Active Vocabulary General and Academic Words - Amy E. Olsen 2013

Chapter 6. Science fiction
Part 1 General Words

The Silent Stars

They had lost contact with the Earth. The crew didn't know this yet, but they would soon. They had been sent to subjugate the newly discovered life on Jupiter. Conquering another race was not a mission that Orion enjoyed. He never believed that humans were the omnipotentrace, but the government felt otherwise, and it was im­possible to resist its force. He was told that if he wanted to voice any dissent, he would find himself in prison. Rather than disagree, he took the assignment.

His lack of enthusiasm for the job had led to a cursory inspection of the ship's equipment. Now he regretted the rush, although no longer being under the Earth's surveillance might have its benefits. Orion checked with his chief engineer to see whether the precise reason for the malfunction could be discovered. It wasn't a problem with the communication equipment after all; it was a miscalculation by the navigation computer that had sent the ship off course. No one knew where they were, and they were no longer within range to commu­nicate with any satellites.

He could already feel the Grand Commander's anger. When, or if, they returned, he was sure the commander would annihilate the whole crew. The commander's antipathy for those who failed was 25 well known. He had all too often destroyed whole fleets for failing a mission. It was time for Orion to make a decision.

Just as he was to announce to the crew that there was a glitch in the navigation system and that their mission was about to change, Sergeant Aurora escorted Private Gemini into the room.

"Sir, we discovered what caused the problem with the navigation computer. Private Gemini 30 introduced a virus into the program."

Amazed, all Orion could ask was "Why?"

With absolute serenity, Private Gemini explained, "I can't go on another mission to take over an innocent planet. We haven't the right."

"Your motive may be honorable, Private, but I can't condone such behavior. I will have to put 35 you in confinement. Take her away."

When he was alone, Orion smiled. He would release the clever and attractive private in a couple days. He would soon interview her more thoroughly to see what she had done to the computer, but in his heart he felt she had helped them all. They were now emissaries for peace. It was time to finally tell the crew that they were headed on a mission of discovery and that they would be bringing a mes- 40 sage of peace to those they encountered among the stars.

Predicting

For each set, write the definition on the line next to the word to which it belongs. If you are unsure, re­turn to the reading on page 42, and underline any context clues you find. After you've made your predic­tions, check your answers against the Word List on page 47. Place a checkmark in the box next to each word whose definition you missed. These are the words you'll want to study closely.

Set One

having unlimited authority or power

exact

to differ in opinion

to conquer

hasty

□ 1. subjugate (line 3) ...

□ 2. omnipotent (line 7) ...

□ 3. dissent (line 10) ...

□ 4. cursory (line 14) ...

□ 5. precise (line 19) ...

Set Two

to destroy

to forgive

a mistake in planning

dislike

representatives sent on a mission

□ 6. miscalculation (line 20) ...

□ 7. annihilate (line 24) ...

□ 8. antipathy (line 24) ...

□ 9. condone (line 34) ...

□10. emissaries (line 38) ...

Self-Tests

1 Circle the correct word to complete each sentence.

1. The dictator tried to (annihilate, subjugate) the people so they would work in the fields.

2. I realized I needed to do more than a (precise, cursory) proofreading of my papers after I got a "D" on my first essay.

3. Because of one little (antipathy, miscalculation), we ended up twenty miles from where we wanted to be.

4. I can't (dissent, condone) the newspaper's sloppy coverage of the city's plans for downtown rede­velopment; it has not investigated how the changes are going to affect those who live downtown.

5. I didn't like it when Reina was my baby-sitter because she thought she was (cursory, omnipotent).

6. I wanted to (annihilate, condone) the crab grass; it was ruining an otherwise beautiful lawn.

7. I have an (antipathy, emissary) for spicy mustards on my sandwiches.

8. Since the two countries were at war, the (miscalculation, emissary) secretly met with the king to discuss plans to settle the dispute.

9. I am (precise, omnipotent) when I make an online order so I don't get the wrong items.

10. I had to (subjugate, dissent) when asked if I agreed with moving the meeting to Thursday; I already had plans for that day.

2 Match the quotation to the word it best illustrates. Context clues are underlined to help you. Use each word once.

Set One

Vocabulary list

annihilate

antipathy

emissary

condone

miscalculation

1. "I hate shopping. How can some people spend all day at a mall?"

2. "I will deliver your message to the president when I meet with her next week after my return home."

3. "I thought if we left at three o'clock we would have plenty of time to make it by five. I forgot about the bridge construction delay. I planned wrong, again."

4. "I can overlook your coming home late this time since you helped your sick friend get home safely."______________

5. "We destroyed that team 63 to 0."

Set Two

Vocabulary list

omnipotent

dissent

cursory

precise

subjugate

6. "You must be accurate when you take these pills: take the red pill at noon every day and the blue pill at 10 a.m. every other day."

7. "I have conquered your country—bow down before me!"

8. "I looked the report over quickly, Doris, and it seems fine."

9. "I beg to differ with the committee. I think the plan will work."

10. "As fire chief, the City Council has given me full authority to handle the spreading wild fires."

3 Use the vocabulary words to complete the following analogies. See Completing Analogies on page 6 for instructions and practice.

Set One

Vocabulary list

cursory

dissent

annihilate

antipathy

emissary

1. grow : flowers :: ... : weeds

2. friend : warmth :: enemy : ...

3. accept : reject :: ... : careful

4. mother : scolding :: ... : message

5. assent : agree :: ... : differ

Set Two

Vocabulary list

subjugate

condone

miscalculation

precise

omnipotent

6. baker : cake :: tired person : ...

7. distant: close :: ... : powerless

8. fortunate : lucky :: exact : ...

9. crown : a king :: ... : a slave

10. rain : flowers :: special circumstances : ...

Context Clue Mini-Lesson 2

This lesson uses antonyms—words that mean the opposite of the unknown word—as the clues. In the paragraph below, circle the antonyms you find for the underlined words and then, on the lines that follow the paragraph, write a word that is opposite the antonym as your definition of the word.

The opening night of the new art exhibit didn't start well. I saw a man grimace as he studied a painting of bright yellow and orange flowers. What was wrong? Most people would smile at such a scene. I heard a woman swear behind me. I wondered what painting could have incensed her so; most of the works were meant to calm people. I was feeling despondent. Looking for a way to cheer myself up, I spied the refreshment table. The pastries I had ordered from the new bakery looked delicious. I took a bite and finally understood what was upsetting people. Instead of sugar, the bakery had put salt in the icing. I would not, however, let my guests forsake me because of a salty pastry. I threw the tray in the trash and sent my assistant to buy cookies. I persuaded those in attendance to remain with promises of special deals and more goodies to come.

Your Definition

1. Grimace ...

2. Incensed ...

3. Despondent ...

4. Forsake ...

Interactive Version: Use the photograph and the sentence starters to write a science fiction story. Use at least six of the vocabulary words in your story. Feel free to add word endings (i.e., -s, -ed) if needed.

1. When the spaceships first appeared, ...

2. The people of Earth learned ...

3. Most people were surprised by ...

4. After a week, people were still unsure ...

5. Ten months later, world leaders decided ...

6. Just before the spaceships left, ...

Word Part Reminder

Below are a few exercises to help you review the word parts you have been learning. Fill in the missing word part from the list, and circle the meaning of the word part found iri each sentence. Try to complete the questions without returning to the Word Parts chapter, but if you get stuck, look back at Chapter 4.

Example: I am sweating much, so I use an antiperspirant each morning.

omni

cis   

pie   

fy

1. I wanted to make my stomach happy, and the only thing I felt that would satis ... it was a slice of pizza.

2. I am excited to read the ... bus volume that just came out because it is a collection of all of the short stories by my favorite writer.

3. Before he began to cut material for a suit, my uncle would check his measurements three times. Because he was so pre...e, he never made a mistake.

4. It will be difficult for me to fill my orders if you keep de...ting my supply by eating the cookies as soon as they come out of the oven.

Word List

Words to Watch

Which words would you like to practice with a bit more? Pick 3-5 words to study, and list them below. Write the word and its definition, and compose your own sentence using the word correctly. This extra practice could be the final touch to learning a word.