"Impudent" means rude or cocky. "Authoritative" is having knowledge or mastery of a subject. "Inadequate" means insufficient or not enough. "Ecstatic" means joyful or extremely happy. "Zealous" means passionate and enthusiastic.

Someone who is "irascible" is easily angered or annoyed. "Cranky" is the best choice as it means ill-tempered or grouchy. Considering the other choices, "hot" and "chilly" are not related in meaning to "irascible," "formidable" means intimidating in strength, and "veritable" means true, as you might be able to tell because the root contains the root "veri," which derives from the Latin "veritas," meaning truth. The root "veri" appears in other words such as "verisimilitude" and "veracity."

"Meticulous" is descriptive of someone who gives close attention to detail. The answer choice closest in meaning to "meticulous" is therefore "careful."

"Fiesty" means lively or spunky, so "lively," which means full of energy, is the correct answer. "Depressed" means sad and gloomy. "Radiant" means bright or very shiny. "Bad-tempered" means easily irritated or upset. "Fertile" means fruitful, able to produce a lot of crops, or capable of conceiving.

“Irascible” means very irritable or easily provoked to anger, so "irritable" is the correct answer. None of the other answers are close in meaning to “irascible”. “Dehydrated” means dry or lacking water. “Gaseous” means vaporous. “Dying” means fading or expiring. “Honest” means truthful.

“Churlish” means rude, so "rude" is the correct answer. None of the other answers are close in meaning to “churlish”. “Impersonal” means detached. “Blotted” means marked or stained. “Vague” means not clear. “Focused” means fixated or absorbed.

"Renowned" means famous and admired. Similarly, the correct answer "celebrated" means well-known and praised. None of the other choices have similar meanings: "redundant" means unnecessarily repetitive; "oppositional" means working against someone or something; "frank" means direct and honest; and "dense" means thick.

"Shrewd" means astute or clever. The correct answer "sharp-witted" similarly means smart, quick, and clever. The other answer choices do not have similar definitions: "peaked" means pale and sickly; "vivacious" means full of life; miserly means stingy and mean; and competitive means having a strong desire to be the best at everything.

"Querulous" means complaining, whining, or petulant, so "petulant," which means irritable or grouchy, is the correct answer. None of the other answer choices are close in meaning to "querulous": "charming" means delightful; "inquisitive" means curious; "mild" means gentle; and "rambunctious" means rowdy.

"Resolute" means unshakable or stubborn, and the correct answer "adamant" means insistent and determined. The other choices do not have similar definitions: "beginning" means new, "wavering" means unsure, "troublesome" means difficult, and "particular" means choosy.