1. Altruistic (adj.) unselfish, concerned with the welfare of others.
S: selfless
A: selfish, self-centered
Ghandi is known for his altruistic love for needy people around the world.

2. Assent (v.) to express agreement (n.) agreement
S: concur, consent, accede
A: disagree, differ, dissent
After the meeting, a poll was taken to determine the number of people who assented with the speaker.
The coach’s assent with the referee caused the players to stop complaining about the call.

3. benefactor (n.) one who does good to others S: patron, humanitarian
A: misanthrope, malefactor
One of the school’s benefactors bequeathed enough money to fund a new gym.

4. chivalrous (adj.) marked by honor, courtesy, and courage; knightly
S: gallant, civil, valiant
A: crude, uncouth, churlish, loutish
Most of us agree that Hector is a more
chivalrous character than Achilles.

5. clemency (n.)mercy, humaneness; mildness, moderateness
S: leniency, forbearance, gentleness
A: harshness, severity cruelty, inflexibilty
The convict begged for clemency from the judge after the jury found him guilty as charged.

6. dearth (n.) a lack, scarcity, inadequate supply; a famine
S: insufficiency, want, paucity
A: surplus, oversupply, glut, abundance
An employer may complain of a dearth of qualified applicants for available jobs.

7. diffident (adj.)shy, lacking self-confidence; modest, reserved
S: timid, bashful, unassertive, withdrawn
A:bold, brash, audacious, self-confident, jaunty
Many a diffident suitor has lost his beloved to a bold rival.

8. discrepancy (n.) a difference; a lack of agreement
S: disagreement, divergence, inconsistency
A: agreement, convergence, consistency
Discrepancies in the testimony of witnesses to a crime can have a decisive impact on the outcome of a trial.

9. embark (v.)to go abroad, to make a start; to invest
S: commence, launch, begin, board
Heroes embark on journeys in which they prove their heroism.

10. facile
(adj.) easily done or attained; superficial; ready; fluent; easily shown but not sincerely felt
S:effortless, assured, poised, specious
A:labored, awkward, halting
Math is a facile subject for some and difficult for others.

11. indomitable (adj.) unconquerable, refusing to yield
S: unbeatable, invincible, unyielding
A: surrendering, submissive, yielding
When it comes to fighting, Achilles’ indomitable spirit leads him to victory against Hector.
Let’s beat our opponent and be an indomitable baseball team tomorrow!

12. infallible (adj.) free from error, absolutely dependable
S: unerring, certain
A: imperfect
Many people didn’t like Fred
because he considered himself
infallible when it came to almost
every topic.

13. plod (v.) to walk heavily or slowly; to work slowly S: lumber, trudge
A: scamper, skip, prance
The injured bear plodded toward its
den.
When it comes to geometry, I plod
through the concepts with great
difficulty.

14. pungent (adj.) causing a sharp sensation, stinging, biting
S: sharp, spicy,
piquant, caustic, racy
A: bland, unappetizing,
colorless, insipid
Pungent jokes can be
offensive to some
people.
Certain cheeses have
pungent aromas.

15. remiss (adj.) neglectful in performance of one’s duty, careless
S: negligent, lax, slack
A: scrupulous, dutiful,
punctilious
When I am remiss about
completing my school-
work, my grades suffer.
(ALLUSION: a reference
to historical art, literature,
something everyone knows)

16. repose
(v.) to rest; lie; place. (n.) relaxation, peace of mind, calmness
S: sleep; (n.) tranquility, respite
A: (n.) exertion, wakefulness, tumult, bustle
* When Friday arrives, I am
ready for a period of repose.
* The cremated remains of renown
heroes repose in graves marked
with piled stones.

17. temerity (n.) rashness, boldness S: recklessness, foolhardiness,
effrontery
A: timidity, fearfulness,
diffidence, humility
Too much temerity in the workplace
might lead to a stern talk from the
boss.

18. truculent
(adj.) fierce and cruel; aggressive; deadly, destructive, scathingly harsh
S: brutal, savage, belligerent, vitriolic
A: gentle, mild, meek, unthreatening
The Nazi party during WWII is
known for committing
truculent crimes against
humanity.

19. unfeigned (adj.) sincere, real, without pretenses: S: genuine
A: insincere, simulated, phony
The woman’s unfeigned horror
at the sight of the car accident
indicated that it was worse than it
appeared to be.

20. virulent (adj.) extremely poisonous; full of malice; spiteful
S: venomous, noxious, baneful, hateful
A: innocuous, harmless, benign
Adolf Hitler spread his
virulent beliefs
throughout Europe.