Question

vocabulary strategy-resources
you can use a print or online dictionary and a thesaurus to identify synonyms and antonyms of
vocabulary words. using these resources can help you better understand the meaning and usage
of unfamiliar words.
practice and apply
write sentences using each of these vocabulary words: wistfully, anxiously, discreetly, rueful,
jest, and perplexed. then, use a dictionary or thesaurus to find a synonym for each vocabulary
word. finally, rewrite your sentences, replacing each vocabulary word with its synonym. has the
meaning of your sentences changed? how?

1. wistfully

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

1. anxiously

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

1. discreetly

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

1. rueful

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

1. jest

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

1. perplexed

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

Explanation:

1. wistfully

• Original sentence: She looked out the window wistfully, thinking about her childhood home.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Longingly
• Rewritten sentence: She looked out the window longingly, thinking about her childhood home.
• Meaning change?: The core meaning of feeling a strong desire or nostalgia remains the same. "Wistfully" has a slightly more melancholic tone, while "longingly" is more focused on the desire, but the overall idea of yearning is preserved.

2. anxiously

• Original sentence: He waited anxiously for the test results to be announced.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Nervously
• Rewritten sentence: He waited nervously for the test results to be announced.
• Meaning change?: Both words convey a sense of unease or worry about an outcome. "Anxiously" emphasizes a more intense, perhaps more prolonged, feeling of anxiety, while "nervously" can imply a more immediate, jittery feeling. However, the basic idea of waiting with worry is unchanged.

3. discreetly

• Original sentence: She passed the note to her friend discreetly during the class.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Secretly
• Rewritten sentence: She passed the note to her friend secretly during the class.
• Meaning change?: Both words suggest doing something without others noticing. "Discreetly" implies doing it in a way that is tactful and not drawing attention, while "secretly" just emphasizes the hidden nature. The main action of passing the note without being seen is still the focus, so the meaning is largely the same.

4. rueful

• Original sentence: He gave a rueful smile when he realized his mistake.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Regretful
• Rewritten sentence: He gave a regretful smile when he realized his mistake.
• Meaning change?: Both words express a feeling of remorse or sadness about something. "Rueful" has a slightly more sorrowful or self - deprecating tone, while "regretful" is more straightforward about feeling regret. But the overall idea of a smile showing remorse is maintained.

5. jest

• Original sentence: He spoke in jest, but his friends took it seriously.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Joke
• Rewritten sentence: He spoke in joke, but his friends took it seriously. (Note: More commonly, we would say "He spoke as a joke...", but following the task of replacing the word, "in joke" is used here for the sake of the exercise. Alternatively, "He joked, but his friends took it seriously" is also a valid rewrite.)
• Meaning change?: The core idea of speaking in a humorous, non - serious way is the same. "Jest" is a more formal or literary term for a joke, while "joke" is more common, but the meaning of the sentence (that his words were not meant to be taken seriously) remains.

6. perplexed

• Original sentence: The student looked perplexed by the difficult math problem.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Confused
• Rewritten sentence: The student looked confused by the difficult math problem.
• Meaning change?: Both words describe a state of not understanding or being puzzled. "Perplexed" implies a deeper or more complex state of confusion, while "confused" is a more general term. But the basic idea of the student not understanding the problem is the same.

Answer:

1. wistfully

• Original sentence: She looked out the window wistfully, thinking about her childhood home.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Longingly
• Rewritten sentence: She looked out the window longingly, thinking about her childhood home.
• Meaning change?: The core meaning of feeling a strong desire or nostalgia remains the same. "Wistfully" has a slightly more melancholic tone, while "longingly" is more focused on the desire, but the overall idea of yearning is preserved.

2. anxiously

• Original sentence: He waited anxiously for the test results to be announced.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Nervously
• Rewritten sentence: He waited nervously for the test results to be announced.
• Meaning change?: Both words convey a sense of unease or worry about an outcome. "Anxiously" emphasizes a more intense, perhaps more prolonged, feeling of anxiety, while "nervously" can imply a more immediate, jittery feeling. However, the basic idea of waiting with worry is unchanged.

3. discreetly

• Original sentence: She passed the note to her friend discreetly during the class.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Secretly
• Rewritten sentence: She passed the note to her friend secretly during the class.
• Meaning change?: Both words suggest doing something without others noticing. "Discreetly" implies doing it in a way that is tactful and not drawing attention, while "secretly" just emphasizes the hidden nature. The main action of passing the note without being seen is still the focus, so the meaning is largely the same.

4. rueful

• Original sentence: He gave a rueful smile when he realized his mistake.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Regretful
• Rewritten sentence: He gave a regretful smile when he realized his mistake.
• Meaning change?: Both words express a feeling of remorse or sadness about something. "Rueful" has a slightly more sorrowful or self - deprecating tone, while "regretful" is more straightforward about feeling regret. But the overall idea of a smile showing remorse is maintained.

5. jest

• Original sentence: He spoke in jest, but his friends took it seriously.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Joke
• Rewritten sentence: He spoke in joke, but his friends took it seriously. (Note: More commonly, we would say "He spoke as a joke...", but following the task of replacing the word, "in joke" is used here for the sake of the exercise. Alternatively, "He joked, but his friends took it seriously" is also a valid rewrite.)
• Meaning change?: The core idea of speaking in a humorous, non - serious way is the same. "Jest" is a more formal or literary term for a joke, while "joke" is more common, but the meaning of the sentence (that his words were not meant to be taken seriously) remains.

6. perplexed

• Original sentence: The student looked perplexed by the difficult math problem.
• Synonym (from thesaurus): Confused
• Rewritten sentence: The student looked confused by the difficult math problem.
• Meaning change?: Both words describe a state of not understanding or being puzzled. "Perplexed" implies a deeper or more complex state of confusion, while "confused" is a more general term. But the basic idea of the student not understanding the problem is the same.