"Sinister" is an adjective meaning threatening and bad, so the answer choice closest in meaning to "sinister" is "evil," an adjective meaning harmful and wrong. Considering the other answer choices, none are close in meaning to "sinister": "innocent" is an adjective that means not having done anything wrong; "guilty" means culpable or having committed an offense or a crime, especially in the context of court and the law; and "hurt" means offended or physically injured.

"Estimable" means admirable.

"Pragmatic" refers to a person who is practical, or in other words, someone who is able to reason through problems in a logical way. You likely have at least one friend who is pragmatic; he or she would be the problem-solver of the group. "Sensible" also implies reasonable judgment and is our answer choice. As you might know, "elderly" means old and "foolish" means silly or impractical. "Stagnant" refers to anything that is standing still instead of moving forward; it is often used to describe the standing water present in swamps, but can also describe other situations in which there is a lack of progress.

“Languid” means relaxed or lazy. To provide further help, “sturdy” means strong and reliable; “fortuitous” means owed to good luck; “portly” and “corpulent” both mean fat. 

The word "just" must be used in the sense that means "appropriate" or "fair" (as in "justice.") The way to tell this is by first looking at your options. The only alternative meaning might be "nearly"—as in, "I just arrived at the class." However, the only answer that is in the range of meanings applicable to that use is "delayed," and that word is not a suitable synonym. The only synonym is "equitable," which means fair or just. You can think of it is meaning something like treating equally.

"Frugal" means economical with money, or thrifty.

"Terse" means short, concise, and "succinct." None of the other answer choices are close in meaning to "terse": "trepidatious" means fearful and timid; "banal" means common and lacking in creativity; "persistent" means constant and unyielding; and "temporary" means not permanent, fleeting, or only lasting for a short while.

“Slovenly” means messy. To provide further help, a “creative” person is imaginative and often artistic; “serendipitous” means fortunate or owed entirely to chance; “unfortunate” means not lucky; “inauspicious” means an unlucky beginning that suggests an unfavorable conclusion.

The word "deferential" means showing respect to someone or something. The best choice is "respectful" as it is a part of the definition of "deferential." Considering the other choices, "fleeting" means not lasting, "effective" means able to accomplish a certain goal, "helpful" means providing assistance, and "profane" means secular when used as an adjective.

"Absentminded" is an adjective that describes a person or his or her behavior or manner and means "having or showing a habitually forgetful or inattentive disposition," so we need to pick out an answer choice that means something like "forgetful" or "inattentive." Neither "focused" nor "observant" can be the correct answer, then, because each of those words is an antonym of "absentminded." "Forgetful" is an answer choice, and because it is the answer choice closest in meaning to "absentminded," "forgetful" is the correct answer.