Unit 2 Vocab

Question 1

abominate

Answer 1

to hate or strongly dislike.
Mrs. Finklesnark, my ancient English teacher, abominates the poor use of grammar, but it seems to me that some of her complaints are a bit frivolous and out-of-date.

Question 2

abreast

Answer 2

1. side by side; 2. up to date; knowledgeable about current topics; aware.
   The Great Wall of China is so broad that a column of soldiers can walk twenty abreast along its top.

Question 3

acquaintance

Answer 3

1. a person someone knows but would not consider a close friend; 2. personal knowledge about someone or something.
   Jeremy is an acquaintance from school and seems like a nice guy, but we’ve never visited each other’s homes or hung out together after classes.

Question 4

admirable

Answer 4

1. deserving, or thought of, with great approval or pleasure; 2. excellent, extremely good.
   Hard work and perseverance are admirable traits to develop and will serve you well all your life.

Question 5

affectionately

Answer 5

with love or tenderness.
Treated affectionately, many cats and dogs abandoned at shelters make loyal and loving companions.

Question 6

bauble

Answer 6

1. cheap flashy jewelry or accessory.
   Weighing several carats, her diamond engagement ring was no bauble.

Question 7

boom

Answer 7

1. to make a deep, echoing sound; 2. to grow or prosper, especially in business; (n) 1. a deep, echoing sound; 2. a sudden increase; a gain in popularity; 3. a period of significant economic growth; 4. a pole holding a microphone over a set or stage; 5. a horizontal beam projecting out from a crane or similar mechanism; 6. many of the long poles used in the construction or operation of boats and aircraft.
   The boom in high-speed Internet access is putting quite a strain on the physical infrastructure that carries the signals into our home computers.

Question 8

calculable

Answer 8

1. capable of being determined or estimated;
   2. relied on, counted on; dependable.
   Investing is not gambling; in investing, the risks are calculable while in gambling everything is up to chance.

Question 9

castigate

Answer 9

1. to strongly criticize or express disapproval; 2. to punish severely, especially to correct.
   Castigated for his failure to tell the complete truth to investigators, the businessman found himself burdened with an unsavory reputation.

Question 10

develop

Answer 10

1. to make or become larger, better, or more advanced; to grow or evolve; 2. to come into being, especially gradually, over time; 3. to make visible or clear.
   Her minor cold developed into a life-threatening case of pneumonia.

Question 11

engage

Answer 11

1. to attract and hold one’s attention or interest; 2. to pledge or promise to marry; 3. to hire for work, help, or services; 4. to enter into battle or conflict; 5. to join, interlock, or attach; 6. to be involved in; to participate in.
   While most of my classmates might disagree, I find writing vocabulary sentences rather engaging, an opportunity to exercise my creativity.

Question 12

foundation

Answer 12

1. the support, basis, or groundwork of anything; 2. an organization which is supported by the financial contributions of others;
   3. face makeup.
   In order to have success in algebra, one must first have a firm foundation in arithmetic—adding, subtracting, multiplication, and division.

Question 13

malady

Answer 13

1. any disease, illness, or impairment of the body; 2. any unhealthy or undesirable condition.
   With the discovery of penicillin and antibiotics in the first half of the twentieth century, many deadly maladies, such as cholera and plague, became far less fearsome and dreaded.

Question 14

maltreat

Answer 14

to treat in a bad, cruel, or rough way; abuse.
By signing the Geneva Conventions, a country promises not to maltreat any prisoner of war it captures.

Question 15

mediate

Answer 15

1. to act between two or more individuals or groups to help them reach an agreement or settle an argument;
   2. to be in the middle of, or form a connection between; (adj) 1. being in a middle place or position.
   The politician offered to mediate the hostage situation, but the captors felt he couldn’t be trusted to be fair to both sides.

Question 16

murky

Answer 16

1. dark, dim, gloomy; 2. cloudy, difficult to see through, especially water; 3. confusing, unclear.
   It was difficult to clearly see the manatee in the murky water of the lagoon.

Question 17

oscillate

Answer 17

1. to move or swing back and forth with a regular rhythm; 2. to be undecided about an opinion or plan of action.
   The sprinkler oscillated one full circle every two minutes.

Question 18

residence

Answer 18

1. the place in which a person lives; 2. the time period during which a person lives in a place; 3. the time period during which a person works or studies in a specific place, especially one training in medicine; 4. the official location of a business.
   The residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is better known as The White House.

Question 19

role

Answer 19

1. the part or character played by an actor or actress; 2. the actions or position expected of a person or group in an activity or situation; 3. the expected or normal behavior of a person in a social setting.
   The positive or negative role we choose to play in any situation is determined by our attitude.

Question 20

tranquil

Answer 20

1. quiet, peaceful, calm; 2. not tense, agitated, or restless; 3. steady.
   The tranquil evening was shattered by the clanging of the air raid sirens.