Read the following passages and respond to the questions that follow each passage. Your responses should be based on the passages. Love is a great force in private life; it is indeed the greatest of all things: but love in public affairs does not work. It has been tried again and again, and it has always failed. The idea that nations should love one another, or that business concerns or marketing boards should love one another, or that a man in Portugal should love a man in Peru of whom he has never heard - it is absurd, unreal, dangerous. It leads us into perilous and vague sentimentalism. "Love is what is needed," we chant, and then sit back and the world goes on as before. The fact is we can love only what we know personally. And we cannot know much. In public affairs, in the building of civilization, something much less dramatic and emotional is needed, namely, tolerance. Tolerance is a very dull virtue. It is boring. It is negative. It is merely putting up with people, being able to stand things. Yet it is the quality which will be most needed after the war. This is the sound state of mind which we are looking for. This is the only force which will enable different races and classes and interests to settle down together to the work of reconstruction. The world is very full of people - appallingly full: it has never been so full before, and they are all tumbling over each other. Most of these people one doesn't know, and some of them one doesn't like: doesn't like the colour of their skins, say, or the shapes of their noses, or the way they talk, or their smell, or their clothes, and so on. Well, what is one to do? There are two solutions. One of them is the Nazi solution. If you don't like people, kill them, banish them. segregate them, and then strut up and down proclaiming that you are the salt of the earth. The other way is much less thrilling, but it is on the whole the way of the democracies, and I prefer it. If you don't like people, put up with them as well as you can. Don't try to love them: you can't, you'll only strain yourself. But try to tolerate them. On the basis of that tolerance a civilized future may be built. Certainly I can see no other foundation for a post-war world.
What is the meaning of the word "appallingly" as used in the passage?
unpleasantly
Understanding "Appallingly" in the Passage
The question asks for the meaning of the word "appallingly" as it is used in the provided passage. To understand the meaning of a word in context, we should look at the sentence where it appears and the surrounding sentences.
The relevant sentence from the passage is:
"The world is very full of people - appallingly full: it has never been so full before, and they are all tumbling over each other."
Let's break down this sentence and the context:
- The passage states the world is "very full of people".
- It then uses the word "appallingly" to describe *how* full it is: "appallingly full".
- It adds that it has "never been so full before".
- It further describes the situation: "they are all tumbling over each other."
The phrase "tumbling over each other" suggests a negative consequence of being so full – a sense of being crowded, perhaps uncomfortably so. The fact that the author follows "very full" with "appallingly full" implies that "appallingly" intensifies the sense of being full, but in a negative way.
Now let's consider the given options:
- unpleasantly: This suggests that the extreme fullness is causing discomfort or is undesirable. The context of people "tumbling over each other" supports a sense of unpleasantness due to overcrowding.
- abundantly: This means plentifully or in large quantities. While the world is certainly abundant in people, "appallingly" usually carries a stronger, more negative connotation than just "abundantly". The passage emphasizes the negative aspect of this abundance (people tumbling over each other).
- appealingly: This means in an attractive or pleasing way. The context describes overcrowding and discomfort ("tumbling over each other"), which is the opposite of appealing.
- necessarily: This means in a way that is required or unavoidable. This does not fit the description of the state of being full. "Appallingly" describes the nature or quality of the fullness, not its inevitability.
Considering the context of overcrowding and the typical strong, negative meaning of "appallingly" (causing shock, horror, dismay; dreadful; terrible), the word here is used to convey that the world is full to an unpleasant or dreadful degree. Therefore, "unpleasantly" is the option that best captures the meaning of "appallingly" in this specific sentence, highlighting the negative aspect of the extreme fullness.
Important Questions from Passage Based Questions
Read the following passage and answer the questions based on it.
As climate change affects seasonal patterns, water management and distribution become important. Rainwater harvesting has become particularly important in urban areas these days. This process involves collecting and storing rainwater for later use. It recovers groundwater levels, prevents water wastage during the monsoon, reduces soil erosion and helps in the availability of drinking water. Above all, it promotes the method of water conservation.
This paragraph supports which of the following statements the most?
A. Climate change has adversely affected humanity.
B. Forests help maintain groundwater levels.
C. Rainwater harvesting is the need of the hour.
D. There are not enough water reserves for urban areas.
Which of the following inferences can be drawn from the above excerpt?
Which of the following statement is FALSE?
According to the excerpt what led to the diversity of flight techniques?
Which of the following statements is WRONG in the context of the above excerpt?
