N1 Grammar · Test 21

The sentence means: 'If you're going to a hotel restaurant, wearing a suit would be the most （　） choice.' 無難(ぶなん) means 'safe, unobjectionable, prudent' — the choice that is least likely to draw criticism. Wearing a suit to a hotel restaurant is the safe, conventional choice, so 無難 fits perfectly.

• 1非難(ひなん) means 'criticism, blame.' Wearing a suit would not be 'criticism,' so this does not fit.
• 3避難(ひなん) means 'evacuation, taking refuge.' This is unrelated to choosing appropriate attire.
• 4苦難(くなん) means 'hardship, suffering.' Wearing a suit is not a hardship in this context.

• 無難ぶなん — safe, unobjectionable, prudent (the safest choice)
• 非難ひなん — criticism, blame
• 避難ひなん — evacuation, taking refuge
• 苦難くなん — hardship, suffering

The sentence means: 'This specialized （　） is relatively new, and research has not progressed much yet.' 領域(りょういき) means 'domain, field, area' and combines naturally with 専門 to form 専門領域('specialized field/domain'), which fits perfectly — a field of specialization that is new and under-researched.

• 1領土(りょうど) means 'territory' (national land). This refers to a nation's land area and does not combine with 専門.
• 2領事(りょうじ) means 'consul' (a diplomatic official). This is a person/title and does not fit the context of a research field.
• 4領地(りょうち) means 'territory, possession' (land under one's control). This refers to physical land, not an academic field.

• 領域りょういき — domain, field, area (of study/expertise)
• 領土りょうど — territory (of a nation)
• 領事りょうじ — consul (diplomatic official)
• 領地りょうち — territory, domain (land under control)

ルーズ (loose, lax) fits perfectly. The sentence says Sato-san is always late with deadlines and causes trouble for others — this describes someone who is lax or undisciplined about rules and schedules.

• 1ドライ (dry) means emotionally detached or unsentimental. It describes someone who is cold or businesslike, not someone who misses deadlines.
• 3ユニーク (unique) means one-of-a-kind or distinctive. It is a positive trait and does not explain being late or causing trouble.
• 4オープン (open) means frank/open-minded. This is generally positive and does not fit the negative context of being late and causing problems.

• ルーズ — lax, loose, undisciplined (about rules, deadlines, morals)
• ドライ — dry, emotionally detached, unsentimental
• ユニーク — unique, distinctive
• オープン — open, frank

理性的に (rationally) is the correct choice. The sentence contrasts 感情的に (emotionally) with the blank: 'Since we are both adults, let's not be emotional but proceed with discussion rationally.' 理性的 is the direct antonym of 感情的 in this context.

• 1理屈的に means 'by logic-chopping / arguing with mere logic' and carries a negative nuance of being overly theoretical or argumentative. It does not pair naturally as the opposite of 感情的 here.
• 2理解的に is not a standard expression. While 理解 (understanding) is related, 理解的に does not contrast with 感情的に in the way the sentence requires.
• 3理知的に (intelligently, intellectually) refers to intellectual sharpness rather than calm, reasoned judgment. It is less natural as the antonym of 感情的 in this context.

• 理性的りせいてき — rational, reasonable (contrasted with 感情的 'emotional')
• 感情的かんじょうてき — emotional, sentimental
• 理屈りくつ — logic, argument (often with negative nuance of empty reasoning)
• 理知的りちてき — intellectual, intelligent

仕上げる (to complete, finish up) is correct. 'It took three years to complete the doctoral dissertation.' 仕上げる specifically means to finish something after effort, which fits completing a major work like a thesis.

• 1仕切る (to partition, to manage) does not collocate with 博士論文. You don't 'partition' a dissertation.
• 2仕入れる (to stock, to purchase goods) is used for buying inventory, not for completing a thesis.
• 4仕掛ける (to set up, to initiate, to start something) means beginning an action, not finishing one. The sentence requires 'complete,' the opposite direction.

• 仕上しあげる — to complete, to finish (after effort)
• 仕切しきる — to partition, to manage, to take charge
• 仕入しいれる — to stock, to purchase (goods/inventory)
• 仕掛しかける — to set up, to initiate, to start

The sentence means 'Even the sun does not shine forever; there will come a time when it fades.' The grammar 〜と(は)いえども means 'even though one says ~' or 'even ~,' expressing concession. '太陽といえども' = 'even the sun.' This correctly conveys that despite being the sun (something seemingly eternal), it too will eventually disappear.

• 2'いったらば' — This is not a standard grammatical expression. It resembles a conditional form but is ungrammatical in this context.
• 3'いえばこそ' — 〜と(い)えばこそ means 'precisely because one says ~,' giving a reason/cause. This doesn't fit the concessive meaning needed here.
• 4'いったからには' — 〜と言ったからには means 'since (someone) said ~, then...' which implies someone made a statement and a consequence follows. This doesn't fit the concessive 'even the sun' meaning.

• 〜と(は)いえども — even though one says ~; even ~ (concessive expression)
• 消え去る（きえさる） — to disappear, to fade away
• 永遠えいえん — eternity, forever

The sentence means 'His glory was something obtained at the end of winning through harsh races.' The verb pattern is 勝ちぬく (to win through / to persevere and win), formed from V-stem (勝ち) + ぬく (to do to the end). Before 末に (at the end of / after doing), the verb must be in the た-form: 勝ちぬいた末に. Therefore option 3 'ぬいた' is correct, giving 勝ちぬいた末に.

• 1'ぬいて' — This is the て-form, which cannot directly precede 末に. The て-form would be used for sequential actions, not for the 'after doing ~' structure.
• 2'ぬく' — This is the dictionary/informal form. 末に requires a modifier in the た-form (past/completed action), so the plain form is grammatically incorrect here.
• 4'ぬき' — This is the 連用形 (stem form), used for connecting nouns (e.g., 勝ちぬき末) or for compound verbs, but not before 末に which requires た-form.

• 〜末に（〜すえに） — after doing ~ (requires V-た form); at the end of ~
• 勝かちぬく — to win through, to persevere and win (V-stem + ぬく: to do to the end)
• 栄光えいこう — glory, honor
• 獲得かくとく — acquisition, obtaining

The correct answer is 2 「ままみれ」. When inserted, the phrase becomes 「泥まみれになって」(どろまみれになって), meaning 'becoming covered in mud.' The noun まみれ attaches to a noun (here 泥 'mud') and means 'covered in / smeared with.' The full sentence means: 'When I was small, I used to fight with my younger brother until we were covered in mud.'

• 1「ずくめ」(ずくめ) means 'entirely / nothing but' (e.g., 黒ずくめ 'all in black', 幸せずくめ 'nothing but happiness'). 泥ずくめ is not an established expression and does not convey 'covered in mud.'
• 3「ばかり」means 'only / full of,' but 泥ばかりになって is grammatically awkward here — ばかり does not combine with になって to mean 'become covered in.' The pattern N+まみれ is the idiomatic choice.
• 4「みずく」is not a valid suffix or word in this context. 泥みずく is not a recognized expression.

• 泥どろまみれ — covered in mud; smeared with mud
• まみれ — (suffix) covered in, smeared with (dust, mud, sweat, blood, etc.)
• ずくめ — (suffix) entirely, nothing but (used with nouns like 黒, 幸せ)

The correct answer is 3 「ともなしに」. The pattern V-辞書形 + ともなしに means 'without any particular intention / without consciously trying to.' The sentence means: 'At a café, I was listening to the conversation at the next table without really intending to, and was surprised to find it was about my company.' The key nuance is that the listening was unintentional or aimless.

• 1「ばかりか」means 'not only... but also' and is used to add information (e.g., AばかりかBも). It does not convey 'without intending to.'
• 2「のみならず」means 'not only' (formal equivalent of ばかりか). It also does not fit the meaning of unintentional listening.
• 4「どころではなく」means 'far from ~ing / not in a position to ~' (e.g., 遊ぶどころではない). It implies one cannot do something due to circumstances, which does not match the context of casually overhearing a conversation.

• 〜ともなしに — without any particular intention; without consciously trying to (V-dict + ともなしに)
• ばかりか — not only... (but also)
• のみならず — not only (formal)
• 〜どころではなく — far from ~ing; not in a situation to ~

The correct answer is 4 「考える」. The pattern V-辞書形 + だに means 'even just doing X (is enough to...)' or 'merely X.' Here, 考えるだに恐ろしかった means 'even just thinking about death was terrifying.' The dictionary form is required before だに.

• 1「考え」is the V-ます stem (連用形). The pattern だに requires the dictionary form (辞書形), not the stem.
• 2「考えた」is the past tense (V-た形). だに does not take the past form; it requires the dictionary form.
• 3「考えて」is the te-form (V-て形). This does not combine with だに in this grammar pattern.

• 〜だに — even just ~; merely ~ (V-dict + だに, used with verbs of thinking/feeling to express that even the slightest amount is enough)