Question

Part of this sentence given below has been underlined. You have to select the option that best replaces the underlined part.

The appetite of banks for funds was lost under the onslaught of the slowdown, corporates refused to borrow even as bank deposits flourished.
 

• A. bank deposits flourished
• B. bank deposits swelled
• C. bank deposits were enhanced
• D. bank deposits flummoxed

Hint:

In financial contexts, choose terms like "swelled" or "surged" when referring to dramatic increases. These words convey the magnitude of change better than terms like "flourished" or "enhanced."

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

The sentence provides a contrast between banks and corporates: while banks struggled to obtain funds, deposits continued to rise, which points to a contradiction in economic activity during a slowdown. The correct answer must reflect the significant increase in bank deposits.

Option (A), bank deposits flourished, is a reasonable choice but sounds less formal and lacks the powerful imagery of a large, noticeable increase. "Flourished" refers to growth but doesn't emphasize the volume of growth as much as "swelled."

Option (B), bank deposits swelled, is the most appropriate answer. "Swelled" conveys the idea of a dramatic or substantial increase in the number of deposits, which fits well with the context of economic conditions where banks are seeing an unexpected rise in deposits despite a slowdown.

Option (C), bank deposits were enhanced, uses the term "enhanced," which typically means improvement in quality rather than quantity. While deposits might improve in quality, the sentence focuses more on their volume, not quality, making this choice less accurate.

Option (D), bank deposits flummoxed, is clearly incorrect as "flummoxed" means confused or puzzled, which doesn’t make sense in the context of describing the growth of deposits. Therefore, the best choice is option (B) as it best conveys the significant and unexpected increase in deposits.