Vocabulary Review

1. Vocabulary Review List 4

2. altruism Part of Speech: NOUN Meaning: unselfishness; humanity; philanthropy Usage • Should we assume that people are motivated by altruism or self-interest? • Her altruism inspired others to act benevolently. • Habitat for Humanity thrives on the altruism of its volunteers.

3. assiduous Part of Speech: ADJECTIVE Meaning: diligent; persevering; industrious Usage • Tom was known as an assiduous researcher, often working in the lab for twelve to fifteen-hour stretches. • The reporter engaged in assiduous editing, all in an effort to make the piece as polished as possible. • Tammy was an assiduous student who rarely took time out of her day to engage in anything non-academic.

4. cacophony Part of Speech: NOUN Meaning: disharmony; discord; harshness Usage • The cacophony of dozens of car horns drove me to madness. • Near the end of the parade, and no doubt a result of poor planning, we were tortured with the cacophony of a jazz band, bag pipers, and a drum corps. • The sounds of barking dogs and sirens added to the cacophony on the streets.

5. ephemeral Part of Speech: ADJECTIVE Meaning: short-lived; fleeting; momentary Usage • New words are constantly being coined; some will prove ephemeralwhile others are here to stay. • Her passion for hip-hop proved ephemeral, as evidenced by the grunge-style of dress she adopted, as well as her new affinity for the likes of Nirvana and Alice in Chains. • Jim talked a big game about sticking up to the bullies, but when confronted by them his confidence was lacking, his brashness ephemeral.

6. innocuous Part of Speech: ADJECTIVE Meaning: inoffensive; harmless; mild Usage • The banter between the boys was generally innocuous, and so neither was severely reprimanded. • At any moment, a seemingly innocuousdecision can explode in their faces. • Chemical waste disposal falls under environmental protection legislation, so appropriate steps must be taken to render waste innocuous before disposal.

7. importune Part of Speech: VERB Meaning: to ask urgently and repeatedly; to pester; to persist Usage • The life of a telemarketer, someone charged with importuningcustomers to empty their pockets, must be stressful. • For hours, the boy importuned his mother to buy him the video game, but she never caved. • The teacher importuned his students to submit their permission slips by the deadline, for their failure to do so would result in their inability to go on the field trip.

8. obviate Part of Speech: VERB Meaning: to anticipate and prevent or eliminate (difficulties, disadvantages, etc.) by effective measures Usage • This strategy does not obviate the need for heads of school to take steps to address such matters at a school level. • Increased road access may also obviate the need for airdrops. • They may answer some of your questions or even obviate the need for a consultancy visit.

9. pernicious Part of Speech: ADJECTIVE Meaning: causing great harm or ruin; injurious; deadly Usage • Pernicious weed has spread all through the bed. • Pernicious myths have started to become a little too popular. • The negative impact upon young minority students may be especially pernicious.

10. vacillate Part of Speech: VERB Meaning: to waver in mind or opinion; to be indecisive or irresolute Usage • She frequently vacillates back and forth from a positive perspective to a grim outlook. • The senator vacillatedinstead of going on the offensive, prompting the critics to attack him in the papers. • The little girl vacillated for minutes at the ice cream stand, fearful of selecting something she wouldn’t like.

11. vacuity Part of Speech: NOUN Meaning: emptiness; absence of thought, intelligence or something else specified Usage • Looking at the issues in this way exposes the essential vacuity of the claim. • Years of verbal abuse are likely the cause of her emotional vacuity. • The vacuity of his responses was no doubt precipitated by marathon workdays and sleep deprivation.