Hello, I am confused when coming across these words when doing my exercise. Can you explain to the difference them and say what answer is the most appropriate in the context?
Our journey was hampered by the icy roads, which forced us to drive more slowly.
Although she was able to walk with the aid of crutches, having a broken ankle hindered her movements considerably.
Each resident of the house must pay his own tax.
Barred or blocked means they could not continue.
They were forced to drive slowly, but were still able to continue. So barred or blocked would not be used.
If they are obstructed, they may or may not be able to continue. Obstructed means there is something in the road, like a tree or car wreck. When obstructed they might be able to drive around it. Ice is not something in the road like an obstruction.
barred, blocked, hindered
Hindered does not completely stop her. It just makes it more difficult to walk.
Blocked means there is something physically in her way so she can’t move forward.
Barred in this context also means something blocks her.
In other contexts barred can mean she is banned or not allowed.
settler, resident, inhabitant, dweller
Resident, inhabitant and dweller all mean the same thing in this context. Resident is the best choice because it’s the most commonly used word.
Settler normally means migrants who are new to the land. Like when Europeans settled in the Americas for the first time.
Here you can see the red and white bar across the road. In this case it is literally a bar. In other cases it may be something else that blocks the road.
Torsten, we need to select the best or most suitable option from among those provided. If so, I think the verb ‘impede’ or ‘obstruct’ would be better.
