Question

Find the synonym of the underlined word.
A Japanese company pioneered the use of the Bessemer process for making steel and improve the quality of steel.
a. Hid
b. Initiated
c. Explored
d. Disguised
e. Illustrated

Answer 1

Hint: Synonyms can be defined as - one of two or more words or expressions of the same language that have the same or nearly the same meaning in some or all senses. You have to look for the word that expresses the same meaning as ‘pioneered’ does.

Complete answer: The word ‘pioneer’ means to develop or be the first to use or apply an idea, knowledge, information or activity etc.
For e.g. – He pioneered the idea of lunch breaks in the office, or this technique was pioneered by a famous scantest etc.
Now, let us look into the options provided and find a substitute for the underlined word ‘pioneered’ –
Hid means – it is the past tense of hide which implies to keep or put something out of the eye sight or conceal something.
Initiated means – to cause a process or action or activity to begin.
Explored means – to travel through unfamiliar areas in order to know about them.
Disguised means – to change one’s appearance in order to conceal one’s identity to to become unrecognizable.
Illustrated means – something (especially a book, paper, magazine, or news paper etc.) containing pictures or graphics.
So, in the above sentence the context for the use of the word ‘pioneered’ is – that the company developed, initiated or started the use of Bessemer. Therefore, by this explanation the correct solution is the option – ‘b’.

Note: In situations where the meanings of the given options are not clear, use elimination methods and remove the words that you think are least likely to be right. That way you will have a clearer picture.