Monday Mix is the Edvento feature of confusing word groups that you are bound to stumble upon in the GRE. Consider the following single blank text completion question.
The sergeant has always been a haughty person. He is still under the ______ that he can solve any case.
- Illusion
- delusion
- allusion
- elusion
- hallucination
Let us go step by step. Here the first thing is to figure out the clue for the blank. In the example, the sergeant has a ‘false impression’ that he can solve any case. Now, we need to find something that means false impression.
Now, let us see what these words mean.
Illusion - something that deceives by producing a false or misleading impression of reality. I’m sure most of you must have come across this word.
Delusion - a fixed false belief that is resistant to reason or confrontation with actual fact.
At this point we might be confused which one would be the correct answer. There is a minute difference between the words.
Delusion comes from within the subject himself. It is a false belief that the sergeant has and since he is a haughty person, he is resistant to change.
Illusion is something that has to be perceived by him. There have to be external factors acting on the sergeant.
Hence, in this case, delusion is the correct answer.
Let us check what the other words mean.
Allusion - an incidental mention ofsomething, either directly or by implication
I could not fully understand the allusion that the author was making to Shakespeare’s work throughout his article.
Elusion - the act of avoiding someone or something.
The teacher was livid at Jane’s repeated elusions from project work
Hallucination - a sensory experience of something that does not exist outside the mind. It is a synonym of illusion.
