2014-06-30 09:00:37

Like all politicians, Henry Clay had his enemies, but in general, few senators or congressman in history were as ______ as Clay was.

(A) substantial
(B) divisive
(C) prudent
(D) abhorred
(E) venerated

The correct answer is E
Explanation: To find the missing word, try to predict its meaning by using clues in the sentence. Here, the best clue is "but," which implies that the two clauses that make up the sentence have opposite meanings. This means that, though Clay had enemies, he must have been the opposite of having enemies too. That means the missing word must mean something like respected or liked. Choice E is correct, because "venerated" means "revered, or regarded with great respect."

None of the other choices work, either:

substantial: of considerable size, importance, or worth (This almost works, but being important is not the opposite of having enemies)

divisive: tending to cause disagreement between people (this would work if the sentence used "and" instead of "but," as having enemies is similar to being divisive)

prudent: acting with or showing care for the future (nothing in the sentence implies that Clay was prudent)

abhorred: hated or detested (this would work if the sentence used "and" instead of "but," as having enemies is similar to being abhorred)