Chapter 22—sophomore
1. commemorate
• Thomas devoted himself to feeding the hungry. So on the
(verb)
anniversary of his death, it seems wrong to commemorate his
life with a fancy dinner party that only the rich can attend.
• Each year, my parents commemorate their first date by
having dinner at McDonalds, the place where they first met.
a. to share
b. to celebrate
c. to believe
2. complacent
(adjective)
• Elected officials cannot afford to be complacent about
winning an election. Before long, they’ll have to campaign
again for the voters’ support.
• Getting all A’s hasn’t made Ivy complacent. She
continues to work hard at school.
a. very eager
b. reasonable
c. too much at ease
3. consensus
(noun)
• A vote revealed strong agreement among the teachers. The
consensus was that they would strike if the school band did
not act quickly to raise their pay.
• The family consensus was that we should go camping
again this summer. Ray was the only one who wanted to do
something else for a change.
a. a majority view
b. an unusual idea
c. a question
4. deplete
(verb)
• I’d like to help you out with a loan, but unexpected car
repairs have managed to deplete my bank account.
• In order not to deplete their small quantity of canned food,
the shipwreck survivors searched the island for plants they
could eat.
a. to use up
b. to forget
c. to find
5. diligent
(adjective)
• I wish I had been more diligent about practicing piano
when I was younger. It would be nice to be able to play well
now.
• Diane was lazy when she first joined the family business,
but she became so diligent that she inspired others to work
harder.
a. self-satisfied
b. lucky
c. hard-working
6. empathy
(noun)
• Families who lost loved ones in the attacks on the World
Trade Center and the Pentagon have empathy for one another
because of their shared grief.
• Ms. Allan is an excellent career counselor partly because of
her great empathy. She understands each student’s feelings
and point of view.
a. a common opinion
b. a sympathetic understanding
c. an efficiency
7. menial
(adjective)
• Victor thinks my summer job delivering pizzas is menial
work, but I’ve found that it requires some skills.
• Every job can be done with pride. Even menial jobs such
as washing windows or scrubbing floors can be done with
care.
a. unskilled
b. steady
c. satisfying
8. niche
(noun)
• Although her degree was in accounting, Laura decided her
niche was really in business management, so she went back
to school for more training.
• Dom spent the years after college moving restlessly from
job to job, never finding a comfortable niche for himself.
a. a shared opinion b. a suitable place
c. an education
9. transcend
(verb)
• The psychic convinced her clients that she could transcend
time and space and talk directly with the dead.
• Yoga can help one transcend the cares of the world and
reach a state of relaxation.
a. to participate in
b. to go past
c. to use up
10. waive
(verb)
• The defendant decided to waive his right to an attorney and,
instead, speak for himself in court.
• Since Lin had studied so much math on her own, the school
waived the requirement that she take high school algebra.
a. to lose
b. to honor
c. to give up
1. __________
2. __________
3. __________
4. __________
5. __________
6. __________
7. __________
8. __________
9. __________
10. _________
Not requiring special skills or higher intellectual abilities
The ability to share in someone else’s feelings or thoughts
To rise above or go beyond the limits of; to exceed
To honor the memory of someone or something as with a ceremony
To willingly give up (as a claim, privilege, or right); do without
An opinion held by everyone (or almost everyone) involved
Feeling too much satisfaction with oneself or one’s accomplishments
Steady, determined, and careful in work
An activity or situation especially suited to a person
To use up
commemorate
complacent
consensus
deplete
diligent
menial
empathy
niche
transcend
waive
1. The old man decided to _________ any claim he had to the family fortune,
preferring to see the money go to the younger generation.
2. The American Inventors’ Association gathered at a banquet to ________
Thomas Edison.
3. My grandfather, who’s recovering from heart surgery, is weak, so it doesn’t
take much effort for him to ________ the little energy he has.
4. Many believe that Shakespeare’s works __________ those of all other authors.
5. The restaurant got off to a good start, but then the owners became ______
about their success and stopped trying to attract new customers.
6. Several sessions with a career counselor helped Suzanne consider what her
__________ in the working world might be.
7. The children help out at the family restaurant, but they are able to perform only
__________ tasks such as mopping floors and cleaning tables.
8. Arnie has been ______ in his study of German because he hopes to speak the
language with his relatives from Germany when they visit next summer.
9. I had hoped the restaurant would be good, but our group’s _________ was that
the food was only so-so and the service was even worse.
10. Dr. Grange is a brilliant mathematician, but she lacks ________for her
students. She doesn’t understand how they can find some problems so difficult.
commemorate
complacent
consensus
deplete
diligent
menial
empathy
niche
transcend
waive
At Eastman High School reunions, the conversation usually gets around to the
question, “Who was the best teacher in school?” And year after year, the (1)__________
of the graduates has been that Mr. MacDonald was the best. Many remember Joe
MacDonald as the epitome of teaching—the teacher against whom they measured all
others.
He had started his professional life as a highly paid attorney. However, never at
home with the law, he left his lucrative practice and found his (2)_____________ as an
English teacher in the shabby classrooms of Eastman. Mr. MacDonald somehow helped
his students (3) _________________ their broken-down surroundings and experience the
magic in the words of Shakespeare, Dickinson, or Frost. Even those who tended to shun
reading began to think there might be something to this literature stuff after all.
Mr. MacDonald’s enthusiasm for his work was never (4) _____________d. In
fact, instead of being used up, his zeal actually increased through the years. Other
teachers became (5) _______________ about their work and did only cursory lesson
preparation. But Mr. MacDonald was as (6)________________ as an eager first-year
teacher. He could often be found talking with students after school, as his great
(7) _____________ had given him the reputation of being someone who understands
students’ problems. He was fun, too. On the first really beautiful spring day of each
year, he’d (8) ________________ his lesson plan and take the class out into the sunshine
to sit under the blue sky and talk about literature. And no task was too (9)____________
for him. He was often seen picking up trash from the grounds—something other teachers
would never condescend to do.
After Mr. MacDonald’s retirement, his former students wanted to honor him in
some way. They thought about a statue, but decided to (10) _____________ his teaching
in the way that he’d like best, with a college scholarship for an Eastman student, which
was established in his name.