_____ his knowledge of the mountainous country, John Smith was appointed as our guide.
| A．In spite of | B．On account of |
| C．Regardless of | D．Instead of |
Political parties often differ in their views on various _____ concerning their own countries.
| A．ways | B．measures | C．issues | D．patterns |
Evidence obtained from observation and experiment is often used to _____ a scientific theory.
| A．confirm | B．confine | C．conform | D．conceive |
Jack is good, kind, hard-working and intelligent. _____, I can't speak too highly of him.
| A．As a result | B．By the way |
| C．On the whole | D．In a word |
Because of the strong sun Mrs. William's new dining room curtains _____ from dark blue to gray within a year.
| A．faded | B．fainted | C．paled | D．diminished |