Australia Vocab Part 2 Days 1 & 2

Australia Vocab (Part 2) Vocabulary Name:____________________
Day 1
New Words: staccato acrid reverie thesis assertion
The Term Paper
Students today have it rough. Not only do they have to battle with the acrid smell of whiteboard cleaner in the classroom, they have to put up with many annoyances during timed papers. Their classrooms are filled with many posters on the wall that can distract and put them in a state of reverie. They also must listen to the staccato tapping of pencils while other students work. It is my thesis that students should be able to do all school work form home via radio. Some students may not agree with this overall argument, but many assertions can back up this claim. The students in Australia seem to have done just fine with this system, students’ homes are more comfortable, and homes lack the distractions of chaotic classrooms.

Sample sentences: Try your hand now at using your new words by writing them in their correct form (change endings if necessary) in these sentences:

1. The________ smell of burning rubber made my stomach lurch/
2. The ____________ applause after the opening band was nothing compared to when Iron Maiden took the stage with their accordions.
3. My overall_____________ was that students should have to clean their own school.
4. I backed up the main argument with _________ that stated the proposal would save money and be beneficial to our community as a whole.
5. The boring lecture caused me to fall into a state of __________ where I became a pirate.

Definitions: Match the new words with their dictionary meanings.

6. staccato ___ a. something declared or stated positively
7. acrid ___ b. a proposition that is maintained by argument
8. reverie ___ c. marked by abrupt, disconnected parts or sounds
9. thesis ___ d. daydreaming
10. assertion ___ e. unpleasantly sharp, pungent or bitter to the taste, smell, or tone

Grammar Lesson (The Dash)-Try making a sentence that uses a dash
A dash may be used to emphasize a word, series, phrase, or clause

He’s the kind of man who picks his friends—to pieces.
--Mae West

Australia Vocab (Part 2) Vocabulary Name:____________________
Day 2
New Words: pellucid vigilant pungent precipitated edifying

The refrigerator that time forgot
Although many modern refrigerators have the benefit of being pellucid, allowing the owner to observe the rotting of their produce from afar, there are still items that never seem to get thrown out. Even the most vigilant owner will miss the occasional jar of yogurt that becomes so pungent you feel the need to climb to the top of your apartment and allow the container to precipitate onto the pavement below. Intellect screams that the yogurt must suffer a demise or forever stink up your apartment, but I hope you will think of our earth first before leaving the contents in the alley. Although it may seem intelligent to throw the yogurt out the window, I hope this edifying passage will at least help you do the right thing with these rotting foods. Aim for the dumpster.

Sample sentences: Try your hand now at using your new words by writing them in their correct form (change endings if necessary) in these sentences:

1. The paintings in the church served a(n)__________ purpose even for those who could not read.
2. The finest bridge in all Peru broke and ___________ five travelers into the gulf below.
3. Wordsworth would often speak of the clear, __________ streams that would allow him to see the beauty that could be found beneath the surface.
4. Because the teacher was extremely ___________, no one could cheat on tests.
5. The rotten sandwich in my desk released a(n) _________ odor that made the class ill.

Definitions: Match the new words with their dictionary meanings.

6. pellucid ___ a. watchful
7. vigilant ___ b. admitting the passage of light; transparent or translucent
8. pungent ___ c. to throw from or as if from a great height; hurl downward
9. precipitated ___ d. enlightening or uplifting so as to encourage intellectual or moral improvement
10. edifying ___ e. penetrating, biting, or caustic

Grammar Lesson (The Dash)-Try making a sentence that uses a dash
The dash is used to indicate a sudden break or change in the sentence.
At dark, shadowy intersections, I could cross in front of a car stopped at a traffic light and elicit the thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk of the driver-black, white, male, female-hammering down the door locks.
-Brent Staples, “Night Stalker”