| A | B |
|---|
| What Harry wanted was a _____ ( ) little wife to sit at home and mind the house, but instead, he had an assertive and forward-thinking business woman as his partner. | demure (adj) |
| Wanda’s four-inch stiletto heels made a rapid ______ ( ) on the polished wooden floors and left little divots behind that could only be removed with a fresh sanding of the boards. | staccato (noun) |
| Sydney tried to appear calm for the sake of her family and friends, but her voice ______ ( ) revealing her agitation and distress. | quavered (verb) |
| Henry followed the code of chivalry: Neither ________ ( ) money nor hoard it. | squander (verb) |
| Agatha was a vain woman who spent hours in front of the mirror, applying her makeup and fussing with her hair, and insisted that she would never ______ ( ) her age, keeping it under wraps until the day she expired. | divulge (verb) |
| Mark had not _____ ( ) his parents about his newest plans of dropping out of college, hitching to the West coast, and working as a surfing instructor. | enlightened (verb) |
| Brian looked cool, but in fact little _____ ( ) of sweat ran down his back, soaking his shirt from collar to tail. | rivulets (noun) |
| William Shakespeare expresses the tragic ______ ( ) of life thus: “Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and is heard no more.” | brevity (noun) |
| The _____ ( ) heat of the dessert forced us to take shelter under our tents during the day and conduct most of our research in the early mornings and at dusk. | relentless (adj) |
| Relations between the countries had _____ ( ) to the point that no trade or travel was conducted between them. | deteriorated (verb) |
| ____ ( ) of the new youth soccer league met with the local parent to discuss by-laws, safety rules, uniforms, and other pressing issues. | Proponents (noun) |
| Articulate students who ____ ( ) themselves well during college interviews are the ones who win admission into the top-seated universities. | comport (verb) |
| Early rifles had such a “kick” to them that experienced soldiers were often injured by the _____ ( ) after pulling the trigger. | recoil (noun) |
| A president will often _____ ( ) the defeat of a legislative program by appealing for the public’s support on television. | forestall (verb) |
| The social studies teacher Mr. Potter asked his students to write a ____ ( ) summary of the Vietnam War; his students were inclined to be prolix, and he had not the time to read pages and pages of their writing. | concise (adj) |
| Sleep was what she needed to _____ ( ) her strength after four nights of thirteen-hour shifts in the operating room. | recoup (inf) |
| The dean said that he would review the university’s _____ ( ) and then make a decision about Jared’s failure to attend classes for the months of March and April. | statutes (noun) |
| “Wear and tear” is the ______ ( ) that results from ordinary use and not from misuse and abuse. | depreciation (noun) |
| Iris turned and covered her nose as the yard ______ ( ) of rotting straw and fermenting horse manure. | reeked (verb) |
| I asked a passerby for directions but I received a ______ ( ) explanation of where to go and how best to travel there. | garbled (adj) |
| John’s commencement speech was noted for its ___ ( ) more than its content, yet the graduates were delighted that the ceremony concluded ten minutes ahead of schedule. brevity (noun) | brevity (noun) |
| As Sally packed to leave for her four-year stint at the Naval Academy, her father, the admiral, reminded her to __ ( ) herself as a family emissary. | comport (inf) |
| As a general rule, editors and readers appreciate writing that is __ ( ) and forceful rather than prolix and ornate. | concise (adj) |
| Despite her __ ( ) demeanor, she is a competitive speed skater, always ready for a challenge on ice. | demure (adj) |
| We were concerned about the ____ ( ) of our beach house; Hurricane Sandy had damaged the exterior, and the years of humid weather left the walls and doors in the interior warped and nearly crumbling. | depreciation (noun) |
| It is painful for anyone, particularly close family members, to watch someone’s health _____ ( ). | deteriorate (verb) |
| He was too much of a gentleman to __ ( ) his mother’s age; Mom enjoyed the attention that she received for her youthful appearance. | divulge (inf) |
| An __ ( ) society is ruled by knowledge and reason rather than superstition and prejudice. | enlightened (adj) |
| Sometimes it is possible to __ ( ) a cold by taking Vitamin C. | forestall (inf) |
| If you’ve played the game of telephone, you know how easy it is to __ ( ) a message inadvertently. | garble (inf) |
| Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a leading __ ( ) of women’s suffrage in the United States at the turn of the twentieth century. | proponent (noun) |
| My voice __ ( ) whenever I try to reach the high notes; that’s why I hate to perform in front of large audiences. | quavers (verb) |
| Renee ___ ( ) at the thought of a venomous snake curled up under her bed, ready to attack at the slightest provocation. | recoiled (verb) |
| When the engineer accidentally released the giant spring, its powerful __ ( ) sent him sprawling. | recoil (noun) |
| I plan to __ ( ) my family’s lost fortune by working hard, earning extra money, and investing wisely. | recoup (inf) |
| The unmistakable __ ( ) of spoiled food greeted us as we entered the long-abandoned cabin. | reek (noun) |
| In How the Other Half Lives, the author describes tenements in urban neighborhoods that __ of poverty. | reek (verb) |
| The novel Les Miserable recounts ex-convict Jean Valjean’s lifelong flight from the __ ( ) police inspector Javert, who is rather tragic in his misguided pursuit of justice. | relentless (adj) |
| The puppies lapped up water from the ____ ( ) that ran down the mountain and fed the river below. | rivulets (noun) |
| A rule of chivalry states that one should neither _____ ( ) wealth nor hoard it. | squander (verb) |
| We strained to listen and finally heard the __ ( ) hoof beats of the ponies trotting into the courtyard. | staccato (adj) |
| This __ ( ) should be understood as one part of Queen Elizabeth 's larger effort to standardize measurements of all kinds. | statute (noun) |
| Clifford’s face glowed as he __ ( ) his theory, converting the wrinkles and pallid duskiness of age into the radiance of childhood. | divulged (verb) |
| We linger too long, no doubt, beside this paltry __ ( ) of life that flowed through the garden of the Pyncheon House. | rivulet (noun) |
| When we met, there was a natural __ ( ), a natural drawing back of my heart at the first sight of him, and often as I have seen him since. | recoil (noun) |
