In the following question, some of the words in the passage have been left out. Read the passage carefully and choose the correct word for each blank, out of the four alternatives and fill in the blanks.

After falling consistently _______ (1) the U.S. dollar for a major part of the year, the rupee has _______ (2) somewhat over the last few weeks. It has risen by almost 5% from its lowest levels _______ (3) in October. Even with this recent improvement, the rupee is still down about 11% since the start of the year. The rupee's performance has been closely _______ (4) to global crude oil prices. This makes sense, as imported oil accounts for about 80% of India's total demand. The value of the rupee dropped when oil prices climbed earlier this year, a trend that lasted until early October. Since then, as global crude prices have fallen, the rupee has _______ (5) against the dollar.

Blank (1) sits in "After falling consistently ____ the U.S. dollar", describing the rupee losing value relative to the dollar.

When one currency weakens in comparison with another, the fixed idiom is to fall or move "against" that currency, so a rupee falling "against the dollar" means it is depreciating.

The passage confirms this comparison by later noting the rupee is "still down about 11% since the start of the year", a clear loss measured against the dollar.

"For" would wrongly suggest support or purpose, "of" gives no sense of comparison, and "with" implies moving together, which contradicts a fall relative to the dollar.

Only "against" expresses the contest of value between two currencies that the sentence needs.

The correct word is against.

Blank (2) completes "the rupee has ____ somewhat over the last few weeks", and the following sentence says it "has risen by almost 5% from its lowest levels".

A present-perfect verb meaning to regain lost value is required, and "recovered" fits both the grammar (has + past participle) and the sense of bouncing back after a decline.

The contrast structure of the passage, a long fall followed by a recent rise, makes "recovered" the natural choice.

"Admire" is unrelated in meaning, and "energy" is a noun, so neither can serve as the verb here.

"Ground" alone does not complete the perfect tense; one would need "regained ground", so the single word does not fit the blank.

The correct word is recovered.

Blank (3) appears in "It has risen by almost 5% from its lowest levels ____ in October", where a verb showing the rupee hit those lows is needed.

"Reached" means to arrive at or attain a point, so "the lowest levels reached in October" correctly says the rupee touched its bottom that month.

The perfect and past framing of the passage supports a verb of attainment describing when the low occurred.

"Behind" is a preposition or adverb, not a verb of reaching, and does not fit the slot. "Render" means to give or cause and makes no sense with "lowest levels".

"Admire" is about regard or appreciation, wholly unrelated to hitting a numerical low.

The correct word is reached.

Blank (4) is in "The rupee's performance has been closely ____ to global crude oil prices", and the pairing with "to" signals a word expressing a link.

"Tied" combines with "to" to mean strongly connected or linked, and the passage immediately justifies this by noting imported oil is about 80% of India's demand.

So "closely tied to crude oil prices" accurately describes the dependence the rest of the paragraph explains.

"Tightly" and "morally" are adverbs and cannot follow "has been closely ____ to" as the needed adjective/participle; they also do not form the idiom with "to".

"Amicably" means in a friendly way, which is meaningless for a statistical relationship between a currency and oil prices.

The correct word is tied.

Blank (5) reads "as global crude prices have fallen, the rupee has ____ against the dollar", so we need a verb showing the rupee gaining value.

The passage establishes an inverse relation: the rupee dropped when oil prices climbed, so when oil prices fall the rupee should rise, i.e. strengthen.

"Strengthened" is the present-perfect verb that captures the rupee growing stronger against the dollar, consistent with the earlier "recovered".

"Tandem" and "culture" are nouns and cannot complete "has ____", and neither conveys a gain in currency value.

"Relating" does not express strengthening and would not fit "against the dollar", which needs a verb of rising value.

The correct word is strengthened.