- ebullient (c)
enthusiastic. Nina has
such a bubbly, ebullient
personality—I can’t be-
lieve she was ever shy! - pique (a) resentment.
After being passed over for
a promotion, Manuel left
the office in a fit of pique. - bonhomie (b) friendli-
ness. There’s an absence
of bonhomie between the
rival basketball teams. - dour (c) gloomy. How
can you be so dour on this
sunny morning? - amatory (b) romantic.
Some people claim that
chocolate can put you in
an amatory mood, but I
don’t buy it. - timorous (c) fearful.
Bernard is usually
timorous around large
Vocabulary Ratings
9 & below:content
10–12: delighted
13–15: ecstaticdogs, but he seems to
love our three golden
retrievers.- wistfully (a) with sad
longing. “I miss when
my friends would call
me on my birthday—now
they just text!” Monica
said wistfully. - belligerent (a) hostile.
The sightseers were
chased from the pond
by a belligerent swan. - fervor (c) passion.
Nicole’s fervor for local
honey inspired her to
open a beekeeping
business. - compunction
(a) remorse. The con man
showed no compunction
about fleecing unsuspect-
ing investors. - umbrage (a)
indignant displeasure.
Elvira took umbrage at
being called a wicked
witch.
12. schadenfreude
(c) joy at another’s pain.
We all felt some
schadenfreude when
our boorish manager
was finally fired.
13. querulous (b) fretful.
I don’t recommend
traveling overseas with
Aunt Lisa—she gets
querulous and cranky
on long flights.
14. blithesome
(c) merry. “There is
nothing so blithesome
as a summer day at
the beach with the
children, is there?”
Tim said.
15. lugubrious (b)
mournful. This lugubrious
violin solo isn’t doing
much to raise my spirits.
Word Power
ANSWERS
126 february 2019
Reader’s Digest
matthew cohen