AWP2 ch 12

(1)

ADVANCED

WORD POWER

Second Edition

B

ETH

J

OHNSON

J

ANET

M. G

OLDSTEIN

(2)

Unit Three: Chapter 12

•

amicable

•

immutable

•

devious

•

ponderous

•

dissonance

•

predecessor

•

efface

•

rebuff

(3)

TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT

Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.

–

adjective

• Who says that cats and dogs are enemies? Our dog and two cats live

together in the most amicable way.

• Because the two countries had always maintained amicable relations,

they were able to settle their border dispute through friendly talks.

Amicable

means

A.

hostile.

B.

peaceable.

C.

cute.

1

amicable

An amicable relationship

Ph

oto

: R

ufu

s S

ars

ap

aril

(4)

–

adjective

• Who says that cats and dogs are enemies? Our dog and two cats live

together in the most amicable way.

• Because the two countries had always maintained amicable relations,

they were able to settle their border dispute through friendly talks.

Amicable

means

A.

hostile.

B.

peaceable.

C.

cute.

1

amicable

Enemies are contrasted with friendly animals that live together in a peaceable

way. Peaceable relations would allow countries to settle disputes through friendly talks. Ph oto : R ufu s S ars ap aril

(5)

2

devious

–

adjective

• Beware of devious advertising. For example, a sign may say in huge

letters “PRICES SLASHED 75 PERCENT” and then in tiny type “on selected items only.”

• Aimee’s mother didn’t want to ask her directly if she and her boyfriend

were going to get married, so she used more devious wording: “Do you and Dave have any plans for the future?”

Devious

means

A.

obvious.

B.

rude.

C.

sneaky.

Ph

oto

: N

ort

h C

aro

lin

a D

O

(6)

2

devious

–

adjective

• Beware of devious advertising. For example, a sign may say in huge

letters “PRICES SLASHED 75 PERCENT” and then in tiny type “on selected items only.”

• Aimee’s mother didn’t want to ask her directly if she and her boyfriend

were going to get married, so she used more devious wording: “Do you and Dave have any plans for the future?”

Devious

means

A.

obvious.

B.

rude.

C.

sneaky.

A devious scam to steal money

It is sneaky to try to hide restrictions on a sale. In the second item, a direct question is contrasted with a more

sneaky way to find out information.

(7)

3

dissonance

–

noun

• Over time, people’s ideas of dissonance in music change. Chords that

sounded harsh and grating to previous generations now seem pleasant to us.

• Kids like to create dissonance on a piano by using both arms to slam down

all the keys at once.

Dissonance

means

A.

an unpleasant sound.

B.

a rare sound.

(8)

3

dissonance

–

noun

• Over time, people’s ideas of dissonance in music change. Chords that

sounded harsh and grating to previous generations now seem pleasant to us.

• Kids like to create dissonance on a piano by using both arms to slam down

all the keys at once.

Dissonance

means

A.

an unpleasant sound.

B.

a rare sound.

C.

an everyday sound.

Harsh-sounding chords would make an unpleasant sound. Slamming down all the piano keys at once would also make an unpleasant

(9)

4

efface

–

verb

• When Joanie and Gary broke up, she said, “I’ve thrown away all his letters

and photographs. Now I wish I could efface my memories.”

• Last Thanksgiving, the turkey slid off its platter onto the dining-room rug.

We scrubbed and rubbed, but we weren’t able to efface the stain completely.

Efface

means

A.

to face up to.

B.

to remove all traces of.

C.

to try to preserve.

Trying to efface graffiti

Ph

oto

: O

liv

er W

olte

(10)

4

efface

–

verb

• When Joanie and Gary broke up, she said, “I’ve thrown away all his letters

and photographs. Now I wish I could efface my memories.”

• Last Thanksgiving, the turkey slid off its platter onto the dining-room rug.

We scrubbed and rubbed, but we weren’t able to efface the stain completely.

Efface

means

A.

to face up to.

B.

to remove all traces of.

C.

to try to preserve.

Trying to efface graffiti

One way to remove all physical

traces of an ex-boyfriend is to throw away all his letters and photos. One way to try to remove all traces of a stain is to rub and scrub the area.

Ph

oto

: O

liv

er W

olte

(11)

TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT

5

garrulous

–

adjective

• Our waiter at dinner last night was extremely garrulous. He hung around

our table telling us long stories when all we wanted was to eat in peace.

• Because Arnie is so garrulous, I always need an excuse to escape. Today

I broke into his non-stop talk with, “I’d love to hear more, but I have a class now.”

Garrulous

means

A.

long-winded.

B.

short-tempered.

(12)

5

garrulous

–

adjective

• Our waiter at dinner last night was extremely garrulous. He hung around

our table telling us long stories when all we wanted was to eat in peace.

• Because Arnie is so garrulous, I always need an excuse to escape. Today

I broke into his non-stop talk with, “I’d love to hear more, but I have a class now.”

Garrulous

means

A.

long-winded.

B.

short-tempered.

C.

open-minded.

(13)

6

immutable

–

adjective

• Does Mr. Madison ever smile? The frown on his face seems immutable. • For years, my aunt has followed an immutable schedule: she always gets

up at 6:30 a.m., works out for a half hour, and then has a soft-boiled egg and toast.

Immutable

means

A.

changeless.

B.

flawless.

C.

fearless.

An immutable expression— carved in stone at Mount Rushmore

Ph

oto

: N

atio

na

l P

ark

S

erv

(14)

6

immutable

–

adjective

• Does Mr. Madison ever smile? The frown on his face seems immutable. • For years, my aunt has followed an immutable schedule: she always gets

up at 6:30 a.m., works out for a half hour, and then has a soft-boiled egg and toast.

Immutable

means

A.

changeless.

B.

flawless.

C.

fearless.

An immutable expression— carved in stone at Mount Rushmore

If the answer is, “No, he never smiles,” then Mr. Madison’s frown is changeless. The aunt’s schedule is changeless since she always does the same thing at the same time each day.

(15)

7

ponderous

–

adjective

• Ads for the circus always used to describe the elephants as “ponderous

pachyderms.”

• There used to be a theory that dinosaurs became extinct because they

grew too large for their own good. They were so huge and ponderous that they could hardly move.

Ponderous

means

A.

living in ponds.

B.

delicate.

C.

weighty.

Ph

oto

: U

sie

(16)

7

ponderous

–

adjective

• Ads for the circus always used to describe the elephants as “ponderous

pachyderms.”

• There used to be a theory that dinosaurs became extinct because they

grew too large for their own good. They were so huge and ponderous that they could hardly move.

Ponderous

means

A.

living in ponds.

B.

delicate.

C.

weighty.

Elephants are weighty animals. If dinosaurs were so huge that they could hardly move, they must have been very weighty.

Ph

oto

: U

sie

(17)

8

predecessor

–

noun

• It won’t be easy to get used to the new boss. She seems quiet, formal,

and serious, whereas her predecessor was easygoing and loved to laugh.

• When they moved into their new apartment, the Martins had to get rid of

a lot of junk that their predecessors had left behind.

Predecessor

means

A.

someone earlier.

B.

someone later.

(18)

8

predecessor

–

noun

• It won’t be easy to get used to the new boss. She seems quiet, formal,

and serious, whereas her predecessor was easygoing and loved to laugh.

• When they moved into their new apartment, the Martins had to get rid of

a lot of junk that their predecessors had left behind.

Predecessor

means

A.

someone earlier.

B.

someone later.

C.

someone who predicts.

(19)

9

rebuff

–

verb

• Here’s a good way to rebuff a telephone pollster who’s trying to find out

which candidate you’re supporting. Just say, “I’m sorry, but I never discuss politics with strangers.”

• The new puppy bounded joyfully up to the resident housecat. But the cat

rebuffed his advances with a loud hiss and a scratch to his nose.

Rebuff

means

A.

to treat coldly.

B.

to welcome warmly.

(20)

9

rebuff

–

verb

• Here’s a good way to rebuff a telephone pollster who’s trying to find out

which candidate you’re supporting. Just say, “I’m sorry, but I never discuss politics with strangers.”

• The new puppy bounded joyfully up to the resident housecat. But the cat

rebuffed his advances with a loud hiss and a scratch to his nose.

Rebuff

means

A.

to treat coldly.

B.

to welcome warmly.

C.

to reward.

(21)

10

static

–

adjective

• “This scene is too static,” the director said to the actors. “It’s dead. We’ve

got to get some action into it.”

• A still life, as the name suggests, is a static painting: it might show, for

example, a bowl of apples. By contrast, an action painting shows a dramatic scene full of movement.

Static

means

A.

silent.

B.

inactive.

(22)

10

static

–

adjective

• “This scene is too static,” the director said to the actors. “It’s dead. We’ve

got to get some action into it.”

• A still life, as the name suggests, is a static painting: it might show, for

example, a bowl of apples. By contrast, an action painting shows a dramatic scene full of movement.

Static

means

A.

silent.

B.

inactive.

C.

stressful.

(23)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

2.

Do you think surprise quizzes are a useful teaching tool? Or do you consider them ________ and unfair?

1.

Zach quickly ________s anyone who calls to try to sell him something or raise funds. “I’m not interested,” he says, and hangs up.

Complete each item with the correct word from the box.

A. amicable B. devious C. dissonance D. efface E. garrulous

(24)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

2.

Do you think surprise quizzes are a useful teaching tool? Or do you consider them ________ and unfair?

1.

Zach quickly _________ anyone who calls to try to sell him something or raise funds. “I’m not interested,” he says, and hangs up.

F. immutable G. ponderous H. predecessor I. rebuff J. static

Hanging up is a blunt way to reject a salesperson.

The words surprise and unfair suggest that devious means “tricky.”

rebuffs

(25)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

4.

Whenever I visit my _________ Uncle Hal, I tell him I have

another appointment in an hour. Otherwise, I would be forced to sit and listen to him all day.

5.

Everyone dreads the principal’s speeches. Her slow, labored way of talking and long pauses make even a short talk _________.

3.

The hardest of all stains to _________ is blueberry. If you drop blueberry pie on a white shirt, you’ll have to throw the shirt away or dye it blue.

(26)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

4.

Whenever I visit my _________ Uncle Hal, I tell him I have

another appointment in an hour. Otherwise, I would be forced to sit and listen to him all day.

5.

Everyone dreads the principal’s speeches. Her slow, labored way of talking and long pauses make even a short talk _________.

3.

The hardest of all stains to _________ is blueberry. If you drop blueberry pie on a white shirt, you’ll have to throw the shirt away or dye it blue.

The stain is hard to remove completely if the shirt must be dyed blue to match.

The uncle must be annoyingly talkative if he would talk all day.

Slow, labored speech and long pauses would make a talk sound heavy.

efface

garrulous

(27)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

7.

Wanting to be on _________ terms with her new neighbors, Meg brought them a homemade pie to welcome them to the

neighborhood.

6.

As I walked through the hall of the music school, I could hear three instrumental classes in three rooms playing three different pieces all at once. This _________ made my ears ache, so I fled into the street.

(28)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

7.

Wanting to be on _________ terms with her new neighbors, Meg brought them a homemade pie to welcome them to the

neighborhood.

6.

As I walked through the hall of the music school, I could hear three instrumental classes in three rooms playing three different pieces all at once. This _________ made my ears ache, so I fled into the street.

The combination of sounds was so harshly disagreeable that it hurt ears.

Welcoming new neighbors with a homemade pie would show goodwill

and help put their relationship on friendly terms.

dissonance

(29)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

9.

Although the car Jasmin just bought is four years old, it looks like new. Whoever was her __________ in owning it took very good care of it.

10.

The stars may look unchanging, but in fact they are not _________. Stars are born, and eventually die, over billions of years.

8.

Did you ever wonder why people in old photographs look frozen in stiff, _________ poses? It’s because they could not move while the film was being exposed—a process that took a long time.

(30)

SENTENCE CHECK 1

9.

Although the car Jasmin just bought is four years old, it looks like new. Whoever was her __________ in owning it took very good care of it.

10.

The stars may look unchanging, but in fact they are not _________. Stars are born, and eventually die, over billions of years.

8.

Did you ever wonder why people in old photographs look frozen in stiff, _________ poses? It’s because they could not move while the film was being exposed—a process that took a long time.

Since they could not move, they had to stand in stiff, still poses.

The four-year-old car was owned by a person who came before Jasmin.

The stars’ appearance contrasts with the fact that they are not

unchanging or varying.

static

predecessor