Inclined to find fault or to judge with severity; involving skillful judgment as to truth or merit

Sometimes, Barb became annoyed with her long stories that were usually either confusing or __________, but never really get to the point.

Antonym for compulsory:

The edicts of the pool are as follows: No pets in the pool area, no running or horseplay, no diving, no food or drink, no glass containers or alcoholic drinks.

What would another word for edicts be?

Tommy’s parents started arguing with each other so loudly that Tommy and his friend could hear the noise from upstairs. Tommy started to get upset, so his friend took action. He played the song, “I’m a Goofy Goober” loud enough so that Tommy couldn’t hear the arguing, and began to dance around the room. This led Tommy’s parents to come upstairs, and when they saw the scene, the tension immediately dissolved between them. They all started dancing together.

What happened between Tommy’s parents when they found the boys dancing to “Goofy Goober?”

Which of the following is an example of paradox?

We were supposed to go to the beach, but the __________ rainfall kept us at the indoor hotel pool.

To feel or show displeasure at, from a sense of injury or insult

As Anne watched the ___________________ documentary about homelessness, she was motivated to help solve the problem in her city.

Every school has insolent students who enjoy making teachers angry when they don’t follow the rules.

What does insolent mean in this sentence?

Synonym for abhorrent:

The two men went to court with each other this time over a dispute about who would be paying court fees in a previous __________, in which they sued their former employer together.

“Early in life she had discovered the important truth that nothing looks so like innocence as an indiscretion; and by a series of reckless escapades, half of them quite harmless, she had acquired all the privileges of a personality.”

This quote from Oscar Wilde shows that the girl could get away with indiscretions by pretending to be innocent to the fact that she does a lot of things that she shouldn't. How is this possible?

Synonym for sufficient:

Which of the following is an example of a euphemism?

Synonym for paradigm:

Beauty is subjective and should not be limited to only what we see on the outside.

Based on this quotation by Alek Wek, how could beauty be subjective?

Beauty is only about looking good

Some nobles feel bad for the plebeians, while others hate them for being poor, ordinary, and simple.

What kind of people do you think plebeians are?

Do not __________ me for being nice to her just because you think she is weird.

Of, or relating to, or characterized by sudden or rash action; impulsive

When he started checking his phone constantly and getting nervous if I went near it, I got the __________ that he was hiding something from me.

Well- advanced or competent in any subject

After writing down everyone’s height, the student analyzed the quantitative data to determine he was the tallest in his class.

What does quantitative mean in this sentence?

Antonym for refine:

RI.9-10.9 Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (e.g., Washington’s Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech, King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”), including how they address related themes and concepts.

According to the state standard for reading informational text, seminal documents are probably what?