NDA (I) 2022 General Ability Test · Question 37 of 150

Correct — B, drought. A 'deluge' is a great flood or heavy downpour of water; the word opposite in meaning is 'drought', a prolonged shortage of water or rainfall.

• (a)cloudburst — 'Cloudburst' is a sudden, violent rainstorm — very close in meaning to a deluge, so it is a synonym, not the opposite.
• (c)deforestation — 'Deforestation' is the clearing of forests; it is an environmental process unrelated to an excess or shortage of water.
• (d)drizzle — 'Drizzle' is light rain; it is a smaller amount of rain, not the opposite of a flood, which is the near-absence of water.

An antonym item — a 'deluge' is an excess of water (a flood), so the opposite is a 'drought', a severe lack of water.

No directly related past PYQ was found.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Select the word opposite in meaning to 'flood'.

  • (a)torrent
  • (b)drought
  • (c)downpour
  • (d)spate

  Answer(b) drought — a 'flood' is too much water; a 'drought' is too little, so it is the opposite.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Select the word opposite in meaning to 'downpour'.

  • (a)cloudburst
  • (b)dry spell
  • (c)torrent
  • (d)monsoon

  Answer(b) dry spell — a 'downpour' is heavy rain, whereas a 'dry spell' is a rainless period, so it is the opposite.