~

I Picture this: Adverse City I

Adversity in Adverse City.
2
~
I Picture this: S that tick I
Oh beautiful S!That tick
tickles my aesthetic sense.
4
~
I Picture this: a duel nation I
In aduel nation, duelers
receive adulation.
1
~
I Picture this: ad vote Kate I
CAR R OTS IN
yTHE FI ELD.
~l N OT
I N THE POT!
Whovote-sAye to thi-sad
for vegetable right-s'?
-,
111
In an advoteKate
advocates vegetable rights.
3
adversity
adu lation
poverty; misfortune
flattery; admiration
Some people believe that adversity improves
the character, making one astronger and
more understanding person.
R ock stars often receive widespread adulation
for ashort period of time.
During awar, civilians aswell assoldiers
usually experience adversity.
On somecollegecampuses therearemovements
to place less stress on intercollegiate athletics
so that good students would receiveasmuch
adulation asgood athletes.
The stoic philosophers of ancient Greece
believed that facing adversity calmly isa
great virtue.
After World War II, General Dwight D.
Eisenhower received somuch adulation
for leading the Alliesto victory that it
helped him be elected president of the
United States.
aesthetic advocate
pertaining to art or beauty urge; plead for
To besuccessful, an interior decorator
needs to have awell-developed aesthetic
sense.
The government of the United States
advocates democracy asthe best political
system for all countries.
A well-designed house combines practical
and aesthetic elements so that it ispleasing
both to look at and to livein.
People who advocate increased immigration
to Australia argue that the country has
enough resources to support far more people
than it does now.
Aesthetics isabranch of philosophy that
studies such questions aswhat makes
something beautiful.
The advocates of ahigher minimum wage
supported their caseby sayingthat it is
nearly impossible for aperson to survive
on the present minimum wage.
~
I Picture this: a firm mate I
A firm mate makes an affirmation.
6
~
I Picture this: a leaf he ate
I ~
A leaf he ate to alleviate his hunger.
8
~
I Picture this: Af a bull I
Af, abull so affable-his "bull mates"
think him laughable.
5
~
I Picture this: a gray gate I
Beyond agray gate lies
the aggregate wealth of Gray's estate.
7
affirmation affable
assertion; confi rmation easily approachable; warmly friendly
R eciting the Pledge of Allegiance isan
affirmation of our loyalty to our country.
J udges at beauty contests often choose one
of the contestants asthe most affable.
Many religions require converts to make an
affirmation of belief in the teachings of their
new religion.
People who work in sales arefrequently
affable individuals who enjoy talking to
many types of people.
Our principal, Mr. Delaney, asked each of us
to make an affirmation of our determination
to make our best effort in all our subjects.
The young teacher was soaffable hebecame
his students' friend but lost their respect.
alleviate
aggregate
relieve; make more bearable total
The United N ations isworking to alleviate
poverty in the world.
The R oman Empire was an aggregate of many
states under the Emperor.
Many people find that exercise isagood
wayto alleviate the effects of stress.
The aggregate wealth of acountry includes
the assets of individuals, companies, and
other organizations.
To alleviate traffic congestion, cities such
asLondon and Singapore impose afeeon
motorists driving into downtown areas
during busy periods.
The aggregate strength of thevarious branches
of the U.S. armed services isimmense.
~
I Picture this: AI True his stick I
AI True-his stick selects
thosehe's altruistic to.
10
~
I Picture this: am Rea Valens I
I realltj don't like tni-s one ..
con-sideration. . And then agai
doee look . . . On the other han
"I amBeaValens and ambivalence
ismy motto."
12
~
I Picture this: a loofa I
Aloofa beingaloof.
9
~
I Picture this: am big you us I
"Who should say'I ambig?' You?Us?
It's not ambiguous who isbigger!"
11
altruistic aloof
unselfishly generous; concerned for others apart; reserved
Many people are attracted to teaching
for altruistic reasons rather than financial
ones.
Shy individuals usually liketo remain aloof
in large gatherings of people.
When one country gives aid to another
country it isgenerally for reasons that
arenot entirely altruistic.
The new student was aloof for afewweeks,
adjusting to her new classmates.
A mother's loveisoften cited asan example
of altruism.
Some managers remain aloof from their
workers, while others prefer to be"one of
the gang."
ambivalence
ambiguous
the state of having contradictory or
conflicting emotional attitudes
unclear or doubtful in meaning
Becauseheknew that teaching gives asteady
income whereas writing usually does not,
it waswith considerable ambivalence that
hegaveup teaching to become afreelance
writer.
When writing an essay, try to avoid making
ambiguous statements.
The language used in advertising isoften
deliberately ambiguous.
J oan was attracted to Ted, so she finally
agreed to adate with him; however, shedid
sowith some ambivalence because of his
reputation for being self-centered.
Homonyms-words that sound the same
but mean different things-are sometimes
ambiguous when used in speech; pair/pare/
pear isan example of this.
Sal wasambivalent about whether to try
out for the football team or the soccer
team because he enjoyed playing each
sport equally.
~
I Picture this: Anna kissed I
Anna kissed abrave young Czar who
saved her from an anarchist.
14
~
I Picture this: ant tag on I
Oe-stroy af( human-s!
\
~\
Antagonism from ants
with tags on them.
16
~
I Picture this: am Orphous I
What areyou?
\ .
"I am Orphous, an amorphous
mass of dust and gas."
13
~
I Picture this: Ann O'Malley I
Ann O'Malley, the only girl who livedin
the valley, was an anomaly.
15
anarchist
amorphous
a person who seeks to overtu rn
the establ ished government; an
advocate of abolishing authority
formless; lacking shape or definition
Governments regard anarchists asdangerous
because they represent athreat to the
existence of the state.
This modern painting isamorphous; I can't
figure out what it's supposed to be.
Anarchists generally believe that governments
infringe on rights that human beings enjoy
naturally.
The company's plan to expand isat present
amorphous, but it should begin to take
shape at aseries of meetings next month.
Mr. J ones, our principal, seems to regard any
student who argues for letting students have
avoice in the running of the school asan
anarchist.
This essay isso amorphous that it isn't
possible to determine its main argument.
antagonism
anomaly
actively expressed hosti I ity
i rregu larity
Antagonism developed between the twins,
Bill and J ohn, after they discovered that
each of them had asked the same girl to
the dance.
An anomaly in aperson's heartbeat should
beinvestigated by aphysician.
The Earth's atmosphere causes anomalies
in telescopic observation of other planets.
According to psychologists, some antagonism
between siblings isnatural as each child seeks
parental affection and approval.
Because Fred had always come to work on
time, his boss regarded it asan anomaly
when hearrived an hour lateone day.
J ason knew that hemight antagonize his
history teacher if hecriticizedher teaching
methods, but he decided that he had no
choice because hewasn't learning much
in the class.
~
I Picture this: Aunty dotes I
Aunty dotes on her goats that carry
antidotes to places remote.
18
~
I Picture this: a path he I
Bya path he sat in apathy.
20
antediluvian
(an tih duh 100 vee un)
Picture this: Aunty dill luvin'
~1Uf~T\;
LiL'S-
;l~~1~
Aunty Lil, adilliuvin' lady, reads tales
of antediluvian times.
17
~
I Picture this: Aunty equated I
Aunty equated Wes with her old flameJ ess.
What an antiquated mind.
19
antidote
medicine to counteract a poison
or disease; something that
rei ieves a harmfu I effect
R esearchers aretrying to find an antidote
for the common cold, but so far they have
had only limited success.
Doctors often saythat the best antidote for
most human illsistime.
If you arebitten by asnake, you should try
to note its appearance so that the correct
antidote can beprescribed based on what
species of snake bit you.
apathy
lack of interest or concern
Voter apathy in the United States isso great
that in most elections lessthan half of the
eligiblevoters turn out to cast their votes.
Apathy about social and political issues often
occurs when people feel that these issues do
not directly concern them.
After many years of trying without success to
become manager, Harry became apathetic
about striving to get ahead in his career.
antediluvian
antiquated; extremely old
The origins of Egypt arelost in the mists
of antediluvian times.
Young people today regard black and
white TV asan antediluvian form of
technology.
"Mom," Tina said to her mother, "your
ideas areso antediluvian. Today, all the
girls aregetting tattoos."
antiquated
old-fashioned; obsolete
Most people regard the phonograph asan
example of an antiquated technology.
Some famous writers prefer to usean
antiquated typewriter rather than a
computer.
Although they employed technology that
would beconsidered antiquated today,
the engineers who designed the Egyptian
pyramids were ableto cut and move stones
weighing thousands of tons each.
~
I Picture this: a pre-hen I
Apre-hen, likeapre-teen,
feelsapprehension.
22
~
I Pictu re this: are dents I
"Aredents on it?" asks
theardent racer.
24
~
I Picture this: a peas I
Appeasing apot of peas.
21
~
I Pictu re this: ark K-ick! I
Sickkangaroos on archaic ark K-"Ick!"
isall they can say.
23
apprehension
fearful anticipation of the future; dread
Most people think about their own eventual
death with apprehension.
The students facing the SAT are full of
apprehension because their future depends
on how well they perform on this test.
Many people are filledwith apprehension
when they have to speak before alarge
group of people.
ardent
intense; passionate; zealous
Ardent Democrats and R epublicans usually
vote for the persons nominated by their
parties.
Even the most ardent supporters of freedom
of speech believe there must besome
limitations on what people are allowed
to say.
An ardent environmentalist, Senator Wood
voted for the bill even though it meant aloss
of jobs for his state in the mining industry.
appease
pacify or soothe; relieve
To appease liberals in his party who were
unhappy with his conservative policies,
the president appointed aliberal to the
Supreme Court.
The candy bar that Candy ateappeased
her hunger.
In order to appease the angry voters,
Congress voted to reduce taxes.
archaic
ancient; out of date
The typewriter isregarded by many people
today asan archaic form of technology.
The words thou and thee areexamples of
archaic English.
Students often complain that they have
trouble understanding Shakespeare's English
because it isarchaic.
~
I Picture this: art a fact I
"Art-a fact of lifein all eras," saysAnn,
with the artifact in her hands.
26
~
I Picture this: Ascend Dance I
Doing the Ascend Dance to ascendancy.
28
~
I Picture this: Arrow Dance I
At the Arrow Dance,
arrows illustrate arrogance.
25
~
I Picture this: art is sin I
"Artis sin," saysthe Puritan to the artisan.
27
artifact
arrogance
object made by human beings
pride; haughtiness
Our history class decided to make atime
capsule, sowegathered various artifacts
from our everyday life, put them in asteel
box, and buried them in the schoolyard.
Although he isone of the richest people
in America, Samtries to avoid giving
an appearance of arrogance; hedrives
acompact car and eats in fast-food
restaurants.
Thepyramids of Egypt arethe largest
artifacts left by ancient humans.
People from rich countries visiting poor
countries sometimes display arrogance,
believing themselves to besuperior to
the local people.
From artifacts left by the people of an
ancient civilization, scientists can build a
picture of how those people lived.
Shy people are sometimes accused of
arrogance because they seemhaughty
and aloof.
ascendancy arti san
manually skilled worker;
craftsman as opposed to artist
cantrall ing infl uence; damination
If one country gains ascendancy in a
region of the world, its neighbors often
band together to try to prevent it from
gaining even more power and influence.
Potters areartisans who can earn agood
living by making things that areboth useful
and attractive.
During the early part of the twentieth century,
N azism was in ascendancy in Germany.
Even in this ageof mass production, there
isademand for goods, such ashigh-quality
furniture, that can only beproduced by
skilled artisans.
Over the past decade or so, China has been
gaining ascendancy among Asian nations.
Artisans normally earn more money than
laborers because they have skillsthat are
in greater demand.
~
I Picture this: a spire I
They aspire to build aspire of straw and wire
for the man with the lyre.
30
~
I Picture this: all day shush I
All day long he says"Shush"
to audacious climbers making afuss.
32
~
I Picture this: a set tick I
Here sits an ascetic
with aset of ticking clocks.
29
~
I Picture this: as Sue aged I
As Sueaged, only asagecould
assuage her rage.
31
.
aspire
asceti c
seek to attai n; long for
practicing self-denial; austere
Many people aspire to besuccessful novelists,
but fewsucceed.
The monk led an ascetic life, spending most
of his time in prayer and eating only asmuch
asnecessary to stay alive.
When hewas ahigh school student, Bill
Clinton aspired to bepresident.
Some religions encourage their followers
to practice asceticism asaway to purify
themselves.
Malaysia aspires to beadeveloped country
bythe year 2020.
Some writers lead an ascetic existence when
they work on abook, living simply and
spending nearly all of their time writing.
audacious assuage
dari ng; bold
ease or lessen; satisfy; soothe
His plan was an audacious one-to climb
Mt. Everest solo.
After the long and bitter fight for control
of the company, the new CEO felt that it
was important to assuage the angry feelings
of all the parties involved.
President Kennedy set one of the most
audacious goals of all time when he said
that America should land aman on the
moon and return him safely to Earth
before 1969.
The dying soldier's pain was assuaged by
the painkiller that the nurse gavehim.
J apan's plan at the start of World War II
wasaudacious-strike at America quickly
before it could build up its military strength.
There's nothing better than cold, pure water
to assuage your thirst.
~
I Picture this: aw Tono must I
Aw! Tono must rely on guano,
but at least it's autonomous.
34
~
I Picture this: a version
Hehas an aversion to aversion of baked
sturgeon cooked by his wife, aplastic surgeon.
36
~
I Picture this: Aussie tear I
An Aussie sheds an Aussie tear: "It'll bean
austere year without my outback gear."
33
~
I Picture this: have a rice
"Have arice cracker; you're in luck-it's only
ten bucks!" (What avarice!)
35
autonomous
austere
self-govern ing
forbiddingly stern; severely
simple and unornamented
In theAmerican system of government,
states arenot autonomous; many powers
arereserved to the central government.
I enjoy the austere beauty of theArizona
dessert.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, many of
its former republics became autonomous
nation -states.
Monasteries are austere places designed to
encourage prayer and reflection.
With the issuance of the Declaration of
Independence in 1776, the United States
asserted its right to be an autonomous
nation.
Schoolmasters in colonial America generally
were austere figures who inspired fear in
their students.
.
aversion
.
avarice
firm dislike
greediness for wealth
I havean aversion to spicy food because it
upsets my stomach.
According to psychologists, many gamblers
aremotivated not by avarice but by aneed
for excitement.
Suehas such an aversion to cigarette smoke
that shecan't stand being in aroom in which
even one person issmoking.
It was not avarice that motivated J oeto work
hard to become wealthy somuch asadesire
for financial security. .
An aversion to spiders isfound in people
all over the world.
Although Lou was not really an avaricious
person, he did find the idea of winning the
twenty million dollar lottery prize attractive.
~
I Picture this: bee l i e I
The bee tells alie that belies its nasty sting.
38
~
I Picture this: bomb' s t i ck I
Pretti:! -soon
we won't have to
Ii-sten to thi-s bomba-st
ani:!more. ,
The bombastic speaker doesn't
hear the bomb's tick.
40
~
I Picture this: be guy i l l I
"You'll be a guy who is ill and beguile
the nurse from Brazil."
37
~
I Picture this: bowl st i r I
In the bowl, stir the batter
to bolster the boys' morale!
39
bel i e
begui l e
contradict; give a false impression
charm; mislead or delude
His kind words were belied by his angry tone
and expression.
The conman beguiled my mother with a
sob story about how his child needed money
for an operation.
The small sizeof the Australian funnel web
spider belies the deadliness of its venom.
Ms. J ohnson's small sizebelies the ferocity
with which she can scold astudent who
doesn't hand in an assignment on time.
Many British soldiers enlisted in the army
in World War I because they were beguiled
by the idea of taking part in aquick and
glorious victory.
A good magician uses anumber of tricks
to beguile his audience into believing that
what they're seeing is real.
bombast i c
bol st er
pompous; using inflated language
support; reinforce
Today, bombastic speeches are criticized for
their pomposity, but in the past many people
enjoyed them as entertainment.
Knowing alot of difficult words will bolster
your confidence when you take the SAT.
A bombastic piece of writing may impress
some readers, but others will surely conclude
that its author is an insincere and pretentious
person.
A good manager knows when to criticize
an employee and when to bolster his or her
confidence with praise.
Becareful of putting all the SAT-type words
you've learned into your essays; you might
think they sound impressive, but your
teacher will probably say that your writing
isbombastic.
Britain and its allies were bolstered by the
entry of the United States into World War I I
in 1941.
~
I Picture this: calculate Ted I
"I calculate Ted islate for calculus for no
calculated reason-just California dreamin'."
42
~
I Picture this: Capri I
We can never predict
what the!:j'H "-
be doing at
three o'clock.
Off the isleof Capri, capricious
dolphins play at three.
44
~
I Picture this: brag art I
The Brag Art Exhibition
of braggart art.
41
~
I Picture this: can door I
"A can with adoor? Honestly, 1didn't do it!"
he sayswith candor.
43
cal cul at ed
deliberately planned
Baseball managers sometimes take calculated
risks, such as calling for adouble-steal.
The comedian's performance appeared
unrehearsed; however, we found out later
that every line was carefully calculated to
get alaugh from the audience.
I was disappointed to find out that Bill's
every move was calculated to win our
boss's favor and make me look bad.
. .
Capri CI OUS
unpredictable; fickle
"The weather has been capricious recently,"
Bill said, "so, I think I'll skip the picnic
I planned with my friends and just order
apizza."
My cat isacapricious eater; every day she
wants something different to eat.
Science operates on the assumption that
the laws of nature are not capricious.
braggart
boaster
Mandy's mom turned into abit of abraggart
after her daughter made the all-state soccer
team.
Braggarts are annoying-especially when
their boasts turn out to be correct!
Our basketball team has abraggart who
saysthat no one can outshoot her from
either the field or the free throw line.
candor
frankness; open honesty
It's unrealistic to expect people to speak with
candor at all times.
It seems to be human nature to expect candor
from others when wespeak to them but not
to also expect it from ourselves.
Talk show hosts are good at getting guests to
speak candidly about their lives.
~
I Picture this: coal-less I
The "coal-less" people of Coalsville finally
coalesce around the coal strike issue.
46
~
I Picture this: come pile I
"Come, pile up your files and
compile The Styles of the Nile! "
48
"
~
I Picture this: Charlotte Tan I
Charlotte Tan with acharlatan.
45
~
I Picture this: call oak we all I
When wehear the call to the oak,
we all speak in colloquial terms.
47
coal esce charl at an
combine; fuse a quack; pretender to knowledge
To work together successfully, military
units must coalesce to become agroup of
like-minded individuals.
J ack pretended to be alinguist with avast
knowledge of foreign languages; however,
he was exposed as acharlatan when he
couldn't even tell us the meaning of
au revoir. The United States began to coalesce as a
nation during the early nineteenth century
asthe experiences of many groups were
communicated around the country.
The history of medicine is filled with
charlatans who promised cures for
incurable illnesses.
Our business plan began to coalesce in our
minds after several discussions. A charlatan sold me awatch worth $5
for $50.
compi I e
col l oqui al
pertaining to conversational
or common speech
assemble; gather; accumulate
Newspapers compile information from
many sources in order to givereaders a
wide view of what ishappening in the
world.
Colloquial speech helps the members of
agroup of people to identify themselves as
different from others.
After every season, the batting average and
other statistics for every player in Major
LeagueBaseball are compiled.
Colloquial words and expressions should
not be used in formal English.
"OK" is an American colloquial expression
that is used around the world.
A good prosecutor compiles evidence
steadily until aconvincing caseis made
of the defendant's guilt.
conflagration
(kon fluh gray shun)
Picture this: con flag ration
On(~one flag
per cell!
\
A con flag ration after the
prison flagconflagration.
50
~
I Picture this: cord J ill I
"I've cut the cord, J ill!"
(Relations are no longer cordial.)
52
~
I Picture this: come place cents he I
"Come, place your cents on Clancy. He isset
to win," he sayswith complacency.
49
~
I Picture this: con found I
What the con found confounds him.
51
confl agrat i on
compl acency
great fi re self-satisfaction; smugness
During World War II, Allied bombing of
Tokyo caused aconflagration in that city.
Complacency among employees is a
problem sometimes faced by managers
of successful companies.
The retreating army started aconflagration
in order to destroy supplies that could be
used by the advancing forces.
Some experts believe that J apanese industry
became complacent after its great success
in the 1980s.
Firefighters in large cities with many high-
risebuildings must be careful not to allow a
small fireto spread quickly and become
a conflagration.
Health workers urged parents to guard
against complacency and make sure that
their children are immunized against
measles and other infectious diseases.
cordi al confound
gracious; heartfelt confuse; puzzle
Despite being separated, Bill and Laura still
have cordial relations with one another.
Until Louis Pasteur discovered germs, the
origin of many diseases confounded
scientists.
The principal gavethe new teachers acordial
welcome at the teacher orientation. The American watching acricket match in
Britain was confounded by the complex
rules of the game. Diplomats work hard to maintain cordial
relations with their colleagues from other
countries so that disputes can be discussed
in afriendly atmosphere.
Many statements that students make in their
essays are confounding to teachers because
they are poorly written.
~
Picture this: crypt t i ck I
A cryptic crypt tick.
54
~
Picture this: t he bi l l i t at e I
The bill it ate debilitates
the billy goat.
56
~- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
~
Picture this: cry t ear on I
"You didn't meet the criterion for the team?
Come, cry a tear on my shoulder."
53
,
~
I Picture this: cool pebbl e I
Sue's cool pebble ismissing,
and Beth is culpable.
55
crypt i c
mysterious; hidden; secret
The only reply Mrs. Thomas got from her
daughter J essicawhen she asked her where
shehad been was acryptic "Out."
Sharon got her essay back and was surprised
to seethat her teacher had written only a
cryptic comment: "Hmrn."
The historian believed that he had found a
cryptic message buried in the old text.
debi I i t at e
weaken; enfeeble
During very hot weather it's important to
drink plenty of water so as not to become
debilitated as aresult of dehydration.
Diseases debilitate many people in Africa
who don't have adequate nutrition and lack
access to modern medicine.
Injuries sustained in automobile accidents
debilitate thousands of people in the United
States each year.
cri t eri on
standard used in judging
One criterion of agood vocabulary-building
book is that words are reinforced in the
student's mind.
Many universities include the ability to
write clear and correct English as one of
their admissions criteria.
Studies show that the most important
criterion students use in judging the
effectiveness of ateacher is his or her
knowledge of the subject.
cul pabl e
deserving blame
The police investigation narrowed down the
list of suspects to three people, one of whom
was considered most likely to be culpable.
Suspects cannot be held unless there is
reasonable evidence that they are culpable.
The principal found J imculpable of cheating
on the exam and suspended him from school
for aweek.
~
I Picture this: Dep-Wreck 8 I
Near Dep- Wreck 8, they deprecate
the "Catch of the Day."
58
~
I Picture this: dear river I
"Dear river, from you all creeks
are derivative!"
60
~
I Picture this: deep rabbit he I
Deep in the rabbit warren,
he tells them atale of depravity.
57
~
I Picture this: Deer Ride I
They deride all rides except
for the Deer Ride.
59
deprecat e
express disapproval of; belittle
Linda enjoyed her creative writing class
because her teacher never deprecated the
stories shewrote, but instead always praised
what was good about them.
Bob Dylan's singing was deprecated by many
people; nevertheless, he became one of the
most famous singers in the history of popular
music,
After the principal deprecated the new
teacher in front of her class, the students
lost their respect for her.
deri vat i ve
unoriginal; derived from another source
Fewworks of art are truly original; nearly
all are derivative in that they use the ideas
and styles of earlier works.
American Impressionism is aderivative
style; American artists adapted European
Impressionism to create anew style.
Critics agree that the new novel ismerely
derivative, offering nothing new in either
styleor content.
depravi t y
extreme corruption; wickedness
War often brings out the most extreme forms
of depravity in human beings, such asthe
use of torture.
Many people believe that without civilization
humanity would sink into depravity.
The citizens' committee on censorship decided
that no form of depravity should beportrayed
in the newspaper.
deri de
ridicule; make fun of
Attempts to use radio waves for long-range
communication were derided by early
twentieth-century physicists as impossible.
Every time Larry tried to diet, his friends
derided his effort to loseweight asfutile.
Some people deride the study of art asa
waste of time.
~
I Picture this: dill gents I
Remember, ever!:! pickle
in a jar of Dill 0ent-s
mu-st be perfectl!:!
pickled.
. /
',:I~
Dill gents pickled with diligence.
62
~
I Picture this: disc count I
.sorr.!::!,
)\ Hercule-s.
That'-s a
di-scounted
throw.
It went /
out of
bound-s.
He must discount the
throw in the disc count.
64
~
I Picture this: tigress shun I
When you make asafari digression,
there's atigress you should shun.
61
~
I Picture this: disc close I
U F O R R E A 5 1
No, I'm-sorr!:!,
that information
i-s clas-sijled.
"How does the disc close?
I cannot disclose that information."
63
di I i gence
di gressi on
steadiness of effort;
persistent hard work
wandering away from the subject
Learning aforeign language requires diligence
on the part of astudent.
Some students in history classthink Mr.
Romano's digressions are awaste of time,
but I enjoy them because I learn interesting
facts that aren't in the textbook.
Diligence is only one of the requirements
for success; another is the application of
intelligence.
Work diligently in all your subjects so that
you can reach your full potential.
Avoid digressions when you write an essay;
teachers expect your writing to befocused
and free of irrelevant information.
The judge instructed the witness to stop
digressing and stick to the main events in
her account of the incident.
di scount di scl ose
disregard; dismiss reveal
Until someone sawhim having dinner with
awoman in arestaurant, the students
discounted the rumor that the school's
oldest bachelor, Mr. Leonard, was going to
bemarried.
For tax purposes, the government requires
that anyone earning an income disclose its
source.
The report discounted the story he was
told because it contradicted all the other
information he had about the situation.
A journalist can sometimes obtain
information from aperson if the journalist
agrees not to disclose the source of that
information.
People who work for intelligence services
such asthe CIA must learn what information
they should discount and which they should
analyze carefully.
Aunt Becky has never disclosed the name
of the man she was going to be married to
thirty years ago but who died in acar crash
just before the wedding.
~
I Picture this: this Dane I
This Dane has disdain for the Collie,
the Pug, and the Dalmatian.
66
~
I Picture this: dispute ate us I
Our disputatious dates liked to dispute
while they ate with us.
68
discriminating
(dih skrim uh nay ting)
Picture this: disc criminal
A disc criminal with discriminating taste.
65
disinclination
(dis in kluh nay shun)
Picture this: this incline nation
In this incline nation, folks have
adisinclination to walk uphill.
67
di sdai n
di scri mi nat i ng
scorn able to see differences
The soldier was treated with disdain by his
comrades because he fled the battle after
the first shot was fired.
A discriminating reader, Ms. Hansen
chooses books that have been highly praised
by respected reviewers.
Dishonest individuals are regarded with
disdain by most people.
Lucy's parents want her to become more
discriminating in her choice of boyfriends.
In summarizing what the convicted man
had done, the judge made no attempt to hide
her disdain for aperson who would abandon
his own children.
Gail has discriminating taste in chocolate; she
can tell with one bite if apiece of chocolate is
high quality.
di sput at i ous
di si ncl i nat i on
argumentative; fond of argu ing a lack of inclination; reluctance
Mary seems naturally disputatious; she
takes an extreme position on every issue.
Mr. Tanner's son Ike told his father that he
had adisinclination to spend abeautiful
Saturday afternoon mowing the lawn. His
father's reply was "That's fine, as long as
you understand that I will then have a
disinclination to pay your allowance this
week."
Phil has hardly adisputatious bone in his
body; he'll agree with practically everything
you say.
The disputatious customer disagreed with
everything that she was told by the manager. Arthur, aslightly built young man, has a
disinclination to participate in sports
involving physical contact.
I have adisinclination to help you because
you didn't help me when I was having
difficulties.
~
I Pictu re th is: Di verge gent I
Di on the verge of going with
agent on adivergent path.
70
~
I Picture this: dog mat tick I
Dogmatic views from adog mat tick.
72
~
I Picture this: this scent I
This scent causes him to dissent.
69
docum nt
(dok yuh ment)
Picture this: Doc U meant
Thi-s man wa-s -sbabbed
in a fight, and we think
he came to ~ou
for treatment.
I a{wa!:f~document
-such ca-se-s. I don't know
wh~ there'-s nothing
in the file.
Doc U meant to document the case.
71
di vergent
varying; going in different directions
from the same point
Sandra and Peter took divergent approaches
to solving the equation, but both arrived at
the correct answer.
Paul and Sylvester were good friends in high
school, but their lives took divergent paths
after high school: Paul enlisted in the Navy
and sails around the world, while Sylvester
has settled down in our hometown.
It's often more interesting to listen to a
discussion between experts with divergent
views than to adiscussion in which similar
views are expressed.
dogmat i c
opinionated; arbitrary
A good book reviewer is flexible and not
dogmatic in his or her views about what
makes abook worthwhile.
A good scientist can't be dogmatic in
evaluating evidence.
One goal of education is to make people
lessdogmatic and more open to different
viewpoints.
di ssent
disagree
No one dissented, so the motion was passed
unanimously.
Courage is often required for aperson to
dissent from the opinion of the majority.
J ustice Smith wrote the dissenting opinion
for the minority.
document
provide written evidence
The job of abiographer ismade easier if the
subject has documented his or her life.
The historical society has started aproject
to document the history of our town.
Dad likes to document our summer vacation
trips by recording highlights with his video
camera.
~
I Pictu re this: E goat i s hi m I
Can !:l0u help u-s
get the picnic
read!:l? ..........
c::::::::Il:J ~~
No, certain I!:!not!
<:::i:l!~~~ I am a much too
important
individual
to help
with -such
minor
chore-s.
The main concern of E goat is himself.
What egotism!
74
~
I Picture this: a l edge he I
Our dear friend Franz met
hi-s fate below .~-'-"I '"
thi-s ledge.
He tried to
climb where --
no one ha-s
climbed
before.
On a ledge, he delivers an elegy.
76
~
I Picture this: el ect ri c I
An eclectic collection at Electric Connection.
73
~
I Picture this: eel at e Ted I
Elated swimmers swam asthe eel ate Ted.
75
egot i sm
excessive self-importance; conceit
A good definition of growing up islosing
your egotism and becoming more concerned
about the needs of other people.
It could be hard to avoid egotism if you get
straight As, have the lead in the school play,
received aperfect score on the SAT, and
have been selected for the all-state basketball
team.
Some people are so egotistical that they
hardly listen to what other people say,
preferring instead to talk almost constantly.
el egy
poem or song expressing grief
Deeply saddened by the death of his young
son, the poet Ben J ohnson wrote an elegy
to him.
P. B. Shelley's poem "Adonais" is an elegy
mourning the death of J ohn Keats at the
ageof twenty-five.
One of the great elegies in American
literature isWalt Whitman's "When Lilacs
in the Dooryard Bloom'd," amoving poem
for President Abraham Lincoln.
ecl ect i c
composed of elements drawn from
diverse sources
Lionel has an eclectic collection of model
trains from all over the world.
The works of the writer Isaac Asimov
demonstrate that he had remarkably eclectic
interests; they cover practically every subject
imaginable, from Shakespeare to nuclear
physics.
Dr. McAllister owns an eclectic collection
of art from all over the world.
el at ed
overjoyed; i n high spirits
The new author was elated to seeher first
book in print.
I was elated when my son phoned me to
say that his wifehad delivered ahealthy
baby girl.
The members of our debating team were
elated when they won the state high school
debating championship.
~
I Picture this: Em bell I
VOTE FOR THE DISH
THAT~ DI SPlAYEI I ) THE BEST
Em's bell is embellished with relish.
78
~
Picture this: N mitt he I
Wh.!:Jare .!:J ouwearing that
-6tupidN mitt?!
~.
--.~
"~
The N mitt he wears causes enmity.
80
Picture this: a loose sieve I
"Hey you sieve, get back here!
There's gold inthis here river!"
A loose sieve being elusive.
77
~
Picture this: Em you're late I
"Em, you're late! Must you emulate
girls who make their dates wait?"
79
embel l i sh
el usi ve
adorn; ornament; add fictitious detail
hard to grasp; tending to evade capture
Sarah embellished her living room with
vases shehad collected in her travels all
over the world.
My brother, an enthusiastic surfer, goes out
to the ocean with his board every weekend
in search of the elusive "perfect wave."
According to arecent survey, nearly half
of all job applicants admit to embellishing
their qualifications.
Evidence for the existence of intelligent life
outside of Earth has proved elusive.
A journalist should not embellish astory
to make it more interesting to the reader.
"Alley Cat" Al is an elusive fellow; first he
escaped from police custody, then he eluded
astatewide manhunt.
enm i t y
emul at e
ill will; hatred imitate; strive to equal or excel
A feud within afamily sometimes causes
greater enmity than one between people
who aren't related.
In Aesop's fable "The Tortoise and the Hare,"
the reader is asked to emulate the tortoise;
the lesson is, "Slow and steady wins the race."
The U.S. Civil War caused great enmity
between North and South that persists in
some forms to this day.
J im's mother wanted her son to emulate his
father J umbo J imin all but one area-his
tendency to overeat.
No enmity exists between the two rivals
for the middleweight boxing championship,
but each boxer does have ahealthy respect
for the skills of the other.
After Sharon finishes her medical training,
she plans to emulate her father and become
ageneral practitioner in arural area.
~
I Pictu re this: equally vocal I
C.an~ou tell u-s
clearly and
deAniiely
where ~ou
-s+and on
thi-s i-s-sue?
The equivocal candidates are equally vocal.
82
~
I Picture this: even a scent I
f".t''''f,I I lI I I I I I I . _
''lI",fI\'q~~\~~IN'I/.!.. -
Even ascent of Evanescent will
drive men crazy.
84
~
I Picture this: a fern mural I
A fern mural that's ephemeral.
81
~
I Picture this: Yule log C I
Bya hearth with the glowing Yule LogG
he delivers aglowing eulogy.
83
equivocal
unclear in meaning;
intentionally misleading
Debaters normally can't take an equivocal
position if they want to win; they must take
adefinite position either for or against the
motion proposed.
Thejudge demanded that the witness give
adefinite "yes" or "no" answer, but received
only an equivocal "maybe."
Politicians sometimes giveequivocal responses
to questions in order to avoid having their
position on an issue "pinned down."
evanescent
fleeting; vanishing
Thoughts are often evanescent, coming into
the mind for an instant and then vanishing
as quickly as they came.
Timjoined amonastery because he believes
that worldly happiness is evanescent, whereas
spiritual happiness is eternal.
The artist is trying to capture the evanescent
play of sunlight on the surface of the lake.
ephemeral
short-I ived; fleeti ng
Most of the writing that appears in
newspapers is ephemeral.
In comparison to the billions of years that
the universe has existed, the lifeof each
living thing seems ephemeral.
Much slang is ephemeral, but some words-
such asphony-become part of standard
English.
eulogy
expression of praise
At the funeral of her beloved grandmother,
Donna read aeulogy she had written to her.
J imgavewhat might well be the shortest
eulogy in history at his friend's funeral:
"He was apretty cool dude."
This biography of Abraham Lincoln isn't
merely aeulogy to him; it examines his
weaknesses aswell as the qualities that
made him agreat president.
~
I Picture this: exempt Larry I
"Let's exempt Larry from exams
since he's got exemplary grades."
86
~
I Picture this: " Fast -I I I " i t at e I
l J I I R1
" F ast-Ill" it ate to facilitate their
illness experiment.
88
~
I Picture this: X Sal t I
X Salt is exalted
to Superior Salt Status.
85
~
I Picture this: X , you bear ant s I
"X, you bear ants!" he sayswith exuberance.
87
exemplary
serving as a model; outstanding
Although I don't agree with the book's
argument, I admit that it's written in an
exemplary manner.
The town council voted to recognize
Ms. Miller's thirty years of exemplary
service as town clerk with aspecial
ceremony.
My English teacher said that my essay was
exemplary and that he would read it to
the classto illustrate the qualities of a
good essay.
faci I itate
help bring about; make less difficult
To facilitate the investigation into its hiring
practices, the company made its personnel
records available to government officials.
The governor's order that nonessential
vehicles stay off the roads facilitated the
movement of relief supplies into the flooded
area.
The dictator refused to facilitate UN
inspections of his country's nuclear
weapons.
exalt
raise I n rank or dignity; praise
The combat hero was exalted in his home-
town when he returned home from the war.
Having been made Bishop at the ageof forty,
Father Watson believed hewould one day
reach the exalted position of Cardinal.
When the College of Cardinals selects a
Pope, he is exalted above all other Roman
Catholics.
exuberance
joyful enthusiasm; overflowing
abundance
Pat could hardly contain her exuberance
after she sawher score on the SAT; it meant
she would be accepted at the collegeshe
always wanted to attend.
When Ted finally got the chance to play in
acollege football game after spending three
years as backup quarterback, he played
with so much exuberance that he inspired
his team to acome-from-behind victory.
The book reviewer hailed the new novel as
"celebrating the vitality, exuberance, and
optimism of the American people."
~
I Pictu re th is: fanatic is Em I
SAT Voc.A~UL.ARY
HOWTh STUDY
srmon'6 s. ,.tM '5AT
What afanatic is Em!
Her fanaticism knows no bounds.
90
~
I Picture this: fees a bull I
You can pa,l:j the fee-s I
to m,l:ja-s-si-stant.
-/1 Pa,l:j fee-s to.a buff?
,''''l/) But how?
~ ":::. r / 1I ml
,~ - ~
J J ua
OVIA
J J U8
Z Y3 11AOTTA
It's not feasible to pay fees to abull.
92
~
I Picture this: fowl low I
. ..
Fowl flylow over afallow field.
89
~
I Picture this: fast hideous I
A fastidious dresser about to come
to afast, hideous end.
91
fanat i ci sm
excessive enthusiasm; extreme
devotion to a belief or cause
Moderates believe that fanaticism is
dangerous because it divides people into
opposing, often hostile, groups.
Miranda's fanaticism in imitating the dress
of her favorite pop singer isbeginning to
worry her parents.
Uncle J imis afanatical follower of the
Chicago Cubs baseball team; he attends
nearly every game, even away games.
feasi bl e
practical; possible
The outlawing of alcoholic beverages
during Prohibition proved not
to be feasible, and thus the Twenty-
First Amendment to the Constitution
was approved, repealing the Eighteenth
Amendment, which had banned such
beverages.
The proposal to colonize Mars is not feasible
because it does not include realistic plans
for ensuring that the people who settle
there would be able to survive in the event
supplies from Earth were disrupted.
The plan to guarantee every person a
minimum yearly income of $30,000 is not
politically feasible.
fal l ow
plowed but not sowed; uncultivated
The field has lain fallow for so many years
that people are beginning to wonder if its
owner isplanning to sell it to property
developers.
On the first day of class, Professor Williams
looked out at the faces of the freshmen in
his literature class, and thought, "The minds
of these students are likefallow fields
waiting for me to plant in them the seeds
of knowledge."
Mr. J ones decided to let ten acres of his
farmland liefallow this year.
fast i di ous
difficult to please; really careful
The fastidious editor spent an hour
considering the placement of asingle
comma.
J ohn is avery unusual teenager-he's
fastidious in keeping his room neat.
A fastidious housekeeper, Doris vacuums
the living room carpet daily.
~
I Picture this: Gar rul e us I
"Gar, rule us!"
shouts the garrulous crowd.
94
~
I Picture this: gul l -a-bul l I
"If you believe in the gull-a-bull,
you must be gullible!"
96
~
I Picture this: fi r t i ff I
A fir tiff is afurtive affair.
93
~
I Picture this: Greg A ri us I
Greg Arius and his gregarious ways.
95
garru l ous
talkative; wordy
The psychologist is good at encouraging
reserved individuals to open up and talk
about their problems; sometimes, in fact,
they become so garrulous that she has
trouble getting aword in herself.
The normally garrulous actress was
speechless when it was announced that
shehad won the Academy Award for
best actress.
I ran into an old friend who is so garrulous
that I missed my dentist appointment
listening to her updates on what our
mutual friends have been doing.
gul l i bl e
easily deceived
The new teacher was so gullible that she
fell for one of the oldest excuses in the book:
"Sorry, ma'am, I can't hand in my homework
on time because my dog chewed it up."
The saying, "Never giveasucker an even
break," means that one should not hesitate to
take advantage of someone who is gullible.
J ohn is definitely gullible: He believes the
e-mail message he received saying that he
was the lucky winner of avilla in France is
genume.
furt i ve
sneaky; secretive
During the SAT test last week, I sawa
student take afurtive glance at an
electronic dictionary he had apparently
snuck into the test center.
The man's furtive behavior in the department
store attracted the attention of the security
guards, who suspected that he was planning
to shoplift.
The children crept furtively down the
stairs on Christmas Eve, hoping to see
their presents and perhaps even catch a
glimpse of Santa Claus.
.
gregari ous
sociable
Although human beings seemto beagenerally
gregarious species, some individuals prefer
solitude.
Some studies suggest that girls tend to be
more gregarious than boys.
Oliver isgenerally gregarious, but sometimes
he enjoys taking some time to be alone and
reflect on things.
~
I Picture this: hard D I
"Gee, this is ahard D to
crack-talk about hardy!"
98
~
I Picture this: hamper I
Kid-s, no one'e moving
until all the~e clothe-s
are wa-shed.
A dirty hamper in the camper will
hamper their holiday plans.
97
~
I Picture this: heed Don is I
"Take heed! Don is ahedonist!"
100
~
I Picture this: haw, teen S I
"Haw, haw, haw-teen S
displays such haughtiness!"
99
hardy
hamper
strong; sturdy
obstruct; make more difficult
The first European settlers in America had
to behardy to survive the harsh winters.
My attempts to loseweight are hampered by
the fact that my wifeis an excellent cook.
A football running back must behardy
enough to take repeated poundings from
opposing defenders.
Mandy's performance on the math test was
hampered because her attention was focused
on the handsome new student sitting next
to her.
Health care workers are concerned about
hardy strains of bacteria that are evolving
aresistance to antibiotics.
Coast Guard vessels trying to reach the
sinking ocean liner were hampered by
high seas in the area.
hedoni st
haught i ness
one who believes that pleasure
is the sole aim in life
pride; arrogance
Asayoung man, Charles was ahedonist, but
ashe grew older he became more interested
in spiritual matters.
The headwaiter in the fancy French restaurant
is so haughty you would think that hewasnot
awaiter but America's leading French cook.
"Eat, drink, and be merry" is apretty good
summary of ahedonist's philosophy.
Tired of thehaughtiness of their overbearing
boss, the employees decided to complain
about her to the CEO of the company.
Saint Augustine abandoned the hedonistic
pursuits of his youth to pursue the spiritual
life.
People generally expect royalty to behave
with considerable haughtiness.
~
I Picture this: higher ark he I
HI GHER. '
ARK S I I
M EDI UM ~
A R K S
LOWER
ARK S
A higher ark he built in the
hierarchy of arks.
102
~
I Pictu re th is: hyper bowl I
stop being hyper!
You'll -sma-sh Hour-self
to -smibhereen-s!
Don't u-se
hyperbole
on me!
Using hyperbole on ahyper bowl.
104
~
I Picture this: Hair-a-Sea I
In the little village of Hair-a-Sea,
it's heresy not to have hair.
101
~
I Picture this: home 0 genius I
"0, you're ahome 0 genius! I just love
your homogeneous homes."
103
hierarchy
arrangement by rank or standing
Some people believe that lifeis organized as a
hierarchy, with plants at the bottom, animals
in the middle, and human beings at the top.
AsSallyadvanced in her career, moving
steadily up the company hierarchy, she
found that many of her colleagues envied
her success.
Every country has asocial hierarchy based
on the status possessed by each individual.
hyperbole
exaggeration; overstatement
I agree with you when you say that I'm very
pretty," J ulie said to her boyfriend. However,
I think you're using abit of hyperbole when
you say I'm the prettiest girl in the world."
Writers sometimes use hyperbole to create
larger- than -life" characters.
Advertisements often use hyperbole to
persuade people to buy products: This
revolutionary new product will change
your lifeforever."
heresy
opinion contrary to popular belief
The view that organized sports are awaste of
time probably would be regarded asheresy
by amajority of Americans.
A Ford buyer his entire life, Dad said he
felt likehe was committing heresy when
he bought aToyota last year.
The research suggesting that students who
study at home with proper supervision
perform better academically than students
who attend school was regarded asheresy
by the teachers' union.
homogeneous
composed of identical parts
A world with ahomogeneous population
would be apretty boring place.
Homogeneous grouping of students allows
teachers to tailor their lessons for different
ability groups.
In its early history, the United States was
arelatively homogenous society, but as
immigrants arrived from many parts of the
world, the population grew more varied.
~
I Picture this: I ke K ono's class I
Iconoclastic students in IkeKono's class.
106
~
I Picture this: i mp peck a bul l I
Hello, little imp. How do !:l0udo?
It'-sa beautiful morning, wouldn't !:l0u-sa!:l?
Woulds=care for I
a cup of tea?
.,)
I ..etmegive !:jou
a little peck.
\
Animp tries to peck abull
with impeccable manners.
108
~
I Picture this: hi ppo critical I
I dete<st tho<se
who don't do all the,!:!can
to <Savethe environment.
1(r.' /
A hippo, critical of others,
being hypocritical.
105
~
I Picture this: a mute table I
Animmutable fact:
There's no talking at amute table.
107
i conocl ast i c
attacki ng cherished trad itions
During the 1960s, many iconoclastic young
people questioned the accepted beliefs and
values of the time.
The young art critic established her reputation
by writing iconoclastic articles ridiculing the
conservative views of other critics.
Some iconoclasts in the field of education
believe that the present education system
should be replaced with anew one designed
to meet the needs of modern society.
i mpeccabl e
faultless; having no flaws
Although the work of the research group
was impeccable, they were unable to identify
the source of the problem.
My fourth grade teacher insisted on impeccable
penmanship from every student.
The actress made sure she was dressed
impeccably for the Academy Awards
ceremonies because she knew that reporters
would be out in full force, observing every
detail of her appearance.
hypocri t i cal
pretend ing to be vi rtuous; deceivi ng
Paula believes that her parents arebeing
hypocritical in saying that stealing iswrong
in view of the fact that they take atowel from
every hotel they stay in when they go on
vacation.
The bumper sticker on the vehicle in front of
me telling people to "Savethe environment!"
could be regarded as hypocritical, considering
that it's on agas-guzzling SUV spewing out a
lot of pollutants that harm the environment.
Doris thought that her mother was being
hypocritical in saying that she shouldn't be
married at the age of nineteen, considering
that her mother was married at seventeen.
i mmut abl e
unchangeable
Most religions teach immutable values for
their followers to liveby.
Science operates on the assumption that there
exist laws of nature that are immutable.
According to the theory of evolution, each
species of living thing is not immutably fixed
in its nature, but rather in acontinual process
of change as it adapts to its environment.
~
Picture this: in sight I
"Wehaveinsight theguywho's
trying to incite ariot."
l l O
inconsequential
(in kon sih kwen shul)
Picture this: in con sequence shall
"It's inconsequential howwego, but
inconsequence shall wegoif you insist!"
112
~
I Picture this: imp you dance I
"Imp, you dance? Your impudence
must bepunished!"
109
I ncongruous
(in kong groo us)
Picture this: in Congress
Incongruous behavior inCongress.
l l i
incite
arouse to action
Inciting ariot isacriminal offense because
it endangers public safety.
The seaman was court-rnartialed for inciting
mutiny on board the ship.
The rebels captured agovernment television
station and used it to make broadcasts
inciting revolution.
inconsequential
insignificant; unimportant
"The spelling errors in my essay are
inconsequential because they don't affect
the meaning," Susiesaid to her English
teacher.
Driving home from the supermarket I was
involved in an accident; fortunately, however,
the damage was inconsequential-just a
minor dent in the rear bumper.
Richard believes so strongly that the U.S.
national debt should be eliminated that he
donated $1,000 to the Treasury Department;
his donation had an inconsequential effect on
the debt, but it made him feel alittle better.
impudence
offensive boldness
The famous surgeon became angry with
the young doctor for having the impudence
to question his judgment in the case.
The dictator punished his adviser for his
impudence in suggesting that more power
should begiven to the people.
The teacher ignored the impudent comment,
knowing that responding to it would just
givethe student who made it the attention
hewas seeking.
.
Incongruous
not fitting; absurd
That house built inthe design of aski lodge
looks incongruous out here inthe desert.
It seems incongruous that those beautiful
paintings are exhibited in ashoddy, filthy
gallery.
The rattan furniture that looked sogood in
my house in Florida looks incongruous
in my new house in Minnesota.
I
I Picture this: in deuce I
Carved in the deuce was anoose
to induce fear in Bruce.
114
~
Picture this: inn ovation I
A real inn ovation for this inn's innovation.
116
~
I Picture this: in different I
People in different lands
being indifferent to each other.
113
I
I Picture this: in a queue us I
In a queue, us and some
innocuous snakes.
115
induce
persuade; bri ng about
When hewas eight years old, nothing could
induce Bruce to go near agirl; however, now
that he's nineteen, he can't stay away from
them.
Oliver used many strategies to induce Gail to
marry him, including sending her apresent
every day.
A total vegetarian all his life, nothing could
induce J ason to eat apiece of meat.
innovation
change; introduction of someth ing new
The space shuttle was an innovation in space
flight; however, some experts now believe
that areturn to older types of spacecraft is
advisable because of the problems the shuttle
has had.
One of the great recent innovations in
communications istwitter.
Ms. Chambliss won this year's teacher-of-
the-year award for her innovative and
effectiveapproaches to conducting lessons.
indifferent
unmoved; unconcerned by; mediocre
Bill isthe kind of person who isindifferent
to his surroundings; he doesn't seemto notice
whether he's walking in abeautiful forest or
the ugliest section of the city.
Tired of his son's indifferent attitude toward
schoolwork, Mr. Kilmer threatened to make
him stay home all weekend to catch upwith
his assignments.
The usually excellent actor gavean
indifferent performance in the newplay.
.
Innocuous
harmless; unlikely to provoke
strong emotion
King, my family's German Shepherd, looks
ferocious, but I assure you that he's actually
innocuous.
Den's illness seemed innocuous at first, but
it steadily became worse until his lifewasin
danger.
The fumes might appear innocuous-they
smell pleasant enough-however, prolonged
exposure to them will almost certainly harm
your health.
~
I Picture this: in tea gritty I
"I . ff
n ... tea ... gritty stu .
Shehas no integrity!"
118
~
I Picture this: in trip heed I
Eventhemost intrepid explorer should,
inhis trip, heed warnings.
120
~
I Picture this: Inn Sue-Larry Tea I
Sueand Larryliveininsularity
drinking Inn Sue-Larry Tea.
117
~
I Picture this: intimate date I
Anintimate date tends to intimidate her.
119
integrity
i nsu I arity
uprightness; wholeness
narrow-mindedness; isolation
The community expects schoolteachers to be
individuals of integrity whom young people
can respect.
The insularity of China during much of its
history caused many people in that country
to be suspicious of foreigners.
Amber isaperson of integrity; shecould
havekept the $10,000 in the wallet that she
found and no one would have been the
wiser; instead, shereturned the wallet and
the money to their rightful owner.
These native people livean insular existence
in their remote mountain village.
Thebank clerk was believed to beaperson
of integrity-until it was discovered that she
had withdrawn $300,000 from acustomer's
account and left town during the night.
Europeans sometimes accuse Americans of
insularity; they sayAmericans tend to regard
events occurring beyond the borders of their
country as having little relevance to them.
intrepid
intimidate
fearless frighten; coerce or inhibit by threats
Anintrepid investor, Mr. Wilcox regularly
puts alargepart of his savings into high-risk
stocks.
Don't let the difficult vocabulary on the SAT
intimidate you; if you study systematically,
you can learn most of the words likelyto
appear on the test.
Only afewintrepid climbers have dared to
scalethe sheer wall of Mt. Doom. The president deployed the Seventh Fleet to
intimidate the potentially aggressivenation.
Mary isintrepid in pursuing her dream of
becoming apublished writer; despite having
received hundreds of rejections, shesubmits
anew story every week.
The Maori warriors of New Zealand do a
war dance called the haka to intimidate
their enemies.
~
I Picture this: jock caller I
A jock caller says something jocular.
122
~
I Picture this: Lynn Cere I
"Lynn Gere loves to linger here."
124
~
I Picture this: I ron Nick I
"It's ironic that Iron Nick was flattened
by aload of barbells."
121
~
I Picture this: laugh fish I
What do .!::I outhink
of the laugh fi-sh?
\
Laugh fish serenade them at alavish feast.
123
jocular
. .
Ironic
unexpected and contrary
in outcome
said or done in jest
The young diplomat closed his tribute to the
outgoing ambassador with what he intended
to beajocular remark about the ambassa-
dor's loveof food; the ambassador, however,
sawit asan insult.
It was an ironic twist offate for the greatest
swimmer in Olympic history-drowning in
aswimming pool.
Tim's continual jocular comments were
starting to annoy Sue: "Can't you ever be
serious?" sheasked.
Isn't it ironic that it was the worst student
in the English classwho later became a
distinguished novelist?
Wewere surprised to seeour usually serious
math teacher in ajocular mood, cracking
jokes a-mile-a-minute.
It's ironic that Betty, atireless campaigner
against drunk driving, was killed in acar
crash caused by adrunk driver.
linger
lavish
loiter or dawdle; continue or persist
extravagant; wastefu I
Most of the guests left the party at midnight,
but Robin and Gwen lingered into morning,
talking about their different philosophies
oflife.
When my company makes amillion dollars,
I'll invite all my employees to alavish dinner
to celebrate.
After the funeral, the old woman lingered a
while at her husband's grave, recalling their
long lifetogether.
The young couple regret their lavish spending
on their honeymoon trip; now they don't
have enough money for adown payment
on the house they want to buy.
The last cold I had lingered for solong I
thought that I'd have it for the rest of my
life.
The salesman entertained his clients lavishly,
hoping to closethe bigdeal with them.
~
I Pictu re th is: myrrh scenery I
A mercenary Moor stops to admire
the myrrh scenery.
126
~
I Picture this: mitt a gate I
They drop his mitt by agate
to mitigate his anger.
128
~
I Picture this: list-less I
Lisaislistless because she's "list-less."
125
~
I Picture this: met tickle us I
"Her behavior was far from meticulous.
Whenever wemet, shewould tickle us!"
127
mercenary
listless
interested in money or gain lacking in spirit or energy
Responding to critics who complained that
heseemed to write for mercenary rather
than artistic motives, the writer replied,
"Even writers have to eat and pay the
mortgage."
Our football team was listless in the first
half and fell behind 28to 7, but inthe
second half they came back to lifeand
mounted acomeback.
The investor's motive in building aresort in
thepoor country isn't entirely mercenary; he
believes that aresort will bring employment
that will help the local people.
We were surprised by the band's listless
performance until welearned that it had
been touring for three months straight
and its members were exhausted.
Although offers of freeservices on the Wodd
Wide Web may beattractive, there isoften
amercenary motive behind them: If you
signup for afreeservice, you're more likely
to later sign up for aservice that you have to
pay for.
It's such ahot day that everyone islistless,
just sitting around the house eating ice
cream and drinking soda.
mitigate
meticulous
moderate in intensity painstaki ng; excessively carefu I
The government provided food subsidies
to mitigate the effects of the depression on
the poor.
The novelist planned the plot of her novel in
meticulous detail.
Most medicines that can bebought over-
the-counter only mitigate the effects of
anailment, they don't cure the ailment
itself.
Mr. Tan's lawn ismeticulous; hespends two
hours every weekend working on it.
Herb's meticulous preparation for the SAT
was rewarded with aperfect score.
Thejudge decided that because of the
mitigating circumstances of the casehe
would not impose the most severe sentence
possible.
~
I Picture this: most say ick
ICK!
\
Most say "ick" when they see
Moe's ickymosaic.
130
~
I Picture this: Neff ferry us
Attention! Wenave ju-st learned
tnat a neFariou-s bomber i-son board.
Tni-s ferr!::j i-sclo-sed. ~-:::::=~:;;::~~
"Hecan't havetheNeff ferry us over-
there's anefarious bomber on board!"
132
~
I Picture this: more rose
I
t
,I I I ,I
I I I r
>
Why did Oliver
break up with me'?
Oh why?
\
Morose Mary needs more rose.
129
~
I Picture this: Monday I
A mundane Monday.
131
.
mosaic
picture made of colorful small inlaid
tiles; something that resembles a mosaic
In the Roman Empire, floors were decorated
with mosaics made up of marble slabs of
various colors.
The detective pieced together the clues at the
scene of the crime until they formed amosaic
that gavehim aclear picture of how all the
events led to the crime.
Thechurch of Hagia Sophia inIstanbul,
Turkey, isfamous for itsbeautiful gold
mosaics.
nefarious
very wicked
The terrorists' nefarious plan to bomb the
elementary school was uncovered through
alert police work.
The actor, famous for his portrayals of
nefarious characters, longed to play the
"good guy" for achange.
The hackers' nefarious plan was to break
into computers in banks around the country
and make them crash, causing chaos in the
economy.
morose
iI I -hu mored; sad; gloomy
Diagnosed with terminal cancer, Ruth refused
to become morose; instead, sheresolved to
livethe rest of her lifeto the fullest.
The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates
believed that aperson shouldn't become
morose, even when facing his or her
own death.
Some people become morose after someone
closeto them dies.
mundane
worldly as opposed to spiritual; everyday;
concerned with the commonplace
Professor Pascal has little time for the
mundane business of running her laboratory;
sheleaves that to her assistant sothat she
can concentrate on research.
The English teacher asked his students to
record not the mundane details of their
livesbut rather their observations and
reflections.
A talented writer can make even amundane
topic likebrushing your teeth or mowing
the lawn interesting.
~
I Picture this: Noto Riot he I
For his part in the Noto Riot, he
gained instant notoriety.
134
~
I Picture this: Ob live eon I
How long did
Ob live'?
\
Oblived an eon before
Oblantis fell into oblivion."
136
~
I Picture this: non shell lance I
"Shell lance or non shell lance?" heasks
with nonchalance.
133
~
I Picture this: Ob Letter Eight I
In ObLetter Eight, Oblantis obliterates aliens.
135
notoriety
ill fame (being known widely
and unfavorably)
The student gained notoriety on campus for
cheating on her final exams.
Our football team's left defensive end has
gained notoriety around the conference
for his dirty play.
Thewriter received notoriety in the literary
world when it was discovered that hehad
copied most of the ideas for his best-selling
book from along-forgotten work by another
author.
oblivion
obscurity; forgetfu I ness
The scholar's careful research discovered a
long-lost manuscript by William Shakespeare,
thus rescuing it from oblivion.
Very fewwriters areremembered past their
own generation; most fall into oblivion,
completely forgotten by both readers and
critics.
Somepeople believe that after aperson dies
there isoblivion.
nonchalance
indifference; casual lack of concern
After being nearly "beaned" by an inside
fastball, Luke got up, dusted himself off,
and with complete nonchalance delivered
the game-winning hit on the next pitch.
Dad acted nonchalant about his promotion
to vice-president of the company, but we
all knew that hewas actually very excited
about it.
An appearance of nonchalance isrequired for
anyone who wants to be considered "cool."
ob I iterate
destroy completely
Rising sealevels threaten to obliterate many
of the island nations of the world.
The meteor was obliterated when it collided
with the Moon.
After her divorce, Tammy obliterated
everything shehad that reminded her of
her ex-husband.
~
I Picture this: Ob stun eight I
You gu.!::f-Swere -so ob-stinate,
I had to u-selevel 10
to knock .!::fouout.
\
"How many aliens did Ob stun?"
"Eight, exactly eight obstinate aliens."
138
~
I Picture this: oar rater I
"The oar rater thinks he's an orator!"
140
~
I Picture this: Ob's cure I
Ob's Cure lost in obscure times.
137
~
I Picture this: a port Tunis I
At aport, Tunis tourists approach
an opportunist.
139
obsti nate
stubborn; hard to control or treat
Timisobstinate about one thing: He refuses
to goout with his friends until he's completed
all of his homework.
My car isobstinate; it refused to start, even
though I had tuned the engine aweek earlier.
The obstinate toddler clung to her mother,
wailing and refusing to get on the bus to
goto nursery school.
orator
public speaker
Although shewas not aparticularly good
orator, people listened closely to Ruth's
talk because shespoke about her difficult
experiences with complete honesty.
In the ageof television, apolitician needs
fewer of the skills of the traditional orator
and more of those of apopular television
personality.
The orator held the crowd spellbound with
her fascinating speech and exciting way of
speaking.
obscure
indistinct; not easily understood
The obscure writer wrote twenty books
before finally capturing the attention of the
reading public.
The meaning of this poem issoobscure that
even the best critics disagree about it.
The poet made areference to an obscure
fourteenth-century artist that only an art
historian would befamiliar with.
opportunist
one who sacrifices principles for
gain by taki ng advantage
of circumstances
During wartime, opportunists often profit
from shortages of important materials,
stockpiling them and later selling them at
high prices.
After the town's water supply became
contaminated, opportunists began selling
bottled water at triple the regular price.
The lawyer isan opportunist; sheapproaches
people injured in car accidents and asksthem
if they'd likeher help in suing other parties
involved.
~
I Picture this: pass if fist I
Corne on, .!:J oupacifl-st!
-6ee thi-s fI-st'?
L.et'-sfight!
/"
A pacifist must pass if afist
iswaved at him!
142
~
I Picture this: pear for all I
"There's apear for all on the
peripheral pear trees!"
144
~
I Picture this: oar Nate I
The oar Nate made wasvery ornate.
141
~
I Picture this: pen Yuri I
Here'-s a little
-some+hing
for .!:J ou,Yuri. <,
In the pen, Yuri lived in penury.
143
pacifist
one opposed to force; anti mil itarist
A group of pacifists protested peacefully
against the war.
Pacifists in Hitler's Germany could do little
to prevent that country's conquest of many
of its European neighbors.
One of the best-known pacifist churches
isthe Society of Friends, also called the
Quakers.
peripheral
outer; margi nal
A good manager must be able to decide
which tasks must be done very soon and
which ones can beput off to later because
they're peripheral.
Becausethe negotiator believed that it was
important to build trust between the parties
inthe dispute, sheencouraged them to settle
peripheral issues before moving on to more
important issues.
Scientists must focus on the essential aspects
of what they're studying, excluding anything
that isperipheral.
ornate
excessively or elaborately decorated
Taste in art today tends to prefer straight-
forward, unadorned design to design that
isornate.
Modern readers tend to prefer writing that is
simple and direct to writing that isornate.
We marveled at the ornately carved chair
created by the master furniture maker.
penury
severe poverty; sti ngi ness
The expense of the long legal battle will
reduce both sides to penury unless they
arrive at asettlement soon.
During the Great Depression of the early
twentieth century, some millionaires lost
so much money that they had to livein
penury.
Though hehad been reduced to penury
by the bankruptcy of his business, Mr. Ford
remained confident that hewould soon
recover and bewealthy again.
~
I Picture this: pit he I
Inthepit, hemakes apithy remark.
146
~
I Picture this: polar Mick call I
A polemical polar Mick call.
148
~
I Picture this: fin omen-ahhh! I
~
_ ~ Now it'~a rare fin omen! ~
~~W~,- Ahhh! Thi~all mean-s we're poing
~ ~ to have a great catch.
\-=-!_~~5::.
AHHH AHHH
\ \
"And nowit's afinomen-ahhh-rare
phenomena!
145
~
I Picture this: play Cate I
Intheplay, Cate must placate anangrymob.
147
pithy
concise; mean i ngfu I ;
substantial; meaty
The eighteenth-century writer Samuel
J ohnson isfamous for his pithy remarks,
such as "No man but ablockhead ever
wrote, except for money."
In this ageof the politics of the "sound
bite"-a short statement that can beplayed
on television for avery short period of time-
it isimportant for acandidate to beable
to come up with pithy statements that
express his or her views in afewwords.
Try putting apithy quotation from awell-
known person inyour essay to capture your
reader's interest.
polemical
aggressive in verbal attack;
disputatious
Rather than reasonably discussing issues of
concern to voters, the speakers in the forum
gavepolemical speeches attacking the views
of their opponents.
Senator Smith had been told that the debate
would beareasonable discussion of the issue,
but her opponent launched into apolemical
speech denouncing her position.
The candidate for officeclosed the debate
with these words: "I had hoped this would
beafair evaluation of the political situation,
but instead my opponent has used it as an
opportunity for polemical attacks on me."
phenomena
observable facts; subjects of
scientific investigation
Scientists must keep accurate records of the
phenomena they study.
Physicists study the phenomena of nature in
order to discover their underlying laws.
Scientists useinstruments such astelescopes
and microscopes to extend the range
of human senses so that 'theycan study
phenomena in nature more comprehensively.
placate
pacify; lessen the anger of
To placate the angry customer, the store
manager gaveher a$100gift voucher.
After Bob's father threatened to take away
the keys to his car if he didn't study for the
SAT, Bobplacated himby studying for
an hour.
Nigel could seethat placating his boss was
not going to beeasy; shehad aright to
beangry with him for his carelessness in
forgetting to call their most important
client.
~
I Picture this: pretend shush
"Pretend we're not here-shush!"
They avoid pretentious people.
150
~
I Picture this: pro fusion I
"A profusion of nuclear fusion plants!"
"Yeah, they're really pro fusion around here."
152
~
I Picture this: pond her Russ
Upon careful con-sider-a+lon, however ...
I think !:jou will find the implication-s ~
of our imminent nuptial I "elation-ship ~~
-sati-sfactol"!:j .. unlee-e of cour-se, . . 0. t:..
~~
At the pond, her Russ makes a
ponderous proposal.
149
~
I Picture this: prod a gull I
Get off, gull, thi-s
i-s m!::lprivate
beach now. ".,-
A prodigal prince tries to prod agull
to leavehis private beach.
151
pretentious ponderous
pompous; making unjustified claims;
outward I y extravagant
weighty; unwieldy
I feel sopretentious wearing this $3,000
suit; I'm used to wearing apair of jeans and
aT-shirt all day.
To take his mind off ponderous matters of
state for awhile, the president went to see
amOVIe.
Bynature reserved and modest, J ill has no
interest in apretentious wedding with
hundreds of guests.
The amateur comedian was soponderous
in his delivery that by the time hegot to
the punch line of his story hehad lost the
attention of most of his audience.
Wewereamazed to seeBob, who has always
been such amodest guy, acting in such a
pretentious way; he's strutting down the
street likeheowns the whole town.
The students soon became bored with the
guest speaker's ponderous delivery of her
speech.
profusion prodigal
overabu ndance; excess wasteful; reckless with money
There has been aprofusion of new car
models this year.
Mr. Larsen was so fedup with his children's
prodigal spending that hecut their allowances
in half.
There issuch aprofusion of food at this
party that I can't possibly try all the dishes. The congressman criticized what hecalled
the government's prodigal spending and
vowed to work for large cuts inthe budget. Theprofusion of lifeon Earth isso great
that scientists have been able to study only
asmall fraction of it in depth. Bart's credit card encouraged his prodigal
spending, which has gotten himdeeply
into debt.
~
I Picture this: queer rule us I
Dad, wh!l can't we
go to Spain for vacation
thi" !lear? Wealwa!l"
do -suchboring thing".
.J ohnn!l' !l0u got
onl!l 99% on !lour
a""ignment.
That'" di-6gracetul.
I expect 100%. rn~~!\'iiI
I
Yearsago our Grandpa gaveaqueer rule to us:
"Bequerulous!"
154
~
I Picture this: Ram Bull I
RamBull likes to ramble 'round town.
156
~
I Picture this: quack Myer I
That hail"potion
HOU-sold me You told me
doe-en/i: work! I 'd I "e~ain
1
. \1:\ jH HO~:~cp.18ck, MHel"!
I :}, / d.
'"'"r" ;,r~(I {
,.:t #0 .
I ; e ~
, k ~
_ I T': --::
They chase quack Myer into aquagmire.
153
~
I Picture this: Qwee Essence I
Qwee Essence brings quiescence.
155
.
quagmire querulous
soft wet boggy land; complex or
dangerous situation from which
it is difficult to free oneself
complaining; fretful
The expedition faced achoice: Go the long
way around the vast swamp and lose precious
time or gothrough it and risk having their
vehicles get stuck in aquagmire.
The querulous tourist spent most of his time
in Europe complaining that Europe wasn't
likehome.
The defense lawyer introduced so much
evidence that the trial became bogged
down in aquagmire of irrelevant
information.
Sophie must benaturally querulous; she's
been complaining throughout our entire
class trip to Washington, D.C.
After six hours of nonstop driving, Ms.
Chambers' six kids arebecoming querulous.
Military leaders feel that involvement in a
foreign country could lead the country into
aquagmire.
.
quiescence
ramble
state of bei ng at rest;
temporary inactivity
wander aimlessly
Thecease- firebrought awelcome period of
quiescence inthe long-running civil war.
The biographer encouraged her subject to
ramble on about his childhood, hoping
to discover details that would help givean
accurate picture of his early life.
Many astronomers believe that the universe
will one day contract into atiny point and
reach quiescence.
The teacher's comment on Stan's essay:
"This long essayrambles too much. It
needs to bebetter organized. It can't
wander aimlessly from topic to topic."
Thevolcano isquiescent now, but when
it erupts the villagesurrounding it will be
destroyed.
The governor's confused, rambling
explanation did little to help his critics
understand why hevetoed the bill that he
had continually promised to support
during the campaign.
~
I Picture this: Ra ant I
RAH RAH, Ra!
oh great Ra!
Giver of L.ife!
RAH RAH, Ra!
"ByRa, that ant can rant!"
158
~
Pictu re th is: raw Cuz I
C~vI~t<.v-l1 R/lvll1<Avi I
A/! ~: ~teak~
are reall~
raw, Cuz!
~
A raucous cry-"The steaks are raw, Cuz!"
160
~
I Picture this: rank core I
That'~ ridiculoue, Xircon!
The data clearlH e-s+abti-sh
that the core of thi~planet
rank? high in xyfithium
in it? heavie-st eieie!
Xircon and Xirla rank the core
with rancor.
157
~
I Picture this: rat if I I
TREATY
Between Rak and Human-s
Rak 0ranted:
1. t-imiied Right6 of'
Citizen6nip
2. Right totiFe
RAT'S:
tf$'~ive upan!:!plan
v to eat, ad a-s if
'9 ":) : eating. think
L. about eating
_ actually eat an!:!
U
food a-s-socia+ed
with m
"I'll bearat if I ask them to ratify this treaty."
159
rant rancor
speak in an angry or excited manner; rave bitterness; hatred
Theprincipal ranted for an hour at the
assembly about the poor behavior of
thestudents.
Psychologists saythat people taken hostage
sometimes feel not rancor toward their
captors but sympathy.
In London's Hyde Park, there's aplace at
which people regularly make speeches
ranting against the illsof the world.
Asaprofessional soldier, Colonel Gunn bore
no personal rancor toward his foe; for him,
the enemy was purely aforce to bedestroyed.
It's one thing to rant against social injustice;
however, it's quite another to actually do
something to correct it.
The husband and wifeagreed that they should
get adivorce and that the process should be
done without rancor.
raucous
ratify
harsh and shrill; disorderly
and boisterous
approve formally; confi rm; verify
The inexperienced speaker had no idea how
to quiet the raucous crowd sothat shecould
begin her speech.
The president's appointment of Iudge J ones
was ratified by the Senate after several days
of debate.
The raucous cries of the crows were becom-
ingsoannoying to the writer hard at work
on his book that hebegan to eyethe shotgun
sitting inhis gun case.
The Constitutional amendment wasapproved
by Congress; however, in order to become
part of the Constitution it still must be
ratified by three-quarters of the state
legislatures.
Theraucous crowd at the Super Bowl made
it difficult for the players to hear their
quarterback calling out signals.
The U.S. Senate ratified the treaty with
Albania after ashort debate.
~
I Picture this: rays I
~1~
r ~~ )1
,~ ..
z ~t:~:' ~"z.
Hot rays raze the city.
162
~
I Picture this: redone dent I
Thai'.s what the cu-s+omer-
s-sked for. He told meto
\ "Redo the dent!"
"Isn't aredone dent alittle redundant?"
164
~
I Picture this: raven us I
"Then I guess it's baked raven.
Us folks areravenous!"
161
~
I Picture this: Rick count I
We cho-se Rick to do
the recount becau-se
ne'-s -so hone-st.
Recounting how Rick was picked
to count the votes in the recount.
163
raze
ravenous
destroy completely
extremely hungry
Returning after fiftyyears to the town he
grewup in, J imsawthat the houses on his
old street had been razed and ashopping
center had been built on the site.
After her one-week diet of nothing but
vegetables, fruit, and rice, Kimwas
ravenous.
Thehotel was razed sothat an officebuilding
could bebuilt on the site.
After receiving ataste of fame when she
appeared on national television, theyoung
actress became ravenous for even greater
fame.
Much of San Francisco was razed in the
great fireof 1906.
Please start the barbecue-I'm ravenous.
redundant
recou nt
unnecessary; repetitious;
excessively wordy
narrate or tell; count over again
Legal terms such as "cease and desist" and
"null and void" might appear redundant to
thelayperson.
Beth's grandfather loves to recount tales of
his boyhood adventures.
Istheword "free" in the phrase "free gift"
redundant since agift isfreeby definition?
Thejudge asked the witness to recount
everything that had happened on the day
that the crime was committed.
Engineers normally design spacecraft with
redundant systems so that if the primary
one failsthe secondary one can take over.
The autobiography recounts everyimportant
event in the senator's long and distinguished
career.
~
I Picture this: row bust I
"Row, row, row your bust gently down the
stream," sings the robust rower.
166
~
I Picture this: satyr Rick call I
5a\l:J~omething ~atirical! ~tLO~ONNHt M~K
~tiTW1<~
Yeah,like"Don't
!J ougu~think
-sat!J ~maHer?"
"
"Satyr Rick calls the park people to make a
satirical comment."
168
~
I Picture this: Rhet oracle I
Rhet questions the oracle and
receives arhetorical response.
165
~
I Picture this: sage I
Great .sage, tell u-s,
which herb -should we
put in the pot
to bring u-s wl-sdorrrf
l.s it par.sley?
I
r'
1 .\
(!!J ,J,;
Par.sle.!::J'?No way.
Onl.!::J.sage will
make .!::Jouwi-se.
/
This sage swears by sage.
167
robust
vigorous; strong
The general warned the enemy commander
that any attack would be met immediately
with arobust counterattack.
A heavyweight boxer must berobust enough
to withstand the extremely hard punches of
his opponents.
theAmerican Army General George Patton
saidthat America would win the war because
itssoldiers were more robust than those
of the enemy.
satirical
mocki ng; characterized by
sarcastic wit to attack
or expose folly
Although the students did not intend their
satirical skit to beinsulting to anyone, most
of the audience thought it tasteless and
offensive.
Satirical writing generally makes fun of a
fault in society or in human nature, often
with the intention of bringing such faults
to people's attention.
Television programs such as Saturday Night
Live feature satirical comedy that pokes fun
at modern society.
rhetorical
pertaining to effective communication;
insincere in language; characterized by
overly elaborate, pompous language
This line from the Bible uses the rhetorical
device of repetition of the same word:
"Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher,
vanity of vanity; all isvanity."
Rhetorical techniques can beused to make
your writing more effective.
The speech consisted mainly of empty
rhetoric rather than meaningful ideas.
sage
person celebrated for wisdom
Although shedidn't consider herself asage,
J anice's friends always sought her advicewhen
they encountered aproblem in their lives.
The teachings of the ancient Chinese sage
Confucius arestill greatly respected today.
I was surprised to hear such sagewords from
such ayoung person.
~
I Picture this: scan tea I
TheTeaPolicescan theteaparty
for scanty outfits.
170
~
Picture this: screw tin eyes I
Trainees screwtin eyeson the doors while
thebossscrutinizes their technique.
172
~
Picture this: sat shore ate I
On Saturdays they sat ontheshore and
atefriesthat they'd saturated inketchup.
169
~
I Picture this: screw pull us I
"Can this screwpull us through?
Wemust makeascrupulous check!"
17l
scanty
meager; insufficient
With supplies becoming scanty, the
commander decided to halt the advance
and concentrate on obtaining food, water,
and other necessities.
The country's scanty reserves of oil make
it dependent on importing oil from other
countries.
The content of Barbara's history essay was
soscanty that it received aD.
scrutinize
examine closely and critically
Mandy scrutinized her sister's appearance
and then said, "I pronounce you ready to
goto the dance. You look great."
During the interrogation the detective
scrutinized the suspect's facefor an
indication that hewas not telling the truth
about his involvement in the crime.
The computer programmer scrutinized the
program that shehad written to seeif there
wereany errors in it.
,
saturate
soak thorough I y; drench
The heavy rain before the football game
saturated the turf, making it difficult for
players to execute plays properly.
I left the sprinkler on overnight by mistake;
now the ground isso saturated that I can't
lieon ablanket on the grass to catch some
rays.
It's sohumid that when I gojogging, my
shirt becomes saturated quickly.
scrupulous
conscientious; extremely thorough
Ralph's scrupulous preparation for the
English test resulted in his receiving agrade
ofA.
The groundskeeper at the baseball stadium
isscrupulous about maintaining the infield
grass but doesn't bother much about the
outfield grass.
Coach Ford's preparation of our team for
the championship game against Statewas
scrupulous; he made sure that every detail
was perfectly planned.
~
I Picture this: serve vial I
Sir Viletells his servile slaveto serve
thevial of poison to his guest.
174
I Picture this: Soap Horrific I
Soap Horrific. Soap that's not soporific.
176
I
I Picture this: sick illusion I
The!:!-sa!:!that the old hermit who live-s
there believe-she'-s the la-st
human on Earth.
~/
He lives in seclusion with his sick illusion.
173
~
I Picture this: slug I
A sluggish slug pulls Bee's luggage.
175
servile
slavish; submissive
People who are used to being nice are
sometimes soservile that they are unable
to say"No" to an unreasonable request.
After half the workers in the plant had been
laid off, Sallynoticed that some employees
werebecoming servile in their relationship
with the plant manager.
Servants inVictorian England were generally
expected to be servile toward their employers.
soporifi c
sleep-causing; marked by sleepiness
Terri finds nothing more soporific than
listening to classical music; she's usually
asleepbefore the end of the first movement
of asymphony.
If you have trouble getting to sleep, try
reading along, boring, soporific book.
A lot of guys find "chick flicks" soporific
because there's too much talk and not
enough action.
seclusion
isolation; solitude
The hermit lives in seclusion in acabin in
the mountains.
Some writers can do their work with others
around, but some prefer quiet and seclusion.
The scholar went into seclusion sothat she
could concentrate on finishing her history
of mathematics.
sluggish
slow; lazy; lacking energy
The first three laps of the 5,OOO-meterevent
were run at asluggish pace, but on thefourth
lap the state champion suddenly picked up
the pace.
Because economic growth has been sluggish,
Congress voted to reduce taxes to try to
stimulate spending.
My car was sluggish until I cleaned the
carburetor; now it accelerates likeacar in
adrag race.
~
I Picture this: Stag 'n' Ant I
A stagnant business at the Stag 'n' Ant.
178
~
I Picture this: S.S. Trident I
The 5.5. Trident lets out astrident wail.
180
~
I Picture this: spore addict I
The spore addict waits for sporadic spores.
177
~
I Picture this: stole lid I
Though someone stole the lid,
the chef remains stolid.
179
stagnant
motion less; stale; duII
During the long drought, all that was left
of LakeWeir was stagnant water one foot
deep.
The government reported that economic
growth had been stagnant during the last
quarter of the year and that measures were
therefore being considered to stimulate
the economy.
Fewer people have been investing in the
stock market recently because it's been
stagnant the last fewmonths.
strident
loud and harsh; insistent
Demands by shareholders for the removal
of the chairman of the company from his
position became more strident after share-
holders learned that he had covered up the
company's large losses.
Despite strident protests from environ-
mentalists, the plan to build adam in the
conservation area was approved by the
government.
Callsfrom the alumni for the head football
coach to resign grew more strident after the
team finished with arecord of two wins and
elevenlosses.
sporadic
occurring irregularly
The advancing army met sporadic enemy
resistance, but it used heavy artillery barrages
to destroy the fewunits that were still
putting up afight.
Although there have only been sporadic
outbreaks of flu this winter, government
health officials aremonitoring the situation
carefully.
The military announced that they had taken
complete control of the enemy city; however,
sporadic gunfire could still beheard insome
areas.
sto lid
showi ng I ittle emotion
Awaiting sentencing, the convicted man
could get no hint of his fatefrom the stolid
expression on thejudge's face.
Behind the banker's stolid, conservative
appearance isaman whose hobby is
parachuting from airplanes and who
uses weekends for nonstop partying.
The commander, remaining stolid despite
the heavy causalities his unit had suffered
in the assault, ordered afresh attack.
I Picture this: super facial I
Wow, not even one
blemi-sh left!
Our -super facial clear-s
all -superficial one-s.
\
A super facial will clear all
superficial blemishes.
182
~
I Picture this: Surf It I
At Waikiki's SurfIt, they are
surfeited with Surf 'n' Turf.
184
~
I Picture this: sub side I
The sub lay on its side waiting
for the attack to subside.
181
~
I Picture this: Super Flu us I
"The Super Flu left us with
superfluous tissues."
183
su pe rfi cia I
concerned on I y with the obvious;
shallow; near the surface
Becausehis injury was only superficial, our
quarterback was ableto return to the game
after receiving some treatment.
My English teacher expects us to analyze in
depth the poems westudy; hegives little
credit for asuperficial analysis.
Only very talented novelists have the ability
to givereaders more than asuperficial
picture of the characters in their books.
surfeit
indulge to
excess in anything
Between Christmas Day and NewYear's Day
everyyear, television viewers are surfeited
with collegefootball bowl games.
Tom's appetite for computer games was
surfeited after heplayed them practically
nonstop over the summer vacation.
There has been asurfeit of movies this year
with afemale superhero in the leading role.
subside
settle down; descend; grow quiet
After the argument, J ean's anger subsided,
and she apologized to her friend for having
been rude.
The excitement in our school about winning
the state football championship has finally
subsided three months after thevictory.
After the floodwaters subsided, the farmer
surveyed the damage the flood had caused
to his crops.
superfl uous
unnecessary; excessive; overabundant
When writing your answer on atest, you
should avoid superfluous comments and
just stick to the important points.
This filmhas already received hundreds
of glowing reviews; any more would be
superfluous.
This dessert ismade of chocolate icecream,
chocolate mousse, chocolate fudge, and
chocolate chips; would some chocolate
topping besuperfluous?
~
I Picture this: sick of aunt I
I think !J0u're the mo-st hand-some, brave-st and
-smarte-st prince in hi-stor!J.
of cour-se !Jou -siil! need
m!J advice, -so I want !Jou
to rai-se m!J -spending
mone!J
to one
million
a !Jear..
Sickof hisaunt-a slicksycophant-
hebooted her out of his castle.
186
~
I Picture this: ten a city
-
- -
- ..
With great tenacity, thecraft
continue their attack, ten to acity.
188
~
I Picture this: Sir Repetitious I
I mu-st be -eurrepbiiioue.
I mu-st be eurrepiiiioue.
I mu-st be eurrepiiiioue.
I mu-st be eurrepiiiioue.
11mu-st be -s u-s.
LI mu-st be -s~../'
~
~
Sir Repetitious inasurreptitious operation.
185
1
~
I Picture this: Tant a mount I
RidingTant, amount, up EI PicainPeruis
tantamount to sayingalpacas' rights arefew!
187
sy cophant
surreptitious
self-seeker who tries to gain favor by
flatteri ng important people; boot I icker
done in a secret way; hidden
Hoping to get the best mark in the class,
thesycophant flattered his teacher at every
opportunity.
We have to besurreptitious inpreparing
Dad's surprise party so hedoesn't become
suspicious of what we're doing.
Val isashameless sycophant; sheisconstantly
telling her boss that his ideas arethe best
ideas that anyone has ever had and that he
should bethe president of the company.
The movie star made asurreptitious exit
through the back door of the studio to
avoid reporters.
Fedup with all the sycophants around him
alwaysagreeing with everything he said, the
CEO screamed at them, "Stop saying 'Yes'
to everything I say!" "Yes," they all replied
I I I unison.
The intelligence officer surreptitiously
monitored the enemy naval operation from
his hidden observation post.
tenacity
tantamount
firmness; persistence
equivalent in effect or value
Carol demonstrated remarkable tenacity in
achieving her goal of receiving aperfect score
on the SAT; shestudied for an hour every
day for ayear, never allowing herself to be
distracted.
In Mr. Rogers' math class, any remark that
suggests the slightest bit of disrespect for
the wonders of mathematics isregarded as
tantamount to saying that studying the
subject isawaste of time.
If you have enough tenacity, you can learn
all 200vocabulary words in this set.
Thomas Edison showed incredible tenacity
inhis invention of the lightbulb; he tried
thousands of substances in the filament
before finding one that worked properly.
The political party that Mr. Stevens belongs
to isso dominant in this county that winning
its nomination for an officeistantamount
to winning the officeitself.
The harsh threat that the government made
to the leaders of the neighboring country is
tantamount to adeclaration of war.
~
I Picture this: tie raid I
Wh!:l on earth did !:Iou
~~;~ -sneak in here and
tMess around with
~tif/.s?
It'-s unbelievable.
Mark m!:lword-s,
!:I0ung man,
/:Iou will be
puni6hed fo,.
thi6!
The-se tie-s are
likegold to me.
I can't believe..
A tirade at thetieraid.
190
~
I Picture this: Try Fling I
Oh, pleeee,
can we tr.!:j
"Try Fling"?
\
TryFlingistoo trifling for theFrisbeechamp.
192
~
I Picture this: Thread Bear I
Thread Bear takesorders
fromthreadbare customers.
189
~
I Picture this: tour pour I
During thetour, when it started topour,
they fell into adeeptorpor.
191
ti rade
extended scolding; long, angry speech
denou nci ng someth ing
Fedup with his wife's spending on clothes,
Mr. Banks began atirade against modern
fashion and the stupidity of people
conforming to it.
Themagazine editorial isbasically atirade
by the retiring publisher against the declining
quality of reporting in newspapers and
magazmes.
After Simon failed French, his father launched
into atirade about how hehad ason who
wastoo lazy to study and would never
succeed likehis father had.
trifl i ng
trivial; unimportant
Thepoet was unconcerned with what he
considered the trifling fact that his readership
consisted of only his wife, her brother, and
three friends.
One thousand dollars may beatrifling
sumto amillionaire, but to apoor family
it's enough money to buy alot of necessities,
such as food and clothing.
Beth refused her friend's offer to pay back the
$3shehad borrowed for parking, saying three
bucks wasjust atrifling amount of money.
th readbare
worn through till the threads
show; shabby and poor
J ack's wifetells him that wearing threadbare
suits to work makes him look poor; J ack's
reply is, "I will bepoor if I have to keep
buying new suits."
Since my favorite sweater has become
threadbare, I'll have to buy anew one.
Amber isreally good at sewing; shetook a
threadbare dress shegot in the second-hand
store and made it look practically new.
torpor
physical or mental inactivity;
sluggishness; dormancy
In the spring, the snake began to recover
from itswinter torpor and went insearch
of agood breakfast.
My physics teacher asked the classto shake
itself out of its mental torpor and really
think about the problem.
The hot, humid weather has induced in
everyone atorpor that makes it difficult
to do much of anything at all.
~
I Picture this: term oil I
Heburns theterm oil, ignoring
theturmoil outside.
194
~
Picture this: vapor eyes I
Thegirl withvapor eyeswill vaporize you!
196
~
I Picture this: trunk Kate I
Thetreethey didtruncate-
so, bythetrunk Katewept.
193
~
Picture this: uniform at tea I
They wear theuniform at tea
to promote uniformity.
195
turmoi I
tru ncate
great commotion and confusion
shorten; cut the top off
There was turmoil in the political party after
itsmost influential and respected member
announced that hewas quitting the party
and joining the opposing party.
When his English teacher handed out the
1,OOO-pagenovel for the classto start reading,
Larry piped up, "Can't weread the truncated
version instead?"
Adolescence isoften regarded as atime of
emotional turmoil.
My pleasant conversation with an old friend
was truncated by an important telephone
call.
Turmoil ensued when abomb was found
under aseat at the rock concert.
Network television officialsdecided totruncate
the broadcast of the football gamebecause it
had gone on way past the time scheduled for
it and would interfere with the broadcast of
afeature movie.
.
vaporize uniform ity
turn into vapor sameness
Military planners areworking on aspace-
based weapon that would beable to vaporize
entire cities with aburst of high energy.
The pollster found agreat uniformity of views
on the central issues confronting the nation;
on lessimportant issues, however, there was
agreat diversity of views.
After taking measurements of the Sun's
high-energy radiation, the space probe
plunged toward the Sun's surface and
wasvaporized.
The editor of the encyclopedia tries to
maintain auniformity of stylefrom article
to article sothat the reader will beableto
focus on the information itself rather than
on how it's presented. At the end of the science fiction movie, the
hero fired agigantic ray gun at the hostile
aliens, vaporizing them. The company doesn't expect uniformity
in dress, but it does expect employees to
dress appropriately and not wear outlandish
outfits to work.
~
I Picture this: Vye roo lent I
What'~ wrong with V!:je'?
/
She mi-s-se-s her
kangaroo.
~~:;::> She lent
it to a gU!:j
named 0u!:j.
and it
caught a
reall!:j bad
vir-u-s and
died.
Poor Vye. Theroo shelent Guy
got avirulent virus and died.
198
~
I Picture this: Z lot I
A Z lot zealot admires his Zs.
200
Picture this: virtue oh so I
This virtuoso has avirtue oh so rare-
he spreads cheer far and near.
197
~
I Picture this: whim sickle I
I wonder wh!:j I had a whim to do that.
~~ ../
On awhim hetook up asickle
to create whimsical shapes.
199
vi ru lent
vi rtuoso
extremely poisonous; hostile; bitter
highly skilled artist
Thevirulent computer virus spread very
rapidly around the world through the
World Wide Web.
Iimi Hendrix was aguitar virtuoso who
developed anew styleof playing that still
influences musicians today.
A particularly virulent strain of flu is
spreading rapidly around the world.
The actor gaveavirtuoso one-man
performance: One moment hewas an
interesting Hamlet, the other atotally
believable King Lear.
Researchers working with virulent
microorganisms are required to take many
precautions sothat the microorganisms
don't get out of the laboratory and infect
people or animals.
Our school's all-state forward turned ina
virtuoso performance last night, scoring
thirty-two points, dishing out eight assists,
pulling down twelve rebounds, and forcing
six turnovers.
zealot whimsical
fanatic; person who
shows excessive zeal
unpredictable; fanciful
Senator Smith isazealot when it comes to
the issue of conservation; shesupports far
more measures to protect the environment
than anyone elsein Congress.
The movie The Wizard of Oz displays a
whimsical sense of humor that appeals to
both children and adults.
Uncle Rick could beregarded as azealot
when it comes to supporting his political
party; hehas voted for all the candidates
of his party in every election since 1975.
When hewas feeling whimsical, the science
fiction writer Isaac Asimov enjoyed writing
limericks-short, humorous, often
nonsensical verse.
In his book The True Believer, Eric Hoffer
argued that political zealots are often
motivated by aneed to compensate for
afeelingof personal inadequacy.
Sabrina was in one of her whimsical moods:
"Let's do something different today," she
said to her boyfriend. "Let's act out ascene
from Romeo and Juliet in Mr. Harrison's
physics class."