After mispronouncing the name of the leader of an allied nation, the Secretary was quite ashamed; she had never before heard such _______ levied against her as the leader’s angry response.
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Solution
( E. an invective , F. a vituperation )
Recycle the clue angry response into the blank. Three of your choices—laudation, panegyric, and approbation—are nearly the opposite of what you’re looking for, so eliminate choices (A), (C), and (D). A dictum is a formal or authoritative statement; that’s not supported by the sentence, so eliminate choice (B). Both invective and vituperation can mean a speech of anger, so choices (E) and (F) give you appropriate, equivalent sentences.
While the new bistro’s service was absolutely punctilious, the cuisine was rather _______.
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Solution
( B. quotidian , D. pedestrian )
Since punctilious means having very strong attention to detail, especially with etiquette, this is a good thing to describe service. The word while tells you that you need something in the other direction for cuisine, so you need a word that means the food is not too great.Obsequious means flattering, eliminate choice (A). Both quotidian and pedestrian mean commonplace or boring, so keep choices (B) and (D). Distasteful could work, because it could mean unpleasant tasting, but there is no synonym for this word in the choices, and therefore no way to make the sentence equivalent with another one of the choices. Eliminate choice (C).Gustatory means having to do with the sense of taste. This is too broad, so eliminate choice (E). Pedantic is a synonym for punctilious, but we need the opposite, so eliminate choice (F).
After his embezzlement was discovered, the CEO was _______ by board members, shareholders, and customers alike.
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Solution
( C. upbraided , F. lambasted )
The CEO took money, so you need a word for the blank that means the board members, shareholders, and customers punished him. Cachinnated means laughed at, so eliminate choice (A).Blandished means flattered, so eliminate choice (B). Upbraided means censured, and so does lambasted, so keep choices (C) and (F). Simpered means smiled, so eliminate choice (D).Caviled means to find fault with unnecessarily, but since the CEO embezzled, this can’t work. Get rid of choice (E).
The philosopher’s arguments were so _______ that it was nearly impossible to follow the logic from his premises to his conclusion.
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Solution
( C. labyrinthine , E. byzantine )
The logic is hard to follow, so you need a word for the blank that means confusing or convoluted. Both labyrinthine and byzantine mean twisting and turning like a maze, so keep choices (C) and (E).Rhetorical means using a strong, formal writing style, so eliminate choice (A). Libertine and unscrupulous are roughly synonymous, and both mean having lax moral standards, so eliminate choices (B) and (D). Decorous means dignified or proper, so eliminate choice (F).
The young poet feared that her career may have prematurely reached its _______ after reading the encomium with which her first publication was met.
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Solution
( A. apogee , F. zenith )
The clue to the blank is encomium, which means a speech of high praise. Since the poet is young and afraid that her career reached a premature point, the word in the blank must meanpeak. Apogee and zenith both mean highest point, so choices (A) and (F) validly complete the sentence. An auspice means good sign, so eliminate choice (B). Coda means a concluding section and does not fit this context, so eliminate choice (C). Nadir and perigee both mean lowest point and are the opposite of what you need, so eliminate choices (D) and (E).
The President could not tolerate dissent from his views, and so he only appointed people to his cabinet who were more _____ than advisors.
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Solution
( B. sycophants , D. toadies )
Since the President could not tolerate dissent from his views, you need a word that means his cabinet members would always agree with him. Pundits and authoritarians would offer their own strong opinions, so eliminate choices (A) and (F).Cynics would act pessimistically, so eliminate choice (C). Partisans would be biased, but not necessarily all in the same direction as the President, so eliminate choice (E). Sycophants and toadies in choices (B) and (D) are synonyms indicating that the members are flatterers or yesmen, and produce equivalent statements.
Joseph was never outwardly perturbed by bad news, and was known as the _______ of composure.
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Solution
( A. quintessence , D. epitome )
You need a word for the blank that means that Joseph was the model of composure. Both quintessence and epitome would mean he is a perfect embodiment of composure, so choices (A) and (D) produce equivalent sentences that make sense. Bane would mean he somehow annoys composure, and is incorrect. Rector would mean Joseph is the priest or academic leader of composure, and antithesis would mean he proves the opposite of composure; eliminate choices (C) and (E). Regent would mean he is the king ruling over composure, so eliminate choice (F).
Hollywood studios, usually guided by their penchant for hiring A-list movie stars, are rethinking their strategies in an economy more suited to hiring _______ actors who command far less per picture than their celebrity counterparts, who can cost studios upwards of 15 or 20 million dollars for one movie.
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Solution
( C. fledgling , D. neoteric )
The sentence tells you that the studios have a penchant for hiring A-list movie stars. Then it tells you those studios are rethinking that strategy, so you know the actors they’re looking for now are not A-list. This is further supported with the clues that tell you the economy is not suited to celebrities who get paid $15 to $20 million, but to another kind of actor who commands far less per picture. So put something in the blank like unknown or new. You can eliminate choices (A) and (B) because those two answers would describe the A-list celebrities.Choice (E) also fits more with the A-listers because they’re the ones who would be expensive. Choice (F) doesn’t fit with anything in the sentence. That leaves choices (C) and (D), both of which mean new or just starting out, which is what you’re looking for.
Before the Clone Wars, the Jedi were a powerful peace-keeping force in the galaxy, but they were unable to avoid _______ after Palpatine called out Order 66, which reprogrammed every clone trooper to immediately assassinate his Jedi masters.
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Solution
( A. decimation , C. annihilation )
The sentence tells you that the Jedi were a powerful peace-keeping force, but there’s a contrast indicated by the but and the time trigger before the Clone Wars. That lets you know that something is going to happen that will challenge the Jedi’s status. The sentence also tells you that every clone trooper was reprogrammed to assassinate his Jedi master. This lets you know that there was a massive attack against the Jedi. So you could fill in the missing word with something like serious injury or really bad experience. You can eliminate choices (B) and (F) because those are going in the wrong direction. They only connect with the powerful Jedi clue, not taking into account the contrast triggers. Choices (D) and (E) have nothing to do with the sentence, so you can eliminate them. That leaves (A) and (C), both of which mean completely destroy.
The phacellophora camtschatica, which can grow up to two feet in diameter, is more commonly referred to as the Fried Egg jellyfish because of its white bell and cloudy yellow organs, which give its tentacles a _______, semi-transparent look.
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Solution
( D. diaphanous , F. gossamer )
The important clues in this sentence are the words cloudy and semi-transparent, both of which describe the inner workings of the jellyfish. Choice (A) could be tempting because a jellyfish tentacle could definitely be caustic, but there’s no context for it. Eliminate it. You can eliminate choice (E) for the same reason. It seems logical, but isn’t actually supported by the text. Choice (C) is connected to the sentence because jellyfish are natatory creatures, but the blank is specifically describing the appearance of tentacles, not the jellyfish as a whole. Choice (B) has nothing to do with the sentence. Choices (D) and (F) both mean loose, flowing, or seethrough, which is what you’re looking for.