Table Of Content

ABETTIR VOCABULARY e remarkable new approach that begins dramatic and lasting improvement afterjust 10 days...'Easy and fun!" -WilsonLibraryBulletin C O ^(n OS ^ o1 ig o ^J^ ——O >o ^ EAN AFTER READING THIS BOOK, YOU'LL HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS What is the difference between imply and infer? What is the connection between monk and monopoly? What are the mythic roots ofhymeneal? I Where is the key to understanding circumambient? Howcanyoutakewordsaparttoseehowtheyworkand what they mean? Why is a dictionary often unnecessary even with the most unfamiliar words? I "The authors are convinced (and wejoin them intheirconviction) thatthereare . . . memoryaids, orbetteryet, systems, where- by one mayfamiliarize himselfwith entire sets of words at once analyze and . . . penetrate their meaning even when they have never been seen before Highly . . . " rewa—rding. ^Mario Pei author, scholar, and Professor of Romance Languages at Columbia University Outstanding Reference Books Websters New World Dictionary ofthe American Language A Dictionary of Synonyms andAntonyms Websters New World Thesaurus A New Guide to Better Writing How to Build a Better Vocabulary Speed Reading Made Easy Harpers English Grammar Websters Red Seal Crossword Dictionary Better English Made Easy Available from Warner Books AITENHON:SCHOOTSANDCX)Rl«iL«iO^^ WARNER books are available at quantity dis- counts w^ith bulk purchase for educational, business, or sales promotional use. For infor- mation, please write to: SPECIAL SALES DEPARTMENT, WARNER BOOKS, 1271 AVENUEOFTHEAMERICAS,NEWYORK,NY 10020 HOW TO BUILD ABETTER VOCABULARY Completelyrevisedandup-dated MAXWELL NLfKNBERG and MORRIS ROSENBLUM WithanIntroductionbyMarioPel Q \AARNER BOOKS NEWYORK BOSTON Ifyoupurchasethisbookwithoutacoveryoushouldbeawarethatthisbook mayhavebeenstolenpropertyandreportedas"unsoldanddestroyed"tothe publisher.Insuchcaseneithertheauthornorthepublisherhasreceivedany payment forthis "stripped book." WARNER BOOKS EDITION Copyright © 1949by Prentice-Hall, Inc. Copyright © 1961 by Maxwell Numbergand Morris Rosenblum Copyright©renewed1977byMaxwellNumbergandMorrisRosenblum. All rights reserved. This WarnerBooks Edition ispublishedby arrangementwith Prentice-Hall, Inc., EnglewoodCliffs, NewJersey07632 WarnerBooks, Inc. 1271 Avenueofthe Americas New York, N.Y. 10020 VisitourWebsiteat wwwwameibookscom . . ^9ATimeWarner Company Printed in the United StatesofAmerica FirstWarnerBooksPrinting:July, 1983 Reissued: August, 1989 30 — "InBasic English, MissJones I loveyou!* Acknowledgments WE SHOULD LIKE to express our indebtedness to Rose Nurnberg and Dora J. Rosenblum for their patient and helpful counsel; to Jason Wingreen and Leo Dressier for helpful suggestions. •Drawing reproduced courtesy New York Times Book Review, 5 For permission to use original drawings, and cartoons and textual matter published elsewhere, acknowledgment is made to the following individuals, newspaper, magazine, and book publishers: Dwight Chapman, Jon Comin, Tom Courtos, Chon Day, Alan Dunn, John Hersey, A. John Kaunus, Reamer Keller, Harry Lazarus, Lou Lilly, David McCord, James S. Mac- E>onald, Hal Mcintosh, Mendelsohn, Joseph Mirachi, Garry Moore, Christopher Morley, Ralph Newman, Ed Nofziger, Virgil Partch, Hesketh Pearson, Gardner Rea, Salo Roth, Charles D. Saxon, Burr Shafer, Charles Strauss, Martino Weiler, Anne Whitney. The New York Herald Tribune, The New York Times. Atlantic Monthly, Collier's, Coronet, Cue, Harper's Maga- zine, Life, Look, New Republic, Pageant, Redbook, The New Yorker, The Reader's Digest, The Saturday Evening Post, The Saturday Review, This Week Magazine, Variety, "ivr Authors' Preface WHY another book on vocabulary? For two reasons. First, becausemost books on the subject are solemn affairs. As if improving and enriching your knowledge of words were a grim business! We don't believe it. We believe that learning more words and more about words can and must be a pleas- urable activity. Infact,whenit comestolearningofanykind, we're all for the old childhood rhyme: What's learned with pleasure Islearnedfullmeasure. •Drawing reproduced from This Week. Copyright 1947 by the United Newspapers Magazine Corporation. Authors' Preface That's where this book comes in. We have designed it for yourenjoyment. Wehavetriedtomakeitchattyandinformal, readable, and entertaining. We have not hesitated to include anecdotes, puns, rhymes, cartoons, and even fillers wherever theybelong andwhenevertheycanhelp. Second, because we want to give you a method of building a bigger and better vocabulary solidly and securely. Our chief purpose, therefore, has been to help you acquire a permanent interest in words. We think this is a better way than the hit- and-run method of memorizing lists of unconnected words. We ask you to stay with the words and make them perma- nently yours. That's our purpose. Now, what's yours? You are reading this because you want to improve and enrich your vocabulary. You may consider the effective use of words a business and social asset. You may desire to improve your reading, writing, and speaking vocabulary. You may want to keep up with your friends who know more words than you do. You may have a scholarly interest in words as a branch of knowledge worth cultivating. For these reasons, you may also find it extremely necessary to take note of the changing meanings of old words and keep up with the formation of the new words that are becoming a part of our language in great numbers at arapidpace. Finally,youmayhavethemorepracticalpurpose of wanting to get a high rating on civil service, scholarship. CollegeBoard,professional,oranyotherexaminationsinwhich aknowledgeofvocabularyhasbecomeincreasinglyimportant. Whatever your purpose, we think you will find what you wantinthisbook.Wecanshowyouhowto acquirethewords; the rest—is up to—you. And oh, yes if, after reading this book, you should hap- pen to marry the boss's daughter, it won't be because of your increased vocabulary. The only words you'll need for that are: "Iloveyou."Theystill do the trick.