Querida Amazonia

Question 1

ecological

Answer 1

[relating to ecology or the environment]

The destruction of the rain forests is an ecological disaster.

Question 2

parliament

Answer 2

[in some countries, the group of (usually) elected politicians or other people who make the laws for their country]
On Tuesday the country’s parliament voted to establish its own army.

Question 3

diagnoses

Answer 3

[a judgment about what a particular illness or problem is, made after examining it]
Diagnosis of the disease is difficult in the early stages.

Question 4

timber

Answer 4

[trees that are grown so that the wood from them can be used for building]
These trees are being grown for timber.

Question 5

ranch

Answer 5

[a very large farm on which animals are kept, especially in North and South America]
He went to work on a ranch.

Question 6

hydroelectric

Answer 6

[producing electricity by the force of fast moving water such as rivers or waterfalls]
More than 80% of the power generated in the Northwest comes from hydroelectricity.

Question 7

outrage

Answer 7

[a feeling of anger and shock]

These murders have provoked outrage across the country.

Question 8

peasant

Answer 8

[a person who owns or rents a small piece of land and grows crops, keeps animals, etc. on it, especially one who has a low income, very little education, and a low social position. This is usually used of someone who lived in the past or of someone in a poor country]
Tons of internationally donated food was distributed to the starving peasants.

Question 9

abhorrence

Answer 9

[a feeling of hating something or someone]

She looked at him in/with abhorrence.

Question 10

amputate

Answer 10

[to cut off a part of the body]

In these cases there is no choice but to amputate.

Question 11

shrewdness

Answer 11

[clear understanding and good judgment of a situation, usually resulting in an advantage]
She was a woman of great courage and political shrewdness.

Question 12

permeate

Answer 12

[to spread through something and be present in every part of it]
A foul smell of stale beer permeated the whole building.

Question 13

steep

Answer 13

[to cause to stay in a liquid, especially in order to become soft or clean, or to improve flavour]
We had pears steeped in red wine for dessert.

Question 14

invasive

Answer 14

[An invasive organism is one that has arrived in a place from somewhere else and has a harmful effect on that place]
The Asian long-horned beetle is one of the newest and most harmful invasive species in the United States.

Question 15

swell

Answer 15

[to become larger and rounder than usual; to (cause to) increase in size or amount]
The group recruited more members, swelling its ranks (= increasing its size) to more than 1.3 million.

Question 16

cosmic

Answer 16

[relating to the universe and the natural processes that happen in it]
cosmic dust/radiation

Question 17

gust

Answer 17

[a sudden strong wind]

A sudden gust of wind blew his umbrella inside out.

Question 18

foliage

Answer 18

[the leaves of a plant or tree, or leaves on the stems or branches on which they are growing]
The dense foliage overhead almost blocked out the sun.

Question 19

stoicism

Answer 19

[the quality of experiencing pain or trouble without complaining or showing your emotions]
He endured the pain of his wounds with great stoicism.

Question 20

spine

Answer 20

[the line of bones down the centre of the back that provides support for the body and protects the spinal cord]
She injured her spine in a riding accident.

Question 21

enamoured

Answer 21

[liking something a lot]

I have to say I’m not exactly enamoured of this part of the country.

Question 22

menace

Answer 22

[something that is likely to cause harm]

Drunk drivers are a menace to everyone.

Question 23

equilibrium

Answer 23

[a state of balance]

The disease destroys much of the inner ear, disturbing the animal’s equilibrium.

Question 24

capitulate

Answer 24

[to accept something or agree to do something unwillingly]

I capitulated and let my daughter go with her friends.

Question 25

spurious

Answer 25

[false and not what it appears to be, or (of reasons and judgments) based on something that has not been correctly understood and therefore false]
Some of the arguments in favour of shutting the factory are questionable and others downright spurious.

Question 26

contrive

Answer 26

[to arrange a situation or event, or arrange for something to happen, using clever planning]
Couldn’t you contrive a meeting between them? I think they’d really like each other.

Question 27

languish

Answer 27

[to exist in an unpleasant or unwanted situation, often for a long time]
He has been languishing in jail for the past 20 years.

Question 28

juridical

Answer 28

[relating to the law]
… an integral ecology cannot be content simply with fine-tuning technical questions or political, juridical and social decisions.

Question 29

catastrophic

Answer 29

[a sudden event that causes very great trouble or destruction]
They were warned of the ecological catastrophe to come.

Question 30

adorn

Answer 30

[to add something decorative to a person or thing]

The bride’s hair was adorned with white flowers.

Question 31

stagnate

Answer 31

[to stay the same and not grow or develop]

The electronics industry is showing signs of stagnating after 15 years of growth.

Question 32

inculturation

Answer 32

Inculturation is the term that Catholic leaders and theologians have used in recent decades to denote a process of engagement between the Christian Gospel and a particular culture.
For the Church to achieve a renewed inculturation of the Gospel in the Amazon region,…

Question 33

aboriginal

Answer 33

[a member of a race of people who were the first people to live in a country, before any colonists arrived]
What does it mean to be an Native American or indigenous aboriginal today?

Question 34

sobriety

Answer 34

[the state of being sober [not drunk or affected by alcohol] ]
The police said his car had been weaving all over the road, so they pulled him over and gave him a sobriety test.

Question 35

frenzied

Answer 35

[uncontrolled and excited, sometimes violent]

As the evening wore on the dancing got more and more frenzied.

Question 36

inimical

Answer 36

[harmful or limiting]

Excessive managerial control is inimical to creative expression.

Question 37

culmination

Answer 37

[the point at which an event or series of events ends, having developed until it reaches this point]
Winning first prize was the culmination of years of practice and hard work.

Question 38

demean

Answer 38

[to cause someone to become less respected]

The entire family was demeaned by his behaviour.

Question 39

uneven

Answer 39

[not level, equal, flat, or continuous]

Be careful on that path - the paving stones are uneven.

Question 40

itinerant

Answer 40

[travelling from one place to another, usually to work for a short period]
For a time, my sister was an itinerant church singer.

Question 41

envisage

Answer 41

[to imagine or expect something in the future, especially something good]
When do you envisage finishing the project?

Question 42

pragmatic

Answer 42

[solving problems in a sensible way that suits the conditions that really exist now, rather than obeying fixed theories, ideas, or rules]
In business, the pragmatic approach to problems is often more successful than an idealistic one.

Question 43

maternal

Answer 43

[behaving or feeling in the way that a mother does towards her child, especially in a kind, loving way]
She is very maternal towards her employees.

Question 44

beset

Answer 44

[hurt or troubled by something bad]

Many problems have beset the team in recent months.