Verbal Advantage – Level 06 Review Test

Thaumaturgy comes from Greek thauma (wonder, marvel) and -ergos (working), so by derivation it means the working of miracles. A thaumaturge is a miracle worker or magician. Not legerdemain, which comes from French léger de main (light of hand) and means sleight of hand or trickery.

Prestidigitation combines French preste (quick, nimble) with Latin digitus (finger), so it literally means nimbleness with the fingers. It now means sleight of hand, as in conjuring tricks. Legerdemain means much the same thing, but literally it is 'light of hand', not 'nimble fingers'.

Puerile means childish, immature or silly. Synonyms include juvenile, sophomoric, callow, asinine, frivolous, inane and fatuous. Genteel means refined, polite or well-bred, which is nothing like puerile.

Manifest means clear, obvious and plainly seen. Enigmatic means puzzling, mysterious and hard to understand, so the two are opposites. Each of the other pairs is made of synonyms: perspicuous/lucid (clear), cryptic/arcane and inscrutable/esoteric (obscure, mysterious).

Supercilious comes from Latin supercilium, 'eyebrow' (super, above, + cilium, eyelid). A supercilious person is haughty and disdainful, as if raising an eyebrow at others. Proud and superior describe the meaning of the word, not the origin of -cilious.

Capacious means roomy, spacious, able to hold a lot, and so also comprehensive: a capacious handbag, a capacious memory. Vacuous means empty-headed, fatuous means foolish, and superfluous means more than is needed.

Mnemosyne was the Greek goddess of memory and the mother of the nine Muses. Her name is related to mnemonic (helping memory). Athena was the goddess of wisdom, Ops was a Roman goddess of plenty, and Laodicea was an ancient city, not a goddess.

Sonorous means having a deep, full, rich sound. Sinuous means winding or curving, so the two words are not synonyms. The other pairs all mean winding, indirect or twisting: devious/circuitous, serpentine/meandering, labyrinthine/tortuous.

Exonerate comes from Latin ex- (from) and onus (burden). It means to free someone from blame or a charge of guilt: The evidence exonerated him. Disparage means to belittle, ostracize means to exclude, and remunerate means to pay.

Petalism was a form of banishment used in ancient Syracuse. Citizens wrote the name of a person to be exiled on olive leaves (Greek petalon, leaf). It was similar to Athenian ostracism, in which names were written on pottery shards.

Plethoric means overabundant or excessive, and especially inflated or overblown in style. In that sense it is a synonym of turgid, bombastic and grandiloquent. Opulent means wealthy, luxurious or lavish, and it does not describe an inflated style of language.

Procrustes was the legendary robber of Attica. He stretched or cut off the limbs of his victims to make them fit his bed, until Theseus killed him. From this we get Procrustean: forcing things to fit an arbitrary standard. Not Theseus, who was the hero who defeated him.

Pyrrhonism means extreme skepticism, doubt about everything. The word comes from Pyrrho of Elis, a Greek philosopher who taught that certain knowledge is impossible. Epicureanism and hedonism concern pleasure, and a solecism is an error or impropriety.

Arcadian means rural, simple and peaceful, like the idealized countryside of Arcadia in Greece. Pastoral, bucolic, idyllic and agrarian all relate to the countryside. Boeotian means dull, stupid or uncultured, after the ancient Greek region whose people the Athenians mocked.

A solecism is a grammatical mistake ('between you and I') or a breach of good manners. The word is said to come from Soloi, a Greek colony whose people spoke corrupt Greek. Not Pyrrhonism, which means universal doubt or skepticism.

Incessant means never stopping, going on without any break: incessant rain. Unceasing has exactly this meaning. Not continual, which strictly means happening again and again, with breaks in between.

A toady is a fawning follower: someone who flatters and serves a powerful person to win favour, a sycophant. The word comes from toadeater, the assistant of a fake doctor who pretended to eat poisonous toads. An informer is a different kind of person.

Latin tenere means to hold. Tenacious means holding firmly or persistently, and tenable means able to be held or defended, as in a tenable argument. The same root appears in tenant and retain.

Palpable (from Latin palpare, to touch) means able to be touched or felt, and so easily perceived or obvious: a palpable tension in the room. Imperceptible means the opposite, and tangential means only slightly connected.

Odious means hateful, disgusting or deserving hatred. Repugnant and loathsome are synonyms, but refractory means stubborn and hard to control, so that set contains the odd word. All the words in the other sets mean hateful, offensive or shameful.

Ruminate comes from Latin ruminari, 'to chew the cud', as cows do. The modern meaning, to think over slowly and repeatedly, comes from this image. Not to contemplate, which is the present meaning, not the Latin origin.

Recumbent means lying down or reclining, especially in a comfortable, restful position. Not prostrate, which means lying flat face down, often from exhaustion or in submission, not for comfort.

A bromide is a trite, unoriginal remark or idea: hackneyed (overused) and insipid (dull). The word comes from bromide compounds once used as sedatives. A boring remark is like a sedative that puts you to sleep.

-dox comes from Greek doxa, 'opinion'. Orthodox means 'right opinion', following accepted beliefs. Heterodox means 'other opinion', departing from accepted beliefs. Not religion: the words are often used about religion, but the root itself means opinion.

Grandiloquent comes from Latin grandis (great) and loqui (to speak). It means speaking in a pompous, lofty style. Cacophony, cacoethes and orthoepy all come from Greek, not Latin.

Impecunious means poor, having little money. It does not mean sad or gloomy, as dismal and lugubrious do. All the words in the other sets mean sorrowful, mournful or gloomy.

Infinitesimal means so small that it can hardly be measured: an infinitesimal amount of poison. Not a very small but measurable amount, because the key idea is that it is immeasurably small.

To malinger is to pretend to be sick or injured in order to avoid work or duty. A malingerer is someone who does this. Not they loiter: loitering means hanging around idly, which is a different thing.

Asseverate means to state or declare something solemnly and earnestly: He asseverated his innocence. Vindicate means to clear of blame, ruminate means to think over, and indemnify means to compensate for loss.

Eminent means distinguished, prominent or remarkable: an eminent scientist. Something about to happen is imminent, not eminent, so that statement is false. The two words are often confused because they sound alike.

Phon- comes from Greek phone, 'sound' or 'voice'. Cacophony means a harsh, unpleasant sound (kakos, bad), and phonetic relates to speech sounds. Not speech: the root refers to sound in general, as in telephone and symphony.

Cacoethes (from Greek kakos, bad, + ethos, habit) means a bad habit or an irresistible urge, as in a cacoethes for gossip. Recalcitrance means stubborn resistance, equanimity means calmness, and animadversion means criticism.

Refractory and intractable both mean stubborn and hard to manage, so they are synonyms, not antonyms. Each of the other pairs sets a yielding word (malleable, acquiescent, deferential, submissive) against a stubborn one (obstinate, perverse, recalcitrant, intransigent).

Enervated means drained of energy, weakened or exhausted. It does not mean 'energized', although many people think so. Its opposite is animated: lively and full of energy. Not tired, which is a synonym of enervated.

Sang-froid (French for 'cold blood') means calmness and composure, especially under pressure or in danger: She showed remarkable sang-froid during the crisis. Levity means lack of seriousness, stricture means severe criticism, and acclamation means loud approval.