The word "delegate" actually can be a noun or a verb. Here, it is being used as a verb, but you can only tell this by looking at your options. When we "delegate" a task, we turn it over to someone else. (Hence, the word "assign" is the best option.) The person to whom certain tasks are delegated is himself or herself called a "delegate." This is why a delegate to a convention is called a "delegate." We give that person the authority to stand in our place at the convention, but the act of delegating is not the act of representing. The act of delegating is the actual giving over of the task. Delegation makes someone to become a representative. The difference is important! Likewise, delegates may vote or be involved in elections; however neither of these are synonymous meanings for the term.

"Prune" as a verb means to cut back a part of a plant so the plant will grow healthily. It is a close synonym with the less specific word, "cut." The incorrect answer choices "grow," "follow," "enjoy," and "eat" have little or nothing to do with the act of trimming foliage.

The word “merit” is often used as a verb, and it is in this sense that it is implied here. All of the wrong options are tempting because one might think of receiving a “merit badge” or at least a “merit symbol.” These are all unacceptable, because even if the word can be thus applied as an adjective to the given noun, it does not mean the same thing as the noun does. The word “merit,” when used as a verb, means to deserve praise. For instance, it can be used in a sentence like, “After John saved the girl from the freezing water, nobody doubted that he merited the praise of the whole community for his act of bravery.” Given this usage of “merit,” the best option is “deserve.”

For this word, there are two parts that are helpful in coming up with a general meaning of the word, though you must be careful. The “im-” prefix is really the form of “in,” though it changes here because of the way we pronounce “n” when it is followed by “p.” Sometimes “in” can also mean on when used as a prefix. The “-pose” is related to “position,” here meaning something like to place; therefore, we can think of “impose" as being to place upon. Now, to force someone to do something is to place something on them (or to “foist” it on them). It should be noted that “impose” does add an additional shade meaning implying that this imposing is also something of an infliction or a penalty.

The word “exclaim” literally means to shout out. The “ex-” prefix is likely familiar, being taken from the Latin for out or out of. The “-claim” portion is related to words like “clamor” and “proclaim.” It comes from the Latin for to call in the sense of to call out. When someone “exclaims” something, he or she shouts it out, often in anger or surprise. For instance, upon unexpectedly discovering an answer, one might exclaim, “Eureka!”

The word “ingress” is perhaps a bit strange looking, but you can infer its meaning from two relatively well known bases. The prefix “in-” merely means in or into. While the “-gress” may seem unknown, think of words like “progress” or “digress.” The “-gress” in these words comes from the Latin word for to step. The words “grade” and “gradual” both come from this same base. Literally speaking, an “ingress” is a “going in” or—more appropriate for our word choices—the means of going in. For this reason, it often means merely “door,” “entrance,” or “entryway.”

"Prescience" and "omniscience" both mean foresight. "Juxtaposition" means adjacency or positioning side-by-side. "Malediction" means curse or damnation. "Maelstrom" means agitation or chaos. "Modicum" means a bit or small amount.

Likely, you think of the word “constitution” as it is used to describe the founding document of the United States or another country. The word is literally derived from a prefix meaning “with”—as found in “concur” as well as “community” (in the “com-” form of that prefix)—and the base coming from to stand or to set up. The constitution of something is the way that it has been established as a whole, that is, how it is composed. Because of this meaning, the term is at times used to describe the state of health that someone experiences. For instance, someone might say, “He did not have a strong constitution but, instead, was always getting sick.”

The word “repose” is related to words like “impose,” “depose,” and “suppose,” all of which have the base “-pose,” which is related to “position” or “place.” While “repose” does not mean to place back, as one would expect from the “re-” prefix, it does take on a stronger sense of “positioning” or “placement,” meaning rest. Used as a verb, it can mean to be resting or sitting in a single location. It likewise can be used figuratively sense of placing (for example) one’s trust in someone else. Sometimes, you will hear people speak of burying a body as placing that person in “final repose”—that is, in his or her “final resting place.”

The word “transition” is taken from two familiar components, though you might not see the second component at first sight. The prefix “trans-” means across. When someone “translates” something, he or she “carries” it from one language to another. Likewise, “transferring” is the sending or carrying of something “across from one person or place to another.” The “-ition” is related to the small “-it” in “exit.” It means to go, and “exit” means to go out. A “transition” is a going across from one place, quality, etc. to another. Better stated, it means a change from one thing to another. "Alteration" is thus the answer choice closest in meaning to "transition."