Advanced Vocabulary Booster 5 + Practical Exercises (for B2/C1 level students)

ADVANCED VOCABULARY BOOSTER 5 + PRACTICAL EXERCISES

This time we´re going to focus on the following 10 words: THRIVE/D/D (v.) – BIASED (adj.) – PUNDIT (n.) – LOOPHOLE (n.) –  RUCKUS (n.) – DISMAL (adj.) – HEED/ED/ED (v.) – COMPLACENT (adj.) – STURDY (adj.) – REVAMP/ED/ED (v.)

1. THRIVE/D/D (v.): to grow vigorously; to prosper; to succeed; to flourish

Ex.: Mike´s new business has been thriving in spite of the economic crisis.

2. BIASED (adj.): having an unfair tendency to believe that some people, ideas, etc. are better than others; prejudiced; partial

Ex.: “Their account of the situation might be biased. We´d better listen to both sides of the story before we jump to conclusions.”, said Mr. Shields.  

3. PUNDIT (n.): an expertin a particular subject who is often asked to give an opinion about it

Ex.:They have decided to call in a financial pundit who could advise them how to properly invest their fortune.

4. LOOPHOLE (n.): a means of evasion, esp. an opportunity of evading a law, contract, etc.

Ex.:Lawyers often exploit tax loopholes to save theirclients money.

5. RUCKUS (n.): disturbance or uproar; commotion; fuss

Ex.:“The kids raised such a ruckus last night. I had a hard time trying to get tosleep.”,Fred told his friends.

6. DISMAL (adj.): gloomy; cheerless; very bad or poor

Ex.:They were all disappointed with their team´s dismal performance.

7. HEED/ED/ED (v.): to pay close attention to a warning, call, advice, etc.; to take notice of

Ex.: “The accident would not have happened if Joe had heeded the warnings.”, said Neil to a friend.

8. COMPLACENT (adj.): feeling so satisfiedwith your own situation or abilities that you feel you don´t need to try any harder

Ex.: “Our performance has been good so far, but we can´t afford to be complacent.”, said Gary to some other players on his team.

9. STURDY (adj.): not easily damaged or affected; strong

Ex.: “The jeep we rented was sturdy enough to cope with the bumpy unpaved road to the mountains.”, Jefferson told Donald.

10. REVAMP/ED/ED (v.): to give a new form to old materials; to fix; to repair or renovate

Ex.:“You´ll probably get a much better deal if you revamp that old house before you put it up for sale.”, Dave advised Ryan.

 EXERCISES

I – Fill in the gaps in the sentences below with a word presented in Vocabulary booster 5.

1. “We wouldn´t have gotten lost if we had ___________ Mary´s advice.”, Faye told Nick. 
2. “I don´t care what Phillip thinks. Honestly, I really think he´s ___________ against women.”, said Sheila to a friend.
3. “This ___________ weather can be a little depressing sometimes.”, said Luke to a visitor.
4. “Although our products have been selling well and business seems to be looking up, I don´t think we should become _____________. This is a competitive market and no one really knows what might happen in the future.”, said Mr. Grey at the meeting.
5. “These boots have been through a lot. I´ve had them for about four years now. They´re really ____________.”, Brian told Liam.
6. “I´ve heard predictions from a couple of political _____________, but, you know, I always take what they say with a grain of salt.”, said Frederick to a friend.
7. They took advantage of a _____________ in the contract to get out of the deal.
8. “Can you, please, tell them to knock it off?”, Bill asked Sharon when he saw the _____________ some teenagers were making in the hallway.
9. “Our neighborhood mall has been _____________ recently and it now looks as good as new.”, said Louise to a friend.
10. “This kind of plant _____________ with little sunlight and you don´t have to water it very often either.”, said Linda to a friend.

II – Matching: Find the most appropriate definition for each word in the left-hand column.

1. Heed _____                         a. feeling so satisfied with your own situation or abilities that you feel you don´t need to try any harder
2. Loophole _____                  b. disturbance; commotion; fuss
3. Complacent _____             c. gloomy; cheerless; very bad or poor
4. Ruckus _____                     d. pay close attention to a warning, call, advice, etc.
5. Dismal _____                      e. a means of evading a law, contract, etc.

III–Choose the synonym.

1. Sturdy
   a. balmy       b. stocky        c. bulky        d. strong

2. Biased
   a. torn       b. prejudiced        c. dreary        d. lawful

3. Thrive
   a. prosper       b. toss        c. perish        d. dart

4. Pundit
   a. plump       b. exquisite        c. pioneer        d. expert

5. Revamp
   a. reunite       b. stabilize        c. renovate        d. overcome

Key to Exercises

I – Fill in the gaps in the sentences below with a word presented in Vocabulary booster 5.

1. heeded      2. biased     3. dismal        4. complacent       5. sturdy     6. pundits     7. loophole     8. ruckus     9. revamped     10. thrives

II – Matching: Find the most appropriate definition for each word in the left-hand column.

1. d       2. e       3. a       4. b       5. c

III – Choose the synonym.

1. d       2. b       3. a       4. d       5. c

Source: FALE TUDO EM INGLÊS AVANÇADO – Author: José Roberto A. Igreja / Disal Editora

José Roberto A. Igreja is the author and co-author of several ELT books, including:

LET´S TALK ABOUT IT! – The Ultimate ELT Conversation Book, now available on the Amazon stores of the following countries:

AUSTRALIA     BRAZIL     CANADA     FRANCE    GERMANY   INDIA    ITALY     JAPAN    MEXICO       NETHERLANDS     SPAIN     UK     US

If you´re based in Brazil the paperback is available at a discount price on UICLAP!
240 pages – 31 QR-CODES for the audio tracks (dialogues) “even the paperback comes with built-in technology”

600 Phrasal Verbs (with Jonathan T. Hogan)

Talking Business

How do you say … in English?

Fluent Business English (with Robert C. Young)

What to say when …?

False Friends

English for Job Interviews (with Robert C. Young)

Essential American Idioms! (with Joe Bailey Noble III)