All MBA entrance examinations test candidates on Reading Comprehension, to check whether they possess critical, analytical, verbal abilities or not. Comprehension means to understand what you are reading and answering a set of questions based on it. How accurately and how quickly the candidate reads up the passage will depend on the vocabulary the candidate possesses. In other words, vocabulary is pivotal to a candidate’s chances in Reading Comprehension.
Words are important
Any meaningful sentence in any language is a collection of words arranged in a particular order. Words are important because words have meaning. A candidate’s chances in VARC is directly proportional to the number of words in his vocabulary bank. This is because a good vocabulary raises a candidate’s possibility of understanding the passage accurately. Once this happens, it is very likely that the candidate will be able to answer the questions easily, for he will not be in any dilemma whatsoever, as far as the passage goes.
Relation between Vocabulary and Reading Comprehension
The relationship between Vocabulary and Reading Comprehension is immense. If you are not able to decode the meaning of words in the passage, it will have an adverse effect on your understanding of the passage. While reading the passage, you will come across words that are not so frequently used in spoken language, therefore, are not too fresh in your memory. The idea is to build your vocabulary so that even for the words that are uncommon, you are able to recall them from your passive vocabulary and identify the meaning.
Why candidates find RC difficult?
Candidates often spend more time preparing for sections such Quantitative and Logical Reasoning sections, as these are technical subjects requiring application of mind. But it is the Reading Comprehension section which can prove tricky and consume a lot of time of candidates, especially for the ones who are not quick readers. Vocabulary cannot be built over a few days, it is an ongoing process. Therefore, the candidates who are comfortable with words and have a knack of registering new words in their memory are at an advantage. The others have to work very hard to do well in this section. Also, English does not come naturally to Indians as it is not the mother tongue, so this barrier needs to be overcome by every single candidate.
Time factor
Reading Comprehension is tricky also because candidates have to read the entire passage and attempt the questions within a limited time. If the candidate consumes more time than he should doing a passage, the other questions will suffer. This makes knowledge of words crucial. Good vocabulary will supplement your understanding of the passage and make it easier. Otherwise, you will get stuck on a word in the passage and lose time, as well as your confidence.
Be smart
Sometimes, it is not possible to guess the meaning of all words in the passage. In such instances you have to be smart to decode the meaning of the words by guessing the meaning of the word in context. Understanding the approximate meaning of the word should be enough in most cases to comprehend the passage.
Good vocabulary is essential to your chances in Reading Comprehension. It makes the job of interpreting the passage easier and also saves time.
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