"Shopping" does not belong with the other words. "Sweeping," "mopping," "washing," and "dusting" are all verbs describing a specific type of cleaning. "Shopping" is not a cleaning activity; it refers to the activity of looking for or purchasing consumer goods in a store.

If you "analyze" or "examine" something, you are inspecting it in detail, not just on the surface. If you "deduce" something, you are making a conclusion. This also requires inspection at a deeper level. To "differentiate," you must be able to look at multiple items and determine their similarities and differences. (Much like you are doing now!) All of these words indicate a deep examination or inspection of something. The word "commit" can mean to carry out. For example: He "committed" a crime. It can also mean to pledge oneself. For example: He "committed" himself to performing in the play. Neither of these meanings requires examining or inspecting.

These words are all very closely related, even the one differing word. Note, however that the wrong answers all necessarily indicate singing. Chanting is not merely something that happens at a football game. It comes originally from the Latin for “to sing,” and it is found in words like “cantata” as well as “incant,” which itself basically means “to chant.” An “incantation”—so often associated with magic for most people—is originally derived from this kind of chanting by which the supposedly magical words would be sung. “Cantillate” is clearly related to these as well, basically meaning “to chant” or “to intone,” implying that such singing is perhaps done in a religious context. To “recite” something merely means to repeat it, generally from memory. Sometimes, a “recitation” could be sung or chanted, but we would likely have to add a description to make clear that it was being sung, for the word “recite” does not necessarily indicate such chanting.

Although all of these words pertain to looking or observing something, notice that the group of related words are all joined by the added notion of being intent or focused. You likely know “stare,” “gaze,” and “inspect.” The word “scrutinize” means “to examine very carefully.” In comparison with all of these focused kinds of observation, “look” is much weaker and hence fits least in the group of words.

All of the related words here have to do with improving something or making it better. The word “perfect” can be used as a verb to describe the process of “bringing something to perfection.” It thus describes such an ongoing action as “improving.” To “ameliorate” something literally means to bring it to a better state. The “a-” prefix here is related to the “ad-” (meaning to or toward) found in words like “advance.” The “melior” portion comes from the Latin word for better. When we "refine" something, we purify it (thus improving its quality). Only the word “produce” does not signify improvement.

All of these options can pertain to disapproval of something or at least some aspect of something. While the four incorrect answers all have different aspects of critiquing, the general sense is this somewhat general notion of having some negative judgment regarding the thing being disapproved, objected to, criticized and so forth. Note however that “condemn” implies an unqualified, strong critique, thus surpassing the general notion shared by the other options. It thus is the word that least fits among the options provided.

The verb "cry" describes a person shedding tears. Each of the other verbs describe a way to move: climb, crawl, dance and wriggle. "Wriggle" means to squirm or wiggle, much like a snake or worm.

Notice that all of the incorrect options describe a state of affairs in which someone or something is hated to a great degree. Indeed, most of the words are synonyms. The one exception is “despise” which means “to feel contempt for someone or something.” This is because the word comes from literal roots meaning “to look down on.” Still, all of these words indicate a state of affairs in which something is disliked to a great degree. In contrast with this, the very weak word “dislike” stands out as not fitting into the group.

Each of the related words is concerned with some way of trying to make something else intelligible. To “construe” is to interpret something. Generally, the word is used in the sense of interpreting something in one way as opposed to another, as in, “He construed her words to mean that she hated all vegetables, so he never bought anything but red meat for dinner.” To decipher something is to decode it—a type of attempting to make something that was hidden now understandable. The word “disregard” really has nothing at all to do with the other meanings, for it merely means “to ignore.”

The group of wrong, related words all indicate some kind of action of combining things. To “fuse” two or more things is to blend or combine them into a single entity. A welder is someone who fuses metals together with heat. Just as a dating “couple” is a set of two “joined people,” the word “couple” can more generally mean to combine. Splicing is the process of joining strands (wire, rope, etc.) together at a single point of connection. In contrast, to “sever” something is to cut it apart or divide it.