Choose the correct pair of words from the options given to fill in the blank in the given sentence:
Once his ......, now Raj is the arch enemy of his friend and keeps passing trite________.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → confidant, compliments
First blank:
- Confidant (noun) is a trusted friend with whom one shares secrets. "Once his confidant" means Raj was once the friend's trusted companion.
Example: Her sister has always been her closest confidant. - Confident (adjective) means sure of oneself; it cannot follow "his" as a noun. Confidant (a person) and confident (sure) differ by one vowel.
Example: She felt confident before the exam. - Confidence (noun) is trust or belief in oneself, and confidentiality (noun) is the keeping of information secret; both name a quality, not a person.
Example: The bank promises full confidentiality to its customers.
Second blank:
- Compliments are words of praise. "Trite compliments" are dull, overused words of praise, the empty praise an enemy passes.
Example: She thanked him for his kind compliments. - Complements are things that complete or go well with something else; one does not "pass" complements. Compliment (praise, with "i") and complement (completing, with "e") sound alike.
Example: The red scarf complements her white dress.
Complete sentence: Once his confidant, now Raj is the arch enemy of his friend and keeps passing trite compliments.