Question

read the following excerpt from wongs testimony to congress. which of the following words would most weaken the meaning of the sentence if it replaced this italicized phrase from joshua wongs testimony to congress?
that night, pro - beijing thugs with suspected ties to organized crime gathered in the yuen long train station and indiscriminately attacked not just protesters returning home, reporters on the scene, but even passersby.
which of the following words would weaken the impact of wongs statement if it replaced the underlined words?
○ assailed
○ besieged
○ accosted
○ bombarded

Explanation:

1. Analyze the meaning of "indiscriminately attacked": It implies a violent, unselective assault.
2. Analyze each option:

• "assailed": Means to attack violently, similar in intensity to "attacked" here.
• "besieged": Means to surround and attack, often in a prolonged way, still conveys a strong aggressive action.
• "accosted": Means to approach and speak to (often aggressively), but it is less violent and less intense than "indiscriminately attacked". It is more about confronting rather than a physical assault of the same magnitude.
• "bombarded": Can mean to attack with bombs or a lot of questions/criticism, in a physical sense, it is a strong form of attack.

1. So, "accosted" has the least intensity and would weaken the impact of the statement as it downplays the violent nature of the action compared to the original "indiscriminately attacked".

Answer:

C. accosted