The situation described in the second clause is very negative, which means the blank word must mean something opposite to the negative situation. The correct answer is "ideal,” which means perfect. To further help you, "fruitful" and "abundant" are two words that both describe something there is plenty of.

The structure of the sentence sets up a contrast between the two dinosaurs, so we can infer that we need to pick out an adjective that means something like "enormous" or "slow" and is the opposite of "small" and "speedy." "Swift," then, cannot be the correct answer because "swift" is a synonym of "speedy," and the sentence already tells us that the brontosaurus was "slow." "Lumbering," however, is a great word to describe the brontosaurus, because "lumbering" means "moving in a slow, heavy, awkward way." Because "lumbering" is the answer choice that best describes the "enormous" and "slow" brontosaurus, "lumbering" is the correct answer.

Since the book received something that is the opposite of rejection from some critics, the correct choice is "acclaim", which means praise. None of the other answer choices have anything to do with the sentence's context: "frenzy" means panic, "parapet" refers to a short wall that encloses a raised part of a building, "lull" means pause or respite, and "criticism" means censure or denunciation.

First, you must note that "the latter" refers to the "latter person", namely Lee. Therefore, we could read the sentence: ". . . he was unable to prove Lee's __________."  From what we have been told, Thompson is certain of Lee's guilt. The best answer is the one that states that he cannot prove this (i.e. the guilt). The word "culpability" means guilt. It comes from the Latin "culpa", which means fault or blame. Someone who is "culpable" ("culp-able") is able to be blamed ("blame-able").

Since George believes himself to be a righteous man, he must believe that he does good deeds. However, the sentence indicates that this opinion is not held by others. This is indicated by the key word "although," which indicates the contrast of perspectives. While George thinks that he is rightesous, many others found his actions to be less than perfect. The word "conduct" can mean manner of behaving, so "conduct" is the correct answer.

When we cannot explain the reason for our belief, we are said to have a "hunch." Sometimes, we just "feel" that something "has to be the case." For instance, you know that someone is a liar and likewise has often been nasty to old women. Suppose that person came to your house, and at some point soon thereafter cookies came up missing. You might have a "hunch" that the person stole them—particularly if your other visitors were all virtuous people. Of course, it would be a good idea to investigate the facts related to this hunch.

When someone has "deep convictions," that person is very convinced of his or her beliefs. When such a person defends such "personally important" positions and beliefs, he or she will likely be very passionate. Such passion will be a mark of the strong feelings that he or she feels regarding the topic or belief.

The two key things to note are the introductory clause that begins with "although," and the fact that Thomas does decide to attempt the task. When someone has little hope for success, it is possible that such a person would be a "pessimist," that is, someone who thinks the worst about a situation (or even life in general).  However, the sentence indicates that while Thomas does have little hope, he has not completely given up hope. Therefore, he is not an absolute pessimist. (In contrast to pessimism, there is "optimism," which is the belief that things will work out for the best. It is related to words like "optimum" and "optimal," all coming from the Latin for "best.")

This sentence contains several context clues. First, the key word "despite" tells us that Austin's attempts to stay awake were unsuccessful. If that information weren't enough, the second part of the sentence outrightly states that Austin fell asleep. So, the feeling that overcame him must have been one of exhaustion. The only word that fits this sentence is "fatigue," which is the great tiredness that generally follows activities that require great effort.

In the main clause of the sentence, we are told that Brandon's friends did not know either his likes or his dislikes. Therefore, they did not know what types of things he preferred in comparison with other things. The idea of "preferences" includes the notion of ranking or ordering the things that are preferred, so this is the best option among those provided.