BUILDING
VOCABULARY SKILLS
Fourth Edition
Sherrie L. Nist
© 2010 Townsend Press
Unit Three: Chapter 13
• accessible
• prevail
• awe
• propel
• cite
• rational
• compatible
• retort
• exempt
• retrieve
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
1 accessible
– adjective
• The department store was not accessible from her side of the
road, so Kristin looked ahead for a U-turn.
• We always hung the candy canes on the Christmas tree’s highest
branches, where they weren’t accessible to the younger children.
Accessible means
A. good to look at.
B. within reach.
C. desirable.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
1 accessible
– adjective
• The department store was not accessible from her side of the
road, so Kristin looked ahead for a U-turn.
• We always hung the candy canes on the Christmas tree’s highest
branches, where they weren’t accessible to the younger children.
Accessible means
A. good to look at.
B. within reach.
C. desirable.
If the department store couldn’t be
reached (wasn’t within reach) from her
side of the road, Kristin would have to
make a U-turn. If the candy canes were on
the highest branches, they would not be
within reach of little children.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
2 awe
– noun
• Nelson and Donna have different types of heroes. Although
Nelson greatly admires Tom Brady, Donna is in awe of Oprah
Winfrey.
• Sid is in awe of his gymnastics coach, whom he considers the
greatest man he knows.
Awe means
A. anger.
B. respect.
C. hope.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
2 awe
– noun
• Nelson and Donna have different types of heroes. Although
Nelson greatly admires Tom Brady, Donna is in awe of Oprah
Winfrey.
• Sid is in awe of his gymnastics coach, whom he considers the
greatest man he knows.
Awe means
A. anger.
B. respect.
C. hope.
If Oprah Winfrey is a hero to Donna, Donna must respect her.
If Sid considers the coach the greatest man he knows, Sid
must respect the coach.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
3 cite
– verb
• Jamal was embarrassed but pleased when the teacher cited his
essay as an example of good writing.
• Tired of picking up after her sister, Kim cited examples of her
sloppiness: “stacks of papers, piles of dirty clothes, and
unwashed dishes.”
Cite means
A. to forget.
B. to mention.
C. to ignore.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
3 cite
– verb
• Jamal was embarrassed but pleased when the teacher cited his
essay as an example of good writing.
• Tired of picking up after her sister, Kim cited examples of her
sloppiness: “stacks of papers, piles of dirty clothes, and
unwashed dishes.”
Cite means
A. to forget.
B. to mention.
C. to ignore.
It would please Jamal to have the teacher mention his essay as an
example of good writing. Kim mentions three specific examples of
her sister’s sloppiness.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
4 compatible
– adjective
• My former girlfriend and I weren’t very compatible; whenever
she wasn’t angry with me, I was angry with her.
• Some sweet and salty foods are compatible: for example,
chocolate-covered pretzels are delicious.
Compatible means
A. well-known.
B. healthy.
C. able to work together.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
4 compatible
– adjective
• My former girlfriend and I weren’t very compatible; whenever
she wasn’t angry with me, I was angry with her.
• Some sweet and salty foods are compatible: for example,
chocolate-covered pretzels are delicious.
Compatible means
A. well-known.
B. healthy.
C. able to work together.
If he is angry with the former girlfriend whenever she is not angry with
him, the two would not be able to work together very well. If chocolate
covered pretzels are delicious, the flavors must work together.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
5 exempt
– adjective
• Since he had never been spanked, my little brother thought he
was exempt from punishment—until he wrote on the walls in
ink.
• Students with A averages were exempt from final exams, so the
top three students began their vacation early while the rest of us
sweated it out on exam day.
Exempt means
A. excused.
B. in fear.
C. hiding.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
5 exempt
– adjective
• Since he had never been spanked, my little brother thought he
was exempt from punishment—until he wrote on the walls in
ink.
• Students with A averages were exempt from final exams, so the
top three students began their vacation early while the rest of us
sweated it out on exam day.
Exempt means
A. excused.
B. in fear.
C. hiding.
If the little brother had never been spanked, he would have
thought he was excused from punishment. If the top
students were able to begin their vacation before exams,
they must have been excused from the exams.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
6 prevail
– verb
• Most Hollywood movies have a happy ending: good prevails
over evil.
• Although Kennedy prevailed over Nixon in 1960, eight years
later Nixon won the presidency.
Prevail means
A. to win.
B. to watch.
C. to lose.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
6 prevail
– verb
• Most Hollywood movies have a happy ending: good prevails
over evil.
• Although Kennedy prevailed over Nixon in 1960, eight years
later Nixon won the presidency.
Prevail means
A. to win.
B. to watch.
C. to lose.
If the movies have happy endings, good must win over evil.
In the second sentence, the word won tells you the meaning
of prevail.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
7 propel
– verb
• My brother gave me a shove, which propelled me into the lake
fully clothed.
• When the wind failed to propel the boat, we lowered the sails
and turned on the motor.
Propel means
A. to support.
B. to move forward.
C. to raise.
Airplane propellers
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
7 propel
– verb
• My brother gave me a shove, which propelled me into the lake
fully clothed.
• When the wind failed to propel the boat, we lowered the sails
and turned on the motor.
Propel means
A. to support.
B. to move forward.
C. to raise.
Airplane propellers move
a plane forward.
If one is shoved (from behind), one
moves forward. If they had to turn
on the motor, the wind must have
failed to move the boat forward.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
8 rational
– adjective
• The belief that breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck
isn’t rational. The only bad luck it could really bring is stepping
on a sharp piece of broken glass.
• Mr. Tibbs isn’t rational; in addition to believing he came from
another planet, he does crazy things like shoveling snow in his
pajamas.
Rational means
A. helpful.
B. kind.
C. reasonable.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
8 rational
– adjective
• The belief that breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck
isn’t rational. The only bad luck it could really bring is stepping
on a sharp piece of broken glass.
• Mr. Tibbs isn’t rational; in addition to believing he came from
another planet, he does crazy things like shoveling snow in his
pajamas.
Rational means
A. helpful.
B. kind.
C. reasonable.
Believing that breaking a mirror can bring seven years bad
luck is not reasonable. Shoveling snow in pajamas and
believing one is from another planet are not reasonable
things. The word crazy is a clue.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
9 retort
– noun
• Sue, who is slender, boasted, “Thin is in.” So Pat, who is heavy,
gave this retort: “Well, fat is where it’s at.”
• When Shelley’s balding boyfriend made fun of her new perm, her
retort was, “Jealous?”
Retort means
A. a wish.
B. an answer.
C. a fact.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
9 retort
– noun
• Sue, who is slender, boasted, “Thin is in.” So Pat, who is heavy,
gave this retort: “Well, fat is where it’s at.”
• When Shelley’s balding boyfriend made fun of her new perm, her
retort was, “Jealous?”
Retort means
A. a wish.
B. an answer.
C. a fact.
Heavy Pat gives a clever answer to slender Sue’s boast. Shelly gives
a clever answer to her boyfriend’s teasing.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
10 retrieve
– verb
• My dog Floyd refuses to retrieve a thrown Frisbee. Instead of
running to bring it back, he only tilts his head and gives me a
questioning look.
• I can’t retrieve my sweater from the library until tomorrow, since
the library had closed by the time I realized the sweater was
missing.
Retrieve means
A. to remember.
B. to touch.
C. to get back.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
10 retrieve
– verb – verb
• My dog Floyd refuses to retrieve a thrown Frisbee. Instead of
running to bring it back, he only tilts his head and gives me a
questioning look.
• I can’t retrieve my sweater from the library until tomorrow, since
the library had closed by the time I realized the sweater was
missing.
Retrieve means
A. to remember.
B. to touch.
C. to get back.
In the first item, the words bring . . . back tell you the meaning. If the
library had closed, one wouldn’t be able to get back the sweater.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
1. When I go bowling with Joan, she usually wins, but I
always __________ in Scrabble.
2. Jet engines __________ a plane forward.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
1. When I go bowling with Joan, she usually wins, but I
always __________
in Scrabble.
prevail
The word wins tells you that prevail means win.
2. Jet engines __________
a plane forward.
propel
The jet engines on an airplane move it forward.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
3. I ran back to the ladies’ room to __________ my purse,
but someone had already taken it.
4. In my family, a person is __________ from household
chores on his or her birthday.
5. The cabinet above the refrigerator was __________ to Tanya
but not to her roommate Mieko, who was much shorter.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
3. I ran back to the ladies’ room to __________
retrieve my purse,
but someone had already taken it.
She would run back to the ladies’ room to get back her purse.
4. In my family, a person is __________
exempt from household
chores on his or her birthday.
One would be excused from doing household chores on his or her
birthday.
5. The cabinet above the refrigerator was __________
accessible to Tanya
but not to her roommate Mieko, who was much shorter.
For Tanya, who is much taller, the cabinet is within reached.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
6. The general’s uniform and medals filled Scott with
__________. However, Marla, who knew the general
personally, felt only disrespect for him.
7. There are at least two versions of the joke in which a
customer complains that a fly is in his soup. The waiter’s
__________ is either “That’s okay—there’s no extra
charge” or “Don’t worry—he won’t drink much.”
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
6. The general’s uniform and medals filled Scott with
__________.
However, Marla, who knew the general
awe
personally, felt only disrespect for him.
The word disrespect tells you that awe means respect.
7. There are at least two versions of the joke in which a
customer complains that a fly is in his soup. The waiter’s
__________
is either “That’s okay—there’s no extra
retort
charge” or “Don’t worry—he won’t drink much.”
Each statement by the waiter is an example of a clever reply to the
customer’s complaint.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
8. When Bridget writes up her experiment, she will
__________ similar studies by other researchers, to show
that her results match theirs.
9. Some people don’t think in a(n) _________ way. Their
thoughts are governed by emotion, not reason.
10. My father thinks everything combines well with peanut
butter. He even thinks peanut butter and onions are
__________ in a sandwich.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. accessible
B. awe
C. cite
D. compatible E. exempt
F. prevail
G. propel
H. rational
I. retort
J. retrieve
8. When Bridget writes up her experiment, she will
__________
similar studies by other researchers, to show
cite
that her results match theirs.
Bridget will mention the other studies to support her own results.
9. Some people don’t think in a ___________
way. Their
rational
thoughts are governed by emotion, not reason.
People whose thoughts are not governed by reason don’t think in a
logical way.
10. My father thinks everything combines well with peanut
butter. He even thinks peanut butter and onions are
__________
compatible in a sandwich.
The word combines tells you that the father thinks that peanut butter
and onions combine well in a sandwich.
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