The key to completing this sentence is the word "dethroned." To "dethrone" an individual is to unseat or remove him from a position of power, so the aging boxer must have not only have won matches, but also held some sort of title. Two of the choices ("underwhelming performance" and "being vanquished in the early rounds") imply that the boxer tended to lose or perform badly, so these can be eliminated right away. The choice in which he won about half of his matches makes slightly more sense, but you wouldn't be able to "dethrone" someone who only won half of the time, since that kind of record would not have given the boxer a title or figurative "throne." The last remaining choice, in which the boxer was a reigning champion, is the only sensible answer.

Our only information about Maggie can be found in the first part of this sentence, where we learn that she "despises strenuous physical activity." To "despise" something is to hate it or even view it with disgust, and "strenuous physical activity" means "intense exercise." In short, Maggie hates exercise. However, properly completing this sentence involves noticing another key aspect: the word "neither." This word tells us that we're looking for an activity that Maggie would not enjoy. The only choice that involves exercise is the one that mentions school sports, which is certainly an activity that Maggie would not like and is therefore the correct answer.

To properly complete this sentence, you must know the meaning of the word "skeptical." A "skeptical" person is one who questions what he or she is told instead of believing it immediately; in other words, he is doubtful instead of gullible. Since Allie's brother is skeptical, he would certainly not believe Allie's statement about a haunted house without further evidence. Of the answer choices, two involve becoming afraid, which would not happen to a boy who doubted that Allie was telling the truth. A third choice, in which Allie's brother "thoroughly believed his sister," is the opposite of what a skeptical person would do. The only possible choice remaining is that the boy "laughed and dismissed (his sister's) comments completely," which makes perfect sense in this context.

The keywords "more . . . than" tell us that we are looking for a group that contrasts with pacifists. In other words, since pacifists have achieved more progress than a certain group, this group must be different from the pacifists in some way that makes them less successful. First, however, we need to know that the word "pacifist" means someone who is against war and favors peaceful, nonviolent means of inspiring change. Looking at the answer choices, we see that the "nonviolent individuals," the "demonstrators" who prefer unity over conflict, and "people who advocate for peace instead of war" are all synonymous with pacifists. The only answer choice that provides contrast is that which describes the violent activists, and this selection is therefore our answer.

If you know the meaning of the word "ancestor," you'll be able to complete this sentence easily. Your ancestors are the relatives who preceded you in your family lineage, like your grandparents, their parents, and their parents before them. Note that this word generally refers to significantly distant relatives, so although your father came before you in your family line, he would be unlikely to be referred to as your ancestor. In any case, the only choice that includes older, direct relations is the one that involves Damian's great-grandparents, so that is the correct answer.

The key word in this sentence is "profit." "Profit" means money made from doing or selling something after costs have been accounted for. If it cost you one dollar to make a glass of lemonade and you sold that glass of lemonade for three dollars, you would make a profit of two dollars. In order to make money, the artist had to sell his work. Painting art that his clients enjoyed would be the best way to make sales and make a profit. 

If the artist painted pictures that were fulfilling, it doesn't mean his clients would want to buy them.

If the artist painted pictures that his family liked, it wouldn't necessarily please his clients, the people who buy his paintings. 

If the artist copied art that he saw in museums, it wouldn't guarantee that his clients would like the art that was in museums. 

If the artist tried a new style, it doesn't that he necessarily would be good at it and create art clients would buy.

The key word in this sentence is "humble," which means modest or not making a big deal out of your abilities or work. In this case, it makes sense that the humble owner wouldn't take credit for his work.  

Humble doesn't have anything to do with being friendly or hiring your friends.

Being humble wouldn't be the reason you discovered a way to save the company.

Being generous by giving surprises doesn't mean that you are also humble.

Humbleness doesn't make you creative or encourage you to start a new business.

Because his calculation was "inaccurate" (not accurate or incorrect), the subject would have written down the wrong answer for the question.  

We don't know if he or she would have aced the test based on that one question, but if they wrote down a wrong answer, he or she cannot have aced the test.

The student wouldn't have received full credit for his or her answer if the calculation was inaccurate. 

We don't know if the student would have passed the class or not based on one test question.

Having the wrong calculation wouldn't cause the student to review the section. He would be reviewing the section to check for errors. 

The only information that we are given about this class is that it "emphasizes," or strongly focuses on, individual study. In other words, the students must be encouraged to learn about the subject matter in their own way. We are looking for an answer that describes a flexible, personalized approach, not a strict cookie-cutter teaching style. Of the choices here, the only one that works here is the one about helping students find their own specific interests.

What do we know about the team captain? Only that he or she "never seemed to become fatigued." To answer this question, the first helpful piece of information to consider is the meaning of the word "fatigued," which simply means tired or exhausted. In other words, the team captain never seemed to get tired. However, a vital clue is the word "even" at the beginning of the sentence. Here, "even" implies that everyone including the team captain must've reacted to the three-hour practice in the same way, specifically one that would be unusual for the captain him- or herself. The only sensible answer is "stop and rest for a few minutes," an activity that would be remarkable for someone who rarely became tired at all.