Idioms on GMAT

Look for these common idiom tricks on GMAT questions:

Consider, regard...as, think of...as: there is no as after consider, while both regard and think of need the as.

To be/being: In general, avoid the construction to be/being because they are usually passive. To be/being are commonly used in junk answer choices.
Idioms in Bold tend to be more common on the GMAT

A
access to The company has access to large capital reserves.
act as The poison pill in the contract acts as a preventative measure against hostile takeovers.
allows for The design of the robot arm allows for great flexibility.
as....as Chocolate tastes as good as ice cream.
associate with He associates beer with potato chips.
attribute to The poor first quarter results are attributed to the restructuring.
a responsibility to The CEO has a fiduciary responsibility to all shareholders.
a result of The recent Nasdaq decline is a result of higher interest rates.
a sequence of The Sumerian text was a sequence of incomprehensible symbols.
agree with The Teamsters do not agree with the Republicans on many issues.
among  Used when discussing more than two items. He was the finest policeman among the hundreds of rookies.
as good as/or better than The new software is as good as or better than anything on the market
as great as The new house looks as great as I had hoped.
attend to (someone) The emergency room doctor attended to the injured victim.
attribute X to Y/X We attribute the results to the new management.
attributed to Y The extinction of the dinosaurs has been attributed to an asteroid collision.

B
based on The results are based on a comprehensive ten year study.
begin to He will begin to study twelve hours before the test.
believe X to be Y After seeing the flying saucer, I believe UFOs to be a real phenomenon.
between  Used when discussing two things (if there are more than two, then use among instead). He could not decide between Corn Flakes and Raisin Bran.

C
care about How much do business schools care about your score?
centers on + noun The GMAT centers on the knowledge of basic math and writing/reading skills.
choose to The number of students who choose to go to business school has increased in the last ten years.
consistent with Your grades are not consistent with your abysmal GMAT scores.
contend that He contends that the GMAT has a cultural bias.
consider + noun How important do you consider the test?
continue + to If you continue to study, you will succeed.
contrast A with B If you contrast A with B, you can see the difference.
convert to You may convert muscle to fat if you study too much.
compare A to B (compare to stresses similarities). The music critic favorably compared him to Bob Dylan.
compare A with B (compare with stresses differences). Broccoli is good for you compared with ice cream.
count on + noun He counts on management support.
concerned with They are concerned with investor relations more than actual profitability.
conform to  When you work at a new company, you should try to conform to its corporate culture.

D
decide to We decided to continue.
decide on We decided on the new format.
depend on The global economy depends on improving productivity.
different from The CAT is very different from the paper and pencil GMAT.
difficult to Many students find the CAT difficult to take.
distinguish between X and Y Distinguish between domestic and international production.
distinguish X from Y Juries must attempt to distinguish truth from falsehood.
depends on whether Our place in the playoffs depends on whether we win tonight.

E
to be + essential to + noun Speed is essential to success in the Internet marketplace.
except for He did well on the GMAT, except for the sentence correction questions.

F
flee from The convict fled from the country.

G
grow from Dell Computer grew from a start- up to a Fortune 500 company in less than fifteen years.
grow out of Needless to say, they quickly grew out of their first office.

H
help + noun + to Their direct business model helped them to grow rapidly.

I
indicate that Dell's recent stock trouble may indicate that their growth will not continue to be as rapid.
invest in He is too risk-averse to invest in the stock market
identical with His DNA is identical with his twin's.
in contrast to The candidate claims to support tax cuts, in contrast to his prior statements.
independent from The Federal Reserve Board is supposed to be independent from political considerations.
indifferent towards Some countries are indifferent towards human rights.

L
leads to Rapid growth often leads to problems.
like Usually only used for direct comparison: He walks like Joe walks.
localized in Most Internet venture capital is localized in a few areas of the world.

M
mistake + noun + for I mistook you for an old friend.
modeled after The judicial building is modeled after the Parthenon.
more than ever Companies demand MBA graduates now more than ever.

N
native to There is a unique business culture native to the U.S.
a native of It infects those who are not even a native of America.
need to Living in New York City is an experience everyone needs to try.
to be + necessary + to It is necessary to get a high GMAT score to get into Stanford.
neither...nor Neither Tom nor Sam has the necessary skills to finish the job.
not only...but also Stanford not only has the highest GMAT average, but also the highest GPA.

P
prohibit from + gerund You are prohibited from using a calculator on test day.
potential to A graduate of a top business school has the potential to make over $100,000.

R
range from X to Y The GMAT scores at top business schools will range from 650 to 750.
refer to If you have any more questions, you should refer to a grammar book.
regard as Wharton's finance program is regarded as the finest in the world.
require + noun + to You require a GMAT score to go to most U.S. business schools.
rivalry between X and Y The rivalry between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees is one of the most celebrated in professional sports.
responsible for The manager is responsible for seven entry level employees.
retroactive to The tax policy change is retroactive to last year.

S
save for Save for William, no one else passed the exam.
save from Many people use business school to save them from dull jobs.
so that So should not be used as an adjective: GMAT preparation is so... boring. Use it with "that." This guide is designed so that you may raise your score.
subscribe to Business school students should subscribe to the Wall Street Journal.

T
tie to The contract should be tied to concessions.
transmit to The communications system will transmit to anyone within range.

U
used + infinitive Japan used to be the model industrial economy.
to be + used to + gerund After five practice tests, he was used to the GMAT CAT format.

   The most effective way to learn idioms is to practice them. Whenever you get an idiom question wrong, write down the idiom. Make a list and memorize. There are a finite number of idioms that could be tested on the GMAT, and with enough practice, you should be able to cover most of them.

Examples

1. When choosing a car you often have to choose (between/among) practicality and performance.

Between is correct. Use "between" to distinguish two things, such "practicality" and "performance." Use "among" for more than two things. The bank robbers divided the stolen money "among" the five of them."

2. A small order of french fries has much (fewer/less) fries than the super-sized order.

Fewer is correct. Fewer answers the question "How many?" relating to something that could be counted individually." Less "refers to things such as pudding, cake, or flour, which cannot be reasonably quantified

3. I prefer Mozart (to/over) Beethoven.

"

refer to" is the proper expression.

4. Timothy talks (like/as) his friends do.

This is one of the few instances "like" should be used in English. "Like" is used here as a direct comparison.

5. He was studying (in/at) a rate of two practice GMATs per day.

It's "at a rate of," instead of "in a rate of."

6. The joint-venture contract covers such questions (like/as) the division of profits and costs.

"Covers… as" is better here. "Like" should be used very rarely, only for direct comparisons (Joe plays like his brother).

7. Dan Marino is regarded (as/to be) one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play football.

The idiom is "regarded as."