Question:medium

Choose the correct option out of the four choices given.
A good judge never gropes ___________ the conclusion.

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Sort the verb by its job. Verbs of searching, like look, hunt and feel, all take the same preposition, while "arrive" and "come" take different ones.
Updated On: Jul 17, 2026
  • to
  • at
  • on
  • for
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The Correct Option is D

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
The word "conclusion" pulls the mind towards "arrive at a conclusion" and "come to a conclusion", which is exactly the trap the question sets. The preposition must be chosen to suit the verb in the blank, not the noun after it.

Step 2: Key Formula or Approach:
Sort the verb by what it does. Verbs of reaching a destination take "to" or "at": come to, arrive at, get to. Verbs of searching take "for": look for, hunt for, search for, feel for, fish for. "Grope" describes searching by touch, so it belongs in the second group and takes "for".

Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
Picture the literal action. In a dark room a person gropes for the door handle, moving the hands about until they find it. The handle has not been reached, it is being sought, so the searching preposition is right.
The figurative use keeps the same shape. A speaker who has lost his thread gropes for words. A student who does not know the topic gropes for an answer. Both are searching blindly.
Now test "at". "Grope at" appears only where the target is already found and is being pawed, which is not searching and does not fit a conclusion.
Test "to". This needs a verb of motion or arrival, and groping is not arrival, it is the fumbling before arrival.
Test "on". Nothing rests on top of a conclusion, so the phrase carries no sense.
The finished sentence, "A good judge never gropes for the conclusion", says a sound judge does not fumble blindly after an answer but reasons his way to it.

Step 4: Final Answer:
Searching verbs take "for", so the answer is option (D), for.
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