{"id":124,"date":"2016-03-29T22:29:51","date_gmt":"2016-03-29T22:29:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/mcat\/?p=124"},"modified":"2016-12-08T07:04:50","modified_gmt":"2016-12-08T15:04:50","slug":"mcat-vocabulary-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/mcat\/mcat-vocabulary-list\/","title":{"rendered":"MCAT Vocabulary List"},"content":{"rendered":"

Having a strong vocabulary foundation pays huge dividends in a plethora of instances: when you\u2019re writing your personal statement, reading medical journals or a book for pleasure, networking with professionals, attending fancy dinner parties, and so on. Oh, and it\u2019ll pay off big time on the MCAT, too! Be sure to check out our free, MCAT vocabulary flashcards<\/a> to start improving your vocabulary today.<\/p>\n

Where will Vocabulary Show Up on the MCAT?<\/h2>\n

You\u2019ll be able to put your vocabulary skills to the test predominantly on the Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills (CARS) section of the MCAT. Here\u2019s an excerpt from the AAMC<\/a> about the CARS section:<\/p>\n

Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills passages are relatively short, typically between 500 and 600 words, but they are complex, often thought-provoking pieces of writing with <\/i>sophisticated vocabulary<\/i><\/b> and, at times, intricate writing styles.<\/i><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t let the word \u2018sophisticated\u2019 intimidate you! Even if you don\u2019t know a particular word at first, you can always figure out its meaning by the context it\u2019s in, which we\u2019ll discuss a little later. For more information about CARS, take a look at April\u2019s Blog Post on How to Study for the MCAT CARS<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Is there an Official MCAT Vocabulary List I Should be Studying?<\/h2>\n

While there isn\u2019t an official list to study from, you should get in the habit of reading every single day<\/i><\/b><\/a>. And this includes reading books or articles you\u2019re interested in: an autobiography of a basketball coach, an article about Scandinavian politics, or a short story about a boy wizard are all fair game!<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll naturally come across words you aren\u2019t familiar with and see them used in a sentence instead of just memorizing a definition from the dictionary. Before you look the word up<\/a>, do your best to guess what that word means based on the tone of the author and the other words in the sentence. This will make you a strong active reader<\/i> and help you pay attention to the small details that you\u2019ll be asked to pinpoint on the MCAT!<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t begin to emphasize how advantageous it is to study Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes, especially in the sciences! Think about words like hepatitis or intravenous. If you know your roots, you can figure out what these words mean without ever having seen them before. For example, hepato<\/i> means liver while itis<\/i> means inflammation, so hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver. And, intra<\/i> means within while venous<\/i> means vein, so an intravenous injection is one that goes in your veins! Check out this list<\/a> and study the: Latin prefixes, Latin suffixes, Greek prefixes, Greek suffixes, and Greek base words. You\u2019ll thank me later \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Vocabulary in Context<\/h2>\n

Sometimes, knowing the definition of a word is not enough, especially if the word has multiple meanings. Let\u2019s look at the following sentence:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe medical school application process is designed to screen out less-qualified candidates and select for the best and the brightest.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

If this was part of a passage, a question might ask us, \u201cBased on the passage, \u2018screen\u2019 most closely means:\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you had skimmed the passage and did not know the context that \u2018screen\u2019 was being used in, you might choose \u2018protect\u2019 as your answer choice because you know that it\u2019s a definition of \u2018screen.\u2019 In the context of the sentence, however, \u2018screen\u2019 means to filter. If you had read<\/i> the passage and understood how \u2018screen\u2019 was being used, then you would have gotten the answer right, without necessarily knowing any of \u2018screen\u2019s\u2019 definitions! Chris\u2019s Blog Post about how to read Vocabulary in Context<\/a> has excellent tips on how to develop this skill.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Having a strong vocabulary foundation pays huge dividends in a plethora of instances: when you\u2019re writing your personal statement, reading medical journals or a book for pleasure, networking with professionals, attending fancy dinner parties, and so on. Oh, and it\u2019ll pay off big time on the MCAT, too! Be sure to check out our free, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":152,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[2337],"class_list":["post-124","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mcat-books-resources"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMCAT Vocabulary List - Magoosh MCAT Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What's the best way to prepare for vocabulary on the MCAT? Is there an MCAT Vocabulary list to study from? 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