PSAT Critical Reading : Two Verbs in Two-Blank Sentences
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Example Question #1461 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Choose the set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The judge always disliked __________ out sentences for high crimes, for exact equity and justice are quite difficult to __________ in the midst of life’s general ambiguity.
announcing . . . contain
forcing . . . justify
meting . . . ascertain
pronouncing . . . explain
blurting . . . announce
meting . . . ascertain
In an old usage, “meet” meant “to be proper or just.” When one “metes” a sentence, he or she issues a judgment. The sentence implies that the judge does not like giving (meting) out such sentences because it is difficult see and interpret all of the details in the midst of life’s ambiguities. To attempt to see and discern such details in an exact manner would be to “ascertain” them. The word is derived from the Latin word for “sure or settled” and is related to English words for “surety” such as “certificate” and “certitude.”
Example Question #31 : Two Verbs In Two Blank Sentences
Choose the set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Due to a confusion about the budget, the board game club could only __________ two board games; since the two they picked would have to _________ for the entire semester, they picked them out with extreme care.
lose . . . serve
consider . . . crease
afford . . . include
obtain . . . suffice
relocate . . . optimize
obtain . . . suffice
For the first blank, we need to pick out a word that means something like get or buy. Either "obtain" (acquire) or "afford" (have enough money to be able to buy) could be correct. For the second blank, we need to pick out a verb that means something like last or be used. Either "serve" (be adequate) or "suffice" (be enough) could be potentially correct. Of the possible words that we've identified as potentially correct for each blank, only "obtain" and "suffice" appear in the same answer choice, so the correct answer is "obtain . . . suffice."
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