Barron's 1100 Words You Need to Know » Week 21 - Day 2

Word List
  • lush [lush]
    luxurious, elaborate
    → “Can one run for political office without the promise of lush campaign contributions from many sources?” “Steve Forbes; In His Own Debt,” Parade, 9/15/99
  • destitution [des´ tə tü´ shən]
    extreme poverty
    → “Our Supreme Court has said that any citizen has a Constitutional right to have counsel, and that the court must appoint a lawyer to defend the destitute.” Joseph Welch, “Should a Lawyer Defend a Guilty Man?”
  • ponder [pon´ dər]
    to consider carefully
    → “As I made my way back, I pondered the significance of what I’d seen.” Nicholas Kristof, “1492: The Prequel”
  • supplication [sup´ lə kā´ shən]
    earnest prayer
    → “The last supplication I make of you is that you will believe this of me.” Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
  • decadence [dek´ ə dəns]
    decay
    → “I said earlier that the decadence of our language is probably curable.” George Orwell, Politics and the English Language

One day, Prince Siddhartha expressed the desire to leave his lush surroundings and ride out among his people. He was profoundly shaken by the misery, destitution, disease, and excruciating* pain with which his people were constantly afflicted.* Retiring to his room to ponder over what he had seen, he remained there for several days, deaf to the supplication of those who pleaded with him to come forth. It seemed to Siddhartha that his life had been redolent* with decadence, and he was determined to make amends.

Sample Sentences Use the new words in the following sentences.

  1. The __________ stage setting drew applause from the theater buffs.*
  2. In the hospital, the alcoholic had time to __________ over the need to be abstemious.*
  3. As the traveler followed the tortuous* path up the Kentucky mountain, he was sickened by the __________ which he saw.
  4. Through __________ , the fraternity head hoped to end the strife* among the members.
  5. Rumors of Rome’s __________ were rife* among the barbarian tribes.

Definitions Match the new words with their meanings.

  1. a. decay
  2. b. extreme poverty
  3. c. to consider carefully
  4. d. earnest prayer
  5. e. luxurious, elaborate
  1. lush __________
  2. destitution __________
  3. ponder __________
  4. supplication __________
  5. decadence __________

Answer Key
on tenter hooks—in a state of anxiety (cloth used to be stretched or “tentered” on hooks)
The indicted* clerk was kept on tenter hooks by the district attorney.

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