Week 14 6/16
1.
Takeoff (n.)
Meaning 1: the moment when an airplane,
helicopter, etc., leaves the ground and begins to fly
Meaning 2: the beginning of a jump
Meaning 3: a sudden increase in size,
activity, or popularity
Sample sentence: Please remain seated
during takeoff.
Synonyms: blastoff, launch, liftoff
Antonyms: landing
2.
Current (adj.) (n.)
Meaning 1: happening or existing now:
belonging to or existing in the present time
Meaning 2: aware of what is happening in a
particular area of activity
Meaning 3: a continuous movement of water
or air in the same direction
Meaning 4: a flow of electricity
Meaning 5: an idea, feeling, opinion, etc.,
that is shared by many or most of the people in a group
Sample sentence: Strong currents pulled the swimmer out to sea.
Synonyms: trend, direction, drift, leaning,
run, tendency, tide, wind
3.
Abort (v.)
Meaning 1: to end a pregnancy deliberately
by causing the death of the fetus
Meaning 2: to stop something before it is
completed because of problems or danger
Sample sentence: When problems occurred
during the launch, it was necessary to abort.
Synonyms: abandon, cancel, call, call off,
cry off, drop, recall, repeal, rescind, revoke, scrap, scrub
Antonyms: continue, keep
4.
Severe (adj.)
Meaning 1: very bad, serious, or unpleasant
Meaning 2: causing a lot of physical pain
or suffering
Meaning 3: very harsh
Sample sentence: In the most severe cases, the disease can lead to blindness.
Synonyms: austere, authoritarian, flinty,
hard, harsh, heavy-handed, ramrod, rigid, rigorous, stern, strict, tough
Antonyms: clement, forbearing, gentle, indulgent,
lax, lenient, tolerant
5.
Proximity (n.)
Meaning: the state of being near
Sample sentence: <the proximity of the curtains to the fireplace was a
cause of concern for the safety inspector>
Synonyms: adjacency, closeness, contiguity,
immediacy, nearness, propinquity, vicinity
Antonyms: distance, remoteness
6.
Intimate (v.)
Meaning: to say or suggest (something) in
an indirect way
Sample sentence: <trying to intimate that there was more going on than anyone
knew>
Synonyms: allude, imply, indicate, infer,
insinuate, hint, suggest
7.
Partly (adv.)
Meaning: somewhat but not completely: to
some extent or in some degree
Sample sentence: The project failed partly
because of a lack of funds.
Synonyms: half, halfway, incompletely,
part, partially, partway, in part
Antonyms: all, altogether, completely,
entirely, fully, perfectly, quite, totally, utterly, wholly
8.
Anxiety (n.)
Meaning 1: fear or nervousness about what
might happen
Meaning 2: a feeling of wanting to do
something very much
Sample sentence: He's been feeling a lot of
anxiety about his new job.
Synonyms: agita, agitation, anxiousness,
apprehension, apprehensiveness, care, concern, concernment, disquiet,
disquietude, fear, nervosity, nervousness, perturbation, solicitude, sweat,
unease, uneasiness, worry
Antonyms: unconcern
9.
Quest (n.)
Meaning 1: a journey made in search of
something
Meaning 2: a long and difficult effort to
find or do something
Sample sentence: The team's quest to win a championship finally came to an end.
Synonyms: hunt, search
10. Pyramid (n.)
Meaning 1: a very large
structure built especially in ancient Egypt that has a square base and four
triangular sides which form a point at the top
Meaning
2: a shape, object, or pile that is wide near
the bottom and narrows gradually as it reaches the top
Meaning
3: something that resembles a pyramid in the way
its parts are arranged or organized
11. Cathedral (adj.) (n.)
Meaning 1: the main church of an area that
is headed by a bishop
Meaning 2: emanating from a chair of
authority
12. Modest (adj.)
Meaning 1: not very large in size or amount
Meaning 2: not too proud or confident about
yourself or your abilities: not showing or feeling great or excessive pride of
clothing : not showing too much of a person's body
Sample sentence: She enjoyed modest success with her singing career.
Synonyms: average, intermediate, mean,
median, medium, middling, midsize (also midsized), moderate, middle
Antonyms: coarse, dirty, filthy, immodest,
impure, indecent, obscene, smutty, unchaste, unclean, vulgar
13. Mere (n.) (adj.)
Meaning: an expanse of standing water: lake,
pool
Meaning 2: used to say that something or
someone is small, unimportant, etc.
Meaning 3: used to say that something small
is important or has a big effect or influence
Sample sentence: <the mere idea of your traveling alone to Europe is
ridiculous>
Synonyms: bare, very
14. Construction (n.)
Meaning 1: the act or process of building
something (such as a house or road)
Meaning 2: the business of building things
(such as houses or roads)
Meaning 3: the way something is built or
made
Sample sentence: Construction
of the new bridge will begin in the spring.
Synonyms: erection, structure
15. Roam (v.)
Meaning: to go to different places without
having a particular purpose or plan
Sample sentence: The chickens are able to roam around freely in the farmyard.
Synonyms: bat, cruise, drift, float, gad
(about), gallivant (also galavant), kick around, knock (about), maunder,
meander, mooch, ramble, range, wander, rove, traipse
16. Confession (n.)
Meaning 1: a written or spoken statement in
which you say that you have done something wrong or committed a crime
Meaning 2: the act of telling people
something that makes you embarrassed, ashamed, etc.
Meaning 3: the act of telling your sins to
God or to a priest
Sample sentence: I have a confession to make: I have never done this before.
Synonyms: acknowledgment (or
acknowledgement), admission, avowal, concession, self-confession
Antonyms: disavowal, nonadmission
17. Exceptional (adj.)
Meaning 1: not usual : unusual or uncommon
Meaning 2: unusually good : much better
than average
Meaning 3: mentally or physically disabled
Sample sentence: The seafood dishes at this
restaurant are exceptional.
Synonyms: aberrant, aberrated, abnormal,
anomalous, atypical, especial, exceeding, extraordinaire, extraordinary, freak,
odd, peculiar, phenomenal, preternatural, rare, singular, uncommon,
uncustomary, unique, unusual, unwonted
Antonyms: common, customary, normal,
ordinary, typical, unexceptional, unextraordinary, usual
18. Vertical (adj.)
Meaning 1: positioned up and down rather
than from side to side : going straight up
Meaning 2: having a structure in which
there are top, middle, and bottom levels
Synonyms: perpendicular, plumb, raised,
standing, stand-up, upright, upstanding, erect
Antonyms: flat, recumbent
19. Occupy (v.)
Meaning 1: to live in (a house, apartment,
etc.)
Meaning 2: to fill or be in (a place or
space)
Meaning 3: to fill or use (an amount of
time)
Sample sentence: She occupies the house that her grandfather built 50 years
ago.
Synonyms: absorb, bemuse, busy, catch up,
engross, enthrall (or enthral), enwrap, fascinate, grip, immerse, interest,
intrigue, involve, engage
20. Gauge (n.) (v.)
Meaning 1: an instrument that is used for
measuring something
Meaning 2: something that can be used to
measure or judge something else
Meaning 3: the distance between the rails
of a railroad
Meaning 4: to make a judgment about
(something)
Meaning 5: to measure (something) exactly
Sample sentence: The broadest gauge of the economy—the gross domestic product,
adjusted for inflation—has risen little more than 4% since the recovery began.
—Alfred L. Malabre, Jr., Wall Street Journal, 26 July 1993
21. Buffer (n.) (v.)
Meaning 1: to protect (something) from
something
Meaning 2: to lessen the harmful effects of
(something)
Meaning 3: computers: to put (something,
such as data) in a buffer
Sample sentence: The trees help buffer the house from the hot summer sun.
Synonyms: cushion, gentle, soften
22. Shrink (v.)
Meaning 1: to become smaller in amount,
size, or value
Meaning 2: to make (something) smaller in
amount, size, or value
Meaning 3: to quickly move away from
something shocking, frightening, or disgusting
Sample sentence: The sweater shrank when it was washed.
Synonyms: compress, condense, constrict,
contract
Antonyms: balloon, expand, snowball, swell
23. Numerous (adj.)
Meaning: existing in large numbers
Sample sentence: The birds are becoming
more numerous in this area.
Synonyms: beaucoup [slang], legion,
multifold, multiple, multiplex, multitudinous, many
Antonyms: few
24. Dormitory (n.)
Meaning 1: a building on a school campus
that has rooms where students can live
Meaning 2: a large room with many beds
where people can sleep
Sample sentence: Guests at the camp can
stay in private cabins or for a smaller fee in the dormitories.
25. Crystal (n.) (adj.)
Meaning 1: a small piece of a substance
that has many sides and is formed when the substance turns into a solid
Meaning 2: a clear hard mineral that is
either colorless or very light in color and that is used in making jewelry
Meaning 3: a special type of glass that is
very clear
Sample sentence: Some of the crystals used in the necklace are a pale pink color.
Synonyms: clear, crystal clear,
crystalline, limpid, liquid, lucent, pellucid, see-through, transparent
Antonyms: cloudy, opaque
