Unit 53

Question 1

Nugatory

Answer 1

(adj) trifling; invalid
e. g. The historian has a knack for focusing on information that appears nugatory but that, upon examination, illuminates the central issue.

Question 2

Obdurate

Answer 2

(adj) stubborn

e. g. Coach Knight is obdurate about one thing: the offensive line is the heart of his football team.

Question 3

Obsequious

Answer 3

(adj) overly submissive

e. g. They were served by obsequious waiters.

Question 4

Obsequy

Answer 4

(n) funeral ceremony (often used in the plural, obsequies)

e. g. Solemn obsequies were held for the president John F. Kennedy following his assassination on November 22. 1963.

Question 5

Obviate

Answer 5

(v) to make unnecessary; to anticipate and prevent
e. g. An experienced physician can often discern if a patient’s symptoms are psychosomatic, thus obviating the need for expensive medical tests.

Question 6

Occlude

Answer 6

(v) to shut; block
e. g. One of the primary uses of solar cells is in spacecraft to provide electric power; this is because space is an environment uniquely suited to these devices since it has no weather to occlude the Sun and it is not susceptible to interruptions in sunlight caused by the rotation of the Earth.

Question 7

Occult

Answer 7

(adj) relating to the practices connected with supernatural phenomena.

Question 8

Odyssey

Answer 8

(n) a long, adventurous voyage; a quest
e. g. Steve’s quest for enlightenment took him on a spiritual odyssey that helped him to gain an understanding of many philosophers and religions.

Question 9

Officious

Answer 9

(adj) too helpful; meddlesome

e. g. Some of us on the tour found the guide officious, but others thought she was helpful and courteous.

Question 10

Olfactory

Answer 10

(adj) concerning the sense of smell
e. g. Wine connoisseurs say that the olfactory senses play as important a part in appreciating a good wine as the sense of taste.