NAME: ________________________________________________
Due Friday, September 20th
TWELVE ANGRY MEN VOCABULARY TERMS
DIRECTIONS: Fill in the boxes below to understand the meaning of new or unclear words from Twelve
Angry Men. For each term, find the definition, and create an original sentence. The sentence for
“premeditated” and definition for “sadist” have been filled in for you as models.
Term
1. belligerent (adj)
Definition
hostile and aggressive
Original Sentence
The loud, angry man was
belligerent when he shouted at
his coworker.
2. abstain (v)
to choose not to do or have
something
I will abstain from eating the
junk food, because it is
unhealthy.
3. jeopardy (n)
danger of loss, harm, or failure
Jeffrey is in jeopardy of failing
the class because of his bad
grades.
4. sadist (n)
someone who obtains pleasure
from inflicting pain on others
The soldiers were considered
sadists for torturing their
enemies.
5. insignificant (adj)
too small or unimportant to be
worth consideration
Those details were insignificant,
because they did not affect my
opinion.
6. counsel (n)
- the lawyer or lawyers
conducting a case
- advice
7. contort (v)
twist or bend out of its normal
shape
- The defense counsel did
everything they could to win the
case.
- Did you give him counsel on his
problem?
The truck was contorted and
looked like a pretzel after the
accident.
8. intimidate (v)
to make (someone) afraid
The other team was intimidated
by our strong forward, because
they were afraid of losing
against her.
9. premeditated (v)
think out or plan (an action, esp.
a crime) beforehand
The day before, Randall had
premeditated murdering his
cousin.
10. prosecution (n)
the act or process of holding a
trial against a person who is
accused of a crime to see if that
person is guilty
The prosecution of the suspect
took place to determine
whether he was guilty or
murder or not.
11. sequence (n)
A following of one thing after
another
The number sequence at the
board went in order from one to
twenty-seven.
12. sequester (v)
To remove or set apart;
segregate
The ill man was sequestered so
that he would not make other
people sick as well.
13. validity (n)
Fairness or reasonableness
The validity of his response was
never an issue, because it
seemed true and likely.
14. subside (v)
to become less strong or intense
The symptoms subsided when
she took the medicine.
15. conceivable (adj)
able to be imagined
It is conceivable that she did
well on the test, because she
studied for hours last week.
16. meek (adj)
having or showing a quiet and
gentle nature
The meek puppy licked the new
baby’s foot softly.
17. ad lib (v)
to improvise or deliver
spontaneously
I will ad lib the presentation,
because it seems more natural
than planning my speech.
18. unanimous (adj)
fully in agreement
The decision was unanimous to
take a trip to California that
summer.
19. acquittal (n)
judgment, as by a jury or judge,
that a defendant or suspect is
not guilty of a crime
The man received an acquittal
and was let free from jail when
the court determined that he
was not guilty of the crime.
20. monopoly (n)
complete ownership or control
of something
The student had a monopoly of
all of the bonus points in the
class when he answered the
questions correctly.