Ten Words in Context - Mr. Assael's English Classes



Vocabulary Unit 6

Exercise 1. Due: ______________________.

Find each of the unit’s words in Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary (m-). Copy the word and its entry onto a separate sheet of paper. Copy the word broken into its syllables; copy ALL meanings; copy ALL parts of speech; copy ALL related words; copy ALL synonyms and antonyms; copy any sample sentences or phrases given. There are only two things that you do not need to copy: (1) anything related to pronunciation and (2) anything related to word origin. Use the information you find to complete Exercises 2, 3, and 4. Do not use a word processor for this exercise. Credit will be given for handwritten work only. A minimum of half credit will be deducted for failing to copy over ALL parts of any entry.

|brevity |frivolous |lampoon (verb) |reproach (noun) |torpor |

|clemency |heist (noun) |querulous |respite (noun) |unscathed |

Exercise 2A and 2B. Due:_______________________.

A. 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.

1. brevity • Everyone was surprised by the brevity of the principal’s speech at graduation. He spoke for less than five minutes.

• President Calvin Coolidge was famous for the brevity of his remarks. When a woman told him, “I have a bet that I can get you to say three words to me!” his response was, “You lose.”

___ brevity means a. strength b. intelligence c. briefness

2. clemency • A good teacher knows when to show clemency. For instance, if a student has been working very hard but does poorly on one quiz, the teacher might offer not to count that score.

• The convicted murderer was executed, even though religious leaders around the world asked the court to show clemency and reduce his sentence to life in prison.

___ clemency means a. mercy b. haste c. strength

3. frivolous • Do you feel like seeing a serious movie, or something more frivolous?

• We were laughing over some ridiculous joke, but then the news of our friend’s injury put an end to our frivolous mood.

___ frivolous means a. lighthearted b. cold-hearted c. brokenhearted

4. heist • The house was unlocked, empty, and full of wedding presents—a perfect target for a heist.

• The action movie was about the attempted heist of a famous painting, Leonardo de Vinci’s “Mona Lisa.”

___ heist means a. a purchase b. an imitation c. a burglary

5. to lampoon • Someone in our office lampooned all our paperwork by circulating a six-page form to be submitted, in triplicate, by anyone who wanted a pencil. Several humorless employees actually filled it out.

• “Forbidden Broadway” is a comedy show consisting of takeoffs on plays running in New York. Each theater season it lampoons a new crop of victims.

____to lampoon means a. to summarize b. to make fun of c. to praise

6. querulous • People who work in the complaints department of a store must get used to dealing with lots of querulous customers.

• The spoiled little boy looked at his birthday presents and said in a querulous voice, “None of them are very big, are they?”

____ querulous means a. shaky b. dishonest c. discontented

7. reproach • The kids deserve a reproach for making such a mess of the house while their parents were away.

• During the campaign, both candidates drew reproach from the newspapers for making untruthful statements and generally behaving very badly.

____reproach means a. thanks b. disapproval c. respect

8. respite • Emergency-room doctors work long shifts. Their only respite is a short nap on a couch.

• Twice a week, a nurse spends an afternoon at the Henderson’s house, so that Mrs. Henderson can have a respite from caring for her sick husband.

____respite means a. time off b. a salary c. a mark of respect

9. torpor • When Dermot took a midwinter vacation in Florida, the unaccustomed heat drained his energy. His torpor was so overwhelming that all he wanted to do was lie in a hammock.

• The sleepy little town seemed to doze peacefully through the afternoon. It looked as if nothing could rouse it from its torpor.

____torpor means a. hostility b. curiosity c. drowsiness

10. unscathed • “Thanks to my seat belt,” said Frankie, “I was able to walk away from the collision unscathed. Without it, I would probably have been badly injured.”

• When her husband left her, Mimi lamented. “I wish I could say that this has left me unscathed,” she said. “But, the truth is that I’ve been deeply wounded.”

____unscathed means a. strengthened b. angry c. unhurt

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

1. Feeling ________________________ on a sunny Saturday morning, I treated myself to a manicure rather than doing the housework that was waiting for me.

2. The police believe at least three people were involved in the jewelry store ________________________: one was a lookout, one did the actual stealing, and one drove the getaway car.

3. Since the shoplifting incident was James’s first such offense, the court showed _______________________ and only fined him rather than sending him to jail.

4. Professor Mazzeo’s lectures are noted for their ______________________. He frequently finishes speaking before even half the hour is up.

5. Although Mr. Hackman frequently says, “I don’t like to complain,” his conversation is always full of _______________________ comments about all the things that upset him.

6. After a snake eats, it generally falls into a state of ___________________________ for a day or more, barely moving or even breathing.

7. Our cat fell out of an attic window but walked away ____________________________.

8. Some very funny movies are takeoffs on certain types of serious movies. For instance, Airplane s disaster movies, while Love At First Bite makes fun of vampire films.

9. I spend Thursday mornings at my sister’s house, giving her some ____________________________ from her very active two-year-old twins.

10. Sheila is a very forgiving person. Although she had every right to be angry at me for what I did, she accepted my apology without a word of ______________________________.

Exercise 3A and 3B. Due:_______________________.

Exercise 3A. Following are synonyms and/or synonymous phrases for your the ten words. Write each word next to its definition. Also write the part of speech.

1. _______________________ ______________ complaining; discontented

2. _______________________ ______________ to attack or ridicule through humorous imitation

3. _______________________ ______________ rebuke; disapproval

4. _______________________ ______________ briefness; shortness of duration

5. _______________________ ______________ state of mental or physical inactivity; sluggishness; drowsiness

6. _______________________ ______________ a theft

7. _______________________ ______________ lighthearted; silly

8. _______________________ ______________ mercy; leniency

9. _______________________ ______________ unharmed; not injured

10. _______________________ ______________ a short period of rest or relief; time out

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

2. Political cartoons _______________________ public figures, but this mockery is not ______________________; rather than being merely funny, it is meant to reveal and comment on social problems and wrongdoing.

4. Caring for a loved one during a long illness does not leave even an exemplary caregiver ____________________. In fact, “burnout” is very likely if the caregiver does not have a(n) _______________________________ from time to time.

6. According to Shakespeare, “___________________________ is the soul of wit.” If so, the one-line joke is beyond ______________________________, since it could hardly be briefer.

8. The thief who was responsible for the ________________________________ pleaded for ____________________________, claiming that he was a modern-day Robin Hood. “I steal from the rich and give to the poor,” he said.

10. Champagne makes many people sleepy. But others, rather than being overcome by ____________________________, feel irritable and ________________________________ after drinking it.

Exercise 4. Due: ___________________________:

On a separate sheet of paper, write an original sentence using each vocabulary word. To show that you know the meaning of the word, each sentence must also have a “context clue”. Underline the vocabulary word and its context clue in each sentence. You must write each sentence twice: once using the synonym or synonymous phrase from Exercise #2A or #3A of this worksheet and then again using the vocabulary word. More detailed instructions on context clues and on writing sentences in pairs is given in the handout: “Instructions for Writing Sentences with Vocabulary Words.”

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