The basic meaning that we are looking for is "slowed." Clearly, Gerald's questions are slowing progress on the project, for the partners are having to stop to answer numerous questions. Whenever something is "impeded," it is "slowed."  An "impediment" is something that gets in the way. The word actually comes from Latin roots that literally mean to put on the foot. (The word "pedal" is related to the "-ped" portion of "impede.") If you have something on your foot, you certainly are not going to get things done quickly!

We really are not told anything about physical or emotional abuse in this sentence. All we know is that the boy was held in the custody of security. This means that they held him in a particular place until his parents could come to get him. When we are detained, we are held by something or by someone. Generally, this kind of action happens at the hands of authority. The boy most certainly was detained by the authorities in the mall. Hence, this is by far the best option among those offered here.

A number of these options are likely tempting, as the clouds clearly did travel past the mountain. The sentence does hint that they had to "go up" over the top of the mountain's peak. Therefore, the best option is "ascended," for this expresses most clearly the idea that the clouds are going upward in their travels over the peak.

Since the sentence talks about the handwriting of the man from whom the checks had been stolen, the best option is to stay as close as possible to this idea of using stolen checks. Therefore, the word "forging" is the best option among those provided. Whenever we "forge" someone's handwriting or signature, we make a copy of it (falsely and deceptively). This is likely what the thief wishes to do.

A "crawlspace" is an area under a house, like a very small basement. Clearly the man in question wants to go down there to avoid being detected. Whenever we "evade" something or someone, we try to get away from them or avoid them. This is what the person in question is doing by going down into that area.

The general idea of this sentence is that the metal has to be cleansed of its impurities before it is sold. Now, the word "cleansed" might be tempting. Indeed, even "heated" might be tempting if you know about how metals are processed. The best option, however, is "refined." This word means to remove impure elements from something. This is clearly what the sentence calls for, so it is the best option among the various other, tempting options provided.

All that we know is that the new boss is using the situation at the company to his own advantage. Apparently the workers like the owner. The new boss is using this goodwill to do something beneficial for himself. Whenever someone uses another person in this way, he or she is said to exploit that person—or, in this case, the group of people. Although this is a kind of abuse, the word "exploit" best describes the boss's actions.

The general idea in this sentence is that a lack of coffee caused problems for Joseph's driving. Put another way, we could say that not having coffee would "hamper" his ability to drive. Whenever our abilities are lessened in this manner, we can also say that they are "impaired." Often people talk about being "impaired" by drinking alcohol. Since alcohol alters your brain functions, it can impair your abilities as well as your grasp on reality.

As grim as it might sound, the sentence hints that the police are going to dig up the dead body. The word "exhume" is taken from two roots that literally mean to take out of the ground. The prefix "ex-" is likely very familiar to you, meaning out of. The "-hume" portion is likely less familiar. The word "human" actually is related to this root, as though we were made from the ground or the earth.

It seems that one of the two people in this agreement has chosen to break his or her promise.  Whenever we "violate" an agreement, we choose to ignore the obligations of that agreement. The word can also be used in the sense of meaning to disrespect something or someone. For instance, you can "violate" someone's privacy by bursting into his or her room, forcing yourself into the area rudely.