BUILDING VOCABULARY SKILLS Fourth Edition Sherrie L. Nist © 2010 Townsend Press.

BUILDING VOCABULARY SKILLS

Fourth Edition

Sherrie L. Nist

© 2010 Townsend Press

Unit Two: Chapter 9

• elapse • infer

• evasive • lethal

• fluent • obsession

• futile • ordeal

• harass •persistent

TEN WORDS IN CONTEXTChoose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.

1 elapse

Elapse means

A. to develop.

B. to go back.

C. to go by.

• Although four years had elapsed since I last saw Marian, we talked as if we’d never parted.

• When I’m busy with work I enjoy, I never notice how much time is elapsing.

– verb


Elapse means

A. to develop.

B. to go back.

C. to go by.

• Although four years had elapsed since I last saw Marian, we talked as if we’d never parted.

• When I’m busy with work I enjoy, I never notice how much time is elapsing.

Four years had gone by since they last saw one another. Doing something one enjoys makes one not notice how much time is going by.

1 elapse – verb


2 evasive – adjective

Evasive means

A. truthful.

B. indefinite.

C. detailed.

• The Rothmans worried that their son was hiding something when he became evasive about where he had been and what he’d been doing.

• We didn’t want anyone at school to know our father was in the hospital, so we were evasive about him, saying only, “He has to be away for a while.”


Evasive means

A. truthful.

B. indefinite.

C. detailed.

• The Rothmans worried that their son was hiding something when he became evasive about where he had been and what he’d been doing.

• We didn’t want anyone at school to know our father was in the hospital, so we were evasive about him, saying only, “He has to be away for a while.”

If the Rothmans think their son is hiding something, he must have been indefinite about his activities. In the second item, the statement “He has to be away for a while” is indefinite.

2 evasive – adjective


3 fluent• To work in a foreign country, it helps to be fluent in its

language.

• Jamila wanted to hear what was wrong with her car in simple, everyday words. She was not fluent in the language of auto mechanics.

– adjective

Fluent means

A. able to remember.

B. able to teach.

C. able to express oneself.


• To work in a foreign country, it helps to be fluent in its language.

• Jamila wanted to hear what was wrong with her car in simple, everyday words. She was not fluent in the language of auto mechanics.

Fluent means

A. able to remember.

B. able to teach.

C. able to express oneself. It helps to be able to express oneself in the language of the country where one works. If Jamila wants to hear the explanation in simple, everyday words, she must not be able to express herself in the language of auto mechanics.

3 fluent – adjective

TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT

• My best friend is so stubborn that once he has made a decision, it is futile to try to change his mind.

• I’m convinced that washing machines eat socks, so it is futile to try to find matching pairs in a load of clean laundry.

4 futile

Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.

Futile means

A. hopeless.

B. easy.

C. useful.

– adjective

TEN WORDS IN CONTEXT

• My best friend is so stubborn that once he has made a decision, it is futile to try to change his mind.

• I’m convinced that washing machines eat socks, so it is futile to try to find matching pairs in a load of clean laundry.

Choose the meaning closest to that of the boldfaced word.

Futile means

A. hopeless.

B. easy.

C. useful. If the friend is very stubborn, it would be hopeless to try to change the person’s mind. If washing machines ate socks, it would be hopeless to try to find matching pairs.

4 futile – adjective


Harass means

A. to injure.

B. to annoy.

C. to please.

5 harass – verb

• A few students in the cafeteria like to harass everyone else by frequently clinking their silverware and stamping their feet.

• Sometimes it doesn’t help to harass people about quitting smoking. Bothering them all the time may make them resist quitting.


Harass means

A. to injure.

B. to annoy.

C. to please.

• A few students in the cafeteria like to harass everyone else by frequently clinking their silverware and stamping their feet.

• Sometimes it doesn’t help to harass people about quitting smoking. Bothering them all the time may make them resist quitting.

Clinking their silverware and stamping their feet would be ways for a few students to annoy everyone else. In the second item, the words bothering them all the time suggest that harass means “to annoy.”

5 harass – verb


Infer means

A. to conclude.

B. to forget.

C. to conceal.

• The fact that the old man left his fortune to strangers led us to infer he was not fond of his children.

• Since you went hiking on Super Bowl Sunday, I inferred that you were not a football fan.

6 infer – verb


Infer means

A. to conclude.

B. to forget.

C. to conceal.

• The fact that the old man left his fortune to strangers led us to infer he was not fond of his children.

• Since you went hiking on Super Bowl Sunday, I inferred that you were not a football fan.

Based on the fact stated, one can conclude the man was not fond of his children. It is reasonable to conclude that someone who goes hiking on Super Bowl Sunday is not a football fan.

6 infer – verb


Lethal means

A. rare.

B. deadly.

C. hopeful.

• My father is not alive today because of a lethal combination of driving and drinking.

• Jake is so good at karate that his hands are lethal weapons. Because he realizes he could kill somebody, he is very careful with his karate skills.

7 lethal – adjective


Lethal means

A. rare.

B. deadly.

C. hopeful.

• My father is not alive today because of a lethal combination of driving and drinking.

• Jake is so good at karate that his hands are lethal weapons. Because he realizes he could kill somebody, he is very careful with his karate skills.

Driving and drinking are a deadly combination. If Jake is so skilled at karate that he can kill somebody, his hands are deadly weapons.

7 lethal – adjective


Obsession means

A. a helpful habit.

B. a possession.

C. a constant concern.

• Psychologists help people troubled by obsessions to gain control over their thinking, so they are not bothered by the same thoughts over and over.

• Going to garage sales was at first just a hobby. But bargain-hunting has become such an obsession that I can’t seem to stop going to them.

8 obsession – noun

“You really ought to get help for that obsession with licking your paws.”


Obsession means

A. a helpful habit.

B. a possession.

C. a constant concern.

• Psychologists help people troubled by obsessions to gain control over their thinking, so they are not bothered by the same thoughts over and over.

• Going to garage sales was at first just a hobby. But bargain-hunting has become such an obsession that I can’t seem to stop going to them.

For people who are bothered by the same thoughts over and over, those thoughts are a constant concern. If the person can’t stop going to garage sales, bargain-hunting must have become a constant concern.

8 obsession – noun

“You really ought to get help for that obsession with licking your paws.”


Ordeal means

A. a welcome event.

B. a sure success.

C. a difficult challenge.

• Even if you are in good physical condition, running cross-country is an ordeal.

• Hannah came out of the difficult three-hour test, sighed, and said, “What an ordeal. I’m worn out.”

9 ordeal – noun

Ice climbing is an ordeal. Photo: Bernhard


Ordeal means

A. a welcome event.

B. a sure success.

C. a difficult challenge.

• Even if you are in good physical condition, running cross-country is an ordeal.

• Hannah came out of the difficult three-hour test, sighed, and said, “What an ordeal. I’m worn out.”

9 ordeal – noun

Running cross-country is a difficult challenge. A difficult three-hour test is a difficult challenge.

9 ordeal – noun

Ice climbing is an ordeal. Photo: Bernhard


Persistent means

A. stubborn.

B. useless.

C. late.

10 persistent • At first Tony wouldn’t go out with Lola, but she was persistent

in asking him. Now they’re engaged.

• I am a very persistent salesman. I work with customers for as long as it takes for them to buy something.

– adjective


Persistent means

A. stubborn.

B. useless.

C. late.

• At first Tony wouldn’t go out with Lola, but she was persistent in asking him. Now they’re engaged.

• I am a very persistent salesman. I work with customers for as long as it takes for them to buy something.

If Tony and Lola are now engaged, Lola must have been stubborn about asking him out. Someone who works with customers as long as it takes must be a stubborn salesman.

10 persistent – adjective

SENTENCE CHECK 1

1. Roger knew a few Chinese phrases, but he was not _________ enough in Chinese to carry on a conversation.

2. Photographers _________(e)d the movie star, photographing her even on a private beach.

Complete each item with the correct word from the box.

A. elapse B. evasive C. fluent D. futile E. harass

F. infer G. lethal H. obsession I. ordeal J.persistent

SENTENCE CHECK 1

1. Roger knew a few Chinese phrases, but he was not _________ enough in Chinese to carry on a conversation.

2. Photographers ____________ the movie star, photographing her even on a private beach.




fluent

harassed

To carry on a conversation, one must be able to express oneself with ease.

If photographers photographed the star even on a private beach, they constantly disturbed her.

SENTENCE CHECK 1

3. When I’m on a diet, the thought of eating pizza becomes an __________ for me.

4. Reporters tried to pin the President down on his plan to rescue the hostages, but he always gave a(n) __________ answer.

5. After ten seconds __________, a bell rings, and the game-show host reads the next question.




SENTENCE CHECK 1

3. When I’m on a diet, the thought of eating pizza becomes an __________ for me.

4. Reporters tried to pin the President down on his plan to rescue the hostages, but he always gave an ___________ answer.

5. After ten seconds __________, a bell rings, and the game-show host reads the next question.




obsession

evasive

elapse

When on a diet, the idea of eating pizza can completely fill one’s mind.

In spite of the efforts to pin the President down, he gave a deliberately unclear answer.

After ten seconds pass, a bell rings.

SENTENCE CHECK 1

6. Selling drugs can be a(n) _________ occupation—there is almost one drug-related murder a day in Philadelphia alone.

7. Going to the veterinarian is a real _________ for our dog, who begins to shiver in fear at the sight of the vet’s office.




SENTENCE CHECK 1

6. Selling drugs can be a ___________ occupation—there is almost one drug-related murder a day in Philadelphia alone.

7. Going to the veterinarian is a real _________ for our dog, who begins to shiver in fear at the sight of the vet’s office.




lethal

ordeal

One murder a day suggests that selling drugs is a deadly occupation.

The dog’s reaction shows that going to the vet is a very difficult experience for the dog.

9. Eduardo had to work full-time to support his family, but he still earned his college degree by being __________ in his studies even when he was busy or tired.

10.It was easy for the teacher to __________ that one of the students had copied the other’s paper—both had the same wording in several paragraphs.

SENTENCE CHECK 1

8. It is __________ to try to have a conversation with Manny when a football game is on television because his eyes are glued to the set.




9. Eduardo had to work full-time to support his family, but he still earned his college degree by being __________ in his studies even when he was busy or tired.

10.It was easy for the teacher to __________ that one of the students had copied the other’s paper—both had the same wording in several paragraphs.

SENTENCE CHECK 1

8. It is __________ to try to have a conversation with Manny when a football game is on television because his eyes are glued to the set.




If his eyes are glued to the TV, it’s useless to try to have a conversation.

If Eduardo earned his degree, he must have refused to quit.

Based on the evidence, it was easy to draw the conclusion that one student copied the other’s paper.

futile

persistent

infer

BUILDING VOCABULARY SKILLS Fourth Edition Sherrie L. Nist © 2010 Townsend Press.

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Transcript of BUILDING VOCABULARY SKILLS Fourth Edition Sherrie L. Nist © 2010 Townsend Press.