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Vocabulary Builder Study Notes

Odd One Out

📖Definition

Odd One Out questions ask you to find the word that does not belong with the others.

Knowledge Required

You need to spot categories, meanings, word classes and sometimes spelling patterns.

How To Answer

Look for what most of the words share. They may be animals, emotions, weather words, school objects, verbs, adjectives or synonyms.
Test more than one possible rule before deciding.
Choose the word that fails the strongest rule shared by the others.

✏️Example

Which word does not belong with the others? notebook, stormy, misty, sunny, frosty

Solution

Stormy, misty, sunny and frosty describe weather. Notebook is a school object, so it is the odd one out.

💡Multiple Choice Tip

Some lists have a tempting but weak link. Prefer a clear meaning category over a small spelling coincidence unless the question is clearly about letters.

💡Tips/hints

Say the category in your head: These are all types of..., These all mean..., These are all things that...
If two words seem odd, re-check the other three to find their shared rule.