Difficulty: Easy
Correct Answer: ineradicable
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
This verbal ability question tests your knowledge of precise English vocabulary and single-word substitutes. Competitive examinations in English often present a short definition such as “unable to be destroyed or removed” and ask you to select the one word that conveys this idea exactly. Understanding subtle differences between similar looking words is very important for building strong language skills and for scoring well in general-knowledge and English sections of exams.
Given Data / Assumptions:
Concept / Approach:
The key idea in the definition is permanence. Something that is “unable to be destroyed or removed” continues to exist even when it is attacked, criticised, or when attempts are made to erase it. The English adjective “ineradicable” is commonly used to describe such things as ineradicable stains, ineradicable beliefs, or ineradicable memories. The other options do not express this specific idea of something that cannot be destroyed or removed, so we must compare each option with the definition carefully.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Focus on the core meaning of the definition: complete resistance to destruction or removal.
Step 2: Consider “ineradicable”. The root “eradicate” means to destroy completely or to pull out by the roots. Adding the negative prefix “in-” gives “ineradicable”, which means that something cannot be eradicated, destroyed, or removed.
Step 3: Check “habit”. A habit can sometimes be hard to give up, but the word itself does not intrinsically mean “impossible to destroy or remove”; many habits can be changed.
Step 4: Check “worn”. This describes something that has been used so much that it is damaged or thin. It suggests being weakened, not being impossible to destroy.
Step 5: Check “fixed”. This can mean attached, stable, or decided, but it does not naturally mean that something can never be destroyed or removed.
Step 6: Conclude that “ineradicable” is the only option that accurately and completely fits the definition.
Verification / Alternative check:
A quick dictionary style restatement confirms that “ineradicable” means “impossible to eradicate” and is typically glossed as “unable to be destroyed or removed”. The other words are common in English but are used in very different senses. There is no natural context in which “habit”, “worn”, or “fixed” alone can be used as exact synonyms for the given definition, so the match with “ineradicable” is strong and unambiguous.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes pick words that feel vaguely related to permanence or stability without checking whether the meaning truly includes “cannot be destroyed or removed”. Another common error is to choose the word that they have seen more often in everyday life, rather than the one that is technically correct in vocabulary questions. It is important to break the word into roots and prefixes, as with “eradicate” and “ineradicable”, to understand meaning accurately.
Final Answer:
The word that means “unable to be destroyed or removed” is ineradicable.
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