IMPROVING
VOCABULARY SKILLS
Fourth Edition
Sherrie L. Nist
© 2010 Townsend Press
Unit Two: Chapter 9
• concurrent
• hypothetical
• confiscate
• nominal
• constitute
• predominant
• decipher
• prerequisite
• default
• recession
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
1 concurrent
– adjective
• Concurrent with the closing of the steel mill was the opening of
a new toy factory in town. As a result, most of the workers laid
off from the mill found jobs at the new factory.
• Having mistakenly registered for two concurrent classes, Joe
had to drop one of them and choose a course that met at a
different time.
Concurrent means
A. occurring at the same time.
B. resulting.
C. noticeable.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
1 concurrent
– adjective
• Concurrent with the closing of the steel mill was the opening of
a new toy factory in town. As a result, most of the workers laid
off from the mill found jobs at the new factory.
• Having mistakenly registered for two concurrent classes, Joe
had to drop one of them and choose a course that met at a
different time.
Concurrent means
A. occurring at the same time.
B. resulting.
C. noticeable.
If the laid-off workers from the mill found jobs at the new factory,
the closing of the mill must have occurred at the same time as the
opening of the factory. In the second item, Joe would not be able
to take the two classes if they occurred at the same time.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
2 confiscate
– verb
• “Hand ’em over,” my father said. Just as we were really starting
to have fun, he confiscated our entire supply of water balloons.
• Chinese drug agents once confiscated $2 million worth of heroin
that had been wrapped in plastic and inserted into live goldfish.
The agents seized the drugs as they were being sent out of the
country.
Confiscate means
A. to distribute widely.
B. to take possession of.
C. to overlook.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
2 confiscate
– verb
• “Hand ’em over,” my father said. Just as we were really starting
to have fun, he confiscated our entire supply of water balloons.
• Chinese drug agents once confiscated $2 million worth of heroin
that had been wrapped in plastic and inserted into live goldfish.
The agents seized the drugs as they were being sent out of the
country.
Confiscate means
A. to distribute widely.
B. to take possession of.
C. to overlook.
If the father says, “Hand ’em over,” he is planning to take possession
of the water balloons. In the second item, the word seized tells you
that confiscate means “take possession of.”
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
3 constitute
– verb
• In my opinion, a good movie, a pizza, and animated conversation
constitute a perfect night out.
• Twelve business and professional people constitute the board of
directors of the women’s shelter. Among other things, they help
raise funds for the shelter.
Constitute means
A. to repeat.
B. to oppose.
C. to form.
“You mean walking from the TV to the
refrigerator doesn’t constitute a workout?”
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
3 constitute
– verb
• In my opinion, a good movie, a pizza, and animated conversation
constitute a perfect night out.
• Twelve business and professional people constitute the board of
directors of the women’s shelter. Among other things, they help
raise funds for the shelter.
Constitute means
A. to repeat.
B. to oppose.
C. to form.
“You mean walking from the TV to the
refrigerator doesn’t constitute a workout?”
A good movie, a pizza, and animated
conversation would form a perfect
night out. Twelve people would form
the board of directors.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
4 decipher
– verb
• Why do contracts have to use language that’s so difficult to
decipher?
• If your teacher can’t decipher your handwriting, you’ll need to
write your papers on a computer.
Decipher means
A. to figure out.
B. to find.
C. to improve.
Handwriting that is hard to decipher
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
4 decipher
– verb
• Why do contracts have to use language that’s so difficult to
decipher?
• If your teacher can’t decipher your handwriting, you’ll need to
write your papers on a computer.
Decipher means
A. to figure out.
B. to find.
C. to improve.
Handwriting that is hard to decipher
The legal language used in contracts
is difficult to figure out. If you need to
write you papers on a computer, the
teacher must not be able to figure out
your handwriting.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
5 default
– verb
• We won our case against the appliance repairman because he
defaulted by failing to appear in court.
• Eli’s mother said, “I’ll co-sign on your car loan, but you have to
make every payment. If you default, it will hurt my credit
rating.”
Default means
A. to act as expected.
B. not to do something
required.
C. to begin.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
5 default
– verb
• We won our case against the appliance repairman because he
defaulted by failing to appear in court.
• Eli’s mother said, “I’ll co-sign on your car loan, but you have to
make every payment. If you default, it will hurt my credit
rating.”
Default means
A. to act as expected.
B. not to do something
required.
C. to begin.
By failing to appear in court, the repairman did not do something
required of him—so he lost the case. Eli is required to make every
payment on her car loan.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
6 hypothetical
– adjective
• Imagine the hypothetical situation of going to live alone on an
island. Which books and CDs would you take along?
• Law schools hold pretend court sessions with hypothetical cases
so that students can practice their skills.
Hypothetical means
A. sure to happen.
B. dangerous.
C. imaginary.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
6 hypothetical
– adjective
• Imagine the hypothetical situation of going to live alone on an
island. Which books and CDs would you take along?
• Law schools hold pretend court sessions with hypothetical cases
so that students can practice their skills.
Hypothetical means
A. sure to happen.
B. dangerous.
C. imaginary.
Going to live alone on an island is an imaginary situation for most
people. The word imagine is a clue. If the court sessions are pretend,
the cases must be imaginary.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
7 nominal
– adjective
• Except for a nominal registration fee, the camp for needy
children is entirely free.
• Professor Banks gave us only nominal extra credit for
participating in psychology experiments. She wanted our course
grade to be based mainly on our test scores.
Nominal means
A. enormous.
B. very little.
C. helpful.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
7 nominal
– adjective
• Except for a nominal registration fee, the camp for needy
children is entirely free.
• Professor Banks gave us only nominal extra credit for
participating in psychology experiments. She wanted our course
grade to be based mainly on our test scores.
Nominal means
A. enormous.
B. very little.
C. helpful.
If the camp is for needy children, the registration fee must be very
little. If Professor Banks wanted the grade to be based mainly on
test scores, she would give very little extra credit for participating
in experiments.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
8 predominant
– adjective
• Rock is the predominant music on that radio station, but country
music is also played.
• Although the predominant type of car in New York City in 1900
used gasoline, a third of the cars ran on electricity.
Predominant means
A. rare.
B. main.
C. temporary.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
8 predominant
– adjective
• Rock is the predominant music on that radio station, but country
music is also played.
• Although the predominant type of car in New York City in 1900
used gasoline, a third of the cars ran on electricity.
Predominant means
A. rare.
B. main.
C. temporary.
Although rock isn’t the only music on that station, it is the main music
the station plays. If only a third of the cars ran on electricity, the main
type of car was gasoline powered.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
9 prerequisite
– noun
• You can’t take Spanish Literature I unless you’ve taken the
prerequisite, Spanish III.
• Since she was allergic to cigarette smoke, Kaylin told Troy that
his quitting smoking was a prerequisite for their marrying.
Prerequisite means
A. a requirement.
B. a penalty.
C. a method.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
9 prerequisite
– noun
• You can’t take Spanish Literature I unless you’ve taken the
prerequisite, Spanish III.
• Since she was allergic to cigarette smoke, Kaylin told Troy that
his quitting smoking was a prerequisite for their marrying.
Prerequisite means
A. a requirement.
B. a penalty.
C. a method.
Spanish III is a requirement in order to take Spanish Literature. If
Kaylin is allergic to cigarette smoke, it would be a requirement for
Troy to quit smoking in order for them to get married.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
10 recession
– noun
• While seashore businesses in the North suffer a recession in the
winter, they do very well from spring to fall.
• The department store laid off twenty workers during the
recession, but it rehired them when business improved.
Recession means
A. a rapid growth.
B. a sale.
C. an economic setback.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
10 recession
– noun
• While seashore businesses in the North suffer a recession in the
winter, they do very well from spring to fall.
• The department store laid off twenty workers during the
recession, but it rehired them when business improved.
Recession means
A. a rapid growth.
B. a sale.
C. an economic setback.
In contrast with doing very well from spring to fall, seashore business
suffer an economic setback in the winter. In the second item, the words
business improved suggest that recession means “an economic set
back.”
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
1. Anger was the ___________ emotion among voters when
they first heard that their taxes would be raised again.
2. Although the two robberies were __________—both
occurred at midnight on Friday—one man had planned
them both.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
1. Anger was the ___________
predominant emotion among voters when
they first heard that their taxes would be raised again.
Anger would be the most common emotion at the news of higher taxes.
2. Although the two robberies were __________—both
concurrent
occurred at midnight on Friday—one man had planned
them both.
If both robberies occurred at midnight on Friday, they happened
at the same time.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
3. One hundred senators and 435 members of the House of
Representatives __________ the United States Congress.
4. A __________ for taking the driver’s road test is passing a
written test on the state’s driving laws.
5. The town library charges only a __________ fine for late
books but a higher fine for late DVDs.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
3. One hundred senators and 435 members of the House of
Representatives __________
constitute the United States Congress.
One hundred senators and 435 members of the House make up the
United States Congress.
4. A __________
prerequisite for taking the driver’s road test is passing a
written test on the state’s driving laws.
Passing the written test is a requirement before taking the driver’s
road test.
5. The town library charges only a __________
nominal fine for late
books but a higher fine for late DVDs.
In contrast with the higher fine for late DVDs, the fine for late books
is very little.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
6. Karim has such terrible handwriting that his wife couldn’t
__________ his message saying she should meet him at
the restaurant.
7. When the shoe factory closed, our little town went into a
__________ because the laid-off workers had no money
to spend at local businesses.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
6. Karim has such terrible handwriting that his wife couldn’t
__________
decipher his message saying she should meet him at
the restaurant.
“Such terrible handwriting” suggests that Karim’s note couldn’t be read.
7. When the shoe factory closed, our little town went into a
__________
recession because the laid-off workers had no money
to spend at local businesses.
If the workers had no money to spend at local businesses, the town
would go into a business decline.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
8. The phone company refused to install a phone in Glen’s
new apartment because he had _______(e)d on several
of his previous bills.
9. After Justine borrowed the family car without permission for
the third time, her parents _______(ed) her driver’s license.
10. To teach young children safety, many parents explain what
to do in __________ situations, such as if a stranger asks
them to go for a ride.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. concurrent
B. confiscate
F. hypothetical G. nominal
C. constitute
D. decipher
E. default
H. predominant I. prerequisite J. recession
8. The phone company refused to install a phone in Glen’s
new apartment because he had __________
defaulted on several
of his previous bills.
If the phone company refused service, he must have failed to pay his bills.
9. After Justine borrowed the family car without permission for
the third time, her parents __________
confiscated her driver’s license.
If she borrowed the car without permission, her parents must have
seized her driver’s license.
10. To teach young children safety, many parents explain what
to do in __________
hypothetical situations, such as if a stranger asks
them to go for a ride.
The sentence gives an example of a theoretical situation.