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Test your basic knowledge |
Complete Advanced Sentences
Start Test
Study First
Subjects
:
english
,
grammar
Instructions:
Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
If you are not ready to take this test, you can
study here
.
Match each statement with the correct term.
Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.
This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. The boss prefaced his speech by telling a pointless _____ about an encounter he'd had with former President Bush.
repudiate
whimsical
anecdote
alleviate
2. Although you can still hear _____ outbursts of laughter and signing outside - the Halloween parade has passed; the party is over till next year.
sporadic
mundane
gregarious
derivative
3. A born storyteller - my father loved to _____ anecdotes about his early years in New York.
recount
prevalent
refute
rebuttal
4. The doctor assured the boy's parents that his fever would eventually _____.
resolution
assumption
subside
brevity
5. Because she was a firm believer in old-fashioned courtesy - Miss Post _____ the modern tendency to address new acquaintances by their first names.
deprecate
obdurate
aesthetic
heresy
6. When you send a message on Twitter - be _____; a tweet cannot be more than 140 characters long.
gregarious
preclude
transient
concise
7. The BP oil spill has caused _____ damage to the entire Gulf Coast.
induce
extraneous
emulate
profound
8. After a decade of popularity - Hurston's works had fallen into _____; no one bothered to read her novels and short stories any more.
adversity
oblivion
hypothetical
heresy
9. The governor's appointment of his brother-in-law to the State Supreme Court was a _____ violation of the state laws against nepotism.
flagrant
assumption
satirical
austere
10. Because Sal once had fallen asleep while reading War and Peace - he thought that all Russian novels were _____.
levity
innocuous
document
soporific
11. After separating from Tony - Tina announced that she would _____ all debts incurred by her soon-to-be-ex-husband.
preclude
profane
repudiate
opportunist
12. In providing college scholarships for economically disadvantaged youths - Eugene Lang performed a truly _____ deed.
inadvertently
gregarious
altruistic
hypothetical
13. Though Huck was quite willing to _____ Tom's story - Aunt Polly knew better than to believe either of them.
corroborate
discrepancy
adversity
ascetic
14. I am a _____ about the proposed new health plan; I want some proof that it will work.
skeptic
apathy
contentious
reprimand
15. The Head Start program attempts to _____ prekindergarten children so that they will do well when they enter elementary school.
homogeneous
frivolous
nurture
verbose
16. Please try not to include so many _____ details in your report; the bare facts are all I need.
expedient
meticulous
feasible
superfluous
17. Seeking the end of slavery - the abolitionists _____ freedom for the slaves.
relegate
lavish
satirical
advocate
18. Although Georgia O'Keeffe painted many subjects over the years - she had a definite _____ for painting flowers.
alleviate
predilection
zealot
explicit
19. My editors must assume I'm a _____ writer; they expect me to revise six books this year.
disparage
inherent
prolific
hypothetical
20. Looking for any inconsistency in the testimony that might exonerate his client - the defense lawyer pounced on a _____ between the two witnesses' versions of what had occurred.
surreptitious
discrepancy
debunk
instigate
21. To revise a textbook properly - you must do more than make a few _____ changes to the manuscript.
superficial
superfluous
disparage
sporadic
22. We could tell we were in serious trouble from the _____ of the principal's expression.
superficial
verbose
immutable
gravity
23. We made an _____ choice to eat at the first restaurant we saw.
zealot
scrutiny
acclaim
arbitrary
24. These endorsements written by satisfied customers _____ our claim that Barron's SAT is the best SAT-prep book on the market.
heresy
expedient
substantiate
exacerbate
25. Violently disagreeing with the referees' ruling - Coach Ben became so _____ that they threw him out of the game.
surpass
oblivion
sporadic
contentious
26. The wealthy - self-indulgent young man felt oddly drawn to the strict - _____ lifestyle practiced by members of some monastic orders.
ascetic
digression
garrulous
abstract
27. Matilda thought it was somewhat _____ of the young man to have addressed her without first having been introduced. Perhaps manners were freer here in the New World.
presumptuous
endorse
lethargic
eulogy
28. The defense called several respectable witnesses who were able to _____ the lying testimony of the prosecution's sole witness.
colloquial
peripheral
refute
nurture
29. Although Eric knew the boss had no sense of humor - he couldn't resist making one _____ remark.
hierarchy
expedient
jocular
induce
30. An occasional glass of wine with dinner is relatively _____ and should have no ill effect on you.
rancor
specious
innocuous
constraint
31. A miser hoards money - not because he is _____ - but because he is stingy.
placate
prudent
assumption
subside
32. Shrewdly purchasing valuable plots of land for small sums - John Jacob Astor gained a reputation as an _____ investor.
digression
astute
detachment
derision
33. Tina was still angry despite Tony's soft and _____ words.
insipid
elusive
scrutiny
conciliatory
34. Although Alfred _____ in fulfilling his duties at work - he is less conscientious about meeting his obligations at home.
implement
deprecate
scrupulous
reserve
35. Through the comments of the characters in his cartoon strip - Doonesbury - Gary Trudeau ridicules political corruption; his humor is _____ in nature.
discrepancy
inherent
satirical
guile
36. This alleged fiscal crisis is no crisis at all. it is based on _____ claims about financial institutions and on scare stories about impending economic ruin.
condone
surpass
specious
soporific
37. What _____ did you use when you selected this essay as the prizewinner?
peripheral
criterion
obdurate
debilitate
38. After medical school - the two doctors took widely _____ paths - one becoming a wealthy plastic surgeon - the other joining the nonprofit Doctors Without Borders.
divergent
dogmatic
rancor
acclaim
39. All things change over time; nothing is _____.
reprimand
acclaim
zealot
immutable
40. Government agents have been known to use wiretapping and other _____ methods to spy on suspected terrorists.
gregarious
ambiguous
disdain
surreptitious
41. Towering over the nearby houses - the MacMansion looked wholly _____ in the historic neighborhood of small Craftsman bungalows.
alleviate
nonchalance
heresy
incongruous
42. The young wrestler struggled to defeat his formidable _____.
strident
condone
adversary
refute
43. Icebreakers were needed to _____ the trapped whales from the icy floes that closed them in.
jocular
prolific
hyperbole
extricate
44. Blind people sometimes develop a compensatory ability to sense the _____ of objects around them.
embellish
disdain
compliance
proximity
45. Whenever Sue was angry - she tried to avoid raising her voice because she had no wish to sound _____.
cryptic
mollify
strident
decorum
46. Every time Ermengarde made a mistake in class - she was terrified that she would receive a harsh _____ from Miss Minchin.
reprimand
succinct
resolution
autonomous
47. The museum curator placed the Eskimo-carved wooden totem pole in _____ with two contemporary stone masks from Africa - creating a stunning effect.
assumption
cryptic
juxtaposition
preclude
48. When acacias are in bloom - the increase of pollen in the air _____ Richard's hay fever.
exacerbate
exuberance
homogeneous
superficial
49. The mayor was unwilling to _____ the plan until she was sure it had the governor's backing.
esoteric
predilection
exemplary
implement
50. Thoroughly baffled by Holmes's _____ remarks - Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.
elucidate
transient
corroborate
cryptic