Reminder: vocabulary 15 is due next Monday June 4 (see copy below)
Vocabulary 15 definitions
1.
amenity (noun)- that which is pleasant or agreeable;
(plural) attractive features or customs
2.
aperture (noun)- an opening, gap, hole; orifice
3.
dissidence (noun)- a difference of opinion; discontent;
disagreement, dissent , disaffection
4.
epicurean (adj)- devoted to the pursuit of pleasure;
fond of good food, comfort and ease; with discriminating tastes; (noun) a
person with discriminating tastes; hedonistic, sybaritic, discriminating
5.
improvident (adj.)- not thrifty; failing to plan ahead;
prodigal, spendthrift, extravagant
6.
iniquity (noun)- wickedness, sin; a grossly immoral
act; evil, crime
7.
inviolable (adj.) – sacred; of such a character that it
must not be broken, injured or profaned
8.
mutable (adj)- open to or capable of change; changeable,
variable
9.
nascent (adj).)- just beginning to exist or develop;
having just come into existence; budding, incipient, embryonic
10. obeisance
(noun)- a deep bow or other body movement indicating respect or submission;
deference, homage
11. panegyric
(noun) formal or elaborate praise; a tribute; encomium, testimonial
12. pillory
(noun)- a device for publicly punishing offenders; a means for exposing one to
public contempt or ridicule; (verb)- to expose to public contempt or ridicule
13. pittance
(noun)- a woefully meager allowance, wage or portion; modicum, trifle
14. presage
(verb)- to foreshadow or point to a future event; to predict; (noun) a warning
or indication of the future; augur, portend, foretell
15. progeny
(noun)- descendants, offspring. children, followers, disciples
16. promulgate
(verb)- to proclaim; to make known far and wide; announce
17. rectitude
(noun)- uprightness, righteousness, correctness; probity, integrity
18. restive
(adj)- restless, hard to manage, balky; uneasy, fidgety, recalcitrant
19. seraphic
(adj)- angelic, heavenly, celestial, cherubic; cherubic
20. subsist
(verb) to have existence; to remain alive, manage o make a living or maintain
life; to persist or continue; last, sustain, survive
Vocabulary 15 exercise 1
Fill in the blank with the correct definition.
1. We
are sure that their vow is ______________________________ because their sense
of moral obligation will prevent them from ever breaking it.
2. Conscientious
parents will do everything they can to foster and develop the
_______________________ intellectual curiosity of a small child.
3. Imagine
someone with my _____________________ tastes having to live for a week on that
watery mush!
4. The
biography is a pretty evenhanded appraisal of the man’s strengths and
weaknesses, not just another _________________________ to a great hero.
5. I
see no reason to question the _______________________ of her dealings with us
since I know her to be “as honest as the day is long.”
6. He
inveighs against the sins of society with all the stridency of an Old Testament
prophet castigating the _____________________ of the ungodly.
7. The
wranglers suspected that there were wolves or mountain lions nearby when the
herd suddenly grew nervous and _____________________________.
8. The
Bible tells us that visitors to the court of Solomon, the great Hebrew king,
willingly paid him ______________________________.
9. For
many ancient peoples, the appearance of a comet was a fearful omen that
_______________________ great social upheaval.
10. After a few
days in which everything went my way, I suddenly learned just how
_________________________ Lady Luck can be.
11. Am I to be
____________________________ before the entire student body because I made a
few minor mistakes as a member of the Student Council?
12. The
liberties that we have inherited from our forefathers are a sacred trust that
we must pass on undiminished to our ________________________.
13. Authoritarian
governments often resort to violence and coercion in their efforts to repress
political ___________________________.
14. Our
financial situations are so different that what she considers a mere
_________________ seems a fortune to me.
15. It was the
_________________________ of its natural setting on those rolling hills that
led the architect to dub the estate “Mount
Pleasant
16. The
President has ____________________________ a policy that commits the nation to
curbing pollution.
17. “I’m afraid
that the child’s seraphic countenance belies the devilry in his heart,” I
observed sadly.
18. The
__________________________ on most cameras can be adjusted to admit more or
less light, as required.
19. Nutritionists
say that most of us could ________________________ on a great deal less food
than we actually consume.
20. Though I’m
by no means ________________________ with my money, I don’t hoard it either.
Vocabulary 15 Exercise 2
1. The
artist painted the children with ________________________ smiles to suggest
their innocence.
2. Peasants
in the nineteenth-century Ireland
3. After
the earthquake, rain and cold came through the ______________________ in the
wall of the damaged house.
4. Safeguarding
the retirement income of millions of Americans is a(n)
_____________________________ trust of the federal government.
5. The
candidate tried to ________________________ her political opponent by suggesting
that he had ties to organized crime.
6. In
comparison to the overwhelming need for food and medicine, the shipment was a
mere ______________________.
7. The
School Board __________________________ a new approach to education that
emphasized phonics.
8. The
chef took a(n) _____________________________ delight in presenting the most
delicious dishes to his demanding clientele.
9. When
I backpack there are certain basic __________________________ such as clean
sheets and a dry tent, that I find I sometimes miss.
10. The speaker
delivered a ____________________________ in honor of the award-winning author.
11. The mayor
is a person of unquestionable ________________________; his honesty is
indisputable.
12. The Bill of
Rights guarantees certain civil rights and protections to ourselves and our
__________________________.
13. When the
commanding officer announced that all leave was cancelled, there was widespread
______________________ in the ranks.
14. Some people
are so _______________________________that despite high incomes they struggle
to make ends meet.
15. The
____________________________ horse had not been taken out of the stable for
five days.
16. The
skirmishes at the border _____________________ a war.
17. English
Puritans looked upon the court that surrounded King Charles I as a den of ____________________________.
18. Upon
entering the throne room, each courtier made a respectful
__________________________ before the king and queen.
19. The
____________________________ was placed in the center of town so that everyone
could view the outlaws and their shame.
20. Recent
public opinion polls registered _____________________________opposition to the
proposed tax increases.
Vocabulary 15 exercise 3
Synonyms
1. tried to survive in a desert
_______________________________
2. dark clouds portending rain
_______________________________
3. the angelic tones of the choir
______________________________
4. challenged
the integrity of the judge
_____________________________
5. a hedonistic display of luxury
_____________________________
6. stuffed the orifice with old newspapers
______________________________
7. showed a budding interest in politics
_____________________________
8. paid respect to those who came before
her _____________________________
9. the pleasantness of a quiet garden
_____________________________
10. sacrosanct principle of equality
_____________________________
11. will be
punished for their crimes ______________________________
12. repaid a
mere modicum of what is owed
______________________________
13. announced by the public health authorities
______________________________
14. fidgety after the caffeine
_______________________________
15. a fickle disposition _______________________________
Antonyms
16. insulted the
king’s ancestors ______________________________
17. always praises those in authority ______________________________
18. gave a long diatribe on the military
______________________________
19. widespread
political agreement ______________________________
20. a thrifty manager
______________________________
Vocabulary
15 exercise 4
1. Religious
(obeisance / dissidence) was one of
the motives that led many people to leave their homes and found colonies in North America .
2. Writers
often regard their works as their (dissidence
/ progeny) in much the same way as other people regard their pets as family
members.
3. The
resounding victory we scored at the polls is an eloquent tribute to the (rectitude / dissidence) of her approach
as campaign manager.
4. As
the speaker’s remarks became more inflammatory, the crowd grew more sullen and
(nascent / restive).
5. The
novel centers on a(n) (improvident /
seraphic) young man who squanders his inheritance on riotous living and
dies in the poorhouse.
6. I
realize the official made a serous mistake, but that is no reason to (pillory /subsist) him so unmercifully
in the press.
7. We
would like to believe that the intensifying fear of ecological catastrophe (subsists / presages) an era of
environmental harmony in the near future.
8. The
cost of living has risen so sharply that a salary that was adequate a decade
ago is now no more than a mere (panegyric
/ pittance.)
9. The
new “gourmet” deli features delicacies that are bound to delight even the most
exacting of (epicurean / nascent)
palates.
10. No matter how well defended, no boundary is (inviolable / restive) unless the people
on either side of it respect each other.
11. “Angelica”
is indeed an apt name for one whose (mutable
/ seraphic) beauty is complemented by such sweetness of temper and
gentleness of spirit.
12. One cannot
expect a(n) (epicurean /nascent)
democracy to go through its early years without experiencing serious growing
pains.
13. Recently,
the Principal (promulgated / presaged)
a new dress code that abolished some of the unnecessary strictness of the old
rules.
14. Liberty
15. There was a
loophole in the law, and through this (aperture
/ obeisance) the defendant escaped the legal consequences of his crime.
16. Instead of
being so concerned with the (iniquities / apertures) of others, they would do
well to concentrate on correcting their own shortcomings.
17. The study
of government shows us that many political institutions thought to be
unchanging are in fact highly (inviolable
/ mutable).
18. Specific
customs vary widely in different lands, but the basic (affectations / amenities) of civilized living are much the same
everywhere.
19. Like so
many others of his generation, he paid unquestioning (iniquity / obeisance) to the accepted symbols of material success.
HOMEWORK: reading schedule for book. 
