Chapter 2: Selected Exercises Synonyms 1. divergent. Look at the way the word is used on p. 31 of your text. There it is used as an adjective " . . . divergent variants." Given that, what is the best synonym? But can its best match "separate" be used as another part of speech? and if so what, and how would we pronounce the word differently. Interestingly enough, "divergent" is a compound word composed of the prefix "dis" meaning "apart' plus the root word "vergere" meaning to bend--literally meaning "to bend apart." 2. variant, used as a noun on p. 31. And if we consider that a variant is something that "differs in form only slightly from something else, as a different spelling or pronunciation of the same word," what is the best synonym? 3. extinct, used as an adjective on p. 34. Given the choices, c. nonexistent is the best choice, but we have a problem here. "Extinct" implies that it once existed but no longer does; "nonexistent" implies that it never existed. Be careful about using one-to-one synonyms; they don't always work; always consider the connotative value of a word. 4. ultimately. Its best match is a finally. See page 37 of your text for a contextual renditon of this word. "ultimate" is a noun plus the suffix -ly turns it into an adverb. 5. subsequent. The best choice is b following. See p. 38 of your text for a contextual rendition of the word. 6. Proto (p. 32), as a prefix. We've already talked about this in terms of "Proto-Indo-European" and "Proto-Germanic so the best match would be "ancestral." 7. devised (p. 33). Its best match is a invented. 8. ubiquitous (p. 35). Its best match is of course b everywhere. 9. constitute (p. 31). The best match is c compose, but not always is there a one-to-one corresponence. "Correct grammar and sentence structure do not in themselves constitute a good essay." But if you are writing an essay, you do not "constitute" it. 10. petty (p. 37). the best synonym is "small," but not small in size, rather "of small importance; trivial: a petty grievance, petty cash, petty larceny, Definitions 1. pagan (p. 35). Non-Christian. 2. native (p. 34). Being one's own because of the place or circumstances of one's birth: our native land. 3. conservative (p. 39). Favoring traditional views or values; tending to oppose change. From a Latin verb conservare meaning to preserve. 4. wake (p. 39), and you're looking for wake with a superscript 2. A track, course, or condition left behind. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita left behind major damage along the Gulf Coast in their wake. 5. sense (p. 33). A meaning that is conveyed, as in speech or writing; signification: :the sense of the novel is the inevitability of human tragedy. One of the meanings of a word or phrase: The word set has many senses. 6. pantheon (p. 37). All the gods of a people. From a Greek word pantheion meaning "shrine of all the gods": pan = all; theos = gods. Think of other pan words: panorama; Pan-Hellenic council; pangram (a sentences that uses all the letters of the alphabet, as in the timeless typing practice sentence, "the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog."); pandemic. 7. genealogical (p. 32). A record or table of the descent of a person, family, or group from an ancestor or ancestors; a family tree. 8. incorporated (p. 37), either a transitive or an intransitive verb. United into one main body; combined. 9. barbarian (p. 35). A member of a people considered by those of another nationn or group to have a primitive civilizatin. Originally a "barbarian" was a "foreigner," anyone who did not speak your own language, from a Greek word barbaros meaning "foreign, ignorant," and it is speculated that its ultimate signification was "unable to speak intelligibly." The related Sanskrit word barbaras meant "stammering." 10. strains (p. 35), and you're looking for strain with a superscript 2. The collective descendants of a common ancestry. Selected Analogy Entries 4. subdue (p. 37) : subjugate (p. 38) as annex (p. 35) : attach But be careful about using attach as a synonym for annex. When you add a bibliography to your research paper, you do not annex it; you attach it. But if you run out of space in your present building, you can add an annex or a city can annex a unit of space not previously part of the city. 5. genuine : nominal (p. 38) as real : spurious "Nominal" meaning "in name only." She was a nominal student; she never came to class and never did any of the work she was assigned. Selected Imposter Entries 3. Abeyance (p. 39) has nothing to do with "obedience," but rather it means "the condition of being temporarily set aside; suspension (as of an activity). "She held in abeyance her plan to finish her degree until the children were in school." The word is almost always used in an "in" phrase. "The company held in abeyance its plans to expand until the economy improved." 4. Pretex (p. 38), by analogy with other "pre" words, should mean "before the text," as in "preface," but it doesn't. It means an avowed reason for doing something but not the real reason. "Using the pretex that she adored classical music, she went to the concert, but she had heard the really handsome young man who sat in front of her in class was going, and she thought this the perfect opportunity to accidentally 'run into him.'" Selected Matching Entries Inscriptions (p. 33) matches with "writings," but writings in the sense of "being carved or etched into a stone of metal surface." Latter (p. 35) matches with "last or last mentioned;" it has nothing to do with "later." Given a choice of an apple, a peach, or a pear, I always choose the latter. Potpourri 1. The Continent (p. 35) refers to the continent of Europe 2. King Arthur is a "shadowing general"(p. 32) because we don't know much about him. Historians have long argued whether or not he was a historical figure or whether he is a mytical figure who has been historicized. At any rate, in story and legend he is the valiant and courageous Celt who fought against the invading Anglo-Saxons. 5. Frustrate (p. 35) as used in the essay has the meanning of "thwart, hinder, prevent, circumvent, disappoint." Her efforts to get a passport were frustrated because she couldn't obtain a copy of her birth certificate.
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