Question 22·Easy·Words in Context
When historians uncovered letters between the two inventors, the correspondence ______ crucial context, showing that their collaboration was far closer than previously assumed.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
For SAT Words in Context questions, first cover the choices and predict a rough meaning for the blank using the sentence’s clues—especially anything after commas or "showing/which/so that" clauses. Decide whether the missing word should have a positive or negative effect and what role it plays (e.g., clarifying, opposing, causing). Then compare each option’s literal meaning (not just its tone or difficulty) to your prediction, and eliminate choices that don’t fit the sentence’s logic or time frame. Finally, reread the sentence with your chosen answer to confirm that it makes a clear, natural statement.
Hints
Restate the situation
Think about what happened when historians discovered the letters. Did these letters make things clearer or more confusing about the inventors’ relationship?
Use the clause after the comma
Focus on "showing that their collaboration was far closer than previously assumed." Does this suggest that the letters hid information, fought against it, or helped reveal it?
Check for time and logic
The letters already existed in the past and were later uncovered. Would it make sense for them to be describing the future, or are they changing how we understand the past?
Match meaning, not just sound
Pick the option whose meaning fits the idea of giving historians important background information, not just a word that sounds formal or academic.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the sentence meaning
Paraphrase the sentence: When historians found the letters, those letters gave them important background information that showed the inventors actually worked together more closely than people used to think. So the correspondence is helping clarify, not confuse or oppose, the understanding of their collaboration.
Use the clue after the comma
Focus on the phrase after the comma: "showing that their collaboration was far closer than previously assumed." This tells you what the "crucial context" does: it reveals or helps explain that the inventors’ relationship was closer than people thought before. So the missing word should match the idea of providing helpful, clarifying information.
Check each option’s meaning against the context
Now, match each answer to the intended meaning:
- A word that means "hid" or "made unclear" would not fit because the context is being clarified.
- A word that means "provided or gave" would fit, because the letters give crucial context.
- A word that means "disagreed with or denied" would suggest the letters go against the crucial context, which doesn't match the sentence.
- A word that means "forecasted the future" would not make sense with past letters changing historians’ understanding. Only one option matches the idea of providing helpful context.
Select the word that best fits
The only choice that means "provided or gave" is B) supplied, which makes the sentence read: "the correspondence supplied crucial context"—clearly showing that the letters provided important background information that changed historians’ view of the collaboration.