Question

Select the word that is farthest in meaning to the word in capital letters:
ACERBIC
 a. Accused
b. Polite
c. Unpleasant
d. Improbable

Answer 1

Hint: The student should go through the options provided carefully and try to recall each of their meanings. Then the option which is the most opposite in meaning to the given word in question should be selected.

Complete answer:
Antonyms are those words that express meaning as opposed to the meaning of another word, in which case the two words are antonyms of each other.
In the given question, the word ‘acerbic’ refers to ‘harsh or corrosive in tone’.

Let us analyze the options given to us in this question-
Option (a.), 'accused', refers to ‘Having been accused; being the target of accusations’.
Therefore, option (a.) is incorrect as its meaning is not antonymous to that of the given word ‘acerbic’.
Option (b.), ‘polite', refers to ‘showing regard for others in manners, speech, behavior, etc.’.
Therefore, option (b.) is correct as its meaning is antonymous to that of the given word ‘acerbic’.
Option (c.), ‘unpleasant', refers to ‘offensive or disagreeable; causing discomfort or unhappiness’. Therefore, option (c.) is incorrect as its meaning is not antonymous to that of the given word ‘acerbic’.
Option (d.), ‘improbable', refers to ‘not likely to be true or to occur or to have occurred’.
Therefore, option (d.) is incorrect as its meaning is not antonymous to that of the given word ‘acerbic’.

Note:
 Sometimes the given options in a question where we have to find the opposite of the given word do not exactly mean the opposite of the given word. If this happens, we have to select the option which is the most antonym to the meaning of the word in the question.