#10 approbation ~ archaic

Question 1

approbation

/ˌæprəˈbeɪʃən/

Answer 1

n. approval; praise
- The crowd expressed its approbation of the team’s performance by gleefully covering the field with toilet paper.
- The ambassador’s actions met with the approbation of his commander in chief.
Approbation is a fancy word for approval, to which it is closely related.
Disapprobation is disapproval.

Question 2

appropriate

/əˈproʊpriˌeɪt/

Answer 2

v. to take without permission; to set aside for a particular use
- Nick appropriated my lunch; he grabbed it out of my hands and ate it. So I appropriated Ed’s.
- The deer and raccoons appropriated the vegetables in our garden last summer. This year we’ll build a better fence.
- When Congress decides to buy some new submarines, it appropriates money for them. That is, it sets some money aside. The money thus set aside is called an appropriation.

Question 3

misappropriate

/ˌmɪsəˈproʊpriˌeɪt/

Answer 3

v. to put to a wrong use
- When an elected official takes money that was supposed to be spent on submarines and spends it on a Rolls-Royce and a few mink coats, he is said to have misappropriated the money.

Question 4

expropriate

/ɛksˈproʊpriˌeɪt/

Answer 4

v. to take possession of
- When the government decides to build a highway through your backyard, it expropriates your property for this purpose. That is, it uses its official authority to take possession of your property.

Question 5

aptitude

/ˈæptɪˌtud, -ˌtyud/

Answer 5

n. capacity for learning; natural ability
- Some rare students have a marked aptitude for taking the SAT. They can earn high scores without any prep.
- I tried to repair my car, but as I sat on the floor of my garage, surrounded by mysterious parts, I realized that I had no aptitude for automobile repair.

Question 6

ineptitude

/ɪnˈɛptɪˌtud, -ˌtyud, ɪˈnɛp-/

Answer 6

n. the opposite of aptitude; quality or condition of being inept (without skill or aptitude for a particular task or assignment)

Question 7

arbiter

/ˈɑrbɪtər/

Answer 7

n. one who decides; a judge
- An arbiter of fashion determines what other people will wear by wearing it herself.
The words arbiter and arbitrator mean the same thing.

Question 8

arbitrate

/ˈɑrbɪˌtreɪt/

Answer 8

v. weigh opposing viewpoints and make decisions

- An arbiter arbitrates.

Question 9

arbitration

/ˌɑrbɪˈtreɪʃən/

Answer 9

n. a formal meeting to settle a dispute

- An arbiter presides over an arbitration.

Question 10

arbitrary

/ˈɑrbɪˌtrɛri/

Answer 10

adj. random; capricious
- The grades Mr. Simone have his English students appeared to be arbitrary; they didn’t seem related the work the students had done in class.
- The old judge was arbitrary in sentencing criminals; there was no sensible pattern to the sentences he handed down.

Question 11

arcane

/ɑrˈkeɪn/

Answer 11

adj. mysterious; known only to a select few
- The rites of the secret cult were arcane; no one outside the cult knew what they were.
- The arcane formula for the cocktail was scrawled on a faded scrap of paper.
- We could make out only a little of the arcane inscription on the old trunk.

Question 12

archaic

/ɑrˈkeɪɪk/

Answer 12

adj. extremely old; ancient; outdated
- The tribe’s traditions are archaic. They have been in force for thousands of years.
- Archaic civilizations are ones that disappeared a long time ago.
- An archaic meaning of a word is one that isn’t used anymore.