Chapter 5
IN THIS CHAPTER
Defining words for better understanding
Putting words together to make new words
Playing word games
The military is in love with words. Military personnel write almost everything down in memos, manuals, regulations, standard operating procedures, and policy letters. They should hire a few For Dummies authors to write these items, because the current writers seem to love fancy words. A little shovel isn’t a shovel in the military; it’s an “entrenching tool.” The boss of your duty section isn’t “the boss” or even “the supervisor”; she’s the “noncommissioned officer in charge” (NCOIC for short).
If you’re going to be successful in the military, you have to have a solid vocabulary, and that’s why the military includes the Word Knowledge subtest as part of the AFQT score. How can you obey a regulation if you don’t know what the words mean? And trust me, failure to obey a regulation is a big no-no in the military.
Your score on the Word Knowledge subtest, along with your score on the Paragraph Comprehension subtest (see Chapters 7 and 8), is used to compute what the military calls a verbal expression (VE) score. The VE score is then combined with your Arithmetic Reasoning score (see Chapters 11 and 12) and your Mathematics Knowledge score (see Chapters 9 and 10) to compute your AFQT score. (For more information on how these scores combine, turn to Chapter 2.)
The VE score is also used to determine whether you’re qualified for many military jobs. If you’re interested in which military jobs require a good VE score, you may want to consider picking up a copy of the bestselling book ASVAB For Dummies, which is also published by Wiley.
The good news is that anybody can improve his or her vocabulary. You’ve been learning new words and their meanings since you first learned to talk. In this chapter, I give you some hints, tips, and techniques you can use to speed up the process.
Your vocabulary naturally grows throughout your life. Even professional writers learn a new word once in a while through everyday life experiences. But if the ASVAB is staring you in the face, you may not want to wait for life’s natural process. In the following sections, you descry omnifarious contrivances to expedite progression of a comprehensive phraseology. I’m sorry; I got carried away. What I mean is you find some ways to improve your vocabulary.
People who read a lot have larger vocabularies than people who don’t read much. That sounds kind of obvious, but I’m sure the government has spent a few thousand dollars funding studies to confirm this.
It doesn’t matter much what you read, as long as you make it a regular, daily practice. You don’t have to read Homer or Keats. Leave that to the intellectuals in the Berkeley coffee shops. Your reading choices may be action-adventure or romance books for enjoyment, the daily newspaper, magazines, Internet articles and blogs, or even comic books. (If it weren’t for Batman and Robin, I wouldn’t know what “Zow!” means.)
Other people have vocabularies that differ from yours. If you speak to a variety of people, and you do it often, you’re exposed to a variety of cultures and occupations, all of which expose you to new words.
Make a goal to learn at least one new word per day. A great way to meet that target is to visit or subscribe to one of the many Internet word-of-the-day websites or download an app. Here are a few suggestions:
http://dictionary.reference.com/wordoftheday
.www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day
. You can also download M-W’s app to your smartphone; you’ll always have a dictionary at your fingertips, and you can check out the word of the day when you have a spare 30 seconds.http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/category/word-of-the-day
.www.oed.com
.Try to use your new word in conversation a couple of times to help you remember it. Writing a few example sentences can help you remember the new words in context.
A fun way to increase your word knowledge is to do crossword puzzles or play word games. Scrabble and Mad Libs, for example, are great ways to reinforce new vocabulary words. There are dozens of word game apps, too, such as Word Streak and Words with Friends. You can improve your vocabulary while having fun! It’s a win-win.
Learning a new word doesn’t do you much good if you forget it a week later. Learning often requires repetition, and that’s especially true when it comes to memorizing new words.
Just to get you started, I give you 50 words in Table 5-1.
TABLE 5-1 Fifty Vocabulary Words
Word |
Part of Speech |
Meaning |
Abrupt |
Adjective |
Beginning, ending, or changing suddenly |
Acrid |
Adjective |
Harshly pungent or bitter |
Becalm |
Verb |
To make quiet |
Buffoon |
Noun |
A clown |
Chaos |
Noun |
Utter disorder and confusion |
Cognizant |
Adjective |
Taking notice of something |
Defer |
Verb |
To put off or delay to a later time |
Derision |
Noun |
The act of ridiculing or making fun of something |
Effulgence |
Noun |
Great brightness |
Enmity |
Noun |
Hatred |
Famish |
Verb |
To cause extreme hunger or thirst |
Fealty |
Noun |
Loyalty |
Generalize |
Verb |
To draw general inferences |
Grotto |
Noun |
A small cavern |
Habitual |
Adjective |
According to usual practice |
Hideous |
Adjective |
Extremely ugly or appalling |
Ichthyic |
Adjective |
Fishlike |
Icon |
Noun |
An image or likeness |
Illusion |
Noun |
An unreal image |
Irritate |
Verb |
To excite ill temper or impatience in something |
Jovial |
Adjective |
Merry |
Juxtapose |
Verb |
To place close together |
Kernel |
Noun |
A grain or seed |
Kinsfolk |
Noun |
Relatives |
Laggard |
Adjective or noun |
Falling behind; one who lags behind |
Laud |
Verb |
To praise |
Maize |
Noun |
Corn |
Malevolence |
Noun |
Ill will |
Nestle |
Verb |
To adjust cozily in snug quarters |
Novice |
Noun |
Beginner |
Obese |
Adjective |
Exceedingly fat |
Obtrude |
Verb |
To push or thrust oneself into undue prominence |
Pare |
Verb |
To cut, shave, or remove the outside from anything |
Pedagogue |
Noun |
Teacher; one who is fussily academic |
Quadrate |
Verb |
To make square; to make conform or agree with |
Quiescence |
Noun |
Quietness |
Rancor |
Noun |
Malice |
Raucous |
Adjective |
Loud and rowdy |
Sanguine |
Adjective |
Cheerfully optimistic; having the color of blood |
Sepulcher |
Noun |
A burial place |
Teem |
Verb |
To be full to overflowing |
Tenacious |
Adjective |
Unyielding |
Umbrage |
Noun |
Injury or offense |
Vacillate |
Verb |
To waver |
Valid |
Adjective |
Founded on truth |
Velocity |
Noun |
Speed |
Wile |
Noun |
An act or a means of cunning deception |
Wizen |
Verb |
To become or cause to become withered or dry |
Yokel |
Noun |
Country bumpkin |
Zealot |
Noun |
One who is enthusiastic to an extreme or excessive degree |
Flashcards have been around for a long time. They’re still in wide use in these days of electronics and computers because they work. And they work especially well for subjects that just require simple memorization.
You can make flashcards from any stiff paper material, like index cards, construction paper, or card stock. Write the words from your list on flashcards — words on the front and a short definition on the back. Use only one word per card.
Review all the cards in the set, looking at each front and back.
Go through the set several times.
Test and sort.
Read the front of the card. Try to say what’s written on the back. If you’re wrong, put the card in a “wrong” pile. Do the same for each card until the cards are sorted into “right” and “wrong” piles.
Review the “wrong” pile.
Read each card in the “wrong” pile, front and back. Go through the “wrong” pile several times.
Test and sort with the “wrong” pile.
Go through the cards of the “wrong” pile, testing yourself with them and sorting them into “right” and “wrong” piles just as you did with all the cards in Step 2. Keep working with the cards of the “wrong” pile until they’re all in the “right” pile.
Many English words are created from building blocks called roots, prefixes, and suffixes. Not every word has all three, but many have at least one. The prefix is the part that comes at the front of a word, the suffix is the part that comes at the end of a word, and the root is the part that comes in the middle of a word. Think of roots as the base of the word and prefixes and suffixes as word parts that are attached to the base.
If you don’t know the meaning of a word, you can often break it down into smaller parts and analyze those parts. For instance, introspect is made up from the root spect, which means to look, and the prefix intro, which means within. Taken together, introspect means “to look within.” Wasn’t that fun?
If you memorize some of these word parts, you’ll have a better chance of figuring out the meaning of an unfamiliar word when you see it on the Word Knowledge subtest — and that’s a good thing. Figuring out the meaning of unfamiliar words is how people with large vocabularies make them even larger. (They look up words in the dictionary, too.)
A root is a word part that serves as the base of a word. If you recognize a root, you can generally get an idea of what the word means, even if you’re not familiar with it. As Mr. Miyagi said in The Karate Kid, “Root strong, tree grow strong.” All right, Daniel-san, in terms of your vocabulary, think of it this way: If your knowledge of word roots is strong, your vocabulary will be much stronger.
In Table 5-2, I list some common roots. Memorize them. When you sit down to take the ASVAB, you’ll be glad you did.
TABLE 5-2 Roots
Root |
Meaning |
Sample Word |
anthro or anthrop |
relating to humans |
anthropology |
bibli or biblio |
relating to books |
bibliography |
brev |
short |
abbreviate |
cede or ceed |
go, yield |
recede |
chrom |
color |
monochrome |
circum |
around |
circumnavigate |
cogn or cogno |
know |
cognizant |
corp |
body |
corporate |
dic or dict |
speak |
diction |
domin |
rule |
dominate |
flu or flux |
flow |
influx |
form |
shape |
formulate |
frac or frag |
break |
fragment |
graph |
writing |
biography |
junct |
join |
juncture |
liber |
free |
liberate |
lum |
light |
illuminate |
oper |
work |
cooperate |
pat or path |
suffer |
pathology |
port |
carry |
portable |
press |
squeeze |
repress |
scrib or script |
write |
describe |
sens or sent |
think, feel |
sentient |
tract |
pull |
traction |
voc or vok |
call |
revoke |
A prefix is a group of letters added before a word or base to alter the base’s meaning and form a new word. In contrast, a suffix is a group of letters added after a word or base. Prefixes and suffixes are called affixes because they’re attached to a root.
Tables 5-3 and 5-4 list some common prefixes and suffixes. Each list has the word part, its meaning, and one word that uses each word part. Writing down additional words that you know for each word part can help you memorize the lists.
TABLE 5-3 Prefixes
Prefix |
Meaning |
Sample Word |
a- |
no, not |
atheist |
ab- or abs- |
away, from |
absent |
anti- |
against |
antibody |
bi- |
two |
bilateral |
contra- |
against |
contradict |
de- |
away from |
depart |
dec- |
ten |
decathlon |
extra- |
outside, beyond |
extracurricular |
fore- |
in front of |
foreman |
geo- |
earth |
geology |
hyper- |
excess, over |
hyperactive |
il- |
not |
illogical |
mal- or male- |
wrong, bad |
malnutrition |
multi- |
many |
multifamily |
non- |
not |
nonfat |
omni- |
all |
omnivore |
ped- |
foot |
pedestrian |
que-, quer-, or ques- |
ask |
question |
re- |
back, again |
replay |
semi- |
half |
semisweet |
super- |
over, more |
superior |
tele- |
far |
telephone |
trans- |
across |
transplant |
un- |
not |
uninformed |
TABLE 5-4 Suffixes
Suffix |
Meaning |
Sample Word |
-able or -ible |
capable of |
agreeable |
-age |
action, result |
breakage |
-al |
characterized by |
functional |
-ance |
instance of an action |
performance |
-ation |
action, process |
liberation |
-en |
made of |
silken |
-ful |
full of |
helpful |
-ic |
consisting of |
acidic |
-ical |
possessing a quality of |
statistical |
-ion |
result of act or process |
legislation |
-ish |
relating to |
childish |
-ism |
act, practice |
Buddhism |
-ist |
characteristic of |
elitist |
-ity |
quality of |
specificity |
-less |
not having |
childless |
-let |
small one |
booklet |
-man |
relating to humans, manlike |
gentleman |
-ment |
action, process |
establishment |
-ness |
possessing a quality |
goodness |
-or |
one who does something |
orator |
-ous |
having |
dangerous |
-y |
quality of |
tasty |
English is a complicated language. You could probably learn Spanish, German, or even Korean from scratch more easily than you could English. How many other countries do you know that have to teach their own native language throughout all the school grades (and even college!)?
In the English language, you usually have more than one way to say the same thing, even by swapping just one word. These different words with the same meaning are called synonyms. Synonyms are different words that have the same or very similar meanings. Funny, amusing, and comical are synonyms; they all mean the same thing.
In fact, that’s what the Word Knowledge subtest on the ASVAB really does: It tests your ability to select synonyms for the underlined words contained in the question stem. Look at the following example.
Perform most nearly means
(A) eat.
(B) dance.
(C) execute.
(D) sing.
The correct answer is Choice (C). Execute (to carry out something) is a synonym of perform, which means the same thing. Although you can perform a dance or perform a song, dance and sing don’t actually mean the same thing as perform.
An antonym is a word that has the opposite or nearly opposite meaning of another word. Smile and frown are antonyms of one another. The test makers often use antonyms as wrong answers on the Word Knowledge subtest. Knowing antonyms for words not only improves your chances of narrowing your answer choices. It also beefs up your vocabulary. For example, if you know that fast is an antonym of slow and you know what slow means, you also know what fast means.
Thesauruses are special dictionaries of synonyms and antonyms. We writers use them all the time to make us look smarter. Here are a couple of online thesauruses you can use to look up synonyms for words on your word list:
www.thesaurus.com
www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus
Some words in the English language are spelled the same but have two or more meanings. For example, a fluke can mean a fish, the end parts of an anchor, the fins on a whale’s tail, or a stroke of luck.
Some words are spelled the same but have different meanings and are often pronounced differently. The word bow, meaning a special kind of knot, is pronounced differently from bow, meaning to bend at the waist. Bow, meaning the front of a boat, is pronounced the same as bow (bend at the waist), but bow, meaning a weapon, is pronounced the same as bow (a special knot). See why foreigners trying to learn English get frustrated?
Other words are pronounced the same but are spelled differently and mean something different. To, too, and two and there, their, and they’re are examples. All these types of words are collectively known as homonyms.
The last type of homonym is especially important when it comes to the Word Knowledge subtest of the ASVAB. The test makers won’t try to trick you by having two homonym answers for words that are spelled the same but have multiple meanings, but they will use homonyms that are spelled differently and have different meanings.
Flue most nearly means
(A) sickness.
(B) fly.
(C) chimney.
(D) None of the above.
You may be tempted to choose Choice (A), but that would be correct if flu were the test word. The past tense of fly is flew. The word flue means a chimney pipe.
Table 5-5 shows you a few more examples of common homonyms.
TABLE 5-5 Common Homonyms
Word |
Definition |
Example Sentence |
Allowed |
Permitted |
He allowed the audience to participate. |
Aloud |
Normal volume of speaking |
They couldn’t speak aloud in the library. |
Cent |
A penny |
I couldn’t believe I got the comic book for just one cent. |
Scent |
Aroma |
The scent coming from the kitchen made my mouth water. |
Sent |
Past tense of send |
He sent the letter Monday. |
Cue |
Stimulus to action |
A door slamming was his cue to exit the stage. |
Queue |
Line |
There was a large queue of cars waiting to park. |
Die |
To cease living |
The flowers die when the weather gets cold. |
Dye |
To color or stain |
She wants to dye her hair red. |
Elicit |
To draw or bring out |
He vowed to elicit the truth from his friend. |
Illicit |
Unlawful |
He used illicit means to avoid paying taxes. |
Fairy |
Supernatural being |
The fairy was dancing in the night. |
Ferry |
A boat for crossing rivers or other small bodies of water |
The ferry took us quickly across the river. |
Gorilla |
Large ape |
I threw the gorilla a banana. |
Guerrilla |
Irregular soldier |
The band of guerrillas attacked the convoy. |
Hangar |
Building for airplanes |
Jack pulled the aircraft into the hangar. |
Hanger |
A device for hanging things |
Mom said to put the shirt on a hanger. |
It’s |
Contraction of it is |
It’s a very hot day. |
Its |
Belonging to it |
The bank said its savings accounts were the best. |
Know |
To possess knowledge |
I know you went to the store. |
No |
Zero or negative |
I told John there was no way we would travel together. |
Lessen |
To make less |
We gave him medicine to lessen his pain. |
Lesson |
Something to be learned |
We must never forget the lessons of the past. |
Postal delivery |
I expected the check to be in the mail. |
|
Male |
A gender |
The teacher asked all males to go to one room and all females to go to another. |
Naval |
Pertaining to ships |
He wanted to become a naval officer. |
Navel |
Belly button |
Mom always said not to play with my navel. |
Ordinance |
Decree or local law |
Spitting on the sidewalk was against the town ordinance. |
Ordnance |
Military ammunition |
We were running low, so we asked the sergeant for more ordnance. |
Patience |
The ability to suppress restlessness |
I couldn’t believe her patience with the students. |
Patients |
People under medical care |
The nurse treated all her patients with respect. |
Reek |
Bad smell |
The reek of the skunk invaded the living room. |
Wreak |
Inflict |
Jack continued to wreak havoc every time he got upset. |
Sleight |
Dexterity |
The magician’s sleight of hand was amazing. |
Slight |
Small amount |
There was only a slight increase in salaries this year. |
Threw |
Propelled by hand |
He threw the ball to first base. |
Through |
In one side and out the other |
Dad drove through the tunnel. |
Vary |
Change |
The interest rate continues to vary up and down. |
Very |
Extreme |
I am very happy with ASVAB AFQT For Dummies. |
Weak |
Not strong |
After his illness, Paul was very weak. |
Week |
Seven days |
It’ll take at least a week to finish this report. |
Your |
Belonging to you |
Your new car is really cool. |
You’re |
Contraction of you are |
You’re going to be in trouble when Dad gets home. |
The best way to improve your vocabulary? Practice, practice, and more practice. The vocabulary exercises in this section will give you a little face-time with the nuts and bolts of the questions you’ll find in the Word Knowledge subtest of the ASVAB.
Activity 1 is a matching game (See? I told you playing word games to grow your vocabulary would be fun!). Match the word on the left with the word that has the most similar meaning — its synonym — on the right; you’ll find the correct answers at the end of this chapter.
Answer |
Vocabulary Word |
Synonym |
1. |
1. consider |
A. uncommon |
2. |
2. evident |
B. capsize |
3. |
3. scarce |
C. fail |
4. |
4. vain |
D. flounder |
5. |
5. render |
E. go-between |
6. |
6. gadget |
F. deliberate |
7. |
7. backfire |
G. give |
8. |
8. wallow |
H. descend |
9. |
9. habits |
I. arrogant |
10. |
10. fabricate |
J. within |
11. |
11. pressured |
K. compelled |
12. |
12. keel |
L. assemble |
13. |
13. plunge |
M. obvious |
14. |
14. intermediary |
N. customs |
15. |
15. internal |
O. apparatus |
Activity 2 has 15 vocabulary words and their opposites. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to match the vocabulary word with the word it is the most opposite of. The correct answers are at the end of this chapter.
Answer |
Vocabulary Word |
Antonym |
1. |
1. contrary |
A. concern |
2. |
2. disregard |
B. innocent |
3. |
3. protest |
C. inept |
4. |
4. endorse |
D. admire |
5. |
5. guilty |
E. freeze |
6. |
6. ill |
F. fabrication |
7. |
7. melt |
G. individual |
8. |
8. actual |
H. clumsiness |
9. |
9. abstain |
I. agreeable |
10. |
10. despise |
J. disapprove |
11. |
11. faultless |
K. imperfect |
12. |
12. clan |
L. counterfeit |
13. |
13. resourceful |
M. continue |
14. |
14. fact |
N. healthy |
15. |
15. agility |
O. concur |
Activity 3 gives you a word with a common root. It’s your job to find the root, guess what the word means, and look it up in the dictionary (or flip to the end of this chapter, where I’ve written out the definition for you). It’s often helpful to think of words you already know that sound similar to words you don’t know; that can help you guess the right answers.
Word |
Root |
Your Definition |
1. hemorrhage |
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2. magnify |
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3. alleviate |
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4. verbalize |
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5. dismal |
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6. marine |
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7. affirm |
||
8. admonish |
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9. autograph |
||
10. hydrate |
||
11. convene |
||
12. relapse |
||
13. liberate |
||
14. pathetic |
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15. unanimous |
Activity 4 has 15 vocabulary words that have prefixes attached. Tap into your existing vocabulary to figure out what each word means based on its prefix. Write the prefix in the column beside the word, and then write what you think the word means. Then, when you’re done, check your answers at the end of this chapter.
Word |
Prefix |
Your Definition |
1. apolitical |
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2. predetermined |
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3. devalue |
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4. coaxial |
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5. extraordinary |
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6. miniature |
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7. undesirable |
||
8. forerunner |
||
9. byproduct |
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10. overreact |
||
11. uplift |
||
12. midway |
||
13. intergalactic |
||
14. omnipotent |
||
15. substrate |
Activity 5 contains 15 vocabulary words with suffixes tacked on their back ends. Separate the suffix from the word (and write it down), jot down what the word probably means, and then check your answers in the dictionary or at the end of this chapter.
Word |
Suffix |
Your Definition |
1. postage |
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2. annoyance |
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3. disciplinarian |
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4. wisdom |
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5. clemency |
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6. artful |
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7. celestial |
||
8. zanily |
||
9. completion |
||
10. placement |
||
11. authorship |
||
12. fascination |
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13. fortitude |
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14. circular |
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15. audible |
You find 15 sentences in Activity 6. Try to define the underlined word based on the context of the sentence that it’s in and write your definition in the “Your Definition” column. Then look up the word in the dictionary or flip to the end of this chapter to find out whether you were right (or pretty close). Write the official definition in the final column so you can better boost your vocabulary.
Sentence |
Your Definition |
Dictionary Definition |
1. Smoking has deleterious effects on your health. |
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2. The topic was too serious for her to be so facetious. |
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3. The English lexicon contains hundreds of thousands of words. |
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4. She told him not to plagiarize, but he copied the text anyway. |
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5. The commander didn’t want to capitulate, but the general told him to surrender. |
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6. His sunny disposition and sanguine attitude made everyone like him. |
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7. Nobody wanted a dictator or a totalitarian regime. |
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8. David vehemently denied the accusations because he was not guilty. |
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9. Cheryl never saw a structure as colossal as the Great Pyramid of Giza. |
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10. Jesse’s bizarre hairstyle often got him attention from the girls at school. |
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11. The teens participated in the boycott by refusing to buy coffee. |
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12. The embargo on car sales made it impossible to get a new model. |
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13. The idea that black cats are unlucky is a fallacy. |
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14. The artist made the mosaic with pieces of colored glass. |
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15. The dog’s constant barking was a nuisance. |
Check your answers for each of the exercises here, and take some time to review the explanations if you’re not sure where you went wrong.
Answer |
Vocabulary Word |
Synonym |
1. F |
consider |
deliberate |
2. M |
evident |
obvious |
3. A |
scarce |
uncommon |
4. I |
vain |
arrogant |
5. G |
render |
give |
6. O |
gadget |
apparatus |
7. C |
backfire |
fail |
8. D |
wallow |
flounder |
9. N |
habits |
customs |
10. L |
fabricate |
assemble |
11. K |
pressured |
compelled |
12. B |
keel |
capsize |
13. H |
plunge |
descend |
14. E |
intermediary |
go-between |
15. J |
internal |
within |
Answer |
Vocabulary Word |
Antonym |
1. I |
contrary |
agreeable |
2. A |
disregard |
concern |
3. O |
protest |
concur |
4. J |
endorse |
disapprove |
5. B |
guilty |
innocent |
6. N |
ill |
healthy |
7. E |
melt |
freeze |
8. L |
actual |
counterfeit |
9. M |
abstain |
continue |
10. D |
despise |
admire |
11. K |
faultless |
imperfect |
12. G |
clan |
individual |
13. C |
resourceful |
inept |
14. F |
fact |
fabrication |
15. H |
agility |
clumsiness |
18.222.137.240