Vocabulary Power Plus – Lesson #6
Packet Due: Monday, October 27, 2014
Grade: 11
Test: Monday, October 27, 2014
Name: __________________________________
Period: __________
**Note: Copy the vocabulary words and definitions on index cards or somewhere else for study purposes.
I.
Definitions
1. antipathy (an tip a thee) n. an intense dislike
So great was her feeling of antipathy that she was afraid that it showed in her face.
Syn: aversion
Ant: affinity
2. elucidate (i loo si date) v. to make clear
To elucidate his theory, he drew a large diagram on the board.
Syn: explain; clarify
Ant: obscure
3. imminent (im a nent) adj. likely to happen; threatening
Though the danger was imminent, the crew seemed quite relaxed.
Syn: impending; approaching
Ant: distant; delayed
4. banal (bay nal) adj. common, ordinary
His banal remarks quickly bored the entire class.
Syn: trivial; insipid
Ant: original; fresh
5. obdurate (ob dur rate) adj. stubborn; hardhearted
The young boy was obdurate in his refusal to make any trade.
Syn: inflexible; obstinate
Ant: compliant; amendable
6. peruse (pur rooz) v. to read carefully; scrutinize
Bob peruses the classified ads every day to try and find a part-time job.
Syn: N/A
Ant: N/A
7. bedlam (bed lem) n. a noisy uproar; a scene of wild confusion
The concert hall was sheer bedlam until the rock star appeared.
Syn: mayhem; chaos
Ant: N/A
8. affluence (af loo ence) n. wealth; richness
Paul earned his fortune without relying on the affluence of his family.
Syn: fortune
Ant: N/A
9. scurrilous (skur a lus) adj. coarsely abusive; vulgar
The scurrilous partrons of the saloon were often seen shouting and fighting.
Syn: indecent
Ant: respectable
10. parody (par o dee) n. a work which imitates another in a ridiculous manner
Joan’s parody of the English teacher was funny to everyone but the English teacher.
Syn: caricature; burlesque; lampoon
Ant: N/A
11. sedulous (sed ju lous) adj. hard working; diligent
Everyone knew Jason would get ahead in the world because he was sedulous in all he undertook.
Syn: studious; assiduous
Ant: lazy; lax
12. onerous (oh ner us) adj. burdensome; heavy; hard to endure
The doctor had the onerous job of informing the family of the child’s death.
Syn: crushing; distressing
Ant: N/A
13. amoral (ay mor al) adj. lacking a sense of right and wrong
The amoral henchmen obeyed all of the boss’s orders, no matter how despicable
Syn: corrupt; evil
Ant: innocent; virtuous 2
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14. eschew (es choo) v. to keep away from; to avoid; to shun
The minister advised the congregation to eschew temptation.
Syn: N/A
Ant: embrace; welcome
15. denouement (dey noo mauh) n. (French origin) an outcome; result
The novel would have been exciting if it wree not for the boring denouement
Syn: conclusion
Ant: N/A
II.
Words in Context
From the lists below, supply the words needed to complete each appropriate paragraph. In each list, there
will be some words that will not be used.
1.
bedlam
banal
scurrilous
eschew
amoral
obdurate
elucidate
imminent
Saturday had been a[n] __(a)__, uneventful day until the special
report interrupted every television and radio broadcast in the city. A
a. _____________________________________
b. _____________________________________
news anchorman __(b)__ the __(c)__ threat of an approaching tidal
wave, and, in minutes, the coastal city erupted into __(d)__. According
to the experts, the 120-foot tidal wave would obliterate the city in
c. _____________________________________
forty minutes—not nearly enough time for an organized evacuation
d. _____________________________________
of three million people.
The panic turned humans into __(e)__ animals. In the rush to
e. _____________________________________
escape to the high ground beyond the peninsula, people who were
f.
once pleasant and mannerly now screamed __(f)__ remarks at anyone
_____________________________________
g. ______________________________________
preventing their fast escape. Ordinary people who had no means of
transportation carjacked automobiles and threw the operators to the
ground. Mobs fleeing apartment buildings trampled anyone not fast
enough to keep up. There were also thousands of people who were
too __(g)__ to believe the alerts; they stayed in their homes and made
futile preparations.
2.
onerous
bedlam
eschew
sedulous
affluence
peruse
Kim was a[n] __(a)__ office manager with an impeccable record, but
a. _____________________________________
b. _____________________________________
c. _____________________________________
d. _____________________________________
none of her experiences prepared her for the __(b)__ task of firing Bill.
Before the meeting, she __(c)__ Bill’s file to learn where his
productivity declined. Bill was well-liked in the office, so Kim knew
that Bill’s coworkers would probably __(d)__ her for firing their
friend.
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3.
scurrilous
parody
affluence
antipathy
elucidate
denouement
The show that we watched last night was actually a[n] __(a)__ of a
a. _____________________________________
b. _____________________________________
c. _____________________________________
d. _____________________________________
III.
popular Shakespeare play; all the major characters were animals, and
it was a comedy rather than a tragedy, unlike the original play. The
plot essentially remained the same: a prince of great __(b)__ is the
target of his evil stepbrother’s __(c)__. The __(d)__ of the new play is
different because at the end of the play, the prince forgives his
stepbrother instead of fighting him to the death.
Roots, Prefixes, and Suffixes
Study the entries and answer the questions that follow.
The root pel means “to push” or “to drive.”
The roots sum and sumpt mean “take.”
The root celer means “swift.”
The prefix con means “with” or “together.”
The prefix dis means “apart” or “in different directions.”
The prefix ex means “out” or “from.”
The suffix ator means “one who does.”
The suffix ion means “the act of.”
1. Using literal translations as guidance, define the following words without using a dictionary.
a. expel
b. dispel
c. propeller
d. consumption
e. sumptuous
f.
accelerator
2. Someone who moves with celerity is moving ___________________________________________________________.
The word accelerate means ____________________________________, but if you slow down, you
_________________________________.
3. You create a[n] _______________________________________ by taking excerpts from your career history and
writing them down; however, do not _______________________________________ that someone will hire you
without an interview.
4. If you drive something forward, you ________________________________ it, but if you drive something back,
you ___________________________________ it.
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A salesperson might _______________________________________ you to purchase a product, but a threat to your
safety would ____________________________________ you to take cover. You will then need to
___________________________________________ rumors that you ran away.
5. List at least six words that you can think of, that begin with the prefix con.
6. List at least six words that you can think of, that contain the suffix ator.
IV.
Critical Reading
Below is a reading passage followed by several multiple-choice questions similar to the ones you will
encounter on the SAT. Carefully read the passage and choose the best answer from each of the questions.
The author of the following passage describes the evolution of American handwriting and comments about the
decline of the art.
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1. As used in line 13, progeny most nearly means.
A. ancestors
B. predecessors
C. descendants
2. The purpose of the first paragraph is to
A. expresses the importance of penmanship.
B. explain how fine writing is disappearing.
C. inform how the phases of handwriting.
3. As used in line 50, denizens most nearly means
A. relatives
B. dwellers
C. commanders
4. Which answer best describes the implication of
the following sentence (line 49 – 51)?
A. People in the author’s time forego pride,
precision, and beauty.
B. Victorian people had vid drams of success
C. Pride, Precision, and Beauty are mandatory
elements of penmanship
5. As used in line 62, the word hand most nearly
means
A. appendage
B. style
C. drawing
7. As used in line 69, intrinsic most nearly means
A. avoided
B. inherent
C. substituted
8. The last line of the passage can be most
accurately described as an example of
A. opinion
B. irony
C. metaphor
9. According to the passage, which of the following
choices is not a phase in the evolution of
penmanship?
A. the development of Edwardian italic writing
B. America adopting the Spenserian writing
method
C. the introduction of the Palmer method
10. This passage would probably be found in a[n]
A. department store catalog
B. newspaper column
C. arts and craft book
6. Austin Palmer created a new method of writing
because
A. he and Spencer had a professional rivalry.
B. the Department of Education requested a
simple style of writing
C. the Spenserian method was tiring for writers
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