Barron's 1100 Words You Need to Know » Week 30 - Day 1

Word List
  • extinct [ek stingkt´]
    no longer existing
    → “There are many warnings that loss of habitat will make many species extinct in the near future.” “The Rotunda,” Publication of the American Museum of Natural History, 5/5/98
  • idyllic [ī dil´ ik]
    simple, peaceful
    → “The brilliant Hawaiian sunrise beckons you to a great breakfast as your tour of the idyllic islands begins.” Brochure for Perillo Tours
  • galvanize [gal´ və nīz]
    excite or arouse to activity
    → “While he could not galvanize an audience, he could make them think.” George Jean Nathan, House of Satan
  • encumbrance
    burden, handicap, load
    → “Maxim decided to dispose of the encumbrance of a whining wife and three disrespectful teenagers by leaving silently in the dead of the night.” Everett Dodds, Greener Pastures [adapted]
  • gaudy [gô´ dē]
    showy, flashy
    → “This computer drawing program permits children to express themselves in the most gaudy art they can imagine.” Working Mother, 5/96

The man who best described the now extinct life aboard a steamer on the Mississippi River is Mark Twain. Having actually worked aboard the river boats, his writing captures the tranquil* or turbulent* events of those days. In his book about life on the Mississippi, Twain recalls the idyllic times when man was not in such a great rush to get from one place to another. One chapter deals with the races conducted between the swiftest of the boats. When a race was set, the excitement would galvanize activity along the river. Politics and the weather were forgotten, and people talked with gusto* only of the coming race. The two steamers “stripped” and got ready; every encumbrance that might slow the passage was removed. Captains went to extremes to lighten their boats. Twain writes of one captain who scraped the paint from the gaudy figure that hung between the chimneys of his steamer.

Sample Sentences Use the new words in these sentences.

  1. Today, the trend* is to more and more __________ dress.
  2. It is amazing how lithe* football players can be, despite the __________ of the safety features of their uniforms.
  3. The dinosaur is an __________ species.
  4. City dwellers often yearn for the __________ life in the country.
  5. A dictator will use any pretext* to __________ his people into aggressive actions.

Definitions Match the new words with their definitions.

  1. a. burden, handicap, load
  2. b. showy, flashy
  3. c. simple, peaceful
  4. d. excite or arouse to activity
  5. e. no longer existing
  1. extinct __________
  2. idyllic __________
  3. galvanize __________
  4. encumbrance __________
  5. gaudy __________

Answer Key
forty winks—a short nap
During the night before the big test, he studied continuously, catching forty winks now and then.

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