Question

In any society that values liberty and regards it as a right, punishment will be viewed very seriously, to be __________ only if a very good justification for it is __________.

• A. awarded ....... ....... ....... based
• B. imposed ....... ....... ....... posited
• C. meted ....... ....... ....... tendered
• D. provided ....... ....... ....... forwarded

Hint:

For formal contexts like law or governance, prefer precise collocations such as “meted out” or “tendered” that are standard in legal language.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

In the given statement: "In any society that values liberty and regards it as a right, punishment will be viewed very seriously, to be __________ only if a very good justification for it is __________.", we need to fill in the blanks with words that both fit grammatically and make logical sense within the context of the sentence.

The following options are provided:

1. awarded ....... ....... ....... based
2. imposed ....... ....... ....... posited
3. meted ....... ....... ....... tendered
4. provided ....... ....... ....... forwarded

Analyzing each option:

1. Awarded ....... based: 'Awarded' is generally associated with granting something positive, like a prize or recognition, which doesn't logically associate with 'punishment'. Therefore, this option doesn't fit.
2. Imposed ....... posited: 'Imposed' can fit with punishment. However, 'posited' means put forward as a basis of argument, which does not imply justification is provided. Hence, this doesn't work semantically.
3. Meted ....... tendered: 'Meted' means to dispense or allot justice, which fits the context of punishment. 'Tendered' means to offer or present formally, which correlates with presenting justification. This option suits logically and syntactically.
4. Provided ....... forwarded: While 'provided' can correlate to giving out something like a service or an item, in terms of punishment, it's not appropriate. 'Forwarded' similarly is more about sending or transmitting, rather than presenting justification.

Thus, the correct answer is meted ....... tendered because these words appropriately and accurately complement the context of punishment needing a formal justification.