Question

Find the synonym of the underlined word.
Gradually, the sound of the music and laughter died down, and the whole campus went to sleep.
A. Became louder
B. Became softer
C. Was forgotten
D. Became more cheering
E. Became more irritating

Answer 1

Hint:If a sound or an activity dies down, it becomes quieter or less audible. It was several minutes before the applause died down. The correct option to be chosen is a phrasal verb. Choose the option that relates the best.

Complete answer:
Option A is not the incorrect answer. 'Became louder' indicates higher pitch, voice, sound etc. Hence, Option A does not satisfy the hint. Therefore, it's not the correct answer.

Considering the sentence, the phrasal verb ‘died down’ means nothing but to become low in intensity. The sound of the music and laughter died down or became quieter. Hence, option B is the correct answer and the other options are wrong because they do not provide the appropriate meaning.

Option C is absolutely of no use here. ‘Was forgotten’ means to not be able to remember something. This option cannot be used in the sentence. Neither it is correct grammatically as per the sentence nor it matches the hint given. Therefore, Option C is incorrect.

Option D is also wrong. The word ‘cheering’ means encouraging shouts. ‘Became more cheering’ is even more than the word cheering itself. Option D is absolutely contrary to the hint. Thus, it is the wrong answer.

Option E is also incorrect. ‘Became more irritating’ in general means causing displeasure, anger, or annoyance or an irritating noise. As the meaning of Option E is clear, so is the incorrect answer.

Hence the correct answer is option ‘B’.

Note::Died down is the past tense of die down. It refers to gradually becoming less strong.
 Example-
The wind will die down in the evening. She waited for the noise to die down before she started singing.
Die down is a phrasal verb. A phrasal verb is a verb that is made up of a main verb together with an adverb or a preposition, or both. Typically, their meaning is not obvious from the meanings of the individual words themselves.