Barron's 1100 Words You Need to Know » Week 40 - Day 4

Word List
  • augment [ôg ment´]
    enlarge, increase
    → “The Russian army was augmented by helicopters and rocket-launching tanks in its attack on the defenders.” Newsday, 11/27/99
  • fatuous [fach´ ü əs]
    foolish, silly, inane*
    → “After only a few seconds of silence, speakers of English seem obligated to say something, even making a fatuous comment about the weather.” Bill Bryson, The Mother Tongue
  • contort [kən tôrt´]
    twist violently
    → “He is an actor who can contort his face into any number of shapes.” People, 4/15/99
  • repertoire [rep´ ər twär]
    works that an artist is ready to perform
    → “He led a secret life as a forger of paintings, with the most famous as part of his repertoire.” Peter Landesman, New York Times, 7/18/99
  • imperceptible [im´ pər sep´ tə bəl]
    extremely slight or gradual
    → “In the two decades since W. Ugams had come to Boston, his status had imperceptibly shifted.” John Updike, New Yorker, 10/22/60

Actors depend upon their ability to gesticulate* almost as much as upon speech to obtain their desired histrionic* effects. With them, gesture serves much more than merely to augment speech. When their communication is by gesture alone, it is called pantomime. In the early silent motion picture period, gestures were flamboyant.* To show that he was distraught* about the danger in which the heroine had been placed, the hero would go through the most fatuous actions. He would stagger, beat his breast, tear his hair, and contort his face into the most doleful* appearance. There weren’t many simple or restrained gestures in his repertoire. The heroine, to indicate her love, would fling her arms wide and ardently* jump into her sweetheart’s arms. It was only much later that actors became skilled enough to communicate with the audience through discreet* gestures and almost imperceptible changes in facial expression that could transmit nuances* of emotion.

Sample Sentences Use the new words in these sentences.

  1. The new employee wanted to gain favor with his boss, and his obsequious* desires led to the most __________ behavior.
  2. Her virtuosity* was demonstrated by the works she performed from her __________.
  3. He had always appeared virile,* so that the __________ decline toward senility* went unnoticed until he succumbed* and began to use a cane.
  4. The paroxysm* of coughing served to __________ her body until she could gain a respite.*
  5. The parsimonious* octogenarian* sought to __________ his wealth by removing it from its cache* and placing it in a bank.

Definitions Match the new words with their definitions.

  1. a. extremely slight or gradual
  2. b. enlarge, increase
  3. c. foolish, silly, inane*
  4. d. twist violently
  5. e. works that an artist is ready to perform
  1. augment __________
  2. fatuous __________
  3. contort __________
  4. repertoire __________
  5. imperceptible __________

Answer Key
to have at one’s fingertips—to have thorough knowledge, to have ready
He had at his fingertips an extensive repertoire.*

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