English 7

Anonymous

• unnamed, unknown• namelessThe author of the story remained

anonymous.

Browse

• To read casually, to window shop, to nibble or graze

• skim, scanThe woman browsed the store in search of a

new hat.

Dupe

• a person easily tricked or deceivedThe boys were dupes for white washing the

fence for Tom Sawyer.The five year old was a dupe for trading a

quarter for two nickels.

Dynamic

• active, energetic, forceful• vigorous, high poweredThe waitress had a dynamic personality.

Eradicate

• to root out, to get rid of, destroy completely• wipe out, uprootThe old house on my street was eradicated.The tree was eradicated from our front yard.

Frustrate

• to cause feelings of discouragement• to prevent from accomplishing a purposeThe man became frustrated when he was

billed an additional charge.

Grim

• stern, merciless, fierce, savage, cruel• dreadful, frightfulThe removal of the Cherokees from their

homeland was a grim part of American history.

Inimitable

• not capable of being copied• matchless, incomparable, uniqueThe great pyramids of Egypt are known for

their inimitable strength. Old world art has inimitable detail.

Makeshift

• a temporary substitute for something elseThe makeshift performance was filling time

until the main act arrived.

Marginal• near the edge or the margin, barely good• borderline, minimalThe marginal nature of the votes for the

election of 1824 resulted in the House of Representatives choosing the president.

Pending

• waiting to be settledThe sale of the house is still pending.

Prescribe

• to order as a rule or a course to be followed

• appoint, recommendThe doctor prescribed a spoonful of sugar to

help the medicine go down.

Preview

• something seen in advance• foretasteWe were able to see a preview of the

upcoming sequel to the film.The appetizer was a preview to the delicious

meal to come.

Prominent• standing out as to be easily seen• conspicuous, noticeableHer eyes are her most prominent facial

feature.

Quaint• odd or old-fashioned in a pleasing way,

clever, skillfully madeThe country setting of the home was quite

quaint.The quaintness of the quilt gave the room an

old fashioned charm.

Reluctant• unwilling, holding backThe flower girl was reluctant to walk down

the aisle. The child was reluctant to share his toys.

Scrimp

• to handle very economically or stingilyDuring the economic hard times of the

depression people had to scrimp.

Snare

• to trap or catch• a trap or entanglementThe spider snared a tasty fly in his web.

Utmost

• greatest, highest, farthest• maximum, supreme, bestWearing a seatbelt is of utmost importance.

Vengeance• punishment in return for an injury or wrong• revenge, retaliation, reprisalAfter WWI, Germany sought vengeance

against the countries that blamed them for the war.