Tackle the analogies on the Miller Analogies Test by approaching each MAT analogy with a step-by-step plan. Step one is to identify the analogy’s structure; the next step is to use that structure to construct a sentence that expresses the relationship between the terms.
When you’ve written a sentence you’re happy with, it’s time to check the choices to see which answer choice creates a similar relationship to the remaining term.
Make sure you check all the answer choices unless you’re completely confident that you’ve found the right answer.
To practice checking the choices, here’s an analogy:
MITTEN : HAND :: _________________ : HEAD
(A)toupee
(B)hair
(C)hat
(D)eyeglasses
After identifying the analogy’s structural type (1:2,3:4) and creating sentence as a guide, “A mitten warms a hand,” it’s time to move to the third step in solving an MAT analogy: deciding which choice most closely creates a matching relationship.
First, look over the answer choices, keeping the sentence, “A mitten warms a hand” in mind:
Does a toupee warm your head? Not really.
Does hair warm your head? Kind of, but it’s not clothing like a mitten.
Does a hat warm your head? Usually.
Do eyeglasses warm your head? Not even close.
That’s it — pick the choice with the closest relationship to the one you’ve described in your sentence. You should be able to make a similar sentence with the right answer and its matching term. Since “A hat warms your head” is so similar to “A mitten warms your hand,” it’s pretty clear that Choice (C) is correct.
