Exercises

ago ambulo angulus & ardeo astronomy audio augeo battuo cado caedo cano capio caput corpus Definitions (See Word Definitions) dens domus gradior Greek Roots ludo os/pectus rumpo scribo tendo torqueo traho vaco voco

On ago, agere, egi, actum = do, act, drive, lead, guide, move (set in motion)

i. Looking at the words in this vocabulary, write down a word of three letters, then a word of four letters, then five, etc, until you reach words of thirteen or fourteen letters. Glancing over both lists, decide about how many letters the majority of words derived from Latin ago contain.
Would it be three letters, six letters, or ten letters, or some other number?

ii. Checking through the vocabulary, can you produce a list containing a word of one syllable, then a word of two syllables, right up to a word with five syllables? You should have a list of five different words. Now, see if you can produce a similar list of another five words.
Glancing through all the words again, decide where most words fall. Do they have one, two, three, four or five syllables?

iii. Can you find

a word beginning with the letter n
a word beginning with a vowel
a word beginning with a blend
a word beginning with a triple consonant blend
a word of six letters
a word beginning and ending with a vowel
a word beginning with the fifth letter of the alphabet
a word beginning with a prefix meaning both ways
a word ending with a suffix meaning one who.

Make sure all your words are different. If you have two the same, see if you can change one.

iv. These nouns and their meanings have become muddled up. Can you sort them out?

agriculture	:	guiding of a ship
an examination	:	tactics used in planning one’s success
an agenda	:	business dealings
agony	:	movement
transactions	:	things to be dealt with in a meeting
cogitation	:	suffering
an actor	:	an opponent
an antagonist	:	a leading figure
activity	:	thoughtful pondering
a protagonist	:	an extraordinary person
a prodigy	:	a performer in a play
horticulture	:	a test designed to show what has been learnt
navigation	:	the cultivation of the land
a strategy	:	the art of cultivation of gardens

v. Can you pair up these verbs with their meanings?
to extract, cogitate, coagulate, antagonize, agitate, agonize, examine, activate
Meanings: ponder, stir up, demand from, push into action, look into carefully, cause opposition, be driven by opposing thoughts, turn fluid into a solid state.

vi. Here are the meanings of three words with the root word –gogue in them:

a gathering of Jews for guidance and worship
one who leads the people and often sways them with his or her words
one who guides and teaches children

Can you find the three words that have these meanings?

vii. Write the word antagonise across your page half-way down, spreading the letters out.
Find words from the vocabulary on Latin ago with at least one letter in common with the word antagonise and write them down vertically so the letters interlock (see Question iv of the exercises on Vocabulary and Voco = I call). For the letter a, you might choose agency or transaction. To interlock with the t of antagonise, you might choose activity. Do this exercise with as many words as you can looking at the shapes you create and colour the border.
This is a valuable exercise which helps one get to know words in each vocabulary, so no shirking!

viii. Can you explain why agony means ‘suffering’ when the Latin ago has the idea of acting, doing, driving or leading?

ix. John Milton wrote a long poem called ‘Samson Agonistes’, which retells the story of Samson found in chapters 13 – 17 of Judges in the Old Testament of the Bible.
See if you can find out more about the story of Samson and decide why the present participle or adjective, agonistes, is applied to Samson. Can you find a good translation for this adjective using something of the basic meaning of the Latin and Greek ago = do, act, drive, lead, set in motion? Remember, too, that the Greek, agon, has the idea of struggling.

Answers to Exercises on ago:

iv. These nouns and their meanings have become muddled up. Can you sort them out?

agriculture	:	the cultivation of the land
an examination	:	a test designed to show what has been learnt
an agenda	:	things to be dealt with in a meeting
agony	:	suffering
transactions	:	business dealings
cogitation	:	thoughtful pondering
an actor	:	a performer in a play
an antagonist	:	an opponent
activity	:	movement
a protagonist	:	leading figure
a prodigy	:	an extraordinary person
horticulture	:	the art of cultivation of gardens
navigation	:	guiding of a ship
a strategy	:	tactics used in planning one’s success

v. Can you pair up these verbs with their meanings?

to exact	:	demand from
cogitate	:	ponder
coagulate	:	turn fluid into a solid state
antagonize	:	cause opposition
agitate	:	stir up
agonize	:	be driven by opposites or opposing thoughts
examine	:	look into carefully
activate	:	push into action

vi. Here are the meanings of three words with the root word–gogue in them:

synagogue
demagogue
pedagogue

viii. Samson was expected to deliver his people, the Israelites, from the oppression of the Philistines, but although he won several victories over them, he finally lost his strength, was captured, blinded, and forced to do hard labour. He was led into a temple to be jeered at by the celebrating Philistines, who were unaware that Samson’s strength was beginning to return. While they praised their god, Samson quietly took hold of the temple pillars and brought them down so that the roof fell in on all the Philistine gentry killing them and himself as well.

ix. Did you translate Samson Agonisters as Suffering Samson or Samson doing the business or Struggling Samson succeeds or Samson acting up (to expectations at last) or Samson’s (last) thrust of energy or Samson finally gets cracking? Let’s know of your really good answers.

On Ambulo = I amble along

i. From the word perambulator, see how many 2-letter and 3-letter words you can find in 5 minutes. You will have 2 lists, e.g. am and mat.

On Angulus & ardeo (angle & I burn)

i. Fill in the gaps with a word from the vocabularies:

It had been a disastrous fishing trip. From the moment the _____1_____ fisherman pulled up the _____2_____, the winds blew up at all _____3______. The boat filled with water up to his ______4______ & his face grew _______5_______white. He was glad to reach the shore again.

ii. From the word arsonist find two words of one-letter, two of two letters, two of three letters, two of four letters & two of five letters.

Answers to Exercises on Angulus & ardeo:

i. 1.ardent 2. anchor 3. angles 4. ankles 5. ashen

ii. a, I. as, at, it. art, arm ass. arts, arms, mast, time. smart, times, timer, masts.

On Astronomy (stars)

i. Put a single word of similar meaning next to these phrases:

a group of stars
a starlike sign used in printing
a falling star
the vapour round the earth
the study of the stars for fortune-telling
unhealthy in mind
the study of the stars for knowledge
a terrible event
a star trailing light
the study of weather conditions
a flower with star-shaped petals
a group of stars like the Milky Way
one who studies the stars as they are said to affect people's lives.

ii. Take the word meteorological and see how many words you can make from its letters in three minutes.

iii. Draw a fairly large star and decorate it with a sun, moon, stars, a comet and a galaxy.

Answers to Exercises on Astronomy (stars):
i. Put a single word of similar meaning next to these phrases:

a group of stars = a constellation
a starlike sign used in printing = an asterisk
a falling star = a meteor
the vapour round the earth = the atmosphere
the study of the stars for fortune-telling = astrology
unhealthy in mind = insane
the study of the stars for knowledge = astronomy
a terrible event = a disaster
a star trailing light = a comet
the study of weather conditions = meteorology
a flower with star-shaped petals = an aster
a group of stars like the Milky Way = a galaxy
one who studies the stars as they are said to affect people's lives = an astrologer.

On Audio = I hear and Obedio = I obey

i. Fill in the gaps from these words:

audience (twice), inaudible, auditorium, orator, audibility

Many people crowded the ............1........... to hear the well-known ........2......…. . At first the .........3......… listened carefully, but as the microphones were not working and the words were ...........4......…, they grew restless. However, the fault was soon righted; .........5.......… was restored, and the .........6......… listened spell-bound.

ii. In the above passage (Question i) see if you can find four nouns from the words already printed. A noun can be defined as ‘the person or thing you are talking about’.

iii. Put the correct meaning next to the word it explains:

orator	:	state of not being heard well
auditor	:	doing what one is directed to
audition	:	a respectful gesture
audience	:	a test given to an actor
congregation	:	people listening to a concert
obedience	:	an expert speaker
theatre	:	one who checks accounts
inaudibility	:	people worshipping in a church
obeisance	:	place where films are shown

Answers to Exercises on Audio and Obedio:

i. 1. auditorium 2. orator 3. audience 4. inaudible 5. audibility 6. audience

ii. people, microphones, words, fault (These all refer to people or things we talk about)

iii.

orator	:	an expert speaker
auditor	:	one who checks accounts
audition	:	a test given to an actor
audience	:	people listening to a concert
congregation	:	people worshipping in a church
obedience	:	doing what one is directed to
theatre	:	place where films are shown
inaudibility	:	state of not being heard
obeisance	:	a respectful gesture of homage

On Augeo = I increase

i. Can you sort out these nouns and their meanings which have become muddled up?

auctioneer: eighth month of the Western calendar
authority: a woman writer
augury: act of officially granting permission
authorship: person managing a sale with ever-increasing bids
decimation: seven babies born at one birth
August: a sale where the price is reached through bidding
octet: source, origin
septulets: a musical composition for eight instruments
authorization: the power to decide and act
authoress: process of installing one in an important office
auction: destruction of almost a tenth of the population
inauguration: act of predicting likelihood of future events

ii. Can you match up these adjectives and their meanings which have become mixed up?
august: based on the number ten
authoritative: domineering, dictatorial
authoritarian: secondary, supporting
inaugural: regarded as reliable and knowledgeable
decimal: having eight sides and eight angles
octagonal: opening with ceremony
auxiliary: majestic, impressive, stately

iii. List from Act II, Scene ii of “Julius Caesar” by William Shakespeare

a) four strange things that happened involving animals or the dead and dying

b) three lines that suggest the noise of the storm and

c) two or three lines suggesting what the storm looked like.

Later in the scene Caesar tells of Calpurnia’s dream. Describe the dream in your own words stating why it seemed to be a warning auguring ill. Then describe how Decius explains the dream in a positive way.

Answers to Exercises on Augeo = I increase

i. auctioneer: person managing a sale with ever-increasing bids
authority: the power to decide and act
augury: act of predicting likelihood of future events
authorship: source, origin
decimation: destruction of almost a tenth of the population
August: eighth month of the Western calendar
octet: a musical composition for eight instruments
septulets: seven babies born at one birth
authorization: act of officially granting permission
authoress: a woman writer
auction: a sale where the price is reached through bidding
inauguration: process of installing one in an important office

ii. august: majestic, impressive, stately
authoritative: regarded as reliable and knowledgeable
authoritarian: domineering, dictatorial
inaugural: opening with ceremony
decimal: based on the number ten
octagonal: having eight sides and eight angles
auxiliary: secondary, supporting

iii. Act II, Scene ii of “Julius Caesar” by William Shakespeare:

a) A lioness had her cubs in the street. Dying men groaned. Graves opened up. Blood fell like rain upon the Capitol.

b) The noise of battle hurtled in the air,
Horses did neigh and dying men did groan
And ghosts did shriek and squeal about the streets.

c) Fierce fiery warriors fought upon the clouds,
In ranks and squadrons and right form of war,
Which drizzled blood upon the Capitol.

Calpurnia dreamed she saw Caesar’s statue pouring forth blood through a hundred spouts and many Romans bathing their hands in it as if delighted. She assumed Caesar had been murdered and the citizens of Rome were rejoicimg because of it. But Decius interpreted it as Rome being revived and made great through Caesar.

On Battuo = I beat

i. Choosing from the following words or phrases, fill in the gaps:

bated, battalion, battered, battery, battle, battlements, battle cry, battler, combat, embattled, debate, battledress

i. He was an old soldier and there could be no ___________ about his value in ________ . A real ________ , he had taken part in single __________ as well as in full-scale war, and now there were only a few of his __________ left. Grimly they donned their __________ and prepared to defend the ___________ city. They cleaned their __________ of guns and placed them on the __________. With __________ breath they listened for the __________ of the enemy. Would they come out of the fight __________ and bruised?

ii. Can you draw the wall of a city with its battlements? Can you add a battery of guns, a moat, with the battlefield and soldiers in front?

iii. By changing the first vowel in batter, see if you can make three more words.

Do you know what they mean? Can you put each word in a sentence so as to show its meaning?

iv. These nouns and their meanings have become muddled up. Can you sort them out?

battered	:	becoming less
a battalion	:	a place where animals are killed for meat
a debate	:	group of heavy guns
rebate	:	one involved in a fight
a battery	:	a long fight
an abattoir	:	a discount
battle	:	a unit of armed forces
a combatant	:	a presentation of different opinions
abating	:	knocked about, beaten

Answers to Exercises on Battuo:

i. Clem was an old soldier and there could be no debate, about his value in battle. A real battler, he had taken part in single combat as well as in full-scale war, and now there were only a few of his battalion left. Grimly they donned their battledress, and prepared to defend the embattled city. They cleaned their battery of guns and placed them on the battlements. With bated breath they listened for the battle cry of the enemy. Would they come out of the fight battered and bruised?

iii. better, bitter, butter

iv.

battered	:	knocked about, beaten
a battalion	:	a unit of armed forces
a debate	:	a presentation of different opinions
rebate	:	a discount
a battery	:	a group of heavy guns
an abattoir	:	a place where animals are killed for meat
battle	:	a long fight
a combatant	:	one involved in a fight
abating	:	becoming less

On Cado = I fall

i. Here is a list of words. Can you sort them into pairs that have something in common? They may have slightly different meanings and different uses, but they still have something in common. An example might be mischance and mishap.

waterfall, perchance, the West, occasionally, happening, mischance, decaying, cadaver, sometimes, decadence, Occident, occasion, cascade, decadent, mishap, deterioration, perhaps, corpse.

Glancing through all the words again, decide where most words fall. Do they have one, two, three, four or five syllables?

Answers to Exercises on Cado:

i. waterfall, cascade; sometimes, occasionally; decaying, decadent; cadaver, corpse; decadence; deterioration; Occident, the West; occasion, happening; mischance, mishap; perhaps, perchance.

ii. case, cadence, decadent, accidental, incidentally

chance, decay, occasion, coincidence, occasionally, etc.

iii. Three syllables.

On Caedo = I cut, I kill

i. The -cide in a number of words means the killing of. Explain who or what may be killed when these words are used:

a) pesticide b) matricide c) suicide d) homicide e) fratricide f) parricide g) fungicide h) infanticide

e.g. Infanticide is the killing of an infant or child.

ii. Knowing the words in Question 1, what might be definitions for these words?

Fraternity, a matriarch, infancy, homo sapiens, paternal (e.g. grandparent), infantile

Look up your dictionary if you wish

[Greek arkhos = ruler, chief; Latin sapiens = wise, intelligent and so modern]

iii. What is being killed off in decision-making?

iv. Learn about teeth: incisors, canines (Latin canis = dog), premolars and molars (Latin mola = a millstone).

Check the internet or dictionary and decide on the job of each sort of tooth.

Answers to Exercises on Caedo:

i. a) a pest b) one’s mother c) oneself d) a man or woman (human being) e) one’s brother or sister f) one’s father or parent g) an infant

ii.

matriarch	:	a woman who is head of a family or tribe
paternal	:	on one's father's side of the family
infantile	:	like a child, childish
fraternity	:	brotherhood; group with interests in common
homo sapiens	:	modern man
infancy	:	early childhood; when one is a baby

iii. Possible plans, ideas, solutions

iv. Incisors are for cutting; canines for biting, holding and grasping; molars for holding and crushing or grinding

On Cano = I sing:

i. Can you pair up these words with their meanings?
accent, charm, cantata, shanty, chant, canon, cannon, enchantment, descant, cantor, cant, cantabile

Meanings: spell; magical formula; stress or stressed part; language peculiar to a certain group; church choir leader; a singing tone; minor oratorio; decorative melody sung above the main tune; half sung, half spoken words; song sung by sailors as they work; large mounted gun; musical composition like a round.

ii. Now put the words into alphabetical order starting with accent

Answers to Exercises on Cano:

i. Accent = stress or stressed part; Charm = spell or magical formula; cantata = minor oratorio; shanty = song sung by sailors as they work; chant = half sung, half spoken words; canon = musical composition like a round; cannon = large mounted gun; enchantment = magical formula or spell; descant = decorative melody sung above the main tune; cantor = church choir leader; cant = language peculiar to a certain group; cantabile = a singing tone,

ii. accent cannon canon cant cantabile cantata cantor chant charm descant enchantment shanty.

On Capio = I take, I seize

i. Can you put the words in the list below into alphabetical order?

incapable, deceptive, conceptual, principal, exceptional, capacious, reciprocal, receptive, imperceptive, municipal, anticipatory, unoccupied, susceptible, unacceptable, capture, conceive, deception, receive.

ii. Checking through the vocabulary for words beginning with the letter c, see how many words you can find of one, two, three, four, five and even six syllables.

iii.

On Caput = the head

i. Here is a list of words. Can you write one meaning for each word, using the word head in each answer? An example might be cape (geographical) = a headland.

decapitate, capital (city), cape (garment), precipitous (cliffs), chief (of a tribe), capital (offence), handkerchief, chef, captain (of a ship), chapiter, per capita, mischief, capitulate, cap, chieftain, capitulum, chapeau.

On Corpus = the body

i. How many syllables in each of these words? corpuscle, corps, corset, corporation, dandelion, expectation, coast.

ii.Pair up these words with their meanings:

corporal corpuscle corslet corsage corpse incorporate corpulent

Meanings: dead body, blood cell, large, posy pinned on bodice, tight slimming garment, relating to the human body, include in a body of material.

iii. Now put the words in List ii into alphabetical order.

On Definitions See Word Definitions

i. General

How many letters are there in the English alphabet?
How many vowels or voices are there in this alphabet?
How many consonants are there?
The letter y has several uses. Find a word in which it acts as a consonant, another in which it says e, and a third in which it says i.
Name the 6th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 20th, 22nd and 24th letters of the alphabet.
Number each letter of the alphabet and using this as a code, turn your full name into this code, e.g. Ben becomes 2, 5, 14.
Can you say the alphabet starting from any letter? Try starting with the letter r.

ii. Name the parts of speech from these definitions:

tells what some noun or other does
introduces a phrase
stands instead of a noun
gives more information about a noun
gives more information about a verb
joins sentences together
the thing one is talking about

iii. Name the words that these definitions apply to:

the stressed syllable
a word of one syllable
a word ending
the word ending which can mean full of
the prefix which means many
a general term for prefixes and suffixes
the words that you know and use
a word from which other words are derived
the indefinite article
words with similar meanings
opposites
the objective form of I
nouns referring to particular people
nouns referring to groups
nouns referring to emotions and ideas
nouns referring to things we can touch.

iv. Name and draw the punctuation marks which

mark the end of a sentence
indicate a question
show what is actually said
indicate a shortened form
show speech is said with feeling
indicate possession
indicate how syllables are divided
are used to introduce quotations
link connected statements
separate words in lists
show letters are omitted
begin the names of the days of the week or months of the year

Answers to Questions on Definitions
i. General

26
5
21
yard, yawn, yell, yesterday or you; happy or sadly; by, cry or spy (There are other possibilities)
f, i, l, o, t, v, x

ii. Name the parts of speech from these definitions:

verb
preposition
pronoun
adjective
adverb
conjunction
noun

iii. Name the words that these definitions apply to:

accent
monosyllable or monosyllabic
suffix
–ous
poly-
affixes
my or your vocabulary
root
a or an
synonyms
antonyms
me
proper nouns
collective nouns
abstract nouns
concrete nouns

iv. Name and draw the punctuation marks which

full stop (.)
question mark (?)
inverted commas (“ “)
full-stop (.)
exclamation mark (!)
apostrophe (‘)
hyphen (-)
colon (:)
semi-colon (;)
comma (,)
apostrophe (‘)
capital letter (ABC, etc).

On Dens = a tooth

i. Pair these words up with their meanings: indentation dentist teeth denture trident tusk dandelion orthodontist.

Meanings: herb with yellow flower; set of false teeth; one who specialises in straightening teeth; recess in the coastline carved out by the sea; tooth of an elephant; one who works with teeth in general; spear with three prongs; hard bony structures in mouth of humans used for biting and chewing.

ii. Now arrange the words in alphabetical order.

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On Domus = building, house

i. These nouns and their meanings have become muddled up. Can you sort them out?

timber	:	lack of safety, peril
a dame	:	underground cell for prisoners
a damsel	:	area under one lord's control
dominion	:	building material
dominatiom	:	having absolute power over
despotism	:	territory under control of a government
a dungeon	:	round-shaped roof
danger	:	having control over
domain	:	young unmarried woman
a dome	:	lady of the house

ii. This time the verbs and their meanings are muddled up. Can you match them up?

to predominate	:	exposed to an unsafe situation
to domineer	:	help get used to life in the home
to endanger	:	be superior to, prevail over
to domesticate	:	have control or a commanding influence over
to dominate	:	force one's ideas on others with arrogance

iii. Can you pair up the adjectives below with their nouns so that the pairs make sense?
manner, ruler, feature, help, animals, missions (nouns)
domiciliary, predominant, despotic, domineering, domesticated, dangerous, despotic

Answers to Exercises on Domus = building, house:

i. These nouns and their meanings have become muddled up. Can you sort them out?

timber	:	building material
a dame	:	lady of the house
a damsel	:	young unmarried women
dominion	:	territory under control of a government
domination	:	having control over
despotism	:	having absolute power over
a dungeon	:	underground cell for prisoners
danger	:	lack of safety, peril
domain	:	area under one lord's control
a dome	:	round-shaped roof

ii. This time the verbs and their meanings are muddled up. Can you match them up?

to predominate	:	be superior to, prevail over
to domineer	:	force one's ideas on others with arrogance
to endanger	:	expose to an unsafe situation
to domesticate	:	help get used to life in the home
to dominate	:	have control or a commanding influence over

iii. domiciliary help; domineering manner; dangerous missions; predominant feature; domesticated animals; despotic ruler

On Gradior = I step

1. These nouns and their meanings have become muddled up. Can you put the correct meaning next to the word it explains?

aggressive	:	going backwards
progressive	:	sloping part of road
gradual	:	entrance or way in
ingredients	:	able to be broken down by bacteria
gradation	:	a step up or promotion
degradation	:	one who steps towards another as if to attack
biodegradable	:	a step in a series
an upgrade	:	making steps forward, advancing
a downgrade	:	act of bringing down to a lower level, e.g. of self-esteem
ingress	:	a meeting of people coming together from different parts
egress	:	a step down or demotion
congress	:	elements of any compound or mixture
retrogression	:	a student who has not yet stepped up to the degree exams
a gradient	:	a series of gradual changes or degrees, e.g. of colour
a degree	:	exit or way out
a graduate	:	as if attacking
an undergraduate	:	one who has passed all the steps and gained a degree or diploma
an aggressor	:	progressing by steps or degrees

2. Explain the meaning of the following five words showing how they relate to stepping:
a) aggression b) digression c) regression d) transgression e) progression

3. Can you explain the difference between a fifth grader, an undergraduate, a graduate, and a post-graduate student?

Answers to Exercises on Gradior = I step:

1. Sorting nouns and their meanings:

aggressive	:	as if attacking
progressive	:	making steps forward, advancing
gradual	:	progressing by degrees or steps
ingredients	:	elements of any compound or mixture
gradation	:	a series of gradual changes or degrees, e.g. of colour
degradation	:	act of bringing down to a lower level, e.g. of self-esteem
biodegradable	:	able to be broken down by bacteria
an upgrade	:	a step up or promotion
a downgrade	:	a step down or demotion
ingress	:	entrance or way in
egress	:	exit or way out
congress	:	a meeting of people coming together from different parts
retrogression	:	going backwards
a gradient	:	sloping part of road
a degree	:	a step in a series
a graduate	:	one who has passed all the steps and gained a diploma or degree
an undergraduate	:	a student who has not yet stepped up to the degree exams
an aggressor	:	one who steps towards another as if to attack

2.a) stepping towards (as if to attack) b) stepping aside c) stepping back d) stepping across (from cultural norms) e) stepping forward

3. A fifth grader is a young pupil of about 10 or 11 years, probably attending an elementary or primary school and in their fifth year of education. An undergraduate is a university or college student who is studying for a degree, in particular, a bachelor’s degree. When they have passed their examinations, they are known as graduates. Some students go on to do research or extra study after they have gained a degree and are called post-graduate students.

On Greek Roots

i. A common Greek ending is -logy, which means a word or study of. Work out how the words in the list below relate to words or a type of study or science:

astrology, genealogy (gene = race), biology (bios = life), microbiology (mikros = small); physiology (phusis = nature, natural things); geology (ge = earth); psychology (psukho = the mind); anthropology (anthropos = human being); cosmology (kosmos = world, universe, a well-ordered system of creation); theology (theos = a god); horology (hora = time, hour); chronology (khronos = time, especially distant time, history); ideology (id = to see; idea = form, pattern, and so, system of ideas); philology (philo = love of); eulogy (eu = well, and so praise); an anthology (anthos = a flower); meteorology (meteor = things above); tautology (tauto = the same), phonology (phonos = sound).

ii Below is a list of meanings of words, all of which begin with the letters ph. Can you find a single word for each meaning?

a shop where medicines are prepared; a ghost; a stage of development; a picture obtained through the use of light; method of teaching reading through sounds; an unreasonable fear; a small glass bottle; a collector of postage stamps.

iii. Here are some meanings of words, all of which begin with ps. See if you can find a single word for each meaning:

an assumed name; a sacred song; the study of the human mind; an archaic expression of contempt; the human mind or soul; a skin disease marked by red patches and white scales.

iv. Here is a list of words, all of which end in the letter -a:

drama, enigma, era, idea, asthma, dilemma, stigma, coma, bacteria, diploma

Can you pair up the words with their correct meaning as seen below?

a long distinct period of time; a mark of disgrace; a letter or document conferring some power, privilege or honour; exciting events; a deep sleep or state of unconsciousness; micro-organisms, some of which may cause disease; an ailment involving the lungs; a situation involving two equally distasteful choices; a mystery or puzzling matter; a notion

Answers to Exercises on Words derived from Greek roots:

i. study of the stars; study of one's ancestry; study of living organisms(especially plants and animals); science or study of very small organisms like bacteria, viruses, fungi; the science of the functions of living organisms (a branch of biology); the study of the earth; study of the human mind; study of humans and their customs; study of the universe; study of religions involving God or gods; study of measuring time and of clock-making; study of times past; system of ideas behind political and economic activity; study of language or love of learning and words; words of praise; a collection of poems or literary gems; study of the weather or atmosphere; saying the same thing in different words; study of sounds in a language.

ii. pharmacy, phantom, phase, photograph, phonics, phobia, phial, philatelist

iii. a pseudonym, psalm, psychology, pshaw, psyche, psoriasis

iv. exciting events; a mystery or puzzling matter; a long distinct period of time; a notion; an ailment involving the lungs; a situation involving two equally distasteful choices; a mark of disgrace; a deep sleep or state of unconsciousness; micro-organisms, some of which may cause disease; a letter or document conferring some power, privilege or honour (literally, folded paper from 'to fold and double').

On Ludo = I play

i. Choosing from the following words or phrases, fill in the gaps:

delusion, eluded, disilusioned, prelude, alluded, ludo, elude

i. Sadly, the game of ______________ was the ______________ to a fight. Tim could not bear to lose so he tipped the board over. Annoyed and under the ______________ he could win any fight, Jim punched Tim, but Tim punched him harder. So Jim fled, managing to ____________ Tim’s friends who followed him. Jim reached his home, sore and _______________. After that, if anyone _____________ to this fight, Jim simply ________________ the subject.

Answers to Exercises on Ludo = I play:

i. Sadly, the game of ludo was the prelude to a fight. Tim could not bear to lose so he tipped the board over. Annoyed and under the delusion he could win any fight, Jim punched Tim, but Tim punched him harder. So Jim fled, managing to elude Tim’s friends who followed him. Jim reached his home, sore and disillusioned. After that, if anyone alluded to this fight, Jim simply eluded the subject.

*You may also hear the word illusion used in this sense

On Os/pectus = bone/chest

i. Pair these words up with their meanings:

ostracise ossify oyster ossuary osprey osteoporosis osteoarthritis expectorate pectoral

Meanings: turn to bone a shellfish banish from society a disease of porous bones a vault where bones are kept inflammation of the finger bones related to the chest large fish-eating bird spit.

ii. Now put the words themselves into alphabetical order.

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On Rumpo = I break

i. Replace the phrases below with single words of the same meaning chosen from these words:

rupture, bankrupt, abrupt, eruption, interruption, irruption, fracture, disrupt:

a) The sudden shooting up of a geyser b) burst (a blood vessel) c) hasty and disconnected d) legally judged unable to pay one’s debts e) landing troops in a country not one’s own f) put an end (to services) by breaking them g) a short stoppage h) break a bone

ii. Can you sort out these words and their meanings which have become mixed up?

disrupt	:	break out (of a volcano)
a rumpus	:	a break in a cell membrane
erupt	:	breaking up (services) and creating annoyance
irruption	:	bribery and ……….
corruption	:	sudden violent invasion
disruption	:	legally unable to pay one’s debts
interrupt	:	unexpectedly broken off
abrupt	:	lacking integrity and honesty
bankrupt	:	not able to be turned to dishonesty
incorruptible	:	break up a party
rupture	:	a slight disturbance of the peace
corrupt	:	stop (a speech or meeting)

iii. Choosing from the following words or phrases, fill in the gaps:

interrupted, disruptive, abruptly, interruptions, bankrupt, corruption, erupted

Upset by the persistent interjections and ______________, the politician suddenly stopped and ____________ ordered the offenders to leave. The group ______________ into laughter as they left. After this the speaker denounced bribery and ____________, promising, if elected, to remove all ____________ influences, which, he argued, were trying to _______________ the country. No one ____________ him further.

Answers to Exercises on Rumpo = I break:

i. Replace these phrases with single words of the same meaning:

The sudden shooting up of a geyser = eruption
burst (a blood vessel) = rupture
hasty and disconnected = abrupt
legally judged unable to pay one’s debts = bankrupt
landing troops in a country not one’s own = irruption
put an end (to services) by breaking them = disrupt
a short stoppage = interruption
break a bone = fracture

ii. Sorting out words and their meanings:

disrupt = break up (a party)
a rumpus = a slight disturbance
erupt = break out (of a volcano)
irruption = sudden violent invasion
corruption = bribery and ………
disruption = blocking (services) and creating inconvenience
interrupt = stop (a speech or meeting)
abrupt = unexpectedly broken off
bankrupt = legally unable to pay one’s debts
incorruptible = not able to be turned to dishonesty
rupture = a break in a cell membrane
corrupt = dishonest, able to be bribed

iii. Fill in the gaps:

Upset by the persistent interjections and interruptions, the politician suddenly stopped and abruptly ordered the offenders to leave. The group erupted into laughter as they left. After this the speaker denounced bribery and corruption, promising, if elected, to remove all disruptive influences which, he argued, were trying to bankrupt the country. No one interrupted him further.

On Scribo = I write

i. See if you can find one word or phrase for the following types of writing:
a) extra writing at the end of a letter
b) writing that sets out details of a scene
c) writing carved into stone
d) writing that you can read only with difficulty
e) sacred writing
f) written parts of a play
g) writing over an archway
h) writing ordering medicine
i) a song written in a different key to the original
j) writing round the edge of a coin
k) hand-written copy of a work

ii. Fill in the spaces with appropriate words derived from scribo:

a) "Is this the magazine that you _______________ to?"
b) "Will you please keep to the ______________?" said the exasperated producer.
c) "To what do you ____________ the present state of unrest?"
d) Pilgrims always used to carry a staff and _________________ .
e) "He's a rather difficult person to describe; in fact, he's rather __________________."
f) "My ___________________ for you would be a long holiday."
g) The suffering of the homeless was terrible. I would call it _____________________ .
h) The loan was fully ____________________ ten days before the closing date.

iii. Write down the following phrases, putting beside each the literal meaning of the words in bold. Try to include the words down or under in your explanation:

a) to subscribe to a magazine
b) a submarine
c) submersion
d) substandard
e) a subway
f) subjects of the king

iv. Write down the following abbreviations, putting an explanation beside each:

a) a.m. b) p.m. c) PM d) BC e) A.D. f) MS g) MSS h) i.e. i) etc. j) e.g. k) RSVP

Answers to Exercises on Scribo = I write:

i. a) extra writing at the end of a letter = postscript
b) writing setting out details of a scene = description
c) writing carved into stone = an inscription
d) writing which is difficult to read = scribble
e) sacred writing = scripture
f) written parts of a play = script
g) writing over an archway = a superscription
h) writing ordering medicine = a prescription
i) a song written in a different key to the original = a transcription
j) writing round the edge of a coin = circumscription
k) hand-written copy of a work = manuscript

ii. The appropriate words are:
a) subscribe b) script c) ascribe d) scrip e) non-descript f) prescription g) indescribable h) subscribed

iii. The literal meanings might be:
a) write one's name down or under for b) a ship that goes under the sea c) going or putting under water (Latin mergo = I dip, plunge) d) below the expected standard e) a path that goes under the road f) people under the king. Literally, subjects are those thrown under a king, ruler or government (Jacio, jectum = I throw, thrown)

iv. a) a.m. = ante meridiem = before noon (literally, before the middle of the day) b) p.m. = post meridiem = after midday or afternoon (literally, after the middle of the day) c) PM = Prime Minister d) BC = Before Christ (BC may also be short for British Columbia) e) A.D. = Anno Domini = In the year of Christ (After Christ) f) MS = manuscript g) MSS = manuscripts h) i.e. = id est = that is, in other words i) etc. = et cetera = and the rest j) e.g. = exempli gratia = for (gratia) an example(exempli) k) RSVP = Repondez s'il vous plait = Reply please

On Tendo = I stretch

i. Choose 6 verbs from the list with different prefixes. Beside each verb put its literal meaning, e.g. extend = stretch out.

ii. Make a list of the words formed from the past participle of tendo which have the letter ‘-t’ in them and those which take the ‘-s’ ending, e.g. attention and extension.

iii. Take the word extensive and see how many words you can make from its letters.

On Torqueo = I twist

1. Write out the following phrases putting one word of exactly the same meaning beside each:

a) to twist out of shape b) mental torture
c) full of twists and turns d) an ill-natured reply
e) the act of obtaining money from someone by threats
f) one who entertains by twisting the limbs into unusual positions
g) ancient ornaments made of twisted metallic rings
h) severe pain caused by having one’s limbs twisted in order to gain information

2. Fill in the blanks:
In ancient days men were put upon the rack, …………… and ……………… . This means their limbs were stretched out until they confessed to some crime or offered wanted information. Then their ................... shouted gleefully and thought up further punishments for the victims. One man who was accused of ........................ never confessed to the crime. He declared that he had never ........................ money from any poor widow. His face .................. with pain, he endured the ..................... for hours after which he fell unconscious.

Answers

1. a) distort b) torment c) tortuous d) retort e) extortion f) contortionist g) torque h) torture
2. In the ancient days men were put upon the rack, tortured and tormented. This means that their limbs were stretched out until they confessed to some crime or offered information. Then their *torturers (tormentors) shouted gleefully and thought up further punishments for the victims. One man who was accused of extortion never confessed to the crime. He declared he had never extorted money from any poor widow. His face contorted with pain, he endured the *torture (torment) for hours after which he fell unconscious.
* The words torturers and torture can be replaced by tormentors and torment

Note: The rack was a medieval instrument of torture for stretching the limbs. ‘To be on the rack’ means to be in torment.

3. Take the word contortionist and see how many short words you can form from the letters. Once you have found about 20, put them into alphabetical order.

On Traho = I pull, draw, drag, take

1. Explain the meaning of the following words showing how they relate to pulling, drawing, dragging or taking, e.g. attract = draw towards :
a) attract b) contract c) detract d) distract e) extract f) protract g) retract h) subtract

2. Look up the word DRAW in the dictionary. Write it in capital letters in the centre of your page. You might like to draw a circle around it. The Old English word draw is used in many expressions, e.g. draw conclusions, draw a picture, draw a line in the sand. See if you can find seven expressions with the word draw in them. Write them around your circle, spacing them out evenly. Then write the meaning beside each expression. Can you illustrate each expression?

3. Make an imaginary dictionary entry for the word distraction (See below for an example):
a) Divide the word into syllables
b) Indicate what part of speech it is
c) Give it a meaning
d) State the derivation in square brackets

e.g. subtraction: (sub/trac/tion) noun 1 act of taking from, deducting [from Latin subtractum = drawn away from underneath, from sub + trahere = to draw, take or pull]

Answers

1. a) attract = draw towards b) contract = draw up with (conditions) or draw up or together (and tighten, of muscles) c) detract = take from d) extract = take from or out, pull out, remove e) distract = take (attention) away from f) protract = draw out or forward g) retract = take back (words) h) subtract = take from underneath or away

2. You may draw the blinds, a deep breath, a salary, a figure, someone’s portrait, a response like criticism, a card from a pack, lots, a raffle, water from a well, money from the bank, a shot at bowls, stumps in cricket. There are probably many others.

3. Distraction: dis/trac/tion/ noun or n. 1 anything that draws one’s attention away from (the subject in hand, for example) [from Latin distractum = drawn away from or in a different direction, from Latin dis + trahere = to draw or drag]

On Vaco = I am empty, free; without anything

i. Here is a list of three-letter words which begin and end with the same consonant: bob, coc, dod, fof, gog, lol, mum, non, pop, ror, sos, tot, vov, wow. Some are real words and some are non-words.

1. Can you sort them out into two lists, one of real words and one of non-words?
2. Now take the same group of words and see how many real words you can make by changing the vowel, e.g. from bob, you may get bib.
3. Working with the same list, see how many new real words you can find by changing the last consonant of both real words and non-words, e.g. Bob may give you bog and coc will give you cot.
4. Again, working with the original list, see how many real words you can find by changing the first consonant, e.g. Bob may turn into cob, and dod may produce cod. You may find many others, too.

ii. In Middle English, the English spoken and written in England from about 1066 till the late 1400’s, the letters u, v, and w were often used interchangeably and a v was often written as a u.

Here are some common words as they might be written in Middle English. See if you can work out their spelling in modern English, e.g. saugh = saw

yow, doun, swich, renoun, tour, lowed, toun, halwe, trewe, wiues, vouwes.

On Vocabulary and Voco = I call

i. These nouns and their meanings have become muddled up. Can you sort them out?

provocation	:	a large gathering of people called together
a vocalist	:	work one feels called to do
a vocation	:	one who speaks in one's favour
the voice	:	a singer of popular songs
a convocation	:	organ of speech
an advocate for	:	cause of agitation or annoyance

ii. This time the verbs and their meanings are muddled up. Can you match then up?

to revoke	:	sing
to equivocate	:	speak in favour of
to vociferate	:	call forth, cause anger
to provoke	:	express
to voice an opinion	:	shout out loudly
to vocalize	:	speak ambiguously
to advocate for	:	cancel

iii. Can you pair up the adjectives below with these nouns so that the pairs make sense?

agreement, behaviour, cords, demands, guidance, happy memories?
vocational, evocative of, vociferous, vocal, provocative, unequivocal (adjectives)

iv. Write the word PROVOKE spread out across the middle of your page like this:

P R O V O K E

Now find words from the vocabulary on Voco to link up vertically with these letters, e.g.

					I
					N
					V
				V	O
P	R	O	V	O	K	E
	E		O	I	E
	V		W	C
	O		E	E
	K		L
	E

Find a word for each letter. Draw round the outline and colour it in to see how the shape looks. Try the game several times aiming to get different patterns.

Answers to Exercises on Vocabulary and Voco:

i. provocation = cause of agitation or annoyance
a vocalist = a singer of popular songs
a vocation = work one feels called to do
the voice = organ of speech
a convocation = a large gathering of people called together
an advocate for = one who speaks in one's favour.

ii. to revoke = cancel
to equivocate = speak ambiguously
to provoke = call forth, cause anger
to vociferate = shout out loudly
to voice an opinion = express
to vocalize = sing
to advocate for = speak in favour of.

iii. vocational guidance; evocative of happy memories; vociferous demands; vocal cords; provocative behaviour; unequivocal agreement [There may be other possibilities]