Word Knowledge · Practice test 2

Correct answer: unwilling

Reluctant describes hesitation about doing something, so unwilling fits. Eager states the opposite attitude.

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Correct answer: able to be

The suffix -able turns a verb into an adjective meaning capable of being done, so portable means able to be carried and readable means able to be read.

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Correct answer: discourage

To encourage someone is to give them confidence to act, so discourage, meaning to take that confidence away, is the direct opposite.

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Correct answer: surveillance

A reconnaissance mission gathers information about enemy positions, so surveillance is the closest match.

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Correct answer: detect

To discern a difference is to perceive it when it is faint or subtle, so detect is the closest match. All four choices begin with the same two letters, which is the confusion this item tests.

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Correct answer: neat

A tidy workspace has everything in its place, so neat is the direct match.

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Correct answer: danger

Peril is serious risk or exposure to harm, so danger is the closest meaning.

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Correct answer: prevent

To preclude is to rule something out entirely, so prevent is the match. Complicate is the near miss the item is built around: stripped threads do not make reuse harder, they make it impossible.

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Correct answer: assemble

To dismantle something is to take it apart, so assemble, meaning to put it together, is the opposite.

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Correct answer: shortage

A surplus is more than is needed, so a shortage, having less than is needed, is the opposite. The other three are all ways of saying more than enough.

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Correct answer: reduce

To amplify a signal is to make it stronger, so reduce is the opposite. Magnify, boost, and intensify all push in the same direction as amplify.

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Correct answer: agreement

A consensus is general agreement across a group, so agreement is the closest match. Dispute is the opposite state.

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Correct answer: align

Events that coincide happen together or match up, so align is the closest match. Conflict points the opposite way, toward disagreement.

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Correct answer: believable

Plausible means it sounds reasonable enough to be accepted, without saying whether it is true. That is why false is wrong: the sentence leaves the truth of the explanation open.

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Correct answer: gathered

To compile is to bring separate pieces together into one whole, so gathered is the match. Duplicated is the trap: compiling combines the reports rather than copying them.

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Correct answer: mistake

A blunder is a careless or foolish mistake, so mistake is the closest match.

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Correct answer: murmur

To whisper is to speak in a very soft, breathy voice, so murmur is the closest match. Shout is the opposite volume.

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Correct answer: hardworking

A diligent worker keeps at the task with care and persistence, so hardworking is the closest match. Experienced describes what someone has done before rather than the effort they put in.

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Correct answer: widespread

Something ubiquitous seems to turn up everywhere you look, so widespread is the closest match.

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Correct answer: measure

Used as a verb, gauge means to determine an exact amount, so measure is the match. As a noun the same word names the instrument that does it, or the thickness of sheet metal and wire.

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Correct answer: workable

A viable plan or organism is capable of working or surviving, so workable is the closest match.

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Correct answer: lacking

To be deficient in something is to have too little of it, so lacking is the match. Rich would state the opposite condition of the soil.

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Correct answer: between or among

The prefix inter- means between or among, so international relations occur between nations and an interstate highway runs between states.

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Correct answer: approve

Applied to a vote on an agreement, sanction means to give official approval. The word can also mean a penalty, but that sense would not follow a vote to approve.

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Correct answer: mess

Clutter is an untidy pile of things taking up space, so mess is the closest meaning.

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Correct answer: cunning

A sly move is clever and concealed, so cunning is the closest match.

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Correct answer: gather

To assemble is to bring parts or people together into one place or one whole, so gather is the closest match.

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Correct answer: narrows gradually

A tapered shaft loses thickness steadily along its length, so narrows gradually is the match. The word is common in shop work, as in a taper pin or a tapered bearing.

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Correct answer: irregular

Erratic readings jump about with no pattern, so irregular is the match. Low would describe their value rather than their inconsistency.

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Correct answer: stop

To halt is to bring something to a stop, which is why the command is used for stopping a marching column.

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Correct answer: turbulent

Tranquil means calm and undisturbed, so turbulent, meaning full of disturbance, is the opposite.

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Correct answer: recover

To salvage cargo is to recover it from loss or damage, so recover fits the sunken ship described.

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Correct answer: supply coordination

Logistics covers the movement and supply of people and materials, so supply coordination is the closest match.

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Correct answer: extinguish

To quench is to put something out or satisfy it fully, whether a fire or a thirst, so extinguish is the closest match. In metalwork the same word names cooling hot steel quickly in liquid.

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Correct answer: landscape

Terrain refers to the physical features of a stretch of land, so landscape is the closest match.

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