N3 Vocabulary · Test 49

ありきたり means 'commonplace, ordinary, cliché' — something unoriginal or run-of-the-mill. 平凡な (へいぼんな, 'ordinary, mediocre') is the best match. The sentence means: 'Many of the opinions raised at today's meeting were commonplace.'

• 1的確な (てきかくな) means 'accurate, appropriate, spot-on.' This is the opposite nuance — it describes something well-suited or precise, not something ordinary or cliché.
• 3積極的な (せっきょくてきな) means 'proactive, positive.' This describes an attitude of taking initiative, unrelated to whether an opinion is commonplace.
• 4否定的な (ひていてきな) means 'negative, denying.' This describes the content/stance of an opinion (rejecting something), not how ordinary it is.

• ありきたり — commonplace, ordinary, cliché, unoriginal
• 平凡へいぼんな — ordinary, mediocre, unremarkable
• 的確てきかくな — accurate, appropriate, precise
• 積極的せっきょくてきな — proactive, positive
• 否定的ひていてきな — negative, denying

歴然（れきぜん）としている means 'is clear, obvious, unmistakable.' The sentence says: 'The gap in ability between the two teams is clear.' はっきりしている ('is clear/distinct') is the correct paraphrase.

• 1以前と変わらない means 'unchanged from before.' 歴然 does not mean unchanged; it means the difference is clearly visible, regardless of whether it changed.
• 2ほとんどない means 'there is almost none.' This is the opposite — 歴然としている implies the gap is clearly large and obvious, not negligible.
• 3以前より大きくなっている means 'has become bigger than before.' 歴然 describes the clarity of the difference, not a temporal change in its size.

• 歴然れきぜん — clear, obvious, unmistakable (used as 歴然としている)
• 実力じつりょく — actual ability, real strength
• 差さ — difference, gap

極力 (きょくりょく) means 'as much as possible, to the utmost.' The sentence means: 'Let's reduce wasteful expenses as much as possible.' できる限り ('as much as one can') is the correct paraphrase.

• 1少しずつ means 'little by little, gradually.' 極力 is about degree/extent (doing something to the maximum), not about pace.
• 2大幅に (おおはばに) means 'significantly, on a large scale.' While you might reduce expenses significantly, 極力 emphasizes doing your utmost, not the size of the reduction.
• 4真っ先に (まっさきに) means 'first of all, before anything else.' This is about priority/order, not about doing something to the greatest extent.

• 極力きょくりょく — as much as possible, to the utmost
• 無駄むだな — wasteful, useless
• 経費けいひ — expenses, operating costs
• できる限り（できるかぎり） — as much as one can, to the best of one's ability

落胆 (らくたん)する means 'to be disappointed, to be discouraged.' The sentence means: 'I was disappointed when I heard the results.' がっかりした ('was disappointed') is the correct paraphrase.

• 1びっくりした means 'was surprised.' Surprise is not the same as disappointment; 落胆 specifically conveys feeling let down or disheartened.
• 3動揺した (どうようした) means 'was shaken, was agitated.' This describes emotional instability or being upset, not specifically the let-down feeling of disappointment.
• 4疑問を持った (ぎもんをもった) means 'had doubts.' This is about questioning something, completely unrelated to feeling discouraged.

• 落胆らくたん — disappointment, discouragement (落胆する = to be disappointed)
• 動揺どうようする — to be shaken, to be agitated
• がっかりする — to be disappointed, to be let down

あっけない means 'too simple, anticlimactic, disappointingly brief' — something that ends without the drama or satisfaction one expected. The sentence means: 'I heard the ending of that novel was anticlimactic/disappointingly abrupt.' 意外につまらない ('unexpectedly boring/uninteresting') captures the sense of being let down by something that lacked substance or drama.

• 2意外におもしろい means 'unexpectedly interesting.' This is the opposite — あっけない implies disappointment, not pleasant surprise.
• 3予想通りつまらない means 'boring as expected.' あっけない carries a nuance of unexpectedness (the ending was surprisingly thin/abrupt), so 'as expected' does not fit.
• 4予想通りおもしろい means 'interesting as expected.' This is doubly wrong — neither 'as expected' nor 'interesting' matches あっけない.

• あっけない — too simple, anticlimactic, disappointingly brief/abrupt
• 結末けつまつ — ending, conclusion

とっくに means 'a long time ago' or 'already (well before expected).' Option 2, '山田さんならとっくに帰りました' (Yamada already went home long ago), is the natural usage: something was completed well before the present moment or before the listener expected.

• 1'このへんには、とっくに大きいお寺があった' says a big temple existed here long ago. とっくに describes an action completed well before expected, not mere past existence. You would simply say 昔（むかし）大きいお寺があった.
• 3'今ごろ謝ってもとっくに遅いよ' is redundant and unnatural. とっくに already implies 'long ago,' so pairing it with 遅い (late) creates an odd collocation. The natural expression is 今ごろ謝っても手遅れ（ておくれ）だ / 遅すぎる.
• 4'電話がとっくに鳴りっぱなしだ' combines とっくに with 〜っぱなし (a continuous ongoing state). とっくに describes a completed action in the distant past, which conflicts with a state that is still continuing now.

• とっくに — a long time ago; already (well before expected)

まちまち means 'varying, inconsistent, differing from case to case.' Option 1, 'うちの家族は夕食をとる時間がまちまちだ' (In my family, the time we eat dinner varies), is the textbook usage: different people or instances show different values.

• 2'自分用と贈り物用をまちまちに包んでもらった' tries to use まちまち as 'separately / individually.' The correct word is 別々（べつべつ）に. まちまち describes things that differ unpredictably, not items wrapped separately on purpose.
• 3'まちまちな色が混ざっていてきれいだね' tries to use まちまち as 'various / diverse.' The correct word is さまざま（な） or 色とりどり（いろとりどり）. まちまち has a nuance of inconsistency, not attractive variety.
• 4'まちまちの店舗で異なります' is grammatically and semantically awkward. The natural phrasing is 店舗（てんぽ）によって異なります. まちまちの店舗 ('varying stores') is not idiomatic.

• まちまち — varying, inconsistent, differing from case to case

ゆとり means 'margin, leeway, room to spare' — especially in finances, time, or space. Option 2, '子供が生まれてからは経済的にゆとりがなくなった' (Since having a child, we lost financial leeway), is the classic usage: ゆとりがなくなる = losing breathing room in one's budget.

• 1'資料のゆとりはあと一枚だけです' tries to use ゆとり as 'extra/surplus copies.' The natural word is 余（あま）り or 余分（よぶん）. ゆとり refers to comfortable margin, not a leftover count.
• 3'あと一日だけゆとりをください' tries to use ゆとり as 'extension/time.' The natural expression is 時間をください or 余裕（よゆう）をください. ゆとりをください is not idiomatic.
• 4'これ以上交渉のゆとりはない' tries to use ゆとり as 'room for negotiation.' The correct word is 余地（よち）: 交渉（こうしょう）の余地はない. ゆとり is about personal/financial/time breathing room, not negotiation flexibility.

• ゆとり — margin, leeway, room to spare (in money, time, space, etc.)

配布（はいふ） means 'distributing/handing out printed materials, samples, flyers, etc.' Option 4, 'あの店では今、化粧品の無料サンプルを配布している' (That store is currently handing out free cosmetic samples), is the correct usage: physically giving out items to people.

• 1'インターネットでは、最新ニュースがすぐに配布される' uses 配布 for online news distribution. The correct word is 配信（はいしん）. 配布 implies physically handing out tangible items.
• 2'携帯電話の電波は、どこにいても配布される' uses 配布 for radio waves. The correct word is 届（とど）く / 届いている. 電波（でんぱ） is not 'distributed' like documents.
• 3'ご購入いただいた商品は、ご自宅まで配布いたします' uses 配布 for delivering purchased goods. The correct word is 配達（はいたつ） or お届け. 配布 is for distributing free materials, not delivering orders.

• 配布はいふ — distribution, handing out (printed materials, samples, etc.)

質素（しっそ） means 'simple, frugal, plain' — typically describing a lifestyle without luxury. Option 4, '無駄なものは買わずに、質素な生活を送っている' (Living a frugal life without buying unnecessary things), is the textbook usage: 質素な生活 = a simple, frugal lifestyle.

• 1'この文章は質素で、とてもわかりやすい' tries to use 質素 for writing style. The correct word is 簡潔（かんけつ） or シンプル. 質素 describes lifestyle, not prose.
• 2'値段の質素なツアー' tries to use 質素 as 'cheap/affordable.' The correct word is 安（やす）い or 手頃（てごろ）な. 質素 does not describe price levels.
• 3'経験は質素でも' tries to use 質素 as 'little/few.' The correct word is 少（すく）ない or 浅（あさ）い. 質素 does not describe quantity or depth of experience.

• 質素しっそ — simple, frugal, plain (lifestyle without luxury)