Level F Unit 2
Your task:
1. Complete RPS2 by creating a key and highlighting
the roots, prefixes, gand suffixes in each word.
Don’t forget to define the meaning.
2. Find the sentences followed by an (*). Highlight
the synonym clue in the sentence.
3. Find the sentences followed by a (#). Highlight the
antonym clue in this sentence.
4. Find the words that are followed by a (+). This
indicates that Jerome failed to provide a clear clue.
Provide a synonym or antonym clue in an original
sentence.
ameliorate
• A hot meal can ______ the discomforts of
even the coldest day.
• I refuse to accept the idea that conditions in
this slum have deteriorated so far that nothing
can be done to ______ them.
• I trust that we will have the will to improve
what can now be improved and the patience
to bear what cannot now be ________.*
aplomb
• Considering the family’s tense mood, you
handled the situation with _______.
• Addressing the school assembly for the first
time was a nerve-racking experience, but I
managed to deliver my speech with a
reasonable amount of ______.
• She handled a potentially embarrassing
situation with cool ______.#
bombastic
• He delivered a _________ speech that did not
even address our problems.
• The voters of this city are looking for practical
answers to urgent questions and will not
respond to that kind of ______ and
pretentious claptrap.
• His message may seem ______ but there is a
solid framework of practical ideas onderlying
the rather pompous language.*
callow
• They entered the army as _____ recruits and
left as seasoned veterans.#
• He tries to give the impression of being a true
man of the world, but his conduct clearly
shows him to be a ______ and feckless
youth.*
• I can usually forgive a _____ display of feeble
jokes and showing off– but not by someone
who has passed his fortieth birthday!
drivel
• To me, my dream made perfect sense, but
when I told it to my friend it sounded like
______.
• They have a great deal to say on the subject,
but unfortunately most of it is meaningless
________.
• Must we continue to listen to all that childish
______?
epitome
• Admitting when you have been fairly defeated
is the ______ of sportsmanship.
• That dancer is very talented, but isn’t it going
rather far to call her the _______ of feminine
beauty and grace?
• Long periods of intense boredom punctuated
by short periods of intense fear”– in this
famous definition a British general ______ the
nature of war.
Exhort
• With dramatic gestures, our fans vigorously
_______ the team to play harder.
• The prophets of old fervently ____ the people
to amend their lives.
• We are all ready and willing to do what must
be done; what we need is leadership, not
______.
Ex Officio+
• The President is the ________ commander-inchief of the armed forces in time of war.
• The Vice President of the United States, the
Secretary of State, and the Secretary of Defense
are ______ members of the National Security
Council.
• Because I believe in spreading governmental
powers among several officials, I am opposed to
having the mayor as _____ head of the Board of
Education.
infringe
• If you continue to _____ on my
responsibilities, will you also take the blame
for any mistakes?
• A good definition of freedom is: “The right to
do anything you wish as long as you do not
____ on the rights of others”.
• The publisher will take prompt legal action
against anyone who _____ on the copyright of
this book.
Ingratiate+
• It is not a good idea to _________ oneself by
paying cloying compliments.
• How can we have any respect for people who
try to ______ themselves with their superiors
by flattery and favors?
• The song had a pleasant, ______ melody that
gained it quick popularity and then caused it
to be forgotten just as quickly.
interloper
• The crowd was so eager to see the band perform
that they resented the opening singer as an
__________.
• The people trying to ‘crash’ our dance may think
of themselves as merry pranksters, but they are
really ______ who would prevent us from having
a good time.
• After the unexpected defeat, the members of the
team wanted to be alone and regarded anyone
who entered the locker room as an ______.
intrinsic
• It had been my father’s favorite book when he
was my age, but for me it held little ________
interest.
• This old necklace has little _____ value, but it
means a great deal to me because it belonged to
my mother.
• In stating that “All men are created equal and
endowed…with certain inalienable rights,” the
Declaration of Independence proclaims the _____
value of every human being.
inveigh
• You should not ______ against the plan with
quite so much vigor until you have read it.
• Representing an organization of senior
citizens, the rally’s keynote speaker _______
vehemently against conditions that rob the
elderly of their dignity and independence.
• It is easy to ____ against dirty politics, but less
easy to play a positive role, however small, in
the political process.
lassitude
• On some days I am overcome by ________ at the
thought of so many more years of schooling.
• After completing those long, grueling exams, I
was overwhelmed by a ______ so great that I felt
I would never be able to study again.
• After years of fighting for social reforms, she
experienced a kind of spiritual ______ that
caused her to withdraw and let others lead the
struggle.
millennium
• In 1999 an argument raged over whether 2000 or
2001 would mark the beginning of the new
_______.
• Though fossils show that human beings have
been on earth a very, very, very long time, the
earliest written records of their activities date
back only about a few ______.
• “I’m sure your every wish will be grated,” I
assured the demanding child, my tongue firmly in
my cheek, if and when the _____ ever comes!”++
Occult+
• One need not rely on ______ knowledge to grasp
why things disappear in a house where two cats
live.
• The mere fact that we cannot explain at the
present time how she was hurt doesn’t mean
that she was the victim of some ______ power.
• There is evidence that proves that many persons
supposed to possess _____ powers have either
been clever frauds or victims of self-deception.
permeate
• The rain _______ all of my clothing and
reduced the map in my pocket to a pulpy
mass.
• W looked up hungrily as the delightful odor of
broiled steak and fried onions ______ the
room.
• A sour odor of decay, stale air, and generations
of living ______ every corner of the old
tenement.
precipitate
• Scholars often disagree over which event or
events _______ an historic moment.
• “The rash and ____ actions of that young
hothead almost cost us the battle, to say nothing
of the war,” the general remarked sourly.
• When the bridge suddenly colapsed in the high
winds, the people on it at the time were _____ to
their deaths in the watery abyss below.
Stringent#
• Some argue that the more _____ laws against
speeding will make our streets safer.
• “If you think my rules are too _______ and
confining,” the coach said, “ then you
probably shouldn’t be a candidate for the
team.
• Do we need new laws to combat crime, or
rather more _____ enforcement of the laws
we already have?
surmise
• I cannot be sure, but I ______ that she would
not accept my apology even if I made it on my
knees.
• We do not know what her motives were, but
we may _____ that she was mainly concerned
for the child’s well being.
• In this situation we cannot act on the basis of
what may be _____ but only in accordance
with what is definitely known.#
Prefixes
Roots
Suffixes
Epi
Above, over, Melior
on, upon
To make
better, to
improve
Tude
State,
condition of
ex
out
Tom
Incision,
section
enium
Year, years
Intra
Within,
inside
Hort
To
encourage,
urge
strongly
Ise
To act or
treat in a
certain way;
to make into
Mill
One
thousandth
of a unit
Fring
Break,
breaking,
cracked
Per
Through,
across, over
Grat
Beloved,
pleasing,
dear
Veh
Bearer,
conveyer