"Ratify" means approve and is usually used to refer to the passage of legislation. So, "approve" is the correct answer. For clarification, "emancipate" means to make free, "insolent" means rude, "reproach" means scold or tell off, and "insult" means verbally disparage.

"Aggravate" means make something worse. For instance, if you aggravate an injury, you do something to make the injury more serious. So, "worsen" is the correct answer. "Improve" is an antonym of "aggravate"; it means make something better. As for the other answers, "grow" means get larger, "shrink" means get smaller, and "produce" means make or yield.

Compensate, is a verb that means "to give someone something." Of the answer choices, the word with the closest definition is "reward".

"Obtain" is a verb that means "to gain or get something, usually by effort," we need to pick out another word that means "to get something." While both "procure" and "retrieve" involve getting something, "retrieve" means "to get and bring something back from a place," whereas "procure" means "to get something by some action or effort." Since "procure" is closer in meaning to "obtain" than is "retrieve," "procure" is the correct answer.

"Supply" means provide or give, so "provide" is the correct answer. "Hinder" means delay or block. "Prepare" means make or get ready for something. "Combat" means fight, oppose, or engage in battle. "Soothe" means calm or comfort something or someone.

"Conjure" means produce something unexpectedly or summon, so "produce," which means to present or to offer, is the correct answer. None of the other answers have meanings close to those of "conjure" and "produce": "disappear" means vanish; "exercise" means to engage in physical activity; "choose" means decide or select; and "quarrel" means to fight or argue with.

"Covet" means to desire or to crave something, so "desire," a verb that means want or covet, is the correct answer. None of the other answer choices are close in meaning to those of "covet" and "desire": "relish" means to enjoy or take great delight in doing something; "exceed" means to go beyond an expectation or limit; "concentrate" means to focus or to pay intent attention to something or someone; and "depart" means to leave.

To vend means to sell, so "sell" is the correct answer. For clarification, to "rue" something means to have feelings of regret about it, "fey" means supernatural or magical, and "detest" means hate.

“Oust” means remove a person from a position. As for the other answer choices, “allay” means soothe someone's fears or concerns, and “compose” means create, often specifically create a piece of music or create a poem.

Relinquish means give up control of, so "renounce" is the answer choice closest in meaning to "relinquish."