Juxtapose - Percolate

Question 1

Juxtapose

Answer 1

To place things next to each other in order to compare or contrast; ex) The artist __________ed some of his early sketches with some of his later works to show how much his style had changed over time.

Question 2

Keen

Answer 2

Quick-witted, sharp; ex) His __________ sense of smell allowed him to figure out what was for dinner long before he reached the kitchen.

Question 3

Kudos

Answer 3

Praise for achievements; ex) The volunteers all received __________ for their work at the homeless shelter.

Question 4

Lambaste

Answer 4

To scold or criticize sharply; to beat; ex) The critics __________ed the author’s newest novel, saying he had become lazy in the wake of his last book’s success.

Question 5

Languish

Answer 5

To exist in a dreadful or gloomy situation; to become weak; ex) The convict had been __________ing in prison for nearly 20 years.

Question 6

Latter

Answer 6

The second of two things mentioned; nearer the end; ex) My parents offered either to buy me a new computer or to pay for a trip to Europe for my graduation, and I chose the __________, having never been abroad.

Question 7

Laudable

Answer 7

Deserving praise; favorable; ex) Jenny’s efforts to raise money for breast cancer research were __________.

Question 8

Lavish

Answer 8

Adj: elaborate and luxurious. V: to freely and boundlessly bestow; ex) He showered her with __________ gifts of jewelry and clothes in an attempt to win her over.

Question 9

Lenient

Answer 9

Easy-going, tolerant; ex) Sarah’s parents were not __________ at all when it came to grades; she was expected to earn straight A’s.

Question 10

Lethargic

Answer 10

Deficient in alertness; lacking energy; ex) Linda was __________ all day; she had not slept at all the night before.

Question 11

Listless

Answer 11

Characterized by a lack of energy; ex) During his long illness, Michael became very __________ and spent most of his time in bed.

Question 12

Loathsome

Answer 12

Offensive, disgusting; ex) His __________ behavior ultimately resulted in his being fired; his employers had received numerous complaints from his coworkers.

Question 13

Loquacious

Answer 13

Very talkative or rambling; ex) My plans for a quiet dinner were disrupted by a __________ patron seated at the next table.

Question 14

Lucid

Answer 14

Easily understood; clear; ex) The speaker presented a series of __________ arguments in favor of the antismoking law.

Question 15

Ludicrous

Answer 15

Laughable or foolish; ex) Mark’s __________ budget estimations resulted in large financial losses for his company.

Question 16

Magnanimous

Answer 16

Courageous, generous, or noble; ex) Coach Davis was __________ in defeat and congratulated the winning team on a game well played.

Question 17

Malevolent

Answer 17

Purposefully wishing harm on others; ex) The villain in the movie was a __________ old man who would stop at nothing to gain power over the citizens in his community.

Question 18

Manifest

Answer 18

Adj: clearly recognizable. V: to make clear. N: a list of transported goods or passengers used for record keeping; ex) The airline workers’ dissatisfaction with their wages __________ed itself as a two-week-long strike.

Question 19

Mar

Answer 19

To inflict damage or blemishes on; ex) He was careful not to __________ the surface of the antique table during the move from the storage facility.

Question 20

Melancholy

Answer 20

Adj. glum. n. deep contemplative thought; ex) Reid attributed his __________ mood to the weather; it had been raining for nearly a week.

Question 21

Melodramatic

Answer 21

Overly emotional or sentimental; ex) “I’m never talking to you AGAIN!” she exclaimed in a __________ manner.

Question 22

Mercurial

Answer 22

Prone to sudden unpredictable change; volatile; ex) Michael had a very __________ temperament; he could go from cheerful to irate in a matter of moments.

Question 23

Metamorphosis

Answer 23

A transformation or change; ex) The new CEO vowed that the struggling business would undergo a complete __________, and that it would soon be thriving and successful.

Question 24

Meticulous

Answer 24

Devoting a high amount of attention to detail; ex) Janine was __________ about her appearance, refusing to be seen in public without makeup.

Question 25

Mettle

Answer 25

Courage; ex) The troops showed their __________ in the face of armed combat.

Question 26

Minuscule

Answer 26

Extremely small; unimportant; ex) The acceptable error for this test is __________, so the research team takes the utmost care in executing it.

Question 27

Miscreant

Answer 27

Villain; evildoer; ex) In typical fairy tale style, the heroine of the story overcomes the local __________, teaching him a lesson and earning the esteem of the townspeople.

Question 28

Mitigate

Answer 28

Causing something to be less intense, forceful, or harmful; ex) The County Road Commission authorized the use of extra snowplows to help __________ the hazardous road conditions.

Question 29

Mollify

Answer 29

To calm down or alleviate; to soften; ex) The experienced referees attempted to __________ the angry players before a fight broke out.

Question 30

Munificence

Answer 30

The act of liberally giving; ex) The soup kitchen was able to feed more than one thousand homeless people every day, thanks to the __________ of the community.

Question 31

Nascent

Answer 31

Just beginning to exist; ex) Brett’s __________ career in politics ended before it began when the public learned that he had been arrested for the purchase of narcotics.

Question 32

Negligent

Answer 32

Characterized by carelessness and neglectfulness; ex) His often __________ behavior led to his being replaced by a more diligent manager.

Question 33

Negligible

Answer 33

Meaningless and insignificant; ex) The difference between the two brands of baby food was __________; both offered the same nutritional value.

Question 34

Nostalgia

Answer 34

A bittersweet longing for the past; ex) Every time I hear that song, I feel a wave of __________ for my college days.

Question 35

Noxious

Answer 35

Unwholesome or harmful; ex) Environmentalists protested the construction of a new factory that would emit large quantities of __________ gases into the atmosphere each day.

Question 36

Obdurate

Answer 36

Firm, stubborn; ex) The governor was __________ in her beliefs that schools needed additional funding for their art and music programs.

Question 37

Obscurity

Answer 37

The condition of being unknown; ex) The 1962 hit single propelled him from relative __________ in the Canadian north to fame and fortune in Los Angeles.

Question 38

Obsolete

Answer 38

No longer in use; outmoded or old-fashioned; ex) Telegrams became __________ with the development of the Internet.

Question 39

Obtuse

Answer 39

Lacking intellectual clarity; blunt, or slow-witted; ex) My law professor insinuates that his students are incredibly __________ if they don’t know the answer to one of his questions.

Question 40

Obviate

Answer 40

To render unnecessary; ex) The brand-new underpass will __________ the railroad crossing gates at the intersection.

Question 41

Odious

Answer 41

Arousing or deserving strong hatred; ex) The __________ crimes committed by the gang members put them at the top of the city’s most-wanted list.

Question 42

Onerous

Answer 42

Very troublesome or oppressively difficult; ex) The police had the __________ task of somehow convincing the assailant to set his hostages free.

Question 43

Ostracize

Answer 43

To eliminate from a group ex) Coworkers have __________ed the young welder since he first spoke out against the union.

Question 44

Paradox

Answer 44

A self-contradiction; something that appears to be self-contradictory, but is nonetheless true; ex) It was a strange __________ that adding more capacity to the network actually reduced its overall performance.

Question 45

Paragon

Answer 45

An example of excellence; ex) Mother Theresa was a __________ of piety and generosity.

Question 46

Parse

Answer 46

To break down into components; ex) Mrs. Antoinette assigned our French class 100 sentences to __________ into subject, verb, and tense.

Question 47

Pedantic

Answer 47

Characterized by a narrow concern for detail, particularly in academics; ex) My history teacher’s hopelessly __________ lectures left the class in a state of utter boredom.

Question 48

Penchant

Answer 48

A tendency or fondness; ex) Her __________ for designer clothes was something that her meager salary could simply not support.

Question 49

Perceive

Answer 49

To become aware of something, usually through the senses; ex) __________ing the sadness in his voice, I asked him if anything was wrong.

Question 50

Percolate

Answer 50

To slowly pass through; ex) Mountain spring water is generally safe to drink because it has spent decades slowly __________ing through porous layers of rock.