The pilot says that it is easier to take off from the airport than to … on the tarmac

Analyze the question

The sentence is: "The pilot says that it is easier to take off from the airport than to __ on the tarmac."

The underlined phrase is "take off". We need the word that is the opposite of "take off" and also fits the gap grammatically and in meaning.

Explain the concept

This is an antonym question with a context check. Two things must hold:

1. The word must be opposite in meaning to "take off" (to leave the ground and begin flying).
2. It must fit the sentence: "to __ on the tarmac".

Solution

• The opposite of an aircraft taking off is an aircraft landing, which means touching down on the ground.
• Checking each option: • A. land: "to land on the tarmac" is natural and is the standard aviation term. ✔ • B. come down: this means descend. It is close, but it describes the descent, not the touchdown, and it is not the standard opposite of "take off". • C. alight: this means to get off a vehicle or to settle on something (a bird alights on a branch). It is not used for an aircraft touching down on a runway. • D. drop: this suggests falling suddenly and does not fit the context of a controlled landing.

Answer: A. land

Exam tip

For antonym questions with a sentence gap, always test your chosen word in the sentence. "Take off" and "land" are a standard aviation pair, just like "depart" and "arrive". Learn such pairs together to save time in the exam.