Would a dilatory person win a punctuality award?
What is the relationship between spleen and splenetic?
Are the police pleased to get a joquacious stool pigeon?
What medicine is appropriate for a bucolic condition?
1. ambivalent (am-biv'-o-lont)—having conflicting feelings toward a person or thing, such as love and hate.
a. I've read a great deal on the topic of capital punishment but I’m still ambivalent about it.
b. On the surface, Sloan was loyal to the chemical company but she maintained ambivalent feelings about its defense policies.
2. loucolie (byO0-kal-ik)—rural; rustic; pastoral. The Greek word boukolikos means “herdsman.”
a. The artist was celebrated for his bucolic canvases painted at the Ohio farm.
b. Two hours out of the big city, our eyes were refreshed by bucol- i¢ countryside scenes.
3. eretehety (krach-it-6)—full of peculiar whims; ill-tempered; eccen- tric. Crochet work was done with a small, twisted hook; from “twisted” it was an easy jump to “eccentric’-thus the connection between crochet and crotchety.
a. No one took Uncle Sid seriously when he asked for watermelon pudding because he had a reputation for being crotchety.
b. The crotchety old millionaire left his fortune to his twelve cats.
4. dilatory (dil-e-tér-6)—slow; late in doing things; inclined to delay;
meant to gain time.
a. The crooked sheriff's dilatory tactics prevented Columbo from watching the thieves that night.
b. Phyllis’ dilatory habits drove her punctual husband up the wail.
5. disconsolate (dis-kan'-so-lit)—sad; dejected; cheerless.
a. After the bad news arrived in a telegram from the Secretary of Defense, the new widow was understandably disconsolate.
b. When Zelda Fitzgerald was disconsolate, she sought relief through alcohol.
6. dludlgeom (duj-on)—resentment; an angry or offended feeling. It comes from the Anglo-French expression en digeon, which meant
“the hand on the dagger hilt.”
a. Captain Ralston was in high dudgeon after having been demoted.
b. Filled with dudgeon, Edgar sought revenge against his step- brother, Edmund.
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LESSON 29/APPEARANCES AND ATTITUDES 151
frowarel (fro-erd,-ward)—contrary; not easily controlled; stubbornly willful.
a. The froward colt was led into the ring by three handlers who were careful not to be kicked.
b. Petruchio displayed one way to deal successfully with a froward woman in The Taming of the Shrew.
genteel (jen-tél')—well-bred; refined; excessively polite.
a. Mrs. Berman’s gentee/ manners were quite out of place in the sailors’ bar she operated.
b. Etiquette and genteel behavior were taught by Emily Post and Amy Vanderbilt.
Jocumd (jak-ond, j6-kend)—pleasant; agreeable; genial. Our word joke can be traced back to jocund.
a. One of the things that gets me off to a good start each morning is our elevator operator's joc- und face.
b. The company’s jocund mood was shattered by the blackout.
loguacious (l6-kwa'-shas)—talkative. Some synonyms are garrulous, voluble, prolix, verbose, and prating.
a. With a few drinks under his belt, my normally quiet cousin can become quite /oquacious.
b. The loquacious talk-show host never gave his guests a chance to tell about themsetves.
splemetic (spli-net'ik)—irritable; bad-tempered; spiteful. The word derives from spleen, the abdominal organ that the ancients regarded as the seat of emotions.
a. Frieda’s splenetic outburst at the dinner table was in poor taste.
b. One way to drive Albie into a splenetic frenzy is to discuss income taxes with him.
tendentious (ten-den-shes)—opinionated; advancing a definite point of view or doctrine.
a. Although the Post's political columns are often tendentious, | find them very informative.
b. Our school board rejected several history texts, objecting to the tendentious writing they con- tained.
truculent (truk-yoo-lant)—fierce; cruel; savage.
a. ina truculent editorial, the newspaper's owner ripped the Supreme Court decision to shreds.
b. Lord Hastings was unprepared for Richard’s trucufent outburst.
vacuous (vak-yoo-was)}—empty; purposeless; stupid; senseless.
a. ‘wo years on drugs had changed Roger's alert look to a vacuous stare.
b. The judge dropped the assault charges when he realized how vacuous they were.
venal (vé-n'l)—readily bribed or corrupted.
a. Originally there was enough money to cover all expenses but venai officials took most of it.
b. When caught for speeding, George tried to set up a vena/ bargain with the arresting officer.
I. Which Word Gomes to Mind?
In each of the following, read the statement, then circle the word that comes to mind.
1. Cows in the meadow, sheep in the corn
(venal, bucolic, disconsolate) 2. First, | want to go—then | want to stay
(ambivalent, truculent, dudgeon) 3. “What's your rush? So what if we're late?”
(jocund, dilatory, genteel) 4. The millionaire asked to be buried in his Rolls Royce
(crotchety, tendentious, froward) 5. “Were you vaccinated with a phonograph needle?”
(vacuous, loquacious, splenetic) 6. Jane always has a smile on her face
(froward, venal, jocund) 7. Firing someone can easily put him/her into this frame of mind
(dudgeon, tendentious, bucolic)
8. The slightest remark sets Virginia off on a rampage (truculent, splenetic, dilatory) 9. i can’t make up my mind
(crotchety, ambivalent, tendentious) 10. A decidedly partisan view of the Inaugural address
(genteel, splenetic, tendentious)
il. True or False?
In the space provided, indicate whether each statement is true or false.
A jocund person has a good chance of being hired as a receptionist.
Splenetic behavior is always a sign of good breeding.
Truly great bullfighters welcome an animal that is froward.
The gangster’s company has become synonomous with vena/ arrangements.
— 5, Skyscrapers and subways are integral parts of the bucolic life. ge ONS
LESSON 29/APPEARANCES AND ATTITUDES = 153.
Greg’s genteel nature may account for his shyness.
A truculent response is guaranteed to win friends.
Feeling disconsolate over his loss, Fred briefly considered retiring from baseball.
The student’s vacuous stare suggested he did not understand the question.
Because of his joguacious nature, Carlos had little to say.
SO OND
lll, Fill in the Blank
Insert one of the new words in the proper space in each sentence below.
1. Martha wondered how Gary could hope to convince her with such explanations.
2. The successful politician walks a thin line between appearing too and too wishy-washy.
3. Stephan tried to sort out his feelings of respect and resentment towards his father.
4. After the hectic campaign, the president-elect was refreshed by his retreat.
A(n) child perhaps needs more love than a well-adjusted one.
6. The life has its merits, but most people cannot resist the attractions and excitement of the city.
7A person tends to give others little opportunity to express themselves.
8. The fans were deeply disappointed to learn that their idol had been bitten by the bug.
9. The host easily broke the iciness between two of the guests who had been enemies for years.
10. Because of George’s habits, we often referred to him as the late George Owens.
IV. What's the Antonym?
Which of the new words is most nearly opposite in meaning to the one provided?
punctual gentie
even-tempered gross
incorruptible agreeable cheerful unequivocal urban
SO MPNAAA HH > = intelligent
Matching
Match the word in column A with its correct definition in column B by writing the letter of that definition in the space provided.
A B
—_ 1. ambivalent a. resentment
_——_—_ 2, bucolic b. not easily controlied
_—— 3. croichety c. having conflicting feelings
— 4. dilatory d. ii-tlempered
__.. 5. disconsolate e. talkative
___._ 6. _dudgeon f. irritable
_—_ c3 Ioward g. opinionated
_—_—_ 8. genteel h. empty
__..._: 9. jocund i. refined
___. 10. loquacious J. rural
__... 11. splenetic k. Inclined to delay
____ệ 12. iendentious |. genial
—_ T3. truculent m. able to be bribed
____. 14. vacuous n. savage
___ 15. venal 0. dejected
BuT MAR, LoqvAc, L