Manhattan Prep Reading Comprehension

Question 1

unpropitious

Answer 1

unfavourable

Question 2

nuanced

Answer 2

balanced

Question 3

virulence

Answer 3

severity

Question 4

bevy

Answer 4

a large group of people or things of a particular kind

Question 5

marshal

Answer 5

assemble and arrange (a group of people, especially troops) in order; methodically assemble and arrange (facts, ideas, objects, etc.); direct the movement of (an aircraft) on the ground at an airport

Question 6

ex post facto

Answer 6

after the fact

Question 7

escapade

Answer 7

an act or incident involving excitement, daring, or adventure, exploit, caper

Question 8

bigot

Answer 8

someone who is intolerant towards those holding different opinions, dogmatist

Question 9

purblind

Answer 9

obtuse, dim-witted, slow to understand; partially blind

Question 10

astigmatic

Answer 10

relating to astigmatism

Question 11

bemused

Answer 11

bewildered, puzzled, confused

Question 12

resigned

Answer 12

having accepted something unpleasant that one cannot do anything about
“a resigned shrug of the shoulders”

Question 13

portentous

Answer 13

ominous, of or like a portent, of momentous significance; pompous, bombastic, pontifical

Question 14

impetus

Answer 14

the force or energy with which a body moves, propulsion, impulsion; catalyst

Question 15

supercilious

Answer 15

arrogant, conceited

Question 16

prim

Answer 16

feeling or showing disapproval of anything regarded as improper, stiffly correct

Question 17

bereft

Answer 17

deprived from;

(of a person) sad and lonely, especially through someone’s death or departure

Question 18

screed

Answer 18

a long speech or piece of writing, typically one regarded as tedious; a levelled layer of material (e.g. cement) applied to a floor or other surface; level (a floor or layer of concrete) with a straight edge using a back and forth motion while moving across the surface

Question 19

impugn

Answer 19

challenge, dispute, call into question

Question 20

peculiar

Answer 20

unique

Question 21

naysayer

Answer 21

a person who criticizes, objects to, or opposes something

Question 22

shore up

Answer 22

to stop a building from falling down; to support or improve an organization, agreement, or system that is not working effectively or that is likely to fail

Question 23

subsistence

Answer 23

the state of having what you need in order to stay alive, but no more

Question 24

vernacular

Answer 24

the form of a language that a particular group of speakers use naturally, especially in informal situations

Question 25

insurgent

Answer 25

someone who fights the government on their own country; someone resistant to political authority

Question 26

sui generis

Answer 26

unique

Question 27

relief

Answer 27

a method of raising shapes above a flat surface so that they appear to stand out slightly from it

Question 28

level

Answer 28

to aim or direct something at someone or something

“Rothbard levels the criticism that…”

Question 29

eclipse

Answer 29

to make another person or thing seem much less important, good, or famous

Question 30

epitome

Answer 30

the typical or highest example of a stated quality, as shown by a particular person or thing, pinnacle

Question 31

courtesan

Answer 31

a woman, usually with a high social position, who in the past had sexual relationships with rich or important men in exchange for money

Question 32

littoral

Answer 32

near the coast

Question 33

arboreal

Answer 33

of or living in trees

Question 34

levy

Answer 34

tax

Question 35

ken

Answer 35

area of knowledge

Question 36

embroil

Answer 36

to cause someone to become involved in an argument or a difficult situation (e.g. embroiled in the conflict/war/lawsuit)

Question 37

ensconced

Answer 37

positioned firmly and comfortably in something

“he is ensconced in his new home”

Question 38

formative

Answer 38

relating to the time when someone or something is starting to develop in character (e.g. formative years, formative influences)

Question 39

curtail

Answer 39

reduce or limit

Question 40

stamp out

Answer 40

to stop or destroy (something bad)