Vocabulary 2 - Mr. Assael's English Classes



Vocabulary Unit 9

Exercise 1. Due: ______________________.

Below are your vocabulary words for this week’s unit. Locate the handout containing these words and their dictionary entries, and copy the entries onto a separate sheet of paper. Copy everything everything everything E V E R Y T H I N G in each entry. Leave N O T H I N G out. Use the same spacing and line breaking used on the handout (except for the two columns; you don’t have to do that). Make sure you keep this work in your notebook because you will need it to complete Exercises 2, 3, and 4 throughout the week.

• A MINIMUM of half credit will be deducted from your grade if you fail to copy over ALL of any entry or if you fail to use the same spacing and line-breaking used on the handout.

• DO NOT use a word processor. Credit will be given for handwritten work only.

|terse |exemplary exuberance |incidental |parsimonious prodigal |surreptitious |

|decadence | |insolvent | |writhe |

Exercise 2A and 2B. Due:_______________________.

2A. Ten Words in Context: In the space provided, write the letter of the meaning closest to that of each boldfaced word. Use the context of the sentences to help you figure out each word’s meaning.

terse Davy Crockett was not a naturally terse speaker. His speeches were full of rambling anecdotes, digressions, and jokes.

Alfred was not what you’d call loquacious. His comments were always terse, though never rude.

terse means ______ a. brief b. long-winded c. emotional

decadence The older generation always sees decadence among young people. They say that kids today are spoiled, lazy, and extravagant.

Grandfather considers the internal combustion engine a sign of the decadence of Western civilization. “Stop the decay before it’s too late!” he says. Get out of your cars, get on your feet, and walk!”

decadence means ______ a. a disappointment b. corruption c. disapproval

exemplary Christine has a glowing letter of recommendation from her former boss, in which he says, “She is an exemplary employee who always does more than is asked.”

This year, the “Teacher of the Year” award was given to not one but two exemplary instructors.

exemplary means ______ a. praiseworthy b. extra c. exotic

exuberance Jenny called all her friends, shrieking with exuberance over being accepted at her first-choice college.

Children may believe they are the only ones who are happy to see summer vacation arrive, but their teachers feel some exuberance, too!

exuberance means ______ a. fear b. boredom c. joy

incidental Selma chose her college because it has such a good nursing program, but an incidental reason was that it is located in a beautiful town.

Rita and Jen moved in together so they could split the rent, but an incidental effect is that they can borrow each other’s clothes.

incidental means ______ a. secondary b. incorrect c. secret

insolvent Barry lost his head when he got his first credit card. He went on a spending spree, couldn’t pay his bills, and ended up insolvent.

Compulsive gamblers often lose so much money that they become insolvent, but they can’t control their urge, and their debt keeps growing.

insolvent means______ a. bankrupt b. without friends c. without goals

parsimonious The boss, a parsimonious man, insists that we save old memos and letters and use the backs of pages as note paper.

Elena is a parsimonious cook. She creates cheap meals from old cheese rinds, stale bread, and wilted vegetables.

parsimonious means ______ a. stingy b. mischievous c. talented

prodigal Mary and Kim both make decent salaries. They could live comfortably on what they make if they weren’t such prodigal spenders.

I don’t think it’s prodigal to spend some extra money to get well-made shoes. Cheap ones fall apart so fast that you soon end up buying another pair.

prodigal means ______ a. useful b. extravagant c. careful

surreptitious Students naturally want to know what will be covered on a test. Instead of trying to find out by surreptitious means, it is better simply to ask the instructor, who is often willing to provide at least a rough idea.

As the wedding reception ended, several guests made surreptitious trips to the parking lot, where they tied tin cans and crepe paper to the newlyweds’ car.

surreptitious means ______ a. straightforward b. useless c. sneaky

writhe Grandpa remembers the scratchy long underwear he wore to school in the winter: “It was so itchy that I would writhe and wriggle at my desk all day long.”

The children writhed with impatience as they waited to board the plane. “Stop fidgeting before you drive me nuts,” their weary father begged them.

writhe means ______ a. freeze b. squeeze c. squirm

2B. Fill in the blanks with vocabulary words from this unit. Use each word once.

1. When doubts were expressed about his “autobiography” Daniel Boone’s response was ____________________________; he simply said, “Every word is true,” and left it at that.

2. Although the local newspaper is small, it has an excellent reputation. In fact, every year it wins statewide awards for its _____________________________ reporting.

3. “Stopping smoking can save your life,” said the doctor. “And there are some ______________________ benefits as well: you won’t have stained teeth, yellow fingers, or bad breath.”

4. The school’s _________________________ administration decided to save money by dimming all the lights. The students, who could barely see to read, protested angrily.

5. “When the rich get richer and the poor get poorer,” the economist warned, “that is a sign of ____________________________: the society is starting to weaken.”

6. Smoking is forbidden in the office, but some employees keep sneaking off for ____________________________ trips to the fire stairs, where they light up.

7. Trying to scratch an itchy spot on its back, the pig ______________________-ed and twisted as it rubbed against the fence.

8. When stories came out about the senator’s lavish offices, his many trips to luxury resorts, and his huge staff of underworked employees, taxpayers complained about such a/an ___________________________ way to spend taxpayer money.

9. The shelter for the homeless has made an urgent appeal for donations. Without more contributions to pay its bills, it will soon be __________________________.

10. As soon as Tony came in the door, I knew he had good news. His __________________________ showed all over his face.

Exercise 3A and 3B. Due:_______________________.

Exercise 3A. Following are definitions of the ten words. Write each word next to its definition. Also write the part of speech.

1. _____________________________ ____________ very frugal or ungenerous

2 _____________________________ ____________ extravagant and wasteful to a degree bordering on recklessness

3 _____________________________ ____________ happy high spirits, enthusiasm, and vitality

4 _____________________________ ____________ to make extreme twisting and rolling movements with the body

5 _____________________________ ____________ a process of decline or decay in a society, especially in its morals

6 _____________________________ ____________ so good or admirable that others would do well to copy it

7 _____________________________ ____________ unable to pay debts; penniless

8. _____________________________ ____________ brief and unfriendly, often conveying annoyance

9. _____________________________ ____________ done in a way to escape notice and disapproval

10. _____________________________ ____________ occurring as a minor consequence of something more important

3B. Fill in the blanks with vocabulary words from this unit. Use each word once.

Few people like to think of themselves as cheap, but almost everyone seems to be about something. Even rich, extravagant people who are in most ways are likely to be thrifty about something. Even the most affluent will squeeze the last little bit out of a tube of toothpaste. Nearly anyone will and crawl to get a dropped nickel out from under the bed. When a bottle of shampoo is nearly empty, I add water to get a few more washes out of it. Countless people reuse tea bags. Why do we do these things? Just a few comments could never explain it. Are we afraid that taking a new tea bag or throwing away a bit of shampoo is a sign of moral or that it will make us And, since our thrift is often done in a manner, that is, on the sly rather than holding our behavior up as a model, we can’t really say that we think our thrift is . And, since the actual savings from these types of actions is so small, it must be to the main benefit, which must be some sort of feeling of satisfaction. You know, there’s nothing like the we feel when we find a dollar bill on the street.

Exercise 4. Due: ___________________________:

In a separate document, write original sentences for the unit words. Follow the detailed instructions in the handout: “Instructions for Writing Sentences with Vocabulary Words.” The instructions explain how to use context clues, how to complete proper underlining, and how to write sentences in pairs using synonyms or synonymous phrases from Exercise #2 of this worksheet (ONLY!).

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