2070

Question 1

sheathe

\ˈshēth\

Answer 1

D. to cover something (a knife or a sword) in a material, especially in order to protect it

E. sometimes shipbuilders sheathe a ship’s bottom with copper for extra protection from barnacles and other threats

Question 2

shibboleth

\ˈshi-bə-ləth\

Answer 2

D. an old idea, principle or phrase that is no longer accepted; a custom, word, etc. that distinguishes one group of people from another

E. the crumbling of old political shibboleths / “Utility is our national shibboleth: the savior of the American businessman is fact and his uterine half-brother, statistics.”

Question 3

shoddy

\ˈshä-dē\

Answer 3

D. cheap; poorly made

E. shoddy goods / shoddy treatment

Question 4

shunt

Answer 4

D. to turn aside

E. John was shunted sideways to a job in sales.

Question 5

sideral

\sī-‘di-rē-āl\

Answer 5

D. related to the stars that are far away, not the sun or planets

Question 6

simian

\ˈsi-mē-ən\

Answer 6

D. pertaining to the monkeys

E. a study of simian viruses

Question 7

simile

\ˈsi-mə-(ˌ)lē\

Answer 7

D. a word or phrase that compares something to something else, using the words like or as

E. “She’s as fierce as a tiger” is a simile, but “She’s a tiger when she’s angry” is a metaphor.

Question 8

simper

\ˈsim-pər\

Answer 8

D. to smile in a silly manner

E. He simpered and smirked while he talked to the boss.

Question 9

simulate

Answer 9

D. to pretend or fake

Question 10

sinecure

\ˈsī-ni-ˌkyu̇r\

Answer 10

D. a job that you are paid for even though it involves little or no work

Question 11

sinister

Answer 11

D. threatening; evil

E. the movie relies too much on sinister background music to create the suspense that the plot sorely lacks

Question 12

sinuous

Answer 12

D. winding; devious

Question 13

skeptical

Answer 13

D. doubting

Question 14

skittish

Answer 14

D. playful; jumpy; marked by extreme caution

E. a skittish horse / We’ve been skittish about taking on such a large mortgage.

Question 15

skulk

\ˈskəlk\

Answer 15

D. to hide or move around secretly, especially when you are planning something bad

E. There was someone skulking behind the bushes. / I don’t want reporters skulking around here.

Question 16

slake

Answer 16

D. to drink so that you no longer feel thirsty; to satisfy a desire

E. trying to slake his curiosity

Question 17

slatternly

Answer 17

D. dirty; untidy

E. a slatternly girl

Question 18

sleazy

Answer 18

D. dirty, unpleasant and not socially acceptable, especially because sex is involved; immoral and unpleasant

E. a sleazy neighbourhood / a sleazy reporter

Question 19

slothful

Answer 19

D. lazy

Question 20

slough

\slau\

Answer 20

D. a state of moral degradation or spiritual dejection; a place of deep mud or mire; to shed

Question 21

slovenly

Answer 21

D. careless and untidy

E. He grew lazy and slovenly in his habits.

Question 22

sluggard

\ˈslä-gərd\

Answer 22

D. a lazy person

E. tried to wake up the sluggards who were still sleeping at that late hour

Question 23

sobriety

\sə-‘brī-ə-tē\

Answer 23

D. soberness (not drunk, serious and sensible)

E. She was a model of sobriety and honesty. / the sobriety of the situation

Question 24

sojourn

'so-jərn\

Answer 24

D. a temporary stay in a place away from your home

E. Our family enjoyed a two-week sojourn in the mountains.

Question 25

solecism

'sä-le’-sē-se’m\

Answer 25

D. a mistake in the use of language in speech or writing; an example of bad manners or unacceptable behaviour

E. a social solecism / the solecism of asking one’s hosts how much something in their house cost them

Question 26

solicitous

\se’-‘li-sē-te’s\

Answer 26

D. expressing care

E. a solicitous host / ‘Are you cold?’ he asked solicitously.

Question 27

soliloquy

\sə-ˈli-lə-kwē\

Answer 27

D. a talking to oneself (solus alone + loqui to speak)

E. Hamlet’s famous soliloquy, ‘To be or not to be…’

Question 28

solstice

\ˈsäl-stəs\

Answer 28

D. either of the two times of the year at which the sun reaches its highest or lowest point in the sky at midday, marked by the longest and shortest days

E. the summer/winter solstice

Question 29

solvent

\säl-ve’nt\

Answer 29

D. a substance, especially a liquid, that can dissolve another substance; able to pay one’s debts

E. industrial solvents for removing oil / He couldn’t stay solvent after losing his business.

Question 30

somatic

\sō-ˈma-tik\

Answer 30

D. pertaining to the body

E. a somatic disorder that was once thought to be “all in the patient’s head”

Question 31

somnabulism

\säm-ˈnam-byə-ˌli-zəm\

Answer 31

D. sleep-walking (somnus sleep + -ambulus walk, as in ambulant)

Question 32

somnolent

\säm-ˈnam-le’nt\

Answer 32

D. almost asleep; making you feel tired (somnus sleep)

E. a somnolent Sunday afternoon

Question 33

sonorous

Answer 33

D. rich and full (sound)

Question 34

soothsayer

Answer 34

D. a person who is believed to be able to tell what will happen in the future

E. a soothsayer predicted that I would meet the man of my dreams online, assuming of course that I became a subscriber to the Web site’s dating service

Question 35

sophisticated

Answer 35

d. urbane; not native

Question 36

sordid

'sor-did\

Answer 36

D. immoral or dishonest; very dirty and unpleasant

E. It was a shock to discover the truth about his sordid past. / people living in sordid conditions

Question 37

soupçon

'sōp-sän\

Answer 37

D. a trace or hint; a very small amount

E. There was a soupçon of malice in her remark.

Question 38

spasmodic

\spas-‘mä-dik\

Answer 38

D. happening suddenly for short periods of time; not regular or continuous; caused by your muscles becoming tight in a way that you cannot control

E. a spasmodic interest in politics / spasmodic movements

Question 39

specious

Answer 39

D. seeming right or true but actually wrong or false

E. a specious argument

Question 40

spector

Answer 40

D. a ghost; something that haunts or perturbs the mind (specere to look)

E. feeling so terrified that every shadow became a specter / the specter of hunger

Question 41

spectral

Answer 41

D. like a ghost; connected with a ghostconnected with a spectrum

E. a spectral figure / the full spectral range

Question 42

splenetic

\sple’-ˈne-tik\

Answer 42

D. often bad-tempered and angry

E. the newspaper publisher’s splenetic editorials often struck fear into local politicians

Question 43

spontaneous

Answer 43

D. arising naturally

Question 44

sporadic

Answer 44

D. occasional

E. sporadic outbreaks of the disease / Fighting continued sporadically for two months.

Question 45

sportive

Answer 45

D. playful

E. a sportive pastor who began every sermon with a joke

Question 46

spurious

\ˈspyu̇r-rē-əs\

Answer 46

D. false; not real; based on false ideas or ways of thinking

E. He had managed to create the entirely spurious impression that the company was thriving. / a spurious argument