8th Grade
Name: ________________________________________________
Class Period: __________________
Unit 7 Vocabulary Packet
1. acme – (n) the highest point
2. attribute – (n) a quality or characteristic belonging to or associated with someone or something; (v)
to assign to, credit with; to regard as caused by or resulting from
3. belittle – (v) to make something appear smaller than it is; to refer to in a way that suggests lack of
importance or value
4. convey – (v) to transport; to transmit; to communicate, make known; to transfer ownership or title to
5. doctrine – (n) a belief, principle or teaching; a system of such beliefs or principles; a formulation of
such beliefs or principles
6. excise – (v) to remove by cutting (n) an indirect tax on the manufacture, sale or distribution of a commodity
or service
7. exotic – (adj) foreign; charmingly unfamiliar or strikingly unusual
8. haggard – (adj) thin, pale and worn as a result of worry or suffering; wild-looking
9. jaunty – (adj) lively, easy and carefree in manner; smart or trim in appearance
10. juncture – (n) a joining together; the point at which two things are joined; any important point in time
11. menial – (adj) lowly, humble, lacking importance or dignity; (n) a servant who does the humble and
unpleasant tasks
12. parry – (v) to ward off, evade, avoid; (n) a defensive movement in fencing and other sports
13. predatory – (adj) preying on, plundering or piratical
14. ravage – (v) to destroy, lay waste, ruin; (n) ruinous damage, destruction
15. stance – (n) a way of holding the body; an attitude or position on an issue
16. tawdry – (adj) showy or flashy but lacking in good taste
17. turncoat – (n) a person who switches to an opposing side or party
18. unassuming – (adj) not putting on airs, modest
19. wallow – (v) to roll about in a lazy, clumsy or helpless way, to overindulge in; (n) a wet, muddy or
dusty area used by animals as a sort of bath; a state or moral or physical collapse
20. waver – (v) to move to and fro, become unsteady; to show lack of firmness or decision
8th Grade
Directions: Write each vocabulary word 3 times each on the lines provided. If you are having
trouble with spelling, write the words 5 times each.
21. acme – ____________________________________________________________________________________
22. attribute – _________________________________________________________________________________
23. belittle – __________________________________________________________________________________
24. convey – ___________________________________________________________________________________
25. doctrine – _________________________________________________________________________________
26. excise – ___________________________________________________________________________________
27. exotic – ____________________________________________________________________________________
28. haggard – _________________________________________________________________________________
29. jaunty – ___________________________________________________________________________________
30. juncture – _________________________________________________________________________________
31. menial – ___________________________________________________________________________________
32. parry – ____________________________________________________________________________________
33. predatory – ________________________________________________________________________________
34. ravage – ___________________________________________________________________________________
35. stance – ___________________________________________________________________________________
36. tawdry – __________________________________________________________________________________
37. turncoat – _________________________________________________________________________________
38. unassuming – ______________________________________________________________________________
39. wallow – __________________________________________________________________________________
40. waver – ____________________________________________________________________________
8th Grade
Directions: Using the vocabulary words from this packet, fill in the blanks with the correct
word. Use each word only once. Remember that an incorrectly spelled word is wrong.
41. Even
though you start at a(n) _____________________________ job, you may
gain valuable experience and move upward rapidly.
42. The
Nobel Prize winner was so ___________________________ that we took
him to be just another struggling writer attending the conference.
43. She
sat there staring at the menu, __________________________ between the
steak sandwich and the chili cheese fries.
44. Though
many ________________________ creatures prefer to hunt at night,
lions and leopards are active during the daytime.
45. During
her trip through Kenya, my cousin took pictures of hippos as they
______________________ in a mudhole.
46. When
he switched parties, people called him a(n)
____________________________., but he said that he had just had an honest
change of opinion.
47. Since
my boss has, as they say, “a short fuse,” patience cannot be considered
one of his outstanding ___________________________.
48. Two
of our divisions were marching rapidly towards each other and hoped to
effect a(n) ____________________________ before the enemy attacked.
49. Disease
had so __________________________ his once handsome face that I
could scarcely recognize him!
50. The
Monroe ______________________________ sought to prevent the
colonization of the American continents by European powers.
8th Grade
51. Her
happy expression and the __________________________ way she walked
down the street gave the impression of someone “on top of the world.”
52. The
drawn and __________________________ faces of the rescued miners
showed clearly the terrible strain they had undergone.
53. In
her most celebrated novels, such as Pride and Prejudice and Emma, Jane
Austin reached the _________________________ of her literary art.
54. Because
of his ability to __________________________ his opponents’ blows, he
was rarely hurt in his many fights in the ring.
55. We
will need several trucks to _________________________ all the books to the
new library building.
56. Because
Ted Williams was one of the greatest hitters of all time, many
batters have tried to imitate his __________________________ at the plate.
57. The
room was so overcrowded with flashy furnishings that the overall effect
was cheap and ___________________________.
58. I
agree that we should not exaggerate his achievements, but we should not
_______________________________ them either.
59. In
the early 19th century, Thomas Bowdler attempted to “clean up” the works
of Shakespeare by ______________________________ all words and phrases
that he felt were coarse or offensive.
60. Most
Americans think of Australia as a strange and wonderful continent full
of ________________________ plants and animals.
8th Grade
Directions: Match each group of expressions with its synonym from this unit.
61. flashy, loud, garish, gaudy, tacky, vulgar
____________________________
62. a traitor, deserter, renegade
____________________________
63. to carry, transport; to send, transmit; to impact
____________________________
64. carefree, unconcerned, lighthearted
____________________________
65. to wreck, lay waste, devastate
____________________________
66. strange, alien; picturesque, colorful
____________________________
67. to hesitate, falter
____________________________
68. careworn, drawn, gaunt, wasted
_____________________________
69. posture, bearing; a position
_____________________________
70. lowly, humble; a servant, underling, scullion
_____________________________
71. a principle, belief
_____________________________
72. to ward off, fend off, deflect
_____________________________
73. modest, unpretentious
_____________________________
74. looting, pillaging; ravenous, rapacious
_____________________________
75. to cut out, delete, expunge
_____________________________
76. a quality, trait; to credit with, ascribe to
_____________________________
77. to roll about; to delight in, bask in
_____________________________
78. a union; a seam, joint; a turning point
_____________________________
79. the summit, top, peak, pinnacle
_____________________________
80. to minimize, underrate, disparage
_____________________________
8th Grade
Directions: Match each group of expressions with its antonym from this unit.
81. downcast, dejected, glum
_____________________________
82. to stand firm, be resolute
_____________________________
83. to put in, insert, interpolate
_____________________________
84. native, indigenous; familiar, commonplace
_____________________________
85. a loyalist, diehard
_____________________________
86. the low point, bottom
_____________________________
87. conceited, pretentious, self-important
_____________________________
88. refined, tasteful; subdued, muted
_____________________________
89. to exaggerate, magnify, overestimate
_____________________________
90. healthy, glowing, radiant
_____________________________
91. a boss, master; lofty, elevated
_____________________________
92. to do no harm, to spare
_____________________________
8th Grade
Directions: Write a compound sentence with 10 of the vocabulary words from this unit.
93. ____________________________________________________________________________________
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94. ____________________________________________________________________________________
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95. ____________________________________________________________________________________
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96. ____________________________________________________________________________________
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97. ____________________________________________________________________________________
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98. ____________________________________________________________________________________
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99. ____________________________________________________________________________________
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100.
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101.
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102.
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