N1 Vocabulary · Test 16

人脈 is read じんみゃく. 人 takes the on'yomi じん (as in 人口 じんこう or 人格 じんかく), and 脈 is read みゃく (as in 脈搏 みゃくはく or 静脈 じょうみゃく). 人脈 means 'personal connections / network of contacts,' which fits the context of 'expanding one's network through social activities.'

• 2じんまく is wrong because 脈 is read みゃく, not まく. This is a deliberate distractor that drops the small ゃ.
• 3にんみゃく is wrong because 人 here uses the on'yomi じん, not にん. The kun'yomi にん is not used for this compound.
• 4にんまく is wrong for both reasons: wrong reading of 人 (にん instead of じん) and wrong reading of 脈 (まく instead of みゃく).

• 人脈じんみゃく — personal connections, network of contacts

賢い is read かしこい, meaning 'wise, clever, smart.' The sentence says Suzuki's points are always precise/appropriate, so the speaker thinks he is truly a wise person. This fits perfectly.

• 1するどい (鋭い) means 'sharp' (e.g., a blade or a sharp mind/senses). While somewhat related to intelligence, it is not the reading of 賢い.
• 3すごい (凄い) means 'amazing, terrible, great' — a general intensifier, not the reading of 賢い.
• 4えらい (偉い) means 'great, admirable, important' — describes status or excellence, not the reading of 賢い.

• 賢かしこい — wise, clever, smart
• 的確てきかく — accurate, precise, appropriate

顕著 is read けんちょ. 顕 has the on'yomi けん (as in 顕示 けんじ), and 著 has the on'yomi ちょ (as in 著作 ちょさく or 著名 ちょめい). 顕著 means 'remarkable, conspicuous, striking,' fitting 'cultural differences appear conspicuously in dietary habits.'

• 1げんちょ is wrong: 顕 is read けん, not げん. This is a voicing distractor.
• 2けんしょ is wrong: 著 is read ちょ here, not しょ. しょ is another on'yomi of 著 (as in 著書 ちょしょ — note even there it's ちょ), but in this compound it is ちょ.
• 4げんしょ is wrong for both: 顕 is けん not げん, and 著 is ちょ not しょ.

• 顕著けんちょ — remarkable, conspicuous, striking
• 食生活しょくせいかつ — dietary habits, food lifestyle

多岐 is read たき. 多 is read た (as in 多数 たすう), and 岐 is read き (as in 岐路 きろ). 多岐にわたる is a set expression meaning 'to cover a wide range of topics/areas,' fitting 'the consultation covered many different topics.'

• 2たじ is wrong: 岐 is read き, not じ. This is a voicing distractor.
• 3たぎ is wrong: 岐 is read き, not ぎ. Another voicing distractor.
• 4たし is wrong: 岐 is read き, not し. This plays on visual similarity of 岐 to characters with a し reading.

• 多岐たき — many branches, wide range (多岐にわたる: to cover a wide range)
• 相談そうだん — consultation, discussion

廃れて is read すたれて, from the verb 廃れる (すたれる), meaning 'to fall into disuse, to become obsolete.' The sentence says 'that custom has now fallen out of use,' which matches perfectly.

• 1くずれて (崩れて) means 'to collapse, crumble, fall apart' — physically breaking down, not the reading of 廃れる.
• 2かすれて (掠れて) means 'to become hoarse, to fade, to wear thin' — used for voices or faint marks, not the reading of 廃れる.
• 3つぶれて (潰れて) means 'to be crushed, to go bankrupt, to be ruined' — physical or economic destruction, not the reading of 廃れる.

• 廃すたれる — to fall into disuse, to become obsolete
• 風習ふうしゅう — custom, practice

基盤 (きばん) means 'foundation' or 'base,' and 築く (きずく, 'to build/establish') is its standard collocation. 生活の基盤を築いた means 'built a foundation for one's life,' which fits perfectly: the speaker took a steady job and established a stable base for living on this land.

• 1根拠 (こんきょ) means 'grounds' or 'basis' and is used for claims, arguments, or reasoning (e.g., 根拠のない噂 'baseless rumor'). It does not collocate with 築く and is not used for a life foundation.
• 3根源 (こんげん) means 'root cause' or 'origin' (e.g., 病気の根源 'root cause of illness'). It refers to where something originates, not a base you build, and does not pair with 築く.
• 4基地 (きち) means 'base' in the sense of a military or operational facility (e.g., 軍事基地 'military base'). It is a physical installation, not something you build for your personal life.

• 基盤きばん — foundation, base (for life, business, etc.)
• 根拠こんきょ — grounds, basis (for a claim or argument)
• 根源こんげん — root, origin, fundamental cause
• 基地きち — base, facility (military/operational)
• 築きずく — to build, to establish

すんなり means 'smoothly, without difficulty or resistance.' The sentence contrasts the expectation that the discussion would be difficult (難航する) with the reality that opinions quickly aligned and a conclusion was reached easily. すんなり結論が出た ('a conclusion was reached smoothly') captures this contrast perfectly.

• 2うっとり means 'enraptured, fascinated, spellbound' (e.g., うっとりと見とれる 'gaze in fascination'). It describes being captivated by beauty, not how a conclusion is reached.
• 3ふんわり means 'softly, fluffy, lightly' (e.g., ふんわりとしたケーキ 'fluffy cake'). It describes physical softness or a gentle atmosphere, not the ease of reaching a conclusion.
• 4こっそり means 'secretly, stealthily' (e.g., こっそり抜け出す 'sneak out secretly'). It implies doing something without being noticed, which does not fit the context of an open discussion.

• すんなり — smoothly, without difficulty or resistance
• うっとり — enraptured, fascinated
• ふんわり — softly, fluffy, lightly
• こっそり — secretly, stealthily
• 難航なんこうする — to make heavy going, to have difficulty proceeding

見かける (みかける) means 'to happen to see, to catch sight of (someone).' The sentence says 'I caught sight of Sato-san at the station a moment ago, but it's strange because he should be overseas right now.' 見かけた fits perfectly: the speaker briefly spotted someone who looked like Sato.

• 1見合わせる (みあわせる) means 'to exchange glances' or 'to postpone' (e.g., 開催を見合わせる 'postpone holding'). Neither sense fits seeing someone at a station.
• 2見過ごす (みすごす) means 'to overlook, to fail to notice' or 'to let pass by.' If the speaker overlooked Sato, they wouldn't know they saw him, which contradicts the sentence.
• 4見違える (みちがえる) means 'to fail to recognize (someone due to changed appearance)' (e.g., 見違えるほど美しくなった 'became so beautiful one can hardly recognize her'). The sentence is about spotting someone, not about not recognizing them.

• 見みかける — to happen to see, to catch sight of
• 見合みあわせる — to exchange glances; to postpone
• 見過みすごす — to overlook, to fail to notice
• 見違みちがえる — to fail to recognize (due to changed appearance)

一掃 (いっそう) means 'to sweep away, to eliminate completely,' and 不安を一掃する ('to completely eliminate anxiety') is a standard collocation. The mayor's responsible actions swept away the residents' unease, causing expectations toward the administration to soar.

• 2追放 (ついほう) means 'banishment, expulsion' (e.g., 政界から追放される 'be expelled from politics'). It targets a person or group, not an abstract feeling like 不安.
• 3削除 (さくじょ) means 'deletion, erasure' and is used for data, text, or records (e.g., ファイルを削除する 'delete a file'). It is not used for eliminating emotions.
• 4排出 (はいしゅつ) means 'discharge, emission' (e.g., 二酸化炭素を排出する 'emit CO2'). It refers to expelling something outward, not removing anxiety.

• 一掃いっそう — sweeping away, complete elimination
• 追放ついほう — banishment, expulsion
• 削除さくじょ — deletion, erasure
• 排出はいしゅつ — discharge, emission

染みる (しみる) means 'to soak in, to permeate, to seep into.' 味が染みる is a common expression meaning 'the flavor has soaked into the food.' Well-boiled vegetables have flavor that has permeated them, making them soft and delicious. 味が染みて柔らかく describes this perfectly.

• 1溶ける (とける) means 'to melt, to dissolve' (e.g., 氷が溶ける 'ice melts'). Vegetables that are boiled do not melt; their flavor soaks in rather than dissolving away.
• 3潤う (うるおう) means 'to be moistened, to be enriched' (e.g., 喉が潤う 'one's throat is moistened'). While it relates to moisture, 味が潤う is not a natural collocation for food.
• 4沈む (しずむ) means 'to sink, to submerge' (e.g., 船が沈む 'a ship sinks'). 味が沈む is not a meaningful expression for food.

• 染しみる — to soak in, to permeate, to seep into
• 溶とける — to melt, to dissolve
• 潤うるおう — to be moistened, to be enriched
• 沈しずむ — to sink, to submerge