Our team spirit is so high that there is never a _____ reaction from players who aren't chosen to start a game.
Sometime in mid-August, you can view the spectacular Perseid meteor shower, as comet debris _____ through space and enters Earth's atmosphere.
The principal asked the students not to hang around in front of the houses and other buildings _____ to the school.
The administration had no major scandals, but it was also _____ of outstanding accomplishments.
I am angry not because she criticized me but because she made remarks that were untrue and _____ .
I'd been looking forward to the new TV series on Monday nights, but the first episode turned out to be just another _____ detective story.
Are we going to allow minor disagreements to _____ the club that we have worked so hard to organize?
He said that he was going to ask only “a few casual questions,” but I soon saw that he wanted to _____ me thoroughly.
Even the most _____ work can be interesting if you regard it as a challenge to do the very best you can.
Representatives from both nations met to negotiate a _____ to give each side a chance to care for its wounded.
If the sights we've seen today are a true _____ of what lies ahead, we're in for some real treats.
For three generations, their family has formed one of the leading automotive _____ of this country.
As he grew old, the torrent of beautiful music that he had produced for so many years was reduced to a mere _____ .
“The program the usher handed you contains a brief _____ of the action of the opera you are about to see,” I replied.
When we are having fun, time rushes by, but even five minutes in the dentist's waiting room may seem _____ .
What would you consider an adequate _____ for having worked so many extra hours on the job?
The flight attendant asked the passengers to make sure that they had all their personal belongings before _____ from the aircraft.
Regardless of who started this silly quarrel, isn't it time for us to declare a _____ and work together for the best interests of the school?
What we want to do is _____ the old house without harming its charm and beauty.
With flattery and clever half-truths, the newcomers _____ themselves into the inner circle of the organization.
Planted in the fertile soil of her imagination, the seed of a great idea soon _____ into a workable proposal.
The way to be successful at a job is to carry out all instructions carefully, even though you think some of them are _____ or silly.
Only twenty yards from the finish line, the horse stumbled and _____ its rider to the ground.
When I saw a big “A” on my term paper in English, I felt that I had been fully _____ for all my hours of hard work.
The senator's speech seemed _____ as he droned on for an hour.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Read the following excerpts that contain vocabulary words from this unit. The vocabulary words are written in bold font.
2. Select the answer that best completes each question. (5 points)
*You may only select one option for your answer.
EXCERPT #1:
As the original design was to cross the British Channel, and alight as near Paris as possible, the voyagers had taken the precaution to prepare themselves with passports directed to all parts of the Continent.
(“The Balloon-Hoax”)
EXCERPT #1 Question: When voyagers alight from their means of transportation, they _____ .
EXCERPT #2:
These phenomena were occasioned by the expansion of the gas, through increase of heat in the atmosphere, and the consequent disruption of the minute particles of ice with which the network had become encrusted during the night.
(“The Balloon-Hoax”)
EXCERPT #2 Question: A disruption of ice particles involves _____ .
EXCERPT #3:
“In respect to the insinuations leveled at Beauvais, you will be willing to dismiss them in a breath. You have already fathomed the true character of this good gentleman.”
(“The Mystery of Marie Roget”)
EXCERPT #3 Question: Insinuations are statements that are _____ .
EXCERPT #4:
. . . Our attention was again arrested by the appearance of the sun. It gave out no light, properly so called, but a dull and sullen glow without reflection, as if all its rays were polarized.
(“Ms. Found in a Bottle”)
EXCERPT #4 Question: A sullen glow would be _____ .
EXCERPT #5:
“This mistake made a difference of about two inches and a half in the ‘shot'—that is to say, in the position of the peg nearest the tree; . . . of course the error, however trivial in the beginning, increased as we proceeded with the line. . . .”
(“The Gold-Bug”)
EXCERPT #5 Question: Something that is trivial is definitely NOT _____ .
DIRECTIONS:
1. Read the following passage that contains vocabulary words from this unit. The vocabulary words are written in bold font.
2. Select the answer that best completes each question. (5 points)
*You may only select one option for your answer.
PASSAGE:
The hill country midway between Nashville and Louisville along Interstate 65 looks like much of the land in rural America. Its landforms are typical of vistas you will see in Tennessee, Kentucky, and the surrounding states. Yet there is nothing humdrum about what lurks beneath those ridges, bluffs, and streams. For underneath the old-growth forest of black oak, beech, sugar maple, tulip poplar, and hickory lies the world’s longest cave system, Mammoth Cave, with its seemingly interminable number of underground passageways and rooms.
Prehistoric hunters were the first to discover, explore, and use Mammoth Cave for shelter. Later, Native Americans also lived in the cave. About 200 years ago, American settlers came
to this region. Unlike Native Americans, these settlers considered the caves to be of trivial importance. During the War of 1812, however, the cave’s resources became valuable:
saltpeter, used in making gunpowder, was mined there. After the war, with the help of explorer-guides, the cave gained national attention as a tourist attraction.
Nowadays, visitors can get a foretaste of the cave’s history and uses within a few hundred yards of its historic entrance. There they will come to the Rotunda, a huge chamber that features the remains of the saltpeter mine that was in full operation during the War of 1812.
Today, Mammoth Cave is both a national park and a World Heritage Site. To accommodate its many visitors, hotels and restaurants have been built adjacent to the cave’s Historic Entrance. As a safety precaution, many miles of its passageways have handrails that are lit with electric lights. Yet even with these improvements, the cave remains a dangerous place. In fact, all visitors must tour the cave accompanied by a park ranger.
The meaning of humdrum is _____ .
Interminable most nearly means _____ .
Trivial is best defined as _____ .
The meaning of foretaste is _____ .
Adjacent to most nearly means _____ .
DIRECTIONS:
1. Read each sentence and determine if it contains a grammar error or not.
2. Select the answer that best completes each question. (10 points)
*You may only select one option for your answer.
In warm weather, aphids on a healthy host plant are able to produce 50 offspring in a single week, each of them will be mature only one week later.
The breathy, smooth sound of flutes and pipes give them a magical, haunting quality; perhaps this sound underlies such legends as the Pied Piper of Hamelin, who is said to have enchanted all the children in a town.
In an amazing coincidence, the discovery of gold in California occurred just nine days before Mexico and the United States signed the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, whereby California became part of the United States.
Manuel has made a thorough study of museum Web sites on the Internet, and no one is more conversant with this subject than him.
Controversy continues to rage over the identities of those to who Shakespeare wrote his love sonnets.
Many a novelist, including George Orwell and Isak Dinesen, have published his or her work under a pseudonym; in real life, for example, George Orwell was Eric Blair, while Isak Dinesen. was Karen Blixen.
Among all water sports, Will’s three favorites are surfing, water-skiing, and to go canoeing.
Most respondents in the opinion poll indicates that they would support a tax increase, provided that the city government will earmark the additional funds for the school improvements.
Neither Ruth nor Tovah could find their tickets to the concert, so both stayed at home that evening.
Making a good violin is a challenging task, the right materials must be carefully selected, and months of shaping and finishing are required.
A family that ruled over the British Empire for some time would be known as a _____ .
Which of the following is the opposite of gush?
A friend who is brooding because of resentment over something that happened can be described as _____ .
To suggest or hint slyly is to _____ .
If an old theater has been restored to good condition, it has been _____ .
Which of the following is another word for cease-fire?
A witness who is being questioned by lawyers is being _____ .
To pay back is to _____ .
Which of the following is the opposite of important?
A short written acount of a person’s work experience is known as a _____ .
Which of the following might be another word for spiteful?
A picnic that has been disturbed by a pair of large, playful dogs has been _____ .
DIRECTIONS:
1. Read the following passage that contains vocabulary words from this unit. The vocabulary words are written in bold font.
2. Select the answer that best completes each question. (4 points)
*You may only select one option for your answer.
PASSAGE:
Between 1975 and 2003, some airline passengers were able to do something extraordinary. They could board a plane in New York and alight in London only three hours later. How was such a flight possible? These passengers paid thousands of dollars extra to fly the Concorde, a jet that dramatically cut down on a trip that, while not exactly interminable, normally lasted about six hours. The Concorde hurtled through the air at speeds that reached over 1,300 miles per hour, greatly exceeding those of normal jet airplanes. Only 20 Concordes were built in all, and, sadly for people who loved the fast-flying planes, all were retired due to rising operating costs, among other reasons. It is possible, however, that the planes’ glory does not exist only in the past. Perhaps they offer a foretaste of the future as well since there are projects underway to build new airplanes that would make superfast flights a possibility once again.
In sentence 2, alight means _____ .
Which of the following words could be used to replace interminable (sentence 4)?
If a plane hurtled (sentence 5) through the air, it moved _____ .
In sentence 8, foretaste means _____ .
DIRECTIONS:
1. Read the following passage that contains vocabulary words from this unit. The vocabulary words are written in bold font.
2. Select the answer that best completes each question. (4 points)
*You may only select one option for your answer.
PASSAGE:
For a long time, the piece of land that is adjacent to my apartment building has been empty and unused. It has been kept neat and clean, but without a house or building on it, it had a humdrum and almost sad appearance. That situation changed about two months ago. That’s when a group of residents in our neighborhood contacted the owner of the lot and received permission to plant a community garden. Now, instead of looking barren, the patch of land will be filled with flowers, vegetables, and perhaps even fruit on trees during the spring, summer. and fall. In fact, with spring just around the corner, our neighborhood group has already started preparing the garden. Some members are germinating tomato, squash, and cucumber seeds indoors so that the seeds can be planted after the danger of the last frost in our area passes and warm weather can be safely expected.
In line 1, adjacent means _____ .
If a place has a humdrum (line 2) appearance, it looks _____ .
Which of the following words could not be used to replace barren (line 5)?
If people are germinating (line 7) seeds, they are _____ .