Read the passage below and determine the word that best completes the sentence. Which word correctly fills the blank based on the contrast established by the transition signal?
Answer:Although the nineteenth-century philologist claimed that regional dialects were fundamentally robust and immune to external influence, modern sociolinguistic surveys reveal that mass communication has rendered these localized vernaculars surprisingly 【vulnerable】, causing many distinctive linguistic features to vanish within a few generations.
Answer
The blank must be filled with a word such as 'vulnerable', 'fragile', 'precarious', or 'susceptible' to contrast with the idea of being robust and immune.
The correct answer must convey weak, easily damaged, or subject to decay (e.g., 'vulnerable' or 'fragile'). The sentence begins with the concession signal 'Although', which contrasts the past claim that regional dialects were 'robust and immune' with the modern reality that features are vanishing.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Identifying Contrast and Reversal Clues in Text Completion