“He is often lauded for pursuing a philosophy that is progressive in
spirit and yet practical in application.”In line 15 (cited above), the word “spirit” means
A) apparition
B) psyche
C) disposition
D) sentimentTo get this one right, you have to realize that the word spirit stands in for
something like “in theory” (a big clue is that it is contrasted to “in application”).
The answer choice that is closest to “in theory” is C, disposition. But do you see
how somebody who wasn’t paying close attention could be misled? The Serpent
deliberately put two answers in there—choices A and B—that a student would
be drawn to if they weren’t considering the context for the word. When you see
spirit, your first thought is probably related to ghosts or your inner being. A and
B try to lure people into answer choices that relate to this kind of “spirit.”
Among the answer choices, the Testing Serpent
deliberately includes the wrong answers a student would
most likely come up with.Answer D, sentiment, is an even more devious Impostor. The word sentiment
is three inches away from correct. Character is a better word to describe the
quality of a philosophy or argument—sentiment more often refers to a feeling or
opinion. Choosing between these two is tough, but the Impostors make it easy to
not even make it to that point.
Here’s another example:
“Borrowing from the Roman emperors who placated their subjects
with gladiator fights and opulent circuses, the prime minister sealed
his victory in the 1998 election by sponsoring a lavish centennial
celebration that earned him the admiration of even his fiercest
critics.”In line 6 (cited above), the main reason the author compares
political practices from two distant eras in history is in order to:
A) condemn the showiness of the prime minister’s political style.