Improving Vocabulary Skills Chapter Five

Matching words with definitions Determined by personal judgment, not rule or reason; based on impulse Motivated by financial gain; greedy An indirect reference A group of symptoms typical of a particular disease or condition A mild or vague term used as a substitute for one considered offensive or unpleasant To calm, especially by giving in to the demands of Lacking originality; overused; commonplace To stain the honor of someone or something To attack physically or verbally Unselfishly concerned for the welfare of others; unselfish

Sentence check one Allusion Altruistic Appease Arbitrary Assail Banal There have been people _____enough to sell their own children for the right price. “Someone hasn’t shown me his report card,” my mother said, making a(n) _____ to my brother. It takes a(n) _____ person to adopt a disabled child. The mugger ______ed his victims with a baseball bat. The local undertaker insists on using a(n) _____ for the chapel of his funeral parlor. He calls it the “slumber room.” The report that the halfback was addicted to drugs _____(e)d the team’s image. The only thing that would _____ the dead boy’s parents was the imprisonment of the drunk driver who killed him. Abraham Lincoln was thought to have had Marfan’s _____, a group of symptoms which include unusually long bones and abnormal blood circulation. The judge’s harsh sentence was _____. Rather than being based on past similar cases or on the seriousness of the crime, it was based on the judge’s opinion of the defendant. “You’re special” probably appears on thousands of greeting cards, but when someone says it to you and means it, it never seems _____. Allusion Altruistic Appease Arbitrary Assail Banal Euphemism Mercenary Syndrome Taint

Sentence check Two a. allusion b. altruistic c. appease d. arbitrary e. assail f. Banal g. euphemism h. mercenary i. syndrome j. taint 1-2. _____ people tend to place the public welfare above their own self- interest. In contrast, ______ people will exploit anyone for profit – they will even sell harmful products. 3-4. The angry customer loudly _____(e)d for having sold her a broken clock. The salesman quickly _____(e)d her by giving her a full refund. 5-6. My boss judges performance in a(n) _____ manner, praising and scolding according to his moods. And when he says, “Please stay a few minutes longer today,” “a few minutes” is a(n) ______ for “an hour.” 7-8. A certain rare _____ includes a very odd symptom – an uncontrollable urge to use the obscene language. This disease can _____ a victim’s reputation, because some people who hear the foul language won’t understand the reason for it. 9-10. The critic hated stale language. Instead of writing a(n) _____ comment such as “That ballerina is light on her feet,” he made an interesting _____ to the dancer’s movements: “She was never heavier than moonlight.”