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<li>Because of their spare, white appearance, ancient Greek statues in modern museums are often considered ------; yet newly unearthed antiquities showing traces of bright pigment are not so ------.</li>
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<p>I originally picked (D), which is the correct answer, but then I switched my answer to (A). Can someone please explain why the answer is (D)?</p>
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<li>(It is) now generally agreed (that) the rings of the planet Saturn (are composed of) (several) billion small ice particles. (No error)</li>
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<p>Although this is a very easy question, containing no errors, I was thinking that it should be "It is now generally agreed upon that...." Why is that wrong?</p>
<ol>
<li>Because of their spare, white appearance, ancient Greek statues in modern museums are often considered ------; yet newly unearthed antiquities showing traces of bright pigment are not so ------.</li>
</ol>
<p>The clues in the sentence implied that the statues were white, spare, and undecorated - from that you know that the first blank must be a synonym of those descriptions. Only ones that fit are “plain”, “austere”, and, less likely, “commonplace”. Then you are given another clue in the sentence, the word “yet”, which implies a change in direction, normally leading you to find a word opposite of the one you picked for the first blank. However, the words “not so…” at the end of the sentence are making a comparison to the first blank, so you know that you are looking for a synonym of the first blank. Only one that fits is “unadorned”.</p>