1. divergence noun: a split in 2 directions – Verb: diverge – Adjective: divergent Sample sentences: –“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood.” (Hint: Robert Frost poem – Two paths diverged in a yellow wood...) (Latin di = 2, vers = turn.) 76

2. judicious adjective: wise, making good decisions – Adverb: judiciously Sample sentences: –He was known to be careful and judicious in his choices. –She chose her friends judiciously, placing her confidence in those who were reliable and discreet. (Hint: Like a good judge. Or, Judge Judy.) 77

3. languish Verb: To lose motivation or energy, become feeble – Adjective: languid – Noun: languor Sample sentences: –For years he languished in a prison cell. (Hint: Lacking a wish – a person who languishes loses his will to do things.) 78

4. malice Noun: ill will, the desire to cause harm –Adjective: malicious –Adverb: malicously –Related words: malevolent, malign Sample sentences: –This was not an impulsive crime; he acted with malice aforethought. –The malicious things they said on Facebook led her to contemplate suicide. (Hint: “mal” means bad.) 79

5. entreaty noun: a plea or request – Verb: entreat Sample sentences –She begged for clemency, but her entreaties were adamantly rejected. (Hint: Entreat for entry to a concert.) 80

6. somber Adjective: dark or gloomy Sample sentences: –The day after the accident, a somber mood prevailed. (Hint: Somber rhymes with bomber; when a bonmber explodes a bomb, darkness falls.) 81

7. maraud verb: to raid and plunder – Noun: marauders – Adjective: marauding Sample sentences: –Anglo-Saxon villagers feared the Viking marauders who swept down from the sea. –Marauding rebels overran the countryside. (Hint: Harry Potter had a “marauder's map”.) 82

8. nostalgia noun: sentimental longing for the past – adjective: nostalgic Sample sentences: –Disney's “Main Street” capitalizes on American nostalgia for a past that never really existed. –Every time I hear a Beatles song, I get nostlagic for the 60s. (Hint: Greek roots – nostos is home, algia is pain – so, homesickness.) 83

10. pretentious Adjective – self-important – Adverb: pretentiously Sample sentences: –He showed off his new-found wealth in a pretentious McMansion. (Hint – He pretends to be better than everyone else.) 84

11. volatile adjective: explosive, unstable – Noun: volatility Sample sentences: –Easily angered, he had a volatile temper. –As the police and protestors faced each other, it was a volatile situation. –Be careful – that substance has high volatility 85

12. permeate verb: to spread throughout – Adjective: permeable Related words: percolate, perforate, perennial, permanent (Latin prefix per, “through, throughout, thoroughly”) Sample sentences: –An atmosphere of welcome permeated the house. –Chemicals can pass through a permeable membrane. (Hint: The smell of garlic permeated the house.) 86

13. instigate verb: to cause to happen, incite, provoke – Noun: instigator, instigation Sample sentences: –The provacateur instigated a riot. –Tommy took the cookies, but only at the instigation of his big brother. (Hint: Rhymes with initiate.) 88

14. uncouth Adjective: crude or clumsy Sample sentences: –He was so uncouth he blew his nose in his napkin at dinner. (Hint: Un courteous youth) 87

15. duplicity noun: lies, falsehood, double-dealing, fraud – adjective: duplicitous Related words: complicate, implicate, implicit, explicate, replicate (Latin verb plicare, “to fold”) Sample sentence: –Eventually her duplicity got her in trouble, as people learned what a liar she was. (Hint: Duplicity is like being 2-fold, or a two-faced liar.) 89

16. facetious Adjective: humorously sarcastic, cleverly amusing – Adverb: facetiously Sample sentences: –He was only being facetious when he said people in famine-stricken areas would not have to diet. –“Oh, yes, lets have a picnic in the rain,” he said facetiously. (Hint: His face was not serious. ) 90