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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. Othello's false friend lago uses considerable _____ to trick Othello into believing that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him
credulity
garrulous
haughtiness
guile
2. To win his audience - the speaker used every _____ trick in the book.
relegate
rhetorical
partisan
elucidate
3. Though Glenn was devout - he was no _____; he never tried to force his beliefs on friends.
brevity
ephemeral
zealot
prevalent
4. The attorney came up with several far-fetched arguments in a vain attempt to _____ his weak case.
obdurate
haughtiness
soporific
buttress
5. Rather than live in the crowded city center - we chose to buy a house in one of the _____ suburbs ringing the metropolis.
peripheral
incorrigible
acclaim
retract
6. Uninterested in philosophical or spiritual discussions - Max talked only of _____ matters - such as the daily weather forecast or the latest basketball results.
mundane
equivocal
adversary
expedient
7. 'Any publicity is good publicity - 'said the starlet. 'If I can't have a good reputation - I'll settle for _____.'
notoriety
undermine
exacerbate
document
8. 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.
ironic
abridge
specious
rancor
9. It is _____ that his success came when he least wanted it.
surpass
furtive
meticulous
ironic
10. Typically - partygoers are _____; hermits are not.
gregarious
juxtaposition
levity
abridge
11. Government agents have been known to use wiretapping and other _____ methods to spy on suspected terrorists.
surreptitious
inane
surpass
placate
12. Thoroughly baffled by Holmes's _____ remarks - Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.
censure
hyperbole
rancor
cryptic
13. The legendary athlete Jim Thorpe - who _____ all his competitors at the 1912 Olympic Games - made a name for himself in baseball - football - and track.
succinct
surpass
coercion
frivolous
14. The senator was _____ for behavior inappropriate to a member of Congress.
reserve
meticulous
incite
censure
15. Although some girls were attracted by Mark's air of _____ - Judy was put off by it - for she felt his aloofness indicated a lack of openness.
endorse
reserve
abstract
colloquial
16. Towering over the nearby houses - the MacMansion looked wholly _____ in the historic neighborhood of small Craftsman bungalows.
hyperbole
incongruous
volatile
transient
17. The bottle of wine I brought to Sharon's party was certainly _____: how was I to know that Sharon owned a winery?
incongruous
inane
redundant
juxtaposition
18. Through the comments of the characters in his cartoon strip - Doonesbury - Gary Trudeau ridicules political corruption; his humor is _____ in nature.
embellish
satirical
disseminate
transient
19. The Head Start program attempts to _____ prekindergarten children so that they will do well when they enter elementary school.
nurture
inane
gregarious
expedient
20. With its worn-out dialogue and predictable plot - the sitcom struck me as unbearably _____.
detachment
banal
hierarchy
coercion
21. Although defeat appeared inevitable - the general was _____ in his refusal to surrender.
oblivion
inane
obdurate
erudite
22. An occasional glass of wine with dinner is relatively _____ and should have no ill effect on you.
innocuous
turbulent
abstract
arbitrary
23. Although the University of California at Berkeley is just one part of the state university system - in many ways - Cal Berkeley is _____ - for it runs several programs that are not subject to state control.
autonomous
assumption
extricate
verbose
24. The headmaster's _____ demeanor tended to care off the more timid students - who never visited his study willingly.
ambiguous
austere
superfluous
criterion
25. No matter how hard Darnell tried to lure the trout into taking the bait - the fish was too _____ to catch.
elusive
ephemeral
anarchy
rebuttal
26. The infant Mozart's parents quickly realized that their son had an _____ gift for music.
jocular
innate
ephemeral
whimsical
27. On certain issues of principle - the senator refused to take a _____ stand - but let her conscience be her guide.
esoteric
partisan
rhetorical
emulate
28. In a brief essay - describe a person you admire - someone whose virtues and achievements you would like to _____.
placate
derivative
prolific
emulate
29. The museum curator placed the Eskimo-carved wooden totem pole in _____ with two contemporary stone masks from Africa - creating a stunning effect.
juxtaposition
laconic
scrupulous
levity
30. Flat prose and flat ginger are equally _____; both lack sparkle.
insipid
sporadic
condone
inane
31. 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.
discrepancy
incite
esoteric
document
32. Nobody minded when Professor Renoir's lectures wandered away from their official them; his _____ were always more fascinating than the topic of the day.
derivative
deprecate
opportunist
digression
33. Shrewdly purchasing valuable plots of land for small sums - John Jacob Astor gained a reputation as an _____ investor.
inane
explicit
astute
garrulous
34. There is a fine line between speech that is _____ and to the point and speech so abrupt that it verges on rudeness.
constraint
rhetorical
reprove
terse
35. A firm believer in democratic government - she could not understand the _____ of people who never bothered to vote.
skeptic
apathy
enhance
interpid
36. Stories in The New York Times often include _____ allusions to obscure people and events.
esoteric
interpid
partisan
transient
37. No wonder Ted doesn't think straight! His mind is so cluttered with _____ information that he can't concentrate on the essentials.
hyperbole
extraneous
vacillate
buttress
38. In Tibet today - the common people still _____ their traditional spiritual leader - the Dalai Lama.
placate
venerate
gregarious
expedient
39. The doctor assured the boy's parents that his fever would eventually _____.
renounce
coercion
subside
exacerbate
40. The conceited rap star relished the _____ he received from his groupies and yes-men.
renounce
strident
taciturn
adulation
41. His coarse - hard-bitten exterior _____ his inner sensitivity.
belie
opportunist
retract
satirical
42. Covering the Olympic Games - the sportscasters _____ every American victory and grumbled about every American defeat.
instigate
dogmatic
gregarious
acclaim
43. The architect realized that her design for the new school had to be in _____ with the local building code.
implement
extol
advocate
compliance
44. The winter storm was ______; it changed course constantly.
fervor
conciliatory
levity
capricious
45. The rich new student tried to attract friends by making an _____ display of his wealth.
buttress
ambivalence
ostentatious
extricate
46. The fact that the band was already booked to play in Hollywood on New year's Eve _____ their accepting the gig in London.
heresy
skeptic
preclude
impair
47. 'Judicial activism' is the alleged tendency of some judges to _____ the power of elected legislatures by making the law rather than merely interpreting it.
subside
notoriety
usurp
austere
48. When I saw how Fred and his fraternity brothers had trashed the frat house - I decided to _____ my offer to let them use our summer cottage over spring break.
endorse
eclectic
elucidate
retract
49. 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.
interpid
presumptuous
partisan
ascetic
50. At evening block inspection - the recruits' bunk room - washroom - and gear come under the inspecting officer's close _____.
acclaim
scrutiny
zealot
ostentatious