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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 winter storm was ______; it changed course constantly.
brevity
disparity
capricious
impede
2. Although Alfred _____ in fulfilling his duties at work - he is less conscientious about meeting his obligations at home.
cryptic
scrupulous
embellish
debilitate
3. Their _____ in rank made no difference at all to the prince and Cinderella.
disparity
profane
prudent
oblivion
4. As far as I'm concerned - Apple's claims about its new computer are pure _____; no machine is that good!
hyperbole
retract
criterion
disdain
5. Othello's false friend lago uses considerable _____ to trick Othello into believing that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him
strident
relegate
guile
ascetic
6. Icebreakers were needed to _____ the trapped whales from the icy floes that closed them in.
preclude
extricate
nurture
decorum
7. Cool - calm - and collected - James Bond shows remarkable _____ in the face of danger.
esoteric
nonchalance
advocate
proliferation
8. The senator was _____ for behavior inappropriate to a member of Congress.
indifferent
reprove
derivative
censure
9. Uncertain which suitor she ought to accept - the princess _____ - first favoring one and then the other.
hierarchy
innate
resolution
vacillate
10. Whenever Sue was angry - she tried to avoid raising her voice because she had no wish to sound _____.
superficial
placate
lethargic
strident
11. Nobody minded when Professor Renoir's lectures wandered away from their official them; his _____ were always more fascinating than the topic of the day.
digression
satirical
dogmatic
proliferation
12. Although you can still hear _____ outbursts of laughter and signing outside - the Halloween parade has passed; the party is over till next year.
inadvertently
adversity
sporadic
substantiate
13. Stories in The New York Times often include _____ allusions to obscure people and events.
haughtiness
esoteric
constraint
profane
14. 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.
dismiss
garrulous
reserve
verbose
15. No wonder Ted doesn't think straight! His mind is so cluttered with _____ information that he can't concentrate on the essentials.
recluse
strident
ironic
extraneous
16. Despite airing her clothes for several hours - she could not rid them of the _____ odor of mothballs that clung to them.
cryptic
ambiguous
pervasive
venerate
17. The headmaster's _____ demeanor tended to care off the more timid students - who never visited his study willingly.
furtive
cursory
nurture
austere
18. 'Judicial activism' is the alleged tendency of some judges to _____ the power of elected legislatures by making the law rather than merely interpreting it.
elucidate
usurp
gregarious
whimsical
19. When acacias are in bloom - the increase of pollen in the air _____ Richard's hay fever.
exacerbate
alleviate
cryptic
ephemeral
20. Nothing could shake his _____ that his children would get the best education that money could buy.
resolution
criterion
lavish
conciliatory
21. The mayfly is an _____ creature; its adult life lasts little more than a day.
anarchy
gravity
recluse
ephemeral
22. The rich new student tried to attract friends by making an _____ display of his wealth.
flagrant
substantiate
ostentatious
disparage
23. Because she was a firm believer in old-fashioned courtesy - Miss Post _____ the modern tendency to address new acquaintances by their first names.
deprecate
strident
ephemeral
extol
24. My Uncle Henry can out-talk any three people I know. he is the most _____ man in Cayuga County.
predilection
garrulous
capricious
surreptitious
25. 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.
scrupulous
esoteric
specious
furtive
26. Rejecting the candidate's _____ comments on tax reform - the reporter pressed him to state clearly where he stood on the issue.
lethargic
equivocal
preclude
garrulous
27. Typically - partygoers are _____; hermits are not.
gregarious
immutable
scrupulous
anarchy
28. Because a _____ examination of the ruins indicates the possibility of arson - we believe the insurance agency should undertake a more thorough investigation of the fire's cause.
cursory
succinct
indifferent
dismiss
29. A doting mother - Emma was more likely to praise her son's childish finger paintings than to _____ them.
disparage
taciturn
instigate
cryptic
30. The glitter and _____ of the ballroom took Cinderella's breath away.
constraint
concise
taciturn
opulence
31. The beauty of Tiffany's stained glass appealed to Esther's _____ sense.
usurp
whimsical
aesthetic
heresy
32. The reviewers praised the new restaurant's _____ selection of dishes - which ranged from Asian stir fries to French ragouts and stews.
verbose
extraneous
eclectic
discrepancy
33. The Beatles expressed themselves through capricious - flip humor and _____ displays of carefree abandon.
whimsical
deprecate
skeptic
turbulent
34. The airline customer service agent tried to _____ the angry passenger by offering her a seat in first class.
mollify
cryptic
satirical
heresy
35. The fact that the band was already booked to play in Hollywood on New year's Eve _____ their accepting the gig in London.
adversary
preclude
flagrant
rancor
36. 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.
levity
garrulous
reticent
retract
37. Paradoxically - _____ reasoning does not always produce incorrect results; even though your logic may be flawed - the conclusion you reach may still be correct.
fallacious
proximity
strident
taciturn
38. The inquisitors used both physical and psychological _____ to force Joan of Arc to deny that her visions were sent by God.
mitigate
corroborate
recount
coercion
39. Although defeat appeared inevitable - the general was _____ in his refusal to surrender.
scrupulous
obdurate
subside
pragmatic
40. Bobby was such a _____ eater that he would eat a sandwich only if his mother first cut off every scrap of crust.
alleviate
aesthetic
abstract
fastidious
41. Shrewdly purchasing valuable plots of land for small sums - John Jacob Astor gained a reputation as an _____ investor.
astute
opulence
belie
garrulous
42. My editors must assume I'm a _____ writer; they expect me to revise six books this year.
prolific
profound
guile
elusive
43. Con artists take advantage of the _____ of inexperienced Internet users to gain access to their credit card information.
credulity
adversity
ostentatious
gregarious
44. After the quarrel - Gina said nothing could _____ her to talk to Pedro again.
flagrant
buttress
affirmation
induce
45. The infant Mozart's parents quickly realized that their son had an _____ gift for music.
relegate
extricate
innate
document
46. A pragmatic politician - he was guided more by what was _____ than by what was right.
frivolous
taciturn
expedient
terse
47. The doctor assured the boy's parents that his fever would eventually _____.
astute
criterion
subside
extraneous
48. No matter how hard Darnell tried to lure the trout into taking the bait - the fish was too _____ to catch.
elusive
peripheral
colloquial
repudiate
49. Because Carmen believed in Juan's fidelity - she _____ the notion that he might be having an affair.
peripheral
opulence
dismiss
nurture
50. She kept all the receipts form her business trip in order to _____ her expenses for the Internal Revenue Service.
extraneous
aesthetic
assumption
document