Choose the option that best replaces the underlined portion in the given sentence:
The recent television series The Family Man showcases the valiant efforts made by Indian intelligence agencies to safeguard the nation, against the acting with equal force but with opposite effect attempts of different groups to puncture our tenuous peace.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → countervailing
Countervailing means acting against something with equal force so as to cancel its effect (from counter, against + the old verb vail, from the Latin valere, to be strong). The series shows the agencies' efforts working against the attempts of groups to disturb the peace, which is the meaning of "acting with equal force but with opposite effect".
Example: Rising exports had a countervailing effect on the fall in local demand.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: connotative — Incorrect. Connotative means suggesting a meaning beyond the literal one; it is a term about words, not about opposing forces.
Example: The word "home" has a warm, connotative meaning.
Option 2: histrionics — Incorrect. Histrionics is a noun meaning exaggerated, dramatic behaviour meant to attract attention; it cannot describe "attempts".
Example: The child's histrionics did not move his mother.
Option 4: filamentary — Incorrect. Filamentary means thin and thread-like; it describes physical shape.
Example: Some fungi grow in filamentary strands.