Mixed-Vocabulary - 1

(C) Wariness is cautiousness; others are anxieties.

(D) Megalopolis is a city; others are persons.

(A) Blighted is withered; others are lively.

(D) Puritanical is positive; others are negative extremes.

(C) Pagan is non-religious; others are derogatory terms used for the rural folks.

'Dilettante' means a person who cultivates an area of interest superficially or casually, lacking deep knowledge or expertise. 'Cognoscente' (the correct antonym) refers to a person with expert knowledge or refined taste in a particular field - essentially a connoisseur. The other options (formal dress, firebrand, chaff) are unrelated words that do not convey the opposite meaning.

Furtive means done in a stealthy manner (secret). Overt means not hidden (open). So option 2 is correct.

'Preen' primarily means to groom or dress oneself with careful attention to detail, like a bird grooming its feathers. It can also mean to take pride in oneself or one's appearance. 'Groom' is the correct synonym. 'Redeem' means to recover, 'powder' and 'prick' are unrelated actions. The word derives from birds' behavior of maintaining their feathers with their beaks.

Obfuscate means to muddle or confuse.

'Masticate' means to chew or grind food with the teeth, breaking it down for digestion. It is the technical term for the mechanical process of chewing that occurs before swallowing. 'Chew' is the correct synonym. 'Devour' means to eat quickly, 'swallow' comes after chewing, and 'divert' means to distract - none of these capture the specific meaning of mastication.

Lurid refers to something harsh, vivid, or shocking in appearance or description - often used for garish colors, sensational details, or unpleasantly bright intensity.

Ephemeral means short lived, transitory.
Everlasting means never coming to an end, lasting forever (eternal). Hence, option 4 is the most opposite word to 'ephermeral'.

Aphasia is the medical term for loss of ability to speak or understand language, while volubility refers to fluent, ready speech - they are direct opposites.

A renegade is someone who abandons their allegiance, group, or cause - essentially becoming a rebel or traitor to their original commitment.

A gadfly is literally a biting fly that pests livestock, and figuratively means a persistent, annoying person who provokes or criticizes others - essentially a nuisance.