Complete the following sentences with appropriate word(s) .

1.   Measurement is, like any other human endeavor, a complex activity, subject to error, not always used _____, and frequently misinterpreted and ___________________.                                                                  

(a)           mistakenly, derided. (b) erratically, analyzed. (c) systematically, organized (d) innovatively, refined (e) properly, misunderstood.            

2.   In a revolutionary development in technology, several manufacturers now make biodegradable forms of plastic; some plastic six-pack rings, for example, gradually ________ when exposed to sunlight.

(a)           harden (b) stagnate (c) inflate (d) propagate (e) decompose.

3.   To alleviate the problem of contaminated chicken, the study panel recommends that the federal government shift its inspection emphasis from cursory bird by bird visual checks to a more ____ random sampling for bacterial and chemical contamination.                                                               

(a) rigorous (b) perfunctory (c) symbolic (d) discreet (e) dubious.                          

4.   Her novel published to universal acclaim, her literary gifts acknowledged by the chief figures of the Harlem Renaissance, her reputation as yet ______ by envious slights, Hurston clearly was at the ___________ of her career. 

(a)           undamaged, ebb (b) untarnished, zenith (c) untainted, extremity (d) blackened, mercy (e) unmarred, brink

5.   To the dismay of the student body, the class president was ________ berated by the principal at a school assembly.

(a)           Ignominiously (b) privately (c) magnanimously (d) fortuitously (e) inconspicuously. 

Answers: 1.e  2.e 3.a 4.b 5.a