NDA (II) 2024 General Ability Test · Question 50 of 141

Correct — B, tainted. Literally 'tarnish' is the dulling of a metal's lustre; figuratively, here it means the department's reputation was spoiled or stained, so the nearest word is 'tainted' (damaged, contaminated). 'Enhanced' and 'restored' point the opposite way (improving or rebuilding an image), and 'assigned' (given, allotted) is unrelated.

• (a)enhanced — 'Enhanced' means improved or heightened — the opposite of having one's image damaged.
• (c)restored — 'Restored' means brought back to a former good state — again the reverse of being tarnished.
• (d)assigned — 'Assigned' means given or allotted; it has nothing to do with spoiling a reputation.

Synonym-in-context item: 'tarnished' (literally, metal losing its shine; figuratively, a reputation stained) matches 'tainted'.

No directly related past PYQ was found.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Select the word nearest in meaning to 'sullied'.

  • (a)cleaned
  • (b)stained
  • (c)praised
  • (d)sold

  Answer(b) stained — 'sullied' means made dirty or disgraced, i.e. stained.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Select the synonym of 'blemished'.

  • (a)flawless
  • (b)flawed
  • (c)polished
  • (d)renewed

  Answer(b) flawed — 'blemished' means marked by a flaw or imperfection, i.e. flawed.