A Word for Everything!
Quiz Book
by Jennifer Stewart
Published by Jennifer Stewart at Smashwords
Visit the author's website at http://www.write101.com
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Copyright 2010 Jennifer Stewart
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
102 Quizzes to super-charge your word power!
Chapter 2: “What Do You Do? What’s Your Father Do?”
Chapter 3: Qualities And Feelings
Science and Maths
The World Around Us
Ah! The Theatre!
A Boating We Will Go
Chapter 5: Food, Glorious Food
Chapter 6: Mostly Villains And The Not-So Bright
Chapter 9: All Creatures Great and Small
Super-Charged Words Containing X & Z
INTRODUCTION
The English language contains an estimated million words, and that means that there is quite literally a word for every occasion. The important thing is to know what word to use and when to use it …
Commiserate with the poor soul who was waxing lyrical about architectural history and declared, “The Greeks invented three kinds of columns, the Corinthian, Doric and Ironic.”
Or the chap telling people about the ancient Olympic Games, who explained that “the Greeks ran races, jumped, hurled the biscuits and threw the java.” And then told how “the reward to the victor was a coral reef …”
Consider the student who explained how “Hamlet rations out his situation by relieving himself in a long soliloquy.”
And the other who wrote that “Miguel Cervantes wrote Donkey Hote.”
With so many words to choose from, why do so many people get it so terribly wrong?
Because they haven’t taken the time to find the correct word; because they’ve never seen the word written down, but have only heard it (or misheard it), which may explain these amazing statements:
“Samuel Morse invented a code of telepathy."
"Louis Pasteur discovered a cure for rabbis"
"Charles Darwin was a naturalist who wrote the Organ of the Species.”
We can laugh at these extreme examples, but many people make similar errors every day.
This little book is an attempt to help you improve your word power and is a compilation of the quiz section of my weekly writing tips newsletter, The Write Way.
What’s that? You’d like to subscribe now? But, of course. Just click on the link or paste the address into your web browser: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WritingTips/
To get the most out of your quizzes, have a pen and paper handy (yes, we’re going back to writing things on paper for this!) The mere act of writing the answer in your own sweet hand will help the word stick in your mind. The answers are at the end of each chapter, but try to work each word out before you check the answers, because thinking about the word also helps it take up residence in your little grey cells.
“How do I work out the meaning of a word I’ve never heard before?” I hear you ask.
Let’s pretend you’re reading a book and the writer has described a character who has “a vacuous look.” Yes, I know you know what it means, but we’re using this to illustrate the technique. The first thing you do is scan your memory banks for words that are similar. What else starts with these letters?
Vacuum!
And what does ‘vacuum’ mean? It’s a ‘void, a space, emptiness, nothingness, vacuity.’ So you now know that this word has something to do with emptiness.
The next step is to look at how the word is used in context. In our example, it’s used to describe a character’s look. Let’s then substitute one of our meanings from ‘vacuum.’
The man has an empty look.
Not bad. That makes sense; let’s try this:
The man has an empty-headed look.
The man has a blank look.
The man has a stupid look.
Exactly!
Now you know what ‘vacuous’ means.
Try this technique with any unfamiliar word you come across in your reading. You’ll get pretty close nearly every time.
Every now and then in the course of this book, I’ll explain the origins of interesting words and toss in a few fascinating ones, just for fun. No, really, words can be fun.
Don’t believe me?
Then ponder the word tragedy for a moment. A "tragedy," boys and girls, is a play (usually in three acts) where the main character comes to grief because of a fatal flaw in his (or her) personality. It's also used to refer to any disaster that ends in loss of life ... but nowadays it's often used to describe piddling things such as a missed goal in a game of footy.
Mind you, a quick check in my trusty Webster's reveals some fascinating details about the origin of this word. It comes from two Greek words, tragos ‘a he-goat’ and oide ‘a song’ ... So it means ... "a goat singer!" See the connection now?
No?
Me neither ... let's have another look ...
Hmmm ... it seems that once upon a time, whenever these old tragedies were performed (the plays that always ended in tears and sent the audience away thanking their lucky stars they hadn't fallen in love with their mothers etc), it was the custom to sacrifice a goat and sing a bit of a song before the play got under way - hence the term "part that comes after the goat-singer" or "tragedy."
Another guess ... er ...theory is that goats were often offered as prizes for these performances (whether for the playwright or actors my source doesn't say) ... hence the term "goat-actors" or "tragedy!"
Don't fancy that one either? OK, how about Theory Number Three?
Because these plays dealt with characters who were brought to ruin and suffered extreme sorrow as a consequence of their own tragic flaws, moral weaknesses or inability to cope with unfavourable circumstances, and because these were performed live, without the aid of the instant replay, the actors had to show how down and out on their luck the central characters were, so they dressed in goat-skins ... hence the term "daggy, you-got-everything-you-deserved you, you, nasty person dressed in a goatskin you" or, "tragedy."
I kid you not (pregnant pause inserted while you marvel at the pun ...) that’s the honest-to-goodness origin of the word.
OK, can’t wait to get started? Neither can I!
Grab your pen and paper, and let’s go ...
One last thing before you dash off. I must stress that all the words in these quizzes are in the dictionary. I want you to remember that as you progress through each set, because I know there will be times when you’ll be saying to yourself, “OK. She must have made that one up in some demented nightmare … That can’t possibly be a real word!”
It is, dear reader. If it’s in the quiz, it’s in the dictionary.
And don’t forget the bonus chapter of X and Z words, for when you’re puzzling over what to do with all those Xs and Zs you accumulate with such regularity when playing word games.
By the time you’ve worked your way through this little lot, you’ll have an additional 1076 words to use so you can say exactly what you mean – every time. And that’s not counting the X and Z words – there are 55 more words in your special bonus chapter!
You'll also find bonus words tossed with gay abandon throughout the quizzes.
The answers to the quizzes are at the end of the chapters.
Chapter 1: WARMING UP
Must ... have ... coffee ...
Just got back from ... (gulp) shopping!
Normally a shopping expedition is a pleasant pastime but not this time! It started with trying to find a parking spot, and isn’t that a fun way to spend the odd half-hour? Driving round and round; searching the horizon for signs of people returning to their cars and trying to outfox all the other lost souls circling endlessly.
I've actually discovered a way to thwart the competition though. All you do is visualise the desired parking space ... See yourself driving into it ... Watch the look of awe/anguish/admiration on the faces of the aforementioned rivals ... Feel the glow as you skip gaily from your car to the entrance which is located (naturally) only a few metres from where you parked ...
Hey, it works for me! And if you don't get a spot, at least you stop stressing for a few minutes. Try it next time you go shopping ... Oh, that's right ... You're never going to set foot in that abomination they call a shopping centre car park again, are you? Sorry, I forgot.
What about we just have a nice cup of coffee, then?
White? Black? Frothy? Decaf? Latté? Cappuccino? Skinny or fat? Espresso?
Aargh! Too many choices!
How about a cup of tea then before we get started?
It’s always a good idea to warm up before engaging in any exercise … So let’s start with some nice quizzes to ease those little grey cells gently into the workout before stirring them up with some super-charged words.
Set 1
Which word in each of the following best fits the definition:
1. compulsion to steal
i) kleptomania ii) dipsomania iii) virtuoso
2. disbelief in God
i) agnostic ii) atheist iii) scoffer
3. insane desire to light fires
i) somnambulist ii) pyromaniac iii) ascetic
4. highly skilled
i) active ii) consummate iii) glib
5. indifferent
i) antipathetic ii) pathetic iii) apathetic
6. delusion of grandeur
i) patricide ii) megalomania iii) atrophy
7. poignant
i) sharp ii) intrepid iii) immature
8. frank
i) dull ii) ingenuous iii) intrepid
9. easily tricked
i) incredulous ii) gullible iii) ingenious
10. a backwards look
i) prospect ii) retrospect iii) introspect
Bonus Word
Awreak [uh REEK] (vb) to avenge. This is a wonderful word - can't you just hear yourself giving a blood-curdling cry of "Awreak, awreak!" as someone takes your spot in the car-park? It comes from an Anglo-Saxon word awrecan, which means ‘to take vengeance on’
Set 2
This is one small step in the campaign to eliminate "a lot" from our language! Match up the collection next to each word:
anthology, archipelago, bale, bunting, chain, fusillade, gaggle, hand, index, menagerie, posy
1. poems
2. flowers
3. bananas
4. names
5. islands
6. animals
7. wool
8. mountains
9. shots
10.flags
11.geese
Set 3
What always impresses me with the English language (and this applies to most languages) is that there are just so many words - I love discovering just the right word for the right spot - it gives a great feeling of satisfaction.
Try substituting one word for these expressions:
1. to happen again
2. strong or powerful
3. deep-sounding
4. to send or throw back sound
5. a feeling of great respect
6. to make slight cuts in the skin
7. that which follows
8. a story designed to teach a lesson
9. difficult to defeat
10.to rid milk of germs by heating
Bonus Word
Cunctation (n) delay, procrastination
This comes from the Latin cunctatus, 'to delay.'
Back in the days of the Republic, Roman general, Quintus Fabius Maximus, was given the nick-name "Cuncator" because of his ingenious tactics of delaying an open encounter with Hannibal during the Second Punic War.
Hannibal had inflicted horrendous losses on the Roman army at the battles of Ticinus, Trebia and Trasimene, and knowing that they didn't have the strength to take the Carthaginians on in a full battle at that time Fabius used guerilla tactics to hamper the progress of Hannibal's forces.
We still use the term 'Fabian tactics' to describe this method of defeating an enemy.
Set 4
Who or what lives in each of these?
1. manse
2. rectory
3. convent
4. monastery
5. coop
6. lodge
7. holt
8. lair
9. eyrie
10.asylum
Bonus Word
Parasigmatism (n) ‘a lisp that leads to an inability to pronounce the sound S.'
What perverted soul came up with that one?
Set 5
I've mentioned before the incredible richness of our language and the way we squander these riches. Exercise those little grey cells, and match up the correct term for each "little bit" below:
water, flowers, butter, paper, bread, wood, hair, sand, glass, oil, dirt, wind, light, grass
A crumb of
A speck of
A grain of
A puff of
A lock of
A splinter of
A pat of
A scrap of
A blade of
A gleam of
A chip of
A sip of
A posy of
A smear of
Set 6
All right, enough warming up, time to start huffing and puffing. Here are some t'riffically useful words ... Do that thing you do:
brummagem, anthropophagy, tohubohu, boondoggle, hiemal , aglet, corybantic, bezonian, absquatulate, obnubilate
1. wintry
2. the plastic tip on the end of a shoelace
3. to obscure; to cloud
4. a state of chaos, disorder, and confusion
5. to flee, make off; abscond
6. cannibalism
7. a scoundrel
8. an unnecessary activity or wasteful expenditure of time or money
9. cheap and showy but inferior and worthless
10.frenzied or agitated
Bonus Word
Here's another of those words that proves, without a shadow of a doubt, that English has a word for every occasion:
Abature (n) ‘trail through a wood beaten down by a stag.’
You’ll notice that it’s not a trail through a forest or across a plain, but through a wood ... and not beaten down by a horse or a bear or a tiger, but by a stag - not a doe ... a stag!
Set 7
Find the odd word in each group:
1. absolute, total, limited, entire
2. cleanse, adulterate, debase, defile
3. amnesty, reprieve, discharge, conviction
4. belabour, repeat, persuade, reiterate
5. assimilate, reject, accustom, conform
6. reduce, augment, enlarge, expand
7. avarice, greediness, generosity, cupidity
8. askew, straight, aslant, awry
9. length, brevity, shortness, succinctness
10.chronic, habitual, acute, incessant
Set 8
Match each word below with its synonym:
hasten, unlucky, broadcast, introverted, increase, created, illustrate, excessive, impulsive, passion
1. disseminate
2. engender
3. exemplify
4. expedite
5. fervour
6. hapless
7. impetuous
8. increment
9. inordinate
10.introspective
Set 9
Match the short words with their long counterparts:
top, mean, dare, talk, low, explain, direct, dumb, peril, give
1. categorical
2. inarticulate
3. decumbent
4. jeopardy
5. elucidate
6. zenith
7. interlocution
8. pusillanimous
9. subscribe
10.speculate
Bonus Word
I'm sure you already know someone who has this ... but you just never had the word to describe it ... until now:
Diastema (n) ‘a space between teeth’
Set 10
Choose the odd word out in each group:
1. accost, waylay, ignore, confront
2. deny, allege, claim, assert
3. responsive, intractable, amenable, agreeable
4. indifference, unconcern, passion, apathy
5. aptitude, awkwardness, talent, gift
6. stratagem, truth, trick, artifice
7. aggravate, assuage, soothe, alleviate
8. mental, physical, intellectual, cognitive
9. complete, round out, complement, detract
10.complicity, distance, conniving, scheme
OK. They were to get you started. Next we’ll take a look at some words to use when writing about a variety of occupations.
But first -- the answers!
ANSWERS
Set 1 Answers
1. compulsion to steal - KLEPTOMANIA
2. disbelief in God - ATHEIST
3. insane desire to light fires - PYROMANIAC
4. highly skilled - CONSUMMATE
5. indifferent - APATHETIC
6. delusion of grandeur - MEGALOMANIA
7. poignant - SHARP
8. frank - INGENUOUS
9. easily tricked - GULLIBLE
10. a backwards look – RETROSPECT
Set 2 Answers
1. poems - ANTHOLOGY
2. flowers - POSY
3. bananas - HAND
4. names - INDEX
5. islands - ARCHIPELAGO
6. animals - MENAGERIE
7. wool - BALE
8. mountains - CHAIN
9. shots - FUSILLADE
10.flags - BUNTING
11.geese – GAGGLE
Set 3 Answers
To happen again - RECUR
Strong or powerful - PUISSANT
Deep-sounding - RESONANT
To send or throw back sound - REVERBRATE
A feeling of great respect - AWE
To make slight cuts in the skin - LACERATE
That which follows - SUBSEQUENT
A story designed to teach a lesson - PARABLE
Difficult to defeat - INVINCIBLE
To rid milk of germs by heating – PASTEURISE
Set 4 Answers
1. manse - MINISTER
2. rectory - RECTOR
3. convent - NUN
4. monastery - MONK
5. coop - CHOOKS (HENS)
6. lodge - BEAVER
7. holt - OTTER
8. lair - WOLF (or other wild animal)
9. eyrie - EAGLE
10.asylum - (No, not us at the end of a lo-o-o-ng week ...) MENTAL PATIENT
NB Some of these words have become interchangeable e.g. a minister can live in MANSE or a RECTORY - depending on his denomination.
Set 5 Answers
A crumb of BREAD
A speck of DIRT
A grain of SAND
A puff of WIND
A lock of HAIR
A splinter of GLASS
A pat of BUTTER
A scrap of PAPER
A blade of GRASS
A gleam of LIGHT
A chip of WOOD
A sip of WATER
A posy of FLOWERS
A smear of OIL
Set 6 Answers
1. hiemal - WINTRY. This is one of those flash words to describe the seasons. It comes from the Latin word for winter 'hiems.' We also get hibernate from this same root. You can also use brumal to describe wintry things.
2. the plastic tip on the end of a shoelace - AGLET
3. to obscure; to cloud - OBNUBILATE
4. a state of chaos, disorder, and confusion - TOHUBOHU
5. to flee, make off; abscond - ABSQUATULATE
6. cannibalism - ANTHROPOPHAGY
7. a scoundrel - BEZONIAN
8. an unnecessary activity or wasteful expenditure of time or money - BOONDOGGLE
9. cheap and showy but inferior and worthless - BRUMMAGEM
10.frenzied or agitated – CORYBANTIC
Set 7 Answers
1. absolute, total, LIMITED, entire
2. CLEANSE, adulterate, debase, defile
3. amnesty, reprieve, discharge, CONVICTION
4. belabour, repeat, PERSUADE, reiterate
5. assimilate, REJECT, accustom, conform
6. REDUCE, augment, enlarge, expand
7. avarice, greediness, GENEROSITY, cupidity
8. askew, STRAIGHT, aslant, awry
9. LENGTH, brevity, shortness, succinctness
10. chronic, habitual, ACUTE, incessant
Set 8 Answers
1. disseminate - BROADCAST
2. engender - CREATE
3. exemplify - ILLUSTRATE
4. expedite - HASTEN
5. fervour - PASSION
6. hapless - UNLUCKY
7. impetuous - IMPULSIVE
8. increment - INCREASE
9. inordinate - EXCESSIVE
10.introspective - INTROVERTED
Set 9 Answers
1. categorical - DIRECT
2. inarticulate - DUMB
3. decumbent - LOW
4. jeopardy - PERIL
5. elucidate - EXPLAIN
6. zenith - TOP
7. interlocution - TALK
8. pusillanimous - MEAN
9. subscribe - GIVE
10.speculate - DARE
Set 10 Answers
1. accost, waylay, IGNORE, confront
2. DENY, allege, claim, assert
3. responsive, INTRACTABLE, amenable, agreeable
4. indifference, unconcern, PASSION, apathy
5. aptitude, AWKWARDNESS, talent, gift
6. stratagem, TRUTH, trick, artifice
7. AGGRAVATE, assuage, soothe, alleviate
8. mental, PHYSICAL, intellectual, cognitive
9. complete, round out, complement, DETRACT
10.complicity, DISTANCE, conniving, scheme
Chapter 2: “WHAT DO YOU DO? WHAT’S YOUR FATHER DO?”
I had occasion to visit the dentist last week ... and before you try to tell me that these days there's nothing to be scared about ... I know that. But the formative years of my teeth coincided with the introduction of Coca Cola out here, so I became well acquainted with a series of dentists and quite frankly, the experiences are seared into the reptilian depths of my brain.
We're talking survival here, folks ... pure and simple. That lizard part of my little grey cells dredges up tribal memories of some lumbering figure, bearing down on me with flint arrowhead and rock hammer for a spot of trephining on a tender part of my skull to release the evil spirits causing my pain, and the fear factor kicks in no matter how hard to I try to suppress it.
So it was with sweaty palms that I sat in the waiting room as the youngster ... (could she have been a day over 11?) emerged from the surgery and beckoned me in.
As I watched this slip of a girl (OK. Maybe on closer observation she was twenty-something), I wondered what ever possessed her to go into dentistry. Can you think of anything worse than spending your working day peering into people's mouths?
Well, to answer my own question, "Yes."
Picture the scene ... it's a beautiful autumn morning, the birds are chirping in the trees, you spring out of bed, run to the open window, take a deep breath of fresh air, turn to your mum and say, "I'm going to be a proctologist!"
Why? In the name of all that's sane ... Why?
So as I sat in The Chair, I pondered some of the myriad medical specialists out there (anything to get my mind off what was going on) and wondered if there was even one that I could bring myself to do for a living. (And if you haven't guessed by now, let me just say that Nurse Nancy I'm not. I have not even a passing interest in the workings of the digestive tract of any other human being, so please don't tell me about your bowel habits, your hiatus hernia or your reflux ... I just don't want to know!)
A few possibilities that fought their way past the madman with the stone axe and into my conscious mind included: Ear, Nose & Throat (Too much halitosis. Ugh!)
Dermatologist (I once saw a photo of the skin's surface taken with an electron microscope ... now there's the stuff of nightmares)
Podiatrist (I realise the foot is one of the unsung heroes of the anatomical world, but wouldn't you think, that if there's a specialist for the foot, that there should, logically, be one for the hand, too?)
Urologist (No comment)
Otolaryngologist (Fancy doing that to your kids! "What does your mummy do, dear?"
"Um ... she's a otto ... an orta ... a orry ... She's a (sob sob) ... Mar-meee!")
By the way, otolaryngologist is just a flash name for our aforementioned ear, nose and throat bloke; a urologist studies the urinary tract in men and women and the genital tract in men; and the word proctologist comes from the Greek proktos (anus) and logos (study) ... Say no more!
Division of labour and specialisation of labour have enabled humans to achieve their top spot in the food chain. Once our ancestors realised that a few specialist hunters and gatherers could run around and get hot and sweaty while providing enough to feed the entire mob, it was no longer necessary for every individual to spend all day hunting hairy mammoth or collecting berries. So the less-athletic members of the human race were then able to spend their time thinking and inventing and experimenting … How else would we have come up with Tupperware, eh?
What you do to keep the wolf from the door is an important part of where you fit in the Grand Scheme of Things, how you see yourself and how others perceive you. No wonder we have so many words related to occupations!
Set 1
Match up the specialist with the job:
nephrologist, pulmonologist, gastroenterologist, toxicologist, otolaryngologist, immunologist, cytopathologist, ophthalmologist, cardiologist, neurophysiologist
1. treats diseases of the ear, nose, and throat and some diseases of the head and neck, including facial plastic surgery
2. treats eye defects, injuries, and diseases
3. treats stomach disorders
4. conducts the diagnosis and treatment of allergic conditions
5. treats heart disease
6. treats kidney disease
7. treats disorders of the nervous system and muscles
8. diagnoses disease by studying cells obtained from body secretions, scrapings, or aspiration
9. treats diseases of the lungs
10.treat people who have been poisoned by household or industrial toxins, environmental toxins, and prescription and nonprescription drugs
Here’s one of those wonderful little pieces that float through cyberspace. No-one knows who wrote it, but we all wish we could take credit for it!
A Brief History of Medicine
"I have an earache...."
2000 B.C. - Here, eat this root.
1000 A.D. - That root is heathen, say this prayer.
1850 A.D. - That prayer is superstition, drink this potion.
1940 A.D. - That potion is snake oil, swallow this pill.
1985 A.D. - That pill is ineffective, take this antibiotic.
2003 A.D. - That antibiotic is artificial! Here, eat this root.
Set 2
Have you ever stayed at the end of a film to watch the credits? Fascinating, isn't it? Apart from the fact that you wonder how any movie-maker ever makes any money, there are some wondrous job titles in there. Try your hand at matching up the terms with their meanings:
segue, dailies, beat, mixer, looping, gaffer, cutter, dolly grip, best boy, breakaway
1. assistant to the electrician
2. specially designed prop or set piece which looks solid by shatters easily
3. electrician
4. screening of footage before it is edited
5. crew member who moves the piece of equipment that the camera sits on to allow mobility of the camera
6. chief of the sound crew; responsible for the quality of the sound recording on a shoot
7. transition from one shot to another in editing
8. single unit of action
9. person responsible for assembling the various visual and audio components of a film into a coherent and effective whole.
10.an in-studio technique matching, synchronizing voice to picture
Bonus Word
Piacular (adj) ‘requiring sacrifice; atrociously bad’
And come to think of it, this isn’t a bad word to have in your repertoire when it comes to discussing movies.
Set 3
These words are for those whose work day takes them to the astral plane:
arcane, divination, bane, shaman, necromancy, ankh, amulet, chakras, pentacle, besom
1. a natural or created object that gives protection to the owner
2. something bad, evil or that causes harm
3. five pointed star enclosed within a circle
4. universal life charm
5. requiring secret or mysterious knowledge
6. a broom of twigs tied together on a long handle; witches' broomstick
7. seven major intersections of energy located on the vertical axis of the body
8. one who acts as a medium between the physical and spiritual worlds
9. belief that departed spirits communicate by physical means such as knocking on walls
10.the art of revealing future events by conjuring up the dead; black arts
Bonus Word
Thaumaturgy (n) ‘the working of miracles or magic feats.’ This one comes from the Greek words for wonder (thauma) and work (ergon).
Set 4
While we’re leaving behind things temporal, try these:
caruncle, eremite, sedile, petard, ephectic, feretory, thurible, talaria, phot, digamy
1. a receptacle to hold the relics of saints
2. censer of metal, for burning incense, having various forms, held in the hand or suspended by chains
3. a winged sandal (as worn by Hermes)
4. an explosive device used to break down a gate or wall
5. habitually suspending judgement
6. an outgrowth on a plant or animal such as a fowl's wattle
7. a unit of illumination equal to one lumen per square centimetre
8. a recluse or hermit, especially a religious recluse
9. remarriage after the death or divorce of one's first husband or wife
10. one of a set of seats, usually three, provided in some Roman Catholic and Anglican churches for the use of the presiding clergy, traditionally placed on the epistle side of the choir near the altar, and in Gothic-style churches often built into the wall.
Bonus Word
Doppelganger (n) ‘a spiritual or ghostly double that haunts its living counterpart.’ This word comes from the German: doppel ‘double’ and Gänger ‘goer’
Set 5
Some words with a political bent (pardon the pun!)
faction, tariff, constituent, populism, incumbent, pork-barrelling, referendum, cartel, coup d'etat, oligarchy
1. a formal organisation set up by a group of firms that produce and sell the same product for the purpose of exacting and sharing monopolistic rents
2. a person who is represented politically by a designated government official or officeholder, especially when the official is one that the person has voted into office
3. a quick and decisive extra-legal seizure of governmental power by a relatively small but highly organized group of political or military leaders, typically by means of the unexpected arrest or assassination of the incumbent chief executive and his principal supporters within the government
4. term for a group of people banded together to seek some self-serving or "selfish" goal through the political process
5. a current office-holder
6. any system of government in which virtually all political power is held by a very small number of wealthy but not necessarily skilled people who shape public policy primarily to benefit themselves financially, while displaying little or no concern for the broader interests of the rest of the citizens
7. any of a number of political movements that demand the redistribution of political power, economic dominance and/or cultural leadership away from what are seen as corrupt, greedy, over-centralized, urban-based oligarchies in favour of empowering "the common people"
8. a vote taken by the general public to decide an important legislative or policy issue directly (rather than having the issue decided by a representative assembly or other legislative agency)
9. a tax imposed on goods imported from outside the country that is not imposed on similar goods from within the country
10. spending public funds by legislative assemblies for projects that don't serve the interests of any large portion of the country's citizens but are nevertheless vigorously promoted by a small group of legislators because they will pump outside taxpayers' money and resources into the local districts these legislators represent
Bonus Word
Anachronism (n) is an artifact that belongs to another time; a person who seems to be displaced in time (i.e., who belongs to another age) or something located at a time when it could not have existed or occurred.
Like so many of our scientific terms, this comes not from Latin, but from Greek: ana ‘back’ and chronos ‘time’
Set 6
If your interests lie in the photographic field, here are some terms you can drop into the conversation to impress your mates:
synchronisation, resolution, aperture, panning, microphotography, exposure, photomicrography, selenium, halation, emulsion
1. micro-thin layers of gelatin on film in which light-sensitive ingredients are suspended; triggered by light to create a chemical reaction resulting in a photographic image
2. production of "halos" round bright spots in an image, by light reflecting from the back of the film-base
3. concerted action of shutter opening and closing of electrical contacts to fire a flashbulb or electronic flash at the correct moment to make most efficient use of the light output
4. light-sensitive substance which, when used in a barrier-layer construction, generates electrical current when exposed to light. Used in exposure meters.
5. hole or opening formed by the metal leaf diaphragm inside the lens or the opening in a camera lens through which light passes to expose the film
6. the ability of a lens to discern small detail
7. moving the camera so that the image of a moving object remains in the same relative position in the viewfinder as you take a picture
8. the quantity of light allowed to act on a photographic material; a product of the intensity (controlled by the lens opening) and the duration (controlled by the shutter speed or enlarging time) of light striking the film or paper
9. the process of making minute photographs of large objects
10.the process of taking photographs of minute objects using a camera and a microscope
Set 7
Some words to toss about when you're chatting with your paleontology mates:
echinoderms, bioluminescence, paleobathymetry, taxonomy, petrify, Vendian, bivalve, amoeba, articulated, oviparous
1. a microscopic, one-celled animal consisting of a naked mass of protoplasm
2. a mollusk having two shells hinged together, as the oyster, clam, or mussel; or any animal with two halves to its shell such as an ostracode or brachiopod.
3. sea animals covered with calcite plates or spines
4. the production of light by living organisms
5. to convert into stone or a stony substance
6. the science dealing with the identification, naming, and classification of plants and animals
7. animals that hatch from eggs
8. the latest period of the Proterozoic era, spanning the time between 650 and 544 million years ago - sometimes referred to as the Ediacaran period is distinguished by fossils representing a characteristic collection of complex soft-bodied organisms found at several localities around the world