DRILL 5

Question 1

By reordering the sentences in the problem and adding distracting figures, the professor successfully _______ a previously easy exam question and made it almost impossible to solve.

    engendered

    muddled

    interpreted

    erased

    obliterated

    obfuscated

Question 2

Because she always had the correct answers to life’s difficult dilemmas, my grandmother was sought after for her _______ by family members and neighbors.

    duplicity

    wisdom

    bewilderment

    ignorance

    sagacity

    guile

Question 3

The _______ road, made what seemed like a short trip on a map much longer in reality; it twisted its way through mountains to get from one valley to another.

    abbreviated

    invigorating

    fleeting

    immense

    serpentine

    tortuous

Question 4

Classmates who had pre-judged Lucy as unaware were surprised when she made the _______ observation that their professor’s missing coffee mug indicated that he had left for the day.

    asinine

    perceptive

    obtuse

    transparent

    astute

    lucid

Question 5

Madeline’s guests all agreed that had it not been for the terrible weather, her wedding day, complete with white dress and three-tiered cake, would have been _______.

    urban

    divine

    excessive

    disproportionate

    idyllic

    rustic

Question 6

The Shakespeare scholar argued that in all of the playwright’s 37 works, he had never written the part of a _______ character, only relying on vibrant and colorful individuals to propel his stories forward.

    pedestrian

    original

    imperial

    domineering

    extraordinary

    mundane

Question 7

The intricate, complex photographic process of the daguerreotype contributed to the rapid development of numerous related processes, a _______ that included tintypes and calotypes.

    proliferation

    stagnation

    primogenitor

    archetype

    antiquity

    burgeoning

Question 8

The athlete, once well respected for his work with the anti-drug programs, was scorned for his _______ nature when medical tests proved he’d been using steroids for years.

    esteemed

    felonious

    sanguine

    disingenuous

    buoyant

    duplicitous

Question 9

The protestors acknowledged the leader’s appeal to _______ violence, and walked quietly in the funeral processions instead of throwing rocks at police officers.

    mollify

    abjure

    eschew

    condone

    glorify

    manifest

Question 10

Diecast truck manufacturers release limited edition models and others with obscure commercial advertising in order to _______ their trucks and ensure that certain items become dedicated collectibles instead of toys.

    rarefy

    circulate

    investigate

    subtilize

    spur

    incite

Question 11

The phacellophora camtschatica, which can grow up to two feet in diameter, is more commonly referred to as the Fried Egg jellyfish because of its white bell and cloudy yellow organs, which give its tentacles a _______, semi-transparent look.

    caustic

    resplendent

    natatory

    diaphanous

    calamitous

    gossamer

Question 12

Before the Clone Wars, the Jedi were a powerful peace-keeping force in the galaxy, but they were unable to avoid _______ after Palpatine called out Order 66, which reprogrammed every clone trooper to immediately assassinate his Jedi masters.

    decimation

    sovereignty

    annihilation

    ingenuity

    misrepresentation

    ascendancy

Question 13

Hollywood studios, usually guided by their penchant for hiring A-list movie stars, are rethinking their strategies in an economy more suited to hiring _______ actors who command far less per picture than their celebrity counterparts, who can cost studios upwards of 15 or 20 million dollars for one movie.

    luminary

    renowned

    fledgling

    neoteric

    exorbitant

    iniquitous

Question 14

Joseph was never outwardly perturbed by bad news, and was known as the _______ of composure.

    quintessence

    bane

    rector

    epitome

    antithesis

    regent

Question 15

The President could not tolerate dissent from his views, and so he only appointed people to his cabinet who were more _______ than advisors.

    pundits

    sycophants

    cynics

    toadies

    partisans

    authoritarians

Question 16

The young poet feared that her career may have prematurely reached its _______ after reading the encomium with which her first publication was met.

    apogee

    auspice

    coda

    nadir

    perigee

    zenith

Question 17

The philosopher’s arguments were so _______ that it was nearly impossible to follow the logic from his premises to his conclusion.

    rhetorical

    libertine

    labyrinthine

    unscrupulous

    byzantine

    decorous

Question 18

After his embezzlement was discovered, the CEO was _______ by board members, shareholders, and customers alike.

    cachinnated

    blandished

    upbraided

    simpered

    caviled

    lambasted

Question 19

While the new bistro’s service was absolutely punctilious, the cuisine was rather _______.

    obsequious

    quotidian

    distasteful

    pedestrian

    gustatory

    pedantic

Question 20

After mispronouncing the name of the leader of an allied nation, the Secretary was quite ashamed; she had never before heard such _______ levied against her as the leader’s angry response.

    a laudation

    a dictum

    a panegyric

    an approbation

    an invective

    a vituperation