Question 123·Hard·Words in Context
Despite the robust empirical evidence supporting biologist Lynn Margulis’s theory of endosymbiosis, many of her contemporaries initially dismissed the idea as _____, a speculative conjecture lacking the rigor demanded by evolutionary science.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
For Words-in-Context questions, always read the entire sentence (and surrounding sentences if given) to understand the situation and tone before looking at the options. Identify key clue words near the blank—especially contrast words like despite, attitude words like dismissed, and any definitions or restatements after commas or dashes. Decide first whether the missing word should be positive, negative, or neutral, and what rough idea it should convey (for example, “admiring of new ideas” vs. “harshly critical and dismissive”). Then quickly test each option in the sentence: cross out choices that don’t match the tone or that don’t fit the explanation provided by the surrounding text. Rely more on how well a word fits the context than on a vague feeling that the word is ‘hard’ or ‘soph
Hints
Focus on the description after the comma
Look closely at the phrase after the blank: it restates how her contemporaries viewed the theory (a speculative conjecture lacking the rigor demanded by evolutionary science). Use that explanation to guide what kind of word must go in the blank.
Think about tone: positive, neutral, or negative?
The verbs and phrases around the blank—despite, dismissed, lacking the rigor—signal a clear attitude. Ask yourself: is their view respectful and admiring, or critical and dismissive?
Match each option to that attitude
Go through each choice and ask: would a critic who thinks an idea is just a speculative, not-rigorous guess use this word? Eliminate any option that sounds neutral, positive, or doesn’t strongly fit that kind of criticism.
Step-by-step Explanation
Use the overall structure and tone
Notice the contrast word despite at the beginning: Despite the robust empirical evidence... many of her contemporaries initially dismissed the idea as ____. This tells you that even though there was strong evidence, other scientists rejected it.
Also pay attention to the verbs and phrases around the blank: dismissed the idea as ____, a speculative conjecture lacking the rigor demanded by evolutionary science. This clearly shows a negative, critical attitude toward the theory.
Infer what kind of word is needed
The explanation after the comma restates how they viewed the idea: a speculative conjecture lacking the rigor demanded by evolutionary science.
Key clues:
- dismissed the idea → they did not respect it.
- speculative conjecture → they thought it was more like a guess than solid science.
- lacking the rigor → they believed it was not careful or scientific enough.
So the blank should describe a theory that seems very unreasonable, far outside accepted science, or not to be taken seriously.
Test each answer choice against the context
Now compare each option with that meaning and tone:
- interdisciplinary: means involving more than one academic field. This is neutral or even positive and does not suggest something is unscientific or speculative.
- revolutionary: means causing great change or being very new and important. This can be bold, but not necessarily lacking rigor; it can be admired.
- rudimentary: means basic, undeveloped, or simple. That does not match the idea of speculative conjecture; it describes something primitive, not something viewed as wildly unacceptable.
- outlandish: (we will confirm in the next step) is the only one that clearly carries a strong, negative sense that can match being dismissed as not rigorous.
Choose the word that matches both meaning and tone
Since A, B, and C do not fit the strongly negative description (speculative conjecture and lacking rigor), they can be eliminated.
Outlandish means extremely strange, bizarre, or far outside usual or accepted ideas. That is exactly how her contemporaries are portrayed as seeing the theory: not just new, but too strange and not rigorous enough.
Therefore, the best and most precise choice is D) outlandish.