Book1 (1)

I was filled with a mix of rapt admiration and __________ fear.

abject

I didn't want to hear the __________ details of their relationship.

sordid

It will __________ them to dispose of their booty.

avail

They were finally forced to __________ to the terrorists' demands.

capitulate

They only made a __________ effort.

perfunctory

He gave the report a rather __________ look.

cursory

The women wore veils in __________ to the customs of the country.

deference

The organisms can be divided into __________ categories.

discrete

It is a critic’s job to follow every __________ fashion.

ephemeral

An __________ father who refused to pay maintenance for his children.

errant

The disease was controlled by the simple __________ of not allowing anyone to leave the city.

expedient

__________ violence on television.

gratuitous

These policies are __________ to the interests of society.

inimical

The joke provided a moment of __________ in an otherwise dreary meeting.

levity

The email was __________ in tone.

peremptory

Her face was a __________ reminder of the passing of time.

poignant

The book does not __________ to be a complete history of the period.

purport

She was shy and __________.

reticent

He battled on, in the __________ conviction that he was in the right.

sublime

The __________ threads of a spider’s web.

tenuous

The president was a __________ old man with white hair and a gracious manner.

venerable

He makes unpredictable, __________ decisions.

arbitrary

A __________ night’s sleep.

fitful

They had to contend with __________ economic forces.

capricious

She murmured some __________ phrases of encouragement.

banal

The truth of his __________ was confirmed by the newspaper report.

conjecture

A __________ kiss.

decorous

I was reluctant to __________ myself in his problems.

embroil

The books were intended for the __________ of the masses.

edification

A programme of music for everyone, even those with the most __________ taste.

esoteric

__________ clothes/colours.

garish

A __________ phrase/subject.

hackneyed

An __________ manner.

obsequious

Stop __________ and come to the point.

prevaricating

__________ was the foundation of the wise man's counsel.

Sagacity

__________ criticism.

strident

She gave a __________ smile.

supercilious

In the heat they sank into a state of __________.

torpor

There's not a __________ of truth in the rumour.

vestige

Robbie obeyed with __________ for somehow there was that in him which judged it best to obey Mrs. Weston, without as much as a scrap of hesitation.

alacrity

Though of noble __________, he wore the garb of an ordinary warrior.

bearing

The __________ route from Baltimore to Annapolis took them on and off the same road.

circuitous

I knew I had been harsh, but I did not want to __________ the whole ship of negotiations.

capsize

He stared at me for a moment with an odd expression on his face—perhaps surprise, perhaps __________.

consternation

I could see she despised me, marking with all the snobbery of her class that I was humble, shy and __________.

diffident

The Empress was fascinated by his genius, and __________ him to visit Russia without delay.

enjoined

Every other nation has folk traditions of men who were poor but extremely wise and virtuous, and therefore more __________ than anyone with power and gold.

estimable

He begged their __________ for his lengthy absences from the Wilmette house.

forbearance

It was not a physical fatigue—it was a draining __________ that numbed the margins of his mind.

lassitude

It had not been in my plan to listen to him, but my curiosity was __________.

piqued

Inflation, according to economists such as Milton Friedman, was caused by __________ governments printing too much money to pay for excessive wage inflation.

profligate

The way we cook for and eat with others is one of the more tangible, __________ ways of measuring generosity.

quotidian

The dispute was __________, with both sides saying they would not budge on their rate terms.

rancorous

Far from being “specious” and “baseless,” the lawsuit challenging the Purple Line project raised vitally important __________.

issues

A man was kneeling in front of her mother with his hands raised high, palms upward in __________.

supplication

Because I am loud and talkative, my words are thought __________ and silly.

trite

I felt a __________ delight just being near the excitement.

vicarious

He kept __________ notebooks detailing the technical specifications of how film sets operate.

assiduous

This __________ well for the day.

bodes

Indeed, some taxpayers may be confused by the new information requirements, while others may find ways to __________ the rules.

circumvent

To write a thoughtful, persuasive argument requires hard thinking and clear, __________ rhetoric.

cogent

She stood at the desk a long time before the librarian __________ to attend to her.

deigned

__________ was the foundation of the wise man's counsel.

Dignity

Smith was not being __________, but he was not being forthcoming either.

disingenuous

He was only some kind of folk legend, a warning used by mothers when youngsters were __________ or disobedient.

fractious

All were men inured to hard service and familiar with__________ life.

frontier