Transcript Slide 1

ADVANCED
WORD POWER
Second Edition
BETH JOHNSON
JANET M. GOLDSTEIN
© 2011 Townsend Press
Unit Six: Chapter 26
• abstemious
• eclectic
• abstruse
• extraneous
• astute
• hardy
• aversion
• intractable
• diminutive
• soporific
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
1 abstemious
– adjective
• Kori is abstemious when it comes to chocolate. She rarely has any, and
when she does, it’s never more than one or two small pieces.
• We say that an abstemious person who eats very little “eats like a bird”—
but in fact, birds eat almost all the time.
Abstemious means
A. self-indulgent.
B. moderate in eating and drinking.
C. sophisticated.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
1 abstemious
– adjective
• Kori is abstemious when it comes to chocolate. She rarely has any, and
when she does, it’s never more than one or two small pieces.
• We say that an abstemious person who eats very little “eats like a bird”—
but in fact, birds eat almost all the time.
Abstemious means
A. self-indulgent.
B. moderate in eating and drinking.
C. sophisticated.
Restricting herself to two small pieces (and no cocoa) shows she’s
moderate in eating and drinking chocolate. “Eats very little” suggests
that abstemious means “moderate in eating and drinking.”
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
2 abstruse
– adjective
• The scholarship winner was so bright that as a high-school freshman, she
was already taking university-level courses in abstruse subjects, such as
biochemistry and ancient Greek philosophy.
• The Swedish art film was too abstruse for me—it was full of symbols and
references that I couldn’t understand.
Abstruse means
A. hard to comprehend.
B. absurd.
C. elementary.
Photo: U.S. DOE
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
2 abstruse
– adjective
• The scholarship winner was so bright that as a high-school freshman, she
was already taking university-level courses in abstruse subjects, such as
biochemistry and ancient Greek philosophy.
• The Swedish art film was too abstruse for me—it was full of symbols and
references that I couldn’t understand.
Abstruse means
A. hard to comprehend.
B. absurd.
C. elementary.
Photo: U.S. DOE
Biochemistry and ancient Greek
philosophy are subjects most ninthgraders find hard to comprehend. If the
speaker couldn’t understand the film, he
or she found it hard to comprehend.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
3 astute
– adjective
• How kind of you to give me a sweater, and how astute of you to have
noticed that sea-green is my favorite color!
• If you were a little more astute, you would have noticed that Betsy and
Eli are not getting along well—they didn’t say a word to each other
during dinner.
Astute means
A. surprised.
B. shrewdly observant.
C. courageous.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
3 astute
– adjective
• How kind of you to give me a sweater, and how astute of you to have
noticed that sea-green is my favorite color!
• If you were a little more astute, you would have noticed that Betsy and
Eli are not getting along well—they didn’t say a word to each other
during dinner.
Astute means
A. surprised.
B. shrewdly observant.
C. courageous.
Only a shrewdly observant individual would notice the exact shade of
color another person prefers. In the second item, the person must be
less than shrewdly observant if he or she didn’t notice that two people
didn’t exchange a single word during dinner.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
4 aversion
– noun
• Dad has such an aversion to answering machines that he hangs up as
soon as he hears a recorded message.
• Denise has an aversion to dresses and skirts. She wears only pants.
Aversion means
A. a strong distaste for.
B. a strong preference for.
C. a knowledge of.
Photo: U.S. Army - Larry Johns
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
4 aversion
– noun
• Dad has such an aversion to answering machines that he hangs up as
soon as he hears a recorded message.
• Denise has an aversion to dresses and skirts. She wears only pants.
Aversion means
A. a strong distaste for.
B. a strong preference for.
C. a knowledge of.
Photo: U.S. Army - Larry Johns
Refusing to leave a message suggests
a strong distaste for answering
machines. Denise must have a strong
distaste for dresses and skirts if she
never wears them.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
5 diminutive
– adjective
• Kiran’s income last year seemed so diminutive that he assumed he wouldn’t
have to pay taxes. He was wrong.
• When I saw a display of eighteenth-century costumes at the museum, I was
surprised at their small size. Our ancestors must have been diminutive people!
Diminutive means
Photo: Donaldson Brothers, Five Points, N.Y.
A. impossible to measure.
B. sizable.
C. little.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
5 diminutive
– adjective
• Kiran’s income last year seemed so diminutive that he assumed he wouldn’t
have to pay taxes. He was wrong.
• When I saw a display of eighteenth-century costumes at the museum, I was
surprised at their small size. Our ancestors must have been diminutive people!
Diminutive means
Photo: Donaldson Brothers, Five Points, N.Y.
A. impossible to measure.
B. sizable.
C. little.
Kiran’s income may have been small,
but it wasn’t so little that he didn’t
have to pay taxes. The word small
suggests diminutive means “little.”
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
6 eclectic
– adjective
• “We’re having an eclectic dinner tonight,” Kris announced. “First wonton
soup, then Swedish meatballs, and then Pennsylvania Dutch shoofly pie for
dessert!”
• The concert program was eclectic: the songs came from America, Germany,
Italy, Spain, and Japan; and they included selections from musical comedy,
grand opera, and children’s songs.
Eclectic means
A. lacking in diversity.
B. varied.
C. lengthy.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
6 eclectic
– adjective
• “We’re having an eclectic dinner tonight,” Kris announced. “First wonton
soup, then Swedish meatballs, and then Pennsylvania Dutch shoofly pie for
dessert!”
• The concert program was eclectic: the songs came from America, Germany,
Italy, Spain, and Japan; and they included selections from musical comedy,
grand opera, and children’s songs.
Eclectic means
A. lacking in diversity.
B. varied.
C. lengthy.
The dinner menu is quite varied since each course comes from a
different culture. The concert program is quite varied since the
songs represent different countries and musical genres.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
7 extraneous
– adjective
• If you want to tell a joke well, don’t include a lot of extraneous remarks,
such as “OK, here comes the funny part” or “Wait, I didn’t tell that part
right.”
• On the famous old TV show Dragnet, the detective, Sergeant Joe Friday,
often said, “All we want are the facts, ma’am,” to prevent witnesses from
wasting his time with extraneous comments and ideas.
Extraneous means
Photo: darwin Bell from San Francisco
A. unrelated.
B. excellent.
C. important.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
7 extraneous
– adjective
• If you want to tell a joke well, don’t include a lot of extraneous remarks,
such as “OK, here comes the funny part” or “Wait, I didn’t tell that part
right.”
• On the famous old TV show Dragnet, the detective, Sergeant Joe Friday,
often said, “All we want are the facts, ma’am,” to prevent witnesses from
wasting his time with extraneous comments and ideas.
Extraneous means
Photo: darwin Bell from San Francisco
A. unrelated.
B. excellent.
C. important.
In the first item, the quoted remarks
are unrelated to setting up a joke’s
punch line. The detective must think
that a witness’s comments and ideas
are unrelated to solving a case if he
sees them as a waste of his time.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
8 hardy
– adjective
• Although they are small, Shetland ponies are hardy, able to survive the
long, cold winters of their native Shetland Islands.
• Farm children had to be hardy; they were expected to work long hours
in the fields.
Hardy means
A. healthy and sturdy.
B. delicate.
C. hardhearted.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
8 hardy
– adjective
• Although they are small, Shetland ponies are hardy, able to survive the
long, cold winters of their native Shetland Islands.
• Farm children had to be hardy; they were expected to work long hours
in the fields.
Hardy means
A. healthy and sturdy.
B. delicate.
C. hardhearted.
Shetland ponies must be healthy and sturdy if they are able to
survive long, cold winters. Farm children must have been healthy
and sturdy if they were able to work long hours in the fields.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
9 intractable
– adjective
• Doria came home from her job at the daycare center looking worn out.
“The kids were really intractable today,” she said. “We just couldn’t get
them to calm down and behave.”
• Mules are notoriously intractable. You’ve probably heard the expression
“as stubborn as a mule.”
Intractable means
A. unclassifiable.
B. uncontrollable.
C. unrecognizable.
Photo: tn.gov
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
9 intractable
– adjective
• Doria came home from her job at the daycare center looking worn out.
“The kids were really intractable today,” she said. “We just couldn’t get
them to calm down and behave.”
• Mules are notoriously intractable. You’ve probably heard the expression
“as stubborn as a mule.”
Intractable means
A. unclassifiable.
B. uncontrollable.
C. unrecognizable.
Photo: tn.gov
The kids must have been uncontrollable
if the adults couldn’t get them to calm
down and behave. The word stubborn
suggests that mules can be difficult to
manage or uncontrollable.
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
10 soporific
– adjective
• If you’re having trouble sleeping, try a glass of warm milk, which is
supposed to be soporific.
• Raquel plays tapes of soft, dreamy music in her baby’s room at naptime.
She hopes the music will have a soporific effect.
Soporific means
A. causing anger.
B. causing excitement.
C. causing drowsiness.
Photo: Bertil
TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT
Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.
10 soporific
– adjective
• If you’re having trouble sleeping, try a glass of warm milk, which is
supposed to be soporific.
• Raquel plays tapes of soft, dreamy music in her baby’s room at naptime.
She hopes the music will have a soporific effect.
Soporific means
A. causing anger.
B. causing excitement.
C. causing drowsiness.
Photo: Bertil
A person having trouble sleeping
would want to drink something
causing drowsiness. At a baby’s
naptime, a parent would play music
that causes drowsiness.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
1. Many birds fly south in the winter, but some _________ species,
such as cardinals and chickadees, stay to add color and life to the
cold northern landscape.
2. At first, our puppy seemed _________; we couldn’t teach him to
obey. But a professional trainer showed us how to control him with
praise and rewards.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
1. Many birds fly south in the winter, but some _________
species,
hardy
such as cardinals and chickadees, stay to add color and life to the
cold northern landscape.
The birds must be tough and strong to stay in a cold northern climate.
2. At first, our puppy seemed _________;
intractable we couldn’t teach him to
obey. But a professional trainer showed us how to control him with
praise and rewards.
The puppy must have been unruly and hard to control if they couldn’t
teach him to obey.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
3. Cho used to love olives, but once she ate so many of them that she got
sick. Since then, she has had a real _________ to olives—she can’t even
stand to look at one, and nothing can induce° her to try them again.
4. When there’s a death in the family, parents shouldn’t try to hide it from
the kids. Even young children can be _________ enough to see that
something is wrong.
5. Grandmother was a(n) ________ woman, not even five feet tall, but she
had the strength of a much larger person.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
3. Cho used to love olives, but once she ate so many of them that she got
sick. Since then, she has had a real _________
aversion to olives—she can’t even
stand to look at one, and nothing can induce° her to try them again.
She must have an intense dislike for olives if she can’t stand to look at them.
4. When there’s a death in the family, parents shouldn’t try to hide it from
the kids. Even young children can be _________
astute enough to see that
something is wrong.
Children would have to be perceptive to see things their parents try to hide.
5. Grandmother was a __________
diminutive woman, not even five feet tall, but she
had the strength of a much larger person.
If she was less than five feet tall, Grandmother was a small woman—in
fact, extremely small in comparison with her strength.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
6. Our pastor wants to inspire people, but his sermons are so long
and boring that they have a(n) _______ effect instead—all they
inspire is a stupor°.
7. “You need to edit your report,” Ms. Hawkins told the student. “You’ve
got some good, useful information here, as well as some incisive°
ideas, but they’re buried under paragraphs of _________ data.”
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
6. Our pastor wants to inspire people, but his sermons are so long
and boring that they have a _________
soporific effect instead—all they
inspire is a stupor°.
Long, boring sermons might cause some people to fall asleep.
7. “You need to edit your report,” Ms. Hawkins told the student. “You’ve
got some good, useful information here, as well as some incisive°
ideas, but they’re buried under paragraphs of extraneous
_________ data.”
To keep good ideas from getting lost in paragraphs of irrelevant data, the
student needed to edit out any information not essential to the thesis.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
8. Please be __________ in using the Scotch tape—we’ve got only
one roll to wrap all these presents.
9. Trying to impress his intelligent new girlfriend, Al pretended to be
reading books on _________ subjects such as quantum physics
and chaos theory.
10. Joel is a great dinner guest because his interests are so _________;
no matter what the topic is, he can talk about it intelligently and
amusingly.
SENTENCE CHECK 1
Complete each item with the correct word from the box.
A. abstemious
B. abstruse
C. astute
D. aversion
E. diminutive
F. eclectic
G. extraneous
H. hardy
I. intractable
J. soporific
8. Please be __________
abstemious in using the Scotch tape—we’ve got only
one roll to wrap all these presents.
The person would need to exercise restraint in using the tape if one roll
had to be sufficient to wrap a lot of presents.
9. Trying to impress his intelligent new girlfriend, Al pretended to be
reading books on _________
abstruse subjects such as quantum physics
and chaos theory.
Quantum physics and chaos theory are difficult to understand.
10. Joel is a great dinner guest because his interests are so _________;
eclectic
no matter what the topic is, he can talk about it intelligently and
amusingly.
His interests must be varied and his knowledge must come from many
sources if he can talk about any topic that happens to come up at dinner.