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English Usage
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Choose the word or set of words for each blank in the following questions that best fits the meaning of the
sentence.

1. Many species of intertidal fish have developed ..... abilities that enable them to ..... a particular location, generally
a tide pool, that provides a suitable refuge.
(1) foraging, do without (2) compensatory, aspire to
(3) natural, vanish from (4) singular, escape from
(5) homing, return to

2. There are any number of theories to explain these events and, since the experts disagree, it is ..... the rest of us in
our role as responsible scholars to ..... dogmatic statements.
(1) paradoxical for, abstain from (2) arrogant of, compensate with
(3) incumbent on, refrain from (4) opportune for, quarrel over
(5) appropriate for, issue forth

3. It may be useful to think of character in fiction as a function of two ..... impulses : the impulse to individualize and the
impulse to .....
(1) analogous, humanize (2) disparate, aggrandize (3) divergent, typify (4) comparable, delineate
(5) related, moralize

4. It is this tightly circumscribed scene that gives to Mrs. Woolf’s novels, despite her modernity of technique and insight,
their odd and delicious air of ..... as of some small village world, as bright and vivid and perfect in its ..... as a
miniature.
(1) anachronism, transience (2) parochialism, tininess
(3) cynicism, rusticity (4) intrigue, antiquity
(5) fragility, petiteness

5. There was so much ..... material in the argument, ideas dragged in without reference to the case, that it was
singularly ..... to grasp the budding lawyer’s point.
(1) exceptional, unrewarding (2) variegated, effortless
(3) hypothetical, superficial (4) superficial, irrelevant
(5) extraneous, difficult

Select the lettered answer that contains the best version of the underlined section.

6. The addendum have circulated through the channels of the system for at least a year, but now the committee is trying
to follow the trial.
(1) The addendum (2) The addenda
(3) Since the addendum (4) Because of the addenda
(5) As the addenda

7. During the conflict between the two countries, every contingency, including some members of the inactive reserves,
were called upon to help.
(1) were called upon to help (2) was called upon to help
(3) is calling upon to help (4) was calling upon to help
(5) had been calling upon to help

8. The line of men was led into stadium, every warrior bearing his own weapon, and each one of the men were taken
to alocation to wait until his fight.
(1) every warrior bearing his own weapon, and each one of the men taken to a location to wait until his fight.
(2) every warrior bearing his own weapon, and each one of the men was taken to a location to wait until his fight.
(3) every warrior bearing his own weapon, and each one of the men were being taken to a location to wait until his
fight.
(4) every warrior bearing his own weapon, and all of the ones of the men were taken to a location to wait until his
fight.
(5) every warrior bearing his own weapon, and each one of the men had been taken to a location to wait until his fight.
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9. After hundreds of hours of research, the team of scientists finally announced that the bacteria grows mainly in the
dark recesses of the of the cavern, so no threat was posed to anyone.
(1) the bacteria grows only in the dark recesses of the cavern
(2) the bacteria grow only in the dark recesses of the cavern
(3) the bacterium grow only in the dark recesses of the cavern
(4) the bacteria is grown only in the dark recesses of the cavern
(5) the bacteria used to grow only in the dark recesses of the cavern

10. A flock of geese fly high, usually in a specific formation, communicate with other flocks in flight, and land in droves.
(1) A flock of geese fly high, usually in specific formation, communicate with other flocks in flight, and land in
droves.
(2) A flock of geese flies high, usually in a specific formation, communicate with other flocks in flight, and land in
droves.
(3) A flock of geese fly high, usually in a specific formation, communicates with other flocks in a flight, and land in
droves.
(4) A flock of geese flies high, usually in a specific formation, communicates with other flocks in flight, and lands in
drove.
(5) A flock of geese flies high, usually in a specific formation, communicating with other flocks in flight, and lands
in drove.

Choose the lettered word or phrase that is most nearly similar in meaning to the word in capital letters.

11. TEMERITY
(1) timidity (2) resourcefulness (3) boldness (4) tremulousness
(5) caution

12. PLATITUDE
(1) fatness (2) bravery (3) dimension (4) trite remark
(5) strong belief

13. MELEE
(1) heat (2) brawl (3) attempt (4) weapon
(5) choice

14. GARISH
(1) sordid (2) flashy (3) prominent (4) lusty
(5) thoughtful

15. CITE
(1) galvanize (2) visualize (3) locate (4) quote
(5) signal

Choose the lettered word or phrase that is most nearly opposite in meaning to the word in capital letters.

16. OBTUSE
(1) sheer (2) transparent (3) tranquil (4) timid
(5) shrewd

17. RUDIMENTARY
(1) pale (2) polite (3) asinine (4) developed
(5) quiescent

18. SENILITY
(1) virility (2) loquaciousness (3) forgetfulness (4) youth
(5) majority

19. TURBID
(1) clear (2) improbable (3) invariable (4) honest
(5) turgid

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20. PUNCTILIOUS
(1) happy (2) active (3) vivid (4) careless
(5) futile

Select the lettered pair in the following analogy questions that best expresses a relationship similar to
that expressed in the original capitalised pair.

21. SIGN : ZODIAC

(1) poster : billboard (2) letter : alphabet (3) prediction :prophecy (4) signal : beacon
(5) rhyme : almanac

22. PUGNACIOUS : BATTLE

(1) timorous : beg (2) loquacious : drink (3) tenacious : persist (4) veracious : lie
(5) wicked : survive

23. PROOF : ALCOHOL

(1) cream : milk (2) canteen : water (3) tanker : oil (4) octane : gasoline
(5) pulp : juice

24. PECCADILLO : TRIFLING

(1) pariah : popular (2) diagnosis : accurate (3) notion : farfetched (4) squabble : petty
(5) pursuit : trivial

25. RICOCHET : BULLET

(1) soar : falcon (2) aim : crossbow (3) pierce : dart (4) carom : ball
(5) catapult : missile

Objective Key
1.(5) 2.(3) 3.(3) 4.(2) 5.(5) 6.(2) 7.(2) 8.(2) 9.(2) 10.(4)
11.(3) 12.(4) 13.(2) 14.(2) 15.(4) 16.(5) 17.(4) 18.(4) 19.(1) 20.(4)
21.(2) 22.(3) 23.(4) 24.(4) 25.(4)

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