Q1. wan : color :: ________ : ________Correct Option E … Explanation: "Wan" means pale, or lacking colour. The relationship is "lacking in." "Listless" means lacking energy or vigour, so it fits exactly. Options B, C and D show the opposite relationship: robust means full of health, vivid means full of imagination and candid means full of honesty. Option A is also "characterised by," because something tedious is full of monotony. Hence, option E.Q2. cartographer : maps :: ________ : ________Correct Option A … Explanation: A cartographer is a specialist who makes maps. The relationship is "specialist : what he or she creates." A horologist makes clocks and watches, which are timepieces. Option B pairs a worker with a workplace. Options C and E pair a worker with a tool or material. Option D pairs a worker with an associated condition. Hence, option A.Q3. flock : sheep :: ________ : ________Correct Option D … Explanation: A group of sheep is called a flock. The relationship is "collective noun : animal." A group of whales is called a pod. The other options mismatch the collective nouns. A pride is a group of lions, and a herd is a group of cattle. A swarm refers to insects, and geese form a gaggle. A group of fish is a school or shoal, while colony is used for ants, bats and similar animals. Hence, option D.Q4. parsimonious : lavish :: ________ : ________Correct Option C … Explanation: "Parsimonious" means extremely sparing with money, and "lavish" means extravagant, so the two words are antonyms. "Taciturn" means reserved and untalkative, and "loquacious" means very talkative, so they are also antonyms. Options A, B, D and E are all pairs of synonyms or near-synonyms. Hence, option C.Q5. drought : famine :: ________ : ________Correct Option A … Explanation: A drought causes famine. The relationship is "cause : harmful consequence." Negligence likewise causes accidents, which are harmful outcomes. Option B is cause and effect, but the effect is beneficial. Option C shows a condition and its remedy. Option D pairs a condition with the place it is treated. In Option E, ambition does not necessarily bring a reward, and a reward is not harmful. Hence, option A.Q6. blade : shear :: ________ : ________Correct Option D … Explanation: A blade is used to shear, or cut. The relationship is "tool : the action it performs." A hammer is used to pound. Options A and E pair a tool with the material it works on. Option B pairs a tool with a place, and Option C pairs a tool with the person who uses it. Hence, option D.Q7. sonnet : fourteen :: ________ : ________Correct Option C … Explanation: A sonnet is a poem of exactly fourteen lines. The relationship is "poetic form : fixed number of lines." A haiku is a poem of exactly three lines. Options A and D pair a form with a feature, not a fixed count. In Option B, a novel's number of chapters is not fixed. Option E pairs a unit of poetry with poetry in general. Hence, option C.Q8. dilapidated : decrepit :: ________ : ________Correct Option B … Explanation: "Dilapidated" and "decrepit" both describe something worn out and in ruin, so they are synonyms. "Pristine" and "immaculate" both describe something spotlessly clean and untouched, so they are also synonyms. Options A, C, D and E are all pairs of antonyms. Hence, option B.Q9. ember : conflagration :: ________ : ________Correct Option D … Explanation: An ember is a small glowing fragment that can grow into a conflagration, or a huge destructive fire. The relationship is "small beginning : large, destructive outcome." A rumour can similarly escalate into a full-blown scandal. Option A reverses the scale, because a gust is stronger than a breeze. Options B and C show a by-product, not an escalation. Option E pairs two unrelated fire-related objects. Hence, option D.Q10. placate : appease :: ________ : ________Correct Option A … Explanation: "Placate" and "appease" are synonyms that both mean to calm or pacify someone. "Mollify" and "soothe" are also synonyms meaning to calm, so they match both the relationship and the sense. Options B and C are synonym pairs, but they mean to agitate and to scold, not to calm. The words in Option D are not synonyms. Option E is a pair of antonyms. Hence, option A.Q11. vintner : winery :: ________ : ________Correct Option B … Explanation: A vintner is a winemaker who works at a winery. The relationship is "specialist : place of work." An apiarist is a beekeeper who works at an apiary, a place where bees are kept. The other options are traps based on similar-sounding words. A cobbler mends shoes and has nothing to do with cobblestones. A farrier shoes horses, which is not the same as working a farm. A chandler makes candles, not candlelight. Masonry is a mason's work product, not a workplace. Hence, option B.Q12. frugal : miserly :: ________ : ________Correct Option B … Explanation: Being frugal is a reasonable virtue, and taken to an extreme it becomes miserliness. The relationship is "moderate trait : its excessive degree." Being wary is sensible caution, and taken to an extreme it becomes paranoia. Options A, C, D and E are all pairs of antonyms, not differences of degree. Hence, option B.Q13. pungent : odor :: strident : ________Correct Option C … Explanation: "Pungent" describes a sharp, strong odour. The relationship is "harsh or intense quality : the sensation it describes." "Strident" describes a loud, harsh sound. Option A, a melody, is usually pleasant rather than harsh. Option B, silence, is the absence of sound. Option D, a whisper, is the opposite of strident. Option E, an echo, is a reflected sound and not the category itself. Hence, option C.Q14. myopic : nearsighted :: sanguine : ________Correct Option E … Explanation: "Myopic" is a synonym of "nearsighted." "Sanguine" means cheerfully optimistic, so the synonym is "optimistic." Option A plays on "sanguine" sounding like blood, and Option B plays on the idea of lacking blood. Option C, morose, is an antonym. Option D, cautious, is unrelated. Hence, option E.Q15. shard : glass :: splinter : ________Correct Option A … Explanation: A shard is a sharp broken fragment of glass. The relationship is "fragment : the material it comes from." A splinter is a thin, sharp fragment of wood. Metal produces filings or shavings, fabric produces threads, stone produces chips, and clay produces shards or crumbs. Hence, option A.Q16. ravenous : hunger :: parched : ________Correct Option D … Explanation: "Ravenous" describes an extreme state of hunger. The relationship is "extreme state : the need it expresses." "Parched" describes an extreme state of thirst. Option A is unrelated. Options B and C are causes that can make land or people parched, not the state itself. Option E repeats the first pair. Hence, option D.Q17. blacksmith : forge :: chemist : ________Correct Option C … Explanation: A blacksmith works at a forge. The relationship is "worker : the characteristic workplace." A chemist works in a laboratory. Options A and D are industrial sites not specific to a chemist. Option B is a pharmacist's workplace, and Option E is a piece of equipment. Hence, option C.Q18. cygnet : swan :: fawn : ________Correct Option B … Explanation: A cygnet is a young swan. The relationship is "young one : adult animal." A fawn is a young deer. A young goat is a kid, and a young horse is a foal. A young antelope or elk is usually called a calf. Hence, option B.Q19. transient : permanent :: ephemeral : ________Correct Option E … Explanation: "Transient" and "permanent" are antonyms. "Ephemeral" means lasting a very short time, so its antonym is "enduring." Options B and D are synonyms of ephemeral. Options A and C are unrelated. Hence, option E.Q20. covet : desire :: usurp : ________Correct Option A … Explanation: To covet is to desire something, especially something belonging to another. To usurp is to seize power or position wrongfully. The relationship is "specific, often wrongful form : general action." Options B, C and D are legitimate or temporary ways of obtaining something. Option E is the opposite of seizing. Hence, option A.
