N1 Vocabulary · Test 69

やんわり means 'gently, softly, tactfully' and is the standard adverb for やんわり断る (to refuse gently/tactfully). The sentence says 'I asked the other party for cooperation, but was gently turned down.' This conveys a soft, indirect rejection.

• 1しんなり means 'limply, softly' (e.g., vegetables becoming limp after cooking). It is not used for refusing.
• 3うんざり means 'tired of, fed up with' and expresses boredom/disgust. うんざり断られてしまった is not a natural collocation.
• 4ひんやり means 'chilly, cold to the touch' and describes a cool sensation. It has nothing to do with refusing.

• やんわり — gently, tactfully, softly
• しんなり — limply, wilted
• うんざり — tired of, fed up with
• ひんやり — chilly, cool sensation

当（とう） is a formal prefix meaning 'this, our (establishment).' 当ホテル = 'this hotel' and is commonly used in official announcements within a facility. The sentence says 'In this hotel, all rooms are non-smoking,' which is a typical in-house notice.

• 1自（じ） as a prefix means 'self-' (e.g., 自社 our company), but 自ホテル is not a standard expression.
• 2主（しゅ） means 'main, principal' (e.g., 主原因 main cause). 主ホテル is not a meaningful collocation.
• 3実（じつ） means 'truth, reality' (e.g., 実例 actual example). 実ホテル is not a valid expression.

• 当とう — this, our (formal prefix for one's own establishment)
• 自じ — self- (prefix)
• 主しゅ — main, principal
• 実じつ — truth, reality, actual

綿密な（めんみつな）means 'detailed, thorough, meticulous.' The sentence says 'When starting a new business, it is necessary to make a (　) plan.' A thorough/detailed plan is exactly what is needed, so 綿密な fits perfectly: 綿密な計画（a detailed plan）.

• 1零細な（れいさいな）means 'small-scale,' typically used to describe a small business (零細企業). It does not collocate with 計画, and a 'small-scale plan' is not what the sentence calls for.
• 3繊細な（せんさいな）means 'delicate, sensitive, fine.' It describes things like a person's sensitivity or fine craftsmanship, not a plan. 繊細な計画 is unnatural.
• 4濃密な（のうみつな）means 'dense, concentrated, thick,' used for things like fog, relationships, or atmosphere. It does not modify 計画 naturally.

• 綿密めんみつな — detailed, thorough, meticulous
• 零細れいさいな — small-scale (usually of a business)
• 繊細せんさいな — delicate, sensitive
• 濃密のうみつな — dense, concentrated, thick

ルーズ means 'sloppy, lax, careless,' especially about rules, time, or money. The sentence says 'He has a ルーズ side when it comes to money.' だらしない means 'sloppy, untidy, careless' and is the closest paraphrase, so option 2 is correct.

• 1ずうずうしい means 'shameless, brazen, audacious.' Being sloppy with money is not the same as being shameless.
• 3うるさい means 'noisy, fussy, strict.' Someone who is ルーズ is the opposite of fussy/strict.
• 4よわい（弱い）means 'weak.' Being careless/sloppy with money is not the same as being weak with money.

• ルーズ — sloppy, lax, careless (loanword from 'loose')
• だらしない — sloppy, untidy, careless
• ずうずうしい — shameless, brazen
• うるさい — noisy, fussy, strict

なじむ（馴染む）means 'to get used to, to adapt to, to settle into.' The sentence says 'I've gotten quite なじんできた at this workplace.' 慣れて（なれて）means 'got used to,' which is the correct paraphrase.

• 1恵まれて（めぐまれて）means 'blessed, fortunate.' Getting used to a workplace is not about being blessed.
• 2逆らって（さからって）means 'going against, defying.' This is the opposite of adapting.
• 3飽きて（あきて）means 'got tired of, got bored with.' The sentence has a positive nuance of settling in, not losing interest.

• なじむ — to get used to, to adapt to, to settle into
• 慣なれる — to get used to
• 恵めぐまれる — to be blessed, to be fortunate
• 逆さからう — to go against, to defy

円滑に (えんかつに) means 'smoothly, without friction.' 交渉が円滑に進む ('negotiations proceeded smoothly') is a natural collocation. The sentence means 'The negotiations proceeded smoothly, and we were able to sign the contract without issue.'

• 1しとやかに (淑やかに) means 'modestly, gracefully, demurely' — used to describe a woman's demeanor, not negotiations.
• 2しなやかに (撓やかに) means 'flexibly, supplely' — describes physical flexibility or graceful movement, not how negotiations proceed.
• 4急性に (きゅうせいに) is not an adverbial expression; 急性 refers to 'acute (medical condition)' as in 急性肺炎. It is completely out of context here.

• 円滑えんかつ — smooth, without friction
• しとやか — modest, graceful, demure (demeanor)
• しなやか — flexible, supple, graceful
• 急性きゅうせい — acute (medical)

結束 (けっそく) means 'unity, cohesion, solidarity.' 結束を強める ('to strengthen unity/cohesion') is a standard collocation. The sentence means 'Let's strengthen the team's unity for the next tournament.'

• 1収束 (しゅうそく) means 'convergence, subsiding (of a situation/disease).' You do not say 収束を強める; it is used for things calming down, not team cohesion.
• 3親密 (しんみつ) means 'intimate, close (relationship).' It is a na-adjective describing closeness between people, not something you 強める in this context.
• 4緊密 (きんみつ) means 'close, tight (relationship/cooperation).' While related, 緊密を強める is not a standard collocation; the correct word for team cohesion is 結束.

• 結束けっそく — unity, cohesion, solidarity
• 収束しゅうそく — convergence, subsiding (of a situation)
• 親密しんみつ — intimate, close (relationship)
• 緊密きんみつ — close, tight (relationship/cooperation)
• 結束を強める（けっそくをつよめる） — to strengthen unity/cohesion

背景（はいけい） means 'background.' The phrase 「～を背景に」 means 'with ~ as a background / backed by ~.' The sentence means 'That company expanded into overseas markets with its massive capital as a backing.' This is the correct and natural collocation.

• 2根源（こんげん） means 'root cause / origin.' You cannot say 「資本を根源に」 because capital is not the origin or root cause of the expansion; it is the backing or foundation behind it.
• 3後援（こうえん） means 'sponsorship / backing (by a person or organization).' While semantically close, the fixed expression is 「～を背景に」, not 「～を後援に」. 後援 is used as a noun meaning sponsorship itself, not in this grammatical pattern.
• 4発端（ほったん） means 'beginning / start (of an event).' Capital is not the 'beginning' of the overseas expansion in this sense, so 「資本を発端に」 is unnatural.

• 背景はいけい — background
• 根源こんげん — root cause, origin
• 後援こうえん — sponsorship, backing
• 発端ほったん — beginning, start (of an event)
• 資本しほん — capital
• 進出しんしゅつする — to expand into, to advance into

まばら means 'sparse, scattered, few and far between.' When describing attendance (出席者), 「出席者がまばらだった」 means attendance was thin/sparse — i.e., few people came. Option 2, 少なかった (すくなかった, 'were few'), correctly captures this meaning.

• 1多かった (おおかった) means 'were many,' the opposite of まばら.
• 3まじめだった means 'were serious/earnest.' まばら describes quantity/density, not attitude.
• 4ふまじめだった means 'were not serious / frivolous.' Again, まばら is about sparseness, not seriousness.

• まばら — sparse, scattered, few and far between
• 研修会けんしゅうかい — training session, seminar
• 出席者しゅっせきしゃ — attendees

どんより（した） describes weather that is 'cloudy, gloomy, and heavy/dark' — the kind of overcast sky that feels oppressive. Option 1, 曇っていて暗かった (くもっていてくらかった, 'was cloudy and dark'), matches this meaning perfectly.

• 2晴れていて明るかった (はれていてあかるかった) means 'was sunny and bright,' the opposite of どんより.
• 3風が吹いて涼しかった (かぜがふいてすずしかった) means 'was windy and cool.' どんより has nothing to do with wind or coolness.
• 4雨が降って蒸し暑かった (あめがふってむしあつかった) means 'was rainy and humid/hot.' どんより refers to gloomy overcast weather, not rain and humidity specifically.

• どんより — gloomy, heavily overcast (weather)
• 一日中いちにちじゅう — all day long