CAT 1998 — VARC Question 4
Idiomatic UsageEasy
Passage / Data
Direction: A part of each sentence given below has been underlined. You have to select the option that best replaces the underlined part.
The management can still hire freely but cannot scold freely.
Answer & solution
cannot scold at will
- B
cannot give umbrage
- C
cannot take decisions to scold
- D
cannot scold willfully
Solution
'At will' fits here perfectly in contrast to 'freely'. ‘umbrage’ can be given without intention, so (b) is not right. (d) does not make sense. ‘scolding’ happens spontaneously most of the times, hence it is unlikely that it involves a decision-making process.