Four words are given: Soft, Fatiguing, Discordant, Force. Which pair among the options shows the strongest relationship of being most nearly opposite or clearly contrasted in meaning?

Introduction / Context:
This vocabulary question provides four words and asks which pair is most nearly the same or opposite in meaning. The words are labelled as A for Soft, B for Fatiguing, C for Discordant, and D for Force. The options present different pairings like A B, A C, A D, and B C, and we must choose the pair that shows the clearest strong relationship in terms of similarity or contrast. Such questions test the candidate s sense of nuances in English vocabulary and ability to detect antonym or synonym relationships among a small group of words.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• A stands for Soft.
• B stands for Fatiguing.
• C stands for Discordant.
• D stands for Force.
• The answer options specify pairs of these letters: A B, A C, A D, and B C.
• We assume standard dictionary meanings of these words.

Concept / Approach:
First we clarify each word. Soft generally means gentle, not hard, or mild. Fatiguing means tiring, causing fatigue. Discordant refers to lack of harmony, especially of sounds or opinions. Force refers to strength, power, or physical energy. Among these, the clearest relationship is between Soft and Force. Soft suggests gentleness or lack of hardness, while Force suggests strong power or energy. They are strongly contrasted in common usage, for example soft approach versus use of force. The other pairs do not show such a clear synonym or antonym structure.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Interpret the meaning of each word. Soft means gentle or not hard, Fatiguing means causing tiredness, Discordant means not in harmony, and Force means strength or power. Step 2: Check each option pair. Step 3: For A B, Soft and Fatiguing, the meanings are unrelated; softness does not necessarily cause fatigue. Step 4: For A C, Soft and Discordant, the meanings are again not directly connected. Step 5: For A D, Soft and Force, we see a strong contrast: Soft suggests a gentle approach, Force suggests a strong or aggressive approach. Step 6: For B C, Fatiguing and Discordant, the connection is weak. Something discordant may be unpleasant but is not necessarily fatiguing. Step 7: Therefore the pair with the clearest strong contrast is A D, that is Soft and Force.

Verification / Alternative check:
We can verify by thinking about how the words appear in phrases. We say soft tone and forceful tone, soft music and forceful music, soft approach and use of force. In each case, soft indicates mildness and lack of strong impact, while force indicates strong impact or power. This repeated pattern of contrast in common expressions confirms that Soft and Force form an opposite or at least strongly contrasting pair. The other words do not show such common paired usage. Fatiguing relates to tiredness, and Discordant relates to lack of harmony, so pairing them would be arbitrary rather than a well recognised relationship.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
A-B (Soft and Fatiguing): Soft does not mean tiring, and they do not naturally appear as opposites or close synonyms.
A-C (Soft and Discordant): Soft tends to relate to gentle or quiet, whereas Discordant means harsh or not harmonious. They can appear together but are not standard antonyms in this context.
B-C (Fatiguing and Discordant): Fatiguing relates to tiredness, while Discordant relates to harshness or disagreement. These are different ideas and do not form a clear pair of same or opposite meanings.

Common Pitfalls:
One pitfall is to search only for exact synonyms and miss strong antonym or contrast pairs. The question wording allows for either same or opposite meaning, so a clearly opposite pair is valid. Another mistake is to over analyse rare possible connections between words instead of focusing on the most obvious and commonly recognised relationship. Keeping in mind everyday phrases like soft words versus forceful words makes it easier to spot that Soft and Force are strongly contrasted and thus form the best answer.

Final Answer:
The pair that shows the strongest clear relationship of contrast is Soft and Force, which corresponds to option A-D.