The first part of the sentence says that Maggie is not usually afraid, but the "but" is the key word that lets us know that the blanks describe her being afraid in the second half of the sentence. Starting with the second blank, "tentative" makes the most sense because it means hesitant or uncertain. This is confirmed as the correct choice by the first blank, "dilapidated," which means in bad condition because of lack of care. While "ramshackle" and "nervewracking" also would work, their partner words do not fit the context as well.

The opening word "though" tells us to expect a change in the relationship between these two siblings—either they were close as children and no longer are, or they didn't get along when they were young and do now; we are looking for antonyms. Three of the answer choices offer two words with very similar meanings: "docile" and "agreeable" (both depicting a fairly-pleasant relationship), "volatile" and "bellicose" (both describing a combustible or even warlike relation), and "strained" and "turbulent" (both telling of a relationship marked by tensions and fighting). Only the pairing of "tempestuous" (stormy) and "amicable" (friendly) provides the antonym pair we are looking for.

For the first blank, we need an adjective that describes how many films the filmmaker is able to create in a short amount of time. Both "hardworking" or "prolific" emphasize how many films the filmmaker is producing, so either word could work in the first blank. For the second blank, we're looking for an adverb that conveys how consistently the filmmaker is working; in choosing between the remaining answer choices "diligently" (industriously) and "ludicrously" (ridiculously), "diligently" is the better option, making the correct answer "prolific . . . diligently."

For the first blank, we're looking for a word that means "not likely," as the teacher knows that Billy's family doesn't have pets, but he is claiming that a dog ate his homework. Either "implausible" or "unbelievable" could work. For the second blank, we need an adjective that means something like able to be seen, or obvious. Either "palpable" (easy to perceive) or "tangible" (able to be physically touched) could work. Looking to see which of the possible answers we've identified match up, we can pick out "implausible . . . palpable" as the correct answer.

The sentence implies that Bryce has an aggressive personality and that he will fight over any topic, whether large or small. Some of the options for the first blank are tempting, such as “tempestuous” and perhaps even “overbearing.” However, “aggression” best matches the notion of fighting, and—even more importantly—none of the other options match the second as does the word “trivial,” meaning small or unimportant.

We can infer that because "many people [are] choosing to install fake, manmade grass," we need to pick out a combination of words that either means "real lawns have become rare" or "fake lawns have become common." While "artificial" and "manufactured" are both similar in meaning to "fake" and "manmade," only "artificial" lines up with a word for the second blank that means "common" - "commonplace." "Manufactured" lines up with "uncommon," so it can't be the answer, because if many people are installing fake lawns, manufactured lawns cannot be uncommon. Similarly, "authentic . . . pedestrian" cannot be the correct answer either, because if many people are installing fake grass, authentic lawns are not likely in the process of becoming "pedestrian," or commonplace. The correct answer is "artificial . . . commonplace" because it best fits the context of the sentence.

Since we know that Charlie rarely says anything in class, we know that the adjective we need for the first blank should reflect his quiet nature. Either "diffident" (timid; shy) or "laconic" (using very few words) could work.

This leaves us to choose between "garish" and "garrulous" for the second blank, which needs an adjective that describes Charlie's talkative cousin. Since "garish" means obtrusively bright and showy and "garrulous" means excessively talkative, especially about trivial matters, "garrulous" is the best choice for the second blank and the answer is "diffident . . . garrulous." 

The way this sentence is constructed you know that the approach of teacher’s described in the second part of the sentence must be opposite in meaning to the approach described in the first part. This is due to the usage of the word “whereas.” The second blank then must therefore be opposite in definition to a “strict adherence to established protocol.” Of the five answer choices then, for the second blank, novel is the best possible answer. Novel, when used in this context, means something new or untested. Champion, like novel, is defined in this sentence by one of its secondary meanings. In this context champion means to promote something. Lambast and condemn both mean to criticize; meticulous refers to careful and detailed planning; prosaic means lacking imagination; miserly means greedy for money or unwilling to share.

For the second blank, we can infer that we're looking for an adjective that means "profitable" because we know that the captain's scheme increased his profits threefold. Of the possible choices, "fruitful" and "successful" could each work. For the first blank, we're looking for an adjective that describes this captain's dishonest nature; either "corrupt" or "fraudulent" could work. Of the potential answer choices we've identified, only "corrupt" and "fruitful" line up in a single answer choice, so the answer is "corrupt . . . fruitful."

The best way to begin this question is to look at the second blank first. These experiences are not well called “questionable” or “amazing.” Now, “extreme” and “heinous” seem appropriate. However, “nugatory” means unimportant, and “reductive” is clearly not a good option. The paring “indelible . . . traumatic” works well. “Indelible” means unable to be removed.” Based on its roots, the word literally means "non-deletable" (if such a word existed). Such traumatic experiences would leave the person so changed, so this is not a bad option for this sentence.