WW12 Lesson 15 (Fifi)

Question 1

anachronism

Answer 1

(n)

1. The placing of some person or thing out of its proper historical place.
   * In a play set in 1922, a television onstage would be an _anachronism_.
2. A person or thing that is or seems to be out of its proper time in history.
   * The personal computer has made the typewriter an _anachronism_.

Question 2

apiary

Answer 2

(n)

A place where bees are raise for their honey.

• Beekeepers wear special protective clothing when visiting the _apiary_.

Question 3

archetype

Answer 3

(n)

1. The original model from which others are made or developed.
   * Ford’s Model-T was the _archetype_ for mass-produced automobiles.
2. Patterns of myth and ritual that occur repeatedly in diverse cultures throughout time.
   * In his much-respected book Hero with a Thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell traces the hero _archetype_ across cultures and centuries up to the present day.

Question 4

carcinogen

Answer 4

(n)

A substance that causes cancer.

• Research has clearly established the presence of _carcinogens_ in tobacco products.

(adj)

carcinogenic

Question 5

checkered

Answer 5

(adj)

Marked by frequent changes of situation; full of ups and downs.

• She has had a _checkered_ business career, but her credo is “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.”

Question 6

cornucopia

Answer 6

(n)

1. A goat’s horn, or a straw container shaped like it, filled with produce from the harvest; a horn of plenty.
   * Thanksgiving greeting cards often show images of _cornucopias_ as table centerpieces.
2. An enormous store; an abundance.
   * The Modern Library series offers a _cornucopia_ of literary classics.

Question 7

devolve

Answer 7

(v)

To pass on or be passed on to.

• When President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, presidential duties _devolved_ upon Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson.

Question 8

equitable

Answer 8

(adj)

Fair to all concerned.

• The teachers’ contract will not be signed until its terms seem _equitable_ to all the parties.

Question 9

exigencies

Answer 9

(n)

(pl)

Demands; requirements.

• The _exigencies_ of a faltering economy call for action by governmental leaders.

Question 10

fatalism

Answer 10

(n)

The belief that fate determines everything and one cannot influence the outcome of particular events.

• “Whatever will be, will be” is an expression of _fatalism_.

(adj)

fatalistic

Question 11

gustatory

Answer 11

(adj)

Relating to the sense of taste.

• The chocolate layer cake in the display case was both a visual and _gustatory_ delight.

Question 12

minutiae

Answer 12

(n)

(pl)

Small details.

• “He cannot see the forest for the trees” is a metaphorical expression indicating that one is so involved in _minutiae_ that he fails to see the larger picture.

Question 13

motley

Answer 13

(adj)

Composed of many different kinds of types; diverse.

• The band members were a _motley_ group who expressed their sartorial taste in a variety of unconventional ways.

Question 14

prospectus

Answer 14

(n)

A printed statement, given to potential buyers, describing a business or investment opportunity.

• The _prospectus_ of the mutual fund apprises investors of the stocks it selects.

Question 15

vernal

Answer 15

(adj)

Or or relating to the spring.

• The _vernal_ equinox occurs on or about March 21 and marks the beginning of spring in the northern hemisphere.