1. Daily Vocabulary Academic English 11

2. Week 1 1. austere (aw STEER) adj. stern ex. Jill’s father was austere with her about having dates with boys he didn’t know.

3. Week 1 2. lament (la MINT) v. to express sorrow or regret; to mourn ex. The nation lamented the passing of the President while at the same time celebrated his achievements while in office.

4. Week 1 3. voracious (vo RAY shus) adj. having an insatiable appetite ex. Teenage boys tend to be voracious eaters.

5. Week 1 4. officious (uh FISH us) adj. offering unwanted services or advice ex. The officious waitress would not go away even when Jennifer told her that she wanted only coffee.

6. Week 1 5. candor (CAN dur) n. truthfulness, sincere honesty ex. Without regard to feelings, our teacher said she would criticize our term papers with absolute candor.

7. Week 2 1. impede (im PEED) v. to delay; to interfere with ex. My uncle always told me not to let anyone impede my ambition to go to medical school.

8. Week 2 2. onerous (AHN ur us) adj. troublesome or oppressive; burdensome ex. After our truck ran out of gas, we had the onerous task of pushing it two miles to the nearest gas station.

9. Week 2 3. gregarious (gruh GAIR ee us) adj. sociable ex. Paige was so gregarious that she hated to be alone.

10. Week 2 4. pious (PI us) adj. devout or virtuous; holy ex. Elizabeth was pious, saying her prayers every night before bed.

11. Week 2 5. evade (ee VADE) v. to avoid by cunning; to flee from a pursuer ex. Jane always managed to evade helping her sister wash the dinner dishes by claiming she had homework to do.

12. Week 3 1. attrition (ah TRISH un) n. a gradual reduction ex. The war became a battle of attrition, each side wearing down the other.

13. Week 3 2. edification (ED ih fih kay shun) n. enlightenment; instruction ex. We would have been lost at the art show had not programs been provided for our edification.

14. Week 3 3. writhe (ryth) v. to suffer acutely, as in pain or embarrassment ex. Tina writhed when the class heard she failed chemistry for the third time.

15. Week 3 4. carrion (KAIR ee un) n. dead and rotting flesh ex. After mauling its prey, the lion left the carrion to the hyenas.

16. Week 3 5. petulant (PET you lant) adj. ill humored, irritable, cranky ex. The petulant teacher slammed down her book and stalked angrily from the classroom.

17. Week 4 1. pinion (PIN yun) v. confine ex. The handcuffs were used to pinion his hands.

18. Week 4 2. incite (en SIGHT) v. to arouse to action ex. Waving a stick at Jerry’s dog only incites him and increases the chance he will bite you.

19. Week 4 3. ambivalence (am BIV ah lents) n. indecision; experiencing contradictory emotions ex. Jeb’s ambivalence about which diet to choose made him disregard the whole idea of losing weight.

20. Week 4 4. nullify (NUL ih fy) v. to make useless; cancel; undo ex. The purchase contract could be nullified because it had never been signed by the buyer.

21. Week 4 5. embroil (im BROYL) v. to involve in argument or hostile action ex. Most of the civilized world was embroiled in conflict during World War II.

22. Week 5 1. bludgeon (BLUD jun) v. to strike or knock down ex. The police arrested the lumberjack on suspicion of bludgeoning a co-worker with an axe handle.

23. Week 5 2. abate (ah BAIT) v. to reduce ex. Marta’s defeat in the tennis tournament did not abate her zeal for the game.

24. Week 5 3. lithe (lythe) adj. bending easily and gracefully ex. The lithe ballerina stretched her muscles before her performance.

25. Week 5 4. askew (uh skew) adj. to one side; crooked ex. After the flood receded, the bridge was found to be askew of the road which connected to it.

26. Week 5 5. aptitude (ap TUH tude) n. natural ability ex. Chris has had a champion’s aptitude for tennis since she was four years old.

27. Week 6 1. travail (tre VAYL) n. strenuous physical or mental labor ex. When he saw his flourishing crops, he realized his travail had been worth it.

28. Week 6 2. intrepid (in TREP id) adj. fearless; bold ex. The bullfighter was intrepid as he stood in the arena before the fierce bull.

29. Week 6 3. atrophy (AT ruh fee) v. to wither away ex. The author’s interest in writing atrophied after he won the Pulitzer Prize for literature.

30. Week 6 4. muster (MUS tur) v. to collect or gather ex. The Texans at the Alamo mustered all the troops available to defend against the invading Mexican army.

31. Week 6 5. incessant (in SES unt) adj. continuing without interruption; nonstop ex. The incessant rain flooded the front yard.

32. Week 7 1. scrutinize (SKROOT uh nyze) v. to look very carefully; to examine ex. Newspaper proofreaders scrutinize an entire newspaper each day.

33. Week 7 2. eloquent (EL oh kwent) adj. extremely expressive in speech, writing, or movement ex. Stan gave a moving, eloquent speech.

34. Week 7 3. eminent (EM ih nent) adj. standing out; distinguished; prominent ex. Michael Jordan is considered one of the most eminent basketball players of the 20 th century.

35. Week 7 4. prudent (PROOD ent) adj. cautious; exercising good judgment ex. Michele decided it would be prudent to ignore the insult and walk away from such a hateful girl.

36. Week 7 5. idyllic (eye DIL ik) adj. charming in a rustic way; naturally peaceful ex. Chuck and Cathy bought an idyllic cabin in the Smoky Mountains.

37. Week 8 1. choleric (KAHL ur ik) adj. hot-tempered; quick to anger ex. When my dad gets in one of his choleric moods, everyone stays clear.

38. Week 8 2. aspire (as PIRE) v. to hope to achieve a goal ex. Tim aspired to be the valedictorian of his class at graduation and studied hard to reach that goal.

39. Week 8 3. consensus (kun SEN sus) n. general agreement ex. The consensus of the faculty was that no more chili dogs were to be served at the school lunch.

40. Week 8 4. defunct (dee FUNGKT) adj. dead or inactive ex. Latin is a defunct language.

41. Week 8 5. callow (KAL oh) adj. immature and inexperienced ex. The callow boater did not have a life preserver or a radio onboard his sailboat.

42. Week 9 1. palpable (PAL pah bul) adj. capable of being touched or felt ex. The palpable imagery helps make the poem more realistic.

43. Week 9 2. adroit (ah DROIT) adj. skillful ex. Many fourth graders are more adroit on the computer than their parents.

44. Week 9 3. resurgent (re sur jent) adj. possessing the ability to rise after defeat ex. The resurgent little boy was determined to ride his bike without training wheels.

45. Week 9 4. gird (gyrd) v. to encircle ex. Jack hoped he could stop the invasion of weeds from his neighbor’s yard by girding his lawn with a pre-emergent herbicide.

46. Week 9 5. fathom (fa THUM) v. to understand fully ex. The jury found it hard to fathom how the defendant could commit such a terrible crime.

47. Week 10 1. sedentary (SED en ter ee) adj. characterized by or requiring much sitting; accustomed to little exercise ex. Because of a stroke, the normally active woman was forced to lead a more sedentary life.

48. Week 10 2. entice (in TICE) v. to lure, to attract ex. The delicious aroma of a hamburger stand often entices the passerby to stop for a snack.

49. Week 10 3. languish (LANG gwish) v. to become weak ex. Because of the extreme heat on the soccer field, Charlotte began to languish.

50. Week 10 4. remorse (re MORSE) n. a strong feeling of sadness or guilt for having done something wrong ex. The remorse we feel for hurting those we love is the beginning of being able to say we’re sorry.

51. Week 10 5. adherent (ad HEER unt) n. a follower of a leader; supporter ex. The political candidate praised his adherents for their support.

52. Week 11 1. corpulent (KOR pew lent) adj. obese ex. Some football players look corpulent but are actually very muscular.

53. Week 11 2. devoid (di VOID) adj. entirely without; lacking ex. The island was devoid of drinking water.

54. Week 11 3. replete (re PLEET) adj. full or supplied to the utmost ex. The buffet was replete with many tantalizing dishes.

55. Week 11 4. baleful (BAYL ful) adj. threatening; hurtful; malignant; ominous ex. Gertrude cast a baleful glance at her boyfriend when he said she had gained a lot of weight.

56. Week 11 5. callous (KAL uss) adj. unfeeling, insensitive ex. A callous remark about someone is a statement that does not take into consideration the feelings of another.

57. Week 12 1. dearth (durth) n. scarcity; lack ex. A dearth of rain last summer led to many failed crops, especially corn in the valley.

58. Week 12 2. maladroit (mal uh DROYT) adj. clumsy; inept ex. The maladroit painter spilled a can of paint on our new carpet.

59. Week 12 3. prowess (PROW is) n. exceptional skill or bravery ex. Although Tim brags of his golf prowess, his friends say he is just a hacker.

60. Week 12 4. edifice (ED uh fis) n. a building, especially one of imposing appearance or size ex. The construction of one edifice led to another, and New York City became a skyline of enormous skyscrapers.

61. Week 12 5. malice (MAL is) n. a desire or intention to harm others or see them suffer ex. The prisoner was not granted parole because his malice was still obvious.

62. Week 13 1. appease (ah PEEZ) v. to soothe; to relieve by giving into ex. To appease his mother, Zachary always walked the dog before dinner.

63. Week 13 2. boon (boon) n. a timely benefit; a blessing ex. The week-long rain was a boon to the farmers whose crops were withering from drought.

64. Week 13 3. conundrum (kuh NUN drum) n. a dilemma; any problem or puzzle ex. Justin’s conundrum after high school was whether he should go find a job or go to college first.

65. Week 13 4. covert (KOH vert) adj. secret; hidden; concealed ex. Sam carried out covert missions for the CIA in China during the Korean War.

66. Week 13 5. muse (myooz) v. to ponder; to think about at length ex. Though the odds of winning the lottery are very low, it is fun to muse about what you would do if you actually won.

67. Week 14 1. fray (fray) n. fight or scuffle; brawl ex. A fray occurred in the cafeteria when Kirk spilled his tray on Jody.

68. Week 14 2. commodious (kuh MOD dee us) adj. spacious, roomy ex. The rooms in the castle were so commodious that they were as large as the average home.

69. Week 14 3. abhor (ab HOR) v. to hate very much ex. Most people abhor the thought of public speaking.

70. Week 14 4. plight (plyte) n. a distressing situation ex. Determined to rescue the fifty hostages from their plight, the police rushed the aircraft before the terrorists could cause further harm.

71. Week 14 5. bucolic (byoo KAHL ik) adj. country-like ex. There is nothing bucolic about big city life.

72. Week 15 1. alleviate (uh LEE vee ayt) v. to relieve, to lessen ex. Aspirin alleviates painful headaches most of the time.

73. Week 15 2. lax (lax) adj. careless, negligent ex. When the bank security became lax, it was then that the bank robbers planned to rob the bank.

74. Week 15 3. abut (UH but) v. to border upon; to adjoin ex. Texas abuts Mexico on its southern border.

75. Week 15 4. panache (pa NASH) n. dashing elegance of manner or style ex. Eric entered the room with panache, wearing his new tux, Rolex watch, and $500 shoes.

76. Week 15 5. relinquish (ri LING kwish) v. to surrender, give in ex. After playing in the minor leagues for 10 years, Rodney finally relinquished his dream of making it to the major leagues.

77. Week 16 1. tyro (TY row) n. a beginner ex. People never suspected that this was Henry’s first marathon race; he ran the course like a veteran instead of a tyro.

78. Week 16 2. throng (throng) n. a large group of people gathered closely together ex. A throng of revelers gathers at Times Square in New York City on New Year’s Eve.

79. Week 16 3. emulate (IM u late) v. to attempt to equal through imitation ex. Tiger Woods has a golf swing that many golfers try to emulate.

80. Week 16 4. torpid (TOR pid) adj. dormant; inactive; lethargic ex. Volcanoes may be torpid for centuries and one day suddenly erupt.

81. Week 16 5. torrid (TOR id) adj. intensely hot; burning; passionate ex. The torrid heat and wind are what led to the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.

82. Week 17 1. cajole (kuh JOHL) v. to persuade someone to do something ex. Jeannie always sweet-talked and cajoled her parents into letting her have her way.

83. Week 17 2. prattle (PRAT l) v. to babble; to talk meaninglessly ex. The three year old prattled for hours although no one understood what she was saying.

84. Week 17 3. assail (ah SAIL) v. to attack violently ex. While the defendant claims he did not assail the claimant, he did have bruises to prove otherwise.

85. Week 17 4. slake (slayk) v. to quench; to satisfy a craving ex. During halftime, the quarterback tried to slake his thirst by drinking Gatorade.

86. Week 17 5. infamous (in fa mus) adj. having an evil reputation ex. The great white shark has been made infamous by the movie Jaws.

87. Week 18 1. fleece (fleece) v. to swindle ex. The housewives on our street were fleeced by a con man selling bogus magazine subscriptions.

88. Week 18 2. manifest (MAN ih fest) adj. clearly apparent to the sight or understanding; obvious ex. Rebecca’s flu symptoms were manifest, yet the doctor could do nothing. ex. There is manifest danger of lighting a match near a gas pump.

89. Week 18 3. ostracize (AHS truh syze) v. to exclude from a group; to shun ex. Andre felt ostracized by the members of the club, but the truth was they couldn’t understand his accent.

90. Week 18 4. fickle (FIK uhl) adj. often changing for no reason; not consistent ex. The fickle girl is one whose boyfriend is the one she is holding hands with at the moment.

91. Week 18 5. serene (se REEN) adj. clear; calm; tranquil ex. The family goes to the beach for its serene setting.

92. Week 19 1. emit (EE mit) v. to send or give out ex. David told the mechanic that the car emitted a strange sound when he started the engine.

93. Week 19 2. enmity (EN mi tee) n. hostility; deep-seated hatred ex. The enmity between the teams was apparent to the spectators.

94. Week 19 3. rivet (RIV it) v. to hold the attention of ex. The kids are always riveted to the television on Saturday mornings.

95. Week 19 4. abridge (uh BRIJ) v. to shorten; to condense (a speech, movie, book, or other text) ex. Many movies are abridged for television.

96. Week 19 5. surmise (sur MIZE) v. to guess ex. Detective Culleton was able to surmise the identity of the murderer by the clues left behind.

97. Week 20 1. chide (chide) v. to scold ex. When Bobby threw his toys against the wall, his father chided him for his bad temper.

98. Week 20 2. spurn (spurn) v. to reject with disdain ex. When Jimmy won the tennis match and offered to shake hands with his opponent, the loser spurned Jimmy’s hand and walked off.

99. Week 20 3. depravity (di PRAV ih tee) n. extreme wickedness ex. Ed’s mother attributed his depravity to violent movies and video games.

100. Week 20 4. gravity (GRAV ity) n. seriousness or importance ex. Young children don’t understand the gravity of playing with matches.

101. Week 20 5. feign (fayn) v. to pretend; to give a false appearance ex. Elizabeth feigned illness in order to stay home from school.

102. Week 21 1. accrue (ah CROO) v. to accumulate over time ex. Bryan’s unpaid parking tickets accrued to the point they would have paid for his college tuition.

103. Week 21 2. debacle (di BAHK ul) n. a sudden failure ex. It was an absolute debacle for the Flyers as they lost the game after taking a 3-0 lead.

104. Week 21 3. entreat (en TREET) v. to implore, plead, beg ex. Our entire family entreated our father to take us on a summer vacation to Europe.

105. Week 21 4. tenacious (teh NAY shus) adj. tough; stubborn ex. The weeds in our lawn are so tenacious we can never get rid of them.

106. Week 21 5. cache (kash) n. a hiding place, or the objects hidden in a hiding place ex. Treasure hunters have searched for Blackbeard’s treasure in Bahamian caves, but no one has yet found his cache.

107. Week 22 1. terse (turs) adj. brief and to the point; concise ex. Rich could tell he had annoyed his teacher when she gave him a terse reply.

108. Week 22 2. pristine (PRIS teen) adj. extremely pure; untouched ex. Those who know about the island keep it a secret because they want to continue to enjoy its pristine beaches.

109. Week 22 3. capitulate (kah PICH uh layt) v. to surrender under certain conditions; to give in ex. After sending a rose everyday for three weeks, Betty finally capitulated and married Ed.

110. Week 22 4. inundate (IN un dayt) v. to overwhelm with abundance or excess; flood ex. During final exams, we are so inundated with school work that we have no time for fun.

111. Week 22 5. crux (KRUKS) n. main point ex. After Harry rambled on for hours, it was difficult to understand the crux of his speech.

112. Week 23 1. aloof (uh LOOF) adj. distant, reserved in manner; uninvolved ex. At the wedding reception, the bride’s relatives were very aloof, hardly speaking to the groom’s guests and family.

113. Week 23 2. exodus (EK suh dus) n. a mass departure ex. The forest fire created an exodus of animals.

114. Week 23 3. influx (IN fluks) n. a mass arrival ex. South Florida has an influx of northern tourists every winter.

115. Week 23 4. cerebral (suh REE brul) adj. intellectual ex. Cerebral for a football player, the wily Kansas quarterback rarely called a play that wasn’t well planned and thought out.

116. Week 23 5. connoisseur (kahn uh SUR) n. an expert, particularly in matters of art and taste ex. When it came to coins, Jerry proclaimed he was a connoisseur, because he had collected them all his life.

117. Week 24 1. cacophony (kuh KAFH uh nee) n. harsh sound ex. Gene thinks all rock music is a cacophony to be avoided whenever possible.

118. Week 24 2. expunge (ex PUNGE) v. to remove; to delete; to erase ex. The judge ordered the clerk to expunge the lawyer’s statement from the record.

119. Week 24 3. frank (frangk) adj. straightforward ex. The doctor was frank about Lisa’s prognosis.

120. Week 24 4. beleaguer (be LEE gur) v. to harass ex. In the midst of important negotiations, the union official asked his staff not to beleaguer him with insignificant details.

121. Week 24 5. emphatic (em FAT ik) adj. forcibly expressive ex. My mom was emphatic when she told me to be home by midnight.

122. Week 25 1. milieu (mill you) n. environment or surroundings ex. After a long sea journey, a sailor on land for the first few days feels out of his milieu.

123. Week 25 2. histrionic (his tree AHN ik) adj. overly dramatic, theatrical ex. As soon as you would mention the word wrinkle, the middle-aged actress would fall into a state of histrionic tears.

124. Week 25 3. arduous (AHR joo us) adj. hard, difficult, tiresome ex. The assignment given to the recruits was arduous, twenty miles with full packs in the hot sun.

125. Week 25 4. harrowing (HARE roe ing) adj. disturbing or frightening ex. After the harrowing experience when Eddie’s main parachute didn’t open, and his emergency chute saved him only at the last minute, he vowed never to jump again.

126. Week 25 5. tawdry (TAW dree) adj. cheap in appearance or nature ex. Scott gave Rhonda a tawdry engagement ring and could tell by her face that she didn’t like it.

127. Week 26 1. circumvent (sur kum VENT) v. to bypass ex. We were able to circumvent the heavy traffic by taking a short-cut.

128. Week 26 2. ambiance (AM bee uns) n. mood, feeling; general atmosphere ex. The ambiance of the locker room after the team lost the championship was depressing.

129. Week 26 3. atone (ah TONE) v. to make amends ex. Rachel atoned for skipping school by getting straight A’s on her next report card.

130. Week 26 4. sage (sayj) n. a person of wisdom ex. In our family we consider the grandparents the sages of the family.

131. Week 26 5. augment (awg ment) v. to make or become greater ex. The king attempted to augment his army by going into villages and drafting men into service.

132. Week 27 1. queue (Q) v. to form or to wait in line ex. During the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, fans queue outside the gates the day before and spend the night waiting for the gates to open the following morning.

133. Week 27 2. myriad (MIR ee ud) n. an extremely large number ex. George was a hypochondriac, weighted down by a myriad of concerns about his health.

134. Week 27 3. noxious (KNOCKS ee us) adj. physically or mentally destructive; harmful to human beings ex. The noxious pollutants discharged into the bay by the paper mill killed all the marine life.

135. Week 27 4. curtail (ker TALE) v. to lessen, usually by cutting away from ex. Sheriff McDougall curtailed all further night patrols east of the river until bullet-proof windows were installed in his patrol cars.

136. Week 27 5. facilitate (fuh SILL uh tate) v. to make easier, to help bring about ex. Jack’s tools facilitated the repair of the sink.

137. Week 28 1. obtuse (ob tuse) adj. block-headed, slow in comprehension ex. Hazel was so obtuse she thought a watched pot of water never boils.

138. Week 28 2. congenial (kun JEAN ee ul) adj. pleasant to be around ex. Dr. Armstrong was very congenial, always a smile and a kind word for his patients.

139. Week 28 3. doldrums (DOHL drums) n. a period or condition of depression or inactivity ex. Ever since Jack’s dog died, the little fellow has not touched his toys, moping around day after day in the doldrums.

140. Week 28 4. archaic (ahr KAY ik) adj. belonging to an earlier time, ancient; outdated ex. Small countries that depend on agriculture for their economy will never raise their standard of living as long as they use archaic farm tools.

141. Week 28 5. draconian (dray KOH nee un) adj. hard, severe, cruel ex. Judge McNamara handed down a draconian sentence to the defendant, sixty days for littering.

142. Week 29 1. precarious (pruh KA REE us) adj. unsafe, unsteady, unstable ex. It was a precarious moment; we were out of town without any money and without any gas.

143. Week 29 2. torque (tork) n. a turning or twisting force ex. The wrench handle was too short to generate the torque required to loosen the bolt.

144. Week 29 3. docile (DAHS ul) adj. easily taught or controlled; obedient, easy to handle ex. A desirable quality of basset hounds is that they are docile, and that is why they are sought as house pets.

145. Week 29 4. hovel (HUV ul) n. a small, miserable dwelling; an open, low shed ex. The hovels where the homeless live are neglected structures.

146. Week 29 5. countenance (KOWNT uh nanz) n. a person’s face, especially the expression ex. The submarine commander’s calm countenance hid his true feelings of anxiety and fear.

147. Week 30 1. wane (wain) v. to decrease gradually ex. When the air began to wane in his air tank, the diver knew he had to return to the surface.

148. Week 30 2. aggrandize (uh GRAN dyze) v. to exaggerate ex. Fishermen tend to aggrandize the size of the fish they catch.

149. Week 30 3. cloister (KLOY stur) n. a tranquil, secluded place ex. Mary regarded her sewing room as a cloister where she could withdraw from the hectic life of a mother of six and enjoy moments of privacy.

150. Week 30 4. forsake (for SAYK) v. to abandon, to give up ex. All the general’s troops had forsaken him, and he had no choice but to follow them and return to safe ground.

151. Week 30 5. revere (ri VEER) v. to regard with great devotion or respect, to honor ex. Mother Teresa was greatly revered by all who knew of her humanitarian work in Africa.

152. Week 31 1. surreptitious (sur ep TISH us) adj. acting in a secret manner ex. The magician was so surreptitious during his magic trick that the audience was completely fooled.

153. Week 31 2. mawkish (MAW kish) adj. excessively and objectionably sentimental ex. Elizabeth is so mawkish that she cries at every wedding.

154. Week 31 3. abash (ah BASH) v. to make ashamed or uneasy ex. Caught listening to her sister’s conversation, Jen was abashed and quickly put down the receiver.

155. Week 31 4. peccadillo (pek ah DIL oh) n. a minor offense ex. Being ticketed for running a red light is a mere peccadillo compared to driving while intoxicated.

156. Week 31 5. raffish (RAF ish) adj. cheaply vulgar in appearance or nature; disreputable ex. The raffish character had been seen at the murder and was taken in for questioning.

157. Week 32 1. bauble (BAW bul) n. a small, inexpensive trinket ex. Never one for baubles, Diane always wore real diamonds.

158. Week 32 2. skullduggery (skul DUG uh ree) n. trickery; underhandedness ex. In order to capture ships at sea, pirates would practice all types of skullduggery to gain an advantage over their prey.

159. Week 32 3. chasm (KAZ um) n. a deep opening in the earth’s surface; a gorge ex. The Grand Canyon is one big chasm.

160. Week 32 4. pecuniary (pi KYOO nee er ee) adj. consisting of or relating to money ex. Tom wanted to take Ann to the prom but didn’t ask her because of his pecuniary problems.

161. Week 32 5. presentiment (pre ZEN tih ment) n. a sense that something is about to occur; a premonition ex. Ray had a presentiment that he would hear from Tony before the end of the day.

162. Week 33 1. sundry (SUN dree) adj. various, several, miscellaneous ex. There were sundry animals at the zoo.

163. Week 33 2. ethereal (i THEER ee ul) adj. very light; airy; delicate; heavenly ex. An ethereal mist covered the hill in the morning.

164. Week 33 3. diatribe (DYE uh tryb) n. a bitter verbal attack ex. Coach Johnson’s diatribe was futile because the referee refused to reverse his decision.

165. Week 33 4. eschew (ES choo) v. to avoid or shun ex. We were advised to eschew riding the subway at night.

166. Week 33 5. winnow (WIN oh) v. to rid of undesirable parts ex. The military attempts to winnow out those who are not officer material.

167. Week 34 1. prodigious (pra dij us) adj. enormous in size, quantity, degree ex. The construction of the Panama Canal was a prodigious undertaking.

168. Week 34 2. boor (buur) n. someone who is unrefined ex. He was seen as a boor when he started slurping soup and eating salad with his fingers.

169. Week 34 3. agog (ah gog) adj. highly excited by eagerness ex. Betty and Laura are always agog on Christmas morning.

170. Week 34 4. nettle (NET l) v. to irritate ex. My little brother always seems to nettle me.

171. Week 34 5. bequest (bi KWEST) n. something left to someone in a will ex. Henrietta’s jewelry was a bequest from her mother.