Question

Choose the word that gives the antonym of the word italicized.
The incident cemented their relations.
(A) destroyed
(B) wasted
(C) corroded
(D) disintegrated

Answer 1

Hint: Synonyms and antonyms are essential parts of grammar that help to increase our vocabulary, make reading languages more enjoyable and also make our writings come alive. Synonyms are words that closely resemble a given word. Whereas antonyms are those words which are completely opposite in meaning to a given word.
The word ‘cementing’ refers to the act of fixing something with cement. However, the meaning changes with context. Here, ‘cement’ is a verb that refers to the patch up or the fixing of a disagreement between two or more parties.

Complete answer:
1. Here we are going to check each option one by one so that we can detect the correct option containing the answer to the given question.
2. ‘destroyed’ refers to the end of the existence of something by damaging or attacking it.
3. ‘wasted’ is a verb that refers to the careless use of something.
4. ‘corroded’ means the destruction or damage of something slowly by chemical reaction.
5. ‘Disintegrated’ refers to the breaking up in small parts as the result of impact or decay.
6. Therefore, we can see that the best appropriate antonym of the given word would be the fourth option, which is ‘disintegrated’. The option D is correct.

Hence the correct answer is option ‘D'.

Note: While dealing with antonyms, one should keep in mind that there will be various words whose meaning will be in the opposite direction of the given word. But the correct antonym would be the word which will be completely opposite to the given word in every respect. The meaning that we discussed above that ‘to cement’ is the action to integrate different particles together. If we think in such a way, it will be easier for us to get the antonym of this word.