Question

Choose the one which best expresses the meaning of
CONTUMACY
a) Divorce
b) Relation
c) Resistance
d) Cooperation

Answer 1

Hint: The word ‘contumacy’ refers to ‘stubborn refusal to obey or comply with authority, especially disobedience to a court order or summons'. This word is usually used as a noun and another synonym of ‘contumacy’ is ‘inflexibility’.

Complete answer:
The word ‘contumacy’ can be written in its adjective form ‘contumacious’ as well. However, this word has fallen out of use since the late 1900s. It has become archaic. It can be used in a sentence in the following way:
For example, in the sentence ‘The contumacious student refused to obey the principal and he was suspended’, the word ‘contumacious’ is used as an adjective. It refers to the fact that the student refused to cooperate and this action got him suspended as a punishment.

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

a) divorce - The word ‘divorce’ refers to ‘the legal dissolution of a marriage by a court or other competent body'. This word has a completely different meaning from the given word. It is not the synonym of ‘contumacy’. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
b) relation - The word ‘relation’ refers to ‘the way in which two or more people or things are connected; a thing's effect on or relevance to another'. This word has a completely unrelated meaning from the given word. It is not the synonym of ‘contumacy’. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
c) resistance - The word ‘resistance’ refers to ‘the refusal to accept or comply with something'. This word has the exact same meaning as the given word. It is the synonym of ‘contumacy’. This is the required answer. So, this is the correct option.
d) cooperation - The word ‘cooperation’ refers to ‘the action or process of working together to the same end'. This word has a completely opposite meaning to the given word. It is not the synonym of ‘contumacy’. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.

Note: Try to understand the context of the given word by using it in a sentence and look through the given options. Differentiate between each of the options as they only have a slight difference. Choose the most appropriate option i.e. the option that is closest in meaning to the given word.