GRE Reading Comprehension
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Source: OG2
The more definitions a given noun has, the more valuable is each one. Multiple definitions, each subtly different from all the others, convey multiple shades of meaning. They expand the uses of the word; language is enriched, thought is widened, and interpretations increase or dilate to fill the potentialities of association. The very impossi- 5 bility of absoluteness in the definition of certain nouns adds to the levels of connotation they may reach. The inner life of a writer often says more than most readers can know; the mind of a reader can discover truths that go beyond the intent or perhaps even the comprehension of the writer. And all of it finds expression because a word can mean many things.
Question List: 1 2
The passage suggests that a writer's use of nouns that have multiple definitions can have which of the following effects on the relationship between writer and reader?
- A It can encourage the reader to consider how the writer's life might have influenced the work.
- B It can cause the reader to become frustrated with the writer's failure to distinguish between subtle shades of meaning.
- C It can allow the reader to discern in a work certain meanings that the writer did not foresee.
- D It allows the writer to provide the reader with clues beyond the word itself in order to avoid ambiguity
- E It allows the writer to present unfamiliar ideas to the reader more efficiently