Physics GRE Discussion Forums

Hi! I've been preparing for the GRE general, and I found it very hard to get the score above 500 in verbal. I was just curious of how important GRE is as regarding graduate school admissions (of course, physics department PhD programs). I know that in general GRE is not as important as other factors such as GPA, recommendation letters, and so on. But what if I am extremely weak at the verbal part?
I got a 480/800 in verbal/math respectively (kaplan practice tests) .
My GPA is 3.993/4.000 in stony brook university, and as for physics related courses (including math courses) are GPA/4.00.
I've got 2 research experiences but I haven't published anything yet (not even as a second author, but I am preparing one.).
I haven't took GRE subject yet.
I know that this information is not good enough to tell anything about the possibility of getting an admission, but does my GRE score blocks my chances of getting into top school like caltech or mit?
To be frankly, I don't think I will ever be able to score above 500 in the verbal section. Oh btw, I'm an internation student (getting a BS in the United States)and my toefl is 273 CBT.
I wasn't sure if I am allowed to ask questions in this discussion forum. But in anycases, thank you in advance for your replies!

Information on minimum / average scores for different programs can be found at http://www.gradschoolshopper.com

Most schools at least have a minimum TOEFFL score, and some have minimum GRE scores as well.