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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 glitter and _____ of the ballroom took Cinderella's breath away.
inherent
scrupulous
rectify
opulence
2. The mayfly is an _____ creature; its adult life lasts little more than a day.
ephemeral
quandary
adulation
turbulent
3. Pointing out that the candidate consistently had voted against strengthening antipollution legislation - the reporter _____ her claim that she was a fervent environmentalist.
laconic
proliferation
scrutiny
debunk
4. Acetone is an extremely _____ liquid: it vaporizes instantly.
volatile
retract
hypothetical
exemplary
5. Rather than live in the crowded city center - we chose to buy a house in one of the _____ suburbs ringing the metropolis.
elucidate
malicious
peripheral
substantiate
6. Through the comments of the characters in his cartoon strip - Doonesbury - Gary Trudeau ridicules political corruption; his humor is _____ in nature.
satirical
heresy
feasible
profane
7. According to Sherlock Homes - the very point that appears to complicate a case - when duly considered and scientifically handled - is the one most likely to _____ it.
elucidate
oblivion
hierarchy
mundane
8. After Ralph dropped his second try of drinks that week - the manager swiftly _____ him to a minor post behind the bar.
criterion
exacerbate
profound
relegate
9. When Elizabeth realized that Darcy considered himself too good to dance with his inferiors - she took great offense at his _____.
fervor
discerning
hypothetical
haughtiness
10. Using only a few descriptive phrases - Austen manages to _____ the character of Mr. Collins so deftly that we can predict his every move.
delineate
vacillate
dismiss
deprecate
11. Typically - partygoers are _____; hermits are not.
gregarious
ambiguous
metaphor
placate
12. Blind people sometimes develop a compensatory ability to sense the _____ of objects around them.
hierarchy
insipid
proximity
embellish
13. The defense lawyer confidently listened to the prosecutor sum up his case - sure that she could answer his arguments in her _____.
malicious
erudite
adversity
rebuttal
14. Don't bore your audience with excess verbiage; be _____.
adversity
sporadic
succinct
usurp
15. Stories in The New York Times often include _____ allusions to obscure people and events.
esoteric
guile
partisan
undermine
16. There is a fine line between speech that is _____ and to the point and speech so abrupt that it verges on rudeness.
terse
furtive
laconic
insipid
17. A miser hoards money - not because he is _____ - but because he is stingy.
mitigate
prudent
derivative
redundant
18. These endorsements written by satisfied customers _____ our claim that Barron's SAT is the best SAT-prep book on the market.
reprimand
substantiate
proliferation
explicit
19. In a brief essay - describe a person you admire - someone whose virtues and achievements you would like to _____.
benign
disparity
emulate
discerning
20. Although her early poetry was clearly _____ in nature - the critics thought she had promise and eventually would find her own voice.
recluse
reprove
derivative
guile
21. Compared to Jo - who was perfectly ready to chat with anyone about anything - Beth was _____ about what she considered personal matters.
turbulent
elucidate
retract
reticent
22. To win his audience - the speaker used every _____ trick in the book.
rhetorical
frivolous
austere
hypothetical
23. The uncrowned queen of the fashion industry - Diana was famous for her _____ taste.
impeccable
meticulous
haughtiness
gravity
24. Though Widow Douglas had hopes of reforming Huck - Miss Watson considered him _____ and swore he would come to no good end.
colloquial
mitigate
incorrigible
incite
25. At evening block inspection - the recruits' bunk room - washroom - and gear come under the inspecting officer's close _____.
discrepancy
disparity
scrutiny
astute
26. Violently disagreeing with the referees' ruling - Coach Ben became so _____ that they threw him out of the game.
malicious
garrulous
contentious
placate
27. Even though she knew she would be burned at the stake as a witch - Joan of Arc refused to _____ her belief that her voices came from God.
anecdote
specious
anarchy
renounce
28. Although her _____ smile and gentle bearing made Miss Marple seem to be a sweet little old lady - in reality she was a tough-minded - shrewd observer of human nature.
benign
opportunist
impair
garrulous
29. The Beatles expressed themselves through capricious - flip humor and _____ displays of carefree abandon.
esoteric
hierarchy
whimsical
incite
30. Although Georgia O'Keeffe painted subjects over the years - she had a definite _____ for painting flowers.
notoriety
inane
predilection
juxtaposition
31. After medical school - the two doctors took widely _____ paths - one becoming a wealthy plastic surgeon - the other joining the nonprofit Doctors Without Borders.
belie
derivative
divergent
adversity
32. Even the best-mannered students have trouble behaving with _____ on the last day of school.
criterion
decorum
document
superfluous
33. The architect realized that her design for the new school had to be in _____ with the local building code.
adversary
frivolous
compliance
instigate
34. I am a _____ about the proposed new health plan; I want some proof that it will work.
rebuttal
adulation
lethargic
skeptic
35. In Tibet today - the common people still _____ their traditional spiritual leader - the Dalai Lama.
hypothetical
venerate
allusion
cryptic
36. When Johnny came down with a bad case of poison oak - the doctor recommended calamine lotion to _____ the itching.
coercion
alleviate
feasible
criterion
37. Because Ann felt no desire to marry - she was _____ to Carl's constant proposals.
terse
indifferent
embellish
concise
38. Unlike Widow Douglas - who _____ Huck's minor offenses - Miss Watson did nothing but scold.
advocate
condone
strident
corroborate
39. Con artists take advantage of the _____ of inexperienced Internet users to gain access to their credit card information.
superfluous
credulity
compliance
prevalent
40. Flat prose and flat ginger are equally _____; both lack sparkle.
exacerbate
haughtiness
constraint
insipid
41. There's no point to what you're saying. Why are you bothering to make such _____ remarks?
furtive
vacillate
whimsical
inane
42. You had better _____ your accounting errors before the auditors arrive.
advocate
rectify
nonchalance
mollify
43. Because the student body at their daughter's prep school was so _____ - they decided to send her to a school that offered greater cultural diversity.
obdurate
censure
homogeneous
quandary
44. Although the movie star was no genius - she was sufficiently _____ to tell her true friends from the countless phonies who flattered her.
incorrigible
capricious
discerning
disdain
45. Othello's false friend lago uses considerable _____ to trick Othello into believing that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him
guile
subside
interpid
inadvertently
46. Disappointed in love - Miss Emily became a _____; she shut herself away in her empty mansion and refused to see another living soul.
gravity
verbose
pervasive
recluse
47. My Uncle Henry can out-talk any three people I know. he is the most _____ man in Cayuga County.
garrulous
banal
presumptuous
levity
48. The rich new student tried to attract friends by making an _____ display of his wealth.
altruistic
aesthetic
homogeneous
ostentatious
49. In the film Funny Face - the bookish heroine _____ fashion models for their lack of intellectual interests.
elucidate
redundant
disdain
induce
50. To revise a textbook properly - you must do more than make a few _____ changes to the manuscript.
pervasive
profound
superficial
repudiate