Solved Examples Set 1 (Sentence Completion)

1. The show is worth seeing for the ________ of Judy Convoy’s vivacious performance, which ________ the stage whenever she appears.

   1. effervescence . . . enlivens
   2. verve . . . deforms
   3. torpor . . . dominates
   4. bravado . . . enervates
   5. sprightliness . . . muffles

   (A. effervescence . . . enlivens) The phrase vivacious performance suggests that both the missing words should suggest liveliness. Effervescence, verve, and sprightliness are all promising, but only A has a verb that also suggests vitality.

2. The company has accused its larger rival of trying to ________ the ________ retail market in the north by offering illegal contracts to outlets in the area.

   1. control . . . bankrupt
   2. monopolize . . . lucrative
   3. annul . . . profitable
   4. corner . . . factitious
   5. divest . . . remunerative

   (B. monopolize . . . lucrative) Three of the verbs might work here (control, monopolize, or corner), but only lucrative fits a sought-after market.

3. Time and time again, the power of the mob in Chicago appears to have been annihilated, but it has always ________ itself.

   1. reappeared
   2. eliminated
   3. returned
   4. regenerated
   5. exhumed

   (D. regenerated) The but indicates the power has not been annihilated, so the verb that is missing must indicate a rebirth and be used with itself. A and C are not used with the pronoun; B has the opposite of the required meaning; and though E is possible, D is clearer.

4. The thought of a nuclear ________ sparked by a misunderstanding poses an awesome ________.

   1. device . . . reverberation
   2. holocaust . . . specter
   3. danger . . . spectacle
   4. liaison . . . probability
   5. explosion . . . calamity

   (B. holocaust . . . specter) Working from the second blank first, notice that you are looking for a word coinciding with thought. Only specter is a type of thought (something that haunts or perturbs the mind), and along with it, holocaust (destruction by fire) makes good sense.

5. Students at Pennsylvania State University have ________ the Liberty Bell’s original tone, a ________ of four notes, E flat, F sharp, G sharp, and B flat.

   1. relegated . . . combination
   2. replicated . . . melding
   3. decanted . . . concurrence
   4. reproduced . . . disjunction
   5. intimated . . . knell

   (B. replicated . . . melding) The context suggests a word like reproduced or replicated. Given these two choices, only melding could describe the combining of the four notes.

6. As the controversial argument continued, the debaters became more _________ and their remarks became more ________.

   1. subdued . . . hostile
   2. vehement . . . acrimonious
   3. reticent . . . cliché
   4. affable . . . adverse
   5. emotional . . . adroit

   (B. vehement . . . acrimonious) The answer is vehement . . . acrimonious. The signal words controversial, more, and more suggest a conflict that increases or intensifies. The only pair that supports these context clues is vehement . . . acrimonious. Even if you are not certain of the definition of acrimonious, the other choices can be eliminated because none of them suggests the intensification of the controversy.

7. Alarmist newspaper stories present the pit bull terrier as ________ killer, but owners insist that the dog is friendly and ________.

   1. an invidious . . . malleable
   2. a malign . . . philanthropic
   3. a ferocious . . . docile
   4. an infamous . . . self-serving
   5. a dissolute . . . venal

   (C. a ferocious . . . docile) The first adjective will be negative (a malign or a ferocious killer), while the second must go well with friendly and describe a dog. The best choice is docile, because people do not normally describe dogs as philanthropic.

8. The ________ problem of piracy has the music industry worried, because the pirates overseas are ________ by the crackdown in the United States.

   1. burgeoning . . . unabashed
   2. widespread . . . intimidated
   3. immaterial . . . incriminated
   4. minor . . . untroubled
   5. evanescent . . . undeterred

   (A. burgeoning . . . unabashed) If the problem worries the industry, it cannot be immaterial, minor, or evanescent. And if the industry is worried, the pirates still must be unabashed (unafraid) rather than intimidated by crackdowns.

9. Heavy snows in the passes of the Pyrenees have seriously ________ rescuers trying to reach travelers surprised by the spring blizzards.

   1. excluded
   2. expedited
   3. rappelled
   4. assisted
   5. hampered

   (E. hampered) The context indicates the missing verb should mean impeded, kept from moving freely. B, C, and D are clearly unsuitable. The use of the adjective seriously eliminates excluded as the answer.

10. The primary ________ of the region’s cuisine, such as beans, legumes, and pasta, provide high levels of complex carbohydrates and often ________ meat as the primary source of protein in the diet.

    1. requirements . . . supplement
    2. components . . . replace
    3. fads . . . subjoin
    4. facet . . . duplicate
    5. ingredients . . . indemnify

    (B. components . . . replace) The noun could be either B or E, but indemnify (“to compensate for a loss”) makes no sense at all, whereas replace is a reasonable choice.

11. So ________ was the sales person's tone about the qualities of the new computer system that Najam nearly missed the ________ in its calculations in his budget.

    1. Persuasive ... flaw
    2. adopted ... accuracy
    3. harsh ... amount
    4. irritating ... greatness

    (A. Persuasive ... flaw) The sales person's tone is always "persuasive" during sales talk for the first blank and something like "flaw" for the second. Choice A is the right answer.

12. Slovenia’s declared intention to ________ and Croatia’s decision to ________ the conference, aimed at preventing the breakup of the federation, are twin blows to Yugoslavian unity.

    1. secede . . . boycott
    2. withdraw . . . foster
    3. divide . . . consolidate
    4. recede . . . avoid
    5. patronize . . . exclude

    (A. secede . . . boycott) The two verbs must both (twin blows) indicate a divisive action. The words foster, consolidate, and patronize do not fit, but choice D is marred by the use of recede, which means to move back, not to withdraw from.

13. America at Sea is a one-volume ________ history that covers the nation’s military and commercial activities.

    1. aquatic
    2. ancient
    3. meretricious
    4. theological
    5. maritime

    (E. maritime) The title tells us the book is about the American sea history; the logical choice is maritime, which means “of the sea.”

14. ________ must be distinguished from ________, which is the recognition of different categories of people without the inputing of any differences in rank.

    1. Totalitarianism . . . brotherhood
    2. Modification . . . ossification
    3. Classification . . . ramification
    4. Stratification . . . differentiation
    5. Finitude . . . infinitude

    (D. Stratification . . . differentiation) In this case, the second blank is easier to fill because it is followed by a definition. Differentiation is the recognition of different categories of people, and so on. Stratification, which does imply the differences in rank that differentiation does not, is also appropriate.

15. Some historians contend that the ________ Germany was forced to pay after World War I ________ made possible the rise of Nazism.

    1. restorations . . . indefinitely
    2. recriminations . . . finally
    3. expenditures . . . gratuitously
    4. reparations . . . ultimately
    5. disbursements . . . immediately

    (D. reparations . . . ultimately) The first noun must mean something like payments. Only reparations fits exactly, and ultimately makes more sense than the four other adverbs.

16. The success of the English-Spanish simulcast must be ________ to Margo Quiroz, who interprets 40 different news items in each nightly newscast.

    1. attested
    2. censured
    3. interpreted
    4. transliterated
    5. attributed

    (E. attributed) The context requires a transitive verb used with the preposition to meaning assign or ascribe. Choices B, C, and D do not fit these requirements. Choice A attested is used with to but means to certify or make clear.

17. It is difficult to take sides with either party because both of the combatants are so ________ to ________.

    1. indifferent . . . evasion
    2. reluctant . . . compromise
    3. hostile . . . interference
    4. impenetrable . . . rhetoric
    5. averse . . . expectation

    (B. reluctant . . . compromise) The first half of the sentence presents the choice between the two combatants as difficult. Choices A, D, or E would not clarify this description. Both B and C are plausible, but because many disputing parties would object to interference, choice B is preferable.

18. Puzzled passersby occasionally see the ________ message “Nowhere in Particular” on the destination signs of Culver City buses.

    1. minatory
    2. exclamatory
    3. enigmatic
    4. surreptitious
    5. ameliorative

    (C. enigmatic) Because the passersby are puzzled, the missing word should have some connection with this adjective. The best choice is enigmatic, a synonym of perplexing.

19. The writing is awkward, even ________, but the novel has nonetheless attracted a large ________.

    1. felicitous . . . following
    2. grotesque . . . vacuity
    3. elegant . . . repertoire
    4. graceful . . . audience
    5. ungainly . . . readership

    (E. ungainly . . . readership) The first word here must have a meaning like awkward, but more intense. The only choices are grotesque, B, or ungainly, E, but only E has a noun (readership) that fits the second blank.

20. Unfortunately, too many American actors in a Shakespeare play chop the verse into gobbets that are ________ to the audience and ________ to their own vocal chords.

    1. inscrutable . . . an expedience
    2. congenial . . . a danger
    3. galling . . . a panacea
    4. anodyne . . . an emollient
    5. incomprehensible . . . a threat

    (E. incomprehensible . . . a threat) The Unfortunately at the beginning tells us to look for words with negative denotations. Of the five choices, only E has both an adjective and a noun with meanings that are unfavorable.

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