Question

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a closer look
anabolic steroids: dying to win?
many people feel the pressure to look and (1. ) their best. it is not surprising that some will do anything to accomplish this - like taking performance - enhancing drugs such as anabolic steroids. these steroids are variants of testosterone, the (2. ) responsible for the changes during puberty that usher boys into manhood. the most notable effect is the increase in bone and muscle mass. pharmaceutical companies introduced anabolic steroids in the 1950s to treat certain muscle - wasting diseases, anemia, and muscle (3. ) in patients immobilized after surgery, and they became available to the general public during the 1980s.
convinced that “doping” could enhance muscle mass and athletic endurance, many athletes (both men and women) have turned to (4. ) steroids. well - known athletes such as mark mcgwire (former st. louis cardinals first baseman), marion jones (2000 track and field olympian), lance armstrong (seven - time tour de france winner), and alex rodriguez (new york yankees shortstop) admitted to (5. ) use and were stripped of medals and titles, and suspended from their respective sports.

1. hormone 2. atrophy 3. anabolic 4. steroid 5. perform
2. atrophy 2. anabolic 3. steroid 4. perform 5. hormone
3. anabolic 2. steroid 3. perform 4. hormone 5. atrophy
4. perform 2. hormone 3. atrophy 4. anabolic 5. steroid
5. steroid 2. perform 3. hormone 4. atrophy 5. anabolic

Explanation:

1. "look and perform their best" is a common collocation, so the first blank is "perform".
2. Testosterone is a hormone, so the second blank is "hormone".
3. Muscle - wasting implies muscle atrophy, so the third blank is "atrophy".
4. Athletes turn to anabolic steroids for performance - enhancing, so the fourth blank is "anabolic".
5. The athletes admitted to steroid use, so the fifth blank is "steroid".

Answer:

1. perform
2. hormone
3. atrophy
4. anabolic
5. steroid