English Midterm Vocab

Question 1

Tumult

Answer 1

(n.) – Violent and noisy commotion or disturbance of a crowd or mob

The tumult among the people was due to the Black Friday sales, and the race for products.

Question 2

Specious

Answer 2

(adj.) – Apparently good or right though lacking real merit; superficially pleasing or plausible

The advertisement for the governor made him look specious and lacked facts.

Question 3

Lolled

Answer 3

(v.) – To recline or lean in a relaxed, lazy, or indolent manner; lounge

I lolled in my new conformable chair, while I watched TV.

Question 4

Unheeded

Answer 4

(v.) – To not give careful attention to

He unheeded his friend’s warnings of how hard the test was and did not study enough.

Question 5

Suffusion

Answer 5

(n.) – The spread or flood through or over

The suffusion of red in the evening sky gave it a swirly look.

Question 6

Furtively

Answer 6

(adv.) – In a sly or shifty manner

He furtively looked around as he took a cookie from the jar.

Question 7

Swathed

Answer 7

(v.) – To bandage

I swathed my cut from the rock with a bandage.

Question 8

Paunch

Answer 8

(n.) – A large and protruding belly

The paunch of the man increased as he ate dinner.

Question 9

Clamber

Answer 9

(v.) – To climb, using both feet and hands

The monkeys clambered up the tree to get food.

Question 10

Inaudible

Answer 10

(adj.) – Not loud enough to be heard

His whisper was almost inaudible as he told his secret to his friend.

Question 11

Truculently

Answer 11

(adj.) – Fierce; cruel; savagely brutal

The hungry lion truculently pounced and ate its prey.

Question 12

Elephantine

Answer 12

(adj.) – Huge, ponderous, or clumsy

The clown wore elephantine shoes and often tripped on them.

Question 13

Opalescence

Answer 13

(n.) – Milky iridescence

The fog had a lot of opalescence.

Question 14

Perceptible

Answer 14

(adj.) – Capable of being perceived; recognizable; appreciable

The man trying to hide in the dark was very perceptible because of his neon shirt.

Question 15

Belligerence

Answer 15

(n.) – A warlike or aggressively hostile nature, condition, or attitude

The Romans had a great amount of belligerence as they fought their way to a world power.

Question 16

Mirage

Answer 16

(n.) – Something illusory, without substance or reality

When he struggled to find water in the desert, he saw many mirages of lakes that were not actually there.

Question 17

Inscrutable

Answer 17

(adj.) – Incapable of being investigated, or analyzed; impenetrable

The thief claimed he was inscrutable and could never be found.

Question 18

Tacit

Answer 18

(adj.) – Understood without being openly expressed; implied

When the man implied his joke, the audience had to be tacit in order to understand.

Question 19

Vicissitudes

Answer 19

(n.) – A change or variation occurring in the course of something

The random path of the auto-piloted plane had many vicissitudes.

Question 20

Clamorously

Answer 20

(adj.) – Vigorous in demands or complaints

The robber clamorously demanded the money from the cash register.

Question 21

Corpulent

Answer 21

(adj.) – Large or bulky of body; portly; stout; fat

The TV show “Biggest Loser”, often shows corpulent people lose weight.

Question 22

Tentatively

Answer 22

(adj.) – Unsure; uncertain; not definite or positive; hesitant

I was tentative as I made my next move in chess.

Question 23

Ululation

Answer 23

(n.) – A howl, such as a dog or a wolf

The ululation of the dogs woke up the whole neighborhood.

Question 24

Propitiating

Answer 24

(v.) – To make favorably inclined; appease

I propitiated voting for John by putting up positive posters of him around the school.

Question 25

Cessation

Answer 25

(n.) – A temporary or complete stopping; discontinuance

The cessation of the person in front of me almost made me walk into him.