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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. My editors must assume I'm a _____ writer; they expect me to revise six books this year.
anarchy
homogeneous
hypothetical
prolific
2. Their _____ in rank made no difference at all to the prince and Cinderella.
nonchalance
disparity
conciliatory
turbulent
3. The rich new student tried to attract friends by making an _____ display of his wealth.
predilection
relegate
ostentatious
assumption
4. The senator was _____ for behavior inappropriate to a member of Congress.
affirmation
undermine
censure
resigned
5. Rather than live in the crowded city center - we chose to buy a house in one of the _____ suburbs ringing the metropolis.
prudent
peripheral
aesthetic
document
6. 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.
specious
exemplary
mitigate
reticent
7. I am a _____ about the proposed new health plan; I want some proof that it will work.
disparage
vacillate
whimsical
skeptic
8. Is an old-fashioned hairstyle an apt _____ for being out of step with the times and in need of change?
incite
predilection
metaphor
adulation
9. Without additional funding - it may not be _____ to build a new stadium for the team on the city's highly developed West Side.
ambivalence
feasible
nurture
inadvertently
10. You can _____ your chances of being admitted to the college of your choice by learning to write well.
enhance
innate
peripheral
document
11. 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.
zealot
benign
garrulous
sporadic
12. The headmaster's _____ demeanor tended to care off the more timid students - who never visited his study willingly.
nurture
skeptic
transient
austere
13. The mayfly is an _____ creature; its adult life lasts little more than a day.
levity
ephemeral
specious
anecdote
14. By their use of the Internet - propagandists have been able to _____ their pet doctrines to new audiences around the globe.
substantiate
disseminate
astute
resolution
15. Stop giggling and wriggling around in the pew; such _____ is improper in church.
autonomous
levity
extol
reserve
16. Disappointed in love - Miss Emily became a _____; she shut herself away in her empty mansion and refused to see another living soul.
insipid
fastidious
vacillate
recluse
17. On certain issues of principle - the senator refused to take a _____ stand - but let her conscience be her guide.
partisan
heresy
taciturn
exuberance
18. To win his audience - the speaker used every _____ trick in the book.
innate
mitigate
rhetorical
nurture
19. She kept all the receipts form her business trip in order to _____ her expenses for the Internal Revenue Service.
ephemeral
specious
cursory
document
20. Covering the Olympic Games - the sportscasters _____ every American victory and grumbled about every American defeat.
prolific
incorrigible
soporific
acclaim
21. Compared to Jo - who was perfectly ready to chat with anyone about anything - Beth was _____ about what she considered personal matters.
impede
preclude
reticent
usurp
22. Icebreakers were needed to _____ the trapped whales from the icy floes that closed them in.
extricate
impair
hypothetical
scrutiny
23. There is a fine line between speech that is _____ and to the point and speech so abrupt that it verges on rudeness.
terse
venerate
volatile
enhance
24. When both Harvard and Stanford accepted Laura - she was in a _____ as to which school she should attend.
impeccable
quandary
document
profane
25. After medical school - the two doctors took widely _____ paths - one becoming a wealthy plastic surgeon - the other joining the nonprofit Doctors Without Borders.
anarchy
disparity
divergent
incite
26. When you place a phone call from an airplane - _____ is essential; you are charged for every minute.
opulence
extricate
renounce
brevity
27. Though his fellow students considered him a gifted scholar - Paul knew he would have to spend many years in serious study before he could consider himself truly _____.
benign
hyperbole
erudite
acclaim
28. To revise a textbook properly - you must do more than make a few _____ changes to the manuscript.
superficial
surreptitious
ostentatious
nonchalance
29. Although Georgia O'Keeffe painted many subjects over the years - she had a definite _____ for painting flowers.
predilection
exemplary
meticulous
repudiate
30. 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
prudent
inherent
specious
31. No matter how hard Darnell tried to lure the trout into taking the bait - the fish was too _____ to catch.
recluse
mitigate
rebuttal
elusive
32. The airline customer service agent tried to _____ the angry passenger by offering her a seat in first class.
astute
extol
mollify
furtive
33. At commencement - the dean praised Ellen for her _____ behavior as class president.
exemplary
incite
astute
autonomous
34. Though Huck was quite willing to _____ Tom's story - Aunt Polly knew better than to believe either of them.
esoteric
disdain
vacillate
corroborate
35. Bobby was such a _____ eater that he would eat a sandwich only if his mother first cut off every scrap of crust.
superficial
transient
deprecate
fastidious
36. Instead of delivering a spoken _____ at Genny's memorial service - Jeff sang a song he had written in her honor.
benign
prolific
elusive
eulogy
37. The governor's appointment of his brother-in-law to the State Supreme Court was a _____ violation of the state laws against nepotism.
flagrant
embellish
refute
compliance
38. It is _____ that his success came when he least wanted it.
malicious
ironic
interpid
detachment
39. The young princess made the foolish _____ that the regent would not object to her taking the reins of power.
assumption
colloquial
taciturn
rhetorical
40. To be low man on the totem pole is to have a decidedly inferior place in the _____.
hierarchy
laconic
malicious
alleviate
41. The architect realized that her design for the new school had to be in _____ with the local building code.
compliance
reticent
ambiguous
presumptuous
42. No wonder Ted doesn't think straight! His mind is so cluttered with _____ information that he can't concentrate on the essentials.
extraneous
incite
prudent
terse
43. The inquisitors used both physical and psychological _____ to force Joan of Arc to deny that her visions were sent by God.
exuberance
profane
coercion
exacerbate
44. Stories in The New York Times often include _____ allusions to obscure people and events.
surreptitious
verbose
metaphor
esoteric
45. Times of economic hardship inevitably encourage the _____ of countless get-rich-quick schemes.
disdain
acclaim
subside
proliferation
46. The attorney came up with several far-fetched arguments in a vain attempt to _____ his weak case.
derivative
buttress
recount
colloquial
47. The young wrestler struggled to defeat his formidable _____.
adversary
jocular
lavish
criterion
48. Using only a few descriptive phrases - Austen manages to _____ the character of Mr. Collins so deftly that we can predict his every move.
soporific
delineate
hyperbole
impeccable
49. In Tibet today - the common people still _____ their traditional spiritual leader - the Dalai Lama.
venerate
disparity
gravity
haughtiness
50. The classic cowboy hero is a _____ figure - someone generally described as the strong - silent type.
meticulous
laconic
deprecate
reprove