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Critics who treat today's architects as having invented the wholesale
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08 Sep 2026, 00:54
08 Sep 2026, 00:54
Expert Reply
00:00
Question Stats:
25% (01:48) correct
75% (01:52) wrong based on 4 sessions
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Critics who treat today's architects as having invented the wholesale rejection of structural convention overlook a long lineage of precedent: builders across centuries pursued the very same (i) ______ ambition, simply on a far more modest scale, so that what genuinely sets the present moment apart is not the impulse itself but its sheer (ii) _______.
| Blank (i) | Blank (ii) |
|---|---|
| A. mutability | D. heterodox |
| B. inscrutability | E. derivative |
| C. magnitude | F. syncretic |
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Re: Critics who treat today's architects as having invented the wholesale
[#permalink]
08 Sep 2026, 12:43
08 Sep 2026, 12:43
shouldn't it be A and D - since builders refused to follow conventional practices which also means their methods were constantly changing.
Re: Critics who treat today's architects as having invented the wholesale
[#permalink]
08 Sep 2026, 23:24
08 Sep 2026, 23:24
Expert Reply
Explanation
The sentence argues that today's architects did not invent the rejection of structural convention; it has a long history. Builders in earlier centuries pursued the same unconventional ambition but on a smaller scale. What truly distinguishes the present is not the impulse itself but its sheer scale (magnitude).
Blank (i) - heterodox
The impulse is a "wholesale rejection of structural convention," which is an unconventional or nonconformist approach.
Heterodox means not conforming with accepted or orthodox standards. It perfectly describes the ambition to reject tradition.
Blank (ii) - magnitude
The sentence states that the impulse is not new; the difference is the size or extent of its application.
Magnitude means great size, scale, or importance. The phrase "sheer magnitude" is a common collocation that emphasizes the vastness of the current scale compared to past modest efforts.
Why the Other Options Fail
Mutability (changeability) - does not describe an ambition to reject convention.
Inscrutability (mysteriousness) - irrelevant.
Derivative (unoriginal) - would mean the present is not original, but the sentence says the impulse is not original; the blank refers to what is different (the scale).
Syncretic (combining different beliefs) - does not fit the idea of scale or extent.
The sentence argues that today's architects did not invent the rejection of structural convention; it has a long history. Builders in earlier centuries pursued the same unconventional ambition but on a smaller scale. What truly distinguishes the present is not the impulse itself but its sheer scale (magnitude).
Blank (i) - heterodox
The impulse is a "wholesale rejection of structural convention," which is an unconventional or nonconformist approach.
Heterodox means not conforming with accepted or orthodox standards. It perfectly describes the ambition to reject tradition.
Blank (ii) - magnitude
The sentence states that the impulse is not new; the difference is the size or extent of its application.
Magnitude means great size, scale, or importance. The phrase "sheer magnitude" is a common collocation that emphasizes the vastness of the current scale compared to past modest efforts.
Why the Other Options Fail
Mutability (changeability) - does not describe an ambition to reject convention.
Inscrutability (mysteriousness) - irrelevant.
Derivative (unoriginal) - would mean the present is not original, but the sentence says the impulse is not original; the blank refers to what is different (the scale).
Syncretic (combining different beliefs) - does not fit the idea of scale or extent.
