Vocabulary Set 11 English 3

ROOT: Term/Termin Comes from the Latin verb Terminare, “to limit, bound, or set limits to.”

Indeterminate Definition: Not precisely determined; vague. Sentence: The law allowed for the indeterminate sentences for certain unusual classes of offenders.

Interminable Definition: Having or seeming to have no end; tiresomely drawn out. Sentence: Their appeals to their audiences for money are so interminable that there’s barely time for the sermons.

Terminal Definition: (1) Forming or relating to an end or limit. (2) Fatal. Sentence: The old man was suffering from terminal cancer which caused him to cough violently whenever he took too deep of a breath.

Terminology Definition: The words with specialized or precise meaning used in a field or subject. Sentence: Civil engineers use a technical terminology that is like a foreign language to most people.

ROOT: Di/Duo The Greek and Latin prefixes meaning “two.”

Dichotomy Definition: (1) A division into two often contradictory groups. (2) Something with qualities that seem to contradict each other. Sentence: With her first job she discovered the dichotomy between the theories she’d been taught and the realities of professional life.

Diplomatic Definition: (1) Relating to negotiations between nations. (2) Tactful Sentence: It is important for the United States to keep a diplomatic tone with surrounding countries.

Duplex Definition: (1) Having two principal elements; double. (2) Allowing electronic communication in two directions at the same time. Sentence: The last two years of college I rented a duplex house with a group of my friends.

Duplicity Definition: Deception by pretending to feel and act one way while acting another. Sentence: By the time Jackie’s duplicity in the whole matter had come to light, she had moved leaving no forwarding address.

ROOT: Ortho Comes from orthos, the Greek word for “straight,” “right,” or “true.”

Orthodontics Definition: A branch of dentistry that deals with the treatment and correction of crooked teeth and other irregularities. Sentence: It is important to see your orthodontist when you have braces.

Orthodox Definition: (1) Holding established beliefs, especially in religion. (2) Conforming to established rules or traditions, conventional. Sentence: The O’Briens remain orthodox Catholics, faithfully observing the time-honored rituals of their church.

Orthopedics Definition: The correction or prevention of deformities of the skeleton. Sentence: The surgery to correct the child’s spinal curvature was done by a leading specialist in orthopedics.

Orthography Definition: (1) The spelling of words according to standard usage. (2) The part of language study concerned with letters and spelling. Sentence: We spend a lot of time in this class talking about orthography.