“Captious” sounds like “captivating,” but the meaning is quite different. “Captious” means to find fault. “Adversary” and “antagonist” cannot work as “avid” and “impassioned” fans do not describe an enemy. “Acolyte . . . ardent” is the correct answer.

We know that the whatever goes in the first blank cannot be negative because the second part of the sentence refers to something “atrocious” to be “overcome;” and, since there is a sentence shift, we know that both parts of the sentence cannot be negative. “Sublime” means inspiring and impressive. “Acoustics” refers to the sound quality of a location. Together, these form the correct response.

“Egregious” means really bad, so this will not work given the fact that she progressed quickly. Similarly, “ignorance” and “illiteracy” can also be eliminated. This leaves us with “acumen . . . unrivaled” as the correct answer.

A “canard” is a false story or rumor. “Perfidy” is a betrayal of trust. “Adventitious” looks similar to “adventure,” but it actually means happening by chance and not an essential part. A “blunder” is a careless mistake. “Adventitious . . . blunder” is the correct answer.

"Ombudsman" works as the answer, as it matches the description in the following clause of someone who collects grievances of the public. "Deleterious" works as the other answer because it talks about the harmfulness of the claims. Completion questions of this type simply require that you understand the full context of the sentence, and recognize the word for the noun that is the subject of the sentence, and the adjective matching the way they are being described from the context of the given portions of the sentence.

"Inscrutable" makes sense as it describes the juggernaut of information, which cannot be easily understood. "Practice" also makes sense because it describe the process by which one can learn the stock market

A "die" is a tool used for shaping things (usually metal). "Pedestrian" means commonplace or simple. "Prosaic" has a similar meaning to "pedestrian," but a "shard" isn't typically used to shape metal.

Since the two couples were arrested, it’s safe to say the remarks that got out of hand weren’t positive or complimentary. It is highly unlikely that the couples were arrested for “infidelity” or “perfidy,” which refers to a betrayal of trust, especially since the word that fits in the first blank is the result of escalated negative remarks. An “affray” is a noisy brawl. “Denigrating” refers to speaking damagingly or being derogatory. “Affray . . . denigrating” is the correct answer.

Someone who was “reticent” or “taciturn” would be quieter and less inclined to engage in conversation. These traits do not describe the male character in the sentences. “Affront” refers to something done to cause offence. “Garrulous” means talkative. “Affront . . . garrulous” is the correct response.

“Elegance” and “refinement” refer to something that is tasteful and of high quality. For the first blank, we want something a bit more specific. We want a definition that includes zigzagging, hugging the curves and racing. “Agility” is the ability to move quick and graceful. “Quintessential” means the perfect example. “Agility . . . quintessential” is the correct answer.