Question

Choose the opposite meaning of the underlined word.
In ancient India, scholars has no interest in political power or material growth.
a. internal
b. spiritual
c. psychic
d. celestial

Answer 1

Hint: The word ‘material’ usually means ‘the matter from which a thing is or can be made’, but here, it means ‘denoting or consisting of physical objects rather than the mind or spirit’.

Complete step by step solution: The context of this sentence is important to understand the meaning of the word. Here, the word ‘material’ means ‘denoting or consisting of physical objects rather than the mind or spirit’.
Now, we know the meaning of the word, let’s look at our given options:
internal - This word means ‘of or situated on the inside’. This is not the antonym of the given word as it has an unrelated meaning. So, it is an incorrect option.

spiritual - This word means ‘relating to or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things’. This has the exact opposite meaning to the given word. So, this is the correct option.

psychic - The word ‘psychic’ means ‘relating to or denoting faculties or phenomena that are apparently inexplicable by natural laws’. This has a different meaning to the required word. So, this is an incorrect option.
celestial - The word ‘celestial’ means ‘positioned in or relating to the sky, or outer space as observed in astronomy ‘positioned in or relating to the sky, or outer space as observed in astronomy’. This has a completely different meaning to the required word. So, this is an incorrect option.

Note: Find out the meaning of the word, in the context of the required sentence. Then, choose the option which has the exact opposite meaning to the underlined word.