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24 Jun 2019, 11:12
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D
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
25%
(medium)
Question Stats:
77% (01:37) correct
23%
(01:53)
wrong
based on 211
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Our words are meaningless and cannot be distinguished from their opposites, as can be proved by an example. People think that they know the difference between the meanings of "bald" and "having hair." Suppose an average person twenty-one years of age has N hairs on his or her head. We say that that person is not bald but has hair. But surely one hair less would make no difference, and a person with N - 1 hairs on his or her head would be said to have hair. Suppose we kept on, with one hair less each time. The result would be the same. But what would be the difference between someone who had one hair and someone who had none? We call them both bald. Nowhere can we make a distinction between "bald" and "having hair."
Which of the following statements best counters the argument above?
(A) The word "bald" can be translated into other languages.
(B) A word can have more than one meaning.
(C) A word such as "cat" can be applied to several animals that differ in some respects.
(D) Words can lack precision without being meaningless.
(E) People cannot think clearly without using words.
Which of the following statements best counters the argument above?
(A) The word "bald" can be translated into other languages.
(B) A word can have more than one meaning.
(C) A word such as "cat" can be applied to several animals that differ in some respects.
(D) Words can lack precision without being meaningless.
(E) People cannot think clearly without using words.
25 Jun 2019, 06:00
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Quote:
The right answer here is D. We've been asked for a counter to the argument, so we need a statement that makes the conclusion invalid. In this case, the conclusion is that "Our words are meaningless and cannot be distinguished from their opposites". The rationale given here is that its impossible to make a clear distinction between "bald" and "having hair", which are opposites.
A - This is irrelevant. In English at least, the conclusion remains unaffected. OUT
B - If a word can have multiple meanings, it still can suggest that there is little difference between a word and its opposite. OUT
C - This is very similar to B. One word being applied to multiple situations and meanings. OUT
D - This suggests that the problem the author mentioned was not one of meaninglessness, but one of precision. It certainly adds up that "having hair" is imprecise about how much hair, and at what degree one is considered bald. By providing an alternative explanation, it weakens the argument that words are meaningless. CORRECT
E - This is not relevant to the argument. We are not told enough about the link between thinking and meaning. OUT
- Matoo
25 Jun 2019, 21:48
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MatooCrackVerbal
Completely agree with this explanation. It is important to target (or counter) the conclusion of the stimuli : Our words are meaningless and cannot be distinguished from their opposites. By attacking this conclusion, you can rule out A and E. They are both irrelevant. For B and C, they take an idea from the passage and twist it around but still don't target the conclusion. Hence, D.
On a side note, this question took me 2:32 seconds which is slightly more than what I'm willing to give but hey, at least I got it right! You will too. Keep at it!
