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Difficulty: Very hardCollocation and Idiomatic Fit

Far from being indifferent to the plight of the rural populace, the reform-minded magistrate was remarkably ________ the welfare of the peasantry, frequently enacting policies that mitigated feudal tax obligations even at the expense of his own standing among the nobility. Which of the following options best completes the blank in the passage above?

  1. solicitous ofAnswer
  2. B
    solicitous for
  3. C
    solicitous to
  4. D
    solicitous with
  5. E
    apathetic toward

Answer

The option 'solicitous of' correctly completes the sentence both semantically and idiomatically.
The introductory clause 'Far from being indifferent...' signals that the magistrate was highly attentive to the peasantry. The adjective 'solicitous' accurately reflects this meaning. Idiomatically, 'solicitous' pairs with the preposition 'of' when expressing concern for a person or cause, rendering 'solicitous of' the only grammatically and idiomatically correct choice.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze structural contrast signals in the sentence stem
The opening concessionary phrase 'Far from being indifferent...' establishes a contrast reversal. The blank requires a word opposite in meaning to 'indifferent', indicating care, concern, or attentiveness.
Recognizing sentence polarity ensures the chosen vocabulary word fits the contextual tone.
2
Evaluate semantic fit among options
The root adjective 'solicitous' means attentive, caring, or concerned, which perfectly opposes 'indifferent'. This eliminates 'apathetic toward', which maintains indifference rather than contrasting with it.
Narrowing the options to words with correct semantic valence eliminates contextual tone mismatches.
3
Verify prepositional complementation and idiomatic fit
In formal GRE-level prose, 'solicitous' takes the specific prepositional complement 'of' ('solicitous of someone's welfare'). Combinations with 'for', 'to', or 'with' break standard idiomatic pairing.
Text Completion items testing idiomatic fit require precise adherence to established adjective-preposition collocations.

Key Concept

Adjective-Preposition Collocation and Idiomatic Complementation
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Topics

Collocation and Idiomatic Fit

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