Complete the 12 sentences below. Choose the best answer for each one.
1The finance ministry says the shortfall was ............... caused by a collapse in customs revenue.
Wrong!
"reportedly" fits because the cue cites a named external source as the basis for the claim.
2The seal was broken and the contents had shifted, so the parcel had ............... been opened in transit.
Wrong!
"evidently" is appropriate because the broken seal is visible evidence from which the speaker infers interference.
3The documents, which have not yet been tested in court, describe the contractor as ............... complicit in the bribery scheme.
Wrong!
"allegedly" is required because the sentence reports an accusation that has not been proved in court.
4No one objected when the clause was read aloud, so the board ............... accepted the wording.
Wrong!
"presumably" fits because the speaker is drawing a reasonable assumption from the visible fact that no objection was made.
5The committee was convened ............... to improve transparency, though most observers saw it as a way to delay publication.
Wrong!
"ostensibly" signals that the stated reason may not be the real or complete reason.
6The pilot scheme ............... saved money, but the corrected figures show a substantial overspend.
Wrong!
"supposedly" fits because the sentence reports what people claim, while the corrected figures undermine it.
7From the traffic camera footage, the second car ............... crossed the line after the light had turned red.
Wrong!
"clearly" is licensed because the footage provides direct observable evidence for the conclusion.
8According to several witnesses, the minister ............... left by a side entrance before the vote began.
Wrong!
"reportedly" is correct because the claim is attributed to witnesses rather than asserted as self-evident.
9At first, the anomaly ............... looked like a harmless rounding error.
Wrong!
"apparently" fits because the judgement is based on how the data looked to the auditors at that stage.
10............... the deadline was unrealistic, but that does not excuse submitting unverified figures.
Wrong!
"admittedly" introduces a concession before the speaker's main contrasting point.
11The defendant denies having met the lobbyist, whom prosecutors say she ............... contacted through an encrypted account.
Wrong!
"allegedly" is needed because prosecutors make the claim and the defendant denies it, so it remains an accusation.
12The researchers tripled the sample size, ............... because they considered the original cohort too small.
Wrong!
"presumably" is correct because the speaker infers the team's judgement from their decision to triple the sample size.
Exercise complete
0 out of 12
correct answers
Answers
- The finance ministry says the shortfall was reportedly caused by a collapse in customs revenue.
- The seal was broken and the contents had shifted, so the parcel had evidently been opened in transit.
- The documents, which have not yet been tested in court, describe the contractor as allegedly complicit in the bribery scheme.
- No one objected when the clause was read aloud, so the board presumably accepted the wording.
- The committee was convened ostensibly to improve transparency, though most observers saw it as a way to delay publication.
- The pilot scheme supposedly saved money, but the corrected figures show a substantial overspend.
- From the traffic camera footage, the second car clearly crossed the line after the light had turned red.
- According to several witnesses, the minister reportedly left by a side entrance before the vote began.
- At first, the anomaly apparently looked like a harmless rounding error.
- admittedly the deadline was unrealistic, but that does not excuse submitting unverified figures.
- The defendant denies having met the lobbyist, whom prosecutors say she allegedly contacted through an encrypted account.
- The researchers tripled the sample size, presumably because they considered the original cohort too small.