Nouns, Verbs, and Adjectives or Adverbs in Three-Blank Texts

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GRE Verbal › Nouns, Verbs, and Adjectives or Adverbs in Three-Blank Texts

Questions 1 - 10
1

My neighbor's well-behaved, __________ son displayed his patience and __________ while he sat still amidst the chaos, refusing to wander and __________ about.

Stoic . . . Compliance . . . Ramble

Irritable . . . Cunning . . . Garrison

Erudite . . . Gravitas . . . Curtail

Fleeting . . . Apathy . . . Emigrate

Wizened . . . Ignominy . . . Appropriate

Explanation

You are told that the neighbor's son is "well-behaved" and shows "patience." From this information it is reasonable to conclude that the son could be described as "stoic" meaning calm, not emotional, impassive. Further, if the son is demonstrating his patience it makes sense that he is also demonstrating "compliance" or obedience, by not running around and disrupting his parent. Finally, the last blank is clearly related to running around heedlessly, so the correct answer is "ramble." To provide additional help, "irritable" means easily annoyed; "garrison" refers to troops stationed in a fort to protect it; "erudite" means well-educated, scholarly; "gravitas" means dignity; "curtail" means reduce in impact; "fleeting" means not lasting very long; "emigrate" means move to a new country; "apathy" means not caring; "wizened" means_ancient, very old_; "ignominy" means shame, disgrace; "appropriate" (when used as a verb) means take something not belonging to you and refit it to fit your need.

2

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

The scientist's theories initially seemed __________ at best, as there existed little evidence to support them; however, later advances in her field __________ her claims and she received many __________ for her work.

tenuous . . . corroborated . . . accolades

esoteric . . . disparaged . . . harangues

ambiguous . . . vindicated . . . elegies

empirical . . . bolstered . . . panegyrics

spurious . . . enervated . . . encomiums

Explanation

We know that initially, not a lot of evidence supported the scientist's theories. We know the word for the first blank is a adjective with a negative connotation because of the phrase "at best" that follows it; from these context clues, we can select "ambiguous," "esoteric," and "tenuous" as possible choices. For the second blank, we need a word similar to "confirmed," so "corroborated" and "vindicated" are both suitable choices. For the final blank, we need to choose between "accolades" (a wards granted as acknowledgments of merit) and "elegies" (laments for the dead), and "accolades" is the best choice. So, the correct answer is "tenuous . . . corroborated . . . accolades."

3

Often a person who is a mere __________ can appear to have a vast __________ of knowledge when he or she has a merely superficial grasp of __________ topics.

dilettante . . . accumulation . . . sundry

charlatan . . . scholarship . . . trivial

novice . . . collection . . . ordinary

greenhorn . . . repertoire . . . recurrent

perjurer . . . assimilation . . . elementary

Explanation

The options given for this question contain many tempting, but ultimately less correct, answers. A "novice" is someone who is new to a given field or position, as is a "greenhorn." A "charlatan" is someone who lies in claiming to have a given set of skills or knowledge. One could very easily convince oneself that these sets are correct; however, the best hint for the answer is the "superficial grasp." A "dilettante" is specifically a person who gathers together various forms of knowledge without any interest in going deeply into the details. We might call such a person a "dabbler." He or she would accumulate knowledge on a variety of topics. "Sundry" means of several kinds or, merely_, various._

4

The aged scholar was well known for his __________, having written __________ articles on many issues of cellular mutation from the most __________ of topics to large-scale, systemic investigations.

erudition . . . innumerable . . . minute

education . . . countless . . . intriguing

brilliance . . . amazing . . . tedious

influence . . . redundant . . . influential

supremacy . . . numbing . . . applicable

Explanation

The last blank of the sentence may be the simplest to fill in first. The scholar is known for writing on issues that are either large-scale or what seems to be contrasted to this, namely "small-scale." The word "minute" is not the same as the time measurement (i.e. minutes vs. hours). "Minute," in this context, means small. Thus, he wrote on minute, detailed topics as well as large-scale investigations. For such work, he was likely known for his vast learning and erudition. This does not mean he was known for his education or even his brilliance. "Erudition" describes having attained an impressive degree of learning and scholarship. Finally, we can guess that he has written many articles. (This is hinted at by the fact that he wrote "on many issues.") It is quite reasonable to describe these articles as being "innumerable."

5

Although the stadium had been filled with a(n) __________ of voices and sounds, it was now stilled to a(n) __________. The people stood with mouths silent and __________ as the lightning struck multiple times on the field.

cacophony . . . hush . . . agape

crowd . . . din . . . amazed

blather . . . whisper . . . teeming

elation . . . murmur . . . horrified

mixture . . . mumble . . . kinetic

Explanation

This whole sentence indicates that the stadium was filled with sound but then became "silent." It is key to note this word, for the stadium did not merely become quiet. Thus, options like "whisper," "murmur," and "mumble" are not acceptable for our purposes. If the people's mouths were silent, they were either closed or open without making a sound. To be "agape" is to be hanging open, often in amazement. This works well. To be "stilled to a hush" means to be brought to absolute silence. Finally, a "cacophony" is a loud and unpleasant mixture of sounds—a situation which seems to be well described regarding the initial state of the stadium.

6

Choose the word or set of words that, when inserted into the sentence, best completes the sentence.

George decided to __________ eating red meat to reduce his high cholesterol, as he had been told by his doctor that his current diet was __________ to his overall health; it was a difficult lifestyle change, as he had a __________ for hamburgers.

abstain from . . . deleterious . . . predilection

cease . . . pernicious . . . platitude

forbear from . . . volatile . . . paradox

bolster . . . pragmatic . . . anachronism

impugn . . . disparate . . . abeyance

Explanation

For the first blank, we need a verb that means something like stop. "Abstain from," "forbear from," and "cease" could all work, as they mean just that. For the second blank, we're looking for an adjective that means something like "causing harm"; either "deleterious" (causing harm or damage) or "pernicious" (having a gradual harmful effect) could work. For the last blank, we need a noun that means something like "fondness"; in choosing between "predilection" (a preference for something) and"platitude" (a moral saying used too often to be interesting or thoughtful), "predilection" is the better choice, so the answer is "abstain from . . . deleterious . . . predilection."

7

The __________ work of Isidore of Seville __________ all known topics of his era into a single text. It was named after his __________ methodology, which utilized grammar and history to explain the origins of the words listed in the tome.

exhaustive . . . collated . . . etymological

tenacious . . . investigated . . . habitual

classic . . . recounted . . . questionable

intriguing . . . linked . . . philological

impressive . . . undergirded . . . research

Explanation

The final blank of this sentence is probably the best place to start with this question. The methodology described is that of using etymologies, which are the historical origins of a given word. (This was, in fact, the method followed by Isidore of Seville in his aptly named Etymologiae.) For the second blank, notice that the sentence says that the various topics were gathered brought "into a single text." The word that most quickly comes to mind is "gathered." While this is not an option, "collated" is, for it means to collect or gather together. It literally comes from the roots "col-," meaning with or together, and "-late," which here means to bring. (There is an etymology for you, too!) Such a work likely is comprehensive or, as is an option here, "exhaustive."

8

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

Although many of its particular scientific facts are dated, the Physics of Aristotle retains a(n) ____________ worth for philosophical reflection. Its treatment of motion and change can help to ____________ any discussion as regards the general topics to be treated regarding the ____________ that we encounter in our everyday lives.

enduring . . . orient . . . mutability

astonishing . . . alleviate . . . ontology

staggering . . . fortify . . . metaphysics

technical . . . temper . . . logic

pedagogical . . . elevate . . . philosophy

Explanation

Well, this is a somewhat strange sentence! Still, it is very approachable, so long as you pay attention to each clue. Note for the first blank that the sentence basically says that the Physics has a continuing worth, even though some of its facts are out of date. Thus, the worth endures or can be said to have an enduring worth. Now, for the second option, we are looking for something that expresses the idea of "giving a general direction." Whenever we get our "orientation", we get this general idea of the lay of the land. The word "orient" is derived from the Latin for east. Hence, getting your orientation could be understood as "finding East." This helps you to know your overall situation (indeed, all of the directions—North, South, East, and West). Finally, the last sentence really should only refer to something in the sentence. It doesn't presuppose any philosophical knowledge on your part. Thus, if motion and change are the topics treated in the Physics, then it is safe to say that "mutability" is the best option for the third blank. This word is clearly related to words like "mutation" and "mutable," both of which deal with changes and alterations.

9

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

A gardener must learn to __________ hedges and trees well, for such __________ will become quite ___________ without such paring.

prune . . . vegetation . . . overgrown

plow . . . existents . . . vexing

belittle . . . property . . . testy

cut . . . largess . . . horrendous

assay . . . tasks . . . indolent

Explanation

The word "paring" provides our first and clearest clue. It means to trim the outside of something. This means that the gardener is doing such cutting. "Cut," however, is only partially synonymous. "Pruning" is the process of paring a plant. The second blank refers back to the hedges and trees, which can be called by the general term "vegetation." Finally, the third blank describes what will happen if such vegetation is not cut properly: it will become "overgrown."

10

I feel such a strong sense of __________ at the __________ fees charged by my local bank that I am thinking of __________ banking institutions altogether.

Indignation . . . Exorbitant . . . Eschewing

Mendacity . . . Cumbersome . . . Espousing

Credulity . . . Wanton . . . Delineating

Indulgence . . . Halcyon . . . Jettisoning

Zealotry . . . Miniscule . . . Remedying

Explanation

From context it is clear that the author of this sentence has strong feelings about banks; it is not clear what the nature of those feelings are, so you have to try to see which three words fit together logically. The correct answer is, therefore, "indignation" (anger at a perceived injustice, umbrage); "exorbiant" (excessively costly); "eschewing" (abstaining from). To provide additional help, “mendacity” means untruthfulness, dishonesty; “cumbersome” means heavy, a burden; “espousing” means declaring; “credulity” means a tendency to believe everything; “wanton” means random; “delineating” means making a list of; “indulgence” means allowing oneself to gratify a desire; “halcyon” means happy, idyllic, a period of time in the past that was carefree; “jettisoning” means getting rid of; “zealotry” is passion, uncompromising and intense belief in some dogma; “miniscule” means tiny; “remedying” means fixing.

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