Lesson 2: Essential Words for the TOEFL

Jun 7, 2016

advanced ○ advantage ○ advent ○ agile ○ albeit ○ allow ○ appealing ○ celebrated ○ contemporary ○ distribute ○ encourage ○ energetic ○ frail ○ refine ○ worthwhile

advanced
[adj.] ahead of current thought or practice forward thinking, new
[Syn.] progressive

[v.] advance
[n.] advancement

Advanced technology is changing the world.
His advancement to captain came unexpectedly.

advantage
[n.] something that may help one to be successful or to gain something
[Syn.] benefit

[adv.] advantageously
[adj.] advantageous

Is there any advantage in arriving early?
He was advantageously born into a rich family.

advent
[n.] the coming or appearance of something
[Syn.] arrival

With the advent of computers, many tasks have been made easier.
The newspapers announced the advent of the concert season.

agile
[adj.] able to move in a quick and easy way
[Syn.] nimble

[adv.] agilely
[n.] agileness
[n.] agility

Deer are very agile animals.
She moved agilely across the stage.
Mars exploration projects, created at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, rely heavily on agile development.

albeit
conj. in spite of the facts, regardless of the fact
[Syn.] although

His trip was successful, albeit tiring.
Albeit difficult at times, speaking another language is rewarding.

allow
[v.] to agree to let something happen, not to interfere with an action
[Syn.] permit

[n.] allowance
[adj.] allowable
[adv.] allowable

Arthur’s natural agility will allow him to excel in sports.
The extra money allowed us to stay abroad another day.

appealing
[adj.] attractive or interesting, able to move feelings
[Syn.] alluring

[v.] appeal
[n.] appeal
[adv.] appealingly

Working abroad is appealing to many people.
Through his speeches, the candidate appealed to the voters.

celebrated
[adj.] acclaimed, well-known, and popular
[Syn.] renown

The celebrated pianist will give a concert this weekend.
San Francisco is celebrated for its multicultural makeup.

contemporary
[adj.] modern, up-to-date; also a person living at the same time as another person
[Syn.] current

[n.] contemporary

Contemporary architecture makes very good use of space.
Cervantes was a contemporary of Shakespeare.

distribute
[v.] to divide among people or to give out
[Syn.] dispense

[n.] distribution

Many publishers distribute their newspapers directly to homes in their area.
The distribution of seeds is very quick with this new machine.

encourage
[v.] to give courage or hope to someone
[Syn.] inspire

[n.] encouragement
[adj.] encouraging
[adv.] encouragingly

Even though the runner finished second, he was encouraged by his performance.
His teacher gave him the encouragement that he needed to learn the material.

energetic
[adj.] full of life, action, or power
[Syn.] vigorous

[n.] energy
[adv.] energetically

Sam hasn’t been as energetic as he usually is.
There’s a lot of energy in these batteries.

frail
[adj.] weak in health or in body
[Syn.] fragile

[n.] trade

The frail wings of the newborn bird could not lift it off the ground.
One of the frailties of human beings is laziness.

refine
[v.] to make pure, to improve
[Syn.] perfect (v.)

[n.] refinement
[adj.] refined

Factories must to refine oil before it can be used as fuel.
A squirt of lime juice is the perfect refinement to cola.

worthwhile
[adj.] value in doing something
[Syn.] rewarding

It was worthwhile waiting 10 hours in line for the tickets.
It’s worthwhile to prepare for the TOEFL.

Choose the synonym.
1. inspire
  1. celebrate
  2. attract
  3. encourage
  4. appeal
2. advantage
  1. benefit
  2. persistence
  3. nimbleness
  4. allure
3. fragile
  1. modern
  2. famous
  3. allowable
  4. frail
4. contemporary
  1. timing
  2. current
  3. well-known
  4. perfect
5. appealing
  1. refined
  2. encouraging
  3. alluring
  4. popular
6. renown
  1. unknown
  2. celebrated
  3. adverse
  4. disapprove
7. worthwhile
  1. rewarding
  2. acceptable
  3. agile
  4. permitted
8. vigorous
  1. attractive
  2. beautiful
  3. energetic
  4. advantageous
9. refine
  1. persist
  2. value
  3. perfect
  4. divide
10. distribute
  1. disappoint
  2. disrupt
  3. discourage
  4. dispense
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to the underlined word in the sentence.
1. Swallows are among the most agile passerine birds.
  1. energetic
  2. frail
  3. beautiful
  4. nimble
2. Shrimping in Mississippi’s tidal areas is not allowed during the summer months.
  1. worthwhile
  2. permitted
  3. encouraged
  4. appealing
3. With the advent of cable television and the use of satellites for broadcasting, television reception improved.
  1. arrival
  2. refinement
  3. distribution
  4. advantage
4. Most tadpoles are vegetarians, albeit those of some species are carnivorous.
  1. although
  2. simply
  3. supposedly
  4. since
5. Advanced scientific disciplines like solar cell technology and genetic engineering are exploding with possibilities.
  1. valued
  2. celebrated
  3. new
  4. appealing

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