Acuity
The __________of most people's hearing diminishes as they grow older.
delineate
The architects will ___________the main features of their plan at the next client meeting.
depraved
Oscar Wilde's novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray" is about a ______________man whose portrait reveals his wickedness.
enervate
Unfortunately, the great musician's mind was _____________ by disease in the last decade of her life.
esoteric
The graternity developed a set of ____________ rites that had to be performed by anyone seeking membership.
fecund
The remarkably _____________mind of Albert Einstein produced theories that revolutionized the science of physics.
fiat
The ruler instituted several new _________________.
figment
The sihouette of a man on the porch was a mere _______________ of your overheated imagination.
garner
Over the years, the writer was able to ____________ some wisdom that she passed on to others in her books.
hallow
In the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln ____________ the battlefield on which the Union soldiers fought and died.
idiosyncrasy
The fact that the plurals of some nouns are formed irregularly is an ______________ of English grammar.
ignominy
He went from glory to ________________.
mundane
The painter left all ________________ concerns to her sister while she single-mindedly pursued her artistic goals.
nuance
In his writing, the poet paid close attention to every ____________of meaning in the words he choose.
overweening
It was the ________________ confidence of the candidate that prevented her from acknowledging her weaknesses.
penchant
A teacher with a ________________ for belaboring the obvious is bound to be boring.
reputed
Although he is the ________________ head of a crime syndicate, he has never spent time in jail.
sophistry
The couple was beguiled into buying a bigger house than they needed by the clever ___________ of the broker.
sumptuous
The _____________feast honoring the king's birthday was followed by musical entertainment.
ubiquitous
The _____________ eye of the TV camera threatens to rob citizens of any sense of privacy.
ignominy
Cleopatra took her own life rather than suffer the ____________of beig led through the streets of Rome in chains.
fecund
Her imagination is like a ____________field in which new ideas spring up like so many ripe ears of corn.
enervate
Scandal and corruption may so ___________an administration that it can no longer function effectively.
nuances
Two synonyms are rarely exactly the same because _____________ of tone or applicability make each of the words unique.
delineate
Few writers have J.D. Salinger's remarkable ability to ____________the emotions and aspirations of the average teenager.
acuity
It is only in superior mental powers, not in physical strength or __________ of the senses, that human beings surpass other living things.
sophistry
Your language is indeed clever and amusing, but your argument is nothing but a piece of outright ____________.
penchant
Someone with a pronounced _________ for saying the wrong thing might justly be described as a victim of "foot-in-mouth" disease.
sumptuous
The ____________ banquet was a pleasant change of pace from the spartan fare to which I had become accustomed.
idiosyncratic
He means well, be we cannot tolerate his highly ____________behavior in an organization that depends on discipline and teamwork.
mundane
Like a true fanatic, he considers anyone who disagrees with him on any issue to be either feebleminded or ______________.
figments
A true sign of intellectual maturity is the ability to distinguish the _______________ of wishful thinking from reality
fiat
In a democracy, the government must rule by persuasion and consent - not by mere _________.
overweening
How I'd love to knock the wind out of the sails of that lout's ____________ conceit!
esoteric
The conversation between the computer programmers was so ______________ that I wasn't sure they were speaking English.
mundane
In that rarefied atmosphere, I was afraid to ask about anything quite so ____________ as the location of the rest room.
garner
I appreciate all those kind expresssions of gratitude for my services, but I had also hoped to ______________some cash.
reputedly
The alert defense put up by our team completely neutralized our opponents ___________ unstoppable passing attack.
hallowed
We will never abandon a cause that has been _______________ by the acheivements and sacrifies of so many noble people.
ubiquitous
Probably no complaint of young people is more _____________ than "My parents don't understand me!
overweening
In Shakespeare's Othello and King Lear, the ____________ pride of the title characters contributes to their tragic downfalls.
ignominy
Eight White Sox players in the 1919 World Series were banned from baseball for throwing games and forced to live with the ___________ of thier actions.
sophistry
The orator who is most able to recognize and rebut his or her opponent's persuasive __________ consistently will wi the debate.
mundane
Weary of her ___________ day-to-day life, the woman embarked o a summer-long bicycle adventure across the continental United States.
penchant
Given my ____________for spicy food, I should enjoy the cayenne pepper.
garnered
The marathon not only brought in huge sums of money for Africa's starving masses, but also ____________ much sympathy for their plight.
depraved
Beneath the man's cultivated manner and impeccable grooming there lurked the __________ mind of a brutal sadist.
reputed
The man is __________ to have mob connections, but so far no one has actually substantiated the allegation.
mundane
May I interrupt this abstruse discussion and turn your attention to more ______________ matters - like what's for dinner?
fiat
During the eleven years of his "personal rule", King Charles I bypassed Parliament and ruled England by royal __________.
enervated
I was so _________ by the oppressive heat and humanity of that awful afternoon that I could barely move.
fecund
The phonograph is but one of the wonderful new devices that sprang from the _________ mind of Thomas Edison, our most prolific inventor.
figment
Your suspicion that I am constantly making fun of you behind your back is a mere ___________ of your overheated brain," I replied.
hallowed
The ground in which those soldiers are buried was ____________ by the blood they shed on it.
ignominy
He was a changed young man after he suffered the __________ explusion from West Point for conduct unbecoming of a gentleman.
penchant
His constant use of the word fabulous, even for quite ordinary subjects, is a(n) ___________that I could do without.
sumptous
There is quite a difference between the austere furnishings of my little apartment and the __________ accomodations of a luxury hotel.
overweening
His __________sense of superiority dominates his personality in much the same way as his beetling brow dominates his face.
idiosyncrasy
You may have many good traits, but I do not admire your _____________ for borrowing things and failing to return them.
acuity
The passing years lessened her physical vigor but in no way dimished the _________ of her judgement.
nuance
Music can often express a(n) ______________of mood or feeling that would be difficult to put into words.
delineated
The artist's sketch not only _________ the model's appearance accurately, but also captured something of her personality.
ubiquitous
American-style fast food shops have gained such popularity all over the world that they are truly __________.
esoteric
Most people I know are so busy dealing with the ordinary problems of life that they have no time for __________ philosophical speculation.
sophistry
Analysis will show that his "brilliant exposition" of how we can handle the pollution problem without cost to anyone is sheer _______________.