NOUNS
Because of his mathematical _____, Larry was able to figure out in minutes problems that took other students hours.
a. acumen
b. acrimony
c. alacrity
d. aspersion
a. acumen
(n.) keen insight
The author’s _____ style has won him many followers who dislike wordiness.
a. implacable
b. primeval
c. laconic
d. querulous
c. laconic
(adj.) terse in speech or writing
The Bill of Rights assures that the government cannot _____ our rights to a free press.
a. adumbrate
b. abrogate
c. cajole
d. decry
b. abrogate
(v.) to abolish, usually by authority
The _____ furnishings of the dictator’s private compound contrasted harshly with the meager accommodations of her subjects.
a. myriad
b. multifarious
c. opulent
d. laconic
c. opulent
(adj.) characterized by rich abundance verging on ostentation
The mythical Helen of Troy was considered _____ of female beauty.
a. pathos
b. polemic
c. portent
d. paragon
d. paragon
(n.) a model of excellence or perfection
His _____ made him enter the abandoned gold mine despite the obvious dangers.
a. malediction
b. morass
c. nadir
d. cupidity
d. cupidity
(n.) greed, strong desire
In the summer months, the great heat makes people _____ and lazy.
a. languid
b. jubilant
c. latent
d. insidious
a. languid
(adj.) sluggish from fatigue or weakness
My little brother _____ me by poking me in the ribs for hours on end.
a. vilify
b. vituperate
c. vex
d. obfuscate
c. vex
(v.) to confuse or annoy
The new government feared that the Communist sympathizers would have a(n) _____ influence on the nation’s stability.
a. ostensible
b. pernicious
c. pallid
d. officious
b. pernicious
(adj.) extremely destructive or harmful
Doctors wish there was a single _____ for every disease, but sadly there is not.
a. panacea
b. paragon
c. pariah
d. parsimony
a. panacea
(n.) a remedy for all ills or difficulties
The royal family’s _____ made everyone else in their country rich.
a. effrontery
b. hegemony
c. munificence
d. morass
c. munificence
(n.) generosity in giving
The professor’s _____ lectures seemed to be about every subject except the one initially described.
a. demure
b. capricious
c. contrite
d. discursive
d. discursive
(adj.) rambling, lacking order
They feared that the construction of a golf course would _____ the preserved wilderness.
a. desecrate
b. cajole
c. burnish
d. adumbrate
a. desecrate
(v.) to violate the sacredness of a thing or place
I’m the first to admit that I’m a(n) _____ coffee drinker—I drink four cups a day.
a. laconic
b. inveterate
c. hapless
d. garrulous
b. inveterate
(adj.) stubbornly established by habit
My brother launched into a(n) _____ against my arguments that capitalism was an unjust economic system.
a. temerity
b. umbrage
c. polemic
d. hegemony
c. polemic
(n.) an aggressive argument against a specific opinion
Refusing to display even a(n) _____ of sensitivity, Henrietta announced her boss’s affair in front of the entire office.
a. iniquity
b. harangue
c. effrontery
d. modicum
d. modicum
(n.) a small amount of something
The priest lives a(n) _____ life devoid of television, savory foods, and other pleasures.
a. brusque
b. ascetic
c. inimical
d. insidious
b. ascetic
(adj.) practicing restraint as a means of self-discipline, usually religious
My discovery of the ring behind the dresser _____ me from the charge of having stolen it.
a. enervate
b. dissemble
c. deride
d. exculpate
d. exculpate
(v.) to free from guilt or blame, exonerate
My father’s long-winded explanation was a stark contrast to his usually _____ statements.
a. pertinacious
b. platitude
c. perfunctory
d. pithy
d. pithy
(adj.) concisely meaningful
His _____ made him an easy target for con men.
a. credulity
b. calumny
c. clemency
d. cacophony
a. credulity
(n.) readiness to believe
Little did the explorers know that as they turned the next bend of the calm river a vicious _____ would catch their boat.
a. morass
b. maelstrom
c. nadir
d. neophyte
b. maelstrom
(n.) a destructive whirlpool which rapidly sucks in objects
That beast looks so _____ that I would fear being alone with it.
a. fetid
b. florid
c. fecund
d. feral
d. feral
(adj.) wild, savage
Rachel’s assistant tried to _____ her into accepting the deal.
a. expunge
b. blandish
c. inure
d. reprove
b. blandish
(v.) to coax by using flattery
My mother’s _____ love letters to my father are in the attic trunk.
a. exigent
b. egregious
c. extant
d. ebullient
c. extant
(adj.) existing, not destroyed or lost
Jane goes to one protest after another, but she seems to be a(n) _____ rather than an activist with a progressive agenda.
a. boon
b. iconoclast
c. maverick
d. acolyte
b. iconoclast
(n.) one who attacks common beliefs or institutions