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Question

Each of the following sentences has a blank space and four words are given below it. Select the word or group of words you consider most appropriate for the blank space and indicate your response accordingly

The teachers said that they were no longer prepared to________ the ways of the new Headmaster.

This question was previously asked in
CDS I 2017 General Knowledge Previous Year Paper (05-Feb-2017)
The correct answer is

Put up with

Analyzing the Sentence Completion Question

The question asks us to choose the most appropriate word or phrase to fill the blank in the sentence: "The teachers said that they were no longer prepared to________ the ways of the new Headmaster." We need to find a phrase that expresses what the teachers are unwilling to do regarding the Headmaster's ways.

Examining the Options

Let's look at the given options, which are all phrasal verbs beginning with "Put":

  • Put over with
  • Put on with
  • Put up with
  • Put up to

Evaluating Each Phrasal Verb Option

We need to understand the meaning of each phrasal verb and see which one fits the context of the teachers' feelings about the new Headmaster's ways.

Option 1: Put over with

The phrase "Put over with" is not a standard phrasal verb in English. "Put over" can mean to communicate something effectively or sometimes to postpone, but adding "with" does not form a recognized phrasal verb with a relevant meaning here.

Option 2: Put on with

Similar to the first option, "Put on with" is not a standard English phrasal verb. "Put on" has many meanings, such as wearing clothes, staging a performance, deceiving someone, or adding something, but none of these meanings combined with "with" make sense in the given sentence.

Option 3: Put up with

The phrasal verb "Put up with" means to tolerate, endure, or accept an unpleasant situation or person without complaining. This meaning aligns perfectly with the context of the sentence. If teachers are no longer prepared to "put up with" the Headmaster's ways, it means they are no longer willing to tolerate or endure them.

Option 4: Put up to

The phrasal verb "Put up to" means to encourage or persuade someone to do something wrong or foolish. For example, "His friends put him up to stealing the apples." This meaning does not fit the context of teachers reacting to a Headmaster's ways; they wouldn't be encouraged to do something by his ways in this sense.

Determining the Correct Phrasal Verb

Based on the meanings of the phrasal verbs, "Put up with" is the only option that correctly conveys the idea of teachers being unwilling to tolerate the Headmaster's actions or methods. The sentence means the teachers are refusing to endure the Headmaster's ways any longer.

Completed Sentence

The completed sentence with the correct phrasal verb is:

The teachers said that they were no longer prepared to put up with the ways of the new Headmaster.

Phrasal Verb Meaning Fit in Sentence?
Put over with Not a standard phrasal verb No
Put on with Not a standard phrasal verb No
Put up with Tolerate, endure Yes
Put up to Encourage to do wrong No

Conclusion

The phrasal verb "put up with" is the most appropriate choice to complete the sentence, as it means to tolerate or endure something unpleasant. The teachers are not willing to tolerate the new Headmaster's ways.

Revision Table: Phrasal Verbs with 'Put'

Phrasal Verb Common Meaning(s) Example Sentence
Put off Postpone; Discourage Don't put off your homework. / His attitude put me off.
Put on Wear (clothing); Stage (a play); Deceive; Increase (weight) Put on your coat. / They put on a great show.
Put out Extinguish (fire); Annoy; Publish Put out the candle. / He was put out by the delay.
Put down Insult; Suppress (rebellion); Write down Don't put him down like that. / The revolt was put down.
Put up Erect; Offer accommodation; Increase (price); Preserve (food) They put up a tent. / Can you put me up for the night?
Put up with Tolerate; Endure I can't put up with this noise!
Put up to Encourage to do something wrong Who put you up to this prank?

Additional Information: Understanding Phrasal Verbs

Phrasal verbs are a combination of a verb and an adverb or a preposition, or sometimes both. The combination often has a meaning that is different from the original verb. Learning phrasal verbs is important for understanding and using English fluently.

  • They are very common in spoken and informal English.
  • The meaning of a phrasal verb can sometimes be guessed from the individual words, but often it is idiomatic and needs to be learned.
  • Some phrasal verbs are separable (the object can go between the verb and the particle), while others are inseparable (the object must come after the particle). For example, "put off the meeting" or "put the meeting off" are both correct (separable). "Put up with" is usually inseparable when followed by the thing being tolerated, e.g., "put up with the noise" (not "put the noise up with").
  • Context is key to understanding the meaning of a phrasal verb, as many have multiple meanings.
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