Her problem was exacerbated by the loss of her father?

Step 1: Analyze the question You need the word closest in meaning to "exacerbated" in the sentence: Her problem was exacerbated by the loss of her father.

Step 2: Explain the concept "Exacerbate" is a verb meaning to make a problem, situation, or feeling worse or more severe. It is used for things that are already bad, such as pain, tension, or difficulties.

Step 3: Check each option

• A. exaggerated means to describe something as larger or worse than it really is. This is about speech or description, not about making a problem actually worse. It looks similar to "exacerbated" in spelling, which makes it a trap.
• B. solved means to fix a problem, the opposite of what the sentence says.
• C. aggravated means to make worse or more serious. This matches "exacerbated" almost exactly.
• D. infuriated means to make someone very angry. It applies to people's emotions, not to problems getting worse.

Step 4: Answer The loss of her father made her existing problem worse, so the closest word is aggravated, which is option C.

Exam tip: Don't choose a word just because it looks or sounds like the one in the question. "Exacerbated" and "exaggerated" look alike but mean different things. Remember: exacerbate = aggravate = worsen. A quick way to test is to put each option into the sentence and see which one keeps the original meaning.