N1 Vocabulary · Test 13

昇進 (しょうしん) means 'promotion' — specifically, rising in rank or position within an organization (especially a company). Option 4 says Section Chief Matsumoto will be promoted to Department Head (部長) next month. This is a classic example of moving up in corporate rank, which is exactly what 昇進 describes.

• 1Advancing from 2nd year to 3rd year in university is 進級 (しんきゅう), not 昇進. 昇進 is about rank/position in a workplace, not academic year progression.
• 2Improving one's cooking skills to a professional level is about skill improvement, not a rank promotion. A word like 上達 (じょうたつ) would fit here instead.
• 3Moving up to 2nd place in a sports ranking is better described by 昇格 (しょうかく) or simply 上位に上がる. 昇進 refers to personnel promotions, not competitive rankings.

• 昇進しょうしん — promotion (in rank/position, especially in a company)
• 進級しんきゅう — advancement to the next grade/year
• 昇格しょうかく — promotion in status/rank (broader than 昇進)

配布 (はいふ) means 'to distribute' — handing out printed materials, documents, maps, etc. to people. Option 3 says the station information center distributes tourist maps free of charge. This is the standard usage of 配布.

• 1Dropping materials on the floor after bumping into someone is an accident, not distribution. The intended word here would be something like 散らばる (scatter) or simply 落としてしまった (dropped).
• 2Mail being delivered to the wrong house is a delivery error. The correct word is 配達 (はいたつ, delivery), not 配布.
• 4Watering garden trees is 散水 (さんすい) or 水をやる, not 配布. 配布 is for distributing items to people, not for watering plants.

• 配布はいふ — to distribute (printed materials, documents, etc. to people)
• 配達はいたつ — delivery (of mail, packages, etc.)

滅びる (ほろびる) means 'to perish, to be destroyed, to collapse' — used for large-scale entities like civilizations, nations, dynasties, or cultures. Option 4 says a civilization that once flourished in this region perished due to a great disaster. This is the perfect context for 滅びる.

• 1Funds running out is better described as 資金が尽きる (つきる, run out) or 資金が失われる. 滅びる is too dramatic for money.
• 2Fish dying is simply 死んでしまった. 滅びる is not used for individual animals or small-scale deaths.
• 3Hopes of winning disappearing is better expressed as 望みが消えた or 望みが絶たれた. 滅びる is for civilizations/nations, not abstract hopes.

• 滅ほろびる — to perish, to be ruined/destroyed (of civilizations, nations, cultures, etc.)

発足 (ほっそく) means 'to be established, to be inaugurated' — used when an organization, committee, or group officially begins its activities. Option 1 says this organization was established last August with the purpose of supporting international students. This is the correct usage.

• 2A bus terminal is a facility, not an organization. 発足 does not apply to buildings or facilities. The appropriate word would be 完成 (かんせい, completion) or 開業 (かいぎょう, opening for business).
• 3An international tournament starting is 開催 (かいさい, to hold/host), not 発足. 発足 is for organizations, not events.
• 4Becoming aware of one's role as team leader is about developing self-awareness, which would be 自覚が芽生えた or 自覚が生まれた. 発足 cannot be used for mental/psychological states.

• 発足ほっそく — to be established/inaugurated (of an organization, committee, etc.)
• 開催かいさい — to hold/host (an event, conference, tournament, etc.)

提起 (ていき) means 'to raise, to bring up' — specifically, to formally raise an issue, problem, or matter for discussion or attention. Option 3 says someone raised the issue of how the nursing care system should be structured in today's parliamentary session. 問題を提起する is the standard collocation.

• 1Alerting consumers about product safety is 注意を喚起 (かんき)する, not 注意を提起する. 喚起 means to call attention to something, while 提起 is for raising issues/problems.
• 2Proposing to a friend that you start a company together is 提案 (ていあん)する or 持ちかける. 提起 is not used for making proposals or suggestions.
• 4Asking someone to take on the coach position is 打診 (だしん)する or 依頼 (いらい)する. 提起 is for raising issues, not for making requests or offers.

• 提起ていき — to raise/bring up (an issue, problem, or matter for discussion)
• 喚起かんき — to call attention to, to arouse (awareness, concern)
• 提案ていあん — to propose/suggest (a plan or idea)

開拓 is read かいたく (kaitaku), meaning 'pioneering' or 'opening up (a new route/market)'. The sentence means 'We opened up a new sales route.' Option 1 is the correct reading.

• 2かいだく is a deliberate misreading using the voiced dakuten だく instead of たく; there is no such word.
• 3かいせき is the reading of 開席 (opening a seat/event) or relates to 開催, not 開拓.
• 4かいぜき is a fabricated misreading combining 開 with a wrong second-kanji reading; no such word.

• 開拓かいたく — pioneering, opening up (a new market/route)
• 販売ルート（はんばいルート） — sales route/channel

復興 is read ふっこう (fukkō), meaning 'reconstruction' or 'revival'. The sentence means 'We are devoting all our efforts to the town's reconstruction.' Option 1 is correct.

• 2ふっきょう uses the long-vowel/kyō reading for 興, which is wrong; 興 here is こう.
• 3ふくこう misreads 復 as ふく instead of ふっ (with small っ).
• 4ふくきょう combines both errors: ふく for 復 and きょう for 興.

• 復興ふっこう — reconstruction, revival
• 取り組む（とりくむ） — to tackle, to work on

怠る is read おこたる (okotaru), meaning 'to neglect' or 'to be lazy about'. In the past tense it becomes 怠った (おこたった). The sentence means 'Because I neglected to check the documents, a problem arose.' Option 4 is correct.

• 1いつわった is the past tense of 偽る (いつわる), 'to deceive/lie' — wrong meaning and kanji.
• 2ためらった is the past tense of 躊躇う (ためらう), 'to hesitate' — wrong meaning.
• 3あやまった is the past tense of 誤る (あやまる), 'to make a mistake' or 謝る 'to apologize' — plausible but not the reading of 怠る.

• 怠おこたる — to neglect, to be remiss in
• 生しょうじる — to arise, to occur

了承 is read りょうしょう (ryōshō), meaning 'consent' or 'approval'. The sentence means 'With the person's consent, we published the photograph.' Option 3 is correct.

• 1りゅうしゅう is the reading of 留守 (るす/りゅうしゅ) confusion or 留収 — not a real word here; it mixes りゅう with しゅう.
• 2ろうしょう misreads 了 as ろう instead of りょう.
• 4ろうしゅう combines both wrong readings: ろう for 了 and しゅう for 承.

• 了承りょうしょう — consent, approval, understanding
• 掲載けいさい — publication, publishing (in a medium)

指図 is read さしず (sashizu), meaning 'order' or 'direction' (giving orders/instructions). The sentence means 'That person is always giving this-and-that orders.' Option 2 is correct.

• 1さしじ uses the unvoiced じ instead of the voiced ず; 指図 is さしず, not さしじ.
• 3しず drops the さし prefix; not a valid reading of 指図.
• 4しじ is the reading of 指示 (しじ), 'instruction' — a near-synonym but not the reading of 指図.

• 指図さしず — order, direction (bossing someone around)
• あれこれ — this and that, various things