Commonly Confused Words: Exercise 1

IDIRECTIONS for the question 1 to 8: In the question, there are four sentences. Each sentence has pairs of words / phrases that are italicized and highlighted. From the italicized and highlighted word (s) / phrase (s), select the most appropriate word (s) / phrase (s) to form correct sentences. Then, from the options given, choose the best one.
  1. The cricket council that was [A] / were [B] elected last March is [A] / are [B] at sixes and sevens over new rules.
    The critics censored [A] / censured [B] the new movie because of its social unacceptability.
    Amit's explanation for missing the meeting was credulous [A] / credible [B].
    She coughed discreetly [A] / discretely [B] to announce her presence.
    1. if
    2. BBAAA
    3. AAABA
    4. BBBBA
    5. AABBA
    6. BBBAA
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  3. The further [A] / farther [B] he pushed himself, the more disillusioned he grew.
    For the crowds it was more of a historical [A] / historic [B] event; for their leader, it was just another day.
    The old man has a healthy distrust [A] / mistrust [B] for all new technology. This film is based on a real [A] / true [B] story.
    One suspects that the compliment [A] / complement [B] was backhanded.
    1. ABAB
    2. ABBBA
    3. BAABA
    4. BBAAB
    5. ABABA
  4. Regrettably [A] / Regretfully [B] I have to decline your invitation.
    I am drawn to the poetic, sensual [A] / sensuous [B] quality of her paintings.
    He was besides [ A] / beside [B] himself with rage when I told him what I had done.
    After brushing against a stationary [A] /stationery [B] truck my car turned turtle.
    As the water began to rise over [A] / above [B] the danger mark, the signs of an imminent flood were clear.
    1. BAABA
    2. BBAB
    3. AAABA
    4. BBAAB
    5. BABAB
  5. Anita wore a beautiful broach(A)/brooch(B) on the lapel of her jacket.
    If you want to complain about the amenities in your neighborhood, please meet your councilor(A)/counselor(B).
    I would like your advice(A)/advise(B) on which job I should choose.
    The last scene provided a climactic(A)/climatic(B) ending to the film.
    Jeans that flair(A)/flare(B) at the bottom are in fashion these days.
    1. BABAA
    2. BABAB
    3. BAAAB
    4. ABABA
    5. BAABA
  1. The cake had lots of currents(A)/currants(B) and nuts in it.
    If you engage in such exceptional(A)/exceptionable(B) behavior, I will be forced to punish you.
    He has the same capacity as an adult to consent(A)/assent(B) to surgical treatment.
    The minister is obliged(A)/compelled(B) to report regularly to a parliamentary board.
    His analysis of the situation is far too sanguine(A)/genuine(B).
    1. BBABA
    2. BBAAA
    3. BBBBA
    4. ABBAB
    5. BABAB
  2. She managed to bite back the ironic (A)/caustic(B) retort on the tip of her tongue.
    He gave an impassioned and valid (A)/cogent(B) plea for judicial reform.
    I am not adverse (A)/averse(B) to helping out.
    The coupe(A)/coup(B) broke away as the train climbed the hill.
    They heard the bells peeling (A)/pealing(B) far and wide.
    1. BBABA
    2. BBBAB
    3. BAABB
    4. ABBAA
    5. BBBBA
  3. We were not successful in defusing(A)/diffusing(B) the Guru’s ideas.
    The students baited(A)/bated(B) the instructor with irrelevant questions.
    The hoard(A)/horde(B) rushed into the campus.
    The prisoner’s interment(A)/internment(B) came to an end with his early release.
    The hockey team could not deal with his unsociable(A)/unsocial(B) tendencies.
    1. BABBA
    2. BBABB
    3. BABAA
    4. ABBAB
    5. AABBA
  4. Personality is a term with many varying (A)/differing (B) connotations (A)/nuances (B), depending on the gist (A)/context (B) of usage. In medical and psychological argot (A)/parlance (B), personality is used to denote those characteristics of a person that account for consistent patterns of feeling, thinking and behaving”; unique and enduring (A)/endearing (B) patterns of behaviour and emotional response which make us distinct individuals.
    1. BAABB
    2. BAABA
    3. AABBA
    4. ABAAB
Directions for the question 9 to 15: In the question, there are a set of sentences. Each sentence has pairs of words / phrases that are highlighted. From the highlighted word (s) / phrase (s), select the most appropriate word (s) / phrase (s) to form correct sentences. Then, from the options given, choose the best one.
  1. 1. The polar bear is adapted to (A) / for (B) the sub zero temperature.
    2. He corresponded to (A) / with (B) many of the top European leaders of his time.
    3. The impact was less (A) / lesser (B) than what was expected.
    4. It must have been she (A) / her (B) who called.
    5. The presidential candidate ensured (A) / assured (B) his listeners that there would be no more poverty once she was elected.
    1. AAAAA
    2. BBBBB
    3. ABAAB
    4. ABBAA
  2. 1. My teenage years were also shot through with errant (A) / arrant (B) stupidity.
    2. In its revised format the Awards became biennial (A) / biannual (B) taking place every two years.
    3. The banality of Rhoda Brook’s stories militated (A) / mitigated (B) against their becoming popular.
    4. The gallery attempts to weld a number of seemingly disparate (A) / disparage (B) themes together to make us think about our place in the universe
    5. Late Capitalism more particularly strives to explain the contemporary history of capitalism by its immanent (A) / imminent (B) laws of motion.
    1. AABAA
    2. AAAAA
    3. BABAA
    4. ABBAA
  3. 1. There was no need to enervate/innervate the supporters gathered for the Chief Minister’s oath taking ceremony as the people were already riding high on enthusiasm.
    2. The moral brigade has taken up the mandate to remove from society what it unilaterally considers to be exceptionable/exceptional.
    3. It is often seen that people rush in with incoherent/inchoate ideas that are still in their nascent stages, and in the process, lose their chance of presenting something which meets the desired standards.
    4. Shouting out epithets/epitaphs in public is never a good idea and can damage your social standing for sure.
    5. Elicit/illicit activities of the state’s politicians have led to a situation where the state’s exchequer is almost bankrupt.
    1. BBABA
    2. BABAB
    3. AABAB
    4. AAAAB
  4. As the country gears (A)/revs(B) up for the general elections and while we are at this exciting junction (A)/juncture (B) of carving (A)/sculpting (B) out new opportunities for the people of India, two lessons are important (A)/premier (B) for political leaders to reflect (A) / manifest(B) on.
    1. ABAAA
    2. AABAA
    3. BBAAA
    4. BBBAA
  5. It would be a practical (A) / practicable (B) accomplishment if we were to leave Iraq; however, now that we are there it isn’t really practicable (A) / practical (B).
    D-Wave Systems chose two very practical (A) / practicable (B) problems to demonstrate its 16- qubit processor, which it has called Orion.
    When Sir Alec started out, economists were not thought of as practical (A) / practicable (B) people, offering solutions to contemporary problems.
    We’d have to give up the research; the study wouldn’t be practicable (A) / practical (B) without the waiver.
    1. AABAA
    2. AAAAB
    3. AABAB
    4. BBAAB
  6. While nervous about his priority score, the investigator put on a pretence (A) / pretext (B) of nonchalance.
    He said he was coming to learn to play tennis but he came under false pretences (A) / pretext (B); he really wanted to steal the tennis balls.
    The leaders used the insults as a pretext (A) / pretense (B) to declare war.
    The investigator used his writing responsibilities as a pretext (A) / pretence (B) for not attending the meeting.
    Flogging would be overtly punitive, as modern incarceration is, but it would abandon the pretence (A) / pretext (B) of rehabilitative potential, which incarceration retains.
    1. AAAAB
    2. ABBAB
    3. AAAAA
    4. BABBA
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  8. Milan sat through the session gazing abstractly (A) / abstractedly (B) through the window.
    The board passed by acclamation (A) / acclimation (B) a motion to fund the AIDS program.
    If anything sets him a part (A) / apart (B) it is his volunteer work at the orphanage.
    I've been doing my best to reduce the backlog but I must admit that I've hardly made a dent (A) / made a foot (B) in the problem so far.
    The foreign minister effected (A) / affected (B) nonchalance, although really he was deeply hurt by the snub.
    1. BABAB
    2. ABBBA
    3. BAABB
    4. BABAA
1. D Council is a collective noun and will take a singular verb.
The critics can only criticize and not censor anything.
2. B Farther is used for distance while further means to a greater degree.
The appropriate word in the second sentence is historic, meaning – of great importance.
Mistrust means ill placed trust whereas the old man does not seem to believe much in new technology.
Films are based on true stories.
Compliment means to praise while complement means to complete.
3. B Regretfully is the best option.
It is an expression of disappointment.
Sensuous is the appropriate usage.
It relates to the pleasure of senses.
Besides is the correct word, beside is a preposition.
Stationary means immobile, hence the correct option.
Water rises above the danger mark and not over the danger mark.
4. C Brooch - jewellery and item for jewellery,
Broach - to think.
Councillor – representative of local authority, Counsellor – Advisor.
Climactic – constituting a climax,
climatic – relating to climate.
Flair – aptitude,
flare – expanding outward. Option C is correct.
5. B Currants – fruits.
Exceptional – uncommon/extra ordinary, Exceptionable – objectionable.
Consent – to accept/give acceptance,
Assent – agreement.
Obliged – legal obligations,
Compel – to force.
Sanguine – optimistic,
Genuine – real.   Option B is correct
6. B Caustic – bitter.
Cogent plea (idiomatic usage)
Adverse – unfavorable,
Averse – opposed.
Coupé – a small compartment,
Coup – a struggle.
Peeling – to scrap off,
Pealing – a set of bells tuned to each other. Option B is correct
7. A Defused – reduce severity of,
Diffuse – spread.
Bated – to lessen,
Bait – to harass.
Hoard – to accumulate,
Horde – a large group.
Internment – to confine.
Unsociable – unfriendly. Option A is correct
8. C Option 3. Personality means different things when used in different contexts. Hence we need varying as it shows diversity and connotations because we are talking about differences in meanings. Parlance means a way or manner of speaking; vernacular; idiom: legal parlance. Enduring means long lasting or permanent. And Endearing means tending to make dear or beloved.
9. C Adapted to means naturally suited; adapted for means created to.
Correspond to means in agreement with; Correspond with to exchange letters.
Less than is comparing; lesser is used as an adjective. 
It must have been” is to be a verb so the pronoun must be in subject form ‘she’ not ‘her
To ensure something is to take steps to make sure that something happens; To assure something is to make certain that it will happen or has happened or to promise that something will be done as said.
10. C arrant - That is plainly such; out – and – out; notorious an arrant fool, errant - erring or straying from what is right or the right course, shifting about
Biennial – happening every two years, lasting or living two years, Biannual – coming twice a year; semiannual.
Militate – to influence toward or against a change. Mitigate – to lessen, make easier or bearable.
Disparate – essentially not alike; distinct or different in kind; unequal Disparage – to lower in esteem; discredit, to speak slightingly of; show disrespect for; belittle
Immanent – living, remaining, or operating within; inherent. Imminent – likely to happen without delay; impending; threatening: said of danger, evil, misfortune
11. B Sentence 1:
Enervate means to decrease or to reduce vitality or strength.
Innervate means to stimulate (a nerve, muscle, or body part) to action.
Sentence 2:
Exceptionable means liable to be objectionable or offensive.
Exceptional means differing from the norm, either better than average or worse than average:
Sentence 3:
Incoherent means lacking orderly cohesion or relevance; not logically connected; disjointed; rambling; lacking orderly continuity.
Inchoate means initial rudimentary formulation of something; just begun; in the early stage; rudimentary; not yet clearly or completely formed or organized; imperfectly formulated; such as, an idea.
Sentence 4:
Epitaph is something written or said in memory of a dead person; especially, words written on a gravestone.
Epithet, on the other hand, is a term used to characterize, or to describe, a person or thing. Epithet can also be in sense of an offensive word or name that is used as a way of abusing or insulting someone or others.
Sentence 5:
Elicit means to draw out, extract, or to bring forth:
Illicit, on the other hand, means not permitted, unlawful, illegal, banned.
12. A Option 1. “To rev up” means to accelerate or increase. Here the correct word should mean to get ready for a coming action or event which is “gears up”. “A juncture” is a line or point at which two bodies are joined, or a point of exigency or crisis in time. A junction is an act of joining; combining or the state of being joined; union. “Carving” means to make or create for (often fol. by out): He carved out a career in business, while “sculpting” means to shape, mold, or fashion especially with artistry or precision. “Manifest” means “readily perceived by the eye or the understanding; evident; obvious; apparent; plain: a manifest error.”
13. B Option 2. Practicable means “able to be carried out, feasible”. Practical means “makes sense and can be carried out, Based on reality or action rather than ideas or imagination, Suitable, appropriate”
14. C Option 3. A pretence is feigning; make-believe. A pretext is something that is put forward to conceal a true purpose or object; an ostensible reason, excuse.
In the first sentence, the investigator is pretending or feigning, hence pretence. In the second, to come under false pretences means false representation of fact or circumstance. In the third, the leaders used the insults as an excuse to declare war. In the fourth, the investigator used his responsibilities as an excuse. In the last sentence, the meaning is false claim.
15. A Option 1: BABAB.  Abstractedly means lost in thought; deeply engrossed or preoccupied. Abstractly means thought of apart from concrete realities, specific objects, or actual instances. 
Acclamation means a loud shout or other demonstration of welcome, goodwill, or approval. Acclimation means to accustom or become accustomed to a new climate or environment; adapt. Apart means to or at one side, with respect to place, purpose, or function.
To make a dent in means to show initial progress; pass an initial stage of (work, thought, solving a problem, etc.)
Affect means to pretend.
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