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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. I am a _____ about the proposed new health plan; I want some proof that it will work.
venerate
compliance
erudite
skeptic
2. When Amanda said to the ticket scalper - 'One hundred bucks? What do you want - a pound of flesh?' she was making an _____ to Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice.
allusion
gravity
quandary
conciliatory
3. The fact that the band was already booked to play in Hollywood on New year's Eve _____ their accepting the gig in London.
flagrant
hyperbole
nonchalance
preclude
4. When both Harvard and Stanford accepted Laura - she was in a _____ as to which school she should attend.
reprimand
discerning
quandary
ambivalence
5. Tourists are urged not to _____ the sanctity of holy places by wearing immodest garb.
profane
meticulous
superfluous
pervasive
6. Judy's great fear was that she might _____ omit a question on the exam and mismark her entire answer sheet.
astute
inadvertently
eclectic
scrupulous
7. Galileo's assertion that the earth moved around the sun directly contradicted the religious teachings of his day; as a result - he was tried for _____.
haughtiness
austere
heresy
acclaim
8. No wonder Ted doesn't think straight! His mind is so cluttered with _____ information that he can't concentrate on the essentials.
disparity
inherent
extraneous
capricious
9. Paradoxically - _____ reasoning does not always produce incorrect results; even though your logic may be flawed - the conclusion you reach may still be correct.
abstract
dismiss
fallacious
rectify
10. Politicians of both the extreme right and left annoy me because they do not sound like people but parrots mindlessly repeating _____ clich
digression
dogmatic
reserve
cryptic
11. 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.
embellish
austere
feasible
renounce
12. In a fiery speech - Mario _____ his fellow students to go out on strike to protest the university's anti-affirmative action stand.
austere
incite
derivative
dogmatic
13. Because Webster's dictionary had grown so large and unwieldy - the publishers decided to _____ it and bring out a condensed version.
pervasive
usurp
abridge
assumption
14. Though Widow Douglas had hopes of reforming Huck - Miss Watson considered him _____ and swore he would come to no good end.
adversity
mitigate
incorrigible
dismiss
15. These endorsements written by satisfied customers _____ our claim that Barron's SAT is the best SAT-prep book on the market.
substantiate
impede
soporific
partisan
16. Compared to Jo - who was perfectly ready to chat with anyone about anything - Beth was _____ about what she considered personal matters.
reticent
nurture
soporific
rectify
17. The wealthy - self-indulgent young man felt oddly drawn to the strict - _____ lifestyle practiced by members of some monastic orders.
ascetic
eclectic
refute
affirmation
18. Despite Tom's _____ of innocence - Aunt Polly suspected he had eaten the pie.
advocate
elucidate
placate
affirmation
19. The mayfly is an _____ creature; its adult life lasts little more than a day.
ephemeral
rebuttal
anarchy
cryptic
20. The glitter and _____ of the ballroom took Cinderella's breath away.
guile
criterion
indifferent
opulence
21. A doting mother - Emma was more likely to praise her son's childish finger paintings than to _____ them.
hierarchy
debilitate
incorrigible
disparage
22. The reviewers praised the new restaurant's _____ selection of dishes - which ranged from Asian stir fries to French ragouts and stews.
eclectic
verbose
eulogy
pragmatic
23. The defense called several respectable witnesses who were able to _____ the lying testimony of the prosecution's sole witness.
relegate
refute
predilection
ostentatious
24. Cool - calm - and collected - James Bond shows remarkable _____ in the face of danger.
divergent
anecdote
disparity
nonchalance
25. No matter how hard Darnell tried to lure the trout into taking the bait - the fish was too _____ to catch.
elusive
profound
recount
oblivion
26. Is an old-fashioned hairstyle an apt _____ for being out of step with the times and in need of change?
predilection
haughtiness
quandary
metaphor
27. In the film Funny Face - the bookish heroine _____ fashion models for their lack of intellectual interests.
ephemeral
pervasive
disdain
explicit
28. The costume designer _____ the leading lady's ball gown with yards and yards of ribbon and lace.
embellish
refute
banal
fallacious
29. You can _____ your chances of being admitted to the college of your choice by learning to write well.
partisan
enhance
disparage
incongruous
30. After separating from Tony - Tina announced that she would _____ all debts incurred by her soon-to-be-ex-husband.
peripheral
pervasive
assumption
repudiate
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.
induce
discrepancy
alleviate
concise
32. Seeking the end of slavery - the abolitionists _____ freedom for the slaves.
incorrigible
advocate
condone
esoteric
33. In a brief essay - describe a person you admire - someone whose virtues and achievements you would like to _____.
discerning
satirical
adversity
emulate
34. Their _____ in rank made no difference at all to the prince and Cinderella.
dismiss
banal
enhance
disparity
35. Violently disagreeing with the referees' ruling - Coach Ben became so _____ that they threw him out of the game.
arbitrary
contentious
dismiss
hypothetical
36. The winter storm was ______; it changed course constantly.
elusive
elucidate
zealot
capricious
37. Despite airing her clothes for several hours - she could not rid them of the _____ odor of mothballs that clung to them.
opulence
disparage
conciliatory
pervasive
38. At the protest rally - the students cheered the strikers and booed the dean with equal _____.
fervor
scrutiny
instigate
relegate
39. Othello's false friend lago uses considerable _____ to trick Othello into believing that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him
belie
guile
elusive
peripheral
40. Nothing could shake his _____ that his children would get the best education that money could buy.
gregarious
allusion
resolution
extraneous
41. What _____ did you use when you selected this essay as the prizewinner?
criterion
jocular
abstract
taciturn
42. 'Any publicity is good publicity - 'said the starlet. 'If I can't have a good reputation - I'll settle for _____.'
notoriety
innate
disdain
superficial
43. The classic cowboy hero is a _____ figure - someone generally described as the strong - silent type.
transient
laconic
astute
elusive
44. Her wealthy suitors wooed her with _____ gifts.
derivative
discerning
lavish
abridge
45. 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.
abstract
laconic
ambiguous
autonomous
46. It is _____ that his success came when he least wanted it.
credulity
opulence
ironic
gregarious
47. After Ralph dropped his second try of drinks that week - the manager swiftly _____ him to a minor post behind the bar.
relegate
acclaim
garrulous
partisan
48. When Johnny came down with a bad case of poison oak - the doctor recommended calamine lotion to _____ the itching.
cryptic
impede
whimsical
alleviate
49. After medical school - the two doctors took widely _____ paths - one becoming a wealthy plastic surgeon - the other joining the nonprofit Doctors Without Borders.
predilection
divergent
terse
impeccable
50. After a decade of popularity - Hurston's works had fallen into _____; no one bothered to read her novels and short stories any more.
recount
venerate
scrutiny
oblivion