The military was able to … the plan to overthrow the government.

Analyze the question

The sentence is: "The military was able to ..... the plan to overthrow the government." We need a verb that means to stop a plan from succeeding.

Explain the concept

This question tests vocabulary and collocation, which means which words naturally go together. Look at what each option means:

• Fight means to struggle against something physically or verbally. We say "fight a war" or "fight crime", but "fight a plan" is not the natural phrase, and it doesn't say the plan was stopped.
• Disrupt means to interrupt or disturb the normal course of something, as in "disrupt a meeting" or "disrupt services". It suggests a temporary interference, not a total defeat of a plan.
• Thwart means to prevent someone from accomplishing something, to foil or frustrate it. It collocates with "plan", "attempt", "scheme", "plot" and "coup".
• Disturb means to interfere with peace or to worry someone. It does not fit with a "plan".

Show the solution

1. The sentence is about a plan to overthrow the government, which is a coup plot.
2. The military "was able to" do something, which suggests success in stopping it.
3. The word that means to stop a plot successfully is thwart.

Correct sentence: The military was able to thwart the plan to overthrow the government.

Answer: C. thwart

Tip: Remember the pairing thwart + plan/plot/attempt. Words like foil, frustrate and thwart all mean to defeat a plan. In WASSCE lexis questions, always ask yourself, "Which word fits the meaning and also sounds natural with the other words in the sentence?"