explicate | For centuries scholars have argued over how to (explicate/renounce) certain cryptic passages in Milton’s plays and poems. |
fracas | A (fracas/chagrin) between rival groups on the floor of the convention was swiftly quelled by security guards. |
savory | Some people seem to relish every (somnolent/savory) morsel of gossip that comes their way. |
reticent | The workers were (vehement/reticent) to speak about the bank robbery, frightened that the thieves might later seek retaliation. |
chagrin | With deep (chagrin/pandemonium), I must confess that I was the one who neglected to hire the orchestra for the class dance. |
repress | We all have impulses to violence, but we must learn to (repress/concur) them if we are to live in a civilized society. |
concur | Although some people would disagree, many more would (concur/renounce) that the Beatles were the most influential rock band of all time. |
voluble | Mr. Sanderson is usually a man of very few words, but he was certainly (abrasive/voluble) when we asked him about his operation. |
acclimated | It’s not surprising that after so many years of military service, he has found it difficult to become (acclimated/vehement) to civilian life. |
vehemence | I was startled not so much by your disapproval of my proposal as by the (fracas/vehemence) with which you denounced it. |
zealous | Some politicians are more (zealous/voluble) in promoting their own careers than in seeking to help the people who elected them. |
grotesque | The figures in the surrealistic painting had the (grotesque/reticent) appearance of characters in a nightmare. |
raucous | After spending a month in the country, we found the sounds of rush-hour traffic in the big city more (raucous/grotesque) than ever. |
complacent | Kim attributed her failure to get the leader role in the play to the director’s poor judgement and remained (raucous/complacent) about her acting abilities. |
somnolent | Will I ever again sleep as deeply as I did on those deliciously (raucous/somnolent) afternoons on that hot, quiet beach? |
explicate | Economists have spent years attempting to (acclimate/explicate) the causes of the 1929 stock market collapse and the years of economic depression that followed it. |
abrasive | He has a good deal of ability, but his (zealous/abrasive) personality has prevented him from getting ahead in the business world. |
concurred | After a lot of persuading, our parents (repressed/concurred) with our plan to make a bicycle tour of New England. |
complacent | The (voluble/complacent) expression on the antique doll’s porcelain face seemed to proclaim, “All’s right with the world.” |
renounce | In unforgettable words, the soothsayer called on mankind to (acclimate/renounce) the use of armed force. |
reticent | Why is it that some people are so talkative about most things but so (complacent/reticent) about their own personal backgrounds? |
defaming | Lacking a positive program of his own, he hoped to gain the support of the voters by (explicating/defaming) the other candidates. |
Pandemonium | (Pandemonium/Defamation) erupted when the nervous theater manager announced to the waiting crowd that the rock concert was canceled. |
receptive | Gloria’s kind words put me in a such a (receptive/savory) fame of mind that I agree to work on the committee before I knew what I was doing. |
savory | Rosemary is preferred in this soup due to its (savory/voluble) qualities. |