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ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension 2.5 Vocabulary-In-Context 183 Views


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ASVAB Paragraph Comprehension 2.5 Vocabulary-In-Context. "Ingenious" most nearly means what?


Transcript

00:01

We speak student!

00:04

[ musical flourish ]

00:07

And here's your Shmoop du jour, brought to you by wasp nests. [a boy hitting a paper wasps nest with a stick]

00:11

Here's a tip:

00:12

they are not pinatas. Trust us. Really.

00:15

All right, check out the following passage.

00:17

Paper wasps gather fibers from trees and plants and mix these

00:21

fibers with saliva - ew, gross -

00:23

in order to create water-resistant nests.

00:26

Paper wasp nests are ingeniously

00:28

complex in their construction and durability. [narrator reading a passage]

00:30

The wasps also secrete a chemical which repels ants,

00:34

which can threaten the eggs and offspring of the paper wasps.

00:37

Hmm.

00:38

All right, "ingenious"

00:40

most nearly means... what?

00:42

Inside genius? [music playing in the background]

00:43

[ mumbles ] All right.

00:47

Well, apparently, wasp nests are pretty elaborate. [a paper wasp enjoying in a Jacuzzi pool]

00:49

As a matter of fact, we wouldn't be surprised to find a miniature day spa

00:52

and an exercise bike in there. Yeah.

00:54

But we've gotta hand it to you wasps. You're pretty dazzling.

00:56

Let's get into the question.

00:58

The passage's emphasis on their impressive

01:00

and complicated nature gives us a hint in defining "ingenious." [a laser beam from a paper wasp nest killing ants]

01:04

Now, elements of the wasp nest are certainly strategic,

01:07

like its elaborate anti-ant defense mechanisms,

01:10

but the passage also emphasizes other elements,

01:13

like its water resistance and durability. [a paper wasp flying a spacecraft]

01:16

It's not just an army base, all right?

01:18

So strategic isn't the best choice.

01:20

And the writer's emphasizing more than just

01:23

that the nests are extremely complex, right?

01:26

That complexity serves a purpose. [a man watching a movie in a theater]

01:28

Unlike Christopher Nolan movies.

01:30

Ingenious doesn't mean extremely, so C's gotta go.

01:33

And nothing about the functional saliva and fiber-based

01:36

secretion-filled construction implies elegance or beauty. [a man talking to a woman]

01:40

Body secretions are rarely attractive.

01:43

So we can get rid of option D, too.

01:45

But all of the layers of defenses and traps [ two paper wasps discussing something]

01:47

do imply that the nest is clever and well-designed,

01:51

making option A the closest definition to "ingenious."

01:55

Isn't it comforting to know that these vicious

01:57

biting pests are also pretty smart? [a paper wasp posting a piece of paper on the fridge]

01:59

[ chuckles ] Yeah, maybe we'll just stay indoors.

02:02

[ glass breaks ]

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