Directions: In each of the following questions there are three blank spaces.…
2023
Directions: In each of the following questions there are three blank spaces. Below each question there are some options and each option consists of three words which can be filled up in the blanks of the statement(s) to make the statement grammatically correct. Choose the correct alternative among the options given below.
The charity's mission to ___________________ poverty was a ___________________ endeavour, but their dedication never ___________________.
- A.
elevate, reckless, wandered
- B.
prosecute, serendipity, capitulate
- C.
prolific, sycophant, blurred
- D.
reduce, malfeasance, distorted
- E.
alleviate, quixotic, wavered
Attempted by 1 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: E
Concept
In a multi-blank sentence-completion item, a word fits a blank only when it satisfies both collocation (the customary word that pairs with the surrounding words) and part of speech. A verb blank needs a verb, an adjective blank needs an adjective, and the chosen words must combine into one coherent sentence. So each blank must be tested separately for grammatical class and for natural pairing with the words around it, and the whole set must read as one well-formed sentence.
Applying it blank by blank
Blank 1 follows “mission to ___ poverty”, so it needs a verb meaning to lessen poverty. “alleviate” means to make suffering or a problem less severe, giving the standard collocation “alleviate poverty”.
Blank 2 modifies the noun “endeavour”, so it needs an adjective. “quixotic” means idealistic and well-meaning but impractical — exactly the tone for a charity’s ambitious anti-poverty mission, and it pairs naturally with the contrast word “but” that follows.
Blank 3 completes “their dedication never ___”, so it needs a past-tense verb describing dedication. “wavered” means weakened or became unsteady; “never wavered” is the idiomatic way to say dedication stayed firm, matching “but” after a hard task.
All three of “alleviate, quixotic, wavered” are the correct part of speech and the natural collocate, so the sentence reads cleanly: a charity’s mission to alleviate poverty was an idealistic-yet-impractical endeavour, but its dedication stayed firm.
Why the other sets fail
“elevate, reckless, wandered”: you “elevate” a thing’s status, not poverty (a charity would lower poverty, not raise it), and “dedication wandered” is not idiomatic.
“prosecute, serendipity, capitulate”: “serendipity” is a noun and cannot modify “endeavour”, and “dedication capitulated” misuses a word meaning to surrender.
“prolific, sycophant, blurred”: “prolific” cannot serve as the verb the first blank needs, and “sycophant” is a noun, not an adjective for “endeavour”.
“reduce, malfeasance, distorted”: “reduce poverty” is fine, but “malfeasance” is a noun (wrongdoing) and cannot fill an adjective blank before “endeavour”, so the set breaks at blank 2.