In each of the following questions, out of the given alternatives,choose the one which best expresses the meaning of the given word.
Discontented
Answer: C
It is dissatisfied.
Discontented means not satisfied with one's situation. Contented and pleased are its opposites; disenchanted means having lost an illusion, which is a narrower thing.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Careless
Answer: A
It is negligent.
Careless means not taking proper care. Attentive, responsible and vigilant are all its opposites.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Doleful
Answer: B
It is mournful.
Doleful means expressing sorrow, from the same root as dolour. Cheerful, glad and bright are its opposites.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Accolade
Answer: E
It is honour.
An accolade is an award or expression of praise. The word first meant the embrace or touch on the shoulder by which a knight was created, from the Latin for the neck.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Nymph
Answer: E
It is fairy.
A nymph is a minor nature goddess of Greek myth, inhabiting rivers, trees and mountains. Flinch and clinch merely rhyme.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Obliterate
Answer: D
It is to blot out.
To obliterate is to destroy utterly or wipe out all trace, from the Latin for striking out a letter - littera. Initiate is its opposite.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Impetuous
Answer: E
It is rash.
Impetuous means acting quickly without thought, from the Latin for rushing at. Circumspect and reflective are its opposites.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Gall
Answer: B
It is bitterness.
Gall is bile, and figuratively bitterness of spirit - and, confusingly, also impudence, as in the gall to ask. Bitterness is the sense meant here.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Mural
Answer: B
It is a painting on a wall.
Mural comes from the Latin murus, wall. Strictly it is an adjective meaning of a wall, and the noun is short for mural painting.
Please log in or register to report this question.
Propriety
Answer: D
It is decorum.
Propriety is correctness of behaviour and manners. Misconduct is its opposite. Note it is not the same as property, though the two words share a root in what is one's own.
Please log in or register to report this question.
