Craft and StructureEasy–MediumVerb fixed by a contrast with 'rather than'
Craft and Structure practice question
Rather than ____ the rumour, the mayor's silence only encouraged it to spread.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
- A. quashingCorrect
- B. spreading
- C. confirming
- D. repeating
Answer: A. quashing
'Rather than' sets what silence was expected to do against what it did: it encouraged the rumour instead of stopping it. To 'quash' is to put an end to.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. spreading
- Spreading the rumour is what actually happened, not the expected opposite.
- C. confirming
- Silence can't confirm anything, and confirming isn't the opposite of encouraging a rumour.
- D. repeating
- Repeating a rumour would spread it, the same direction as 'encouraged'.
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