Vocabulary Building Workbook

268 Pages·2014·3.84 MB·English

Vocabulary Building
Workbook

This workbook is designed to help you improve your vocabulary.
It includes 24 lessons with a variety of exercises to help you learn
new words commonly used in the Canadian workplace.

Literacy and Essential Skills –
for LEARNING, WORK, and LIFE
You can download this publication by going online: http://www12.hrsdc.gc.ca
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© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2013
For information regarding reproduction rights, please contact
Public Works and Government Services Canada at:
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PDF
ISBN: 978-1-100-12137-6
ESDC
Cat. : Nº : WP-102-12-13E
Table of Contents

Introduction page 2

Unit 1 page 5

Unit 2 page 44

Unit 3 page 82

Unit 4 page 121

Unit 5 page 159

Unit 6 page 196

Answer Key page 232
Introduction

The Vocabulary Building Workbook will help you improve your vocabulary and learn
new words commonly used in the Canadian workplace.

The workbook includes 24 lessons with a variety of exercises:
• Matching Meanings
• Using the Right Word
• Relating Meanings
• Analyzing and Comparing Words
• Reading Comprehension
• Crossword Puzzles

Getting Started

Each lesson starts with a list of words and definitions, and an example of how each word
can be used in a sentence to help you better understand the meaning. Once you have read
the vocabulary words and definitions in each lesson, you can begin the exercises.

Understanding the Parts of Speech

Parts of speech help you understand how a word should be used. The part of speech for
each vocabulary word is identified using the following abbreviations:

noun = n.
verb = v.
adjective = adj.
adverb = adv.
preposition = prep.

Definitions of the Parts of Speech

Noun (n.)
A noun is a person, a place or a thing.
Example: Tom ran to the store to buy chocolate.

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Adjective (adj.)
An adjective is a word used to describe a noun.
Example: Little Tom ran to the corner store to buy white chocolate.
Verb (v.)
A verb is a word used to show an action.
Example: Little Tom ran to the corner store to buy white chocolate.
Adverb (adv.)
An adverb is a word used to describe a verb.
Example: Little Tom ran quickly to the corner store to buy white chocolate.
Preposition (prep.)
A preposition is a word that links nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in
a sentence.
Example: Little Tom ran quickly to the corner store to buy white chocolate.
Other Terms You Will Need to Know
Synonym
A synonym is a word that means the same as another word.
Example: large is a synonym for big
Example: tiny is a synonym for small
Antonym
An antonym is a word that means the opposite of another word.
Example: hot is an antonym for cold
Example: on is an antonym for off
Homonym
A homonym is a word that sounds the same as another word but means
something else and is sometimes spelled differently.
Examples of common homonyms:
• their (belonging to them) and there (in that place)
• hear (to listen to something) and here (in this place)
• to (toward), too (also), and two (the number 2)
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Anagram
An anagram is a word or phrase that contains all the letters of another word or
phrase but in a different order.
Example: “post” is an anagram of “stop”
Example: “astronomers” is an anagram of “no more stars”
Analogy
An analogy links two things that are related in some way. For example, an apple
is like a ball because they are both round.
Word analogies compare two pairs of words. The second pair of words must be
related in the same way that the first two words are related. For example, if the
first pair of words are antonyms, the second pair of words must also be antonyms.
Example: dark is to light as laugh is to cry
(antonyms: dark and light are opposites and laugh and cry are
opposites)
Example: shoe is to foot as tire is to wheel
(a shoe goes on a foot and a tire goes on a wheel)
Example: post is to stop as drawer is to reward
(anagrams: the same letters are used to spell each pair of words)
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Unit 1
Lesson 1: Page 6
career confident continuous contribute essential
fascinate focus invest manuscript numeracy
oral performance quality skill sponsor
Lesson 2: Page 15
business comment competition contact facsimile
form obtain option quote receive
recycle reply review transmittal urgent
Lesson 3: Page 24
attitude diplomat dramatics encourage environment
gossip initiative key mutual organization
positive professional reliable success support
Lesson 4: Page 33
apply asset available balance candidate
confirm excess fare flexible fluent
knowledge offer orientation reservation statutory
Unit Review: Crossword Puzzle Page 42
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Vocabulary Definitions Lesson 1
career
n. a job held over a long period of time that usually requires education
or training
• Maria completed a nursing program at college and is looking
forward to starting her new career as a nurse.
confident
adj. sure of yourself or having a strong belief or trust in another person
or thing
• Grace was more confident about asking for a promotion after she
earned her diploma.
Also n. confidence; adv. confidently
continuous
adj. going on or carrying on for a period of time without a break;
constant, non-stop
• I didn’t have time to restock the shelves because there was a
continuous stream of people coming into the store all day.
Also n. continuation; v. continue; adv. continuously
contribute
v. to give ideas, time, money, articles or help towards a common
purpose
• Are you going to contribute money to the social committee this
year?
Also n. contribution
essential
adj. necessary, very important
1.
relating to the basic nature of something
2.
• 1. Knowing how to use a computer is an essential skill for today’s
workplace.
The essential oils found in some herbs are available at health food
2.
stores.
Also n. essence; adv. essentially
fascinate
v. to attract and hold someone’s attention, interest or curiosity
• The children were fascinated by the magician’s tricks.
Also n. fascination; adj. fascinating
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focus
v. to pay attention to a particular point
1.
to adjust to make an image clearer
2.
• 1. Ahmed needed to write memos at work, so he focused on
improving his grammar and spelling.
Lena focused the overhead projector to make the words on the
2.
screen clearer.
Also n. focus; adj. focal
invest
v. to put up money, capital or time for profit or gain
• It could be risky to invest your money in the stock market.
Also n. investment, investor
manuscript
n. a document that contains a story, article or other piece of writing that
is being prepared for publication

● Aaron submitted the manuscript of his biography to the publisher for
approval.

numeracy
n. ability to add, subtract, multiply and divide and to apply calculations
to various tasks
• Board games that include play money help children improve their
numeracy.
Also n. numeral; adj. numerical; adv. numerically
oral
adj. . spoken
1
. concerning the mouth
2
• 1. Bob is expected to give an oral presentation on the importance of
keeping the work area clean and safe.
. The dentist explained that oral hygiene is important to prevent
2
cavities.
Also adv. orally
performance
n. . the carrying out of a task or duty
1
. a dramatic or musical show
2
• 1. Improved workplace performance leads to greater productivity
and safety.
. Her performance at the ballet recital was excellent.
2
Also n. performer; v. perform
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