IQ Test Similarities Questions: Examples and How to Answer
IQ test similarities questions give you two words, like "apple" and "banana," and ask one thing: how are they alike? The best answer names the most specific category both belong to ("both are fruits"), not a surface detail ("both have peels") or a difference. Get into the habit of hunting for that tightest shared category and your verbal reasoning score climbs fast.
If you tend to know the answer but struggle to put it into clean words, IQ Tester spots that exact slip and gives you daily drills for it. Find my weak spots
What a similarities question asks
A similarities test is one of the oldest kinds of verbal IQ test item. The examiner says two words and asks, "In what way are they alike?" or "How are these two things the same?" There's no multiple choice. You have to come up with the link yourself and say it out loud.
That makes it different from most IQ test language questions. Vocabulary items check whether you know what a word means. Similarities questions check whether you can step back from two things you already know and see the idea that connects them. Psychologists call this abstract verbal reasoning.
You'll see this format in:
- The Similarities subtest on Wechsler-style tests for kids and adults
- Online verbal IQ test quizzes (often as "pick the word most similar")
- School aptitude and gifted-program screenings
- Some job and entrance tests, dressed up as "verbal reasoning questions"
Similar words vs similar things
Some online "iq test similar words" quizzes are really synonym tests: "Which word means the same as rapid?" That's a vocabulary skill. A true similarities question is about concepts. "Rapid" and "fast" are synonyms. "A river and a road" are alike because both are routes things travel along. Different skill, and this guide is about the second one.
The scoring rule: 0, 1 or 2 points
On Wechsler-style similarities items, each answer is usually scored 0, 1 or 2 points. You don't need the official manual to use the logic behind it:
| Points | What the answer does | Example for "cat and mouse" |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Names a general, precise category that fits both | "Both are mammals." |
| 1 | Gives a true but shallow or partial link | "Both have fur." / "Both have tails." |
| 0 | Gives a difference, a wrong link, or a vague one | "A cat chases a mouse." / "They're both things." |
Notice the 0-point traps. "A cat chases a mouse" is true, but it's a relationship, not a likeness. "They're both things" is technically true of everything, so it tells the listener nothing.
The 1-point answers aren't wrong. They're just stuck at the level of what you can see or touch. The 2-point answer climbs one step higher into what the things are.
Finding the tightest category
Here's the method, in the order you should run it in your head.
- Picture both things. Spend one second on each.
- Ask "what kind of thing is it?" for each one separately. Cat: animal, mammal, pet. Mouse: animal, mammal, rodent.
- Find the overlap. Animal and mammal both appear on each list.
- Pick the most specific overlap. Mammal beats animal, because it narrows things down more while staying true for both.
- Say it in one short sentence. "Both are mammals."
The "zoom" check
Think of categories like a camera zoom. "Living things" is zoomed way out. "Pet cats" is zoomed in too far for a mouse. The right answer is the tightest zoom that still keeps both things in the frame.
When there's no obvious category
Harder similarities test questions pair things that don't share a family, like "poem and statue." Then ask what each one is for or what it does. A poem and a statue are both works of art, both ways people express ideas. Function and purpose are your backup routes when kind-of-thing fails.
Worked examples
Here are similarities questions with answers, from easy to hard. Cover the right-hand side and try each one first.
Easy
- Shirt and jacket. 2 points: both are clothing. 1 point: you wear both on your top half.
- Piano and drum. 2 points: both are musical instruments. 1 point: both make noise.
- Hour and week. 2 points: both are units of time. 1 point: both are on a calendar.
Medium
- Egg and seed. 2 points: both are the start of a new living thing. 1 point: both are small and roundish. This one trips people because the category isn't a single noun.
- Map and recipe. 2 points: both are sets of instructions or guides. 1 point: both are written on paper.
- Salt and water. 2 points: both are things the body needs, or both are chemical compounds. 1 point: both are in the sea.
Hard
- Praise and punishment. 2 points: both are ways of shaping someone's behavior. 1 point: both are things a teacher gives. 0 points: "one is good and one is bad" (that's a difference).
- Fly and tree. 2 points: both are living things. 1 point: both are outside.
- Enemy and friend. 2 points: both are relationships between people. 1 point: both are people you know.
Hard items usually pair opposites on purpose. The pull is to describe how they differ. Resist it. Opposites almost always share a category, and that category is the answer.
For step-by-step breakdowns of other hard formats, see our guide to hard IQ test questions with answers explained.
Common traps in verbal reasoning questions
Most lost points come from a handful of habits.
- Answering with a difference. "One flies, one swims." The question asks for alike.
- Stopping at looks. Color, shape and size are almost always 1-point answers.
- Going too general. "Both are objects" or "both exist" scores 0 on most items.
- Giving three answers and hoping one sticks. Pick your best and say it cleanly. A rambling answer is harder to score well.
- Rushing the first link you think of. The first link that pops up is often the most visual one. Take two seconds to zoom out once.
That last one matters more than it sounds. Plenty of people know the right category but blurt the easy one first, or freeze when a pair looks odd. Rushing then freezing is a pattern, not a personality trait, and you can train it.
Not sure if your slips come from rushing, from putting the idea into words, or from not seeing the link at all? That's hard to judge about yourself. IQ Tester asks 16 quick questions and tells you which of seven problems is actually tripping you up, then builds your daily drill around it. Find my weak spots
Practicing at home
You can practice similarities questions anywhere, no worksheet needed. A few ways that work well for students and adults:
The two-word game
Have a friend or parent name two random nouns. You get ten seconds to give a 2-point answer. Swap roles. Keep a running list of pairs that stumped you and try them again a week later.
Say the category out loud
When you answer, finish the sentence "Both are kinds of ___." Saying the full sentence forces you to pick a real category instead of a vague feeling. It's the same idea as the "Name the rule out loud" drill we use for pattern puzzles.
Climb the ladder
Take any single word, like "hammer," and climb: hammer → tool → object people make. Then do it for a second word and see where the ladders meet. This builds the zoom skill directly.
Mix in other verbal IQ test items
Similarities sit alongside analogies and odd-one-out questions. If you want to see how those work, our guide to IQ test trick questions covers the reading slips that also show up in verbal sections.
A quick daily checklist:
- Five pairs a day, spoken aloud.
- At least one pair of opposites.
- At least one pair with no obvious noun category.
- Note any answer you'd score as a 1, and upgrade it.
Sharpen your verbal reasoning in two minutes
IQ Tester's 16-question check takes about two minutes and shows whether putting reasoning into words is one of your weak spots. From there you get one tip and one roughly 10-minute drill each day, weighted toward what trips you up, with verbal problems mixed in alongside pattern, number and logic ones. You can retest any time to see if IQ test similarities questions feel easier.
FAQ
What is a similarities test on an IQ test?
It's a verbal reasoning subtest where you hear two words and explain how they're alike. It measures how well you can find the abstract idea that links two things. Wechsler-style tests include it as one of their verbal subtests.
How do you answer similarities questions correctly?
Name the most specific category both things share, in one short sentence, such as "both are mammals." Avoid differences, looks-based links and answers so broad they fit everything. If there's no clear category, describe what both things are for.
Are iq test similar words questions the same as synonyms?
Not quite. Synonym quizzes ask which word means the same as another. Similarities questions ask how two different things are alike, which is a concept skill rather than a vocabulary one.
Can you practice verbal reasoning questions for an IQ test?
Yes. Saying pairs aloud, climbing from specific to general categories, and reviewing the ones you missed all build the habit. Short daily practice helps more than one long session.
What are some good similarities questions for students?
Start with pairs like shirt and jacket or piano and drum, then move to egg and seed or map and recipe. Finish with opposites like praise and punishment, which push you to find the shared idea instead of the difference.