Fill in the blank in the following sentence with the most appropriate option:
The class instructor couldn't ____________ from the Manga comic during the lecture.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → tear him away
To tear someone away (from something) means to make someone leave something that he is enjoying or is deeply absorbed in, usually with difficulty. The student was so absorbed in the Manga comic that the instructor could not get him to stop reading it; the "from" already in the sentence completes the phrase "tear him away from".
Example: The children could not be torn away from the cartoon film.
Complete sentence: The class instructor couldn't tear him away from the Manga comic during the lecture.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: turn him down — Incorrect. To turn someone down means to refuse or reject a person, a request or an offer; "turn him down from the comic" makes no sense.
Example: The bank turned down his request for a loan.
Option 3: pick him at — Incorrect. This is not an English phrasal verb. "Pick at" means to eat food in small bites without interest; it cannot take "him" before "at" and cannot be followed by "from".
Example: The sick child only picked at her food.
Option 4: look out for him — Incorrect. To look out for someone means to watch for someone or to take care of someone; it does not fit "from the Manga comic".
Example: Please look out for your little brother at the fair.
The following words have also been asked in other CUET (UG) English papers:
| Word | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| pick at | – | – | – | 11-06 S1 | – |