Л.И. Швыдкая
ПРАКИЧЕСКИЙ КУРС АНГЛИЙСКОЙ
ЛЕКСИКОЛОГИИ
ENGLISH LEXICOLOGY
TEST BOOK
I
Учебник
3-е издание, стереотипное
Москва
Издательство «ФЛИНТА»
2014
УДК 811.111(075.8)
ББК 81.2Англ
Ш358
Р е ц е н з е н т ы :
кандидат филологических наук, профессор Нижегородского государственного
лингвистического университета
И.М. Деева
доктор филологических наук, профессор Санкт-Петербургского
института внешнеэкономических связей, экономики и права
В.В. Кабакчи
доктор филологических наук, профессор Волгоградского
государственного педагогического университета
В.И. Карасик
Ш358
Швыдкая Л.И.
Практический курс английской лексикологии.: в 2-х ч. Ч. I [Электронный
ресурс] : учебник / Л.И. Швыдкая. – 3-е изд., стер. – М. :ФЛИНТА, 2014. — 372 с.
ISBN 978-5-9765-2027-1
English Lexicology Test Book является учебником нового типа, в котором
органически сочетаются теоретические положения с обширным фактическим материалом.
Впервые в практике преподавания лексикологии использован метод тестирования Multi-ple
Choice, позволяющий выработать автоматический навык соединения теории и практики, а
также обеспечить эффективный контроль и самоконтроль.
Часть I содержит разделы по этимологии и словообразованию; часть II – по системным
отношениям лексики, семантике, идиоматике. Завершает учебник раздел на повторение,
включающий три полноформатных теста. Все разделы учебника и серии заданий имеют
идентичную структуру: от идентификации параметров и механизма создания явления до
узуального и окказионального употребления в разных функциональных стилях. Все задания
снабжены ключами ответов.
Учебник предназначен для студентов факультетов иностранных языков, аспирантов,
филологов широкого профиля, переводчиков, преподавателей и специалистов в области
лингвистики, а также широкого круга лиц, планирующих сдачу экзаменов для получения
одного из сертификатов международного образца.
УДК 811.111(075.8)
ББК 81.2Англ
ISBN 978-5-9765-2027-1
© Издательство «ФЛИНТА», 2014
CONTENTS
Introduction
4
Etymological and Cultural Background of the English Vocabulary
8
Word Formation
Morphological Structure of English Words
53
Affixation (Derivation)
58
Compounding
176
Conversion
260
Abbreviation
307
Blending
342
Backformation
354
Answer Keys
368
Index
382
3
INTRODUCTION
English Lexicology Test Book is written for undergraduate and
postgraduate students, specialists in linguistic theory and practice, and
teachers of English. The material for the book is carefully chosen from classical and contemporary British and American sources to meet the particular
needs of students majoring in English linguistics. The logic behind the construction of this book rests on a systematic and repetitive study of principal
theoretical and practical issues of English Lexicology.
This book can teach students the fundamentals of English Lexicology, and in this process help them dramatically increase awareness of and
confidence with words and their usage, as well as expand their vocabulary.
The pedagogic assumptions underlying the theory and construction
of this book are that human beings generally do not recall the details of
what they learn and read and often do not retain what they believe they have
learned. Thus, merely studying theory and isolated theoretical issues and
topics only to the point of recall is not sufficient for long term retension and
effective linguistic practice. This book seeks to combine theory and practice
by getting students to repeatedly review and participate in the systematic
process of analyzing, defining and comparing thousands of words, word
parts and phrases, and using repetition and comparison inherent in this procedure as a means of acquiring and honing linguistic skills. The multiplechoice format of this book encourages learners to determine the correct answer by using theoretical, contextual and dictionary-based information.
Reading and analyzing a broad assortment of texts will expose students to a
large stock of words and a variety of styles. Where quotes or excerpts are
used, the authors’ original spelling and punctuation are preserved.
English Lexicology Test Book consists of two parts. Each of which
is divided into sections, complementing and supplementing the others. Part
One deals with the problems of etymology, morphological structure of English words, word-building (affixation, compounding, conversion, abbreviation, blending, back-formation). Part Two is concerned with semantic and
systematic analysis of the vocabulary, idioms, British and American English, etc. Besides, Part Two comprises a revision section with three final
tests. Each part has answer keys and a cross-reference subject index at the
end. This arrangement helps students to focus upon the principles and par-
4
ticulars presented in each section, which features a definite subject area (abbreviations, for instance); but to ensure that they not only learn certain lexicological facts, but that they can also connect them with other problems, the
same issues appear over and over again in different sections and in different
contexts and different wording. So by learning something new students will
be reviewing the already familiar points. The subject index should prove
very useful for both student and instructor when learning or reviewing the
material; it serves to show where additional information about this or that
issue can be found in the book.
Each principal section of the book (with the exception of final tests
and answer keys) is based on a similar pattern: a short theoretical survey of
the problem with concise definitions of all essential issues dealt with in the
section, and a number of multiple-choice assignments (quizzes). The theoretical preamble to each section will motivate students by giving them a
head start and making the quizzes less imposing. However, because of
space limitations, theoretical information is highly compressed. Multiplechoice quizzes and tests are designed to help students focus on, understand
and remember how this or that linguistic phenomenon can be actualized in a
practical study. Assignments in each quiz and qiuizzes within each section
are arranged in an order of ascending complexity. More complex and/or
optional tasks are marked with an asterisk.
Quizzes show some variations in format:
1. Four-option multiple-choice assignments of the type “Each of
the following sets contains... Can you identify it?”, comprising ten or more
sets, each having four choices marked A..., B..., C..., D...; and of the type
“Identify the following ... as: A... B... C... D...” with a number of texts for
analysis to follow.
2. Multiple-choice matching assignments given in a two-column
format, with the left column (or column one) comprising definitions or sentences with blanks to be filled in with appropriate words or phrases listed in
column two (right column). Issues for analysis are printed in boldface.
The three final tests cover the lexicology minimum every student
should acquire by the time of course completion. They are designed to give
students an intensive review of the fundamentals of the lexicology course.
Each final test consists of 70 assignments covering the principal issues of
the course. The final tests not only provide valuable reinforcement material,
but can also be used as a diagnostic tool. Both major sections and final tests
5
include a number of short jokes for students to determine the underlying
lexicological phenomenon.
All assignments can be done either in class as group activities or
on an individual-student basis. The instructor should use his or her own
discretion in differentiating classwork and homework and the number and
type of quizzes for pass, good and excellent grades.
To the Student
How to use this book?
Spend some time browsing through the book to become familiar
with its organization and content so that you can determine which areas will
be of greater benefit to you. Then you can return to the beginning of the
book and proceed with a more systematic study.
Carefully preview all the introductory theoretical material with
term definitions and examples preceding each set of quizzes in a section.
Then read all the sentences or words given in a quiz set; each will
add to your understanding of the task. Try to discover the correct answer by
comparing the definitions and usages of the words and their parts and seeing
how one is similar to or different from the others. In addition to discussing
why the answer is correct, it is useful to discuss the inapproprietness of other choices as a way to differentiate between various issues. There is only
one correct answer in each set. If you cannot find the right answer, look it
up in the answer key and then go back to the theoretical part and the same
quiz to understand your mistake. If necessary, refer to fundamental lexicology books for a more thorough and comprehensive theoretical treatment of
the problem. But be careful, as quite a number of definitions and particulars
are diffrent from those found in other books and present the author’s original approach to some problems, including more detailed classifications.
After you finish each section, leaf back over the pages with the
quizzes you’ve just done as a kind of quick review, and make note of basic
principles of the phenomenon. Be sure that you use the cross-reference subject index provided at the end of the book to direct you quickly to the same
issue treated in a different linguistic format. Repeating the same issue in a
diffrent setting may have a powerful effect. Dare to be repetitious until you
can recognize and solve a lexicological problem immediately.
Make a practice of looking up words, their etymologies, proper usage, etc., in a dictionary. Thus by the end of this course you will not only
6
become well-versed in the fundamentals and particulars of English lexicology, but you will also learn hundreds of new words and their usage.
Final test results can help you determine your proficiency in English Lexicology. If the number of your total correct answers in each test is
60 –76%, you achieve the minimum succesful performance – a pass grade
(satisfactory); good – 77-90%; excellent – 91-100% of correct answers.
Do not mark your answers in the book.
Now on to the work!
ABBREVIATIONS
adj., adjective
adv., adverb
AF, Anglo-French
Aus., Australian
BE, Brit., British English
c., century
cf., compare
Chin., Chinese
cogn., cognate
conj., conjunction
Du., Dutch
E.g., for example
esp., especially
f., fr., from
F., Fr., French
Flem., Flemish
Germ., German
Gk, Greek
Gmc, Germanic
Goth., Gothic
Heb., Hebrew
Hind., Hindi, Hindustani
It., Ital., Italian
L., Lat., Latin
LG, Low German
LL, Late Latin
ME, Middle English
MLG, Middle Low German
n., noun
OE, Old English
OF, Old French
OHG, Old High German
ON, Old Norse
OS, Old Saxon
perh., perhaps
Pers., Persian
pl., plural
Port., Portuguese
prec., preceding
prep., preposition
pron., pronoun
Rom., Roman, Romanic
Russ., Russian
sl., slang
Sp., Spanish
US, American English
v., verb
v.i., verb intransitive
v.t., verb transitive
w., word
7
ETYMOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL BACKGROUND OF THE
ENGLISH VOCABULARY
Etymology, a branch of linguistics concerned with the origin and
development of words, phrases, morphemes, etc.
Etymology, the historically verifiable sources of the formation of a word
and the development of its meaning; an account of these. (fr. Gk etymos
true, real; logos treating of, discourse)
Origin of the word, the language to which the word may be traced.
E.g., tea of Chinese origin (Amoi dial.) t’e = Mandarin dial. ch’a
Source of the word, the language from which the word was taken into
English.
E.g., tea in the 17th c. from Dutch thee: Dutch is the source-language.
Native word, a word which belongs to the original English wordstock.
E.g., man, wood, to sit, red
Native Word Types
1. Words of common Indo-European word-stock with cognates in other
languages of Indo-European family (Latin, Greek, Russian, Sanskrit,
etc.)
E.g., foot: Lat. ped; Gk pod; Russ. пята
red: Lat. rufus; Russ. рдеть, руда
2. Words of common Germanic word-stock with cognates in other
languages of Germanic group (Danish, Dutch, German, Icelandic,
Norwegian, Swedish, Gothic, etc.)
E.g., house: OE hus; OS, OHG, ON hus; Goth. hus
man: OE man(n); OS, OHG man; ON mathr; Goth. Manna;
Germ. der Mann
3. Words of English word-stock without cognates found in other
languages.
E.g., kite: OE cÿta
wench: OE wencel
witch: OE wicca, wicce
8
Borrowing, the process of taking over a word, phrase, morpheme or
meaning from another language.
Loan-word (loan, borrowing, borrowed word), a word taken over from
another language and modified in phonemic shape, spelling, paradigm
and/or meaning according to the standards of the English language.
E.g., umbrella fr. Italian ombrella
verst
fr. Russian верста
butter
fr. Latin butyrum
Mechanism of Borrowing:
1. Transcription, the rendering of the sound form of a foreign word by
the characters of the alphabet of another language.
E.g., samurai fr. Japanese; shekel fr. Hebrew sheqel
2. Transliteration, the rendering of a letter or letters of one alphabet by
equivalents in another.
E.g., sputnik fr. Russian спутник
3. Transplantation, the transferring of a word from one language into
another, without changing its graphic form.
E.g., pêche, a peach-flavoured alcoholic drink, especially sparkling
wine (fr. French) … crowd which had turned up at Øvrevoll for the
Norsk Grand National … (Francis. Slay…) (fr. Norwegian)
4. Loanshift (semantic calque), a change in the meaning of a word resulting
from the influence of a corresponding word in a foreign language.
E.g., collegium
1. a collegiate church
2. an independent and self-governing ecclesiastical body
uncontrolled by the state
3. a group of officials, headed by a commissar, who are in charge
of a commissariat in Soviet Russia. fr. Russ. коллегия
5. Loan translation (calque), a word-for-word or morpheme-formorpheme translation from another language, without changing the
word structure or sequence of elements.
E.g., masterpiece fr. German Meister (master) + Stück (piece)
decembrist fr. Russian декабрист
cult of personality fr. Russian культ личности
6. Semi-calque, a combination of transliteration or transplantation with
loan translation.
E.g., Third Reich fr. German Drittes Reich
9
You may wish to shop in the Beriozka Shop in your hotel
or in Moscow. (H.A.W.) fr. Russian магазин «Берёзка»
Etymological doublets, two or more words of the same language which
were derived by different routes from the same basic word (i.e. words of the
same origin).
E.g., break: OE brecan, OS brekan, Goth. brikan, fr. Gmc *brekan
breach: ME breche, fr. OF breche, fr. Gmc *brekan
shirt: OE scyrte, ON skyrta, fr. Gmc skurtjōn
skirt: ME fr. ON skyrta
Folk (popular) etymology, a popular modification of the form of a word, in
order to render it apparently significant; an attempt to find motivation for a
borrowed word.
E.g., “I think, therefore I am” was said by the philosopher Day Cart.
(Lederer. Fractured…) (Descartes, René, French philosopher, physicist and
mathematician)
Grayhound, slender, long-legged keen-sighted dog used in coursing hares
etc.
OE grīghund, ON greyhundr = grey (bitch) + hundr (dog)
Assimilation of loanwords (adaptation, naturalization), partial or total
conformation to the phonetical, graphical and morphological standards of
the receiving language and its semantic structure, and the beginning of its
development according to the laws of this language.
Degree of assimilation of loanwords:
1. Completely assimilated words cannot be distinguished from native
words either phonetically, graphically, morphologically or semantically.
E.g., street, sport, spouse
2. Partially assimilated words
A. Phonetically and/or graphically non-assimilated words possess
phonetic and/or spelling features of the source-word.
E.g., garage, machine, zucchini, café
B. Morphologically (grammatically) non-assimilated words retain
their foreign plurals.
E.g., crisis – crises; erratum – errata; formula – formulae
C. Semantically non-assimilated words denote phenomena of a
foreign culture.
E.g., the Kremlin, kasha, blini (Russ.)
10
2.
Words resisting assimilation (non-assimilated loan words)
E.g., i. e. (that is) (Lat.); Sturm und Drang (Germ.); Mon ami (Fr.)
Cultural Orientation of Words
1. Culturally neutral words: form words (articles, conjunctions,
auxiliary verbs, etc.)
2. Culturally universal words – polyonyms – may be used in reference
to any culture.
E.g., house, room, boy, telephone, stove
3. Culturally oriented words (realia):
A. idionyms, internal cultural terms, denoting cultural peculiarities
of English-speaking countries and peoples.
E.g., Green Beret (U.S.), the City (Brit.)
B. xenonyms, external cultural terms
E.g., borscht (Russ.), tanka (Japanese)
International words, words of identical origin that occur in several
languages as a result of simultaneous or successive borrowings from one
ultimate source.
E.g., школа (Russ.), school, l’ecole (Fr.), la escuela (Sp.), die Schule
(Germ.), kool (Estonian), etc., fr. schōle (Gk)
False friends, words that have the same or similar form in two (or more)
languages but different meanings in each.
E.g., …copies of Horse and Hound and Country Life filled a magazine rack
to overflowing. (Francis. Longshot)
Продуктовый магазин
Interrelation between Etymological Background of English Words and
Their Cultural Orientation
11
Native
Origin
Neutral
A
The
You
But
With
Of
Cultural Orientation
Polyonyms
Idionyms
House of
Summer
Lords (Brit.)
Fire
Township
Gold
(US)
House
Freshman
Man
(US)
Internationalisms
Sweater
Twist (dance)
Break (dance)
Hobby
Loan
She
They
Them
Though
Internationalisms
School
University
Tennis
Art
Justice
Kibitzer
Country
Sky
Skate
Associate
(US)
Sophomore
(US)
The Tower
(Brit.)
The City
(Brit.)
Placido
(Brit. sl. ₤10)
Xenonyms
Black
Hundred
(Russ.)
Goose-step
(Germ.)
Thaw
(Russ.)
Igloo
(Eskimo)
Kibbutz
(Heb.)
Shah
(Pers.)
Kolkhoz
(Russ.)
Gai-ge
(Chin.)
QUIZ ONE
Identify the following native words as of
A. common Indo-European word-stock
B. common Germanic word-stock
C. English word-stock
1. It takes two to speak the truth ... one to speak, another to hear.
(Reminisce)
2. Humor is the harmony of the heart. (Reminisce)
12
3. “Boy, I’m hungry,” Michaelangelo said. He looked at the kitchen
cabinets. (Hiller)
4. A candle loses none of its light by lighting another candle. (Reminisce)
5. Our days are happier when we give people a bit of our heart rather than a
piece of our mind. (Reminisce)
6. Put your will in neutral so that God can shift you. (Reminisce)
7. Rovill ... is a fairly nifty spot where a chappie without encumbrances in
the shape of aunts might spend a somewhat genial week or so.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
8. ... the cluster of cold half-undressed men round the red-hot coke stove.
(Francis. Dead…)
9. Angella Brickell, 17, employed as a ‘lad’ by prominent racehorse trainer
Tremayne Vickers, failed to turn up for work on Tuesday afternoon and
hasn’t been seen in the stables since. (Francis. Longshot)
10. I was in pretty good eyebrow-raising form by now, so I gave him a
touch of it. (Wodehouse. Life…)
11. “What’s his name?” I asked. (Francis. Dead…)
12. Worry pulls tomorrow’s cloud over today’s sunshine. (Reminisce)
13. He asked, “Is our application getting anywhere?” (Hailey. Strong…)
14. This is the point. Here we approach the nub. (Wodehouse. Life…)
15. A grudge is one thing that does not get better when it is nursed.
(Reminisce)
16. ‘Well, I’ll be popping. Toodle-oo!’
‘Pip-pip!’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
17. “Which witch is which?” Jane Smart asked. (Updike)
18. The smallest light is seen in the darkest night. (Reminisce)
19. The manor was situated on a ledge near a wooded combe. (Clark. The
Anastasia…)
20. Faith is the bird that sings while it’s still dark. (Reminisce)
21. ... I suddenly heard a groan so lost-soulish ... (Wodehouse. Life…)
22. ... she was a bit too ingratiating. (Updike)
23. You know, they should make this show into a movie! (Hiller)
24. I weighed this. It was specious, of course. (Wodehouse. Life…)
25. A closed mouth gathers no foot. (Reminisce)
26. They had come to hate Sonny for his bloodthirstiness, which they
considered barbaric. (Puzo)
27. My body grew, but my brain grew even more. I got smarter and smarter
as they got bigger and bigger. (Hiller)
13
28. At Cannes she had been a happy, smiling English girl of best type, full
of beans and buck. (Wodehouse. Life…)
29. What I mean to say is, if you’ve finished exercising the old bean, it’s
probably in mid-season form for tackling problems. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
30. I found him eventually in his room lying on the bed with his feet on the
rail, smoking a toofah. (Wodehouse. Life…)
31. It was the ultimate weapon – the sixth sense. (Hiller)
32. The most highly flammable kind of wood is the chip on the shoulder.
(Reminisce)
33. ‘Do listen for a second.’
‘I won’t.’
‘Right ho, then. I am dumb.’
‘And have been from a child.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
34. ‘All you have to do,’ I said, ‘is to carry on here for a few weeks more,
and everything will be oojah-cum-spiff.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
35. “... when I was a child,” he remembered with glee, “she used to rush
behind a curtain if her husband brought home a strange man ...” (Hunter)
36. A housewife called out with a frown
When surprised by some callers from town,
”In a minute or less
I’ll slip on a dress” –
But she slipped on the stairs and came down. (Topsy-Turvy World)
37. ... one of the largest and shortest-tempered swans I had ever seen.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
38. Splinter was terrific, there was no doubt about it and the Turtles agreed
on it, but sometimes the ninja stuff went just a little bit too far for their
teenage hearts. (Hiller)
39. She gasped for breath and then began babbling. She thought she was
dead. (Hiller)
40. “Wow.” He turned it over and looked at his own face. “It’s really cool.”
(Francis. Longshot)
QUIZ TWO
Match each Russian word with its native English cognate.
14
1. Дом
A. home
B. house C. timber
2. Болото
A. bog
B. pool
C. pull
3. Овца
A. ewe
B. lamb
C. sheep
4. Полный
A. plenty B. full
C. pond
5. Говядина
A. beef
B. veal
C. calf
6. Пламя
A. fire
B. fever
C. flame
7. Дерево
A. trefoil B. timber
C. draw
8. Клёвый
A. clever B. claymore C. cleaver
9. Груда
A. gross B. great
C. grade
10.Полк
A. polk B. pollack C. polka
D. dome
D. mire
D. ram
D. fool
D. cow
D. blush
D. tree
D. clear
D. ground
D. folk
QUIZ THREE
Identify the source-language of the following boldface words as
A. Arabic
H. Italian
B. Chinese
I. Japanese
C. Dutch
J. Latin
D. French (Old French)
K. Old Norse (Scandinavian)
E. German
L. Russian
F. Greek
M. Spanish
G. Hindi
N. Yiddish
1. . .. h e w as app roa ch ed b y a rep res en ta tive of Fe ld ing- Roth
Pharmaceuticals with an invitation to “come aboard”– a euphemism for
an offer of employment ... (Hailey. Strong…)
2. It may be illegal to drive one-handed, but coffee does help. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
15
3. Her face cleared as if automatically: the thought of the baby could
diminish to trivia the grimmest forebodings. (Francis. Longshot)
4. And the whip whirled them away, slamming the fair and the midway
into a tilted blur of lights and faces ... (King. The Dead…)
5. It’s thought that the pyramids grew out of the mastabas of the Pharaohs
and noblemen who preceded them. (Hunter)
6. She stopped, looked at him with compassion and waited. (Reader’s
Digest)
7. I have another nudnick here wants a round table like King Arthur’s.
(Barnhart)
8. ... old-fashioned Rubenslike nudes. (Barnhart)
9. Guberniya, a territorial subdivision or province in Russia before 1917.
(Barnhart)
10. She was a victim of the most common form of mental illness,
schizophrenia – a loss of touch with reality, a disintegration of
personality. (Barnhart)
11. Don’t be such an apologetic schnook. (Chapman)
12. Lieberman was the worst. Lieberman was a real zshlub. (Chapman)
13. His ... BBC cookery series has been repeated so often, and the book of the
series has sold so many copies, ... that he has been responsible for more
people learning to wok than anyone else in history. (Ayto)
14. ... there isn’t anybody who really does much in the way of harrying me.
It seemed to me that the skies were blue, so to speak, and no clouds in
sight. (Wodehouse. Life…)
15. Here too the upholstered armchairs around the trestle table were
obviously expensive. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
16. I got down to the agenda in my debonair way. (Wodehouse. Life…)
17. The World Bank ... has long been one of the biggest issuers in Tokyo’s
market for samurai bonds. (Ayto)
18. ... He declares that, while on his way from the Devonshire Club to Boodle’s,
he suddenly saw the phantasm of Eustace. (Wodehouse. Life…)
19. “Pizza dude’s got thirty seconds,” he grumbled. (Hiller)
20. She’d just been attacked by four thugs who were in the middle of a
robbery. (Hiller)
21. ‘You feel that Miss Angela’s strictures should not be taken too much au
pied de la lettre, sir?’
‘Eh ?’
‘In English we should say “literally”.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
16
22. “You’ve been on both sides of business,” she pointed out. “Prescription
drugs and O-T-C. Tell me what you see as differences between them.”
“It’s pretty basic. O-T-C is mostly hype.... I guess you’ve discovered
that from studying costs. ... As we both know, a prescription drug costs
millions to research and takes five, six years before it’s ready for selling.
With an O-T-C item, you need six months or less to formulate the stuff,
and the cost is peanuts ...” (Hailey. Strong…)
23. The agency’s middle-aged creative man. (Hailey. Strong…)
24. Actually I took it for granted, as just a fact of life. (Francis. Longshot)
25. Doctors had recently diagnosed the baby girl as having a central nervous
system disorder ... (Hailey. Strong…)
26. “Yes. We’ve got two detectives finding out everything they can about
the Ross woman. …” (Clark. Weep…)
27. I am quite aware that in a weekly journal space is a desideratum.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
28. The guide book said the tree was a sycamore. (Hunter)
29. He believes that his departed comrades would be “proud” of all the
media hoopla. (Newsweek)
30. ‘Well, then, dash it, I’m on velvet, absolutely reclining on the good old
plush! …’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
31. She legged it into the sitting room and volplaned into a chair. (Wodehouse. Life…)
32. My schedule, which is on a tag that you tie to your robe, showed me as
having two water aerobics classes, a yoga class, a facial, a massage, two
dance classes ... (Clark. Weep…)
33. Jeeves has always been a whale for the psychology of the individual...
(Wodehouse. Life…)
34. ‘... She came to tell me I’d got to distribute the prizes at some beastly
seminary she’s a governor of down at Market Snodsbury.’ (Wodehouse.
Life…)
35. I saw that I had been wrong in supposing that the stars were not germane
to the issue. (Wodehouse. Life…)
36. I hopped out with some briskness and, slipping a couple of towels about
my limbs and torso, made for the sitting-room. (Wodehouse. Life…)
37. Mrs. Lyle had been pleased that Victoria had been remembered by her
father, but she had been quite adamant that nothing was going to make
her leave the comfortable shores of England again. (Hunter)
38. “Looks like you’re the one who needs the lesson,” the masked man said.
(Hiller)
17
39. Nearby, two hoodlums grabbed a little old lady’s purse and began
running away with it – toward Raph! (Hiller)
40. We knew about Khasekhem himself, of course, because his statues and
steles had been found in Hierakonpolis. (Hunter)
QUIZ FOUR
Identify the origin of the boldface words in Quiz Three as
A. Arabic
H. Japanese
B. Chinese
I. Latin
C. French
J. Old Norse (Scandinavian)
D. German(ic)
K. Russian
E. Greek
L. Sanskrit
F. Hindi
M. Spanish
G. Italian
N. Yiddish
QUIZ FIVE
Identify the mechanism of borrowing in the following boldface words as
A. calque (loan translation)
B. loanshift (semantic calque)
C. transcription
D. transliteration
E. transplantation
F. semi-calque
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
18
He spun round just in time to see Mrs. Parsons dragging her son back
into the doorway while the boy pocketed a catapult. (Orwell)
He went to the delicatessen where he bought salmon, pâté, crackers,
and grapes. (Clark. Remember…)
Mr Lebed’s arrival in the Kremlin has given Mr Yeltsin’s ticket a fresh
appeal to nationalist and law-and-order voters alike. (The Economist)
Mr Grachev and Mr Barsukov were reported to be resting this week at
their dachas. (The Economist)
The difficulty is going to be how to admit the mistake without losing
face. (Clark. Word…)
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
The German defense minister works from the building in Berlin where
officers plotted Hitler’s assassination, and Chancellor Helmut Kohl
actually brought the sons of three of those coup plotters to Paris with
him last week. (Newsweek)
Across Russia, Ukraine and the other former Soviet states, profound
ignorance about AIDS is still normal. (Newsweek)
The word “gaige” – Chinese for perestroika – is on the lips of every
official from the lowliest party secretary to the most senior member of
the Poliburo. (Ayto)
Some things are sold as they were found, others are transformed;
kelims for example are used to cover sofas and armchairs. (Ayto)
Juliette put her arm round her. “It’s best not to think of it, chérie.
Whoever it was will not try that trick again to get rid of you…”
(Hunter)
Viktor Chernomyrdin, 59, prime minister since December 1992.
Previously ran Gazprom, Russia’s national gas monopoly. (Economist)
It looks as though he [Rupert Murdoch] may swing it: get the bulk of
his journalists to accept cash inducements and opt for the new premises
(though a brave 30 refuseniks at the Sunday Times were still saying
no). (Ayto)
But if Russia doesn’t help the former republics, says Yeltsin’s adviser
Andranik Migranyan, “the opposition will say [Yeltsin] opposes
restoration of the union.” (Newsweek)
Before ordering the trousseau, there is one little point she wants
cleared up. (Wodehouse. Life…)
They were instructed in escrima, aiki-jutsu and ninjutsu, and shown
how each provides different forms of defence against unarmed
attackers or assailants using swords, knives, sticks and firearms. (Ayto)
With his bo, a four-foot-long staff that had pointed ends, he could fix
most of his enemies. (Hiller)
The upper echelons of Russian law enforcement no doubt include their
share of unreconstructed former KGB officers; other members just as
certainly are working for the mob. (Newsweek)
The Brezhnev era’s other contribution to the development of a criminal
culture was to allow to return in force of a class of Russian godfathers
known as vory v zakone, or thieves-in-law. (The Economist)
19
19. Two days later 200 members of a German panzer division helped
celebrate Bastille Day in Paris by rolling down the Champs-Elysées in
armored personnel carriers bearing the Iron Cross. (Newsweek)
20. Juliette stared at her, unable to believe her ears. “C’est incroyable!
That it should be this one, who knows nothing, who should now control
the finances of the whole expedition!” (Hunter)
21. “Maybe all that hardware’s for making cole slaw.” Nobody laughed
(Hiller)
22. Khozraschiot [sic] means the end of huge subsidies to inefficient
enterprises, which will result in closures and lay-offs. (Ayto)
23. … I’ve got to fill him and fiancée with rich food … (Wodehouse. Life…)
24. Former East Germans, whose army aped the Wehrmacht right down to
the goose step, tend to be dubious. (Newsweek)
25. In the industrialized east, decrepit factories and mines lost suppliers and
markets overnight with the breakup of the U.S.S.R. (Newsweek)
26. A man who has spent 17 years in prison camps for criminal offenses,
he now has his own political party and television station, plus a letter
from Patriarch of the Orthodox church blessing his charity work. (The
Economist)
27. At 6 p.m. Monday, TASS, the Soviet News Agency, reported falsely
that Gorbachev was ill and had yielded his powers temporarily to
Yanayev. (The Economist)
28. I never thought I would see the fall of the Soviet Union – the break-up
of it – during my lifetime. (This Week)
29. Iron Cross, Velvet Glove. Germany: The Bundeswehr is back in
business. Now the military faces the challenge of training good soldiers
– instead of blind followers. (Newsweek)
30. His kishkas were gripped by the iron hand of outrage and frustration.
(Chapman)
QUIZ SIX
Match the words with the language and definitions.
1. a wear thing, in Japanese
A. sake
B. kimono
C. harakiri
20
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
D. samurai
a children’s garden, in German
A. a créche
B. a day nursery
C. kindergarten
D. day-care
a powdered chemical, in Arabic
A. alcohol
B. coffee
C. cocoa
D. gun-powder
a keepsake, remembrance, in French
A. memento
B. memorandum
C. souvenir
D. token
offense, to trap with a springing device, in Greek
A. scaffold
B. snare
C. trap
D. scandal
a little bag, a pouch, in old French
A. budget
B. bursary
C. knapsack
D. purse
leisure, in Greek
A. symposium
B. school
C. pastime
D. sport
to go about in a circle, in Latin
A. orbit
B. surround
C. seek
D. search
the smallest Venetian coin, in Italian
A. centesimo
21
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
22
B. gazette
C. magazine
D. centime
the palm of the hand, in old English
A. glove
B. wrist
C. mitt
D. fist
management of a household, in Greek
A. ecosphere
B. ecocide
C. economy
D. ecology
the nomad race, thought to have come from Egypt, in English
A. gypsy
B. bedouin
C. arab
D. romany
a belt, girdle, in Greek
A. area
B. zone
C. circle
D. equator
a trombonelike instrument invented and named by comedian Bob
Burns, in American English
A. blowpipe
B. missile
C. bagpipe
D. bazooka
foot of a crane, in Old French
A. pedicure
B. pedestal
C. pedigree
D. peduncle
lion’s tooth, in Old French
A. dandiprat
B. lionet
C. dandelion
D. dentin
17. hearth, fireplace, in Latin
A. core
B. focus
C. fo’c’sle
D. center
18. a beak, in Latin
A. rostrum
B. roster
C. pitch
D. beak
19. labours, works, in Latin
A. toil
B. pains
C. proceeds
D. opera
20. to leap at or upon, in Latin
A. offend
B. insult
C. injure
D. affront
QUIZ SEVEN
Each of the following sets contains an etymological doublet of the uppercase word. Can you identify it?
1.
2.
… and as a tinker came by just at the time, she quickly gave him the
pudding, which he put into his BUDGET, and went away. (Folk Tales)
A. She always stays within her budget. (Barnhart)
B. The witness would not budge from his first statement. (Barnhart)
C. The apples bulged his pockets. (Barnhart)
D. Scientists have known for years that psittacosis … is carried by
parrots and budgies. (Barnhart)
You know it’s going to be a bad day when you turn on the news and
they’re displaying emergency ROUTES out of your city.
A. The pigs rooted up the garden. (Barnhart)
23
3.
4.
5.
24
B. The enemy was in full rout. (Barnhart)
C. She’d just had her hair tinted yesterday, so now it was again a soft
red, and all the gray had been firmly routed. (Clark. The
Lottery…)
D. Political circumstances have forced him to oppose the Marples
programme root and branch. (Barnhart)
‘Bonzo must be a good forty marks behind by now. Only some
sensational and spectacular outrage upon the public WEAL on the part
of young Thos could have enabled him to wipe out the lead. And of that
there is now, apparently, no chance.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
A. You know this place very well – you seem to know all the paths.
(Christie. Halloween… )
B. It’s a good local story, but there is a wishing well over at Little
Belling. (Christie. Halloween…)
C. Weal, a streak or ridge raised on the skin by a stick or whip.
(Webster)
D. Wale, a ridge on the surface of cloth, as corduroy; texture of cloth.
(Webster)
I mixed myself a BEAKER … (Wodehouse. Life…)
A. … his manager told him he had to think along with the pitcher
when he was at bat and Yogi began grumbling. ‘How can you
think and hit at the same time?’ he asked. (Pepe)
B. Be especially careful not to swear in front of little children. Little
pitchers have long ears. (Makkai)
C. Mr. Alleman showed … the corn picker with which he can pick
twenty acres of corn in a ten-hour day. (Barnhart)
D. The beak-buster in the opening round was the first punch Moore
had thrown. (Chapman)
Denny Pennington put down his pool CUE. (Hiller)
A. Change the settings to Arizona and cue in some songs for Doris
Day. (Chapman)
B. Dolly Parton, left, stuck to her kewpie-doll look (those shoes
weren’t made for walking). (Newsweek)
C. Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean. (Barnhart)
D. “The English have really everything in common with the
Americans, except, of course, language,” said Oscar Wilde when
he heard that audiences in New York weren’t queuing to see his
plays: they were standing in line at the box office. (Barnhart)
6.
7.
8.
9.
ADULTS must accept full responsibility for their actions. (Barnhart)
A. Vegetarians do not like their foods adulterated with animal fats.
(Robinson)
B. ‘There were some young adolescents there?’ (Christie.
Halloween…)
C. She did not allow her emotions to drive her to the point of
adultery and, quite possibly, the beginning of the end of her
marriage. (Reilly)
D. The rock star grew to abhor the adulation of his fans. (Robinson)
The thoughtful editor had ABRIDGED the massive book by removing
the boring parts. (Robinson)
A. The chef at this restaurant is dreadful; the good meal we just had
was an aberration. (Robinson)
B. When men are hard-driven, as in war, they will sleep … in an abri
or foxhole or sitting upright in a bucking plane or jeep. (Barnhart)
C. During the last few decades abbreviations have proliferated to
such an extent that they now form a major – and still increasing –
part of the language. (Oxford Dictionary of Abbreviations)
D. The engineers bridged the river. (Barnhart)
He put his assistants to work assembling evidence, cleaning up every
loose end, cutting off each LEGAL avenue of escape that Moretti’s
attorney might attempt to explore. (Sheldon. Rage…)
A. Let there be no soul so sinful and corrupt as to attract the Prince of
Darkness and his legions into Rouen. (Schoonover)
B. Her handwriting is both beautiful and legible. (Barnhart)
C. He has remained loyal to the team even though they lose every
game. (Barnhart)
D. He has a beautiful legato line on which he places his words
without yielding to the common Italian temptation to elide
consonants. (Barnhart)
The woman’s SCREECHES brought the police. (Barnhart)
A. The screams of the engines announced that the day was done.
(Barnahrt)
B. The prisoner shrieked when he was tortured. (Barnhart)
C. You may … almost fancy you hear the shrill of the midsummer
cricket. (Barnhart)
D. The grunting horns and syncopated strings, the skirling clarinets
… make a classical tour de force. (Barnhart)
25
QUIZ EIGHT
Identify words in bold type as
A. etymological doublets
B. different meanings of a polysemantic word
C. variants of the word
D. different words, not connected with each other in any way
1. Ivan inherited his family’s business, but then through foolish management,
exhausted its capital and drove it into bankruptcy. (Robinson)
Furniture, automobiles, and animals are chattels. (Barnhart)
Cowboy, a man who looks after cattle on a ranch. (Barnhart)
2. As the work became easier, his attitude toward school changed from
dislike to great enthusiasm. (Barnhart)
A thorough understanding of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is
important. (Amberg)
3. Why, in the days when I was with him, old Heppenstall never used to
preach under half an hour, and there was one sermon of his on
Brotherly Love which lasted forty-five minutes if it lasted a second.
Has he lost his vim lately, or what is it? (Wodehouse. Life…)
Vis, force; power; strength; vigor; energy. (Wodehouse. Life…)
4. Walking in a thick-pleached alley in mine orchard. (Barnhart)
The drunkard signed a pledge never to drink again. (Barnhart)
The man’s plea was that he did not see the signal. (Barnhart)
5.
Letters to his son and daughter contained messages of love and pleas
for forgiveness. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
Come here, please.
He had a good lawyer to plead his case. (Barnhart)
6. ... his ability to attract some of the cream of scientific newcomers.
(Hailey. Strong…)
Creme de menthe, liqueur flavored with mint. (Webster)
Chrism, olive oil or unguent, consecrated by a bishop and used in the
administration of baptism, confirmation, and extreme unction in
certain churches. (Webster)
7. The cream of the class is made up of the best students. (Barnhart)
When Elizabeth has scooped up the last drop of the ice cream, her
father suddenly said, “What made you do it, Liz?” (Sheldon.
Bloodline)
26
8.
“A mere bagatelle!” she declared, but a wave of panic swept through
her at the thought. (Hunter)
If they don’t pay their hotel bill they will be put out bag and baggage.
(Makkai)
Father has a new overnight bag. (Barnhart)
9. Jane Smart was practicing Bach’s Second Suite for unaccompanied
cello, in D minor ... (Updike)
They were ushered into an enormous suite with four bedrooms, a
beautiful living room, a kitchen, and a huge terrace overlooking the
bay. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
10. He sued the railroad because his cow was killed by the engine.
(Barnhart)
A man’s suit consists of a coat, vest, and trousers. (Barnhart)
The queen travelled with a suite of twelve. (Barnhart)
11. ... to root the truth out of the prisoner. (Barnhart)
He had been routing among the piled newspapers under the kitchen
dresser. (Barnhart)
12. Pickles are put up in a salty liquor. (Barnhart)
A cloud of awful liquorice taste roiled and boiled its way down his
throat, and Eddie breathed deeply. (King. It)
QUIZ NINE
Identify the following word definitions and etymologies as
A. true
B. false (folk etymology)
1.
2.
3.
4.
Tailor. The name for a maker of suits comes from the Late Latin
taleare “to cut”. In France, by way of which it came to England, the
word still retains much of its Roman meaning … (Radford)
Jumper. The derivation is jump, a short coat worn by men more than
two hundred years ago, and connected with the French jupe “a
petticoat.” (Radford)
Misfortune, the kind of fortune that never misses. (Bierce)
Haberdasher, … origin is that the phrase was the German habt ihr das
“will you buy this?” (Radford)
27
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
28
Gibberish, despite the contrary opinions of other etymologists the
writer holds that this word for unintelligible conversation is derived
from Geber, the Arabian alchemist of the eleventh century, who wrote
in mystical jargon in order to avoid the death penalty for sorcery, which
he might have incurred from the Ecclesiastical authorities of his day
had he written, plainly, such heretical opinions. (Radford)
Primarily a hall-mark is an official stamp of the Goldsmiths’
Company, made at their Hall, marking the standard of gold and silver
articles assayed by them. (Collins)
Self-evident, evident to one’s self and to nobody else. (Bierce)
Water is composed of two gins, Oxygin and Hydrogin. Oxygin is pure
gin, Hydrogin is gin and water. (Lederer. Fractured…)
More culinary spookery has been served up in the game of tennis,
where love means “no points”. The most charming derivation for the
use of love in this sense is that the word derives from l’ouef – “the egg”
– because a zero resembles an egg, just as the Americanism goose egg
stands for “zero”. (Lederer. Adventures…)
Mary Queen of Scots … was temperamental about her fare and, when
piqued, would eat nothing but a preserve of oranges, of which she was
inordinately fond. The delicacy was therefore nicknamed Marie
malade, hence marmalade. (Lederer. Adventures…)
The original scapegoat was an actual goat upon whose head were
symbolically placed all the sins of the ancient Hebrew community. As
we read in the book of Leviticus, the animal was allowed to “escape”
into the wilderness, bearing the community’s burden of sin and atoning
for all its transgressions. (Lederer. Adventures…)
Jubilee – The word originates from yōbhēl, meaning ram’s horn. Every
fifty years, ancient Hebrew law required a general release of all slaves
and a return of all lands to their original owners. These were naturally
years of great rejoicing and celebration. The blowing of the ram’s horn
signified the onset of the jubilee. (Horowitz)
“Our King James First … being invited to Dinner by one of his Nobles,
and seeing a large Loyn of beef at his table, drew out his sword and
knighted it.” For the gullible that is indeed how the word sirloin came
about. (Lederer. Adventures…)
A surname is the name of somebody you say “Sir” to. (Brandreth)
15. Cranberries acquired their name from the Low German kranbeere,
meaning “crane”, because the plant flourishes in marshy lands
frequented by cranes. (Lederer. Adventures…)
16. Trivial comes from the Latin tri, “three,” and via, “way,” and means
literally “like something found at the place where three roads meet.”
(Lederer. Adventures…)
17. Autobiography is the history of motorcars. (Brandreth)
18. If someone invited you to a restaurant to dine on little worms, small
strings,… little tongues, small hairs, and the house toilet – all
comouflaged as an elegant form of paste – what would you say?
Besides vermicelli, Italian restaurants serve spaghetti (<Ital. spag (o):
cord, string, twine + -etti: small, little, tiny), … linguine (Ital. lingu(a):
tongue + -ine: small, little, tiny) and lasagna (<LL lasan(um): cooking
pot, chamber pot + L -ia : the act, process, or result of) all of which, in
the late nineteenth century, are chicly…, dubbed pasta. …Your order
please! (Schleifer)
19. “And how many hours a day did you do lessons?” said Alice, in a hurry
to change the subject.
“Ten hours the first day,” said the Mock Turtle: “nine the next, and so on.”
“What a curious plan!” exclaimed Alice.
“That’s the reason they’re called lessons,” the Gryphon remarked:
“because they lessen from day to day.” (Carroll)
QUIZ TEN
Each of the following sets contains a folk etymology sample. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. Don’t shoot – I don’t want to be president. (Brandreth)
B. I was born this way. What’s your excuse? (Brandreth)
C. In their penthouse atop fashionable Cayman Manor, a residential
high-rise a mile or so outside the city, Edwina and Lewis D’Orsey
were at breakfast. (Hailey. The Money…)
D. The onetime mining town with the rowdy past holds its annual
Jerome Home Tour that month, perhaps the best way to learn about
the copper camp’s red-letter days. (Arizona Highways)
29
2.
A. It [humour] flew like a butterfly from flower to flower obedient
only to its own caprice and pursuivant of neither method nor
intention. (Maugham)
B. At an airport, a 10-year-old boy asked his mother, “Why aren’t
helicopters called heavencopters? After all, they do rise upward.”
(Lederer. Fractured…)
C. The difference between this company and a cactus plant is that the
plant has pricks on the outside. (Brandreth)
D. Now that the chlorophyll has broken down, pigments once masked
beneath the green have begun to emerge, colors that in only a few
days will be gone. (Arizona Highways)
3.
A. She grew quite attached to him. (Maugham)
B. On the overhead speaker, Harris could hear Cy Jordan’s voice
intoning a distress call. “Mayday, Mayday. This is Trans America
Two. Explosive decompression. We are diving, diving.” (Hailey.
Airport)
C. Another point of note was that the Epistle was directed at wavering
Jewish Christians who were, because of persecution, tempted to
fall back into Judaism. (Lampe)
D. They procrastinate, leave it until “tomorrow”, whenever it is a matter
of dropping bad habits or developing good ones. (Lampe)
4.
A. If the cockroaches Blatta and Periplaneta are subjected to alternating
12-hour periods of light and dark, their activity is largely confined
to the latter. (Barnhart)
B. It might be that the sight of Sebastian Moon would break down Thos’s
iron self-control to the extent of causing him to inflict mayhem
on the person ... (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. There were parking places all along that road, not planned official
tarmacked areas but small inlets of beaten earth formed by the
waiting cars of many walkers. (Francis. Longshot)
D. Have a go at translating these eight gems of gobbledygook.
(Brandreth)
5.
A.
30
The chief inspector had been under attack the entire morning by
half of the officials of the Swiss government. What did he think
he was running – a gestapo? How dare he awaken the president
B.
C.
D.
6.
A.
B.
C.
D.
7.
A.
B.
C.
D.
8.
A.
of a respectable building corporation and order him to deliver
documents in the middle off the night? (Sheldon. Bloodline)
“...The FDA just gave a decision against us on our aerosol
sprays. There’s going to be a complete ban on aerosols within
two years.” (Sheldon. Bloodline)
I hope as you read this you are sipping one of our delicious fruitjuice eye-openers. (Clark. Weep…)
Teddy doesn’t like him much and he drew such a funny picture
of Perry hanging by his heels from a gallos. The face looked like
Perrys and still it didn’t. Cousin Jimmy said it was a
carrycachure and laughed at it .... (Montgomery)
Tom told a lie about George and when he was found out, he had
to eat humble pie. (Makkai)
The first five telephone numbers were listings for Cotter
Hayward, his office, his boat, the New York apartment, the New
Mexico ranch, the Pebble Beach condo. (Clark. The Lottery…)
The head resident at Harvard University’s Wolbach Hall
sponsored a weekly tradition called Wednesday night on the
dorm’s VCR. (Reader’s Digest)
Two years ago, W. H. Smith Television Services ... ran a pilot
programme of ‘informercials’ on a cable-television channel in
Glasgow. (Ayto)
It yanked the ads with spokeslady, Wendy, created clumsy new
ones about “freedom” and generally performed like “a big guy
trying to act cool”… (Newsweek)
Conversation overheard between two little boys:
“Are you in adultsense now?”
“No, I think I’m still in Pooh-Bear-ty.” (Lederer. Fractured…)
I went straight back to my room, dug out the cummerbund and
draped it round the old tum. (Wodehouse. Life…)
To be a good nurse, you must be absolutely sterile. (Lederer.
Anguished…)
So now, in a situation threatening to become every moment more
scaly, I did not lose my head. I preserved the old sang-froid.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
31
B.
Answering accusations that he failed to pay his taxes, former
New York City Mayor Davis Dinkins reasoned, “I haven’t
committed a crime. What I did was fail to comply with the law.”
(Lederer. Fractured…)
C. “That lowdown scoundrel deserves to be kicked to death by a
jackass – and I’m just the one to do it!” shouted a congressional
candidate in Texas. (Lederer. Fractured…)
D. My favorite character in English history is Henry VIII because
he had eight wives and killed them all. Henry VIII lived in a two
Door castle. (Lederer. Fractured…)
9.
A. Proteins are composed of a mean old acid. (Lederer. Fractured…)
B. Stop air pollution – quit breathing. (Brandreth)
C. An apple a day keeps the doctor away, but an onion a day keeps
everyone away. (Brandreth)
D. A pedestrian hit me and went under my car. (Lederer. Anguished…)
10.
A. The guy was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times
before I hit him. (Lederer. Anguished…)
B. I was thrown from my car as it left the road. I was later found in
a ditch by some stray cows. (Lederer. Anguished…)
C. The title of this chapter, for example, is based on a famous
classroom faux pas: “In 1957, Eugene O’Neil won a Pullet
Surprise.” (Lederer. Anguished…)
D. The pedestrian ran for the pavement but I got him. (Lederer.
Anguished…)
11.
A.
12.
A. He nodded without answering and went into the dining room.
The corner table he preferred was reserved, but the maitre d’
quickly switched the expected diners to another table and led him
to it. (Clark. The Cradle…)
32
... and his jowl was too massive; when he did not hold his head
up to hide it you saw that he had a double chin ... (Maugham)
B. Marie and Perrier Curie shared the Noble Prize. (Lederer. Fractured…)
C. Due to the Rector’s illness, Wednesday’s healing services will
be discontinued until further notice. (Lederer. Anguished…)
D. Offertory: “Jesus Paid It All.” (Lederer. Anguished…)
B.
He did a quick mental calculation; the delta vee could not have
been more than fifteen kilometers an hour. (Clarke)
C. A woman approached a new student at an elementary school and
introduced herself, saying, “Hello, I’m the principal here.”
“No, you’re not,” replied the little girl. “You’re the
princessipal.” (Lederer. Fractured…)
D. In the circs., no doubt, a certain moodiness was only natural.
(Wodehouse. Life...)
13.
A.
B.
C.
D.
14.
A.
15.
A.
As usual, New York in August was hot, sticky and sultry. The
air-conditioning in the limo had just gone on the fritz, and
Alvirah thought longingly ahead to their new apartment on
Central Park South, which would be wonderfully cool. (Clark.
The Lottery…)
You can tell them I’m not an ogre. (Francis. Longshot)
So long, I will be back tomorrow. (Makkai)
Gazwelcher n. (Brit.) a person who undertakes to buy a house
but withdraws from the transaction just before contracts are to
be signed. (Ayto)
Now, hard on the decline of padded shoulders and the return of
busts we have the Whannies. ... A status symbol if ever there
was one! (Ayto)
B. Three kinds of blood vessels are arteries, vanes and caterpillars.
(Lederer. Anguished…)
C. Old lumberjacks never die – they just split. (Lederer. Get…)
D. Old principals never die – they just lose their faculties.
(Lederer. Get…)
B.
C.
D.
Leo was followed by Michaelangelo, Mike to his friends, who
wore an orange mask and was armed with nunchukus, a ninja
weapon consisting of two thick sticks joined by a chain. (Hiller)
The formality of the dining-room furnishings seemed at first to
change his mood from ease to starch ... (Francis. Longshot)
Marie Curie did her research at the Sore Buns Institute in
France. (Lederer. Fractured…)
It was a small modern house in a cul-de-sac, bought cheaply
before it was built. (Francis. Longshot…)
33
QUIZ ELEVEN
Identify nonce words among folk etymology samples in Quiz Ten.
QUIZ TWELVE
Which of the following loan words are
A. Completely assimilated
B. Phonetically and/or graphically non-assimilated
C. Morphologically (grammatically) non-assimilated
D. Semantically non-assimilated
E. Non-assimilated (resisting assimilation)
1.
‘You must have heard of newts. Those little sort of lizard thing that
charge about in ponds.’ (Wodehouse. Life...)
2. Later it’s on to Red Square to see the Great Kremlin Palace and the
gaily-painted onion domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral. (H.A.W.)
3. A nervous exchange of trivia came next. (Plain)
4. Tomorrow I shall ask Aunt Dahlia to take the two warts for a country
ramble, to lose them in some sequestered spot, and to leave the rest to
Nature. (Wodehouse. Life…)
5. ‘... If you will forgive me saying so, you have got an idée fixe.’
‘A what?’
‘An idée fixe. You know. One of those things fellows get. ...’
(Wodehouse. Life…)
6. ... in the background of which one seemed to hear the stamp of naked
feet and the throbbing of tom-toms. (Orwell)
7.
Waiters appeared like genii to clear the table and bring coffee.
(Francis. Enquiry)
8.
“From my mother,” he admitted. “She was a little French hen of a
woman. I’ve always regretted that I never knew her, for the French
often have a je ne sais guoi that other women lack.” (Hunter)
9.
Then at dead of night, it appears, they sneaked privily into the party of
the second part’s cubicle and shoved the needle through the bedclothes and punctured her water-bottle. (Wodehouse. Life…)
10. This chattiness wasn’t at all apparent in the first ten minutes ...
(Francis. Longshot)
34
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
Like Edina, Saunders is pouty and childishly impatient in her costume
du jour, a silver Adidas-Style track suit with matching sneakers.
(Newsweek)
He looked up into my face, partly anxious, partly still full of his usual
machismo. (Francis. Longshot)
He had worked with an army of lieutenants, fanning out like radii of a
spider web. (Hailey. The Money…)
He is what is usually called a gourmet. Very particular about what he
eats. (Wodehouse. Life…)
There are many vegetarian and fish dishes to choose from and
particularly moreish is paneer: chunks of fresh cottage cheese with
capsicum, cherry tomatoes and onions in a marinade. (Ayto)
As I dare say you know, Jeeves’s reputation as a counsellor has long
been established among the cognoscenti, and the first move of any of
my little circle on discovering themselves in any form of soup is
always to roll round and put the thing up to him. (Wodehouse. Life…)
For you to create a scene like that would have been horrifying to her.
(Clark. I’ll Be…)
… the underground corridor of tombs of the bulls who in their lifetime
had been sacred to Ptah, the creator-god of Memphis. (Hunter)
… the city being crammed with bonhomous lads who one and all
extended a welcoming hand to the stranger in their midst.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
The thing that had stymed me – viz. that this girl was obviously all
loaded down with ideals and sentiment and what not – was quite in
order as far as he was concerned. (Wodehouse. Life…)
... the smooth, central slide, up which the sarcophagus had been
hauled. (Hunter)
Two fascinating days await us in Moscow as we see the 15th century
Kremlin and visit Cathedral Square. (H.A.W.)
I’ve sent the roster of medical staff to Miss Collins by overnight mail.
She’ll have a lot of reading to do unless she knows what name she’s
looking for. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
... the seesawing of the tides of battle… (Clark. The Anastasia…)
Her book became the vade mecum of the women’s movement and the
Friedan voice was now heard frequently. (Hailey. Strong…)
You want a magic genie that’s going to come out of a bottle and give
you three wishes. (King.The Dead…)
35
27. The whole of the inside was elaborately embroidered with appliqué
work in brilliant colours ... (Hunter)
28. Aunt Agatha stiffened visibly. Very much the grande dame of the old
régime. (Wodehouse. Life…)
29. ... shall we commandeer the chariot you came in and ride back in
style? (Hunter)
30. The Chinese “diaspora” is growing in sophistication – Johnny Chung,
John Huang and the Riady family notwithstanding. So forget the
Blarney stone. Better to walk a piece of the Great Wall. In the last
four months, says U.S. Ambassador Jim Sasser, one fifth of Congress
has visited China. (Newsweek)
31. The nashi ... is just the kind of up-market fruit the New Zealanders
have been looking for since their worldwide triumph with the hairy
green, curiously tasteless Kiwi fruit. (Ayto)
32. And has not our modern “civilization” created technologies whose byproducts have proved to be slow-acting but fatal poisons? (Lampe)
33. I do not think I am too sanguine, sir. (Wodehouse. Life…)
34. He wore pince-nez ... (Wodehouse. Life…)
35. Noting that the Sultan has denied Ms. Marketic’s allegations, you state
that his response “didn’t surprise” Marketic’s lawyer. (Newsweek)
36. Borscht belt, the region in and near the Catskill Mountains north of
New York City where many predominantly Jewish resort hotels are
found. [fr. Russian borshch “beet soup,” which was frequently on the
menu of such hotels, in its Yiddish spelling]. (Chapman)
37. It’s always interesting to try out a new food, especially when it comes
from France – but what is this fromage frais and how do you use it?
(Ayto)
38. Two buddies enjoying a quiet schmooz. (Chapman)
39. You can’t use a heavy desktop computer, with its main plug and its
spaghetti of cables, in a railway carriage or on a beach. (Ayto)
40. I know what happens when a country falls into the hands of a
Communist Party with allegiance to the apparats in Moscow or
Peking. (Barnhart)
41. It consisted of a heart-breaking farewell speech, a generous parting
gift and a tearful arrivederci. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
42. They really wanted the whole world to know this information but
couldn’t get it out. (Newsweek)
36
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
There is a story DiAngelo tells about his wretched childhood that is
unintentionally revealing. (Newsweek)
Each new tranche will normally be sold at a higher … price than the
last. In other words the first tranche is the cheapest. (Ayto)
Quite a few statues and stelae of Kha-Sekhem have been found in the
past, always in the south… (Hunter)
“Liebchen, I’m not going to hurt you. I love you, don’t you know
that?” He touched her, and she could feel her flesh crawl. (Sheldon.
Bloodline)
The only catch was that the cult wasn’t taking new members.
(Newsweek)
The Hazardous Waste Treatment Council warns that sham ‘exemption
enterprises’ have been set up to avoid federal disposal requirements.
Richard Fortuna, executive director of the HWTC, says that the
‘regulatory limbo’ created by Congress when it temporarily exempted
recycling enterprises from hazardous-waste-disposal laws pending
EPA rules, ‘turned into a regulatory luau.’ (Ayto)
The four courses are zakuska, or appetizer; soup such as borscht; the
main course of beef, pork, chicken or fish with potatoes, rice or
noodles; and then dessert. (H.A.W)
“Where do ideas about assassinations start?” She had not expected an
answer, but Bruce supplied one. (Hailey. Strong…)
QUIZ THIRTEEN
Identify the following idionyms as
A. American
B. Australian
C. British
D. Canadian
1.
2.
The White House would like to dismiss Larry Nichols as a vicious
crank. After all, he has accused President Clinton of being a liar, a
thief, an adulterer and a drug-money launderer. (Newsweek)
Her joey, nibbling at the grass some distance from her, jumped in
sudden panic and made for his mother with single-purposed speed.
37
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
38
With her paws she held her pouch open like a sugar bag. He tumbled in
headlong … (Marshall)
As always, there were baubles, bosoms and bad taste aplenty at last
week’s Oscars. (Newsweek)
It’s a crucial question for the RCMP as a force, because more than half
the Mountie’s work is done for the various provinces. (Barnhart)
While the City represents the British way of life, it is not responsible
for it, and certainly not in charge of it. Even Whitehall has to tread
delicately in this matter. (Barnhart)
As the rival health-care plans make it to the floors of the House and
Senate over the next month, members of Congress and the White
House will accuse each other of bad faith while practicing it
themselves. (Newsweek)
Producer Jon Plowman says that when the show was first pitched to the
BBC, an executive doubted that “two women being drunk is funny.”
He was wrong. (Newsweek)
Niagara’s outstanding accomodation & dining value, two blocks from
the picturesque Horseshoe Falls. (Tour Book)
When the two houses finish their work in mid-August, the Senate
seems likely to accept the centrist approach, and the House to swallow
a mandate. (Newsweek)
They had a regular round. Ten or eleven pubs like ours – free houses.
(Francis. Dead…)
Dole proposes eliminating more than $100 billion from Medicare and
Medicaid. (Newsweek)
“Uncle George has been known to ask, on Cup Final day, what has won
the Derby.” (Francis. Dead…)
Bardi and Chitali were having a row. Hugh heard a waddy descending,
Bardi screeching. (Pritchard)
Robert Owen, QC, said they were justified in opposing solicitors and
stated that ‘solicitors should not be allowed to pass themselves off as
barristers.’ (O’Dell)
… with the living room warm from both the Quebec heater and the
fireplace. (Barnhart)
The Lord Chancellor is expected to end the long and heated debate on
wigs with a decision this month that solicitor-advocates must remain
bareheaded. (O’Dell)
17. I was stimulated by Uncle Martini-Henry’s waxed moustache, and
malacca, and watch-chain with its sharktooth breloque as much as by
the saga of his earlier bush-whacking adventures … (Porter)
18. When melancholy Autumn comes to Wembley
And electric trains are lighted after tea
The poplars near the Stadium are trembly
With their tap and tap and whispering to me. (O’Dell)
19. £1,000 Pay-Out To Tot, 5, Kept In Nick. (O’Dell)
20. Whether we grow up on teiglach, tarte aux pommes, gulab jaman or
brownies, Americans share at least one bedrock culinary value: we’re
devoted to Jell-O and we like red best. (Newsweek)
21. Bernie went into the bedroom and threw some clothes in the black
nylon suitcase that Mama had bought at a garage sale years ago. It did
not look bad. Mama had cleaned it up. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
QUIZ FOURTEEN
Identify the culture orientation of the following xenonyms as
A. Arab
E. Japanese
B. French
F. Jewish
C. German
G. Russian
D. Italian
H. Spanish
1.
2.
3.
4.
I consider that it has rather a Spanish effect. A touch of the hidalgo.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
She drove to Punta Murra and watched the Sardos cook small lambs on
open fires. The native islanders gave her seada, a goat cheese covered
in a dough, with hot honey over it. (Sheldon. Bloodline…)
The shish-kebab was very good. There were little bits of barbecued
lamb, cooked over charcoal in the open air, and some barbecued
mincemeat, more properly called kufta, served with chipped potatoes
instead of rice, and with a yoghourt sauce … (Hunter)
“That’s two down, Tracy,” Ernestine Littlechap chortled. “The word on
the street is that your lawyer friend Perry Pope ain’t practicin’ law no
more. He had a real bad accident.” They were having café au lait and
beignets at a small sidewalk café off Royal Street. (Sheldon. If…)
39
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
40
Samuel’s father had come from Russia, where he had fled from a
pogrom in Kiev, and he had made his way to Krakow, where he had
met his bride. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
Ahead he could see the fortifications towering over the Vistula. Samuel
clung to his father more tightly. He was actually in Krakow, surrounded
by the feared goyim, the people who locked them up every night.
(Sheldon. Bloodline)
He wore a blue mask and carried katana – ninja fighting-swords.
(Hiller)
And how does she [the horse] show her appreciation? She drops dead.
When I catch the gonif who sold her to me, I’ll kill him!” (Sheldon.
Bloodline)
It was a nondescript little trattoria and the food was no better and no
worse than might be found in a hundred other trallorie of the city …
(Shaw. Two…)
A man who has spent 17 years in prison camps for criminal offenses,
he now has his own political party and television station, plus a letter
from Patriarch of the Orthodox church blessing his charity work. (The
Economist)
Last year the Russian Federation’s entire budget was $10.5 billion.
(Newsweek)
The Bundeswehr is back in business. Now the military faces the
challenge of training good soldiers – instead of blind followers.
(Newsweek)
Two days later 200 members of a German panzer division helped
celebrate Bastille Day in Paris by rolling down the Champ-Elysées in
armored personnel carriers bearing the Iron Cross. (Newsweek)
When FBI chief Louis Freeh arrived at the remote country dacha, the
Russian first deputy interior minister welcomed him with swirling
Gypsy dancers, roast suckling pig and plenty of liquid refreshment.
(Newsweek)
It was the birthday of the Infanta. She was just twelve years of age and
the sun was shining brightly in the gardens of the palace. (Wilde.
Fairy…)
… she ordered a light breakfast and hot, black coffee, and walked over
to the window overlooking the Prado. (Sheldon. If…)
Traditional Russian banyas, or bathhouses, in Moscow now make
themselves available at night as rendezvous points for anonymous sex,
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
prompting inevitable comparisons to the San Francisco bathhouse
scene of the early 80s (though most banyas cater to heterosexual men
and their prostitutes). (Newsweek)
Anna learned to cook, so that she could make Walther’s favorite dishes.
She made choucroute, a bed of crunchy sauerkraut and creamy mashed
potatoes heaped with a smoked pork chop, a frankfurter and a
Nuremberg saussage. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
It was the first time that German armor had been there since the Allied
invasion of Europe ended a daily goose-step down the avenue by Adolf
Hitler’s Wehrmacht. (Newsweek)
Her photograph was constantly appearing in Paris-Match and Jour de
France. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
On Befana, the sixth of January, Ivo dressed up as the Befana, the
witch, and handed out presents and carbone, the black rock candy
prized by the children, to Francesco, Carlo and Luca. (Sheldon.
Bloodline)
The Interior Ministry’s OMON special forces, the so-called Black
Berets, are almost certain to be disbanded. (The Economist)
“Do you know anything about flamenco?” Jeff asked. (Sheldon. If…)
It was Danny’s first look at the entire clan. He was proud to be part of
it, and when he saw the advanced students, he became excited. They
looked so cool in their black dogis. Being cool and being tough was a
sure way to avoid any stupid lectures from his father. (Hiller)
When Nureyev, Baryshnikov and the Panovs made the pryzhok from a
Soviet to a U.S. troupe, they had to defect. This week, for the first time,
guest artists Nina Ananiashvili and Andris Liepa leap to the New York
City Ballet from the Bolshoi without giving up their citizenship. (Ayto)
Plain or flavoured with fruit, fromage frais tastes fine on its own or is
great used for cooking or on cereals. (Ayto)
On separate sides of the border, the lives of two extended families, one
Arab and the other Jewish, show how much the intifada … has
transformed the relationship between the rulers and the ruled. (Ayto)
Renewable plastic chopsticks had become an ecological problem in
Japan. And renewable wooden chopsticks were suspected of carrying
disease. Despite the shortage of wood, disposable, splittable wooden
chopsticks, or waribashi, seemed the wave of the future. (Ayto)
41
QUIZ FIFTEEN
Each of the following sets contains an internationalized xenonym. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. They were having café au lait and beignets at a small sidewalk
café off Royal Street. (Sheldon. If…)
B. As with any financial débâcle involving a big public company,
isolated signs of weakness had been evident for weeks and
months beforehand. (Hailey. The Money…)
C. He received a letter from the director of the nursing home,
suggesting that he select some mementos for Phoebe to have in
her room when she went to live there. The director wrote that
familiar objects, particularly those involving long-term memory,
helped increase awareness in Alzheimer patients. (Clark.
Remember…)
D. Have you shopped in our boutique this week? If not, you must
come and see the stunning fashions we have just received for
both men and women. One-of-a-kind only, of course. Each of
our guests is unique. (Clark. Weep…)
2.
A.
B.
C.
D.
3.
A.
B.
C.
42
“Did the taxi bring you round by the obelisk?” he asked her …
(Hunter)
The afternoon schedule included a loofah, a manicure, a yoga
class, a pedicure, two more water exercises … (Clark. Weep…)
As before, he was ready for the outdoor life: a blue padded hood
joined all in one to his anorak. (Francis. Slay…)
So on his own, unofficially, he took all the Hexin W papers over
to Capitol Hill to one of Donahue’s aides. The aide showed
them to Donahue, who grabbed the whole schmear as if it were
a Christmas present. (Hailey. Strong…)
With more than a million boxes sold every day, Jell-O remains
unrivaled as the chief icon of American home cooking. (Newsweek)
On the bed she had laid out a handsome caftan that Min had
selected for her during her last visit to the spa. (Clark. The Lottery…)
His other sai, or fighting dagger, was in April O’Neil’s purse.
(Hiller)
D.
She was a sharp-tongued virago, a snob, and she hated Samuel.
(Sheldon. Bloodline)
4.
A. Still, the Nile, surprisingly really the colour of eau-de-nil in
certain lights, was a noble ally in keeping the desert at bay … (Hunter)
B. … and a cold wind that smelled of guano and dead mangelwurzels playing searchingly about the spinal column.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. The three new staff members worked in the Roman Bath, which
was the newest attraction at the spa. (Clark. The Lottery…)
D. All countries have their anti-experimentation kooks, but Britain
is the worst. (Hailey. Strong…)
5.
A. Putting on her travel coat, she drew the collar up and wrapped a
scarf around her head, drawing it like a peasant’s babushka over
her cheeks as far as it would go … (Plain)
B. In fine Bolshevik tradition, truth is here stood on its head. (The
Economist)
C. It does not matter if they are called a tsar, a general secretary or
a mafia don. (The Economist)
D. The drug is called hymka, a liquid opiate injected intravenously, now
increasingly popular with young people across Ukraine. (Newsweek)
6.
A. A maître d’ brought menus … (Hailey. Strong…)
B. But critics contend that Moscow’s money would have been
better spent on a public-education blitz rather than treatment
centers that are underused. (Newsweek)
C. The fact of the financial imbroglio lie buried in vaults and
drawers of old paperwork … (Updike)
D. We legged it with quiet dignity, the chappie pursuing us with his
foul innuendoes to the last. (Wodehouse. Life…)
7.
A. As swans go, he may have been well up in the ranks of
intelligentsia; but when it came to putting his brains against
Jeeves, he was simply wasting his time. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. Some led by Dr. Andrei Sakharov accept Mr. Gorbachev’s
sincerity and think his ‘perestroika’ (‘restructuring’) should be
encouraged. (Ayto)
43
C. Special investigators of the Moscow Directorate General of Bath
Houses swing into action [to catch people who have entered
without paying]. … But behind these raids is a story that might
make Mr. Gorbachev reach for his perestroikan sword. (Ayto)
D. Along with glasnost … perestroika has been the Russian
buzzword of the 1980s and has well and truly colonized English.
(Ayto)
8.
A. Of what trade are all the presidents of the United States? –
Cabinet-makers. (English Humour)
B. We were peering into the family cupboard and having a look at
the good old skeleton. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. My late Uncle Henry, you see, was by way of being the blot on
the Wooster escutcheon. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. Above them on the street, the pizza man stared at the grate
where he’d delivered a pizza, and been taken for three dollars.
(Hiller)
9.
A. You see it was a good idea of yours to put the onus on me by
making me director here, but it wouldn’t answer. (Hunter)
B. What was Stephen’s news? He’d sounded almost noncommittal,
so it couldn’t have to do with the election, could it? No, of
course not. Even he didn’t have that much sangfroid. (Clark.
The Anastasia…)
C. I want to establish the way the railings shut out everyone but the
elite. Inside can be mandarins of racing. Outside, hoi polloi.
(Francis. Decider)
D. Sushi (Assorted Sliced Raw Fish with Vinegar Rice) …. Deluxe
13.50 (Japanese Menu)
10.
A. … and the dogs of the neighbourhood, without benefit of
pedigree or grooming, met in little groups … (Hunter)
B. “Father’s sanctum,” Dart said unnecessarily. (Francis. Decider)
C. … it so happened that on the Sabbath after my return to the
good old Metrop. I had a call to pay in Manchester Square …
(Wodehouse. Life…)
D. “Are you sure Raphael’s okay?” April asked, leading the trio
back up to her apartment. (Hiller)
44
11.
A. It was the custom of the Cypress Point Spa that luncheon was
served informally at tables around the pool. Most of the guests
were dressed in tank suits and robes. (Clark. The Lottery…)
B. Juliette was bound to have something French and very chic
whereas Victoria’s wadrobe was strictly limited when it came to
evening wear. (Hunter)
C. Can you arrange to send round a woman police constable to her
parents? They live out Wokingham way. The address is in my
office. Do it pronto. We don’t want anyone from Shellerton
upsetting them first. (Francis. Longshot)
D. He meant a coffee-bar. They sat beside their bags and sipped
their espressos with contented langour. (Spark)
12.
A. When he saw Tracy, he stood up and said, “May I buy you a
drink, beautiful lady?”
Tracy hesitated, then smiled. “Why, yes, thank you.”
“What would you like?”
“A vodka and tonic, please.” (Sheldon. If…)
B. He took the package from her, read the table of ingredients, and
laughed. “Darling, why not? If you want to use that ancient
greasy goo, it won’t do Brucie the slightest harm. Won’t do him
any good, either, but it’ll make you feel better …” (Hailey.
Strong…)
C. … leaving the Mapleton to go to her escritoire and write a full
account of the proceedings to my Aunt Agatha. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
D. The passenger answered, “I’m fine. I was … thinking of another
taxi ride. Several years ago.” (King. The Dead…)
QUIZ SIXTEEN
Each of the following sets contains a pair of internationalisms – false
friends. Can you identify them?
1.
A. Many other important applications are under detailed
investigation in laboratories throughout the world. (Pyle & Page)
Учебные лаборатории
45
B. She took a job in a small gallery and on her day off was
volunteer docent at the museum. (Plain)
Доцент, ученое звание и должность преподавателей вузов
ряда стран. (СЭС)
C. Most schools with foreign students have copies of the TOEFL
bulletin and application form. (Pyle & Page)
Создать свою школу в науке. (Ожегов)
D. The best methods of improving your use of English grammar with
this guide is to study formulas and sample sentences. (Pyle & Page)
Методика, совокупность методов обучения чему-нибудь,
практического выполнения чего-нибудь, а также наука о
методах обучения. (Ожегов)
2.
A. Shakespeare is a great name in English literature. (Barnhart)
В 17-19 вв. в Японии господствовала своеобразная диглоссия:
старый письменный язык являлся государственным языком,
языком науки, высоких жанров литературы … (ЛЭС)
B. Belgium and France were the theater of the First World War. (Barnhart)
Театр военных действий – местность, где происходят военные
действия. (Ожегов)
C. These selections are all thrilling brand-new performances played
by world-famous symphony orchestras. (Barnhart)
Симфонический оркестр, включающий струнные, духовые
и ударные инструменты. (Ожегов)
D. … that our philosophy of computer usage has changed tremendously
during the past ten years. (Борисова)
Целую философию развел по пустякам. (Ожегов)
3.
A.
B.
C.
46
After the invention of the telescope in 1609, observatories were
established in many European cities. (Barnhart)
Самый большой в мире телескоп-рефлектор (диаметр
зеркала 6м; СССР). (СЭС)
He felt no jealousy, only the dreariness of a man who tries to
write an important letter on a damp sheet of paper and finds the
characters blur. (Barnhart)
Беседа носила деловой характер. (Ожегов)
While he dealt with the deaf and investigated the science of
acoustics, his studies eventually led to the invention of the
D.
multiple telegraph and his greatest invention – the telephone.
(Pyle & Page)
Телефон, общепринятое сокращенное название телефонной
связи. (СЭС)
Much of the prosperity of this region is due to Ybor’s cigar
factory established more than one hundred years ago. (Pyle & Page)
Региональный, … относящийся к какой-либо определенной
территории – району (региону), области, стране, группе
стран; построенный по территориальным признакам. (СЭС)
4.
A. His expertise was not equal to the task. (Barnhart)
Наиболее часто проводятся экспертизы плановоэкономические,
бухгалтерские,
врачебно-трудовые,
судебные. (СЭС)
B. Mars, 4,200 miles in diameter and 55 percent of the size of
Earth, is 34,600,000 miles from Earth, and 141,000,000 miles
from the Sun. (Pyle & Page)
Отношение длины окружности к её диаметру выражается
… числом π … (СЭС)
C. There are various theories as to the cause of the business cycle.
(MacKenzie)
Теория текста охватывает любые знаковые последовательности,
однако основным её объектом является вербальный текст. (ЛЭС)
D. If you have a special checking account or if you’ve borrowed
from a bank to buy a new car, you’ve dealt with a commercial
banker. (Barnhart)
Банкирские дома (конторы), банковские учреждения,
принадлежащие отдельным банкирам или группе банкиров.
(СЭС)
5.
A. The deep oceans and the continents are different in their
geological structure. (Barnhart)
Материк (континент), крупный массив земной коры,
большая часть которого выступает над уровнем Мирового
Океана, а периферия находится ниже его уровня. (СЭС)
B. The happy family lived in an atmosphere of gaiety. (Barnhart)
Давление и плотность воздуха в атмосфере Земли с
высотой убывает. (СЭС)
47
C. I've made the basket-ball team and you ought to see the bruise
on my left shoulder. (Webster)
Баскетбол, спортивная командная игра, в которой мяч
забрасывают
руками
в
подвешенное
кольцо
с
прикрепленной к нему сеткой. (Ожегов)
D. Thus, helium is not a good candidate for a nuclear pumped laser.
Кандидат в депутаты
6.
A. The association of these masters with each other, and with men
intelligent of their merits, is mutually agreeable and stimulating.
(Barnhart)
Интеллигентный человек
B. The warm climate for outdoor activities, the need for
preparedness in war, and their lifestyle caused the Greeks to
create competitive sports. (Pyle & Page)
На работе сложился нездоровый климат. (Ожегов)
C. These athletes brought shame not only to themselves, but also to
the cities they represented. (Pyle & Page)
Атлет, спортсмен, занимающийся атлетикой. (Ожегов)
D. Like other Indians of the period, he was illiterate, but his
determination to remedy the situation led to the invention of a
unique eighty-six-character alphabet based on the sound
patterns that he heard. (Pyle & Page)
Русский алфавит, последовательный ряд букв, передающих
звуковой состав русской речи и создающих письменную и
печатную форму национального русского языка. (СЭС)
7.
A. Many of these symbols of whole words are very picturesque and
exact and can be used internationally … (Pyle & Page)
Этот подарок – символ верности. (Ожегов)
B. Gelatin is also commonly used in the photographic industry and
in making medicinal capsules. (Pyle & Page)
В фундамент здания заложена капсула с запиской. (Ожегов)
C. The most dramatic change can be seen in the input/output
voltage-transfer curves.
Драматический исход
D. In recent years, scientific and technological developments have
drastically changed human life on our planet. (Pyle & Page)
48
Солнечная система состоит из центрального светила
Солнца и 9 больших планет … (СЭС)
–
8.
A. A tapeworm is a parasite that lives in the intestines of humans
and animals. (Pyle & Page)
Паразитизм, сосуществование двух организмов, при котором
один организм (паразит) питается за счет другого. (Ожегов)
B. After inventing dynamite, Swedish-born Alfred Nobel became a
very rich man. (Pyle & Page)
Динамиты,
пластичные
или
порошкообразные
патронированные взрывчатые вещества, содержащие
нитроглицерин. (СЭС)
C. The way the floorboards had been laid, I saw, had meant that the
doctored beam had been a main load-bearer. (Francis.
Longshot)
Доктор медицинских наук
D. Every year on December 16, the anniversary of Nobel’s death,
the awards (gold medal, illuminated diploma, and money) are
presented to the winners. (Pyle & Page)
Оборотная сторона медали.
9.
A. The ancient Egyptians were sun worshipers and great
astronomers, so computations for the Great Pyramid were based
on astronomical observations. (Pyle & Page)
Пирамида – усыпальница Хеопса в Гизе – крупнейшая
(выс. 146,6) в Египте. (СЭС)
B. A healthy diet is directly related to good health. (Pyle & Page)
Диетотерапия…,
применение
с
лечебной
или
профилактической
целью
специально
подобранного
пищевого рациона (диеты) в сочетании с соответствующим
режимом питания. (СЭС)
C. Farmers often give penicillin to cattle and poultry … (Pyle & Page)
Пенициллиназа, фермент, расщепляющий пенициллины на
неактивные вещества. (СЭС)
D. Lewis D’Orsey looked at his wife gravely. “In that case, my
dear, after I’ve covered my shorts tomorrow, I will never trade
in FMA again.” (Hailey.The Money…)
Шорты, род коротких брюк. (Ожегов)
49
10.
A.
B.
C.
D.
50
Petroleum products, such as gasoline, kerosene, home heating
oil, residual fuel oil, and lubricating oils, come from one source
– crude oil… (Pyle & Page)
Перегонка нефти, разделение нефти на составные части
(фракции), выкипающие в определенном интервале
температур, с целью получения бензина, лигроина,
керосина, мазута и др. (СЭС)
One important endocrine gland is the thyroid gland. (Pyle &
Page)
Железы внутренней секреции (эндокринные) выделяют
продукты своей жизнедеятельности – гормоны –
непосредственно в кровь или лимфу … (СЭС)
Investigators found such occurrences within a ten-kilometer
radius of the epicenter of a fairly recent quake. (Pyle & Page)
Километр, мера длины, равная 1000 метров. (Ожегов)
The small motors were the day’s most popular stocks.
(Barnhart)
Мотор-редуктор, агрегат, состоящий из двигателя и
редуктора, выполненных в одном блоке. (СЭС)
WORD FORMATION
MORPHOLOGICAL STRUCTURE OF ENGLISH WORDS
Morpheme is the minimum meaningful language unit, which is an
association of a given meaning with a given sound pattern. Morphemes
occur in speech as constituent parts of words.
Word is the minimum free form that can constitute a complete
utterance. It is an association of a given meaning with a given sound
complex; it is normally uninterruptable in speech, and when written or
printed has spaces on either side.
Bound morpheme normally occurs only in combination with other
( bound or free ) morphemes; not free.
E.g., -s, -ing, -ed; in-, de-; -ly, -ness; -dub- (dubious, indubitable),
eu- (eulogy, euphony, euphoria); -man- [hand] (manual, manifest,
emancipate, mandatory).
Free morpheme is capable of forming a word without adding other
morphemes.
E.g., togetherness – together; barrelful – barrel
According to the role morphemes play in constructing words they are
subdivided into roots and affixes.
The root of a word is commonly a morpheme which carries the
main lexical meaning and cannot be further analyzed, and which underlies
related derivatives of the word.
E.g., righteous, rightful, rightly (free morpheme)
synchronize, chronicle, anachronism, chronic (bound morpheme).
Word family is a group of words having a common root as their
basis. (see prec. examples)
Affix is a derivational or functional bound morpheme added to the
root or stem of the word. Affixes change lexical, lexico-grammatical or
grammatical meaning of the word.
Derivational affixes serve to form new words. Derivational affixes
change or modify lexical and/or lexico-grammatical meaning of words.
Functional affixes [inflections, outer formatives, endings] serve to
convey grammatical meaning.
51
E.g., write + -s = writes, look + -ed = looked, fine + -est = finest
(functional affixes)
write + -ative = writative, look + -er = looker, fine + re- = refine
(derivational affixes)
Prefix is a derivational affix standing before the root or stem and modifying
the word meaning.
E.g., build v.– rebuild v.
productive adj. – nonproductive adj.
continue v. – discontinue v.
fire n. – afire adj.
foul adj. – befoul v.
Suffix is a derivational affix following the root or stem and forming
a word in a different part of speech or a different word-class.
E.g., build v. - builder n.
continue v. - continual adj.
mob n. - mobster n.
Infix (Tmesis) is a form inserted within the main base of a word.
E.g., stand ( cf. stood )
to-us-ward (cf. toward us )
I can’t find it any-blooming-where.
Stem is a part of the word that remains unchanged throughout its
paradigm. A stem containing one or more derivational affixes is a derived
stem. A stem containing two or more root morphemes is a compound stem.
E.g., specify – specifying – specifies – specified (a derived stem)
spectrographic ( a compound stem )
According to the number of morphemes in the word and the relations
between them we distinguish the following structural types of words:
1) Root words, containing one free root morpheme: car, true, red, go.
2) Derivatives, containing one root morpheme and one or more derivational
affixes: disCOURagement, FAULTless, PEOPLEhood
3) Compounds, consisting of two or more stems: chalkboard, peopleoriented.
4) Compound derivatives, consisting of two or more stems with a
derivational affix referring to the combination as a whole, not to one of its
elements: honeymoon +-er, wholeheart + -ed.
52
Structural word type
Wordbuilding
mechanism
Root word
–
Affixation
Derivative
(affixed
word)
enforcer
Compound
Compound
derivative
–
oldmaidish
Compounding
window
lookerupper
pocketbook
–
Conversion
…you can
rest up for
the big do
tonight.
That
lawyer, …
she is a
natural.
to get
mousetrapped
–
Abbreviation
snafu
…to detox
a
heroin
addict
sitcom
–
Blending
smog
transistor
–
–
Backformation
They spent
the rest of
the afternoon
lazing on the
sand.
this
blinding
unease
to test-fly a
prototype of
the new jet
–
Borrowing
(calque)
tundra
subject,
doctor
to brainwash
–
53
Each of the structural word types can result from the following word
formation processes (word-building mechanisms): 1) Derivation
(affixation); 2) Compounding; 3) Conversion; 4) Abbreviation; 5) Blending;
6) Backformation; 7) Borrowing (calque).
Word-building or morphological analysis helps to see into the
word-building pattern of the word. Morphological analysis is based on the
Immediate Constituents (IC). An IC is any of the two meaningful parts
forming a larger expression. The method is based on the fact that a word
analyzable into morphemes is involved in certain structural correlations
(oppositions). The morpheme boundaries in a word are determined on the
basis of comparison with other words. Breaking a word into IC helps to
observe in each cut the structural order of constituents which may differ
from their actual sequence. The procedure of IC analysis is reduced to the
recognition and classification of the same and different morphemes and the
same and different word patterns. Such analysis can continue until the
ultimate constituents (UC) are reached. IC analysis helps to determine the
meaning of the complex words.
E.g., Their imperturbableness, their air that nothing has happened renews
our guarantee.
1. imperturbable+-ness
*im-+perturbableness
*imperturb+-ableness
2. im-+perturbable
*imperturb +- able
3. perturb +-able
*per-+turbable
4. per-+turb
54
(-ness, abstract noun suffix meaning state,
quality; added to adjectival stems: kindness,
fondness, daintiness.
A man…cool and quite English, imperturbable)
(im-, a negative prefix added to adjectival
stems: impossible, impolite, immodest.
Perturbable, liable to be disqieted or agitated)
(-able, adjectival suffix meaning able/worthy
to be V-ed, added to verbal stems: readable,
forgettable.
Highly perturbed, he wondered what was
coming next).
(per-, meaning through, throughout: perfume,
perforate, peruse; *turbable)
(per-, persist, persecute, perspire; turb-: tur-
bid, turbulate, turbine, disturb; fr. Lat. turba,
turmoil, crowd).
im-+ [(per-+turb)+- able] + -ness: calmness
Bathysiderodromorphobia
1. bathysiderodromo + phobia). Phobia is a free root morpheme; so the
word under analysis is a compound. Phobia : fear (phobia, a persistent,
morbid or insane fear of a specific thing or group of things: acrophobia
– fear of heights, bathophobia – fear of depth, ecophobia – fear of
home, theatrophobia – fear of theaters)
2. bathysiderodrom + -o- (-o-, a linking vowel in compounds: speedometer, thermometer, drunkometer, Anglo-Russian)
3. bathy + siderodrom. Bathy: deep, in the depth (bathyal, having to do
with the deeper levels of the ocean , bathyscaph, an apparatus for deepsea exploration, bathynaut – a deep-sea explorer, bathygram – a graphic
record of water depth obtained from an echo sounder)
4. Sidero+drom. Drom: track, course, a running, road (dromedary, the
swift one-humped camel of Arabia fr. Gk Dromos – a running;
Dromos [Archeology], a passage often between rows of columns,
leading to a temple fr. Gk Dromos a running, race course, an avenue;
hippodrome in ancient Greece and Rome an oval track for horse races;
airdrome [Brit. Aerodrome], large tract of open level ground, including
all buildings and fixtures for the operation of aircraft).
5. Sider + -o- . Sider-: iron (siderography, the art of engraving on steel;
siderolite, a meteorite composed of a mixed mass of iron and stone;
siderosis, a chronic inflammatory disease of the lungs caused by
inhalation of iron particles; siderurgy, the art of working in iron and
steel; -o-, linking vowel)
Bathysiderodromophobia, fear of deep iron roads, i. e. fear of railroads
(tracks with parallel steel rails) in the depth (i. e. underground) – fear of
subways, undergrounds or metros.
55
AFFIXATION
(Derivation)
Affixation, the process of forming a new word by adding a derivational
affix to ( the root or stem of) a word.
E.g., objection (fr. object)
unforgettable (fr. forgettable)
suitcaseful (fr. suitcase)
Affixation results in the formation of a derived or compound-derived
word depending on the character of the stem.
Derivatives are formed from simple or affixed stems.
E.g., mile + -age = mileage
dis- + continue = discontinue
beautify + -ication = beutification
Compound-derivatives are formed from compound stems.
E.g., selfconscious + un- = unselfconsious
self-righteous + -ness = self-righteousness
Affixation is divided into prefixation, suffixation or infixation.
Prefixation, the adding of a prefix to (the root or stem of) a word.
E.g., dis- + service = disservice
sub- + conscious = subconscious
il- + logical = illogical
Suffixation, the adding of a derivational suffix to (the root or stem of) a
word.
E.g., tiger + -ess = tigress
literary + -ism = literarism
partner + -ship = partnership
subconscious + -ness = subconsciousness
Infixation (tmesis), the adding of an infix to (the root or stem of) a word.
E.g., I was born in West-by God-Virginia. (Chapman)
I can’t find it any-blooming-where (Chalker & Weiner)
abso-bloody-lutely (Chalker & Weiner)
Besides derivation, an affixed word can result from:
Compounding: eye-catcher; inn-keeper; looker- upper
Conversion: reclaim n. ; manual n.
Abbreviation: decaf (fr. decaffeinated)
Back-formation: unease (fr. uneasy)
56
Blending : transistor (fr. transfer + resistor)
Borrowing (loan derivative) : subject; doctrine
Synchronically derivational affixes may be classified according to:
1) the lexico-grammatical class of words they form
E.g., noun-forming (disbelief, drainage, mobster)
verb-forming (untie, uglify, etc.) [see table 1, table 2]
2) the lexico-grammatical character of the source stem (the stem they are
added to)
E.g., noun-stem (expresident, boyhood, rainy)
verbal stem (shipment, readable, rewrite, etc.)
[see table 1, table 2]
Monovalent affixes are added to one lexico-grammatical type of stem.
E.g., -eer is added only to noun-stems: auctioneer
a- is added to adjectival stems to form adverbs: afresh [see table 1, table 2]
Multivalent affixes are added to more than one lexico-grammatical type of
stem.
E.g., non-: non-fat, non-stick, non-criminal
-ness: agelessness, otherness, oneness [see table 1, table 2]
Transpositive affixes change the lexico-grammatical meaning of the word.
E.g., be- + friend (n.) = befriend (v. t.)
non- + stop (v.) = non-stop (adj)
employ (v.) + -ee = employee (n.) [see table 1, table 2]
Non-transpositive affixes do not change the lexico-grammatical character
of the word.
E.g., ex- + wife (n.) = ex-wife (n.)
mis- + inform (v.) = misinform (v.)
mob (n.) + -ster = mobster (n.)
green (adj.) + -ish = greenish (adj.) [see table 1, table 2]
The majority of suffixes are transpositive. The majority of prefixes are nontranspositive.
Morphological Structure of Stems involved in affixation:
1) root: unkind, hopeful
2) derived (prefixed and/or suffixed): childishly, replacement
3) compound: nightmarish
57
4) compound-derived: absentmindedness
5) abbreviated: ex-con, hubby
6) phrase: middle-of- the-roader, out-of-towner
Allomorph is a positional variant of an affix occurring in a specific
environment and characterized by complementary distribution.
E.g., in- /il- / im- / irinactive, illegal, immortal, impure, irreducible
com- / col- / con- / cor- / co- (Lat. cum : with, together, jointly)
conduct, collaborate, commensurate, correlate, coexist
ex- / ef- / e- ( Lat. ex )
exclude, elect, emit, effort
-able / -ible
capable, legible [see table 2]
Etymological Background of English Affixes
Native Prefixes
a- 1. (OE an, on: on, in, into) ashore, afire
a- 2. (OE of - : of, off, away from) anew, akin
a- 3. (OE a- : out, up) arise , awake
be- (OE bi -: by, near) betroth; befriend; behead
mis- (OE mis- : bad, badly) misbehave, misprint
un- (OE un- : not, without, reversal of) unfair; unfold; untruth
Native Suffixes
-y (OE -ig) sleepy, sandy
-ly (OE -lic : form ) brotherly
-ish (OE -isc: having the quality of) foolish; reddish
-en (OE -en: made of) leaden
-ful (OE -ful, -full: full) spoonful; spiteful
-less (OE -leas: less) childless
-ward(s) (OE -weard: to, toward) backward
-ness (OE -ness, -nes, -nyss, -nys) kindness
-ship (OE -scipe fr. scyppan create) friendship
-hood (OE hād: condition, quality) childhood
-dom (OE dōm : judgement) wisdom
-er (OE -ere) player
58
-ster (OE -istr, -estre) mobster
-ling (OE -ling) urderling
-ock (OE -oc, -uc: small) hillock
-le (OE -el, -il, -ol) icicle, handle
-en (OE - nian) frighten
Borrowed (Loan) Prefixes
Latin-Derived Prefixes
ab-/abs-/a- (Lat. ab-: away, from) abduct
ad-/a- (Lat. ad-: to, toward, at) advent, accident
ante- (Lat. ante-: before) anteroom
com-/co- ... (Lat. com-: with, together ) compress
de- (Lat. de-: away from, off) depend, depress
dis-/di- (Lat. dis-: away, from, apart) dismiss, different
ex-/e-/ef- (Lat. ex-: out of) excursion, elocution, effort
in-/im- (Lat. in-: in, into, within) impel, incise
in-/im- (Lat. in-: not) inert, imperfect
inter- (Lat. inter-: between, among) interlocutor
non- (Lat. non-: not, without) nonsense
ob-/o- (Lat. ob-: to, forward, against) obvious, omit
per- (Lat. per-: through) perforate
post- (Lat. post-: behind, after) postscript
pre- (Lat. prae-: before) predict
pro- (Lat. pro-: before, forward, forth) progeny, profession
re- (Lat. re-: back, again, anew) reverse
sub-/sus- (Lat. sub-: under, below) submarine, suggest, support, sustain
sur- (Lat. super-: over, above, beyond) surname, supreme
trans- (Lat. trans-: over, across, beyond) transatlantic, transform
Greek-Derived Prefixes
a-/an- (Gk a-, an-: without, not) amoral
ana-/an- (Gk ana-: up, back, again) analysis, anagram, anode
anti- (Gk anti-: against, opposite of) antonym
dia- (Gk dia-: through, across) diagnose, diabetes
dys- (Gk dys-: bad, difficult) dyslexia
en-/em-/el- (Gk en-: into, within) endemic, ellipsis, empathy
syn-/sym-/sy- (Gk syn-: with, together) symposium, synonym
59
Borrowed (Loan) Suffixes
Latin-Derived Suffixes
-al manual, gradual
-ar lunar, muscular
-ic volcanic
-an American
-ary military
-able/-ible/-ble/-bil visible, viable
-ile/-il agile
-ive reflective
-ous famous
-lent violent
-ate adequate
-ite composite
-ant militant
-ent affluent
-y injury
-ine medicine
-ice service
-or pallor
-ty society
-ion diction, injection
-ment basement
-ure/-ur pressure, literature
-ance/-ence attendance, conference
-ary vocabulary
-or investor, actor
-ary/-arium library, aquarium
-ory dormitory
-age courage
-ate speculate
-fy specify
Russian-Derived Suffixes
-nik no-goodnik
-sky buttinsky
Greek-Derived Suffixes
-ia/-y anemia, agony
60
-sis/-sy hypocrisy, diagnosis
-ism heightism
-ist Marxist
-ite Israelite
-tery monastery
-isk asterisk
-ac cardiac
-oid asteroid
-ize advertize
French-Derived Suffixes
-esque picturesque
-ess poetess
-ette cigarette
-oon balloon, cartoon
-lier electrolier
Italian/Spanish-Derived Suffixes
-erino bitcherino
-o freako, muso, luxo
Hybrid is a word formed from words or morphemes
different languages.
E.g., readable (Native + Latin)
refusenik (Latin + Russian)
commuter (Latin + Native)
unpredictable (Native + Latin + Latin + Latin)
derived
from
Polysemantic affixes possess several connected meanings as the result of
the development and changes of their original meanings.
E.g., un- 1) to reverse action: untie
2) to deprive of, to take out of: unhive, unearth
-ful 1) the amount which N contains: barrelful
2) having ..., giving...: useful, helpful
Monosemantic affixes possess only one meaning.
E.g., -able/-ible, able/worthy to be V-ed: allowable, gradable
-less, without: colorless
pre-, before: predefine, prehistoric
61
re-, again, back: rewrite
[see vocabulary definitions]
General meaning
Prefixes
1. negative: un-, non-, dis-, in-, a2. reversative: un-, de-, dis3. repetitive: re4. spacial (locative): sub-, sur-, trans-, inter-, pre-, ex-, in5. temporal: pre-, post-, fore-, ex6. quantitative (numerical): uni-, mono-, bi-, tri-, semi-, poli7. evaluative: mal-, arch-, mis-, eu-, dys-, dis8. accompanying (attendant): con-, anti-, cor-, syn-, proSuffixes
1. personal/non-personal agent: -er, -or, -sky, -ey, -o, -ster, -ist, -ian
2. nationality, inhabitant of, member of community: -o, -an, -er
3. feminine: -ess, -stress, -ette
4. diminutive (size): -ie, -y, -eme, -ling, -ette, -let, -ock, -le
5. action, activity (abstract): -al, -fication, -ance, -y, -ment, -ion, -ism
6. collectivity: -ry, -age
7. state, condition, quality: -dom, -ty, -ness, -hood, -ship, -ity
8. scientific thought, political movement, attitude: -ism, -ocracy
9. material, substance: -on, -ite, -en
10. amount, quantity: -age, -ful, -teen, -th
11. attitude (affection, humour, familiarity, pejoration,): -ers, -arooney, -ie,
-y, -oo, -ard, -ess, -ling
12. direction: -ward, -erly, -ling
13. quality: -ish
62
Table 1 Prefixation
Source
Stem
N
V
Adj
Target Word
N
a- asymmetry
ante- anteroom
arch- archbishop
co- cofounder
dis- disfavour
ex- ex-wife
in- inability
inter- interleaf
mal- malpractice
mis- mistrial
non- non-member
post- post-issue
pre- preposition
pro- pronoun
re- retranslation
sub- subway
sur- surrealism
un- untruth
V
be- befriend
de- debug
dis- disbar
en- enslave
re- rehouse
Adj
a- abed
anti- anti-missile
non- non-party
post- postclassical
pre- pre-war
pro- pro-life
be- bedarken
co- co-operate
de- deodorize
dis- discontinue
inter- interdate
mal- maltreat
mis- misinform
pre- predefine
re- redo
sub- sublet
trans- transact
un- undo
a- asleep
non- non stop
be- belittle
dis- disable
a- amoral
ab- abnormal
ante- antenuptial
anti- antisocial
co- co-tidal
dis- disloyal
in-/il-/im-/ir- insane,
illogical, irregular
inter- international
mal- malodorous
non- non-effective
post- postnatal
pre- prehistoric
pro- proclerical
sub- subconscious
trans- transracial
un- unfair
63
Table 2 Suffixation
Target word
Source
stem
N
V
64
N
-age leafage
-aholic vidaholic
-ateria/-eria/-teria
cavateria
-dom kingdom
-eer engineer
-er mariner
-erino peacherino
-ery/-ry beanery
-ess goddess
-ette kitchenette
-hood manhood
-gate Koreagate
-ian/-an musician
-ics linguistics
-ie/-y piggy, Okie
-ite beachite
-itis committeetis
-ing flooring
-ism heroism
-ist centrist
-ful suitcaseful
-let ringlet
-ling princeling
-nomics Nixonomics
-nik peacenik
-o klutzo
-ocracy youthocracy
-oid cheezoid
-ola buckola
-roo babyroo
-ship friendship
-ster clubster
-age stoppage
-al removal
-ant/-ent attendant
president
-ance/-ence annoyance
-ee employee
-ency presidency
-er/-or driver, investor
-ery eatery
V
-ate
oxidate
-en
happen
-fy
beautify
-ize
patronize
Adj
-able/-ible
responsible
serviceable
-al/-ial/-ual
additional
factual, partial
-an/-ian
African
-ary/-ory
stationary
-ative/-itive
sensitive
qualitative
-en wooden
-ese Chinese
-ful beautiful
-ic/-ical
angelic,
musical
-ie/-ey/-y/-sy
artsy, skyey,
hairy
-ific beautific
-ish boyish
-less hairless
-ly cowardly
-o berserko
-oid
humanoid
-ous glorious
-ward
backward
-ative/-itive/-ive
attractive,
affirmative
-ful forgetful
-less
countless
-ory
mandatory
-y creepy,
Adv
-ward(s)
northward
-wise
crabwise
Num
Adv
-ie/-y cookie
-ing driving
-ion/-tion/-ation/
-ition/-sion
organization,
oppression,
description, decision,
addition
-ment management
-nik beatnik
-o foldo
-ola payola
-orium/-atorium
printorium,
drinkatorium
-dom freedom
-er southerner
-ery snuggery
-ette snuggette
-holic happyholic
-ie/-y cutie, sharpy
-ism modernism
-ite socialite
-ity/-ty sanity
-ness homelessness
-nik no-goodnik
-o pinko
-ster youngster
-ness togetherness
Pron
-ness otherness
Conj
Num
-ness oneness
Adj
choky
-ate
activate
-en sharpen
-fy/-ify
simplify,
uglify
-ize
formalize
-ie/-y/-sey/-sy -ly happily
cutesie,
bleaky
-ish youngish
-ling middling
-ly deadly
-o neato
-es/-ce
thence
-wise
otherwise
-y iffy
-teen
fifteen
-ty eighty
-th sixth
65
*QUIZ ONE
Identify the root of the following word as
A. a free morpheme
B. a bound morpheme
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
66
She reminded herself of the color coding of the doors: pink for facial
rooms; yellow for massage; orchid for herbal wraps; white for steam
cabinets; blue for sloofing. (Clark. Weep…)
Often, Celia went on, such nostrums and folk remedies were marketed
by families. It was some of the same families who opened early
drugstores. Later still, their descendants continued the family tradition
and built drug manufacturing firms… (Hailey. Strong…)
An over-excited imagination… (Wodehouse. Life…)
Silent teamster boss gets unusual punishment… (Lederer.
Anguished…)
Recasting larger problems into smaller ones means finding something
you can start right now that yields a quick and perceptible result.
(Reader’s Digest)
… if I thought I was a ruddy osteopath. (Wodehouse. Life…)
The great comfort of turning 49 is the realization that you are now too
old to die young. (Reader’s Digest).
My husband was under so much pressure at work when our first child
was born that he became somewhat distant from me and the baby.
(Reader’s Digest)
“Last week a grain of sand got into my wife’s eye and she had to go to
a doctor. It cost me three dollars.”
“That’s nothing. Last week a fur coat got in my wife’s eye and it cost
me three hundred.” (English Humour)
It’s not always easy to let those you love experience pain, frustration or
anger. (Reader’s Digest)
… three subdivisions: flop, flopperoo and kerplunk. (Chapman)
The Emperor closed his eyes, held his head forward and breathed in.
(Golding)
Jeff prided himself on being the best confidence artist in the business,
and she had outsmarted him. (Sheldon. If…)
14. Tremayne and I had each read two accounts of the previous day’s
proceedings while dealing with the sandwiches, one in a racing paper,
another in a tabloid. (Francis. Longshot)
15. … seeing I supposed a tallish, thinnish, youngish brown-eyed person in
jeans, scarlet sweater and incongruous dinner jacket. (Francis.
Longshot)
16. “Oh, my poor darling.” There was an adoring look in her eyes. “I’ll be
right back, sweetheart.” (Sheldon. If…)
17. Tracy watched her slink across the floor. “Aren’t you afraid she’ll give
you diabetes?”
“She is sweet, isn’t she? And how have you been lately, Duchess?”
(Sheldon. If…)
18. You know, practical joking and so forth. She said if she thought I was a
practical joker she would never speak to me again. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
19. They had refused to meet their daughter-in-law and were making their
son miserable. (Reader’s Digest)
20. Twenty-nine men were tried for regicide – the killing of a king. (Clark.
The Anastasia…)
21. … but judging from the noise they were making they were extremely
hungry. (Durrell. The Garden…)
22. … and Ronnie further told us, without noticeable cheering us up, that
for a publisher in the modern world turnover was all very well but
losses weren't... (Francis. Longshot)
23. I felt more grateful than ever that he’d got one particular marginal
book accepted… (Francis. Longshot)
24. The travel firm had said they would take me back once I’d got this
foolishness out of my system. (Francis. Longshot)
25. She makes it more bearable for people. (Francis. Longshot)
26. Detective Constable Rich followed everywhere like a shadow…
(Francis. Longshot)
27. … so I told him he’d have a long job considering old Angie’s
opportunities, not to mention willingness. (Francis. Longshot)
28. … and felt the breath rush out of my lungs from the iciness of the river.
(Francis. Longshot)
67
QUIZ TWO
Each of the following sets contains a derivative that does not belong to the
word family. Can you identify it?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
68
AMB (to go, to walk)
A. Ambitious, strongly desirous (of a thing; to do)
B. Ambivalent, acting in opposite ways; having conflicting attitudes
or feelings
C. Ambulance, a vehicle, boat or airplane equipped to carry sick,
injured, or wounded persons
D. Ambulatory, having to do with walking; not fixed, changing
E. Preamble, a prelimenary statement
F. Perambulator, a baby carriage
CANT/CENT/CHANT (to sing)
A. Decanter, a vessel used for decanting, esp. a bottle for serving wine
B. Chant, a melody in which a number of words are sung on the
same note
C. Enchant, to attract and delight; entrance
D. Incantation, a charm or spell used in ritual recitation
E. Recant, to make a formal denial of
F. Accent, vocal emphasis given to a particular syllable, word, or phrase
CUB/CUMB (to lie down)
A. Succumb, to submit or yield to something overwhelming
B. Recumbent, lying down, reclining
C. Cubicle, a small compartment, as for work or sleeping
D. Cubic, having a shape of a cube
E. Incubate, to maintain at optimal environmental conditions for
development
F. Incumbent, imposed as an obligation or duty; obligatory
DAC/DOC (to teach)
A. Dactylogram, a fingerprint
B. Didactic, morally instructive
C. Docile, easily managed or taught
D. Doctor, a person trained in the healing arts and licensed to practice
E. Document, a paper that provides evidence or information
F. Indoctrinate, to teach a doctrine, belief, or principle to
FER ( to bring, to carry, to bear)
6.
7.
8.
9.
A. Conference, a meeting for consultation or discussion
B. Defer, to put off, postpone
C. Ferment, to undergo a gradual chemical decomposition, giving off
bubbles of gas, and changing in character
D. Fertile, capable of initiating, sustaining, or supporting
reproduction
E. Offer, to present for acceptance or rejection
F. Vociferous, making an outcry; clamorous
FID (faith, trust)
A. Affidavit, a written declaration made under oath before an
authorized officer
B. Confidant, one to whom secrets or private matters are disclosed
C. Diffident, lacking self-confidence; timid
D. Fidicinalis, one of the four little lumbrical muscles in the palm of
the hand, the action of which facilitates quick motion of the
fingers, as in playing the violin
E. Fiduciary, held in trust
F. Perfidy, deliberate breach of faith; treachery
GRAT (pleasing)
A. Congratulate, to extend good wishes to
B. Grating, a grill or network of bars; grate
C. Gratitude, thankfulness
D. Gratuity, a tip for service
E. Gratuitous, given without return; unearned
F. Ingrate, an ungrateful person
HER/HES (to stick)
A. Adherent, a faithful supporter; follower
B. Adhesive, sticking and holding fast
C. Coherent, logically connected; consistent in structure and thought
D. Cohesive, tending to hold together; sticking together
E. Herald, a messenger
F. Inherent, existing; belonging to (a person or thing) as a permanent
attribute or quality; intrinsic; essential
HOM (same)
A. Homologize, to make homologous; show the correspondence of
B. Homeopathy, the method of treating diseases by very small doses
of drugs, which in large doses would produce in a healthy person
symptoms similar to those of a disease
69
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
70
C. Homosexual, having to do with or manifesting sexual feelings for
one of the same sex
D. Homogeneous, of the same kind, nature, or character; similar
E. Homage, dutiful respect; reverence; honor
F. Homograph, a word of the same spelling as another, but of a
different sound form and meaning
HOME (dwelling place)
A. Homely, of plain manners; unsophisticated; unpretending
B. Homer, a homing pigeon
C. Homily, a sermon, usually on some part of the Bible
D. Homestead, a house with its land and other buildings
E. Homey, cozy and comfortable
F. Homeward, toward home
MIN (small)
A. Diminish, to make smaller in size, amount, or importance; lessen;
reduce
B. Diminutive, little; tiny
C. Miniature, a very small copy or model
D. Minster, a monastery church
E. Minute, a unit of time equal to 1/60 of an hour of 60 seconds
F. Minuet, a stately dance, originating in 17th-cent. France
MUT (to change)
A. Commute, to travel as a commuter
B. Immutable, not susceptible to change
C. Mutilate, to deprive of a limb or an essential part
D. Mutant, an organism or a new genetic character differing from the
parental strain as a result of mutation
E. Permutation, a transformation
F. Transmutation, the transformation of one species into another
NAT/NAI (to be born)
A. Cognate, having a common ancestor or origin
B. Innate, inborn
C. Naive, simple and credulous; ingenuous
D. Natant, swimming, floating
E. Nation, the people occupying the same country, united under the
same government and mostly speaking the same language
F. Renaissance, a rebirth or revival
NOV/NEO/NOU (new)
15.
16.
17.
18.
A. Neologism, a new word, expression, or usage
B. Novel, a fictional prose narrative of considerable length
C. Renovate, to restore to an earlier state
D. Nouveau riche, one who has recently become rich
E. Novena, a recitation of devotions for nine consecutive days
F. Novice, a beginner
PED/POD (foot)
A. Encyclopedia, a comprehensive reference work containing articles
on a wide range of subjects or on numerous aspects of a particular
field
B. Expedient, appropriate to a particular purpose
C. Impediment, hindrance or obstruction
D. Pedal, a foot-operated lever
E. Peddle, to travel about selling (wares)
F. Antipode, a direct opposite
SOL (to loosen, to free)
A. Resolution, a formal statement of a decision
B. Solvent, able to meet financial obligations
C. Soluble, possible to solve or explain
D. Irresolute, unsure of how to act or proceed
E. Dissolve, to make or become liquid; melt
F. Consolidate, to unite into one system or whole; combine
SUA (smooth)
A. Assuage, to make less severe; ease
B. Dissuade, to deter from a course of action or purpose
C. Persuade, to induce to undertake a course of action or embrace a
point of view by means of argument, reasoning or entreaty
D. Suability, the state of being suable; liability to be sued
E. Suasive, advising or urging; persuasive
F. Suave, smoothly agreeable and courteous
TAIN/TEN/TIN (to hold)
A. Abstention, the act or habit of abstaining
B. Attenuate, to make or become thin or small; to weaken
C. Contain, to have within; to include; to comprise
D. Pertinent, relating to a specific manner; relevant
E. Sustenance, means of livelihood
F. Tenant, one who pays rent to use or occupy property owned by
another
71
19. TEND (to stretch)
A. Attend, to be present at; to accompany
B. Contend, to compete
C. Extend, to stretch, spread, or enlarge to greater length
D. Distend, to swell or cause to swell
E. Tender, delicate, fragile
F. Tender, a formal offer; money
20. VID/VIS (to see)
A. Adviser, a person who advises
B. Evident, easily seen or understood; obvious
C. Provision, the act of supplying or fitting out
D. Visage, the face or facial expression of a person
E. Viscous, having relatively high resistance to flow
F. Visit, to stay with as a guest
QUIZ THREE
Each of the following sets contains a word that does not have a Greek
numerical prefix or combining form. Can you identify it?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
A. Monochrome B. Monetarist C. Monocle D. Monarchy
A. Digest B. Digamy C. Dyad D. Diarchy
A. Trilogy B. Trichotomy C. Triad D. Tribunal
A. Tessera B. Tetradactyl C. Tetricity D. Tetrapod
A. Pentagon B. Pentagram C. Penthouse D. Pentatomic
A. Hexagon B. Hexagram C. Hexameter D. Hexenbesen
A. Heptachord B. Hepatogenic C. Heptastych D. Heptagon
A. Ocular B. Octant C. Octoroon D. Octonal
A. Enneahedral B. Enneastyle C. Ennui D. Enneagon
A. Decadence B. Decander C. Decameron D. Decade
QUIZ FOUR
Each of the following sets contains a word that does not have a Latin
numerical prefix or combining form. Can you identify it?
72
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
A. Uniform B. Unison C. Unimpeachable D. Univalent
A. Bicuspid B. Bifocal C. Bilious D. Bicycle
A. Trigger B. Trinity C. Trimester D. Triplet
A. Quadrangle B. Quadrille C. Quadruped D. Quasar
A. Quinquennial B. Quintessence C. Quinsy D. Quintet
A. Sesquipedalian B. Sestet C. Sextuplet D. Sexagenarian
A. Septivalent B. September C. Septennial D. Septic
A. Octachord B. October C. Octroi D. Octastyle
A. Novena B. Novelty C. Nonagenarian D. Novennial
A. Decimeter B. Decibel C. Decimal D. Decisive
QUIZ FIVE
Identify the correct variant of IC analysis.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
There was an injustice there and it rankled her. (Sheldon. Rage…)
A. in-+ (just + -ice)
B. (in-+just) +-ice
… but once in a while an overzealous tin hotdog, a young detective,
would set up a gypsy – or illegal – tap, hoping to pick up information.
(Sheldon. Rage…)
A. (over + zeal) + -ous
B. over + (zeal + -ous)
He nodded, tight-lipped. (Sheldon. Rage…)
A. (tight + lip) + -ed
B. tight + (lip + -ed)
Whether you like it or not, a campaign needs salesmanship. (Sheldon. Rage…)
A. {(sale + -s) + [man + -ship]}
B. [(sale + -s) + man] + -ship
C. sale + [-s + (man + -ship)]
D. [sale + (-s + man)] + -ship
“Joey La Guardia works for the Organization?”
“He’s one of Michael Moretti’s enforcers.” (Sheldon. Rage…)
A. en- + [(force +-er) + -s]
B. [en- + (force +-er)] + -s
C. [(en- + force) + -er] + -s
D. en- + [force+ (-er + -s)]
73
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Thus it is that the manner in which you utter words, write words, and
receive words throughout your life determines how effectively and
resourcefully you carry on the business of being a member of the
human race. (Lederer. The Miracle…)
A. [(re- + source) + -ful] + -ly
B. [re- + (source + -ful)] + -ly
C. re- + [source + (-ful + -ly)]
D. re- + [(source + -ful) + -ly]
Dore Schary … has agreed to produce on the Capitol Steps a reenactment of Lincoln’s second inauguration. (Barnhart)
A. re- + [en- + (act + -ment)]
B. re- + [(en- + act) + -ment]
C. [(re- + en-) + act] + -ment
D. [re- + (en- + act)] + -ment
… and went on uninterruptedly cutting up her food. (Francis. Dead…)
A. un- + {inter- + [(rupt + -ed) + -ly]}
B. {[un- + (inter- + rupt)] + -ed} + -ly
C. {un- + [(inter- + rupt) + -ed]} + -ly
D. {un- + [inter- + (rupt + -ed)]} + -ly
President Clinton’s approach to expanding coverage is
uncharacteristically straightforward… (Newsweek)
A. un- + |{[(character + -ist) + -ic] + -al} + -ly|
B. |un- + {[character + (-ist + -ic)] + -al}| + -ly
C. un- + |{[character + (-ist + -ic)] + -al} + -ly|
D. un- + |{character + [(-ist + -ic) + -al]} + -ly|
Incomprehensibility is the reader’s fault … the writer’s reasoning …
cannot be responsible. (Barnhart)
A. |in- + {[(com- +pre-) + hens] + -ibil}| + -ity
B. in- + |{com- + [(pre- + hens) +- ibil]} + -ity|
C. |in- + {com- + [pre- + (hens + -ibil)]}| + -ity
D. |in- + {com- + [(pre- + hens) + -ibil]}| + -ity
QUIZ SIX
Each of the following sets contains a non-prefixed word. Can you identify
it?
74
1.
A.
B.
C.
D.
2.
A.
B.
C.
D.
3.
A.
B.
C.
D.
4.
A.
B.
C.
D.
5.
A.
The core of Stratton Park racecourse imploded, folding
inwards. (Francis. Decider)
That’s a visual (and emotional) expectation, something she is
looking forward to; she sees herself doing it, perhaps
imagining herself hanging a picture on the living room wall or
making the new four-poster bed for the first time or helping to
move the sofa closer to the fireplace. (Reilly)
To fall in love, then, is not a wilful act involving a
premeditated choice. (Reilly)
I wandered into our kitchen in search of something to drink
and instantly spotted the milk pitcher on the counter. (Reilly)
He didn’t want to quarrel; besides, he had come to enjoy
himself. (Barnhart)
The walls were besprinkled with holy water. (Barnhart)
They caught twelve fish between them. (Barnhart)
Beware! Danger is here. Beware the fury of a patient man. (Barnhart)
A modest man will not make a parade of his wealth. (Barnhart)
Man is an embodied paradox, a bundle of contradictions.
(Barnhart)
She had been irritated by newspaper paragraphs – nobody
could ever find out who wrote them. (Barnhart)
Nine people out of ten looked on him as something of a
parasite, with no real work in the world. (Barnhart)
The ladies sat protecting their complexions under large beach
umbrellas and small ruffed parasoles. (Barnhart)
… the parapet of the great dam. (Barnhart)
There are huge parachutes used in guided missile tests, chutes
to stabilize torpedoes dropped from airplanes… and a parachute
that is intended to yank an airplane out of a spin if anything
goes wrong in test flights. (Barnhart)
… the rescue plane with paramedics aboard. (Barnhart)
Thereafter, no such animals came into existence and, therefore,
incarnation in animal bodies was no longer possible, nor
necessary. (Lampe)
75
B.
C.
D.
6.
A.
B.
C.
D.
To many others, they are the harbinger of autumn – an immense
patchwork of safron, crimson, and green. (Arizona Highways)
The use of “man” and corresponding pronoun is not intended to
suggest, in any way, that males are more important than
females. (Lampe)
Everyone is invited to participate in the massive bonfireilluminated procession, which features Indian dances. (Arizona
Highways)
… flakes as large as the ball of a man’s thumb have covered the
mountain-side with a white blanket, unblemished save for the
imprints of a few small inquisitive creatures. (Arizona
Highways)
Washington and Lincoln are illustrious Americans. (Barnhart)
… indeed, that changing orientation is the cause of the seasons.
(Arizona Highways)
My mental diary is imprinted with wonderfully vivid
impressions of that first visit. (Arizona Highways)
7.
A. Passive or active, indoors or out-doors, this brief sampling
suggests that the events and activities of Arizona’s winter season
span all tastes. (Arizona Highways)
B. Desert lakes in central Arizona lure anglers with dozens of
species of fish, including striped bass and rainbow trout.
(Arizona Highways)
C. It is a time to pause, to notice the beauty of little things, to find
inspiration in their perfection... (Arizona Highways)
D. It pleased her to see that I was as surprised as herself, and if I
was not so indignant with Jane as she was she ascribed that to
the criminal lack of morality incident to my sex. (Maugham)
8.
A. The milkman is behind his usual time today. (Barnhart)
B. The little boy behaves badly in school. (Barnhart)
C. A San Francisco “be-in” attracted more than 100,000 persons.
(Chapman)
D. Before she goes, I would like to talk to her. (Barnhart)
76
QUIZ SEVEN
Identify the word-formation mechanism in the following words with
prefixes as
A. Prefixation
B. Suffixation
C. Compounding
D. Conversion
E. Abbreviation
F. Back-formation
G. Borrowing (a loan derivation)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
He will infallibly get the bird, and I want to witness his downfall.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
I gave her a quick recap of the incident. (Chapman)
“Anybody who continues to live in a subculture so demonstrably sick
has no right to call himself well. The only well thing to do is what I’m
going to do now, mainly, jump out of this window.” So speaking
Winsome straightened his tie and prepared to defenestrate. (Saussy
III)
After having dismantled a good section of it I had unearthed nothing
more exciting than a couple of indignant scorpions, a few woodlice
and a young gecko who fled, leaving his writhing tail behind him. It
was hot and thirsty work and after an hour or so I sat down in the
shade of the, as yet, undismantled wall to have a rest. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
The old Turk, who was surprisingly lithe for his age, had drawn his
dagger and was making wild but ineffectual swipes at Roger, who was
darting from pom-pom to pom-pom growling savagely, evading the
blade with ease. (Durrell. The Garden…)
She talked incessantly about her trip and gave us graphic thumbnail
pictures of the people she had met, inevitably ending with, ‘and so I
told them if they came to Corfu to come to see us.’ (Durrell. The
Garden…)
For some time we discussed the foibles and dissected the characters of
our fellow men with great relish and then I noticed that Lulu was
missing from the scene. (Durrell. The Garden…)
77
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
78
… while Roger, who appeared to be more thirsty than hungry, had
gone beneath the fig and almond trees and had disembowelled a
watermelon. (Durrell. The Garden…)
To my intense annoyance and frustration, the dormouse, recovering
from its momentary panic, squeezed out from under the net, galloped
along the wall and disappeared into another crevice. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
However this proved to be its undoing, for it had chosen a ‘cul de sac’
and before it had discovered its mistake I had clamped the net over
the entrance. (Durrell. The Garden…)
I was just wondering how long it would take me to demolish the rest
of the wall when from a hole some three feet from me, the dormouse
appeared. (Durrell. The Garden…)
Have you heard about the incompatible couple?
He had no income, and she wasn’t pattable. (Lederer. Nothing…)
She would gaze happily into space while I watched some creature or
other or else would simply fall into a donkey doze, that happy, trancelike state that donkeys can attain when, with half-closed eyes, they
appear to be dreaming of some nirvanna and become impervious to
shouts, threats, or even whacks with sticks. (Durrell. The Garden…)
Many useful substances are now recovered from materials that used to
be thrown away. (Barnhart)
… to recover a couch with new material. (Barnhart)
He reminisces of years gone by… (Barnhart)
She would enthuse over the most trivial idea. (Barnhart)
I watched it, entranced by its diminutive size, its rich coloring and its
air of innocence. (Durrell. The Garden…)
Eventually, it must have become obvious that the impoverished soil
would no longer support maize or vegetables on the pocket
handkerchief fields, and so the owner had moved away. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
Revivalism, the archbishop admits, accomplishes some things for
which God should be praised. (Barnhart)
The rude little girl spoke to her mother with unheard-of impudence.
(Barnhart)
We may keep alive the consciousness that it is alike our highest
wisdom and our highest duty to regard that through which all things
exist as the Unknowable. (Barnhart)
23. They had carried the affair flawlessly – until the day when one of the
Earthmen had unkindly disinterred a real Voltuscian artifact. (Science
Fiction)
24. … but by some means the male would track her down and then, still
yapping, do battle with her, crashing his shell against hers, trying to
bludgeon her into submission, while she, undeterred, would try to go
on feeding in between the bouts of buffeting. (Durrell. The Garden…)
25. The Turk’s three wives, aghast at their master’s downfall, were
standing immobile, uttering noises like three minarets at sundown.
(Durrell. The Garden…)
26. After a few weeks’ rehab they sent him back home. (Chapman)
27. In this historic neighborhood, remodelers were busy restoring to their
original elegance dozens of 18th century row houses. (Barnhart)
28. The English country gentleman galloping after a fox – the unspeakable
in full pursuit of the uneatable. (Barnhart)
29. It may have taken a disaster to prove the unworkability of the
scheme. (Barnhart)
30. Dehydrofreezing n. a process for preserving fruits and vegetables by
partial dehydration and quick freezing. (Barnhart)
31. I beg your pardon, sir. The expression escaped me inadvertently.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
32. I jumped in and out of opium habits but eventually de-toxed for good.
(Chapman)
33. Finally, there was sweet and gentle Mama Kondos, a widow of some
eighty summers, who lived with her three unmarried and, as far as I
could see, unmarriageable daughters on an untidy but prosperous
farm in a valley to the south. (Durrell. The Garden…)
34. ‘You always try to repress me,’ said Margo. ‘Everything I do is
wrong.’ (Durrrell. The Garden…)
35. Naturally, with the island thus a-burst with life, my collecting
activities redoubled. (Durrell. The Garden…)
36. ‘His lamb?’ asked Margo bewildered, ‘What lamb?’
‘The lamb he brought for his Almond-blossom, as he calls you,’ said
Mother accusingly. (Durrell. The Garden…)
37. I recalled his high spirits, his vitality, his confidence in the future, and
his disinterestedness. (Maugham)
38. It had been a not-unpleasant surprise to find that Scott Covey was
John and Elaine’s other guest. (Clark. Remember…)
79
39. “While you co-workers are going over that dull stuff,” Lilian
announced, “I’m going shopping at Harrods.” (Hailey. Strong…)
40. Two coeds are gossiping on their way home after high school.
(Lederer. Nothing…)
*QUIZ EIGHT
Each of the following sets contains a boldface word that is not formed by
prefixation. Can you identify it?
1.
A. He managed to derail the proposal just before Christmas.
(Chapman)
B. Q. Have you always lived in Beaumont since you came off the
farm?
A. No, I lived in Orange before I married and demarried.
(Lederer. Disorder...)
C. A time of ended hopes and deep dejection. (Hailey. Strong…)
D. A solitary gum tree for which he had an especial affection
seemed likely to withstand the tempestuous disruption, but that
too was at length deradicated and sent wildly hurling and
thrashing like a dog maddened with the pain of the whip. (Saussy III)
2.
A. … required to don upper and lower unmentionables. (Chapman)
B. Like great. She’s real unreal. (Chapman)
C. A hard line drive is a blue darter, frozen rope, or an ungodly
shot. (Chapman)
D. … leading us to think you are so untogether that you want other
blacks to do through the same thing. (Chapman)
3.
A.
B.
C.
D.
80
… the things … they had hashed and rehashed for many a
frugal conversational meal. (Chapman)
Williams has worked for minimum wage, rehabbing houses.
(Chapman)
Are you really going to re-up and go to that chopper school?
(Chapman)
The whole culture’s shot through. The skeleton needs melting
and re-shaping. (Bradbury)
4.
A. The Master of Ravenswood mounted the ambling hackney and
was proceeding at a slow pace when he heard the galloping of a
horse behind him … “Dismount then and draw,” said Bucklaw,
setting him an example. (Scott)
B. That and his thinning hair made him look older than his age and more
like a bank teller than a media powerhouse. It was an impression
quickly dispelled, however, when he began to speak. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. ‘Is one to have no privacy, Glossop?’ I said coldly. ‘I instructed
Jeeves to lock the door because I was about to disrobe.’
‘A likely story!’ said Tuppy. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … a prime cause of marital discontent. (Reilly)
5.
A.
B.
C.
D.
6.
A.
B.
C.
D.
7.
After Spenser … had reinvented the art of writing well. (Barnhart)
Rejiggering assignments because of pregnancy is a fact of life.
(Chapman)
… if you plan for the future, and retool if necessary… (Chapman)
It’s reprehensible to put an unqualified person in a sensitive
medical situation. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
They came to counseling blaming each other for their recurring
conflicts over who is right by reason of his or her stubbornness,
bullheadedness, selfishness, inconsiderateness. They had a values
collision, and you could cut their competitiveness with a knife. (Reilly)
Because of the need for scientific help with sales training
information, the Research Department had to be consulted
frequently, something Dr. Lord made clear was an imposition
on his time. Yet he refused to delegate responsibility to
someone else. (Hailey. Strong…)
… I shrank with horror from the spectacle of his present
ineptitude. Or is it ineptness? (Wodehouse. Life…)
… there was a sense of something lost for always; of a new
beginning which suddenly went nowhere; of the
impermanence of everything… (Hailey. Strong…)
A. As well as gold, they believed in laissez-faire, the free,
unhampered function of the market-place where inefficient
companies were allowed to fail, and efficient ones succeed: devil
take the hindmost. (Hailey. The Money…)
81
B. Once again they were the indomitable Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles. (Hiller)
C. With an incredible turn of speed he turned, leapt gracefully on
to the ruined wall and disappeared into a crack between two
stones… (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. On reflection I decided that my butterfly net was a more suitable
instrument than my shirt, so armed with it I made my way down
the hillside with the utmost caution, freezing immobile every
time the weasel appeared out of the hole and looked around.
(Durrell. The Garden…)
8.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Andrew had kept watch as best he could on the physician – the
objective being to ensure that no medical mishap or crucial
misjudgement occurred. (Hailey. Strong…)
“… I believe. I have my moral standards. One mistake, one
misstep down a slippery slope, and you can’t – …” (Plain)
She took grave offence at the clout I gave her for this
misbehaviour, so we started this expedition barely on speaking
terms. (Durrell. The Garden…)
He was also a lonely misanthrope who saw the world and
himself with intolerable clarity. (Barnhart)
*QUIZ NINE
Each of the following sets contains a monovalent prefix. Can you identify
it?
1.
A. Orange trees have coexisting fruit and flowers. (Barnhart)
B. There are still far too many variables and combinations of
variables interacting in countless ways. (Barnhart)
C. The ink had faded so that many words were illegible. (Barnhart)
D. After the patient got well, the doctor discontinued his visits.
(Barnhart)
2.
A. A question about biology is irrelevant in a music lesson.
(Barnhart)
B. Antibiotic drugs are well on the way to abolishing diseases
82
caused by bacteria and larger organisms, and even some viruses.
(Barnhart)
C. A bidirectional microphone picks up sounds from in front of
and behind the microphone, but not from the sides. (Barnhart)
D. He will probably co-star with sir Lawrence Olivier in … Jean
Anouith’s new play, “Becket.” (Barnhart)
3.
A. He made so many mistakes he had to begin his work anew. (Barnhart)
B. Flight tests demonstrate the compatibility of airframe, engine
and autopilot subsystems. (Barnhart)
C. Earthquake predictors are faultfinders. (Brandreth)
D. If you can keep your head when those about you are losing
theirs, perhaps you’ve misunderstood the situation. (Brandreth)
4.
A. “Keep on taking the antibiotics.” (Francis. Decider)
B. Hard at it went the two animals, till at last the result of their
labours stood full in view of the astonished and hitherto
incredulous Mole. (Grahame)
C. … pressure and demands on our energy and time come from
every corner of our lives and can contribute very poignantly to
marital strife and disharmony … (Reilly)
D. Autumn draws to a close with previews of the holidays …
(Arizona Highways)
5.
A. … then the shock of the early plunge, the scamper along the
bank, and the radiant transformation of earth, air, and water…
(Grahame)
B. Then he reentered the house … (Grahame)
C. The more common sources of stress … in the marital context
are: job pressures (meeting deadlines, too much or too little
work, interpersonal conflicts with superiors or fellow
workers)… (Reilly)
D. But such a satisfaction was not mine, for the end that she had
always and confidently predicted to the ill-assorted match did in
point of fact come. (Maugham)
6.
A. This celestial enactment of the transition of the seasons is most
easily viewed in late April. (Arizona Highways)
83
B. I pick up the leaf and hold it toward the sun, examining its veins
– it is nearly translucent. (Arizona Highways)
C. Terry awoke at sunrise. (Barnhart)
D. He subscribed $50 to the hospital fund. (Barnhart)
7.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Here one can either flee entirely the classic concept of winter or
embrace the season as Nature meant it to be: cold, dry, crisp.
(Arizona Highways)
Few limited areas of the world encompass, as Arizona does, six
distinct biogeographic life zones. (Arizona Highways)
The uplands, about 4,000 to 6,000 feet are represented by Payson
(4,930 feet), Prescott (5,354), Sedona (4,240)… (Arizona Highways)
Sir Gervaise, like a woman, had written his mind in his
postscript. (Barnhart)
8.
A. Scientists used posthypnotic suggestion to induce people to …
dream about certain subjects. (Barnhart)
B. This precautious way of reasoning and acting has proved … an
uninterrupted source of felicity. (Barnhart)
C. The idea of an East-West non-aggression pact … is not new –
and time has not made it any more sensible. (Barnhart)
D. Nature’s annual rebirth seems to strike a chord of renewal in
everyone who feels close to this ancient land. (Arizona
Highways)
9.
A. The walls were besprinkled with holy water. (Barnhart)
B. The kind old man befriended the hungry young artist.
(Barnhart)
C. To unwind from his work, Dykstra likes to raise flowers… in
the garden of his Georgian colonial home. (Barnhart)
D. The coeducational camp, in which boys and girls enjoy shared
activities, is now no rarity. (Barnhart)
QUIZ TEN
Identify the origin of the following prefixes as
A. Greek
84
B. Latin
C. Native
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
‘You’d better consult Jeeves,’ I said.
‘A hot and by no means unripe idea! Where is he?’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
There is considerable variation and inconsistency in the use of hyphens
in words and compounds. (Chalker & Weiner)
How very sad it is to think
Our poor benighted brother
Should have his head upon one end,
His feet upon the other. (Poems to Enjoy)
Lalande wonders how a piece of paper can become the symbol for a
given amount of gold, while a mathematician speaks of symbols for the
signs of the square root… (Eco)
‘Yes, well, some other time perhaps,’ she promised untruthfully. ‘But
this is an emergency.’ (Durrell. The Garden…)
The frail child was in obvious need of food and sunshine. (Barnhart)
Jealous people belittled the explorer’s great discoveries. (Barnhart)
‘My next trick, a difficult and dangerous one, will take some time,’ he
said portentously. (Durrell. The Garden…)
Leslie joined him and they discussed the problem of the entombed
Kralefsky. (Durrell. The Garden…)
The whole island was a-bustle and ringing with sound. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
Down below the tortois hills, below the old olive groves filled with
wine-red anemons, asphodels, pink cyclamen… (Durrell. The Garden…)
Man is an embodied paradox, a bundle of contradictions. (Barnhart)
Syntax, particularly when contrasted with pragmatics and semantics as
a subdivision of semiotics… (Chalker &Weiner)
Nonprescription Strength
THE COURT: What type of drug was involved?
THE WITNESS: It wasn’t a methamphetamine. It was a noncontrolled
laxative.
THE COURT: Sounds like you would be in more trouble. (Lederer.
Disorder…)
Our next problem… is setting up seminars and symposia to digest all
the data. (Barnhart)
I’ve read it aloud to appreciative groups… (Lederer. Anguished…)
85
17. A mixed metaphor combines two or more inconsistent metaphors, and
if Shakespeare can use one in Hamlet’s great soliloquy, why shouldn’t
the rest of us join the fun? (Brandreth)
18. From my not uncomprehensive knowledge of Greek insults, I dragged
up the worst of my vocabulary. (Durrell. The Garden…)
19. Faced, however, with the nestful of baby birds, she would inevitably
waver and then say yes. (Durrell. The Garden…)
20. But when I unwrapped it from the cloth in which she had brought it I
found to my annoyance that Mama Kondos had sent the wrong puppy.
(Durrell. The Garden…)
21. Angelo was an ex-prize fighter who had never made the big time but
was built like a rhino. (Hailey. The Money…)
22. The truth is that successful teachers strive to make themselves
unnecessary, so I’m going to keep this introduction and those to each
chapter that follows brief and to the point. (Lederer. Anguished…)
23. Historical (diachronic) linguistics is an honorable field of study; so is
the structural (synchronic) linguistics. (Barnhart)
24. Strictly, ellipsis exists only when the missing words are exactly
recoverable. (Chalker & Weiner)
25. Handsome though it is, the classic wood-and-paper architecture of
Japan is wildly dysfunctional for a Northern climate. (Barnhart)
26. ‘Impertinent man!’ said Mother indignantly. ‘Really I could smack
Margo. Tell him who I am, Gerry.’ (Durrell. The Garden…)
27. Preventive, especially as an adjective, is the preferred form. That’s
why the impeccable Henry W. Fowler, in Modern English Usage,
remarks that “preventative is a needless lengthening of an established
word, due to oversight and caprice.” That’s why a Secretary of Health
and Welfare once cautioned that “aspirin is not a substitute for other
preventive therapies for heart attack.” (Lederer. The Write…)
28. … there were vague stirrings of un-ease in him. (Bradbury)
29. Surrealism still has its numerous adherents. (Barnhart)
30. The design, by the French artist Pierre Gandon, shows the Arc de
Triomphe, with a mass of flowers in the foreground, but this busy 15
fr. adhesive has been criticized by the experts as being “too busy.”
(Barnhart)
31. I had re-upped for two more classes with him. (Chapman)
32. The pervasive and persuasive influence of mass marketing and
advertising has dramatically speeded up the production of eponyms,
86
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
and the manufacture of common nouns and verbs from brand new
names has become a burgeoning source of new words in the English
language. (Lederer. Crazy…)
If she was angry, the lines deepened into corrugations and her mouth
was like an implosion. (Golding)
He had to explain, to make it very clear, to try to undo the harm he had
done. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
With neo-classicism, euphemizing often took a Latin turn. The quest
for a more decorous language promulgated a host of medical, scientific
and polite expressions for vital and sexual functions. (Neaman &
Silver)
When people misuse words in an illiterate but humorous manner, we
call the result a malapropism. (Lederer. Anguished…)
I present my favorite modern examples of big word abusage…
(Lederer. Anguished…)
… Snoopy sits atop his doghouse, typing away at a manuscript.
(Lederer. Anguished…)
Due to the Rector’s illness, Wednesday’s healing services will be
discontinued until further notice. (Lederer. Anguished…)
To show what happens when writers fail to pay attention to their
pronouns and antecedents, I refer you to my all-time favorite
reference errors. (Lederer. Anguished…)
QUIZ ELEVEN
Each of the following sets contains a boldface word whose prefix or first
syllable is etymologically different from that of the rest of boldface words.
Can you identify it?
1.
A. “My major hobbies have always been reading and collecting
books and classical music tapes, records, and CDs,” he
commented. (This Week)
B. They are now better off as far as salaries are concerned. (This Week)
C. From Princeton, he earned an M.A. in Slavak languages and
literature, also concentrating in Russian. (This Week)
D. In contrast, the females were light olive with pale blue spots and
leaf-green fins. (Durrell. The Garden…)
87
2.
A. My answer is that I am an equal opportunity collector, and I
believe that all members of our society should have the chance to
contribute bloopers to Anguished English. (Lederer. Anguished…)
B. They must compact large-size print into narrow column
widths… (Lederer. Anguished…)
C. Condomania did hit the TV screens, but for one week only.
Some programs were good, some were appalling, but at least
most of us got the drift. (Ayto)
D. I made quite a number of friends that I corresponded with over
the years… (This Week)
3.
A. The Mormon Church has no doctrinal position on when life
begins but takes a hard line against abortions performed for
reasons other than to save the life of the mother… (Lederer.
Anguished…)
B. Based on your knowledge of their words, evaluate the emotional
stability, degree of adjustment and repressed frustrations of
each of the following… (The Cloucester County Times)
C. Many of the most amusing grammatical errors occur where
ambiguous phrases and clauses end up the wrong part of a
sentence. (Lederer. Anguished…)
D. Take whatever you feel is appropriate. (The Cloucester County
Times)
4.
A. Later in the same book report, the student explored the ending
of the novel … (Lederer. Anguished…)
B. “That’s what started me off,” he explained. (This Week)
C. Hedrick met his wife, Jane, while they were both at Deptford
High School where she was a special education teacher working
with emotionally and physically disabled children. (This Week)
D. So we scraped them, and that was harder work than peeling.
They are such an extraordinary shape, potatoes – all bumps and
warts and hollows. (Jerome)
5.
A. Witness Encouraged to Edit
(After the witness gave a long, rambling answer)
MR. PIRO: Do you see how easy it would have been if you just
said “stock.”
88
THE WITNESS: Bob, I have to process these things through my mind.
MR. PIRO: But the processing doesn’t have to be coming out of
your mouth. (Lederer. Disorder…)
B. I enjoyed it very much. I found the Russians to be very
hospitable people and I got along very well with them, especially
since I spoke their language. (This Week)
C. The male merely lay, gulping and pouting in the entrance of his
pot while the females gulped and pouted with equal zest at either
end of the aquarium. (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. … Poets whose effusions entranced my soul. (Barnhart)
6.
A. Worried about the growth of dangerous weapons such as
military-style survival knives, cross-bows and garottes, Scotland
Yard has ordered a study into the spread of ‘survivalist’ shops in
London. (Ayto)
B. … who have anything to do with Opera, even if they are only
studying for it, always appear to run to surplus poundage.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. To support this idea, by now stale, of Communism as a
surrogate religion, Chayefsky feels free to rewrite the early
history of the Russian Revolution. (Barnhart)
D. It doesn’t happen, however, that this exercise on occasion
reveals that the limitations far surpass in number and intensity
the power points of one or both individuals. (Reilly)
7.
A.
B.
C.
D.
8.
The bold messages entice readers to purchase copies from the
newsstands and, if there is time, to dive more deeply into a
story. (Lederer. Anguished…)
The deep joy we take in the company of people with whom we
have just recently fallen in love is undisguisable, even to a
purblind waiter. (Barnhart)
A certain document of the last importance has been purloined
from the royal apartments. (Barnhart)
In earlier days, the church proscribed dancing and cardplaying.
(Barnhart)
A. Delighted with my success, I mounted Sally and rode home in
triumph and with my new acquisition. (Durrell. The Garden…)
89
B. I was delighted and determined to keep a close watch on the
nest to note the progress of the young… (Durrell. The Garden…)
C. ‘Mmm, er…, yes,’ said Theodore, finding he could not better
this description. (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. The lamb seemed disappointed that no one was taking any notice
of him; he had gambolled a little, decorated the floor, and done
two nicely executed pirouettes… (Durrell. The Garden…)
9.
A.
B.
C.
D.
… so that I, the handkerchief and the dormouse were liberally
bespattered with gore. (Durrell. The Garden…)
But before I could do anything the door burst open and he
appeared belligerently. (Durrell. The Garden…)
By the fourth day, we were all beginning to feel the strain.
(Durrell. The Garden…)
He tried to get up once but, at the terrible, gobbling clutch of
the mud, uttered a despairing cry like a bereaved seagull and
lay still. (Durrell. The Garden…)
10.
A. But the disadvantage of the canals was that they were fringed on
each side with tall, rustling bamboo breaks which, while providing
shade, shut out the wind, so that the atmosphere was still, dark, hot
and as richly odiferous as a manure heap. (Durrell. The Garden…)
B. The conference… had a prologue and epilogue of arrivals and
departures. (Barnhart)
C. While the Bootle Bumtrinket was ideal for my purposes, I
would have been the first to admit that she had none of the
refinements of an ocean-going yacht… (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. The Bootle Bumtrinket, by virtue of her shape and flat bottom,
could be propelled up and down these inland waterways with
comparative ease… (Durrell. The Garden…)
11.
A. As he was still turning it over and looking at it, suddenly there
stood before him a negro efrit, one of whose lips touched the
heavens, and the other lip the earth. (Folk Tales)
B. My efforts to turn the leaden waterlogged boat towards the bank
were superhuman. (Durrell. The Garden…)
C. The effect on my tutor, Mr. Kralefsky, was, however, very
different. (Durrell. The Garden…)
90
D. But Larry was not listening; he had extracted a postcard from
the mail Captain Creech had brought. (Durrell. The Garden…)
12.
A. But it was the heavy emergence of the tortoises that would
really tell me that spring had started … (Durrell. The Garden…)
B. As I was temporarily embarrassed financially, I explained to
the Rosebeetle Man that he would have to wait for payment until
the beginning of the next month… (Durrell. The Garden…)
C. A wise person does not become embroiled in other people’s
disputes. (Barnhart)
D. Well, she wants to start a society for the elimination of cruelty
to animals here in Corfu… (Durrell. The Garden…)
13.
A. Panic on the 5.22. Three incompetent hoodlums hold up wealthy
train passengers but are frustrated by finding only plastic money
in their wallets. Original idea and smarter moments can’t sustain
unusual suspenser which goes on a bit too long. (Ayto)
B. The late Mr. Thomas Cardew, an old gentleman of a very
charitable and kindly disposition found me, and gave me the
name of Worthing, because he happened to have a first-class
ticket for Worthing in his pocket at the time. Worthing is a place
in Sussex. It is a seaside resort. (Wilde. Selections)
C. ‘Mon Dieu!’ he cried shrilly, ‘ve are submerge. My shoe is
submerge. Ze boat, she ave sonk.’ (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. The attack succeeded beyond all expectations. (Barnhart)
14.
A. The difference between the right word and the almost right word
is the difference between “lightning” and “lightning bug.”
(Twain)
B. Diskography has proved of value in the demonstration of
damaged intervertebral disks in instances when routine
myelography has been ineffective. (Barnhart)
C. She is a very people-oriented person and is always filled with
sympathy for the down-trodden and disabled. (This Week)
D. I wanted above all things to catch it and take it home with me to
add to my menagerie but I knew this would be difficult.
(Durrell. The Garden…)
91
QUIZ TWELVE
Match the following definitions with the prefixed words given below.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
92
Dorsal means pertaining to the back. When you put your signature on
the back of a check, this means you accept responsibility, you _______
it.
Plain means clear, simple. The word that means to bring out the clarity
or the simplicity of something, to clarify, is ________ .
Unsanitary really means not healthy. There is another word like it that
at one time also meant not healthy. It was a polite word for the mentally
ill; the word is _________ .
Tradition means handing over. The delivering, the handing over of a
criminal from out of a country where he is hiding to another country for
trial or punishment is _________ .
Latin litera means a letter of the alphabet. By adding the prefix for not,
we get ________ , a person who can neither read, nor write.
Rain in German is regen (‘g’ and ‘ī’ frequently interchange). The
process of artificially bringing water in to the field (in a sense, bringing
rain in) is called ________ .
They came to an ________ : their difficulty was so great they could not
pass through.
The word ‘leap’ – to jump, to go – has another form, lope. When a
couple runs off to get married we say they are _______ .
An _______ jumps in where she’s not wanted, or does not belong.
A word meaning distinguished, magnificent consists almost wholly of
the Latin prefix for above, the word is ________ .
The Greek word dote means ‘to give’. A substance given to a child who
has swallowed poison, to work against its ill effects, is called an
_______ .
If you judge something before weighing the facts or listening to the
evidence, you are guilty of _______ .
The Latin sper means ‘to hope’. If you are completely away from, or
without, hope you are in ________ .
Clemency means ‘gentleness, mercy’, when the weather is threatening
or harsh, it is ________ .
The word tail means ‘to cut.’ A tailor is really a cutter. In the past
merchants had to divide large barrels into small portions, cut large
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
pieces of wood into smaller pieces, trim large bolts of cloth into pieces
for individual dresses or suits. All these merchants who cut and recut
were called _______ .
Guise means ‘a style’ or ‘fashion.’ When you alter your clothing to
hide your identity, you are _______ yourself.
A _______ is a reduction of the sum that you would normally pay. You
simply count off part of the money.
Dia means ‘through, across.’ The line that goes through the circle,
measuring the distance across is called the _______ .
Per means ‘through, thoroughly.’ If you stand throughout, continue
firmly in a state or a condition, you are _______ .
If a plant lasts throughout the year or many years (annus = year), it is
called _______ .
Per also means ‘thoroughly’ in a negative sense, completely bad or
evil. To come to ruin morally or spiritually means________ .
Duc means to ‘lead.’ When we lead out or bring out one’s powers and
capabilities, we _______ him.
Sub means ‘under.’ The beams that carry a building from underneath
are called _______ .
Com means ‘together.’ To ________ is to place in or bring into proper
relation with one another.
insane
illiterate
impasse
inlerloper
supreme
retailers
eloping
discount
I.
J.
K.
L.
M.
N.
O.
P.
inclement
persistent
perish
educate
explain
irrigate
extradition
dispair
Q.
R.
S.
T.
U.
V.
W.
X.
supports
correlate
endorse
perennial
prejudice
diameter
disguising
antidote
QUIZ THIRTEEN
Complete the words in the following sentences by adding the prefix or the
combining form whose meaning is given in parentheses at the end of the sentence.
93
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
94
All John’s ____ cedents, as far back as he could trace them, had been
born in New Zealand. (before)
A. pre- B. ante- C. fore- D. proHe decided to take ____ graduate work at the university in order to
assure himself of a better position with the company. (after)
A. apres- B. post- C. afterThe district attorney claimed he could prove the crime was ____
meditated. (before)
A. ante- B. fore- C. pre- D. proThe escaped prisoner ____ merged himself in the shallow stream to
escape detection by the bloodhounds. (under)
A. hypo- B. cata- C. sub- D. underThe ____ terior of the house was painted a bright red. (out)
A. exB. exo- C. out- D. endo
My parents were ____ pleased when I came home late on Friday.
(not)
A. misB. dis- C. un- D. imMy mother is going to ____ decorate the house. (again)
A. overB. beC. reD. enI bought it last week, but I will ____ sell it to you. (again)
A. unB. retro- C. reD. redI have never been ____ sincere with you. (not)
A. unB. non- C. ilD. inI sense some ____ comfort in you. (opposite)
A. nonB. unC. mis- D. disHave you ever known me to ____ lead you? (incorrectly)
A. misB. disC. reD. inYou don’t even have to ____ pay me for the map. (before)
A. foreB. ante- C. pre- D. proI’m a little ____ organized now, but I’ll get the map to you tomorrow.
(not)
A. misB. non- C. in- D. disMany searches for the gold have had to be ____ continued. (away from)
A. unB. disC. de- D. diMany people say this artifact is ____ existent. (not)
A. unB. inC. nonD. dis-
QUIZ FOURTEEN
Use the following prefixes to complete the boldface words.
A. deF. irB. disG. misC. ilH. nonD. imI. reE. inJ. un1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
A three-storey structure, probably forty years old and showing signs of
**repair. (Hailey. The Money…)
Once she was at home with her mother she **bosomed herself of all
her troubles. (Makkai)
She was only a florist’s daughter, and whenever she was potted she got
**flowered. (Lederer. Nothing…)
It’s up to me, yes, to commit or **commit ghosts, choose or not
choose out of the whole damn history of the land? (Bradbury)
Which is why it seemed unfortunate that the 1960s were already
proving a dry, **-innovative period for the prescription drug business.
(Hailey. Strong…)
Our men … took up three men; one of which was just drowning, and it
was a good while before we could **cover him. (Barnhart)
The men **covered as the flag passed by. (Barnhart)
I **covered that she had a consuming passion for large brown
grasshoppers. (Durrell. The Garden…)
Faced with the actual array of random containers, I had to **think.
(Francis. Decider)
The home environment can **do a lot you try to do at school.
(Bradbury)
He had done her and her family a grave **service. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
They see no middle ground, no neutral state wherein one is neither
happy-aware of a sensation of fulfillment at the moment nor unhappyaware of a sensation of **fulfillment at the moment. (Reilly)
As I’m writing, I have no conscious sensation of happiness or
**happiness or any other feeling. (Reilly)
She felt **accountably guilty. (Hunter)
Alex Vandervoort was uneasy about them all. His **ease did not have
to be translated into action. (Hailey. The Money…)
95
16. Sam interjected, “But Alzheimer’s **ease and the normal aging
process are two separate things, right?” (Hailey. Strong…)
17. The **reproachable Mechlin lace… (Wodehouse. Life…)
18. For all these reasons it was a situation made to order for someone
**honest and “in the know.” (Hailey. Strong…)
19. ‘Black son of the devil! **legitimate offspring of a witch! My shoes!
Leave my shoes! I will kill you… destroy you!’ panted the old Turk,
slashing away at Roger [the dog]. (Durrell. The Garden…)
20. The **avoidable order of things. (Orwell)
21. In years gone by apparently **explicable fires have occurred.
(Barnhart)
22. It was on the tip of her tongue to tell this intelligent, sympathetic
woman about the **explainable business of the figure on the widow’s
walk… (Clark. Remember…)
23. “What is this? Who’s made any **steps? What in heaven’s name are
you talking about?…” (Plain)
24. This beast, Sally by name, had been a birthday present; and as a means
of covering long distances and carrying a lot of equipment I found her
an **valuable, if stubborn, companion. (Durrell. The Garden…)
25. It was into this interesting situation that Larry and Leslie intruded.
They stood riveted in the doorway, drinking in the scene with
**believing eyes. (Durrell. The Garden…)
26. The wall behind the lamp was already covered by a host of various
insects which, after an **successful suicide attempt, were clinging
there to recover themselves before trying again. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
27. When he did emerge he did so with such suddenness that I was
**prepared. (Durrell. The Garden…)
28. He sat up on his hind legs and stared at me with interest **tinged by
alarm. (Durrell. The Garden…)
29. … the dormouse wouldn’t move from its new hole if **disturbed.
(Durrell. The Garden…)
30. She had all her father’s passion for the unknown, the
**comprehensible, even the exotic. (Hunter)
31. … I was laden with a variety of edible commodities, the largest of
which was a watermelon, a generous present pressed upon me by
Mama Agathi, a friend of mine whom I had not seen for a week, an
96
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
**conscionable length of time, during which she presumed I had been
without food. (Durrell. The Garden…)
‘And in these restless times, my dear Wooster,’ he said, ‘I fear that
brevity in the pulpit is becoming more and more desiderated by even
the bucolic churchgoer, who one might have supposed would be less
afflicted with the spirit of hurry and **patience than his metropolitan
brother…’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
“…You must be a very good archeologist! Are you better than my
father was?”
“Egyptology is my subject. Your father didn’t specialise. He wasn’t a
patient man. He wanted results long before he had **earthed all the
available evidence…” (Hunter)
I’m **tracted about it. (Wodehouse. Life…)
Those who cannot carry a train of consequences in their heads; nor
weigh exactly the preponderancy of contrary proofs and testimonies …
may be easily **led to assent to positions that are not probable.
(Hailey. Strong…)
An infectious **willingness to make a decision about anything.
(Hailey. Strong…)
… with whom she could gossip freely and **consequentially. (Shaw.
Two Weeks…)
And a white-satin border would be **practical. (Clark. The Lottery…)
‘Ayii! Ayii! Ayii! His shoes! His shoes!’ screamed the women in a
chorus, **mobile on their cushions. (Durrell. The Garden…)
During this period, the new weapon is extensively tested and
“**bugged” by the Air Force. (Barnhart)
For seven years, I have suffered in the consciousness that I am
**wombed and yet remain a woman … (Ayto)
I can’t give you **interested advice, because I’m a business colleague
of your employer. (Swan)
I was completely **interested in what he had to say. (Swan)
Despite the pleadings and protestations of her parents, Deborah refused
to **nounce her love for the leader of the motorcycle gang.
(Robinson)
The preacher **nounced sin. (Barnhart)
97
QUIZ FIFTEEN
Match the right negative or reversative prefix
1. fold
2. legal
3. appear
4. common
5. normal
6. profit
7. regular
A. unA. inA. misA. inA. inA. unA. un-
B. disB. unB. disB. unB. unB. nonB. in-
C. misC. ilC. inC. ilC. ilC. abC. il-
D. inD. nonD. unD. imD. abD. misD. ir-
E. imE. imE. ilE. abE. nonE. disE. im-
*QUIZ SIXTEEN
Identify the general semantic component of the following prefixes as
A. negative
B. reversative
C. repetitive
D. spacial (locative) and/or temporal
E. quantitative (numerical)
F. evaluative
G. accompanying (attendant)
H. traspositive: 1) verb-forming
2) adjective/adverb-forming
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
98
My student’s two botched sentences are superb examples of the
scalding water writers can get themselves into when they misplace a
modifier. (Lederer. Anguished…)
Down the front was a brown tie, fixed by a large brooch of some ugly,
semi-precious stone in brown and black. (Golding)
Many, perhaps most people in the western world, still today subscribe
to the concept of the sleep of the soul. (Lampe)
Because Clement of Rome (A.D. 95) quoted profusely from it, some
people thought that he might have written it. (Lampe)
Its doctrine has the overtones of those of Paul and it is presumed that
the author might have come under the influence of Paul. (Lampe)
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
Zsa Zsa Gabor, when asked how many husbands she had had, replied:
“You mean apart from my own?” (Brandreth)
Oddly, hexarchy refers to a group of six states, not a government of six
leaders. (Hellweg)
A hot thundery wind launched itself at them, spent itself, and
somewhere a bell beat out wild triphthongs. (Saussy III)
‘But as you haven’t,’ interrupted the Rat, rather unkindly, ‘I suppose
you’re going to sit on the snow all night and talk?’ (Grahame)
After some further toil his efforts were rewarded, and a very shabby
door-mat lay exposed to view. (Grahame)
Then he reentered the house, strapped a belt round his waist, shoved a
brace of pistols into it, took up a stout cudgel that stood in a corner of
the hall, and set off for the Wild Wood at a smart pace. (Grahame)
It grew and it multiplied, till from every quarter as he listened
anxiously, leaning this way and that, it seemed to be closing in on him.
(Grahame)
There was no deliberate, premeditated, conscious effort on my part to
fall in love with her. (Reilly)
They are discouraged over their failure to resolve their difficulties on
their own. (Reilly)
That is why we watch so many sit-coms on television, and why we go
to the theater to see Eddie Murphy films, and why comedians like Bob
Hope, Carol Burnett, and Lucille Ball have been in such demand over
the years. (Reilly)
She desires to experience as best as she can the internal experience of
the other. (Reilly)
The pattering increased till it sounded like sudden hail on the dry leafcarpet spread around him. (Grahame)
The dusk advanced on him steadily … (Grahame)
Drowsy animals, snug in their holes while wind and rain were battering
at their doors, recalled still keen mornings, an hour before sunrise…
(Grahame)
One member of the company was still awaited … (Grahame)
… he found his thoughts dwelling again with much persistence on the
solitary grey Badger, who lived his own life by himself… (Grahame)
Euphemism… is an instinct as old as language itself. (Brandreth)
Handsome though it is, the classic wood-and-paper architecture of
Japan is wildly dysfunctional for a Northern climate. (Barnhart)
99
24. Sometimes the humor issues from a confusion between two words.
Working independently, students have written, “Having one wife is
called monotony,” “When a man has more than one wife, he is a
pigamist…” (Lederer. Anguished…)
25. Besides, we can’t. It’s quite out of the question, because he lives in the
very middle of the Wild Wood. (Grahame)
26. All are sleepy – some actually asleep. (Grahame)
27. He conducted the two animals to a long room that seemed half
bedchamber and half loft. (Grahame)
28. Subconsciously Judith absorbed the details of the place as, at his
invitation, she deposited her bags on a marble table near the receptionroom door. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
29. The King attended the beheading of a woman. (Clark. The
Anastasia…)
30. There was also another only child, the 12-year-old daughter of Jairus,
who was confirmed to have died but whom Jesus Christ raised up.
(Lampe)
31. … but his father makes a timely appearance and commands the child to
take the same coat and wear it again. (Lampe)
32. Two hours before dawn members of Acción Dinámica adfenestrated
themselves into the palace. (Saussy III)
33. The lights were out, and all were thought to be abed. (Barnahrt)
34. Anna Anderson in truth became the living embodiment of Anastasia,
with her memories, her emotions, her intelligence. (Clark. The
Anastasia…)
35. I found Western Europe astir with efforts to rethink current policies…
(Barnhart)
36. Many monasteries were robbed, many clerical persons maimed and
maltreated. (Barnhart)
37. The small-group sides are the best, with the nonet in particular coming
through as a sparkling unit. (Barnhart)
38. I mean stories about an unexplainable presence, a ghost. (Clark.
Remember…)
39. Stamp out distemper – but don’t step in it. (Brandreth)
40. Support wildlife – vote for an orgy! (Brandreth)
41. Repeal inhibition! (Brandreth)
42. Repeal the law of gravity! Brandreth)
43. Sock it to me with apathy. (Brandreth)
100
44. There’s an anti-everything man for you, a militarist, anti-Christ, antihuman, anti-intellectual. (Bradbury)
45. ‘I don’t see that objecting to unexpected guests is being narrowminded, dear,’ said Mother. ‘After all, I’m the one that has to do the
cooking.’ (Durrell. The Garden…)
46. Mother was seated on the floor, perched uncomfortably on a cushion,
gingerly holding in one hand a piece of rope to which was attached a
small, black and excessively high-spirited ram. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
47. In many communities, Mexican Independence Day means music and
dancing. (Arizona Highways)
48. Throughout the fall, of course, football is the predominant spectator
sport. (Arizona Highways)
49. All three state universities field teams in intercollegiate competition.
(Arizona Highways)
50. … to think about the fragile quality of our environment and the
interrelation of all the elements of our existence. (Arizona Highways)
51. Because the earth’s axis is tilted in relation to the plane of its year-long
solar orbit, the orientation of the northern and southern hemispheres to
the sun changes with the seasons... (Arizona Highways)
52. … and the sweeping vistas of the summer Milky Way reappear.
(Arizona Highways)
53. The Law of Like Attracts Like and the Law of Spiritual Gravity would
ensure that he is attracted away and that he rises toward Paradise where
similar noble and mature spirits have their abode. (Lampe)
54. Reincarnation is a pleasant surprise. (Brandreth)
55. Archduke Ferdinand found alive; First World War was a mistake.
(Brandreth)
56. Watching a razor-sharp wit at work is always exhilarating – provided
the witty wounding words are not aimed in your direction… (Barnhart)
57. I saw that a good many of my fellow-guests were well known to the
public from their photographs in the illustrated papers. (Maugham)
58. Mrs. Tower was a bad correspondent and though I sent her an
occasional picture-postcard I received no news from her. (Maugham)
59. … and I sought to discover in what lay her peculiar gift. (Maugham)
60. … and because it pleased him she persuaded herself, though not
without misgivings, to wear them in preference to those she had chosen
herself. (Maugham)
101
61. Never is this more true than in autumn, when in the three short months
between equinox and solstice the canyon passes from the hot aftersummer drought to the first chill days of winter. (Arizona Highways)
62. … the round-tailed ground squirrels… have already disappeared
underground in anticipation of the dry weather to come. (Arizona
Highways)
63. She was dressed in black and white as no doubt befitted her slightly
ambiguous position… (Maugham)
64. We arranged before we married that if either of us wanted his liberty
the other should put no hindrance in the way. (Maugham)
65. Enjoy a good laugh – go to work on a feather. (Brandreth)
66. Be security conscious – because 80 percent of people are caused by
accident. (Brandreth)
67. This is to say that our sojourn on earth has a definite purpose. (Lampe)
QUIZ SEVENTEEN
Each of the following sets contains a non-allomorph prefix. Can you
identify it?
1.
A.
B.
C.
D.
2.
A.
B.
C.
D.
102
Many of the best jests attributed to Oscar Wilde in Britain are
attributed to Mark Twain in the United States. (Brandreth)
She sent for Blanche to accuse her face to face. (Barnhart)
Mrs. Tower, not without magnanimity, acknowledged that she
had been mistaken in Gilbert. (Maugham)
But notwithstanding appearances she never faltered in her
opinion that the marriage could not last. (Maugham)
The Martians in The War of the Worlds survived every military
weapon known to man but succumbed to the common cold.
(Robinson)
Tom had indeed been shot, but the wound was superficial; the
bullet had merely creased the tip of his nose. (Robinson)
The enemy surprised the fort. (Barnhart)
Thanksgiving meals are usually a surfeit for everyone involved.
(Robinson)
3.
A. A surrogate mother is a woman who bears a child for someone
else. (Robinson)
B. From the messages the eight-ball has been sending me, I
surmise that someone’s going to be giving me a present soon.
(Robinson)
C. Mom and Dad suppressed our brief show rebellion by
threatening to hold our hands in public if we didn’t behave.
(Robinson)
D. The popular new drug helps anxieties to subside, but it does not
eliminate them completely. (Robinson)
4.
A. Revolutions usually begin as a small band of seditious
individuals plot to change the established order. (Robinson)
B. A husband and a wife may separate by agreement or by order of
a court. (Barnhart)
C. When the southern states seceded from the Union, they probably
never expected to create as much of a ruckus as they did. (Robinson)
D. A boiled egg is a semifluid. (Barnhart)
5.
A. A congenital birth defect is one that is present at birth but was
not caused by one’s genes. (Robinson)
B. The complacent camper paid no attention to the bear prowling
around his campsite, and the bear ate him up. (Robinson)
C. The military police looked for contraband in the luggage of the
returning soldiers, and they found plenty of it, including
captured enemy weapons and illegal drugs. (Robinson)
D. A writer with a colloquial style is a writer who uses ordinary
words and whose writing seems as informal as common speech.
(Robinson)
6.
A. The tear gas diffused across the campus; students as far away as
the library reported that their eyes were stinging. (Robinson)
B. I asked my children to ignore any discrepancy between what I
say and what I do. (Robinson)
C. After a lengthy digression, the lecturer returned to his speech
and brought it to a conclusion. (Robinson)
D. The research team reported it was able “to study the whole life
history of a dystrophic muscle.” (Barnhart)
103
7.
A. Did you achieve all that you expected to today? (Barnhart)
B. Breaking the dish was purely accidental; John did not mean to
do it. (Barnhart)
C. Most boys are akin in their love of sports. (Barnhart)
D. She adores her mother. (Barnhart)
8.
A. The abdication of the King of Egypt took place in 1952.
(Barnhart)
B. The latest acquisition is a painting by Rubens. (Barnhart)
C. The discovery of America is usually ascribed to Columbus.
(Barnhart)
D. Abbreviated sentences of a more predictable kind are a frequent
feature of informal writing and conversation. (Chalker & Weiner)
9.
A. Everyone in the wedding party was nervous until the subtle
harmonies of the string quartet infused them with a sense of
tranquility… (Robinson)
B. When you said I looked healthy, was that really meant as an
implication that I’ve put on weight? (Robinson)
C. Criminals engage in illicit activities. (Robinson)
D. The irruption of barbarians was one cause of the downfall of the
Roman Empire. (Barnhart)
10.
A. Many children have an illogical fear of the dark. (Barnhart)
B. Jim’s impending fiftieth birthday filled him with gloom; he was
starting to feel old. (Robinson)
C. The subway officials did their best to scrub the graffiti off the
trains, but the paint the vandals had used proved to be
ineradicable; not even cleaning fluid would remove it.
(Robinson)
D. My decision not to wear a Tarzan costume and ride on a float in
the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is irrevocable; there is
absolutely nothing you could do or say to make me change my
mind. (Robinson)
11.
A. Heat is the efficient cause in changing water to steam. (Robinson)
B. By presedential edict, all government offices were closed for the
holiday. (Robinson)
104
C. Fighting and shouting embroiled the classroom, leading the
teacher to jump out of the window. (Robinson)
D. Certain kinds of nonprofit organizations are exempt from
taxation. (Robinson)
12.
A. He elected history as his major study. (Barnhart)
B. She embarrassed me by asking me if I really liked her.
(Barnhart)
C. Susan was an engaging dinner companion; she was lively and
funny and utterly charming. (Robinson)
D. According to the established principles of conservation in
physics, energy is never created or destroyed, but is only
transferred and transformed. (Barnhart)
OUIZ EIGHTEEN
Each of following sets contains a prefix homonymous with the other three
ones. Can you identify it?
1.
A.
... I had to confess that the charge was excellent, well thought
out, as it was, and with the full power of the ram’s wiry body and
bony head landing with precision on the back of Mother’s knees.
Mother was projected on to our extremely uncomfortable
horsehair sofa as if propelled by a cannon, and she lay there
gasping. (Durrell. The Garden…)
B. This rat had met an unfortunate end in the claws of my scops
owl, Uysses. (Durrell. The Garden…)
C. ... the weasel who was sitting up on his stone sniffing the air and
apparently unaware of his danger. (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. While I was musing on the best method of achieving this result a
drama unfolded in the ruined cottage below. (Durrell. The Garden…)
2.
A. He seemed, by all accounts, to be such an important personage
and, though rarely visible, to make his unseen influence felt by
everybody about the place. (Grahame)
B. Some married people also confuse this neutral emotional state
with apathy, or indifference. (Reilly)
105
C. Her fiancé is coming to dine here tonight to be introduced to me,
and I want you to come too. (Maugham)
D. As the substance absorbs increasing amounts of heat radiation,
the rate its constituent atoms vibrate increases. (Lampe)
3.
A. In early November, gray clouds cover the sun at last and gentle
rains refresh the desert. (Arizona Highways)
B. The replenished creek rushes vigorously down its channel,
cascading over boulders, splashing into foamy waves. (Arizona
Hiphways)
C. Her repeated reprimands were getting her nowhere fast. (Reilly)
D. Magically, I now find some of those unforgettable images
recaptured in the winter portfolio that follows. (Arizona Highways)
4.
A. Longtime Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley was known for
beheading the English language wilh such mutilations as “I
resent your insinuendoes” and “We shall reach greater and
greater platitudes of achievement.” (Lederer. Anguished…)
B. The Rat attacked a snow-bank beside them with ardour...
(Grahame)
C. “I’m sorry, miss, but you’ll have to leave. I’ve let you stay beyond
visiting hours.” Matron looked disapproving. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
D. Any marital counselor will tell you that in every problematic
situation between husband and wife there is always the issue of
expectations involved. (Reilly)
5.
A. The following statements are collected from insurance forms in
which drivers were asked to explain their disasters in the fewest
words possible. (Lederer. Anguished…)
B. The members of certain orders of friars and nuns are discalced.
(Barnhart)
C. The suddenly increased rate of growth is not due to glandular
disfunction. (Barnhart)
D. Many materials discolor if exposed to sunshine. (Barnhart)
6.
A. The streets are aswarm with humanity. (Barnhart)
B. The Baltic from Finland to Danzig was aswim with Soviet
warships. (Barnhart)
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C. Any object which cannot be divided into corresponding halves by
any plane is said to be asymmetrical. (Barnhart)
D. The South spit was just awash with the flowing tide. (Barnhart)
7.
A. Glass is amorphous; sugar is crystalline. (Barnhart)
B. He averted an accident by a guick turn of his car. ( Barnhart)
C. The Constitution was amended so that women could vote.
(Barnhart)
D. The dried remains of summer wildflowers crunch beneath my feet
as I ascend the volcanic slope. (Arizona Highways)
8.
A. Variegation was studied in a hybrid ... and found to be due
to dicentric chromosomes. (Barnhart)
B. Various birds and insects are dichromatic. (Barnhart)
C. Because the vowels are jumbled up they tend to change character
and diphthongise. (Barnhart)
D. Sabino Canyon, Tucson’s desert oasis in the foothills of the Santa
Catalina Mountains is a place of astonishing diversity.
(Arizona Highways)
9.
A. A high fence surrounds the field. (Barnhart)
B. The buyers surveyed the goods offered for sale. (Barnhart)
C. The baby-sitter mixed herself a surreptitious cocktail as soon as
Mr. and Mrs. Robinson had driven away. (Robinson)
D. As Keats wrote Cortez’s men looked at each other “with a
wild surmise” when they first saw the Pacific Ocean and realized
that they had achieved their goal. (Robinson)
QUIZ NINETEEN
Each of the following sets contains a non-suffixed word. Can you identify
it?
1.
A. The Countess, who resembled a raddled black crow wearing an
orange wig, was a formidable force, there was no doubt, but the
matter was too important to allow her to ride rough-shod over
everyone. (Durrell. The Garden…)
107
B. She made red currant preserves.
C. True wit: Billy Crystal’s introduction, in which he spliced
himself into the nominated films, was brilliant. (Newsweek)
D. After drilling several preliminary test holes, it reported
“insignificant amounts of gold.” (Newsweek)
2.
A. What had served them well in the past, their deep and genuine
feeling of us-ness, no longer was doing the job because they
found it so difficult, if not impossible, to sustain that feeling.
(Reilly)
B. Furthermore, businesses cannot change their prices too
frequently… (MacKenzie)
C. However, we are always happy to hear about new record
attempts. From the American Editors of Guinness.
D. Banks lend to blue chip borrowers (very safe large companies) at
the base rate or the prime rate; all other borrowers pay more,
depending on their credit standing (or credit rating, or
creditworthiness)… (MacKenzie)
3.
A. A famous punster boasted that he could make a pun on any
subject. When asked to do so at a banquet, he queried: “Will
someone name a subject?”
“The King!” someone called out.
Without a moment’s hesitation, the punster punned: “The King
is not a subject!” (English Humour)
B. … it gives the handicaps and the current odds on each starter.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. “It was a different tiddely poem,” said Pooh, feeling rather
muddled now. (Baum)
D. Lizzie was first removed from her parents when she was 18
months old. (Reader’s Digest)
4.
A. During the ensuing days, as the time of the great event grew
nearer, the island’s inhabitants became more and more frenzied
and tempers grew shorter and shorter. (Durrell. The Garden…)
B. The commonly accepted use of the term consonant is potentially
ambiguous. (Chalker & Weiner)
C. Said an elephant travelling by train,
108
D.
5.
A.
B.
C.
D.
6.
A.
B.
C.
D.
7.
A.
B.
“They tell me my trunk must remain
in the guard’s van. I cavil
at this, and my travel
Henceforth will be by aeroplane. (Poems to Enjoy)
A new servant maid named Maria,
Had trouble in lighting the fire.
The wood being green,
She used gasoline…
Her position by now is much higher. (Topsy-Turvy World)
There was once a spinster from Wheeling,
Endowed with such delicate feeling
That she thought any chair
Should not have its legs bare,
So she kept her eyes fixed on the ceiling. (Topsy-Turvy World)
Said a bad little youngster named Beauchamp,
“Those jelly tarts, how shall I reauchamp?
To my parents I’d go,
But they always say ‘No,’
No matter how much I beseauchamp.” (Topsy-Turvy World)
“You can really have no notion how delightful it will be when
they take us up and throw us, with the lobsters, out to sea!” (Carroll)
I will not allow work on the piers to go to hoodlums and mobsters
from New York. (Barnhart)
Nixnik, member of the White House staff under Richard Nixon.
(Brandreth)
Earth-orbiting satellites are the oldest type of spacecraft – the
first one, Sputnik 1, was launched on Oct. 4, 1957. (Webster)
But while the Beatniks travel about the country on the backs of
the trucks, the rest of us are going to college and then plunging
… into marriage and parenthood. (Barnhart)
A year ago, 10,000 foreigners [in Japan] briefly refused to be
fingerprinted, as part of an organized campaign against the
exasperating practice. About 200 hard-core refuseniks are left,
four times as many as before last autumn’s campaign. (Ayto)
When a hacker programs, he creates worlds. (Chapman)
… the two games he mentioned were laughers. (Chapman)
109
C.
D.
He heard a moocher deliver the following spiel. (Chapman)
… two jaspers with a grudge. (Chapman)
8.
A.
B.
C.
D.
And he looked, well, goofy. (Chapman)
Greaseless. Nongooky. (Chapman)
… the advent of the latest taxi competitor: the gypsy cab. (Chapman)
… a pretty gutty guy. (Barnhart)
9.
A. What a dinky joint! (Chapman)
B. He tries to convince her that she is not daffy. (Chapman)
C. I’ve heard some dillies in my day, but that’s the payoff.
(Barnhart)
D. He dallied with the offer for days, but finally refused it.
(Barnhart)
10.
A. … disgusto special effects aside. (Chapman)
B. Writers about baseball use a strange lingo. (Barnhart)
C. Above all these, she must be willing to share his values and
goals. Sounds somewhat macho and self-serving? Perhaps so,
but at least he was honest… (Reilly)
D. … the nutso names of the current batch of new bands. (Chapman)
11.
A. I’ve heard there are still hobo camps all across the country, here
and there; walking camps they call them … (Bradbury)
B. Charlie doesn’t know anything. He’s a thicko. (Chapman)
C. Okay, now a socko surprise. (Chapman)
D. You can always tell phychos, they have dirty hands. (Chapman)
12.
A. Drugola n. (narcotics) Money paid by narcotics dealers for
protection, esp to the police. (Chapman)
B. And Fortune’s worst floppola seems apocalyptic: Who will care
for the poor? (Chapman)
C. Mandola n. a small lute of the 1600s and 1700s with a slightly
curved handle where the tuning pegs were placed. (Barnhart)
D. Payola n. undercover payments or graft, made or given in return
for favors, as to disc jockeys for otherwise free promotion of a
record, song, or performer. (Barnhart)
110
13.
14.
A. What was the decider, however irrational, that made them
choose that house and no other? (Francis. Decider)
B. I’d go to a friend’s baby shower and try not to cry. Someone
suggested I look into in vitro fertilization, and Jamie was born
fifteen months later… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. He is a smart shower and a well-made dog. (Barnhart)
D. Tracy opened her purse and pulled out the revolver. (Sheldon. If…)
A. Another candidate for presidency has thrown down the
gauntlet. (Makkai)
B. Hamlet n. a small group of dwellings in a rural district, not
large enough to warrant a church or a school. (Webster)
C. Mouth n. In man, the gateway to the soul, in woman, the outlet
of the heart. (Bierce)
D. It was still snowing as he stumped over the white forest tracks,
and he expected to find Piglet warming his toes in front of his
fire… (Milne)
QUIZ TWENTY
Identify the word-building mechanism of the following words containing a
suffix as
A. Back-formation
B. Blending
C. Borrowing
D. Compounding
E. Conversion
F. Prefixation
G. Suffixation
1.
A number of aliens were in the store, mainly shopping for souvenirs,
but they were staring too. A puppeteer is unique. Imagine a headless,
three-legged centaur wearing two Cecil the Seasick Serpent puppets on
his arms, and you’ll have something like the right picture. But the arms
are weaving necks, and the puppets are real heads, flat and brainless,
with wide flexible lips. (Science Fiction).
2. Volunteers are hard to come by. (Lederer. Disorder...)
3. He volunteered to get the necessary information. (Hornby)
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4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
But in choosing instead to capitalise on the fears and dissatisfactions
of some of his crew and derecognise the union, he has taken a more
radical course. (Ayto)
Police documents have disappeared ... have been burned, have been
doctored. (Barnhart)
“That’s wonderful,” she told the doctor. (Reader’s Digest)
Today I would agree with psychoanalyst Carl Jung, who once said,
“We should not pretend to understand the world only by the intellect.”
(Reader’s Digest)
His transformation has helped his family deal with incredible strain.
(Reader’s Digest)
... he and his sister spend 12 to 18 hours a week on a home dialysis
machine. (Reader’s Digest)
If she was too fond of her rubbishy children she couldn’t help it.
(Barrie)
Nana had filmy eyes ... (Barrie)
What stayed him was Peter’s impertinent appearance as he slept. The
open mouth, the drooping arm, the arched knee: they were such a
personification of cockiness as, taken together, will never again, one
may hope, be presented to eyes so sensitive to their offensiveness.
(Barrie)
The year’s most regretted sale went ahead amid protests yesterday
when Sotheby’s sold 97 magnificent medieval and Renaissance books
from the John Ryland Library, Manchester. ... The library broke with a
century’s convention that the British public collections do not
deaccession their holdings, the principle being that the terms of
bequests will dry up if they are not accepted in perpetuity. (Ayto)
Waitressing in coffee bars can be interesting, but the work is hard.
(Barnhart )
When it comes to dealing with daily obstacles, he says, ‘we have a
tendency toward catastrophizing and awfulizing.’ (Ayto)
Here they sat in the stifling laundromat and she could see geat big
dust kitties under the washing machines… (King. It)
At her first parents’ meeting, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported,
“parents were spellbound and teachers dumbfounded by the size of the
crowd, the first sign that things were changing.” (Reader’s Digest)
Voices in Congress, the media, the anti-defense lobby, sought to
discredit the program. (Reader’s Digest)
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19. ... a pair of hands that talked with a facility that had never been learned
in England. (Hunter)
20. Bob tried vegetarianism and other approaches ... (Reader’s Digest)
21. I found her esconced in the kitchen, stirring frantically at a huge,
aromatically bubbling cauldron, frowning at a cookbook in one hand,
her spectacles misty, her lips moving silently as she read. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
22. Accession v.t. (esp. US) to record (additions to a library) by entering
the titles and authors in a file, list, or register (Barnhart)
23. The boss said if anything went wrong he’d give us an audible.
(Chapman)
24. The more he neglects the us-ness in the marriage, the more she is sure
it was all a mistake. (Reilly)
25. Adolesce v.i. (esp. US) to be or become an adolescent; to behave like
an adolescent
26. Recrudesce v.i. to break out again; to become active again
27. Fluoresce v.i. to give off light by fluorescence; become fluorescent
28. Without asking, he got another mug from the cabinet and poured
coffee. “Vivian told me that you’re a coffee-holic.” (Clark.
Remember…)
29. Their ideas coalesced into a new theory. (Random House Webster)
30. The patient is convalescing nicely. (Hornby)
31. Green plants were found to luminesce like fireflies, although on a
small scale. (Barnhart)
32. He reminisces of years gone by ... (Barnhart)
33. It was easy to be cynical about such stories, but this legend was
venerable indeed. (Hunter)
34. When all the members of the Foot were assembled, Shredder arrived.
Danny couldn’t believe it. The man was something else. He was the
baddest, meanest man Danny had ever seen. (Hiller)
35. So she said that she was 21, and he did not question her. (Reader’s Digest)
36. They rarely did homework, and during tests they opened their books
and brazenly asked questions back and forth. (Reader’s Digest)
37. Remember when what is now called publicity was called public shame
and humiliation ? (Reader’s Digest)
38. ‘Well, I suppose it’s all right. I’ve never known you make a bloomer
yet.’ (Woodhouse. Life…)
113
39. He was driving 90 miles an hour in a stolen car he used to burglarize
an appliance store. (Reader’s Digest)
41. One saw pesticide seeping into groundwater; the other saw farm soils
brimming with record harvests. (Reader’s Digest)
41. I’ve stayed at places in the country where they‘ve jerked me out of the
dreamless at about six-thirty to go for a jolly swim in the lake.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
42. The only fault she had to find with Mrs. Hearn was that she didn’t do any
spring housecleaning. (Barnhart)
QUIZ TWENTY-ONE
Each of the following sets contains a boldface word that is not formed by
suffixation in Modern English. Can you identify it?
1.
A. He … informed my progeny that any sign of disobedience would
incur immediate banishment to the bus for the rest of the day.
(Francis. Decider)
B. If Spiro could be classified as our guardian angel to whom no
request was impossible of fulfilment, Dr. Theodore Stephanides
was our oracle and guide to all things. (Durrell. The Garden…)
C. My heart beat with excitement… (Durrell)
D. What are his sentiments in the matter? (Barnhart)
2.
A. … she, despite her earlier claims, was a novice in the art of
dalliance. (Hunter)
B. I find that getting along with another human being sometimes
demands tolerance and silence. (Reader’s Digest)
C. The spartan discomfort was not, either, a self-pitying morass of
abject failure, but more the arctic doldrums between the high
elation of the recent acceptance of my first novel for publication
and the distant date of its launch into literary orbit. (Francis.
Longshot)
D. … knew, though I couldn’t see it, that my skin must be covered
with large angry crimson patches which had spread and were
turning black and finally yellow as the blood underneath
congealed and dispersed. My face, I knew, must be giving the
114
same rainbow performance, and I undoubtedly had two lovely
black eyes. (Francis. Decider)
3.
A. A defense attorney spent the morning challenging the
prosecution’s main witness. (Reader’s Digest)
B. You want to relieve their problems instead of letting them find
their own solutions. (Reader’s Digest)
C. You may find that such simple steps help you control the
situation. (Reader’s Digest)
D. Silences regulate the flow of listening and talking. … They are
to conversations what zeroes are to mathematics – crucial
nothings without which communication can’t work. (Reader’s
Digest)
4.
A. Immediately behind the iris is the crystalline lens, a somewhat
plastic lens, the curvatures of whose surfaces can be changed by
muscles around the edge in order to vary the focal length.
(Barnhart)
B. … entangled in a serpentine of military red tape. (Barnhart)
C. “Wise men say: Forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price
for a late pizza!” (Hiller)
D. The Post Road … kept close to the base of the bluffs, which in
this area were palisades of elephantine granite boulders.
(Barnhart)
5.
A. Aunt Dahlia, who was sitting with a bevy of the local nibs in the
second row, sighted me as I entered and waved to me to join her,
but I was too smart for that. I wedged myself in among the standees
at the back, leaning up against a chap… (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. This was where trainees, now wearing dogis like Tatsu’s,
studied the deadly art of karate. (Hiller)
C. They put up posters, made field trips, and held camporees to aid
the effort. (Barnhart)
D. Drama: First-time nominee Laurel Bacall, 72, considered a sure
bet as best supporting actress for Barbara Streisand’s “The
Mirror Has Two Faces,” looked shocked when she lost to
Juliette Binoche, 33. (Newsweek)
115
6.
A. To look at you, one would think you were just an ordinary sort of
amiable idiot – certifiable, perhaps, but quite harmless. (Barnhart)
B. He should have been likeable though… (Hunter)
C. So the island was wound up to a pitch of unbearable excitement
when the great day dawned. (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. “You great big huggable sweet thing you,” Jane Smart said,
leaning toward her. (Updike)
7.
A. “Yes,” she said in unfriendly tones, “I do.” (Hunter)
B. That money was enclosed in five hefty – er, bulky – canvas bags
fastened with straps and padlocks. (Francis. Slay…)
C. Newtown was a ritzy little community, and cops in places like
that were always on the lookout for strange cars driving around a
neighborhood. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. He didn’t want anybody to know about their mission, especially
a nosy reporter. (Hiller)
8.
A. ‘Then he can’t fight now?’
‘Oh, can’t he just!’
‘Left-hander?’
‘He has an iron hook instead of a right hand, and he claws with it.’ (Barrie)
B. Political scandal-mongers were even tossed a surprising and
piquant new morsel. (Barnhart)
C. The names of pianists were better known to me than the names
of footballers. (Golding)
D. She was a gunnysacker par excellence. (Reilly)
9.
A. He owns a stockbrokerage firm. Would you like to be a
stockbroker, darling? (Sheldon. If…)
B. Things were reported to have been ‘sent to the depot’ that had,
after the fire, marched out of their home bases by the suitcaseful
to much nearer destinations, a good fire is a godsend, right,
Colonel? (Francis. Decider)
C. To be Mary-Annish is to behave like a girl, whimpering
because nurse won’t carry you, or simpering with your thumb in
your mouth, and it is a hateful quality… (Barrie)
D. With self-honesty comes a shift from dependence on others for
motivation and discipline to relying on oneself. (Reader’s Digest)
116
10.
A. I hoped wholeheartedly that I had left Admiral far enough back
to be invisible, and that he would not make a noise. (Francis.
Dead…)
B. I wouldn’t have said off-hand that I had a subconscious mind…
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Sometimes, unwillingness to change a wrong decision is plain
pigheadedness, nothing more. (Hailey. The Money…)
D. Whether you like it or not, a campaign needs salesmanship.
(Sheldon. Rage…)
QUIZ TWENTY-TWO
Identify the lexico-grammatical character of the stem of a suffixed word as
A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adjective
D. Adverb
E. Numeral
F. Pronoun
G. Conjunction
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Max Hornung was a dumpy, wistful-looking man, egg-bald, with a face
that had been put together by an absentminded prankster. (Sheldon.
Bloodline)
The doctor was the one who had attended the fallers at the open ditch,
businesslike and calm. When he saw what he was being asked to do, he
didn’t want to. (Francis. Decider)
The Turtles and their ninja master, an elderly human-sized rat named
Splinter, lived in an abandoned sewer maintenance room. (Hiller)
“All clear,” Lieutenant Durkin said. “False alarm. Something must
have set it off. Can’t always depend on these electronic things…”
(Sheldon. If…)
The poor man was brought back here soggy with sleep and bombarded
with accusing questions. He’s not ultra-bright at the best of times. He
just blinked and looked stupid. Conrad blames me for employing a
thicko. (Francis. Decider)
117
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
The car stopped at the gate to Pebble Beach onto the Seventeen Mile
Drive, and the chauffeur paid the toll. (Clark. Weep…)
But to be fair, he does no harm, which in these days invests him with
sainthood. (Francis. Decider)
Little knowing that she had just come up against the stoniest-hearted,
beastiest-natured, and generally most poisonous young human rattle
snake in all Shropshire. (Wodehouse. Life…)
The newspaper boy, a weather-beaten man in his seventies, handed
Joseph Colella a paper and Colella gave him a dollar. (Sheldon.
Rage…)
Ken Bailey took her to dinner at Luchow’s to celebrate, and Jennifer
was recognized by the captain and several of the customers. Strangers
called Jennifer by name and congratulated her. It was a heady
experience. (Sheldon. Rage…)
He raised his flute to his lips, gave a plaintive, quavering hoot,
prolonged and mournful, and then, taking the flute from his lips,
opened his eyes wide and hissed, swaying from side to side and
occasionally snapping his teeth together. (Durrell. The Garden…)
“Why don’t you find a table?” she added with creditable hauteur as he
said nothing at all. (Hunter)
He tossed the fully cooked pizza into the air. Before it landed, Mike
swished at it four times, cutting it into eight exactly equal pieces.
“It slices, it dices, and yes, it makes french fries three different ways!”
(Hiller)
We’d spent the whole day in the stable yard, the human action in the
foreground taking place against a background of routine equine life.
(Francis. Decider)
Commercial paper, as both men knew, were IOU’s bearing interest but
backed only by a borrower’s reputation. (Hailey. The Money…)
Now, the most pleasant feature of lunch at a country house is this –
that you may sit next to whomsoever you please. (Baum)
The witness paused, then smiled and said, “I saw him spit it out.”
(Reader’s Digest)
He was desperate to die in peace. Any priest would have given him
absolution: who was I cruelly to withhold it? I was not of his faith.
(Francis. Decider)
… – but still there was one event at least which I confidently expected
to remain untainted by the miasma of professionalism. I allude to the
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20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
Girls’ Egg and Spoon Race. It seems, alas, that I was too sanguine.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
Dividing 100 percent responsibility between two people gives each of
them ten percent. (Reader’s Digest)
The more decrepit the vehicle, the more maniacal the driver. (Reader’s
Digest)
She said she had always suspected me of being a heartless practical
joker, and now she knew. (Wodehouse. Life…)
Here, too, a moment’s reflection can make your remarks more precise
and effective. (Reader’s Digest)
There are, of course, times when it is important not to keep our mouths
shut – to counter injustice, to soothe a friend, to straighten out a
misunderstanding. (Reader’s Digest)
At this outrageous statement she recovered enough to point out acidly
the difference in the number of people engaged in two pursuits.
(Francis. Dead…)
An icecream van bumped past my father’s cottage, calling attention to
itself with a vibraphone. (Golding)
Quito, a high mountain city in a cupped palm of the Andes… (Hailey.
Strong…)
I peered into the surround, and saw at once that this had been no
ordinary bonfire. (Golding)
This Board, held just a week before the special meeting of the
shareholders, was in the nature of a dress rehearsal. (Galsworthy. The
Forsyte…)
He went out by the underground to Portland Road station, whence he
took a cab and drove to the Zoo. (Galsworthy. The Forsyte…)
Some critics found “The Color Purple” too PG and picturesque…
(Newsweek)
… John Quincy Adams (played by Anthony Hopkins) came out of
retirement to argue the Africans’ case in the Supreme Court.
(Newsweek)
Allen, an actress, TV director and choreographer, read about the
Amistad while visiting Howard University in 1982. (Newsweek)
Otherwise, we’d just have the judge hear this case. (Lederer.
Disorder…)
Was Peter the least gallant of the English mariners who have sailed
westward to meet the Unknown? (Barrie)
119
36. To call the lavatory the john is sexist and unkind to people called
John… (Barnhart)
37. Many Americans and Japanese are devotees of baseball. (Barnhart)
38. His prose is … as dispiriting as the “eats” on the counter of a sleazy
beanery. (Barnhart)
39. This ramekin is not ovenable or flameproof.
Packaging of Marks and Spencer chocolate mousse, 1987 (Ayto)
40. A few Westerners have become what Hilary Carmody calls
‘jadeaholics.’ I met, in addition to Russell Beck, three other fine
contemporary New Zealand nephrite carvers in their studios. (Ayto)
41. The program has been modified, but not simplified for their benefit.
(Barnhart)
42. After 1 billion televiewers had watched the last world cup in 1982, it
was hoped that ground attendances would increase and gentrify
everywhere. (Ayto)
43. In the moments before the show began in the vomit-peach space of
James Stirling’s Tate auditorium, an uncertain cocktail party
atmosphere prevailed. The punters got kissy. (Ayto)
44. I thought occasionally that I could eat better if I sold something, but I’d
never get back what I paid for the skis, for instance, and it seemed
stupid to cannibalize things that had given me pleasure. (Francis.
Longshot)
45. Check that the haulage people will be on time delivering the hay.
(Francis. Longshot)
46. The Africans have few allies – a broke young attorney (Matthew
McConaughey) and a prominent abolitionist (Morgan Freeman) – and
they’re desperate to make themselves understood. (Newsweek)
47. When the movie is released in December, the director may get teased
for moonlighting as an international freedom fighter. (Newsweek)
48. Should I state these facts in uncertain, tentative, iffy terms, just because
many people may not know of these sports giants? (Lampe)
QUIZ TWENTY-THREE
Identify the lexico-grammatical character of suffixed words in Quiz
Twenty-Two as
A. Noun
120
B.
C.
D.
E.
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Numeral
QUIZ TWENTY-FOUR
Each of the following sets contains a word with a non-transpositive suffix
realization. Can you identify it?
1.
A. … the officialdom of the political and military police and fulltime party whips, accustomed to ruthless doctrinal rather than
practical, empirical solutions. (Barnhart)
B. Woe betide the successful young actor who accepts stardom
before he is ready for it. (Barnhart)
C. A fine athlete has freedom in actions. (Barnhart)
D. Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians. (Barnhart)
2.
A. Since August Chemical Bank, Sheerson and Salomon Brothers
have each shed 150-170 people. Post October 19th, gloomsters
predict that many more equity jobs will be lost. (Ayto)
B. He was a beau of all the elder ladies and superannuated
spinsters. (Barnhart)
C. … an army largely made up of youngsters. (Barnhart)
D. The discreet and sober conversation of the oldsters was much
disturbed by the loud laughter of the younger folks. (Barnhart)
3.
A. When Degsy was young he wanted to be an actor for a while,
loving the ‘upfrontness’ of it. ‘Upfrontness’ is a word he uses a
lot, covering everything from hype to hyperbole. He loves to be
looked at, to act. (Ayto)
B. When Ronald Raegan became president, summitry was out of
fashion. (Ayto)
C. My sources include the University of Pennsylvania and Dr Bryce
Rankine, a top wine academic in that bastion of masculinism,
Australia. (Ayto)
D. The appointment of Ann as secretary pleased her friends. (Barnhart)
121
4.
A. Mr Neil Kinnock told the parliamentary Labour Party yesterday
that he pleaded guilty to ‘electoralism’, but not to the charge
that the party was drifting loose from its democratic socialist
moorings. (Ayto)
B. Mr. Galbreith has been handicapped by the mannerism of the
lecture hall. (Barnhart)
C. They are gravely hampered in carrying it out by current fears of
radicalism. (Barnhart)
D. You will hear Kate Barker talking about Keynesianism and
monetarism, inflation and unemployment. (MacKenzie)
5.
A. By the following week Angela Brickell’s disappearance had
been taken up by the national dailies… (Francis. Longshot)
B. … but there is no doubt that cerebral excitement does, as you
suggest, exist in no small degree. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. During the First World War Kendall Commanded HMS
Calgarian, a luxury liner serving as a cruiser. (Barnhart)
D. To his wife said a grumbler named Dutton,
“I’m a gourmet, I am, not a glutton.
For ham, jam, or lamb
I don’t give a damn.
Come on, let’s return to our mutton.” (Topsy-Turvy World)
6.
A. Thrown to a literary lion, I perceived. A real one, a lioness.
(Francis. Longshot)
B. The book that had been accepted, which was called Long Way
Home, was about survival in general and in particular about the
survival, physical and mental, of a bunch of people isolated by
a disaster. (Francis. Longshot)
C. White elephant refers back to the albino elephants once
considered sacred in Siam (now Thailand). These creatures were
so rare that each one born became automatically the property of
the king and was not permitted to work. (Lederer. The Play…)
D. The enormous appetite and utter uselessness of the animal would
soon plunge the “gifted” man into financial ruin. (Lederer. The Play…)
7.
A. … a dark misty night, and coldish. (Barnhart)
B. His conversation was sprinkled with bookish words. (Barnhart)
122
C. They slogged 500 miles across the most nightmarish terrain on
earth. (Barnhart)
D. Pouting when scolded is childish. (Barnhart)
8.
A. … and Claude and Eustace are more or less languishing in Vine
Street police-station till I pop round and bail them out. So if you
could manage a tenner – oh, thanks, that’s fearfully good of
you. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. They were, the author finds, three reasons for the radicalization
of scientists. (Barnhart)
C. The natural dyestuffs used by these Indian cottagers aren’t
completely color-fast. (Barnhart)
D. Mr. P.G. Wodehouse… filed a naturalization petition as a first
step toward obtaining United States citizenship. (Barnhart)
9.
A. His small farm provides maintenance, but not much more.
(Barnhart)
B. Her psychiatrist helped Emma to see how her emotional tensions
were linked with fears of drowning and other accidents which
involved stoppage of breathing. (Barnhart)
C. There were perhaps 3,700 scattered privateers serving as the
great bulk of the American Navy. (Barnhart)
D. The man who runs a locomotive is an engineer. (Barnhart)
10.
A. Curiosity killed the cat.
B. Women are always more cautious in their casual hospitalities
than men. (Barnhart)
C. … the oddity of wearing a fur coat over a bathing suit. (Barnhart)
D. A baby two weeks old does not have much personality.
(Barnhart)
11.
A. Jennifer finished reading the report and looked up at Ken Bailey.
“The whole thing sounds a little fishy, doesn’t it?” (Sheldon. Rage…)
B. A hearty meal satisfied his hunger. (Barnhart)
C. He would sit on a heady scaffold. (Barnhart)
D. The color of these ants varies with the colony from a pale
greeny yellow to a deep red brown. (Barnhart)
123
12.
A. His oral reports to the FBI were laced with falsehoods. (Barnhart)
B. With dauntless hardihood, and brandish’d blade, rush on him.
(Barnhart)
C. Soldiers who are fighting together often have a strong feeling of
brotherhood. (Barnhart)
D. Is there any great likelihood of rain this afternoon? (Barnhart)
13.
A. He was a small elderly man, very spry and tidy, with a weatherbeaten face and wrists whose tendons stood out like strung cords.
(Francis. Dead…)
B. I have been awake for over forty hours, few of which could be
called restful. (Francis. Dead…)
C. A witness who had seen wire fastened to a fence, even though it
would have been dark and foggy, even though perhaps he could
not swear at which fence he had seen it, would definitely have
been better than no witness at all. (Francis. Dead…)
D. Before I could answer, he and his elder sister Polly launched into
a heated and astonishingly well-informed discussion about the
respective merits of burial and cremation. (Francis. Dead…)
QUIZ TWENTY-FIVE
Each of the following sets contains a monovalent suffix. Can you identify it?
1.
124
A. Owners of five or six goodish horses don’t grow on bushes any
more. (Francis. Dead…)
B. The sullen pout on Joe’s babyish face slowly changed into a
mulish determination which was only slightly less repellent.
(Francis. Dead…)
C. As he passed me where I stood just inside the changing room
door, his eyes lifted to mine with one of the darting, laughing
glances which made him likeable in spite of his faults. (Francis.
Dead…)
D. He was persistent, and although I thought he could easily find
someone going directly to Epsom if he tried hard enough, I
agreed in the end to take him. (Francis. Dead…)
2.
A. “Don’t imagine that we always know what’s going to win,” said
Dane. “Jockeys are bad tipsters. But that one was a cert, a dead
cert.” (Francis. Dead…)
B. Didn’t he see the attendant roll up the wire while he was running
towards him? (Francis. Dead…)
C. Apathy, like cold, was a killer. (Francis. Longshot)
D. I … went in to the weighing room, pondering on the information
that my captors with the horse-box came from Brighton.
(Francis. Dead…)
3.
A. “On the other hand those embryos represent lives that wouldn’t
have come into existence at all without this process,” Meghan
said. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. In Britain, a company that refuses to hire the HANDICAPPED
(a word that suggests its origin, the concept of a hand-in-the-cap)
might well be accused of Ableism – a new term for a refusal to hire
the PHYSICALLY DISADVANTAGED (Neaman & Silver)
C. BLOWBACK is more crudely described in America as BLACK
PROPAGANDA or DISINFORMATION (from the Russian
desinformatsiya, 1960s and 1970s), deliberate falsehoods that
get back to and are believed by the country of their origin.
(Neaman & Silver)
D. … but he was not particularly unpopular with the other jockeys,
owing to his irrepressible, infections cheerfulness. (Francis. Dead…)
A. In American English, in school /university/ college are more
common than at school etc. (Swan)
B. “How very goody-goody,” he said sarcastically, with added
obscenities. (Francis. Longshot)
C. I can give you his appointments for those months and try to
figure out through expense accounts to which of those he would
have driven. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. Princeton Review students use the Hit Parade to get the
maximum possible mileage out of their vocabularies and
improve their verbal SAT scores. (Robinson)
4.
5.
A. I felt as high as if I had already drunk the champagne which
waited unopened in the changing-room, the customary crateful
of celebration for Champion Hurdle day. (Francis. Dead…)
125
B. “A wonderful day,” I agreed, looking at him carefully. (Francis.
Dead…)
C. … and golden geldings who had already taken prizes and cups
galore across the Irish Sea. (Francis. Dead…)
D. With slight irritation Tremayne answered… (Francis. Longshot)
6.
A.
B.
C.
D.
7.
A. It seemed to me that she had an inexhaustible inner fire battened
down tight under hatches, and only the warmth from it was
allowed to escape into the amused, slow voice. (Francis.
Dead…)
B. Liars and thieves are contemptible. (Barnhart)
C. Car toppable 10' or 12'; easy to sail for fun or race 14' or 15';
sheer exhilaration 18' or 19'. [advertisement] (Ayto)
D. Bette Davis, clad in spiderous black, the gaunt conqueror of
cancer and the stroke that followed her 1983 mastectomy
elegantly chainsmokes through our conversation in a Central
Park South hotel, too, and mocks the idea of anti-nicotine laws.
(Ayto)
A. And I was sure that this little melodrama was intended to soften
me up into a suitably frightened state of mind. (Francis. Dead…)
B. It was also imperative to create a new existence for the ten
thousand expellees and refugees from the East. (Barnhart)
C. Especially since the year 1914 every single change in the
English landscape has either uglified it or destroyed its meaning
or both. (Barnhart)
D. Major Davidson did not reappear, though his horse got up and
galloped off riderless. (Francis. Dead…)
8.
9.
A.
B.
126
… the younger son of a German princeling. (Barnhart)
Hollywood starlet’s marriage was on the rocks. (Barnhart)
He had no authority; he was merely a hireling. (Barnhart)
And Tom’s the first sweetie she ever had. (Chapman)
At other levels or its upward progress the staircase branched off
inwards to a members’ lunch room and outwards to ranks of
standing-only steps open to the elements. (Francis. Decider)
You will be in her good graces for being punctual, thank
goodness. She is very Edwardian, you’ll find. (Francis. Dead…)
C.
D.
Then she began to pack. Helen had tapestry luggage in the
closet. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
Collins was tall, classically handsome, an impeccable dresser
and quietly witty, while Carter was bluff and hearty… (Clark.
I’ll Be…)
10.
A. -erino (-arino, -orino) suffix used to form nouns. A humorous
version or a remarkable specimen of what is indicated:
peacherino / bitcherino [probably fr. Italian diminutive suffix
-ino combined with the agentive suffix -er] (Chapman)
B. There it lay in the long grass, half hidden, beaded with drops of
mist, coiled and deadly. (Francis. Dead…)
C. Madeline Kahn is his dipso wife, Gilda Radner his dipsy
daughter. (Chapman)
D. All that was visible was brownish opaque muddy water.
(Francis. Longshot)
11.
A. -ery 1.Suffix used to form nouns
meaning place or
establishment where the indicated thing is used, done, sold, etc.:
boozery / eatery/ minkery. (Chapman)
B. Tell the no-goodnik to leave quietly or I will call the police.
(APCAC)
C. … senior officials [in Sierra Leone] whose wholesale
involvement in corruption is generally referred to as the
‘Milliongate’ scandal. (Ayto)
D. We are a nation of “happyholics”. A society addicted to the
pursuit of happiness. (Reilly)
QUIZ TWENTY-SIX
Identify the morphological structure of the stem of a suffixed word as
A. root
B. derived (prefixed and /or suffixed)
C. compound
D. compound-derived
E. abbreviated
F. phrase
127
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
My face, I knew, must be giving the same rainbow performance, and I
undoubtedly had two lovely black eyes. (Francis. Dead…)
The Netherlands, too, seems to be trying to ‘kick-start manufactures
into the wind energy industry,’ according to one British turbine
designer. It is said to be offering a 40 per cent subsidy on investment
to Dutch developers of new wind farms. (Ayto)
… I stifled irritation at his round granny glasses… (Francis. Decider)
First student: “Great Scott! I’ve forgotten who wrote ‘Ivanhoe’!”
Second student: “I’ll tell you if you tell me who the dickens wrote ‘The
Tale of Two Cities’!” (English Humour)
‘… I say, Bertie, old man,’ said Bingo, apparently fed up with the
discussion about sleeping-quarters, ‘I see daylight.’
‘Well, it’s getting on for three in the morning.’
‘I was speaking figuratively, you ass. I meant that hope has begun to
dawn.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
The sound came from the chest of drawers, and Peter made a merry
face…
‘Wendy,’ he whispered gleefully, ‘I do believe I shut her up in the
drawer!’ (Barrie)
Well, as you know, my dear Mrs. Durrell, I am training them to put on
a special demonstration for his Majesty on the evening of his arrival.
(Durrell. The Garden…)
Consultant surgeon Margaret Ghilchik … is a member of various
societies which specialise in her area of interest, breast cancer. She also
meets people through being on hospital committees. But you can also
network with clients and associates in a semi-formal setting. (Ayto)
… chasing skimming swallows, barking vociferously. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
Sandy’s customary forgetfulness to do so infuriated him… (Reilly)
“If you won’t accept me as your lover,” said the tragic youth, “I shall
hang myself on the tree in front of your house.”
“For goodness sake don’t do that,” she said. “You know how my
parents object to fellows hanging about the house.” (English Humour)
And she tells us, up front, that her inferences are guided by her own
feminist perspective that “situates the social practices of courtship,
sexuality, and marriage within the analytic category of patriarchy...”
(Journal of Reading)
128
13. The no-longer-overlookable decrepitude of this house’s old furnace
and deteriorating pipes and radiators… (Updike)
14. About a year ago, owing to the strongmindedness of one particular
publican, mine host of the Blue Duck, business in the protection line
began to get unexpectedly rough for the protectors. (Francis. Dead…)
15. He was one of those eccentrics a child will accept as part of the
landscape. (Golding)
16. If you are a newcomer [to wine tasting], and especially if you are
female, I’m afraid you yourself run the risk of being surreptitiously –
and sometimes not so surreptitiously – ‘nosed’ (winespeak for smelt).
(Ayto)
17. He was standing there, stiff as a guardsman, his neck stretched up
straight, his long, greenish-brown beak pointing skywards, while from
each side of his narrow skull his dark, protuberant eyes gazed at me
with a fierce watchfulness. (Durrell. The Garden…)
18. ‘My cousin Angela’s not a bad sort, Tuppy,’ I said, in a grave elderbrotherly kind of way. ‘Not altogether a bad egg, Angela, if you look
at her squarely…’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
19. Albini resents what he sees as the evils of the networking system,
which enslaves bands to a lifetime of ass-kissing and being ripped off.
He is plagued with his own personal swarm of networkers. (Ayto)
20. This is exactly the problem that ecologists face in trying to explain how
the abundances of interacting species in a community are codetermined by competition, predation, herbivory, disease, parasitism,
mutualism, and disturbance. (Ayto)
21. I think one sees … the necessity to put into effect the EEC
extensification proposals. (Ayto)
22. Far from being passive, the ‘nostalgiasts’ are on the march, their
banner proudly borne by the Prince of Wales, scourge of the mindless
modernists. (Ayto)
23. Nutritionists accept that … the majority of babies and most
preschoolers don’t need vitamin drops. (Ayto)
24. Grange Hill… – the programme that single-handedly convinces entire
generations of schoolchildren that they aren’t living unless their
classrooms resound with parody, criminalspeak, uninventive abuse,
bullying and fattyism. (Ayto)
25. The pudding is always execrable. So is the word ‘microwaveable,’
though I admit that its meaning is clear and I cannot think of an
129
26.
alternative to signify foods that are specially prepared for microwave
cooking. (Ayto)
I switched on the steely a bit more. ‘No, Jeeves,’ I said, in a level tone,
‘the object under advisement is mine. I bought it out there.’
(Wodehouse. Life…)
You’ve seen the viddies of Paris and the other towns we’ve explored
on this side of the sea – London, Rome, Moscow. (Clarke)
Every evening, from the mobile phone in the bus, the boys talked to
their mother; family routine on expeditions. (Francis. Decider)
She grinned monkeyishly. (Updike)
The phenomenon of survivalism was brought forcibly to public
attention in Britain by the so-called ‘Hungerford massacre’ of 19
August 1987, when in a bizarre series of crazed shootings Michael
Ryan killed 16 people and then shot himself. Ryan was a survivalist; in
pursuit of this ‘hobby,’ which appeals to perverted notions of selfreliance and the frontier spirit, he collected and practised with a
considerable armoury of guns. (Ayto)
27.
28.
29.
30.
QUIZ TWENTY-SEVEN
Identify the origin of the following suffixes as
A. Greek
B. Latin
C. Native
D. French (modern)
E. Italian
F. Russian
G. Spanish
1. ... the unimportance of lesser concerns. (Hailey. Strong…)
2. ... and the one thing she absolutely bars is anything in the shape of hearty
humour. (Wodehouse. Life…)
3. You’re losing your witchiness! (Updike)
4. I went to the massive icebox in the larder that contained our perishable
foodstuffs and peered into its icy, misty interior. (Durrell. The Garden…)
5. Gudrun, almost angrily, took up her rubber and began to rub out part of
her drawing. (Lawrence. Women…)
130
6. “Yes,” wavered Ursula; and the conversation was really at an end.
(Lawrence. Women…)
7. Just inside the gate of the school shrubbery, outside the churchyard,
Ursula sat down for a moment on the low stone wall ... (Lawrence.
Women…)
8. I heard a story the other day. I can’t quite remember it, but it was about
a chap who snored and disturbed the neighbours, and it ended, “It was
the adenoids that adenoid them.” (Wodehouse. Life…)
9. The taxis remained empty and driverless. (Francis. Dead…)
10. “GPs don’t do this sort of thing any more,” he told Roger. “They refer
people to hospitals. He should be in a hospital. This level of pain is
ridiculous.” (Francis. Decider)
11. ... she was ready to write about the fate of the regicides, those who had
planned, signed or carried out the death warrant of Charles I and were
to know the swift justice of his son, Charles II. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
12. ‘Right,’ I said. ‘Then we will form a syndicate and bust the Ring. I
supply the money, you supply the brains, and Bingo – what do you
supply, Bingo?’ (Wodenhouse. Life…)
13. The criminals were so skilled and so fast that nobody ever heard them
coming or saw them going! People were beginning to call it an invisible,
silent crime wave. (Hiller)
14. Seltzer noted a switch in the roles of the newspapers, ... and the
magazines, which once dealt mainly in fiction and features… (Barnhart)
15. Words for more than 100 types of government are presented below.
They range from “boobocracy” (government by boobs) to “aristarchy”
(rule by the most qualified) ... (Hellweg)
16. N-bomb (a neutron bomb), a hydrogen bomb set off with little heat or
shock effect. It is designed to kill personnel by the release of highly
lethal, short-lived neutrons. (Barnhart)
17. Living in a democracy, we are periodically cursed/blessed with electionyear mania. (Hellweg)
18. Authority exuded from his short upspringing grey hair, his narrow eyes,
his strong stubby fingers. (Francis. Dead…)
19. ... but in fact he himself returned to the buildings and the tents to
oversee the clearing up, the locking, and the security arrangements for
the night. (Francis. Decider)
131
20. I did remember the revolution because it had given me three days blissful
holiday from my lessons and the cake shop had been one of my favourite
shops. (Durrell. The Garden…)
21. Researchers who study the rhythms of conversation recognize the
important role turn-taking plays in our conversations and relationships
with others. (Reader’s Digest)
22. I’m proud of my heritage ... (Reader’s Digest)
23. ... he proceeded to investigate and disappear into every nook... (Durrell.
The Garden…)
24. The smallest hole will eventually empty the largest container, unless it
is made intentionally for drainage, in which case it will clog. (Reader’s
Digest)
25. Geist’s Rule for Travel With Kids
Never in the same direction. (Reader’s Digest)
26. Soames stared. Was this young man reading him a lesson against
pessimism? (Galsworthy. A Modern…)
27. This change was apparent when, after eight years of NDE research in
children, I re-interviewed the Seattle study group. (Reader’s Digest)
28. Dart’s car, an old dusty economical runabout, was standing next to
Marjorie’s chauffeur-driven blackly-gleaming Daimler ... (Francis. Decider)
29. Co-captains, bands and majorettes all are part of big-time college
football. (Barnhart)
30. You ought not to sing the berceuse blastissimo. (Chapman)
31. They haven’t hit me with a wrongo yet, although they did miss a
whopper this morning. (Chapman)
32. Come on, come on, you stupidniks, go, get out! (King. It)
33. Jockeys are the worst tipsters in the world. (Francis. Enquiry)
34. Daimler puts the customary case for its acquisitive drive, making much
of the ‘synergy’ all conglomerateurs promise to foster between different
parts of their empires. (Ayto)
35. Between Saturday evening and 1:30 a.m. Sunday, police reported 481
arrests, about half of them on the gang-infested south side. About 190
of the arrestees were suspected gang members ... (Ayto)
36. Back in 1858 Oliver Wendell Holmes coined the word verbicide. He
used it to describe the “violent treatment of a word with fatal results as
to its legitimate meaning, which is its life.” (Brandreth)
37. Not only is there wisdom in knowing where to keep your mouth shut...
(Reader’s Digest)
132
38. She certainly looked attractive. Clothes and manners made a woman
whatever the fools said nowadays. (Lawrence. Women…)
39. The Embassy doctor can be consulted if a visitor is seriously ill and
considering entering a Russian hospital. (H.A.W.)
40. The hospital dredged up an ambulance to take me back to Roger
Gardner’s house ... (Francis. Decider)
41. Ingram, boyish, with unruly red hair and only a year out of Harvard
Business School, was apparently keen and energetic. (Hailey. Strong…)
42. Peacherino n. an attractive young woman (Chapman)
43. There were cornucopias of sugarplums,
And a mouse with a crown, that sucked its thumbs,
And a fascinating Russian folderol,
Which was a doll inside a doll inside a doll inside a doll ... (Poems to
Enjoy)
44. So Marlene remained with the Wider Infinity at Victoria. Soon, however,
inspired by the dynamic spirit of Harry, she began to note this and that
member who was perhaps unworthy of its high purpose. She led a
purgative faction.
‘We must,’ she said to Ewart Thornton, that big sane grammar school
master, ‘rid our Body of the cranks!’ (Spark)
45. They know I worked at a big city hospital and that puts them on the
defensive, but I don’t know anything about systemic disorders, I
saw fractures and gallstones mostly. (Updike)
*QUIZ TWENTY-EIGHT
Each of the following sets contains a suffix, originally a word or word base.
Can you identify it?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
A.
thrift
freedom
hillock
icicle
friendly
eighth
assistant
B.
wealth
hireling
gangster
colourless
boyish
wrestle
superintendent
C.
friendship
offering
neighbourhood
golden
nimble
wander
defiance
D.
writer
ladle
fondness
hearty
blacken
sixteen
justification
133
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
magnify
attitude
nudity
autocracy
principal
mayoress
eatable
advertize
consulate
palindrome
physicist
Monicagate
fluency
edible
inferiority
drainage
bronchitis
socialism
kleptomaniac
monarch
lobotomy
facilitate
suicide
Israelite
domestic
legible
nutrition
blockade
QUIZ TWENTY-NINE
Each of the following sets contains a hybrid. Can you identify it?
1.
A.
B.
C.
D.
-eroo suffix used to form nouns (also -aroo, or -roo, or -oo)
Emphatic, humorous, or affectionate form of what is indicated:
babyroo, jivaroo, screameroo, sockeroo. (Chapman)
The risk assessment is an interpretation of the evidence on these
two points. (EPA)
Then she’d showered, a long, hot shower that took some of the
achiness from her shoulders. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
“When we eventually take over the capitalist system,” Margot
said, “selling short on the stock market will be one of the first
things to go.” (Hailey. The Money…)
2.
A. Her desk held her checkbook, daily memo pad, personal
stationery. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. I told him that was wonderful… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. Mac wasn’t sure if the overwhelming surge of tenderness he
felt now for his son, or for the little boy Edwin Collins had been
fifty years ago in Philadelphia. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. Helene was fascinated with medicine and particularly the kind that
is done here, the process of assisted reproduction. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
3.
A. It was all part of the usual pattern of finding something to do –
anything – rather than sit down and face the empty page, except
that that day the uneasiness was extra. (Francis. Longshot)
B. … and it was with a distinct sense of release that I remembered
I’d said that I would go back for his camera. The unease
134
vanished. I found a piece of paper and left my own message…
(Francis. Longshot)
C. The taxis remained empty and driverless. (Francis. Dead…)
D. “The last I saw of him, he was having a few unfriendly words
with Sandy in the gents, and getting the worst of it.” (Francis.
Dead…)
4.
A. … a constable in uniform… (Francis. Dead…)
B. She knew that she had become an embittered woman. (Clark.
The Anastasia…)
C. She was a member of the Rumanian Society and was notified of
any of our activities. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. His tone was still conversational. (Francis. Dead…)
5.
A. Jealous people belittled the explorer’s great discoveries. (Barnhart)
B. I’ve learned that trust is the single most important factor in both
personal and professional relationship. (Brown)
C. He and his investigators are going to try to persuade us that Dad
is alive. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. Meghan and the cameraman sat in the lobby of Danbury
Medical Center. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
6.
A. He had no intention of going to Connecticut that afternoon.
(Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. –ess, suffix used to form nouns. A woman member of the
indicated group or calling. A standard suffix now used most
often in slang partly because the standard use is regarded, and
sometimes meant to be, offensive: loaferess / muggess / veepess.
(Chapman)
C. I’ve learned that in every face-to-face encounter, regardless of
how brief, we leave something behind. (Brown)
D. Through Nolan I began to understand how much more there was
to riding races than fearlessness and being able to stay in the
saddle. (Francis. Longshot)
7.
A. … Helene Petrovic had been truthful. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. Her accusation of a possible plot by the Manning Clinic to kill
her aunt was dismissed as frivolous. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
135
C. About a year ago, owing to the strongmindedness of one
particular publican, mine host of the Blue Duck, business in the
protection line began to get unexpectedly rough for the
protectors. (Francis. Dead…)
D. Dr. Manning knew that it would take only one verified case of a
mix-up to cause alarm in every woman who had borne a child
through treatment at the clinic. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
8.
A. I suddenly had no reservations. (Francis. Dead…)
B. … a girl of her natural sweetness and tender-heartedness.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. The man who followed Tremayne through the door looked like a
smudged carbon copy: same height, same built, same basic
features, but none of Tremayne’s bullishness. (Francis. Longshot)
D. I edged along the curtain in the upstream direction of the shut
door and by hauling my way up the links at the side managed to
scramble around the boat-house wall and up out of the water to
roll at last onto the grassy bank. (Francis. Longshot)
9.
A. Very high-spirited young gentleman, sir. Up to some game, I
should be disposed to imagine. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. I’m reasonably sure-footed. (Hunter)
C. In the office she found a temporary receptionist, a thirtyish
pleasant-faced woman. (Clark. Weep…)
D. … the star-spangled blackness. (Hunter)
10.
A. … the elder-brotherly advice. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. I’ve learned that envy is the enemy of happiness. (Brown)
C. I’ve learned that the quality of the service in a hotel is in direct
proportion to the thickness of the towels. (Brown)
D. I’ve learned that a loving, faithful wife is a man’s greatest
treasure. (Brown)
QUIZ THIRTY
Identify the general semantic component of the following noun-forming
suffixes as
136
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
I.
J.
K.
L.
M.
N.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
activity, occupation, profession (personal agent)
inhabitant of, nationality, member of community (personal)
feminine
diminutive
action, activity (abstract)
collectivity
instrument (non-personal agent)
object; result of activity (personal / non-personal)
state, condition, quality
place of action, activity
scientific thought, attitude, political movement / government, science
material, substance
disease
amount, quantity
… a beanery in Hell’s Kitchen. (Chapman)
Frank is such a buttinsky. (APCAC)
Sullivan continues putting the bee on other Government biggies.
(Chapman)
She left out only her toiletries and the clothes she would wear in the
morning. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
… a born seamstress. (Barnhart)
… bored with the games, utterly bored with the jockocracy. (Chapman)
The post-war babies who metamorphosed from brats into beatniks and
passed from hippiehood through yuppidom are … now known
collectively as baby boomers. (Ayto)
The assistant state attorney wants to see us. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
This technical- or medical-sounding term [a positive suitcase sign] is
one of the many indicative of sexism in hospitals. (Neaman & Silver)
In this category is the BLUE BLOATER, a patient with chronic
bronchitis who is blue from lack of oxygen and bloated from water
retention. (Neaman & Silver)
Rayon, which has only recently come into extensive use, is a creation
of the chemist. (Barnhart)
Ores containing the carbonate of iron, siderite, are of many varieties.
(Barnhart)
But the notion of ‘sememe’ is decidedly problematic (particularly for a
concept such as that of the ‘Past Participle’). (Chalker & Weiner)
137
14. Giantesses are rarer than giants but their heights are still spectacular.
(Guinness)
15. Asterisk (in printing or writing) a mark like a star [*] which calls
attention to a note, or distinguishes word or words. (Webster)
16. “Would you be willing to be interviewed on-camera, to let us do some
footage on the facilities and speak to some of your clients?” (Clark. I’ll
Be…)
17. On Sunday night, the body of Dr. Henry Williams was found in his car
on the outskirts of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the quiet neighborhood
where he and his wife had grown up and met as teenagers. (Clark. I’ll
Be…)
18. Rustlers work in late fall and winter to pick up yearlings missed by the
branding iron at roundup. (Barnhart)
19. There was an auction coming up on property near the Rhode Island
border. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
20. If the correct choice of sports footwear is your priority, then a podiatrist
is highly qualified to advise you on your choice. Podiatry Association,
3 Bridge Avenue, Maidenhead, Berkshire. (Ayto)
21. The young fella in the exquisite lapis lazuli silk suit … half-watching
on his cute hand-sized computer the pretty blonde Channel Eleven
anchorette introducing the Early Bird News programme. (Ayto)
22. In the worst possible scenario, women who might not be able to
produce eggs for possible fertilization have lost their chance for
biological motherhood. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
23. “You seem to be taking it very well,” Philip had commented, “or are
you still in denial?” (Clark. I’ll Be…)
24. … Bernie dutifully scraped every spoonful from the bowl and drained
his glass of apple juice. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
25. Her father had fashioned it after a fieldstone manor in Drumdoe, which
as a boy he had thought so grand that only the gentry would dare set
foot in it. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
26. Employees and guests watched from doorways. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
27. She hurried into the kitchenette, opened the refrigerator and removed
the carton of milk. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
28. The stretcher was being wheeled in. Meghan darted back into the
emergency room behind it. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
29. …she’s been robbed. Probably hit by some druggie who needed a fix.
(Clark. I’ll Be…)
138
30. Tremayne was pink with gratification. (Francis. Longshot)
31. … and he and Coconut jumped up and ran around throwing mock
punches at each other, swinging on tree branches, getting rid of
bashfulness with shouts and action and shows of strength. (Francis.
Longshot)
32. The grayly persistent detective chief inspector emerged like a turtle
from his shell when he saw us arrive, and he’d come alone for once: no
silent note-taker in his shadow. (Fancis. Longshot)
33. He seemed to settle finally for us, us being the police, or at least the
fact-seekers and, clearing his throat, he told me that his men with
grappling irons and magnets had missed finding the floorboard…
(Francis. Longshot)
34. He was entitled, I supposed, to his small exploratory excursion around
my character … (Francis. Longshot)
35. When whipping cream, always use chilled beaters and a chilled bowl.
(Wenonah)
36. Place a piece of chalk in jewelry box to prevent costume jewelry from
tarnishing. (Wenonah)
37. Why is the vast majority of the first side devoted to a nine-minute
version of ‘Light My Fire’ which only goes to prove the tedious muso
strain that lurked in Morrison’s musicians? (Ayto)
38. Christian Delteil prepared three different puddings – milk chocolate
and praline mousse, a dark chocolate cake, and a marquise – for sundry
foodies, winies, and chocoholics to sample with each of 11 wines and
one armagnac. (Ayto)
39. All she wants is to get her nails done, which is all New York suddenly
wants. Each corner seems to have a nailarium. … Haircutters retreat,
useful shops are beaten out by the cost of leases, amenities are all
replaced by franchises; and all that’s left is the manicure. (Ayto)
40. Both mergerites and anti-mergerites hurried forward to claim their
share of blame, knowing that nothing in British politics succeeds like
apology. (Ayto)
41. The punsters are making it tough for the sane folk around here.
(Barnhart)
42. His oral reports to the F.B.I. were laced with falsehoods. (Barnhart)
43. Is there any great likelihood of rain this afternoon? (Barnhart)
139
44. Grahame spent … his youth and middle age in what started as humble
clerkdom and ended as successful, if rather idle, administration in the
Bank of England. (Barnhart)
45. The stripling stared at me in a nasty sort of way through the jam.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
46. When she told the receptionist she wanted to speak to someone about
Helen Petrovic, the woman’s face changed… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
47. I didn’t have a personality that overshadowed his own. (Francis.
Longshot)
48. “Somewhere in that pile of cuttings,” I pointed “is an account of
Angela Brickell’s disappearance … (Francis. Longshot)
49. According to the service record booklet it had been serviced the
preceding October, just a little over a year ago. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
50. The partnership had worked. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
51. … and the discovery of her fraudulent credentials … (Clark. I’ll Be…)
52. Tremayne promoted me from Touchy to a still actively racing
steeplechaser that Monday morning, a nine-year-old gelding called
Drifter. (Francis. Longshot)
53. Doone very nearly said “Oh” in his turn, and made a visible
readjustment in his mind. (Francis. Longshot)
54. There can’t be any connection. The death that occurred in this house
was an accident, whatever the jury thought. (Francis. Longshot)
55. In some bemusement Doone watched him go: his first taste of the
difficulty of deflecting Tremayne from a chosen course. (Francis.
Longshot)
56. People simply mark him down as a pinko and file him away in their
minds to be dealt with later. (Barnhart)
57. And remember: the most important thing to do when you arrive at the
hospital is to turn back for just a few seconds and give those chaps and
chapesses a wave. (Ayto)
58. … a comforting steadiness in the authority with which he would lead
them on the dance floor or tuck a hand under their elbow on an icy
evening. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
59. “We are going to keep you,” the obstetrician told her. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
60. She saw no great manifestation of grief from anyone. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
61. Helene had worked as a cosmetician until she got a job as a secretary
in the clinic in Trenton… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
140
62. He was a perfect mimic, taking off the mannerisms of one of the
captains dealing with a cranky guest. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
63. John Glenn, who on Feb 20, 1962, became the first American to orbit
the Earth… (Webster)
64. Public spirit in the masses was dead or sleeping; the Commonwealth
was a plutocracy. (Barnhart)
65. A major worry is public apathy – fatalism bred of stories about the alldestroying horror of the H-bomb. (Barnhart)
66. … “I mean, I have three kids and I’d hate to think they started life in a
freezer like those embryos.” (Clark. I’ll Be…)
67. He spoke like a Londoner though, not with a Berkshire accent.
(Francis. Dead…)
68. It’s a snuggy. No, too young, a snuggette. Fourteen years old and hot to
trot. (Chapman)
QUIZ THIRTY-ONE
Identify the meaning of a noun-forming suffix -er in the following
derivatives as
A. occupation, profession
B. inhabitant of (place, origin, abode)
C. person performing or capable of performing an action
D. person possessing a distinctive characteristic
E. male
F. instrument, machine, implement (material agent)
G. thing possessing a distinctive characteristic
H. action, process, occurrence (single instance of)
I. non-material agent
J. thing capable of causing an action
1.
2.
3.
… that you’re boiling and simmering because you think I’m a candyassed apple polisher who’s out to egg you on. (Lederer. Crazy…)
She had Helene Petrovic’s file in her drawer. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
There was surprisingly a gas cooker standing against one wall.
(Francis. Longshot)
141
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
I left the tire lever and mallet on the grass and stepped down into the
boat-house, the shocking chill of the water again a teeth-gritter.
(Francis. Longshot)
The owners, mother and daughter, were tremblers. (Francis. Longshot)
A house wife called out with a frown
When surprised by some callers from town,
“In a minute or less I’ll slip on a dress” –
But she slipped on the stairs and came down. (Topsy-Turvy World)
If I hadn’t recognised that the men who stopped me in the horse-box
were also taxi-drivers, I’d never have found out anything at all.
(Francis. Dead…)
He would hit out again, and in doing it show me the next step towards
him, like the flash of a gunshot in the dark revealing the hiding place of
a sniper. (Francis. Dead…)
The voice of the commentator boomed over the loudspeakers that the
horses were approaching the second open ditch… (Francis. Decider)
Batter coexisted with batsman in the late 18th and early 19th centuries
…, but the gradual establishment of batter as the term for baseball
hitter (for which batsman was occasionally used in the 19th century,
meant that batsman became the preferred term for cricket. (Ayto)
… I stepped into the building and threaded my way through the
overcoated, beer-drinking customers. (Francis. Decider)
Bells rang loudly in the Tote building, and the queues squirmed with
the compulsion to push their money through the little windows before
the shutters came down. (Francis. Dead…)
… but it was now empty except for three ageing young ladies mopping
up the beer-slopped counter. (Francis. Dead…)
At the climax of John F. Kennedy’s impassioned speech in 1963 at the
Berlin Wall, the President wanted to say, “Ich bin Berliner!”– “I’m a
Berliner!”– since in German, words for nationalities are not preceded
by articles. What Kennedy actually said was, “Ich bin ein Berliner!”–
“I am a jelly doughnut!” (Lederer. Anguished…)
Dick gave Tom some pointers on improving his tennis. (Barnhart)
This surprising drivel made the innkeeper hesitate long enough for me
to say “I don’t belong to the Marconicars. I’m against them…”
(Francis. Dead…)
During dinner it was to Uncle George that Kate addressed most of the
account of our afternoon’s adventures. (Francis. Dead…)
142
18. The masseuse who had been assigned to her was one of the old-timers.
(Clark. Weep…)
19. The first was “Widowers’ Houses,” of Independent Theatre fame.
(Shaw. Selections…)
20. Six-shooter, a revolver with a cylinder holding six cartridges. (Ayto)
21. Many stoves have timers for baking. (Barnhart)
22. This is for people who are first-timers in the U.S.
23. At Fort Lewis, in Washington State, the RAF has been demonstrating
rotortuners which reduce the vibrations of helicopter blades in the
minimum amount of time. (Ayto)
24. It has always been necessary to use a double-header to pull this train
up the steep grade. (Barnhart)
25. Give him a fiver and let’s get outa here. (APCAC)
26. They opened a punk rock club in a disused Coca Cola bottling plant
and the punk rock world beat a path to their doorstep. El Paso met the
punkers and neither would be quite the same again. (Ayto)
27. Panic on the 5.22. Three incompetent hoodlums hold up wealthy train
passengers but are frustrated by finding only plastic money in their
wallets. Original idea and smart moments can’t sustain unusual
suspenser which goes on a bit too long. (Ayto)
28. … Helene Petrovic was very nice, well respected, but a loner. (Clark.
I’ll Be…)
29. “How about a jockey, or a trainer, or an owner?” asked Lodge.
(Francis. Dead…)
30. People aren’t what they seem, and murderers are fond of animals,
until they get in the way. (Francis. Dead…)
*QUIZ THIRTY-TWO
Identify the connotational component of the following attitudinal suffixes as
A. affectionate, familiar
B. derogatory, offensive, pejorative
C. intensifying
D. humorous
1. These are all British imports, coming ultimately from public school
slang: bonkers/ preggers/ starkers. (Chapman)
143
2. … grinding out the old heart-felt crapola. (Chapman)
3. … itching to play something more demanding than bimbettes and stand-by
wives. (Chapman)
4. I … would rather get my old-fashioned, homemade this or that off a
chainstore shelf, without any folksy buildup. (Barnhart)
5. Few of Hitchcock’s films were genuine stinkers. (Chapman)
6. Don’t be such a weirdo! (APCAC)
7. This little cararooney’s got only 10,000 miles on her. (Chapman)
8. He patted the walkie-talkie clipped to his belt. (Francis. Decider)
9. Sullivan continues putting the bee on other Government biggies.
(Chapman)
10. Ain’t my new computer a sweetie? (Chapman)
11. He’s not ultra-bright at the best of times. He just blinked and looked
stupid. Conrad blames me for employing such a thicko. (Francis. Decider)
12. In her successful bid for the Connecticut governorship, the late Ella
Grasso had to contend with the opposition’s slogan “Connecticut
Doesn’t Need a Governess”. (Lederer. The Miracle…)
13. Poetess suggests a quaint, drawing-room version of a poet, who writes
only about bluebirds and sunsets. (Lederer. The Miracle…)
14. The saint had a beatific smile. (Barnhart)
15. “… and take their clothes to a launderette, won’t you?” (Francis. Decider)
16. They bought alsatians or bull terriers, and we arranged a system for
taking all the kiddies to school by car. (Francis. Dead…)
17. If it proves to be a “stinkeroo” leave the theatre quietly or suffer in
silence. (Chapman)
18. … a laggard in love, and a dastard in war. (Barnhart)
QUIZ THIRTY-THREE
Identify the general semantic component of the following adjective-forming
suffixes as
A. able to be, capable of (being) V-ed
B. characterized by, having the qualities (character) of
C. somewhat…
D. without
E. pertaining to, originating in; following some doctrine or system
F. able to V
144
1. Certain traits manifest the characteristics of modern man earlier than
others. The teeth, for example, became humanoid long before the jaw.
(Barnhart)
2. The first actual golden disc was one sprayed by RCA Victor for
presentation to Alton “Glenn” Miller (1904-44) for his Chattanooga
Choo Choo on Feb 10, 1942. (Guinness)
3. Jesus was a punster. Petros is Greek for “rock”, after all, so when Jesus
declared that Peter was to be the rock on which the church would be
built, the play of words must have been intentional. (Brandreth)
4. Many literary giants of the past have been master punsters. (Brandreth)
5. Meghan had observed that people being interviewed seemed to be
naturally more expansive if they felt a sense of identity with the
interviewer. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
6. Powell sees it as a post-cold-war alliance to combat a new threat –
young people disengaged from American life. (Newsweek)
7. The modern victims of verbicide tend to be everyday words that get
battered to death by thoughtless or excessive use. (Brandreth)
8. If you are one of those who is lucky enough to know that a chester
draws is a piece of furniture and a charitable isn’t (it’s an adjective
meaning generous and kindly), you may be ready for an orthographical
challenge. (Brandreth)
9. It is, of course, love that makes the world go round and the love-struck
graffitist is nothing if not romantic. (Brandreth)
10. If you want to know why I rate Bierce’s dictionary above all others,
take a look at a few of his diabolical definitions. (Brandreth)
11. Was it possible that behind one of those windows there was a doctor who had
helped Helene Petrovic to perfect her dangerous deception? (Clark. I’ll Be…)
12. Many Polish-Americans were left wondering what glasnostian
brainstorm within the top Polish leadership resulted in Pietzak’s being
permitted to travel abroad. (Ayto)
13. White man’s burden: the alleged duty of the white, or Caucasian,
peoples to bring their civilization to other peoples regarded as
backward; phrase popularized by Kipling and other apologists for
imperialism. (Webster)
14. Exuberant and exultant propensities in phraseology continually lead to
cerebral extradition for malefactors guilty of philological pyrotechnics.
(Brandreth)
15. Devise appropriate one-word anagrams for each of these phrases… (Brandreth)
145
16. We move from modern presidents to Protestant-Catholic strife of
centuries ago with this remarkable – if not entirely comprehensible –
example of the anagrammatist’s art… (Brandreth)
17. When we returned from the newly greenish-brownish Downs there was
a strange car in the yard and a strange man drinking coffee in the
kitchen… (Francis. Longshot)
18. Angela, I learned, lived in a stable hostel with five other girls, who
described her as “moody”. (Francis. Longshot)
19. She sounds so friendly … (Clark. I’ll Be…)
20. No, we have never had another instance in which there was a question
of fraudulent credentials. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
21. Dr. Williams was an excellent interview. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
22. Thanks, everyone. Doctor, I’m so grateful. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
23. When the car came out, it was still shabby but respectable, the basic
dark green color recognizable. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
24. I don’t like to talk about being so foolish. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
25. The American government has been described as an assembly of those
speaking bureaucratese, Pentagonese, State-Departmentese,
gobbledygook and a local city dialect called “urbababble”. (Neaman &
Silver)
QUIZ THIRTY-FOUR
Supply the missing suffix in the following derivatives.
A.-able B. -ible C. -ous D. –ant
Some old beliefs seem incred** to educated people. (Barnhart)
People nowadays are incredul** about ghosts and witches. (Barnhart)
His story of having seen a ghost seemed incred** to his family. (Barnhart)
A nause** drug, inducing nausea or vomiting. (Barnhart)
… a kind of slimy stuff … a most nause**, odious smell. (Barnhart)
Still, if you must get sick in front of a grammar purist, please feel
nauseated, rather than nause**. (Lederer. The Write…)
7. Thus, if you say, “I’m nause** today,” some wiseacre might shoot back,
“How honest of you to admit that!” (Lederer. The Write…)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
A.-ic B. -ical C. -atic D. -y
146
8. The baseball game was a class** contest, it was one of the finest games I
have ever seen. (Robinson)
9. The neoclass** period in American architecture was a period in which
American builders were heavily influenced by the architecture of ancient
Greece and Rome. ( Robinson)
10. Little Rudolph is a class** example. (Robinson)
11. Risk assessment employs a system** evaluation process to determine if
a hazard exists and what potential risk it might pose. (EPA)
12. The consultant said that the problem was not isolated to one department,
but was system**; that is, it affected the entire company. (Robinson)
13. A system** illness is one that affects the entire body. ( Robinson)
14. Celia studied the material presented, then said, “I suggest an extra line of
copy immediately beneath the name.” She scribbled on a sheet of paper:
System 500
The SYSTEM** Cold Fighter
and passed it to Ingram. (Hailey. Strong…)
15. English for Business Studies is a course for upper-intermediate level and
advanced level students who need to understand and talk about the key
business and econom** concepts. (MacKenzie)
16. Misery index, a statistical expression of the degree of econom**
suffering and deprivation within a society, calculated on the basis of the
rates of inflation and unemployment. (Ayto)
17. He does more than others because he is econom** of time and energy.
(Barnhart)
18. The goal is to find econom** ways of chemically treating water from
the Columbia River so that it can be used to cool Hanford reactors
operating at higher power than at present. (Barnhart)
19. Studies of the changes in pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary
between Anglo-Saxon times and the present day can be described as
diachronic phonology, diachronic linguistics (also called HISTOR**
LINGUISTICS), etc. (Chalker & Weiner)
20. One documentary film, City Out of Wilderness: Washington (produced
by the U.S. Capitol Histor** Society) shows in graphic sequence how
the Capitol has reflected the adventures and progress of the Nation
during its first two centuries of life. (We, the People)
21. Flowers and fountains brighten Market Square in Alexandria, a histor**
port on the Potomac River. (Washington)
147
22. Annapolis, the capital of Maryland since the late 17th century, compares
favorably in its histor** background to Georgetown or Alexandria.
(Washington)
23. The entry of the free people of Germany into the Atlantic association of
nations is an event of histor** significance. (Barnhart)
24. Even when data-based rather than assumed they are histor** in nature
and therefore inapplicable to new products. (Борисова)
A. -ous B. -al C. -ative D. -ed
25. Dancing requires continu** practice. (Barnhart)
26. A further development ... should make possible the continu** casting of
a jointless pipeline on the site. (Barnhart)
27. Continu** relative clause, a non-defining relative clause that continues
the narrative. (Chalker & Weiner)
28. Continu** fraction, a fraction whose numerator is a whole number plus
a fraction which has a denominator composed of a whole number plus a
fraction, and so on. (Barnhart)
A. -ful B. -y C. -ed D. -able
29. Even so, most experts scoff at the notion that there’s no such thing as a
universally health** diet. (Newsweek)
30. He claims that people who follow his plan stay slender and health** ,
and deal better with the normal stresses of life. (Newsweek)
31. His doctor recommended that, to become health**, he should move to
the healthful environment of the country. (Lederer)
32. The children are quite health** although they all have slight colds at the
moment. (Hornby)
A. -ant B. -ent C. -ential D. -ous
33. Sally’s brother was also her confid**; when she had a problem
that she felt she could discuss with no one else, she called him.
(Robinson)
34. His tone as he spoke was confid**. (Barnhart)
35. He has the impudently confid** air of inexperience. (Barnhart)
36. The doctor felt confid** that his patient would recover. (Barnhart)
A. -ness B. -ity C. -ousness D. -ence
148
37. Hitler’s soldiers stormed through the village, committing one enorm**
after another. (Robinson)
38. ... but we should refer to the enorm** of the former Soviet Union.
(Lederer. The Write…)
39. Do not confuse the noun enorm** (great wickedness) with the adjective
enormous (immense) or the noun immensity. (Hayakawa)
A. -y B. -some C. -ous D. -ive
40. The nois** brown liquid seeping out of the floor of my bathroom
certainly isn’t water. At any rate, it doesn’t taste like water. (Robinson)
41. Note carefully the meaning of this word [nois**], it has nothing to do
with “noise.” (Robinson)
42. ... using a loud speaking voice to reach a nois** audience. (Hayakawa)
43. Nois** means harmful, noxious, evil smelling, offensive. (Hayakawa)
A.- able B. -ible C. -itive D. -ory E. -uous F. -ual
44. Thus we see that some of the nerves are sens** and pick up sensations
from sense organs to carry them to the main cords and brain while others
are motor ... (Barnhart)
45. Some species appear more sens** than humans to certain substances
and less sens** to others. (EPA)
46. Mr. Peter G. Roberts said how deeply sens** he was of the great honour
done him by his appointment as chairman of the board. (Barnhart)
47. Theoretically, sens** should indicate someone given to the life of the
senses or something appealing to the senses, but it has been used
suggestively, perhaps euphemistically, so often that sexual desire is
inevitably a part of its reference, although not so strongly insisted upon
as in the case of erotic ... (Hayakawa)
48. The sens** joy from all things fair his strenuous bent of soul repressed.
(Barnhart)
*QUIZ THIRTY-FIVE
Identify the field of discourse (register) the following suffixed words belong
to as
A. neutral
B. literary (formal)
149
C.
D.
E.
F.
colloquial (informal)
slang
special terminology
archaic
1. So I asked Capt. Lesley Fraze of USAF Public Affairs if there was a
problem at the base. ‘No.’ Not even a single alcoholic or druggie?
‘No.’ (Ayto)
2. Stephanie Mills is one of the soul’s new generation women singers, the
Daughters of Diana; women who insist on producing, writing, arranging
and raking in the lion’s share of the spendolas. (Ayto)
3. Both a psychosis and a neurosis are derangements, the former mental,
the latter functional. (In popular usage the border-line between the two
is blurred). (Partridge)
4. Identical forms with urelated meanings are treated as separat lexemes…
(Chalker & Weiner)
5. A very rich man has an amplitude of money. (Barnhart)
6. Our teacher speaks grammatical English but has a French accent. (Barnhart)
7. Grammatic adj. Grammatical
8. Larry’s intrinsic boldness was always getting him into trouble.
(Robinson)
9. Tilled fields jostling with deep umbrageous forests… (Saussy III)
10. That servant will talk her out of it. She’s a toughie. (Chapman)
11. … so I sat down at once like a son of the family; and to invest myself in
the character as speedily as I could, I instantly borrowed the old man’s
knife, and taking up the loaf cut myself a hearty luncheon … (Sterne)
12. … a luncheon of ladies’ auxiliary at the church. (Barnhart)
13. … a goodly youth. (Barnhart)
14. And first I’ll hear the sea-wind, the mewing of the gulls,
The clucking, sucking of the sea about the rusty hulls,
The songs at the capstan in the hooker warping out,
And then the heart of me’ll know i’m there or thereabout. (Masefield)
15. … the thirtyish ex-hooker was answering questions. (Chapman)
16. … the largest and most isolated continuum of preagricultural peoples in
the world [the Australian aborigines]. (Barnhart)
17. … it seemed more reasonable or seasonable to regard all this as some
more boreal thrust, yet it was most unfortunate for the poor dear
roses.(Saussy III)
150
18. Reaction kinetics and gas absorption, as well as catalysis and
granulation, are technical fields in which the division is particularly
interested. (Brandreth)
19. … nobody cared a button for me or my remarks; so I sat me down upon
a bench by the door, philosophating upon my condition … (Sterne)
20. … to philosophize about life, death, mind, matter, God, etc. (Barnhart)
21. There have to be some fulfilling alternatives to the gayola fun fair.
(Chapman)
22. Wonderful! I thought I had seen it all when ‘strike’ was respectified
by ‘industrial action’ and ‘negative profit’ cleaned up ‘loss.’ (Ayto)
23. The battle against river blindness in West Africa has been going on for
more than a decade … Now a drug called ivermectin, which can stop
infected people going blind, has opened up a second front. (Ayto)
24. He got up at dawn, settled in the cracked Naugahyde recliner in the
basement, and began to watch over and over the video he’d taken of
Meghan from his hiding place in the woods. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
25. She broke the connection. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
26. There is nothing to be done about it but surrender to the spell of a
power which one may haply be pardoned for imagining to be a voice
from another sphere. (Fowler)
27. ‘I cannot tell you how mortified I am, Mrs Durrell,’ he said, tears in his
eyes. ‘Those little brutes got some dynamite from some fisherman. I
assure you, I knew absolutely nothing about it, nothing.’ (Durrell. The
Garden…)
28. I knew the Church condemned accidia, but the whole idea seemed to
me quite fantastic, just the sort of sin, I fancied, a priest who knew
nothing about real life would invent. Nor could I understand how
Dante, who says that “sorrow re-marries us to God,” could have been
so harsh to those who were enamoured of melancholy, if any such
there really were. (Wilde. Selections)
29. Advisory committees, if they are confined to pure advice and never get
near the point of action, fade away into a kind of accidie. (Barnhart)
30. There’s nothing in the dock except maybe a couple of beer cans and a
radio some clumsy bimbo dropped when she was teetering out of a
punt in high heels. (Francis. Longshot)
151
QUIZ THIRTY-SIX
Each of the following sets contains a derivative with a suffix that is not an
allomorph or semantic realization of the same morpheme. Can you identify it?
1.
A. And here he was, free as a bird, not accountable to anyone and
out to see where Meghan Collins lived. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. Goats are nimble in climbing among the rocks. (Barnhart)
C. Love of comfort may be ignoble, but one may trust it to be
accomodating. (Barnhart)
D. I cannot speak well enough to be unintelligible. (Austen)
E. Salt is soluble in water. (Barnhart)
2.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
… a campaign to get drivers to fit and use safety belts in their
cars. (Barnhart)
Which variety of cake do you prefer? (Barnhart)
You have plenty of time to catch the train. (Barnhart)
… animals and humans may differ in susceptibility based on
age, sex, genetic diversity, state of health, life-style or other
heterogeneous factors. (EPA)
With a reporter’s eye Meghan observed the activity in the lobby.
(Clark. I’ll Be…)
I’m a sentimental old softy. (Barnhart)
3.
A. … but the old lady’s a looney. The doctors said so and the court
said so. (Sheldon. Rage…)
B. Stephanie was seated with her lawyer… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. … he wondered if his blind stupidity in not realizing his feelings
for Meg had forever relegated him in her eyes to the status of
friend and buddy. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. The story of her delivering a dead canary to the District
Attorney’s star witness was irresistible. (Sheldon. Rage…)
E. Mary Beth is going to have a baby. (Sheldon. Rage…)
4.
A. Evironmental exposure can occur through ingestion, inhalation
or dermal absorption. (EPA)
B. … he read an account of the birthday celebration and retirement
plans… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
152
C. … who would not comment on the conversation. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. He wanted the doctor’s opinion about his headaches. (Barnhart)
E. A warrant has just been issued for Edwin Collin’s arrest on
suspicion of homicide. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
F. She can think of millions of reasons for not helping with the
dishes. (Barnhart)
G. It’s hard to believe that someone who had no opportunity to do
hands-on work under supervision would be able to fool experts,
but it’s the only explanation I have. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
5.
A. After they took a second look, women did find a challenge in the
quizzical expression in his hazel eyes, an endearing boyishness in
the sandy hair that always seemed wind tousled. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. –gate, a form extracted from WATERGATE, occurring as the
final element in journalistic coinages, that name scandals
resulting from concealed crime or other improprieties in
government or business: Irangate. (Ayto)
C. Coal and oil are natural products. (Barnhart)
D. I could imagine these pages joining the others in Lodge’s tidy
file. How fat would it grow before he found the accidental
murderer of Bill Davidson? (Francis. Dead…)
E. Steve was mildly crazy; he believed that at night his thoughts
became corporeal and wandered around his house eating potato
chips and doing laundry. (Robinson)
F. New Yorkers have reputation for being very sophisticated and
cosmopolitan, but most of them are actually very provincial;
they act as though nothing of interest has ever happened on the
other side of the Hudzon River. (Robinson)
G. … the proverbial London fog. (Barnhart)
H. Even with all her years of experience, Mrs. Jones had not yet hit on
an effectual method of getting her children to go to bed. (Robinson)
6.
A. Usually, effects at low dosages are inferred from high dose results
of laboratory or epidemiologic studies. (EPA)
B. The little boy’s ambitions were all prosaic: he said he wanted to
be an accountant, an auditor, or a claims adjustor. (Robinson)
C. The materialistic bride-to-be registered for wedding presents at
every store in town, including the discount pharmacy. (Robinson)
153
D. The buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere appears to be
causing pronounced climatic changes all over the world.
(Robinson)
E. Grammatic is archaic for grammatical. (Partridge)
F. Grammatical competence means an ability to manipulate the
syntactic rules and contrasts with communicative competence.
(Chalker & Weiner)
G. For 22 years Mark Melcher had walked from his drugstore to his
house at exactly 5 o’clock. Methodical Mark was. (Mangum)
H. Pictorial skill being so rare in the colonies, the painter became an
object of general curiosity. (Barnhart)
7.
A. Chief Inspector Schmied found himself starting to hyperventilate
again. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
B. The jurors will have to decide whether Mr. Moretti is innocent or
guilty. (Sheldon. Rage…)
C. As she walked over to join her, she heard the lawyer caution, “I
wish you would not speak to that reporter…” (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. He’s an infinite and endless liar… (Barnhart)
E. You cannot vote while you are still a minor. (Barnhart)
F. I married her before the registrar of Letchbury. (Barnhart)
G. He was extolled as the savior of the country. (Barnhart)
H. He could see that it was empty, except for the bartender. (Clark.
I’ll Be…)
I. She was unacquainted with a collier’s mode of life. (Lawrence.
The Odour…)
J. The clinic was owned by a private group of investors and run by
Dr. Manning… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
K. … Helene Petrovic was very nice, well respected, but a loner.
(Clark. I’ll Be…)
QUIZ THIRTY-SEVEN
Each of the following sets contains a suffix homonymous with the other
three ones. Can you identify it?
154
1.
A. SPECIAL – mentally retarded or brain-damaged. When asked by
Phil Donahue (the Donahue Show, April 24, 1987) what they
preferred to be called, a group of mentally retarded interviewees
indicated that, although they did not dislike general and
institutional terms such as SPECIAL, EXCEPTIONAL and
ACCEPTIONAL (a neologism suggesting the need of the
retarded to be accepted), they really preferred the older term
‘SLOW.’ Institutions and organizations have chosen fancier and
more abstract terms: DEVELOPMENT DISABILITIES,
CONCENTRATION PROBLEMS. (Neaman & Silver)
B. Fearing reprisals from the terrorists, the CIA beefed up its
security after capturing the terrorist leader. (Robinson)
C. Well, well, well, I thought, there was a veritable pussycat lurking
Somewhere inside that self-contained touch-me-not secreterial
exterior. (Francis. Longshot)
D. While the hazard indentification process helps determine
whether a chemical is likely to cause a particular effect in
humans or animals… (EPA)
2.
A. The police officer was cordial; he smiled and shook my hand
before he led me off to jail. (Robinson)
B. He did not think the feeling that… American surplus disposal
programmes were interfering with normal trade was “an accurate
appraisal.” (Barnhart)
C. The dismissal of five workmen caused a strike. (Barnhart)
D. I have three survival kits at present. One small one for taking with
me all the time. (Francis. Longshot)
3.
A. The students’ brazen response to their teacher’s request was
to take out their peashooters and pelt him with spit wads.
(Robinson)
B. The rope tightened when I pulled on it. (Barnhart)
C. Don’t slacken your efforts till the job is done. (Barnhart)
D. A tailor can lengthen your trousers. (Barnhart)
A. The soldiers strengthened their defenses. (Barnhart)
B. The exportation of Irish woolens to the colonies and to foreign countries
was prohibited. (Barnhart)
C. The king wore silken robes. (Barnhart)
4.
155
5.
D. Henry’s company asked him to retire early but he was able to pay
off his mortgage with the golden handshake they gave him.
(Clark. Word…)
A. The magician captivated the children by making their parents
disappear in a big ball of blue smoke. (Robinson)
B. It took ten years, but at last we managed to inculcate in our
daughter the habit of shaking hands. (Robinson)
C. It’s always a mistake to put off assembling intricate toys until
Christmas Eve. (Robinson)
D. Rosie said she was fine, but her slumped, defeated-looking
posture intimated otherwise. (Robinson)
6.
A. The English colonists at Rome perforce became intimate, and in
many cases friendly. (Barnhart)
B. Sissy had a lisp and could not articulate the s sound; she called
herself Thithy. (Robinson)
C. A consummate pianist is an extremely good one. Nothing is
lacking in the way he or she plays. (Robinson)
D. You are fortunate in having such a fine family. (Barnhart)
7.
A. Truth to tell, I can’t remember much about her, except she was
sexy. (Francis. Longshot)
B. “Fishy? You could wrap it up in a newspaper and serve it with
chips. What are you going to do about it?” (Sheldon. Rage…)
C. The sandy hair so like his own that never stayed in place was
falling on his forehead. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. He put the baggage on his dolly and wheeled it out to the taxi
stand. (Barnhart)
8.
A. I plunged into the bustle of a normal racing day, the minor
frustration of a lot of jockeys changing in a smallish space, the
unprintable jokes, the laughter… (Francis. Dead…)
B. … some overworked bobby was already on his way. (Barnhart)
C. The muscles of his forearm would have done credit to a
blacksmith, and silky dark hair grew low on his forehead in a
widow’s peak. (Francis. Dead…)
D. The subcommittee yesterday heard a parade of movie biggies
defend Hollywood’s contribution to culture. (Barnhart)
156
9.
A. Compactors have a magic way with rubbish, squashing bottles,
cans, cartons, and the like into a quarter of their original size. (Ayto)
B. The sun set in a golden splendor. (Barnhart)
C. … the music which came from a transistor radio in his pocket.
(Barnhart)
D. The spacecraft flipped over on its back and snapped the earth
from a distance of 240,000 miles, giving a good picture of the
terminator – the division of the sunlit and shadowed areas of
our planet. (Barnhart)
10.
A. Avid baseball fans frequently display their fervor for the game
by throwing food at bad players. (Robinson)
B. The priest was the village counselor. (Barnhart)
C. My best friend exhibited candor when he told me that for many
years now he has believed me to be a jerk. (Robinson)
D. If people live in squalor for too long, the ruling elite can count
on an insurgency. (Robinson)
11.
A. Her mother had cheese and crackers and grapes on the coffee
table in the living room and wine chilling in the decanter. (Clark.
I’ll Be…)
B. They bought alsatians or bull terriers, and we arranged a system
for taking all the kiddies to school by car. (Francis. Dead…)
C. I could think of pleasanter things to do than drive the twisty
roads to Dorking with Joe breathing alcohol all over me.
(Francis. Dead…)
D. It isn’t only that they come in on different day at different times,
so that a copper might have to wait a fortnight to catch one, but
there aren’t any grounds for arrest. (Francis. Dead…)
*QUIZ THIRTY-EIGHT
Each of the following sets contains a suffixed nonce-word. Can you identify
it?
1.
A. Montag turned and glanced back. What did you give to the city?
Ashes.
157
What did the others give to each other?
Nothingness. (Bradbury)
B. To put it with brutal frankness, there never was a cockier boy. (Barrie)
C. … the indecent outspokenness of the Pyke. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. We all had our pictures of Bounce; and the incongruity of his
sadness, our ourness and Bounce’s bounceness nearly rolled us
on our backs. (Golding)
2.
A. By nature, humankind reaches out for some connectedness in
life. (Reilly)
B. These attitudes are the internal sources of the determination,
cohesiveness, and mutual accomodation I have found in these
quality relationships. (Reilly)
C. The ‘good boys’ therefore tend to be drawn more reaslistically, to
signify their alienness, otherness, as representatives of the world
which is opposed by Dennis and his gang in their antiworld.
(Hodge & Kress)
D. The “you” and “me” (individualization) began to conflict with their
us-ness. (Reilly)
3.
A. Do I really love her? Did I do the right thing to marry her? What
has happened to our oneness, our togetherness? (Reilly)
B. Perhaps the best one can say is that this phenomenon of falling in
love is grounded in human emotion, a more or less intense
pleasurable feeling response that springs from the illusion that
the lover and beloved have bridged the I-Thou gap and are truly
one “in being-ness.” (Reilly)
C. Untidiness between cleaning bouts never phased her. (Reilly)
D. To test fish for doneness, probe gently into the thickest part of
the fish to see if the flesh separates and falls easily into its
natural divisions. (Wenonah)
A. This “contact dermatitis” can be differentiated from athlete’s
foot because the reaction occurs mainly on the ball, outer sides
and top of the foot, where it comes in contact with the shoe.
(Reader’s Digest)
B. Q. What was the diagnosis of the report?
A. Headaches and acute subluxation complex of the cervical
spine associated with radiculitis, myositis and spasm of
4.
158
the cervical paravertebral musculature.
Q. In layman’s terms, would you explain that for us, Doctor?
A. It was a neck strain. (Lederer. Disorder…)
C. Q. Is there a diagnosis or a name for this problem that he has ?
A. Yeah. Crushed foot.
Q. There’s no medical term for it?
A. Crush-tis foot-tis.
Q. Other than the fact that he complains of the pain, is there
anything else that indicates the problem?
A. Yeah. I’ve been there and looked at the crush-tis foot-tis
with
the eye-yis. Yeah. (Lederer. Disorder…)
D. In what may be a major step toward curing cystic fibrosis (CF),
scientists have corrected the defect in CF cells in the laboratary
by inserting a normal version of the gene that causes the disease.
(Reader’s Digest)
5.
A. She resented visits to the nursery from Mrs Darling’s friends…
(Barrie)
B. Harry said in his way, “Fellow saved us from ice-cubery.”
“From what?” Ingrid giggled. Everyone looked at her.
“Sorry,” she whispered, subsiding.
“Quite likely from death,” Mackie said plainly. (Francis. Longshot)
C. There no longer seems to be … the one indispensably fashionable
eatery or hangout where the artist must waste part of his time
daily. (Barnhart)
D. The American Tunaboat Association started soliciting is members
for over $1 million with which to buy and operate an idle tuna
cannery here. (Barnhart)
6.
A. Many Spanish women are brunettes, many Swedish and
Norwegian women are blondes. (Barnhart)
B. An historic house modernised and divided into flat and
maisonette… (Barnhart)
C. In total, they told me not much more than I already knew, except
that Olympia was twice described as a “jockette,” a word I
somehow found repulsive. It appeared that she had ridden in
several ladies’ races at point-to-point meetings… (Francis. Longshot)
159
D. Co-captains, bands and majorettes all are part of big-time
college football. (Barnhart)
7.
A. Being a female, you wouldn’t. You gentler sexers are like that.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
B. … she was different from what Aunt Agatha had called the bold
girls one meets in London nowadays. No bobbed hair and
gaspers about her! (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Directly I’d got up I went to the phone, snatched Eustace away from
his morning’s work, and instructed him to put a tenner on the Twing
flier at current odds for each of the syndicate… (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. The trouble comes sometimes when the real reason rears its ugly
head and slaps you in the kisser. (Francis. Enquiry)
8.
A. With school turning out more runners, jumpers, racers, tinkerers,
grabbers, snatchers, fliers, and swimmers instead of examiners,
critics, knowers, and imaginative creators, the word “intellectual”, of
course, became the swear-word it deserved to be. (Bradbury)
B. There were some leaves which she had thought at first belonged
to it, but closer inspection showed that they belonged to a
creeper that was growing up the far wall. (Hunter)
C. Who needs women’s libbers? I don’t. (Hailey. The Money…)
D. … but after they accomplished their goals virtually all became
enthusiastic exercisers. (Reader’s Digest)
9.
A. ‘Send that off, Jeeves, instanter.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. The Blunderful World of Bloopers. (Lederer. Anguished…)
C. Your mileage is calculated for you by roadside signs screaming –
“Only ten miles to tulepo honey,” … or “Twelve miles to
Sandy’s super-duper jumbo hamburgers.” (Barnhart)
D. … young jut-jawed bruisers wearing leather jackets. (Barnhart)
10.
A. Diphosphopyridine nucleotide is a mouthful. (Chapman)
B. It’s a Blunderful Life. (Lederer. Fractured…)
C. Another useful journalistic technique is an organizational pattern
known as the “inverted pyramid”. (Lederer. The Write…)
D. If you could take your eye off Mrs. Bliss, who is quite an eyeful,
you could see a table in the background. (Barnhart)
160
11.
A. In addition to his Dantonesque boldness in meeting the foe, he
had the constructive mind which is rare in a man of action. (Barnhart)
B. “Lord Haden-Guest” in one of his Jagger=esque boogie reveries
would just make him an even easier mark for the gossip columns.
(Newsweek)
C. Some critics found “The Color Purple” too PG and picturesque.
… (Newsweek)
D. … the white statuesque immobility of her person. (Barnhart)
*QUIZ THIRTY-NINE
Each of the following sets contains a suffixed neologism. Can you identify
it?
1.
A. I don’t think I’d get on well with the Joan Rivers type of female
jokestress. Too aggressive. (Ayto)
B. The place offers good cover and it has water, the two requisites for
the peace of mind of small songsters. (Barnhart)
C. … the classic telegram perpetrated by a Hollywood jokester who
sent a cluster of his friends into a frenzy by writing each of them:
PLEASE DISREGARD PREVIOUS WIRE. (Barnhart)
D. On August 2nd at 12:30 p.m., you are cordially invited to attend a
free gala event outdoors in front of Teamsters Local 237, 216E.
14th. St. Songstress Bonnie Loren will spin and weave a delightful
tapestry of 14 specially selected musical offerings. (City Guide)
2.
A. Ageism is everywhere. It’s much more prevalent than sexism in the job
market, or that’s how it seems from where I’m standing. (Jones & Alexander)
B. The labour controlled [Camden] council’s homosexual unit …
says in a report… ‘In the same way that racism, sexism, ableism,
ageism and classism are institutionalised forms of oppression, so
is heterosexism.’ (Ayto)
C. … criticism of Nell Kinnock in the late 1980s by Tony Benn and
his supporters is merely the latest example. (Ayto)
D. At the beginning of the convention, the newspapers said Mr.
Dukakis measured 5ft 8in. A day later his height was put at half
an inch shorter. Now he is said to be 5ft 7in. … But the height
161
question needs to be put into perspective. The Democratic party
is resolutely opposed to racism, sexism, ageism and heightism.
(Ayto)
3.
A. Looking for the ultimate hair design? … contact one of Austin’s
finest stylists, Lupe Munoz, formerly with Vidal Sassoon in Los
Angeles. (Key)
B. Bookmarks move up in the world this week, when the prestigious
London Antiquarian Book Fair … will feature an exhibition of
200 decorated bookplates, some of a vast collection made by
Hilary Stuart, a 23-year-old student of the violin and a devoted
‘ephemerist.’ (Ayto)
C. Ambitious Hobbyist
Q. What are your hobbies?
A. Drinking coffee and watching girls. (Lederer. Disorder…)
D. Is it all right to call a priest a male chauvinist pig? (Chapman)
4.
A. A blend of folk wisdom and management theory, these rules can
be a useful guide to all of us as we forge ahead into the 21-st
century. (Reader’s Digest)
B. The post-war babies who metamorphosed from brats into beatniks
and passed from hippiehood through yuppiedom are … now
known collectively as the baby boomers. (Ayto)
C. … the officialdom of the political and military police and full
time party whips, accustomed to ruthless doctrinal rather than
practical empirical solutions. (Barnhart)
D. And it shows white people at their best, rallying around captives
and fighting for their freedom. (Newsweek)
5.
A. UFO believers eagerly lap up the information on how to construct
a bomb shelter and how to purchase weaponry. (Newsweek)
B. One of his chief charms as far as I was concerned was that, being
dumb, he had to rely on a remarkable ability for mimicry. He
used his flute as his tongue. (Durrell. The Garden…)
C. Industrial countries have as much recent experience that real
growth targetry is worthless as they have that inflation is harmful.
Yet politicians retain the language of that targetry, using it most
recently at the Tokyo summit. (Ayto)
162
D. President Raegan voted to correct his predecessor’s zealotry.
(Newsweek)
6.
A. In order to speak, we humans must possess a highly complex set
of internalized rules that enable us to utter any of (and only) the
permissible sequences of a given language – although we are
unlikely to have any conscious knowledge of the rules. (Lederer.
The Miracle…)
B. When it comes to dealing with daily obstacles, he says, we have a
tendency toward catastrophizing and awfulizing. (Ayto)
C. Although not entirely a neologism this word has not been recorded
since 1791, well before the days of soundproofing: ‘Solitude, and
patience, and religion, have now quietized both father and
daughter into tolerable contentment,’ Fanny Burney’s Diaries.
(Ayto)
D. Marriage is the only union that cannot be organized. Both sides
think they are management. (Reader’s Digest)
7.
A. His lack of gratitude or gratefulness for cleaning the house
thoroughly once a month appalled her. (Reilly)
B. In every restaurant, the hardness of the butter pats increases in
direct proportion to the softness of the bread being served.
(Reader’s Digest)
C. The well-heeled yobs on the youth fringes of the Conservative
party who regularly smash up their conference venues, the Left
Wing MPs chant inglike bovver boys in the Commons, striking
miners taking up the hooligans’ cry of ‘Here we go,’ are all
depressingly convincing evidence of the universalisation of
‘laddishness.’ (Ayto)
D. Laddish adj. (Brit.) having the quality of macho uncouthness and
aggression exhibited by male groups. (Ayto)
8.
A. Watermelons, their flesh as crisp and cool as pink snow, were
formidable botanical cannonballs, each one big enough and
heavy enough to obliterate a city… (Durrell. The Garden…)
B. Our kitchen stuff carefully selects the best of these recipes, tests
them thoroughly and combines them to make the most flavorful,
memorable meals ever. (Reminisce)
163
C. She found herself playing telephone tag with such cutting edge
dictionary entries as blusher, bullet train, call forwarding and
call waiting, … microwaveable, nuclear winter, … tanning booth
(and bed), voice activated and voice mail (a new oxymoron).
(Lederer. The Miracle…)
D. But three days later, she made a total – and inexplicable –
recovery. (Reader’s Digest)
9.
A. Marriages sometimes appear to be wrecked by mere details …
often however, these details are but signs of a fundamental lack of
compatibility between the two life partners. (Barnhart)
B. Only in Plotsadika-Chotchki, whose inhabitants are blessed and
cursed with a strange motility of mind, could someone stand fully
clothed and be accused of nudity. (Saussy III)
C. He [Jean Genet] died two years ago in a small Paris hotel after
being given a state Grand Prix … to wipe out years of marginality
and was buried in Morocco where he usually lived. (Ayto)
D. Companies whose objective is high profitability will have shorter
lines, including only profitable items. (MacKenzie)
10.
A. He looked more like a hippie with his wild hair and beard, and not
a very clean one at that, than a serious man of study. (Hunter)
B. Lucky Boomer. Throughout the 80s a growing interest by foodies
in ethnic and regional cuisine added a menu of new words to the
American palate and vocabulary … (Lederer. The Miracle…)
C. … and hand them to other chappies … (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. You are a patsy, a quick push, a big softie. (Chapman)
11.
A. Several governments are named in accordance with the
percentage of the populace participating. If you think only
“democracy” means majority rule, then this list is for you.
Isocracy: Polity where all have equal power
Sociocracy: Government by society as a whole. (Hellweg)
B. The French Government is determined, however, to fight any
attempt at uniting Europe under a “technocracy”. (Barnhart)
C. If Congress … refuses to appropriate money to maintain the
judiciary and executive departments, the result is mobocracy.
(Barnhart)
164
D. Remarking that the cuttings are all about Nick Bright-Sparkly and
that every one of the photographs on his wall shows this vibrant
young man in the company of Paula Yates, Nicholas Coleridge,
Ben Elton and other members of the youthocracy, I dive in with
the question that has been troubling traditionalists within the
trade. (Ayto)
12.
A. Sleeperette n. a large reclinable passenger seat on a train,
aircraft, etc. designed to allow the occupant to sleep. (Ayto)
B. Essayette n. a short essay. (Barnhart)
C. Kitchenette n. a very small, compactly arranged kitchen; a part of
a room fitted up as a kitchen. (Barnhart)
D. Laundrette n. laundromat, a self-service laundry consisting of
coin-operated washing machines and dryers. (Barnhart)
QUIZ FORTY
Each of the following sets contains a suffix-neologism. Can you identify
it?
1.
A. He went out to his car, carrying his jazzy jacket … (Francis.
Longshot)
B. Today, these men lead two intellectual schools – sometimes called
the doomsters and the boomsters – that debate whether the world
is getting better or going to the dogs. (Reader’s Digest)
C. I listened to the starch in her voice, observed it in the straightness
of her backbone, recognized the ramrod will that made no
concessions to hardship.
“I could take you across a desert,” I said.
She gave me a long piercing inspection. “I hope that’s not an accolade.”
“An assessment,” I said. (Francis. Longshot)
D. Incidentally, [Oliver] North will be asked about his accepting the
gift of a security gate at his home, a sub-plot that has become
known as Gategate. (Ayto)
2.
A. I was a kind of interplanetary probe, as ignorant of my mission as
the machine itself must be. (Golding)
165
B. About 200 hard-core refuseniks are left, four times as many as
before last autumn’s campaign. (Ayto)
C. It is not unreasonable to hope that after death the mind may
waken to another source of energy. (Reader’s Digest)
D. … all had suffered cardiac arrests stemming from accidents,
asthma, severe kindey problems or heart stoppages during
surgery. (Reader’s Digest)
3.
A. The orgasmatron proper made a fully-fledged appearance in
Woody Allen’s futuristic film Sleeper (1973), in which people in
need of sexual satisfaction enter a superloo-like capsule and
emerge after a short while with a look of inane bliss. (Ayto)
B. Two new ism words knocking at the covers of the dictionary are
Goldwynism and Berraism. (Lederer. Anguished…)
C. Dukakonomics, the economic policies of Michael Dukakis, US
Democratic presedential candidate in 1988. (Ayto)
D. There was a death-where-is-thy-sting-fulness about her manner
which I found distasteful. (Wodehouse. Life…)
4.
A. During the early years of space exploration, NASA scientist
Wernher von Braun gave many speeches on the wonders and
promises of rocketry and flight. (Lederer. Anguished…)
B. In the distance Victoria could see the famous Step Pyramid of
Zoser, the first edifice in Egypt to be built entirely of stone.
(Hunter)
C. Reluctantly, I accepted this restriction, and so my horns reposed
on the window-sill, doing no further damage than to fall regularly
on to our maid Lugaretzia’s foot every evening when she closed
the shutters, but as she was a professional hypochondriac of no
mean abilities she enjoyed the bruises she sustained. (Durrell. The
Garden…)
D. The last time I heard about him, he had jumped on the merry-goround and joined up with some other happyholics. Together they
seek out, try on, and eventually discard every opportunity for
happiness. Nothing satisfies them. (Reilly)
5.
A. All the clichés about the golden numerati falling from grace and
selling the Porsche have a ring of truth. (Ayto)
166
B. Not wishing to have a double case of infanticide on my conscience, and lacking aquarium space, I put the second baby in
a jar and rowed down the coast to the bay where I had caught his
parents. (Durrell. The Garden…)
C. The comic therefore establishes both the mimetic values of its
world, and a system of modality markers. (Hodge & Kress)
D. Marjorie managed that meeting in a way that would have had
super powers kneeling in admiration, and she manipulated you all
so that she got her way, which was for Stratton Park to continue in
its old manner for the foreseeable future. (Francis. Decider)
6.
A. Gold convertibility was replaced by a system of floating exchange
rates. (MacKenzie)
B. Market testing, contracting-out, downsizing and delayering are
steadily transferring workers into much less secure work patterns.
(MacKenzie)
C. The usual target of such political hijackings is of course aircraft,
and the word skyjacking was coined in 1961 to describe the
activity. (Ayto)
D. Thus only a reader well-versed in British establishmentology
might deduce that Milne regards Mrs Thatcher as a vicious
authoritarian, Duke Hussey as her devious henchman and Sir
William Rees-Mogg … as a series of unprintable nouns. (Ayto)
QUIZ FORTY-ONE
Each of the following sets contains a neologism-suffix source-word. Can
you identify it?
1.
A. But while the Beatniks travel about the country on the backs of
trucks, the rest of us are going to college and then plunging …
into marriage and parenthood. (Barnhart)
B. Jazznik n. U.S. sl. a jazz buff
C. I have another nudnik here wants a round table like King Arthur’s.
(Barnhart)
D. Strengthened by the overwhelming endorsement by the Liberal
party for a merger with the Social Democrats, Mr David Steel last
167
night moved swiftly to isolate Dr David Owen’s breakaway SDP
and a small group of Liberal ‘refuseniks.’ (Ayto)
2.
A. A decade and a half after the Watergate affair launched this
suffix on its career … (Ayto)
B. … senior officials [in Sierra Leone] whose wholesale involvement
in corruption is generally referred to as the ‘Milliongate’ scandal.
(Ayto)
C. Koreagate n. series of scandals involving bribe and favor-taking
by U.S. Congressmen from Tong Sun Park, Korean businessman,
and other South Korean agents. (Webster)
D. Irangate n. a scandal involving the supply of Iran arms to and the
use of the profits to fund the Contras in Nicaragua. (Ayto)
3.
A. The worst part, though, was that there was no sign of Splinter.
He’d been ratnapped! (Hiller)
B. Space-nap n. The abduction of a human being by creatures from
outer space, who take him or her into their spaceship. (Ayto)
C. After having spent a fruitless hour trying to kidnap the babies I
was forced, albeit reluctantly, to give up the idea of adding
vultures to my birds of prey collection. (Durrell. The Garden…)
D. Nicholas Cage is the beguiling recidivist bandit who babynaps
one of a furniture magnate’s quins to satiate his wife’s maternal
longings. (Ayto)
4.
A. Courtesy of President Reagan (who gave us a new use of Teflon),
we entered an era of Reaganomics, supply-side and trickle-down
economics, and Laffer curves. (Lederer. The Miracle…)
B. Draw-down n. (in economics) a diminution in quantity caused by
depletion; a reduction (Ayto)
C. [Eric] Morley, meanwhile, is a former Tory candidate and expert
in bimbonomics who has made a fortune from what was
anathema to the News on Sunday worthies: the beauty contest.
(Ayto)
D. Immediately after Labour regained power from the incumbent
Nationalists in 1984, New Zealanders learned what Rogernomics
was all about. (Ayto)
168
5.
A. The American navy’s skyjacking of the aeroplane carrying the
four PLO shipjackers on October 11th … (Ayto)
B. The diamonds are too well guarded. We’re going to hijack the
diamonds during the flight. (Sheldon. If…)
C. The hijacking of the Italian Cruise Ship Achille Lauro. …The
seajack followed hard upon the bombing of the headquarters of
the Palestine Liberation Organization in Tunis. (Ayto)
D. … the week’s third skyjack in Cuba. (Chapman)
6.
A. Hashaholic, one addicted to hashish as an alcoholic is to alcohol.
(Brandreth)
B. Without asking, he got another mug from the cabinet and poured
coffee. “Vivian told me that you’re a coffee-holic.” (Clark.
Remember…)
C. We are a nation of “happyholics,” a society addicted to the
pursuit of happiness. (Reilly)
D. More than 75 per cent of … alcoholic patients have benefited
from the drug [meprobamate] during the withdrawal period.
(Barnhart)
169
COMPOUNDING
Compound is a word consisting of two or more stems (or free or bound
morphemes).
E.g., user-friendly, scarecrow, in-law, forget-me-not, weekend
Compounding (Composition): the process of forming compound words by
joining at least two stems together.
E.g., self-made, seasick, grey-green, wall-flower, whenever
The result of Compounding
1) a compound word: freeze-dry
2) a root word: handicap, twofer, whodunit, helluva
Compound Word Forming Mechanism
1) compounding
duty + free = duty-free
2) conversion
fr. compounds: to blueprint
fr. phrases: a cutthroat, show-me,
to six-pack, drive-by
3) back-formation
to babysit fr. babysitting or babysitter
4) loan translation
to brainwash fr. Chinese hsi nao “wash brain”
5) folk etymology
go-down n. (in India and Eastern Asia) a
warehouse [fr. Malay gĕdong or gudong
warehouse]
cat-soup (var. of ketchup or catchup)
Compounds are
1. Closed (written as one word) outline
2. Open (written as separate words) mountain range
3. Hyphenated (written with hyphens) how-to, two-step
Pseudocompounds are words having the same form as compounds proper
(hyphenated or closed, forestressed, semantically united), but whose
constituents, however, are non-existent in the English language. Pseudocompounds are found among phonetic (true) borrowings.
E.g.,
sang-froid (fr. French)
donnybrook (fr. Donnybrook in Ireland)
170
Compound Derivative (derivational compound) is a word comprising an affix
(prefix or suffix) that refers to the combination as a whole, not to one of its elements.
E.g., a (red-jacket)ed Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary (Updike)
(elder-brother)ly way … (Wodehouse)
(bloodthirsti)ness, (lost-soul)ish, mis(understand),
un(wifelike), (up-to-date)ness
Types of Compounding
1. stem juxtaposition top-notch, my-all
2. with a linking element
a) vowel
artifact, drunkometer
b) consonant
spokesperson
c) preposition
four-by-four, hand-to-hand, free-for-all
d) conjunction
so-and-so, do-or-die, inasmuch
3. lexicalization of phrases killmequick, know-it-all
Type of Stem
1. simple (root or combining form) world-wide
2. derived touchy-feely, mock-heroically, chair-warmer
3. compound microprocessor-based, highwaywoman
4. compound-derived absentmindedness
5. abbreviated B-ball (basketball), odd-bod (body), lip-sync (synchronize)
6. reduplicating flip-flop, dilly-dally, teeny-weeny
Combining Form (or semi-affix) is a free morpheme (stem) with
derivational affix properties acquired through great combining capacity and
frequent use.
E.g., phobia n. a persistent, abnormal, or irrational fear of a specific thing
or situation. Pete has a phobia on the subject. (Franics. Dead…) I hope
mademoiselle does not have claustrophobia. (Sheldon. If…)
bibliophobia
fear of books
bathophobia
fear of depth
chronophobia
fear of time
gamophobia
fear of marriage
musicophobia
fear of music
rhytiphobia
fear of getting wrinkles
telephonophobia
fear of using the telephone
verbaphobia
fear of words
171
politicophobia
fear of, aversion to politicians
zoophobia
fear of animals
man n. a human being, person
Any man could do that.
Businessman, chairman, fireman, policeman, salesman, bottle-man,
gunman
happy adj. having a feeling of or showing pleasure and joy; enjoying
-happy
somewhat insane over or excessively wrought upon what is
indicated: car-happy, power-happy, slap-happy, trigger-happy
proof adj. fully resistant; impervious
Our security is what you call proof from fools. (Sheldon. If…)
bulletproof
resistant to bullets
fireproof
that will not burn
foolproof
so safe and simple that even a fool can use or do it
kissproof
(of lipstick) resistive to kisses
pityproof
unaffected by pity
waterproof
protected against water
mini distinctly smaller that others of its class
You see him zipping by in the family mini. (Barnhart)
Miniskirt, minibus, minibike, minicomputer, miniseries, ministate, minivan
Coordinative compound is a compound whose components are structurally
and semantically independent and constitute two structural and semantic
centers.
E.g., actor-manager
n.
hit-run
adj.
willy-nilly
adj.
walkie-talkie
n.
bittersweet
adj.
Subordinative compound is a compound whose components are neither
structurally nor semantically equal in importance, and one of them
dominates the other.
E.g., badlands, color-blind, evergreen, grandma, playgirl
Syntactic compound is a compound that conforms to grammatical patterns
current in the language.
E.g., northwest, coverall, double-quick, headfirst, maybe, talked-of,
butter-and-eggs, for-free
Asyntactic compound is a compound that does not conform to grammatical
patterns current in the language.
172
E.g., double-speak
least-worst
arm-twist
n.
adj.
v.
second-guess
deep-most
v.
adj.
Endocentric compound belongs to the same lexico-grammatical class as
one of its constituents.
E.g., germ-free adj.
in-patient n.
she-wolf n.
home-made adj.
between-brain n.
spaceship n.
Exocentric compound does not belong to the same lexico-grammatical
class as any of its constituents.
E.g., top-notch
N + N = Adj
wall-flower
Nnon-personal + Nnon-personal = Npersonal
also-ran
Adv + V = N
killjoy
V + Nnon-personal = Npersonal
eighty-six
Numeral + Numeral = Verb
Idiomatic compound is a compound whose meaning is not deducible from
the meaning of its components.
E.g., killjoy
n. A morose pessimist
wallflower n. A person, especially a woman, who is uncourted at a
dance, party
greenback n. A note of U.S currency
fifty-fifty
adv. Being equally likely and unlikely
soft-pedal
v. To make less emphatic or obvious
Non-idiomatic compound is a compound whose meaning is deducible from
the meaning of its components.
E.g., mother-in-law, after-dinner, straightforward, day-long, germ-free
Bahuvrihi is a two-stem exocentric idiomatic compound noun denoting a
person or thing possessing a certain characteristic. The first component
describes a quality possessed by the second.
E.g., lazybones, butterfingers, paperback, egghead, highbrow
Compounds are presented by the following word classes formed by
combination of various parts of speech stems. See the table below.
173
Conj.
Prep.
Adverb
Numeral
Pronoun
Adjective
Verb
Noun
Stem
174
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Pronoun
wall-flower n.
side-line v.
top-notch adj.
air-sea adv.
sportspeak n.
table-hop v.
home-made adj.
hellbent adv.
screw-loose n.
party-hearty v.
germ-free adj.
world-wide adv.
love-all (tennis) n.
toothsome adj.
killjoy n.
spread-eagle v.
carry-home adj.
run-rig adv.
look-see n.
strip-search v.
go-go adj.
maybe adv.
feelgood n.
drip-dry v.
stand-alone adj.
drop-dead adv.
coverall n.
gimme v.
show-me adj.
wetland n.
soft-pedal v.
long-term adj.
yesterday adv.
high-rise n.
merry-make v.
sleepy-looking
adj.
dry-shod adv.
creepy-crawly n.
double-quick v.
least-worst adj.
double-quick adv.
ownsome n.
best-other
(restaur.) adj.
she-wolf n.
all-purpose adj.
anyway adv.
everything pron.
allheal n.
me-seems v.
all-pervading adj.
all-told adv.
all-clear n.
my-dear v.
all-powerful adj.
anymore adv.
my-all n.
he-she adj.
somewhat adv.
someone pron.
two-step n.
two-time v.
seventy-foot adj.
first-class adv.
one-shot n.
second-guess v.
first-run adj.
four-square n.
three-square adj.
four-square adv.
twenty-something
n.
threesome adj.
in-patient n.
down-thumb v.
up-front adj.
belowstairs adv.
nothing pron.
also-ran n.
ill-treat v.
no-win adj.
upgrade adv.
no-good n.
outbrave v.
evergreen adj.
down-right adv.
no one pron.
betweenbrain n.
about-face v.
after-dinner adj.
alongside prep.
to-do n.
intend v.
abovesaid adj.
overthwart adv.
for-free n.
insure v.
afterdark adj.
at-large adv.
over-all n.
with-it adj.
through-other
(Scot.) adv.
if-class n.
as-is n.
and-which
Numeral
Adverb
Preposition
Conjunction
number-one n.
number-two v.
page-one adj.
headfirst adv.
time-out n.
chicken-out v.
adults-only adj.
day-long adv.
shell-like (ear) n.
home-in v.
hands-on adj.
head-on adv.
butter-and-eggs n.
dog-and-pony v.
bread-and-butter adj.
bent-eight n.
stand-first v.
take-one (lit.) adj.
say-so n.
flashback v.
come-hither adj.
mock-heroically
adv.
go-between n.
talked-of adj.
high-five n.
deep-six v.
best-first (search) adj.
higher-up n.
black out v.
deep-most adj.
straight forward adv.
super-plus n.
dead-on adj.
nearby adv.
know-how n.
give-and-take n.
kiss-and-tell adj.
do-or-die adj.
reason-why
(advertising) adj.
free-and-easy adj.
all-fours n.
whatnot n.
me-too v.
all-out adj.
anywhere adv.
whoever pron.
whichever conj.
what-for n.
all-around adj.
all-or-none adj.
what-if adj.
all-but adv.
eighty-one n.
eighty-six v.
twenty-twenty adj.
fifty-fifty adv.
twenty-five num.
seven-up n.
one-up v.
first-ever adj.
six-by n.
one-off (job) adj.
five-and-ten n.
six-and-eight adj.
never-never n.
fast-forward v.
so-so adj.
well-high adv.
whenever conj.
overplus n.
how-to adj.
therefrom adv.
whereto conj.
within prep.
underneath adj.
forever adv.
without prep.
in-between n.
in-between adj.
forby adv.
into prep.
whereas n.
down-and-out adj.
to-and-fro v.
so-and-so n.
no-how adv.
whereas conj.
yes-but (game) adj.
by-and-by n.
in-and-out adj.
in-and-in adv.
plus-fours n.
after-five (fashions)
adj.
if-else (structure)
if-only adj.
and/or conj.
175
QUIZ ONE
Identify the following compounds as
A. open
B. closed
C. hyphenated
1. If I refused point-blank, without explanation, to let Palindrome run in
the race, my permit to ride would be withdrawn, and that would be the
end of my steeplechasing. (Francis. Dead…)
2. “Yes. It’s in the changing room. And his helmet. …” (Francis. Slay…)
3. I glanced uneasily round the changing room at the well-known faces,
refusing to believe that any was the go-between who had brought death
to Joe. (Francis. Dead…)
4. I got back to the Grand by taxi at one in the morning, slept badly, and
woke at seven feeling like Henry Cooper’s punching bag. (Francis. Slay…)
5. The growing popularity of the snowmobile, however, has opened many
parts of the high country that were inaccessible in winter before.
(Arizona Highways)
6. … a large house built of smooth gray bricks with bands of smooth pink
bricks and inset patterns of smooth yellowish bricks, all in all (to me) an
eyesore. (Francis. Decider)
7. I put him down as a retired sergeant-major. (Francis. Dead…)
8. He looked as though he would develop into a ‘chaser in a year or two,
but meanwhile I was riding him in a novice hurdle races to give him
some sorely needed experience. (Francis. Dead…)
9. On this evening the chief forces of the island were disposed as follows.
The lost boys were out looking for Peter, the pirates were out looking
for the lost boys, the redskins were out looking for the pirates, and the
beasts were out looking for the redskins. (Barrie)
10. ‘Fade creams’ are popular with women (and men) to even out skin
tones and regulate the colour of the complexion. (Ayto)
11. … a low white-painted wooden building on the far side of the parade
ring. (Francis. Decider)
12. This is a major stumbling block in developing a health strategy based
on clinical research. (Models…)
13. This man was a member of a vast network of organized crime, a group
that bled the country of untold billions of dollars… (Sheldon. Rage…)
176
14. I did the flat myself. I’ve been whitewashing pigsties since I was six.
(Francis. Enquiry)
15. … home proved to be a sprawling pink-washed ranch-type bungalow…
(Francis. Enquiry)
16. “So you ran away from home?” – “Yes. I hitchhiked to Chicago.
I didn’t have much schooling, but at home I used to read a lot.”
(Sheldon. Rage…)
17. Di Silva had outsmarted her. Among the final prospective jurors
questioned were a private detective, a bank manager and the mother of a
doctor – all of them Establishment – and there was nothing now that
Jennifer could do to keep them off the jury. The District Attorney had
sandbagged her. (Sheldon. Rage…)
18. Only his hair was different. It was snow-white. (Golding)
19. On the way back to the race course in the morning I stopped at a post
office and air-mailed my letter. (Francis. Dead…)
20. Adam and Jennifer had lunch in the walnut-paneled dining room run by
a chef and two waiters. (Sheldon. Rage…)
QUIZ TWO
Each of the following sets contains a compound word. Can you identify it?
1.
A. When Agnes and I got married, my brother Gordon was my best
man. (Makkai)
B. Cousin George. I’ve just been best-manning at his wedding.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. I had to toast the bridesmaid. Who’d be a best man? (Francis.
Decider)
D. … I have been wise enough to know that you are the best man to
rule the Empire… (Golding)
2.
A. She is most efficient and conscientious at her job, but I’d give
her a black mark where punctuality is concerned. (Wood &
Hill)
B. That woman never pays her bills; I’ll have to put her on my
black list. (Clark. Word…)
C. We shall have to black-list him. (Wood & Hill)
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D. My brother Ted is a high school dropout who joined a circus; he
is the black sheep in our family. (Makkai)
3.
A. The heavy duty motor and relatively simple mechanism used in
the scanner has resulted in a long life for the moving parts of the
device. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
B. Mesta Machine Company has built a solid reputation for the
design and manufacture of rolling mill machinery, heavy
processing lines and related equipment. (Iron and Steel
Engineer)
C. It comprises three layers of high-grade plastic, an absorbent layer
of 8-mm thick plastic foam being sandwiched between a
perforated coated PVC foil and a heavy coated PVC foil. (Iron
and Steel Engineer)
D. … 89 of the reporting foundries can produce castings for
railroads, 18 for heavy turbines, 20 for heavy armament …
(Iron and Steel Engineer)
4.
A. The product is uniform and nonpyrophoric
with high
metallization and controlled carbon content. (Iron and Steel
Engineer)
B. For the most part they are cranes that are important to a
particular operation and have relatively high duty cycles. (Iron
and Steel Engineer)
C. This equipment is designed to offer you a high production, fully
automated, fuel efficient oil pipe furnace line for either seamless
or EW pipe processing. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
D. It offers the possibility of a high degree of fire resistance and
reduced fluid costs, and may well be worth the effort. (Iron and
Steel Engineer)
5.
A. There is just as much chance that the low values will combine in
a given loading situation as there is for the high ones. (Iron and
Steel Engineer)
B. This huge check valve, cast of a special low-alloy steel, is
intended for use in Arctic pipelines. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
C. Experience with the scanning units has shown them to be very
reliable, requiring low maintenance. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
178
D. You are new to the job so I’d keep a low profile if I were you
until you became used to things here. (Clark. Word…)
6.
A. Once inside the weighing room, Arne forgot about bugging machines
and introduced me rapidly to a stream of people… (Francis. Slay…)
B. The printing of the city’s newspapers is not considered a part of
the printing industry proper, since the big newspapers set their
own type and have their own presses. (Barnhart)
C. The owner of a New Jersey printing business was delighted when
another company wanted to buy one of his used printing
machines. (Reader’s Digest)
D. Changes Brought About by the Printing Press. The invention of
printing, which William Caxton introduced into England about
1476, released a force that was to have an almost immesurable
effect on both language and thought. (Webster)
7.
A. It is a small-time business, but it may grow. (Makkai)
B. Large dairies ignore the competition from the small try who
make only a few hundred pounds of cheese a year. (Makkai)
C. They ordered drinks and dinner and busied themselves making
small talk. (Sheldon. Rage…)
D. I hadn’t seen my brother for years and when he came to stay we
talked about old times until the small hours. (Clark. Word…)
8.
A.
B.
C.
D.
9.
A.
B.
That led to Ken being hired by his friend to build kitchen
cabinets for the real houses. (Reminisce)
Unscrewing the bottom of Buddy’s small lantern, he replaced the
spent fuel with fresh carbide granules. (Reader’s Digest)
Henry and I discussed crowd movement, racegoers’ behavior,
provision for rain. We set out the essentials, rubbed out the
bottlenecks, made pleasure a priority, gave owners their due,
allocated prime space for Strattons, for Stewards, for trainers’
bars. (Francis. Decider)
She saw her baby sister and thought how much she loved her.
(Reader’s Digest)
The one-armed man sweeping the bank floor was really the house
detective. (Makkai)
But dust – even house dust – is not a simple substance. (Models…)
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C. When bird feeders became prevalent in northern cities, the winter
range of house finches and cardinals expanded, which suggests
that even winter can’t drive off some birds if they have enough
to eat. (Reader’s Digest)
D. The discreet buzz of the house telephone caused him to pick up
the receiver on his desk. (Christie. Halloween…)
10.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Most of the people questioned refused to answer. (Swan)
The window broken yesterday will have to be paid for. (Swan)
I’d like to speak to the person responsible. (Swan)
For residents and veteran winter visitors to the central and
southern Arizona desert, it is easy to stereotype the state as
benign, sun-drenched refuge from the bitter winds sweeping
into the Midwest from the Great Lakes. (Arizona Highways)
11.
A. We climbed back into the jeep and returned to the grandstands,
where, leaning again on the walker, I took my first objective look
at the previous day’s destructive mayhem. (Francis. Decider)
B. Combine mayonnaise, sugar and lemon juice; mix well. (Reminesce)
C. … mayoral duties
D. I’m going to the Hall Form, but mayhap I may go to the school
after. (Barnhart)
QUIZ THREE
Each of the following sets contains a unit that is not a compound word. Can
you identify it?
1.
180
A. Jeff and Loise lived in a twenty-room townhouse filled with
servants, on the East Side of Manhattan. (Sheldon. If…)
B. A country house! How many bedrooms? Well, that point can be
cleared up afterwards. You have a town house, I hope? (Wilde. Selections)
C. Town house, a single family house that is attached to a similar
house on one side. (Webster)
D. Town homes similar to these once housed Scottish merchants
who grew wealthy shipping tobacco to England. (The US Capitol
Historical Society)
2.
A. I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea,
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth,
“Blackbirds” stowed in the hold beneath. (Gishian)
B. Crow, a large, glossy, black bird that has a harsh cry or caw. (Barnhart)
C. In the crazy English language, the blackbird hen is brown,
blackboards can be blue or green, and blackberries are green and
then red before they are ripe. (Lederer. Crazy…)
D. Blackbirds are related to the orioles and include the cowbird,
purple grackle, and red-winged blackbird. (Barnhart)
3.
A. “You demand equality? That’s as maybe, madam, but this room
is for gentlemen only I’m afraid.” (Clark. Word…)
B. Maybe you’ll have better luck next time. (Barnhart)
C. He may be the next mayor. (Barnhart)
D. There are lots of maybes in this glittering promise. (Barnhart)
4.
A. I’ll tell you where she’s staying and you can try to sweet-talk her
into coming back. (Sheldon. Rage…)
B. Polly could sweet talk her husband into anything. (Makkai)
C. Wait’ll you meet her father, he’s a sweetheart. (Chapman)
D. She has such a sweet tooth that she hardly eats anything else but
cake. (Makkai)
5.
A.
6.
A.
A heavy-duty, high efficiency filter, which meets the most
recent government regulations for protection of personnel and
equipment in conditions of extreme air pollution, is available
from Lintern Corp. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
B. A heavy-duty cable in an insulating tube was run underground
by a trenching machine to the members’ parking lot, for lights,
power and refrigerators in the big top. (Francis. Decider)
C. A key supplier of custom-cast components to heavy industry…
(Iron and Steel Engineer)
D. West Germany’s Siemens AG, a heavyweight in medical electronics,
is expanding its hearing-aid marketing effort in France. (Electronics)
This was possible through the use of recently developed highspeed detectors… (Iron and Steel Engineer)
181
B.
Large feedback resistors should be used for high gain with the
small radiated signal from the small, relatively low-temperature
target… (Iron and Steel Engineer)
C. Neither expensive materials, nor high-temperature high-pressure
processes … are required for this new soluble coal. (Iron and
Steel Engineer)
D. Plant output will be increased through the installation of a new
high speed cold mill… (Iron and Steel Engineer)
7.
A. In their penthouse atop fashionable Cayman Manor, a resedential
high-rise a mile or so outside the city, Edwina and Lewis
D’Orsey were at breakfast. (Hailey. The Money…)
B. Generally speaking, this hearth is comprised of two 18-in. courses
and one 9-in. course of high-duty fire-brick. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
C. … high alloy heat-resistant steel castings (Iron and Steel Engineer)
D. The process requires a switching device capable of handling high
voltage and high current for an unlimited number of switching
times. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
8.
A. The now quiet region contains Ramsey Canyon, a sanctuary for
much-studied hummingbirds … (Arizona Highways)
B. The migrating birds that do survive return by early summer.
(Reader’s Digest)
C. Each spring hundreds of millions of songbirds drift back up from
the South like colorful notes of music, streaking the sky with
dark rivers of wings. (Reader’s Digest)
D. The difference between the right word and the almost right word is
the difference between “lightning” and “lightning bug.” (Twain)
9.
A. A flock of wild turkeys is poking around in the soft earth for
berries and seeds. (Arizona Highways)
B. The dried remains of summer wildflowers crunch beneath my
feet as I ascend the volcanic slope. (Arizona Highways)
C. Widespread use of DDT in strong concentrations endangers
human beings as well as wildlife. (Barnhart)
D. Lois said she knew the way so we followed her car, but she took
us on a wild goose chase all round the country lanes instead of
taking the direct route along the main road. (Clark. Word…)
182
10.
A. No matter how many times I see home videos of a new groom
dropping his bride when he tries to carry her over the threshold,
I still laugh. (Robinson)
B. … staying home with her sister lip synching to Leon Russel
records. (Chapman)
C. Mike was as easygoing and wise-cracking as his weapon was
fierce. (Hiller)
D. She had been sitting there, daydreaming, for twenty minutes.
(Sheldon. If…)
11.
A. To add to the insanity, there is no butter in buttermilk, no egg in
eggplant, neither worms or wood in wormwood… (Lederer. Crazy…)
B. Eggheads of the world unite! You have nothing to lose but your
yokes. (Brandreth)
C. Eggnog, a beverage made of eggs beaten up with milk and sugar,
often containing whiskey, brandy, or wine. (Barnhart)
D. Panting, he went on: “I had just walked out of the deli where I
buy an egg sandwich every morning. …” (Reader’s Digest)
QUIZ FOUR
Each of the following sets contains a pseudocompound. Can you identify
it?
1.
A.
She was surprised to see fingerprints smeared across the glass
cocktail table. (Clark. The Lottery…)
B. I was glad simply to reach the door unmolested and to creep
through into the hall, and scuttle across it ignominiously, as low
in Conrad’s esteem as a cockroach. (Francis. Decider)
C. Belgium is often called the cockpit of Europe. (Barnhart)
D. In the club car men were crying out their simple, cocksure
solutions for the United States of America. (Barnhart)
2.
A.
… and had said their further inquiries would be conducted
“elsewhere”, unspecified. (Francis. Decider)
B. Captain Larsen radioed “Mayday” to nearby ships and coastal
rescue stations. (Reader’s Digest)
183
C. Late in the afternoon I noticed a garage-sale sleuth examining
the furniture. I rushed out to inform her that nothing was for
sale… (Reader’s Digest)
D. Perdita Faulds had left the bar and was nowhere in sight when
we reached it. (Francis. Decider)
3.
A. They visited the Gammon Shop and Caswell-Massey, where Adam
bought Jennifer enough potpourri to last for ten years. (Sheldon. Rage…)
B. … but in his day, I had been told, the toughest man ever to put
his foot in a racing stir-up. (Francis. Dead…)
C. During the evening, I telephoned to Newtonnards in his pinkwashed house in Mill Hill. (Francis. Enquiry)
D. I went back to the microphone and said it loud and baldly.
(Francis. Decider)
4.
A. Three-dimensional holographic output, computer graphics with
artificial intelligence and a computer screen manipulated by eye
are just three of the leading-edge projects underway at MIT’s
newest research centre. (Ayto)
B. It took me an hour to cross into Gloucestershire and almost half as
long to sort out the geography of the village of Downfield, which
seemed to consist mostly of cul-de-sacs. (Francis. Enquiry)
C. To Nelly, a dyed-in-the-wool New Yorker, the prospect of
spending her final years away from the Big Apple was appalling.
(Clark. The Lottery…)
D. I don’t think I’ve passed a display of baby things without
window-shopping. (Clark. The Lottery…)
5.
A. Then she made a list of all the things she wanted to do, and the
first was the visit to the Cypress Spa Point – where she planned
to hobnob with the celebrities she’d been reading about all her
life. (Clark. The Lottery…)
B. Tracy and Jeff arrived at Segovia in time for lunch and dined at a
charming restaurant in the main square under the shadow of the
two-thousand-year-old aqueduct built by the Romans. (Sheldon. If…)
C. They went to The Half Note to hear avant-garde jazz in the
Village, and peeked into the windows of the small art galleries.
(Sheldon. Rage…)
184
D. What you have been looking at in a proper paper such as The
Times consists of as many words as are in three novels of
average length, written, subbed, designed, cut to fit exactly into
the jigsaw, stand-firsted, headlined, printed and delivered on to
your breakfast table in 12 hours flat. (Ayto)
6.
A. A nightingale flitted across the garden, came to rest in the dark
side of a cypress and tried over a few notes. (Golding)
B. “It was the boss’s idea, not mine,” said Sandy roughly. “I warned
Fielder to tell him it wouldn’t work, but the boss knew bee-all
about horses and was pig-headed besides. …” (Francis. Dead…)
C. “I didn’t come here to sight-see, Inspector. I must return home
as quickly as possible.” (Sheldon. Rage…)
D. Overseas the long awaited go-ahead has been given for the
building of a mammoth blast furnace at British Steel Corp.’s
Redcar plant at Teeside. (Iron and Steel Engineer)
7.
A.
“… I can’t believe I was curled up in that car like a jack-in-thebox when you had your head in a gas jet.” (Clark. The Lottery…)
B. … and I went on into Conrad’s private room where horse
pictures crowded the walls and endless shiny bric-a-brac
suggested a magpie disposition. (Francis. Decider)
C. Using phony head-in-the-sand excuses to justify something
which you know is evil, but won’t concede, even to yourself.
(Hailey. Strong…)
D. “How about taking a look-see at Conrad’s pet architect’s plans,
then?” (Francis. Decider)
8.
A.
“And Princess Di can always get a job teaching kindergarten.
…” (Clark. Weep…)
B. … she twisted her hair into a topknot and put on a blue cotton
jumpsuit and sandals. (Clark. Weep…)
C. Somewhere in her subconscious she experienced a sense of calm
observing the brilliant checkerblooms, the wood roses, the
flowering currant hedges. (Clark. Weep…)
D. It had been a good flight from Hawaii – smooth air every foot of
the way, the cloud banks lazy and floating like cotton candy at a
circus. (Clark. Weep…)
185
9.
A. But today she took no comfort in the matching ivory couch and
loveseat… (Clark. The Lottery…)
B. … but on the other hand, photographs of a crippled girl sitting in
a wheelchair were certainly a lot less dramatic than the actual
appearance of the girl herself would have been. (Sheldon. Rage…)
C. It had been furnished for the bachelor stockbroker with a kingsized bed, a triple dresser, comfortable easy chairs … (Clark.
The Lottery…)
D. Mrs Bradley, lying on a chaise longue, in a modish dressinggown was polishing her nails. (Maugham)
QUIZ FIVE
Each of the following sets contains a compound derivative.
identify it?
Can you
1.
A. … a pair of purse-snatchers… (Hiller)
B. To be a baby-boomer is to belong to that generation born when
Johny came marching home at the end of the Second World War.
(Ayto)
C. … a mere pleasure-seeker… (Wodehouse)
D. They think we are Ramans. They can’t tell the difference
between one oxy-eater and another.” (Clarke)
2.
A. Jim and I are not miracle-workers. (Hunter)
B. To prevent accidental erasure of a recording, break off the safety
tab with a screwdriver or other tool. (Sony)
C. It must have been rather an eye-opener for you, watching me
handle this case. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. There was a grace, a practised precision, in the way Sarah Mills
held her spoon that told its own story. She was cutting out a
good pace, and her egg didn’t even wobble. A natural egg-andspooner, if there was one. (Wodehouse. Life…)
3.
A. Robert was a window-shopper. (Plain)
B. I know she attracted the celebrity-watchers. (Clark. Weep…)
C. “I was just wondering if it was our little framer-blackmailer at
186
work again. See those words ‘It has been brought to our attention’?
What I’d like to know is who brought it.” (Francis. Dead…)
D. For one thing, many of the camel-drivers had not yet gone
home, and, for another, she didn’t trust herself anywhere within
his vicinity. (Hunter)
4.
A. … suspicious-looking characters… (Clark. Weep…)
B. People were talking about a drunken-driving accident that had
resulted in four deaths. (Clark. The Cradle…)
C. … she had said her say on the subject of the cooking, the waiting,
the chamber-maiding and everything else… (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … the grandmotherly-looking woman… (Clark. Weep…)
5.
A. … the colorful hand-hooked rugs… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. … glass-lined, air-filtered corridors… (Hailey. Strong…)
C. … a dirt-floored transitional area used formerly as a potting
shed… (Updike)
D. … sun-bleached hair… (Updike)
6.
A. … the paisley-patterned dish… (Updike)
B. … his sweat-coated body… (Updike)
C. I also acquired four shillings-worth of pennies, which I stacked
into a paper-wrapped roll. (Francis. Dead…)
D. … the tree-intertwined entrance gate… (Updike)
7.
A. Andrew’s long-estranged father had died. (Hailey. Strong…)
B. Bartlett came in pink-faced from his afternoon in the sun.
(Clark. Weep…)
C. Well-dressed people hurried by. (Clark. Weep…)
D. … an ill-attended church… (Updike)
8.
A. … an ironically realistic replica – a three-dimensional Wayne
Thiebaud – of a white-frosted wedding cake. (Updike)
B. Knowing that Ted was booked at the Spa caused Scott to register
openmouthed astonishment when he saw Elizabeth sitting at
Sammy’s desk. (Clark. Weep…)
C. … managed to keep alive a lifelong, well-informed love of
literature, art and music. (Hailey. Strong…)
187
D. … his finely-chiselled features… (Wodehouse. Life…)
9.
A. Resentment was still sore in her, burning like ill-digested food.
(Plain)
B. … well-formed lips… (Spark)
C. … high-placed and dangerous revolutionaries. (Clark. The
Anastasia…)
D. … he was clear-minded enough to carry it through. (Updike)
10.
A.
B.
C.
D.
… a light-hearted young gentleman… (Wodehouse. Life…)
… ill-concealed jealousy… (Wodehouse. Life…)
… the well-thumbed big book… (Updike)
… hard-earned savings… (Wodehouse. Life…)
11.
A.
B.
C.
D.
… a red-filtered cigarette… (Updike)
Makes the whole thing neat and well-rounded. (Wodehouse. Life…)
geometrically-shaped monuments
half-closed eyes
12.
A. … that’s a rather face-saving way of putting it. (Updike)
B. There the recruits were studying the fine art of pocketpicking. (Hiller)
C. He had turned up at Gunnar Holth’s an hour or so later than expected.
So he could have done his lethal bit of nosy-parkering either on the
flight or in the first hour after he’d landed. (Francis. Slay…)
D. … neatness-loving child… (Updike)
13.
A. I wasn’t so sold on this money-offering scheme. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. When he spoke it was in the schoolmasterish manner that he
sometimes affected. (Orwell)
C. I think you’ll find my watch is right. It’s a perfect timekeeper.
(Christie. Death…)
D. … they sat in the bleachers chaperoning a record hop with its
bloodcurdling throbbing. (Updike)
14.
A. Exterior sounds intruded faintly; the muted tapping of a
typewriter; an air-conditioning hum… (Hailey. The Money…)
B. Alex Vandervoort was a committed party-goer, and loved
gourmet food and wine. (Hailey. The Money…)
188
C. He looked through the expensive gold-fitted dressingcase.
(Christie. Death…)
D. As for his remark about children, that was his well-known
sensibility, his tenderheartedness speaking. (Puzo)
15.
A.
Both were active New Yorkers and each was passionate about
Manhattan… (Clark. Remember…)
B. Lawrence says that the researchers have successfully completed
phase one of a project to develop a remotely operated ‘fellerbuncher’ which is used to fell and de-limb trees. (Ayto)
C. President Reagan plans several meetings with Soviet citizens
during his summit trip to Moscow next month, but White House
officials have ruled out any campaign-style flesh-pressing. (Ayto)
D. It was here that Keycharge cardholders were given or refused
credit. (Hailey. The Money…)
QUIZ SIX
Each of the following sets contains a compound proper. Can you identify
it?
1.
A.
B.
C.
D.
… oak-paneled walls… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
… the tinfoil-wrapped poppet… (Updike)
… the lion-coloured massive ramparts… (Hunter)
… poster-sized ads… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
2.
A. I didn’t actually clutch the brow, but I did a bit of mental browclutching, as it were. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. … a man public-spirited enough to call… (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. In Kyle’s eyes, the trick-or-treating had been absolutely great.
(Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. Behind them was a white Ford van, and standing spread-legged
on the roof, face sunburned and split into a mammoth grin under
his cocked-back construction hat, was the candidate himself.
(King. The Dead…)
3.
A. … but the boss … was pig-headed besides … (Francis. Dead…)
189
B.
The other two nurses had put down their coffee cups and were
staring gape-mouthed at Johnny. (King. The Dead…)
C. He now looked definitely squiggle-eyed. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. He raised a battery-powered bullhorn and shouted into it with
leather-lunged enthusiasm: “HI, Y’ALL!” (King. The Dead…)
4.
A. … that pebble-beached smile… (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. … the brass-handled poker… (Updike)
C. “I will talk about it,” Celia had said, “but if you don’t mind, not
any more for a while. I guess you could say I’m shell-shocked
at this moment.” (Hailey. Strong…)
D. She is a very people-oriented person. (Clark. Word…)
5.
A. Their cars – Alexandra’s pumpkin-colored Subary …, Jane’s
moss-green Valiant. (Updike)
B. An abstract watercolor by Will Moses hung on the wall over the
oyster-colored couch. (Clark. Weep…)
C. … a well-behaved kid… (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. Swinging his skull-shaped lantern, Kyle raced around the back
of the Collins house. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
6.
A. He’d gone to the barber, picked up the dry cleaning and stopped
at the supermarket. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. It was cold and a wind was blowing and Max said, oldmaidishly,
to Bresach: ‘Button up your coat!’ (Shaw. Two Weeks…)
C. I have the highest esteem for Aunt Dahlia, and have never
wavered in my cordial appreciation of her humanity, sporting
qualities, and general goodeggishness. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. They said I could submit features as a free-lancer to them if I
wanted to get back into writing. (Updike)
7.
A. She looked unself-conscious and intent. (Francis. Enquiry)
B. … the old man has revived once more an oft-recurring
question: Should Alex make a fresh life for himself and Margot?
(Hailey. The Money…)
C. … and a sort of goose-fleshy feeling steals over me.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … he had single-handedly contributed more to the Swiss
190
national income than all the chocolate and watch factories
combined. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
8.
A. … a pearwood-handled knife… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. … a gang of top-hatted chappies… (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. She was a pretty enough girl in a droopy, blonde, saucer-eyed
way, but not the sort of breath-taker that takes the breath.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
D. I saw him on TV. I had nothing in particular to do today, so I
thought I’d come over here and check him out in person. I bet I
wasn’t the only out-of-towner who did that.” (King. The
Dead…)
9.
A. The foyer surged with people – hurrying bank staff, messengers,
visitors, sightseers. (Hailey. The Money…)
B. … a few first-timers… (Francis. Dead…)
C. ‘Oh, look,’ she said. She was a confirmed Oh-looker.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
D. In fact one of my good friends bought an old place that had
really been ruined by do-it-yourselfers. (Clark. Remember…)
10.
A.
B.
C.
D.
… a green three-fingered hand… (Hiller)
… the wide, traffic-crowded river… (Hailey. The Money…)
He tried to lie quietly in the king-sized bed… (Clark. Word…)
… steel-rimmed spectacles… (Wodehouse. Life…)
QUIZ SEVEN
Identify the word-formation mechanism in the following compounds as
A. compounding
B. conversion
C. back-formation
D. loan translation
1. Her euphoria was short-lived (Sheldon. If…)
2. The spectators watched, rapt, as the colored lights rainbowed the
darkness. (Sheldon. If…)
191
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
For years the Scots, with five ministers to speak for them, have armtwisted governments. (Ayto)
What these bumblers fear most is our simple scrutiny of their activities
in the clear and honest light of commonsense. (Hailey. Airport)
As Andre went back to cutting paper-thin slices of salami and
provolone cheese for the salad, he could not shake the terrible feeling
that the evening was fated to be a disaster. (Sheldon. If…)
The world was spinning around. Everything was topsy-turvy.
(Sheldon. If…)
Additionally, the government’s drive to reduce Holland’s budget deficit
provides even greater incentive for the young to go-get, particularly
since the ceiling for the minimum salary will be increased from 23 to
27-year-olds. (Ayto)
It seemed to the detectives trailing Tracy that she was interested only in
sightseeing. (Sheldon. If…)
But the hours of waiting had their own theatrical shape, a prologue of
high expectation splendidly stage-managed by tradition. (Barnhart)
If Gil Hodges had been able to handpick his successor, it is very likely
he would have chosen Berra. (Pepe)
She enjoyed being with him, but she was sure that given the
opportunity, he would not hesitate to double-cross her. (Sheldon. If…)
He hitchhiked to New York, where he was hired as a messenger boy
by the International Insurance Protection Association. (Sheldon. If…)
Russell once end-stopped a rarefied discussion about a thinker of
whom he (and, therefore, many others) had never heard by musing,
‘It’s his mother I feel sorry for.’ (Ayto)
The common sunflower, the state flower of Kansas, is a tall plant with
very large, showy flowers. (Barnhart)
… he doesn’t use drugs, drink or smoke – instead, he chain-chews
peppermint gum… (Ayto)
And all Delaney could think of for Stiles to do was sleep-walk through
the picture like a melancholy St Bernard, yearning, saying, “I love you.
I am sad. I love you…” (Shaw. Two Weeks…)
… the burly reporter shouted over the roar of the engine revving up for
takeoff. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
Pending the final decision, notice of the measures suggested shall
forthwith be given to the parties and to the Security Council. (Statute
of the International Court of Justice)
192
19. Who would do something that evil? Maybe it was the kind of person
who would mastermind a crime wave! (Hiller)
20. Baroness mon cul! he thought angrily. Whatever little game you’re
playing, chérie, is going to backfire. (Sheldon. If…)
21. Mac had met and liked Dr. George Manning but was shocked and
concerned that Manning had not immediately warned the Andersons
about the potential embryo mix-up. There was no question he’d been
hoping for a cover-up. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
22. Because these watches were generally cheap affairs, subject to chronic
and chronometric mainspring breakdowns, people started associating
anything shoddy or trivial with mickey mouse, often lowercased, as in
“I’m tired of having to do mickey mouse chores.” (Lederer. Crazy…)
23. When a product achieves wide popular appeal, its name may become a
lowercase word for all products of its type, not just a particular brand.
(Lederer. Crazy…)
24. Some China experts believe the Central Committee’s call for a handsoff policy with regard to the economy could have a dark side too.
(Newsweek)
25. This plan of setting our enemies to destroy one another seemed to us a
masterpiece of policy. (Barnhart)
26. I’ll travel to Europe, Tracy thought. Paris. No. Not Paris. Charles
and I were going to honeymoon there. I’ll go to London. There, I
won’t be a jailbird. (Sheldon. If…)
27. Almost everyone who is concerned with human affairs – as political
scientist, philosopher, man of letters, economist, psychologist, linguist,
theologian, anthropologist, educator, or psychotherapist – continues to
talk about human behavior in this prescientific way. (Skinner)
28. There were designers, photographers, models, film-makers, fabriccreaters, artists, some of the biggest in the business, some especially
flown across Europe for the evening, and some who had simply
bankrolled their way in. (Ayto)
29. I suffer from acrophobia – vertigo – if I get more than two feet above
the ground. (Hunter)
30. She housekeeps in London for a visiting American playwright.
(Barnhart)
31. She was standing at the rail in the moonlight, watching the soft
phosphorescence of the waves… (Sheldon. If…)
193
32. Anthony Orsatti felt a deep chill go through him. There was only one
thing wrong with it: The little hand was going to become a big hand,
and it was going to snowball. (Sheldon. If…)
33. It was a relief to be herself, to stop playacting. The Greeks had the
right word for it, Tracy thought. Hypocrite was from the Greek word
for “actor.” (Sheldon. If…)
34. Supranational – or SuNatCo, as identified by its familiar worldwide
logo – was a multinational giant, the General Motors of global
communications. (Hailey. The Money…)
35. She wore a green-and-white silk Givency dress… (Sheldon. If…)
QUIZ EIGHT
Identify the type of composition in the following compounds as
A. stem juxtaposition
B. with a linking vowel or consonant
C. with a preposition or conjunction linking two stems
D. phrase lexicalization
1. Get rid of bloody Oliver and fuddy-duddy Roger. (Francis. Decider)
2. … Hal Lindsey wrote “The Late Great Planet Earth,” a pseudo-Biblical
doomsday book that became by far the biggest best seller of the
decade. (Newsweek)
3. The aid program is designed to … [help] native handicrafters make
their products more marketable, especially in the United States.
(Barnhart)
4. … brown-painted drains zig-zagged over the exterior… (Francis.
Decider)
5. “… But there’s enough food in this bus for a batallion, and the
batallion’s had a good deal of practice in do-it-yourself!” (Francis.
Decider)
6. Her young sister Shelly was bridesmaid, a bit spotty. (Francis.
Decider)
7. Frontal ground forces would contribute to the air operation by attacking
enemy air and air defense facilities with surface-to-surface missiles,
artillery, and ground attacks. (US Department of Defense)
194
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
Here’s an idea: Why not play volleyball on a racketball court? That
way you can bounce the ball off the walls and call it wallyball. … This
off-the-wall idea for a sport is a big hit where it began in southern
California in 1976. Now, more and more clubs are beginning their own
wallyball programs. (Ayto)
The build-up of pressure in the fluid surrounding the brain of premature
babies, potentially causing brain damage, has hitherto been detectable
only by inserting a probe into the skull. The fontanometer, however
(the term derives from fontanelle, the membrane-covered space
between the bones of a baby’s skull), works non-intrusively: a small
air-filled container with a membrane is placed against the fontanelle,
and any movement on the membrane ensures that the air pressure
within the container is equalized with the pressure inside the head,
which can thus be measured. (Ayto)
He’s very straightforward. He doesn’t dog-and-pony you. (Ayto)
We made our way across this to a polished door and into a cluttered
oak-paneled room whose chief eye-catchers were endless pictures of
horses… (Francis. Decider)
… there were the laughing brown eyes with the reddish lashes and the
bold devil-may-care expression. (Francis. Dead…)
Then she saw that all the shopkeepers were simultaneously beginning
to close up their stands. (Sheldon. Rage…)
Drunkometer, a device for testing a sample of exhaled breath to
measure the amount of alcohol in the blood. (Webster)
“A am clever,” he said matter-of-factly. (Francis. Enquiry)
Issued abroad by both U.S. and foreign companies and usually payable
in dollars, Eurobonds are used to tap the $60 billion in American
money that is slashing around Europe. (Barnhart)
His cupboard door was closed, but boxes stood higgledy-piggledy on
his carpet, their contents stirred up. (Francis. Decider)
This trouble is his handiwork. (Barnhart)
Grangier’s connections with the underworld and the police were
powerful enough for him to maintain his casino. (Sheldon. If…)
Now, there’s no excuse to look your age. Introducing Revlon’s AntiAging Firmagel™ Moisturizer with Sunscreen. This extraordinary
breakthrough visually firms your skin.
195
21. This end of the garden was an enclosure by the river bank, with stone
steps, forget-me-nots, wallflowers not yet in blossom, and shallow,
sliding water. (Golding)
22. He has a bodyguard-butler who keeps everyone away. (Sheldon.
Rage…)
23. Jennifer spent the rest of the day delivering subpoenas in the Bronx,
Brooklin and Queens in a downpour. (Sheldon. Rage…)
24. Though kiss-and-tell books have been composed about other
administrations, it is as a rule considered polite to wait until a president
is out of office. (Ayto)
25. … married to an improvident schemer filled with get-rich-quick
projects that never quite worked out. (Sheldon. If…)
26. His elder brothers were allowed to go trick-or-treating, but he had to
stay home. (Reader’s Digest)
27. He realized that if an upperclassman passed those screened windows,
the empty screw holes might be noticed. (Reader’s Digest)
28. Amstrad plans to conquer the less expensive end of the European
market with a range of cut-price PC workalikes. (Ayto)
29. Jennifer spent the evening going over the transcripts of Connie
Garrett’s lawsuit. (Sheldon. Rage…)
30. The Department of Sanitation had done its best to cope with the snowstorm that had swept the city that December; … (Sheldon. Rage…)
31. ‘… Read this letter.’ He gave it the up-and-down. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
32. Wise statesmen … foresee what time is thus bringing, and endeavor to
shape institutions and to mold men’s thoughts and purpose in
accordance with the change. (Barnhart)
33. Toby drowned his brush with the real world in four cups of hot sweet
milky pick-you-up and every cake he could cajole from the waitress.
(Francis. Decider)
34. Tracy was marched to the desk of the sergeant-on-watch. (Sheldon.
If…)
35. Its jockey willy-nilly flew catapulting out forwards over the birch and
in a flurry of arms and legs thudded onto the turf. (Francis. Decider)
36. This place needs new stands and a whole new outlook, and what it
doesn’t need is a fuddy-duddy old colonel for a manager and a stick-inthe-mud Clerk of the Course who can’t say boo to a doctor. (Francis.
Decider)
196
37. … he was standing bareheaded in the middle of the cross-roads with
his feet well apart, jingling some coins in his pockets. (Francis.
Dead…)
38. So I sat up in bed and wrapped my eiderdown round her shoulders…
(Francis. Dead…)
39. … flashy-looking drawings… (Updike)
40. … the railed forecourt in front of the Jockey Club’s headquarters…
(Francis. Decider)
41. … a bronze copy of Jean-Antoine Houdon’s true-to-life statue
displayed in the State Capitol at Richmond, Virginia. (The US Capitol
Historical Society)
42. When the speaker praised politics as one of the oldest and noblest
professions, his audience of college students gave him a horselaugh.
(Makkai)
43. … at the time I thought of him as just another grownup… (Golding)
44. He overestimated how much explosive it would take, and the whole
thing totally disintegrated into invisible dust which was carried away in
the river below. (Francis. Decider)
QUIZ NINE
Identify the structural type of compound constituents as
A. simple (both stems)
B. derived (at least one stem)
C. abbreviated (at least one stem)
D. compound (at least one stem)
E. reduplicative
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Two jumpmasters accompanied him, holding on to his harness and
guiding his one-minute free fall. (Newsweek)
They avidly watched old “Star Trek” episodes and “The X-Files” while
cruising cyberspace looking for UFO sightings. (Newsweek)
A compromise choice might be Rep. Bill Paxon of New York, a
congenial boy-next-door. (Newsweek)
Stephen Jones with his team that will defend McVeigh, the prime
suspect in the OKBomb case. (Newsweek)
He showed us a sweetie-pie of a little boat. (Chapman)
197
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
The Emperor made a sudden noise that might have been the beginnings
of a shout of laughter if it had not ended in a fit of coughing and a
nose-blow in the Roman manner. (Golding)
A ‘highwaywoman’ from Waterford Ireland, who pleaded guilty to
using an imitation firearm to carry out five robberies, was sentenced to
three years’ youth custody at the Old Bailey yesterday. (Ayto)
Do’s sci-fi universe strongly resembles the imaginings of L.Ron
Hubbard, founder of Scientology, which teaches that human beings
have Thetans, or spirits, that are independent of the physical body.
(Newsweek)
The latest comedies on American TV, including some of the new
‘drama-coms,’ have done away with laugh tracks altogether. (Ayto)
I’ve been dealing with men like Abraham Wilson all my life. They‘re
born troublemakers. (Sheldon. Rage…)
The ambulance drove off slowly with the two racegoers who’d been
felled by the crash through the wing. (Francis. Decider)
The overt encroachment of speculation and dramatization into
documentary programmes, and of documentary techniques into drama,
began with docudrama, but with the advent of the docu-fantasy seems
to leave the tiresome world of facts behind altogether. (Ayto)
“Here is the palpable impression of the footsteps of a man!” cried
Heyward… (Cooper)
“My great-great-grandfather bought it,” Dart said offhandedly, “as
being a suitable seat for a newly ennobled baron. …” (Francis. Decider)
Scarcely a new phenomenon, homophobia gained considerable
impetus from the spread of AIDS, which in the first instance attacked
mainly the homosexual community. (Ayto)
There is pain in my right side, for the edge of the rock cuts me: but I lie
face-downward, my right arm moving slowly as a water-snail on a
lump of stone. (Golding)
A policeman to put the fear of God into evildoers. (Francis. Dead…)
They walked out as individuals, each in a seeming barbed-wire
enclosure of self-righteousness, none of them anxious to acknowledge
my continued presence. (Francis. Decider)
The hoolivan is one of the range of recent ideas dreamed up by the
police to counter soccer hooligans (hence the name). Its cameras, roofmounted and equipped with zoom lenses, sweep the terraces looking
for troublemakers. (Ayto)
198
20. The Turtles simply moved closer to one another, squeezing the helpless
Foot warrior with their shells. Mike glanced over his shoulder at the
fallen fighter. “Looks like this one’s suffering from ‘shell shock,’” he
said. (Hiller)
21. The familiar joy of winning flushed through my limbs, as warming as a
hot bath, and I could have done hand-springs down the changing room
if I hadn’t known it was the horse to whom all credit was due, not the
jockey. (Francis. Dead…)
22. The Crypt of Civilization, a swimming-pool-size repository sealed up
at Oglethorpe University in 1940 by Thornwell Jacobs, won’t reveal its
treasure until 8113. (Newsweek)
23. How I designed an A-bomb in my Junior Year at Princeton (Models…)
24. … Tony’s father had reverted to ranch hand, not ranch owner, as he had
led his in-laws to believe… (Francis. Enquiry)
25. Thus the G-string became an integral part of a stripper’s apparatus.
(Chapman)
26. Her face was covered with a mudpack, and her hair was tucked into a
curler cap. (Sheldon. If…)
27. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists,
73% of its 24,500 members have been sued for malpractice at least
once. To escape the soaring cost of malpractice protection, some 3000
ob-gyns have abandoned the specialty. (Ayto)
28. The English Language is being murdered by people in the computer
industry, according to a computer expert. Their ‘techo-babble’
includes words and phrases such as ‘analysation’ instead of analysis.
(Ayto)
29. “It used to be a long-distance touring coach,” I said. “I bought it when
the bus company replaced its cozy old fleet with modern glass-walled
crowd-pleasers.” (Francis. Decider)
30. The path around to the rear was edged with gloomy evergreen shrubs.
(Francis. Decider)
31. On the turntable, brass radiator gleaming, coach lamps gleaming, old
fuddy-duddy wheels newly tyred, hood folded back, was a vintage
two-seater. (Golding)
32. “We don’t run a Sunday school show,” Uncle Willie explained to Jeff.
“We’re flimflam artists. …” (Sheldon. If…)
199
QUIZ TEN
Identify the part of speech meaning of the following compounds as
A. Noun
E. Pronoun
B. Verb
F. Numeral
C. Adjective
G. Preposition
D. Adverb
H. Conjunction
1. His razor-sharp mathematical mind… (Francis. Dead…)
2. He could out-bluff an angel. (Francis. Dead…)
3. … he knew little, if anything, about steeplechasing… (Francis.
Dead…)
4. For a place that costs so much to relax in, there are quite a few uptight
people around here. (Clark. Weep…)
5. “I’m not laughing.”
“I bet you are, inside. …” (Francis. Decider)
6. Stratton Hays was everything Conrad’s house was not… (Francis.
Decider)
7. I tried to sort out my own jumbled responses, and it was out of the
jumble and not from the thought-through reasons that I gave her my
answer. (Francis. Decider)
8. “Grand to-do about this business!” he sneered. (Christie. Death…)
9. Forthwith this frame of mine was wrenched
With a woful agony,
Which forced me to begin my tale;
And then it left me free. (Coleridge)
10. … and I went home to Scilla’s on Saturday morning feeling more
tottery than I cared to admit, but in good spirits nevertheless. (Francis.
Dead…)
11. Unbearably strung up, and facing her loss for the first time without the
help of drugs, she was angry and pleading by turns. (Francis. Dead…)
12. Notwithstanding our threats to Quest, the police presence behind the
partitioning wall had by that morning fallen to two constables…
(Francis. Decider)
13. The dining room was used for Sunday dinners and whenever company
came, but otherwise it was just a room you walked through on your
way to the kitchen. (Reminisce)
200
14. Palindrome was an odds-on favourite, and clearly in the best of health;
he showed no lameness, no broken blood-vessels, none of the permitted
excuses for a last minute cancellation. (Francis. Dead…)
15. The grounds were fenced in and there was a lovely wrought-iron gate in
front of a sweeping driveway, with lamp posts lighting the way, and a
large front lawn with a row of yews sheltering the house. (Sheldon. Rage…)
16. My son-in-law was quite open about it. (Sheldon. Rage…)
17. BT chiefs believe that Mercury is ‘cherry-picking’ by going for high
volume, high margin business and that it cannot yet compete on all
fronts. (Ayto)
18. I’m sixty-eight kilos. (Swan)
19. “You mean … I’m just a lookout?” (Francis. Decider)
20. We can suspect her strongly, and we do, but there isn’t a pinhead of
proof… (Hailey. The Money…)
21. Cranfield was mean-minded by habit and open-handed only to those
who could lug him upward. (Francis. Enquiry)
22. Throughout the big top we planned solid-seeming flooring, with a
wide center aisle, firm partition walls, and tented ceilings in each
“room” of pale peach-colored thin pleated silk-like material. (Francis.
Decider)
23. But he was noteworthy. (Golding)
24. On This Day I Complete My Thirty-Sixth Year. (Byron)
25. Men of England, wherefore plough
For the lords who lay ye low?
Wherefore weave with toil and care
The rich robes your tyrants wear? (Shelley)
26. Air-conditioning was probably going-off all over this dreadful city. It
was impossible for air-conditioners to cope with the damnable heat and
humidity. (Sheldon. If…)
27. It was as disconcerting as a rock turning to quicksand. (Francis.
Dead…)
28. When the electric lights went out, we used candles as a makeshift.
(Barnhart)
29. Beside the main door into the bus, in a small outside compartment, I’d
long ago installed a chuck-wagon-type bell. (Francis. Decider)
30. Hughes, if I remembered correctly, had in fact said nothing whatsoever.
(Francis. Enquiry)
201
31. … and in any case I could see that it didn’t matter, since the power lay
somewhere between Gowery and Ferth, and Andy Tring and Plimborne
were so much window dressing. (Francis. Enquiry)
32. … I took out the drawings, laying them flat, outside, on Conrad’s desk.
They were, I had to confess, a sort of window-dressing in case Dart
came to find me… (Francis. Decider)
33. Roger and I, less effusively, were nonetheless pleased at the prospect
of working together in the future. (Francis. Decider)
34. … we send our kindest wishes for health and happiness throughout
this holiday season and long after. (Arizona Highways)
35. Only Dart, half-way out of the door, looked back to where I stood
watching the exodus. (Francis. Decider)
36. Hannah’s face revealed it to be a bull’s-eye diagnosis, and also showed
disgust at having had her understandable motives so tellingly disclosed.
(Francis. Decider)
37. The staircase ripped and cracked and crashed as its walls collapsed into
the well, splitting open into jagged caverns all the rooms alongside.
(Francis. Decider)
38. “… Watch me again. I’m thirty-nine and I’ve had four children. Now
look.” She bent over again. (Orwell)
39. Some of those stout men, however, were enjoying themselves …
whereas a patient endurance seemed to be the sentiment exhibited on
their partners’ faces. (Christie. Death…)
40. Two saloon cars sped by in the other direction, and trying to pass the
other, followed by a single-decker country bus full of carefree people
taking home their Tuesday afternoon shopping. (Francis. Dead…)
41. … and occasionally we had been able to side-track him from problems
of geometry or algebra to those of Sherlock Holmes. (Francis. Dead…)
42. There is only a fifty-fifty chance that we will win the game. (Makkai)
43. When Dick and Sam bought an old car, they divided the cost fifty-fifty. (Makkai)
44. Adam had volunteered to test-fly a prototype of the new bomber, and
his colleagues had eagerly seized on his offer. (Sheldon. Rage…)
45. At the same time he noticed that although it was nearly twenty-one
hours the shop was still open. (Orwell)
46. Twenty-three was old enough not to be surprised and shocked by such
matters, she thought gloomily. (Hunter)
47. “We’ll have to hustle – whichever of us is going.” (Christie. Death…)
202
48. Hercule Poirot smiled, remembering that past incident wherein a dead
body, a waiter, M. Blondin, and a very lovely lady had played a part.
(Christie. Death…)
49. If the Appointment Commission fails to certify such establishment and
apportionment to the Secretary of State on or before the date fixed or if
prior thereto it determines that it will be unable so to do, it shall so
certify to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey…
(Constitution of the State of New Jersey 1947)
50. She said – mark this well – that everybody hated her. (Christie. Death…)
51. And I believe he’s quite venomous about her – mutters things under his
breath whenever he sees her. (Christie. Death…)
52. “And,” Roger went on, “if you look at the overall design of the water
inlets and outlets and sewer lines, the drawings make very good sense,
but the water and drain pipes don’t actually go where they should. …”
(Francis. Decider)
53. Two months later Jeff’s father married a nineteen-year-old cocktail
waitress. (Sheldon. If…)
54. His face was lumpy, haphazard and to be accepted as nothing more
than the front of a head. (Golding)
55. Dart bypassed the demonstrators and drove across the road into the
parking lot of the Mayflower Inn opposite. (Francis. Decider)
56. Halfway along the righthand side of the dark brown hall was a dark
brown door with a dark brown settle beside it. (Golding)
57. He was filled with such self-loathing that it was a physical pain.
(Sheldon. Rage…)
58. They had the testimony of the Consigliere Thomas Colfax, and no one
would be able to shake him. For more than twenty-five years he had
been the linchpin of the mob. He would go into court, give names,
dates, facts and figures. And now they were being given the go-ahead
to move. (Sheldon. Rage…)
59. … between citizens of different states; between citizens of the same
state claiming lands under grants of different states, and between a
state, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens, or subjects.
(The Constitution of the United States)
60. Through all of yesterday, with low-key thoroughness, two FBI special
agents had intensively questioned members of the branch staff…
(Hailey. The Money…)
203
QUIZ ELEVEN
Each of the following sets contains a syntactic compound. Can you identify it?
1.
A. How ever did you manage to get the car started? I tried for
hours, and I couldn’t. (Swan)
B. “You lick my boots whenever I snap my little finger, don’t you Mr.Towne?”
“Sure do,” the deputy laughed. (Modern American…)
C. Why ever didn’t you tell me you were coming? (Swan)
D. When ever will you be ready? (Fowler)
2.
A. Newspeak was the official language of Oceania and had been
devised to meet the ideological needs of Ingsoc or English
Socialism. (Orwell)
B. In some cases they could be translated into Oldspeak, or even
into words taken from the A vocabulary, but this usually
demanded a long paraphrase and always involved the loss of
certain overtones. (Orwell)
C. His mind hovered for a moment round the doubtful date on the
page, and then fetched up with a bump against the Newspeak
word doublethink. (Orwell)
D. It had been a speakeasy once. (Chapman)
3.
A. My wife lets out a hair-raising scream when she finds a spider
in the bath. (Clark. Word…)
B. I don’t approve of our local councillors, all they’re interested in
is mutual back-scratching. (Wood & Hill)
C. Digging that clay soil is back-breaking work. (Clark. Word…)
D. It was too bright and sunny on this especial morning for
George’s blood-curdling readings about “Bar. falling,”
“atmospheric disturbance, passing in an oblique line over
Southern Europe,” … (Jerome)
4.
A.
B.
C.
D.
204
The governor of the State has always been a go-getter. (Makkai)
Mary wore handsome go-go boots to the discotheque last night. (Makkai)
Right from the get-go he came out smoking. (Chapman)
He is dismissed as a has-been in his profession. (Barnhart)
5.
A. John did not have a hammer, and he had to make do with a
heavy rock. (Makkai)
B. Only a wantwit … can fail to get some notion of [Samuel]
Johnson’s character in his definition of a dedication as “a servile
address to a patron.” (Barnhart)
C. The difference between him and the other boys at such a time
was that they knew it was make-believe, while to him makebelieve and true were exactly the same thing. This sometimes
troubled them, as when they had to make-believe that they had
had their dinners. (Barrie)
D. When … prices steadily mounted to their peak, thousands of
careful housewives adopted … a make-do policy. (Barnhart)
6.
A. Russel once end-stopped a rarefied discussion about a thinker of
whom he (and, therefore, many others) had never heard by
musing, ‘It’s his mother I feel sorry for.’ (Ayto)
B. Additionally, the government’s drive to reduce Holland’s budget
deficit provides even greater incentive for the young to go-get,
particularly since the ceiling for the minimum salary will be
increased from 23 to 27-year-olds. (Ayto)
C. The Netherlands, too, seems to be trying to ‘kick-start
manufacturers into the wind energy industry,’ according to one
British turbine designer. It is said to be offering a 40 per cent
subsidy on investment to Dutch developers of new wind farms. (Ayto)
D. Stanley Kalms wants to turn Woolworths into a chain of
accessory stores for his highly-successful Dixons and Currys
outlets. … That is the secret behind his plan … to put Dixons
and Currys outlets under the same roof as Woolworths stores.
They will be stand-alone sites, physically distinct from
Woolworths with their own entrances. (Ayto)
7.
A. BT chiefs believe that Mercury is ‘cherry picking’ by going for
high volume, high margin business and that it cannot yet
compete on all fronts. (Ayto)
B. President Reagan plans several meetings with Soviet citizens
during his summit trip to Moscow next month, but White House
officials have ruled out any campaign-style flesh-pressing.
(Ayto)
205
C. Each month [Sierra Leone] pays out some ₤2.5 million pounds to
its Civil Service. A good chunk … goes to what are called
‘diemen’. (Ayto)
D. The technique of cool-chill has become very popular with
catering managers of hospitals, schools, airlines, and the like in
the late 1980s, with its promise of considerable cost-saving
arising from the concentration of cooking facilities in one centre,
from which meals can be distributed to outlying points. (Ayto)
QUIZ TWELVE
Each of the following sets contains an asyntactic compound. Can you identify it?
1.
A. It is perhaps not surprising that both Paris and London show an
upturned look for new spring hairdos. (Barnhart)
B. It’s nothing serious: there’s no need to make such a to-do about
it. (Wood & Hill)
C. Slowly, and unevenly, a ‘can-do’ attitude is beginning to replace
the inertia bred of vested interests in local school districts and in
teacher unions. (Ayto)
D. A would-be inventor once asked his Congressman to send him a
list of everything that had not yet been invented. (The US
Capitol Historical Society)
2.
A. Neither man fits either the Olympian mould of the civil service
supposed to pre-date Mrs Thatcher, or the unthinking ‘can do’
mentality with which she is said to surround herself. (Ayto)
B. With the deep, unconscious sigh which not even the nearness of
the telescreen could prevent him from uttering when his day’s
work started, Winston pulled the speakwrite toward him, blew
the dust from its mouthpiece, and put on his spectacles. (Orwell)
C. Gustav Mahler, when he died in 1911, left behind one of the
most tantalising might-have-beens in musical history: his
unfinished Tenth Symphony. (Barnhart)
D. Twenty years ago she was the centre of attraction in social
circles; now she is just one of has-beens. (Wood & Hill)
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3.
A. “None of those sportswriters ever said anything about you being
smashing-looking and dead sexy.”
I laughed. I had a crooked nose and a scar down one cheek
where a horse’s hoof had cut my face open, and among jockeys I
was an also-ran as a bird-attracter. (Francis. Enquiry)
B. In contrast to his brothers and many of his friends, he doesn’t
use drugs, drink or smoke – instead, he chain-chews peppermint
gum – and has stayed out of trouble with the law. (Ayto)
C. These newlyweds took a trip across America in 1921 – on roller
skates! (Reminisce)
D. I loved eating ‘zip burgers’ at our local drive-in. They were
juicy and messy, but they tasted so good! (Reminisce)
4.
A. Typewriters are about as distinctive as fingerprints. (Francis.
Enquiry)
B. … that man is Grace Roxford’s brother. Jack’s brother-in-law.
(Francis. Enquiry)
C. Bonham’s publicity director Jill Mindham said: ‘We were gobstruck. This sort of thing you might expect in eastern Europe.’
(Ayto)
D. Three eyewitnesses had testified that the driver had tried to stop
the truck to avoid hitting the victim… (Sheldon. Rage…)
5.
A.
6.
A. When one of her clients was arrested for shoplifting, mugging,
prostitution or drugs, Jennifer would head downtown to
arrange bail, and bargaining was a way of life. (Sheldon.
Rage…)
In the fall of 1995 the group sent unsolicited messages (or
“spams”, in cyberspeak) to nearly 100 special-interest Usenet
groups. (Newsweek)
B. In the local cybercommunity, Higher Source operated under the
radar, taking on relatively small jobs and working at dirt-cheap
rates. (Newsweek)
C. Three specific visitor groups have been identified: computernaive visitors or cyberphobics …, computer-literate visitors, and
specialists. (Ayto)
D. Cyberpunk was the science fiction mode of the 1980s. (Ayto)
207
B. “And it was Keith’s car they came back in,” Dart said, excusing
himself. “I was on the lookout for Father’s.”
“Not much of a lookout.” (Francis. Decider)
C. Life-expired buses can breathe again. … The sale of 534 former
Greater Manchester Transport vehicles … was greeted like
manna from Heaven by sections of the transport industry. (Ayto)
D. Everson had come right out and asked him if he was going
fruitcrackers. Todd had come very, very close to punching the
little pansy in the mouth, and that sort of stuff-brawls, scuffles,
punch-outs – was no good. That sort of stuff got you noticed in
all the wrong ways. Talking to yourself was bad, right, okay, but
– … (Grisham)
7.
A. But the BBC remains the least-worst way of running
(reasonably) independent public-subsidy broadcasting. We can
criticise poor programmes, superfluous pop music, the eccentrics
on Radio 3, inflated headquarters staff and too many local
stations, but we still have a product that is outstandingly good. (Ayto)
B. If a husband and wife take on a no-frills mortgage of ₤90,000, at
an interest rate of 11%, their monthly interest payments … will
be roughly ₤750. (Ayto)
C. Applewhite spoke of evil E.T.s who are in collusion with the
government, giving it high-tech weapons in exchange for human
genetic material. (Newsweek)
D. On below-zero evenings, Dad had to stay up until midnight
feeding the furnace. (Reminisce)
QUIZ THIRTEEN
Each of the following sets contains a bahuvrihi compound.
identify it?
1.
208
Can you
A. The longbeards among us remember how Brit-punk largely
bypassed America, though suburban kids later picked up on the fall-out,
refined it into a style of crack-like purity and called it hardcore. (Ayto)
B. Occasionally, though, two diametrically opposed meanings of the
same English word survive, and the technical term for these
schizophrenics is contronym. More popularly, they are known as
Janus-faced words because the Greek god Janus had two faces
that looked in opposite directions. (Lederer. Crazy…)
C. No wonder that business executives are often recruited by
headhunters. (Lederer. Crazy…)
D. King Tantalus, one of the vilest of villains in Greek mythology,
is one of many literary creations that pulse just as powerfully as
their flesh-and-blood counterparts. (Lederer. Crazy…)
2.
A. Directly below her window was an enormous kidney-shaped
swimming pool, its bright blue water clashing with the gray of
the ocean … (Sheldon. If…)
B. “… There must be a dozen companies that’d give their eyeteeth
to get someone like you.” (Sheldon. If…)
C. He was in his New York office Wednesday morning. The
jewelry disappeared Tuesday afternoon. We’re checking the
red-eye flights. (Clark. The Lottery…)
D. Where a Paleface comes, a Red man cannot stay. (Cooper)
3.
A. He was red-faced. (Hailey. Strong…)
B. “This isn’t any of your business, Ilse Burnley,” muttered Jennie,
sullenly.
“Oh, isn’t it? Don’t you sass me, Piggy-eyes.” Ilse walked
up to the retreating Jennie and shook a sunburned fist in her
face. (Montgomery)
C. … the pie-faced little thug. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. He had the beginnings of a black eye. (Wodehouse. Life…)
4.
A. ‘Don’t worry folks! These are genuine greenbacks. All part of
the Service!’ (Hailey. The Money…)
B. There was nothing anyone could do. Not now. It was too late.
She had been caught red-handed. (Sheldon. If…)
C. Tickets for the white-tie affair were a thousand dollars apiece,
and society’s elite flew in from all over the world to attend.
(Sheldon. If…)
D. Tracy walked along the storied old streets and shopped at the
greengrocers and the chemist on Elizabeth Street … (Sheldon.
If…)
209
5.
A. … long-stemmed glasses of champagne. (Updike)
B. … the smart fresh-lipsticked young research woman. (Spark)
C. One girl was honey-blonde, another a striking brunette, the third
a long-haired redhead. (Hailey. The Money…)
D. In most cases the notion that a new car will free its owner of auto
headache will not hold water. (Models…)
6.
A. The two men might have invented the word gray, so
characterless did they appear at first sight.
Ultimate
plainclothes, I thought. (Francis. Longshot)
B. The neighbourhood seemed to be populated by drunks,
prostitutes, and bag ladies. (Sheldon. If…)
C. “We’re honeymooners,” Jeff explained. “My wife became ill –
a slight respiratory disturbance. She needs rest.” (Sheldon. If…)
D. Jeff worked the “count stores,” where clothespins were arranged
in a line. (Sheldon. If…)
7.
A. Goldilocks is a little girl in a folk tale who visits the home of
three bears. (Webster)
B. I got caught in one of the biggest bottlenecks of the year.
(Lederer. Crazy…)
C. … a chubby-faced man… (Clark. Weep…)
D. We would be solvent because of world-wide operation; we’d
have put our own resources where inflation didn’t swallow them.
The other strong arm is the military and police. (Hailey. The
Money…)
8.
A. “… Meanwhile, our Lotromycin is selling well and we’re
developing improved versions of existing drugs.”
Celia said pointedly, “Don’t you mean ‘me-toos’? Copying the
successful drugs of our competitors? …” (Hailey. Strong…)
B.
Bed Time
Come, let’s go to bed,
Says Sleepy-head;
Tarry a while, says Slow;
Put on the pan,
Says Greedy-nan,
We’ll sup before we go. (Poems to Enjoy)
210
C. She hired a car and driver and spent a memorable weekend at the
Chewton Glen Hotel in Hampshire… (Sheldon. If…)
D. All were equipped with maniature walkie-talkies. (Sheldon.
If…)
9.
A. Humankind is beset with a host of fears and has managed to
name practically every one of them. (Lederer. Crazy…)
B. In front of him stood the district attorney, Ed Topper, a slight
man in his forties, with crinkly salt-and-pepper hair cut en
brosse, and cold, black eyes. (Sheldon. If…)
C. There was no reply. Emily looked straight at Chestnut-curls
and repeated her question. Chestnut-curls felt herself compelled
to answer it. (Montgomery)
D. She took out a flashlight, turned it on, and saw the staircase.
(Sheldon. If…)
10.
A. “How do you know it was a getaway car?” Reynolds asked
skeptically. (Sheldon. If…)
B. … a lighthouse on one side, flanked by huge jagged rocks
looming out of the gray ocean like prehistoric monsters, and the
boardwalk on the other side. (Sheldon. If…)
C. See if you can keep your brother – who is a blabbermouth – to
keep this still. (АРСАС)
D. They walked to the Alkmaarder Meer, along winding,
cobblestone streets that dated from the Middle Ages…
(Sheldon. If…)
11.
A. Hawk-eye moved away from the look-out, and descended
musing profoundly, to the shore. (Cooper)
B. Faced with such a catch-22 possibility, companies must protect
and care for their trademarks, or they will be lost. (Lederer.
Crazy…)
C. Does your head retract turtlelike into your body when the
lightning flashes and the thunder cracks? (Lederer. Crazy…)
D. The motion was making her carsick. (Sheldon. If…)
211
QUIZ FOURTEEN
Each of the following sets contains an endocentric compound. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. If I could ferret out the cat’s-paw, he might lend me to her.
(Barnhart)
B. He’s a crackpot about flying saucers. (Chapman)
C. The shrink himself is a certified fruitcake. (Chapman)
D. “Looks like this one’s suffering from shell shock!” he said. (Hiller)
2.
A. In contrast to his brothers and many of his friends, he doesn’t use
drugs, drink or smoke – instead, he chain-chews peppermint
gum – and has stayed out of trouble with the law. (Ayto)
B. “How’s the feature story on the Manning Clinic going?”
“It’s not. They’re stonewalling me. I’ve got to find a different
in vitro facility to use…” (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. “Then her story dovetails with the guard’s account. But what
did he mean when he said ‘back again’?”
“Sir,” Lynch volunteered. “Doesn’t it seem to be the same
situation as Watkins claims – not the same woman, but one with
a strong resemblance?” (Clark. The Anastasia…)
D. Client or not, she was not going to stand by and see someone
railroaded into an insane asylum. (Sheldon. Rage…)
3.
A. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time and she got
mousetrapped. (Sheldon. Rage…)
B. … who was standing there with a sand-bagged look watching
her nominee pass right out of the betting. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. If Gil Hodges had been able to handpick his successor, it is very
likely he would have chosen Berra. (Pepe)
D. And your Godfather has more brains than Jack Woltz. He
doesn’t go up to these people and put a gun to their heads and
say, ‘Vote for Johnny Fontane or you are out of a job.’ He
doesn’t strong-man where strong-arm doesn’t work or leaves
too many hard feelings. He’ll make those people vote for you
because they want to. (Puzo)
212
4.
A. The two men might have invented the word gray, so
characterless did they appear at first sight.
Ultimate
plainclothes, I thought. (Francis. Longshot)
B. Then there was a write-up in the local paper about a seventieth
birthday party that had been given for Dr. Manning by his
daughter, who lives about thirty miles from here. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. Look at it from whatever angle you like, the thing was a washout. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. And that asshole Bernie Everson had come right out and asked
him if he was going fruitcrackers. (Grisham)
5.
A. … a long description of Goodwood, featuring the blue sky, the
rolling prospect, the joyous crowds of pick-pockets, and the
parties of the second part who were having their pockets
picked… (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. The man seemed sand-bagged. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. It was the diet that was the stumbling-block. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. You can increase the playback speed with + button and decrease
the speed with the – button. (Sony)
6.
A. And while the numbers flowing strong
In eddies whirl, in surges throng,
Exulting in the spirits’ genial throe
In tides of power his life-blood seems to flow. (Coleridge)
B. Menley drove Adam to the Barnstable Airport. “You’re very
grumpy,” she teased as she stopped at the drop-off area. (Clark.
Remember…)
C. The effect she had on me whenever she appeared was to make
me want to slide into a cellar and lie low till they blew the AllClear. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … marriage was a bit of a wash-out… (Wodehouse. Life…)
7.
A. Beyond the downtown district, coiled in a double-S, was the
wide, traffic-crowded river… (Hailey. The Money…)
B. They gave all the newly qualified a licence on examination, and
grandfathered the experienced ones. (Chapman)
C. Plans which could see the introduction of new catering methods
in some schools in Taunton Deane and West Somerset took a
213
further step forward this week. Somerset Education Authority
wants to introduce a cook-chill system in some of its primary
schools. (Ayto)
D. The commuter on the Blessed Circle Line … carries on reading
in spite of the fact that she is wedged in so tight between alien
bodies that her feet only touch the ground when the driver
cowboys over points. (Ayto)
8.
A. … she proved to be an upstanding light-heavyweight of some
thirty summers… (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. He remembered how, as a boy, he had preferred bluebottles and
greenbottles to the ordinary fly, because of their bright colour.
(Galsworthy. The Forsyte…)
C. Federal pensioners are “double-dippers” who also collect Social
Security checks. (Chapman)
D. Ask anyone at the Drones, and they will tell you that Bertram
Wooster is a fellow whom it is dashed difficult to deceive. Old
Lynx-Eye is about what it amounts to. I observe and deduce I
weigh the evidence and draw my conclusions. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
9.
A. It’s a good life, I am saying to myself, if you don’t give it to
coppers and Borstal-bosses and the rest of them bastard-faced inlaws. (Sillitoe)
B. … his widowed daughter-in-law… (Maugham)
C. The baby lay on its back for some minutes, gazing with calm
wonder at a sky like a forget-me-not with small, thin clouds like
puffs of frosty breath. (Кащеева..)
D. What an idea for the next game of robbers, or hide-and-seek, on
a wet afternoon. (Кащеева…)
10.
A. He has many good points to his credit, but I’d think more highly
of him if he were not such a know-all. (Wood & Hill)
B. Some hasbeens make spectacular comebacks. (Chapman)
C. Slowly, and unevenly, a ‘can-do’ attitude is beginning to replace
the inertia bred of vested interests in local school districts and in
teacher unions. (Ayto)
D. Men will outdo boys in most things. (Barnhart)
214
11.
A. I am not much of a lad for the merry chit-chat. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
B. I am sorry, Jeeves, but your scheme was a wash-out from the
start. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Though you did say a moment ago the handwriting was a giveaway. (Hailey. The Money…)
D. In their penthouse atop fashionable Cayman Manor, a residential
high-rise a mile or so outside the city, Edwina and Lewis
D’Orsey were at breakfast. (Hailey. The Money…)
QUIZ FIFTEEN
Each of the following sets contains an exocentric compound. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. School inspectors are set to return to the troubled London
borough of Brent this week to see how the council’s ‘racial
equality development’ programme is actually working out at the
chalkface. (chalkface – the classroom as the teacher’s place of
work and as the place of interaction between teacher and pupils) (Ayto)
B. … you can view information about the character sets your
keyboard and monitor are using… (Microsoft)
C. “I’d niver’ve believed it o’Meg, nor that she’d leave me as she
did yestermorn, wi’ all her gear in a kerchief, and a note – …”
(Seton)
D. The Secretary-General shall prepare a list in alphabetical order
of all the persons thus nominated. (Statute of the International
Court of Justice)
2.
A. … the morning sitreps – situation reports on … U-boat attack
and counterattack, British and German air raids, all the details of
the day-to-day progress of the war. (Barnhart)
B. Both books feature computer cowboys, not jocks whose
consciousness can enter cyber-space … directly. They do this
by plugging a terminal directly into the brain via a prepared skull
socket. (Ayto)
C. Cyberpunk was the science fiction mode of the 1980s. (Ayto)
215
D. In 1962 he was awarded a gold medal by the Franklin Institute
for having originated communications satellites in a technical
paper published in 1945.
This described in detail the
geostationary satellite system now used by all commercial
comsats. (Clarke)
3.
A. What these bumblers fear most is our simple scrutiny of their
activities in the clear and honest light of commonsense. (Hailey.
The Money…)
B. The first armed guard shifted the sacks on his shoulders. ‘Don’t
worry folks! These are genuine greenbacks. All part of the
service!’ (Hailey. The Money…)
C. Hal Burnside stood up to go, refastening his briefcase. (Hailey.
The Money…)
D. Kelly detested paperwork and court appearances… (Hailey. The Money…)
4.
A.
B.
C.
D.
5.
A. He scored a bullseye with that answer. (Barnhart)
B. She spent thirty-eight years as a kind of unpaid dogsbody, and
then collected all her father’s notes into this book after his death.
(Barnhart)
C. He wore a windowpane check Cerruti suit, with a classic buttondown shirt and houndstooth pattern tie… (Hailey. The
Money…)
D. Bridesmaid, a girl or a young unmarried woman who attends the
bride at a wedding ceremony.
6.
A. Eye-bright is a European herb of the figwort family, formerly
used as a remedy for weak eyes and diseases of the eyes. (Barnhart)
B. And it was while I was still massaging the coconut and
wondering what the next move was… (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. The bright green colour-wash on the walls showed large dark
patches where the water had come in… (Hunter)
216
A row of battleship-gray steel files. (Clark. Weep…)
… the silence felt heaven-sent. (Updike)
The whole place was pitch-black. (Hiller)
‘Good afternoon, Mr Heyward,’ the redhead said. (Hailey. The
Money…)
D. “Did Lars tell you about the attack on Emma Sherman, and about
her losing her baby?”
“Yes,” he said. “Poor girl.” There was more lip service in his
voice than genuine regret. (Francis. Slay…)
7.
A. And all Delaney could think of for Stiles to do was sleep-walk
through the picture like a melancholy St Bernard, yearning,
saying, “I love you. I am sad. I love you…” (Shaw. Two Weeks…)
B. That guy tailgating me is drunk. (АРСАС)
C. She was unable to stop the cameraman, who began to videotape the room and its occupants. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. He promised her he would do it and sweet-talked her
into not being sore. (Puzo)
8.
A.
Messrs ____________________
Hereinafter referred to as the “Sellers”, on the one part, and v/o
“Export-import”, Moscow, RF, hereinafter referred to as the
“Buyers”, on the other part, have concluded the present Contract
for the following:… (Gromova…)
B. Tell me the result – never mind the whys and wherefores.
(Clark. Word…)
C. But to succeed in life every detail should be arranged well
beforehand. (Christie. Selected…)
D. Getting evidence nowadays is sensitive. (Hailey. The Money…)
9.
A. … a razor-sharp knife… (Hiller)
B. The owners claimed they entertained a resident ghost and were
convinced she was a sixteen-year-old who had died there in the
nineteenth century. (Clark. Remember…)
C. … a day-old Financial Times from London… (Hailey. The
Money…)
D. The big branch was almost helpless. And, as Dick French
predicted, nationwide attention was focused on its plight.
(Hailey. The Money…)
10.
After all, how could any self-respecting [A.] Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtle enjoy a far-fetched [B.] story like E.T.? (Hiller)
But supposing, after Harlow was discontinued, one of those other
217
scientists had a sudden breakthrough [C.], a breathtaking [D.]
discovery which might have happened at Harlow had they carried
on. (Hailey. Strong…)
11.
A. The community blackballed the whole family when the father
went to prison. (Barnhart)
B. All are simply housekeeping – ordinary housekeeping, on a
larger scale. (Hailey. The Money…)
C. It doesn’t sound one of your red-hottest ideas. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. a coal-black gelding
12.
A. Hi-fi, the equipment for high-fidelity reproduction of music, etc.
(Barnhart)
B. V-girl (US sl.) a victory girl; a girl or woman who follows or
consorts with servicemen in wartime
C. Z-day (Military) Zero day
D. I came across it under a box of Q-tips… (Clark. The Lottery…)
QUIZ SIXTEEN
Identify the lexico-grammatic center in the following endocentric
compounds.
1. T-group, a group engaging in sensitivity training. (Webster)
A. B.
2. Miss Sharp will be your mother-in-law … that’s what will happen.
Trackeray)
A. B. C.
3. The budget is proposed by the Secretary-General after careful
A.
B.
scrutinity … of requests from individual Secretariat departments.
(UNO)
4. Major-General Mac Normann, the Division General Commanding,
A.
B.
drove over to watch the results of a practice on the rifle range.
(Barnhart)
5. The pearls were taken by a kleptomaniac who has since returned them.
(Christie. Death…)
A.
B.
218
6. The nation could soon be facing a shortage of babywipes. (Ayto)
A. B.
7. And I believe he’s quite venomous about her – mutters things under his
breath whenever he sees her. (Christie. Death…)
A. B.
8. He looked through the expensive gold-fitted dressingcase. (Christie.
Death…)
A.
B.
9. Hercule Poirot smiled, remembering that past incident wherein a dead
A. B.
body, a waiter, M.Blondin, and a very lovely lady had played a part.
(Christie. Death…)
10. I was too preoccupied, don’t you know. And distrait. Not to say
careworn. (Wodehouse. Life…)
A. B.
11. An early reply would be appreciated, as we wish to reach a quick
decision. Meanwhile we hope you will see in our offer a worthwhile
opportunity. (King & Kree)
A. B.
12. … acid-green sofa… (Updike)
A. B.
13. the four dark-clad men
A. B.
14. About 65 Amerasians … arrived in Thailand yesterday with their
A. B.
relatives on their way to new homes in the United States. (Ayto)
15. “I suppose,” Lord said with a sardonic smile, “now that you’re head
honcho, Sam, you’d like to be surrounded by ‘yes men’ ” (Hailey.
Strong…)
A. B.
16. … raking the winter-fallen twigs out of her lawn. (Updike)
A.
B.
QUIZ SEVENTEEN
Each of the following sets contains a coordinative compound. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. The British Character? Suspicion had been dawning on Michael
for years that its appearances were deceptive: that members of
219
Parliament, theatre-goers, trotty little ladies with dresses tight
blown about trotty little figures, plethoric generals in armchairs,
pettish and petted poets, persons in pulpits, posters in the street,
above all the Press, were not representative of the national
disposition. (Galsworthy. A Modern…)
B. Walton was relatively new to the business after years of being
something of a toy-boy to the Mitford clan. (Ayto)
C. In New York, a veteran feminist street-fighter, Mrs Bella
Abzug has the chance to return to Congress, this time from
suburban Westchester. (Ayto)
D. After one such occasion, a hulking driver-bodyguard who hung
around the club while his boss played cards upstairs, took Miles
aside. (Hailey. The Money…)
2.
A. The penitentiary had a music all its own: the clanging bells,
shuffle of feet on cement, slamming iron doors, day whispers
and night screams … the hoarse crackle of the guards walkietalkies, the clash of trays at mealtime. (Sheldon. If…)
B. … his steel-rimmed half-moon glasses… (Hailey. The Money…)
C. The US Federal Reserve has prohibited large banks, like the one
I work for, advertising long-term certificates of deposit at high
interest rates. (Hailey. The Money…)
D. … and a closed-circuit television console in a booth. The autotellers, Alex explained, were linked directly to computers at
FMA Headquarters. (Hailey. The Money…)
3.
When Andrew learned that Hank March, a likable, energetic man
who worked at various outdoor [A.] jobs, was looking for steady
employment, he offered him a post as chauffeur-gardener [B.] and
general handyman [C.]. Since live-in [D.] accomodation would be
included, the offer was accepted with appreciation… (Hailey. Strong…)
4.
A.
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… $450 a week – for all other expenses including repairs,
insurance, food, clothes, a car for Beatrice …, a housekeepercook, charitable donations… (Hailey. The Money…)
B. Thirty-one years old with a permanent tan, muscular arms and
shoulders and a lean disciplined body, he had the look of an
outdoorsman. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. You’ve been seeing too many movie-pictures. (Wodehouse.
Life….)
D. I expect a theatrical wigmaker would do it for you. (Christie.
Why…)
5.
A. The old-timer from the trust department, Pop Monroe, said softly to
Edwina D’Orsey, ‘This is a sad, sad day.’ (Hailey. The Money…)
B. If you enjoy it, then it’s pure self-indulgence, and if you don’t
enjoy it you’re a fool to do it. (Christie. Why…)
C. It is touch-and-go, as you might say, at the moment, and the
smallest thing may turn the scale. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … two days since discovery of the cash loss at First Mercantile
American’s main downtown branch. (Hailey. The Money…)
6.
A. Benelux, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg (customs union)
B. Was it your idea to come to Egypt for your honeymoon?
(Christie. Death…)
C. He spread his handkerchief cautiously on the rock and sat
somewhat gingerly upon it. (Christie. Death…)
D. … but I don’t like him going there very much – not with all those
queer nerve cases and dope-takers. (Christie. Why…)
7.
A. Support wildlife – vote for an orgy! (Brandreth)
B. Two cheerleaders ended up at the altar. They met by chants.
(Brandreth)
C. Boswash, Boston-Washington DC (indicating the urban area
between these cities)
D. I am only a miserable sneakthief. (Christie. Death…)
8.
A. Plessey scientists reckon that biosensors should be working
properly out of the laboratories in three to five years time. (Ayto)
B. Behind the scenes of the food business lurk the tastemakers …
an even more shadowy crew of strategists, promoters and
pundits, who can mould our very attitudes. (Ayto)
C. To homophobia we can now add racism and sexism in our
culture’s irrational response to this serious disease [AIDS]. (Ayto)
D. His face wore in their presence a mellow look of almost devilmay-care serenity. (Galsworthy. The Forsyte…)
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QUIZ EIGHTEEN
Each of the following sets contains an idiomatic compound.
identify it?
Can you
1.
A. With his low, callous, double-crossing duplicity. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
B. … he came to the house with ill-concealed outrage… (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. … the theatre-going public… (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … the barbed-wire fence… (Hunter)
2.
A.
… Tracy looked around at the lovely old oak-paneled room with
its shelves of leather-bound volumes, the two Corots, a small
Copley, and a Reynolds. (Sheldon. If…)
B. The fact of the matter is, Jeeves, though in many ways the best
valet in London, is too conservative. Hide-bound, if you know
what I mean, and an enemy to Progress. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. “It’s interesting,” Tracy said thoughtfully, “that the countries that
attack America for being too money-oriented are always the
first to beg us for loans.” (Sheldon. If…)
D. … profit-greedy exploiters… (Updike)
3.
… life had fooled and short-changed [A.] her too often to permit
total belief in anything. (Hailey. The Money…)
In the modest living-room [B.] was an old, used sofa bed [C.] she
had slip-covered [D.] with a cotton material… (Hailey. The Money…)
A. … the grey eyes behind rimless glasses unwaveringly focused on
the typewritten words. (Hailey. The Money…)
B. The arthritis drug was only moderately successful but Staidpace
proved an excellent, lifesaving product which became widely
used. (Hailey. Strong…)
C. I used to love watching old movies in the middle of the night,
and he was my hands-down favorite. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
D. … and suburbs in the distance, the latter sensed rather than seen
in an all-pervading haze. (Hailey. The Money…)
4.
5.
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A.
“Iguanodons,” said Summerlee. “You’ll find their foot-marks
all over the Hastings sands, in Kent, and in Sussex. …” (Doyle)
B.
Trident’s footprint is considerably large and each warhead can
be targeted accurately. (Ayto)
C. I rise and follow an old black bear trail through a cluster of
bright red Gambel oaks, stepping in each of the creature’s deeply
sunken footprints. (Arizona Highways)
D. The days of the hotel key are numbered, he said. Credit cards
and other magnetic-cards are already being used in some hotels
though eventually ‘biometric’ systems will be introduced. One
type uses an electronic finger-print reader. Another takes an
‘eyeprint.’ (Ayto)
6.
A.
Reformist psychologists are fighting to implement Darwin’s
long-overdue programme – as they see it – by rehabilitating that
anthropoid being, denigrated since the seventeenth century, as a
misbegotten freak – the chimpanzee. (Amberg & Boone)
B. … a thoroughgoing inspection of a branch revealed… (Hailey.
The Money…)
C. ‘Mr Burnside, is this a full-dress audit?’ (Hailey. The Money…)
D. She went down in the private lift which connected their
penthouse with an indoor parking garage. (Hailey. The Money..)
7.
A.
8.
A. Careless fingerwork is the worst enemy of the average Wigmore
Hall pianist… (Barnhart)
B. “See, it’s a fingernail. Her fingernail! I’m going to label it
Fingernail of the Murdered Woman and take it back to school.
It’s a good souvenir, don’t you think?” (Christie. The Body…)
C. The pattern of veins in someone’s retina is as individual a mark
of identity as fingerprints. (Ayto)
Each day, millions of electronic dollars passed through Tracy’s
hands. It was fascinating work, the lifeblood that fed the arteries
of business all over the globe… (Sheldon. If…)
B. There’s not more than an hour of daylight left, but if you take your
notebook you may be able to get some rough sketch of the place. (Doyle)
C. If the rim of the plateau was indeed the highest point, then why
should this mighty tree not prove to be a watch-tower which
commanded the whole country? (Doyle)
D. … I have been a bold and skilled tree-climber. (Doyle)
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D. An independent driver … may “fingerprint” the boxes on or off
the trailer himself. (Chapman)
9.
A. In the doorway was a woman dressed in a filmy night-gown that
left little to the imagination. (Sheldon. If…)
B. Even when night shifts are not worked, many a factory will take
24 hours’ service of Muzak. (Barnhart)
C. Even now when I think of that nightmare the sweat breaks out
on my brow. (Doyle)
D. … past the gleaming new night clubs with famous chefs and
equally famous gambling rooms… (Chandler)
10.
A. During last winter’s snow storms, the Amtrak Metroliners
frequently had to be removed from service as snow clogged the
motors so cleverly mounted underneath the new high-speed
trains. (Arizona Highways)
B. The dried remains of summer wildflowers crunch beneath my
feet as I ascend the volcanic slope. (Arizona Highways)
C. Arizona offers all of this, and in the pages that follow we present
some of our best highland scenes. (Arizona Highways)
D. She’d dropped her suitcases and reached for a cigarette. “I came
in on the red-eye.” (Clark. The Lottery…)
11.
A. We middle-class folks are now all pretty much aware that the
lunchpail is strictly a boorish accoutrement. (Models…)
B. … one night as I was in my room listlessly donning the soupand-fish in preparation for the evening meal, in trickled young
Bingo and took my mind off my own troubles. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
C. The factories and warehouses, the great stores and newspaper
buildings, the hotels and the palaces of the nabobs, are all gone.
(Models…)
D. It has spawned a huge commercial enterprise offering such items
as sweatshirts, T-shirts, posters, ashtrays, beer mugs, and
“Bunker Stickers.” (Models…)
12.
A. Most other seven-year-olds grew up with mothers. (Clark. I’ll
Be…)
224
B.
It was a man in plus fours whom Bobby did not know.
(Christie. Why…)
C. … a plain-faced lieutenant in his mid-thirties. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
D. Charles was thirty-five and a rich and successful member of one
of the oldest families in Philadelphia. (Sheldon. If…)
13.
A. Jimmy Neary offered an Irish coffee. Meghan shook her head.
“I sure could use one, Jimmy, but we’d better take a rain check.
I have to get to the office.” (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. He tends to reflect to others his own life style and thinks he is
giving good, sound advice. (Reminisce)
C. An attractive woman neighbor of mine drives her husband to the
railroad station every morning. (Reminisce)
D. … if the car passes this test, you must give it the cascading
rainwater test. (Models…)
14.
A. … old women with jet-black faces and braided hair. (Models…)
B. … then used a pedestrian-only street to double back to Rosselli
Plaza… (Hailey. The Money…)
C. Rationalizing that I was a naturalist, not a housecleaner, I
decided to examine my house dust to see exactly what it was
made of. (Models…)
D. But in every romance you have to budget for the occasional
dust-up, and after that incident I had supposed that he had
learned his lesson and that from then on life would be one grand
sweet song. (Wodehouse. Life…)
15.
A. Running downstairs to my mother I held up my hand and made
the letters for doll. (Models…)
B. … he toured the neighbourhood with sound trucks filled with
young men wearing Afro haircuts, dashikis, and beards. (Models…)
C. The company heads all agreed that one of their biggest problems
was the me-too firms, the copycat houses that stole the formulas
of successful products, changed the names and rushed them onto
the market. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
D. Even television, which comes in for a lot of knocks as an imagebuilder that magnifies form over substance, doesn’t altogether
obscure the qualities of leadership we recognize. (Models…)
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16.
A. Is the subject-by-subject or point-by-point strategy more
appropriate to the subject of your comparison? (Barnhart)
B. “By the way, that young Jon Forsyte is over there – they tell me
– staying at Green Street, and stoking an engine or something. A
boy-and-girl affair; but I thought you ought to know.
(Galsworthy. The Forsyte…)
C. Carlo Rizzi, the son-in-law, had offered his services but had
been told to take care of his own business… (Puzo)
D. ‘But before doing so, bring me one of those pick-me-ups of yours.’
‘Very good, sir.’ And presently he returned with the vital
essence. (Wodehouse. Life…)
QUIZ NINETEEN
Each of the following sets contains a word with a combining form. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. Most everyone knows the definitions of monogamy and bigamy;
however, few of us know additional terms for marriage to
specific terms for numbers of spouses. (Hellweg)
B. Science and technology had reached the point at which, with one
great push, the thing could be done. (Skinner)
C. Pogonophile, someone who loves beards.
D. It gave her the opportunity she wanted – to look towards the
front on the driver’s side and read the odometer mileage.
(Hailey. The Money…)
2.
A. Over a century later it seems that murdering words is even more
popular than murdering people. The modern victims of
verbicide tend to be everyday words that get battered to death by
thoughtless or excessive use. (Brandreth)
B. This isn’t a hardware problem; it’s a wetware problem. (АРСАС)
C. Several governments are named in accordance with the percentage
of the populace participating. If you think only “democracy”
means majority rule, then this list is for you. (Hellweg)
D. Here are all the unique governments that defy categorization.
They range from toparchy (A small state consisting of a few
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towns) to panarchy (rule over the entire universe). (Hellweg)
3.
A. The pearls were taken by a kleptomaniac who has since returned
them. (Christie. Death…)
B. The vision of the Countess of Dudley crying in court over Mr
Alastair Forbes’s uncomfortable revelations, published a mere
three years ago, in the Literary Review could well provoke
polemics on the gross absurdity of the libel laws or the sickening
hypocrisy of the upper classes, but it also affords a striking
example of the apotheosis of the ‘actressocracy.’ For, in an
earlier incarnation, Lady Dudley … was of course Maureen
Swanson, the 1950s starlet – oops! – actress. (Ayto)
C. … a lifelong vidaholic, the 33-year-old Simmons (Chapman)
D. Then take Fisher. … He’s been on the Hill so long he probably
thinks the Capitol dome would split in two pieces if he wasn’t
around to give it moral support. He’s never had an original
thought in his life. There’s no stigma attached to his name
because he’s too stupid to be very crooked, although he’ll
probably wind up with some mud on him from this Koreagate
thing. (King. The Dead…)
4.
A. Edwina could see Tottenhoe on the far side of the bank and
called him on the intercom. (Hailey. The Money…)
B. They are only visible at the metalinguistic level, accessible only
to the pedant. (Hodge & Kress)
C. These are signs which have a special relationship to the metasign
of the accent itself. Labov calls these ‘stereotypes’. (Hodge &
Kress)
D. Misodoctakleidists are not welcome here. (misodoctakleidist –
one who hates to practice the piano) (Mrs. Byrne’s Dictionary)
5.
A. She sat in a robe huddled up on the couch, listening to her fate
being broadcast to millions of people. (Sheldon. Rage…)
B. Each course concentrated on the following goals: … 2. To
acquaint teachers with the most recent developments in English
teaching methodology, pedagogical skills, classroom resources, and
career development materials. (Forum)
C. There’s a red Cadillac pimpmobile parked outside. (Chapman)
227
D. Unless otherwise noted, words ending in “-cide” can either
denote a killer or the act of killing. By way of example, “uxoricide”
can refer either to: 1) a husband who murders his wife or 2) the act
of a wife being murdered by her spouse. (Hellweg)
6.
A.
7.
A. Tracy sent in more job applications to insurance companies and
dozens of other computer-oriented businesses. (Sheldon. If…)
B. Ask your trigger-happy hunters to be careful this year.
(АРСАС)
C. She was Tracy Whitney, a computer expert, a decent, lawabiding citizen. (Sheldon. If…)
D. From her room, through the paper-thin wall, Tracy could hear
her neighbours screaming at one another in foreign languages.
(Sheldon. If…)
8.
A.
9.
A.
228
And of course Hamburger, from the city of Hamburg, has
spawned a whole menu-ful of beefburgers, cheeseburgers,
baconburgers, etc., as well as just plain burgers. (Ayto)
B. The living room was exquisitely furnished… (Sheldon. If…)
C. The September heat wave had burned itself deeply into
everyone’s nerves… (Sheldon. If…)
D. She opened the bottle of champagne that the management had
sent up and sat sipping it, watching the sun set over the
skyscrapers of Manhattan. (Sheldon. If…)
“What are we supposed to do?” Schiffer asked. “Let her walk
away scot-free?” (Sheldon. If…)
B. Fujji films come in these clear cases. As you can see what’s
inside, I use them all the time. They weigh nothing. They’re
everything-proof. Perfect. (Francis. Longshot)
C. You can’t expect me to sit around on my hands and be spoonfed. I have to work. (Sheldon. If…)
D. We just issued our annual report for the meat-packing company,
fellas. (Sheldon. If…)
“There are other kinds of jobs. Have you thought about working
as a saleslady?” (Sheldon. If…)
B. “I have a very profitable little sideline, Miss Whitney, and I take
great pleasure in sharing those profits with my colleagues. …”
(Sheldon. If…)
C. The others [embryos] are cryopreserved, or in layman’s
language, frozen, for eventual later use. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. The countryside sped by, flashing vignettes briefly framed by the
window, but Tracy was unaware of the scenery. (Sheldon. If…)
10.
A. She had money in safe-deposit boxes all over Europe, the house
in London, and a chalet in St. Moritz. (Sheldon. If…)
B. I think the Dutch are the most hospitable generous people in the world.
They’re iconoclasts. They hate rules and regulations. (Sheldon. If…)
C. “Don’t think about the weight above your head,” he advised her
maliciously. “We can’t have you suffering from claustrophobia
as well as acrophobia.” (Hunter)
D. … also, using funds which it was the bank’s job to safeguard,
the trust department had invested heavily in Supranational
shares… (Hailey. The Money…)
11.
A. Must you be therefore proud and pitiless? (Shakespeare)
B. … the well-dressed man… (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. The once-famed Casino Bellevue is closed for badly needed
repairs… (Sheldon. If…)
D. It seems they believe I took a minibreak from the book to bump
off an American in East Berlin. (Ayto)
A. There was not a building, antenna, teledish, electric sign or
billboard to be seen. (Ayto)
B. A policeman in shirt-sleeves took Tracy into a room where she
was booked and fingerprinted, then led down a corridor and
locked in a holding cell, by herself. (Sheldon. If…)
C. Its vast sandstone wall reaches upward and outward for
hundreds of feet, blotting out even the sky directly overhead.
(Models…)
D. But oddly enough the rivers of that ancient time clung to their
courses, despite the mountain-building revolution. (Models…)
12.
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QUIZ TWENTY
Each of the following sets contains an archaic compound. Can you identify
it?
1.
A. In the 1963 World Series, the Yankees played as if they were
merely going through the motions. Later, hindsighters would
say it was a sign that the Yankee dynasty was coming to an end.
(Pepe)
B. Trust me, dear Yorick, this unwary pleasantry of thine will
sooner or later bring thee into scrapes and difficulties, which no
after-wit can extricate thee out of. (Sterne)
C. One-on-one was out of the question no matter how many
wisecracks they made. (Hiller)
D. Why, love, I say! madam! sweet-heart! why, bride!
(Shakespeare)
2.
A. Unseemly to gainsay the son of an earl, the grandson of a king…
(Seton)
B. The Queen’s vice-chamberlain ushered them to a small tapestryhung salon. (Seton)
C. The door was kicked open. A dozen torchlights flared. (Greene.
The Basement…)
D. And in front of him was clearly the new manager, on whose left
Michael observed his father. His left hand held his tortoiseshell-rimmed monocle between thumb and finger. (Galsworthy.
A Modern…)
3.
A. Tybalt, you rat-catcher, will you walk? (Shakespeare)
B. The teenager had been picked up for shoplifting in an electronics
store. (Hiller)
C. Is the moonlighting, working in a pivate practice, against
regulations? (Hailey. Strong…)
D. James’ll be proud as Lucifer, Charles thought, and play the
master over me – the Frenchified popinjay! (Seton)
4.
A. Nurse Go, go, you cot-quean, go;
Get you to bed; faith, you’ll be sick to-morrow
230
For this night’s watching. (Shakespeare)
B. I do remember an apothecary, and hereabouts he dwells…
(Shakespeare)
C. Henry and I discussed crowd movement, racegoers’ behavior,
provision for rain. (Francis. Decider)
D. So she was considering in her own mind (as well as she could,
for the hot day made her feel very sleepy and stupid), whether a
pleasure of making a daisy-chain would be worth the trouble of
getting up and picking the daisies, when suddenly a white rabbit
with pink eyes ran close by her. (Carroll)
5.
A. … and about his shelves a beggarly account of empty boxes,
green earthen pots, bladders, and musty seeds, remnants of
packthread, and old cakes of roses, … (Shakespeare)
B. We set out the essentials, rubbed out the bottlenecks, made
pleasure a priority, gave owners their due, allocated prime space
for Strattons, for Stewards, for trainers’ bars. (Francis. Decider)
C. Cap. Mass, and well said; a merry whoreson, ha!
Thou shalt be logger-head. Good faith! … (Shakespeare)
D. Now the chief of pediatrics, a gaunt, slow-speaking New
Englander, said, … (Hailey. Strong…)
6.
A. Mac found his work at the LifeCode Research Laboratory, where
he was a specialist in genetic therapy, to be rewarding, satisfying
and all-absorbing. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. You are a thousand times a propere man
Than she a woman: ‘tis such fools as you
That make the world full of ill-favour’d children:
‘Tis not her glass, but you, that flatters her; … (Shakespeare)
C. Mer. Good king of cats, nothing but one of your nine lives, that
I mean to make bold withal and, as you shall use me hereafter,
dry-beat the rest of the eight. (Shakespeare)
D. A man stepped forward, in his hand a leather bull whip, heavy,
three-petalled. (Greene. The Basement…)
7.
A. Do thou but close our hands with holy words,
Then love-devouring death do what he dare;
It is enough I may but call her mine. (Shakespeare)
231
B. He remembered how, as a boy, he had preferred bluebottles and
greenbottles to the ordinary fly, because of their bright colour.
(Galsworthy. The Forsyte…)
C. … but when the Rabbit actually took a watch out of its waistcoat-pocket,
and looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice started to her feet… (Carroll)
D. Jul. O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father, and refuse thy name … (Shakespeare)
8.
A. How silver-sweet sound lovers’ tongues by night… (Shakespeare)
B. For powerful Fancy evernigh
The hateful picture forces on my sight. (Coleridge)
C. The room was crowded with objects of every kind, lying
higgledy-piggledy… (Hunter)
D. … nightmarish periods when he was incarcerated. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
9.
A. Sam. … I will be cruel with the maids; I will cut off their heads.
Gre. The heads of the maids?
Sam. Ay, the heads of the maids, or their maidenheads; take it
in what sense thou wilt. (Shakespeare)
B. ‘Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon!’ Eftsoons his hand
dropt he. (Coleridge)
C. She smiled a faraway, reminiscent smile. (Christie. Death…)
D. Dear Cypress Point Spa guest,
A cheery good morning to you. I hope as you read this you are
sipping one of our delicious fruit-juice eye-openers. As some of
you know, all the oranges and grapefruits are specially grown for
the Spa. (Clark. Weep…)
10.
A. Farewell, farewell! but this I tell
To thee, thou Wedding Guest! (Coleridge)
B. After this specimen of commonplace verbosity, which the
Marquis seemed to consider as a prelude to triumph, he attempted
to impress a kiss upon the hand of Adeline… (Radcliffe)
C. … tripping lightly through the church-yard, and resolutely
turning away her eyes… (Austen)
D. With throats unslaked,
With black lips baked,
Agape they heard me call:
232
Gramercy! they for joy did grin,
And all at once their breath drew in,
As they were drinking all. (Coleridge)
11.
A. ‘Tis the very band o’Faws who were camped near our burn
yesteryear. (Seton)
B. By so much the more shall I to-morrow be at the height of
heart-heaviness… (Shakespeare)
C. Some years ago he loved a young Russian lady of moderate
fortune; and having amassed a considerable sum in prizemoney, the father of the girl consented to the match. (Shelley)
D. Death is my son-in-law, Death is my heir; (Shakespeare)
12.
A. And this is my usual method of book-keeping, at least with the
disasters of life – making a penny of every one of ‘em as they
happen to me – … (Sterne)
B. Good-night, good-night! parting is such sweet sorrow
That I shall say good-night till it be morrow. (Shakespeare)
C. If a girl, doll or no doll, swoons within a yard or two of a man’s
nose, he can see it without a perspective-glass. (Dickens)
D. Going to find a bare-foot brother out… (Shakespeare)
13.
A. He needed a day away from the office and the myriad problems
of the past week. The media had been omnipresent. The
investigators had been in and out. … (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. “… I’m not much for all these crazy scientific fads.”
Breakthrough, not fads, Meghan thought. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
C. A green satin night-gown of my mother’s, which had been twice
scoured, was the first idea which Obadiah’s exclamation brought
into Susan’s head. (Sterne)
D. The old man had, in the meantime, been pensive… (Shelley)
14.
A. “Yes, Mortimer, it is my hand-writing…” (Bulwer-Lytton)
B. As I went on thus, methought my chaise, the wreck of which
looked stately enough at the first, insensibly grew less and less in
its size; … (Sterne)
C. They smiled also at the beauty of Everhard and their elder
grandchildren… (de Quincey)
233
D. On the day when I first received my ten-pound bank-note, I had
gone to a baker’s shop… (de Quincey)
15.
A. Five warriors seized me yestermorn,
Me, even me, a maid forlorn … (Coleridge)
B. She has a housewife’s hand; but that’s no matter. (Shakespeare)
C. Ros. I could find it in my heart to disgrace my man’s apparel and
to cry like a woman; but I must comfort the weaker vessel, as
doublet and hose ought to show itself courageous to petticoat:
… (Shakespeare)
D. From seventeen years till now almost fourscore
Here lived I, but now live here no more. (Shakespeare)
QUIZ TWENTY-ONE
Each of the following sets contains a compound historism.
identify it?
Can you
1.
A. To the right, he could see a few people in the dining-room and
busboys clearing tables. Well, lunch hour was pretty well over,
he thought. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. Twenty yeomen, warders of the Tower, the Beefeaters, marched
on either side of the coach… (Seton)
C. He was a great lanky laird, a fierce fighter with claymore or
battle-axe. (Seton)
D. Some walls were hung with old carpentry tools, plow planes and
frame saws and drawknives; … (Updike)
2.
A. First there had been clothes to be hired from a mantua-maker
who specialized in secret aid to needy peeresses… (Seton)
B. After I drop off the breadwinner at the airport, I do want to get
in about four hours’ work. (Clark. Remember…)
C. I had been wondering when my new plus-fours would come
under discussion… (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … She gave an impersonal smile to Harley Hutchinson, the
columnist and television personality who was England’s leading
gossipmonger. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
234
3.
A. Two days later, Jenny set out with Charles for an inn in Paris
where a post chaise could be hired for Calais. (Seton)
B. How different it all would have been, I could not but reflect, if
this girl had been the sort of girl who one chirrups cheerily to
over the telephone and takes for spins in the old two-seater.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. And Lynn, shuddering, ran to her carry-on bag, took out the
photo of her children, and put it on the dresser… (Plain)
D. In most pick-pocket training exercises… (Hiller)
4.
A. “… Our instructor has told us that now he is here long enough so
people do not see him as a carpetfogger.”
“Bagger,” Johnny said.
Ngo looked at him with blank politeness.
“The term is carpetbagger.”
“Yes, thanks.” (King. The Dead…)
B. This Board, held just a week before the special meeting of the
shareholders, was in the nature of a dress rehearsal.
(Galsworthy. The Forsyte…)
C. “You should be grateful you’re the only wife I’ve ever had!”
“Am I?”
His reply was impatient. “Stop looking at me as though you
expect me to turn into some kind of Bluebeard before your very
eyes!” (Hunter)
D. … and Jenny’s heart celebrated too, not for the King’s birthday,
but because she was well dressed and admired, because Lady
Betty was laughing with Young, and because there was a band of
mountebanks coming down the street – a tumbler and a bearward leading a shambling bear, and a tiny monkey in a red cap
who somersaulted and ran right up on the table behind them.
(Seton)
5.
A. They were mostly sketches of early settlers, some of them
unnamed, and landmark buildings; property maps; sailing ships
– an unsorted mish-mash, really. (Clark. Remember…)
B. … – this, Trim, was an invention since Solomon’s death; nor had
they horn-works, or ravelins before the curtain, in his time …
(Sterne)
235
C. Hurt no living thing;
Ladybird nor butterfly,
Nor moth with dusty wing. (Poems to Enjoy)
D. … Evelyn and Jenny – stood on the poopdeck watching the flat
wooded shores flow by. (Seton)
6.
A. It struck Menley that there was something aggressive about the
girl’s posture, the way her hands were jammed into the pockets
of her cutoffs, the belligerent thrust of her shoulders. (Clark.
Remember…)
B. He carried his head high under a blond periwig and gold-edged
tricorn… (Seton)
C. In the churchyard James and Charles heard an outburst of wild
battle cries from the Highlanders, and Mackintosh’s
bloodcurdling shouts in Gaelic. (Seton)
D. ‘What Ronnie says he thinks he’ll do,’ proceeded Sue, ‘is to take
the Empress joy-riding…’
‘Joy-riding!’ cried Lord Emsworth, appalled.
‘Only if you won’t give him his money, of course. If you really
don’t feel you can, he says he’s going to drive her all over
England…’ (Wodehouse. Heavy…)
7.
A. You know he hired half a dozen ex-motorcycle outlaws as
bodyguards? … I guess they were pretty rough customers.
(King. The Dead…)
B. How different she is, Bertie, from these hot-house, artificial
London girls! Would they stand in the mud on a winter afternoon,
watching a football match? (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. A gallant curtle-axe upon my thigh,
A boar-spear in my hand; and in my heart
Lie there what hidden woman’s fear there will, – …
(Shakespeare)
D. We set out the essentials, rubbed out the bottlenecks, made
pleasure a priority, gave owners their due… (Francis.
Decider)
8.
A.
236
She had in truth been a nimble jitterbugger at Warwick High.
(Updike)
B.
Clyde was hoping I could do a little Halloween color piece – just
go downtown, interview a couple trick-or-treaters on Oak
Street… (Updike)
C. ‘Sebastian got a nail in his shoe,’ he said in a low, virtuous voice.
‘It hurt him to walk, so I gave him a piggy-back.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … he put his breeches, with his fringed codpiece on, and
forthwith with his short scymetar in his hand, walked out to the
grand parade. (Sterne)
9.
10.
11.
A. … it has carried me and my cloak-bag, continued he, tapping the
mule’s back, above six hundred leagues. (Sterne)
B. … She could see Fiona, her blond hair tousled, her body-hugging
jumpsuit showing off every inch of that perfect figure, her cat’s
eyes insolent and confident. (Clark. The Lottery…)
C. They don’t bury their dead in coffins, they only carry them from
one place to another in wooden boxes, so the dead are rather
vulnerable to the attentions of the grave-robbers, just as they
were in olden times. (Hunter)
D. He lived in a walk-up in the East Village, surrounded by large
noisy families. (Clark. The Lottery…)
A. There are more new breakthroughs in assisted reproduction
methods every day. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
B. … as he stood on his own particular perch behind the mail,
beating his feet, and keeping an eye and a hand on the arm-chest
before him, where a loaded blunderbuss lay at the top of six or
eight loaded horse-pistols deposited on a substratum of cutlass.
(Dickens)
C. She and her lawyer are taking the 11:25 red-eye tonight from
Phoenix. They’ll get to New York around six tomorrow
morning. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. … You need eight compares for a fingerprint to get accepted in
court. (Grisham)
A. There was nothing else alive in the room save a bluebottle and
the tick of the clock; not even a daily paper. (Galsworthy. The
Forsyte…)
B. … and that it was up to Jeeves to rally round the young master,
even if it broke up his beauty-sleep. (Wodehouse. Life…)
237
C. So anyway, one day when you were at the movies, I came here
and dusted your mailbox and doorknob and lifted all the prints I
could. (Grisham)
D. James picked up his goose quill, and made small meaningless
marks on the papers. (Seton)
QUIZ TWENTY-TWO
Each of the following sets contains a compound-neologism. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. … he had single-handedly contributed more to the Swiss
national income than all the chocolate and watch factories
combined. (Sheldon. Bloodline…)
B. Nelly then enumerated the long list of defendants who had
tangled with Tim, including the dry cleaner…, and Macy’s,
which was sued for a broken spring he discovered on a La-ZBoy recliner Nelly had given him years before. (Clark. The
Lottery…)
C. We’re checking on the red-eye flights… (Clark. The Lottery…)
D. With the ever-increasing volume of air traffic, and the mounting
pressure under which air-traffic controllers work, the
phenomenon of the airmiss has come more and more to public
attention in recent years. (Ayto)
2.
A. … they wouldn’t see me at that low level, in my nature-colored
clothes. (Francis. Longshot)
B. She realized it probably would look tacky to wear her sunburst
pin on the robe. Even the women who looked like Christmas
trees at the evening “cocktail” party wouldn’t do that. (Clark.
The Lottery…)
C. The company heads all agreed that one of their biggest problems
was the me-too firms, the copycat houses that stole the formulas
of successful products, changed the names and rushed them onto
the market. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
D. The nation could soon be facing a shortage of babywipes. Scott,
the world’s biggest manufacturer of disposable tissues and towels,
238
has just issued a report warning the British retailers are not stocking
up fast enough with babywipes for the summer peak. (Ayto)
3.
A. “I bumped into him, that’s all I did,” he proclaimed with
tragicomic gestures. (Francis. Longshot)
B. There was not a building, antenna, teledish, electric sign or
billboard to be seen. (Ayto)
C. He said it with more persuasion than command, with the result
that Dee-Dee agreed to stay off the grapevine. (Francis. Longshot)
D. … Sam’s multicolored jacket only emphasizing the personality
clash with gray plainclothes. (Francis. Longshot)
4.
A. Nolan was there, anxiously asking if Tremayne had received any
thumbs-down from the Jockey Club.
“No,” Tremayne said. “Have you?”
“Not an effing peep.” (Francis. Longshot)
B. Randolph, her avid young Doberman, would come rattling his
claws into the kitchen and she would give him a Chew-Z, a
rock-hard bone-shaped biscuit to gnaw on; … (Updike)
C. Cadbury Schwepps identified two distinct consumer categories
for the sauce. First, the ‘baby-boomer’, or ‘yuppie’, a fitness
conscious group who ‘graze’ while working, rather than eat
formal meals. (Ayto)
D. … her usual self-contained manner (Francis. Longshot)
5.
A. Nissan, Japan’s second largest automaker, saved $657 million
last year by slicing costs and streamlining manufacturing
methods. (Ayto)
B. “That Olympia was a sexpot bimbo,” she remarked flatly.
(Francis. Longshot)
C. I spent the time in the outer room looking at a framed corkboard
on which were pinned the dust jackets of the crop still in the
shops, wondering yet again what my own baby would look like.
First-time authors, it seemed, were allowed little input in the
design department. (Francis. Longshot)
D. He walked along a wide, pale-green-carpeted corridor with
pictures of horses on both walls and opened double whitepainted door at the end. (Francis. Longshot)
239
6.
A.
7.
A. … passionless expression of a sleep-walker. (Shaw. Two Weeks…)
B. King James has not left France. An express came from Lord
Mar yestermorn. (Seton)
C. Tonight a special treat, as actual Queensland [politicians] take
part in a docu-fantasy based on the last days of Joh in which the
shambling old stager joins the ALP. (Ayto)
D. ‘I dedicate my life,’ Goldsmith claims solemnly, ‘to fighting
tackiness. Tack is everywhere. Go into the Underground…’ (Ayto)
8.
A. Mr. Lester Brown, president of the Worldwatch Institute in
Washington, said … ‘Consumption [of grain] this year will be
about 152 million tonnes above production – and we have never
before experienced a draw-down on stocks on that scale. (Ayto)
B. … the snowdrops and croci are warmed into bloom out of
matted brown grass… (Updike)
C. Sukie’s awful-looking Weimaraner, Hank, trotted into the room with
his lolling lilac-colored tongue and they played this game… (Updike)
D. The sharei court had little to recommend it in her eyes. The
building was old and dusty and she couldn’t help thinking the
law that was administered there could have done with a good
spring-clean too. (Hunter)
9.
A.
240
… and another corkboard with red drawing-pinned memos.
(Francis. Longshot)
B. Deli-Fresh Friendwiches™ made to order & served on French
bread or a flaky croissant with fries and cole slaw. (Friendly’s menu)
C. Have I ever heard of Lewis having blackouts any other time
after drinking? (Francis. Longshot)
D. Bogusware is the general term for a whole range of usually
malicious programs which have started to plague the computer
world in recent years… When inserted they create all kinds of
havoc, typically by deleting essential data. (Ayto)
Showering quickly, she twisted her hair into a topknot and put on
a blue cotton jumpsuit and sandals. (Clark. Weep…)
B. You thought owls were bemused intellectuals? In fact they are
deadly killing machines with terrifying talons…, advanced ‘earsight’ and cunningly silent flight. (Ayto)
C. Like everyone else, Helmut had seemed grief-stricken at Leila’s
death… (Clark. Weep…)
D. … she felt thoroughly cross and ill-used. (Hunter)
10.
A. Who could have imagined mammoth supermarket chains
majoring their promotion campaigns on E-free food as they do
now? (Ayto)
B. Recently she had become a volunteer at the Brewster Ladies
Library, working there on Monday afternoons. It was a pleasant
and useful pastime, and she enjoyed the company of the other
women. (Clark. Remember…)
C. She forgot to look where she was going and fell heavily over
one of the guy-ropes of the tent, letting loose a cry that would
have done credit to a banshee. (Hunter)
D. Rebecca’s heartbroken. (Updike)
11.
A. It would be a four-hour flight aboard the propeller-driven DC7B and dinner was served soon after takeoff. (Hailey. Strong…)
B. And when will Dukakis prove he can appeal to lunch-bucket
democrats? Certainly not in Connecticut, the white-collar state
he is expected to win this week. ‘Michael Dukakis is having
trouble carrying Democrats who sweat,’ says Mark Siegel, a
member of the Democratic National Committee. (Ayto)
C. The first few rows were occupied by the Nibs – consisting of the
Squire, a fairly mauve old sportsman with white whiskers, his
family, a platoon of local parsons and perhaps a couple of dozen
of prominent pew-holders. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. But it was Bladen, the young dogsbody, who blurted out, “Gosh,
that’s just the way it was! Whenever anybody around here came
up with a ‘with it’ idea, or wanted to jazz up your old
products…” (Hailey. Strong…)
12.
A. I don’t think the country should be deprived of your abilities and
services because of your unfortunate in-law. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
B. … the roundheaded door with a fanlight and glazing bars…
(Clark. The Anastasia…)
C. The two coffee-drinkers had now forsaken their cups and
withdrawn to the station’s far corner. (King. The Dead…)
241
D. Cocaine existed before the new economic policy, of course. But
officials admit that drug income [in Bolivia] is growing in spite
of a high-profit four month campaign by US Air Force
helicopters and troops last year. Mr Paz’s government has also
been more successful in channelling ‘the narcodollars’ into the
economy than its predecessors. (Ayto)
13.
A. The Bellinger is hard-boiled. Those eyes. That chin. I could
read them. A woman of blood and iron, if ever there was one.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
B. “Harrison Fisher’s not a shoo-in, he’s a has-been. Ford is a hasbeen. Muskie’s a has-been. Humphrey’s a has-been. A lot of
local and state politicians all the way across this country are
going to wake up the day after election day and find out that
they’re as dead as dodo birds. …” (King. The Dead…)
C. If a husband and wife take on a no-frills morgage of £90,000, at
an interest rate of 11%, their monthly interest payments … will
be roughly £750. (Ayto)
D. Anthony Orsatti felt a deep chill go through him. There was
only one thing wrong with it: The little hand was going to
become a big hand, and it was going to snowball. (Sheldon. If…)
14.
A. According to the American College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists, 73% of its 24,500 members have been sued for
malpractice at least once. To escape the soaring cost of
malpractice protection, some 3000 ob-gyns have abandoned the
specialty. (Ayto)
B. The bookies in his precinct knew he would never make trouble to
get an extra payoff for himself, that he was content for his share
of the station house bag. (Puzo)
C. Fiona Black studied the picture, then said, “Where is his clothing?”
Catherine opened the door to a walk-in closet. … This one was
Edwin’s. Rows of jackets and slacks and suits. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
D. From there he was driven to Edge Barton where a crowd of wellwishers awaited his arrival. (Clark. The Anastasia…)
15.
A. He scanned the lines of clear, upright handwriting. (Christie.
Death…)
242
B. Linnet’s going to Egypt for her honeymoon. (Christie. Death…)
C. You’ll have to hustle – whichever of us is going. (Christie. Death…)
D. The English language is being murdered by people in the
computer industry, according to a computer expert. Their
‘techno-babble’ includes words and phrases such as
‘analysation’ instead of analysis. (Ayto)
16
A. … the engineer, dressed in his well-laundered denims, bright-red
neckerchief and engineer’s cap. (Reminisce)
B. ‘We are appealing to the viewer who switches off or over the
moment what they’re watching becomes the slightest bit boring,’
he says. That means, in America, the vidkid – who watches TV
out of the corner of one eye while thumbing a magazine or
phoning for a takeaway pizza. (Ayto)
C. The size of the stakes is almost beyond imagining: the liberty and
well-being of 1.2 billion people. (Newsweek)
D. A few of them, to be sure, were dropouts and rebels, and several
seemed to have joined up with Applewhite after a personal loss –
the death of a brother, a broken romance. (Newsweek)
17.
The veins on the back of the hand form a pattern rather like a bar
code [A.], which can be read with an infrared sensor (blood absorbs
the infrared, other tissues reflect it). It is envisaged that the unique
nature of everyone’s pattern will enable veinprints [B.] to be used
as a foolproof [C.] personal identification on ‘smart’ cash cards
and the like: pass the sensor-equipped [D.] card over the back of
one’s hand, and it will alow one to withdraw money from one’s
account via a dispenser. (Ayto)
18.
In an industry noted for producing almost as much ‘vapourware’
[A.] as hardware [B.] and software [C.], the past six months have
seen some of the most vaporous of desktop [D.] hyperbole. (Ayto)
19.
A. I don’t think Hollywood was ready to showcase a film where
black people actually take control of their destiny and fight back
and kill without being punished. (Newsweek)
B. The critics cluck that they’re honor-bound to expose the
Whitney’s shallow trendiness. (Newsweek)
243
C. This way, that way. Swish Swish. Black thighs in bright white
shin-socks. (Ayto)
D. She may be on to something, but beware of programs promising
to pinpoint your ideal eating plan. (Newsweek)
20
A. Gore’s backstairs counsel or diplomatic or bureaucratic
achievement won’t be what counts for him. (Newsweek)
B. One is that Bill Clinton is responsible for any political trouble Al
Gore may be in for his fund-raising activities. (Newsweek)
C. People want simplicity; a cult provides ready-made answers.
(Newsweek)
D. When operating as a computer printer for the IBM-PC, the
Omega has a 10-megabyte memory that can store some 200
documents, filing some of them in special ‘faxboxes’ (for
transmission to a single location) if necessary. (Newsweek)
*QUIZ TWENTY-THREE
Identify the type of communication the following compounds can be used in
as
A. neutral (general)
B. formal
C. special (terminology)
D. jargon (professional, social, etc.) [slanguage]
E. colloquial (informal)
F. vulgar
G. poetic
1. The auditors not only examine the balance-sheets, they make
recommendations for improved financial and management procedures
whenever they find any defects in the system. (United Nations Image
& Reality)
2. … when the entire net proceeds of such games of chance are to be
devoted to educational, charitable, patriotic, religious or public-spirited
uses, in any municipality, in which a majority of the qualified voters,
voting thereon, at a general or special election as the submission
thereof shall be prescribed by the Legislature by law, shall authorize
244
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
the conduct of such games of chance therein. (Constitution of the State
of New Jersey 1947)
The attached parasite, although apparently so specialized as to have
given up living for itself, can still produce offspring, for they are
found in abundance at certain seasons of the year. (Models…)
… and their reports are submitted for approval and follow-up action by
the Assembly and other intergovernmental bodies concerned. (United
Nations Image & Reality)
She deemed the window-frames and shutters brittle
Against a daring housebreaker or sprite … (Byron)
I won’t be instructed by any snotnose. (Chapman)
The judges whose terms are to expire at the end of the abovementioned initial periods of three and six years shall be chosen by lot
to be drawn by the Secretary-General immediately after the first
election has been completed. (Statute of the International Court of
Justice)
The statue stood between two masonry columns, against a
background of patterned marble… (Hodge & Kress)
What sort of solutions are coming out of the think-tanks of the nation?
(АРСАС)
Bring a brown-bag, and we’ll talk and eat at the same time. (АРСАС)
Everybody knows there are ‘me-too’ drugs, perhaps more than there
should be. But they do sometimes lead to new discoveries; also they
keep pharmaceutical companies – which society needs – solvent
between other big breakthroughs. (Hailey. Strong…)
When flags of States or cities or pennants of societies are flown on the
same halyard with the Flag of the United States of America, the latter
should always be at the peak. (The Code of the Flag of the United
States)
She had dreams all yesternight
Of her own betrothed knight… (Coleridge)
For FM broadcasts, raise and extend telescopic rod antenna, then
adjust position and length for best reception. (Sharp)
As time went on, he was given more and more responsibility,
reorganizing various divisions, troubleshooting in whatever part of the
world he was needed, coordinating the different branches of Roffe and
Sons, creating new concepts. (Sheldon. Bloodline)
245
16. This kind of judgement is very widespread indeed in the practical
social semiotics of everyday life. (Hodge & Kress)
17. ‘Bertie,’ said Tuppy, now becoming purely ga-ga, … (Wodehouse.
Life…)
18. Students of cross-cultural communication know how often
misunderstanding arises because of different assumptions in different
cultural groups. (Hodge & Kress)
19. The Buyers have the right to deduct while effecting payment of
collection statements of the amounts provided for in the Contract, i.e.
penalty, insurance, etc. The afore-said reservation shall be included by
the Sellers in the collection Statement. (Gromova, etc.)
20. First there was that mix-up about the prize-giving. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
21. We probably adopt this strategy not so much because of any lack of
interest or power but because of a longstanding conviction that for
much of human behavior there are no relevant antecedents. (Skinner)
22. Monica, we have shit-all evidence of what the killer looks like.
(Chapman)
23. Do not double-click; if you do, you close the window or application or
restore the icon to a window. (Microsoft)
24. That brown-noser actually gave the boss a bottle of wine for her
birthday. (АРСАС)
25. … a student may attack a teacher or vandalize a school, and a dropout
may work to destroy a culture. (Skinner)
26. On the contrary, I was heart and soul in favour of healing the breach
and rendering everything hotsy-totsy once more between these two
young sundered blighters. (Wodehouse. Life…)
27. He was gaining every play till they double-teamed him. (Chapman)
28. “Mace is a failed doctor,” the research director said. “He’s also an
alcoholic, he’s in money trouble, partly because he’s paying alimony to
two wives, and he moonlights by working evenings and weekends,
helping in a private medical practice.” (Hailey. Strong…)
29. Make sure the information you want to paste is on the Clipboard. To
view the contents of the Clipboard, choose the Clipboard viewer in the
Main Group. (Microsoft)
30. The matron whirled around, her face filled with fury. “Shut your
fuckin’ mouth. You speak only when you’re spoken to, do you
understand? That goes for all you assholes.” (Sheldon. If…)
246
31. Nonetheless, they too are finding ape genes only marginally less
embarrassing, simply because chimpanzee’s too human genetic
blueprint palpably fails to reflect the manifold physical differences
separating ape from man. (Amberg & Boone)
32. “… did I show you a picture of the baby?”
“Have you got a picture with you?”
“Is the Pope Catholic?” He reached in his pocket. “Here’s the most
recent. Her name is Hannah. She was three months old last week.
Isn’t she a knock-out?” Elaine studied the picture carefully. “She’s
absolutely beautiful,” she said sincerely. (Clark. Remember…)
33. Perhaps English may give rise to such fluctuation more than some other
languages because of its patently mixed nature: a basic Germanic
wordstock, stress pattern, word-formation, inflection and syntax
overlaid with a classical and Romance wordstock, stress pattern, wordformation – and even inflection and syntax. (Quirk)
34. Candles in all the colors of jellybeans had been found for the
cobwebbed scones along the wall, each draft-tormented little flame
doubled by a tin mirror. (Updike)
35. If you are using a desktop wallpaper, set the wallpaper to None or use
a pattern (a pattern uses less memory than wallpaper). (Microsoft)
36. I stopped at a post office and air-mailed my letter. (Francis. Dead…)
37. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of
the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of
Representatives. (The Constitution of the United States)
38. She was pretty sure she was near a breakthrough on the crime wave –
if only she could pin down Chief Sterns. (Hiller)
39. These territories are hereinafter referred to as trust territories. (Charter
of the United Nations)
40. The figures were entertaining just because they behaved like people,
and it appeared, therefore, that something very much like human
behavior could be explained mechanically. (Skinner)
41. If it rained before he entered the tunnel, he would have to shitcan his
plans. (Chapman)
42. Character Map also displays the keystrokes you can use to create a
selected character within your application. (Microsoft)
43. No rude sound shall reach thine ear,
Armour’s clang, or war-steed’s champing,
Trump nor pibroch summon here
247
Mustering clan, or squadron tramping. (Scott)
44. After the program filename in the Command Line box, press the
SPACEBAR, and type the filename of the document. (Microsoft)
45. He is conducting a sort of rear-guard action in which, unfortunately,
he can marshal formidable support. (Skinner)
46. “How close really are the ‘sibling’ protagonists, man and ape?” – by
definition well-nigh impossible to answer fairly because of our
distorted Homocentric perspective… (Amberg & Boone)
47. We had a real hairy-ass time on the roller coaster. (АРСАС)
48. E’en now the devastation is begun,
And half the business of destruction done;
E’en now, methinks, as pondering here I stand,
I see the rural virtues leave the land. (Goldsmith)
49. When that happened, Syd in turn would be a big-time agent again.
(Clark. Weep…)
50. Gimme a hit off your gauge-butt, will ya? (АРСАС)
51. And now good-morrow to our waking souls,
Which watch not one another out of fear;
For love, all love of other sights controls,
And makes one little room, an everywhere. (An Anthology…)
52. The place looked lovely, Virginia admitted, and it certainly had needed
a face-lift, but the irony would be to go through the inconvenience and
financial drain of renovating and redecorating only to have someone
else come in and buy Drumdoe at a first-sale price. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
53. Contemporary “intrapsychic” theories of psychotherapy tell us how
one feeling leads to another… (Skinner)
54. The compensation of members of the Senate and General Assembly
shall be fixed at the first session of the Legislature held after this
Constitution takes effect, and may be increased or decreased by law
from time to time thereafter, but no increase or decrease shall be
effective until the legislative year following the next general election
for members of the General Assembly. (Constitution of the State of
New Jersey 1947)
55. Jon Creighton, the bank bigot, added, “I understand we’re going in on
the Mexican rescue package for fifty million. Those wetbacks don’t
deserve a damned cent…” (Sheldon. If…)
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QUIZ TWENTY-FOUR
Match each AE compound in the first column with its BE equivalent in the
second column.
1. custom-made
2. bootlace
3. clothespin
4. housewares
5. hardware store
6. freeway
7. sideburns
8. subway
9. windbreaker
10. windshield
11. odometer
12. sidewalk
13. thumbtack
14. raincoat
15. lumber-trade
16. officeholder
17. wildlife
18. birdbanding
19. meat-packing (plant)
20. can-opener
21. meat-grinder
22. microfilm
23. mailbox
24. high-rise (equipped with elevators)
25. business card
26. dead-smooth (file)
A. ironmonger
B. underground, tube
C. windscreen
D. footpath / pavement
E. timber-trade
F. office-bearer
G. clothes peg
H. birdringing
I. microcopy
J. letter-box, pillar-box
K. bespoke (made to measure)
L. superfine-cut (file)
M. multistory
N. meat-preserving (factory)
O. trade card
P. hardware
Q. mincing-machine
R. sideboards (hair)
S. windcheater
T. mileometer
U. drawing pin
V. shoelace
W. waterproof
X. tin-opener
Y. animate nature
Z. motorway
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CONVERSION
Conversion is a combined morphological and syntactic (paradigmatic and
syntagmatic) way of word-building, by which a new word is formed
through the change of the paradigm and distribution of its prototype.
E.g., swim
V→N
Fish swim.
I’ll go for a swim.
We shall go swimming.
An active person likes to be in
The white clouds swam across the sky.
the swim.
The heat and noise made my head swim.
He swims a couple of miles every morning.
Conversion Versus Historical Loss of Endings
Conversion is a synchronic way of word-building. Words formed by
conversion should be distinguished from those formed through the historical
loss of endings of nouns, verbs, etc.
conversion
loss of endings
E.g., swim, v.i. & t., & n.
own adj. [OE āgen]
[OE swimman]
own v. [OE āgnian]
Source Word Versus Target Word
Source word (origninal word; prototype derivational source) is a member
of the pair of words whose lexical meaning is compatible with its
grammatical meaning.
Target word is a member of the pair of words whose lexical meaning is in
conflict with its grammatical meaning.
E.g., swim v. a) lexical meaning: action, process
b) grammatical meaning: action, process
swim n. a) lexical meaning: action, process
b) grammatical meaning: the act or
period of swimming.
Swim v. – source word
Swim n. – target word
The source word is more polysemantic (has more meanings) than a target
word.
E.g., swim v.
1) move through, on or in the water by using arms, legs, fins, etc.
2) cross by swimming
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3) float; be covered with; or as if floating in
4) overflow
5) feel giddy or dizzy
6) seem to move or go round and round before one’s eyes
swim n.
1) the act of swimming
2) the main current of affairs (social or public) (sg. with def. art.)
Source word has a higher word-building and phrase-forming potential
than a target word:
swim-in n. (wade-in)
swimmy adj.
swimmable adj.
in the swim adj. phr.
swimmer n.
out of the swim adj. phr.
swimmeret n.
swimmingly adv.
swimming pool
swimming crab
swim bladder n.
swim fin n.
swim-suit n.
swim-wear n.
swim against the current (stream)
sink or swim
Lexico-Grammatical Character of the Source Word
1) Noun
bottle → bottle v.
2) Verb
retreat → retreat n.
3) Adjective
dirty → dirty v.
daily → daily n.
4) Adverb
out → out n.
5) Pronoun
my → my interj.
6) Numeral
second → second v.
7) Preposition
plus → plus n.
8) Conjunction
and → and v.
9) Interjection
haw → haw v.
Lexico-Grammatical Character of the Target Word
1) Noun
cheat v. → cheat
daily adj. → daily
plus prep. → plus
2) Verb
corner n. → corner
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dirty adj. → dirty
and conj. → and
haw interj. → haw
out adv. → out
3) Adjective
no go phr. → no-go
off prep. → off
4) Adverb
that pron. → that
Morphological Structure of a Source-Word
1) root word
swim v. → swim n.
2) derived word
natural adj. → natural n.
3) compound word
honeymoon n. → honeymoon v.
4) abbreviation
fax n. → fax v.
scuba n. → scuba adj.
5) affix
- ism → ism n.
6) phrase
go between → go-between n.
white knuckle → white-knuckle adj.
Partial Conversion
A target word acquires only some of the characteristics of its word class,
i. e. incomplete paradigm.
E.g., The handicapped are (* a handicapped is, * two handicapped are)
To be in the know (* in know, * in a know, *in knows)
To get (give) a wash (* washes)
It is a must (* the must, * musts)
Complete Conversion
A target word acquires complete paradigm of its word class.
E.g., circular n. (pl. circulars)
frequent v. (frequented, frequenting, frequents)
race v. (races, raced, racing)
Ellipsis + Conversion
Adjective → noun conversion can be explained in terms of a wellestablished adjective + noun phrase from which the noun has been ellipted.
E.g., a professional (man, person, actor, politician, sportsman, etc.)
Ellipsis of adjective-noun phrases with unique (restricted) valency gave rise
to a number of completely substantivized (converted) words.
E. g., prophylactic n. (fr. prophylactic device) [a condom]
nuclear n. (fr. nuclear power)
zoo n. (fr. zoological garden)
252
Conversion is simultaneous with compounding in the case of phrase
source.
E.g., cash-limit v. (to impose a cash limit on): “As with all our budgets, the
fund from which we pay consultants for socially necessary operations is
cash-limited.” (Ayto)
As a rule, only one (rarely more) meaning of a polysemantic word is a
source of conversion.
E.g., vital adj. 1) relating to, connected with, necessary for, animal life
2) full of life and vigour; lively
♥ 3) necessary to the existence of something; essential
Vitals n. those organs of the body which are essential to life.
If you can visualize a bulldog which has just been kicked in the ribs and had
its dinner sneaked by the cat, you will have Hildebrand Glossop as he now
stood before me. “Stap my vitals, Tuppy, old corpse,” I said, concerned,
“you’re looking pretty blue round the rims.” (Wodehouse. Life…)
Semantic Relationship by Conversion
N→V
1) action characteristic of the object; agential [to act as N with respect to
…]: to nurse, to judge
2) instrumental use of the object [to … with N as instrument]: to fork, to
spoon
3) acquisition or addition of the object [to get/give/have N; to provide with
N]: to coat, to frost (a cake)
4) deprivation of the object [to deprive of N]: to dust (furniture), to skin
(alive)
5) locative [to put in/on N; to get/go in/to N]: to bottle, to corner
6) transformation of the object [to make/change into … N]: to cripple
7) transportation [to send/go by N]: to fax, to ship, to phone
8) resultative [to give birth to N]: to fox
V→N
1) state: doubt, (in the) know
2) subject of V: a bore, a cheat, a look-alike
3) object or result of V: a fall, a catch
4) instrument of V: a cover, a wrap
5) instance of action; process: a swim, a wash
6) place of V: retreat, slant
Adj → V
1) (v. t.) to make (more) Adj.: to dirty
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2) (v. i.) to become Adj.: to dry, to calm (down)
Adj → N
1) person of Adj. quality: a comic
2) object of Adj. quality: a daily
QUIZ ONE
Each of the following sets contains a boldface noun that is not formed by
conversion. Can you identify it? Consult a dictionary for etymological clues.
1.
A. “Well,” said Sir Lawrence, with a twirl of his little grizzled
moustache, “I hope I’m wrong…” (Galsworthy. A Modern…)
B. When she had got away, with one kiss received but not
answered, she realised that she had passed through a quarter of
an hour of real life, and was not at all sure that she liked it…
(Galsworthy. A Modern…)
C. Cap’n Bill chuckled a little to himself and remarked to Trot in a
whisper: “For a bird that ain’t got anything to do, this Lonesome
Duck is makin’ consider’ble fuss…” (Baum)
D. She took hold of his ears. (Galsworthy. A Modern…)
2.
A.
“I haven’t any magic strong enough to get you off the Magic
Isle,” replied the Lonesome Duck. “But what magic I possess is
very simple, but I find it enough for my own needs.” (Baum)
B. It was a longish drive and I fetched up at my destination only
just in time to dress for dinner. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. And then he gave a very long sigh and said, “I wish Pooh were
here. It’s so much more friendly with two.” (Milne)
D. Meanwhile the King ordered refreshments to be served to those
waiting, and at his command a rudely shaped Nome entered,
bearing a tray. (Baum)
3.
A.
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… and everybody in Oz will be interested in you, and call you a
hero, and say nice things about you because you helped your
friends out of trouble. (Baum)
B. “Cap’n,” said she, “we’re in a bad fix. There’s nothing here to
eat, and we can’t even lie down to sleep…” (Baum)
C.
“Take good care of these friends of mine,” said the Lion, “and I
will go at once to fight the monster.” (Baum)
D. … he jumped at the end of the tablecloth, pulled it to the ground,
wrapped himself up in it three times, rolled to the other end of
the room, and after a terrible struggle, got his head into the
daylight again, and said cheerfully: “Have I won?” (Milne)
4.
A. … and he had put me right off my feed by bringing a couple of
green things with legs to the luncheon table… (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. Blackfriars Bridge! A dive, and an end in the mud down there?
(Galsworthy. A Modern…)
C. Really, there seemed no hope of help for her from her old friends
in the land of Oz. (Baum)
D. When I was in high school, I knew this kid who worked at the
fair, and he said most of the guys who put these rides together
are dead drunk and they leave off all sorts of …”
“Go to hell,” she said merrily, “nobody lives forever.” (King. The Dead…)
5.
A. He gave his stories a lot of protection, a lot of service. When
winos and drunks filtered up from the Bowery to panhandle on
his beat he got rid of them so roughly that they never came
back. (Puzo)
B. “I took you in, I gave you eats and a little relief from your lousy
lives…” (Updike)
C. I returned to the dining-room for further fruit salad and a quiet
think. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. Dorothy knew at once it was a magic carpet she beheld, and her
heart beat high with hope and joy as she realized she was soon
to be rescued … (Baum)
6.
A.
I lay on my chest and I thought it best to pretend I was having an
evening rest… (Milne)
B. … but he didn’t want her bothered with both the finances and
the everyday details of the dig. (Hunter)
C. Jennifer became an expert at reading those signs, and she would
zero in for the kill. (Sheldon. Rage…)
D. Next evening, the last of the session, the class videotapes the
summer school talent show and stays up much of the night
255
editing the raw footage onto the master tape. (Lederer.
Adventures…)
7.
But we shall never know what Pooh thought, for there came a sudden
squeak [A.] from Roo, a splash [B.], and a lound cry [C.] of
alarm [D.] from Kanga. (Milne)
8.
A. It looked like the finale all right. It wasn’t long before I realized
that it was something more. It was the finish. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
B. And, thirdly, there is no danger of getting lugged into a party of
amateur waits and having to tramp the countryside in the rain,
singing, ‘While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night.’
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. The doll’s eyes were set in an unwinking stare. (Barnhart)
D. My search and research through several dictionaries of
contemporary quotations led inevitably to Milton Friedman, the
Nobel Prize-winning economist and informal adviser to Barry
Goldwater and Richard Nixon. (Lederer. Adventures…)
9.
A. Charles was a prime catch. (Sheldon. If…)
B. Fiona said with some of her former asperity, “I should think
you’ve heard enough about drink for one day.” (Francis.
Longshot)
C. “That will be a hard climb,” said the Scarecrow, “but we must
get over the hill, nevertheless.” (Baum)
D. Now by this time Rabbit wanted to go for a walk too, and
finding the front door full, he went out by the back door, and
came round to Pooh, and looked at him. (Milne)
10.
A. Since I have been an incorrigible (and encourageable) punster all
my life, the challenge stirred my blood. (Lederer. Adventures…)
B. She gave the telephone a friendly glance. (Maugham)
C. … the referee disqualifies the popular favourite and makes the
quick dash for life. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … and he was then a fine, upstanding young man, six feet high
in his stockinged feet and of an athletic build, with broad
shoulders and a confident carriage. (Maugham)
256
11.
A. After all, a newspaper is an enormous product that must be
manufactured from scratch every day. (Lederer. Adventures…)
B. It you selected Search For Applications, a dialog box appears,
prompting you to select the MS-DOS path or individual drives
that Setup should search. (Microsoft)
C. “Where we goin, my friend?” George asked. His fare looked at a
slip of paper. “Port Authority Terminal,” he said. (King. The
Dead…)
D. No one who has read in his early books the descriptions of a run
with the hounds so vivid, and so accurate, can doubt that he
wrote from personal experience. (Maugham)
12.
A.
... and then everybody adjourns to the dance, the Queen walking
in front while the Lord Chamberlain walks behind her carrying
two little pots, one of which contains the juice of Wallflower and
the other the juice of Solomon’s seals. (Barrie)
B. The first two or three notices were noncommittal; then in one of
the morning papers appeared a violent attack. (Maugham)
C. ... there is not a word that could bring a blush to the cheek of the
most guileless, not an episode that could cause the novel reader
of the present day to turn a hair. ( Maugham)
D. No blame can be attached to him. (Milne)
QUIZ TWO
Identify the target word in the following cases of conversion.
1.
A.
B.
2.
I suppose that is why when Roy had lectured in some provincial
town not a single copy of the books of the authors he had
spoken of was ever asked for, but there was always a run on his
own. ( Maugham)
They all made a rush at Alice the moment she appeared, but she
ran off as hard as she could, and soon found herself safe in a
thick wood. (Carroll)
A. He knew that it had been a sacrifice to his parents to give him
so costly an education. (Maugham)
257
B. A mother will sacrifice her life for her children. (Barnhart)
3.
A. Owl took Christopher Robin’s notice from Rabbit and looked at
it nervously. (Milne)
B. Now, if you have a green balloon, they might think you were only
part of the tree, and not notice you ... ( Milne)
4.
A. I want to leave my brain to medical science and my big toe to the
weather bureau. (Brown)
B. The chairs and the rings are the only tell-tale marks these little
people leave behind them, and they would remove even these
were they not so fond of dancing that they toe it till the very
moment of the opening of the gates. (Barrie)
5.
A. No one can order a lunch better than Roy, and generally by the
time the critic has eaten half a dozen oysters and a cut from a
saddle of baby lamb, he has eaten his words too. ( Maugham)
B. A railroad official at Crewe
Met an engine one day that he knew.
Though he nodded and bowed,
The engine was proud,
And cut him – it cut him in two. (Poems to Enjoy)
6.
A. “You are welcome, most noble sorceress, to the land of the
Munchkins. We are so grateful to you for setting our people free
from bondage.” (Baum)
B. ... and for the first time the girl came to realize how dangerous
was her task, and how likely she was to lose her own freedom in
striving to free others from the bondage of the Nome King.
(Baum)
7.
A.
8.
A. Brad, on the other hand, had not kept score, so her eventual
confrontation came as a big surprise to him. (Reilly)
258
“We seen a wreck this morning,” his companion said. “Big car.
Big Cad, a special job and a honey, low, cream-colour, special
job. (Steinbeck. The Grapes…)
B. Robbers wrecked the mail train. (Barnhart)
B. The great American dictionary maker Noah Webster was a
renowned philanderer. One day Mrs. Webster found the
wordsman in bed with the chambermaid.
“Noah, I am surprised,” huffed the offended wife. Thereupon
Webster drew himself up righteously and informed her, “No,
madam, you are astonished. I am surprised.” (Lederer. Nothing…)
9.
A. The feminals seemed to be shopping with great authority. (Ayto)
B. The Henley Center for Forecasting ... says it has found that men
are, increasingly, behaving like women when shopping. The new
man is called a ‘feminal consumer’, which has nothing to do
with being effeminate. (Ayto)
10.
A. Most of us when we do a caddish thing harbour resentment
against the person we have done it to, but Roy’s heart, always in
the right place, never permitted him such pettiness. ( Maugham)
B. This particular school, I hardly know why, has lost its bravery,
their books are neglected, and cricketers though they have
remained, they find difficulty in placing their articles.
(Maugham)
11.
A. The shine on the leather confused Charlie’s eyes; he glanced
over at the magazine, but its glitter, too, seemed to invade his
pupils. (Making It All Right)
B. His boots shone splendidly, in contrast to his intellect, which did
not. (Reader’s Digest)
12.
A. Needless to say, he initially went into a state of semishock,
followed by frequent fits of anger and periods of depression.
(Reilly)
B. There are also numbers of them along the Baby Walk, which is a
famous gentle place, as spots frequented by fairies are called.
(Barrie)
13.
A. And if he is the great Head, he will be at my mercy; for I will roll
this head all about the room until he promises to give us what we
desire. So be of good cheer, my friends, for all will yet be well.
(Baum)
259
B.
The crowd cheered the team on to a touchdown. (Barnhart)
14.
A. It is also believed the winning agency could benefit from an
increase spend on the amount of up to £1.5 million. (Ayto)
B. Moreover, we are living longer and spending more. Even the old
are indentified as sitting on loadsamoney in the form of frozen
equity on their homes. (Ayto)
15.
A. “But how else can you go out?” asked the Piglet anxiously.
“That is the Problem, Piglet, to which I am asking Pooh to give
his mind.” (Milne)
B. “You and your wife must find these questions of precedence
extremely troublesome.”
“Not really,” was the reply, “We have found by experience that
the people who matter don’t mind and the people who mind
don’t matter.” (Brandreth)
16.
A. Last came a little feeble squeaking voice (“That’s Bill,” thought
Alice), “Well, I hardly know – no more, thank’ye, I’m better
now – but I’m a deal too flustered to tell you – all I know is,
something comes at me like a Jack-in-the-box, and up I goes like
a sky-rocket.” (Carroll)
B. Prices were skyrocketing. (Barnhart)
17.
There was a young fellow named Hall,
Who fell [A.] in the spring in the fall.
‘Twould have been a sad thing
Had he died in the spring.
But he didn’t – he died in the fall [B.]. (Poems to Enjoy)
18.
A. Q. Please put an “X” where you fell.
A. On my behind?
Q. No, I meant on the exhibit. (Lederer. Disorder…)
B. At this moment the door of the house opened, and a large plate
came skimming out, straight at the Footman’s head: it just
grazed his nose, and broke to pieces against one of the trees
behind him. (Carroll)
260
19.
A. “Always remember that one swallow does not make a spring.”
“No, but the swallows the size that you take would make one fall
all right.” (English Humour)
B. The two shook hands, sizing each other up, looking deeply into
each other ... (Steinbeck. The Grapes…)
20.
A. Have you heard about the constipated mathematician?
He worked it out with a slide rule. (Lederer. Nothing…)
B. Any man who can take a TV wall apart and put it back together
again, and most men can nowadays, is happier than any man
who tries to slide-rule, measure, and equate the universe, which
just won’t be measured or equated without making man feel
bestial and lonely. (Bradbury)
QUIZ THREE
Identify the lexico-grammatical character of the source word in the
following cases of conversion as
E. Pronoun
A. Noun
F. Numeral
B. Verb
G. Preposition
C. Adjective
H. Conjunction
D. Adverb
I. Interjection
1. He maneuvered the massive weights into the moonlit sky. He readied
his trembling hands to plunge the weights, to smash, to rip apart this
insolently false dream, this silly thing for which he had paid his money,
which would not move, which would not do his bidding. (Bradbury)
2. The danger, as I see it, is that after a bit more of this Mrs. Little will
decide that tinkering is no use and that the only thing to do is to scrap
Bingo and get a newer model. (Wodehouse. Life…)
3. Why questions always lead to should statements. (Reilly)
4. She had spotted Scott’s car and tried to pepper Min with questions
about his presence. (Clark. Weep…)
5. The atmosphere was consequently more or less hotted up.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
261
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
“…in the middle of a mechanical omelet I did the stove to death. Oh,
how it sizzled and screamed, ‘I’m shorted!’…” (Bradbury)
“I think she rather liked having two strings to her bow. Only George
found out, and there was a bust-up you could have heard down in Cape
Town. It was a bad do. (Hunter)
Stephen Zimmerman of Mercury aims to provide a boutique operation
within the parameters of a larger business managing a total of nearly
₤ 22 million. (Ayto)
On her return to her own kraal, the woman wept bitterly when she
found it empty, and paid another visit to the medicine man, whom she
taxed with having spirited away her children. (Folk-Tales)
Down below, things were hotting up nicely. Old Mr. Anstruther may
have been frail, but he undoubtedly had his moments. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
At two o’clock, Elizabeth phoned Syd and asked him to meet her at the
Olympic pool. (Clark. Weep…)
Certainly I remembered Angela’s shark. A man of sensibility does not
forget about a cousin nearly being chewed by monsters of the deep.
The episode was still green in my memory. (Wodehouse. Life…)
Of course, the Army & Navy Stores had a good many face lifts since
those days. In fact, it was quite unrecognisable from the old times. It
was gayer and much brighter. (Christie. At Bertram’s…)
‘Jeeves,’ I said.
‘Sir?’ said Jeeves. He had been clearing away the breakfast things,
but at the sound of the young master’s voice cheesed it courteously.
‘You were absolutely right about the weather. It is a juicy morning!’
(Wodehouse. Life…)
Sell Your Reasons … without the “Or Else.” This specific chunk of a
healthy and effective confrontation actually piggybacks the chunk I’ve
discussed. (Reilly)
At first he seemed to think it humorous, the poor chump! He bubbled
over with merry mirth as he began his tale. (Wodehouse. Life…)
The fingertips of both hands were gone, which is to be expected. In a
drowning it’s one of the first places crabs will attack. (Clark.
Remember…)
Jenny looked into a bottomless never. (Updike)
“… Do you suppose the judge might tape a brief acceptance speech for
us – a few words of thanks, perhaps?” (Sheldon. If…)
262
20. There are no buts about it, Paris is a more beautiful city than London.
(Clark. Word…)
21. Which travels faster – heat or cold?
Heat, because you can catch cold easily. (English Humour)
22. ‘Bingo,’ I cried, deeply moved, ‘you must act. You must assert
yourself. You must put your foot down. You must take a strong stand.
You must be a master in the home.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
23. Not even Sandy Koufax could have downed the cats. (Sheldon. If…)
24. ‘I heartily wish I could, but – ’
‘Nay, but me no buts – I have set my heart upon it.’ (Barnhart)
25. I’ll be in a position to go to my uncle and beard him in his lair
somewhat. (Wodehouse. Life…)
26. He reasoned that she had good delivery, could ad lib at the drop of a
hat and always gave a sense of immediacy and excitement to even a
minor news item. (Clark. I’ll Be…)
27. Suppose I had come to realize that life with Leila would be a succession
of constant ups and downs, of tantrums, of an insecurity... (Clark.
Weep…)
28. And here, they are going to have a baby:
The Jack Dempseys will be a trio in later July.
The Al Trahans are threeing,
The John LaGattas are infanticipating. (Brandreth)
29. The big drug firms were constantly on the lookout for new scientific
talent and monitored carefully all published papers originating in
universities. (Hailey. Strong…)
30. They also love to wine, dine and dance, so one night a month is usually
spent enjoying such entertainment in various “searched out” spots in
the city. (Reilly)
31. Gang members have started shooting people at random from cars, a
practice called drive-by murder. (Ayto)
32. A very little bullet – I should say a twenty-two. (Christie. Death…)
33. We hurrah when we see the soldiers go by. (Barnhart)
34. Give a hurrah for the hero. (Barnhart)
35. So someone must have come up here, routed him out, and gone with
him down these stairs. (Rice)
36. Last week the court said oops, and … withdrew both opinions.
(Barnhart)
37. A sheepskin coat has the woolly side in. (Barnhart)
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38. Tell me the result – never mind the whys and wherefores. (Clark.
Word…)
39. I could see that this had moved him. He plainly wavered. He did a sort
of twiddly on the turf with his foot and, when he spoke, one spotted the
tremolo in the voice. (Wodehouse. Life…)
40. The boy had a flashlight, and was talking to his dog, who paused to
dirty up the roadside five yards ahead. (Francis. Enquiry)
41. Now, he has always stayed glued to the country, completely surrounded
by newts. (Wodehouse. Life…)
42. The only gleam of consolation, the only bit of blue among the clouds,
was the fact that at Roville I should at last be able to wear the rather
fruity cummerband I had bought six months ago … (Wodehouse.
Life…)
43. She oopsed over the side. (Chapman)
44. She’s never relaxed, she’s always on. (Chapman)
45. He has an in at that place, since his mother owns it. (Chapman)
46. She does it AC-DC. (АРСАС)
47. There was a talk of O’Brien’s wife going home today, but her doctor
nixed it. (Clark. The Lottery…)
48. Frankie went down to the hotel, pulled out her big forty-four.
(Chapman)
49. At first he pooh-poohed the story, but he became thoughtful when she
showed him the shadow. (Barrie)
50. He was a nobody, and she was a member of one of the great families
… (Sheldon. Bloodline)
51. Our differences didn’t seem all that big. (Reilly)
QUIZ FOUR
Identify the lexico-grammatical character of the target word in the above
cases of conversion as
A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adjective
D. Adverb
264
QUIZ FIVE
Identify the morphological structure of a source stem as
A. root word
B. derived word
C. compound
D. abbreviation
E. affix
F. phrase
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
… he would find some stinging retort that would discomfort her still
further. (Hunter)
Communism and Fascism are well-known isms. (Barnhart)
… and making sure I learned in my teens how to live happily and
usefully under the burden of extreme wealth. (Francis. Dead…)
The old Sussex Arms got co-oped last year. (Chapman)
Etymology is an unpredictable ology. (Barnhart)
… so I shelved my personal grievances and asked her what was biting
her. (Wodehouse. Life…)
He is inclined to be anti by profession. (Barnhart)
He concealed his irritation at being inconvenienced. “Don’t worry
about it,” he told Tracy. “I’ll find someone to fill in until you return.”
(Sheldon. If…)
She was trying to work herself up into a rage, trying to psych herself
up to commit a crime. (Sheldon. If…)
At the edge of town, we followed an abandoned stretch of the old Erie
Canal into the woods. (Reminisce)
I think I may up the ante to a cool fifty. (Chapman)
She learned to read body language.When a witness on the stand was
lying, there would be telltale gestures: stroking the chin, pressing the
lips together, covering the mouth, pulling the earlobles or grooming the
hair. (Sheldon. Rage…)
As she toured Africa last week, Mrs. Clinton once again tried to
highlight the plight of women around the world. (Newsweek)
Don’t be hasty. Wait until you’ve heard all the pros and cons before
you make up your mind. (Clark. Word…)
265
15. “It’s all blueprinted out. They have squads, sergeants, captains,
corporals, everything,” he said. “We even knew where to bring the
bodies.” (Bradbury)
16. Because these watches were generally cheap affairs, subject to chronic
and chronometric mainspring breakdowns people started associating
anything shoddy or trivial with mickey mouse, often lowercased, as in
“I’m tired of having to do mickey mouse chores.” (Lederer. Crazy…)
17. … and don’t phone this evening … (Francis. Decider)
18. She’s vamping you, Harold. (Chapman)
19. I went to see her where she was waitressing … (Clark. Remember…)
20. Our schools have long taught us the three “R’s.” Somehow or other, I
believe most of us were shortchanged. No one seemed to think of
teaching us how to listen, yet so much of our information comes to us
by way of the spoken word. (Reilly)
21. I dragged up all the garbage I had gunnysacked over the year having to
do with her frequent attacks of forgetfulness. (Reilly)
22. Terry has a T.G.I.F. in his room every evening. (АРСАС)
23. … a flower-pot fell off a window-ledge and nearly brained the hero.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
24. His sister-wife, Isis, combed the world looking for him … (Hunter)
25. That is what George and Dottie learned to do. They speak of a situation
in their relationship some years ago when they KISSed it away by
chunking down and then chunking up. (Reilly)
26. Where before, the Granelli Family had been involved in profitable
illegal activities, under Michael Moretti’s supervision it branched out
(Sheldon. Rage…)
27. I double-took a little when she ordered a cigar. (Chapman)
28. But the universal consensus of opinion is that the fellow is a bounder
and a tick, and that the moment he showed signs of wanting to get into
the place he should have been met with a firm nolle prosequi and
heartily blackballed. (Wodehouse. Life…)
QUIZ SIX
Each of the following sets contains a case of partial conversion. Can you
identify it?
266
1.
A.
“The sack,” I said, “is postponed. Pending attempts to get
wrongs righted.” (Francis. Enquiry)
B. That night his national-security aide, the taciturn Leon Furth,
refused to give specifics. (Newsweek)
C. It mattered not at all that his employers were the heavies of the
piece. (Chapman)
D. Sakkara is on the west side where the dead were sent to reside
with the setting sun. The departed were sometimes referred to
as ‘westerners’ – a salutary thought, don’t you think? (Hunter)
2.
A. “Daddy,” Lisa said, “Brucie has a cold. Can you make it go
away?” (Hailey. Strong…)
B. It was a false alarm. Probably an electrical short. I will have it
checked out at once. (Sheldon. If…)
C. On television and radio, ads are often known as commercials.
(MacKenzie)
D. The majority of economists believe in the comparative cost
principle which proposes that all nations will raise their living
standards and real income if they specialize in the production of
those goods and services in which they have the highest relative
productivity. (MacKenzie)
3.
A. In 1993 and 1994 they took out ads in USA Today and local
alternative weeklies. (Newsweek)
B. He was just trying to remove the implication that Republicans
want to cut Medicare to pay for tax breaks for the rich.
(Newsweek)
C. The SPICEGIRLS brought their annoying Britpop to the United
States, spearheaded by the hit single “Wannabe.” (Newsweek)
D. Applewhite spoke of evil E.T.s who are in collusion with the
government, giving it high-tech weapons in exchange for human
genetic material. (Newsweek)
4.
A. ‘Suit yourself, Jeeves,’ I said moodily. ‘Personally, my heart is
dead and I am going to look in at the Goat and Grapes for
another of the cyanide specials and then home.’ (Wodehouse.
Life…)
B. Pooh is the favourite, of course, there’s no denying it … (Milne)
267
C. Tuesday at 5 p.m. there will be an ice cream social. All ladies
giving milk, please come early. (Lederer. Anguished…)
D. Robbers don’t distinguish between the living and the dead in
their search for victims. Most people here tear the shrouds of the
dead against them being looted. (Hunter)
5.
A. Although “the poor we shall always have with us,” they may
soon no longer be called THE ECONOMICALLY
DISADVANTAGED. (Neaman & Silver)
B. Holmes, who replaced Jim Looney, injured regular, in the third
quarter, took advantage of an erratic … pass defense to score.
(Barnhart)
C. Beginning first from an anthropological perspective that
assumes that cultural rituals also carry covert or tacit meanings
in addition to those that are explicitly recognized. (Journal of
Reading)
D. The town is a typical, sleepy, upstate New York town, the kind
Washington Irving depicted in his classics, Rip Van Winkle and
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. (Pepe)
6.
A. The feeling of freedom becomes an unreliable guide to action as
soon as would-be controllers turn to non-aversive measures, as
they are likely to do to avoid the problems raised when the
controllee escapes or attacks. (Skinner)
B. It’s not an ordinary graveyard, but it has streets with numbered
houses just like anywhere else, only very few of the living live
there. (Hunter)
C. There were too many unknowns, too many dangers. (Clarke)
D. The going is bad on a muddy road. (Barnhart)
7.
A. He is dismissed as a has-been in his profession. (Barnhart)
B. And on the public stage he will always be having to read the
script, follow the guidance, do the boss’s bidding and not mess up,
not look so full of himself as to agitate the White House politicos or
so empty as to be a parody vice president. (Newsweek)
C. Ageism is lagging behind sexism, racism, and handicappism
because even the oppressed seem to accept the discrimination.
(Jones & Alexander)
268
D. Come up from the building’s gloomy depths to the ground floor
of the Senate wing. (The Capitol Historical Society)
8.
A. But that didn’t alter the fact that Jeeves had attempted to do the
dirty on me… (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. … a hideaway for live-together couples and middle-aged gays.
(Chapman)
C. They found a couple of stiffs in the millpond. (Chapman)
D. … magazines from top slicks to minor pulps. (Chapman)
9.
A. YUPPIES, an American acronym for Young Urban
Professionals, sometimes abbreviated to Ys, has spawned many
subcategories. (Neaman & Silver)
B. Iris Murdoch. The Nice and the Good.
C. John Singleton’s “Rosewood”, the true story of whites on a
murderous rampage in a black Florida town in the ’20s, made
just $2 million opening weekend. (Newsweek)
D. He switched from the Stags to the Edmonds because they had
uniforms, and then to the Stockham Post, an American Legion
team that made the national semifinals two straight years. (Pepe)
10.
A. Announcing IRA alternatives that recognize every individual is
unique. (Newsweek)
B. It didn’t take observers in Washington long to figure out who this
last “official” was: Gore himself. (Newsweek)
C. Within their walls I found a mix of the scary and the farcical
under the cloak of spirituality. (Newsweek)
D. The customer-service representative I reached assured me that I
didn’t have to fill out the sheaf of papers. (Newsweek)
11.
A. A brief look at specific events in years gone by. This time we
take you back 52 years to the Spring of 1944. (Reminisce)
B. Sophie Tucker, “last of the red-hot mamas”, draws big crowds
for her show at the Copacabana in New York. (Reminisce)
C. But the most laughs came from my two favorite children of the
airwaves during that era, Charlie McCarthy and “the mean
widdle kid” as portrayed on air by the one and only Red Skelton.
(Reminisce)
269
D. Naturally enough I took her to the art gallery at the first
opportunity, and showed her my find. (Science Fiction)
12.
A.
13.
A. There was a young lady of Niger,
Who smiled as she rode on a tiger.
They returned from the ride
With the lady inside –
And the smile on the face of the tiger. (Topsy-Turvy World)
B. Steamer Gave Him the Ride of a Lifetime. (Reminisce)
C. This rule is a must. (Barnhart)
D. Twenty years ago she was the centre of attraction in social
circles; now she is just one of the has-beens. (Wood & Hill)
14.
A. Once upon a time, the New Hampshire Lawn Tennis Association
sponsored a slogan contest. (Lederer. Adventures…)
B. The soap has a greasy feel. (Barnhart)
C. Being friendly is a do, but being possessive is a don’t. (Chapman)
D. Then I had a stroke of good luck. (Lederer. Adventures…)
15.
A. With all this added up you get a total spend of somewhere
around ₤80 million, and that is really quite a formidable sum of
money. (Ayto)
B. … numerous “sees” or visits from the sergeant. (Chapman)
C. … a few of the other main do’s. (Chapman)
D. The Tweed do was held early last December. (Chapman)
270
“Where,” said Ronald, pointing to a package on the top of
Martin’s laden bag, “did you get your frozen peas?”
“Clayton’s.”
“How much?”
“One and six. That’s for a small packet; does for two. A large is
two and six; six helpings. (Spark)
B. A Friend of mine was married to a scold,
To me he came, and all his troubles told! (Topsy-Turvy World)
C. Four years later, Washington’s heirs finally decided against removing
the General’s remains from Mount Vernon. (The US Capitol History Society)
D. THE GROUP above recalls our trips to the shore to swim.
(Reminisce)
16.
A. Look at each of the next ten lines and see if you can come up
with a riposte to each one that matches or rivals the original.
(Brandreth)
B. Of all the dreadfully good and wonderfully bad puns I have come
across, my favorite is the payoff in Bennett Cerf’s story about
the private detective hired to unearth a missing person named
Rhee who used to work for Life magazine in New York.
(Brandreth)
C. “The English have really everything in common with the
Americans, except, of course, language,” said Oscar Wilde
when he heard the audience in New York weren’t queuing to see
his play: they were standing in line at the box office. (Brandreth)
D. There are scores of English words about which the British and
the Americans don’t seem to agree. (Brandreth)
*QUIZ SEVEN
Each of the following sets contains a word converted through ellipses of a unique
phrase (i.e. a phrase with unique valency of components). Can you identify it?
1.
A. The sky was an adventure Bush had promised himself in 1944
when, as a young U.S. Navy aviator, he bailed out of his torpedo
bomber when it was shot down by Japanese gunners over the
Pacific. (Newsweek)
B. Nowadays a jumbo is a jet, but once he was an African elephant.
The original Jumbo was the London Zoo’s first African elephant
(1865). In 1881 Phineas T. Barnum bought him (for ₤ 2,000) for
his circus. Jumbo was a gigantic animal, 11 1/2 feet in height, 6
1/2 tons in weight, an accomplished performer and something of
a star on both sides of the Atlantic. (Brandreth)
C. B movie: A usually low-budget movie intended for the broad
middle ground of taste and meant to be primarily entertaining
and narrative rather than serious, artistic, etc. (Chapman)
D. British spoken here. (Brandreth)
2.
A. The Dow industrials are up sharply because most of them are
big S&P stocks. (Newsweek)
271
B. Earlier this year Albright ordered U.S. diplomats to monitor
women’s rights as “an integral objective” of American foreign
policy. (Newsweek)
C. In the absence of any major new movements in the art world, this
Biennial opts for a synopsis of what commercial galleries are
showing. (Newsweek)
D. Hotels didn’t have television in those days. Reading was the
baseball player’s only diversion, his only escape from the
boredom of long, tedious road trips. And so Brown reached for
one of his medical texts, while Berra dipped into his seemingly
inexhaustible supply of the classics – Superman comics,
perhaps, or Batman and Robin, or Mutt and Jeff. (Pepe)
3.
A.
4.
A. … the company of village literati and village blues. (Barnhart)
B. Do as Bongartz, Rambo, and Youngquist do. Ease yourself to
sleep creating Croakers in the dark. (Brandreth)
C. Some of our oldest, finest words are gone for good. Others are
with us still – but sorely neglected. (Brandreth)
D. Men sleep 10 minutes more than women, and the difference rises
to 20 minutes more in the fifties and 50 minutes more in the
seventies. (Brandreth)
5.
A.
272
“For-ward-march!” cried all the generals, with one voice.
(Baum)
B. My schedule, which is on a tag that you tie to your robe, showed
me having two aerobic classes, a yoga class, a facial, a massage,
two dance classes, a warm hose treatment, fifteen minutes in the
steam box and a whirlpool dip … (Clark. Weep…)
C. Most of those who score from 0 through 10 out of 60 are children
aged 6 through 9. Others include backward children and adult
illiterates. (Brandreth)
D. Try to behave like an adult. (Barnhart)
The aftereffects of the sedative made it impossible to think
clearly. (Clark. Weep…)
B. Every one of the adjectives derives from the name of a bird or
beast. (Brandreth)
C. You’re crazy if you think Elizabeth has the hots for Ted. If she
did why the hell would she be putting a noose around his neck?
(Clark. Weep…)
D. Almost everyone has a slanguage of their own – the Mafia, the
middle class, sportswriters, disc jockeys, teachers, blacks,
cowboys, gays, even undertakers (they call coffins cans and
corpses heavies) … (Brandreth)
6.
A. We have come to accept that vice presidents may be told by
their principals to take the low road and do the political hatchet
work so that those principals might be seen as above-the-fray
statesmen. (Newsweek)
B. The happiest day is that day in the past that you always run back
to when the present proves unbearable. (Brandreth)
C. While the Negro was being assimilated, however, America was
adding such Negro contributions as jazz music and spirituals to
its cultural store. (Barnhart)
D. So just before newspaper deadlines in the United States, another
more “senior administration official” hurried to tell reporters
that Gore had indeed sternly warned of “consequences” if the
“China money” story was right. (Newsweek)
7.
A. There was a long pause, whilst Ursula stitched and Gudrun
went on with her sketch. (Lawrence. Women…)
B. ‘He has the appeal of Robin Hood and of Macheath in “The
Beggar’s Opera”,’ Alistair Cooke says of Humphrey DeForest
Bogart at the outset of “Bacall on Bogart”, which airs at 8:30
p.m. Friday on WTTW-Ch.11. (Ayto)
C. While Saffy scolds, “Mad fat old cow!” her dysfunctional mum
parties with best friend Patsy (Joanna Lumley) and works
desperately at being trendy. (Newsweek)
D. Upstairs in the nursery Mary Poppins was airing the clothes by
the fire… (Travers)
8.
A.
In the 1993 World Championships, he placed second in HighLimit Omaha and fourth in Seven-Card Stud. (Lederer.
Adventures…)
B. The teacher suited the punishment to the offense by making
Dick sweep up the bits of paper he had thrown. (Barnhart)
273
C. Moreover, Howard’s $56,250 prize money warms the heart of a
father who firmly believes that people should be rewarded for
the sweat of their brains. (Lederer. Adventures…)
D. But who among us is gifted with such vastness of visual memory
that we can spell words solely by the eye? (Lederer. Adventures…)
*QUIZ EIGHT
Each of the following sets contains a case of simultaneous compounding /
conversion. Can you identify it?
1.
A. Two women, fortysomething going on 14, chain-smoke, chaindrink and basically do as many drugs and men as they can get
their hands on. (Newsweek)
B. He criticized Berra privately and publicly, second-guessed him,
threatened him. (Pepe)
C. You're going to role-play four short telephone conversations
involving requests, offers and asking permission. (Jones &
Alexander)
D. How did the debate get side-tracked? Although President
Clinton deserves much credit for putting health care at the top of
the nation’s agenda he veered badly off course with his promise
of a vast expansion of federal entitlements. (Newsweek)
2.
A. The new carrier is an attempt (the third, so far) to introduce a
full-frills, first-class service to America’s skies. (Ayto)
B. All the bands on Ruthless have been trying in the traditional way
to get a record out. Either they’re total f**k-ups …, on acid all
the time, in another world, or they won’t suck dick. They don’t
network. They don’t meet people, don’t make connections. (Ayto)
C. Reagan went through ‘inoffensiveness’ training with behavioural
psychologists who, in the process of goofproofing their
candidate, soon learned that his limitation was attention to detail
and that his asset was his buoyant humour. (Ayto)
D. One reason for short-cutting the legal order … is the
unwillingness some judges are showing now to sign such orders.
(Barnhart)
274
3.
A. Even after Lee jump-started black cinema in the 80s, there was
only a market for contemporary films about boyz and the hood.
(Newsweek)
B. MIC vice-presidents M.G. Pandithan and S.S. Subramaniam
were handed show-cause letters yesterday asking them why they
should not be expelled from the party. (Ayto)
C. The Netherlands, too, seems to be trying to ‘kick-start
manufacturers into the wind energy industry’, according to one
British turbine designer. (Ayto)
D. Having taped his lines before the show, he lip-synched his
pronouncements. (Chapman)
4.
A. This specific chunk of a healthy and effective confrontation
actually piggybacks the chunk I’ve just discussed. (Reilly)
B. Lenin masterminded the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. (Makkai)
C. I was shortchanged by the cashier when I got seven dollars
back instead of eight. (Makkai)
D. The treated wool … can be safely … tumble-dried without
danger of shrinking. (Barnhart)
5.
A.
6.
A. Candidate must sight-read in addition to playing … orchestral
passages. (Barnhart)
B. There were designers, photographers, models, film-makers,
fabric-creators, artists, some of the biggest in the business, some
especially flown across Europe for the evening, and some who
had simply bankrolled their way in. (Ayto)
C. He is very straightforward. He doesn’t dog-and-pony you.
(Ayto)
Quality marriage couples rarely expect each other to mind read.
(Reilly)
B. They brainstorm possible solutions to begin with. (Reilly)
C. I dragged up all the garbage I had gunnysacked over the year
having to do with her frequent attacks of forgetfulness. (Reilly)
D. How much more exciting and stimulating it is for them to write
a comparison/contrast essay on two types of dinosaurs, for
example, if they can use illustrations in the page layout.
(Journal of Reading)
275
D. The commuter on the Blessed Circle Line … carries on reading
in spite of the fact that she is wedged in so tight between alien
bodies that her feet only touch the ground when the driver
cowboys over points. (Ayto)
7.
A. That got off to a bad start when TCI’s John Malone, who had
stakes in both QVC and HSN, blindsided Diller by buying HSN
before Diller could even gear up in his new job, says an industry
source. (Newsweek)
B. “I don’t think Hollywood was ready to showcase a film where
black people actually take control of their destiny and fight back
and kill without being punished,” he [Henry Louis Gates Jr.]
says. (Newsweek)
C. Prices were skyrocketing. (Barnhart)
D. For another example, suppose you are assigned to headline a
story about the fact that the film industry has been churning out
lavish productions, such as the story of Peter Pan grown up and
the saga of gangster Bugsy Siegel? (Lederer. Adventures…)
8.
A. It’s always nice to believe in something. Some people believe
that a cute little creature with floppy ears and a fluffy tail
hoppity-hopped around last week, hiding eggs for people to
find on Sunday. (Newsweek)
B. To pass the time, the crew could use a communal room for
meetings, meals, Laserdisc showings and CD-ROMing.
(Newsweek)
C. In Berlin he attempts to ape an anachronistic charisma; at home,
besieged on health care, he backpedals into campaign mode…
(Newsweek)
D. Highlight key sections and try to agree what really happened.
(Jones & Alexander)
9.
A. It’s time to spring-clean the office and open up a few more
windows. (Barnhart)
B. Think a pair of this summer’s street-smart sunglasses will make
you look cutting-edge? Too late, you’re already mainstream.
(Newsweek)
C. This year’s buzzword is tarmac and it is already reaching verb
276
status, as in: ‘He spent the day tarmacking across the South.’ (Ayto)
D. The number of signers of the petition for a new school
snowballed. (Barnhart)
10.
A. What you have been looking at in a proper paper such as The
Times consists of as many words as are in three novels of
average length, written, subbed, designed, cut to fit exactly into
the jigsaw, standfirsted, headlined, printed and delivered on to
your breakfast table in 12 hours flat. (Ayto)
B. Just to be sure I was covering all the bases, I’d usually throw in a
few of the old stand-bys that have always played havoc with
conjugal love and family love: alcoholism, drug abuse, infidelity,
sexual incompatibility, financial stress, extended family
problems, etc. (Reilly)
C. The old standstill Mexico of mañana and the travel posters is
scrambling toward prosperity. (Barnhart)
D. Though Princess Diana was originally helped by Anna Harvey, a
fashion editor at Vogue, she is now a free-wheeling and
independent shopper amongst British designers… There was a
distinct stand-off with the Emanuels after the wedding-dress
designers signed up with showbiz PR Mark McCormac and
began lending their name to commercial lines of tights,
sunglasses and scent. (Ayto)
*QUIZ NINE
Each of the following sets contains a nonce word coined by conversion. Can
you identify it?
1.
A. Why, was he lunching the girl at this God-forsaken eatery?
(Wodehouse. Life…)
B. Earlier this year Albright ordered U.S. diplomats to monitor
woman’s rights as “an integral objective” of American foreign
policy. (Newsweek)
C. It had taken him less than three minutes to find an unlocked car
on the street and “hot-wire” it, and moments later he was headed
for Jennifer Parker’s house. (Sheldon. Rage…)
277
D. “Very nice going,” Ngo said. “We are having a field trip on
Saturday. First one. Very exciting. The whole class will be
tripping.” “Going,” Johnny said, smiling at the image of Ngo
Phat’s whole citizenship class freaking on LSD or psilocybin.
(King. The Dead…)
2.
A. He stopped his attack, stepped back, and bowed, keeping his
eyes glued to the teenager. (Hiller)
B. To be called a serpent and crocodile one minute and hugged and
darlinged the next was somewhat disconcerting until time and
experience took the edge of it. (Montgomery)
C. They passed a kooch joint. Three girls stood out front in sequined
skirts and bras. They were shimmying to an old Jerry Lewis tune
while the barker hawked them through a microphone. (King. The
Dead…)
D. The days were so hot that even the cicadas started singing earlier
and siesta-ed during the heat of the day, … (Durrell. The
Garden…)
3.
A. ‘… Jeeves?’
‘Sir?’
‘I’m sitting on the roof.’
‘Very good, sir.’
‘Don’t say “very good”. Come and help us. Mr. Filmer and I are
treed, Jeeves.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. “… but Di Silva won’t make a deal. He’s not after Wilson – he’s
after me.”
Ken Bailey looked at her thoughtfully. “Maybe he’s trying to
psych you out. He wants you running scared.” (Sheldon. Rage…)
C. When one person begins to “should” all over another, the latter
inevitably begins to ask why questions, followed by should
statements – and the argument goes on! (Reilly)
D. The ifs of history are not very profitable. (Barnhart)
4.
A. Behaving porcinely, she grew up wearing cute little pigtails and
porkpie hats, happy as a pig in spit when her relatives, sweating
like pigs, carried her around the farm on piggy-back. (Lederer.
Get Thee…)
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B. There is a cut-rate drugstore on the corner. (Makkai)
C. She slapped him on the back and said, “You do what you gotta
do, sport.”
Sport! The chauffeur winced. It was his punishment for being
reduced to chauffeuring rental cars. (Sheldon. If…)
D. She sat back in the cab, filled with rage at what they had done to
her and with shame at how easily they had conned her.
(Sheldon. If…)
5.
A. I climbed into the car, nosed slowly out of the car park, up the
racecourse road, and turned out towards Brighton. (Francis.
Dead…)
B. ‘… He doesn’t know by intuition who you are.’
‘You wouldn’t let it gradually dawn upon him in the course of
the narrative?’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. … and the children had practically mobbed her, shouting things
at her that she didn’t understand, until she had lost her head and
had taken to her heels… (Hunter)
D. “Vera …” Herb began.
“Don’t you Vera me. This is foolishness. Doesn’t the Bible say,
ask and it shall be given…?” (King. The Dead…)
6.
A. He was geographically correct. About fifty yards east of the Ritz
there is one of those blighted tea-and-bun shops you see dotted
about all over London, and into this, if you’ll believe me, young
Bingo dived like a homing rabbit… (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. She and young Tuppy are generally supposed to be more or less
engaged, though nothing definitely ‘Morning Posted’ yet.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Almost before I realized they were in the place, they had
collared the best chairs, pinched a couple of my special
cigarettes … (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. They started to follow her out of the cage and it was then that I
discovered that dormice, like shrews, have a habit of
caravanning. (Durrell. The Garden…)
7.
A. … I found it difficult for a while to spot Seppings. Presently,
however, he hove in view, doing fearfully lissom things in mid-
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floor. I ‘Hi-Seppings!’-ed a couple of times, but his mind was
too much on his job to be diverted … (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. He uncovered the fragrant eggs and b., and I pronged a moody
forkful. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. … and my slice of cake … fell to the ground and was wolfed by
Aunt Agatha’s spaniel, Robert. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. I had read solid literature till my eyes bubbled; we had legged it
together through miles of picture galleries; and I had been
compelled to undergo classical concerts to an extent you would
hardly believe. (Wodehouse. Life…)
8.
A. Red drawing pins were stuck into it at random, one of them
anchoring a note which in large letters announced briefly,
BACK FOR GRUB. (Fancis. Longshot)
B. I don’t want to wrong anybody … (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. HE (at a drugstore counter): “Can I have a dozen condoms,
miss?”
SHE: “Don’t miss me, mister!”
HE: “Well then, you better make it thirteen.” (Lederer.
Nothing…)
D. For directly I opened my eyes on the morrow, I saw daylight.
Well, I don’t mean that exactly, because naturally I did. What I
mean is that I found I had the thing all mapped out.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
9.
A. How unwilling we are to endorse the KISS approach (Keep It
Simple, Stupid) to the problem-solving process. (Reilly)
B. ‘Jeeves, I’m sorry to say that fiancee of yours – Miss Watson,
you know – the cook, you know – well, the long and the short of
it is that she’s chosen riches instead of honest worth, if you know
what I mean.’
‘Sir?!’
‘She’s handed you the mitten and gone and got engaged to old
Mr. Little!’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. … Angela had just regained her board after taking a toss, when a
great beastly shark came along and cannoned into it, flinging her
into the salty once more. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. … as the plane taxied down the runway Jennifer could see signs
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of construction still going on. (Sheldon. Rage…)
10.
A. ‘Thank goodness,’ said Aunt Agatha, ‘arrangements have at last
been made about Eustace and Claude.’
‘Arrangements?’ I said, not having the foggiest. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
B. The meek shall inherit the earth – they’re too weak to refuse.
(Brandreth)
C. Even hypochondriacs can be ill. (Brandreth)
D. Reality is good sometimes for kicks, but don’t let it get you
down. (Brandreth)
11.
A. They brainstorm possible solutions to begin with. (Reilly)
B. They also know that those philosophers of life who limited their
views of the human condition to such bi-polar descriptions as
“highs and lows,” “peaks and valleys,” “ups and downs,” etc.,
failed to include in their descriptions the place where we actually
spend most of our time in life, in neutral! (Reilly)
C. “Must be a short in one of the outlets. Probably shorted out the
whole system. How many air-conditioning vents do you have?”
(Sheldon. If…)
D. “I have asked him to Propose a Rissolution.” And he sat down
again. “Now then, Eeyore,” he said.
“Don’t Bustle me,” said Eeyore, getting up slowly. “Don’t nowthen me.” (Milne)
12.
A. This place is in my blood; our family has summered here for
three centuries. (Clark. Remember…)
B. “Well,” said Pooh, “if I plant a honeycomb outside my house,
then it will grow up into a beehive.”
Piglet wasn’t quite sure about this.
“Or a piece of a honeycomb,” said Pooh, “so as not to waste too
much. Only then I might only get a piece of a beehive, and it
might be the wrong piece, where the bees were buzzing and not
hunnying. Bother.” (Milne)
C. She lugged in the fax machine they’d lent her at the office. She’d
hook it up to the second line in her father’s study. (Clark. I’ll
Be…)
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D. Budge put a beefy arm around Jeff. “Hey, buddy, this is your
brother-in-law. We’re family, remember?” He gave Jeff a bear
hug. (Sheldon. If…)
13.
A. “Then I shan’t be exactly a human?” Peter asked.
“No.”
“Not exactly a bird?”
“No.”
“What shall I be?”
“You will be a Betwixt-and-Between,” Solomon said, and
certainly he was a wise old fellow, for that is exactly how it
turned out. (Barrie)
B. … Dorothy breakfasted like a Princess off peaches and plums
from the trees beside the river. (Baum)
C. There is no more awful story of the Gardens than this of
Marmaduke Perry, who had been Mary-Annish three days in
succession, and was sentenced to appear in the Broad Walk
dressed in his sister’s clothes. (Barrie)
D. You only wanted to hear from me once a month, didn’t you? And
I’ve been peppering you with letters every few days. (Webster)
*QUIZ TEN
Each of the following sets contains a neologism formed by conversion. Can
you identify it?
1.
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A. When a product achieves wide popular appeal, its name may
become a lowercase word for all products of its type, not just a
particular brand. (Lederer. Crazy…)
B. A California-based group called Citizens for Honest Government
is bankrolling Nichols’s career as radio talk-show and video
star. (Newsweek)
C. When Diller hammered away at Roth’s faith in his proposed
movie “Hoffa”, Roth had to think twice, and set up a finance
deal to protect Fox from losses. (Newsweek)
D. Eighteen months ago, everyone agreed that the bottom line to
health-care reform had to be controlling the skyrocketing costs
that are busting the federal budget – and devastating families,
businesses and the economy as a whole. (Newsweek)
2.
A. Setting out in his ragtop Corvette and his new Gulfstream, Diller
launched a job search that took him to the frontiers of corporate
America – and out of the entertainment industry for the first
time. (Newsweek)
B. “It was a devastating find,” said Freeh. (Newsweek)
C. Some economic reform is a must. (Newsweek)
D. Bud McFarlane picked up where his predecessor had left off,
treating North like a son. McFarlane took him under his wing,
bypassing a complicated chain of command. Bud is careful,
circumspect, and along comes can-do Ollie to fulfill his Walter
Mitty fantasies, says one Capitol leader. (Ayto)
3.
A. Two of the crewmen spent Saturday night in a Bristol hospital
after a car rear-ended the team’s passenger van at a stop-light
on U.S. 11. (Ayto)
B. I wish Jeeves wouldn’t go gassing all over the place. It was
supposed to be confidential. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. The NEA [National Edowment for the Arts] had made a grant to
the Walker Art Center to sponsor a series of performances, one
of which was Athley’s. (Newsweek)
D. But as Armstrong laughingly confessed to me, “I didn’t have
that much courage.” (Newsweek)
4.
A. While Saffy scolds, “Mad fat old cow!” her dysfunctional mum
parties with best friend Patsy (Joanna Lumley) and works
desperately at being trendy. (Newsweek)
B. He had set out in another direction, planning to go down to Boston
and take in the Red Sox at Fenway Park, then maybe go over to
Cambridge and nose through the bookshops. (King. The Dead…)
C. “Ab Fab’s” four letter punch lines will be bleeped for tender
American ears. (Newsweek)
D. One of the worst examples is the use of the word “office” as a
verb, said Mr. Jim Seymour, a distinguished consultant, writing
in the latest issue of the American journal, PC Magazine. People
say: “Where do you office?” or “I office in 42nd street.” (Ayto)
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5.
A. She turned and headed down the corridor. (Sheldon. If...)
B. “Homing pigeons are never white,” Gunther explained, “because
white feathers come off too easily, and when pigeons are
homing, they fly at an average of forty miles an hour. (Sheldon.
If…)
C. Later this month the stretch of river alongside the Palace of
Westminster will witness a unique event: a charity regatta in
which dozens of boats manned (and womanned) by various
Parliamentary groups will compete. (Ayto)
D. It had taken me a couple of seconds to place this head. I now
perceived that it belonged to a rather moth-eaten septuagenarian
of the name of Anstruther, an old friend of Aunt Dahlia’s late
father. (Wodehouse. Life…)
6.
A. “It’s looking a lot like last year’s fight over the economic plan,”
says the administration official. “Even the undecideds are the
same.” (Newsweek)
B. I’ve learned that you should never play for a tie score. Go for the
win. (Brown)
C. I’ve learned that it’s just as important to forget a wrong as it is
to remember a kindness. (Brown)
D. It is also believed the winning agency could benefit from an
increased spend on the account of up to ₤1.5 million. (Ayto)
7.
A. ‘That bloody boy,’ he said at last in a sort of muted roar. ‘He tried
to brain me … hit me with a pair of sodding great deer horns!’
(Durrell. The Garden…)
B. I’ve learned that you never get rewarded for the things you
intended to do. (Brown)
C. This is assuming that 95 people out of every 100 you mail do
absolutely nothing with this opportunity and bin this packet. (Ayto)
D. I’ve learned that it takes as much time and energy to wish as it
does to plan. (Brown)
8.
A. Downsized to about 200 works by 70-odd artists, the 1997
Biennial is slickly professional. (Newsweek)
B. A. His attempt to make a friendship with teachers in order to
have the academic load lessened suggests that his social behavior
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is pretty inappropriate.
Q. So anybody that tries to brownnose a teacher has got a
problem?
A. You betcha, if it doesn’t work. (Lederer. Disorder…)
C. As she toured Africa last week, Mrs. Clinton once again tried to
highlight the plight of women around the world. (Newsweek)
D. This doctor is a salaried employee, and he actually knows other
doctors in the plan because they all work in the same building.
(Newsweek)
9.
A. Since the 1960s, addicted New Yorkers (and those from other
fast lanes) have soaked up residential detox and dry-out
programs like the ones at the North Star State’s renowned
Haselden Foundation and St. Mary’s Chemical Dependency
Services. (Newsweek)
B. The saga of steak’s decline could be seen as yet more evidence of
the wimping out of America. We’re becoming a timid, dainty
people so health-conscious and politically correct that being seen
eating anything so ostentatious as a big slab of beef is simply bad
form. (Newsweek)
C. Not that he ever shied away from public. (Newsweek)
D. The Africans were freed. (Newsweek)
10.
A. To cut costs, ranchers have switched to breeds of cattle that
seem to produce inferior meat. (Newsweek)
B. Within their walls I found a mix of the scary and the farcical
under the cloak of spirituality. (Newsweek)
C. The extraordinary Renfro, a real find, and the accomplished
Sarandon make the gradually deepening bond between these two
palpable and touching. (Newsweek)
D. This gives rise to the suspicion that many of the statistics
Americans receive come from sources less interested in precisely
measuring a given problem than in showing that it’s even worse
than anyone thought. (Newsweek)
11.
A. Some slaughterhouses, feed-lots and ranchers are experimenting
with “alliances” to raise quality and try branded products.
(Newsweek)
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B. There are signs of a beef revival; steakhouses are on the rise. But
these harbingers are pitted against powerful demographics:
aging baby boomers will eat less steak, and many of their
children don’t have a taste for it. (Newsweek)
C. The average doc worked simultaneously for 13 HMOs last year,
according to the American Medical Association. Imagine how
easy it is to change your work habits to fit 13 sets of criteria each
day. Now compare this multitasking doctor with one at Kaiser
Permanente, one of the oldest HMOs in the country.
(Newsweek)
D. Where do they toil? In one big facility, pooling information on
patients and techniques. (Newsweek)
12.
A. The law of self-defense as currently codified in most states
recognizes this, and is a male version of survival – two physical
and emotional equals duking it out or facing off “High Noon”
style, pistols at the ready. (Newsweek)
B. As for new subsides, they should be limited to helping lowincome Americans purchase no-frills coverage for doctor and
hospital bills, period. (Newsweek)
C. It mattered not if the victims were unarmed or asleep when the
“wronged” man blew them away in his fit of jealous rage.
(Newsweek)
D. Its first “throw” would come during one of the monthlong Earthto-Mars launch windows that roll around every 26 months.
(Newsweek)
QUIZ ELEVEN
Identify one of the meanings of a polysemantic word as a source of
conversion of the given target word.
1. That’s part of the reason I don’t remember most everything that I
don’t remember. I was told it was attributed to the hit on the head by
two neurologists. (Lederer. Disorder…)
HIT v. (v. t.; v. i.)
A. to give a blow to; strike; knock
286
2.
3.
4.
5.
B. to get to (what is aimed at)
C. to come on; meet with; get to; reach; find
D. to have a painful effect on; affect severely
E. to attack or criticize sharply
F. to agree with; suit exactly
G. to reach or touch directly or effectively
H. to ignite a mixture in a cylinder
I. to make a base hit
Headliner Eddie Rabbit provided a rousing conclusion to the
festivities, performing all of his hits, visiting with fans and signing
autographs. (Reminisce) [see prec.]
Q. There’s a name on here, George Re-s-i-n-d-a-s. Do you know how
to pronounce his name, so I won’t butcher it?
A. George. (Lederer. Disorder…)
BUTCHER n.
A. a man who sells meat
B. a man whose work is killing animals for food
C. a brutal killer; murderer
D. U.S. a vender; peddler, esp. a man who goes through trains selling
magazines, candy, etc.
E. Informal, a person who botches or bungles
Royalties from Evelyn Waugh’s works in the couple of years after
Brideshead was boxed brought about ₤20,000 to each of his six
children. (Ayto)
BOX n.
A. a container, usually lidded, made of a stiff material
B. the contents of a box
C. the quantity a box will hold
D. a small separated compartment in a theater
E. a special compartment in a court of law
F. a compartment in a stable for a horse
G. a wide gash cut in a tree to collect sap or resine
H. Slang an accordion
I. Slang a camera
J. Slang a refrigerator
K. Informal television or a television set
I also skated in Sonja’s 1940-41 “Hollywood Ice Revue”, which played
to sold-out audiences across the country. She was dating
287
6.
7.
8.
9.
multimillionaire Dan Topping then, and it was a kick seeing them hold
hands backstage like any other sweethearts. (Reminisce)
DATE n.
A. the time when something happened
B. a statement of time
C. a period of time
D. the time that anything lasts; duration
E. an appointment to go out socially
F. an engagement for a performance
“That’s because TV journalism is simplistic,” she responded. “Its people
are trained to look for strong, quick impact, so they avoid the
thoughtful, the cerebral, which take up too much air time…” (Hailey.
Strong…)
AIR n.
A. a colorless, odorless, tasteless, gaseous mixture, mainly nitrogen
and oxygen, the earth’s atmosphere
B. the sky; firmament
C. a breeze of wind
D. aircraft
E. air-waves
F. a characteristic impression; aura
G. personal bearing or manner
H. pl. an affected pose
I. a melody or tune
‘He has the appeal of Robin Hood and of Macheath in “The Beggar’s
Opera”,’ Alistair Cooke says of Humphrey DeForest Bogart at the
outset of “Bacall on Bogart”, which airs at 8:30 p.m. Friday on
WTTW-Ch 11. (Ayto) [see prec.]
Upstairs in the nursery Mary Poppins was airing the clothes by the fire
and the sunlight poured in at the window, flickering on the white walls,
dancing over the cots where the babies were lying. (Travers) [see prec.]
This kind of spousal competition, which is the primary cause of marital
discord, results from the inability of partners to flip-flop their way to
mutual accomodation. (Reilly)
FLIP-FLOP n.
A. a turnabout; reversal
B. an acrobatic stunt of jumping forward and backward landing
alternately on hands and feet
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10.
11.
12.
13.
C. a switching unit used in electronic equipment, which changes
physical states, frequencies, etc., upon certain impulses
D. pl. bathing sandals, esp. the kind where a strap fits between one’s toes
Q. When was the next occasion that you had difficulty with your wife?
A. April 27, I believe it was, when she backed over me with the
automobile. (Lederer. Disorder…)
BACK n.
A. the part of a person’s body opposite to his face or to the front part
of his body; the part of any animal’s body which is like this, usually
uppermost and opposite to that on which it walks, crawls, or
supports itself
B. the backbone; spine; the power to act or continue to act
C. the rear, upper or further part
D. the rear part of an object serving to support or protect
E. the reverse or under side
F. that part of a garment which covers the back
G. Sports a player who takes a position behind the front line
Between 1944 and 1971, many currencies were pegged against the US
dollar, i.e. their parities with the US dollar were fixed. (MacKenzie)
PEG n.
A. a small cylindrical or tapered pin, as of wood, used to fasten things
or plug a hole
B. a degree or notch
C. a straight throw of a ball
D. a pretext or occasion
Now, Mr. Stern. Your mother, Helen Stern, lives here in Madera. You
know her pretty well? (Lederer. Disorder…)
PRETTY adj.
A. pleasing or attractive in a graceful or delicate way
B. clever; adroit
C. very bad; terrible
D. superficially attractive but lacking substance
E. Informal considerable in size or extent
F. Archaic brave; bold
“In other words, you’re just going to be a symbolic figurehead – to
reign, like the Queen of England, but not rule.” (Huxley)
RULE n.
A. governing power; authority
289
B. an authoritative direction for conduct or procedure
C. a usual or customary course of action or behavior
D. a statement that describes what is true in most or all cases
E. a standard method or procedure
F. a ruler
14. HELPMATE
Q. What were you expecting from your marriage that never occurred?
A. Well, somebody to help shoulder the burden of being married.
(Lederer. Disorder…)
SHOULDER n.
A. the part of the body to which an arm or foreleg or wing is attached
B. the joint by which the arm or the foreleg is connected to the trunk
C. the part of a garment covering this
D. the foreleg and adjoining parts of a slaughtered animal, used for food
E. a shoulderlike part or projection
15. She [Sonja Henie] was the greatest and caused a big sensation when her
ice show came to Chicago every Christmas. (Reminisce)
SHOW v. (v.i.; v.t.)
A. to let be seen; put in sight; to exhibit
B. to reveal; manifest; disclose
C. to grant; give
D. to point out
E. to guide or conduct; usher
F. to make known, evident, or clear; to explain to
G. to be or become visible; make one’s or its appearance
H. to make a display
I. to be evident or noticeable
J. Informal to appear in or present a theatrical performance
K. Sports to finish third in a race (contrasted with win and place)
*QUIZ TWELVE
Identify the type of semantic relationship by conversion.
N→V
A. action characteristic of the object; agential [To act as N with respect to...]
B. instrumental use of the object [To ... with N as instrument]
290
C. acquisition or addition of the object [To get/give/have N; to provide with N]
D. deprivation of the object [To deprive of N ]
E. locative [To put in /on N; to go/get in/to N ]
F. transformation of the object [To make/change ... into N]
G. transportation [To send/go by N ]
H. resultative [To give birth to N ]
1. Monday afternoon we spent canoeing on the Thames. (Francis.
Decider)
2. “... Someday we may know how to tailor a diet to an individual’s genetic
makeup,” says Ronnie Liebman, a nutritionist with the Center for
Science in the Public Interest ... (Newsweek)
3. Mr. Wolfe: Don’t try to buffalo him and intimidate him by telling him
what’s going to happen at trial. That’s what I object to. (Lederer.
Disorder…)
4. It seemed a fascinating idea. George gathered wood and made a fire, and
Harris and I started to peel the potatoes. (Jerome)
5. Investment is closely linked to consumption, and only takes place when
demand and output are growing. (MacKenzie)
6. Pretty soon he pulled himself together and went to the bank and cashed
a fat check. Then he came back and gave Emily the money. (Mangum)
7. “ ... My idea of mending holes is to cobble the two sides together and
hope for the best.”
“Botch it, do you ? You’re about to make a botch of this job too, if you
don’t mind my saying so. ...” (Hunter)
8. ... I should think it would prejudice the girl against him pretty badly.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
9. The Tysons and Perdues must care about product reputation; otherwise
shoppers will buy something else. Helming thinks the beef industry
should do likewise. He’d scrap the grading system (note: this is not
meat safety) to compel competition on the basis of brand recognition
and quality. (Newsweek)
10. He examined the chess problem and set out the pieces. It was a tricky
ending, envolving a couple of knights. “White to play and mate in two
moves.” Winston looked up at the portrait of Big Brother. White always
mates, he thought with a sort of cloudy mysticism. Always, without
exception, it is so arranged. In no chess problem since the beginning of
the world has black ever won. (Orwell)
291
11. “Do you save up money for a rainy day, dear ?”
“Oh, no! I never shop when it rains.” (English Humour)
12. He had been pretty fatherly and debonair when ladling out the prizes
for the other events, but now he had suddenly grown all pained and
grieved. He peered sorrowfully at the multitude. (Wodehouse. Life…)
13. For at this juncture, as had so often happened when this girl and I were
closeted, the conversation once more went blue on us. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
14. Regan Ralph of the Women’s Project of Human Rights Watch, for
instance, is wary that rhetoric may triumph over results when Russian
and American law-enforcement officials meet this spring at a conference
held under State’s auspices to discuss the subject of forcing Russian
women into prostitution. (Newsweek)
15. We talk health while we snack. ( Newsweek)
16. ... which convinced the old boy that I was off my napper; and since
then he has always had my name at the top of his list of ‘Loonies I
have Lunched with’. ( Wodehouse. Life…)
17. I have to admit, now, when I was a young buck I was about half crazy.
There was two things I liked to do then, is run hot cars and fool with
women. (Lederer. Disorder…)
18. “No,” Jake said slowly. “I think I’ve got enough to hold for awhile. A
Senator gets shot from under me, a bank explodes in my face, and now
I’m handed a bottle of bootleg whisky.” (Rice)
19. She has proved herself the best staying filly in the country, and it was
her misfortune to be foaled in the same year as Lady Zia Werher’s
triple classic winner. (Barnhart)
20. The most important thing is that the sex discrimination legislation ... is
applied. The scheme could use what it is often criticised for, its very
closeness to employers, to challenge their practices and influence them
to change patterns of recruitment and the gendering of jobs. (Ayto)
V→N
A. state
B. subject of V
C. object or result of V
D. instrument of V
E. instance of action; process
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21. A simpler theory is that where there is no independent central bank, the
business cycle is caused by governments beginning their periods of
office with a couple of years of austerity programmes followed by tax
cuts and monetary expansion in the two years before the next election.
(MacKenzie)
22. Q. When an officer went over to where the fight was taking place at
the corner of the house, what were those people fighting doing?
A. Fighting. (Lederer. Disorder…)
23.
Punny Question
Can yeast infections give rise to anything else that you are aware
of? (Lederer. Disorder…)
24. Q. Did I read in these reports that you had trouble hearing?
A. A little bit sometimes. (Lederer. Disorder…)
25. “Well, when this ride is going full steam, the little car we’re sitting in
whips around on its little circular track and sometimes develops up to
seven g, which is only five less than the astronauts get when they lift
off from Cape Kennedy ... (King. The Dead…)
26. The sky dive was an adventure Bush had promised himself in 1944
when, as a young U.S. Navy aviator, he bailed out of his torpedo
bomber when it was shot down by Japanese gunners over the Pacific.
(Newsweek)
27. “The Last Party” is an assidious mix of memoir and reportage, not as
cutthroat as “The Warhol Diaries” but twice as smart. ( Newsweek)
28. Q. I’m just trying to get a feel for any litigation that your family –
A. Not that I know of, no.
Q. – has been involved in.
A. None. (Lederer. Disorder…)
29. “If everybody minded their own business,” said the Duchess in a
hoarse growl, “the world would go round a deal faster than it does.”
(Carroll)
30. The film showed Squelch [the horse] taking the lead coming into the
second last fence. (Francis. Enquiry)
31. “I always give Hughes orders not to treat the horse roughly.”
As if he hadn’t heard a word, Lord Gowery said, “Hughes didn’t pick
up his whip.” (Francis. Enquiry)
32. ... a tough, smart twist who got away with murder. (Chapman)
33. Nevada’s take has been hit by a recession. (Chapman)
34. A small mound of sand was all that was visible of the actual dig. (Hunter)
293
35. ... such drips ... they’re just sort of dull. (Chapman)
36. This place needs new stands and a whole new outlook ... (Francis.
Decider)
37. No one except a few notorious grinds studied that night. (Chapman)
38. Writing dictionaries is indeed a grind. (Chapman)
Adj. → V
A. (v.t.) to make (more) Adj.
B. (v.i.) to become Adj.
39. Forced to ready themselves for the 1944 season at spring training sites
closer to home, the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees announced
plans to work out in French Lick, Indiana and Atlantic City, New
Jersey, respectively. (Reminisce)
40. Let’s cool this whole business for a week or so. (Chapman)
41. At current birth rates the populations of Finland ..., of Norway ... and of
Sweden are set to grey and then to decline in the twenty-first century.
(Ayto)
42. I don’t want to wrong anybody. (Wodehouse. Life…)
43. There are also numbers of them along the Baby Walk, which is a
famous gentle place, as spots frequented by fairies are called. (Baum)
44. I’ve had singles that stiffed. (Ayto)
Adj.→N
A. person
B. object
45. Weddings are a high. (Chapman)
46. All the greats of show business have appeared at the Palace.
(Barnhart)
47. He lost his cool and bolted like a rabbit. (Chapman)
48. Privately, Gingrich’s moods are said to vary from morose lows to
maniac highs. (Newsweek)
49. He is also an intelligent and mature husband, father and professional
who has good insight into human nature, including his own ... (Reilly)
294
ABBREVIATION
Abbreviation is the act or result of reduction of word or phrase by omitting
letters or syllables.
Abbreviation Types
Graphic abbreviation is the shortened form of a word or phrase used only
in written speech to represent the whole.
E.g., Dr. (doctor), B.C. (before Christ), c.b. (cash book), Ice. (Iceland),
s.s. (sections), vltg. (voltage), wt (warrant; weight; without), e.g. (Lat.
exempli gratia: for example), Cu (Chem. Lat. cuprum: copper)
Acronym is a word formed from the first letter or letters of words in a
phrase and pronounced as an ordinary English word. Acronyms are used in
all types of speech.
Eg., EXTEND (Exercise Training for the Elderly and/or Disabled), GEMS
(Global Environmental Monitoring System [in the UN]), SWALK (Sealed
With A Loving Kiss [on envelopes]), YIP (US [a member of the] Youth
International Party)
Initialism is a word formed from the first letter or letters of words in a
phrase and pronounced as a series of letters. Initialisms are used in all types
of speech.
E.g., ACT (American College Test), NNS (Nonmetalic Sheathed Cable),
PCI (a Potential Criminal Informant), SOL (US Sl: Shit Out of luck), TGIF
(Thank God It's Friday)
Clipped Form is an independent word formed by dropping one or more
syllables from a longer word or phrase.
E.g., deb (debutante), fridge (refridgerator), phone (telephone), deli
(delicatessen), flu (influenza)
Abbreviation Mechanism
Apocope (final clipping) is the loss or omission of one or more letters or
syllables at the end of a word or phrase, or words in a phrase.
E.g., amp (ampere), co-op (co-operative), act. (actual), sp vol (specific
volume), NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), n.p.p.
(no passed proof)
295
Syncope (medial clipping) is the loss or omission of one or more letters or
syllables from the middle of a word or phrase.
E.g., maths (mathematics), fancy (fantasy), ma'am (madam), intl
(international), jnt stk (joint stock), mge (message), Dr. (doctor)
Apheresis (initial clipping) is the loss or omission of one or more letters or
syllables at the beginning of a word or phrase.
E.g.,
squire (esquire), count (account), phone (telephone), plane
(aeroplane), tend (attend), fend (defend)
Apocope + Apheresis
E.g., flu (influenza), frig (refrigerator)
Apocope + Syncope (Syncope + Apocope)
E.g., sm. caps. (Printing: small capitals), Lt-Col (Lieutenant-Colonel), Beds
(Bedfordshire)
Apheresis + Syncope
E.g., x'd (executed), xlnt (excellent)
QUIZ ONE
Identify the type of abbreviation as
A. Graphic abbreviation
B. Initialism
C. Acronym
D. Clipped form
1. Cobra
Cabinet Office Briefing Room
2. cub.
3. BISYNC
4. adder
cubic
Computing binary synchronous computations
a small poisonous snake common in Europe (fr. OE
nædre)
refrigerator
a cooperative building, enterprise
Chem. gold
sealed with a lick 'cos a kiss won't stick (on
envelopes)
commanding
charwoman
5.
6.
7.
8.
frig (fridge)
co-op
Au
SWALCAKWS
9. cmdg
10. char
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11. FLOOD
12. IOU
13. PEN
14. Fe
15. PIN
16. BLT
17. k.p.
18. ABLA
19. J-stars
20. exam
21. OE
22. c.c. (or cc)
23. arty
24. TINA
25. ECG
26. ag. feb.
27. kbd or kybd
28. SAD
29. bstr rkt
30. cute
31. a.l.c.
32. cause
33. C.O.D.
34. BBB
35. ANSI
36. CADCAM
(or CAD/CAM)
37. ₤
38. AOC-in-C
39. H of C
40. d and p
(US) fleet observation of oceanographic data
a promise to pay; written acknowledgement of a
debt (repr. I owe you)
International Association of Poets, Playrights,
Editors, Essayists, and Novelists
Chem. iron
personal identification number (used, with cash or
credit card, to access computer-based bank
accounts, etc.)
a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich
key personnel
American Business Law Association
joint surveillance and targeting acquisition radar
system
an examination
Old English (language)
carbon copy (copies)
artillery
Politics, colloquial There is no alternative (usually
referring to Margaret Thatcher)
Med. electrocardiogram
Med. aggrediente febre (Latin: when the fever increases)
keyboard
seasonal affective depression or disorder
booster rocket
attractive, charming; sharp-witted; deceptively
straightforward (fr. acute)
a la carte
Informal because
cash on delivery
bed, breakfast, and bath
American National Standards Institute
computer-aided
design,
computer-aided
manufacturing
Currency pound (Lat. libra)
Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief
House of Commons
development and printing
297
QUIZ TWO
Identify the mechanism of abbreviation in the following language units as
A. Apheresis
B. Apocope
C. Syncope
D. Apheresis + Apocope
E. Syncope + Apocope (or Apocope + Syncope)
F. Apheresis + Syncope
1. bra
2. E-in-C
3. B-girl
4.
5.
6.
7.
homo
Bet
Liza
scrum
8. hsekpr
9. ob. dk.
10. Tina
11. BBQ
12. nt. wt.
(or nt wt)
13. Rick
14. Rick
15. beds.
16. ad lib.
17. BAgEC
18. U-wear
19. MAC
(or m.a.c.)
20. hdqrs
21. v.d.t.
22. convce
23. spec
298
brassiere
Engineer-in-Chief
(fr. 1940s) A promiscuous girl or woman, esp. one who
works in a bar as a sort of hostess to stimulate the sale of
drinks; = Bar-girl
(Sl.) homosexual
Elizabeth
Elizabeth
scrummage (Brit.) a place or situation of confusion and
racket; hubbub
housekeeper
observation deck
Albertina; Christina; Clementina
barbeque
net weight
Derrick
Richard
bedrooms
ad libitum (Lat.: according to pleasure, i.e. freely)
Bachelor of Agricultural Economics
(Sl.) underwear
maximum allowable concentration
headquarters
valuable drinking time
conveyance
speculation
24. tec
25. ID
26. Col Comdt
27. MChemA
28. idolatry
29. adv. pmt.
30. RAM
31. mgt
32. for. rts.
33. fan
34. Lt-Cdr
35. Lt-Col
36. d and d
37. A to A
38. xtry
39. curtsy
40. mob
41. cycle
42. specs.
43. sci-fi
44. possum
45. B-way
46. xs
47. bros.
(or Bros.)
48. carr. fwd.
49. cinema
50. DNA
51. bk
52. afsd
53. Phil
54. Pip
55. oppy
a detective; a detective story
an identity card; identification
Colonel Commandant
Master in Chemical Analysis
idololatry
advance payment
Random Access Memory
management
foreign rights
an enthusiastic admirer of a person of talent; one who is
inordinately devoted to some sport, pastime or pursuit (fr.
fanatic)
Lieutenant-Commander
Lieutenant-Colonel
drunk and disorderly
air-to-air
extraordinary
courtesy
a disorderly or riotous crowd of people; any large group of
persons or things; fr. Lat. mobile vulgus the movable (i.e.
changeable, inconstant), common people
to ride or travel by bicycle, motorcycle or the like
specifications
(coll.) Science fiction: Sci-fi fans… He used to write scifi for the pulps.
an opossum
(USA) Broadway
expenses
brothers
(Commerce) carriage forward
cinematograph
(Genetics) deoxyribonucleic acid
bank
aforesaid
Philip
Philip
opportunity
299
56. C of B
57. wig
58. drawingroom
59. curio
60. G.P.
confirmation of balance
to eavesdrop;
to listen to (person or persons)
surreptitiously (fr. earwig)
a formal reception room (fr. withdrawing room)
a curious object of art (fr. curiosity)
a general practicioner, i.e. a doctor in general practice, as
opposed to a specialist
QUIZ THREE
Each of the following sets contains a non-abbreviated word. Can you
identify it?
1.
A. ARM
B. ARM
C. ARM
D. ARM
(US) adjustable-rate morgage
antiradar missile
atomic resolution microscope
(usu. pl) a thing used in fighting, attacking or
defending; a weapon
2.
A. MAD.
B. MAD
C. MAD
D. MAD
Madeira
mentally disturbed, deranged
magnetic anomaly detection
(Psychiatry) major affective disorder
3.
A. VERT
(Sl.) a perverted person; esp., a person who practices
sexual perversions
vertical; vertigo
a convert
In English forest law, everything within a forest that
grows and bears a green leaf, which may serve as a
cover for deer; also the right to cut green trees or wood
B. VERT.
C. VERT
D. VERT
4.
A. ACORN
B. ACORN
C. ACORN
300
the seed or fruit of the oak-tree
a classification of Residential Neighbourhoods
(directory)
(Computing) associative content retrieval network
D. ACORN
(Computing) automatic checkout and recording network
A. CAT
B. CAT
C. CAT
D. CAT.
computer-assisted tomography
computer-assisted teaching
a tripod having six feet; so called because it always
lands on three feet, however placed
catalogue
6.
A. SAT
B. sat
C. SAT
D. Sat.
(Education) standard assessment task
pt and pp of sit
(US) scholastic aptitude test
Saturday
7.
A. AIDS
B. AIDS
C. AIDS
D. (Visual)
AIDS
acquired immune deficiency syndrome
accident information display system
air force intelligence data-handling system
devices used to assist understanding or memory by
displaying what is to be understood or memorized in
a visible form (picture, chart, etc.)
8.
A. ACE
B. ACE
(Engineering) advanced cooled engine
an airman who has shot down a large number of
enemy machines
American Council on Education
Association of Cultural Exchange
5.
C. ACE
D. ACE
9.
A. BASIC
B. BASIC
C. BASIC
10.
A. DARE
B. D.A.R.E.
C. DARE
D. DARE
(Computing)
beginners’ all-purpose symbolic
instruction code (programming language)
of or at the base; essential
(in Basic English) a simplified vocabulary of 850
elementary English words: British-American
scientific, international, commercial
demand and resource evaluation
(US) Drug Abuse Resistance Education
first child born of English parents in the western
hemisphere
Dictionary of American Regional English
301
QUIZ FOUR
Each of the following sets contains an acronym. Can you identify it?
1.
A. GLAM
B. GLAM
C. GLAM
D. GLAM.
(Coll.) glamorous
(Coll.) greying, leasured, affluent, married
glamour: film-world hangers-on
Glamorgan
2.
A. MASH
B. MASH
C. MASH
D. MASH
(US sl.) a lover
(Aust. sl.) sentimental nonsense
any soft substance beaten or crushed
(US) mobile army surgical hospital
3.
A. BOSS
B. BOSS
C. BOSS
Bioastronautic Orbiting Space Station
the chief; the person in charge
(Teenagers fr. black and jazz musicians)
excellent; wonderful; = COOL
a person or thing regarded as the best
D. BOSS
4.
A. CAT
B. CAT
C. CAT
D. CAT
5.
6.
A. BEST
B. BEST
C. BEST
D. BEST
most excellent; surpassing all others
advantage
to overcome; to defent; to excel
British Expertise in Science
Technology (database)
A. COLA
(USA) cost of living adjustment (clause in
employment contracts)
alternative pl. of colon (intestine)
pl. of colon (prosody)
a genus of trees found in Africa, whose
B. COLA
C. COLA
D. COLA
302
a catamaran boat
a bulldozer or Caterpillar tractor (fr.
Caterpillar, trade name)
(Med.) computerized axial (or computerassisted) tomography
(Jazz musicians) A jazz musician
and
nuts contain caffeine
7.
8.
A. SISTER
B. SISTER
C. SISTER
(Coll.) woman; girl
Special Institutions for Scientific and
Technological Education and Research
(Black) a fellow black woman
D. SISTER
(Brit.) a nurse, especially a head nurse
A. CLASS
a number of people or things grouped
together because of certain likeness or
common traits
high social rank or caste
a group of students taught together
according to standing, subject, etc.
Computer-based
Laboratory
for
Automated School Systems
B. CLASS
C. CLASS
D. CLASS
9.
10.
A. PEEP
B. PEEP
C. PEEP
D. PEEP
A. CHIPS
B. CHIPS
C. CHIPS
D. CHIP(S)
11.
A. ABRACADABRA
B. ABRACADABRA
C. ABRACADABRA
pilot's electronic eye-level presentation
(Coll.) a word; a sound; the least utterance
the first appearance
a brief hasty look or restricted view
(Brit.) French fried potatoes
Clearing House Inter-Bank Payments
System
(US merchant marine) a ship's carpenter
(Electronics) pl. a semiconductor body
in which an integrated circuit is formed or
is to be formed
a mystical word used in incantations, on
amulets, etc., as a magical means of
warding off misfortune, harm, or illness
any charm or incantation using nonsensical
or supposedly magical words
Abbreviations and Related Acronyms
Associated with Defence, Astronautics,
Business,
and
Radio-electronics
303
D. ABRACADABRA
12.
A. GASP
B. GASP
C. GASP
D. GASP
13.
A. POETS’ DAY
B. POETS’ CORNER
C. POETS
D. POETS
(publication of Raytheon Company,
Lexington, USA)
meaningless talk, gibberish, nonsense
(USA) Group Against Smokers’ Pollution
to catch the breath suddenly or with effort,
as in surprise or in choking
to say or tell with gasps
a gasping; catching of the breath with
difficulty
(Coll.) Friday (piss off early – tomorrow’s
Saturday)
(Sl.) W.C. (visit the poets’ corner)
persons who write poetry
persons who display imagination and
sensitivity along with eloquent expression
14.
A. CAFE
B. CAFE
C. CAFE
D. CAFE
a restaurant
a coffee house
(US) a bar-room
(US) Corporate Average Fuel Economy
(standard for minimum fuel consumption
by cars)
15.
A. MIDI
B. MIDI
C. MIDI
D. MIDI
midiskirt
a garment with a midiskirt
musical instrument digital interface
the South of France
16.
A. BLISS
B. BLISS
C. BLISS
D. BLISS
perfect happiness, heavenly joy
baby life support system
any cause of bliss
religious ecstasy
304
QUIZ FIVE
Each of the following sets contains a nonce abbreviation. Can you identify
it?
1.
A. During the Second World War, as an RAF officer, he was in
charge of the first radar talk-down equipment during its
experimental trials. (Clarke)
B. I wouldn’t have thought that this Fink-Nottle would ever have
fallen a victim to the divine p, but, if he has, no wonder he finds
the going sticky. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. From about AD 150 onwards, the Romans built walls round their
towns to keep them safe from attack. (Great Britain)
D. The nightgown trailed over the bench at her dressing table. In
college she'd favored striped drop-seat p.j.’s. But John had
bought her exquisite gowns and peignoirs in Italy. It still seemed
appropriate to wear them here in this house, in his bedroom.
(Clark. The Cradle…)
2.
A. The entries cover all types of shortened forms of words and
phrases, including initialisms, such as BBC and FBI;
acronyms..., such as Aids and Nato; shortenings... (Oxford
Dictionary of Abbreviations)
B. Yet the focus of academic training in TEFL/TESL has been on
linguistics and language acquisition: and few professionals find
themselves fully prepared to face management issues when
promoted to positions of department heads or program directors.
(Forum)
C. ... I took another listless stab at the e. and bacon. (Wodehouse.
Life…)
D. “... You know how kids are. Sometimes they'll bare their souls.
Other times they want you to MYOB.”
“MYOB?”
“Mind your own business.” (Clark. Remember…)
3.
A. Among tests performed on patients receiving experimental drugs
was one to measure urine pH–acidity or alkalinity. (Hailey.
Strong…)
305
B. ... I saw that there was nothing to be gained by trying to lead up
to it gently. It is never any use beating about the b.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Having mastered the Internet on its searches for UFO’s and other
signs of Higher Life, cult members had developed considerable
computer expertise. (Newsweek)
D. On Friday afternoon, Catherine was in the house, getting ready to
go to the inn for the dinner hour. Talk about TGIF, she thought.
Friday meant Meg would soon be home for the weekend.
(Clark. I’ll Be…)
4.
A. This habit of the younger g. of scattering “darlings” about like
birdseed is one that I deprecate. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. A half-kilometer course had been measured along the cliff, and
she made the round trip in five and a half minutes. Allowing for
turning time, this worked out at twelve kph, and she was quite
happy with that. (Clarke)
C. Vincent Lord had published papers while an assistant professor
at U of I... (Hailey. Strong…)
D. Mild SAD patients feel generally down and without energy, but
critical cases often complain of terrible lethargy, deep
depression, a desire to sleep late in the mornings and early at
night, severly antisocial behavior and a strange craving for
stodgy, sweet food. (Ayto)
5.
A. When your notebook estimates that the battery only has enough
charge to continue for a few minutes, it will alert you to a low
battery condition by blinking the battery icon on the LCD status
bar and battery low warning beep. (Sharp Computer Manual)
B. The nurse at the reception desk looked at her white, strained face,
estimated her capacity for further truth, and told her that John
Smith was still in OR. (King. The Dead…)
C. He'd seen E.T. – The Extra Terrestrial. He didn't like it at all.
(Hiller)
D. I could see at a g. that the unfortunate affair had got in amongst
her in no certain manner. (Wodehouse. Life…)
6.
A. And a moment later there was a sound like a mighty rushing
306
wind, and the relative had crossed the threshold at fifty m.p.h.
under her own steam. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. Make full use of the cross-referenced answers, tables of contents,
index and clearly organized review for efficient study throughout
your TOEFL preparation. (Pyle)
C. The kid is A.W.O.L. They sent her to bed for putting sherbet in
the ink, and in bed they imagine her to have spent the evening.
Instead of which, she was out with me, wolfing the eight-course
table-d’hote dinner at seven and six, and then going on to the
Marine Plaza to enjoy an entertainment on the silver screen.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
D. “I'm here to represent Miss Luna Tarner.”
“Jesus H. Christ!”
“Would you tell me what the charges are?”
“Hold on. I'll find her ticket. Luna Tarner. That’s a hot one ...
here we are. Pross. Picked up by CWAC, down below.”
“Quack?”
“You're new around here, huh? CWAC is the City-Wide AntiCrime unit. A pross is a hooker, and down below is south of
Forty-Second Street. Capish?”
“Capish.” (Sheldon. Rage…)
7.
A. Five Oz. Steak Breakfast
a choice sirloin steak, two eggs and southern-style grits or
potatoes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.29
(Breakfast Bar menu)
B. Well, both women – the mothers of the babies born with CNS
disorders – were taking a hodgepodge of other drugs and large
amounts of alcohol throughout their pregnancies. (Hailey.
Strong…)
C. But I had hung up the receiver. Shaken. That's what I was. S.
to the core. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. The average Dinky couple is just turned over 40 with combined
annual income in excess of ₤50,000. One or the other is usually
working at the weekend. (Ayto)
8.
A. Granted a form of home rule with an elected mayor and city
council under the D.C. Self-Government and Governmental
307
Reorganization Act of 1973, Washington is experiencing a
political rebirth. (Washington Past and Present)
B. She became familiar with night court, held in Room 218 of the
Centre Street courthouse. It was a smelly, overcrowded world,
with its own arcane jargon. Jennifer was baffled by it at first.
“Parker, your client is booked on bedpain.”
“My client is booked on what?”
“Bedpain. Burglary with a Break, Enter, Dwelling, Person,
Armed, Intent to Kill, at Night. Get it?”
“Got it.” (Sheldon. Rage…)
C. ... Donahue called the Attorney General and demanded action.
Since then – again as Quentin tells it – Donahue's been calling
the A.G. every hour on the hour. (Hailey. Strong…)
D. Yuppies are dedicated to the twin goals of making piles of
money and achieving perfection through physical fitness and
therapy. (Ayto)
9.
A. ... but I assumed that you were apologizing for your foul conduct
in looping back the last ring that night in the Drones, causing me
to plunge into the swimming b. in the full soup and fish.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
B. I took another oz. of the life-saving and inclined my head.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Everywhere were cameras, kissing and laughing and calling.
The PTA had set up tables on the grass for punch and cookies.
People crowded in knots and got separated, parents making
much of teachers, younger brothers and sisters finding their own
friends. (Plain)
D. Today he fished for a while, checked his lobster pots and was
rewarded with four two-pounders, then put on his scuba gear
and went down for a while.
He docked the boat at the marina and reached home at fivethirty... (Clark. Remember…)
10.
A. As Jennifer entered, one of the guards said, “Hey! Nobody's
allowed in here.”
The outside guide called, “It’s okay, Al. D.A.’s office.”
Jennifer handed Stela the envelope. (Sheldon. Rage…)
308
B. U.S.D.A. Prime Sirloin
19.95
3/4 lbs. of selected, prime, boneless New York strip steak, fit for
a king. (The Pub menu)
C. ‘I think he means, ’ I said – reasonable old Bertram, always trying
to throw oil on the troubled w’s – ‘that if he does he will fall
down the side of the house and break his neck.’ (Wodehouse.
Life…)
D. Ouch! The Leather Nun have written a dance hit. Spliced
around a typically MOR guitar solo you’re treated to an
awkward Swedish rap. (Ayto)
11.
A. Was making the film a way of escaping the conventions of
normal promo vids? (Ayto)
B. “Anyway, after I developed the pix, I compared them to these.”
He handed Dussander three xeroxed photographs. (Grisham)
C. Bloody good to see your old physog on the horizon again, even
if you do look like an understudy for Scarface. (Francis.
Dead…)
D. Phyl is determined to research both sides of the family tree.
(Clark. Remember…)
12.
A. Cold and haughty. No symp. None of the rallying spirit which
one likes to see. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. A party of English racing people came into the restaurant... I
knew most of them: a top amateur jump rider, a pro from the
flat, an assistant trainer, an owner and his wife. (Francis. Slay…)
C. ... I saw Jeeves pause at the door before biffing off to mix the
cocktails and shoot me the sort of grave, warning look a wise old
father might pass out to the effervescent son on seeing him going
fairly strong with the local vamp. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. Are you going to the prom tonight? (Wood & Hill)
13.
A. ... I seemed to be getting a lot of steam behind the punch. Well,
I'm much obliged. I got those two bozoes a couple of beauts!
You'd ought to have seen it. Bam ... Wham! ... and down they
went. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. Maybe he’s trying to psych you out. He wants you running
scared. (Sheldon. Rage…)
309
C.
“What kind of money would you be talking about?”
“Maybe three million dollars a job.”
Pagano emitted a low whistle.
“Think they’d be interested?” Armstead wanted to know.
“Depends what you want them to do. But three mill. Yeah,
they'd be interested.” (Wallace)
D. And I went there without the foggiest idea of indulging in the
tender pash. I hadn’t the slightest intention of proposing to
anybody. (Wodehouse. Life…)
14.
A. ‘What was the hardest thing when you got to the clinic?’
[Liz Taylor]: ‘Saying goodbye to my brother and sister-in-law.
Walking in the dark to the little house where I would be a
patient. I was waiting for a nurse who was going to help me
through detox.’ (Ayto)
B. In a few minutes he was back with the necessary informash.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. ... he thought if he fixed a cert it would be worth a fortune.
(Francis. Dead…)
D. ... Celia’s memo was taken seriously. (Hailey. Strong…)
15.
A. Big mo – decisive momentum – was even used unadorned on the
cover headline in Time magazine this week now that Mr Bush
has finally captured the elusive elexir. You get big mo after
exploiting the bounce of early victories. (Ayto)
B. Anybody been phoning or calling or anything during my abs.?
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. When I’d converted the flat from an old hayloft, I’d built in more
than mod cons. (Francis. Enquiry)
D. The mid-to-late 1960s was a time when women’s lib became a
phrase on many lips and a fixture in the news. (Hailey.
Strong…)
16.
A. Menley was aware of the appreciation in his eyes when the
maitre’d brought her to the table. (Clark. Remember…)
B. “And even though I lean to kingsize beds with box springs, this
is a hell of step up from Avenue B and English Street, where my
old man had a deli.” (Clark. Weep…)
310
C. ‘... What ought I to wear, do you think?’
I wasn't feeling fit for a discussion of gent’s suitings.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
D. A neighbourhood teen burst in. Darden shot him in the face, too,
but the 16-year-old escaped. (Ayto)
17.
A. Last year, as all the columnists reported, Margo had a little drug
problem. The public is getting damn sick of stars who spend
half their lives in drug-rehab centers. (Clark. Weep…)
B. He took her hand and led her to the grouping of Art Deco wicker
furniture near the front windows. (Clark. Weep…)
C. The persp., already bedewing my brow, became a regular
Niagara. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. The Turtles, April and Casey were tired after their long drive
from the farm. Casey didn't seem to like the den very much,
though.
“Great. Just great. First it’s the Farm That Time Forgot, and
now this. Why don’t I ever fall in with people who own
condos?” (Hiller)
18.
A. You heard that nutty Alvirah Meehan say she read in a fan
magazine that Leila La Salle’s apartment was like a motel?
(Clark. Weep…)
B. April unhooked her mike. Her work was done for the night. It
was time to go home. April said goodnight to the cameramen
and the guard at Channel Three. (Hiller)
C. She was so surprised that she jumped about three feet. “Time to
switch to decaf, April,” he teased. She smiled, a little. (Hiller)
D. ‘Always a pleasure to enjoy your hosp., Aunt Dahlia,’ I said
cordially. ‘I anticipate a delightful and restful visit. ...’
(Wodehouse. Life…)
19.
A. Ted could imagine Bartlett in a New Yorker ad, holding up a
bottle of Scotch... (Clark. Weep…)
B. And Gussie, you say, is in the same posish? (Wodehouse.
Life…)
C. ... brought them large menus, printed brown on beige, full of
low-cal things on toast. (Updike)
311
D. “... Have you got those newspaper guys lined up?”
Hagen nodded. “I’ll be feeding them info as soon as things
break.” (Puzo)
*QUIZ SIX
Each of the following sets contains an obsolete (or obsolescent)
abbreviation. Can you identify it?
1.
2.
A. Algol (or ALGOL)
B. SWAK
C. imbars. bidbid
D. KIA
A. tabu
B. snafu
C. WAVES (or Waves)
D. TA
3.
A. scuba
B. WOMAN
C. WIN
D. P.O.Q. (p.o.q.)
4.
A. Holmes
B. GMT
C. VIN
D. S.A.M.F.U.
312
(Computing) algorythmic language
Sealed with a kiss (on envelopes)
I may be a rotten sod, but I don't believe in
bullshit. An Army motto, current in WW2
killed in action
(Mil. sl.) typical Army balls-up
a badly confused or ridiculously muddled
situation
[s(ituation)n(ormal)a(ll)f(ucked)u(p)]
(US Navy)
Women Accepted for
Volunteer Emergency Service
(Brit. coll.) Thanks
self-contained
underwater
breathing
apparatus
World Organization for Mothers of All
Nations
(US) Work Incentive
(Mil. sl.) piss off quickly
Home
Office Large Major Enquiry
System (computer used in crime
investigation)
Greenwich Mean Time
(US) vehicle identification number
(Army sl.) self-adjusting military fuck-up
5.
A. quack
B. HIV
C. vap.
D. h.c.e.
a charlatan (short for quacksalver)
Human Immunodeficiency Virus
a rather rare schoolboys' term dating from
ca. 1905
e.g., ‘He distrusted the female sex because
they seemed to indulge in an undue
amount of “vap” – as he called it – chat
which said one thing and meant another.
Maurice hated “vap.”’ I.e. vapouring
human-caused error
*QUIZ SEVEN
Each of the following sets contains a neologism. Can you identify it?
1.
A. NYC
B. KG
C. n.p. or d.
D. thou
2.
A. rhino
B. s’n’f
C. NBC
D. hh
New York City
A known gambler. This recent American police
abbreviation is among the many terms concerned
with betting and bookmaking
no place or date
(Sl.) one thousand dollars, pounds, etc.
a rhinoceros
a type of pulp fiction featuring glamorous high-spending,
highly sexed women (shopping and fucking) (Ayto)
(US) National Broadcasting Company
hands (height measurment for horses)
3.
A. mitt
B. med. tech.
C. H of L
D. n.i.m.b.y.
a mitten; (sl) a hand
medical technician
House of Lords
(Coll.) ‘Not in my backyard’. Applied to a project
acknowledged as (perhaps) necessary, but ‘please
build it, dump it, etc., somewhere else.’
4.
A. LYKAH
a postscript by teenagers when asking a girl to a
party (1985) [l(eave) y(our) k(nickers) a(t) h(ome)]
313
B. jeep
C. NYD
D. ANOVA
5.
A. LIP
B. par.
C. buppie
D. zoo
a small rugged utility vehicle with four-wheel
drive, orig. developed for military use. [1935-40.
Amer.; alter. of G.P. (for General Purpose)
Vehicle]
(Med.) not yet diagnosed
(Maths.) analysis of varience
life insurance policy
paragraph
a young upwardly mobile black professional
[1980-85 US b(lack)u(rban)p(rofessional)]
a zoological garden
6.
A. piano
B. AID
C. rpm
D. MRM
a pianoforte
(Med.) acute infectious disease
revolution per minute
mechanically-recovered meat (in food processing):
low quality meat removed from a carcass by
mechanical means (e.g. high-pressure jets) after the
main cuts have been conventionally removed, and
used for example in sausages. (Ayto)
7.
A. cot
B. Dinky
(Maths.) cotangent
Either member of a (married) partnership in which
both members have a job and there are no children
or [d(ual) i(ncome), n(o) k(ids)] (the ‘y’ is
sometimes taken to stand for ‘yet’)
chocolate
Master of Dental Science
C. choc.
D. MDSc
8.
A. accom.
B. S. of S.
C. Yuppie
D. c of g
314
accomodation
Secretary of State
an affluent, usu. city-dwelling, professional in his
or her 20s and 30s; a prosperous and ambitious
young professional; [y(oung)u(rban)p(rofessional)]
centre of gravity
QUIZ EIGHT
Each of the following sets contains an example of written speech
abbreviation used in oral communication. Can you identify it?
1.
A. My father had a spaz when he heard it. (АРСАС)
B. ... and, grown to riper years we have enjoyed in the old metrop
full many a first-class binge in each other’s society.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Sir Reginald Witherspoon, Bart, of Bleaching Court, Upper
Bleaching, Hants. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. The crashing and pounding of the cerf blended with the faint
sounds of the cello. (Clark. Weep…)
2.
A. I would have put in a crisp word or two here, but he carried on
without giving me the opp. (Wodehouse. Life…)
B. ‘Thomas did that?’
‘Thos in person.’ (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. ... her hot eyes locked onto Alexandra’s.
“What about you, Lexa? What's your thought?” (Updike)
D. I am gonna spring for some za. (АРСАС)
3.
A. You want a veg with this? (АРСАС)
B. You went in at a front door and ahead of you was a passage
leading to the premises of Bellamy Bros, dealers in seeds and
garden produce. (Wodehouse. Life…)
C. Secrecy and silence, then. My visit here must be strictly incog.
(Wodehouse. Life…)
D. “I’ve remained absolutely true to you because those were only
ob-manipulations’ (sham, insignificant strokings by
unremembered cold hands).” (Saussi III)
4.
A. And yet, if I had only known, what I had been listening to that
a.m. was the first faint rumble of the coming storm. ...
(Wodehouse. Life…)
B. Anne's Baked Beans
Recipe from Anne Rossell
Brown each separately:
315
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 lb bacon
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 green pepper
C. ... all through my childhood and when I was a kid at school she
was always able to turn me inside out with a single glance, and I
haven’t come out from under the ’fluence yet. (Wodehouse. Life…)
D. The Metropolitan Police has issued contracts to Datacom
Systems and Husky Computers for new comms equipment to
support an improved car clamping and vehicle removal scheme.
(Ayto)
5.
A. Then an idea came to him, and in the darkness his lips stretched
in the semblance of a smile. Why hadn't he thought of the scuba
equipment earlier? (Clark. Weep…)
B. But there was no mistaking the 22-year-old ex-postman's
sincerity as he explained the lurid ‘graf’ was an improvisation
on the word, legal. The canvas for Paul's ‘piece’ – the graf short
for masterpiece – was a 40 foot brick council wall. (Ayto)
C. But to make quite certain I was not being followed I stopped
once at a vantage point on top of a rise, and studied the road
behind me with raceglasses. (Francis. Dead…)
D. I mean to say, do something to annoy or offend or upset this
juvenile thug, and he will proceed at the earliest possible opp. to
wreak a hideous vengeance upon you. (Wodehouse. Life…)
*QUIZ NINE
Identify the register type of the following abbreviations as
A. neutral (general)
B. formal
C. special terminology
D. professional jargon (slanguage)
E. slang
F. vulgar
G. colloquial
316
1. TEFL
2. Messrs
3. ibid.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
plane
RAPE
Radar
coch. mag.
detox
9. advv.
10. AUM
11. T.P.
12. laser
13. scuba
14. gym
15. CHIRP
16. BONUS
17. qq.
18. snafu
19. disco
20. HOG
teaching (of) English as a foreign language
(French: gentlemen, sirs, – used in English as plural of Mr)
Messrs should not be used in front of the name of a
limited company, nor should it appear with the names of
firms which indicate their line of business and do not
consist of family names. (King & Cree)
ibidem (Lat.: in the same place; indicating a previously
cited reference to a book, etc.)
an airplane
Right Atrial Pressure Elevation
Radio Detecting and Ranging
(Med.) cochleare magnum (Lat.: tablespoonful)
to free someone of a narcotics addiction; detoxify.
We can detox a heroin addict ... in three weeks.
(Chapman)
adverbs
air-to-underwater missile
toilet paper: There's no T.P. in the john. (АРСАС)
light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation
Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus: ... and
saw a figure in a scuba-diving outfit ... (Clark. Weep…)
a gymnasium: Tom spent the morning working out in the
gym in the men's spa. (Clark. Weep…)
(Civil Aviation) Confidential Human Incidence
Reporting Programme (pilots’ comments on safety
trends)
Borrower's Option for Notes and Underwritten Standby
questions
situation normal, all fucked (fouled) up
discotheque: There’s not much jazzing around at the
disco. (АРСАС)
Hepatic Output of Glucose
The HOG that I’ve got in mind is neither a swine nor a
glutton – he’s a mnemonic who happens to be an
acronym. Evidently the medicos make the most use of
mnemonics, and they use acronyms as well as phrases.
Here is one of the most memorable – and alarming.
(Brandreth)
317
21. RSVP
Repondez s’il vous plait. Answer please:
The chairman and Directors of Marjoy Ltd.
request the pleasure of your company at a Banquet to be
held at the Great Hall, Western Avenue, Bournemouth at
8.30 p.m. on Friday, 20th October, 1978.
Evening dress
R.S.V.P. to the secretary
(King & Cree)
22. oz
ounce:
Collagen & Vitamin E
Hand and Nail Cream
Net wt 4 oz
Growth hormone-inhibiting factor
acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
Exempli gratia. For example
(US) Zone Improvement Program; postal-delivery
zone-number code of five digits used in the addressing of
mail
physical education: She is a phys. ed. teacher
Read-Only Memory
fascimile transmission; an exact copy so transmitted:
I’ve got more faxes coming later, and I want to see them
tonight. (Clark. Weep…)
a memorandum (an informal letter, usually unsigned,
used e.g. in interoffice communication): Her desk held
her checkbook, daily memo pad, personal stationery.
(Clark. Weep…)
(Med.) nocte et mane (Lat.: night and morning; in
prescriptions)
Intelligence quotient:Very clever and a high I.Q., but all
the same not all there. (Christie. Selected…)
not top drawer
top drawer adj. of the best or most important kind
(Law) capias ad satisfaciendum (a writ of execution)
Mind your own business: Sometimes they all bare their souls.
Other times they want you to MYOB. (Clark. Remember…)
(US) take care of business
(black) To perform very well what one needs to do: ...
23. GH-IF
24. AIDS
25. e.g.
26. ZIP
27. phys. ed.
28. ROM
29. fax
(or FAX)
30. memo
31. n. et m.
32. IQ
33. NTD
34. ca. sa.
35. MYOB
36. TCB
318
37. S.O.B.
38. CMOS
(or C/MOS)
39. KISS
40. COIL
where he is always to be found TCBing. (Chapman)
son of a bitch: Look here, you S.O.B., get out! (АРСАС)
(Electronics)
complementary
metal
oxide
semiconductor (or silicon)
(US) keep it simple, stupid
chemical oxygen-iodine laser
*QUIZ TEN
What are the following sets of abbreviations?
A. variants
B. synonyms
C. homonyms
D. different meanings of a polysemantic word
1. CD
CD
CD
CD
CD
closing date
certificate of deposit
compact disk
count down
College Diploma
2. Cap.
Capt.
Capn
Cpt
captain
captain
captain
captain
3. assn
assoc.
assocn
association
association
association
4. AWOL
AWOL
absent without (official) leave
(Mil sl) a wolf on the loose; wolf – a sexually aggressive
man; an ardent womanizer
5. vet
vet
a veteran
a veterinarian
319
vet
vet
to examine closely; scrutinize critically
to be a veterinarian
6. prep
prep
prep
a preliminary or warm-up activity or event; trial run
preparation
the act of preparing a patient for a medical or surgical
procedure
7. prep
prep
prep
to prepare (a person) for a test, debate, etc.
to prepare (a patient) for a medical or surgical procedure
to prepare, to get ready: to prep for the game
8. prep
(Brit. colloq.) homework
schoolgirl)
a preparatory school
preposition
prep
prep.
(done by a schoolboy or
9. bar.
barit.
baritone
baritone
baritone
a male voice part intermediate between tenor and bass
10. p.j.
p.j.
physical jerks
(Coll.) pyjamas
11. att.
atty.
Atty.
attorney
attorney
attorney
12. bet.
betw.
btwn
between
between
between
13. NG
NG
NG
NG
(Railways) narrow gauge
National Gallery
(Med.) new growth
no good
14. prole
a member of the lower or working class [fr. proletarian;
320
prole
prole
popularized by George Orwell’s novel 1984]
to educate the proletariat to become conscious of themselves
as Labour
adj. Corresponding to the British sense of the noun (of a
member of a working or lower class)
15. S.O.S.
S.O.S.
S.O.S.
(or SOS)
S.O.S.
save our souls (the standard signal of distress)
(Med.) si opus sit (Lat.: if necessary; in prescriptions)
(Vulg.) same old shit
16. gee
(Sl.) a sum of one thousand dollars [abbr. for Grand (a
thousand dollars)]
interj. used to express surprise, disappointment, enthusiasm,
or simple emphasis. (Amer. euphemism for Jesus)
interj. used as a command to a horse to turn to the right
to turn or make a turn to the right
gee
gee
gee
17. MIG
MIG
18. gee
thou
grand
(Vulg.) shit on a shingle (chipped beef or ground meat on
toast)
Mi(koyan and)G(urevich) (Soviet jet fighter; named after its
designers)
metal-inert gas (as in MIG welding)
a sum of one thousand dollars
a thousand dollars
a thousand dollars
QUIZ ELEVEN
Choose the definition that best fits the context with the abbreviation.
1. As he filled up the order book pp., [I]
He said, “I should get higher ww.” [II]
So he struck for more pay:
But alas, now, they say,
He is sweeping the elephant cc. [III] (Topsy-Turvy World)
321
[I]
A. pages
B. (Music) pianissimo (very quietly)
C. per procurationem (Lat. by authority of; in correspondence,
used by signatory on behalf of someone else)
D. privately printed
[II]
A. wall-to-wall (in estate agency)
B. worldwide
C. wages
D. warrent writer
A. centuries
B. cages
C. chapters
D. carbon copies
[III]
2. She frowned and called him Mr. [I]
Because in sport he kr. [II]
And so in spite
That very nite
This Mr. kr. sr. (Topsy-Turvy World)
[III] [IV] [V]
[I]
[II]
[III]
[IV]
322
A. memorandum receipt
B. Mister
C. match rifle
D. municipal reform
A. krona (Sweedish monetary unit)
B. krone (Danish monetary unit)
C. (Chess) king’s rook
D. kissed her
A. metabolic rate
B. map reference
C. Mister
D. Minister Residentiary
A. kissed
B. krypton
C. King’s Regiment
[V]
D. King’s Regulations
A. Sir
B. sister
C. senior
D. (US) Sons of the Revolution
3. The president of a big co. [I]
Once threatened to fire and to do. [II]
Cute secretary
Who wouldn’t make merry.
So they quit, and he never did ho. [III] (Lederer. Nothing…)
[I]
[II]
[III]
4.
A. Coalition
B. County
C. Colorado
D. Company
A. ditto
B. dump any
C. delivery order
D. district officer
A. head office
B. hold over
C. hump any
D. habitual offender
This was the most expensive of their accomodations – the rooms the
First Lady used when she saw fit to seek R-and-R at the Spa. (Clark. Weep…)
A. rock and roll
B. rescue and resuscitation
C. rest and relaxation
D. rest and recuperation
What is actually implied in Richard Lederer’s Questions and Answers from
‘How to Flunk a Sex Education Test’ ?
5. Q. What is D & C?
A. Where Washington is.
323
A. (Med.) dilatation and curretage (of the uterus)
B. dean and chapter
C. District of Columbia
D. direct current
6. Q. What is a G-string?
A. A part of a violin.
A.
B.
C.
D.
(Meteorol.) symbol for storm
a musical note or key
German
A breech cloth, or brief covering for the genitals, worn esp. by
striptease dancers.
7. According to Richard Lederer the following blue-two-liner illustrates a
diddle [a dirty riddle] as part of the oral folklore.
What do the abbreviations actually mean?
Q. What do BS [I], MS [II] and PhD [III] stand for?
A. “Bullshit”, “More Shit”, and “Piled Higher and Deeper”.
[I]
[II]
[III]
A. Boy Scouts
B. Bachelor of Science
C. Biochemical Society
D. British Standard
A. Mail Steamer
B. Magnetic Susceptibility
C. Medical Staff
D. Master of Science
A. Doctor of Philosophy
B. Doctor of Public Health
C. Piled Higher and Deeper
QUIZ TWELVE
Match each AE word in the first column with its BE/GE equivalent in the
second column.
324
1.
2.
3.
4.
auto (fr. automobile)
baby-carriage
diaper
G. (Films) general exhibition
(certification)
5. gas (fr. gasoline)
6. gen. (fr. generator)
7. invt. / invty (inventory)
8. jan. (fr. janitor)
9. math (fr. mathematics)
10. movie (fr. moving pictures)
11. pants (fr. pantaloons)
12. poop (sl. Army & Students)
information, data (= scoop)
13. phone (fr. telephone)
14. PS (fr. public school)
15. R adj. motion picture rating of
restricted requiring that a person
under the age of 18 (sometimes
17) be accompanied by an adult
16. shorts
17. soccer (fr. (As)soc(iation
football) + -er
18. squash (fr. Narragansett
asquutasquash)
19. trs. (fr. transfer n.)
20. truck
21. vet (fr. veteran)
22. X a motion picture rating for
erotic films, admission to which
persons under the age of 17 or 18
are not permitted
23. ZIP (or Zip) code (fr. Zone
Improvement Plan / Program)
A. postcode
B. van (fr. caravan)
C. marrow
D. change
E. pants (underwear) (fr. pantaloons)
F. ex-service man
G. gen. (Sl.) general information
H. film
I. ring up
J. U (Films) universal
(certification)
K. nappy (fr. nap(kin) + -y)
L. football
M. petrol
N. maths
O. 18. Films certification
P. dynamo (fr. dynamoelectric
machine)
Q. trousers
R. porter / caretaker
S. PG (Films) parental guidance
(certification)
T. motor-car
U. state school
V. pram (fr. perambulator)
W. stocktaking
325
QUIZ THIRTEEN
Match each word, whose definition is given in the first column, with the
homonymous abbreviation for the US state name in the second column.
1. Shapeless body of a matter;
uncountable
2. To clean
3. The objective case of “I”
4. Sick
5. Nickname for father
6. Title for an unmarried woman
7. A note of the scale
8. Exclamation of sorrow or regret
9. Noah's boat
10. Natural combination of minerals
from which metals can be extracted
A. Ala.
K. Ky.
U. N.C.
B. Alas.
C. Ariz.
D. Ark.
E. Calif.
F. Colo.
G. Del.
H. Fla.
I. Ill.
J. Ind.
L. La.
M. Me.
N. Md.
O. Mass.
P. Minn.
Q. Miss.
R. Mo.
S. N.J.
T. N.Y.
V. Okla.
W. Ore.
X. Pa.
Y. Wash.
Z. Wis.
*QUIZ FOURTEEN
Acronyms constitute such a large portion of military speech that a
conversation may be as unintelligible to the ordinary civilian as the
following. Choose the suitable abbreviation definitions to decode the text.
Hey, the CO [1] wants to see PFC [2] down at the MP [3] shack about a
DWI [4] in a POV [5] (Laughs Parade)
1.
A. careers officer
B. clerical officer
C. commanding officer
D. conscientious objector
2.
A. perfluocarbon
B. polychlorinated fluorocarbon
C. poor foolish civilian (US coll.)
D. (US) Private first class (in the RAF)
326
3.
A. Member of Parliament
B. Metropolitan Police
C. Military Police
D. Mounted Police
4.
A. Dutch West Indies
B. driving while intoxicated
C. died without issue
5.
A. privately owned vehicle
B. (Films) point of view
C. peak operating voltage
QUIZ FIFTEEN
Read these business cards and announcements carefully.
following abbreviations as
Identify the
A. correct
B. incorrect
1. PUBLISHERS INTERNATIONAL
Bloomfield Business Park Bildg. [I] 403-5 Temple, AZ [II]
2.
John Bates
HARDWARE PRODUCTS
3640 Lamar Ave [I]
Memphis, Tennes. [II] 38120
3. Doc. [I] Theodore J. [II] Taylor
114 Wood Str. [III]
Open Mon. [IV] through Frid. [V]
8:30 A.M [VI] to 5:30 P.M. [VII]
327
4. M. [I] and Mrs. [II] William C. [III] Hirst request your company on
Thurs. [IV], Janu [V] 15, from 4:00 P.M. [VI] until 6:00 P.M. [VII] to
celebrate the birth of their son, William C. [VIII], Junr. [IX]
1829 Bloomington Blvrd. [X]
5. All Diversified Systems, Incor. [I]
26 Acorn dr. [II]
Open on Sat. [III] and Su. [IV]
Closed during the months of Apr. [V] and May
328
BLENDING
Blending is the word formation process combining abbreviation and
compounding.
Blend (portmanteau) is a word whose second constituent is always
represented by an aphaeretic1 stem; the first constituent may be represented
by a non-clipped, apocopated2 or syncopated3 stem. Non-clipped stems
may form a blend if they have a telescopic syllable in common.
E.g.,
cinemactress = cinemA + Actress
guesstimate = guess + estimate
smog = smoke + fog
Additive Blend is transformable into a phrase consisting of the respective
non-clipped stems combined by the conjunction AND.
E.g., SMOG: a mixture of SMOKE AND FOG.
Restrictive Blend is transformable into an attributive phrase with the first
element serving as modifier of the second.
E.g., spam = spiced ham
telecast = television broadcast
pulsar = pulsating stellar
Blending Mechanism
1. Telescoping Non-Clipped Stems
E.g., cinemActress = cinemA + Actress
2. Juxtaposing Clipped Stems
a). apocopated stem + aphaeretic stem
E.g., spam = SPiced + hAM
b). non-clipped stem + aphaeretic stem
E.g., toytoon = toy + cartoon
3. Overlapping Clipped Stems
a). apocopated stem + aphaeretic stem
E.g., smog = SMOke + fOG
b). non-clipped stem + aphaeretic stem
E.g., beefalo = beeF + bufFalo
1
aphaeretic – shortened by the omission of the last letter(s) or syllable
apocopated – shortened by the omission of the first letter(s) or syllable
3
syncopated – shortened by the omission of the letter(s) or syllable from the
middle of a word
2
329
c). syncopated stem + aphaeretic-apocopated stem
E.g., tizzy = TInnY + buZZing
d). syncopated stem + aphaeretic stem
E.g., prounce = PRaNCE + flOUNCE
QUIZ ONE
Match the missing blend component in the first column with one of the
words in the second column.
1. shamateur = sham + ____
2. slumbord = slum + ____
3. smash = ____ + mash
4. anecdotard = ____ + dotard
5. Demopublican = Democrat + ____
6. frarority = ____ + sorority
7. glommentary = glossary + ____
8. slumpflation = ____ + inflation
9. bitiny = bitsy + ____
10. avionics = aviation + ____
11. ballute = ____ + parachute
12. probit = probability + ____
13. racon = radar + ____
14. camporee = ____ + jamboree
15. citrange = citrus + ____
16. slickery = slick + ____
17. stuffocation = ____ + suffocation
18. strivation = starve + ____
19. flare = flame + ____
20. glimmer = ____ + shimmer
A. slippery
B. privation
C. gleam
D. balloon
E. orange
F. bikini
G. glare
H. smack
I. unit
J. republican
K. stuffy
L. commentary
M. amateur
N. landlord
O. electronics
P. anecdote
Q. fraternity
R. beacon
S. slump
T. camp
QUIZ TWO
Each of the following sets contains a non-blend word. Can you identify it?
330
1.
A. floatel
B. boatel
C. motel
D. hostel
2.
A. citrange
B. tangelo
C. tangor
D. citrumelo
3.
A. catalo
B. zebrule
C. liger
D. tiglon
4.
A. honoree
B. jamboree
a hybrid fruit produced by crossing the trifoliate
orange and the common sweet orange [citrus +
orange]
a hybrid citrus fruit that is a cross between a
grapefruit (pomelo) and tangerine
a hybrid fruit that is a cross between a tangerine
and orange
a hybrid citrus fruit that is a cross between a
citron and pomelo
a hybrid of the bison and the domestic cow
[cattle and buffalo]
the offspring of a male zebra and a female horse
the offspring of a male lion and a female tiger
the offspring of a male tiger and a female lion
D. freezoree
a person who has been given an honor
a large national or international gathering of
Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts
a small camp gathering of boy scouts or girl
scouts, usu. from a region or district (disting.
from jamboree)
winter Boy Scout meeting
A. smaze
B. smog
a blend of smoke and haze
a blend of smoke and fog
C. camporee
5.
a hotel in which accomodation is provided in
chalets constructed on semi-permanently
moored barges. Floatels should not be confused
with boatels. (Ayto)
(a coinage of the mid-1950s), a waterfront hotel
with facilities for boat owners
a hotel designed for motorists
a lodging place, esp. a supervised lodging place
for young people on bicycle trips, hikes, etc.;
inn, hotel
331
C. smudge
D. smust
6.
A. telecast
B. telecopter
C. telethon
D. teleview
7.
A. cyborg
B. vidiot
C. biot
D. sexetary
8.
A. docufantasy
B. informercial
C. plugumentary
D. rockumentary
9.
A. dancercise
B. exorcise
C. jazzercise
D. sexercise
332
heavy smoke used to protect an orchard against
frost, etc.
a blend of smoke and dust
a television broadcast
helicopter equipped with a television camera
an hours-long television program designed to
promote a cause or raise funds for a charity
a television program; to view a performance,
event, etc. by television
a cybernetic organism; a hypothetical human
being modified for life in a non-earth
environment by the substitution of artificial
organs and other body parts
(Aus.) a constant, mindless looker-in at TV
a biological robot
(sl. humor.) a secretary who is highly attractive,
provocative and available sexually
a television presentation which uses factual
elements as the basis of a far-fetched dramatic
reconstruction or projection of events
a short film produced by an advertiser giving
information about goods which it has for sale;
to be shown on television
(informal) a film or television programme
which purports to be a disinterested factual
documentary, but contains publicity material
a documentary-style film about, and featuring,
rock music
vigorous dancing as an exercise for physical
fitness
to drive out (an evil spirit) by prayers,
ceremonies, magic, etc.
exercise to a musical accompaniment of jazz
petting
10.
A. ambucopter
B. telecopter
C. helicab
D. helipad
11.
A. broadcast
B. newscast
C. simulcast
D. telecast
12.
A. snofari
B. fuminous
C. moped
D. snazzy
helicopter equipped to carry sick, injured, or
wounded persons
helicopter equipped with a television camera
helicopter used as a taxicab
a small area for helicopters to take off or land
on
a speech or other item sent out by radio or
television
a radio or television broadcast of the news
a simultaneous broadcast by radio and television
a television broadcast
an expedition into a cold, snowy region (fr.
snow and safari)
fuming and furious
a motor assisted pedal bicycle (fr. motor and
pedal)
(sl.) elegant; smart and fashionable; clever and
desirable (fr. snappy and jazzy)
QUIZ THREE
Each of the following sets contains a blend. Can you identify it?
1.
A. hamburger
B. cheezeburger
C. beefburger
D. Yogwich
2.
A. videolog
B. vidkid
C. vidaholic
a hamburg steak; a bun or bread roll containing
fried or grilled chopped steak
a hamburger with cooked cheeze on top
a sandwich made with cooked beef
a frozen yogurt cookie sandwich
a videocassette featuring advertisements for
items (e.g. clothes) that can be bought via mail
order
(US) a child who is a compulsive watcher of
television or video
an addict of television
333
D. videotex
system of information retrieval through home
television sets
3.
A. docudrama
B. drama-com
C. dramedy
D. sitcom
a documentary film, TV program, play, etc.
a television comedy-drama
(US) a television comedy-drama
a situation comedy series on television
4.
A. heliport
B. helidrome
a place from which helicopters operate
a small area for helicopters to take off or land
on
a helicopter that makes scheduled stops on a
certain route, usually within a metropolitan area
a helicopter equipped to carry sick, injured or
wounded persons
C. helibus
D. ambucopter
5.
A. tarmac
B. macadam
C. cobblestone
D. glasphalt
6.
A. Intelsat
B. satelloon
C. satcom
D. CAPCOM
7.
A. telebridge
B. telega
C. telex
334
the hard level surface of a road, airfield runway,
etc.; tarmacadam
layers of broken rock or stone of about the same
size, used for roadmaking
a round, smooth stone used for paving, a cobble
a road-surfacing material composed of asphalt
and crushed glass
International Telecommunications
Consortium
satellite balloon
Satellite Communications Center
capsule communicator (in NASA)
Satellite
a television program conducted with
participants in different locations via
communications equipment
(Russ.) a Russian vehicle having a rude box
mounted on four wheels without springs
a system for communication by teletypewriters
wire-connected through automatic exchanges
(telegraph exchange)
8.
D. TELNET
(computing) teletype network
A. affluenza
psychological disturbance arising from an
excess of wealth
something bringing profit or prosperity
an acute, infectious respiratory disease
B. bonanza
C. influenza
9.
D. organza
a fine dress fabric of silk, rayon, etc. like
organdy, but stiffer
A. zinzulation
B. stellifaction
C. agglutination
echoic for the sound of power saws
the act or process of star making
the combination of simple words to form
compounds without alteration of the form or
meaning of the parts
an inflationary period accompanied by rising
unemployment and lack of increase in business
activity
D. stagflation
10.
A. boutique
B. zootique
C. epizootic
D. antique
11.
A. gynergy
B. synergy
C. dysergy
D. energy
a chic little store selling smart or fashionable
clothes and accessories
a pleasantly landscaped zoo featuring animals in
natural-style habitats, and comfortable facilities
for those in a spectating situation
1. animal disease; 2. misery, ailment
an object, often beautiful and valuable,
surviving from the past
spiritual energy inherent in women
(in business) the potentiality of two individual
organizations to be more successful, efficient,
productive, etc when joined together than either
of them had been on its own
(in business) the tendency of two individual
organizations to be less successful, efficient,
etc. when joined together than either of them
had been on its own
forcefulness and vigour in actions or words
335
12.
A. autochondriac
B. bloodmobile
C. snowmobile
D. bookmobile
13.
A. Amerenglish
B. Singlish
C. Amerasian
D. Eurodollars
14.
A. magalog
B. fanzine
C. teenzine
D. magazine
a person who constantly worries about the
condition of his or her car
a small truck with medical equipment for
receiving blood donations
a motor vehicle for travel on snow
a truck fitted out as a traveling library for rural
areas
American English
a simplified and regularized form of English
spoken by inhabitants of Singapore
a person of mixed US and Asian parentage;
specifically one fathered by an American
serviceman during the Vietnam War
American dollars deposited in banks outside
U.S.A., esp. in Europe, which serve as shortterm capital and flow where interest rates are
highest
a large magazine-format catalogue advertising
mail-order goods
a fan magazine
a magazine for teenagers
a publication containing articles, stories, etc. by
various writers, issued at intervals (e.g. weekly
or monthly)
*QUIZ FOUR
Identify the following blends as
A. additive
B. restrictive
1.
2.
3.
4.
squiggle
galumph
squarson
tecpert
336
squirm + wriggle
gallop + triumph
squire + parson
technical + expert
5. brunch
6. macon
7. sexploitation
8. Oxbridge
9. camcorder
10. whye
11. skort
12. prissy
13. liger
14. tizzy
15. chiddler
16. squaerial
17. breathalyzer
18. zootique
19. chortle
20. geep
21. splatter
22. feminar
23. vodkatini
24. beautility
25. tenigue
26. bit
27. palimony
28. affluenza
29. quasar
30. catalo
breakfast + lunch
mutton + bacon
sex + exploitation
Oxford + Cabmridge
camera + recorder
wheat + rye
skirt + short
prim + sissy
lion + tiger
tinny + buzzing (of sound)
child + toddler
square + aerial
breath + analyzer
zoo + boutique
snort + chuckle
goat + sheep
splash + spatter
feminine + seminar
vodka + martini
beauty + utility
tension + fatigue
binary + digit
pal + alimony
affluence + influenza
quasi + stellar
cattle + buffalo
QUIZ FIVE
Identify the mechanism at work in the blends listed in Quiz Four as
A. apocopated stem juxtaposed with aphaeretic stem
B. non-clipped stem juxtaposed with aphaeretic stem
C. apocopated stem overlapping aphaeretic stem
D. non-clipped stem overlapping aphaeretic stem
E. syncopated stem enveloping aphaeretic stem
F. non-clipped stems telescoping
G. syncopated stem enveloping aphaeretic-apocopated stem
337
*QUIZ SIX
Each of the following sets contains a nonce blend. Can you identify it?
1.
A. Earcon is an audio signal produced by a computer, representing a
particular activity that can be or is being carried out by the
computer. This punning coinage is the work of Dr.William
Buxton, developer of the earcon itself. Icons are visual cues for
computer users, ... and so signals that operate via the ear rather
than the eye, are naturally earcons. (Ayto)
B. The geep was first produced by Cambridge scientists in 1984. It is
a chimera – that is, an animal created by artificially combining DNA
from parents of two distinct species. It cannot reproduce. (Ayto)
C. Psychologists in America believe they have discovered a new
disease that is afflicting the wealthy: affluenza. New York
psychologist Arweh Maidenbaum explains that affluenza can
stretch back to childhood: ‘Rich kids grow up in a golden ghetto
without the walls.’ (Ayto)
D. Li-Mon-Eags. He pronounced the magic word in the proper
manner and at once his form changed to the one he had described.
He spread his eagle wings and finding they were strong enough to
support his monkey body and lion head he flew swiftly to the tree
where he had left Ruggedo. (Baum)
2.
A. His interpretation of hip-hop is unsubtle: placing Hurby at the
centre in a blaxploitation shot, with the girls crawling up his legs,
and dollars flying through the air. (Ayto)
B. Hip New Yorkers, who certainly wouldn't buy the Brooklin
Bridge, have been paying up to $70,000 this summer for patches
of water. Welcome to the wonderful growth industry of
‘dockominiums.’ (Ayto)
C. Down he sank in a chair –
Ran his hands through his hair –
And chanted in mimsiest tones
Words whose utter inanity proved his insanity,
While he rattled a couple of bones. (Carroll)
D. The eyelyser was developed by scientists at the Addiction
Research Foundation in Toronto, Canada. It consists essentially of
338
a funnel, which is placed over the eyeball for 15 seconds, and a
gas sensor which analyses the vapour collected by the funnel. It is
claimed that it can measure the alcohol intake even of people who
are unconscious. (Ayto)
3.
A. Fertigation is a method of agricultural fertilization in which plants
are continuously fed via a drip irrigation system with water that
has nutrients added to it. (Ayto)
B. Sexicography. It is high time to add to the long and glorious
tradition of lexicography by compiling a new collection of
definitions – The Dirty Dicktionary. (Lederer. Nothing…)
In this country we like to laugh at the quarrelsome Americans
with their absurd over-fondness for legal actions. They sue for
alimony, palimony (C.) and dallymony (D.). (Ayto)
4.
A. Since Sony invented the Walkman, the Japanese electronics
industry has flooded the world with millions of similar gadgets.
Although they envelop the user in a cocoon of personal music, the
headphones let enough tizzy sound leak out to infuriate anyone
sitting or standing close by. (Ayto)
B. Just as time-honored and challenging are diddles – riddles in which
the question, answer, or both are on the randy side. As the
following blue-two-liners illustrate, diddles, like riddles, have
become part of the oral folklore that we share in common...
(Lederer. Nothing…)
C. The squaerial ... is much smaller, likely to be easier to install,
less obtrusive and more attractive than Astra's two-footer.
(Ayto)
D. If you are going to grab these chiddlers before they switch on the
television, you have to give them very strong medicine; they’re
half-civilized little buggers and they have very strong feelings and
they see things in the strong colours... What the chiddlers love is
when you go overboard. (Ayto)
5.
A. He left it dead and with its head
He went galumping back. (Carroll)
B. On a visit to Chicago, Berra was asked to do a radio tape with a
local sportscaster. (Pepe)
339
C. RAPELTM is a non-violent, non-toxic, harmless, but effective
defense from physical assault or rape. This is not a weapon. When
activated, RAPELTM envelops you in the most repulsive odor
known in nature ... SKUNK odor! This “natural” defense is
immediate and decisive. The attacker is surprised, repulsed and
rendered incapable of assault.
(S.F.Sunday Examiner &
Chronicle)
D. Of more modern portmanteaus, these are my prizners (prize +
winners), a portmanteau designed to capture your attention.
(Brandreth)
340
BACKFORMATION
Back-formation is the formation of a new word by the removal of (real or
apparent) affixes etc. from an existing word; a word that is an instance of
this.
A back-formation is revealed by the fact that the date of its first use is later
than that of its apparent derivative. The majority of back-formations in
English are verbs.
E.g., to typewrite fr. typewritER
to beg fr. beggAR [ME beggen fr. AF begger fr. OF begard fr.
Mdu beggaert mendicant monk]
Back-formation results in the following Morphemic Composition Types:
1. root words beg
2. derived words sanitate (fr. sanitation)
3. compound words (verbs, as a rule, with asyntactic premodification of the
verbal stem by noun): to housebreak (to commit the crime of housebreaking)
fr. housebreaker; to housebreak (to train a dog, a cat, etc. to live in the house
with clean habits) fr. housebroken.
QUIZ ONE
Each of the following sets contains a boldface word coined by backformation. Can you identify it?
1.
A. extend
extension
B. adhere
adhesion
C. decide
decision
to make longer or larger [1250-1300; ME fr. L
extendere]
something extended, an addition or continuation
[1350-1400; fr. L extentio]
to stick fast to; to become fastened to; to
support firmly [1590-1600; fr. F adhirer or L
adhaerēre]
the condition of adhering or sticking to a thing
[1615-1625; fr. F adhesion or L adhaesio]
to settle a question or a doubt; make a choice
[1350-1400; ME fr. OF decider or L decīdere]
the act of deciding, judging, making up one's
341
D. televise
television
2.
A. dryclean
dry cleaning
B. build
building
C. win
winnings
D. offer
offering
3.
A. gran
granny
B. pup
puppy
C. sweet
sweetie
D. lass
lassie
4.
342
A. aircondition
mind; the result of deciding [1425-75; ME for
OF, or L decisio]
to transmit or receive by television [1925-30]
the process by which scenes can be transmitted
by radio and reproduced on receiving
instruments [1905-10]
to clean clothes with naphtha, benzine, or the
like, and little or no water
the cleaning of cloth with little or no water
[1810-20]
to make (a house, ship, railway, etc.) by putting
together materials [before 1150; OE byldan]
the art of building [houses, offices, shops, etc.)
[1250-1300]
to obtain as the result of fighting, competition,
effort, etc. [before 900; OE winnan]
(pl.) that which is won, esp. money won in
gambling [1250-1300]
to hold out or present for acceptance or refusal
[before 900; OE offrian]
the act of offering; that which is offered or
given [before 1000]
(dial. or nursery coll.) a grandmother
an old woman or grandmother [1655-65]
a young dog [1580-90]
a young dog [NE, perh. fr. OF poupee, doll, toy]
[1480-90]
(in direct address) darling, sweetheart [bef. 900;
OE swēte]
(coll.) a sweetheart, dear [1695-1705]
a girl or young woman [1250-1300; ME lasce
fr. MSW lösk]
a girl or young woman [1715-25]
to supply with the
conditioning [1930-35]
equipment
for
air
airconditioning
B. gamble
gambling
C. whitewash
whitewashing
D. fingerprint
finger printing
5.
A. translate
translation
B. donate
donation
C. confiscate
confiscation
D. prostrate
prostration
6.
A. gradate
gradation
B. exhaust
exhaustion
C. fabricate
the act, process, or means of treating air in
buildings, etc., to free it from dust and to regulate
its temperature and amount of moisture [1905-10]
to play games of chance for money [1150-1200;
var. of ME gamen game]
playing games, etc. for money
to whiten with whitewash; to cover up the faults
or errors of [1585-95]
covering up the faults; absolving from blame
to take or record the finger prints of [1855-60]
the act or procedure of taking fingerprints; to
take or record fingerprints of
to turn from one language into another [12501300; ME fr. L translatus]
a rendering of something into another language
[1300-50]
to present as a gift, esp. as a donation to a
friend; to make a contribution [1775-85]
an act or instance of presenting a gifr or
contribution [1375-1425; ME fr. OF fr. L
donationem (donare give)]
to take the property of another person (with
legal authority or as a punishment) [1525-35; fr.
L confiscare]
the act of confiscating [fr. L confisatio]
to reduce to physical weakness or exhaustion
[1350-1400; ME fr. L prosternere]
depression, exhaustion
to arrange in steps or grades [1745-55]
a change by steps or stages; gradual change [fr.
L gradatio (gradus step, degree)] [1530-40]
to drain of strength or energy, wear out [151525; fr. L exhaurire]
extreme weakness or fatigue [1640-50]
to construct; to devise; to forge [1400-50; fr. L
fabricare]
343
fabrication
D. reject
rejection
7.
A. revenge
revenger
B. pledge
pledger
C. hedge
hedger
D. scavenge
scavenger
8.
A. backbite
backbite
backbiter
backbiting
B. bootleg
bootleg
bootlegger
C. beachcomb
beachcomber
344
the act or process of fabricating; manufacture;
something fabricated [1475-1500]
to refuse to have, take, use, etc. [1485-95; ME
fr. L rejicēre]
rejecting or being rejected; a refusal
to inflict pain or harm for; to avenge [13501400; ME fr. OF revenger fr. L vindicare]
an avenger
to give as security; to put in pawn; to engage
[1275-1325; ME & OF plege]
one who pledges
to avoid giving a direct answer to questions;
show hesitation about keeping a promise, etc.
[bef. 900; OE hegg]
one who hedges in betting, etc.
to gather up and remove (refuse); (of animals)
to seek out and devour (refuse or dead organic
matter); to remove refuse, waste, impurities, etc.
from a place or thing [1635-45]
an animal which feeds on dead organic matter
(esp. Brit.) a person employed to remove refuse
[MF scavager inspector of imports] [1520-30]
to slander with petty malice; to talk malicious
gossip [1125-75]
a backbiting
one who backbites
the act of a backbiter; calumny
to deal in (liquor or other goods) unlawfully
alcoholic liquor made, sold or transported
unlawfully [US (from the practice of smuggling
liquor in boot legs) 1885-90]
(US) a person who makes or sells illegal
whiskey [esp. 1920s]
to live as a beachcomber
a man living as vagrant or loafer; a person who
loafs about beaches and warves to gather
D. brown-nose
brown-nose
brown- noser
9.
A. blackmail
blackmail
blackmailer
B. manhunt
manhunter
C. prize-fight
prize-fighter
D. sleepwalk
sleepwalker
sleepwalking
10.
A. bag
bag
baggy
B. smell
smell
smelly
C. tack
tacky
D. kelp
flotsam and jetsam for sale [1830-40]
(sl.) to flatter and pamper in order to gain
approval and advantage
a toady, a sycophant [1935-40]
a person who brown-noses
getting, or trying to get money from a person by
threatening to tell something bad or
dishonorable about him; the money that is
obtained in this way [1545-55]
threaten to tell something bad, etc. about a
person unless he pays money for silence [1545-55]
a person who blackmails
a hunt or search for a man or men, especially for
a fugitive [1840-50]
one who leads, or takes part in a manhunt; a
detective, an investigator
a professional boxing match [1695-1705]
a professional boxer
to be a somnambulist
a somnambulist; one who walks in his sleep
the act or practice of walking while asleep
[1790-1800]
a container made of some pliant material [120050; ME bagge]
to hang loosely
baglike; hanging loosely [1820-30]
to perceive the odor or scent of through the nose;
inhale the odor of [1125-75; ME smel(len)]
the sense of smell; faculty of smelling
emitting a strong or unpleasant odor [1860-65]
squalid, dirty. untidy conditions; tackiness
[1980s]
inferior; shabby; vulgar [1880-85]
any large, brown cold water seaweed of the
family laminariaceae, used as food and in
manufacturing processes [ME cūlpe]
345
kelpy
11.
A. pea
peas
pease
B. flea
fleas
C. plea
pleas
D. tea
teas
12.
A. slave
slavey
B. move
movie
C. jell
jelly
D. talk
346
a water spirit of Scottish folklore reputed to
cause drownings
leguminous plant whose seeds are used for
food; its seed [ME pese, pees, a pea] [1660-70]
[ME pese sg. a pea]
peas
a small wingless jumping insect that lives on the
blood of man and some animals [bef. 900]
pl. flea [OE flēah fr. Gmc *flauh - or *thlauh (Flee)]
an appeal or entreaty [1175-1225] ME & OF
plaid, plait fr. L placitum decree]
pl. plea
a somewhat bitter, aromatic beverage prepared
by infusing tea leaves in boiling water, served
hot or iced [1645-55]
pl. tea a light meal in the afternoon at which tea
is drunk [17th c. tay, tee, prob. fr. Du. thee fr.
Chin (Amoy dial.) t’e = Mandarin dial. ch’a]
to drudge; to toil; to labor like a slave [12501300; ME fr. OF eslave = med. L sclavus,
sclava slav (captive)]
(Brit. coll.) a maidservant, esp. a woman or girl
who does hard menial work [1800-10]
to change place or position; to be or be set in
motion [ME fr. AF mover, OF movoir fr. L
movēre] [1200-50]
a motion picture [1905-10]
to become jelly; (coll.) to take definite form;
become fixed [1820-30]
a food, soft when hot, but somewhat firm and
partly transparent when cold; a jelly-like
consistency. [OF gelee (originally) frost, p.p. of
geler congeal fr. L. gelāre – gelus, freeze – frost,
cold] [1350-1400]
to speak at length about; discuss; to put into
talkie
13.
A. greed
greedy
B. slang
slangy
C. dust
dusty
D. bone
bony
14.
A. conduct
conductor
B. swindle
swindler
C. rob
robber
D. purchase
purchaser
spoken words; utter [ME talkien, talken] [11751225]
(coll.) a talking picture [1910-15]
the quality of wanting more than one’s share;
extreme or excessive desire [1600-10]
wanting to get more than one’s share; wanting
to eat or drink a great deal in a hurry; piggish
[OE grædig bef 900]
words or phrases which are in common use but
which are not considered suitable for use on
serious occasions [18th c. cant; 1750-60]
of the character of, given to the use of, slang
fine, dry earth or other matter in the form of
powder [OE dūst] [bef 900]
covered with dust; like dust [1175-1225]
one of the parts of the framework of the body of
an animal [OE bān fr. Gmc *bainam]
full of bones; hard or like bone in some way
[1350-1400]
to direct in action or course; manage; carry on;
to lead or guide [1440-1450 late ME fr. ML
conductus escort]
a person who conducts; a leader, guide, director
or manager [1525-50]
to obtain by fraud or deceit [1775-85]
one who swindles [fr. Germ. schwindler]
to take something by unlawful force or threat of
violence; steal from; to commit or practice
robbery [1175-1225; ME robben fr. OF
robber]
a person who robs [1125-75; ME robbere fr.
OF robere]
to acquire by the payment of money or its
equivalent; buy [1275-1325; ME fr. AF
purchacer to seek to obtain; procure]
a buyer
347
15.
A. murder
murderer
B. compute
computer
C. investigate
investigator
D. burgle
burglar
16.
A. certain
certainty
B. chaste
chastity
C. difficult
difficulty
D. able
ability
17.
348
A. relate
to kill [1300-50; ME mo(u)dre fr. Gmc
murthre]
a person who commits murder [1300-50]
to calculate; to reckon [1630-40; fr. L.
computare]
a programmable electronic device; one that
computes [1640-50]
to examine in detail; to make inquiry [150010; fr. L. investigatus]
one who investigates
(sl.) to break into (a building); to steal;
burglarize [1870-75]
a person who breaks into a house, building, etc.,
at night to steal or commit some other crime [c.
1500 fr. AF burglour] [1535-45]
established as true or sure; free from doubt or
reservation [1250-1300; ME fr. OF *certanus]
something certain; an assured fact [1250-1300;
ME fr. AF certainte]
pure in thought, word and act [1175-1225; ME
fr. OF fr. L. castus clean]
the state or quality of being chaste; moral
purity [1175-1225]
hard to do or practise, troublesome, perplexing
[1350-1400]
being hard to do; something hard or obscure;
hindrance
[ME fr. OF difficulte or L.
difficultās] [1350-1400]
having the necessary power, skill, resources to
do something [1275-1325; ME fr. L habilis
easy to handle]
power or capacity to do or act physically,
mentally, legally, morally, or financially [13501400; ME fr. L. habilitas aptitude]
to bring into relation, establish relation between
[1480-90, fr. L. relat- refer]
relative
B. derive
derivative
C. affirm
affirmative
D. explete
expletive
18.
A. superintend
superintendent
B. persist
persistent
C. luminesce
luminescent
D. abhor
abhorrent
a kinsman, relation by blood or marriage
[1350-1400; ME fr. Of fr. L.L relativus]
to come from, to have a beginning in [13501400; fr. OF deriver]
(thing, word, chemical substance) derived from
a source, not primitive or original [1400-50; fr.
F dērivatif]
to say firmly and strongly; say that something
is true [1300-50; ME afferme fr. OF afermer]
affirming, answering yes [1400-50; ME fr. OF
affirmatif]
to use an expletive; to swear [1970-75]
a word or number of words used with little
meaning in a sentence, or as an exclamation [fr.
LL expletivus]
to have or exercise the charge of; to oversee
with the power of direction; to control [160515; LL superintendere]
superintending
[1545-55; fr. L ppr. of
superintendere]
to refuse to give up; to continue firmly or
steadily
[1530-40; fr. F persister fr. L
persistere]
refusing to relent; stubborn; persevering [182030; fr. L persistens, ppr. of persistere]
to be or become luminescent [1895-1900]
exhibiting
or
capable
of
exhibiting
luminescence, any cold light [fr. Lat. lumen, a
light]
to hate extremely or with contempt; to loathe,
detest [1400-50; fr. L ab, from, and horrēre, to
shrink]
hating, detesting; exciting horror [1610-20; fr.
L abhorrent, ppr. of abhorrēre]
349
QUIZ TWO
Identify the structural type of back-formations in Quiz One as
A. a root word
B. a derived word
C. a compound word
D. a compound-derived word
QUIZ THREE
Each of the following sets contains a word that is not coined by backformation. Can you identify it?
1.
A. teleport
B. skywrite
C. chain-chew
D. babysit
2.
A. lip-sync
B. tape-record
C. helicopt
D. chain-smoke
3.
A. laze
B. amaze
C. enthuse
D. explete
4.
A. legislate
B. demarcate
350
transport a body by telekinesis
to form words, etc. in the air by smoke from an aircraft
(US) to chew (gum) continuously, starting a
new piece once the old piece is finished
to take care of a child during the temporary
absence of the parents
to synchronize lip movements with (recorded
speaking or singing)
to record on a magnetic tape
to travel by helicopter
to smoke cigarette after cigarette, lighting the
next one from the previous one
to be lazy
to surprise very much
to fill with, show enthusiasm; to cause, become
enthusiastic
to swear
to make laws; to effect or cause to become by
making laws
to set and mark the limits of; to separate,
distinguish
5.
C. orate
D. elongate
to hold forth in a bombastic style
to make longer
A. sleaze
sleazy quality, character or content, sordiness,
vulgarity
a sudden, violent attack
squalid, dirty, untidy conditions, tackiness
a young dog
B. blitz
C. tack
D. pup
6.
A. paddle
B. peddle
C. sanitate
D. buttle
7.
A. asset
B. pea
8.
C. eave
D. sieve
A. house-keep
B. trouble-shoot
C. playact
D. sleepwalk
9.
A. aviate
B. delegate
C. commentate
D. donate
10.
A. confab
B. edit
to move on water, propel canoe, by means of
paddles
to follow occupation of pedlar; busy oneself
with trifles
to make hygienic or sanitary
(U.S. sl.) to serve as a butler
anything one owns or any quality one has that is
of value or use
a pod-bearing plant of the bean family whose
seeds are used as food; the seeds of this plant
pl. eaves overhanging edge of roof or thatch
a sorting utensil with network or perforated bottom
to manage a home and its affairs; keep house
to act or be employed as a troubleshooter
to make a pretense, be false or insincere in
conduct; to perform in a play, act out
to walk while asleep; to be a somnambulist
to fly in an aircraft
to appoint or send (a person) as a delegate; to
give over (one’s power or authority) to another
as agent or deputy
to write, make or furnish with comments
to give, contribute, esp. to a fund or institution
to confabulate, chat
to supervise or direct the preparation of (a
publication); serve as editor of
351
C. proofread
D. teleshop
to read and correct a printer's proof
to do electronic shopping via videotex or other
interactive information service
QUIZ FOUR
Each of the following sets contains a neologism formed by back-formation.
Can you identify it?
1.
A. scavenge
B. buttle
C. vivisect
D. explete
2.
A. teleshop
B. stagemanage
C. jeopard
D. enthuse
3.
A. peddle
B. tack
C. asset
D. jell
4.
A. hawk
B. greed
C. helicopt
D. laze
352
to remove refuse, waste, impurities, etc. from
a place or thing
to serve as a butler
to dissect (animal, or abs.)
to use an expletive, to swear
to do electronic shopping via videotex or
other interactive information service [198085]
to act as stage manager of (a production)
to jeopardize [1327-75]
to fill with, to speak with, show enthusiasm; to
cause, become enthusiastic
to follow occupation of pedlar; busy oneself
with trifles
squalid, dirty, untidy conditions; tackiness
anything one owns or any quality one has that
is of value or use
to become jelly; to take definite form, become
fixed
to carry (goods) about for sale as a street
pedlar does
the quality of wanting more than one’s share
to travel by helicopter
to be lazy
5.
A. babysit
B. televise
C. sleaze
D. dryclean
6.
A. house-keep
B. telecommunicate
C. troubleshoot
D. chain-smoke
7.
A. pettifog
B. sight-read
C. darkle
D. go-get
8.
A. back calculate
B. spring-clean
C. thought-read
D. strap-hang
to take care of a child during the temporary
absence of the parents
to transmit or receive by television
sleazy quality, character or content; sordiness,
vulgarity
to clean clothes with naphtha, benzine, or the
like, and little or no water
to manage a home and its affairs; keep house
[1835-45]
to communicate by telecommunications, i.e.
technology of transmitting information as
words, sounds or images in the form of
electromagnetic signals [1980-85]
to act or be employed as a troubleshooter
[1930-35]
to smoke cigarette after cigarette, lighting the
next one from the previous one [1930-35]
to practise legal chicanery; quibble, wrangle,
about petty points
to read (music, a passage for translation, etc.)
without preparation
to lie concealed; grow dark
(coll.) to be ambitious or go-getting
to perform back calculation (i.e. a calculation
carried out to determine whether a person
below the legal limit of blood alcohol at the
time of testing is likely to have been above the
limit at some immediately previous time when
he or she was driving a vehicle)
to do a spring-cleaning (of)
to sense or perceive another’s thoughts or
intentions by intuition alone (through telepathy)
(of a standing passenger) to cling for support
to one of the straps suspended for this purpose
in a public vehicle
353
9.
354
A. typewrite
B. burgle
C. arm-twist
D. buttle
to use a typewriter
to commit burglary
to pressurize someone into doing something
to serve as a butler
ANSWER KEYS
ETYMOLOGY
Quiz One :
1. A; 2. A; 3. B; 4. C; 5. A; 6. B; 7. B; 8. B; 9. C;
10. B; 11. A; 12. C; 13. B; 14. B; 15. A; 16. A;
17. C; 18. A; 19. C; 20. C; 21. B; 22. B; 23. B;
24. A; 25. A; 26. B; 27. B; 28. A; 29. B; 30. B;
31. B; 32. A; 33. B; 34. A; 35. B; 36. A; 37. B;
38. B; 39. A; 40. B.
Quiz Two:
1. C; 2. B; 3. A; 4. B; 5. D; 6. C; 7. D; 8. A; 9. B;
10. D.
Quiz Three:
1. J; 2. H; 3. J; 4. K; 5. A; 6. D; 7. N; 8. J; 9. L; 10. J;
11. N; 12. N; 13. B; 14. K; 15. D; 16. D; 17. I; 18.
D; 19. H; 20. G; 21. K; 22. F; 23. J; 24. J; 25. F; 26.
K; 27. D; 28. D; 29. D; 30. J; 31. D; 32. G; 33. J; 34.
J; 35. D; 36. D; 37. D; 38. D; 39. J; 40. F.
Quiz Four:
1. E; 2. A; 3. I; 4. D; 5. A; 6. I; 7. K; 8. I; 9. I;
10. E; 11. D; 12. K; 13. B; 14. D; 15. I; 16. I; 17.
H; 18. E 19. E; 20. F; 21. J; 22. E; 23. I; 24. I; 25.
E; 26. D; 27. I; 28.E; 29. M; 30. I; 31. I; 32. L;
33. E; 34. I; 35. I; 36. D; 37.E; 38. I; 39. E; 40. E.
Quiz Five:
1. E; 2. E; 3. D; 4. D; 5. A; 6. B; 7. B; 8. C; 9. C; 10.
E; 11. D; 12. F; 13. B; 14. E; 15. C; 16. C; 17. D; 18.
D; 19. F; 20. E; 21. C; 22. D; 23. E; 24. A; 25. A; 26.
B; 27. D; 28. A; 29. A; 30. D.
Quiz Six:
1. B; 2. C; 3. A; 4. C; 5. D; 6. A; 7. B; 8. D; 9. B; 10.
A; 11. C; 12. A; 13. B; 14. D; 15. C; 16. C; 17. B;
18. A; 19. D; 20. B.
355
Quiz Seven:
1. C; 2. B; 3. A; 4. B; 5. D; 6. B; 7. C; 8. C; 9. B.
Quiz Eight:
1. A; 2. A; 3. C; 4. D; 5. A; 6. A; 7. B; 8. A; 9. B; 10.
A; 11. C; 12. D.
Quiz Nine:
1. A; 2. A; 3. B; 4. B; 5. B; 6. A; 7. B; 8. B; 9. B; 10.
B; 11. A; 12. A; 13. B; 14. B; 15. A; 16. A; 17. B; 18.
A; 19. B.
Quiz Ten:
1. C; 2. B; 3. B; 4. A; 5. D; 6. A; 7. B; 8. D; 9. A; 10.
C; 11. B; 12. C; 13. C; 14. B; 15. C.
Quiz Eleven:
2; 5; 7; 8; 9; 10; 11; 12; 14; 15.
Quiz Twelve:
1. A; 2. D; 3. C; 4. B; 5. E; 6. D; 7. C; 8. E; 9. A; 10.
A; 11. E; 12. E ; 13. C; 14. B; 15. D; 16. E; 17. A; 18.
B; 19. B; 20. E; 21. C; 22. D; 23. A; 24. A; 25. E; 26.
C; 27. B; 28. B; 29. A; 30. D; 31. E; 32. A; 33. B; 34.
B; 35. D; 36. B; 37. E; 38. B; 39. B; 40. E; 41. E; 42.
A ; 43. A; 44. B; 45. C; 46. E; 47. A; 48. B; 49. E;
50. A.
Quiz Thirteen:
1. A; 2. B; 3. A; 4. D; 5. C; 6. A; 7. C; 8. D; 9. A; 10.
C; 11. A; 12. C; 13. B; 14. C; 15. D; 16. C; 17. B; 18.
C; 19. C; 20. A; 21. A.
Quiz Fourteen:
1. H; 2. D; 3. A; 4. B; 5. G; 6. F; 7. E; 8. F; 9. D; 10.
G; 11. G; 12. C; 13. B; 14. G; 15. H; 16. H; 17. G;
18. C; 19. C; 20. B; 21. D; 22. G; 23. H ; 24. E; 25.
G; 26. B; 27. A; 28. E.
Quiz Fifteen:
1. D; 2. C; 3. B; 4. C; 5. A; 6. B; 7. A; 8. D; 9. C; 10.
C; 11. D; 12. A.
Quiz Sixteen:
1. B; 2. D; 3. B; 4. A; 5. D; 6. A; 7. C; 8. C; 9. D; 10.
D.
356
AFFIXATION
Quiz One:
1. A; 2. B; 3. A; 4. A; 5. B; 6. A; 7. A; 8. B; 9. B;
10. B; 11. A; 12. B; 13. B; 14. A; 15. A; 16. B; 17.
B; 18. A; 19. B; 20. B; 21. B; 22. B; 23. B; 24. A;
25. A; 26. B; 27. A; 28. A.
Quiz Two:
1. B; 2. A; 3. D; 4. A; 5. C; 6. D; 7. B; 8. E; 9. E;
10. C; 11. D; 12. C; 13. D; 14. E; 15. A; 16. F; 17.
D; 18. B; 19. E; 20. E.
Quiz Three:
1.B; 2. A; 3. D; 4. C; 5. C; 6. D; 7. B; 8. A; 9. C;
10. A.
Quiz Four:
1. C; 2. C; 3. A; 4. D; 5. C; 6. A; 7. D; 8. C; 9. B;
10. D.
Quiz Five:
1. A; 2. B; 3. A; 4. B; 5. C; 6. A; 7. D; 8. C; 9. A;
10. D.
Quiz Six:
1. B; 2. D; 3. A; 4. D; 5. D; 6. C; 7. A; 8. C.
Quiz Seven:
1. B; 2. E; 3. F; 4. A; 5. A; 6. B; 7. G; 8. A; 9. A;
10. D; 11. G; 12. A; 13. A; 14. G; 15. A; 16. F; 17.
F; 18. A; 19. G; 20. B; 21 C; 22. D; 23. A; 24. A;
25. A; 26. E; 27. B; 28. A; 29. B; 30. C; 31.B; 32.
E; 33. A; 34. A; 35. A; 36. A; 37. B; 38. C; 39. A;
40. E.
Quiz Eight:
1. C; 2. A; 3. B; 4. B; 5. D; 6. B; 7. B; 8. D.
Quiz Nine:
1. C; 2. A; 3. A; 4. B; 5. B; 6. C; 7. C; 8. D; 9. C.
Quiz; Ten:
1. C; 2. A; 3. C; 4. A; 5. B; 6. B; 7. C; 8. B; 9. B;
10. C; 11. C; 12. A; 13. A; 14. B; 15. A; 16. B; 17.
A; 18. C; 19. B; 20. C; 21. B; 22. B; 23. A; 24. A;
25. A; 26. B; 27. B; 28. C; 29. B; 30. B; 31. B; 32.
357
A; 33. B; 34. B; 35. A; 36. C; 37. B; 38. C; 39. B;
40. B.
Quiz Eleven:
1. D; 2. C; 3. A; 4. D; 5. C; 6. C; 7. B; 8. D; 9. B;
10. B; 11. A; 12. C; 13. B; 14. B.
Quiz Twelve:
1. S; 2. M; 3. A; 4. O; 5. B; 6. N; 7. C; 8. G; 9. D;
10. E; 11. X; 12. U; 13. P; 14. I; 15. F; 16. W; 17.
H; 18. V; 19. J; 20. T; 21. K; 22. L; 23. Q; 24. R.
Quiz Thirteen:
1. B; 2. B; 3. C; 4. C; 5. A; 6. B; 7. C; 8. C; 9. D;
10. D; 11. A; 12. C; 13. D; 14. B ; 15. C.
Quiz Fourteen:
1. B; 2. J; 3. A; 4. J; 5. H; 6. I; 7. J; 8. B; 9. I; 10. J;
11. B; 12. J; 13. J; 14. J; 15. J; 16. B; 17. F; 18. B;
19. C; 20. J; 21. E; 22. J; 23. G; 24. E; 25. J; 26. J;
27. J; 28. J; 29. J; 30. E; 31. J; 32. D; 33. J; 34. B;
35. G; 36. J; 37. E; 38. D; 39. D; 40. A; 41. A; 42.
B; 43. J; 44. I; 45. A.
Quiz Fifteen:
1. A; 2. C; 3. B; 4. B; 5. D; 6. B; 7. D.
Quiz Sixteen :
1. F; 2. E; 3. D; 4. D; 5. D; 6. H 2); 7. E; 8. E; 9. D;
10. D; 11. C; 12. E; 13. D; 14. B; 15. B; 16. D; 17.
H 2); 18. D; 19. C; 20. D; 21. D; 22. F; 23. F; 24.
E; 25. D; 26. H 2); 27. G; 28. D; 29. H 1); 30. G;
31. D; 32. D; 33. H 2); 34. H 1); 35. H 2); 36. F;
37. E; 38. A; 39. F; 40. D; 41. D; 42. B; 43. A; 44.
G; 45. A; 46. A; 47. A; 48. D; 49. D; 50. D; 51. E;
52. C; 53. H 1); 54. C; 55. F; 56. D; 57. D; 58. G;
59. B; 60. F; 61. E; 62. D; 63. E; 64. D; 65. H 1);
66. G; 67. D.
Quiz Seventeen:
1. C; 2. A; 3. B; 4. D; 5. C; 6. D; 7. C; 8. A ; 9. C ;
10. B; 11. C; 12. A.
Quiz Eighteen:
1. D 2. B 3. C 4. A 5. C 6. C; 7. A ; 8. D; 9. C.
358
Quiz Nineteen:
1. B; 2. C; 3. A; 4. C; 5. C; 6. B; 7. D; 8. C; 9. D;
10. C; 11. A; 12. C; 13. B; 14. C.
Quiz Twenty:
1. G; 2. C; 3. E; 4. F; 5. E; 6. C; 7. D; 8. F; 9. C ;
10. G; 11. G; 12. G; 13. F; 14. E; 15. G; 16. B; 17.
C; 18. F; 19. G; 20. G; 21. G; 22. E; 23. E; 24. G;
25. A; 26. C; 27. A; 28. G; 29. C; 30. C; 31. A; 32.
A; 33. C; 34. G; 35. E; 36. C; 37. G; 38. G; 39. G;
40. G; 41.E; 42. D.
Quiz Twenty-One:
1. D; 2. B; 3. B; 4. C; 5.C; 6. C; 7. A; 8. B; 9. D;
10. B.
Quiz Twenty-Two:
1. A; 2. B; 3. B; 4. A; 5. C; 6. E; 7. A; 8. C; 9. E ;
10. A; 11. B; 12. B; 13. B; 14. A; 15. A; 16. B; 17.
A; 18. B; 19. C; 20. C; 21. A; 22. A; 23. A; 24. C;
25. A; 26. B; 27. A; 28. A; 29. B; 30. D; 31. A; 32.
B; 33. B; 34. F; 35. A; 36. A; 37. B; 38. A; 39. A;
40. A; 41. C; 42. A ; 43. B; 44. C; 45. B; 46. A; 47.
C; 48. G.
Quiz Twenty-Three:
1. A; 2. A; 3. A; 4. C; 5. A; 6. E; 7. A; 8. D; 9.A;
10.C; 11. C; 12. C; 13. C; 14. A; 15. C; 16. C; 17.
A; 18. A; 19. A; 20. A; 21. C; 22. C; 23. C; 24. B;
25. C; 26. A; 27. A; 28. C; 29. A; 30. D; 31. C; 32.
A; 33. A; 34. D; 35. D; 36. C; 37. A; 38. A; 39. C;
40. A; 41. B; 42. B; 43. C; 44. B; 45. A; 46. A; 47.
A; 48. C.
Quiz Twenty-Four:
1. B; 2. A; 3. B; 4. B; 5. C; 6. A; 7. A; 8. C; 9. D;
10. B; 11. D; 12. C; 13. A.
Quiz Twenty-Five:
1. D; 2. B; 3. A; 4. C; 5. D; 6. B; 7. D; 8. B; 9. B;
10. A; 11. C.
Quiz Twenty-Six:
1. B; 2. B; 3. E; 4. A; 5. B; 6. B; 7. B; 8. A; 9. B;
10. A; 11. A; 12. B; 13. F; 14. D; 15. B; 16. A; 17.
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B; 18. C; 19. C; 20. C; 21. B; 22. C; 23. B; 24. B;
25. C; 26. A; 27. E; 28. B; 29. B; 30. B.
Quiz Twenty-Seven:
1. B; 2. C; 3. C; 4. B; 5. C; 6. B; 7. B; 8. A; 9. C;
10. B; 11. B; 12. B; 13. B; 14. C; 15. A; 16. A; 17.
A; 18. B; 19. B; 20. C; 21.C; 22. B; 23. B; 24. B ;
25. B; 26. A; 27. B; 28. B; 29. D; 30. E; 31. G; 32.
F; 33. C; 34. D; 35. B; 36. B; 37. C; 38. B; 39. B;
40. B; 41. C; 42. E; 43. B; 44. B; 45. B.
Quiz Twenty-Eight:
1. C; 2. A; 3. C; 4. B; 5. A; 6. D; 7. D; 8. A; 9. D;
10. B; 11. A; 12. B; 13. C; 14. C.
Quiz Twenty-Nine:
1. D; 2. C; 3. A; 4. B; 5. B; 6. C; 7. C; 8. B; 9. B;
10. D.
Quiz Thirty:
1. J; 2. A; 3. D; 4. F; 5. C; 6. F; 7. I; 8. A; 9. K;
10. M; 11.L; 12. L; 13. D; 14. C; 15. D; 16. N; 17.
J; 18. D; 19. I ; 20. E; 21. C; 22. I; 23. E; 24. N; 25.
F; 26. H; 27. D; 28. H; 29. D; 30. E; 31. I; 32. A;
33. A; 34. E; 35. G; 36. F; 37. A; 38. D; 39. J; 40.
A; 41. A; 42. I; 43. I; 44. I; 45. D; 46. A; 47. I; 48.
E; 49. D; 50. I; 51. E; 52. H; 53. E; 54. E; 55. E;
56. B; 57. C; 58. I; 59. A; 60. E; 61. A; 62. E; 63.
B; 64. K; 65. K; 66. G; 67. B; 68. D.
Quiz Thirty-One:
1. C; 2. F; 3. F; 4. J; 5. C; 6. C; 7. A; 8. A; 9. F; 10.
A; 11.D; 12. F; 13. G; 14. B; 15. I; 16. A; 17. H;
18. D; 19. E; 20. G; 21. F; 22. D; 23. F; 24. G;
25. G; 26. D; 27. G; 28. D; 29. A; 30. C.
Quiz Thirty-Two:
1. D; 2. D; 3. B; 4. A; 5. B; 6. B; 7. A; 8. A; 9. B;
10. A; 11. B; 12. B; 13. B; 14. C; 15. A; 16. A; 17.
C; 18. B.
Quiz Thirty-Three:
1. B; 2. B; 3. B; 4. E; 5. B; 6. E; 7. D; 8. C; 9. B;
10. B; 11. B; 12. E; 13. E; 14. F; 15. B; 16. A; 17.
360
C; 18. B; 19. B; 20. B; 21. F; 22. B; 23. A; 24. B; 25. E.
Quiz Thirty-Four:.
1. B; 2. C; 3. B; 4. D; 5. C; 6. C; 7. C; 8. A; 9. B;
10. A; 11. C; 12. A; 13. A; 14. C; 15. A; 16. A; 17.
B; 18. B; 19. B; 20. B; 21. A; 22. B; 23. A; 24. B;
25. B; 26. A; 27. C; 28. D; 29. A; 30. B; 31. B; 32.
B; 33. A; 34. C; 35. B; 36. B; 37. B; 38. C; 39. B;
40. B; 41. B; 42. A; 43. B; 44. D; 45. C; 46. B; 47.
F; 48. E.
Quiz Thirty-Five:
1. C; 2. C; 3. E; 4. E; 5. B; 6. A; 7. F; 8. B; 9. B; 10.
C; 11. F; 12. A; 13. F; 14. F; 15. C; 16. B; 17. B;
18. E; 19. F; 20. A; 21. D; 22. C; 23. E; 24. A; 25.
A; 26. F; 27. E; 28. F; 29. B; 30. D.
Quiz Thirty-Six:
1. B; 2. F; 3. D; 4. F; 5. A; 6. H; 7. E.
Quiz Thirty-Seven:
1. B; 2. A; 3. A; 4. A; 5. C; 6. B; 7. D; 8. C; 9. B;
10. B; 11. C.
Quiz Thirty-Eight:
1. D; 2. D; 3. B; 4. C; 5. B; 6. C; 7. A; 8. A; 9. A;
10. B; 11. B.
Quiz Thirty-Nine:
1. A; 2. D; 3. B; 4. B; 5. C; 6. B; 7. C; 8. C; 9. C;
10. B; 11. D; 12. A.
Quiz Forty:
1. D; 2. B; 3. C; 4. D; 5. A; 6. C.
Quiz Forty-One:
1. C; 2. A; 3. C; 4. B; 5. B; 6. D.
COMPOUNDING
Quiz One:
1.C; 2.A; 3.C; 4.A; 5.B; 6.B; 7.C; 8.B; 9.B; 10.A;
11.C; 12.A; 13.B; 14.B; 15.C; 16.B; 17.B; 18.C;
19.A; 20.A.
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Quiz Two:
1.B; 2.C; 3.A; 4.B; 5.B; 6.D; 7.A; 8.C; 9.C; 10.D;
11.D.
Quiz Three:
1.B; 2.B; 3.C; 4.D; 5.C; 6.B; 7.D; 8.B; 9.A; 10.A;
11.D.
Quiz Four:
1.B; 2.B; 3.A; 4.B; 5.C; 6.A; 7.B; 8.A; 9.D.
Quiz Five:
1.B; 2.D; 3.A; 4.C; 5.C; 6.A; 7.B; 8.B; 9.D; 10.A;
11.A; 12.C; 13.B; 14.D; 15.A.
Quiz Six:
1.B; 2.A; 3.D; 4.D; 5.C; 6.A; 7.B; 8.C; 9.A; 10.B.
Quiz Seven:
1.A; 2.B; 3.C; 4.D; 5.A; 6.A; 7.A; 8.A; 9.C; 10.C;
11.C; 12.B; 13.C; 14.D; 15.A; 16.C; 17.B; 18.A;
19.B; 20.B; 21.B; 22.B; 23.A; 24.B; 25.D; 26.B;
27.A; 28.B; 29.A; 30.C; 31.A; 32.B; 33.C; 34.A;
35.A.
Quiz Eight:
1.A; 2.B; 3.B; 4.A; 5.D; 6.B; 7.C; 8.B; 9.B; 10.C;
11.A; 12.D; 13.A; 14.B; 15.C; 16.A; 17.A; 18.B;
19.A; 20.B; 21.D; 22.A; 23.A; 24.C; 25.D; 26.C;
27.A; 28.A; 29.A; 30.A; 31.C; 32.B; 33.D; 34.C;
35.A; 36.D; 37.A; 38.A; 39.A; 40.A; 41.C; 42.A;
43.A; 44.A.
Quiz Nine:
1.A; 2.C; 3.D; 4.C; 5.B; 6.A; 7.D; 8.C; 9.C; 10.B;
11.B; 12.C; 13.A; 14.D; 15.C; 16.B; 17.B; 18.B;
19.C; 20.A; 21.A; 22.D; 23.C; 24.A; 25.C; 26.A;
27.C; 28.C; 29.B; 30.A; 31.E; 32.E.
Quiz Ten:
1.C; 2.B; 3.A; 4.C; 5.D; 6.E; 7.C; 8.A; 9.D; 10.D;
11.G; 12.G; 13.H; 14.C; 15.A; 16.A; 17.B; 18.F;
19.A; 20.A; 21.D; 22.G; 23.C; 24.F; 25.D; 26.A;
27.A; 28.A; 29.C; 30.E; 31.B; 32.A; 33.D; 34.G;
35.D; 36.A; 37.D; 38.F; 39.H; 40.C; 41.B; 42.C;
43.D; 44.B; 45.F; 46.F; 47.H; 48.H; 49.D; 50.E;
51.H; 52.A; 53.C; 54.C; 55.B; 56.C; 57.A; 58.A;
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59.D; 60.C.
Quiz Eleven:
1.B; 2.D; 3.B; 4.D; 5.B; 6.D; 7.B.
Quiz Twelve:
1.A; 2.B; 3.B; 4.C; 5.A; 6.C; 7.A.
Quiz Thirteen:
1.A; 2.D; 3.B; 4.A; 5.C; 6.A; 7.A; 8.B; 9.C; 10.C;
11.A.
Quiz Fourteen:
1.D; 2.A; 3.C; 4.B; 5.C; 6.A; 7.A; 8.C; 9.B; 10.D;
11.A.
Quiz Fifteen:
1.A; 2.C; 3.B; 4.D; 5.C; 6.A; 7.B; 8.B; 9.B; 10.C;
11.A; 12.A.
Quiz Sixteen:
1.B; 2.A; 3.A; 4.B; 5.B; 6.B; 7.A; 8.B; 9.A; 10.B;
11.A; 12.B; 13.B; 14.B; 15.B; 16.B.
Quiz Seventeen:
1.D; 2.A; 3.B; 4.A; 5.C; 6.A; 7.C; 8.D.
Quiz Eighteen:
1.A; 2.B; 3.A; 4.C; 5.B; 6.C; 7.A; 8.D; 9.C; 10.D;
11.B; 12.B; 13.A; 14.D; 15.C; 16.D.
Quiz Nineteen:
1.D; 2.B; 3.A; 4.C; 5.C; 6.A; 7.B; 8.B; 9.C; 10.C;
11.D; 12.A.
Quiz Twenty:
1.B; 2.A; 3.D; 4.A; 5.C; 6.C; 7.D; 8.B; 9.B; 10.D;
11.A; 12.C; 13.C; 14.B; 15.A.
Quiz Twenty-One:
1.C; 2.A; 3.A; 4.D; 5.B; 6.B; 7.C; 8.D; 9.A; 10.B;
11.D.
Quiz Twenty-Two:
1.D; 2.D; 3.B; 4.C; 5.A; 6.D; 7.C; 8.A; 9.B; 10.A;
11.B; 12.D; 13.C; 14.A; 15.D; 16.B; 17.B; 18.A;
19.C; 20.D.
Quiz Twenty-Three:
1.A; 2.B; 3.A; 4.A; 5.A; 6.F; 7.B; 8.A; 9.E; 10.E;
11.D; 12.C; 13.G; 14.A; 15.A; 16.A; 17.E; 18.C;
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19.B; 20.E; 21.A; 22.F; 23.C; 24.E; 25.A; 26.E;
27.D; 28.E; 29.C; 30.F; 31.C; 32.E; 33.C; 34.A;
35.D; 36.A; 37.B; 38.A; 39.B; 40.A; 41.F; 42.C;
43.G; 44.C; 45.C; 46.B; 47.F; 48.G; 49.E; 50.D;
51.G; 52.E; 53.C; 54.B; 55.F.
Quiz Twenty-Four:
1.K; 2.V; 3.G; 4.P; 5.A; 6.Z; 7.R; 8.B; 9.S; 10.C;
11.T; 12.D; 13.U; 14.W; 15.E; 16.F; 17.Y; 18.H;
19.N; 20.X; 21.Q; 22.I; 23.J; 24.M; 25.O; 26.L.
CONVERSION
Quiz One:
1. B; 2. A; 3. C; 4. C; 5. D; 6. A; 7. C; 8. B; 9. B;
10. A; 11. C; 12. D.
Quiz Two:
1. A; 2. B; 3. B; 4. B; 5. A; 6. B; 7. B; 8. B; 9. A;
10. B; 11. A; 12. B; 13. B; 14. A; 15. B; 16. B;
17. B; 18. A; 19. B; 20. B.
Quiz Three:
1. C; 2. A; 3. D; 4. A; 5. C; 6. C; 7. B; 8. A; 9. A;
10. C; 11. A; 12. C; 13. B; 14. A; 15. D; 16. A;
17. B; 18. D; 19. A 20. H; 21. C; 22. B; 23. D; 24.
H; 25. A; 26. D; 27. D; 28. F; 29. A; 30. A; 31.B;
32. F; 33. I; 34. I; 35. A; 36. I; 37. G; 38. D; 39.
A; 40. C; 41. A; 42. C; 43. I; 44. G; 45. G; 46. C;
47. I; 48. F; 49. I; 50. E; 51. E.
Quiz Four:
1. B; 2. B; 3. C; 4. B; 5. B; 6. B; 7. A; 8. C; 9. B;
10. B; 11. B; 12.A; 13. B; 14. B; 15. B; 16. B; 17.
A; 18. A; 19. B; 20. A; 21. A; 22. A; 23. B; 24. B;
25. B; 26. B; 27. A; 28. B; 29. B; 30. B; 31. C;
32. A; 33. B; 34. A; 35. B; 36. A; 37. D; 38. A;
39. B; 40. B; 41. B; 42. A; 43. B; 44. C; 45. A;
46. D; 47. B; 48. A; 49. B; 50. A; 51. D.
Quiz Five:
1. B; 2. E; 3. E; 4. D; 5. E; 6. A; 7. E; 8. B; 9. D;
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10. A; 11. E; 12. F; 13. C; 14. D; 15. C; 16. F; 17.
D; 18. D; 19. B; 20. F; 21. C; 22. D; 23. A; 24. A;
25. D; 26. A; 27. C; 28. F.
Quiz Six:
1. D; 2. D; 3. B; 4. D; 5. A; 6. B; 7. C; 8. A; 9. B;
10. C; 11. A; 12. C; 13. C; 14. B; 15. A; 16. D.
Quiz Seven:
1. C; 2. D; 3. B; 4. A; 5. A; 6. C; 7. B; 8. B.
Quiz Eight:
1. B; 2. A; 3. B; 4. C; 5. D; 6. C; 7. A; 8. C; 9. B;
10. B.
Quiz Nine:
1. D; 2. B; 3. C; 4. A; 5. D; 6. B; 7. A; 8. C; 9. C;
10. A; 11. D; 12. B; 13. A.
Quiz Ten:
1. B; 2. D; 3. A; 4. D; 5. C; 6. D; 7. C; 8. A; 9. B;
10. B; 11. C; 12. B.
Quiz Eleven:
1. A; 2. G; 3. E; 4. K; 5. E; 6. E; 7. E; 8. A; 9. A;
10. C; 11. B; 12. E; 13. A; 14. A; 15. J.
Quiz Twelve:
N → V : 1. G; 2. A; 3. A; 4. D; 5. B; 6. F; 7. C;
8. C; 9. F; 10. C; 11. E; 12. B; 13. E;
14. C; 15. C; 16. C; 17. A; 18. B; 19.
H; 20. B.
V → N : 21. C; 22. C; 23. C; 24. A; 25. B; 26.
E; 27. C; 28. C; 29. E; 30. E; 31. D;
32. B; 33. C; 34. C; 35. B; 36. B; 37.
B; 38. E.
Adj.→V : 39. A; 40. A; 41. B; 42. A; 43. A; 44.
B.
Adj.→N : 45. B; 46. A; 47. B; 48. B; 49. A.
ABBREVIATION
Quiz One:
1.C; 2.A; 3.C; 4.D; 5.D; 6.D; 7.A; 8.B; 9.A; 10.D;
365
11.C; 12.A; 13.C; 14.A; 15.C; 16.B; 17.A; 18.C;
19.C; 20.D; 21.A; 22.A; 23.A; 24.C; 25.B; 26.A;
27.A; 28.B; 29.A; 30.D; 31.A; 32.D; 33.B; 34.B;
35.C; 36.C; 37.A; 38.A; 39.A; 40.A.
Quiz Two:
1.B; 2.B; 3.B; 4.B; 5.A; 6.D; 7.B; 8.C; 9.E;
11.E; 12.C; 13.A; 14.B; 15.C; 16.B; 17.B;
19.B; 20.C; 21.B; 22.C; 23.B; 24.D; 25.B;
27.B; 28.C; 29.E; 30.B; 31.C; 32.E; 33.B;
35.E; 36.B; 37.B; 38.F; 39.C; 40.B; 41.A;
43.B; 44.A; 45.C; 46.F; 47.C; 48.E; 49.B;
51.C; 52.C; 53.B; 54.C; 55.C; 56.B; 57.A;
59.B; 60.B.
Quiz Three:
1.D; 2.B; 3.D; 4.A; 5.C; 6.B; 7.D; 8.B; 9.B; 10.C.
Quiz Four:
1.B; 2.D; 3.A; 4.C; 5.D; 6.A; 7.B; 8.D; 9.A; 10.B;
11.C; 12.A; 13.A; 14.D; 15.C; 16.B.
Quiz Five:
1.B; 2.C; 3.B; 4.A; 5.D; 6.D; 7.C; 8.B; 9.A; 10.C;
11.C; 12.A; 13.D; 14.B; 15.B; 16.A; 17.C; 18.D;
19.B.
Quiz Six:
1.C; 2.A; 3.D; 4.D; 5.C.
Quiz Seven:
1.B; 2.B; 3.D; 4.A; 5.C;6.D; 7.B; 8.C.
Quiz Eight:
1.B; 2.A; 3.C; 4.A; 5.D.
Quiz Nine:
1.C; 2.B; 3.B; 4.A; 5.C; 6.C; 7.C; 8.G; 9.B;
11.G; 12.C; 13.A; 14.G; 15.C; 16.C; 17.B;
19.G; 20.D; 21.B; 22.B; 23.C; 24.A; 25.B;
27.G; 28.C; 29.A; 30.A; 31.C; 32.A; 33.G;
35.G; 36.E; 37.F; 38.C; 39.G; 40.C.
Quiz Ten:
1.C; 2.A; 3.A; 4.C; 5.C; 6.D; 7.D; 8.C; 9.A; 10.C;
11.A; 12.A; 13.C; 14.C; 15.C; 16.C; 17.C; 18.B.
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10.A;
18.C;
26.E;
34.C;
42.C;
50.E;
58.A;
10.C;
18.E;
26.A;
34.C;
Quiz Eleven:
1. [I.] A, [II] C, [III.] B; 2. [I] B, [II] D, [III] C, [IV]
A, [V] B; 3. [I] D, [II] B, [III] C; 4. C; 5. A; 6. D; 7.
[I] B, [II] D, [III] A.
Quiz Twelve:
1.T; 2.V; 3.K; 4.J; 5.M; 6.P; 7.W; 8.R; 9.N; 10.H;
11.Q; 12.G; 13.I; 14.U; 15.S; 16.E; 17.L; 18.C; 19.D;
20.B; 21.F; 22.O; 23.A.
Quiz Thirteen:
1.O; 2.Y; 3.M; 4.I; 5.X; 6.Q; 7.L; 8.B; 9.D; 10.W.
Quiz Fourteen:
1.C; 2.D; 3.C; 4.B; 5.A.
Quiz Fifteen:
1. [I] B, [II] A; 2. [I] B, [II] B; 3. [I] B, [II] A, [III] B,
[IV] A, [V] B, [VI] A., [VII] A; 4. [I] B, [II] A, [III]
A, [IV] A, [V] B, [VI] A, [VII] A, [VIII] A, [IX] B,
[X] B; 5. [I] B, [II] B, [III] A, [IV] A, [V] A.
BLENDING
Quiz One:
1.M; 2.N; 3.H; 4.P; 5.J; 6.Q; 7.L; 8.S; 9.F; 10.O;
11.D; 12.I; 13.R; 14.T; 15.E; 16.A; 17.K; 18.B;
19.G; 20.C.
Quiz Two:
1.D; 2.C; 3.B; 4.A; 5.C; 6.D; 7.A; 8.A; 9.B; 10.D;
11.A; 12.C.
Quiz Three:
1.D; 2.A; 3.C; 4.D; 5.D; 6.B; 7.C; 8.A; 9.D; 10.B;
11.A; 12.A; 13.B; 14.A.
Quiz Four:
1.A; 2.B; 3.B; 4.B; 5.A; 6.B; 7.B; 8.A; 9.A; 10.A;
11.A; 12.A; 13.A; 14.A; 15.B; 16.B; 17.B; 18.B;
19.A; 20.A; 21.A; 22.B; 23.B; 24.B; 25.A; 26.B;
27.B; 28.A; 29.B; 30.A.
Quiz Five:
1.C; 2.A; 3.A; 4.A; 5.A; 6.A; 7.F; 8.A; 9.A; 10.A;
11.E; 12.C; 13.C; 14.G; 15.A; 16.C; 17.B; 18.B;
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19.E; 20.A; 21.C; 22.C; 23.B; 24.F; 25.A; 26.C;
27.F; 28.C; 29.A; 30.A.
Quiz Six:
1.D; 2.C; 3.B; 4.B; 5.D.
BACK-FORMATION
Quiz One:
1.D; 2.A; 3.B; 4.A; 5.B; 6.A; 7.D; 8.C; 9.D; 10.C;
11.A; 12.C; 13.A; 14.B; 15.D; 16.C; 17.D; 18.C.
Quiz Two:
1.A; 2.C; 3.A; 4.C; 5.A; 6.B; 7.A; 8.C; 9.C; 10.A;
11.A; 12.A; 13.A; 14.A; 15.A; 16.A; 17.A; 18.B.
Quiz Three:
1.C; 2.A; 3.B; 4.D; 5.B; 6.A; 7.D; 8.C; 9.B; 10.A.
Quiz Four:
1.D; 2.A; 3.B; 4.C; 5.C; 6.B; 7.D; 8.A; 9.C.
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INDEX
A
abbreviation, 55, 58, 79, 262, 277,
307, 308, 310, 317, 324, 327,
329, 332, 334, 338, 339, 340,
342, 379
acronym, 307, 308, 314
AE, 258, 337
affix, 53, 54, 58, 59, 60, 177, 267,
275, 354
affixation, 55, 56, 58, 59, 370
allomorph, 60, 105, 157
American, 38
apheresis, 308, 310, 343, 351
apocope, 307, 310, 312, 343, 351
archaic, 155, 238
assimilated, 10, 11, 35
assimilation, 10, 11, 35
asyntactic, 179, 213, 354
B
back-formation, 55, 56, 59, 79, 115,
176, 198, 354, 363, 365, 381
bahuvrihi, 179, 216
BE, 258, 337
blend, 342, 343, 346, 349, 350, 351
blending, 55, 56, 59, 115, 342, 380
borrowed, 9, 10, 61
borrowing, 8, 9, 11, 18, 55, 56, 59,
79, 115, 176
British, 38
C
calque, 9, 18, 55, 56
clipped, 307, 308, 342, 351
clipping, 308
cognate, 8, 15
colloquial, 155, 253, 329
combining form, 74, 75, 97, 177, 234
compound, 54, 55, 57, 58, 59, 60,
137, 176, 178, 179, 182, 183,
186, 196, 198, 201, 204, 207,
211, 213, 216, 219, 223, 226,
227, 230, 238, 243, 247, 253,
258, 262, 275, 354, 363
compound-derivative, 54, 55, 58, 60,
179, 193, 363
compounding, 55, 56, 58, 79, 115,
176, 177, 198, 263, 285, 342, 375
connotational, 149
constituent, 56, 342
context, 334
conversion, 55, 56, 58, 79, 115, 176,
198, 260, 262, 263, 264, 268,
271, 275, 277, 285, 288, 293,
302, 377
coordinative, 178, 227
D
derivational, 53, 54
derivative, 54, 55, 58, 70, 146, 152,
157, 275, 354, 363
E
ellipses, 262, 282
endocentric, 178, 219, 226
etymological, 8, 10, 11, 24, 26, 60,
90, 264
etymology, 8, 10, 28, 30, 34, 176,
368
exocentric, 178, 223
369
F
false friends, 11, 47
folk etymology, 10, 28, 30, 34, 176
formal, 155, 253, 329
H
historism, 243
homonym, 332
homonymous, 109, 160, 339
hybrid, 63, 139
I
IC, 56, 75
idiomatic, 179, 230
idionym, 11, 12, 38
infix, 54, 58
infixation, 58
informal, 155, 253
initialism, 307, 308
international words, 11, 43
internationalism, 12, 47
J
jargon, 253, 329
L
lexico-grammatical, 53, 59, 121,
125, 179, 271, 275
linking element, 57, 177
literary, 155
loan, 9, 10, 11, 12, 18, 35, 59, 79,
176, 198
loan translation, 9, 18, 61, 176, 198
loanshift, 9, 18
370
M
meaning, 8, 9, 26, 53, 54, 56, 59, 64,
97, 146, 179, 207, 260, 268
monovalent, 59, 85, 129
morpheme, 8, 9, 53, 54, 56, 57, 63,
68, 157, 176, 177
morphological, 53, 56, 59, 132, 260,
262, 275
N
native, 8, 10, 12, 15, 60
neologism, 167, 171, 174, 247, 293,
325, 365
neutral, 11, 12, 155, 253, 329
nonce-word, 34, 163, 288, 317, 351
O
obsolete, 324
origin, 8, 10, 11, 18, 74, 87, 135
P
phrase, 8, 60, 132, 201, 262, 263,
275, 282, 307, 308, 342
polyonym, 11, 12
polysemantic, 26, 63, 260, 298, 332
prefix, 54, 56, 58, 60, 64, 74, 75, 79,
85, 87, 90, 97, 98, 101, 105, 109,
177
prefixation, 58, 65, 79, 82, 115
pseudocompound, 176, 190
R
register, 155, 329
root, 24, 28, 53, 54, 57, 58, 59, 68,
132, 176, 177, 262, 275, 354, 263
S
semantic, 9, 10, 18, 101, 142, 150,
157, 176, 178, 263, 302
semi-calque, 9, 18
slang, 155, 253, 329
source, 8, 10, 11, 15, 59, 65, 66, 174,
260, 261, 263, 271, 275, 298
stem, 53, 54, 58, 59, 65, 66, 121,
132, 177, 179, 275, 342, 343,
351, 354
subordinative, 178
suffix, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62, 63, 64,
115, 125, 129, 132, 138, 142,
146, 149, 150, 152, 155, 157,
160, 171, 174, 177
suffixation, 58, 66, 79, 115, 118
syncope (syncopated), 308, 310,
343, 351
synonym, 332
syntactic, 178, 211, 260
T
terminology, 155, 253, 329
transcription, 9, 18
transliteration, 9, 18
transplantation, 9, 19
transpositive, 59, 101, 125
V
variant, 26, 60, 75, 332
vulgar, 253, 329
W
word, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 19, 24, 26,
28, 29, 41, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58,
59, 63, 69, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 77,
79, 82, 90, 95, 97, 111, 115, 121,
125, 132, 138, 167, 176, 178,
179, 180, 181, 183, 186, 200,
203, 218, 222, 234, 258, 260,
261, 262, 268, 271, 275, 282,
288, 298, 307, 312, 332, 337,
342, 343, 354, 363
X
xenonym, 11, 12, 40, 43
target, 65, 66, 260, 261, 262, 268,
275, 298
371
Учебное издание
Любовь Ивановна Швыдкая
Практический курс английской лексикологии.
Часть I
Учебник
Подписано в печать 27.05.2014
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