Chapter 3

Question 1

Charlatan

Answer 1

A fake; fraud; imposter; cheat.

Would you trust Wizard Oz, Gilderoy Lockhart (Harry Potter and the Chamber Secrets), or Chaucer’s Friar? I hope not. All three of these men were CHARLATANS, IMPOSTERS who could not be trusted.
Appears in Sentence Completion exercises. (Associated with something negative.)

Question 2

Skeptic

Answer 2

A person who doubts, asks questions and lacks faith.

In the movie Men in Black, Edwards was originally a SKEPTIC who didn’t believe that aliens were living in New York.

Question 3

Rhetorician

Answer 3

An eloquent writer or speaker; a master of RHETORIC(the art of speaking or writing).

Franklin Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr., John F. Kennedy were all CHARISMATIC(magnetic and inspiring) leaders and superb RHETORICIANS, whose eloquent speeches inspired millions of people.

Question 4

Hedonist

Answer 4

A person who believes that pleasure is the chief goal of life.

In Ancient Greece, the HEDONISTS urged their followers to “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” Although it is a long way from Ancient Greece to the home of rapper Ricky Ross in Miami, the HEDONISTIC principle of persuading pleasure remains the same.

Question 5

Ascetic

Answer 5

A person who gives up material comforts and leads a life of self-denial, especially as an act of religious devotion.

At the age 29, Prince Siddhartha Gautama left the luxuries of his father’s palace and for the next 6 years adopted an extreme ASCETIC life. For days at a time, he ate only a grain of rice. His stomach became so empty that, by poking a finger into it, he could touch his backbone. Yet, Gautama found only pain, not wisdom. He decided to give up an extreme ASCETICISM.

Question 6

Raconteur

Answer 6

A person who excels in telling ANECDOTES.

Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was renowned RACONTEUR. Many of the Anecdotes in the movie 300 are taken from his famous history of the Persian Wars.

Question 7

Iconoclast

Answer 7

A person who attacks and ridicules cherished figures, ideas, and institutions.

What do the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaton and the modern filmmaker Michael Moore have in common? Both are ICONOCLASTS. Akhenaton challenged ancient Egypt’s longstanding belief. Moore’s doc. films attacked attacked the war, American health system, Wall street Bankers. Like a true ICONOCLAST, Moore ridiculed Congress, saying that most of its members are scoundrels who deserve to be “removed and replaced”

Question 8

Partisan

Answer 8

A supporter of a person, party, or cause; a person with strong and perhaps biased beliefs.

Do you support health care reform legistation? How do you feel about illegal immigration? If you have a strong views on these issues, you are a PARTISAN.

Question 9

1. Polymath

2. Dilettante

Answer 9

1. A person whose expertise spans a significant number of subject areas.
2. An amateur or dabbler; a person with a SUPERFICIAL in an art or a branch of knowledge; a trifler

POLYMATH Benjamin Franklin, noted author, printer, inventor, scientist, political theorist, musician, satirist, and a stateman, had a myriad of interests, all of which he developed to remarkable degree.

Dilettante comes form the Italian “lover of the arts”

Question 10

1. Mentor

2. Acolyte

Answer 10

1. An advisor; a teacher; a guide.
2. A devoted follower

In the Star Wars SAGA, Obi-Wan Kenobi is a Jedi Knight who serves as Luke Skywalker’s MENTOR. As an eager young ACOLYTE of the SAGE(profoundly wise) Kenobi, Skywalker learns the ways of the Force.

Question 11

Demagogue

Answer 11

A leader who appeals to the fears, emotions, and prejudices of the populace.

Adolf Hitler is often cited as the epitome(perfect example) of a DEMAGOGUE. Hitler rose to power by using impassioned speeches that appealed to the ethnic and nationalistic prejudices of the German people.

Question 12

Automaton

Answer 12

A self-operating machine; a mindless follower; person who acts in a mechanical fashion.

In the Harry Potter series, the Imperius Curse was a spell that caused its victim to fall under the command of the caster. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the Death Eater Yaxley placed an Imperius Curse on Pius Thickness. When Thickness became a Minister of Magic, he behaved like an AUTOMATON.

Question 13

Recluse

Answer 13

A person who leads a secluded and solitary life.

Example of RECLUSE is Harper Lee. Although she is a world-famous Pulitzer Prize- winningn author of “To Kill A Mockingbird”, she rarely appears in public.

Question 14

Bungler

Answer 14

Someone who is clumsy or INEPT; a person who makes mistakes because of incompetence.

In the movie The Princess Diaries, Mia Thermopolis is a BUNGLER who is INEPT in social situations, awkward and clumsy. However, she discovers that she is the Princess of Genovia, a small European Country. After taking many “Princess Lessons”, she emerges as a confident princess.

Question 15

1. Clairvoyant

2. Prognosticator

Answer 15

1.Having the supposed power to see objects and events that cannot be perceived with the fivet raditional senses; a SEER;

Sybill Trelawney was the Divination professor at Hogwarts who claimed to be CLAIRVOYANT. She used tea leaves and crystal balls to see the future.

2. A person who makes predictions based upon curent information and data.

Weather forecasters, sports announcers, and financial analysts are all PROGNOSTICATORS who use information and data to make predictions and forecasts.

Difference between clairvoyant and prognosticator is:
Clairvoyant makes predictions through means beyond the five senses.
Prognosticator use empirical data that can be collected, seen, and studied.
In medicine, doctor gives a patient his Prognosis(a forecast concerning the causes of disease and outlining the chances of recovery)

Question 16

Pundit

Answer 16

An expert commentator; an authority who expresses his or her opinion, usually on political issues.

From CNN’s News Center to ESPN’s Sport Center, television programs are filled with PUNDITS who offer their “expert” commentary on issues ranging from political campaigns to March Madness brackets.

Question 17

Zealot

Answer 17

A very enthusiastic person; a champion; a true believer, perhaps to an excessive degree; a fanatic.

William Lloyd Garrison was a ZEALOT who championed the cause of unconditional and immediate abolition of slavery.

Question 18

Neoophyte, Novice, Greenhorn

Answer 18

A beginner; someone new to a field or activity

In October 2008 Justin Bieber was an unknown NEOPHYTE who had never recorded a song. However, Usher recognized that although Bieber was a NOVICE, he was a musical PRODIGY with the potential to become a superstar. With Usher as his MENTOR, Bieber quickly MORPHED(transformed) from a GREENHORN into a global sensation.

Question 19

1. Benefactor, Patron

2. Beneficiary

Answer 19

1. A person who makes a gift or bequest.
2. The recipient of funds, titles, property, and other benefits.

Nicholas Sparks has achieved international fame by writing romance novels that are often set in New Bern, North Carolina. Residents of New Bern also know Sparks as a generous BENEFACTOR and PATRON  who has donated nearly 1$ million to build a state-of-the-art track. As the BENEFICIARIES of this MUNIFICENCE, the New Bern Bears have become one of North Carolina's top tracks and field teams.
benefit-to do good, a good thing(noun)
beneficent-doing good
benefactor-one who helps another
benevolence-good will towards others
benediction- the act of blessing
ROOT Bene | Good, Well

Question 20

Dissembler, Prevaricator

Answer 20

A liar and deceiver.

In Mean Girls, Regina George is a cunning DISSEMBLER who deliberately lies to her friends and her enemies. In the movie Pirates of the Caribbean; Curse of the Black Pearl, Captain Barbossa is a PREVARICATOR who repeatedly lies to Jack Sparrow, Elizabeth Swann, and Will Turner.

Question 21

Proponent

Answer 21

One who argues in support in something; an ADVOCATE; a champion of a cause.

Although America has faced a number of challenging social problems, our nation has always produced leaders who were strong PROPONENTS of reform. For example, during the 19th century, Jane Addams was an outspoken PROPONENT of urban settlement houses.

Expose - to set forth, show for all to see
Depose - to remove from office
Repose - to rest
Impose - to place on, as a penalty
Suppose - to assume to be true
Propose - to offer, to put forward
Exponent - a person who sets forth or interprets
Postpone - to place later, delay
Posit - to assert to declare
Posture - (vb). to pose, assume a fake position (n). placement of the limbs, carriage
roots PONE, POSE | to place, set, put.

Question 22

Prodigy

Answer 22

A person with great talent; a young genius.

What do Wolfgang Mozart and Pablo Picasso have in common? They were PRODIGIES who demonstrated uncanny artistic talent at a young age.

Question 23

Oracle

Answer 23

A person considered to be ORACULAR, that is a source of wise counsel or prophetic opinions.

Would you like to know what is going to happen in the future? All you have to do is ask an ORACLE. Just as ancient Greek asked the Delphic ORACLE to predict the future, 2010 World Cup soccer fans watched televised reports featuring the predictions of an octopus named Paul.

Question 24

Misanthrope

Answer 24

A person who hates or distrusts humankind.

Ebenezer Scrooge and Alceste are two best-known MISANTHROPES in literature. Scrooge is the main character in Charles Dickens’s 1843 novel, A Christmas Corol. He is a cold-hearted MISERLY(very stingy) MISANTHROPE who despises poor people and Christmas.

Question 25

Innovator

Answer 25

A person who introduces something new.

Google has now become a verb, synonymous with “to search”. But Google was not the first to invent the search engine; others ANTEDATED(preceded in time) Google. However, what made Google INNOVATIVE was the PageRank algorithm, which ranks websites on their relevance to a search in order to provide the most useful results.
In latin “NOV” - new

Question 26

Sycophant

Answer 26

A person who seeks a favor by flattering people of influence; to TOADY; someone who behaves in an OBSEQUIOUS or SERVILE manner.

Louis XIV compelled France’s great nobles to live at the Versailles Palace. Life at the royal palace transformed HAUGHTY(arrogant) aristocrats into favor-seeking SYCOPHANTS.

Question 27

Stoic, Stolid

Answer 27

Seemingly INDIFFERENT to or unaffected by joy, grief, pleasure, or pain; impassive and emotionless.

What woud you do if you scored the winning goal in a championship soccer game? What would you do if your error caused your team to lose a championship baseball game? Most people would be elated to win or dejected to lose. However, STOIC would remain impassive, showing no emotion in victory or defeat.
Being STOLID is not easy. It requires great discipline and self-control. The guards at Buckingham Palace are famous for their ability to endure hot weather while STOLIDLY staying in the same position for hours.

Question 28

Reprobate

Answer 28

A morally unprincipled person;

Who is the most despised REPROBATE living in America today? For thousand of betrayed investors there is only one answer - Bernard Madoff. On June 29, 2009, Judge Denny Chin sentenced Madoff to 150 years in prison for running a giant Ponzi scheme that cheated investors out of almost $65 billion. Madoff’s victims included pension funds, charitable institutions, and elderly retirees. Although Madoff is was a CHARLATAN, he is best described as a REPROBATE because of the ENORMITY(outrageousness) of a fraud that Judge Chin called “extraordinarily evil”.

Question 29

Renegade

Answer 29

A disloyal person who betrays his or her cause; a traitor; a deserter.

In 1777 Benedict Arnold was one of the America’s most admired Revolutionary War generals. Yet, just three years later, Arnold was VILIFIED(slandered, defamed) as a RENEGADE whose name became synonymous with traitor.