Select the most appropriate synonym of the given word: NEBULOUS

Question

Select the most appropriate synonym of the given word: NEBULOUS

1. A. Vague (Correct answer)
2. B. Precise
3. C. Obvious
4. D. Clear

Correct Answer

Option A — Vague

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is Vague.

Key Points

• Nebulous means hazy, unclear, ill-defined — used of ideas or plans that lack sharp outline.
• It comes from the Latin *nebula*, "mist or cloud", the same root as nebula, the cloud of gas and dust in space.
• Vague carries exactly that sense of indistinctness, so it is the synonym.
• The other three options are all antonyms — precise, obvious and clear each mean well-defined — which is the giveaway: when three options cluster together in meaning, the odd one out is usually the answer.
• Words in the same family: amorphous, indistinct, opaque, ambiguous, inchoate.

Additional Information

• The Latin root *nebula* also gives nebulous, nebula and nebulosity, all carrying the sense of cloudiness.
• Words for lack of clarity worth grouping: ambiguous (open to two readings), obscure (hard to understand), opaque (impenetrable), inchoate (not fully formed) and amorphous (shapeless).
• In synonym questions, three options that agree with each other and one that stands apart usually mean the odd one is the answer — the setter builds the cluster deliberately.