English Language

Vocabulary and Synonyms

17,324 Questions

Vocabulary and synonyms are essential components of English language sections across competitive exams. This topic tests word associations, context meanings, and precise vocabulary skills. Regular practice helps test takers score higher in SSC, banking, and railway recruitment tests.

Finding exact synonymsWord substitutionVocabulary in contextAssociated word groups

Vocabulary and Synonyms Questions

Multiple choice
  1. Sorrowful

  2. Sullen

  3. Dross

  4. Navigation

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Dolorous means expressing or causing pain, grief, or sorrow. It describes something that is sad or painful in nature. 'Sorrowful' is the correct synonym as it directly relates to grief and sadness, which is the core meaning of dolorous. The other options (sullen, dross, navigation) are unrelated - sullen means gloomy or bad-tempered, dross means waste matter, and navigation relates to directing movement.

Multiple choice
  1. Rapture

  2. Sleeping

  3. Inactive

  4. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Dormant means temporarily inactive, asleep, or not currently active but capable of becoming active. 'Inactive' (option C) is the correct answer as it directly captures the state of not being active. While 'Sleeping' (option B) is related, dormant has a broader meaning - it can apply to volcanoes, seeds, diseases, or any inactive state. 'Rapture' means intense pleasure, which is unrelated.

Multiple choice
  1. Random

  2. Dour

  3. Acquire

  4. Rigid

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Stubborn means refusing to change opinions, actions, or decisions despite attempts to persuade. 'Rigid' is the correct answer as it captures the inflexibility and unwillingness to bend or change that characterizes stubbornness. Dour means stern or gloomy in manner, random means without pattern, and acquire means to obtain - none of these capture the essence of stubbornness.

Multiple choice
  1. Dotage

  2. Expand

  3. Sensitive

  4. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Senility refers to the physical and mental decline associated with old age, including weakness, memory loss, and impaired judgment. 'Dotage' (option A) is the correct answer as it specifically means the period of life when someone is old and weak, often implying mental decline. The other options are unrelated - expand means to increase, sensitive means responsive to feelings, and 'None of these' is incorrect.

Multiple choice
  1. Vary

  2. Home

  3. Untidy

  4. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Dowdy describes something or someone that is unfashionable, plain, and lacking in style, often referring to clothes or appearance. 'Untidy' is the closest match among the options as dowdy implies a lack of neatness and style. While not a perfect synonym (dowdy specifically relates to fashion/appearance), it captures the essence better than unrelated words like vary, home, or the catch-all 'None of these'.

Multiple choice
  1. Waste matter

  2. Waiter

  3. Blues

  4. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Dross refers to waste material, scum, or impurities that form on the surface of molten metal during smelting. More generally, it means anything worthless or trivial. 'Waste matter' is the correct answer as it directly captures the meaning of dross as worthless material. The other options (waiter, blues) are completely unrelated to the concept of waste or impurities.

Multiple choice
  1. Hypocrisy

  2. Happy

  3. Halogen

  4. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Duplicity means deceitfulness, double-dealing, or being two-faced - specifically pretending to have one set of beliefs or intentions while actually having another. 'Hypocrisy' is the correct answer as both terms describe deceptive behavior where outward appearance differs from inner reality. Happy and halogen are unrelated words - halogen is actually a chemical element.

Multiple choice
  1. Advertise

  2. Arrange

  3. Effective

  4. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Efficient means working well without wasting time, effort, or resources - achieving maximum productivity with minimum waste. 'Effective' is the correct answer as it closely relates to producing desired results. While not identical (effective focuses on results, efficient focuses on the process), it's the best match. Advertise and arrange are unrelated actions.

Multiple choice
  1. Merry

  2. Opera singer

  3. Emanate

  4. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Diva originally meant a distinguished female opera singer, particularly a prima donna. While modern usage sometimes carries connotations of being demanding or temperamental, the primary meaning is still 'opera singer'. 'Opera singer' is the correct answer. The other options (merry, emanate) are unrelated - emanate means to originate or flow out.

Multiple choice
  1. Rich person

  2. Mad

  3. Poor verse

  4. Draw

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Doggerel refers to crude, poorly constructed, or irregular verse that is often comic or trivial in nature. It's poetry lacking artistic merit. 'Poor verse' is the correct answer as it directly captures the essence of doggerel as substandard poetry. The other options (rich person, mad, draw) are completely unrelated to poetry or verse.

Multiple choice
  1. Shadow

  2. Sepoy

  3. Shaky

  4. Brilliance

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Doddering describes someone, typically elderly, who is shaky, unsteady, or trembling in movement due to age or weakness. 'Shaky' is the correct answer as it directly captures the unsteadiness that doddering describes. Shadow and sepoy are unrelated (sepoy was an Indian soldier under British rule), and brilliance is the opposite of weakness.