away
from home for the first time is homesick. An exile who has wasted himself
with pining for his native land is nostalgic. "His ____ was more than
____; it had so preyed upon his thoughts that it had grown into ____."
Rise, ascend. _Rise_ is the more general term, but it expresses less
than _ascend_ in degree or stateliness. "He had foretold to them that
he would ____ into heaven." "Do not ____ from your seat." "The diver
slowly ____ to the surface." "The travelers ____ the mountain."
. _Sell_ is the more dignified word socially, but
may express greater moral degradation. _Vend_ is used of the petty
(as that which can be carried about in a wagon), and may suggest the
pettily dishonest. "That man would ____ his country." "We shall ____ a
million dollars' worth of goods." "The hucksters ____ their wares."
Study the discriminations between the members of the following pairs.
Determine whether the words are correctly used in the illustrative
sentences. (Some are; some are not.)
. _Friendly_ denotes goodwill positive in
quality though perhaps limited in degree; we may be friendly to friends,
enemies, or strangers. _Amicable_ is negative, denoting absence of
open discord: it is used of those persons between whom some connection
already exists. "The newcomer has an amicable manner." "Both sides were
cautious, but at last they reached a friendly settlement." "I have only
amicable feelings for an enemy who is thus merciful." "The two met, if not
in a friendly, at least in an amicable way."
. Both words imply an act of the will; but
_willing_ adds positive good-nature, desire, or enthusiasm, whereas
_voluntary_ conveys little or nothing of the emotional attitude.
_Voluntary_ is often thought of in contrast with _mechanical_.
"They made willing submission." "They rendered whole-hearted and voluntary
service." "Though torn by desire to return to his mother, he willingly
continued his journey away from her." "The sneeze was unwilling."
_Greedy_ denotes excessiveness (usually
habitual) of appetite or, in its figurative uses, of desire; it nearly
always carries the idea of selfishness. _Voracious_ denotes intense
hunger or the hasty and prolonged consumption of great quantities of food;
it may indicate, not habitual selfishness, but the stress of
circumstances. "Nobody else I know is so greedy as he." "The young poet
was voracious of
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