Question

Instructions: Each of the following items is followed by four words or group of words. Fill in the blank with the appropriate word or group of words.

His remarks were filled with ____, which sounded lofty but presented nothing new to the audience.

• A. aphorisms
• B. platitudes
• C. bombast
• D. adages

Hint:

Look for a word meaning a trite, overused remark that sounds wise but says nothing new.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

A quick way to solve this kind of question is to test each option by mentally reading it back into the sentence and checking whether the resulting meaning is logical and consistent throughout.

Try aphorisms: "filled with aphorisms, which sounded lofty but presented nothing new" - this is contradictory, since aphorisms are prized for their fresh, memorable truth, not for being empty of new ideas.

Try bombast: "filled with bombast, which sounded lofty but presented nothing new" - this is plausible but slightly off, because bombast is really about grand, inflated language rather than the remarks being stale repeats of old ideas.

Try adages: "filled with adages, which sounded lofty but presented nothing new" - again contradictory, since adages are respected sayings drawn from real experience, not hollow filler.

Try platitudes: "filled with platitudes, which sounded lofty but presented nothing new" - this reads naturally and consistently, since a platitude is by definition an overused remark that sounds important while adding nothing original.

Only platitudes keeps the sentence logically consistent from start to end, confirming option B as the answer.