Vocabulary and Synonyms

Bewilder means to confuse or perplex someone. Too many product choices confuse the shopper. Befool means to trick, mystify and confuse are close but confuse is the most direct meaning, and startle means to frighten suddenly.

Credulous means having or showing too great a readiness to believe things - gullible or trusting. The parents believed his stories without questioning. Shrewd means clever, suspecting is the opposite, and gentle is unrelated to belief.

Profligate means wasteful or spending money recklessly. In the context, the son wastes time and money on drinking and socializing. Spendthrift is similar but refers to someone who spends wastefully, while wasteful directly captures profligate's meaning of reckless extravagance.

Impecunious means penniless or having no money. The context shows artists who frequent a cheap cafe but order nothing expensive - indicating they lack funds. Needy and jobless are related but not the direct meaning of impecunious.

Covetous means envious or having a strong desire for someone else's possessions. The context directly shows wanting someone else's wealth. Mindful and aware are unrelated, while beneficiary is the opposite - someone who receives, not desires.

Peripatetic means wandering or traveling from place to place. The context of attending many different schools clearly indicates a family that moves frequently. Adventurous is a positive trait unrelated to movement, while conservative and penniless don't fit.

Frivolous means lacking seriousness, playful, or not worthy of serious attention. The father worked hard and couldn't tolerate silly, unimportant pursuits. Ill-behaved means bad manners, dizzy means confused, and beggarly means poor - none capture the lack of seriousness.

Callow means naive, inexperienced, or immature. Young workers being taken advantage of indicates they lack experience. Sophisticated is the opposite, enthusiastic means eager, and amateur means unskilled - none fit like naive does.

Savants means learned people or scholars, especially in science or literature. Translation work requires deep knowledge. Menials means servants, bookworms means excessive readers, and laureates means award winners - none fit like scholars.

Prudent means showing good judgment, wisdom, and careful consideration of consequences. The sentence describes someone who is naturally cautious and sensible about risks, making 'sensible' the correct contextual meaning. 'Choosy' refers to being selective about preferences, 'decent' means morally acceptable, and 'observant' means quick to notice things - none capture the essence of thoughtful caution that 'prudent' conveys.

 Vacuous means blank or empty.

Prosaic means lacking poetic beauty, dull, or unimaginative - the opposite of inventive and creative. The sentence contrasts his first novel's 'delightfully inventive' quality with the second one being disappointingly ordinary and lacking creativity. 'Unimaginative' perfectly captures this sense of something commonplace and lacking artistic flair.

Deft means skillful, nimble, or showing great dexterity in physical movements. The context of climbing trees requires physical agility and skill. 'Dexterous' means skillful with the hands or body, which perfectly matches. 'Swift' means fast, 'ardent' means passionate, and 'inclined' means having a tendency - none capture the sense of physical skill and agility that 'deft' conveys.

Demented in medical contexts refers to cognitive decline and memory loss, which explains why the person requires increasing care as they become less mobile. While insane isn't medically precise, it's the closest option among the choices.