Choose the word from the options given below that is most nearly opposite in…

Concept

An antonym is a word with the meaning most nearly opposite to a given word. To find the best antonym, first fix the precise sense of the key word, then pick the option that reverses that exact action — not merely a word that is loosely “in the other direction.”

Application

“Amalgamate” means to combine or unite separate things into one whole (as when companies amalgamate, or metals are amalgamated). Its precise opposite is the action of taking one whole and breaking it apart into pieces.

Among the words offered, “split” names exactly that reversal — to divide a single unified thing into parts — so it is the most nearly opposite in meaning.

Why the others do not fit

• “merge” — to blend things into one; this is a synonym of “amalgamate,” i.e. the same direction, not the opposite.

• “collect” — to gather scattered items together; this again moves things toward union, not apart, so it is not an antonym.

• “separate” — a near-antonym meaning to keep things apart, but it is a general word that need not start from a single combined whole; the exam keys the more precise reversal of “amalgamate.”

Cross-check

Replace the key word with the chosen option in a sentence: “The firms amalgamated” versus “The firms split” — the two sentences describe directly opposite events (one unit formed vs. one unit divided), confirming the choice.