A Detailed Strategy to Prepare for CAT Verbal Ability Section

Author: Ashvini Jakhar

There is no denying the fact that all the three sections: quantitative ability, data interpretation & logical reasoning and verbal ability & reading comprehension are equally important to excel in CAT exam. However, what students have always struggled with is the preparing for verbal ability section. To help you ace this section, here is what exactly you need to do.

Part A of Verbal Skill Development: Reading

Reading is one of the most vital activities that will help you excel in the verbal ability section. Now, the question is what you should read?

The choices are-

1. Newspapers

Reading newspapers doesn’t only mean reading the editorials. Editorials will help you only up to a certain level, but your learning will not be complete with it. Therefore, you can pick up articles from newspapers such as Economic Times and The Hindu and also read the Sunday editions. Also, you can follow individual authors such as Bachi Karkaria, Hasan Suroor and others and read them online.

2. Books

If you want to do well in the exam, treat reading books as a religious activity. To begin with, here is a list you can go through.

  • Mediocre But Arrogant by Abhijit Bhaduri• Tin Fish by Sudeep Chakravarti• Five Point Someone by Chetan Bhagat• Love Story by Erich Segal• Bridges of Madison Country by Robert James Waller• Oliver’s Story by Erish Segal• The War of the Worlds by HG Wells• Time Machine by HG Wells• The Prophet by Khalil Gibran

Part B of Verbal Skill Development: Vocabulary

The second part is vocabulary, which can be improved by reading more and more. The more you read, the more you come across new words which need to embed in your memory. For this, you can use books such as ‘Word Power Made Easy’ and ‘Six weeks to words of power’. Also, you can use competitive exam coaching materials available online.

Part C of Verbal Skill Development: Grammar

For this part, you can refer to Wren and Martin Book and go through every topic to become well versed. You can start with the parts of speech section that will assist you in enhancing your skills and learning experience.

Thus, following the above given strategy along with other important CAT exam preparation material will help you to excel the verbal ability section and stay ahead in the CAT exam 2015.