parochial - narrow minded, having a limited perspective, not open-minded
heedless - not taking enough care while doing something, careless, reckless
libidinous - being motivated by one's sex drive, slang: being 'horny'
duplicity - dishonesty
to parry - to defend oneself from an attack (this word comes from the sport of fencing - to parry a thrust is to stop one's opponent from hitting you with his sword tip by using your sword to deflect his thrust away)
overweening - too confident, too filled with pride, smug, arrogant
conciliatory - trying to make another happy or satisfied instead of making the person angrier; pacifying
to disabuse - to show someone that what he/she believed was inaccurate or false
a martinet - someone who values discipline excessively; someone who is super strict when it comes to leadership
prudish - someone who is too easily offended or embarrassed by sexual discussions or topics
Answers are below the exercise:
1. After the Civil War President Lincoln's policy toward the South was quite _________________. He indicated that he did not want to seek revenge but, instead, he wanted to welcome the South back into the Union and to help develop the South economically.
2. It was Icarus and not Daedalus who had been ________________; Daedalus knew that flying too high or too quickly would bring disaster, but Icarus failed to show this type of humble self-restraint.
3. Some parents have been complaining that the Diary of Anne Frank contains references to an adolescent's curiosity concerning the development of one's own sexual organs. They feel this book should not be read by young students. Other parents feel these parents are being ____________ and that there is no harm in reading the Diary of Anne Frank.
4. Do you think that a person who does not travel much will have a _______________ outlook on the world? Or, can a person be open-minded and intelligent without visiting other countries?
5. When she saw the child fall into the lake, Mary was ______________ of all risk and jumped in to save him.
6. During the Middle Ages there was much corruption in the Catholic Church and you see this in the tales of _________________ priests in Boccaccio's book Il Decameron.
7. A young officer in the military should try to avoid excessive discipline in regard to his squad lest he acquire the reputation for being a _________________.
8. Bob was able to ____________ Mary's criticism that he was not a strong disciplinarian by saying that he felt positive reinforcement was more effective in regard to raising a child than punishment.
9. You seem to believe that the Persian Empire was run by a series of inhuman dictators, but I would like to _____________ you of that misconception by pointing out that Cyrus was loved by his people and admired around the Mediterranean area.
10. Bob was a straight-forward and honest guy and any form of ________________ bothered him deeply.
Answers are below:
Answers:
1. conciliatory
2. overweening
3. prudish
4. parochial
5. heedless
6. libidinous
7. martinet
8. parry
9. disabuse
10. duplicity
-----------------
http://djg51qu.wix.com/gauss
This blog will give you a chance to improve your vocabulary. New words will be added periodically. There are many, many useful words on this blog!!! Daniel Gauss is an Ivy-educated teacher/tutor. You can reach him at: djg51qu@gmail.com Feel free to add him at https://www.facebook.com/dgauss3 or through Google+. Good luck!
Monday, June 30, 2014
Monday, June 23, 2014
2 verbs, 3 adjectives
Saturday, April 5, 2014
2 nouns, 3 verbs, 4 adjectives
onerous - very difficult work or an activity that requires a great struggle (often physical); if something is burdensome, it is onerous
to bristle - literally this is when hair or bristles stand up on an animal indicating fear or aggression; to bristle means to become upset and consequently to become more aggressive. A person might bristle at the actions of another person.
sullen - this describes a person who is upset or sad and who simply won't talk
infamous - famous for negative reasons
to indulge oneself - to give yourself some source of pleasure, usually as a type of reward
a coup - an achievement that was unexpected and amazing
to calibrate - to adjust some type of measuring device so that it can measure something with the utmost accuracy
ghastly - terrible, disgusting
a palisade - a fence established to provide protection - the fence is usually made of wooden posts with pointed tips at the top
Answers are below the exercise:
Joe _______________ at Mike's suggestion that he was lazy and not working at full capacity. Joe felt himself to be a hard worker and took pride in this.
Al Capone was the most _________________ gangster and criminal in Chicago's history. He bribed police and officials and was a cold-blooded killer.
Bob had been ill for several weeks. Frankly, when I saw him he looked __________________; he was as pale as a ghost and seems quite tired and weak.
These days many children feel that taking care of elderly parents is an ________________ task but it is often unavoidable.
I am not even sure how far I walked yesterday. It's true I wore a special device on my shoe to measure my number of steps, but it turns out that the device wasn't properly ________________________ and did not count any steps.
Getting a great writer like Maribel for our magazine was a real ______________. Everybody wanted her and she chose us because she liked our energy and integrity.
It was just impossible to communicate with Bill yesterday. Due to the death of his dog he was _______________ all day.
I have been working so hard for so long that I think it's time I _________________ myself in a long night of eating chocolate.
Jamestown is known as the first sustainable European-type city in North America. Yet, it wasn't really a city. Basically it was a little collection of houses surrounded by a __________________ to ensure safety from potential native American attacks.
Answers are below:
Answers:
bristled
infamous
ghastly
onerous
calibrated
coup
sullen
indulged
palisade
to bristle - literally this is when hair or bristles stand up on an animal indicating fear or aggression; to bristle means to become upset and consequently to become more aggressive. A person might bristle at the actions of another person.
sullen - this describes a person who is upset or sad and who simply won't talk
infamous - famous for negative reasons
to indulge oneself - to give yourself some source of pleasure, usually as a type of reward
a coup - an achievement that was unexpected and amazing
to calibrate - to adjust some type of measuring device so that it can measure something with the utmost accuracy
ghastly - terrible, disgusting
a palisade - a fence established to provide protection - the fence is usually made of wooden posts with pointed tips at the top
Answers are below the exercise:
Joe _______________ at Mike's suggestion that he was lazy and not working at full capacity. Joe felt himself to be a hard worker and took pride in this.
Al Capone was the most _________________ gangster and criminal in Chicago's history. He bribed police and officials and was a cold-blooded killer.
Bob had been ill for several weeks. Frankly, when I saw him he looked __________________; he was as pale as a ghost and seems quite tired and weak.
These days many children feel that taking care of elderly parents is an ________________ task but it is often unavoidable.
I am not even sure how far I walked yesterday. It's true I wore a special device on my shoe to measure my number of steps, but it turns out that the device wasn't properly ________________________ and did not count any steps.
Getting a great writer like Maribel for our magazine was a real ______________. Everybody wanted her and she chose us because she liked our energy and integrity.
It was just impossible to communicate with Bill yesterday. Due to the death of his dog he was _______________ all day.
I have been working so hard for so long that I think it's time I _________________ myself in a long night of eating chocolate.
Jamestown is known as the first sustainable European-type city in North America. Yet, it wasn't really a city. Basically it was a little collection of houses surrounded by a __________________ to ensure safety from potential native American attacks.
Answers are below:
Answers:
bristled
infamous
ghastly
onerous
calibrated
coup
sullen
indulged
palisade
Sunday, February 9, 2014
7 adjectives, 1 noun - Free SAT, GRE, TOEFL Vocabulary
resplendent - shining beautifully, brightly colored, shining
nascent - being born, developing
implacable - if someone is implacable, he/she is very angry about something and this person cannot be made less angry or made happy
insidious - something insidious is something sneaky which causes harm, or something which doesn't appear to be harmful but you slowly realize it is harmful; something insidious can actually look very attractive at first, before you realize it is harmful
savvy - if someone is savvy about something, he/she has a shrewd or very insightful understanding about something that most people don't have, but the connotation of the word is a bit negative - a savvy politician knows what voters want and will promise this to them or a savvy businessman will know how to make money (in a less than honorable way) than other people
a neophyte - a beginner, a newbie
irredeemable - hopeless, not possible of being saved
ponderous - when this word is used, it usually means someone is trying to say or write something very deep and profound, but instead what the person writes is very boring and dry and dull and uninteresting
Answers are under the exercise:
Alexander Hamilton believed that industrialization would be good for the ________________ American economy after the Revolution. The economy was, after all, being born, and it was necessary to generate wealth quickly for the new republic.
When you start to ski you have to be patient. As a _____________ I lacked patience and tried to ski down slopes that were too difficult for me, and I took some violent falls.
Sunflowers were a favorite object for Vincent van Gogh to paint. He would go to ______________ fields of such flowers and create images that were even more vibrant than what he saw.
Is there still chance for peace in the Middle East or is the situation totally ____________________?
I'm really interested in philosophy because it raises interesting questions we all should ask ourselves. But this professor delivers some of the most ___________________ lectures I have ever heard. He gives philosophy a bad name.
Joseph McCarthy was a _______________ politician who realized that he could benefit from the fear Americans had of communism in the early 1950s. He became quite popular and won several elections by falsely accusing other powerful people of being communists.
I don't know what Bob did to make Joe angry, but Joe has become ___________________ in his anger and hatred toward Bob. He does not even want to see Bob again and if he does, I think there will be trouble.
AIDs is one of the more __________________ viral diseases. A person who has AIDs will probably live with the disease for many years and will not even know it until the disease suddenly appears.
Answers are below:
Answers:
nascent
neophyte
resplendent
irredeemable
ponderous
savvy
implacable
insidious
nascent - being born, developing
implacable - if someone is implacable, he/she is very angry about something and this person cannot be made less angry or made happy
insidious - something insidious is something sneaky which causes harm, or something which doesn't appear to be harmful but you slowly realize it is harmful; something insidious can actually look very attractive at first, before you realize it is harmful
savvy - if someone is savvy about something, he/she has a shrewd or very insightful understanding about something that most people don't have, but the connotation of the word is a bit negative - a savvy politician knows what voters want and will promise this to them or a savvy businessman will know how to make money (in a less than honorable way) than other people
a neophyte - a beginner, a newbie
irredeemable - hopeless, not possible of being saved
ponderous - when this word is used, it usually means someone is trying to say or write something very deep and profound, but instead what the person writes is very boring and dry and dull and uninteresting
Answers are under the exercise:
Alexander Hamilton believed that industrialization would be good for the ________________ American economy after the Revolution. The economy was, after all, being born, and it was necessary to generate wealth quickly for the new republic.
When you start to ski you have to be patient. As a _____________ I lacked patience and tried to ski down slopes that were too difficult for me, and I took some violent falls.
Sunflowers were a favorite object for Vincent van Gogh to paint. He would go to ______________ fields of such flowers and create images that were even more vibrant than what he saw.
Is there still chance for peace in the Middle East or is the situation totally ____________________?
I'm really interested in philosophy because it raises interesting questions we all should ask ourselves. But this professor delivers some of the most ___________________ lectures I have ever heard. He gives philosophy a bad name.
Joseph McCarthy was a _______________ politician who realized that he could benefit from the fear Americans had of communism in the early 1950s. He became quite popular and won several elections by falsely accusing other powerful people of being communists.
I don't know what Bob did to make Joe angry, but Joe has become ___________________ in his anger and hatred toward Bob. He does not even want to see Bob again and if he does, I think there will be trouble.
AIDs is one of the more __________________ viral diseases. A person who has AIDs will probably live with the disease for many years and will not even know it until the disease suddenly appears.
Answers are below:
Answers:
nascent
neophyte
resplendent
irredeemable
ponderous
savvy
implacable
insidious
Sunday, February 2, 2014
4 adjectives, 2 nouns, 1 verb
precipitous (precipitously - adverb) - this adjective comes from the noun 'precipice.' A precipice is a high point or cliff on a mountain - if you accidentally step off a precipice, you drop to your death. So 'precipitous' means a quick decision that you make without thinking about it and often can't change after you make it or a quick action that was taken without enough thought behind it.
prodigious - basically this means huge or much bigger than normal
an ambit - a range or a boundary within which something or someone works
ad hoc - put together for just one reason or purpose; often you will read about ad hoc committees or ad hoc action - this means a committee is put together or action is taken to address this one situation
enmity - very strong hatred toward someone; often enmity means that two groups or two people really hate each other
ruthless - showing no mercy or pity or compassion for others when taking an action
to curdle - when milk is treated with chemicals to become harder, so that it can be made into cheese; this term usually has another common meaning though: if a person is really shocked or scared, he might say that his/her blood curdled.
Answers are beneath the exercise:
It was very dark in the room, and the light switch would not work. Suddenly I heard a scream that made my blood ______________________.
The pirates of the Caribbean were renowned for being totally __________________ toward any ship that provided resistance. If a ship's captain surrendered, the crew was spared but the cargo was stolen. If the captain chose to fight, no mercy would be shown and the entire crew would be slaughtered.
Bob was a little too ___________________ in his choice to marry Becky. They had only gone out with each other for 2 months before he proposed marriage to her, and their marriage only lasted 6 months.
Cyrano, with his __________________ nose, is a story of unrequited love (un-returned) love. His huge nose made him ugly to women but he was able to coach his handsome friend to be beautifully eloquent and to win the heart of the woman that Cyrano, himself, loved.
Bill was an amazing US History professor, but he had spent so much time doing research within his academic________________ that he knew very little else about other fields of study.
There seems to be so much long-standing ______________ between countries in the Mideast that some US presidents do not even try to initiate peaceful negotiations.
Bob was not the most organized person in the world, nor was he good at predicting problems. Instead, he chose to deal with things in an _______________ manner.
Answers are below:
Answers:
curdle
ruthless
precipitious
prodigious
ambit
enmity
ad hoc
prodigious - basically this means huge or much bigger than normal
an ambit - a range or a boundary within which something or someone works
ad hoc - put together for just one reason or purpose; often you will read about ad hoc committees or ad hoc action - this means a committee is put together or action is taken to address this one situation
enmity - very strong hatred toward someone; often enmity means that two groups or two people really hate each other
ruthless - showing no mercy or pity or compassion for others when taking an action
to curdle - when milk is treated with chemicals to become harder, so that it can be made into cheese; this term usually has another common meaning though: if a person is really shocked or scared, he might say that his/her blood curdled.
Answers are beneath the exercise:
It was very dark in the room, and the light switch would not work. Suddenly I heard a scream that made my blood ______________________.
The pirates of the Caribbean were renowned for being totally __________________ toward any ship that provided resistance. If a ship's captain surrendered, the crew was spared but the cargo was stolen. If the captain chose to fight, no mercy would be shown and the entire crew would be slaughtered.
Bob was a little too ___________________ in his choice to marry Becky. They had only gone out with each other for 2 months before he proposed marriage to her, and their marriage only lasted 6 months.
Cyrano, with his __________________ nose, is a story of unrequited love (un-returned) love. His huge nose made him ugly to women but he was able to coach his handsome friend to be beautifully eloquent and to win the heart of the woman that Cyrano, himself, loved.
Bill was an amazing US History professor, but he had spent so much time doing research within his academic________________ that he knew very little else about other fields of study.
There seems to be so much long-standing ______________ between countries in the Mideast that some US presidents do not even try to initiate peaceful negotiations.
Bob was not the most organized person in the world, nor was he good at predicting problems. Instead, he chose to deal with things in an _______________ manner.
Answers are below:
Answers:
curdle
ruthless
precipitious
prodigious
ambit
enmity
ad hoc
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
8 new SAT, GRE, TOEFL vocabulary words
to indemnify, to be indemnified - two meanings: 1) to insure someone for some type of possible loss (if you buy insurance on your car, you are indemnified against damages - if your car gets damaged, you'll receive a payment from the insurance company); 2) to pay someone for some type of damage or harm which has occurred
indolent - being lazy, not feeling like working
sedentary - being seated; a sedentary lifestyle is an inactive lifestyle - a sedentary job is a job in which you sit a lot
endemic to - common to
conspicuously - obviously, noticeably
graft - illegally obtaining money
keening - this is an obscure word which means vocally expressing grief or mourning after a person's death, especially at a funeral (I found the word in the book: Empire of the Summer Moon)
resilient - able to bounce back (usually after something negative happens)
Answers are underneath the exercise:
Designer bags have become a huge industry, as women pay high prices for these luxury items and ___________________ carry them around to show others that they have money and can live the high life.
It was the summer of Bob's junior year and his parents had not pressured him into finding a job. He felt he had the right, this one summer, to be _______________ and relax and casually do some reading and lounging around.
According to the contract, we are __________________ against any losses we may suffer due to the negligence of our partner.
Lately a report noted that those who work at ________________ jobs seem to live shorter lives than those who work at jobs that do not require them to sit for long hours at a time. If a person has to sit for long periods, he/she should find ways to get up and move around often.
One form of political corruption involves _______________. This is when the politician is able to illegally make money through actions he/she preforms as a public servant.
The disease of malaria is _______________ to about 100 countries around the world which have not been able to control the spread of a certain type of mosquito.
The loss of her husband at an early age was devastating for Mary. At the funeral she was literally ________________ over the coffin of her husband with tears running down her face.
Bob proved himself to be extraordinarily ___________________. Even though he was unfairly fired from a job, he soon had another job at a better company in a better position.
Answers are below:
Answers:
conspicuously
indolent
indemnified
sedentary
graft
endemic
keening
resilient
Yes, I'm the guy who caused the scandal in Korea by revealing to a journalist that I did not feel that K-pop performers were being treated well in NY City:
http://nwww.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20100512000682
http://nwww.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20100511000742
indolent - being lazy, not feeling like working
sedentary - being seated; a sedentary lifestyle is an inactive lifestyle - a sedentary job is a job in which you sit a lot
endemic to - common to
conspicuously - obviously, noticeably
graft - illegally obtaining money
keening - this is an obscure word which means vocally expressing grief or mourning after a person's death, especially at a funeral (I found the word in the book: Empire of the Summer Moon)
resilient - able to bounce back (usually after something negative happens)
Answers are underneath the exercise:
Designer bags have become a huge industry, as women pay high prices for these luxury items and ___________________ carry them around to show others that they have money and can live the high life.
It was the summer of Bob's junior year and his parents had not pressured him into finding a job. He felt he had the right, this one summer, to be _______________ and relax and casually do some reading and lounging around.
According to the contract, we are __________________ against any losses we may suffer due to the negligence of our partner.
Lately a report noted that those who work at ________________ jobs seem to live shorter lives than those who work at jobs that do not require them to sit for long hours at a time. If a person has to sit for long periods, he/she should find ways to get up and move around often.
One form of political corruption involves _______________. This is when the politician is able to illegally make money through actions he/she preforms as a public servant.
The disease of malaria is _______________ to about 100 countries around the world which have not been able to control the spread of a certain type of mosquito.
The loss of her husband at an early age was devastating for Mary. At the funeral she was literally ________________ over the coffin of her husband with tears running down her face.
Bob proved himself to be extraordinarily ___________________. Even though he was unfairly fired from a job, he soon had another job at a better company in a better position.
Answers are below:
Answers:
conspicuously
indolent
indemnified
sedentary
graft
endemic
keening
resilient
Yes, I'm the guy who caused the scandal in Korea by revealing to a journalist that I did not feel that K-pop performers were being treated well in NY City:
http://nwww.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20100512000682
http://nwww.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20100511000742
Saturday, January 25, 2014
4 adjectives, 1 verb --> Free SAT, GRE, TOEFL Vocabulary Exercise
mercurial - if a person changes his mood or temper very quickly, he/she is mercurial (The god Mercury traveled quickly between the other gods and people.)
louche - decadent, lacking in morals, corrupt, not an ethical person (pronounced loosh)
glutinous - glue-like or sticky
to ingratiate yourself with someone - to try hard to make someone like you
to be hobbled - to be slowed down (in the old west cowboys would deliberately tie the front legs of their horses together at night to make sure they would not run away - this was 'hobbling' their horses)
Answers are below the exercise:
I had heard that my current boss was a no-nonsense type of person who could be difficult to work with. So I went out of my way to _____________________ myself with him. I often asked his advice, complimented him and even bought him lunch sometimes.
I asked Bob how his research was going, and he told me it wasn't going well. His team has been __________________ by the fact that the government has cut their funding in half.
I'm a rotten cook (a bad cook). I can't even cook rice. When I cook rice it looks, feels and tastes like some _________________ mess.
Chicago is known as one of the most politically corrupt (dishonest) cities in America. Political corruption has existed for so long that most of the politicians become ___________________ after just a short time. If you don't go along with the system there, you don't get anywhere in your political career.
Jack is an amazing guy with a good heart, but he has a significant shortcoming in his personality. He is quite _________________ and it's hard to predict what his mood will be from one moment to the next.
Answers are below:
Answers:
ingratiate
hobbled
glutinous
louche
mercurial
louche - decadent, lacking in morals, corrupt, not an ethical person (pronounced loosh)
glutinous - glue-like or sticky
to ingratiate yourself with someone - to try hard to make someone like you
to be hobbled - to be slowed down (in the old west cowboys would deliberately tie the front legs of their horses together at night to make sure they would not run away - this was 'hobbling' their horses)
Answers are below the exercise:
I had heard that my current boss was a no-nonsense type of person who could be difficult to work with. So I went out of my way to _____________________ myself with him. I often asked his advice, complimented him and even bought him lunch sometimes.
I asked Bob how his research was going, and he told me it wasn't going well. His team has been __________________ by the fact that the government has cut their funding in half.
I'm a rotten cook (a bad cook). I can't even cook rice. When I cook rice it looks, feels and tastes like some _________________ mess.
Chicago is known as one of the most politically corrupt (dishonest) cities in America. Political corruption has existed for so long that most of the politicians become ___________________ after just a short time. If you don't go along with the system there, you don't get anywhere in your political career.
Jack is an amazing guy with a good heart, but he has a significant shortcoming in his personality. He is quite _________________ and it's hard to predict what his mood will be from one moment to the next.
Answers are below:
Answers:
ingratiate
hobbled
glutinous
louche
mercurial
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
2 nouns, 2 adjectives, 1 verb
compunction - a feeling of regret or a sense of guilt over something a person did which he/she considers wrong. This word is often used with 'without' - he acted without compunction, or: he had no compunction in regard to etc.
tandem - when two people/groups work together on something or work on something at the same time; or two people working in conjunction with each other (for instance, in the Olympics there is 'tandem' swimming where two people perform the same activity at the same time)
to abscond with - this means to go somewhere and secretly take something and run away with it
bumptious - a person who is really proud and boastful and kind of rude so that he/she annoys others
protocol - a list of rules to be followed to accomplish something
Answers are below the exercise:
The United States and the Soviet Union pursued their space programs __________________ and the competition added extra pressure which allowed quick and amazing innovations.
Al Capone showed little or no ___________________ for the years that he had run a criminal organization in the City of Chicago.
If a student wants to learn how to conduct a scientific experiment properly, he/she must learn the proper ___________________.
We all understood that Bob was very proud that he had won a scholarship to the college he wanted to attend, but it went to his head. He became very arrogant and ____________________ to the point where we began avoiding him.
The elderly lady thought that Mark was a kind person who liked doing volunteer work. When she invited him to her home, however, she later discover that he had __________________ with some of her priceless jewelry.
Answers are below:
Answers:
in tandem
compunction
protocol
bumptious
absconded
tandem - when two people/groups work together on something or work on something at the same time; or two people working in conjunction with each other (for instance, in the Olympics there is 'tandem' swimming where two people perform the same activity at the same time)
to abscond with - this means to go somewhere and secretly take something and run away with it
bumptious - a person who is really proud and boastful and kind of rude so that he/she annoys others
protocol - a list of rules to be followed to accomplish something
Answers are below the exercise:
The United States and the Soviet Union pursued their space programs __________________ and the competition added extra pressure which allowed quick and amazing innovations.
Al Capone showed little or no ___________________ for the years that he had run a criminal organization in the City of Chicago.
If a student wants to learn how to conduct a scientific experiment properly, he/she must learn the proper ___________________.
We all understood that Bob was very proud that he had won a scholarship to the college he wanted to attend, but it went to his head. He became very arrogant and ____________________ to the point where we began avoiding him.
The elderly lady thought that Mark was a kind person who liked doing volunteer work. When she invited him to her home, however, she later discover that he had __________________ with some of her priceless jewelry.
Answers are below:
Answers:
in tandem
compunction
protocol
bumptious
absconded
Monday, January 20, 2014
5 adjectives, 4 nouns, 1 verb ---> Free SAT, GRE, TOEFL vocabulary
I chose these 10 words from an amazing book: The Empire of the Summer Moon (by S.C. Gwynne). It is a book about an American Indian tribe (the Comanches) that lived in Texas until the 1800s. If you are studying for the SAT or GRE, this would be a good book to read to improve your vocabulary (if you look up all the words you don't know.)
malfeasance - this means an illegal or wrong action, especially by a government official
ornery - an ornery person is kind of a nasty, bad-tempered person who likes to argue and fight
untrammeled - unrestricted, not fenced in, free to move about
arbitrage - when you buy something cheaper in one place and sell it for a higher price in another place
ubiquitous - all over the place; if something looks as if it is all over the place, it is ubiquitous (the word is pronounced with an initial 'you' sound --> you BIK wih tus
unalloyed - pure, not mixed with anything else
an obloquy - a very nasty or mean statement about another person; harsh, severe criticism (this noun can be countable or non-countable...i.e. non-countable: How can you resort to such obloquy! countable: I am tired of all these obloquies being directed at the president!)
a blandishment - this is a deliberately kind of flattering or nice statement meant to get a person to do what you want him/her to do
to bowdlerize - to remove material from a literary work because the material is thought to be too 'dirty', vulgar or offensive; basically this means to censor a work but there is an extra meaning - if a work is bowdlerized, it no longer has the same meaning as it had before the censoring
athwart - in opposition to, against something
Answers are below the exercise:
Sometimes young adult versions of classic famous novels are ____________________ so much that they no longer even resemble the original works.
The current data were completely ________________ what everyone had believed. The theory obviously had to be changed.
One of the worst cases of _________________ in recent American history involved Rod Blagojevich, the governor of Illinois. He was thrown in jail for trying to sell a high-ranking political position to anyone who wanted to buy it.
These days there are people who engage in what is called the "forex" trade, which is a type of ___________________. They buy a certain amount of foreign currency at one price and then sell it at a higher price in a different market. Basically, 'forex' is a type of individual gambling that produces no real good for any economy.
Sometimes it's better to use _________________ to encourage a person to do something that is right than using threats of punishment.
I don't understand why it is so hard to catch a cab in Manhattan. The cabs seem to be _________________, yet they all also seem to be carrying people.
If a country in Europe joins the European Union, their citizens will have ____________________ access to other EU countries.
Bob recently proposed marriage to Becky and when she accepted, he was filled with the deepest and most _______________ joy he had ever felt.
Frankly, I was disgusted by the recent presidential campaign. I do not understand why candidates cannot focus on the issues and why they have to resort to ____________________ that attack the reputations of other candidates.
Many people say that New York City cabbies (cab drivers) are rude. That is an understatement. They are worse than rude, they are __________________ and it is best to just take the subway in order to avoid arguments and nasty exchanges with them.
Answers are below:
Answers:
bowdlerized
athwart
malfeasance
arbitrage
blandishments
ubiquitous
untrammeled
unalloyed
obloquies
ornery
malfeasance - this means an illegal or wrong action, especially by a government official
ornery - an ornery person is kind of a nasty, bad-tempered person who likes to argue and fight
untrammeled - unrestricted, not fenced in, free to move about
arbitrage - when you buy something cheaper in one place and sell it for a higher price in another place
ubiquitous - all over the place; if something looks as if it is all over the place, it is ubiquitous (the word is pronounced with an initial 'you' sound --> you BIK wih tus
unalloyed - pure, not mixed with anything else
an obloquy - a very nasty or mean statement about another person; harsh, severe criticism (this noun can be countable or non-countable...i.e. non-countable: How can you resort to such obloquy! countable: I am tired of all these obloquies being directed at the president!)
a blandishment - this is a deliberately kind of flattering or nice statement meant to get a person to do what you want him/her to do
to bowdlerize - to remove material from a literary work because the material is thought to be too 'dirty', vulgar or offensive; basically this means to censor a work but there is an extra meaning - if a work is bowdlerized, it no longer has the same meaning as it had before the censoring
athwart - in opposition to, against something
Answers are below the exercise:
Sometimes young adult versions of classic famous novels are ____________________ so much that they no longer even resemble the original works.
The current data were completely ________________ what everyone had believed. The theory obviously had to be changed.
One of the worst cases of _________________ in recent American history involved Rod Blagojevich, the governor of Illinois. He was thrown in jail for trying to sell a high-ranking political position to anyone who wanted to buy it.
These days there are people who engage in what is called the "forex" trade, which is a type of ___________________. They buy a certain amount of foreign currency at one price and then sell it at a higher price in a different market. Basically, 'forex' is a type of individual gambling that produces no real good for any economy.
Sometimes it's better to use _________________ to encourage a person to do something that is right than using threats of punishment.
I don't understand why it is so hard to catch a cab in Manhattan. The cabs seem to be _________________, yet they all also seem to be carrying people.
If a country in Europe joins the European Union, their citizens will have ____________________ access to other EU countries.
Bob recently proposed marriage to Becky and when she accepted, he was filled with the deepest and most _______________ joy he had ever felt.
Frankly, I was disgusted by the recent presidential campaign. I do not understand why candidates cannot focus on the issues and why they have to resort to ____________________ that attack the reputations of other candidates.
Many people say that New York City cabbies (cab drivers) are rude. That is an understatement. They are worse than rude, they are __________________ and it is best to just take the subway in order to avoid arguments and nasty exchanges with them.
Answers are below:
Answers:
bowdlerized
athwart
malfeasance
arbitrage
blandishments
ubiquitous
untrammeled
unalloyed
obloquies
ornery
Thursday, January 16, 2014
2 verbs, 3 adjectives, 2 nouns: SAT, GRE, TOEFL vocabulary
to skulk - this means to hide or move around secretly, either because a person is afraid of being seen or because the person wants to do something wrong. So if you did something embarrassing at school, you might skulk around the school hoping not too many people see you. Or, if someone is a criminal who wants to commit a crime, he might skulk around looking for an opportunity.
docile - this word usually means submissive or willing to take orders and do what one is told to do
to dote on - to show too much emotion or affection (love) for someone; to really cater to someone because you really love that person.
vitriol - this is literally a type of acid, therefore, figuratively, it means a very very harsh or nasty type of criticism
chagrin - when a person feels annoyed or irritated because he has failed at something
pendulous - when something is hanging very loosely or low
fallow - in the old days, farmers would leave some of their land fallow for a year so that it could recover from a previous planting and harvesting. So leaving land fallow means not using it so that it can recover.
Answers are below the exercise:
The current trend in the field of education is to build up a student's sense of confidence. I remember the old days, however, when a teacher might verbally attack a student, using such __________________ that the student would be deeply embarrassed.
By the time a student reaches a university, his/her professors expect that student to be completely __________________. This is why professors are sometimes surprised when students complain or demand better efforts and more meaningful types of learning in the classroom.
I called the police and reported a guy who was just ________________ around my neighborhood. Every night when I come home I see him just kind of hiding around the corners of buildings and looking around.
The grapes in that area of the world grow to be so huge that they are __________________. They are large and round and just hang low on the vine ready to be plucked.
Because of China's 'one child' policy, parents tended to really __________________ their only child, and many of these children grew up to be very spoiled and self-absorbed.
I love gardening and my little garden has produced so many cucumbers and tomatoes. But I think I am going to leave my garden ________________ this year so that the soil can recover from previous plantings.
Bob was sure that he was going to be admitted to the graduate program he really wanted to go to. To his _______________, he was denied admission and we knew this because he started skulking around our school.
Answers are below:
Answers:
vitriol
docile
skulking
pendulous
dote on
fallow
chagrin
docile - this word usually means submissive or willing to take orders and do what one is told to do
to dote on - to show too much emotion or affection (love) for someone; to really cater to someone because you really love that person.
vitriol - this is literally a type of acid, therefore, figuratively, it means a very very harsh or nasty type of criticism
chagrin - when a person feels annoyed or irritated because he has failed at something
pendulous - when something is hanging very loosely or low
fallow - in the old days, farmers would leave some of their land fallow for a year so that it could recover from a previous planting and harvesting. So leaving land fallow means not using it so that it can recover.
Answers are below the exercise:
The current trend in the field of education is to build up a student's sense of confidence. I remember the old days, however, when a teacher might verbally attack a student, using such __________________ that the student would be deeply embarrassed.
By the time a student reaches a university, his/her professors expect that student to be completely __________________. This is why professors are sometimes surprised when students complain or demand better efforts and more meaningful types of learning in the classroom.
I called the police and reported a guy who was just ________________ around my neighborhood. Every night when I come home I see him just kind of hiding around the corners of buildings and looking around.
The grapes in that area of the world grow to be so huge that they are __________________. They are large and round and just hang low on the vine ready to be plucked.
Because of China's 'one child' policy, parents tended to really __________________ their only child, and many of these children grew up to be very spoiled and self-absorbed.
I love gardening and my little garden has produced so many cucumbers and tomatoes. But I think I am going to leave my garden ________________ this year so that the soil can recover from previous plantings.
Bob was sure that he was going to be admitted to the graduate program he really wanted to go to. To his _______________, he was denied admission and we knew this because he started skulking around our school.
Answers are below:
Answers:
vitriol
docile
skulking
pendulous
dote on
fallow
chagrin
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
5 adjectives, 3 nouns (2 non-countable, 1 countable)
a milieu - a surrounding environment
pious - very devoted to one's religious beliefs
dingy - dirty, shabby, old and discolored
astute - to be sharp or very clever or very discerning
despicable - disgusting, shameful, something that appalls you because it is so bad
fidelity - faithfulness
reverence - extreme respect for a person or thing
blithe - carefree, showing little concern for things
Answers are below the exercise:
I prefer reading the Economist magazine because of its _______________ analysis of world events.
Because she was very young and came from a wealthy background, Victoria had a ______________ attitude toward life in general.
Is a person born a genius or does his/her childhood ________________ have to do with his/her intellectual development?
I once knew a remarkable woman named Estelle who had been married to her husband for over 50 years. Indeed, when I knew her they still loved each other and their _______________ was beyond question.
Bob goes to church each Sunday and observes all the religious holidays and even prays before he eats. He is one of the most _______________ people I know.
The Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of Tibet, but many people around the world treat him with _______________ since he seems to be a man who represents peace and mercy.
I used to do volunteer work in which I delivered meals to senior citizens (people over 65) who could not leave their homes easily. It was sometimes sad to see the _______________ apartments with the very old and torn furniture where some of these poor elderly people lived.
Many people were upset that the basketball player, Dennis Rodman, recently traveled to North Korea and sang "Happy Birthday" to Kim Jong Un. Almost everybody in the world recognizes Kim as a __________________ dictator who enjoys life while his people suffer. (a dictator is a leader of a country who controls everything in the country)
Answers are below:
Answers:
astute
blithe
milieu
fidelity
pious
reverence
dingy
pious - very devoted to one's religious beliefs
dingy - dirty, shabby, old and discolored
astute - to be sharp or very clever or very discerning
despicable - disgusting, shameful, something that appalls you because it is so bad
fidelity - faithfulness
reverence - extreme respect for a person or thing
blithe - carefree, showing little concern for things
Answers are below the exercise:
I prefer reading the Economist magazine because of its _______________ analysis of world events.
Because she was very young and came from a wealthy background, Victoria had a ______________ attitude toward life in general.
Is a person born a genius or does his/her childhood ________________ have to do with his/her intellectual development?
I once knew a remarkable woman named Estelle who had been married to her husband for over 50 years. Indeed, when I knew her they still loved each other and their _______________ was beyond question.
Bob goes to church each Sunday and observes all the religious holidays and even prays before he eats. He is one of the most _______________ people I know.
The Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of Tibet, but many people around the world treat him with _______________ since he seems to be a man who represents peace and mercy.
I used to do volunteer work in which I delivered meals to senior citizens (people over 65) who could not leave their homes easily. It was sometimes sad to see the _______________ apartments with the very old and torn furniture where some of these poor elderly people lived.
Many people were upset that the basketball player, Dennis Rodman, recently traveled to North Korea and sang "Happy Birthday" to Kim Jong Un. Almost everybody in the world recognizes Kim as a __________________ dictator who enjoys life while his people suffer. (a dictator is a leader of a country who controls everything in the country)
Answers are below:
Answers:
astute
blithe
milieu
fidelity
pious
reverence
dingy
Saturday, January 11, 2014
2 adjectives, 2 verbs, 1 (non-countable) noun
conciliating - when you try to make an angry person feel more calm about a situation
to quell something - basically it means to stop something or to suppress something
prudence - if you are a careful person, you are probably prudent. Prudence means doing things only after you've really considered what the consequences might be.
lustrous - shining
to solicit s/t - to ask for something
Answers are below the exercise:
I love going to the MET Museum in New York City and seeing the _____________ armor that the knights of the Middle Ages wore.
Gout is a very painful disease that makes one of your big toes hurt (alot!). Luckily there is an ointment that can _______________ the pain while your body takes care of eliminating the gout.
(An ointment is a liquid type of medicine that you rub on a body part.)
I really don't think we should give anything to beggars who _________________ money. There are many free food and clothing programs for them in the city, and the city will even help them find jobs and housing.
Sophia was wonderfully ___________________ with me. I became so angry but she was very kind and understanding and helped me get rid of my negative feelings.
If a person is going to take out a loan, he/she should show great ________________. Only take out a loan if you are pretty sure you can pay it back some day.
Answers are below:
Answers:
lustrous
quell
solicit
conciliatory
prudence
to quell something - basically it means to stop something or to suppress something
prudence - if you are a careful person, you are probably prudent. Prudence means doing things only after you've really considered what the consequences might be.
lustrous - shining
to solicit s/t - to ask for something
Answers are below the exercise:
I love going to the MET Museum in New York City and seeing the _____________ armor that the knights of the Middle Ages wore.
Gout is a very painful disease that makes one of your big toes hurt (alot!). Luckily there is an ointment that can _______________ the pain while your body takes care of eliminating the gout.
(An ointment is a liquid type of medicine that you rub on a body part.)
I really don't think we should give anything to beggars who _________________ money. There are many free food and clothing programs for them in the city, and the city will even help them find jobs and housing.
Sophia was wonderfully ___________________ with me. I became so angry but she was very kind and understanding and helped me get rid of my negative feelings.
If a person is going to take out a loan, he/she should show great ________________. Only take out a loan if you are pretty sure you can pay it back some day.
Answers are below:
Answers:
lustrous
quell
solicit
conciliatory
prudence
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
4 adjectives, 1 noun
congenial - this word has two basic meanings: 1) pleasant, friendly 2: if you find a person to be congenial it's because you and that person share certain interests or values
supercilious - a supercilious person is someone who thinks he/she is better or superior to other people
cantankerous - a person who is cantankerous is difficult to get along with; this type of person is kind of nasty and bad tempered
impervious - if something is impervious, it can't be penetrated, you can't get through it
an iconoclast - this is the type of person who enjoys attacking what everyone else believes in; iconoclasts are generally 'good' for a society since they attack ideas or beliefs which may be wrong
Answers are below the exercise:
In Italian universities in the 1500s, the philosophy of Aristotle dominated the study of science. Galileo, however, was an ___________________ who openly attacked this philosophy by showing that it did not explain what he had actually observed through his telescope.
Some cell membranes allow a wide variety of substances into the cell while some are more selective. No cell membrane is ever, however, totally ____________________. Each cell has to admit some substances.
Joe was an amazing athlete and could play several sports, but few colleges wanted to accept him because he had the reputation for being quite _________________ with his coaches and teammates.
The person who wrote the book "Tiger Mom" argues that Chinese mothers, like herself, are "superior" to all other mothers. Yet, she seems like a very ____________________ person from a privileged background who likes to look down on people who were not as fortunate or blessed as she was.
From his email messages, Bob struck me as being a cantankerous guy who liked to complain. But when I met him, I found him to be quite _________________. He was pleasant and agreeable.
I hate blind dates. But, when I met Suzy, I discovered she was totally ________________. We like the same types of movies and share the same types of values.
Answers are below:
Answers:
iconoclast
impervious
cantankerous
supercilious
congenial
congenial
supercilious - a supercilious person is someone who thinks he/she is better or superior to other people
cantankerous - a person who is cantankerous is difficult to get along with; this type of person is kind of nasty and bad tempered
impervious - if something is impervious, it can't be penetrated, you can't get through it
an iconoclast - this is the type of person who enjoys attacking what everyone else believes in; iconoclasts are generally 'good' for a society since they attack ideas or beliefs which may be wrong
Answers are below the exercise:
In Italian universities in the 1500s, the philosophy of Aristotle dominated the study of science. Galileo, however, was an ___________________ who openly attacked this philosophy by showing that it did not explain what he had actually observed through his telescope.
Some cell membranes allow a wide variety of substances into the cell while some are more selective. No cell membrane is ever, however, totally ____________________. Each cell has to admit some substances.
Joe was an amazing athlete and could play several sports, but few colleges wanted to accept him because he had the reputation for being quite _________________ with his coaches and teammates.
The person who wrote the book "Tiger Mom" argues that Chinese mothers, like herself, are "superior" to all other mothers. Yet, she seems like a very ____________________ person from a privileged background who likes to look down on people who were not as fortunate or blessed as she was.
From his email messages, Bob struck me as being a cantankerous guy who liked to complain. But when I met him, I found him to be quite _________________. He was pleasant and agreeable.
I hate blind dates. But, when I met Suzy, I discovered she was totally ________________. We like the same types of movies and share the same types of values.
Answers are below:
Answers:
iconoclast
impervious
cantankerous
supercilious
congenial
congenial
3 verbs, 1 adjective, 1 noun
1. to atrophy - this is when a muscle becomes weaker and smaller because it is not being used
2. intangible - something that is not physical; something which can't be touched
3. to extrapolate - when you extrapolate, you take what you already know and you make a prediction from it
4. to dwindle - to decrease in size
5. a derivative - this comes from the same root word as 'derive;' so a derivative is something that you get from something else
Answers are below the exercise - good luck!
Many foreign tourists come to New York City with lots of money, and before they know it, they realize that their money has ______________ down to a very small amount.
There is a significant problem with using just one test to allow students admission to 'elite' schools. The problem is that some students have amazing but more ________________ qualities that are harder to measure academically (like creativity, kindness, leadership, generosity). It has been a huge failure of our school system to neglect these less measurable qualities.
Gasoline is actually a type of _________________ from oil. After oil is pumped out of the ground, it is refined into gasoline and other products.
From the economic trends of the past year economists have __________________ that unemployment will go down and consumer purchasing will rise.
When astronauts travel in space, they have to make sure that they do various exercises or their muscles will quickly ______________ due to a lack of gravity in space. The lack of gravity means their muscles are not used as much as they are on earth.
answers are below:
answers:
dwindled
intangible
derivative
extrapolated
atrophy
2. intangible - something that is not physical; something which can't be touched
3. to extrapolate - when you extrapolate, you take what you already know and you make a prediction from it
4. to dwindle - to decrease in size
5. a derivative - this comes from the same root word as 'derive;' so a derivative is something that you get from something else
Answers are below the exercise - good luck!
Many foreign tourists come to New York City with lots of money, and before they know it, they realize that their money has ______________ down to a very small amount.
There is a significant problem with using just one test to allow students admission to 'elite' schools. The problem is that some students have amazing but more ________________ qualities that are harder to measure academically (like creativity, kindness, leadership, generosity). It has been a huge failure of our school system to neglect these less measurable qualities.
Gasoline is actually a type of _________________ from oil. After oil is pumped out of the ground, it is refined into gasoline and other products.
From the economic trends of the past year economists have __________________ that unemployment will go down and consumer purchasing will rise.
When astronauts travel in space, they have to make sure that they do various exercises or their muscles will quickly ______________ due to a lack of gravity in space. The lack of gravity means their muscles are not used as much as they are on earth.
answers are below:
answers:
dwindled
intangible
derivative
extrapolated
atrophy
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)