Vocab week 12

Question 1

Abscond

Answer 1

(v.) to sneak away and hide (In the confusion, the super-spy absconded into the
night with the secret plans.)

Question 2

Acumen

Answer 2

(n.) keen insight (Because of his mathematical acumen, Larry was able to figure out in minutes problems that took other students hours.)

Question 3

Affable

Answer 3

(adj.) friendly, amiable (People like to be around George because he is so affable
and good-natured.)

Question 4

Affront

Answer 4

(n.) an insult (Bernardo was very touchy, and took any slight as an affront to his
honor.)

Question 5

Apathetic

Answer 5

(adj.) lacking concern, emotion (Uninterested in politics, Bruno was
apathetic about whether he lived under a capitalist or communist regime.)

Question 6

Assuage

Answer 6

(v.) to ease, pacify (The mother held the baby to assuage its fears.)

Question 7

Berate

Answer 7

(v.) to scold vehemently (The angry boss berated his employees for failing to
meet their deadline.)

Question 8

Bane

Answer 8

(n.) a burden (Advanced physics is the bane of many students’ academic lives.)

Question 9

Carouse

Answer 9

(v.) to party, celebrate (We caroused all night after getting married.)

Question 10

Clandestine

Answer 10

(adj.) secret (Announcing to her boyfriend that she was going to the gym,
Sophie actually went to meet Joseph for a clandestine liaison.)

Question 11

Disseminate

Answer 11

(v.) to spread widely (The politician disseminated his ideas across the town
before the election.)

Question 12

Emulate

Answer 12

(v.) to imitate (I idolize Britney Spears so much that I emulate everything she does: I wear her outfits, sing along to her songs, and date a boy named Justin.)

Question 13

Goad

Answer 13

(v.) to urge, spur, incite to action (Jim may think he’s not going to fight Billy, but
Billy will goad Jim on with insults until he throws a punch.)

Question 14

Indigent

Answer 14

(adj.) very poor, impoverished (I would rather donate money to help the indigent population than to the park sculpture fund.)

Question 15

Meager

Answer 15

(adj.) deficient in size or quality (My meager portion of food did nothing to
satisfy my appetite.)

Question 16

Pariah

Answer 16

(n.) an outcast (Following the discovery of his plagiarism, Professor Hurley was made a pariah in all academic circles.)

Question 17

Penchant

Answer 17

(n.) a tendency, partiality, preference (Jill’s dinner parties quickly became
monotonous on account of her penchant for Mexican dishes.)

Question 18

Reprehensible

Answer 18

(adj.) deserving rebuke (Jean’s cruel and reprehensible attempt to dump
her boyfriend on his birthday led to tears and recriminations.)

Question 19

Subjugate

Answer 19

(v.) to bring under control, subdue (The invading force captured and
subjugated the natives of that place.)

Question 20

Trepidation

Answer 20

n.) fear, apprehension (Feeling great trepidation, Anya refused to jump into the pool because she thought she saw a shark in it.)