Fill in the blanks with the appropriate pair of homonyms:

His _________ up the cooperate ladder is weirdly attributed to his American _________.

ascent, accent

The correct answer is Option (2) - ascent, accent

His ascent up the corporate ladder is weirdly attributed to his American accent.

• "Ascent" refers to the act of rising or climbing, fitting the context of advancing in a career.
• "Accent" refers to a distinct way of pronouncing a language, which can influence perceptions in a corporate environment.