Word Focus Synonym Sets test 05

Questions 1-15 are Antonyms. Find the word most nearly OPPOSITE in meaning to the given word.

1. Recalcitrant is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Submissive
B. Hot-headed
C. Arrogant
D. Supportive
E. Confused

2. Heretical is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Antediluvian
B. Forthright
C. Orthodox
D. Fastidious
E. Fervent

3. Volatile is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Flighty
B. Calm
C. Variegated
D. Rancid
E. Querulous

4. Obdurate is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Amenable
B. Jaundiced
C. Biased
D. Elevated
E. Haphazard

5. Bigoted is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Benumbed
B. Demeaning
C. Open-minded
D. Encircled
E. Astute

6. Nettle is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Exacerbate
B. Inflate
C. Prickle
D. Soothe
E. Prettify

7. Munificence is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Passivity
B. Stinginess
C. Joviality
D. Belligerence
E. Arrogance

8. Subversive is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Radical
B. Errant
C. Sycophantic
D. Generous
E. Conservative

9. Tractable is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Interminable
B. Glamorous
C. Harried
D. Elliptical
E. Obdurate

10. Irascible is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Fractious
B. Slovenly
C. Soporific
D. Even-tempered
E. High-minded

11. Humdrum is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Exciting
B. Enervating
C. Burnished
D. Beclouded
E. Asinine

12. Assuage is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Inundate
B. Intensify
C. Abrogate
D. Incarcerate
E. Revile

13. Parsimony is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Neutrality
B. Credulity
C. Largesse
D. Termination
E. Conurbation

14. Mitigate is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Exacerbate
B. Minimize
C. Aggrandize
D. Lionize
E. Plagiarize

15. Truculent is most nearly opposite in meaning to

A. Wandering
B. Dogmatic
C. Obtuse
D. Aberrant
E. Docile

Questions 16-20 are sentence completions. Choose the answer which contains the words that best fit the blanks and complete the meaning of the given sentence.

16. You might as well try to ____ an angry cobra, as to ____ the sergeant when he is in one of his moods.

A. divert - question
B. condone - soothe
C. capture - arouse
D. placate - pacify
E. taunt - enrage

17. In the days of the last owner, the stately home was run on a ____ scale; no guest left without remarking on the quality and profusion of food and drink.

A. lavish
B. military
C. reduced
D. ornate
E. modest

18. At that time, it was easy for unscrupulous politicians to ____ poor laborers to attack other workers who came from other states; however, these outbreaks of ____ declined as the economy improved.

A. persuade - expansiveness
B. incite - xenophobia
C. assist - rebellion
D. pay - philanthropy
E. suborn - inequity

19. Scientists have not been entirely successful in ____ fears that genetically modified crops pose a threat to consumers, although the issue does not seem as ____ as it once was.

A. mitigating - simple
B. arousing - polemical
C. allaying - contentious
D. generating - frightening
E. subsuming - relevant

20. The philosopher, divorced from reality, spent his time pondering the infinite, and left the ____ matters of food and clothing to his more ____ wife.

A. quotidian - erudite
B. urgent - energetic
C. numinous - worldly
D. pressing - alert
E. mundane - prosaic