Budgeting is an important tool for saving. First, you need to segregate all…
2018
Budgeting is an important tool for saving. First, you need to segregate all your income and expenses.
Then categorise your expenses as least important, important and very important so that you can prioritise them while settling them through your limited income.
Try to figure out ways in which you can increase expenses.
Make sure that your income is greater than your expenses by as wide a margin as possible.
The surplus fund after meeting all expenses becomes your saving. Only after savings are assured should you think about investment.
Which word opposite in meaning to the bold word should replace it in the passage?
Answer: B. Curtail — Concept: In a passage-based antonym-substitution question, one word in the passage is deliberately used incorrectly — shown here in bold — creating a…
- A.
Enhance
- B.
Curtail
- C.
Damage
- D.
Lengthen
- E.
Leverage
Attempted by 43 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Concept: In a passage-based antonym-substitution question, one word in the passage is deliberately used incorrectly — shown here in bold — creating a contradiction with the passage’s overall logic. The task is to find the word opposite in meaning to that bold word which, when substituted, restores the passage’s intended sense.
Application: This passage is entirely about budgeting to control spending — it advises segregating income and expenses, prioritising which expenses matter most, and keeping income ahead of expenses by the widest possible margin so a surplus remains for saving. Against this context, the bolded word "increase" in "Try to figure out ways in which you can increase expenses" directly contradicts the passage’s advice to spend less, not more. A word opposite in meaning to "increase" — one meaning to reduce or restrict an amount — restores the sentence to "Try to figure out ways in which you can curtail expenses," which aligns with the rest of the passage.
Cross-check — why the remaining options do not fit as the opposite of "increase":
Enhance shares the same direction as increase (to raise value or quality), so it cannot be its opposite.
Damage describes causing harm or impairing condition — a change in quality, not in quantity.
Lengthen describes extending duration or physical length — a different dimension from an amount of money.
Leverage describes the strategic use of a resource, not a decrease in an amount.