Select the word closest in meaning to the word: Postulate
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Hypothesize
To postulate is to suggest or assume that something is true, as a basis for further reasoning, without proving it first. Its synonym is hypothesize.
Example: Scientists postulated the existence of a ninth planet to explain the strange orbits.
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Highlight | to draw special attention to something (it does not mean putting forward a theory) | The report highlights the need for more teachers. |
| (2) Disprove | to show that something is false (the opposite of assuming it to be true) | No one has been able to disprove his theory. |
| (3) Refute | to prove a statement or argument wrong (again opposite in sense) | The lawyer refuted every charge against her client. |
| (4) Hypothesize (answer) | to put forward an idea as a possible explanation, to be tested later (both words mean proposing something as true before it is proved) | The doctor hypothesized that the fever was caused by bad water. |
| Synonyms of postulate: hypothesize, propose, assume, posit Antonyms of postulate: disprove, refute, deny, reject |