Words in Context

SAT Reading and Writing· difficulty 3/5

The historian's argument is provocative, but it rests on a handful of sources whose authenticity remains in dispute. Until those documents can be authenticated independently, his thesis must be regarded as suggestive rather than settled.

As used in the text, what does the word "provocative" most nearly mean?

  • A

    deliberately offensive

  • B

    thought-stimulating

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  • C

    sexually suggestive

  • D

    easily disproved

Explanation

The argument is interesting enough to deserve discussion despite contested sources, so "provocative" means thought-stimulating, not the offensive or sexual senses.

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