Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumSynonym Context Clues

During the Arctic deployment, the surveillance outpost's backup generator remained dormant—staying inactive and idle until the primary power grid failed. In the sentence above, which word is the closest synonym for dormant?

  1. A
    dominant
  2. inactiveAnswer
  3. C
    operational
  4. D
    defective

Answer

The word 'inactive' is the closest synonym for 'dormant' in this context.
The sentence utilizes a dash to set off an explicit restatement clue ('staying inactive and idle'), which directly defines 'dormant' as being in a temporarily inactive or quiescent state.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the target word and the surrounding structural punctuation in the sentence
The target word is 'dormant', which is immediately followed by an explanatory dash.
Dashes in context sentences frequently introduce a direct definition, appositive, or restatement clue.
2
Examine the restatement phrase following the dash
The phrase 'staying inactive and idle' explicitly describes the operational condition of the generator.
Contextual synonym clues supply direct definitions to clarify the meaning of the target term.
3
Match the meaning deduced from the clue to the available options
'Inactive' is an exact synonym for 'idle' and captures the intended meaning of 'dormant'.
Aligning the definition directly with the restatement confirms the correct option.

Key Concept

Identifying synonyms through explicit dash restatement and coordinated clue pairs in context
Estimated Time:45s
Rate this question

Topics

Synonym Context Clues

More questions from this topic