GRE Prep Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Sep 28Live Online Class with Top GRE Expert Mike Butville
08:00 PM EDT
-10:00 PM EDT
Top scores are possible when you enroll in a powerful GRE course, taught live online + 6 months access to TTP GRE OnDemand video courses included! Class starts Mon/Wed Sept. 28, 2026 - Dec. 9, 2026, 8:00pm-10:00pm EST
Those who fear that introduced earthworms are degrading Midwestern
[#permalink]
25 Aug 2026, 23:11
25 Aug 2026, 23:11
Expert Reply
00:00
Question Stats:
40% (01:06) correct
60% (02:13) wrong based on 5 sessions
Hide Show timer Statistics
Those who fear that introduced earthworms are degrading Midwestern hardwood forests have, according to a growing number of ecologists, fundamentally misread the scale of the threat: the danger these invaders pose to native biodiversity is frequently (i) _______. Long-term monitoring in sugar maple stands, for instance, has shown worm density to be largely (ii) ______ native understory diversity, with flourishing plant communities persisting even in heavily invaded plots.
| Blank (i) | Blank (ii) |
|---|---|
| A. misconstrued | D. correlated with |
| B. negligible | E. exacerbated by |
| C. unpredictable | F. independent of |
- Part of the project: GRE Hard and Tricky Verbal Practice: NEW Questions Daily
- Also replying to the unanswered questions
- The Definitive GRE Vocabulary Masterclass - 3,000 Words List
- GRE Beginner: The Definitive Guide
GRE Prep Club Team Member
Joined: 20 Feb 2017
Posts: 2932
Given Kudos: 1260
GPA: 3.39
Re: Those who fear that introduced earthworms are degrading Midwestern
[#permalink]
31 Aug 2026, 20:16
31 Aug 2026, 20:16
Expert Reply
Explanation
Blank (i): B. negligible
The key phrase is “misread the scale of the threat”. The ecologists think the danger is much smaller than people assume.
negligible = so small as to be unimportant
misconstrued = misunderstood - doesn’t fit grammatically: “the danger ... is misconstrued” would mean the danger itself is misunderstood, not that its scale is misread.
unpredictable = not supported by the evidence
Blank (ii): F. independent of
The sentence says worm density can be high while native understory diversity remains healthy:
“flourishing plant communities persisting even in heavily invaded plots”
That indicates plant diversity does not depend on / correlate strongly with worm density.
independent of = unaffected by / not dependent on
correlated with = changes together with
exacerbated by = made worse by
Answer: B,F
Blank (i): B. negligible
The key phrase is “misread the scale of the threat”. The ecologists think the danger is much smaller than people assume.
negligible = so small as to be unimportant
misconstrued = misunderstood - doesn’t fit grammatically: “the danger ... is misconstrued” would mean the danger itself is misunderstood, not that its scale is misread.
unpredictable = not supported by the evidence
Blank (ii): F. independent of
The sentence says worm density can be high while native understory diversity remains healthy:
“flourishing plant communities persisting even in heavily invaded plots”
That indicates plant diversity does not depend on / correlate strongly with worm density.
independent of = unaffected by / not dependent on
correlated with = changes together with
exacerbated by = made worse by
Answer: B,F
gmatclubot
Re: Those who fear that introduced earthworms are degrading Midwestern [#permalink]
31 Aug 2026, 20:16
Moderators:
