Units 56-60

Question 1

*penury, n.

Answer 1

extreme poverty; destitution

Question 2

peregrination, n.

Answer 2

a wandering from place to place

Question 3

peremptory, adj.

Answer 3

imperative; leaving no choice; (especially of a person’s manner or actions) insisting on immediate attention or obedience, especially in a brusquely imperious way.

Question 4

perennial, adj.

Answer 4

present throughout the years; persistent

Question 5

*perfidious, adj.

Answer 5

faithless; disloyal; untrustworthy

Question 6

*perfunctory, adj.

Answer 6

superficial; not thorough; performed really as a duty

Question 7

perigee, n.

Answer 7

point in an orbit that is closest to the Earth

Question 8

*permeable, adj.

Answer 8

penetrable

Question 9

perturb, v.

Answer 9

to disturb greatly; make uneasy or anxious; cause a body to deviate from its regular orbit

Question 10

*pervasive, adj.

Answer 10

spread throughout every part

Question 11

petulant, adj.

Answer 11

rude; peevish

Question 12

*phlegmatic, adj.

Answer 12

calm in temperament; sluggish

Question 13

phoenix, n.

Answer 13

mythical, immortal bird that lives for 500 years, burns itself to death, and rises from its ashes; anything that is restored after suffering great destruction

Question 14

physiognomy, n.

Answer 14

facial features

Question 15

*piety, n.

Answer 15

devoutness

Question 16

piquant, adj.

Answer 16

appealingly stimulating; pleasantly pungent; attractive

Question 17

pique, n., v.

Answer 17

fleeting feeling of hurt pride; v. to provoke or arouse

n. Sally left the restaurant in a fit of pique after her date called to say he couldn’t come because he was working late.
v. The geologist’s curiosity was piqued by the unusual appearance of the rock formation.

Question 18

*placate, v.

Answer 18

to lessen another’s anger; to pacify

Question 19

placid, adj.

Answer 19

calm

Question 20

plaintive, adj.

Answer 20

melancholy; mournful

Question 21

*plasticity, n.

Answer 21

condition of being able to be shaped or formed; pliability

Question 22

*platitude, n.

Answer 22

stale, overused expression

Question 23

platonic, adj.

Answer 23

spiritual; without sensual desire; theoretical

Question 24

*plethora, n.

Answer 24

excess; overabundance

Question 25

plumb, v.

Answer 25

to determine the depth; to examine deeply

Question 26

plummet, v.

Answer 26

to fall; plunge

Question 27

plutocracy, n.

Answer 27

society ruled by the wealthy

Question 28

porous, adj.

Answer 28

full of holes; permeable to liquids

Question 29

poseur, n.

Answer 29

person who affects an attitude or identity to impress others

Question 30

*pragmatic, adj.

Answer 30

practical

Question 31

prate, v.

Answer 31

to talk idly; chatter

Question 32

prattle, n.

Answer 32

meaningless, foolish talk

Question 33

preamble, n.

Answer 33

preliminary statement

Question 34

*precarious, adj.

Answer 34

uncertain

Question 35

precept, n.

Answer 35

principle; law

Question 36

*precipitate, v.

Answer 36

to cause to happen; throw down from a height

Question 37

*precipitate, adj. | precipitous, adj.

Answer 37

adj. , rash; hasty; sudden | adj. , hasty; quickly with too little caution

Question 38

*precursor, n.

Answer 38

forerunner; predecessor

Question 39

preempt, v.

Answer 39

to supersede; appropriate for oneself

Question 40

prehensile, adj.

Answer 40

capable of grasping

Question 41

premonition, n.

Answer 41

forewarning; presentiment

Question 42

presage, v.

Answer 42

to foretell; indicate in advance

Question 43

*presumptuous, adj.

Answer 43

rude; improperly bold; readiness to presume

Question 44

preternatural, adj.

Answer 44

beyond the normal course of nature; supernatural

Question 45

*prevaricate, v.

Answer 45

to quibble; evade the truth quibble, v., argue or raise objections about a trivial matter.

Question 46

primordial, adj.

Answer 46

original; existing from the beginning

Question 47

*pristine, adj.

Answer 47

untouched; uncorrupted

Question 48

*probity, n.

Answer 48

honesty; high-mindedness No one questioned the probity of the judge being considered for elevation to the U.S. Supreme Court; what was at issue was his controversial views on several important issues.

Question 49

*problematic, adj.

Answer 49

posing a problem; doubtful; unsettled

Question 50

*prodigal, adj.

Answer 50

wasteful; extravagant; lavish