Barron's 1100 Words You Need to Know (MCQ Test + PDF) Week 21 - Day 2
NEW WORDS
- lush [lush]
“Can one run for political office without the promise of lush campaign contributions from many sources?” “Steve Forbes; In His Own Debt,” Parade, 9/15/99
- destitution [des´ tə tü´ shən]
“Our Supreme Court has said that any citizen has a Constitutional right to have counsel, and that the court must appoint a lawyer to defend the destitute.” Joseph Welch, “Should a Lawyer Defend a Guilty Man?”
- ponder [pon´ dər]
“As I made my way back, I pondered the significance of what I’d seen.” Nicholas Kristof, “1492: The Prequel”
- supplication [sup´ lə kā´ shən]
“The last supplication I make of you is that you will believe this of me.” Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
- decadence [dek´ ə dəns]
“I said earlier that the decadence of our language is probably curable.” George Orwell, Politics and the English Language
TODAY’S IDIOM
on tenter hooks—in a state of anxiety (cloth used to be stretched or “tentered” on hooks)
The indicted* clerk was kept on tenter hooks by the district attorney.