VARCTEST Q1

35. There are two gaps in the sentence/paragraph given below. From the pairs of words given, choose the one that fills the gaps most appropriately.

Domestic violence belongs to the private sphere: it is part of its _________ nature. There are normally no direct witnesses and there are very few convictions, despite its ___________.

(a) pernicious, prevalence (b) pertinent, obscurity
(c) ominous, disparity (d) vindictive, preponderance