Which of the following pairs of homonyms can be used to fill in the blanks most suitably? After realizing their leader had planned to _____ them in the middle of the vast _____, the people refused to follow him any further.
desert, desert
The sentence needs a pair of homonyms – words that sound or look alike but differ in meaning – to fill the two blanks correctly.
The first blank follows “planned to”, so it needs a verb meaning to abandon. That verb is “desert” (stressed on the second syllable), as in to desert one’s followers.
The second blank follows “the vast”, so it needs a noun for a large barren, sandy region. That noun is “desert” (stressed on the first syllable), meaning an arid wasteland.
So both blanks take the spelling “desert”, giving “planned to desert them in the middle of the vast desert”, which is option 4.
The word “dessert” (with a double s) means a sweet dish eaten after a meal and makes no sense in either blank.
Therefore any option containing “dessert” – options 1, 2 and 3 – is incorrect.
Note that “desert” as a verb and “desert” as a noun are homographs spelled the same but pronounced differently, which is the trick the question tests.
The correct pair is desert, desert.
Similar Questions
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Important Questions from Homophones
Select the correct pair of homophones to fill in the blanks.
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Fill in the blank with the appropriate homonym :
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Fill in the blank with the appropriate homonym :
A __________ gives us his words of wisdom.
Fill in the blank with the appropriate homonym :
He favours a ___________ and stick approach to teaching.
Select the most appropriate homophone to fill in the blank.
The dog took a __________ during his walk and lifted his __________ to indicate that he was tired.
