N2 Vocabulary · Test 26

副 (ふく) combines with 社長 to form 副社長 (ふくしゃちょう), meaning 'vice president' or 'deputy president.' The sentence means 'In place of the president, the vice president held a press conference.' 副 is the standard prefix for a deputy or second-in-command position.

• 1従 (じゅう) does not form the word 従社長; there is no such common term. 従 appears in words like 従業員 (じゅうぎょういん, employee) but not as a title prefix here.
• 2準 (じゅん) does not form 準社長 as a standard word. 準 is used in terms like 準備 (じゅんび, preparation) or 準優勝 (じゅんゆうしょう, runner-up), but not for a deputy executive title.
• 3補 (ほ) does not form 補社長. 補 appears in words like 補欠 (ほけつ, substitute) but is not used as a prefix for executive titles in this way.

• 副社長ふくしゃちょう — vice president, deputy president
• 副ふく — prefix meaning deputy, vice-, assistant
• 代かわり — in place of, instead of
• 会見かいけん — press conference, interview

無 (む) combines with 責任 to form 無責任 (むせきにん), meaning 'irresponsible.' The sentence means 'His remark was criticized as irresponsible.' 無 is the standard prefix meaning 'without' or 'lack of,' and 無責任 is a very common compound.

• 1不 (ふ) can form negative compounds (e.g., 不便, 不安), but 不責任 is not a standard Japanese word. The correct prefix for 'without responsibility' is 無, not 不.
• 3放 (ほう) does not form 放責任. 放 appears in words like 放棄 (ほうき, abandonment) but is not used as a prefix before 責任.
• 4否 (ひ) does not form 否責任. 否 appears in words like 否定 (ひてい, denial) but is not used as a prefix before 責任.

• 無責任むせきにん — irresponsible, lacking responsibility
• 無む — prefix meaning without, lack of, non-
• 責任せきにん — responsibility
• 発言はつげん — remark, statement
• 批判ひはん — criticism

連れ (づれ) combines with 子ども to form 子ども連れ (こどもづれ), meaning 'accompanied by children' or 'with children in tow.' The sentence means 'The amusement park on the weekend was full of customers accompanied by children.' 連れ is a suffix attached to a person noun indicating being accompanied by that person.

• 2込み (こみ) means 'including' (e.g., 税込み, tax included) and does not form the expression 子ども込み in this context.
• 3付き (つき) means 'with' or 'attached' (e.g., 条件付き, with conditions), but 子ども付き is not the standard expression for 'accompanied by children.'
• 4加え (くわえ) is not used as a suffix in this way. 子ども加え is not a valid compound.

• 子ども連れ（こどもづれ） — accompanied by children, with children in tow
• 連づれ — suffix meaning accompanied by (someone)
• 遊園地ゆうえんち — amusement park
• 客きゃく — guest, customer

状 (じょう) combines with 招待 to form 招待状 (しょうたいじょう), meaning 'invitation (card/letter).' The sentence means 'I sent an invitation to my friend.' 状 is a suffix meaning 'letter' or 'written notice,' and 招待状 is the standard word for a formal invitation card.

• 1書 (しょ) does not form 招待書 as a common word. 書 appears in compounds like 図書 (としょ, books) or 証明書 (しょうめいしょ, certificate), but the standard word for an invitation is 招待状.
• 2便 (びん/べん) does not form 招待便. 便 appears in words like 航空便 (こうくうびん, airmail) but is not used here.
• 4紙 (し) does not form 招待紙. 紙 means 'paper' and appears in compounds like 手紙 (てがみ, letter), but the correct suffix for an invitation card is 状.

• 招待状しょうたいじょう — invitation card, letter of invitation
• 招待しょうたい — invitation
• 状じょう — suffix meaning letter, written notice
• 送おくった — sent (past tense of 送る)

真 (ま) combines with 新しい to form 真新しい (まあたらしい), meaning 'brand new' or 'completely new.' The sentence means 'My younger brother put on his brand-new shoes, which he had just bought, and went out.' 真 is a prefix that intensifies the adjective, meaning 'truly' or 'completely.'

• 1実 (じつ/み) does not form the word 実新しい. 実 appears in compounds like 実際 (じっさい, actually) but is not used as an intensifying prefix for adjectives.
• 3素 (す/そ) does not form 素新しい. 素 appears in words like 素晴らしい (すばらしい, wonderful) but does not combine with 新しい.
• 4本 (ほん/ほんとう) does not form 本新しい. 本 appears as a prefix in words like 本当 (ほんとう, true) but is not used before 新しい.

• 真新まあたらしい — brand new, completely new
• 真ま — prefix meaning truly, completely, right
• 新あたらしい — new
• 買かったばかり — just bought
• はいて — put on (shoes), wore

特色 (とくしょく) means 'special feature / characteristic.' The sentence says 'The ( ) of this school is that international exchange is flourishing.' 特色 fits perfectly: the school's special characteristic is its active international exchange.

• 1得点 (とくてん) means 'score / points (in a test or game).' A school does not have a 得点 that is 'international exchange is flourishing,' so this is wrong.
• 2性能 (せいのう) means 'performance / capability,' used for machines, devices, or products. It cannot describe a school's characteristic.
• 3効用 (こうよう) means 'efficacy / usefulness,' referring to the beneficial effect of something (e.g., medicine). It does not fit the context of describing a school's feature.

• 特色とくしょく — special feature, characteristic
• 得点とくてん — score, points
• 性能せいのう — performance, capability
• 効用こうよう — efficacy, usefulness

びっしょり means 'soaking wet / drenched.' The sentence says the rain got heavier and, despite using an umbrella, one's clothes got ( ) wet. びっしょりぬれてしまった = 'got completely soaked,' which is the natural expression.

• 1すっきり means 'refreshed / clear / neat,' used for feeling refreshed or something being cleanly resolved. It does not describe wetness.
• 2ぎっしり means 'packed tightly / stuffed,' used when something is filled to capacity (e.g., a schedule, a bag). It does not describe being wet.
• 4ぴったり means 'exactly / fitting perfectly / snugly,' used when something fits precisely or matches perfectly. It does not describe the degree of wetness.

• びっしょり — soaking wet, drenched
• すっきり — refreshed, clear, neat
• ぎっしり — packed tightly, stuffed
• ぴったり — exactly, fitting perfectly

輝かしい (かがやかしい) means 'brilliant / splendid / glorious.' 輝かしい成績 is a common collocation meaning 'a brilliant record / outstanding achievements.' The sentence says the team has won championships many times and left a ( ) record, so 輝かしい is the best fit.

• 1力強い (ちからづよい) means 'powerful / vigorous,' typically describing actions, voices, or movements. It is not normally used to modify 成績 (results/record).
• 3分厚い (ぶあつい) means 'thick,' used for books, clouds, slices, etc. It cannot modify 成績.
• 4限りない (かぎりない) means 'boundless / endless / infinite,' describing emotions or quantities that feel limitless. While poetic, it is not a standard collocation with 成績 in this context.

• 輝かがやかしい — brilliant, splendid, glorious
• 力強ちからづよい — powerful, vigorous
• 分厚ぶあつい — thick
• 限かぎりない — boundless, endless, infinite

面して (めんして) is the te-form of 面する (めんする), meaning 'to face (a direction/place).' 大通りに面していて means 'facing the main street.' The sentence says Hotel A faces the main street and is in an easy-to-find location, so 面して is correct.

• 1当たって (あたって) is the te-form of 当たる, meaning 'to hit / to contact / to correspond to.' A building does not 'hit' a street, so this is wrong.
• 2触れて (ふれて) is the te-form of 触れる, meaning 'to touch / to mention.' A building does not 'touch' a street in this sense.
• 4合わせて (あわせて) is the te-form of 合わせる, meaning 'to match / to combine / to face something toward.' It does not naturally collocate with a road name to mean 'facing the street.'

• 面めんする — to face (a direction or place)
• 当あたる — to hit, to contact, to correspond to
• 触ふれる — to touch, to mention
• 合あわせる — to match, to combine, to face toward

するどい (鋭い) means 'sharp / keen.' 鋭い質問 is a common collocation meaning 'a sharp/penetrating question.' The sentence says it was a ( ) question that accurately grasped the problem points, so するどい fits perfectly.

• 2にぶい (鈍い) means 'dull / blunt,' the opposite of sharp. A question that accurately captures the problem would not be described as 'dull.'
• 3けわしい (険しい) means 'steep / rugged / severe,' used for mountains, paths, or difficult situations. It is not used to describe questions.
• 4ゆるい (緩い) means 'loose / slack / lenient.' It does not collocate with 質問 in this context.

• 鋭するどい — sharp, keen
• 鈍にぶい — dull, blunt
• 険けわしい — steep, rugged, severe
• 緩ゆるい — loose, slack, lenient