Synonyms Questions and Answers

Answer: C

Famous is the synonym of ILLUSTRIOUS.

Illustrious means well known, respected and admired for one's achievements, as Gandhiji is. Famous (widely known) is the nearest of the four choices.

The others are antonyms. Unknown is the plain opposite of famous, ordinary means having no special distinction, and worthless means having no value. None can describe a person whose distinction makes him renowned.

Answer: C

Kind is the synonym of MERCIFUL.

Merciful means showing mercy: being compassionate and forgiving towards someone one has the power to punish or harm. Kind, meaning friendly, generous and considerate, is the nearest in meaning.

Cruel, brutal and harsh all describe a lack of mercy, the willingness to cause pain or to treat others severely, so they are antonyms of the capitalised word.

Answer: B

The antonym of credible is unreliable.

Credible (from Latin credere, to believe) means believable and worthy of trust. A credible statement is one the court can rely on, so its opposite is a statement that is unreliable.

Believable and truthful are synonyms, not opposites. Logical describes reasoning that hangs together; a statement can be logical and still not be believed, so it is neither a synonym nor an antonym.

Answer: A

The antonym of unanimous is divided.

Unanimous (Latin unus, one, and animus, mind) describes a decision on which everyone agrees, with no dissent. Its opposite is a divided decision, where members disagree.

Agreed is close to a synonym. Collective means taken by the group together, which a unanimous decision also is, and common means shared. None of these expresses disagreement.

Answer: B

The synonym of comprehensive is detailed.

Comprehensive means complete, covering all or nearly all parts of something. The sentence itself confirms it: the lecture 'covered every aspect of the topic'. Detailed, meaning thorough and full of particulars, is the closest of the four.

Brief is close to an antonym, since a brief lecture leaves things out. Confusing says nothing about coverage, only about clarity, and ordinary describes quality, not completeness.

Answer: B

The synonym of alleviate is reduce.

Alleviate means to make suffering, a problem or a burden less severe: to alleviate pain, alleviate poverty. Measures that alleviate poverty reduce it.

Increase is the opposite. Observe means to watch or notice, and ignore means to pay no attention; neither has anything to do with lessening a problem. A related word is mitigate, which also means to lessen.

Answer: A

The synonym of arduous given in the key is Steep.

Arduous comes from the Latin arduus, meaning steep or high, and besides its usual sense of 'very difficult, needing great effort' it is used of a slope or path that is steep and hard to climb, as in 'an arduous ascent'. That older, literal sense is the one the key relies on.

Easy and trivial are near opposites of arduous, since an arduous task is neither easy nor of little importance. With steep available as a genuine sense of the word, 'None of these' is ruled out.

Answer: D

The synonym of brisk is Quick.

Brisk means active, energetic and fast, as in 'a brisk walk' or 'brisk business'. Quick carries the same sense of speed and liveliness.

The other three options are its antonyms: sluggish means slow and lacking energy, dull means lifeless or uninteresting, and slow is the plain opposite of quick. Each describes exactly the state a brisk person or pace is not in.

Answer: B

The synonym of candid is Frank.

A candid person speaks openly and honestly, without hiding unpleasant truths, as in 'a candid admission'. Frank means the same: open, direct and sincere.

The other three are opposites. Sly and wily describe someone cunning who gets his way by trickery, and deceitful describes someone who misleads others on purpose. All three involve concealment, the very thing candour lacks.

Answer: C

The synonym of effeminate is Womanish.

Effeminate is used, usually disapprovingly, of a man who has qualities traditionally thought typical of women. It comes from the Latin effeminare, 'to make womanish', so womanish is its direct equivalent.

Manly is its opposite. Hard and robust describe toughness and strong health, qualities traditionally linked with the masculine, so they point away from the meaning rather than towards it.