Question 1
Back at the castle, the situation is taut with emotion. The fair maiden’s mother is livid with fear and anxiety; she has attacks of vertigo. She talks about her daughter’s audacity in riding out into the ominous forests despite many similar kidnappings. The girl’s father, a martinet who rules his family with an iron hand, staunchly refuses to pay the ransom. Iniquity shall not be rewarded! At this moment of crisis a heroic knight volunteers to rescue our heroine; he has had a secret yen for the young beauty. Avoiding rhetoric, he pledges his all to castigate those responsible for this ignominious deed. He holds his life as a mere bagatelle against the duty he owes his beloved mistress. At the propitious moment, he rides off to do or die for her.
Sample Sentences: Use the new words in these sentences.
The rabid baseball fan lost his equanimity and became _____ when the star pitcher became pugnacious and was removed from the game.
Livid describes a face gone pale or grey-blue with strong emotion, especially rage, and it is often used simply to mean furious. The fan loses his equanimity (calmness) because the star pitcher was removed, so he becomes livid, i.e. furiously angry. In the passage, the mother is livid with fear. Taut (tense, on edge) is the most tempting wrong option. However, it is mostly used for situations, nerves, muscles or ropes, and it does not express the sudden anger of a fan who has lost his temper.
Question 2
There was a _____ international situation caused by the proximity of unidentified submarines to our coasts.
Taut means tense or strained, literally like a tightly stretched rope. Unidentified submarines near the coast make the international situation tense, so a taut situation fits. The passage uses the same idea: the situation is taut with emotion.
Question 3
When one enlists in the army, one expects to be under the aegis of a _____.
A martinet is a very strict disciplinarian who demands that rules be obeyed exactly. The army is famous for strict discipline, so a recruit expects to be under the aegis (control, protection) of a martinet. In the passage, the father is a martinet who rules his family with an iron hand.
Question 4
His _____ for imbibing and romping with girls worked to his detriment.
A yen is a strong desire or longing, and it is usually followed by for: a yen for travel. Here his yen for imbibing (drinking) harmed him. In the passage, the knight has had a secret yen for the young beauty.
Question 5
The little boy tried to wheedle a larger allowance from his father by the caustic observations that it was a mere _____ when compared to the allowances of his friends.
A bagatelle is a trifle, something small and unimportant. The boy says his allowance is a mere bagatelle compared with his friends' allowances, meaning it is tiny. In the passage, the knight holds his life as a mere bagatelle against his duty.
Question 6
Definitions: Match the new words with their definitions.
taut
Taut means tense, keyed up, on edge. Literally it describes something pulled tight, such as a taut rope; figuratively it describes a strained mood, as in the situation is taut with emotion.
Question 7
livid
In this book, livid is defined as pale, especially a face turned pale or grey-blue by strong emotion: livid with fear. In modern English it most often means extremely angry, because anger can drain colour from the face.
Question 8
martinet
A martinet is a strict disciplinarian, someone who insists that rules and orders are followed exactly. Example: The new sergeant was a martinet who punished every small mistake.
Question 9
yen
A yen (informal) is a strong desire or longing, usually in the pattern a yen for something. Example: She had a yen for adventure. Don't confuse it with the yen, the Japanese currency.
Question 10
bagatelle
A bagatelle is a trifle, something of little value or importance. It often appears in the phrase a mere bagatelle. Example: To a millionaire, a hundred dollars is a mere bagatelle.
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Free worksheets for class or home
NEW WORDS
- taut [tôt]
“His face grew taut as he was questioned about his use of illegal drugs in his youth.” New York Post, 8/19/99
- livid [liv´ id]
“Livid with anger, the poster boy for road rage jumped out of his red convertible and came running toward us.” Letter to the Editor, “Big Road Hazard,” Newsday, 8/19/99
- martinet [märt´ n et´]
“The prospect of having to talk to Sheila’s principal, a real martinet, made him nervous, but he steeled himself to do it.” John Yount, “The Trapper’s Last Shot”
- yen [yen]
“She could not resist the yen to see how her classmates had progressed so she agreed to attend the class reunion.” Woman’s Home Companion, 9/94
- bagatelle [bag´ ə tel´]
“He saw the benefits to his people as a mere bagatelle.” Winston Churchill, Great Contemporaries
TODAY’S IDIOM
a cat’s paw—a person used as a tool or dupe*
The spy used the innocent girl as a cat’s paw to get military information from the grapevine.*