Search Vocabulary – Schreiner
Book G, Unit # 10
Word List
1.
askance – (adv) with suspicion, mistrust, or disapproval
2.
attenuate – (v) to make thin or slender; to weaken or lessen in force, intensity, or value
3.
benign – (adj) gentle, kind; forgiving, understanding; having a favorable or beneficial effect; not
malignant
4.
cavil – (v) to find fault in a petty way, carp; (n) a trivial objection or criticism
5.
charlatan – (n) one who feigns knowledge or ability; a pretender, impostor, or quack
6.
concatenation – (n) a linking together in a sequence; a chain
7.
concomitant – (adj) accompanying; occurring concurrently; (n) something that accompanies another
thing
8.
decimate – (v) to kill or destroy a large part of
9.
foible – (n) a weak point, failing, minor flaw
10.
forgo – (v) to do without, abstain from, give up
11.
fraught – (adj) full of or loaded with; accompanied by
12.
inure – (v) to toughen, harden; to render used to something by long subjection or exposure
13.
luminous – (adj) emitting or reflecting light, glowing; illuminating
14.
obsequious – (adj) marked by slavish attentiveness; excessively submissive, often for purely selfinterested reasons
15.
obtuse – (adj) blunt, not coming to a point; slow or dull in understanding; measuring between 90 degrees
and 180 degrees, not causing a sharp impression
16.
oscillate – (v) swing back and forth with a steady rhythm; to fluctuate or waver
17.
penitent – (adj) regretful for one’ sins or mistakes; (n) one who is sorry for wrongdoing
18.
peremptory – (adj) having the nature of a command that leaves no opportunity for debate, denial, or
refusal; offensively self-assured, dictatorial; determined, resolute
19.
rebuff – (v) to snub; to repel, drive away; (n) a curt rejection; a check, setback
20.
reconnoiter – (v) to engage in reconnaissance; to make a preliminary inspection
21.
shambles – (n) a slaughterhouse; a place of mass bloodshed; a state of complete disorder and confusion
22.
sporadic – (adj) occurring at irregular intervals, having no set plan or order
Vocabulary Assignment Book G, Unit #10
Filling in the Blanks
Choose the word from this unit that best completes each sentence.
1. The general sent scouts on ahead of the army to ______________ the area for a suitable site to
pitch camp.
2. In one horrible moment, the airplane crash converted the quiet streets of that suburban
community into a ghastly _________________.
3. Good supervisors know that they can get more cooperation from their staff by making polite
requests than by issuing ____________________ orders.
4. The man’s personality was a strange mixture of strengths and weaknesses, fortes and
_______________.
5. Any “investment counselor” who promises to double your money overnight must be regarded as
a(n) ________________________ or a crook.
6. Though my childhood recollections have been ____________________ by the passage of time,
they have not been totally effaced from my memory.
7. Though critics _______________________ at minor faults in the new Broadway show, the
general public loved the piece.
8. Life on the family farm has _____________________ me to hard physical labor and long hours
of unremitting toil.
9. Although there had been some _________________ fighting earlier, they real battles of the
Civil War did not begin until Bull Run in July, 1861.
10. I find it absolutely incredible that such a bizarre _____________________ of improbabilities
could actually lead to the outbreak of a major war.
11. During imperial times, the Roman Senate was little more than a collection of
___________________ yes-men, intent upon preserving their own lives by gratifying the
emperor’s every whim.
12. His statements have been so uniformly _______________ that I get the impression that he is
wearing a permanent pair of mental blinders.
13. As all kinds of wild rumors ran rampant through the besieged city, the mood of the populace
_________________ between hope and despair.
14. During the 14th century, the Black Death suddenly swept across Europe, _____________ the
population and paralyzing everyday life.
15. No doubt he’s very sorry he got caught, but that does not mean that he’s at all _________ about
what he did.
16. I think The World Turned Upside Down is an apt title for any study of war and its ______ social
and economic dislocations.
17. Although the moon appears to be a(n) ______________________ body, the fact is that it only
reflects light received from the sun.
18. In a typical James Bond movie, Agent 007 has a series of adventures that are ____________
with tongue-in-cheek peril.
19. Unless the title Special Aide to the Assistant Section Manager involves a salary increase, I
would just as soon ___________________ it.
20. I was relieved to learn that the tumor on my arm was _________ and my worst fears groundless.
21. We look ____________________ at any program that makes it harder for city dwellers to get
out and enjoy the beauties of nature.
22. I was totally taken aback when they ______________ my kind offers of assistance so rudely and
nastily.
Synonyms
Choose the word that is most nearly the same in meaning as the following groups of
expressions.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
to fluctuate, waver, vibrate, vacillate
remorseful, regretful, rueful, sorry
fawning, servile, sycophantic, mealymouthed
to thin out, dilute, water down
a shortcoming, failing, flaw, defect, quirk
radiant, bright, refulgent, lustrous
to nitpick, quibble, carp
to ravage, wreak havoc, devastate
dull-witted, stupid, dumb, thick; mild
irregular, intermittent, spasmodic
to harden, accustom, acclimate
to spurn, repulse, reject; a setback
a series, sequence, conjunction
benevolent, salutary, salubrious
a mess, disaster area; a slaughterhouse
to do without, refrain from, renounce
a fraud, quack, mountebank, impostor
attendant, accompanying, corollary
high-handed, dictatorial; unconditional
full of, loaded with, charged with
distrustfully, suspiciously, skeptically
to scout, see how the land lies
________________________ 1
________________________ 2
________________________ 3
________________________ 4
________________________ 5
________________________ 6
________________________ 7
________________________ 8
________________________ 9
_______________________10
_______________________11
_______________________12
_______________________13
_______________________14
_______________________15
_______________________16
_______________________17
_______________________18
_______________________19
_______________________20
_______________________21
_______________________22
Antonyms
Choose the word that is most nearly the opposite in meaning as the groups of expressions.
1. a person’s strong suit, forte; a virtue
2. devoid of, lacking, deficient in
3. assertive, bumptious; overbearing; candid, frank;
independent
4. unrepentant, remorseless, uncontrite
5. constant, steady, continuous, uninterrupted
6. irresolute, tentative; mild, unassuming
7. acute, perceptive, quick-witted
8. to indulge in, partake of
9. the real McCoy, genuine article
10. to thicken; to strengthen, bolster
11. dark, opaque, dim, murky
12. to remain fixed, steady, or constant
13. malignant; malevolent, deleterious
14. to accept, take someone up on, welcome
________________________ 1
________________________ 2
________________________ 3
________________________ 4
________________________ 5
________________________ 6
________________________ 7
________________________ 8
________________________ 9
_______________________10
_______________________11
_______________________12
_______________________13
_______________________14
Choosing the Right Word
Encircle the boldface word that more satisfactorily completes the sentences.
1. During the Civil War the ranks of both armies were (decimated, rebuffed) as much by disease
as by enemy action.
2. Since he didn’t want to give me credit for having done a good job, he took refuge in endless
(foibes, cavils) about my work.
3. Since he is not guided by firm principles, he (attenuates, oscillates) between the rival factions,
looking for support from both of them.
4. Lack of consideration for other people is an unfortunate (charlatan, concomitant) of her
driving ambition.
5. When I found that people I admired were looking (askance, sporadic) at my unconventional
clothing, I resolved to remedy the situation.
6. I have learned that (sporadic, peremptory) sessions of intense “cramming” can never take the
place of a regular study program.
7. All angles are classified as acute, right, (obtuse, benign), or straight, according to the number of
degrees they contain.
8. Imagine the general disappointment when the so-called “miracle cure” was exposed as a fraud
promoted by a (charlatan, cavil).
9. We must never allow our passion for justice to be (inured, attenuated) to mere halfhearted
goodwill.
10. Do you want to be a ballet dancer badly enough to (oscillate, forgo) those fattening foods you
love so much?
11. Their relationship has been so (fraught, benign) with strife and malice that I don’t see how they
can ever patch things up.
12. We believe that classes taught by teachers with specialized training will have a (sporadic,
benign) effect on the troubled children.
13. Bank robbers often spend a good deal of time (reconnoitering, rebuffing) the neighborhood in
which the bank they intend to rob is located.
14. Though Americans are always ready to settle a conflict peacefully, they are not afraid to use
(luminous, peremptory) force when necessary.
15. How could you have the heart to (rebuff, cavil) those people’s piteous appeals for aid?
16. By a happy (shambles, concatenation) of events, the right boy, the right girl, and the right
music came together on the dance floor that night.
17. Over the years, her (luminous, obtuse) explanations and scintillating wit have helped her
students master the difficult subject she taught.
18. At an autocrat’s court, free speech is usually replaced by the (penitent, obsequious) twaddle of
self-serving flunkies and toadies.
19. Though I admire the woman’s strong points, I find her (rebuffs, foibles) laughable.
20. The (concomitant, penitent) youths agreed to work without pay until they could make
restitution for the damage their carelessness had caused.
21. Even though my experiences in battle have (inured, caviled) me to scenes of suffering, I was
horrified by the devastation wrought by the tornado.
22. Somehow or other, a bull got into the china shop and turned it into a complete (shambles,
concatenation).