Question

"He often _____ the numbers. False claims are not going to help. Honesty _____ trust", said the manager.

Choose the option with the correct order of words to fill the blanks.

• A. exaggerates; engenders
• B. excels; encourages
• C. aggravates; alleviates
• D. diminishes; eliminates

Hint:

Think about which word means "to inflate or overstate" for the first blank, and which word means "to create or build" for the second blank.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Read the sentence for the logical connection.
The manager says the person often does something to the numbers, and immediately clarifies that "false claims are not going to help." This means the first blank must describe an action that produces false or inflated claims, so the word has to mean something close to "overstates" or "inflates."

Step 2: Match the first blank.
Among the options, "exaggerates" (option A) is the only word that directly means to overstate or blow something out of proportion, which lines up with "false claims." "Excels" (B) means to do very well, "aggravates" (C) means to make a situation worse rather than to inflate numbers, and "diminishes" (D) means to reduce, which is the opposite of the inflated sense the sentence needs.

Step 3: Analyse the second sentence.
"Honesty _____ trust" needs a verb that shows a positive cause and effect relationship between being honest and building trust. The natural pairing is that honesty creates or generates trust.

Step 4: Match the second blank.
"Engenders" (from option A) means "gives rise to" or "brings about," which fits perfectly with honesty producing trust. Checking the other pairs: "encourages" (B) is plausible on its own, but it is paired with "excels", which already fails the first blank, so option B fails as a complete pair. "Alleviates" (C) means to ease or lessen, so "honesty alleviates trust" wrongly suggests trust is a burden being reduced. "Eliminates" (D) means to remove completely, so "honesty eliminates trust" reverses the intended meaning entirely.

Step 5: Confirm the complete sentence.
Reading it fully: "He often exaggerates the numbers. False claims are not going to help. Honesty engenders trust." Every clause flows logically only when both blanks are filled with the option A pair, since it keeps the negative behaviour (exaggeration causing false claims) contrasted with the positive value (honesty building trust).

\[ \boxed{\text{Option A: exaggerates; engenders}} \]