Vocabulary Building

Adverse: unfavorable or harmful

Alternate: occurring in turn

Biodegradable: capable of being decomposed by bacteria or other living organisms

Boxed: contained in a box

Choke: to have severe difficulty in breathing

Convenient: fitting in well with a person’s needs

Discard: get rid of someone or something as no longer useful or desirable

Dolphin: a marine mammal

Ecologically: relating to or concerned with the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings

Fatal: causing death

Incidence: the occurrence, rate, or frequency of a disease, crime, or other undesirable thing

Municipal: relating to a city or town or its governing body

Overuse: use something too much

Pond: a small body of still water

Recycle: convert waste into reusable material

Reusable: that can be used again

Stuffed: filled with something

Tragic: causing or characterized by extreme distress or sorrow

Utilize: make practical and effective use of

Whale: a very large marine mammal

Amateur: a person who engages in a pursuit on an unpaid basis

Ambiguous: open to more than one interpretation

Anonymous: not identified by name

Attain: succeed in achieving

Autonomy: the right or condition of self-government

Concession: a thing that is granted

Decay: rot or decompose

Dwell: live in or at a specified place

Enlighten: give someone greater knowledge and understanding about a subject or situation

Enrich: improve or enhance the quality or value of

Flourish: grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way

Geometry: the branch of mathematics concerned with the properties of space

Gleam: shine brightly

Greed: intense and selfish desire for something

Harmony: the quality of forming a pleasing and consistent whole

Indigenous: originating or occurring naturally in a particular place

Jurisdiction: the official power to make legal decisions and judgments

Parade: a public procession

Statue: a carved or cast figure of a person or animal

Virgin: a person who has never had sexual intercourse

Abnormal: deviating from what is normal or usual

Absent: not present in a place

Adjacent: next to or adjoining something else

Aluminum: a silvery-white metal

Applicable: relevant or appropriate

Artificial: made by human skill; produced by human beings rather than occurring naturally

Bicycle: a vehicle with two wheels

Broker: a person who buys and sells goods

Bureaucracy: a system of government

Configure: arrange or order in a particular way

Consolidate: make something physically stronger or more solid

Convenience: the state of being able to proceed with something without difficulty

Deduct: subtract from a total

Deem: regard or consider in a specified way

Entrepreneur: a person who organizes a business

Evenly: in or into an even state

Fiscal: relating to government revenue

Franchise: an authorization granted by a government or company to carry out specified commercial activities

Ideological: based on or relating to a system of ideas and ideals

Robot: a machine capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically

Abbey: a building or buildings occupied by a community of monks or nuns

Abundant: existing or available in large quantities

Adjoin: be next to and joined with

Ample: enough or more than enough

Arid: extremely dry

Cathedral: the principal church of a diocese

Crisis: a time of intense difficulty or danger

Deprive: deny someone something

Drought: a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall

Eligible: qualified to do or be chosen for something

Fast: moving or capable of moving at high speed

Grumble: complain about something in a bad-tempered way

Inland: away from the coast

Moisture: water or other liquid diffused in a small quantity

Nonetheless: in spite of that

Oath: a solemn promise

Prairie: a large open area of grassland

Rugged: having a broken, rocky, and uneven surface

Scarce: insufficient for the demand

Speculate: form a theory without firm evidence

Aquatic: relating to water

Biosphere: the regions of the surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth occupied by living organisms

Bizarre: very strange or unusual

Celsius: relating to or denoting a scale of temperature

Coarse: rough or harsh in texture

Companion: a person or animal with whom one spends a lot of time

Digest: to break down food

Duration: the time during which something continues

Ecology: the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings

Feat: an achievement that requires great courage, skill, or strength

Infinite: limitless or endless in space, extent, or size

Nucleus: the central and most important part of an object or group

Parasite: an organism that lives in or on another organism

Prominent: important or famous

Repetitive: containing or characterized by repetition

Reproductive: relating to or involved in reproduction

Temperate: relating to or denoting a region or climate characterized by mild temperatures

Tolerance: the ability or willingness to tolerate something

Undergo: experience or be subjected to something

Vulnerable: susceptible to physical or emotional attack or harm