1702

Question 1

philander

\fə-ˈlan-dər\

Answer 1

D. to have casual or illicit sex with a woman or with many women; especially : to be sexually unfaithful to one’s wife

E. he can’t seem to stop philandering, even now that he’s on his fifth marriage

Question 2

philanthropist

Answer 2

D. one who gives money to help others

Question 3

philistine

\ˈfi-lə-ˌstēn\

Answer 3

D. a person who is guided by materialism and is usually disdainful of intellectual or artistic values

E. She dismissed critics of her work as philistines.

Question 4

phlegmatic

Answer 4

D. sluggish; calm

Question 5

phobia

Answer 5

D. an irrational fear (of sth)

Question 6

physiognomy

\ˌfi-zē-ˈä(g)-nə-mē\

Answer 6

D. one’s facial expressions; the shape and features of a person’s face

E. a fierce physiognomy. / the physiognomy of a nation.

Question 7

pied

\ˈpīd\

Answer 7

D. spotted

E. a pied horse

Question 8

piety

Answer 8

D. the state of having or showing a deep respect for somebody/something, especially for God and religion; the state of being pious; devotion to family

E. her piety is quiet but profound

Question 9

pillage

\ˈpi-lij\

Answer 9

D. to loot or plunder (especially in war)

E. The town was pillaged and burned.

Question 10

pinion

\ˈpin-yən\

Answer 10

D. to hold or tie somebody, especially by their arms, so that they cannot move

E. Joan of Arc was pinioned to a stake and burned as a heretic.

Question 11

pious

Answer 11

D. devout

Question 12

piquant

\ˈpē-kənt\

Answer 12

D. agreeably stimulating to the palate, especially : spicy; provocative

E. He served the fish with a piquant sauce. / a piquant bit of gossip

Question 13

pique

\ˈpēk\

Answer 13

D. to offend or provoke

E. After a moment of pique, the senator responded calmly to his accusers. / He slammed the door in a fit of pique.

Question 14

pithy

Answer 14

D. meaningful and concise

Question 15

pittance

\ˈpi-tən(t)s\

Answer 15

D. a meager amount

E. the internship offers only a pittance for a salary, but it is a great opportunity to gain experience

Question 16

placate

Answer 16

D. to pacify

Question 17

placid

Answer 17

D. calm, quiet

Question 18

plaintive

\ˈplān-tiv\

Answer 18

D. mournful

E. We could hear the plaintive cry of a wounded animal in the woods.

Question 19

plait

\ˈplāt\

Answer 19

D. to pleat or braid

E. My mum taught me how to plait my own hair.

Question 20

platitude

Answer 20

D. a dull and commonplace remark

E. His speech was filled with familiar platitudes about the value of hard work and dedication.

Question 21

platonic

\plə-ˈtä-nik\

Answer 21

D. being a relationship marked by the absence of romance or sex

E. They had a platonic friendship, not a romantic one.

Question 22

plaudit

\ˈplä-dət\

Answer 22

D. applause; enthusiastic approval

E. the proud parents bragged that their daughter had received many plaudits for her academic achievements

Question 23

plausible

Answer 23

D. reasonable and likely to be true

Question 24

plebeian

\pli-ˈbē-ən\

Answer 24

D. a common (or of the lower social classes) man

E. plebeian tastes

Question 25

plebiscite \ˈple-bə-ˌsīt\

Answer 25

D. vote by the people of a country or a region on an issue that is very important E. to hold a plebiscite on the country's future system of government

Question 26

plenary \ˈplē-nə-rē\

Answer 26

D. full; complete (com"ple"te, "ple"nary) E. A plenary meeting of the 500 members was held last summer.

Question 27

plenipotentiary \ˌple-nə-pə-ˈten(t)-sh(ə-)rē\

Answer 27

D. a person who has full powers to take action, make decisions, etc. on behalf of their government, especially in a foreign country (plenus-full, potent-power) E. He was promoted from minister plenipotentiary to full ambassador.

Question 28

plethora \ˈplä-thə-rə\

Answer 28

D. excess e. A plethora of books have been written on the subject. / a biology textbook that is helpfully illustrated with a plethora of excellent illustrations

Question 29

plutocracy \plü-ˈtä-krə-sē\

Answer 29

D. government by the wealthy (ploutos-wealth) E. If only the wealthy can afford to run for public office, are we more a plutocracy than a democracy?

Question 30

poach

Answer 30

D. to trespass; to steal

Question 31

pogrom \ˈpō-grəm\

Answer 31

D. an organized massacre of helpless people because of their race or religion (originally the killing of Jews in Russia)

Question 32

poignant \ˈpȯi-nyənt\

Answer 32

D. painfully affecting the feelings E. The photograph was a poignant reminder of her childhood.

Question 33

politic \ˈpä-lə-ˌtik\

Answer 33

D. prudent; crafty E. the actor is politic in discussing the aborted film project, being content to say that there were “creative differences”

Question 34

poltroon \päl-ˈtrün\

Answer 34

D. a spiritless coward E. those poltroons in the state legislature who have caved in to bigotry on this important issue of basic civil rights

Question 35

polygamy \pə-'li-gə-mē\

Answer 35

D. having more than one husband or wife E. a polygamous marriage/society

Question 36

polyglot \ˈpä-lē-ˌglät\

Answer 36

D. knowing, using or written in more than one language E. a polyglot nation

Question 37

pommel \ˈpä-məl\

Answer 37

D. the knob on the hilt of a sword or saber E. the elderly woman pommeled the would-be thief with her handbag until he begged for mercy

Question 38

pompous \ˈpäm-pəs\

Answer 38

D. excessively elevated or ornate; having or exhibiting self-importance E. She found it difficult to talk about her achievements without sounding pompous.

Question 39

ponder

Answer 39

D. to consider carefully

Question 40

portend \pȯr-ˈtend\

Answer 40

D. to foreshadow E. The distant thunder portended a storm.

Question 41

portent

Answer 41

D. an omen

Question 42

portly

Answer 42

D. stout, rather fat E. a portly gentleman who clearly didn't get enough exercise

Question 43

posit

Answer 43

D. to place in position; to set forth as fact E. Most religions posit the existence of life after death.

Question 44

posterity \pä-ˈster-ə-tē\

Answer 44

D. all future generation E. Posterity will remember her as a woman of courage and integrity.

Question 45

posthumous \ˈpäs-chə-məs\

Answer 45

D. born after the death of the father; published after the death of the author; following or occurring after death E. posthumous fame

Question 46

postprandial \pōs(t)-ˈpran-dē-əl\

Answer 46

D. after dinner; occurring after a meal E. postprandial oratory / a postprandial brandy.