Week Eleven

Question 1

Poignant

Answer 1

Adj: causing or having a very sharp feeling of sadness; moving; painful to the feelings

Example:
-The photograph awakens poignant memories of happier days.
-It is especially poignant that he died on the day before the wedding.

Question 2

Inundate

Answer 2

V: to give someone so much work or so many things that they cannot deal with it all; to flood

Example:We have been inundated with requests for help.

Question 3

Lead

Answer 3

N: a piece of information that allows a discovery to be made or a solution to be found

Example:A lead from an informer enabled the police to make several arrests.

Question 4

Fruitless

Answer 4

Adj: unsuccessful or not productive; useless

Example:After months of fruitless negotiations with team owners, the city withdrew its offer to build a new stadium.

Question 5

Leap

Answer 5

V: to make a large jump or sudden movement, usually from one place to another

Example:
-He leaped out of his car and ran towards the house.
-I leaped up to answer the phone.
-The dog leaped over the gate into the field.

Question 6

Station wagon

Answer 6

N: a type of car with a large area behind the back seats for carrying things

Question 7

Garbled

Answer 7

Adj: (of something said) confused and unclear, or giving a false idea; mixed up

Example:
He left a garbled message on my answering machine.

Question 8

Sanguine

Answer 8

Adj: (of someone or someone’s character) positive and hoping for good things; optimistic

Example:
They are less sanguine about the prospects for peace.

Question 9

Delinquent

Answer 9

N: a person, usually young, who behaves in a way that is illegal or not acceptable to most people

Example:Our neighbor hated children and just thought we were a bunch of delinquents.

Question 10

Brash

Answer 10

Adj: (of people) showing too much confidence and too little respect

Example:a brash young banker

Question 11

Wrest

Answer 11

V: to get something with effort or difficulty

Example:The shareholders are planning to wrest control of the company (away) from the current directors.

Question 12

Incarcerate

Answer 12

V: to put or keep someone in prison

Example:The governor announced his plan to incarcerate repeat offenders.

Question 13

Phlegmatic

Answer 13

Adj: A phlegmatic person does not usually get emotional or excited about things

Example:As a football player, his great asset was his calm, phlegmatic manner.

Question 14

Corroborate

Answer 14

V: to add information in support of an idea, opinion, or statement; confirm; support

Example:
Recent research seems to corroborate the theory.

Question 15

Comprehensive

Answer 15

Adj: complete and including everything that is necessary; thorough

Example:
-We offer you a comprehensive training in all aspects of the business.
-Is this list comprehensive or are there some names missing?

Question 16

Zealous

Answer 16

Adj: enthusiastic and eager

Example:He thought the reporters were too zealous in their attempts to get into the event.

Question 17

Fan out

Answer 17

Parasal verb: If a group of people fan out, they move in different directions from a single point.

Question 18

Coerce

Answer 18

V: to persuade someone forcefully to do something that they are unwilling to do; to force

Example:
be coerced into: The court heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession.

Question 19

Vigil

Answer 19

N: a period of staying awake to be with someone who is ill or to call public attention to something

Example:The boy’s parents kept a long vigil in his hospital room.

Question 20

Egregious

Answer 20

Adj: extremely bad in a way that is very noticeable

Example:
egregious error: It was an egregious error for a statesman to show such ignorance.

Question 21

Solicit

Answer 21

V: to ask someone for money, information, or help

Example:to solicit donations for a charity

Question 22

Fugitive

Answer 22

Adj: relating to a person who is running away or hiding from the police or a dangerous situation

Example:
Fugitive families who have fled the fighting in the cities are now trying to survive in the mountains.

Question 23

Surrender

Answer 23

V: to stop fighting and admit defeat

Example:
They would rather die than surrender (to the invaders).

Question 24

Swindler

Answer 24

N: someone who gets money dishonestly by deceiving or cheating people

Example:
The man was a swindler.

Question 25

Elapse

Answer 25

V: If time elapses, it goes past;pass Example: Four years had elapsed since he left college and still he hadn't found a job.

Question 26

Pay off

Answer 26

Phrasal verb: If something you have done pays off, it is successful Example:All her hard work paid off in the end, and she finally passed the exam.

Question 27

Meticulous

Answer 27

Adj: very careful and with great attention to every detail Example:Many hours of meticulous preparation have gone into writing the book.

Question 28

Crosscheck

Answer 28

V: to make certain that information, a calculation, etc. is correct, by asking a different person or using a different method of calculation Example: -He didn't crosscheck his facts before publishing. -Those details can easily be cross-checked

Question 29

Narrow

Answer 29

V: to become less Example:The retailer's loss narrowed to $3 million from $10 million a year earlier.

Question 30

Domicile

Answer 30

N: the place where a person lives; dwelling Example: Any change of domicile should be reported to the proper authorities.

Question 31

Lax

Answer 31

Adj: without much care, attention, or control Example: lax in: The subcommittee contends that the authorities were lax in investigating most of the cases.

Question 32

Sporadic

Answer 32

Adj: happening sometimes; not regular or continuous; occasional Example: -She makes sporadic trips to Europe. -The storm caused sporadic flooding throughout the region.

Question 33

Streak

Answer 33

N: an often unpleasant characteristic that is very different from other characteristics Example: stubborn streak: Her stubborn streak makes her very difficult to work with sometimes.

Question 34

Scoff

Answer 34

V: to laugh and talk about a person or idea in a way that shows that you think they are stupid or silly Example: -The critics scoffed at his paintings. -Years ago people would have scoffed at the idea that cars would be built by robots.

Question 35

Depart

Answer 35

V: to go away or leave, especially on a journey Example:The plane departs at 6 a.m.

Question 36

Inadvertent

Answer 36

Adj: not intentional Example:All authors need to be wary of inadvertent copying of other people's ideas.

Question 37

Lackluster

Answer 37

Adj: without energy and effort Example:The U.S. number-one tennis player gave a disappointingly lackluster performance.

Question 38

Rampant

Answer 38

Adj: (of something bad) getting worse quickly and in an uncontrolled way Example: -rampant corruption -Rampant inflation means that our wage increases soon become worth nothing. -He said that he had encountered rampant prejudice in his attempts to get a job. -Disease is rampant in the overcrowded city.

Question 39

Warehouse

Answer 39

N: a large building for storing things before they are sold, used, or sent out to shops Example: The goods have been sitting in a warehouse for months because a strike has prevented distribution.

Question 40

Disdain

Answer 40

N: dislike of someone or something that you feel does not deserve your interest or respect Example:The mayor’s disdain for his opponents was well known.

Question 41

Rash

Answer 41

Adj: careless or unwise, without thought for what might happen or result Example: -That was a rash decision - you didn't think about the costs involved. -I think it was a bit rash of them to get married when they'd only known each other for a few weeks.

Question 42

Conjecture

Answer 42

N: an opinion or judgment that is not based on proof; a guess Example:What lay behind the decision is open to conjecture.

Question 43

Obviate

Answer 43

V: to remove a difficulty, especially so that action to deal with it becomes unnecessary Example:A peaceful solution would obviate the need to send a UN military force.

Question 44

Summons

Answer 44

N: an official demand to appear in a court of law Example:He was given/served with a summons to appear in court.

Question 45

Lurid

Answer 45

Adj: shocking because involving violence or sex; sensational Example: She told me all the lurid details of her divorce.

Question 46

Quip

Answer 46

N: a humorous and clever remark; a joke

Question 47

Sheer

Answer 47

Adj: not mixed with anything else; pure or complete Example: Some of those books are sheer magic.

Question 48

Vexatious

Answer 48

Adj: difficult to deal with and causing a lot of anger, worry, or argument; annoying Example: This settlement will resolve one of the most vexatious problems in the field of industrial relations.

Question 49

Counterfeiter

Answer 49

N: a person who makes illegal copies of things such as bank notes, DVDs, or official documents

Question 50

Mundane

Answer 50

Adj: very ordinary and therefore not interesting Example:Mundane matters such as paying bills and shopping for food do not interest her.

Question 51

Belligerent

Answer 51

Adj: wishing to fight or argue Example: -a belligerent person -a belligerent gesture

Question 52

Lusty

Answer 52

Adj: healthy, energetic, and full of strength and power Example: a baby's lusty cry

Question 53

Pledge

Answer 53

V: to make a serious or formal promise to give or do something Example: We are asking people to pledge their support for our campaign.

Question 54

Allegiance

Answer 54

N: loyalty and support for a ruler, country, group, or belief Example: pledge allegiance to: In many American schools, the students used to pledge allegiance to the flag at the beginning of the school day.

Question 55

Rote

Answer 55

N: the process of learning something by repetition, rather than by really understanding it Example: She learned multiplication by rote.

Question 56

Recitation

Answer 56

N: saying a piece of writing aloud from memory Example: He gave a beautiful recitation of some poems by Blake.

Question 57

Howler

Answer 57

N: a stupid and obvious mistake, especially in something that someone says or writes Example: -I called her by the name of his first wife, which was a bit of a howler. -So far in the election, no candidate has committed a shocking howler.

Question 58

Wedlock

Answer 58

N: the state of being married