Vocabulary List
Exercise 1: Matching
Match each word with the correct definition.
- Banal _____
- Bane _____
- Bastion _____
- Beget _____
- Belabor _____
- Beleaguer _____
- Belie _____
- Belittle _____
- Belligerent _____
- Bemused _____
- Benefactor _____
- Benevolent _____
- Benign _____
- Bequest _____
- Bereaved _____
- Beset _____
- Blasphemy _____
- Blatant _____
- Blight _____
- Blithe _____
- Bourgeois _____
- Bovine _____
- Canine _____
- Feline _____
- Porcine _____
- Ursine _____
- Brevity _____
- Broach _____
- Bucolic _____
- Bureaucracy _____
- Burgeon _____
- Burlesque _____
B. to bring up a topic
C. ordinary and unoriginal
D. relating to bears
E. to surround with difficulties
F. to make something seem less important
G. relating to dogs
H. a stronghold or place of defense
I. to produce or cause
J. calm, gentle, or harmless
K. relating to pigs
L. aggressive or eager to fight
M. confused or puzzled
N. someone who gives help, especially money
O. a gift left in a will
P. grieving after a death
Q. disrespect toward something sacred
R. obvious in an offensive way
S. a harmful influence or cause of ruin
T. carefree or unconcerned
U. middle-class; concerned with material comfort
V. relating to cows
W. relating to cats
X. shortness in speech or writing
Y. countryside-like; rural and peaceful
Z. a complicated system of officials and rules
AA. to grow or increase rapidly
BB. a comic imitation or parody
CC. a cause of trouble or misery
DD. to repeat or explain too much
EE. to give a false impression
FF. to trouble or attack from all sides
Show Matching Answer Key
1-C, 2-CC, 3-H, 4-I, 5-DD, 6-FF, 7-EE, 8-F, 9-L, 10-M, 11-N, 12-A, 13-J, 14-O, 15-P, 16-E, 17-Q, 18-R, 19-S, 20-T, 21-U, 22-V, 23-G, 24-W, 25-K, 26-D, 27-X, 28-B, 29-Y, 30-Z, 31-AA, 32-BB
Exercise 2: Gap Filling
Choose the best word from the word bank to complete each sentence.
- The teacher disliked the student’s _____ answer because it was dull and predictable.
- For many students, careless reading is the _____ of high SSAT scores.
- The old library became a _____ of serious learning.
- Small mistakes can _____ larger problems if they are ignored.
- Do not _____ the point; explain it once and move on.
- The exhausted team was _____ by injuries and bad weather.
- His calm face seemed to _____ the fear he felt inside.
- A good teacher should never _____ a struggling student.
- The _____ customer shouted at everyone in the store.
- The student looked _____ after reading the difficult sentence.
- The school’s new science lab was paid for by a generous _____.
- The king was remembered as a _____ ruler who cared for the poor.
- The doctor said the small growth was _____ and not dangerous.
- The museum received a valuable _____ from a former student.
- The _____ family gathered quietly after the funeral.
- The town was _____ by floods, disease, and hunger.
- In the strict temple, disrespectful words were treated as _____.
- His cheating was so _____ that everyone noticed immediately.
- The disease became a _____ on the once-healthy crops.
- She had a _____ attitude and ignored the danger.
- The novel criticizes _____ values such as comfort, money, and status.
- The animal moved with a slow, _____ expression.
- The police brought in a _____ unit to track the missing child.
- The cat had a graceful, _____ movement.
- The farmer complained about the animal’s _____ smell.
- The bear’s huge body gave it an _____ appearance.
- The speech was powerful because of its _____.
- It was difficult to _____ the subject of poor grades with the parents.
- The poem describes a peaceful, _____ village.
- The project was delayed by government _____.
- After the rain, flowers began to _____ across the hillside.
- The comedy show was a wild _____ of serious politics.
Show Gap Filling Answer Key
1. banal, 2. bane, 3. bastion, 4. beget, 5. belabor, 6. beleaguered, 7. belie, 8. belittle, 9. belligerent, 10. bemused, 11. benefactor, 12. benevolent, 13. benign, 14. bequest, 15. bereaved, 16. beset, 17. blasphemy, 18. blatant, 19. blight, 20. blithe, 21. bourgeois, 22. bovine, 23. canine, 24. feline, 25. porcine, 26. ursine, 27. brevity, 28. broach, 29. bucolic, 30. bureaucracy, 31. burgeon, 32. burlesque
Exercise 3: Paragraph Using All Words
Read the paragraph and notice how each vocabulary word is used in context.
In a once bucolic village, a benevolent benefactor left a generous bequest to build a library, hoping it would become a bastion of learning rather than a victim of bureaucracy. At first, the villagers were bemused by the plan, but soon new ideas began to burgeon. One belligerent official tried to belittle the project and belabor every minor problem, claiming that the library would beget chaos. His calm words, however, could not belie his selfish motives. The village had already been beset by the bane of ignorance, and many people believed that another delay would be a blight on the community.
Near the town square, a bereaved widow arrived with a canine companion, a feline kitten, and stories about bovine, porcine, and even ursine creatures from her childhood farm. Her speech was admired for its brevity, though she dared to broach difficult subjects such as greed and false pride. Some called her criticism blasphemy against local tradition, but the corruption she exposed was too blatant to ignore. Meanwhile, the children watched a cheerful burlesque in the park, laughing with blithe innocence at the banal jokes. Even the most bourgeois citizens finally admitted that the library was not merely a benign improvement, but a necessary beginning.