P@ul’s Vocabulary

P@ul’s Coaching Home নামে আমার একটা কোচিং সেন্টার ছিল। কোচিংয়ের স্টুডেন্টদের লেকচার শিট দিয়ে পরাতাম। কিছু শিট এখনও আমার কাছে রয়ে গেছে। সেগুলি এক-এক করে আপনাদের সাথে শেয়ার করছি। কিছু ভুল থাকতে পারে। ক্লাসে পড়ানোর সময় শিটের ভুলগুলি শুধরে দিতাম। তবে এখন সময়ের অভাবে সেটা করতে পারলাম না। আপনারা পড়ার সময় একটু কষ্ট করে শুধরে নিয়ে পড়বেন।

আরেকটা কথা। এক্সারসাইজগুলির কোনও সল্যুশন শিট আমি কখনওই বানাইনি। ক্লাসে ইন্সট্যান্টলি সল্ভ করে দিতাম। তাই, আপনাদের কষ্ট করে নিজে সল্ভ করে-করে পড়তে হবে।

TYPE: 1

1. stolid—adj. stubbornly rebellious ………n. one who leads a simple life of self-denial……….n. solemn moral talk; sermon……adj. showing little emotion

2. encroach—n. severity……….n. acting as a dictator……..adj. having an affable manner; carefree………v. to trespass or intrude

3. potent—v. brag; glory over…..n. a gentle wind; breeze……..adj. having great power or physical strength……..n. moral corruption; badness

4. impolitic—v. separate, split…….adj. improper; unfortunate……..adj. unwise; imprudent………v. to disagree; differ in opinion

5. frenetic—n. unrest; agitation……….n. thrift; economical use or expenditure………adj. frenzied………v. to grow together

6. neologism—-v. to soak or stain; permeate……….adj. not clear; uncertain……….n. giving a new meaning to an old word……….v. to agree without protest

7. tepid—-adj. having the composition of wood……….adj. unnecessary; extra………..adj. of a strange nature; weird…………adj. lacking warmth, interest, enthusiasm; lukewarm

8. hamper—v. interfere with; hinder………adj. plausible, but deceptive; apparently, but not actually, true……..adj. having to do with shepherds or the country…….v. to make new; renovate

9. callow—-adj. sweet-smelling; having the odor of a particular thing……….adj. unclear or vague……..adj. solitary……….adj. being young or immature

10. discerning—v. to show sympathy for……….adj. having great power or physical strength………v. to characterize or make as disgraceful…….adj. distinguishing one thing from another; having good judgment

11. adjutant—n. staff officer assisting the commander; assistant……….adj. showing hard work; taking great care………n. hostile feeling or intent………n. extended line of men or fortifications to prevent access or egress

12. adulation—n. narrow neck of land connecting two larger bodies of land……….adj. every two years………..n. flattery; admiration……….n. calmness; peace

13. addendum—n. inscription in memory of a dead person…….n. harshness; plainness………..n. addition; appendix to book…………v. hesitate

14. advent—v. bring upon oneself………v. approach and speak first to a person……….n. pride, haughtiness………n. arrival

15. addle—adj. drowsy; dull………….n. deceit; duplicity………….v. hint; imply……………v. muddle; drive crazy

16. actuarial—n. commotion; riot…………n. soothing or softening remedy………….adj. calculating; pertaining to insurance statistics…………n. thrift; economy

17. adjuration—adj. exhausting…………..adj. dirty; neglected……………n. member of the working class………….n. solemn urging

18. adamant—adj. weighty; unwieldy………….v. equip…………..adj. hard, inflexible…………adj. outstanding; superior

19. adroit—adj. bantering; joking………………adj. skillful……………….v. make less difficult…………….n. descendants; future generations

20. adverse—v. sparkle; flash………….n. brief explanation of words used in the text………….adj. unfavorable; hostile…………..v. echo; resound

21. adorn—-v. leave to someone by means of a will; hand down…………..n. the meat of a deer…………….v. decorate…………..n. statement that looks false but is actually correct; a contradictory statement

22. adjunct—n. hermit……………adj. sleeping; lethargic………….n. something attached to but holding an inferior position………..adj. very important

23. adulterate—n. seriousness……………v. make impure by mixing with baser substances……………..v. issue forth……………n. confusion; strife

24. acuity—n. sharpness……………adj. spread throughout…………n. kinship……………n. poverty, misfortune

25. adherent—adj. verbose; drawn out…………..n. supporter; follower…………..adj. conspicuously wicked………..adj. irreverent

26. admonish—n. uprightness…………v. fret; complain………………adj. unorthodox; unconventional…………..v. warn; reprove

27. adventitious—n. self-control; formal but distant manner…………….v. cut away; trim…………..adj. fleeting; vanishing…………..adj. accidental; casual

28. acumen—adj. spotted; stained………….n. prototype; primitive pattern…………..n. premonition; foreboding…………….n. mental keenness

29. adversary—-n. opponent; enemy…………….adj. imagined; unreal…………..n. mass of floating ice…………adj. wasted away; gaunt

30. adage—v. wise saying; proverb………..adj. pertaining to the people……….v. follow…………..n. accident

31. allocate—v. set aside; designate……………..adj. natural; inborn…………..adj. difficult to please; dainty………….adj. unnecessary; extra

32. predecessor—v. to turn to bone; to harden………………n. one who has occupied an office before another…………….n. a purposely misleading statement………….v. to influence or persuade

33. stigmatize—n. an impossible fancy……………v. to characterize or make as disgraceful……………adj. having lines or grooves………..n. the rounded, upward-projecting front of a saddle

34. servile—adj. slavish; groveling……………..adj. unimportant; small…………..adj. damp and chilly………….adj. clever, resourceful

35. earthy—adj. unrefined…………….adj. productive………….n. a word or phrase which reads the same backwards and forwards………….n. vileness

36. profound—adj. hard to catch…………..adj. deep; knowledgeable…………….adj. being hard to deal with; unsolved situation………….v. to enfeeble; to wear out

37. kinship—v. to blot out; to delete……………..v. to be advantageous; to be necessary…………..n. condition of being physically agitated; disturbance……….n. family relationship; affinity

38. heresy—n. very hard work; intense pain or agony…………….n. opinion contrary to popular belief…………v. to agree without protest…………….adj. dangerous; harmful

39. circumlocutory—n. a rebuke……………..adj. wasteful; lavish………………adj. being too long, as in a description or expression; a roundabout, indirect, or ungainly way of expressing something………….n. disaster

40. jettison—v. to throw overboard goods to lighten a vehicle; to discard………………v. annoy; irritate………….adj. spread out; verbose (wordy)…………v. condescend; stoop

41. lucent—adj. reflective; contemplative…………….adj. shining; translucent………….n. violent or unrestrained anger; fury………….adj. unconcerned

42. relinquish—n. the avoiding of a duty………….v. to build or establish; to instruct and improve the mind…………..n. violent or unrestrained anger; fury………v. to let go; abandon

43. effigy—v. to increase or add to; to make larger…………..adj. matter-of-fact; practical………….n. the image or likeness of a person………….n. appearance, being or manner

44. universal—n. A clause stating a condition or stipulation…………..adj. concerning everyone; existing everywhere…………..v. to bicker………..adj. to the point; clear

45. unequivocal—adj. assumed; uncertain……………..adj. clear and unambiguous…………….v. to gradually become less; to grow dim……….v. to gather up and store; to collect

46. ostentatious—adj. various; miscellaneous…………..v. to profane; violate the sanctity of…………n. a cleft or crack……….adj. being showy

47. concise—adj. in few words; brief………………v. to put money into a fund at fixed intervals………..adj. pertaining to the earth……….n. inflation or extension

48. impasse—adj. irrelevant; not related……………v. to give vent; to inflict………….n. a situation that has no solution or escape………..n. violent or unrestrained anger; fury

49. homeostasis—n. maintenance of stability…………..v. to give great praise…………..v. to free from confusion………….n. one who believes that others are motivated entirely by selfishness.

50. protocol—adj. being mournful or sad……………….n. an original draft or record of a document……………..adj. giving generously………….v. to free from guilt

TYPE: 2

1. adj. lacking vitality; indifferent—palindrome………..surfeit………….cloying……………languid

2. v. to become more and more virulent and fixed—compromise………….arrogate…………….fester…………….derogatory

3. adj. pertaining to a discovery or new revelation—-mendacious…………….euphony………….batten…………….apocalyptic

4. n. lack of facial color—specious……………obeisance…………..gauche………..pallor

5. v. defame; maliciously misrepresent—inured……………..surfeit………….exigent……………slander

6. v. to denounce or condemn openly—dowdy……decry……succinct………dearth

7. v. make easier; simplify—staid……facilitate……….slothful………..plausible

8. adj. discouraged; depressed—skeptic…..haughty…………disheartened…………exonerate

9. adj. honorable; exact—optimist…………alchemist………….parity………..scrupulous

10. v. mix; massage—comport………..obviate……..distant……….knead

11. v. to weaken; often through subtle means—undermine………..caustic………extol………..surpass

12. v. to be advantageous; to be necessary—behoove……….guise……..pessimism…………rivet

13. n. one who believes that others are motivated entirely by selfishness.—insinuate……….bode……….abbreviate………..cynic

14. adj. existing independently of others; a large quantity—incorporeal………eccentric…………substantive…………tentative

15. v. to free from guilt—mien………exculpate………obsequious………….menagerie

16. v. to mourn or grieve——-lament……….privy……..effrontery……….phlegmatic

17. adj. friendly; amiable—-affable……….objective……….covenant………debase

18. adj. glowing through haze; shocking, sensational—distant…………lurid………..knavery……….intangible

19. n. being stripped—garish………sojourn…………agrarian……….divestiture

20. adj. stingy, miserly—cacophony………….bereft……….savor…………penurious

21. adj. shriveled; withered—arbitrary…………curb…………symmetry………..wizened

22. n. disapproval—despotism……….disapprobation…………hackneyed…………stipend

23. v. to build or establish; to instruct and improve the mind—edify………..amiable…………..fecund………….heed

24. v. to agree without protest—solubility……………acquiesce…………perpetual………….exemplary

25. adj. silent; reserved—wry………..placate………….susceptible………….reticent

26. v. to overspread—suffuse………..contusion…………subtlety………..complacent

27. n. a binding and solemn agreement—covenant……….phobia……….lascivious………..decadence

28. n. difference in form, character, or degree—-jeopardy………….inundate……….disparity…….diffuse

29. v. search thoroughly—indigenous……….facilitate………..rummage……….splenetic

30. v. to huddle and tremble—rudimentary………..cower………..insularity…………exigent

31. v. to put money into a fund at fixed intervals—soporific………..succinct………..amortize…………..repugnant

32. adj. complying; obeying—thwart……….compatible………..compliant……….licentious

33. v. to connect or associate with; to accept as a member—affiliate……….antipathy……..trivial……….notorious

34. n. the range or limit of one’s abilities; rope or chain used to keep a boat from drifting or an animal from wandering—ignominious………palliate……..tether………welter

35. n. the quality of being agreeable or eager to please—abeyance……….anoint………complaisance……..tawdry

36. n. a constantly quarrelsome woman—uncanny…….pessimism……….termagant……….pied

37. n. to determine the quality of a substance.—maverick…………assay………..rampart……….condescend

38. v. to organize laws or rules into a systematic collection—ostentatious………..mendacious………..codify………obtrude

39. n. art of taking something for oneself; seizure—appease……..edifice……….usurpation………errant

40. n. something out of place in time (e.g., an airplane in 1492)—attenuate………….august…………salvage…………anachronism

41. n. relatives and acquaintances—impetuous………….arbitrary…………..kith…………..guise

42. adj. fierce, savage, cruel—acclaim………………truculent……………itinerary…………….effeminate

43. adj. stubborn—glib…………..obstinate…………impassive……….sordid

44. adj. tiresome; ordinary—deplete…………phobia…………..prosaic…………truculent

45. v. ask for; call upon—undermine………….jester…………..salubrious…………..invoke

46. v. to plead in favor of—salvage…………..effusive……………advocate…………diverse

47. adj. lustful; wicked—ribald………….lewd……………raucous……………..luxuriant

48. v. to combine—conjoin…………….apathy……………demur………….licentious

49. n. an unworldly young woman—cabal……………….ingénue…………..mercurial…………..innocuous

50. adj. resisting authority—relinquish…………contumacious………….ingenuous………….duplicity

TYPE: 3

After each sentence, select the word which best fills in the blank left in that sentence.

1. The children were so ____________ that the teacher had to yell to be heard. A. truculent B. obstreperous C. morose D. discreet

2. Coach Calhoun tried to ___________ his team to try harder in the face of overwhelming odds. A. flout B. instigate C. emulate D. exhort

3. I don’t think these flowers are __________ to New England. At least I’ve never seen them. A. ingenuous B. fluent C. indigenous D. exigent

4. Roberto pretended to know a lot about the opera, but he was really just a ___________ . A. dilettante B. supernumerary C. chimera D. catalyst

5. The professor became so forceful, so _________ in his expression of opinions, that students began to leave his course. A. dormant B. credible C. dogmatic D. lucid

6. Tashonda had read the book in a __________ fashion and couldn’t remember what she’d read. A. truculent B. obstreperous C. cursory D. discreet

7. The older child had a reputation for ________ trouble in high school, but he calmed down in college. A. mortifying B. appeasing C. curtailing D. instigating

8. The professor got in trouble for making __________ remarks about the Dean of Faculty. A. benign B. pejorative C. pensive D. blithe

9. My uncle has never been to an art museum; in fact, when it comes to matters of art, my uncle is a real _________ . A. patrician B. philistine C. martyr D. hedonist

10. The jury ___________ the mayor of all wrongdoing. A. exonerated B. expatriated C. augmented D. subjugated

11. A __________ seemed to befall the entire community as it heard the horrid news. A. malfeasance B. blasphemy C. largess D. malaise

12. A kind of ____________ seemed to occur when David graduated from high school. He became a serious student all of a sudden. A. metamorphosis B. milieu C. epithet D. accolade

13. Esmerelda’s dissertation was on such an ___________ subject that no one could understand it. A. equitable B. esoteric C. auspicious D. austere

14. Sherman’s hold on his job has become so _________ that no one is sure he’ll be working there next month. A. serendipitous B. eminent C. putative D. tenuous

15. The UConn women basketball team’s perfect season ___________ in a championship win over Tennessee. A. culminated B. fulminated C. fomented D. alleviated

16. The jury was able to see through the ___________ argument of the defense lawyers. A. stoic B. palpable C. specious D. onerous

17. Maria was so _________ that she couldn’t follow even the simple directions on the cake box. A. officious B. obtuse C. candid D. opulent

18. It’s not a good idea to take a balloon ride in _______ weather conditions. A. onerous B. affable C. malleable D. adverse

19. The ___________ reason for moving our college campus downtown is that students will find it easier to get there — but I have my doubts. A. putative B. tangible C. hermetic D. erudite

20. How my brother ever became a priest is an __________ to all of his high school friends. A. idiosyncrasy B. antipathy C. enigma D. archetype

21. Benson’s essay was ____________ with punctuation errors of all kinds. A. replete B. resolute C. opulent D. virulent

22. The prime minister bowed and scraped and behaved ___________ before the new queen. A. resolutely B. ostensibly C. sinuously D. obsequiously

23. Rhonda’s behavior only _____________ an already bad situation. A. obfuscated B. exacerbated C. preempted D. flouted

24. George had the ___________ to suggest that we hire a new coach. A. discretion B. disdain C. surfeit D. temerity

25. The philosophy lecture was so predictable, so _________, that everyone fell asleep in five minutes. A. ascetic B. banal C. astute D. ineffable

26. The Darwin couple ______________ upon their future for months before deciding to get married. A. precluded B. deferred C. ruminated D. incited

27. The ____________ of the task before them would prove a challenge to their imagination and patience. A. omen B. lethargy C. hiatus D. enormity

28. The mysterious, ____________ music floated through the trees and charmed the listeners. A. ethereal B. esoteric C. sanguine D. viable

29. The ____________ facts of the matter were obvious to most of the witnesses. A. perfunctory B. gratuitous C. salient D. bodacious

30. The first-grade teacher attempted to __________ his pupils in the virtues of playing fair. A. stipulate B. edify C. exonerate D. comprise

31. In an attempt to _______ the effects of a bad year, farmers planted a second crop. A. censure B. mitigate C. decimate D. obliterate

32. Clarence was well known for his __________, his ability to lie on the couch and watch TV all day. A. lethargy B. animosity C. futility D. reticence

33. The state accountants were ________ in their use of tax dollars for lunch. A. lucid B. servile C. obscure D. prodigal

34. With all those injuries, death was _________. A. superficial B. inevitable C. precipitous D. fulsome

35. No one really liked the attorney general, but no one could doubt her ____________ . A. anarchy B. viscosity C. veracity D. ineptitude

36. The country’s __________ economy was nearly wiped out by the late summer storms. A. agrarian B. arcane C. frugal D. culinary

37. The last years of the Roman Empire were renowned for their indulgent, ____________ society. A. fortuitous B. incongruous C. fastidious D. hedonistic

38. The ___________ water of the high Rocky Mountains was perfect for the brewer’s purposes. A. latent B. pristine C. perfidious D. acrid

39. To everyone’s horror, Rufus’s farewell speech was filled with bitter ____________ about his bosses. A. invective B. levity C. magnanimity D. transgression

40. When the Maguires moved away, their beautiful gardens began to _____________ from lack of care. A. instigate B. adulate C. languish D. persevere

41. The car salesman was overly helpful — to the point of being _____________ and rude. A. opulent B. circumspect C. reticent D. officious

42. The sculptor loved to work with bright, ____________ metals. A. malleable B. mercurial C. impervious D. ascetic

43. My mother-in-law has made some __________ judgments while investing in the stock market. A. clandestine B. astute C. dissolute D. ponderous

After each sentence, select the word which best fills in the blank left in that sentence.

1. The living room, with its ____________ curtains, was dark and depressing. A. indulgent B. anomalous C. idyllic D. funereal

2. The rock star moved into an ____________ mansion, complete with its own bowling alley and movie theater. A. ostensible B. opulent C. unmitigated D. ascetic

46. Ardenworthy’s _____________ praise of his coach was part of his plan to get onto the team. A. innocuous B. fulsome C. cognizant D. ostensible

47. Josie’s __________ experience in the convent chapel led her to choose a religious life. A. ineffable B. ingratiating C. maladroit D. petulant

48. Everything about Carlos’s financial situation seemed _________ for getting the loan he needed. A. slovenly B. bodacious C. dour D. propitious

49. In Charlie’s adolescent years, the _________ of his existence cost him his self-confidence. A. acerbity B. vagaries C. serenity D. biliousness

50. The _________ old apple seller on the street corner used to scare Sarah. A. copasetic B. pulchritudinous C. wizened D. transmogrified

51. The judge severely ____________ his clerks for telling the press about the defendant’s case. A. chastised B. obligated C. inhibited D. aggravated

52. The ___________ team seemed to suffer one unlucky defeat and injury after another. A. ineffable B. fulsome C. inevitable D. hapless

53. Aunt Clara delivered a beautiful ____________ at Grandmother’s funeral. A. solipsism B. eulogy C. ineptitude D. soubriquet

54. Tawanda gave a ___________ account of the conversation she’d had with the police. A. verbatim B. decorous C. dilatory D. munificent

55. His __________ crimes against the state were well chronicled in the daily papers. A. propitious B. querulous C. blatant D. amorous

56. Students found her ____________ lecture hard to follow. A. meticulous B. honorary C. cogent D. discursive

57. The pirates ___________ their swords and demanded that the captain split the booty evenly among them. A. bilked B. brandished C. augmented D. loathed

58. The students’ __________ attitude toward the assignment astonished the librarian. He knew they wouldn’t finish their work on time. A. dilatory B. salubrious C. ingratiating D. dogmatic

59. Carlos’s ____________ approach to his college education meant that he had many false starts and had to start over again. A. desperate B. bodacious C. droll D. desultory

60. The __________ in Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath stirs our pity for the economically oppressed and unlucky farmers. A. pertinacity B. pathos C. serenity D. prevarication

61. Nigerians seem to have a natural ____________ to excel in long-distance running; in fact, their success demands years of hard work. A. absolution B. guile C. proclivity D. atrophy

62. The English Department was upset when the History Department offered a writing course, which the English profs regarded as their _____________ . A. bailiwick B. bodega C. turpitude D. oubliette

63. Geezer had no ______________ about going into the principal to tell her what he thought. A. juxtaposition B. lampoon C. façade D. compunction

64. The basketball star’s ___________ gestures to give back to his community were praised by sportswriters everywhere. A. laconic B. laudable C. salacious D. rancid

65. Turgeweed’s offenses against the old women in the retirement community were the most ____________ crimes the detectives could remember. A. heinous B. decorous C. coherent D. abstruse

66. The river continued to rise, but the sunshine breaking through the clouds ___________ our fears. A. accrued B. bowdlerized C. allayed D. exacerbated

67. Students got together in a/an _____________, secretly conspiring to get rid of their instructor. A. omnibus B. honorary C. autoclave D. conclave

68. The man’s arms were so ____________ that he could hardly wear shirts with sleeves. A. hirsute B. antiseptic C. omnivorous D. copasetic

69. The __________ effects of sugar on one’s teeth is especially dangerous in one’s youth. A. pervasive B. pernicious C. raucous D. mordant

70. Dogbody’s _____________ criticism of our government’s mishandling of funds laid the groundwork for reform. A. odious B. infirm C. salient D. trenchant

71. Gesualdo’s speech was nearly as ___________ as his fat little body. A. egregious B. rotund C. dubious D. salubrious

72. The general had to respect the ___________ spirit of his old enemies; they would not give up. A. iniquitous B. indomitable C. stringent D. spurious

73. The coach’s ___________ voice could be heard over all the other noise in the gymnasium. A. strident B. mellifluous C. ingratiating D. sanguine

74. The lab technicians went through the titration process with __________ care. A. mordant B. vestigial C. ribald D. sedulous

75. She got really tired of looking after the ____________ affairs of the farm. A. motley B. mundane C. irascible D. felicitous

76. When Tarzan returned to civilization, people worried about his sometimes ___________ behavior. A. fervent B. culpable C. feral D. pedantic

77. The diplomat’s ______________ demands caused him to be less than welcome at most restaurants. A. peremptory B. arcane C. frugal D. pragmatic

78. The artist’s ____________ landscapes included gentle hills and streams, shepherds and flocks of sheep. A. ravenous B. pejorative C. odious D. pastoral

79. The jackass is known for its stubborn, ___________ refusals to respond to commands. A. latent B. recalcitrant C. turgid D. salubrious

80. Even the most uptight scholar delights in the _________ , coarse jokes in Chaucer’s “The Miller’s Tale.” A. ribald B. serendipitous C. egregious D. gullible

81. The French monarchy was renowned for its __________ disregard for the common people. A. solicitous B. litigious C. egregious D. bodacious

82. Charles’s tastes in music were __________ . He had recordings of classical, jazz, rock-and-roll, and heavy metal performers. A. officious B. ubiquitous C. histrionic D. eclectic

83. The professor’s lecture was simply ________, and the students actually began to laugh. A. inane B. ascetic C. affluent D. sedulous

84. He left his family, and I knew that he would someday ________ the day. A. obliterate B. rue C. ossify D. augment

85. The nerves in our fingertips are wonderfully sensitive to __________ sensations. A. insipid B. tacit C. idyllic D. tactile

86. Rinaldo was an _________ smoker and could not break the habit even when he was diagnosed with emphysema. A. indolent B. inveterate C. dubious D. brusque