The key expression is "instead of strictly factual statements." These are contrasted to the second blank and implied as a synonym of the first blank. "Figurative" language is non-literal language. It is like making a "figure" or "picture" in words instead of employing strict meaning. For example, when we say that a storm is "raging," we are using the word "raging" in a non-literal sense, since this strictly applies to human emotions. The word "literal" means involving a word's primary meaning and not any form of extended meaning, such as metaphor. Indeed, "literal" means, "by the letter itself"—sort of like the "letter of the law," as we often say.

The hint regarding the first blank is the expression "maladies of the mouth" used in the main clause. A "malady" is a disease, so the adjective being used to describe the diseases in the first clause must pertain to ones found in the mouth. Such diseases are "oral," a word coming from the Latin for "mouth." The second blank is contrasted to the abilities noted in the introductory clause. While the dentist could treat some diseases, he was not competent in treating every kind of oral disease. "Competence" is the ability to do something.

Since Peter asks questions without much hesitation or care, he likely is very direct. To be "blunt" is to be direct and, often, outspoken. Such a person is like a "blunt" piece of wood—lacking any sharp points or subtlety. He is like a flat, straight board—everything is exposed and direct. Thus, "bluntly" is an excellent choice for the second blank. The first blank is contrasted to this. If someone is blunt, he or she will likely not be known for being "subtle," which is to be delicate and elaborate, often making many distinctions.

Let's start with the second blank. From the context of the sentence, we know that we need to pick out an adjective that means something like not readily available, since the sentence is talking about food in the context of a famine. Either "scarce" (not enough in quantity to meet a given demand) or "rare" could be correct. For the first blank, we need to consider what kind of food is being discussed; we know that it is the people are reduced to eating food that is not tasty and barely edible, so either "palatable" (tasty) or "delectable" (delicious) could be correct, as delicious, tasty food would be very rare during a famine. Of the possible words that we've identified as potentially correct for each blank, only "palatable" and "scarce" appear in the same answer choice, so the correct answer is "palatable . . . scarce."

The author of this sentence reveals that he is thinking about his past, which should lead you to one of two answer choices: either “retrospect” or “hindsight.” From there, it is a simple manner of determining whether “magnanimous” or “noncompliant” behavior would be more likely to upset a teacher. “Magnanimous” means generous and “noncompliant” means not compliant, or unruly and disobedient, so we can safely say that the correct answer is “retrospect . . . noncompliant.” To provide further help, “foresight” is knowledge of future events before they occur; “eclectic” means varied; “forewarning” is a warning about something likely to happen soon; “nostalgic” means fondly remembering the past; and “humorous” means funny. 

It is clear that Sally and Margaret have opposite natures. Whereas Sally is "shy" and "struggles to make friends," Margaret is "loud and affable." Sally is an “introvert” and Margaret is an “extrovert.” You will notice that the prefixes "in-" and "ex-" usually mean the opposite of one another, when placed in front of the same root word. To provide further help, “introspective” means internally thoughtful; “external” means on the outside; “intrepid” means adventurous and “explicit” means directly stated or rude; “intrinsic” means innate and “extraneous” means not needed; “innocuous” means harmless and “extrajudicial” means beyond the law.

Because we know that the forecast predicted snow storms, we can infer that it also predicted cold weather. So, we need to pick out an answer choice for the first blank that means something like "cold." Either "frigid," "chilly," or "icy" could be potentially correct. For the second blank, we need to pick out a word that describes the action of wearing a scarf, hat, and mittens if one knows the weather is going to be cold and snowy. Since wearing those items is a good idea, either "smart," "necessary," or "prudent" ("acting with or showing care and thought for the future") could be potentially correct. Of the possible words that we've identified as potentially correct for each blank, only "frigid" and "prudent" appear in the same answer choice, so the correct answer is "frigid . . . prudent."

We can infer from the sentence that while cell phones were rare in the 1990's, they are no longer rare, so we know that we need to find an adjective for the first blank that means something like "common." Either "ubiquitous" ("present, appearing, or found everywhere") or "pervasive" ("spreading widely throughout an area or a group of people") could work. For the second blank, we know that the individuals we need to describe choose "to be in almost constant communication with their friends," so we can infer that we need to find an adjective that means something like "social" or "talkative." "Gregarious," which means "fond of company; sociable" seems like a good answer choice, as does "garrulous," which means "talkative." Of the possible words that we've identified as potentially correct for each blank, only "ubiquitous" and "gregarious" appear in the same answer choice, so the correct answer is "ubiquitous . . . gregarious."

We can infer that for the first blank, we need to pick out a word that describes how the students might receive someone who didn't speak all day. "Garrulous," an adjective meaning "talkative," is definitely not the correct answer, but either "mysterious" or "enigmatic" ("difficult to interpret or understand; mysterious") could be correct. For the second blank, we need to pick out a word that means something like "always," "often," or "very," because we can infer that the new student is, in fact, shy. Either "extremely," "sometimes," or"acutely" ("intensely, with reference to something unpleasant or unwelcome") could be potentially correct. Of the possible words that we've identified as potentially correct for each blank, only "enigmatic" and "acutely" appear in the same answer choice, so the correct answer is "enigmatic . . . acutely."

For the first blank, we need to pick out an adjective that means something like "involving individual opinions and personal feelings." So, either "subjective" (" based on or influenced by personal feelings, tastes, or opinions") or "qualitative" ("relating to, measuring, or measured by the quality of something rather than its quantity") could be potentially correct. For the second blank, we need to pick out an adjective that means something like "based on facts, theories, and laws." Either "objective" ("not influenced by personal feelings or opinions in considering and representing facts") or "quantitative" ("relating to, measuring, or measured by the quantity of something rather than its quality") could be potentially correct. Of the possible words that we've identified as potentially correct for each blank, only "subjective" and "objective" appear in the same answer choice in the correct order, so the correct answer is "subjective . . . objective."