(GRE) Sentence completion 1

1. Male sperm whales are normally ____ creatures; however, when they are jealously guarding their territory, they have been known to ____ ships.

docile...attack
aggressive...strike
large...assault
peaceful...ignore
powerful...assail

2. The ___ genius of the late Glenn Gould is apparent in this imaginative ____ for piano of Wagner's "Siegfried Idyll," which the composer originally scored for full orchestra and presented to his wife Cosima on her birthday.

ineluctable...diminution
exceptional...music
incommensurate...homage
unmistakable...adaptation
brilliant...celebration

*ineluctable - necesario, obligatorio, inevitable, implacable
- inevitabile

3. Opponents of affirmative action by quota, the practice of hiring on the basis of race or sex as well as _____, maintain that both the hired and the rejected suffer _____ when not judged on their abilities alone.

loyalty...prejudice
status...nepotism
competence...injustice
creed...indignity
dexterity...degradation

*Competence - Competenza - aptitud

4. An ancient and mythopoeic neurological disorder, epilepsy is _____ in part by the sensation of intense and altered consciousness doctors call an "aura," which _____ the epileptic seconds before his seizure.

neurtralized...overcomes
characterized...grips
obviated...afflicts
enhanced...debilitates
diagnosed...proselytizes

*mythopoeic - Of or relating to the making of myths
*proselytize - convert to another faith or religion

5. Although the European Economic Community was established to ______ the economic growth of all its member nations equally, some express ______ at what they claim is their unfair burden in maintaining the organization.

regulate...favoritism
retard...vehemence
promote...resentment
measure...irritation
aid...wrongfulness

6. Those who make up their minds that life should be a succession of triumphs are soon enlightened by ____ reality; even money can ____ the truth only briefly.

stark...defuse
bland...quench
dread...encourage
limpid...hold back
harsh...stave off

* stark: harsh, unpleasant

7. In 1921, Antioch College adopted a policy requiring students to _____ beyond their stacks of books and contribute their talents to the working world in order to earn their bachelor's degrees.

rise
venture
probe
excel
strut

*not rise beyond, rise above

8. The candidate announced, to the _____ of her devoted campaigners, that unless her performance in the polls improved she would _____ the race

consternation...withdraw from
bewilderment...abstain from
mortification...continue
delight...step out of
awe...renounce

surprised
back off from

9. The _____ private contributions for disease research creates _____; the money goes for research into the best-publicized disease, which is not always the most serious or widespread one.

lack of...a reallocation
need for...a nuisance
infirmity in...a debt
colloquialism of...a paradox
indispensability of...a disparity


paradox


*plaintive - expressing sorrow
*bamboozle - hookdwink; lead by the nose
*homespun - handwoven
*waggish - dirty; stained
*rakish - marked by a carefree unconventionality or
disreputableness
*taut - subjected to great tension
*contentious -involving or likely to cause controversy
*impeccable - invulnerable to fear