Solved Examples Set 2 (Antonyms)

1. INANE

   1. foolish
   2. serious
   3. mature
   4. nameless
   5. contrary

   (B. serious.) Inane means silly or empty. Choice B serious means important or solemn.

2. CHAOTIC

   1. Immersive
   2. Orderly
   3. Hectic
   4. Nervous
   5. Embarrasing

   (B. Orderly) Chaotic is a negative word that means in a state of complete confusion or disorder. Orderly is the positive word that is the best opposite.

3. MODERATE

   1. calm
   2. reason
   3. whisper
   4. intensify
   5. lead

   (D. intensify.) Moderate means to make less intense. Choice D intensify means to make more intense.

4. PURITANIC

   1. controlled by hand
   2. making fast
   3. imposing
   4. freewheeling
   5. obtuse

   (D. freewheeling) The adjective puritanic means excessively strict in morals. The most nearly opposite choice here is choice D freewheeling. Choice E obtuse means dull-witted, dense, or ignorant.

5. PALLID

   1. resplendent
   2. lackluster
   3. enervated
   4. impaled
   5. impervious

   (A. resplendent) Pallid means drab or colorless. Choice A resplendent means bright or brilliant. Choice B lackluster means drab or colorless. Choice C enervated means frail or feeble. Choice D impaled means pierced. Choice E impervious means impenetrable.

6. PUNGENT

   1. acrid
   2. piquant
   3. harmonious
   4. untenable
   5. insipid

   (E. insipid) Pungent means sharply affecting the organs of taste, or a strong sour or bitter taste. Choice E insipid means tasteless. Choices A and B are synonyms of pungent. Choice D untenable means implausible or unreasonable.

7. GARRULOUS

   1. Barren
   2. Funnel
   3. Censored
   4. Deaf
   5. Notable

   (D. Deaf) Garrulous means talking too much. Only Deaf; who cannot speak is the right answer.

8. OVERWROUGHT

   1. relaxed
   2. restrained
   3. underutilized
   4. flawed
   5. underestimated

   (A. relaxed.) Overwrought means overcome by nervous agitation or being overexcited. Choice A relaxed means an absence of tension or tightness.

9. ELEVATED

   1. Suspended
   2. Moody
   3. Subterranean
   4. Grounded
   5. Excited

   (C. Subterranean) Elevated means above the ground. "Grounded" means connected to the earth. "Subterranean" means beneath the surface.

10. IRONIC

    1. literary
    2. figurative
    3. analogous
    4. mysterious
    5. literal

    (E. literal) Ironic means using words to express the opposite of their literal meaning. Choice B figurative means metaphoric, a kind of literary comparison. Choice C analogous means a resemblance between two things that are otherwise unlike. Choice E literal means exact or verbatim.

11. INVEIGH

    1. to lose weight
    2. to estimate
    3. to accept meekly
    4. to cherish fondly
    5. to retreat

    (C. to accept meekly) To inveigh is to protest strongly, to rail against. The opposite is choice C to accept meekly.

12. CAPTIOUS

    1. eager
    2. deprived
    3. indulgent
    4. free
    5. anxious

    (C. indulgent) Captious means quick to find fault, carping. The opposite is indulgent.

13. INFIRM

    1. ailing
    2. hospitalized
    3. robust
    4. recovering
    5. firm

    (C. robust.) Infirm means weak, especially from illness or old age. Choice C robust means very healthy.

14. RESILIENT

    1. elastic
    2. resinous
    3. resolute
    4. inflexible
    5. malleable

    (D. inflexible.) Resilient means elastic, easily regaining its original shape. Choice B resinous means composed of resins (particular kinds of particles). Choice C resolute means determined. Choice D inflexible means stiff or rigid. Choice E malleable means moldable or flexible.

15. RECONDITE

    1. obvious
    2. plane
    3. fit
    4. cryptic
    5. cabalistic

    (A. obvious) Recondite means mystical or profound. Obvious means apparent. Plane means flat. Fit means trim. Ambiguous means cryptic. Cabalistic means abstruse or incomprehensible.

16. PRETERNATURAL

    1. customary
    2. naturalistic
    3. adventitious
    4. unnatural
    5. pernicious

    (A. customary) Preternatural means extraordinary. Customary means normal or regular. Naturalistic means based on natural desires or events. Adventitious means fortuitous. Unnatural means artificial or abnormal. Pernicious means harmful or wicked.

17. SUCCULENT

    1. harshly astringent
    2. axiomatic
    3. quietly reclusive
    4. parched
    5. highly spiced

    (D. parched) Succulent means full of juice, juicy. Choice D parched means dried out. Choice B axiomatic means self-evident.

18. FERVOR

    1. an unfortified place
    2. patriotism
    3. drollery
    4. merrymaking
    5. nonchalance

    (E. nonchalance) Fervor means zeal or warmth of feeling, and choice E nonchalance is cool indifference. Choice C drollery is something amusing.

19. REDUNDANT

    1. verbose
    2. irrelevant
    3. prosaic
    4. excessive
    5. insufficient

    (E. insufficient.) Redundant means superfluous, extra, unneeded. Choice A verbose means using too many words. Choice C prosaic means dull or ordinary. Choice E insufficient means not enough.

20. SCRUTINIZE

    1. skim
    2. devour
    3. elaborate
    4. comprehend
    5. question

    (A. skim.) Scrutinize means to examine something thoroughly and carefully. Choice A skim means to glance at or read quickly. Choice B devour means to hungrily or greedily consume.

Solved Examples Set 1
Solved Examples Set 2
Solved Examples Set 3