WORDLY WISE 9 LESSON 8

lapse

V. To fall or slip from a certain level of conduct or accomplishment. After a month of regular exercise, we lapsed into inactivity.

Adroit

adj. Clever at dealing with difficult situations; adept; skillful Her adroit handling of the boat saved us from going onto the rocks.

tacit

adj. Expressed without words; implied. You gave your tacit approval by not raising any objections to our plan.

erudite

adj. Having or demonstrating extensive knowledge learned. In her first book, the author provided an erudite account of the looting of artworks during World War II.

militant

adj. Ready to fight. My parents, militant supporters of public education, worked with other parents and the teachers to improve the elementary schools in our town.

raucous

adj. Rough and unpleasant to the ear. he raucous cries of the restaurant's parrot startled the diners.

definitive

adj. Supplying a final answer; conclusive Some scholars believe that the definitive biography of the poet Sylvia Plath has not yet been written.

prodigy

n. A person who shows remarkable talent at an early age. Mozart was a musical prodigy who began composing at age five.

crusade

n. A prolonged, impassioned struggle for what is believed to be a just cause. John Brown's crusade to emancipate the slaves led to his execution in 1859.

pariah

n. A social outcast Her classmates treated Maria like a pariah when she told the principal that drugs were being sold in school.

avocation

n. An activity pursued for pleasure; a hobby. Serious artists say that painting is both their profession and their avocation.

protégé

n. One whose training or career is helped along by another. Margaret Thatcher was a protégée of Edward Heath, whom she eventually replaced as British prime minister.

demeanor

n. behavior; bearing. She must have been in shock, because her demeanor didn't change in the slightest as she watched her home go up in flames.

induct

v. To install in office, sometimes with a formal ceremony. The president of the university was inducted into office in the morning and then attended a luncheon held in her honor at noon.

Affront

v. To insult or to offend deliberately. There is no better way to affront your coworkers than to suggest that they are indolent.