In the following passage, some of the words have been left out, each of which…

2024

In the following passage, some of the words have been left out, each of which is indicated by a letter. Find the suitable word from the options given against each letter and fill up the blanks with appropriate words to make the paragraph meaningful.

This year, the world’s largest democracy, India, and the biggest country by _____ 1_____ , Russia, are celebrating the 70th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between them. Russia continues to be among India’s major politico-diplomatic and defence partner nations. While India has _____ 2 _____ separate strategic partnership pacts with more than two dozen countries, the Indian and Russian governments in December 2010 _____3_____ their bilateral ‘Strategic Partnership’ to what they termed a “Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.” The New Delhi-based _____4 _____ ‘Foundation for National Security Research’, which did a comparative assessment of India’s strategic partnerships — meaning, ‘political-diplomatic, defence and economic cooperation’ (during the 10-year period prior to November 2011), had said, “Russia emerges as the most important strategic partner of India (followed by the U.S., France, the U.K., Germany and Japan in that order).” The November 2011 report had found that Russia had provided strong political and diplomatic support to India and helped enormously in building India’s defence capability. However, it warned that the “economic content of the (India-Russia) partnership is extremely weak, ” and recommended that “urgent and _____5_____ steps need to be taken to improve economic relations if this (India-Russia) partnership is to be sustained and made durable.”

Find the appropriate word in each case 5

  1. A.

    Various

  2. B.

    Precarious

  3. C.

    Vigorous

  4. D.

    Minuscule

Attempted by 128 students.

Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: C

Final answer: Vigorous.

Why this fits: "Vigorous" means strong, forceful, and energetic. The phrase in the passage calls for "urgent" action and pairs naturally with a word that conveys strength and determination; "urgent and vigorous steps" communicates the need for decisive measures to improve economic relations.

  • Precarious: means unstable or risky. "Urgent and precarious steps" would suggest the steps are unsafe or unstable, which is not the intended meaning; eliminate this choice.

  • Minuscule: means extremely small. "Urgent and minuscule steps" is contradictory because urgency implies substantial action, not tiny measures; eliminate this choice.

  • Various: means several or different. "Urgent and various steps" is awkward and does not convey the necessary forcefulness; it does not collocate naturally with "urgent" in this context.

Conclusion: "Vigorous" best conveys the sense of strong, determined action required by the passage, so it is the most appropriate choice.

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