Ultimate word success - Peterson's 2009

Day 13 Delve into Test-worthy Words About Hardships
Part V Collect More Valuable Words

The eighteenth-century French physician Joseph-Ignace Guillotin did not invent the guillotine, but, unfortunately, his name is forever connected to the beheading machine made famous during the French Revolution (1789—1799). The truth is that Dr. Guillotin was actually opposed to the death penalty, and in 1789 he petitioned the French National Assembly for a more humane and less painful method of execution than what existed at the time for everyone except the wealthy and nobility. Dr. Guillotin suggested the use of a mechanism that would behead painlessly. This decapitating device, originally called the Louisette or Louison after technical expert Dr. Antoine Louis, became known instead as the guillotine, and it became the most popular form of execution in France and many parts of Europe, especially during the French Revolution.

But don’t worry… you won’t lose your head over the words you’ll learn today. Memorize them to help ensure that you have the words you need to get out of today’s tight spots—standardized tests!

Learn Ten Words About Tough Times

The following ten words all describe difficult situations. As you have learned in earlier days, grouping words by a common theme makes them easier to learn. Read the words, parts of speech, pronunciations, and definitions through once. The second time, read the words, say them, and use them in a sentence. This will help fix them in your mind.

Seventh-Inning Stretch: Multiple-Choice #1

Select the correct meaning for each of the following boldfaced words. Circle your choice. The answers appear on here.

1. spurious

(A) actual

(B) reject

(C) authentic

(D) fake

(E) obscure

2. dilatory

(A) always early

(B) inconsiderate

(C) always late

(D) dilated; enlarged

(E) vicious

3. quandary

(A) credence

(B) belief

(C) assurance

(D) hostility

(E) dilemma

4. obscure

(A) crystal-clear

(B) crystalline

(C) fastidious

(D) perverse

(E) cryptic

5. convoluted

(A) complex

(B) futile

(C) hostile

(D) lethargic

(E) fake

6. listless

(A) lethargic

(B) energetic

(C) hostile

(D) dilatory

(E) convoluted

7. slander

(A) support

(B) defamation

(C) suspicion

(D) extol

(E) ignore

8. futile

(A) vicious

(B) pointless

(C) depraved

(D) vile

(E) immoral

9. impede

(A) encode

(B) encourage

(C) thwart

(D) facilitate

(E) denounce

10. cryptic

(A) cruel

(B) grim

(C) indecisive

(D) easy to understand

(E) hard to understand

Give It a Try: Synonyms and Antonyms

To play this game, find a synonym (word that means the same) and an antonym (word that means the opposite) for each of the following vocabulary words. If you want to boost your vocabulary even more, try to come up with more than one synonym and antonym for each word. The answers appear on here.

Master Ten More Words for Difficult Times

A quisling is a traitor, a person who betrays his or her country. It comes from the name of Vidkun Quisling (1887—1945), a Norwegian army officer turned fascist who collaborated with the Nazis during World War II.

The following ten words also describe troublesome situations. See how many of these words are familiar to you already. That will give you a leg up on your studying!

1. condemn (kun-dem) denounce; criticize

2. discredit (dis-cred-it) cause to be doubted

3. disparage (dis-pair-uj) to belittle

4. impinge (im-pinj) interfere with

5. lament (luh-ment) mourn

6. melancholy (mel-un-kaw-lee) depression; sadness

7. pejorative (puh-jor-uh-tiv) disparaging; rude

8. plagiarism (play-juh-riz-um) literary theft; the act of passing someone else’s ideas or writing as your own

9. truncated (trun-kay-tid) shortened

10. vilify (vil-uh-fy) slander; defame

Time for Fun: Word-Find Puzzle

There are fifteen words hidden in this word-find puzzle. Many of the words have already been introduced in this chapter, but a few are new. To complete the puzzle, locate and circle all the words. (See the word list below.) The words may be written forward, backward, or upside down. The answers appear on here. Good luck!

Word List

1. condemn: denounce; criticize

2. discredit: cause to be doubted

3. disparage: to belittle

4. impinge: interfere with

5. lament: mourn

6. melancholy: depression; sadness

7. pejorative: disparaging; rude

8. quandary: state of uncertainty

9. truncated: shortened

10. vilify: slander; defame

11. impede: block; thwart

12. slander: false charges

13. dilatory: always late

14. convoluted: complex

15. spurious: fake

Seventh-Inning Stretch: Word-Definition Match

Match each vocabulary word to its definition. Write the letter of your response in the blank. The answers appear on here.

It’s Your Turn: Rebel Razers and Rabble Rousers

The following vocabulary game contains words about destruction and rebellion. Decide which of the following three numbered words or phrases best describes each word in the list that follows. Write the number of your answer choice on the line to the left of each entry. The answers appear on here.

1. demolish

2. rebel

3. break or injure

Give It a Try: It’s All in the Altitude

All the words you’ll learn today describe the dark side of the human condition. Let’s relieve the gloom with some words that describe highs as well as lows! The following game concerns words that describe highs and lows.

For each word below, determine whether the word is closer in meaning to high or low. Indicate your choice by writing “H” for “high” or “L” for “low” on the line to the left of each word. The answers appear on here.

H—high

L—low

Consider Ten More Words About Worries

A scapegoat is a person who is blamed for the mistakes of others. The word began as two words, escape goat. The Bible (Leviticus XVI, 10) describes the Hebrew ceremony of sacrificing a goat and then allowing a second one, bearing the sins of the people, to escape into the desert. The goat that “escaped” became the “escape goat.” Today, the connotation is a bit different: a scapegoat is “a whipping boy, often a victim of hatred and prejudice.”

Since you’ve been studying so hard, you won’t need a scapegoat! Keep up the good work by learning the following ten words. They all have a negative connotation (emotional overtone).

1. apprehension (ap-ruh-hen-shun) anxiety; worry

2. heinous (hay-nus) atrocious; horrendous

3. malfeasance (mal-feez-uns) misconduct, especially by a public official

4. malice (mal-us) hostility; bitterness

5. ominous (ah-mih-nus) frightening; menacing

6. putrid (pyoo-trid) rotten

7. rancorous (rank-er-us) bitter; resentful

8. timorous (tim-uh-rus) timid

9. toxic (tox-sik) poisonous

10. trepidation (trep-uh-day-shun) agitation; consternation; fear

Give It a Try: Word Scramble

To complete the following acrostic, first unscramble each vocabulary word so that it matches its definition. Then, use the words to fill in the appropriate spaces on the corresponding lines. When you have completed the entire puzzle, another vocabulary word will read vertically in the circles. The answers appear on here.

Time for Fun: True or False

In the space provided, write T if the definition of each word is true and F if it is false. The answers appear on here.

Moan Over More Terms for Woe

This time, there are sentences to help you see how the words are used in context. After you read these sentences, try to create some of your own. This will help you remember the words, especially those that are totally new to you.

1. anathema (uh-na-theh-muh) n. a person or thing condemned, accused, damned, cursed, or generally loathed. A similar word is pariah: an outcast.

The adulteress Hester Prynne, the main character in The Scarlet Letter, is probably the best-known example of an anathema.

Note: Do not confuse anathema with anesthesia: any drug that dulls the senses.

2. bane (bayn) n. any cause of ruin or destruction

The woman grew to abhor her vituperative husband; among friends, she would refer to him hyperbolically as “the bane of my existence.”

3. beleaguer (beh-lee-ger) v. to surround; besiege

Beleaguered by enemy troops, the weary soldiers finally admitted defeat and surrendered their garrison.

4. besmirch (bih-smerch) v. to soil or tarnish, especially a person’s honor or reputation; to defile. Similar words include denigrate, deprecate, and calumniate.

One pejorative remark about the city councilman by the popular local newspaper columnist forever besmirched his reputation among the townspeople.

5. censure (sen-sher) n. strong expression of disapproval; an official reprimand. Similar words include reproach, reproof, stricture, and condemnation.

The town’s newspapers were unanimous in their censure of the proposed tax hikes.

In 1834, the Senate censured President Andrew Jackson for withholding documents related to his actions in removing U.S. funds from the Bank of the United States.

6. chagrin (shuh-grin) n. irritation marked by disappointment or humiliation. A closely related word is vexation (irritation, annoyance, or provocation).

His favorite team lost the big game, much to his chagrin since he had bet a large sum of money that his team would win.

7. chicanery (shih-kay-nuh-ree) n. trickery or deception, usually used to gain an advantage or to evade. Similar words include guile, knavery, disingenuousness, and artifice.

Some unscrupulous knaves would resort to any sort of chicanery in order to fleece an unwitting dupe of his last dollar.

8. choleric (kuh-layr-ik) adj. tempermental; hotheaded. Similar words include mercurial, peevish, and acrimonious.

Just beneath his affable and disarming veneer lay a choleric and dangerous psychopath.

Although choleric is unrelated to caloric, both words involve the notion of heat (a calorie is a unit of measure for heat).

9. churlish (cher-lish) adj. crude; crass; vulgar. Similar words include boorish, impudent, and insolent.

His churlish and uncivilized demeanor seems more befitting the Dark Ages than this age; I want nothing to do with the churl.

10. deprecate (dep-ruh-kayt) v. to express disapproval of. Similar words include reprove, reprimand, rebuke, and reprobate.

“The friends of humanity will deprecate war, wheresoever it may appear.”—George Washington

Deprecation does not necessarily involve blame, criticism, or punishment. Here are similar words that do carry one or more of these meanings:

castigate: to punish in order to correct or reform

censure: to strongly disapprove, criticize, or blame

reproach: to find fault with; blame; criticize

11. indigent (in-dih-junt) adj. poor; destitute; impoverished. A synonym of indigent is impecunious (pecuniary: pertaining to money).

An indigent person is sometimes referred to as a pauper.

Do not confuse indigent with the following:

indigenous: native to or characterizing a particular region

indulgent: permissive; tolerating

12. inexorable (in-ek-sor-uh-bul) adj. relentless; unyielding; merciless. A similar word is implacable: incapable of being pacified or appeased.

No B-rated science fiction epic is complete without the inexorable attack of the grotesque monster, impervious to bullets and bombs but capitulating to the charms of a pretty girl.

“What other dungeon is so dark as one’s own heart! What jailer so inexorable as one’s self!”—Nathaniel Hawthorne

13. renege (rih-nig) v. to go back on one’s promise or word

The world abounds with renegers: spouses reneging on their wedding vows, politicians reneging on their campaign promises, and dieters reneging on their pledge to cut calories.

“Nations don’t literally renege on their debts; they either postpone them indefinitely… or else pay them off in depreciated currency.”—Roger Bridwell

A renegade (traitor or deserter) is a person who reneges on his or her loyalty.

14. salient (say-lee-unt) adj. prominent or conspicuous

The word is usually used to describe features or characteristics. Note the two related but distinct meanings of the word, as underscored by these two sentences:

The most salient feature of my house is its orange color.

At the end of his sermon, the preacher reiterated what he considered to be the most salient points for the congregation to remember.

In this sentence, the word might carry either meaning:

The personal ads were resplendent with such salient words as adventurous, petite, spiritual, and, perhaps most salient of all, single.

15. supercilious (soo-per-sil-ee-us) adj. disdainful in a haughty and arrogant way. Similar words include haughty, consequential, and patronizing.

While stopped at the traffic light, the supercilious socialite in her brand-new luxury car glanced disdainfully to her left at the beat-up old sedan and at the car’s driver.

Imagining a supercilious person raising his or her eyebrows is helpful in understanding the definitions of this word.

16. umbrage (um-brij) n. anger; resentment; sense of having been maligned or insulted

Similar words include vexation, animosity, and spite. The word is derived from the astronomical term umbra, which refers to the darkest shadow formed by an eclipse. Accordingly, a person with umbrage is ensconced in a dark shadow of anger and resentment.

“The patient who sees SOB on his chart should not take umbrage, as it is usually intended to mean ’short of breath.’ ”—William Safire

17. wanton (wahn-tun) adj. without regard for what is morally right; reckless; unjustifiable. A closely related word is want: lack or scarcity. A wanton person demonstrates a want of scruples.

In criminal law, the prosecution must prove that a defendant accused of first-degree murder acted with wanton disregard for human life.

“If you suppress the exorbitant love of pleasure and money, idle curiosity, iniquitous purpose, and wanton mirth, what a stillness there would be in the greatest cities.”—Jean de La Bruyere

Seventh-Inning Stretch: Multiple-Choice #2

Select the word that best completes each sentence. Write the letter of the word in the space. The answers appear on here.

1. The teenager thought that her life would be perfect were it not for acne, which was the __________ of her existence.

(A) besmirch

(B) wanton

(C) compensation

(D) merit

(E) bane

2. Despite the use of exercise, diet, Botox, and plastic surgery, the passage of time is __________ and we all look old eventually.

(A) supercilious

(B) churlish

(C) inexorable

(D) wanton

(E) salient

3. The CEO’s reputation was __________ when it was discovered that he had his hand in the till—to the tune of $30 million.

(A) encroached

(B) beleaguered

(C) besmirched

(D) lamented

(E) ameliorated

4. If you can’t keep a promise, don’t make it, but never __________ on your word.

(A) lament

(B) deprecate

(C) beleaguer

(D) wanton

(E) renege

5. My boyfriend is __________ by nature: even the smallest slights make him very angry.

(A) choleric

(B) serene

(C) melancholy

(D) supercilious

(E) salient

6. We knew the carnival tricks were the most blatant __________, but we didn’t mind getting fooled as long as we were entertained as well.

(A) anathema

(B) chicanery

(C) plagiarism

(D) ingrate

(E) mishap

7. I thought I had lost my keys, but to my __________, they were in my pocket the whole time!

(A) plagiarism

(B) anathema

(C) wanton

(D) chagrin

(E) chaos

8. Since we knew the hobo was _________, we dropped a $10 bill into his outstretched palm.

(A) indigent

(B) wanton

(C) churlish

(D) supercilious

(E) salient

9. President Clinton was __________ by the Senate for his contemptible behavior with a certain intern.

(A) churlished

(B) beleaguered

(C) censured

(D) lamented

(E) lauded

10. No insult was intended, but the child was so sensitive that she took great ____________ anyway and refused to speak to anyone for a week.

(A) plagiarism

(B) rapture

(C) umbrage

(D) quandary

(E) slander

Answers and Explanations

Multiple-Choice #1 (here)

1. D

2. C

3. E

4. E

5. A

6. A

7. B

8. B

9. C

10. E

Synonyms and Antonyms (here)

(Possible answers)

Word-Find Puzzle (here)

Word-Definition Match (here)

1. c

2. f

3. i

4. a

5. g

6. e

7. b

8. h

9. j

10. d

Rebel Razers and Rabble Rousers (here)

1. demolish

abrogate: to set aside

annihilate: to demolish

expunge: to obliterate

2. rebel

apostate: a person who abandons a faith or cause

incendiary: a person who willfully stirs up strife

quisling: a traitor

renegade: a traitor

3. break or injure

lacerate: to wound

maim: to mutilate

rend: to tear violently

It’s All in the Altitude (here)

High

apex: peak

excelsior: loftier

pinnacle: apex

sublime: elevated by joy

usury: an illegal rate of interest

zenith: highest point

Low

abyss: a great depth (e.g., of a gorge or ocean)

alluvial: pertaining to sediment deposits

fathom: to reach the bottom of something; to understand thoroughly

nadir: lowest point

Word Scramble (here)

toxic

impede

malfeasance

ominous

renegade

obscure

usury

slander

Reading down: timorous

True or False (here)

1. T

2. T

3. F

4. F

5. F

6. T

7. T

8. F

9. T

10. T

Multiple-Choice #2 (here)

1. E

2. C

3. C

4. E

5. A

6. B

7. D

8. A

9. C

10. C