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. INTERCEDE

   1. intercept
   2. disrupt
   3. supersede
   4. intervene
   5. question

   (B. disrupt) Intercede means to mediate, to help two sides reach an agreement. Choice A intercept means to take something away. Choice B disrupt means to push apart. Choice C supersede means to replace or overrule. Choice D intervene means to intercede.

3. REDUNDANT

   1. Insufficient
   2. Expanded
   3. Profound
   4. Numerous
   5. Verbose

   (A. Insufficient) Redundant means superfluous, extra, unneeded. But insufficient means not enough.

4. DETACH

   1. Separate
   2. Pack
   3. Bottom line
   4. Scratch
   5. Ambulatory

   (B. Pack) Detach means to separate or unfasten. The best opposite is choice Pack.

5. 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.

6. EMPATHY

   1. compassion
   2. lack of feeling for others
   3. lack of religious certainty
   4. lack of credit
   5. recalcitrance

   (B. lack of feeling for others) Empathy means feeling for others, sympathy. Choice E recalcitrance means disobedience, noncompliance.

7. LABYRINTHINE

   1. flowery
   2. direct
   3. amazing
   4. dark
   5. towering

   (B. direct) Labyrinthine means mazelike. The best opposite is direct, which means straightforward.

8. CONFIDANT

   1. assurance
   2. acquaintance
   3. enemy
   4. confession
   5. ally

   (C. enemy.) Confidant means a friend, a person you can confide in. Choice C enemy is the opposite of friend.

9. MATRICULATE

   1. articulate
   2. speculate
   3. divorce
   4. impart
   5. graduate

   (E. graduate) Matriculate means to sign up, to register for or join, especially for college. Choice A articulate means to express ideas clearly. Choice B speculate means to form opinions without definite knowledge. Choice E graduate means to be awarded a diploma for a course of study or to conclude school successfully.

10. HERETICAL

    1. skeptical
    2. orthodox
    3. unorthodox
    4. ethereal
    5. insincere

    (B. orthodox) Heretical means challenging conventional beliefs. Choice A skeptical means inclined not to believe. Choice B orthodox means to accept conventional beliefs. Choice C unorthodox means unconventional. Choice D ethereal means light and delicate or heavenly. Choice E insincere means hypocritical, not sincere.

11. APPROBATION

    1. probation
    2. guilt
    3. disapproval
    4. disavowal
    5. disaffected

    (C. disapproval) Approbation means approval. Choice A probation is a period of time for examination or evaluation. Choice C disapproval means objection, and is the opposite of approbation. Choice D disavowal means a denial of responsibility. Choice E disaffection means discontent.

12. 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.

13. 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.

14. DISCRIMINATING

    1. racist
    2. gourmet
    3. crass
    4. popular
    5. segregated

    (C. crass) Discriminating means being able to make fine distinctions. Choice C crass means gross, being unable to make fine distinctions.

15. ABSTEMIOUS

    1. self-indulgent
    2. on the dole
    3. self-sacrificing
    4. off the mark
    5. self-satisfied

    (A. self-indulgent) Abstemious means self-denying, temperate.

16. IMBROGLIO

    1. imbibition
    2. proviso
    3. fracas
    4. clarification
    5. settlement

    (E. settlement) Imbroglio means a noisy fight or a dispute. Choice E settlement is the best opposite. Choice A imbibition means to absorb ideas into the mind. Choice B proviso means something insisted on as part of an agreement, with each side giving up some of its demands. Choice C fracas is also a noisy dispute or brawl.

17. TACITLY

    1. thoughtlessly
    2. carelessly
    3. coherently
    4. openly expressed
    5. mildly amused

    (D. openly expressed) Tacitly means silently, without being openly expressed.

18. 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.

19. HIDEBOUND

    1. liberal
    2. dishonorable
    3. honorable
    4. conservative
    5. leathery

    (A. liberal) Hidebound means narrow-minded. Choice A liberal means openminded.

20. INDIGENT

    1. inconsequential
    2. nonnative
    3. extraterrestrial
    4. affluent
    5. compliant

    (D. affluent) Indigent means needy, poor. Choice D affluent means rich, wealthy, or prosperous. Choice E compliant means obliging.

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