Her ideas have always been eccentric.
- (a)special
- (b)strange
- (c)normal
- (d)local
Correct — C, normal. 'Eccentric' ideas depart from the usual pattern, so the reverse is ideas that keep to it — 'normal'. The word grew from Greek roots meaning out of the centre, and that picture is exactly right: an eccentric idea sits off the middle, a normal one sits on it.
- (a)special — 'Special' marks something out as distinctive or better than usual. It does not mean conventional, so it does not reverse 'eccentric'.
- (b)strange — 'Strange' is a near-synonym of 'eccentric' — odd and out of the ordinary.
- (d)local — 'Local' describes where something belongs, not how conventional it is, so it reverses nothing in the sentence.
An antonym item on 'eccentric' — unconventional or odd in behaviour and ideas — whose reverse is 'normal', meaning conforming to the usual standard.
Two choices look plausible for different reasons. 'Strange' is the obvious synonym and would win if the item asked for one. 'Special' feels like a compliment where 'eccentric' feels like a criticism, and candidates who sort by tone rather than by meaning fall for it. Sorting by meaning leaves a single axis — usual against unusual — and 'normal' marks the usual end of it.
- 'Eccentric' comes from Greek ek, out of, and kentron, centre — literally off-centre.
- In geometry and mechanics the word keeps that literal sense of not sharing the same centre.
- Conventional, orthodox and conformist are further opposites of the everyday sense.
- Choosing 'strange', the synonym, in an item that asks for the opposite.
- Choosing 'special' because it sounds like praise.
Asked as an antonym item — choose the word opposite in meaning to the underlined word 'eccentric'.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Select the word opposite in meaning to 'unconventional'.
- (a)odd
- (b)orthodox
- (c)quirky
- (d)novel
Answer(b) orthodox — orthodox means following accepted practice, while the rest mean departing from it.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Select the word opposite in meaning to 'bizarre'.
- (a)weird
- (b)outlandish
- (c)ordinary
- (d)freakish
Answer(c) ordinary — bizarre means strikingly odd, so its reverse is plain and unremarkable.