One might sometimes wonder whether some of the stories passed down through generations are veritable or ____(i)___; whether the heroes had such endless mettle or were, in their hearts, occasionally ____(ii)____; and whether the denizens of the times described were really so ____(iii)____, or were perhaps tinged with a bit of guile.
| Blank I | Blank II | Blank III |
| (A) heretical | (D) pusillanimous | (G) halcyon |
| (B) jejune | (E) arrant | (H) ingenious |
| (C) apocryphal | (F) insouciant | (I) piquant |
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Solution
(C) apocryphal , (D) pusillanimous , (H) ingenious
Each blank is associated with the opposite direction trigger or. For the first blank, the clue veritable requires a word that means untrue. Of the choices, only apocryphal makes sense.For the second blank, the clue mettle requires a word that means cowardly. Of the choices, pusillanimous is the best fit. For the third blank, the clue guile requires a word meaning something such as guileless. Of the choices, only ingenuous means guileless.
Sarah Grand’s short story, “The Tenor and the Boy” was a ____(i)____ account of her popular novel The Heavenly Twins, for it was published years before the novel was completed. Unlike the novel’s characters, who were drawn in rich detail, the short story contained mere ____(ii)____ caricatures.
| Blank I | Blank II |
| (A) fallow | (D) fractious |
| (B) parochial | (E) dynamic |
| (C) nascent | (F) bedizened |
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Solution
(C) nascent , (F) bedizened
The trigger word unlike and the clue drawn with rich detail require that the second blank means lacking detail. Dynamic and fractious do not mean lacking detail, and can be eliminated. Unbedizened means unadorned and is a good fit for this blank. For the first blank, the clue years before the novel was complete and the information later on indicate that the first blank means incomplete. Parochial means narrow-minded and fallow means inactive, so both can be eliminated. Nascent means coming into existence and is the best choice for the first blank.
The 1966 opening of the relatively expansive Grace Memorial Bridge signaled a ____(i)____ improvement in highway safety in the low country of South Carolina; the old bridge had been ____(ii)____ narrow, creating a ____(iii)____ driving experience for traders and tourists alike.
| Blank I | Blank II | Blank III |
| (A) prodigious | (D) insufficiently | (G) malodorous |
| (B) subsidiary | (E) meagrely | (H) cantankerous |
| (C) radiant | (F) precariously | (I) perilous |
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Solution
(A) prodigious , (F) precariously , (I) perilous
The clues are the same for the second and third blanks, so start there. The new bridge was an improvement in highway safety, so the old bridge must have been a danger; of the choices, only precariously makes sense in the second blank, and only perilous makes sense in the third. The first blank describes the improvement; the old bride had been narrow, and the new one was relatively expansive, so a word that means big would make sense. Of the choices, only prodigious means big.
Dismissed by the establishment, professing nothing but disdain for the canon, and yet beloved by his followers who trumpet his _______ opinions, the raffish pundit is laughing all the way to the bank.
| (A) iconoclast |
| (B) blithe |
| (C) inveterate |
| (D) meretricious |
| (E) meritless |
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Solution
(A) iconoclast
Here is a guy who no one in the establishment takes seriously and yet has an exuberant following. His opinions must not match with the mainstream. Iconoclastic is the best fit.
Middlemarch author George Eliot reportedly bemoaned the dearth of ____(i)____ women, of which her well-educated main character, Dorothea, was a ____(ii)____. Therefore, Eliot scholars have long debated the author’s meaning in marrying Dorothea to the elderly preacher Casaubon and having him exploit his bride for ____(iii)____ needs.
| Blank I | Blank II | Blank III |
| (A) captious | (D) paradigm | (G) menial |
| (B) erudite | (E) misogynist | (H) clerical |
| (C) venal | (F) chimera | (I) nebulous |
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Solution
(B) erudite , (D) paradigm , (G) menial
The first and third blanks have the clearest clues, so start with them. For the first blank, recycle the clue well-educated; of the choices, only erudite makes sense. For the third blank, recycle the clue mundane; of the choices, only menial fits. The second blank describes Dorothea, and if her marriage into a life of mundane and menial needs causes debate among Eliot scholars, then Dorothea must have been an example of a well-educated, erudite woman. Of the choices, only paradigm means example.
Video game enthusiasts know that, while the astounding advances in technological innovation might increase the level of fun of the gaming experience, such a result is by no means ______.
| (A) desultory |
| (B) endemic |
| (C) salient |
| (D) ineluctable |
| (E) seminal |
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Solution
(D) ineluctable
The opposite-direction trigger while and the clue might require that the blank mean something like inevitable. None of desultory, endemic, salient, or seminal means inevitable, so eliminate choices (A), (B), (C), and (E). Ineluctable means inevitable, so select choice (D).
Politicians’ tendency to ____(i)____ their own virtues by demeaning their opponents is ____(ii)____: what if voters forget the name of the candidate and remember only that of his adversary?
| Blank I | Blank II |
| (A) enfeeble | (D) injudicious |
| (B) tout | (E) ostentatious |
| (C) democratize | (F) apt |
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Solution
(B) tout , (D) injudicious
A politician emphasizes his virtues, and so the first blank must mean emphasize. To enfeeble is to weaken, the opposite of what you need. To democratize is to make democratic, and doesn’t mean emphasize. To tout is to emphasize the positive nature of something, and is consistent with the context of the first blank. The clue after the colon refers to a negative consequence of the politicians’ actions, so the second blank must be a negative word. Apt means smart and is a positive word you can eliminate. Injudicious and jejune are both negative words. Injudicious means unwise and ostentatious means pretentiously showy. Injudicious is a better fit for the blank: The problem with the politicians emphasizing their own virtues is that it is ineffective and ill-advised.
Veeder claims that the very notion of the existence of synonyms is____(i)____, as words depend on ____(ii)____, connotation, and linguistic and cultural context for their ____(iii)____ meanings.
| Blank I | Blank II | Blank III |
| (A) veracious | (D) denotation | (G) subjective |
| (B) fallacious | (E) cognition | (H) distinct |
| (C) maladaptive | (F) mastication | (I) interchangeable |
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Solution
(B) fallacious , (D) denotation , (H) distinct
Veeder thinks something about synonyms, words that mean the same thing. Meaning for him seems to depend upon context and connotation as much as an actual dictionary definition, which would make the notion of synonyms difficult since there would always be external circumstances to consider. Therefore, we need something negative for the first blank at least. That knocks out veracious. Maladaptive doesn’t make sense since nothing is adapting, so fallacious must work. For the second blank we need things that contribute to the meanings of words. Only denotation works. And for the last blank, we need something that says that even synonyms are different. Distinct fits the bill.
The recent convert, still a _______ with respect to the rites of her church, did not yet feel completely comfortable in her new faith.
| (A) pilgrim |
| (B) iconoclast |
| (C) ascetic |
| (D) tyro |
| (E) poseur |
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Solution
(D) tyro
You are told the subject is new and doesn’t yet feel comfortable. For the blank, you need something to support the notion that she is new. Tyro means a beginner, so it fits nicely.
Marty could not help but view the glass as half-empty: for example, when the economy turned around and jobs began to ____(i)____, Marty insisted to all who would listen that the good news would be quite transient, that another recession was ____(ii)____, and that those who doubted him would later appreciate his unwillingness to celebrate.
| Blank I | Blank II |
| (A) proliferate | (D) superfluous |
| (B) aggrandize | (E) imminent |
| (C) pique | (F) odious |
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Solution
(A) proliferate , (E) imminent
The clue the economy turned around and the trigger word and dictate that the blank, which refers to what happened to jobs, must mean something like increase or become more common. Of the choices, only proliferate makes sense. Be careful with aggrandize—it means to make something greater, not to become more numerous. To agree with the clue the good news would be quite transient, the second blank has to mean something like about to happen. Of the choices, only imminent fits.