| Word | Part of Speech | Contextual Meaning | Example Sentence |
| arrogant | adjective | thinking highly of oneself | Rick was arrogant to think any girl would go out with him. |
| bedside manner | noun | behaviour by a medical professional towards an ill patient | At the new hospital the nurses were all friendly and had a great bedside manner. |
| benevolent | adjective | kind | The benevolent woman made dresses for the poor girls. |
| bewildered | verb - past tense | surprised; confused | John's new purple hair colour bewildered his classmates. |
| blushed | verb - past tense | became red in the face out of embarrassment | Lisa blushed when her father mentioned Chad's name. |
| breeding | noun | production of offspring | Breeding golden retrievers is a profitable profession. |
| brute | noun | a strong, violent person or animal | The brute beat up three kids on his way home from school. |
| cellophane | noun | clear wrapping material - usually for covering flowers or gift baskets | The florist wrapped the flowers in cellophane to protect them from the rain. |
| clambered | verb - past tense | climbed clumsily or with much effort | John clambered through the junkyard looking for a used steering wheel. |
| clutching | verb - progressive | holding very tightly | The bride was clutching the groom's hand so tightly his fingers turned purple. |
| collapse | verb | fall to the ground | The building will collapse as soon as the dynamite explodes. |
| compelling | adjective | strong and believable | The pregnant woman's husband had a compelling reason for speeding. |
| composure | noun | a relaxed appearance | She held her composure until after her husband's funeral. |
| concealed | past participle | hidden | The results of the vote were concealed in the envelope. |
| conceited | adjective | thinking highly of oneself | Jane is so conceited she voted herself for Prom Queen. |
| connubial | adjective | relating to marriage (outdated, formal) | The relatives were excited about Mark and Sally's upcoming connubial festivities. |
| creed | noun | a religious statement or belief | When we recite the creed everyone gets on their knees. |
| cremated | verb - past tense | burned a dead body to ashes | After they cremated my grandfather we had a service for his soul at the church. |
| discretion | noun | the keeping quiet of a secret or personal information | The receptionist must exhibit discretion when handling medical records. |
| diversified | verb - past tense | put money/effort into different things | The business college diversified into other programs including art and science. |
| dreading | verb - progressive | fearing, not wanting to do or happen | I am dreading moving day because there is so much to do. |
| dusky | adjective | darkish in colour | The sky turned a dusky blue before the storm hit. |
| established | adjective | recognized or known for a long time | The 50-year-old barbershop is a well established business in our community. |
| exertion | noun | use of a lot of energy | The marathon runner fainted out of exertion. |
| full term | noun phrase | 40 weeks pregnant, ready to deliver a baby | My sister was supposed to be born premature but surprisingly my mother made it to full term. |
| galvanized | adjective | protected metal | We need some galvanized nails for building the basement. |
| gleaming | adjective | shiny, bright | The toothpaste promises a gleaming smile. |
| glistened | verb - past tense | shone in the sun | The freshly washed car glistened in the driveway. |
| hammock | noun | a bed that swings between posts | I napped outside on the hammock. |
| harsh | adjective | difficult, cruel | The child was given a harsh punishment for stealing the chocolate bar. |
| humiliate | verb | embarrass someone terribly | My father humiliates me when he tells the story about how I crashed the car. |
| indignation | noun | anger because of unfairness or a wrongdoing | I was full of indignation after getting a parking ticket in my own street. |
| indisputable | adjective | unable to be challenged | It was indisputable that it was my turn to do the dishes. |
| inquest | noun | research into a serious matter | The police began an inquest into why the murder may have occurred. |
| irony | noun | an opposite or very different result than expected | The irony of the marriage was that the couple used to hate each other. |
| jilted | past participle | cheated, treated unfairly | The jilted athletes were angry when they discovered that the winner had bribed the judges. |
| laden | adjective | loaded | The woman was laden with three children and two dogs. |
| layabouts | noun (informal) | lazy people | The layabouts were always skipping school and hanging out at the beach. |
| leering | adjective | looking at in a sexual way | The leering men distracted the cheerleaders on the field. |
| loathing | noun | severe hatred | My loathing for mathematics only increased after I failed the final exam. |
| mercilessly | adverb | showing no kindness or forgiveness | The bullies picked on Jordan mercilessly for the entire first year of high school. |
| misadventure | noun | an unexpected or unwanted happening | The hikers didn't foresee the misadventure of the avalanche. |
| mocking | verb - progressive | teasing, making fun of | When I was growing up my brother was always mocking my singing voice. |
| motive | noun | reason for doing something | The motive for the murder was jealousy. |
| mourned | verb - past tense | expressed sadness over a loss | We mourned for her death at the funeral. |
| nonchalantly | adverb | casually | The man who got hit was walking nonchalantly across traffic. |
| numb | adjective | frozen, having no feeling | After skiing all day our toes were numb. |
| pallid | adjective | pale | When her fever disappeared she was pallid as a ghost. |
| parched | adjective | dry from the heat | The grass was parched after the long dry winter. |
| pasty | adjective | pale in colour | My skin always looks pasty when I don't go to the tanning salon. |
| persistently | adverb | without giving up | Fiona persistently asked for a raise in her salary until her boss agreed. |
| pitch | noun | dark black substance used for waterproofing or making roads | We used the pitch on the roof to keep it from leaking. |
| pitching | verb - progressive | setting something up | We were pitching our tent when it started to rain. |
| plantation | noun | an area of land dedicated to a specific crop | The workers spent the whole day getting beans from the coffee plantation. |
| potholes | noun | holes in the road caused by overuse or weather | The potholes in my town are going to ruin my tyres. |
| prudently | adverb | without taking risks | My grandmother prudently keeps to the slow lanes on the highway. |
| prying | adjective | inquisitive | The prying neighbours asked if the pregnant couple was going to get married. |
| pundits | noun | Hindu scholars | The pundits went from door to door speaking about religion. |
| pyre | noun | a pile of wood where a body is placed for burning | The pyre was arranged before the service. |
| reproach | noun | criticism | There was little reproach over the lateness of the flight because of the bad weather. |
| ruefully | adverb | regretfully | I ruefully apologized for forgetting my father's birthday. |
| sardonic | adjective | disrespectful, cynical | The bartender threw out the man for making sardonic remarks to the waitress. |
| shrill | adjective | high pitched (in sound) | The shrill notes of the flute hurt my ears. |
| shrug | noun | gesture; lifting of the shoulders to show that you don't care or don't know an answer | The teacher asked another student after Mark answered the question with a shrug. |
| slats | noun | thin, narrow pieces of wood or other material | The dog poked his nose between the slats of the fence. |
| sprawling | adjective | spread widely | The sprawling ivy covers the front of the house. |
| squabble | verb | argue | My parents always squabble about whose turn it is to pay. |
| stench | noun | terrible smell | The stench in the kitchen reminded us that we forgot to dispose of the garbage. |
| stowed | verb - past tense | packed or stored tidily in an appropriate place | I stowed my winter clothes in the attic. |
| succulently | adverb | juicily | The watermelon was succulently ripe. |
| tenuous | adjective | weak or slight | He gave a tenuous excuse for his absence. |
| tethered | past participle | tied to a post | The tethered dog was barking in the yard. |
| treacle | noun | dark syrup | My sticky hands were covered in treacle from the tree. |
| treads | noun | marks left by shoes, cars or bicycle tires | I knew by the treads on the driveway that my parents had been home. |
| uncomplicated | adjective | simple | She finished the uncomplicated puzzle in no time. |
| unruffled | adjective | calm | Maria appeared unruffled even though she forgot part of her speech. |
| verdict | noun | decision by a judge in court | The people in the courtroom waited for the judge to announce the verdict. |
| verge | noun | piece of land alongside the road | I left the car on the road and walked along the verge to the closest gas station. |
| vulgarity | noun | rudeness | The street person expressed words of vulgarity after we refused to give him money. |
| wake (of a ship) | noun | disturbed water left by a ship | The surfers rode on the wake of the ship. |
| wheezing | verb - progressive | having difficulty breathing | I was wheezing in the forest because of my allergies. |
