Wordly Wise Lesson 1

Question 1

Bewail

Answer 1

v. To express deep regret or sorrow over

Question 2

Destitute

Answer 2

adj.
1. Without resources or possessions, especially the necessities of life
2. Lacking; devoid of

Question 3

Detract

Answer 3

v. To take away, especially from the value, beauty, or importance of

Question 4

Emancipate

Answer 4

v. To set free from slavery; to liberate

Question 5

Extol

Answer 5

v. To praise highly

Question 6

Flamboyant

Answer 6

adj. Excessively showy; unrestrained

Question 7

Impetus

Answer 7

n.
1. A driving force; anything that causes an action
2. Increased activity resulting from a driving force

Question 8

Insuperable

Answer 8

adj. Incapable of being overcome or defeated.

Question 9

Intermittent

Answer 9

adj. Not continuous; happening at intervals

Question 10

Maxim

Answer 10

n. A general truth or rule of conduct; a short saying

Question 11

Obligatory

Answer 11

adj. Required or demanded

Question 12

Plumb

Answer 12

v.
1. To measure the depth of water
2. To reach the deepest part of
3. To understand by examining closely; to solve

adj. Straight up and down; vertical

Question 13

Vagabond

Answer 13

n. A person who wanders from place to place

Question 14

Visage

Answer 14

n. A face, especially one that expresses feelings

Question 15

Wheedle

Answer 15

v.
1. To coax by using sly persuasion or insincere praise
2. To gain by using sly persuasion or insincere praise

Question 16

Many football fans ______ the replacement of real grass by AstroTurf when the new stadium was built.

Answer 16

bewailed

Question 17

Winter is especially painful for ______ people in the cities of the Northeast.

Answer 17

destitute

Question 18

Staring at the blank sheet of paper on which I was supposed to write a poem, I found myself ______ of ideas.

Answer 18

destitute

Question 19

______ caused by the mid-nineteenth-century potato famine forced many Irish families to seek better lives in the United States.

Answer 19

destitution

Question 20

The family’s loud music ______ from the peace and quiet of the beach.

Answer 20

detracts

Question 21

The plan’s ______ were especially critical of the expected cost of the new town hall.

Answer 21

detractors

Question 22

Some teenagers feel ______ when they get a driver’s license.

Answer 22

emancipated

Question 23

In 1863, Abraham Lincoln’s ______ Proclamation stated that all enslaved people in the Confederacy were, from then on, free.

Answer 23

Emancipation

Question 24

The scout leader ______ the virtues of truth and honor.

Answer 24

extol

Question 25

My conservative aunt considered her husband's brightly colored, boldly patterned necktie too ______ for the governor's reception.

Answer 25

flamboyant

Question 26

With an air of ______, the actor flung out her arm and pointed to the door.

Answer 26

flamboyance

Question 27

Her hope of winning an athletic scholarship provided the ______ for years of grueling training on the swim team.

Answer 27

impetus

Question 28

Kala's low grades gave ______ to her increased focus on studying.

Answer 28

impetus

Question 29

During my senior year, passing Physics seemed an ______ obstacle to graduation.

Answer 29

insuperable

Question 30

Showers were ______ throughout the day, although the forecast had promised sunshine.

Answer 30

intermittent

Question 31

Remember the ______ "Actions speak louder than words" when you promise to not be late all the time.

Answer 31

maxim

Question 32

Physical education is ______ unless you have a medical excuse for skipping gym class.

Answer 32

obligatory

Question 33

The lake was too deep for us to ______.

Answer 33

plumb

Question 34

The bathyscaphe is a vessel designed to ______ the oceans of the world.

Answer 34

plumb

Question 35

Her latest book of poems is a valiant attempt to ______ the human soul.

Answer 35

plumb

Question 36

The bricklayer keeps checking to make sure that the wall being built is ______.

Answer 36

plumb

Question 37

He spent a few years as a ______ before settling in a city and getting a job in a factory.

Answer 37

vagabond

Question 38

The ______ life of traveling musicians suited the members of the band.

Answer 38

vagabond

Question 39

The smiling ______ of a young girl looking out from the portrait.

Answer 39

visage

Question 40

He tried to ______ his father into letting him go to a movie on a school night.

Answer 40

wheedle

Question 41

Merritt ______ information about the test from her friend who had taken it earlier in the day.

Answer 41

wheedled