In the given question, two words are omitted, which are replaced by blanks. Choose the best combination of the words that can fit into the given blanks in the same order so as to make a grammatically and logically correct statement.

The whistleblower’s testimony was so _______ that it left lawmakers scrambling to _______ the allegations before they could gain further traction.

Question

In the given question, two words are omitted, which are replaced by blanks. Choose the best combination of the words that can fit into the given blanks in the same order so as to make a grammatically and logically correct statement.

The whistleblower’s testimony was so _______ that it left lawmakers scrambling to _______ the allegations before they could gain further traction.

Accepted Answer

**Solution:**

1. The sentence talks about the whistleblower’s testimony having a strong impact on lawmakers, causing them to react quickly.

2. The first blank describes the nature of the testimony:
   - "Damning" means strongly critical or revealing evidence of guilt or wrongdoing, which fits the context of causing lawmakers to act.
   - Other options like "uninformative," "baseless," "neutral," and "unfounded" imply weak or no impact, which contradicts the lawmakers' scrambling.

3. The second blank describes the lawmakers' reaction:
   - "Counter" means to oppose or respond to reduce the effect of the allegations, which logically follows from a "damning" testimony.
   - Other options like "dismiss," "ignore," "endorse," and "deny" do not fit as well:
     - "Dismiss" or "ignore" imply disregarding, which is unlikely if the testimony is damning.
     - "Endorse" means to support, which contradicts the idea of scrambling to respond.
     - "Deny" is possible but less precise than "counter," which implies active opposition.

**Answer:** (c) damning, counter

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