N4 Vocabulary · Test 55

まじめに ('seriously / earnestly') is correct. The sentence means 'There's a test next week, so I'll study seriously this week.' まじめにべんきょうする is a natural collocation meaning to study with a serious, focused attitude.

• 1じょうぶに ('strongly / sturdily') describes physical strength or durability and cannot modify べんきょうする.
• 2しんせつに ('kindly') describes how one treats other people, not how one studies.
• 4だいじに ('carefully / preciously') can mean treating something with care, but まじめに is the natural and idiomatic choice for studying seriously for a test.

• まじめに — seriously, earnestly
• じょうぶに — strongly, sturdily
• しんせつに — kindly
• だいじに — carefully, with care

Option 4 おとして (落として, from 落とす) means 'to drop.' The sentence reads 'テーブルからコップを落として、割ってしまいました' — 'I dropped the glass from the table and ended up breaking it.' The te-form 落として connects two sequential actions: first you drop the glass, then (as a result) it breaks. This is the natural cause-and-effect relationship.

• 1わたして (渡して, from 渡す) means 'to hand over / pass (something to someone).' You don't 'hand over' a glass from a table, and it wouldn't cause the glass to break.
• 2なくして (無くして, from 無くす) means 'to lose.' Losing a glass is unrelated to it breaking from falling off a table.
• 3こわして (壊して, from 壊す) means 'to break (intentionally or by action).' If you already broke it with こわして, saying わってしまいました (ended up breaking it) afterward would be redundant and illogical — you can't break it twice.

• 落おとす — to drop
• 割わる — to break (something fragile)
• 渡わたす — to hand over, pass
• 無なくす — to lose
• 壊こわす — to break, destroy

Option 2 しゅうかん (習慣) means 'custom / habit.' The sentence reads 'この国には、たんじょうびに特別なものを食べる習慣があります' — 'In this country, there is a custom of eating something special on birthdays.' 習慣があります ('there is a custom') is the standard collocation for describing a cultural or habitual practice shared by a group.

• 1よてい (予定) means 'plan / schedule.' A plan is something an individual decides to do, not a shared cultural practice of a country.
• 3けいけん (経験) means 'experience.' While individuals have experiences, a country doesn't have an 'experience' of eating special food on birthdays in this sense.
• 4きょうみ (興味) means 'interest.' One would say きょうみがあります ('have interest'), but a country having 'interest' in eating something doesn't fit the pattern of a shared cultural practice.

• 習慣しゅうかん — custom, habit
• 予定よてい — plan, schedule
• 経験けいけん — experience
• 興味きょうみ — interest
• 特別とくべつ — special

Option 4 スイッチ (switch) is the correct word. The sentence reads 'ドアのよこのスイッチを押すと、部屋の電気がつきます' — 'When you press the switch next to the door, the room's light turns on.' A switch is exactly what you press (押す) to turn on (つく) a light, making this the natural and logical choice.

• 1チェック (check) means 'checking / verification.' You don't press a 'check' to turn on a light.
• 2スタート (start) means 'start / beginning.' While it implies beginning something, it is not a physical object you press to turn on a light.
• 3チャンス (chance) means 'opportunity / chance.' This is completely unrelated to pressing something to turn on a light.

• スイッチ — switch
• 押おす — to press, push
• 電気でんき — electricity, (room) light
• つく — to turn on (lights, etc.)

Option 1 きめましょう (決めましょう, from 決める) means 'let's decide.' The sentence reads 'こんばんどこで食事をするか決めましょう' — 'Let's decide where to eat tonight.' The pattern 〜か決める ('decide whether/where…') is the standard grammar for deciding on an undecided matter, and the volitional 〜ましょう form naturally invites the listener: 'Let's decide.'

• 2はいりましょう (入りましょう, from 入る) means 'let's enter.' You don't 'enter' where to eat; this doesn't collocate with the 〜か question pattern.
• 3はらいましょう (払いましょう, from 払う) means 'let's pay.' While paying is related to dining, you don't 'pay where to eat' — the 〜か pattern requires a verb of decision-making or selection.
• 4さそいましょう (誘いましょう, from 誘う) means 'let's invite.' You might invite someone to eat, but you don't 'invite where to eat' — the grammatical object here is the question 'where to eat,' which requires 決める.

• 決きめる — to decide
• 入はいる — to enter
• 払はらう — to pay
• 誘さそう — to invite
• 食事しょくじ — meal

The word 小説 is read しょうせつ, meaning 'novel.' The sentence says 'This novel was interesting.' Option 3 (しょうせつ) is correct. 小 has the on'yomi しょう and 説 has the on'yomi せつ.

• 1しょせつ drops the う from しょう. The kanji 小 has the on'yomi しょう (three morae), so this is wrong.
• 2しょぜつ both drops the う and changes せつ to ぜつ (voicing). Both modifications make it incorrect.
• 4しょうぜつ changes せつ to ぜつ (voicing). The kanji 説 is read せつ, not ぜつ, so this is wrong.

• 小説しょうせつ — novel
• おもしろい — interesting, fun

「日記」 is read 「にっき」. The kanji 「日」 here uses the reading にっ (a voiced/促音っ version of にち), and 「記」 is read き. Together: にっき. Option 1 is correct.

• 2「にちき」 keeps the unvoiced reading にち for 「日」 and misses the 促音っ (small っ) that appears in にっき.
• 3「にっきい」 adds an extra い at the end that does not belong to either kanji's reading.
• 4「にちきい」 both misses the 促音っ and adds an extra い.

• 日記にっき — diary
• 毎晩まいばん — every night
• 書かく — to write

「夕方」 is read 「ゆうがた」. 「夕」 is read ゆう (long vowel), and 「方」 is read がた. Together: ゆうがた. Option 2 is correct.

• 1「ゆうほう」 uses ほう, which is the reading of 「方」 in words like 「方(ほう)」 meaning direction/side, but here 「方」 is read がた.
• 3「ゆほう」 both shortens the long vowel ゆう to ゆ and uses the wrong reading ほう for 「方」.
• 4「ゆがた」 shortens the long vowel ゆう to ゆ, but 「夕」 should be read ゆう.

• 夕方ゆうがた — evening
• 雨あめ — rain
• 降ふる — to fall (rain/snow)

「秋」 is read 「あき」 and means autumn. Option 4 is correct.

• 1「ふゆ」 means 冬 (winter), a different season.
• 2「なつ」 means 夏 (summer), a different season.
• 3「はる」 means 春 (spring), a different season.

• 秋あき — autumn
• 冬ふゆ — winter
• 夏なつ — summer
• 春はる — spring