UNIT 4 VOCABULARY
Pg. 1
Word
Meaning
1. brackish (adj.)
somewhat salty; briny
2. bulge (n.)
swelling; rounded protruding part;
protuberance
3. buoyancy (n.)
1. tendency to keep afloat or to rise when
submerged
2. lightheartedness; cheerfulness
(ant. depression, dejection)
4. crest (n.)
highest point; top; summit
5. gear (n.)
1. implements, tools, or apparatus;
equipment; paraphernalia
2. toothed wheel
6. gust (n.)
1. sudden brief rush of wind
2. outburst
7. horizon (n.)
1. line where sky seems to meet the earth
or sea
2. limit or range
8. moderate (v.)
1. make less violent; reduce the
severity of
2. become less violent, severe, or intense;
abate
3. act as chairperson; preside
9. tinge (v.)
color slightly; tint
10. welter (n.)
chaotic mass; jumble
APPLYING WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED
Pg 2
Exercise 1. Which of the two choices makes the sentence correct? Write the
letter of your answer in the space provided.
1. As you can see, I am very _____; there is a welter of correspondence on my desk.
A. methodical
B. disorganized
2. At every gust, the banners _____________.
A. flapped
B. drooped
3. The _____________ made a bulge in my pocket.
A. rubber band
B. apple
4. The solution looks like ordinary water tinged with a dash of __________.
A. salt
B. grape juice
5. At first we wanted a 10% raise, and now we are asking for __________%. We
have moderated our demands.
A. 12
B. 7
6. The horizon seems to _______ as we advance towards it.
A. move on ahead of us
B. remain in a fixed position
7. Take a deep breath of this brackish __________ air.
A. mountain
B. sea
8. The first prize is a __________, but we have no use for such gear.
A. caddie cart and a set of golf clubs
B. one week trip to Hawaii for two
9. The buoyancy of this canoe prevents it from __________.
A. overturning
B. sinking
10. As vehicles pass the crest of this steep road, they ___________ momentum.
A. gain
B. lose
USING FEWER WORDS
Pg 3
Exercise 2. Replace the italicized words with a single word from the vocabulary list
below.
Vocabulary List
welter
moderated
bulge
horizon
gust
buoyancy
tinged
gear
brackish
crest
1. Occasionally there was a sudden brief rush of wind of
gale force.
1. _________________
2. Though the sun had set, the western sky was still
slightly colored with crimson.
2. _________________
3. No one expects bottled mountain-spring water to taste
somewhat salty.
3. _________________
4. Look eastward where the night sky is brightening, and
you will soon see the tip of the moon rise above the
line where sky and earth seem to meet.
4. _________________
5. The grand jury is now considering a chaotic mass of
conflicting testimony.
5. _________________
6. The flood is expected to reach its highest point in
about four hours.
6. _________________
7. Progress at the bargaining table was possible only
when the tempers on both sides became less violent.
7. _________________
8. Because of their tendency to keep afloat, closed plastic
containers do not sink to the bottom of the sea.
8. _________________
9. There is a rounded protruding part on the wall of one
of your tires.
9. _________________
10. The passenger compartment is roomy, but the trunk is
too small for our implements, tools, and apparatus.
10. ________________
SYNONYMS AND ANTONYMS
Pg 4
Exercise 3. Fill the blanks in column A with the required synonyms and
antonyms, selecting them from column B.
Column A
Column B
_____________________ 1. synonym for top
moderate
_____________________ 2. synonym for outburst
bulge
_____________________ 3. synonym for abate
horizon
_____________________ 4. antonym for depressed
crest
_____________________ 5. synonym for jumble
brackish
_____________________ 6. synonym for briny
gust
_____________________ 7. synonym for tint
welter
_____________________ 8. synonym for paraphernalia
buoyant
_____________________ 9. synonym for swelling
gear
____________________ 10. synonym for limit
tinge
IDENTIFICATION
Pg 5
Exercise 4. Read the following statements. Then complete each sentence by
inserting the most appropriate proper name from these statements.
While their parents were busy with last-minute packing, Rita and her brothers were up on
the deck competing to see who would be the first to sight land.
After fruitless house of trying to interpret the
complicated instructions for filing a form
requested by the Federal Trade Commission,
Bruno turned the matter over to an accountant.
When Louise loaded the washing
machine, she put in a bright colored
new washcloth that she didn’t think
would run. It did.
Though she had lost her job, Connie was her same cheerful self. Nothing seemed to be able
to get her down.
All afternoon the ski tow pulled Andrea and
her friends to the top of the slope.
The discussion featured six panelists who
had quit smoking or were trying to.
Hotchkiss presided.
Outraged by Bruce’s remark, Pam snatched up a dinner plate and smashed it on the kitchen
floor.
Getting out of the car, Leon bumped his
forehead on the door frame. When he
touched his forehead later, it was swollen.
Despite the mask, chest protector, shin
guards, and heavy catcher’s mitt, Roscoe
was very agile behind the plate.
A towering wave knocked Carl off of his feet, pounded him onto the sea floor, and gave
him a swallow of surf.
Pg 6
1. ____________________ wore cumbersome gear.
2. ____________________ rode to the crest.
3. ____________________ felt a bulge.
4. ____________________ ‘s laundry was tinged with pink.
5. ____________________ floundered in a welter of detail.
6. ____________________ was overcome by a gust of passion.
7. ____________________ scanned the horizon.
8. ____________________ showed uncommon buoyancy.
9. ____________________ took a brackish drink.
10. ____________________ moderated.
ROOTS AND DERIVATIVES
Each capitalized word below is a root. The words under it are its derivatives.
BRACKISH (adj.)
brackishness (n.)
The water tasted brackish (salty).
The water was undrinkable because of its brackishness (briny
taste).
BULGE (n.)
The honeydew melon made a bulge (swelling) in the shopping
bag.
Her eyeballs bulged (swelled; protruded) with curiosity.
bulge (v.)
BUOY (n.)
buoy (v.)
buoyant (adj.)
A buoy (anchored float) warns approaching ships of
navigational dangers.
Your visits were important to me when I was in the hospital;
they buoyed (raised) my spirits.
The log was buoyant (able to keep afloat); it saved me
from drowning.