Sentence completion questions practice
The teams manager, Eric Gorton has ____________ Nick Fenand in
his squad for next month's qualifying match against Liechtenstein
despite doubts ____________ the players fitness.
A. included .aboutB. hospitalized by
C. joined on
D. removed. over
E. replaced concerning
The best answer is A. Doubts by, on or over are not idiomatic
expressions. The teams manager has done something despite doubts
about the players fitness so it is logical that he included the
player in his squad.
The Anasazi, a civilization that arose as early as 1500 BC,
occupied the region now __________ as the Four Corners, where Utah
Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico meet, for centuries.
A. invoked
B. known
C. labeled
D. denoted
E. assumed
The best answer is B. Choices A, C, D and E cannot precede the
preposition as.
Over the ___________, different New York neighborhoods have
played ___________ to the cutting edge: Greenwich Village in the
1950s, SoHo in the 1970s, the Lower East Side in the 1980s.
A. decades host
B. centuries guest
C. time games
D. moments along
E. way coy
The best answer is A. Host, games, along and coy can logically
follow played, but not guest. It is idiomatic to say over time, not
over the time. Moments does not fit with the broad time span
indicated in the rest of the sentence. Way is illogical.
A groundbreaking exhibition is showcasing Iraq's rich roots in
Mesopotamia, the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers
that gave __________to the world's first urban civilization some
5,000 years ago.
A. support
B. water
C. floods
D. birthE. itself
The best answer is D. Gave birth is idiomatic. It ties in with
the mention of roots and the worlds first urban civilization.
Originally, the project was planned to take at least 15 years,
but effective resource and technological advances have ________ the
teams progress.
A. energized
B. postponed
C. accelerated
D. deferred
E. reduced
The best answer is C. The word but indicates that the project
will not take as long planned, therefore, it is logical that it was
accelerated.
When mortals died, whether noble or __________, they joined Re
on his nocturnal journey through the underworld; __________ at dawn
immortal, if all went well.
A. ordinary occurred
B. common emerging
C. maudlin appeared
D. impoverished woke
E. domestic summoned
The best answer is B. Common presents a contrast to noble.
Emerging is in line with a journey through the underworld.
Toward the end of the 13th century, some __________ event forced
the Anasazi to __________ their houses and homeland and to move
south and east toward the Rio Grande and the Little Colorado
River.
A. seismic shift
B. cataclysmic flee
C. unfortunate desert
D. disastrous move
E. calamitous revisit
The best answer is B. Unfortunate is too weak a word to describe
such an event. Cataclysmic is apt. In choices D and E, move and
revisit do not fit with the last clause of the sentence. A house
and homeland cannot shift.
Those __________ ancestors doubtless found sticks helpful for
pointing out a direction, tracing a diagram in the dirt or
__________ up a slab of useful flint.
A. decrepit fixing
B. faulty picking
C. distant prying
D. olden raise
E. aged keeping
The best answer is C. Choices A and E make the ancestors sound
as though they were still alive. There is no reason for the
ancestors to be considered faulty. The second blank must be filled
with a gerund (-ing form).
Tony Benito and his sister, Margarita Benito, face 15-month jail
terms in Britain on ________ of court charges after they __________
to appear in court to testify about the family's assets.
A. contempt failedB. misconduct refused
C. rudeness agreed
D. love promised
E. scorn swore
The best answer is A. The expression contempt of court is
idiomatic. It is logical that they would be in contempt if they
failed to appear.
Despite __________ printed in newspapers and broadcast over the
internet and on television, Americans __________ to lose millions
to internet con artists.
A. predictions persevere
B. warnings. continue
C. encouragement proceed
D. cautions persist
E. signals incur
The best answer is B. The word despite signals that there is a
contradiction in the two parts of the sentence which rules out C.
Continue to is idiomatic, whereas persevere, persist and incur
cannot be followed by to.
Federal data show that the number of citizens receiving welfare
__________ again last year even though an economic slowdown pushed
more people into __________.
A. rescinded beggary
B. reduced affluence
C. jumped subservience
D. tripled pauperismE. declined povertyThe best answer is E.
Even though signals that there is a contrast from one part of the
sentence to another. Choice E provides for the appropriate
contrast. An economic slowdown cannot push people into affluence or
subservience.
Georgia's teachers received the third largest salary hike in the
country last year but still did not move up in national
__________.
A. competition
B. readings
C. ranting
D. ratings
E. rankings
The best answer is E. There is no national competition for
salaries. Choice B and C are irrelevant. Ratings are usually
applied to a subjective quality, not a fact.
Despite signs of a truce, the countrys dilemma remains, should
they let the north country remain __________ or should they
__________ it.
A. autonomous... conquerB. free self-governing
C. independent separated
D. quelled annexed
E. subordinate subservient
The best answer is A. The word or in the sentence signals that
what is on either side of the word must be different options. Only
A presents two different options.
As the last __________ slice of Atlantic coastal plain bordering
the continent's vast equatorial rain forests, the region, known as
the Gamba Complex, is a biologically __________ mosaic of forests,
savannas, lagoons, lakes and beaches that, until recently, was
virtually unknown to science.
A. underdeveloped luxuriant
B. uncharted broken
C. examined plentiful
D. undeveloped richE. explored abounding
The best answer is D. Choices C and E are unidiomatic following
last. Broken mosaic is illogical as a description of forests
etc.
Mr. Miller has expressed his hope that the project can
__________ support for conserving the Silverson Wildlife
Complex.
A. raise
B. rallyC. mount
D. foster
E. booster
The best answer is B. To rally support is an idiomatic
expression.
The term conservationist had been defined by some as a person
who believes that the natural world is endlessly __________ and
beautiful, and therefore as much of it as possible should be
__________.
A. irrational preserved
B. abhorrent salvaged
C. fascinating savedD. exhilarative promoted
E. appealing distinguished
The best answer is C. Because the blank appears before and
beautiful, one can expect it to be filled with something positive.
The and therefore indicates that the second blank should also be
positive. Only C, D and E have two positive choices, and of them
only C contains two words that are appropriate to describe the
natural world.
__________ temporary power lines and data cables, huddled around
laptops and editing equipment, journalists and technicians were
__________ out news to many outposts.
A. Among burning
B. Although turning
C. Using tossing
D. Despite writing
E. Amid churning
The best answer is E. Although and despite must precede clauses,
not noun phrases. Amid and among are both reasonable choices.
Churning out, however, is idiomatic while burning out, is not.
The country is a regional __________, an absolute but highly
dynamic monarchy that has created an economic __________ out of
little more than vision, geography and will.
A. anomaly powerhouse
B. synchronicity giant
C. incongruity dwarf
D. paradox dependency
E. discrepancy power
The best answer is A. Synchronicity and discrepancy have to
relate to two or more things (i.e. a discrepancy between x and y).
That is not the case here. Out of little more indicates that
something was made out of next to nothing, which is only remarkable
if what was created was positive, such as an economic powerhouse.
Rugby is still largely an __________ sport in Georgia, but in its
traditional __________ of England, France, New Zealand, Australia
and South Africa it has, since turning professional in 1995, become
a multi-billion-dollar industry.
A. voluntary home
B. master vicinity
C. impermeable
D. failed locality
E. amateur bastionsThe best answer is E. The word amateur is a
logical choice after but since turning professional. Bastion is an
appropriate word to describe where the sport is traditionally
played.
In addition to huge gas __________, the Caspian sea may hold as
much as 200 billion barrels of oil, reserves second only to those
of the Persian Gulf.
A. tanks
B. quotas
C. canisters
D. supplies
E. depositsThe best answer is E. A sea can only hold deposits,
not any of the other options.
Union leaders __________ bosses of allowing paramilitaries
access to the plants to __________ graffiti on the walls and
intimidate workers.
A. convicted inscribe
B. accused scrawlC. blamed etch
D. incriminated write
E. denoted scribble
The best answer is B. Only accuse and convicted can be followed
by of . Inscribe has a positive connotation which is
inappropriate.
Very quickly the native Californians were overwhelmed by people
of all __________, coming from all __________ -- by wagon train
from Council Bluffs, Iowa, by horseback from ranchos to the south,
by ship from China.
A. destinations vehicles
B. nationalities countries
C. upbringings interests
D. backgrounds directions
E. denominations sectors
The best answer is D. It is incorrect to use of with
destinations. Nationalities is incorrect because only one
nationality is mentioned. Of choices C, D and E, directions makes
the most sense in light of what follows.
Airspan Airlines long and __________ search for a partner
finally __________ last week when the bankrupt Dutch airline agreed
to merge with Airlex.
A. arduous endedB. extended concluded
C. joyous consigned
D. fortuitous stopped
E. laborious proceeded
The best answer is A. Since the first blank comes after long and
we can assume it will be something that will not be a
contradiction. This rules out joyous and fortuitous. The second
blank follows finally. It is logical that the search ended, and the
information is given in the last part of the sentence.
Thought the negotiators are trying to finalize a less expensive
__________ benefit plan, they are considering charging __________
people higher premiums.
A. health wealthy
B. wealth distinguished
C. safety prosperous
D. payoff abundant
E. fitness cognitive
The best answer is A. Health benefit plan is the only expression
which is idiomatic and logical. Only wealthy makes logical
sense.
Cablewise Systems officially rolled out its national
high-definition satellite service, Boom, in a bet that the cable
operator can __________ into a burgeoning segment of the
television-viewing community that is expected to __________
high-definition television sets.
A. turn reserve
B. dredge abuse
C. float borrow
D. tap own
E. pierce dictate
The best answer is D. Tap into is idiomatic and makes sense in
the context of the sentence. While borrow and reserve are possible
grammatically, own makes the most sense.
Looking to expand its foothold overseas, CSC has purchased a
majority stake in Germany's leading television news agency, giving
the U.S. broadcaster __________ of a leading channel in the German
television __________.
A. control market
B. part emporium
C. desperation consortium
D. domination space
E. power fringe
The best answer is A. The term giving control can be followed by
of whereas desperation, domination and power cannot. While the word
emporium means about the same as market, it is not used in this
sort of figurative context.
More than 80 schools have been __________, with similar
rehabilitation works in progress or in the final stages of
__________.
A. achieved configuration
B. jointed formulation
C. ended sponsorship
D. finished reproduction
E. completed planningThe best answer is E. A school can be
finished or completed, but not achieved, jointed or ended. In the
final stages of planning is more logical and is idiomatic.
People and rhinoceroses prefer similar habitat but don't mix
very well, which is one reason rhinoceroses have almost __________
from the earth.
A. vanished
B. extinguished
C. flourished
D. stumbled
E. abdicated
The best answer is A. Choice B and E cannot be applied to an
animal. Choice C and D cannot be followed by from the earth.
Scientists have __________ a bright purple, bloated frog in
southern India that is so unique it merits the establishment of not
only a new __________ but also a new family.
A. uncovered topic
B. alleviated genus
C. discovered species
D. disseminated disturbance
E. distinguished categorization
The best answer is C. A frog cannot be alleviated or
disseminated. Species logically completes not only ____, but also a
new family.
Most heart attacks occur when a blood clot __________ off one of
the coronary arteries that __________ blood to the heart muscle
itself.
A. blocks fostersB. stops pumps
C. halts supplies
D. closes feedE. obstructs presages
The best answer is D. Closes off is idiomatic. One can feed,
pump or supply blood to the heart, but not foster or presage.
In this era of managed nursing care, Smith continues to
__________ a kind of medicine that most people assume nearly
vanished, bringing to their rounds tenderness and profound
__________.
A. participate caring
B. condone abhorrence
C. disparage suability
D. practice competenceE. engage antipathy
The best answer is D. To practice medicine is idiomatic. The
second blank must be a positive item.
Psychiatrists, medical doctors and __________ have used hypnosis
for more than two centuries to treat __________ and illness.
A. therapists bliss
B. psychologists painC. catalysts suffering
D. physicians discomfort
E. physicists torment
The best answer is B. Physicians is redundant. Catalysts and
physicists are illogical choices. Bliss is an illogical choice for
the second blank.
In each __________, scanners detected increased blood __________
in relevant parts of the brains of hypnotized subjects who were put
through color and pain tests.
A. case flowB. instance stain
C. place powder
D. position current
E. testament stream
The best answer is A. Only choice A and B are logical for the
first blank. Blood stain is does not make sense after the word
increased.
__________ to the "science" of phrenology, an individual's
character and abilities could be deduced from the size and
__________ of various bumps on the head.
A. Corresponding tension
B. Based texture
C. Supposing hardness
D. According shapeE. Configured form
The best answer is D. Based and According are the only logical
choices for the first blank, but Based cannot be followed by to.
Also, while any of the choice could feasibly fit in the second
blank, size and shape is an idiomatic expression.
The world's most prolific aircraft builder's commercial
__________ is struggling in the worst aviation downturn in history
and has __________ off 35,560 of its 93,000 workers since 1999.
A. sector paid
B. part sent
C. division laid
D. ward boughtE. department caught
The best answer is C. Ward is used to refer to part of a
hospitcal. Part is too general. A business does not have sectors.
Since there has been a downturn, it is logical that the workers
have been laid off.
Since he had __________ over the company from his father only a
year before, he blamed himself for destroying a business
relationship his father spent seventeen years __________ .
A. presided cultivating
B. hovered developing
C. ruled crushing
D. relinquished taking
E. taken building
The best answer is E. While presided, hovered and ruled are all
suitable before over, only taken over makes sense coming before
from his father.
Savvy leaders know that there is no single map for __________
leadership; the rules change depending on whom you are guiding and
the __________ around you.
A. altruistic contradictions
B. effective conditions
C. successful natives
D. abysmal situation
E. topical criteria
The best answer is B. Because the sentence starts with Savvy
leaders, the first blank must be something positive, as in choices
A, B and C. Of the three, conditions is the most logical
choice.
A voluntary school drug-testing __________ proposed by the mayor
and school superintendent __________ make this crime-plagued city
the first to experiment with this approach.
A. test should
B. program would
C. study can
D. class will
E. investigation ought to
The best answer is B. Because the drug-testing is just proposed,
i.e. only a possibility, the second blank should be filled with
would.
__________ we bought equipment at the end of last year but
weren't billed until 2003, we had to include it on this year's
books.
A. Because
B. Despite
C. So
D. Whereas
E. After
The best answer is A. Only choice A is grammatical and creates a
logical connection between the two parts of the sentence.
For the first time in 38 years, Essex Packaging has __________
an unprofitable quarter.
A. understood
B. managed
C. handled
D. experienced
E. related
The best answer is D. Semantically, the word experienced is the
most logical choice.
The proposed random testing plan has brought a debate to
Virginia that was already __________ in national political
__________ .
A. intense opinions
B. flouncing rings
C. floundering groups
D. talking parties
E. raging circles
The best answer is E. A debate can be said to be raging, but not
flouncing, floundering or talking. Political circles is idiomatic.
Choice A is incorrect because a debate cannot be intense in a
political opinion.
The governor has shied from taking a position on the issue, but
the Civil Liberties Union said it would actively __________ any
program that forced inmates to sign the __________ .
A. support interface
B. challenge document
C. reflect text
D. sustain certification
E. revere petition
The best answer is B. The word but makes it clear that what the
Union does is different from what the governor has done. Support
and challenge are both suitable options, however, one does not sign
an interface.
Scanners have long been neglected by the designers of the PC
world __________ boxes that take up far too __________ space on the
desktop.
A. sleek many
B. ornamental little
C. clumsy few
D. clunky much
E. blusterous numerous
The best answer is D. Since designers have neglected scanners,
one expects them to be described in negative term, such as clumsy
or clunky. Of the possibilities for the second blank, only little
and much are grammatical suitable with a non-countable noun such as
space.
The plan is proving popular, if __________ , in New Bedford,
where it was originally suggested to Kramer at a __________ of
faith-based organizations earlier this month.
A. trendy assembly
B. widespread opportunity
C. controversial forum
D. cumbersome dispersal
E. prevalent summit
The best answer is C. Because of the word if, the first blank
must contrast with popular. Controversial and cumbersome provide a
suitable contrast. Dispersal is illogical.
Miller unveiled his __________ research plan to the committee
last Tuesday; he expects to have a final plan ready for a
__________ by January.
A. preliminary vote
B. luminous printing
C. concluding decision
D. definitive judgment
E. ultimateverdict
The best answer is A. Preliminary research plan is logical since
it contrasts logically with the final plan.
Had the attempt to increase sales succeeded, Fox would have had
__________ to believe the Forester Plan could set similar
__________ .
A. cause tables
B. foundation traditions
C. underpinning tribunals
D. reason records
E. keystone verifications
The best answer is D. Cause and reason fit in the first blank,
but reason to believe is an idiomatic expression. Similarly, to set
records is idiomatic.
The joint government web site was specially created to educate
small firms __________ their wage and __________ reporting
responsibilities.
A. about tax
B. on refund
C. concerning salary
D. apropos earnings
E. in income
The best answer is A. To educate someone about something is
idiomatic. Since the second blank comes after wage and the blank
will most likely be filled with something similar to wages. Salary
and earnings, however, mean the same thing as wage, and are
therefore illogical choices.
A solid __________ of Americans say they want Congress to
legalize the importation of lower-priced medicines from Canada and
Europe, and would be willing to pay higher taxes to provide
prescription drug benefits to __________ citizens.
A. minority decrepit
B. faction old
C. majority senior
D. lobby elderly
E. fifty percent superfluous
The best answer is C. The first blank comes after the adjective
solid. It would be unusual to use solid to describe a minority,
faction or lobby. Old and elderly make sense, but only senior
citizens is idiomatic.
On April 15, Sangers International, a __________ mainstay here
for 112 years, told its 300 employees to stop work mid-shift
because it was __________ down.
A. factious closing
B. manufacturing shutting
C. economic slogging
D. economical traipsing
E. mechanized pulling
The best answer is B. Only closing down and shutting down are
idiomatic and logical. Factious does not make sense in the context
of the sentence.
In talks on this trip, the prime minister has tried, without
much __________ , to persuade foreign leaders to stop weakening
their __________ against the dollar.
A. gratification money
B. accomplishment billfolds
C. accompaniment exchange
D. voracity tender
E. success currencies
The best answer is E. The first blank, which appears in a
parenthetical expression, logically qualifies the expression the
minister has tried. Currencies is the only choice which can
logically be compared to the dollar.
A week-long investigation began yesterday in Florida, with
__________ speculation on the cause of the crash centering on
damage to the planes right wing.
A. final
B. momentary
C. initial
D. middling
E. definitive
The best answer is C. Since it is the first day of an
investigation that is scheduled to last a week, it makes sense that
the speculation was called initial.
__________ its high concentration of family-owned manufacturing
firms, dating back to the late 1800s, Blendens Furniture is
accustomed to the ups and downs of the business __________ .
A. Having phase
B. With cycle
C. Due to rotation
D. Owning sequence
E. Overseeing disarray
The best answer is B. Having and owning at the beginning of a
sentence cannot precede its. For the second blank, cycle is the
best choice for something described as having ups and downs.
Last week, Texitron, an American firm with factories in 40
countries, __________ it was closing two more plants, __________
the number of Texitron jobs lost to 1,030 this year.
A. determined setting
B. decided deranging
C. proclaimed putting
D. announced bringing
E. alerted raising
The best answer is D. Choice B, C and D can fit in the first
blank. However, only bringing the number to is idiomatic.
In true entrepreneurial style, Kelly has turned the popular book
into a __________ global business of books, games, and videos that
teach the __________ of financial freedom that he used to build his
fortune.
A. flourishing whim
B. starving tenet
C. skulking dogma
D. thriving principles
E. pedestrian ideas
The best answer is D. Since it was done in entrepreneurial
style, one would assume that what Kelly did was successful.
Flourishing and starving are, therefore, apt. For the second blank,
principles is a much better choice since one does not teach a
whim.
With its personal touches, including twice-daily housekeeping
and round-the-clock concierge service, the hotel has a delightful
your-wish-is-our-command air about the place, without the
__________ you might find __________ .
A. ornamentation somewhere else
B. stuffiness elsewhere
C. artifacts missing
D. dankness beyond
E. insubordination away
The best answer is C. The sentence is praising the hotel so one
would expect that the hotel would be without something negative.
Insubordination can only be used to describe a person. Dankness and
stuffiness are appropriate choice for the first blank, but beyond
is not a logical choice for the second blank.
Verton executives challenged the web site tactic, ___________
that if customers switched, the ___________ would lose revenues and
the very jobs the union was trying to protect.
A. arguing company
B. argued firm
C. proclaiming employee
D. stated worker
E. questioning staff member
The best answer is A. A gerund form, such as arguing,
proclaiming or questioning is needed to fill the first blank.
Questioning cannot precede that. One uses the word revenue to talk
about the income of a company, not that of individuals.
___________ an increase in attacks on the existing technology,
Netfix said that it would release features across its line of
network firewall products.
A. Mentioning
B. Talking
C. Combining
D. Citing
E. Toting
The best answer is D. Mentioning is too casual. Talking cannot
precede an increase. Combining and toting are illogical.
Its ___________ includes such treasures as woven funerary shoes
from a royal tomb in ancient Thebes and a rare pair of Inuit boots
___________ of eider skin.
A. compilation done
B. collection made
C. set prepared
D. pile shaped
E. stock fashioned
The best answer is B. Compilation cannot be appropriately
applied to shoes. A pile or stock cannot include items. Only made
can go before of.
There is growing ___________ that a child's earliest experiences
have a more ___________ and long-lasting effect on subsequent
health than had been previously thought.
A. testimony significant
B. thought transitory
C. spurt obsequious
D. reflection peaceable
E. evidence powerfulThe best answer is E. Growing evidence is
idiomatic. Something that does not contradict long-lasting, such as
powerful, is needed to fill the second blank.
Following years of generous stock options, corporate jets and
other ___________, boards are ___________ their belts when it comes
to executive pay.
A. perks
B. liabilities
C. benefits tightening
D. encumbrances
E. prosperity
The best answer is C. Generous stock options and corporate jets
would likely be described as something positive, such as a perk or
a benefit. To tighten ones belt is an idiomatic expression.
The ___________ of tap dance can be traced to the antebellum
South when African-American slaves, adept at copying Irish jigs and
Lancashire clogging, improvised and embellished those dances with
their own ___________ and movements.
A. origins rhythms
B. account feelings
C. birth apathy
D. version awareness
E. chronicle combo
The best answer is A. Only an origin or a birth can be traced. A
dance can be embellished with a rhythm, not with apathy.
The federal and provincial governments launched the National
Children's Agenda six years ago to work ___________ eliminating
child poverty, yet progress is ___________.A. with exclusive
B. on indefinable
C. about ethereal
D. toward elusiveE. near intangible
The best answer is D. Eliminating child poverty is a goal, thus
toward is the best choice. The word yet indicates that the goal has
not been reach, thus elusive is apt.
Started in 1993 by the Cultural Council to ___________ the
city's downtown neighborhoods, the festival ___________ artists and
acrobats, magicians and stilt walkers from as far away as Spain and
China.A. indicate promotes
B. celebrate showcases
C. substantiate singles out
D. commemorate exonerates
E. honor exemplifies
The best answer is B. Celebrate is the most appropriate verb to
describe a festival with artists, acrobats, magicians and stilt
walkers. Showcases is appropriate for things being shown to the
public.
The Thornhill highway carries anywhere from 25,000 to about
50,000 ___________ a day depending on the section of road, with the
count ___________ 60,000 in some urbanized areas.
A. transportation reaching
B. trips averaging
C. vehicles topping
D. automobiles arriving
E. voyages recording
The best answer is C. A highway can carry vehicles or
automobiles, but none of the other options. Choice D is incorrect
because arriving would have to be followed by at.
The public attention it generates could help lay the ___________
for the kind of national consensus needed to bring substantial
reform to health-care delivery.A. groundwork B. beginning
C. basis
D. center
E. origin
The best answer is A. To lay the groundwork for x is
idiomatic.
The improved sales were largely the result of a 21.3% increase
in unit volume, but a 12.1% ___________ in average selling
___________ negatively impacted results.
A. plummet strategy
B. augmentation cost
C. certification charge
D. drop priceE. increase outlay
The best answer is D. The word but signals that the second part
of the sentence will contrast with the first part, therefore, the
first blank should be filled with an antonym of increase, such as
drop. Selling cannot be used as an adjective to describe any of the
choices other than price.
Virginia has not taken any comprehensive ___________ on
transportation funding since ___________ the sales tax a half-cent
in 1986.
A. heart increasing
B. modification adjusting
C. shape moving
D. action raising
E. amendment heaving
The best answer is D. To take amendment and to take shape are
not idiomatic. To take heart, to take shape, and to take action are
idiomatic, but only choice D fits the meaning of the sentence.
To memorialize their loved ones, the ___________ are
increasingly turning to personalization, and those in the funeral
business are responding to the ___________ with a variety of
tasteful customized products.
A. lonelyplea
B. bereaved demandC. mourners task
D. destitute endowment
E. next-of-kin ultimatum
The best answer is B. Any of the choices could feasibly fill in
the first blank, but bereaved is the most logical because it refers
to people who memorialize their loved ones.
While supporting publicly funded health care, Dr. Roberts,
president of the National Orthopedic Association, hopes the case
___________ much needed debate.
A. makes
B. quells
C. stirs
D. agitates
E. represses
The best answer is C. Since debate is much-needed, the blank
should be filled with a word that will promote debate, such as
stirs.
Many athletes and celebrities demand payment for their
signatures, and people are ___________ up to pay the price.
A. lining
B. folding
C. taking
D. cracking
E. giving
The best answer is A. Lining up is both idiomatic and
logical.
The overnight train from London to Edinburgh was an experience
that reminded me how exciting that mode of ___________ can be, but
how our fast-paced lives rarely ___________ the luxury of time to
enjoy it.A. transportation condone
B. adventure allow
C. movement permit
D. shifting suffice
E. travel affordThe best answer is E. Only mode of
transportation and mode of travel are idiomatic and logical. The
word afford, used in the sense of allow, fits the context of the
sentence.
Mardex recently launched a line of broadband home networking
products, ___________ wireless base stations and a five-port hub,
___________ targeting the home and home business.
A. enclosing each
B. including both
C. attaching none
D. containing all
E. enfolding some
The best answer is B. A line of products can logically be said
to include certain items. Both is the logical choice to refer to
two items.
While smoking has declined steadily in Canada since 1965, the
___________ has not held true for girls and younger ___________.A.
inclination people
B. tendency children
C. slope folk
D. trend womenE. grade teenagers
The best answer is D. Tendency and trend are both appropriate
choices, however, women is more appropriate than children. Young
children is a group that would presumably include girls.
James Colin has ___________ his sound on numerous occasions
throughout his career -- all the while ___________ a contemporary
tone.
A. retuned preserving
B. revamped maintaining
C. evolved upholding
D. fabricated sustaining
E. metamorphosed composing
The best answer is B. Choice C, D and E cannot fill the first
blank because they are intransitive verbs. Retuned can be applied
to an instrument, not a sound.
Long waiting ___________, it seems, have become a defining
element of the heath-care system; and nowhere is it ___________
than in orthopedic surgery.
A. days more
B. times shabbier
C. spots better
D. periods worse
E. eras greater
The best answer is D. Waiting periods is idiomatic. The first
part of the sentence discusses something bad (long waits). The
second part of the sentence says that it has become more
pronounced, thus worse is suitable.
At age 84, he is America's most listened-to radio ___________,
and a ten million dollar-a-year ___________ will keep him busy into
his 90s.
A. anchor pact
B. announcer indenture
C. personality treaty
D. broadcaster contractE. duplicator agreement
The best answer is D. Choices B, C and D are suitable to fill
the first blank. Contract is the only noun that can be used to
refer to a work agreement.
In a fascinating book, science ___________ Sarah Helm
___________ there is far more to moths than meets the eye.A.
scribbler exposes
B. writer revealsC. dabbler tells
D. author thinks
E. sycophant discloses
The best answer is B. Only choices B and D can fill the first
blank. All the choices to fill the second blank besides reveals
cannot precede a complete clause.
Founded in 1976, the Benjamin Franklin Literary & Medical
Society has become a leading ___________ of information on health
and medicine for the general ___________.A. source publicB. well
citizenry
C. scourge populous
D. font community
E. resource civilians
The best answer is A. Source of information is idiomatic, as is
general public.
The credibility of The Evening Guardian has made it a valuable
___________ for reaching medical consumers and for helping medical
researchers obtain family ___________.
A. means historiesB. viaduct records
C. tool kinship
D. transducer past
E. affiliate associations
The best answer is A. Both means and tool are acceptable, but
means is more appropriate. Tool is generally used to refer to a
tangible object. Family history is idiomatic in a medical
context.
Six years ago this ___________, Asian leaders met in cold, rainy
Vancouver to discuss the region's worsening financial
___________.
A. time calamity
B. moment distress
C. week crisisD. today tragedy
E. day emergency
The best answer is C. Only week can be used for the first blank.
Choice A and B do not make sense. Today and day cannot follow
this.
Medical Update, a monthly newsletter that reports on
epidemiological surveys and other ___________ of the society, is
___________ by this division.
A. doings disordered
B. episodes put out
C. bouts disseminated
D. activities publishedE. segments assembled
The best answer is D. The first blank must be filled by
something of which surveys can be considered an example, such as
activities. Also, a report being published is logical.A judge
___________ an Arizona woman to 60 days home detention for
intercepting her husband's ex-wife's e-mail, saying the penalty is
a warning to others who might be tempted to do ___________.
A. ordered so
B. declared such
C. sentenced the same
D. segregated as well
E. mediated similar
The best answer is C. Only ordered and sentenced can be followed
with to 60 days. The same has a much clearer referent than so.
In the magazine, national health surveys are taken to
___________ current research on topics such as cancer, diabetes,
high blood pressure, heart disease, and bipolar disorder.A.
proliferate
B. propagate
C. distance
D. furtherE. dissect
The best answer is D. To further research, meaning to advance
it, is idiomatic.
Outside the courtroom, the lanky ___________ told TV cameras he
now hoped to get a job as a computer security ___________ or
programmer.
A. gentleman personnel
B. teenager consultantC. chap resource
D. constituent competitor
E. adolescent player
The best answer is B. Lanky is an adjective most often used to
describe teenagers. Personnel and resource do not fit because it is
a non-countable noun.
A late rally on Wall Street after most European markets had
closed set a positive tone in Europe, with higher-than-forecast
___________ again the main driver of gains.
A. rejoinders
B. profitsC. deficiencies
D. depreciation
E. stupefaction
The best answer is B. Since a positive tone was set, profits is
a logical outcome.
The renaissance in farmers' markets began just ___________ 20
years ago in several places, ___________ them California and New
York City.
A. more with
B. over among
C. more than between
D. above some of
E. up some
The best answer is B. Just over is correct and idiomatic. Among
them is the appropriate expression to single a few out of a
group.
Net margins for grocery stores were sorely ___________, so a
group of usually uncooperative supermarket executives joined
___________ with a few food manufacturers to come up with a system
to automate checkout stands.
A. drooping influences
B. lowered cogency
C. falling teams
D. lagging harnesses
E. sagging forces
The best answer is E. The adjective sorely is most appropriately
used with either lagging or sagging. Joined harnesses is illogical.
Joined forces is idiomatic.
As recently as the 1980s, production far outstripped
___________, and the government was paying dairy farmers $1 billion
to thin their herds while it bought tons of ___________ cheese.
A. supply extra
B. planning unwanted
C. demand surplus
D. quota surreptitious
E. billing supercilious
The best answer is C. For the first blank, choices A and E are
illogical. B and D are ungrammatical. Since production far
outstripped demand, surplus is a logical choice for the second
blank.
After Borden received ___________ in 1856 for producing
concentrated milk in a vacuum, condensed milk became an important
part of the dairy ___________.
A. an award subject
B. a copyright field
C. a document trade
D. a patent industry
E. power of attorney business
The best answer is D. Choices A and D can logically fill the
first blank, but industry makes much more sense for the second
choice.
Tuberculosis kills 1.5 million people a year and nearly two
billion people worldwide have ___________ tuberculosis infection, a
massive potential reservoir for the ___________.
A. sleeping affliction
B. latent disease
C. raging affiliation
D. dozing illness
E. rampant circumstance
The best answer is . Since there is a potential reservoir, it
makes sense that the disease is dormant. Choices A, B and D all
have the same meaning but only latent is a word applied to a
disease.
The ___________ multi-cellular creatures on earth, sponges are
collections of loosely organized single cells with no true organs
or ___________ .
A. plain glands
B. plainest tissue
C. simpler tools
D. simplest tissues
E. small pianos
The best answer is D. An expression of the form The ______
something on earth requires the use of the superlative (-est) form
to fill the blank. Organs and tissues are both parts of a body so
they logically fit together.
A. toxic wiping
B. redundant moving
C. foul selling
D. noxious killing
E. recombinant taking
The best answer is A. A gas cannot be redundant or recombinant.
Killing out is not idiomatic, while moving out cannot be used in a
transitive sense.
Most easily measured ___________ gains come from increasing the
capital stock and improving the efficiency with which the capital
stock is used.
A. lucrative
B. lachrymose
C. economic
D. correctional
E. gainful
The best answer is C. Lucrative and gainful gains are redundant.
Lachrymose and correctional are illogical.
No other people of the world are quite so ___________ with
installing and ___________ expanses of short grass mostly around
houses but also at schools, parks, golf courses, graveyards,
freeway embankments and corporate headquarters.
A. taken keep
B. misguided saving
C. allusive tapering
D. inclusivesavoring
E. obsessed maintaining
The best answer is E. Choices C and D are illogical. B is
incorrect because one cannot be misguided with something. Choice A
is incorrect because the second blank must be filled with a gerund
form (-ing).
Ranchers have long despised prairie dogs, believing
(___________, according to some new research) that they deprive
cattle of ___________.
A. erroneously forage
B. incredulously space
C. frantically greens
D. abstrusely graze
E. utterly food
The best answer is A. Erroneously is the best choice because it
qualifies the word believing.
___________ in the University's Research Park, the Patton Center
is the catalyst that brings together the people and ideas necessary
for ___________ successful enterprises.
A. Found beginning
B. Stationed setting
C. Lying inaugurating
D. Facing fixating
E. Located launchingThe best answer is E. Stationed is used for
army personnel. Facing cannot be followed by in. Lying is
unidiomatic. Launching an enterprise is an idiomatic
expression.
Timber rattlesnakes used to be common in a range ___________
from Oklahoma and Nebraska up the Appalachians to southern New
England, and ___________ the Mississippi river to Wisconsin and
Minnesota.
A. progressing by
B. extending along
C. extenuating forward
D. persevering onward
E. originating siding
The best answer is B. Extending from x to y is an appropriate
expression to discuss a range of land. Along is the best choice to
describe something extending the length of a river.
The castle is now a tourist ___________, bringing visitors and
restoration volunteers from ___________ countries.
A. drawer multiple
B. collector several
C. attraction numerous
D. sighting various
E. abode dismissible
The best answer is C. Tourist attraction is idiomatic. Numerous
is a adjective that can appropriately be applied to countries.
The grandson of a Haitian slave, Dumas became the most famous
author in France; now, his rousing romantic novels are enjoying
renewed ___________.
A. infamy
B. unanimity
C. disrepute
D. popularity
E. disparity
The best answer is D. Since Dumas was the most famous author, it
is logical that what is renewed is his popularity.
Today, as in the ___________, whether for chefs ___________
their restaurants with fresh produce, or customers interested in
homemade cakes and preserves, farmers' markets promise not only
freshness but sociability.
A. country stocking
B. past supplying
C. secret hoarding
D. history supplied
E. east collecting
The best answer is B. The word past makes a logical contrast to
today. History cannot be proceeded by the.
With tools such as lasers, climate-controlled research chambers
and, of course, computers, Hatfield and his ___________ are
bringing soil science into the next ___________.
A. employees term
B. cohorts dimension
C. colleagues century
D. minders exponent
E. facilities component
The best answer is C. Colleagues is an appropriate term to refer
to members of a research team. To bring something into the next
century is idiomatic.
Though the general died young, leaving his son without an
inheritance, the young man overcame ___________, the lack of
___________ education to become one of the world's most popular
writers.
A. exuberance secular
B. poverty formal
C. adversity expedient
D. lethargy liberal
E. illness legal
The best answer is B. Since he was left without an inheritance,
overcoming poverty is logical. The expression formal education is
idiomatic.
Every healthy body at rest ___________ a certain amount of
energy just keeping the organs functioning and blood
___________.
A. expends circulatingB. puts off clotting
C. using pushing
D. burning flow
E. endeavors mingling
The best answer is A. Grammatically, the present simple tense is
called for to fill the first blank. Expends is a suitable verb to
describe the use of energy. For the second blank a gerund (-ing)
form is required to maintain parallelism.
Euthanasia, the act of humanely ___________ animals that are
hopelessly sick or ___________, is a controversial topic.
A. maiming hurt
B. executing wounding
C. slaughtering wounded
D. killing injuredE. assassinating injuring
The best answer is D. Assassinating can only be applied to
people. Maiming, executing and slaughtering have more negative
connotations than killing and therefore could not be used with the
adjective humanely.
Change is particularly difficult for some animals, especially
___________ who have been used to the same daily ___________ for a
long time.
A. them grind
B. those routine
C. these habit
D. critters habitat
E. whomever habitation
The best answer is B. Those is the best pronoun to refer back to
animals. For the second blank, daily grind is appropriate in
meaning, but is a slang expression. A habit cannot be describe as
daily in the sense of general behavior.
The reopening marks the end of a massive, inside-and-out
___________ project that shrouded the society's terra-cotta
headquarters in scaffolding for nearly four years.
A. reduction
B. reunification
C. commiseration
D. renovation
E. conservation
The best answer is D. It is logical that a reopening would
follow a renovation.
Diego silenced the ___________ and turned her passion for
scrapbooks into a successful retail and ___________ business.A.
devotees public
B. enthusiasts marketable
C. detractors economic
D. concordances profitable
E. skeptics wholesaleThe best answer is E. One silences opposing
voices, therefore, choices D and E can logically fill the first
blank. Retail and wholesale logically go together.
Stenton, who was ___________ in New York City in 1915, spent
most of his life sharing his love of music by teaching others to
___________ the piano.
A. educated listen
B. born playC. taught love
D. raised appreciate
E. grown adore
The best answer is B. The first blank requires a verb to refer
to an action that happened in 1915. Other than choice B, all the
choices refer to things that happen over a period of years.
Today Calder is the youngest by nearly two generations at the
veterans hospital, where he ___________ therapy and ___________.A.
undergoes rehabilitationB. has restoration
C. does healing
D. suffers analysis
E. experiences treatment
The best answer is A. Choices A and B can logically and
idiomatically fill the first blank. Restoration is incorrect
because it is not a word one applies to humans.
More and more people are considering mortgages that require the
___________ to pay only the monthly ___________ on the loan.
A. taker profits
B. client revenues
C. instigator dividends
D. borrower interest
E. investigator capitol
The best answer is D. Choices C and D are illogical for the
first blank. Choice A is not idiomatic. Revenues is not a word used
to describe payments made by an individual.
Some economists are predicting that demand will catch up with
productivity shortly, ___________ an enormous boom in job
growth.
A. making
B. shooting
C. spurring
D. spinning
E. goading
The best answer is C. Spurring, a verb whose origins come from
the spurs of a horseback riders boots, is appropriate to describe
something that causes an enormous boom.
The city is ___________ to annex land for new, suburban-style
homes, but zoning abuses blight existing neighborhoods with
___________ construction.
A. scheduled exquisite
B. talking opulent
C. foregoing errant
D. slated illegal
E. considering succulent
The best answer is D. Only choices A and D are both logical and
grammatical for the first blank. For the second blank, however,
exquisite is not a logical adjective to describe a blight.
In ___________ of resolving the profound economic and social
problems that continue to ___________ the nation, the president's
removal last July accomplished nothing.
A. sense butter
B. light libel
C. coin malign
D. means disturb
E. terms plague
The best answer is E. In terms of is idiomatic. Plague is the
best choice to refer to profound economic and social problems.
Some agencies offer financing ___________ for developers to
encourage the building of ___________ housing.A. incentives
rentalB. perks semi-permanent
C. bonuses viable
D. encouragement marketable
E. raises salable
The best answer is A. Perks, encouragement and raises are
usually given to employees, not developers. Housing cannot be
viable.
Marks, ___________ forecaster, estimates that, compared to the
administration's dividend tax cuts, extending unemployment benefits
would produce a 20 times ___________ positive effect on the gross
domestic product.A. a reliable greatest
B. an economic greaterC. an intuitive great
D. a moneyed worse
E. a furtive worst
The best answer is B. Choices A, B and C are reasonable to fill
the first blank. D and E are possible, but would be unusual. After
a 20 times greater___, a comparative form of adjective is needed,
such as greater.
As a politician's wife, Carole Samuels became active in her own
___________, attending chamber of commerce breakfasts and
historical society meetings, and ___________ in the Gardeners
Club.
A. way convened
B. time convening
C. self ran
D. right runningE. identity chaired
The best answer is D. In her own right is idiomatic. A gerund is
needed to fill the second blank to maintain parallelism.
Seth Walters has ___________ more than four decades in
commercial banking, ___________ from a bank messenger to president
and CEO of the Merchants Bank.A. caroled upping
B. resided increasing
C. loafed raising
D. spent risingE. squandered starting
The best answer is D. Grammatically, choices A, B and C cannot
fit in the first blank because they would have to be followed by a
preposition. Choice E is unlikely if the time had been squandered,
Walters would not have risen to the position of president.
As healthcare costs grow, the problem of the underinsured will
only get ___________, as corporations seek to control costs by
continuing to raise ___________ for employees.A. worse
deductiblesB. depleted deductions
C. alleviated welts
D. recompensed interest
E. disparaged abscesses
The best answer is A. The phrase the problem will only get ___,
is generally followed by something negative, such as worse.
Deductibles is logical since the sentence refers to insurance (the
problem of the underinsured).
At the school, she wrote and directed several ___________
productions about the Everglades and its ___________ as well as
tributes to historic Floridians, such as Marjory Stoneman
Douglas.
A. physical fauna
B. theatrical animalsC. musical locations
D. creative flora
E. prolific alligators
The best answer is B. Theatrical productions and musical
productions are idiomatic. Animals is a better choice than
locations for something that belongs to the Everglades.
Some residents claim that the timing of the strike was
inappropriate, considering the ___________ economy.A.
flourishing
B. harmonizing
C. shivering
D. questionableE. illiterate
The best answer is D. Choices B, C and E cannot be applied to an
economy. A strike is generally considered inappropriate when the
economy is poor, hence D is a better choice than A.
A wildfire roaring through the ___________ of the San Bernardino
Mountains burned as ___________ as 20 homes and forced thousands to
flee.A. crests various
B. foothills manyC. summits numerous
D. grounds far
E. trees much
The best answer is B. It would be nearly impossible for a fire
to roar through the crests or summits of mountains. Many is the
appropriate choice to agree with homes.
Businessmen and investors may be ___________ a little easier now
that the initial fears ___________ by the elections of leftist
presidents in neighboring countries have been muffled.
A. living released
B. working tipped off
C. breathing unleashedD. thinking forestalled
E. pondering untapped
The best answer is C. To breath easier is idiomatic. Used
metaphorically, fears can be unleashed.
Arguing that the roots of many of the region's problems are more
political and institutional than economic, the lecturer claimed
that the government will now stress the need to ___________
corruption and ___________ bureaucracy.
A. arm unwieldy
B. forego international
C. attack exceptional
D. defuse permissive
E. tackle inefficientThe best answer is E. Attack and tackle are
the only logical choice for the first blank. The word bureaucracy
is rarely preceded by a positive adjective.
Compared to economic disaster areas like Venezuela and
Argentina, where the ___________ shrank by 12 percent last year,
Brazil's outlook is ___________.A. economy rosyB. population
undecided
C. integration advantageous
D. specification ambiguous
E. profit perilous
The best answer is A. Choice A is the most logical for the first
blank. Profit could not follow the when referring to an entire
country. For the second blank, there is a contrast set up between
Venezuela and Argentina on the one hand, and Brazil on the other.
Since the former are disaster areas, the second should be
positive.
Throughout the downturn of the past few years, economists and
analysts have trumpeted our historic increases in productivity as
the one ___________ in an otherwise dreary economic
___________.
A. upturn neighborhood
B. indication surrounding
C. positive environmentD. advisory background
E. allocation milieu
The best answer is C. The phrase as the one x in an otherwise
dreary sets the stage for a positive word filling the blank. The
Andes ___________ as the floor of the Pacific Ocean slipped
uneasily beneath South America, ruffling the land along the west
coast of the ___________.
A. formed continent
B. created country
C. disinterred mass
D. depredated mass
E. shaped landfill
The best answer is A. Created and shaped would have to be put
into a passive form (were created, were shaped) to fill the first
blank. Disinterred and depredated are illogical.
Researchers have long ___________ about whether this kind of
selfless behavior in animals, ___________ as altruism, directly
benefits the helper.
A. argued known
B. dreamed deemed
C. stipulated named
D. simulated seen
E. posited characterized
The best answer is A. Only argued and dreamed can go before
about. Deemed cannot precede as.
According to Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection, an
animal's success in the gene ___________ is measured by the number
of offspring it ___________ raises to pass on its DNA.
A. source substantially
B. swamp joyfully
C. pool successfully
D. base productively
E. chromosome verdantly
The best answer is C. Gene pool is idiomatic. Successfully is a
logical choice; if the offspring are not raised successfully, they
cannot make an impact on the gene pool.
___________ of mythical giant apes lurk in the oral ___________
of most Native American tribes, as well as in Europe and Asia.
A. Talks chronicles
B. Stories verbiage
C. Legends writings
D. Quips meanderings
E. Tales traditions
The best answer is E. One can have stories, legends or tales of
something. Oral traditions is an idiomatic expression. Furthermore,
oral verbiage is both redundant and illogical, while oral writings
is a contradiction in terms.
Statistically, the 3,300 responses _________ the opinions
(accurate to plus or minus two percent) of the 154 million American
adults who have traveled over the ___________ three years.
A. face last
B. focus first
C. preclude coming
D. represent past
E. repress forthcoming
The best answer is D. Grammatically, all of the choices are
suitable to fill in the first blank, but semantically, represent is
the most logical choice. Because the present perfect (have
traveled) is used, the second blank must be something that refers
to the past.
The academic services division was ___________ to providing
quality support to the students and staff through the provision of
specialist administrative ___________.
A. submitted services
B. committed assistance
C. destined debate
D. conniving help
E. striving contact
The best answer is B. Choice D and E cannot be correct for the
first blank because they are gerund forms. An academic services
division cannot normally be submitted. Destined would have to be
follow be an infinitive form.
Prosecutors have ___________ a wealth of circumstantial evidence
linking the six ___________ to the deadly bombing.
A. collected detectives
B. amassed suspects
C. accumulated suspicions
D. assembled executors
E. engineered perpetrators
The best answer is B. To amass wealth is idiomatic. Here the
expression is expanded to refer to a wealth of evidence. Suspects
is appropriate to refer to people accused but not yet tried. First
hired in 1972 as ___________ staff writer for The Examiner, Frank
Gordon has since fashioned a career in journalism ___________ over
three decades.
A. a budding taking
B. a novice reeling
C. an introductory sponging
D. an eager spanning
E. a top straddling
The best answer is D. For the first blank, a person cannot be
introductory. Eager or novice are the most appropriate adjective to
describe a beginning writer. Only spanning can be used to indicate
that Gordons career lasted three decades.
It was thought that if the corpse did not have ___________ care,
the former pharaoh would not be able to ___________ out his new
duties as king of the dead.
A. careful fold
B. secret address
C. deciduous situate
D. proper carry
E. learned marry
The best answer is D. The care that one takes over something
cannot be described as careful, secret, deciduous or learned.
Duties are said to be carried out.
Many of these prizes are ___________ at the Faculty of Business
presentation ceremony ___________ is held in June for the preceding
academic year.
A. designatedwho
B. relegated that
C. awarded which
D. stultified in which
E. given where
The best answer is C. Prizes are normally awarded or given.
Which is the appropriate pronoun to refer to the ceremony.
Earlier this month tax-evasion charges were ___________ against
Maryanne Sumner, who is ___________ for the auditing of
operations.
A. filed responsible
B. summoned reliable
C. subpoenaed determined
D. lodged reachable
E. grated accountable
The best answer is A. A person can be summoned or subpoenaed,
not charges. To file charges is idiomatic.
The Egyptians mummified their dead because they believed that a
person needed his body in the afterlife, and the better-looking the
better, so it was ___________ on the priests in charge of
___________ to do a good job.
A. designated wrapping
B. selected preserving
C. assigned mummifying
D. doled exacting
E. incumbent embalming
The best answer is E. The first four choices for the first blank
are used passively (the priest was assigned). The blank calls for
an active verb. The work of mummification is embalming.
Projects ___________ by management students include a recent
communication analysis and team development project conducted by a
postgraduate ___________.
A. serviced pupil
B. organized student
C. steered professor
D. accomplished teacher
E. sentenced fellow
The best answer is B. One cannot service, accomplish or sentence
a project. A postgraduate is a type of student.
When deep-sea explorers ___________ the Baltic Sea floor located
a Swedish spy plane shot down by the Russians more than 50 years
ago this June, they ended one of the more ___________ mysteries of
the Cold War.
A. dredging flimsy
B. combing enduring
C. cruising unforeseen
D. skimming unreceptive
E. searching personified
The best answer is B. One cannot cruise or skim the sea floor. A
mystery can be described as enduring when it has been in existence
for a long period of time.
By ___________ the elements in the bones of a person long dead,
researchers can ___________ the main constituents of that
individual's diet.
A. testing delineate
B. revealing concoct
C. exhuming discern
D. examining determine
E. subsuming reveal
The best answer is D. A body can be exhumed, but not the
elements in the bones of a body. These can be tested, examined or
revealed. The constituents of a persons diet can be determined.
Connected by a complex set of ___________ roads, the villages
were defined by ditches, curbs, moats, open parklands, and working
forests.
A. intersecting
B. fixed
C. interlinking
D. thickened
E. dense
The best answer is C. Since the roads are described as complex,
it makes sense that they would be interlinked.
Discovered by two paleontology students in clay pits near
Peterborough, the ___________ is the largest known fish ever
___________.
A. fossil recorded
B. remnant devoured
C. visage monitored
D. vestige summoned
E. pebble careened
The best answer is A. Only fossil is logical in reference to a
fish.
The recent arrest has ___________ concern about a government
push against powerful business barons before the ___________
elections.
A. hurdled forthcoming
B. marked approaching
C. initiated short
D. sparked upcoming
E. kindled near
The best answer is D. While choices C, D and E are all possible,
only sparked concern is idiomatic.
The government will also now start the legal process of lifting
the monopoly ___________ by Telecon, the state carrier.
A. endured
B. pressed upon
C. enjoyed
D. confounded
E. suppliedThe best answer is C. A monopoly is something that a
company enjoys, so C is the most logical choice.
An extensive archaeological excavation has ___________ a lost
city that is believed to be one of the ___________ jewels in the
ancient civilization of the Maya.
A. unearthed crowning
B. buried shining
C. uncovered glowing
D. bared crowned
E. obscured buffed
The best answer is . Excavations remove objects from the earth
therefore, unearthed is an appropriate choice. Crowning jewels is
idiomatic.
Though the economy ___________ through a recession in 2001,
super-low interest rates have ___________ demand for mortgages,
which has encouraged a boom in mortgage refinancing.
A. battled incited
B. conceded impelled
C. suffered fueledD. slogged driven
E. smudged posited
The best answer is C. A recession is a negative occurrence so it
is appropriate that one would battle or suffer through it. Fuel can
be used figuratively to mean promote.
The rationale ___________ the rise of fee-based advice is that
it makes for a better relationship with clients by eliminating the
potential for conflicts that ___________ when someone profits
directly from their recommendations.
A. behind ariseB. invested in occur
C. driving intrude
D. after disrupt
E. following awaken
The best answer is A. It is idiomatic to talk about the
rationale behind x. Similarly, conflicts are said to arise.
Never before in ___________ history have monetary and fiscal
policies been as motivating as today, and yet, the American economy
remains weak and vulnerable.
A. todays
B. yesteryears
C. yesterdays
D. recent
E. topical
The best answer is D. Todays history, yesteryears history and
yesterdays history are unidiomatic expressions. Topical history is
illogical.
The open nature of the web, its unpredictable and ___________
proliferation of ideas and open source software was ___________ to
the world's leading operating systems company.
A. untenable propagation
B. insupportable panacea
C. copious abomination
D. uncontrollable anathema
E. bountiful atomization
The best answer is C. Both copious proliferation and bountiful
proliferation are redundant. Uncontrollable is the most logical
choice for the first blank. Since uncontrollable has a negative
connotation, anathema, also a negative word, is a logical
choice.
Front Inc., ___________ by the 1999 merger between Front Bank
and Merchants Bank, has been at the ___________ of merger rumors
for years.
A. started middle
B. created centerC. began apex
D. founded summit
E. fashioned maelstrom
The best answer is B. A company is created by a merger. Founded
is appropriate to use to refer to a completely new company.
Fashioned cannot be followed by by to refer to the companys
origins.
As younger workers watch parents and others in ___________
generations go back to work after retiring because their savings
were not ___________, they still aren't doing enough to provide for
their own financial futures.
A. senior ample
B. younger sufficient
C. old generous
D. older adequate
E. advanced prolific
The best answer is D. Since the younger workers are watching
parents and other in ____ generations, the others are likely of
their parents generation, hence older is logical. The second blank
must contain a word that explains why older generation would go
back to work.
Outspoken ___________ as a teenager, he was dismissed from high
school when he refused to compromise his word to a school
___________.A. from his time mascot
B. early officer
C. already teacher
D. still regulation
E. even principalThe best answer is E. From his time and early
are unidiomatic and still is illogical. Already is awkward in the
first blank.
College costs once again have increased far faster than
inflation, with ___________ at state schools posting the biggest
___________ in 30 years
A. fees augmentation
B. costs depreciation
C. revenues devaluation
D. tuition increaseE. payments intensification
The best answer is D. Tuition is a word that specifically means
fees paid to a school and is thus the best answer. The first part
of the sentence deals with college costs increases in general, and
the second part mentions a more specific increase.
A new survey says most families aren't generally expecting to
___________ more money on holiday vacations than they did
___________ year.
A. fritter previous
B. spend lastC. save past
D. squander preceding
E. invest prior
The best answer is B. Fritter and squander have negative
connotations that are not in keeping with the tone of the sentence.
One does not invest in a vacation.
__________ in the history of this great country have there been
more annoying commercials on the public ___________.
A. Once systems
B. Ever channels
C. Sometimes broadcasts
D. Never airwaves
E. Always television
The best answer is D. Only choices D and E fit the sentence
grammatically. Public television cannot follow the definite
article.
Since the success of his last book and his Oscar-winning
___________, (a success he likes to remind you of at every
___________), he has become the most prominent liberal agitator in
the West.A. presentationmoment
B. documentary opportunity
C. stagingminute
D. filmprospect
E. enactment initiation
The best answer is B. A documentary or a film are choices which
could be Oscar-winning. For the second blank, prospect and
initiation are illogical. Moment and minute cannot come after at
every.
The most successful remodeling projects begin with homeowners
___________ have a imaginative, yet ___________, idea of what they
want done.A. that sensational
B. where pragmatic
C. which inspired
D. whom dazzling
E. who realisticThe best answer is E. Who is the most suitable
pronoun to refer to homeowners. The second blank must be filled
with a word which contrasts with imaginative because of the yet
before the blank.
To accompany the book, Freeman ___________ has a new ___________
of digital photographs spanning 30 years.
A. as well rehearsal
B. also exhibition
C. additionally
D. too revision
E. besides showing
The best answer is B. None of the choices other than also fit
the sentence grammatically. Photographs can logical be displayed in
an exhibition.
He went over all his expenditures and ___________ for the
preceding year and a half, and was shocked by what he
___________.A. income foundB. disbursements discovered
C. expenses uncovered
D. salaries related
E. tolls manifested
The best answer is A. Disbursements and expenses mean the same
as expenditures and are therefore redundant. An individual usually
doesnt have many salaries and does not collect tolls.
Their income has proven ___________ to maintain what they regard
as a comfortable, though not ___________, lifestyle.
A. superficial excessive
B. opulent verifiable
C. sufficient luxuriousD. ample fulsome
E. sketchy extraordinary
The best answer is C. Sufficient and ample are suitable to
describe income that can maintain a comfortable lifestyle.
He was rejected by the National Film School and spent 11 years
doing odd jobs for a small theatre company before he got the
___________ to make his film noir thriller.
A. break
B. thought
C. calibration
D. opportunity
E. warning
The best answer is D. Break and opportunity are suitable as far
as their meaning, but break cannot be followed by to.
When George Wilson graduated from high school, his parents, both
of ___________ were hearing impaired and on disability, could
provide ___________ financial help toward college.
A. whom no
B. they none
C. who littleD. them scarce
E. parent nary
The best answer is C. Who is the best pronoun to refer back to
Wilsons parents. Only no and little are suitable grammatically for
the second blank.
Michael grew up under difficult circumstances in the San
Fernando Valley, where he battled family ___________ from
___________ age.A. connections a small
B. embattlements a little
C. kinships a young
D. issues every
E. problems an earlyThe best answer is E. One battles problems.
An early age is idiomatic.
While the couple tries to find bargain-basement prices on all
their ___________, they do not ___________ on quality. A. purchases
stintB. inceptions squelch
C. acquisitionssquint
D. abstentions squander
E. accumulations tender
The best answer is A. Purchases and acquisitions are logical
choices for the first blank. The second blank must be filled with a
word that will contrast with the first part of the sentence.
What was a ruthlessly effective way of enhancing their electoral
fortunes has developed into a compulsion never to allow any leader
much of a chance to ___________.
A. persist
B. impeach
C. command
D. impersonate
E. direct
The best answer is C. One cannot allow someone else to persist.
Impeach cannot be used as in intransitive verb. Since a leader
commands, command is the best response.
Though she had never been there, and did not know ___________,
she felt an overwhelming urge to ___________ into this uncharted
territory.
A. an individual strive
B. a soul delve
C. a person plunge
D. a being sift
E. someone hop
The best answer is B. Did not know a soul is an idiomatic
expression used to mean did not know anyone.
The defendants have asked for a jury trial, but Cary, lawyer for
Sun Entertainment, is expected to petition the court today for a
trial by ___________ without ___________.
A. court a judgment
B. tribunal a sentencing
C. proxy an adjudicator
D. fire a panel
E. judge a jury
The best answer is E. The word but sets up the expectation of a
contrast in the sentence. Trial by judge contrasts with jury
trial.
Short, broad grandmothers, speaking only Zapotec, the indigenous
___________ of the region, dutifully grind corn for tortillas and
march their pigs to market.
A. dialogue
B. language
C. vernacular
D. jargon
E. clauses
The best answer is B. Zapotec, written with a capital letter and
spoken, is likely to be the name of a language.
In 1980, Smith & Smith decided to ___________ eight of its
old models to make room for some of the more modern models that
collectors seemed to be ___________ in.
A. retire interested
B. decline focused
C. desist fascinated
D. rest targeted
E. wane charmed
The best answer is A. Retire, though primarily applied to
people, is also used to refer to products. Only interested and
fascinated can precede in.
The Calverts were a young New England couple looking for an
inexpensive way to ___________ a small vacation cottage in
Massachusetts when they first began purchasing country ___________
and folk art in the 1920s.
A. decorate samples
B. endow relics
C. conjure baubles
D. furnish antiques
E. bequeath trinkets
The best answer is D. There is no expensive or inexpensive way
the endow or bequeath a cottage. Country sample is vague (samples
of what?).
Professional searchers will travel the ___________ over, using
any ___________ possible from satellites to simple theft to acquire
meteorites.
A. globemethod
B. earth way
C. planet methodology
D. world means
E. land resources
The best answer is D. While the first four choices for the first
blank all mean the same thing, only world can come before over.
Traffic safety experts said that national driver education
standards should be ___________ so teenagers everywhere receive
___________ training before hitting the road on their own. A.
decanted coercive
B. adapted obliging
C. adopted uniformD. excepted comprehensive
E. incepted insipid
The best answer is C. If the standards were adopted, then the
training would be uniform.
Many of the draft document's points ___________ ideas espoused
for years by anti-globalization ___________.
A. capitulated sympathizers
B. echoed activistsC. estranged protagonist
D. reiterated mentors
E. venerated militantsThe best answer is B. Points may be echoed
or reiterated. One cannot be a mentor for a cause.
Researchers say it will be several years before computer
programs will accurately ___________ fire behavior the way
television weathermen tell viewers where a hurricane or a
___________ is heading.
A. precede rainfall
B. predict cloud
C. prepare shower
D. forecast blizzardE. forbear tornadoThe best answer is D. What
the researchers do is being compared to what weathermen do,
therefore, predict or forecast are logical choices. While any of
the choices for the second blank are feasible, a blizzard is more
similar to hurricane than some of the other choices, and therefore
is better.
Low short-term borrowing costs may give consumers and businesses
an ___________ to spend and invest more and ___________ boost
economic growth.
A. enticement thusly
B. stimulant nevertheless
C. incentive thusD. inducement consecutively E. supplement
therefore
The best answer is C. The first four choices for the first blank
mean roughly the same thing, but the first two are not appropriate
for a business situation. Thus shows the causal effect of the
short-term borrowing on economic growth.
All but the smallest new televisions will have to be able to
receive digital television ___________ by July 2007 under a
government rule upheld by a federal ___________ court on
Tuesday.
A. flashes claims
B. signs broadcasting
C. flares official
D. signals appealsE. messages allowed
The best answer is D. Digital television sends signals. A
regular court rules, but an appeals court upholds or overturns
decisions.
Supporters of helmet laws say the government should punish
states that do not require helmets, since the public often
___________ up paying medical costs for those ___________ in
motorcycle accidents.A. take involved
B. winds tangled
C. give drawn
D. lend wounded
E. ends injuredThe best answer is E. Ends up provides a
justification for governments to punish states that do not require
helmets. Wounded or injured are logical choices for the second
blank, but injured is more often used to refer to people in
accidents.The company's plan is to ___________ costs while trying
to exploit its traditional strengths in entertainment and video
games - particularly with new networked and wireless consumer
___________.
A. trim devicesB. skimp gadgets
C. clip contraptions
D. shape implements
E. wedge widgets
The best answer is A. Trim can be applied figuratively to costs.
Devices is the more common choice to refer to electronic goods.
Gadgets, contraptions and widgets would more likely refer to an
elaborate homemade devise.
Despite Bettlemans pleadings and progress at the bargaining
___________, key issues remained ___________.
A. block unhampered
B. discussion unsolved
C. board hampered
D. table unresolvedE. chair reprimanded
The best answer is D. The bargaining table is idiomatic. Before
completing a negotiation, there are issues that are unresolved, so
remained unresolved is logical.
Under the emerging plan, the cuts would not take ___________ if
hospitals agreed to provide the data that the administration has
requested.A. shape
B. in
C. place D. over
E. time
The best answer is C. Take place is appropriate because it is an
idiomatic expression meaning to occur.
Swift Airlines pilots have approved a measure allowing their
union, the Air Line Pilots Association, to call a ___________ at
one of the nation's largest regional carriers in a ___________ over
a new contract.A. truce disagreement
B. ceasefire disparity
C. strike disputeD. party prong
E. bash gap
The best answer is C. While call a truce, call a ceasefire and
call a strike are all idiomatic, only strike is logical in
reference to airline pilots. Strikes are generally called because
of disputes over new contracts.
One study suggests that children who live in homes where the
television is on most of the time ___________ have more trouble
learning to read than other kids.A. do
B. may C. should
D. also
E. cannot
The best answer is B. Since the study suggests that its finding
are true, may, which expresses possibility, is best.
Left-leaning politicians from around the world worked on a
___________ against the spread of ___________ capitalism.A.
tallying rampant
B. denigration unrestrained
C. aeration raging
D. declaration unfetteredE. proclamation epidermal
The best answer is D. Choice A and C are illogical for the first
blank. A denigration on not something one usually works on.
The agency is working on faster ways to ___________ rapidly
moving ___________ like the SARS virus, which began in China and
spread worldwide early last year.
A. detect threatsB. multiply microbes
C. spread proliferations
D. relieve bugs
E. allot intimidations
The best answer is A. Both detect and relieve are logical in
reference to something like a virus. Bugs is a slang term.
Despite the hours many children spend watching television, the
report found that reading ___________ to be a regular part of many
children's lives.A. ceases
B. stops
C. continuesD. fails
E. neglects
The best answer is C. Because of the word despite in the
sentence, the blank must be filled with something that creates a
contrast in the sentence. Continue is the only word that does
this.