LESSON 36.2 Vocabulary Items (PETERSON’S TOEFL SUCCESS)

(PETERSON’S TOEFL SUCCESS)

LESSON 36.2

Vocabulary Items

When ETS eliminated the first section of Section 3, which consisted of 30 discrete vocabulary items, it replaced them with an increased number of questions (from 12 to 18) about the vocabulary in the reading passages. Most test-takers find that, in general, it is easier to answer vocabulary questions based on the context of a passage than it is to answer questions about vocabulary in single, isolated sentences. In vocabulary items, you must determine which of four words or phrases can best substitute for a word or words in the passage. Most of the questions ask about single words (usually nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs). Some ask about two- or three-word phrases. Sometimes two of the answer choices for these items might be “correct” definitions of the word that is asked about. In those cases, you must decide which of the two is correct in the context of the passage. In ordinary reading, there are several clues that can help you to determine the meaning of an unknown word: √ Synonyms The first state to institute compulsory education was Massachusetts, which made it mandatory for students to attend school twelve weeks a year. The word mandatory is a synonym for the word compulsory. √ Examples Many gardeners use some kind of mulch, such as chopped leaves, peat moss, grass clippings, pine needles, or wood chips, to stop the growth of weeds and hold in moisture. From the examples given, it is clear that mulch is plant matter. √ Contrast In the 1820s, the Southern states supported improvements in the national transportation system, but the Northern states balked. Since the Southern states supported improvements, and since a word signaling contrast (but) is used, it is clear that the Northern states disagreed with this idea, and that the word balked must mean objected or refused. √ General context In a desert, vegetation is so scanty as to be incapable of supporting any large human population. As is generally known, deserts contain little vegetation, so clearly the word scanty must mean scarce or barely sufficient. When answering vocabulary items, you must most often depend on the general context of the sentence to help you choose the correct answer. You should follow these steps to answer vocabulary items: 1 Look at the word being asked about and the four answer choices. If you are familiar with the word, guess which answer is correct. Do NOT mark your answer sheet yet. 2 Read the sentence in which the word appears. If you were familiar with the word and guessed at the answer, make sure that the word that you chose fits with the word as it is used in the sentence. If you were unfamiliar with the word, see if context clues in the sentence or in the sentences before or after help you guess the meaning. 3 If you are not sure which answer is correct, read the sentence with each of the four answer choices in place. Does one seem more logical, given the context of the sentence, than the other three? If not, do any seem illogical? (You can eliminate those.) 4 If you’re still not sure, make the best guess you can and go on. Sample Items In Britain’s North American colonies, university-trained physicians were at a premium. At the time of the Revolution, there were probably only around 400 physicians and some 3,000 practitioners who had on-the-job training as barber-surgeons or physicians’ apprentices. Whether university trained or not, none had much knowledge of the causes of disease, and the “cures” they often recommended— bleeding, blistering, and the use of violent purgatives—were at best ineffective and at worst lethal. 1. The phrase at a premium in the first sentence is closest in meaning to (A) well-paid. (B) not very numerous. (C) very experienced. (D) not well-respected. The correct answer is (B). The phrase “only around 400” indicates that there was a shortage of university-trained physicians. 2. Which of the following words could best be substituted for the word lethal in the last sentence? (A) Impractical (B) Brutal (C) Impossible (D) Deadly The correct answer is (D). The phrase “at best ineffective and at worst lethal” indicates that the correct answer must describe a situation much worse than ineffective. Choices (A) and (C) don’t create logical sentences when substituted for lethal. Choice (B), brutal (which means savage or violent), is more logical, but only choice (D) is synonymous with lethal. EXERCISE 36.2 Focus: Answering both types of vocabulary items about words or phrases in reading passages Directions: Answer the items about the vocabulary in the passages. Mark the proper oval for multiple-choice items and underline the appropriate word or phrase in the bold text to answer “click on” items. Passage 1 The Civil War created feverish manufacturing activity to supply critical material, especially in the North. When the fighting stopped, the stage was set for dramatic economic growth. Wartime taxes on production had vanished, and the few taxes that remained leaned heavily on real estate, not on business. The population flow from farm to city increased, and the labor force it provided was buttressed by millions of newly arrived immigrants willing to work for low wages in the mills of the North and on the railroad crews of the Midwest and West. The federal government’s position toward economic expansion was nothing if not accommodating. The government established tariff barriers, provided loans and grants to build a transcontinental railroad, and assumed a studied stance of nonintervention in private enterprise. The Social Darwinism of British philosopher Herbert Spencer and American economist William Graham Summer prevailed. The theory was that business, if left to its own devices, would eliminate the weak and nurture the strong. But as business expanded, the rivalry heated up. In the 1880s, five railroads operating between New York and Chicago vied for traffic, and two more were under construction. As a result of the battle, the fare between the cities decreased to $1. Petroleum companies likewise competed savagely and, in the 1880s, many of them failed. 1 The word feverish in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to (A) extremely rapid. sickly and slow. very dangerous. understandable. (B) (C) (D) 2 Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word critical in paragraph 1? (A) Industrial Serious Crucial Insulting (B) (C) (D) 3 The phrase the stage was set in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to which of the following? (A) The play was over. The progress continued. The foundation was laid. The direction was clear. (B) (C) (D) 4 Look at the word newcomers in the bold text below. The population flow from farm to city increased, and the labor force it provided was buttressed by millions of recent immigrants. These newcomers were willing to work for low wages in the mills of the North and on the railroad crews of the Midwest and West. Underline the word or phrase in the bold text that is closest in meaning to the word newcomers. 5 The phrase real estate in paragraph 1 refers to (A) tools and machines. actual income. new enterprises. land and buildings. (B) (C) (D) 6 The word buttressed in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to (A) concerned. supplemented. restructured. enriched. (B) (C) (D) 7 The word accommodating in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to (A) persistent. indifferent. balanced. helpful. (B) (C) (D) 8 Look at the word stance in the bold text below: The federal government’s position toward economic expansion was nothing if not accommodating. It established tariff barriers, provided loans and grants to build a transcontinental railroad, and assumed a studied stance of nonintervention in private enterprise. Underline the word or phrase in the bold text that is closest in meaning to the word stance. 9 The word prevailed in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to (A) influenced. triumphed. premiered. evolved. (B) (C) (D) 10 The phrase left to its own devices in paragraph 2 means (A) forced to do additional work. allowed to do as it pleased. made to change its plans. encouraged to produce more goods. (B) (C) (D) 11 Look at the word vied in the bold text below: In the 1880s, five railroads operating between New York and Chicago vied for traffic, and two more were under construction. As a result of the battle, the fare between the cities decreased to $1. Petroleum companies likewise competed savagely and, in the 1880s, many of them failed. Underline the word or phrase in the bold text that is closest in meaning to the word vied. 12 The word savagely in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to (A) fiercely. ( suddenly. surprisingly. genuinely. (B) (C) (D) Passage 3 All birds have feathers, and feathers are unique to birds. No other major group of animals is so easy to categorize. All birds have wings, too, but wings are not peculiar to birds. Many adaptations are found in both feathers and wings. Feathers form the soft down of geese and ducks, the long showy plumes of ostriches and egrets, and the strong flight feathers of eagles and condors. Wings vary from the short, broad ones of chickens, who seldom fly, to the long, slim ones of albatrosses, who spend almost all their lives soaring on air currents. In penguins, wings have been modified into flippers and feathers into a waterproof covering. In kiwis, the wings are almost impossible to detect. Yet diversity among birds is not so striking as it is among mammals. The difference between a hummingbird and a penguin is immense, but hardly as startling as that between a bat and a whale. It is variations in details rather than in fundamental patterns that have been important in the adaptation of birds to many kinds of ecosystems 13 Look at the words peculiar to in the bold text below: All birds have feathers, and feathers are unique to birds. No other major group of animals is so easy to categorize. All birds have wings, too, but wings are not peculiar to birds. Underline the word or phrase in the bold text closest in meaning to the words peculiar to. 14 The word categorize in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to (A) appreciate. comprehend. classify. visualize. (B) (C) (D) 15 The word showy in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to which of the following? (A) Ornamental Graceful Colorless Powerful (B) (C) (D) 16 Look at the word slim in the bold text below: Feathers form the soft down of geese and ducks, the long showy plumes of ostriches and egrets, and the strong flight feathers of eagles and condors. Wings vary from the short, broad ones of chickens, who seldom fly, to the long slim ones of albatrosses, who spend almost all their lives soaring on air currents. Underline the word or phrase in the bold text most nearly OPPOSITE in meaning to the word slim. 17 The word detect in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to (A) utilize. extend. observe. describe. (B) (C) (D) 18 Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word diversity in paragraph 3? (A) Function Heredity Specialty Variety (B) (C) (D) 19 Look at the word striking in the bold text below: Yet diversity among birds is not so striking as it is among mammals. The difference between a hummingbird and a penguin is immense, but hardly as startling as that between a bat and a whale. Underline the word or phrase in the bold text closest in meaning to the word striking. 20 The word hardly in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to (A) definitely. not nearly. possibly. not always. (B) (C) (D) 21 The word fundamental in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to (A) basic. shifting. predictable. complicated. (B) (C) (D) Passage 4 Manufactured in the tranquil New England town of Concord, New Hampshire, the famous Concord Coach came to symbolize the Wild West. Its rugged body and a suspension system of leather straps could handle the hard jolts from rough roads. A journalist in 1868, describing a railroad shipment of 30 coaches bound for Wells, Fargo and Company, wrote, “They are splendidly decorated . . . the bodies red and the running parts yellow. Each door has a handsome picture, mostly landscapes, and no two coaches are exactly alike.” Wells, Fargo and Company was founded in 1852 to provide mail and banking services for the gold camps of California and later won a monopoly on express services west of the Mississippi. A Wells, Fargo Concord Coach carried nine to fourteen passengers plus baggage and mail. The accommodations were by no means plush. However, while conditions may have been primitive and service not always prompt, the stagecoach was the swiftest method of travel through much of the Far West. 22 The word tranquil in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to (A) peaceful. bustling. industrial. tiny. (B) (C) (D) 23 The word symbolize in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to (A) recollect. fulfill. deny. represent. (B) (C) (D) 24 Which of the following could best substitute for the word rugged in paragraph 1? (A) Streamlined Roomy Sturdy Primitive (B) (C) (D) 25 Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word jolts in paragraph 1? (A) Signs Shocks Sights Shots (B) (C) (D) 26 The phrase bound for in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to (A) belonged to. destined for. built by. paid for. (B) (C) (D) 27 Look at the word splendidly in the bold text below: “They are decorated splendidly . . . the bodies red and the running parts yellow. Each door is superbly painted, mostly with landscapes, and no two coaches are exactly alike.” Underline the word or phrase in the bold text closest in meaning to the word splendidly. 28 Look at the word plush in the bold text below: The accommodations were by no means plush. However, while conditions may have been primitive and service not always prompt, the stagecoach was still the swiftest method of travel through much of the Far West. Underline the word or phrase in the bold text most nearly OPPOSITE in meaning to the word plush. 29 Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word swiftest in paragraph 2? (A) Most comfortable Cheapest Most direct Fastest (B) (C) (D)

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