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Suitable for advanced students studying for TOEFL or TOEIC level exams.

Here is some advanced English vocabulary. Do you recognise these words? Study their meanings and then see them in use in the sentences below!

The infamous Lee Harvey Oswald

Vocabulary

• atheist - (n) a person who does not believe in god or gods.
• catastrophe - (n) a sudden and great tragedy or failure.
• cynical - (adj) to believe that other people are selfish and dishonest.
• discrimination - (n) to treat people differently because of something about them (sex, race, religion, class...).
• eligible - (adj) to be able or qualified to be chosen (n) a person who is able to be chosen.
• epidemic - (adj) something spreading quickly over a wide area by infection. (n) tan outbreak of a disease that spreads quickly.
• infamous - (adj) notorious - well known for being bad or evil.
• mundane - (adj) ordinary, uninteresting.
• obsession - (n) to be concentrating unreasonably on only one idea or feeling.
• pedantic- (adj) to be very serious about formal rules.

Example sentences

• () Pete didn't enjoy going to church or reading the bible, so he became an atheist.
• () The sinking of the Titanic was a great catastrophe for people in the United Kingdom.
• () Many people were cynical about the promises made by the new politician.
• () My boss was found guilty of discrimination. He would only promote the men in the company.
• () Tim is not eligible for a junior discount at the cinema because he is over 18 years old.
• () The recent bird flu epidemic led to the death of millions of birds.
• () Adolf Hitler was the infamous leader of the German Nazi Party.
• () The goalless draw between Liverpool and Newcastle was a rather mundane affair.
• () Linda has an obsession with Harry Potter. She's watched every movie at least 30 times.
• () The pedantic referee made the players start the football game again because one of the players was wearing the wrong colour socks.

Are you confident you have learnt this vocabulary? Then it's time to try the quiz! Advanced Vocabulary Quiz