Sentence Completion Practice

Question 1

His assigned 60-page graduate thesis was a ________ task, since he’d never written a paper a quarter the size.

A) odious

B) prolonged

C) jocular

D) daunting

E) sober

Answer 1

D) daunting

Clues: never written, a quarter the size

Question 2

David, wanting to find Mr. Rankeillor’s house, is willing to ________ a stranger on the street to help him identify it.

A) provoke

B) castigate

C) accost

D) interrogate

E) irritate

Answer 2

C) accost

Clues: find house, stranger

Question 3

When Billy ________ the vat of soup and expects a harsh punishment, the tough master-at-arms merely ________ him in a way that puzzles the foretop man.

A) dislogdes…hastens

B) overturns…chides

C) upsets…chastises

D) reconnoiters…admonishes

E) topples…promulgates

Answer 3

B) overturns…chides

Clues: vat of soup, expects punishment, merely

Question 4

The professor of medieval studies had a most ________ collection of office furniture selected from Danish, Spanish, Italian and Hungarian styles of ________ and even a piece from the Ikea catalogue.

A) comprehensive…authenticity

B) variegated…morbidity

C) eclectic…antiquity

D) scintillating…carpentry

E) exquisite…novelty

Answer 4

C) eclectic…antiquity

Clues: medieval, collection, Danish, Spanish, Italian, Hangarian, Ikea

Question 5

The law school professor clearly ________ the boundaries of First Amendment rights as pertaining to ________ and slander.

A) demarcated…rumors

B) explored…slights

C) blurred…calumny

D) delineated…libel

E) deprecated…reputations

Answer 5

D) delineated…libel

Clues: boundaries, First Amendment

Question 6

Though he undoubtedly shared the defensive plans at West Point to an enemy commander, Gen. Benedict Arnold certainly saw his actions as less ________ than the treason ________ in his court-martial.

A) problematic…cited

B) olfactory…implied

C) perfidious…alleged

D) nefarious…posed

E) notorious…defamed

Answer 6

C) perfidious…alleged

Clues: though, enemy commander, treason

Question 7

The prisoners of war became ________ at ________ the rules of the camp, so that tunnels could be dug for escape.

A) pliant…molding

B) deft..circumventing

C) adroit…overslawing

D) adept…proscribing

E) obstreperous…respecting

Answer 7

B) deft…circumventing

Clues: prisoners, so that, tunnels, for escape

Question 8

Catching and holding a frog from the water is challenging because its ________ skin allows it to slip away from a person’s grasp.

A) unctuous

B) lithe

C) pithy

D) malleable

E) arid

Answer 8

A) unctuous

Clues: catching, frog, challenging, because, skin, slip away

Question 9

Though Rachel had just been informed by her mother that her dear dog was dead, she managed her job with remarkable ________ so that no one realized that she was heartbroken.

A) callousness

B) stoicism

C) nubility

D) equanimity

E) aplomp

Answer 9

D) equanimity

Clues: Though, dear dog dead, managed her job, no one realized, heartbroken

Question 10

Since no one saw the crime committed, the physical evidence which identified the accused was the ________ of the prosecution’s case.

A) canopy

B) basement

C) crowbar

D) rudder

E) linchpin

Answer 10

E) linchpin

Clues: Since, no one saw, physical evidence, case

Question 11

A successful teacher must maintain a good ________ with his or her students; they must understand and trust one another.

A) didacticism

B) deference

C) rapport

D) ingenue

E) verisimilitude

Answer 11

C) rapport

Clues: successful teacher, maintain, good understand and trust

Question 12

When Jarmel found the Mirror of Happenstance, he could see all the moments of his day at rising and avoid those ________ that would bring him unhappiness.

A) serendipities

B) vicissitudes

C) carnivores

D) blandishments

E) probabilities

Answer 12

B) vicissitudes

Clues: see all moments of the day, avoid

Question 13

Skipper and Brick shared ________ each other that Maggie found threatening to her marriage.

A) an ambivalence for

B) a symbiosis with

C) an affinity for

D) an animosity for

E) a bathyshpere with

Answer 13

C) an affinity for

Clues: each other, found threatening, marriage

Question 14

Without a doubt, the ________ of his life occurred when his drug addiction caused in rapid ________ the loss of his business, his marriage, and, from an overdose, almost his life.

A) prophecy…sequence

B) nadir…succession

C) apex…confluence

D) perogee…momentum

E) stasis…episodes

Answer 14

B) nadir…succession

Clues: loss, business, marriage, overdose, life

Question 15

The witch, instead of being a ________ crone, was a striking beauty, and Bernard thought that maybe he’d been totally misled as to the nature of the ________.

A) wizened…species

B) grotesque…genre

C) sagacious…breed

D) defaced…genus

E) unsightly…spectre

Answer 15

A) wizened…species

Clues: witch, instead, beauty, nature

Question 16

Convinced that her children had robbed her of a career on Broadway, Sylvia began to display an open _______ toward those whom she should naturally love and nurture.

A) ambivalence

B) antipathy

C) disregard

D) neglect

E) apathy

Answer 16

B) antipathy

Clues: robbed her, should, love and nuture

Question 17

Dr. Kolsky’s ________ manner demonstrated his wide knowledge of physics as well as metaphysical philosophy, and made him a well-respected member of the prestigious university’s faculty.

A) opulent

B) equestrian

C) respective

D) erudite

E) cantankerous

Answer 17

D) erudite

Clues: wide knowledge, member prestigious, faculty

Question 18

Having just won the highest ________ in acting, with offers on the table for movies that paid really well and gave her a chance to work with the best directors, she was at the ________ of her career.

A) notoriety…pinnacle

B) accolade….zenith

C) bauble…nadir

D) commendation…midpoint

E) demerit…apex

Answer 18

B) accolade…zenith

Clues: highest, offers, paid well, best directors

Question 19

Though Miquel had excellent skills in soccer, his constant boasting, _________ and other _________ behaviors convinced the coaches that he threatened team chemistry and kept him off the varsity squad.

A) harranging…mature

B) bellowing…infantile

C) bragging…competitive

D) grousing…fractious

E) bleating…amusing

Answer 19

D) grousing…fractious

Clues: boasting, kept him off the squad

Question 20

The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once ________ upon hearing his friend, Ralph Abernathy, introduce him that it was so ________ he wondered who he was talking about.

A) gesticulated…cross

B) joked…laudatory

C) punned…laborious

D) quipped…enamored

E) posited…confused

Answer 20

B) joked…laudatory

Clues: introduce him, wondered who he was talking about

Question 21

Hester Prynne runs afoul of the ________ edict against adultery and thus is sentenced to wear the red letter.

A) pelted

B) ornery

C) proscribed

D) antiquated

E) concomitant

Answer 21

C) proscribed

Clues: edict

Question 22

George’s natural modesty meant that all ________ he perceived as undeserved.

A) criticism

B) promises

C) platitudes

D) superlatives

E) adulation

Answer 22

E) adulation

Clues: modesty, undeserved

Question 23

Roderick Usher, much ________ by the illness of his sister, Madeleine, retired to his room for the afternoon and returned to me at dinner somewhat ________.

A) enervated…refreshed

B) dilapidated…dismal

C) mollified…rejuvenated

D) frayed…glutted

E) anxious…fatigued

Answer 23

A) enervated…refreshed

Clues: illness of his sister, retired to his room

Question 24

While Jared’s eyes rolled throughout the ________ movie, he wondered at the taste of his friend, Luna, as she sat dabbing her eyes at the sentimental ________.

A) maudlin…hoke

B) insipid…protagonist

C) dramatic…schlock

D) riveting…drivel

E) caustic…plot

Answer 24

A) maudlin…hoke

Clues: rolled his eyes, wondered at taste, dabbing her eyes, sentimental

Question 25

Members of the media took immediate ________ at the use of word “legitimate” in that context, though the junior representative explained that within the context that he did not mean to insult anyone.

A) enervation

B) braggadocio

C) umbrage

D) salutation

E) somnolence

Answer 25

C) umbrage

Clues: many took, insult

Question 26

The professor couldn’t hide his surprise that his students were so ________ toward learning beyond scoring high on the tests.

A) apathetic

B) fatalistic

C) punctilious

D) trenchant

E) myopic

Answer 26

A) apathetic

Clues: surprised, toward learning, beyond, tests

Question 27

Theresa rescued ________ cats that she found in a small ________ outside her home, but, when she got them home, they attacked her domesticated cats and finally bolted out an open window.

A) salvage…hedge

B) dehydrated…thicket

C) famished…dale

D) feral…copse

E) endangered…arboretum

Answer 27

D) feral…copse

Clues: rescued, outside her home, domesticated

Question 28

My boss has an annoying tendency to ________ on big decisions, which he calls “giving everything careful thought”, but it leaves the team less time to actually execute the decision.

A) ponder

B) vacillate

C) cogitate

D) pontificate

E) litigate

Answer 28

B) vacillate

Clues: annoying, decisions, calls “giving careful thought”, less time

Question 29

With all the ________ of cancer weighing down his soul, the patient waited for the tumor to be tested to see if the growth was malignant or ________.

A) anxiety…frivolous

B) tension…trivial

C) laxity…palliative

D) fragility…threatening

E) apprehension…benign

Answer 29

E) apprehension…benign

Clues: cancer, weighing down, tumor, malignant

Question 30

Her neighbor was so ________ a simple moment’s “hello” in the grocery could lengthen into ________ 25 minute gab session.

A) unguarded…an extended

B) noisome…a prolonged

C) loquacious…a truncated

D) garrulous…an interminable

E) contentious…an atrophied

Answer 30

D) garrulous…an interminable

clues - so, moment’s hello, lengthen

Question 31

The spy, code-named “the Blank”, had ________ features and passed unrecognized through heavy surveillance areas.

A) hideous

B) pallid

C) disgruntled

D) nondescript

E) adamant

Answer 31

D) nondescript

Clues: passed unrecognized

Question 32

In an age in which the rich seem to need to ________ their wealth, Warren Buffet maintains a lifestyle almost devoid of ________ trappings.

A) flaunt…affluent

B) understate…pricey

C) infuse…luxuriant

D) ply…influential

E) augment…tasteful

Answer 32

A) flaunt…affluent

Clues: rich, lifestyle, devoid of,

Question 33

The price to buy into the condominium was fairly low, because residents were ________ by ________ service and ground management fees.

A) bilked…minuscule

B) flim-flammed…piddling

C) burdened…exorbitant

D) encumbered…measly

E) succoured…munificent

Answer 33

C) burdened…exorbitant

Clues: fairly low, but, fees

Question 34

Benedick was sure he would be ridiculed for ________ he was in love for he had ________ for so long against marriage.

A) declaring…palavered

B) denying…bantered

C) signifying…sallied

D) proclaiming…railed

E) billowing…decried

Answer 34

D) proclaiming…railed

Clues: sure, be ridiculed, in love, against marriage

Question 35

During the business pitch, she ________ all of the positives aspects of her firm’s service and ________ all the negative aspects.

A) accentuated…downplayed

B) emphasized…highlighted

C) glossed over…ran down

D) polished…buffed out

E) glitzed up…intensified

Answer 35

A) accentuated…downplayed

Clues: positive aspect’s, her, negative aspects

Question 36

While other Supreme Court Justices ________ their decisions in legalese, Justice Parker wrote ________ opinions that most non-lawyers could readily understand.

A) inculcated…salient

B) couched…lucid

C) ensconced…various

D) founded…oblique

E) based…straightforward

Answer 36

B) couched…lucid

Clues: while others, legalese, most non-lawyers understand

Question 37

The ________ between the two sisters, perhaps began long ago in some forgotten sibling ________, but it surfaced at the reading of their father’s will.

A) empathy…satiety

B) antipahty…harmony

C) acrimony…rivalry

D) aversion…cacophony

E) insipidity…rancor

Answer 37

C) acrimony…rivalry

Clues: between sister, surfaced, father’s will

Question 38

Despite the school being hard on newbies, Charles was so _______ that he melted every cold shoulder aimed at him.

A) sedentary

B) cloistered

C) tempermental

D) caustic

E) amiable

Answer 38

E) amiable

Clues: despite, hard, newbies, melted cold shoulder

Question 39

Don Quixote begged a ________ of the innkeeper that the host would officially knight him.

A) compensation

B) credit

C) boon

D) inquest

E) charlatan

Answer 39

C) boon

Clues: begged, host would

Question 40

Because the conman always sounded so polite and ________ to everyone, he was able to convince them all that he could never do anything ________ with their investment money.

A) guiless…scrupulous

B) credulous…nefarious

C) amiable…advantageous

D) dubious…deceptive

E) genuine…untoward

Answer 40

E) genuine…untoward

Clues: because, conman, polite and, could never do, with money

Question 41

Once, cellular phones were ________, but now they are so ________ one can find them in the hands of even young children.

A) rarefied…casual

B) common…prevalent

C) dormant…lively

D) dull…prominent

E) rare…ubiquitous

Answer 41

E) rare…ubiquitous

Clues: once, cell phones, one can find, even

Question 42

By _________ billing records, the firm of Bendini, Lambert and Locke intentionally ________ their clients out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

A) recreating…gored

B) falsifying…bilked

C) coining…mothballed

D) amalgamating…grated

E) disseminating…embezzled

Answer 42

B) falsifying…bilked

Clues:billing, intentionally, out of, dollars

Question 43

The ________ over the new formula, which tested very well in all the sample markets, nearly destroyed the company until the _________ of the old recipe brought back many who had abandoned the brand.

A) debacle…reintroduction

B) confusion…rediscovery

C) fiasco…redressing

D) hoopla…reintegration

D) hullabaloo…reconception

Answer 43

A) debacle…reintroduction

Clues: new formula, nearly destroyed, old recipe

Question 44

Abraham Lincoln suggested that Senator Douglass possessed a political ________ that could have only come from the devil himself.

A) aplomp

B) gumption

C) serum

D) guile

E) bedlam

Answer 44

D) guile

Clues: from the devil

Question 45

The scene at the mine turned from apprehensive and ________ to relieved and ________, when one-by-one all thirty-three men were rescued.

A) procreative…relaxed

B) exurberant…gracious

C) chary…noncommittal

D) steadfast…overjoyed

E) expectant…jubilant

Answer 45

E) expectant…jubilant

Clues: at the mine, apprehensive, relieved, all were rescued

Question 46

He faced his personal ________with dread, because he could either share his feelings with Stephanie and ________ his best friend, Mark, or not tell anyone and continue to suffer not eating or sleeping.

A) dilemma…denote

B) foibles…inure

C) quandary…alienate

D) opportunity…betray

E) decision…rectify

Answer 46

C) quandary…alienate

Clues: personal, either share feelings, and, best friend

Question 47

Many green soldiers are so ________ at the first sight of battle that it is almost unimaginable that they eventually become brave ________.

A) initiated…neophytes

B) elated…warriors

C) timorous…veterans

D) verdant…specialists

E) raw…cadets

Answer 47

C) timorous…veterans

Clues: green, first sight of battle

Question 48

Despite his campaign ________ and the pressures of his own party to end the war, Barack Obama was ________ that the mission should end honorably and acceptably.

A) position…lachrymose

B) utterances…dissuaded

C) rhetoric…adamant

D) orations…stultified

E) expenditures…resigned

Answer 48

C) rhetoric…adamant

Clues: despite, campaign, pressures, should

Question 49

Surviving such a ______ ordeal as the fire that consumed her house, Regina was quite shaken and ________.

A) terrifying…illuminated

B) harrowing…forlorn

C) dramatic…reticent

D) fortuitous…unnerved

E) perfidious…inebriated

Answer 49

B) harrowing…forlorn

Clues: fire, shaken

Question 50

Wallace had ________ cheese, though Grommit didn’t share his enthusiasm for fermented curd.

A) a kinship with

B) a penchant for

C) a regard for

D) a disinclination for

E) a regimen of

Answer 50

B) a penchant for

Clues: cheese, enthusiam

Question 51

The detective didn’t rely upon ________ answers to the ________ of crimes, because he knew how often there were hidden reasons why people cross the line.

A) common…actions

B) unidimensional…indiosyncracies

C) redemptive…rationale

D) pedestrian…forensics

E) patent…motivations

Answer 51

E) patent…motivations

Clues: rely, hidden reasons why, cross the line

Question 52

Shooting stars, which are ________ often for less than one second, are the most ________ of all attractions in the night sky.

A) exigent…momentary

B) transparent…fleeting

C) visible…transient

D) intense…emphemeral

E) present…scintallating

Answer 52

C) visible…transient

Clues: shooting stars, less than one second

Question 53

When the financially ________ car company hired a man who had been fired for a debacle at a rival corporation, it did little to ________ the stockholder’s fears about the future.

A) brankrupt…assuage

B) posited…readjust

C) corroded…palliate

D) strapped…allay

E) solvent…shatter

Answer 53

D) strapped…allay

Clues: financially, had been fired, little

Question 54

Sarah saw too many of her close friends transform from strong-willed and decisive to utterly ________ as soon as they had serious boyfriends.

A) compliant

B) adamant

C) flexible

D) tempermental

E) captivated

Answer 54

A) compliant

Clues: transform, strong-willed and decisive

Question 55

Mr. Darcy declares that his temperament is ________ enough to be called ________; he said that once he has lost a good opinion of someone he has lost it forever.

A) rigid…nascent

B) optimistic…ebullient

C) discursive…regressive

D) inculcated…embedded

E) implacable…resentful

Answer 55

E) implacable…resentful

Clues: temperament, lost his good opinion, forever

Question 56

The ________ believe that the voters are unwilling to select such ________ in foreign policy matters, suggesting that youth, character, education, and energy and no match for experience.

A) realists… an expert

B) pundits…a neophyte

C) veterans…a soldier

D) constituents…a dilettante

E) incredulous…a greenhorn

Answer 56

B) pundits…neophyte

Clues: the voters, unwilling, suggesting, experience

Question 57

Joe’s sensible but slightly overprotective mother ________ him for not wearing his helmet and pads while skateboarding in the neighborhood.

A) exhausted

B) pressured

C) admonished

D) castigated

E) censured

Answer 57

C) admonished

Clues: sensible, overprotective, not wearing

Question 58

News and especially rumors of violence ________ by pro-government militias ________ the situation in the square and brought about calls to abandon peaceful demonstrations.

A) committed…quelled

B) condoned…rallied

C) exculpated…intensified

D) perpetrated…exacerbated

E) mortified…degraded

Answer 58

D) perpetrated…exacerbated

Clues: violence, by militias, situation, abandon peaceful

Question 59

Over the course of thirty years, the castle grew by ________ as the ________ could gather and shape stone enough to continue the project.

A) morsels…subjects

B) increments…masons

C) phases…artisans

D) pelts…engineers

E) design…adjuncts

Answer 59

B) increments…masons

Clues: thirty years, grew by, shape stone

Question 60

Without a ________ of tact, the waiter pointed out the blood stain on the woman’s skirt, ________ her.

A) smidgen…gratifying

B) whiff…embarassing

C) trace…edifying

D) plethora…beleaguering

E) modicum…mortifying

Answer 60

E) modicum…mortifying

Clues: tact, pointed out, stain on skirt

Question 61

After the incident of ________, the captain ________ the chief, who once commanded the crew of the hangar deck, to the duties of the engineer’s mate.

A) insubordination..relegated

B) incompetence…remonstrated

C) negligence…hindered

D) inebriation…reassigned

E) noncompliance…relocated

Answer 61

A) insubordination…relegated

Clues: once commanded the crew, mate

Question 62

Tailgating in Norman on the lot before the Texas-Oklahoma game, the fans will ________ themselves with sausages, meatballs and barbeque.

A) satiate

B) irrigate

C) confuscate

D) lacerate

E) mitigate

Answer 62

A) satiate

Clues: tailgating, sausages, meatballs, barbeque

Question 63

Darlene, reserved and demure, was the ________ to her sister Peggy, free-spirited and ________.

A) prototype…austere

B) antithesis…assertive

C) ying…humble

D) ingenue…successive

E) paragon…corpulent

Answer 63

B) antithesis…assertive

Clues: reserved and demure, free-spirited

Question 64

Some coaches rely on praise to motivate their players and rarely ________ them for mistakes.

A) address

B) berate

C) commend

D) ostracize

E) ignore

Answer 64

B) berate

Clues: rely on praise, and rarely, for mistakes

Question 65

Agatha Christie’s critically unsuccessful last novel that she wrote at 82 years-old is more artifact of the ________ condition of her aged mind than an entertaining mystery.

A) tasteless

B) unimaginative

C) formulaic

D) biased

E) diffuse

Answer 65

E) diffuse

Clues: unsuccessful novel, 82, artifact, condition of aged mind

Question 66

Prof. Heath, fully ________ of the many students who were plagiarising their assignments from internet sources, ________ the cheating policy and gave a one-time amnesty to those students who confessed.

A) reliant on…tightened

B) despairing of…abrogated

C) cognizant of…reiterated

D) candescent of…abandoned

E) infuriated by…disseminated

Answer 66

C) cognizant of…reiterated

Clues: Prof., plagiarising their assignments, cheating policy

Question 67

When the drake smelled the human scent upon her eggs, her instinct ________ her to ________ the nest completely.

A) repulsed..abandon

B) persauded…brood over

C) threatened…dismiss

D) motivated…purify

E) compelled…forsake

Answer 67

E) compelled…forsake

Clues: smelled human scent, instinct, the nest

Question 68

Even with his voice disguised digitally, his friends all recognized him by the ________ phrases which were singularly ________ by his linguistic background.

A) idiosyncratic…convoluted

B) ornate…overlayed

C) grandeloquent…stagnated

D) rarefied…combined

E) inept…conjured

Answer 68

A) idiosyncratic…convoluted

Clues: Even with, voice disguised, recognized, by phrases, singularly, linquistic

Question 69

The ________ traveler, was forced to take the “Bloody Pass”, so named for its many sharp curves where ________ waited for the unsuspecting.

A) canny…hooligans

B) plighted…devotees

C) ruthless…misfortune

D) hapless…highwaymen

E) craven…desolation

Answer 69

D) hapless…highwaymen

Clues: traveler, forced, Bloody Pass, unsuspecting

Question 70

Whereas the Mississippi River is earthen brown so that its depth can only be guessed, the Meramec, a ________, is so ________ one can see clear to the bottom.

A) sustainer…transparent

B) tributary…limpid

C) rivulet…ruddy

D) brook…stagnate

E) beneficiary…diaphanous

Answer 70

B) tributary…limpid

Clues: whereas, earthen brown, clear

Question 71

Before the funeral of the old jurist began, with the bell’s last ________, it cracked, never to be rung again.

A) till

B) vibration

C) gong

D) tine

E) knell

Answer 71

E) knell

Clues: funeral, bell, rung

Question 72

Eventually, the food that Laura found ________ when she arrived in Indonesia soon became reasonably ________.

A) revolting…nutritious

B) exotic…repugnant

C) bland…seasoned

D) disgusting…palatable

E) gross…negligible

Answer 72

D) disgusting…palatable

Clues: eventually, food, became, reasonably

Question 73

With the battlefield still scattered with the casualties of a week before, the already challenging atmosphere in the trenches grew poisonously ________.

A) opaque

B) noisome

C) ruddy

D) adversarial

E) diabolical

Answer 73

B) noisome

Clues: battlefield, causualties, trenches, poisonously

Question 74

Many lenders remain ________, ignoring the call of mercy, and foreclose ruthlessly on the property of many unfortunate people.

A) stoical

B) obdurate

C) calumnious

D) impertinent

E) buttressed

Answer 74

B) obdurate

Clues: ignoring the call of mercy, ruthlessly

Question 75

Some people believed that the American flag is ________, so they ________ a Flag Desecretion Amendment to the Constitution.

A) emblematic…opposed

B) tainted…supplanted

C) burlesque…interjected

D) credulous…supported

E) sacrosanct…advocated

Answer 75

D) sacrosanct…advocate

Clues: American flag, Descretion Amendment

Question 76

The detective trusted none of her statements but checked every detail against eye-witnesses’ statements for ________.

A) veracity

B) security

C) humility

D) infirmity

E) consistency

Answer 76

A) veracity

Clues: trusted none, checked every detail

Question 77

For historical fiction, ________ research will help avoid ________ content, which, if noticed, will destroy the verisimilitude and distract the audience.

A) thorough…plagaristic

B) exhaustive…trivial

C) dilatory…inaccurate

D) painstaking…anachronistic

E) fallible…detrimental

Answer 77

D) painstaking…anachronistic

Clues: historical, research, avoid, destroy, and distract

Question 78

After the wedding, the families and guests ________ late into the night.

A) ravelled

B) caroused

C) gesticulated

D) rallied

E) catewauled

Answer 78

B) caroused

Clues: wedding, families, guests

Question 79

The ________ defended his seat in office by ________, turning the voters away from the challenger with falsehoods.

A) veteran…intimidation

B) rascal…legerdemain

C) incumbent…calumny

D) pundit…prestidigitation

E) politician…erudition

Answer 79

C) incumbent…calumny

Clues: his seat in office, voters, challenger, falsehoods

Question 80

With his ________ income, Bob was forced to be ________ with his money.

A) copious…parsimonious

B) slender…frugal

C) ample…generous

D) meager…effuse

E) paltry…stingy

Answer 80

B) slender…frugal

Clues: income, was forced, with money

Question 81

Laura went from ________ about breaking up with her boyfriend to ________ reading the letter of acceptance from her “wish list” college.

A) despondency…ebullience

B) depression…melancholy

C) insurgency…elation

D) exigency…euphoria

E) pedantry…pinnacle

Answer 81

A) despondency…ebullience

Clues: breaking up with boyfriend, reading letter of acceptance

Question 82

Once they discover her unfortunate family connections, Caroline and Louisa Bingley do everything in their power short of slander to ________ their brother’s emotional attachment to Jane Bennett.

A) cogitate

B) eliminate

C) supplicate

D) inhibit

E) denigrate

Answer 82

D) inhibit

Clues: unfortunate, short of slander, emotional attachment

Question 83

The quarterback, who ran a dogfighting ring from his property, was convicted of the ________ crime of animal cruelty.

A) serpentine

B) insipid

C) heinous

D) arduous

E) malodorous

Answer 83

C) heinous

Clues: dogfighting ring, animal cruelty

Question 84

The demolition expert used a ________ putty explosive for the bridge job.

A) manipulative

B) inconsistent

C) malleable

D) nebulous

E) truncated

Answer 84

C) malleable

Clues: demolition, putty

Question 85

Pollution from the silver mine made the once ________ mountain spring no longer good for hikers to fill their canteens.

A) brackish

B) pellucid

C) bilious

D) purified

E) potable

Answer 85

E) potable

Clues: pollution, made once, mountain spring, no long good

Question 86

Cher made several arguments to Mr. Hall regarding her marking period grade, but, being a debate teacher, he ________ them all.

A) tolerated

B) repudiated

C) ostracized

D) reiterated

E) augmented

Answer 86

B) repudiated

Clues: Cher, arguments, debate teacher

Question 87

Gatzby ordered a new dress to ________ for the one torn at the party, but the ________ thought that piece of civility, “suspicious.”

A) amend…penitent

B) replace…innocent

C) remedy…ingrate

D) compensate…reveler

E) appease…snob

Answer 87

D) compensate…reveler

Clues: new dress, one torn at the party

Question 88

The customer was so angered at the quality of the service, that nothing, but a full refund, would ________ him.

A) rectify

B) appease

C) satiate

D) irritate

E) appropriate

Answer 88

B) appease

Clues: so angered, nothing but refund,

Question 89

The preacher, who staged protest demonstrations against gay marriage at funerals of Gulf War soldiers, created ________ 1st Amendment rights.

A) ambivalence about

B) irony for

C) disinterest in

D) adherence toward

E) respect for

Answer 89

A) ambivalence about

Clues: demonstrations, at funerals

Question 90

The steady and ________ man was perfectly suited to the ________ university’s provost position.

A) stolid…rambunctious

B) impassive…unemotional

C) decorous…austere

D) accomplished…charitable

E) fetid…dignified

Answer 90

C) decorous…austere

Clues: steady and, perfectly suited, university’s

Question 91

A sizeable portion of the British electorate ________ the public ________ for the royal family.

A) acquiesce to…applause

B) disdain…expenditures

C) equivocate for…regard

D) question…scorn

E) revile…larceny

Answer 91

B) disdain…expenditures

Clues: sizable portion, electorate, for royal family

Question 92

The negotiations were at a standstill, mostly because the ________ client wanted a price that jeopardized the ________ of the vendor and would simply hear no argument to the contrary.

A) unwavering…motivation

B) obdurate…reputation

C) commodious…byproducts

D) intransigent…solvency

E) perspicacious…chagrin

Answer 92

D) intransigent…solvency

Clues: standstill, client wanted a price, hear no argument

Question 93

Competitive eaters, like Billy “the Hound” Henderson, may seem ________, but, while not competing, they often have small appetites.

A) inedible

B) insatiable

C) gluttonous

D) gelatinous

E) ingratiated

Answer 93

B) insatiable

Clues: eaters, but, small appetites

Question 94

Marcus Brutus sees the ghost of Caesar in a ________ moment that predicts the conspirator’s death at Phillipi.

A) prescient

B) languished

C) nascent

D) simultaneous

E) aggravated

Answer 94

A) prescient

Clues: predicts

Question 95

Though the wreck was only resting on a sandbar in the rising water of the heavy rain, Huck thought of the ________ of Tom Sawyer and demanded Jim to explore it boldly with him.

A) temerity

B) vainglory

C) remedy

D) accomodations

E) station

Answer 95

A) temerity

Clues: Though the wreck was only resting on a sandbar in the rising water = danger, thinking of how Tom Sawyer would face danger, demanded to go into danger

Question 96

Having seen a bubble or two in the markets before, Hugh allowed his ________ to guide him to responsible investments before and after the crash.

A) sanguinity

B) timidity

C) prudence

D) reputation

E) avarice

Answer 96

C) prudence

Clues: bubble in the market, responsible, crash

Question 97

Dragged through the rose bush by the dog, the little boy had enough long ________ to make a trip to the emergency room necessary.

A) contusions

B) maledictions

C) lacerations

D) fractures

E) frescos

Answer 97

C) lacerations

Clues: rose bush, emergency room

Question 98

Henri Poincare in his analytical paper on the “Three-Body Problem” first ________ the properties of chaotic systems in science.

A) enamored

B) codified

C) elucidated

D) promulgated

E) disseminated

Answer 98

C) elucidated

Clues: analytical paper, properties, chaotic systems

Question 99

When Sir Walter Elliot finds his debts unmanageably high, Lady Russell and Mr. Shepherd try at first to convince him to ________ his spending.

A) eliminate

B) accelerate

C) foster

D) loosen

E) curtail

Answer 99

E) curtail

Clues: when, debts, high, his spending

Question 100

Though the results are clearly tragic, the source of John Claggart’s ________ towards the man he destroys Melville leaves a mystery.

A) affinity

B) antagonism

C) scruples

D) piety

E) affluence

Answer 100

B) antagonism

Clues: tragic, destroys

Question 101

Many master craftsmen of the 17th century ________ their apprentices brutally for failing to attend to work.

A) regulated

B) chided

C) mangled

D) chastised

E) instigated

Answer 101

D) chastised

Clues: brutally, failing to attend

Question 102

Knowing that this task was enormous in ________ and complexity, the board chose the most ________ officer to head the project.

A) difficulty…tiresome

B) range…bellicose

C) detail…assiduous

D) serendipity…efficient

E) scope…diligent

Answer 102

E) scope…diligent

Clues: enormous, and complexity

Question 103

Unlike laws of society which can be broken or changed on the ________ of those who made them, the laws of physics are ________.

A) whim…immutable

B) vascillation…permeable

C) platitudes…intransitory

D) appetites…mortified

E) inclinations…molded

Answer 103

A) whim…immutable

Clues: Unlike, can be broken, those who made them, constant

Question 104

Due to its ________ nature, cleaning “the head” on a naval vessel remains a punishment task for a crewman’s minor ________.

A) noisome…calamity

B) odious…infraction

C) malodorous…commendation

D) unctuous…citation

E) fractious…demerit

Answer 104

B) odious…infraction

Clues: Due to, a punishment task

Question 105

Some critics dislike the entire ________ of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, because Petruchio ________ Kate to his will, and destroys her as an interesting character.

A) pastiche…dominates

B) milieu…ossifies

C) tambor…subjugates

D) horizon…meditates

E) orthodoxy…unifies

Answer 105

C) tambor…subjugates

Clues: critics dislike, to his will

Question 106

The infant sloth must ________ to its mother because the latter moves high in the canopy and needs both hands free.

A) plunge

B) cleave

C) linger

D) coo

E) skulk

Answer 106

B) cleave

Clues: infant, to its mother, moves high, needs both hands free

Question 107

It is ________ the members of the African Union to speak with one voice in support of ________ goals for the continent.

A) located upon…militaristic

B) responsible for…unilateral

C) gratifying to…narcissistic

D) incumbent upon…humanitarian

E) monolithic of…altruistic

Answer 107

D) incumbent upon…humanitarian

Clues: to speak with one voice, goals

Question 108

Charles Foster Kane built Xanadu to be his palace, but, though richly adorned, it became his ________ prison.

A) decadent

B) opulent

C) discursive

D) dank

E) vapid

Answer 108

B) opulent

Clues: palace, but, though richly adorned, prison

Question 109

The president, to some degree, tried to wrap himself in dignity and treat the accusations of ________ as the ________ attempts by his rivals to smear him.

A) impropriety…scurrilous

B) infamy…arduous

C) larceny…reputable

D) criminality…irreproachable

E) immorality…ponderous

Answer 109

A) impropriety…scurrilous

Clues: wrap himself in dignity, treat, rivals, smear him

Question 110

Joseph Merrick, known commonly as the “Elephant Man”, was physically ________ in appearance, but had a ________ and gentle heart.

A) repugnant…wily

B) deformed…belligerent

C) revolting…benevolent

D) monstrous…volpine

E) prestigious…humane

Answer 110

C) revolting…benevolent

Clues: in appearance, but, gentle

Question 111

The chairman of the department noted the ________ nature of the new professor’s lectures, so he advised him to try to stay on point.

A) deft

B) predominant

C) anticlimactic

D) discursive

E) lecherous

Answer 111

D) discursive

Clues: stay on point

Question 112

Trying to adapt to the changing marketplace was hard for the fairly ________ company that had had too much success with its enormous yearly catalogue in the past to finally decide to stop publishing it.

A) innovative

B) plaintiff

C) orthodox

D) ingenious

E) morbid

Answer 112

C) orthodox

Clues: trying to adapt, too much success, catalogue

Question 113

Hugo’s ________ now meant that most chairs would have a fair chance to fail if he tried to sit on them.

A) bounty

B) corpulence

C) plunder

D) buttress

E) gravity

Answer 113

B) corpulence

Clues: most chairs, fail

Question 114

The ________ nature of the occupation of the lands as it stood meant the cycle of violence would be very hard to break.

A) intractable

B) unfeasible

C) inactive

D) unallayed

E) disproportionate

Answer 114

A) intractable

Clues: occupation of the lands, cycle, hard to break

Question 115

Madam Izzi, through her ________ senses, predicted both his winning the lottery and his ________ heart attack.

A) elevated…recent

B) paranormal…concomitant

C) imaginary…concurring

D) clairvoyant…subsequent

E) inordinate…inevitable

Answer 115

D) clairvoyant…subsequent

Clues: Madame, senses, predicted, both

Question 116

For King Henry V, the Battle of Agincourt meant the glory of overcoming overwhelming odds to find victory, but, for the French general, Constable Charles d’Albret, it meant ________ defeat.

A) underachieving

B) ignominious

C) serious

D) exasperating

E) undeserved

Answer 116

B) ignominious

Clues: For Henry, glory, but for French general

Question 117

The Reverend Mr. Hooper’s sermon, though his most powerful offering from the pulpit, did not meet with much ________ from the congregation who found it a little to close to the bone for ________.

A) satisfaction…dismay

B) condolence…laudation

C) felicity…comprehension

D) concern…adulation

E) approbation…congratulations

Answer 117

E) approbation…congratulations

Clues: sermon, powerful, did not meet, congregation, close to the bone

Question 118

As soon as the product was launched, the service center got thousands of angry calls from ________ customers.

A) enamored

B) effusive

C) disgruntled

D) successful

E) nonchalant

Answer 118

C) disgruntled

Clues: angry calls

Question 119

Going from a ________ city like San Francisco to Billings, Montana, Erica found the lack of diversity a hard adjustment.

A) heterogeneous

B) famous

C) storied

D) polluted

E) entrepreneurial

Answer 119

A) heterogenous

Clues: going from, to lack of diversity

Question 120

Though perhaps essentially well-meaning, Penelope’s advice to his friend on how to handle a girlfriend who has a child was considered ________, and he asked her not to mention it again.

A) specious

B) spurious

C) extraneous

D) capacious

E) officious

Answer 120

E) officious

Clues: essentially well-meaning, advice, considered, asked her not to mention it

Question 121

Though Central High School hadn’t beaten Beaumont in basketball in 16 years, the ________ response of the students when it was announced showed how much school spirit had ________ there.

A) perfunctory…waned

B) hearty…diminished

C) lackluster…increased

D) ebullient…plummeted

E) tepid…skyrocketed

Answer 121

A) perfunctory…waned

Clues: though, hadn’t beaten, 16 years, response, showed, school spirit

Question 122

After drinking deep of the kegs of Henry Hudson, Rip Van Winkle felt the heavy call for ________ which he took under a spreading tree, only to awaken twenty-years later.

A) concentration

B) meditation

C) restitution

D) repose

E) hibernation

Answer 122

D) repose

Clues: drinking, kegs, awaken

Question 123

Some love the performer for her ________ style, while others consider her shamelessly over-the-top.

A) modest

B) brazen

C) musical

D) euphonic

E) uncorrupted

Answer 123

B) brazen

Clues: Some love, shamelessly over-the-top

Question 124

He felt nervous watching his daughter approach the ________ to look upon the ________.

A) valley…waterway

B) railing…artwork

C) precipice…gorge

D) fence…llamas

E) placard…battlefield

Answer 124

C) precipice…gorge

Clues: nervous, daughter approach

Question 125

Whether he was a truly boring teacher was hard to say, but ________ students grew ________ during his period.

A) impertinent…sedate

B) alert…nubile

C) ocular…beady

D) perky…somnolent

E) dedicated…hapless

Answer 125

D) perky…somnolent

Clues: whether boring, but, students, grew

Question 126

A successful business office usually exhibits a spirit of ________ among the employees.

A) kinetics

B) camaraderie

C) chutzpah

D) domesticity

E) paucity

Answer 126

B) camaraderie

Clues: successful, spirit

Question 127

After insulting the client, the boss’s son was ________ to work in the mail room.

A) outcast

B) sequestered

C) billeted

D) promoted

E) consigned

Answer 127

E) consigned

Clues: after insulting client, mail room

Question 128

The jewel heist called for a plan so ________ that it took a team of nine more than 20 hours of practice to attempt.

A) duplex

B) intimate

C) elaborate

D) covert

E) bestial

Answer 128

C) elaborate

Clues: heist, plan, team of nine, 20 hours of practice

Question 129

The unlucky businessman flying overseas could get no sleep because of the ________ crying of the ________ baby on the lap of the woman in the seat next to him.

A) interminable…precocious

B) irritating…pacified

C) gratiating…inconsolable

D) incessant…fussy

E) intermittent…intolerable

Answer 129

D) incessant…fussy

Clues: unlucky, get no sleep, crying, baby

Question 130

Holmes meets a village sheriff, whose ________ so ________ him that the famous detective declares that the skill of this parish lawman greatly exceeds his opportunity in such a small and quiet community.

A) acumen…annoys

B) felicity…adjures

C) perspicacity…impresses

D) incisiveness…frustrates

E) liabilities…amazes

Answer 130

C) perspicacity…impresses

Clues: the skill of the parish lawman, exceeds, opportunity

Question 131

When his license to practice law was ________, Gerald had to start a new career again at 45.

A) deactivated

B) altered

C) revoked

D) diminished

E) denied

Answer 131

C) revoked

Clues: license, start a career

Question 132

Placed in the record’s department where he would never be noticed, he knew his career at that company would ________.

A) percolate

B) stagnate

C) ossify

D) adjudicate

E) truncate

Answer 132

B) stagnate

Clues: never be noticed

Question 133

Always selfish as a child, Sophie grew to be ________ by the time she reached college.

A) absessed

B) meglomanical

C) solipsistic

D) incarcerated

E) obsessed

Answer 133

C) solipsistic

Clues: Always selfish, grew

Question 134

With a ________ hard drive and super fast processor, the average secretary’s computer is more powerful than the ones NASA used to send a man to the moon.

A) responsive

B) accelerated

C) extensive

D) elongated

E) capacious

Answer 134

E) capacious

Clues: hard drive, super fast

Question 135

The assemblymen could see the benefits of allowing gambling on the riverboats but voiced concerns regarding the ________ increase in prostitution and drug abuse.

A) exponential

B) incremental

C) concomitant

D) surreptitious

E) provincial

Answer 135

C) concomitant

Clues: gambling,

Question 136

One of the great ________ American history is that a slave-promoting culture clearly also demonstrated a love for freedom.

A) consistencies of

B) dissonances of

C) blemishes on

D) achievements of

E) denotations of

Answer 136

B) dissonances of

Clues: slave-promoting, also, love for freedom

Question 137

Unlike most instructions for assembling toys, the Phosberry Company’s were so ________ that it rarely got a complaint from any costumer.

A) inscrutable

B) dictatorial

C) pellucid

D) clairvoyant

E) rectified

Answer 137

C) pellucid

Clues: unlike, instructions for assembling, rarely got a complaint

Question 138

One of the great problems of ________ is that having a large body tends to make a person more ________, since normal activities become more challenging.

A) overeating…voracious

B) corpulence…energetic

C) rotundity…circumspect

D) obesity…sedentary

E) gluttony…ravenous

Answer 138

D) obesity…sedentary

Clues: large body, activites become challenging

Question 139

For the inexperienced rider, the stable master chooses his most ________ animal, Beauty, to be certain that the young master had no mishaps.

A) tractable

B) amiable

C) admirable

D) spirited

E) attractive

Answer 139

A) tractable

Clues: young master, no mishaps

Question 140

The interrogation took hours longer than it should have, but the suspect’s ________ eventually led to a full confession.

A) gesticulations

B) circumlocutions

C) languishing

D) conversions

E) affectations

Answer 140

B) circumlocutions

Clues: interrogation, longer, evetually

Question 141

Despite his dark and often disagreeable subjects of his writings, Edgar Allan Poe had a reputation, as a young man, for being socially ________ and lively.

A) congenial

B) maladroit

C) morbid

D) convivial

E) macabre

Answer 141

A) congenial

Clues: despite, dark disagreeable, lively

Question 142

Anne could ________ marks of jealousy on the part of Cpt. Wentworth, but he had no ________ of how she really felt toward the attentions of Mr. Elliot.

A) detail…description

B) infer…notion

C) accentuate..awareness

D) recognize…inclination

E) discern…inkling

Answer 142

E) discern…inkling

Clues: marks of jealousy, how she really felt

Question 143

Although certainly a legendary actor, Elizabeth Taylor will be remembered most affectionately for her ________ efforts, particularly in fundraising for AIDS research.

A) omniscient

B) egocentric

C) philanthropic

D) gastronomical

E) riveting

Answer 143

C) philanthropic

Clues: fundraising for AIDS research

Question 144

Eleanor reminds Mr. Willoughby that despite his explanation and apology, she still regards his behavior toward her sister as ________.

A) irreproachable

B) inconstant

C) fickle

D) fastidious

E) reprehensible

Answer 144

E) reprehensible

Clues: despite, softening his guilt

Question 145

The ________ bell-hop simpered around the hotel lobby, bowing and kowtowing to all the guests.

A) immaculate

B) punctilious

C) grandeloquent

D) servile

E) officious

Answer 145

D) servile

Clues: bell-hop, bowing, kowtowing

Question 146

Pappy O’Daniel, contradicting the insult that he lacked moral fiber, declared that he practiced ________ and high-mindedness as the foundation of his political career

A) rectitude

B) solvency

C) loftiness

D) lassitude

E) indolence

Answer 146

A) rectitude

Clues: contradicting, lacked moral fiber, high-mindedness

Question 147

Horace Blanson was a complete ________ and sociopath and would probably commit many other crimes, but the judge was ________ by the law and could only sentence him to three years.

A) offender…hindered

B) maniac…encouraged

C) reprobate…constrained

D) delinquent…accosted

E) socialite…guided

Answer 147

C) reprobate…constrained

Clues: sociopath, commit many other crimes, could only sentence

Question 148

“Moonlight” Graham, itching to get a true crack in the major leagues, displays considerable ________ when he finds himself at Ray Kinsella’s plate facing “Three-fingered” Brown on the mound.

A) acumen

B) compassion

C) ardor

D) psoriasis

E) prowess

Answer 148

C) ardor

Clues: itching to, get a crack

Question 149

The late night host’s ________ humor and humbly stuttering persona belie ________ self-image.

A) sardonic…an insecure

B) ironic…a stumbling

C) self-effacing…an incongruous

D) deprecating…an arrogant

E) pompous…a narassistic

Answer 149

D) deprecating…an arrogant

Clues: humbly stuttering persona, self-image

Question 150

The dictator had his men scan the video file for the face of the ________ who started the crowd shouting for the ruler’s ________ and would pay with her life for her seditious behavior.

A) rebel…malfeasance

B) incendiary…ouster

C) patriot…impediment

D) malcontent…sacrifice

E) dissident…reduction

Answer 150

B) incendiary…ouster

Clues: dictator, started the crowd shouting, pay for, outrage