GrammarPhile Blog

Common, Ordinary, Everyday Adjectives

Posted by Phil Jamieson   Dec 18, 2014 6:00:00 AM

12-18-14_blog Are you guilty of using "everyday" as a noun? Don't do it. The one-word form is only an adjective, as in "an everyday occurrence." Never write, "I exercise my brain everyday." Now, see how you do with the rest of these adjectives.

 

1. distaff: (a) disgruntled; (b) distant; (c) female; (d) odd.

2. bucolic: (a) relating to or typical of rural life; (b) relating to or typical of urban settings; (c) marked by recurrent episodes of prolonged and uncontrollable crying and irritability in an otherwise healthy infant that is of unknown cause and usually subsides after three to four months of age; (d) having the bodily conformation and temperament held characteristic of such predominance and marked by sturdiness, high color, and cheerfulness.

3. equine: (a) of, relating to, or resembling a mosquito or the mosquito family; (b) of, relating to, or resembling a horse or the horse family; (c) of, relating to, or resembling a dog or the dog family; (d) of, relating to, or resembling a pig or the pig family.

4. abbatial: (a) of or relating to an abbot, abbess, or abbey; (b) of or relating to an abscess; (c) of or relating to aberrance; (d) of or relating to a slaughterhouse.

5. bumptious: (a) ignorant; (b) disposed to or characterized by bold or confident assertion; (c) presumptuously, obtusely, and often noisily self-assertive; (d) slow of mind.

6. brumal: (a) freshly swept; (b) disgustingly unpleasant; (c) of a dull or muddy color; (d) indicative of or occurring in the winter.

7. pro bono: (a) being, involving, or doing professional and especially legal work donated especially for the public good; (b) acting in anticipation of future problems, needs, or changes; (c) likely to be or become true or real; (d) U2 aficionado.

8. luculent: (a) having fleshy tissues that conserve moisture; (b) clear in thought or expression; (c) ardently or earnestly wishing; (d) free from other living organisms.

9. torpid: (a) moderately warm; (b) marked by baseness or grossness; (c) ardent, passionate; (d) lacking in energy or vigor.

10. specious: (a) vast or ample in extent; (b) having a false look of truth or genuineness; (c) lacking in qualities that interest, stimulate, or challenge; (d) juvenile, puerile.

To see the answers, click here.

Topics: vocabulary test

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