Language and Word Meaning

Which of the following prefixes means opposite?

• Pre

• Mis

• Semi

• Dis

• Re

The root that means govern is _____.

• Simil

• Cele

• Crac

• Ethn

• leg

The suffix that means more is _____.

• est

• er

• ness

• ion

• ful

Using your knowledge of word parts, specifically root words and suffixes, what does ''liberty'' mean?

• Full of freedom

• A reference to a statue

• Without freedom

• In the process of freedom

• The condition of freedom

The root that means heat is _____.

• hydr

• leg

• therm

• bio

• theo

The author of the passage primarily focuses on the word 'date' for which of the following reasons?

• clutched

• handled

• empowered

• controlled

• facinated

In the context in which it appears, 'richness' most nearly means

• flamboyance

• productivity

• luxury

• fullness

• lucidity

The beauty of language is that each language is filled with concepts and expressions that reflect a distinct cultural outlook. Naturally, we try to translate these terms, but somehow the real flavor is only caught in the correct cultural and linguistic context. Words such as 'date' may seem simple and obvious to Americans, but the concept of the-person-I-am-currently-going-out-with is unique to its culture.

The author of the passage primarily focuses on the word 'date' for which of the following reasons?

• To explain why various cultures use words differently

• To point out a custom that is particularly American

• To lament the difficulties of translating from one language to another

• To illustrate the importance of the cultural context of language

• To contrast American ideas about culture with the ideas of non-Americans

Like poet Walt Whitman, his contemporary, Frederick Douglass, the nineteenth-century Black American abolitionist and orator, made his living by the art of self-celebration, a skill that has always figured in the strategies of American literary figures. He sang his song of himself through four main versions of his autobiography, creating himself as a mythic figure. The result of all this brilliant autobiographical writing is that even scholars who may be relatively unfamiliar with other nineteenth-century Black Americans are acquainted with the major events of Douglass' life.

In typical American fashion, Douglass sought, in his writings, to demonstrate his individuality along with his individualism. Yet the very self-reliance and independence that he stressed in his autobiographies represented conformity to the American type of the self-made individual. Thus, Douglass was, to use Emerson's phrase, a representative man. Much of the present-day biographical and literary treatment of Douglass makes him appear to be exceptional. Yet, for his own part, Douglass stressed the Emersonian dictum that great individuals are often great because they are representative, not because they are exceptional. Self-reliance, for him, often existed in the paradox of blending one's ego into larger forces, of believing that what is true of one's self is true of others. Douglass' concept of self-reliance, like Emerson's, was grounded in the principle of universality, rather than difference.

In the context of the passage, 'figure' most nearly means

• individual

• picture

• amount

• shape

While promoting consumer choice through information was the goal of mandatory GM food labeling policies in the European Union, these policies have unintentionally resulted in the disappearance of labeled GM foods from grocery store shelves. This outcome stems from the controversy over GM foods in Europe and consumer perceptions regarding GM foods. In turn, European food processors and retailers have avoided using GM ingredients in order to reduce their risk of loss in market share due to consumers' negative attitudes toward GM foods. In sharp contrast, the Food, Health and Consumer Products Manufacturers of Canada has estimated that in North America 60 to 70 percent of food products on grocery shelves contain GM ingredients.

• improbably

• undersirably

• randomly

• inadvertently