Read the passage about a climate agreement carefully and choose the option that correctly fills the blank: The scene will now shift to obtaining ______ instruments of ratification to bring the agreement into force before 2020, the first year of its proposed implementation.

Difficulty: Medium

Correct Answer: enough

Explanation:


Introduction / Context:
This question is part of a cloze passage related to an international climate agreement. Such passages test your ability to choose words that fit both grammatically and logically within a context. The sentence discusses obtaining instruments of ratification from countries so that the agreement can come into force before 2020. The blank requires a word that describes a sufficient quantity of ratification documents, not quality, luxury or comfort. Understanding the legal process of treaty ratification helps in choosing the correct option.


Given Data / Assumptions:

  • Sentence fragment: The scene will now shift to obtaining ______ instruments of ratification to bring the agreement into force before 2020.
  • Options: enough, full, lavish, comfortable.
  • International agreements enter into force after a minimum number of countries ratify them.
  • The focus is on the number of instruments, not their appearance or comfort.


Concept / Approach:
In treaty language, an instrument of ratification is an official document by which a state formally confirms it will be bound by an agreement. To bring an agreement into force, a certain threshold number of such instruments must be deposited. Therefore, the natural word to describe the requirement is enough or sufficient. The adjectives full, lavish and comfortable do not logically collocate with instruments of ratification in legal or diplomatic contexts. Enough instruments clearly means a sufficient number of ratifying documents from the required number of countries.


Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Understand the context. The sentence talks about shifting focus to collecting ratification documents from countries. Step 2: Recognise that the goal is to reach the minimum number required for the agreement to enter into force. Step 3: Evaluate enough. It directly expresses a sufficient quantity, which suits the idea of meeting a threshold. Step 4: Evaluate full. Full instruments sounds odd; instruments are either present or not, and full is not used to count documents. Step 5: Evaluate lavish and comfortable. These words relate to luxury or physical comfort, which are irrelevant to legal documents.


Verification / Alternative check:
Read the sentence with each option. Obtaining enough instruments of ratification makes perfect sense, meaning gathering a sufficient number of ratification documents. Obtaining full instruments does not convey a clear idea. Obtaining lavish instruments of ratification introduces a strange notion of luxurious documents, which is illogical. Obtaining comfortable instruments again sounds absurd. Hence, only enough fits grammatically and logically. This matches typical media and academic language, which often refers to enough ratifications to bring a treaty into force.


Why Other Options Are Wrong:

  • full: Does not collocate naturally with instruments of ratification and fails to convey the idea of reaching a numeric threshold.
  • lavish: Suggests luxury or extravagant style, which has no relation to the count of ratification documents.
  • comfortable: Refers to physical or emotional ease, not to the number of legal instruments.


Common Pitfalls:
Some students may choose full because they associate it with completeness, but in this collocation it is not used in legal writing. Others might pick a difficult looking word like lavish thinking that a rare word is more likely to be correct. However, cloze tests almost always demand the word that fits naturally with the surrounding context. A good strategy is to imagine reading the sentence in a reliable newspaper or international report and check which word sounds normal there. In this case, enough is the clear and simple choice.


Final Answer:
The correct word to complete the sentence is enough, giving The scene will now shift to obtaining enough instruments of ratification to bring the agreement into force before 2020.

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