Question

Choose the word which best expresses the meaning of the italicised bold part of the sentence:
His craven behaviour makes him an object of mockery.
a) indecent
b) cowardly
c) mean
d) silly

Answer 1

Hint: The word ‘craven’ refers to ‘contemptibly lacking in courage'. This word is usually used as an adjective and another synonym of the given word ‘craven’ is ‘faint-hearted’.

Complete answer:
In the given sentence the word ‘craven’ is used in the following way:
In the given sentence the word ‘craven’ is used as an adjective to describe the noun ‘behaviour’. It is used to illustrate the fact that the quality of his behaviour makes him the object of mockery, it is essentially telling us why the subject is mocked. This makes this adjective extremely important to the context of the sentence.

Now, we know the meaning and usage of the given word. Let’s look at the given
options-

a) indecent - The word ‘indecent’ refers to ‘not conforming with generally accepted standards of behaviour’. This has a very different meaning to the given word. This cannot be used to replace the given word. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
b) cowardly - The word ‘cowardly’ refers to ‘lacking courage'. This has the exact same meaning to the given word. This can be used to replace the given word. This is the required answer. So, this is the correct option.
c) mean - The word ‘mean’ refers to ‘unkind, spiteful, or unfair'. This has a very different meaning to the given word. This cannot be used to replace the given word. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
d) silly - The word ‘silly’ refers to ‘having or showing a lack of common sense or judgement; absurd and foolish'. This has a very different meaning to the given word. This cannot be used to replace the given word. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.

Note:
Try to understand the meaning of the word, as accurately as possible, with the help of the sentence. Then, go through the options one by one and choose the word similar in meaning to the given word, i.e. a synonym.