The key thing to note here is that the “rules” that Otho does not obey are described as being “conventions.” Propriety is the characteristic that one has when he or she follows the generally accepted norms of a society. Such generally accepted norms are said to be “conventional” in nature. The word “proper” has a very strong sense in meaning “strictly conforming to something’s form or nature.” This is derived from much older Latin terms in logic and philosophy. Here, “propriety” (which is related to “proper”) is “conformity with the standard of society.”

The key expression for this sentence is “without influencing.” In light of the “and not merely,” it is clear that Samantha wishes to have an influence on her students’ lives. Expressed in another manner, she could be said to want to “impact” their lives. By its most direct usage, “impact” means “to strike or hit.” For instance, when a meteor is said to impact the earth. More generally, the word means “to have a strong influence on something else.” This is how the word is being used in the sentence.

The parallel in this sentence is between the notion of “depriving” and the needed word. When someone deprives himself or herself, he or she is said to deny himself or herself of a given good thing. The word “mortification” does not necessarily have the strong sense of “killing” as might be suspected by the “mort-” portion of the word (meaning death, as found in “mortal,” “immortal,” and “morgue”). “Mortification,” might merely mean the process of eliminating or subduing (in a sense “killing off”) the passions of the body. This meaning is used with particular frequency with regard to religious acts of this type, though one can find them in a number of other walks of life as well.

For this sentence, the most specific answer is the best one. Many of these options might be acceptable, for even lumps and bruises can also bleed (in addition to being lumps and bruises). The best option is “lacerations,” which are deep cuts in the flesh, which would be wounds almost completely guaranteed to bleed. All the other cases may or may not bleed.

The contrast expressed in this sentence is between the apple and the coffee shop, which is apparently behind the apple (as implied by “portrayed behind it [the apple]”). When something sits “in front” of other things so as to be very visible, it is said to be in the “foreground,” literally the “front ground” of the image, view, or painting.

The key phrase in this sentence is “once again plenteously available.” It indicates that for a time (i.e. the past ten years), oil was not available in great quantities. When a resource (or any other thing) is “scarce” it is in very limited supply. “Scarcity” is the state of something being “scarce.”

When people try to “dissuade” someone from doing something, they attempt to convince that person not to undertake the given task. Since Timothy was never dissuaded by the arguments of others, he could be said to be “resolute,” that is, firm in purpose. The word determination best expresses this. When someone “determines” something, he or she finds the exact meaning or plan for that thing. A determined person has decided on his or her plan and does not give up in pursuit of it.

The subordinate clause beginning with “subtly” is the key to getting this sentence correct. The implication of this clause is that Peter changed the meaning of a word in the middle of making an argument. Perhaps he changed “payment” from its general sense to a specific use of payment that had legal repercussions. Without noticing, he would thus have shifted the argument from a question of “payment” to “paying in a specific legal circumstance.” Equivocation is generally used to describe this kind of loose use of language. In ancient and medieval logic, a “purely equivocal term” would be a word like “bank,” which describes both the edge of a river and the institution into which you put money. With such a word, you certainly could equivocate—change meanings—though it would not be very subtle!

The parallel in this sentence is between the man things that the officer has and the “far fewer employees and supplies” available to the other groups. Note also that the sentence implies that he is impatient because the other groups are not as efficient as his group, which apparently is better endowed. Resources are those materials and people available for someone to accomplish a given task. This is the best option for this sentence, as all the other options are too specific.           

The two key words in this sentence are “praise” and “resounding.” The sentence implies that the crowd greatly praised the speaker. When someone gives an “ovation,” he or she does just that. Often this signifies that the praise is in the way of applause. We often speak of “standing ovations” when a crowd stands up at the end of a show in order to applaud. Do not be tricked by “ovulation,” which has nothing to do with this sentence. That word has to do with the release of an egg in the female reproductive system.