Complete the following sentence with the grammatically and idiomatically appropriate word pair: "Although the research committee was initially _______ towards the untested composite manufacturing technique, its consistent performance in thermal cycling tests eventually _______ all structural safety concerns."

(A) skeptical ... allayed

(B) indifferent ... exacerbated

(C) enthusiastic ... substantiated

(D) hostile ... augmented

Answer Key:

Verified in official key

### 1. Strategy & Theoretical Principles This is a standard contrast-marker sentence completion question signaled by the conjunction *"Although"*. - The introductory clause describes an initial reservation or doubt regarding the untested method (*"skeptical"*). - The main clause describes how the positive performance resolved or relieved those reservations (*"allayed"*, which means to diminish or put to rest fear, suspicion, or worry). ### 2. Analytical Breakdown - **skeptical ... allayed:** Fits the logical transition perfectly (doubt initially $\to$ relief/clearing of doubts later). - **indifferent ... exacerbated:** Contradictory; good performance would not exacerbate (worsen) safety concerns. - **enthusiastic ... substantiated:** *"Although"* demands contrast, not parallel positivity; also "substantiated concerns" means proved fears right, conflicting with "consistent performance". - **hostile ... augmented:** "Augmented" means increased, which contradicts successful test performance. ### 3. Exam Trap & Standard Reference - **Trap Alert:** Always identify the structural contrast conjunction (*Although, Despite, However*) to determine the polarity of the missing vocabulary words. - **Standard Reference:** Murphy, R., *English Grammar in Use*, Cambridge University Press.

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