Reading for the Real World 3/e-Intro Unit 07 (E)

artistic

having or showing the skill of an artist

Picasso’s artistic style is called Cubism.

boundary

a limit

The city boundaries are marked by the railroad tracks.

burial

an act of placing a body in a grave or tomb

Some cultures have a very positive view of burials.

calligraphy

the art of producing writing

calligraphy takes a lot of skill.

coffin

a wooden box in which a dead body is placed for burial

I helped to put his body in the coffin.

commencement

a graduation ceremony

Some schools get celebrities as their commencement speakers.

connect the dots

to see the relationship between events

Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college.

corpse

a dead body

The corpse stood very still but spoke to the widow in a voice.

decay

to be slowly destroyed by natural processes

On the bed lay a disgusting liquid of terrible decay.

diagnosis

a conclusion about the reason for an illness

The doctor used many resources to make a diagnosis of the girl's disease.

drop-in

a person who visits informally

I’ll drop by on my way home.

flee

to run away; to escape

She tried to flee from the men chasing after her.

font

a set of type in one style or size

Use a larger font for the text.

grave

a place in the ground where a dead body is buried

She laid flowers on the grave.

gut

(informal) used to talk about feelings, ideas, etc. that seem true or right even without a clear reason

My second was the gut feeling that this was not good news.

instinct

something you know without learning it or thinking about it

His first instinct was to duck when he saw the gun.

naively

without knowing; innocently

I, perhaps naively, believed he was telling the truth.

premature

happening before the proper time

It has also been proven that pregnant women who sleep under a tent give birth to fewer premature babies.

pronounce

to say or announce something in a formal way

This word is difficult to pronounce.

proportionally

corresponding to size or shape

Families with children spend proportionally less per person than families without children.

semester

one half of an academic year

This semester I am doing a lot of sports.

shortly

in or within a short time

The show will start shortly so let's take our seats.

skeleton

the frame of bones of a human or animal

We found an animal's skeleton when we were walking in the forest.

stumble into

to accidentally encounter

I stumbled into acting when I left college.

subtle

delicate or clever; not overly obvious and fl ashy

Her perfume was very subtle.

suitor

a man who wants to marry a particular woman

The young lady had many suitor, but her heart belonged to one man.

terribly

in a very bad or unpleasant way

I'm terribly concerned about your low grades

tomb

a building or room where dead bodies are kept

Some people believe that is bad luck to disturb a tomb.

typeface

a design of typed letters

I'd like the heading to be in a different typeface from the text.

typography

the style or appearance of typed letters or words

The dissemination of typography changed the publication system.

vague

not clearly defi ned or understood

He felt dissatisfied with a vague "conception of the brain."