Question:

Linguistic science confirms what experienced users of ASL—American Sign Language—have always implicitly known: ASL is a grammatically BLANK language, as capable of expressing a full range of syntactic relations as any natural spoken language. Select the two answer choices that, when substituted for the BLANK, fit the context and produce the two sentences most nearly alike in meaning.
(A) complete
(B) economical
(C) redundant
(D) spare
(E) unique
(F) unlimited

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Look for punctuation clues. A colon (:) often signals that a definition, explanation, or example is about to follow. Use the information after the colon to predict the meaning of the word in the blank before it.
Updated On: Oct 1, 2025
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Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
This is a sentence equivalence question where the second part of the sentence defines the word in the blank. We need to find two words that match the given definition.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
The colon (:) indicates that the second clause will explain or elaborate on the first. The sentence describes ASL as "as capable of expressing a full range of syntactic relations as any natural spoken language." This means it lacks nothing in grammatical structure or expressive power. We are looking for words that mean "whole," "full," or "not lacking anything."
Analyzing the Options:
(A) complete: This word means having all the necessary or appropriate parts. A "grammatically complete" language is one that has a full system of grammar and syntax, which perfectly matches the definition provided.
(F) unlimited: This word, in context, means not limited or restricted in its capabilities. An "unlimited language" would be one that can express a full range, just like any other natural language. It serves as a good synonym for "complete" in describing ASL's expressive capacity.
The other options are incorrect:
(B) economical / (D) spare: These suggest efficiency or brevity, not fullness of range.
(C) redundant: This means not or no longer needed or useful, the opposite of the intended meaning.
(E) unique: The sentence explicitly compares ASL's capability to other languages, suggesting it is equivalent, not necessarily one-of-a-kind.
Step 3: Final Answer:
Both "complete" and "unlimited" describe a language that is fully formed and not deficient in its expressive capabilities, fitting the definition given in the sentence.
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