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The English language is unique in that, over the centuries, a (i) of
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31 Jan 2022, 00:27
31 Jan 2022, 00:27
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57% (00:50) correct
42% (00:48) wrong based on 66 sessions
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The English language is unique in that, over the centuries, a (i) _______of words have been borrowed from other languages. This history has resulted in an interesting (ii) _______ among linguists: the English language holds claim to the largest vocabulary of any language in the world by far, but after the stolen words are (iii) _______ from the total, some scholars argue that this assertion is not accurate.
| Blank (i) | Blank (ii) | Blank (iii) |
|---|---|---|
| A. plenum | D. dichotomy | G. discounted |
| B. paucity | E. paradigm | H. tallied |
| C. plethora | F. case in point | I. queried |
Re: The English language is unique in that, over the centuries, a (i) of
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05 Feb 2022, 09:43
05 Feb 2022, 09:43
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For multi-blank Text Completions, understand how the blanks are related to one another before deciding which one to tackle first. The first blank is a noun denoting how many words have been “borrowed”; the second blank For multi-blank Text Completions, understand how the blanks are related to one another before deciding which one to tackle first. The first blank is a noun denoting how many words have been "borrowed"; the second blank names an "interesting" phenomenon, described after the colon; and the third blank states what is done with words to call into question the claim that English has the largest vocabulary. The third blank has the strongest clues, so start there. The detour road sign "but" means that English has the largest vocabulary until the stolen words are removed from or not included in the total. (G) discounted means "left out of consideration" and is correct. (H) tallied, meaning "counted," is the opposite of what's needed, and (I) queried, meaning "questioned" does not make sense.
With the third blank filled in, the first blank becomes easier to predict. If not including the words taken from other languages makes English lose its claim to the largest vocabulary, there must be a lot of borrowed words. (C) plethora matches the prediction because it means "an abundance." (B) paucity means "few," which is the opposite of the prediction, and (A) plenum, which has several meanings but all relating to "fullness," does not work in context. Now for blank (ii) before the colon, which functions as a straight-ahead road sign. On the one hand, since the foreign words are now part of the English language, they are counted as part of the language's vocabulary, but on the other hand, some linguists call these words "stolen" and do not count them. This is an interesting set of contrasting ideas, which fits (D) dichotomy well. (E) paradigm means "example" or "theoretical framework," and (F) case in point means "example"; neither describes the contrast presented in the rest of the sentence.
For multi-blank Text Completions, understand how the blanks are related to one another before deciding which one to tackle first. The first blank is a noun denoting how many words have been “borrowed”; the second blank For multi-blank Text Completions, understand how the blanks are related to one another before deciding which one to tackle first. The first blank is a noun denoting how many words have been "borrowed"; the second blank names an "interesting" phenomenon, described after the colon; and the third blank states what is done with words to call into question the claim that English has the largest vocabulary. The third blank has the strongest clues, so start there. The detour road sign "but" means that English has the largest vocabulary until the stolen words are removed from or not included in the total. (G) discounted means "left out of consideration" and is correct. (H) tallied, meaning "counted," is the opposite of what's needed, and (I) queried, meaning "questioned" does not make sense.
With the third blank filled in, the first blank becomes easier to predict. If not including the words taken from other languages makes English lose its claim to the largest vocabulary, there must be a lot of borrowed words. (C) plethora matches the prediction because it means "an abundance." (B) paucity means "few," which is the opposite of the prediction, and (A) plenum, which has several meanings but all relating to "fullness," does not work in context. Now for blank (ii) before the colon, which functions as a straight-ahead road sign. On the one hand, since the foreign words are now part of the English language, they are counted as part of the language's vocabulary, but on the other hand, some linguists call these words "stolen" and do not count them. This is an interesting set of contrasting ideas, which fits (D) dichotomy well. (E) paradigm means "example" or "theoretical framework," and (F) case in point means "example"; neither describes the contrast presented in the rest of the sentence.
Re: The English language is unique in that, over the centuries, a (i) of
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31 Mar 2024, 06:36
31 Mar 2024, 06:36
1
The sentence fragments "the English language holds claim to the largest vocabulary of any language in the world by far" and "but after the stolen words"
clearly indicate that a large number of words were borrowed into the English language. Therefore, the word for the first blank is plethora, which means large and/or excessive. The word paucity means lack, and is the exact opposite of what we are looking for. Plenum indicates completeness as "in a plenary session of the committee", which indicates a session in which all members are invited and usually present.
Next, we have a blank in a sentence next to a colon. Now what follows a colon, elucidates what came before it. The sentence fragment after the colon talks about two sets of scholars, the ones who hold that the English language has the largest vocabulary, and the others who believe that the assertion is not accurate, ones the stolen words are _________. The only way to fill this blank is to choose discounted. If the stolen words are tallied or queried, nothing changes. So they are the wrong choice. And since there are two sets of scholars with two opposing opinions, we can say dichotomy is the right word for the second blank. The words paradigm (pattern or template) and case in point (example) do not convey the intended meaning and are thus the wrong choices.
clearly indicate that a large number of words were borrowed into the English language. Therefore, the word for the first blank is plethora, which means large and/or excessive. The word paucity means lack, and is the exact opposite of what we are looking for. Plenum indicates completeness as "in a plenary session of the committee", which indicates a session in which all members are invited and usually present.
Next, we have a blank in a sentence next to a colon. Now what follows a colon, elucidates what came before it. The sentence fragment after the colon talks about two sets of scholars, the ones who hold that the English language has the largest vocabulary, and the others who believe that the assertion is not accurate, ones the stolen words are _________. The only way to fill this blank is to choose discounted. If the stolen words are tallied or queried, nothing changes. So they are the wrong choice. And since there are two sets of scholars with two opposing opinions, we can say dichotomy is the right word for the second blank. The words paradigm (pattern or template) and case in point (example) do not convey the intended meaning and are thus the wrong choices.
