One Word Substitutions Questions with Solutions

One word substitution questions give a phrase or description and ask for the single word that means the same thing. For example, "a person who cannot read or write" is an "illiterate", and "a speech made without preparation" is "extempore". These questions test vocabulary directly. Words are often grouped by theme: people and their professions or habits (philanthropist, misogynist), fear of things (phobias such as claustrophobia), killing (homicide, regicide), government (democracy, autocracy, oligarchy) and study of subjects (ornithology, entomology). Learning words in these groups, along with common roots such as "-logy" (study of), "-cide" (killing) and "-cracy" (rule), makes them far easier to remember and lets you work out unfamiliar words in the exam. Practise the one word substitution questions below. Each answer includes the word's meaning and root.