Barren adj. Unproductive, 贫瘠的 同:sterile The barren land could produce little food. 2. Intrigue N. Plot, scheme,阴谋 同:conspiracy v.引起...的兴趣 The king’s younger brother took part in the intrigue to make himself king. The book’s unusual title intrigued me into reading it. 3. Refuge n. A protected, safe place, 避难所;避难 同:shelter The cat took refuge from the dog behind a tree. 4. Absurd adj. Silly, ridiculous, 荒谬的 反:reasonable His belief that he was too clever to be caught in his wrongdoing was absurd. 5. Amiable adj. Agreeable, friendly, 和蔼可亲的 反:spiteful She is an amiable girl and gets along with everyone in the office. 6. Stale adj. No longer fresh, 不新鲜的 反:fresh There was only a piece of stale cake left in the refrigerator. 7. Foresee v. See or know before hand, 预知 adj. foreseeable It is impossible to foresee whether she’ll be well enough to come home from hospital next month. 8. Induce v. Persuade, 说服 n. inducement We couldn’t induce the old lady to travel by air. 9. Precede v. Be first before another in order, place or time, 在前 n. precedent Mr. Eisenhower preceded Mr. Kennedy as president of the United States. 10. Prevail v. Be in general use, 流行 adj. prevalent Making resolutions on New Year’s Day is a custom that still prevails. Exercise 从以上单词中选择适当的单词填空 1. Exposure to radioactivity may make animals and plants______. 2. The idea that the number 13 brings bad luck is _______. 3. He made the same _______ joke that I had heard more than 10 times before. 4. We didn’t take our bathing suits, because we could ______ that the water would be cold. 5. The house was built in the style that _____ in the 1980s. 6. The country became more conservative in the years that ______ his election. 7. The advertisements is meant to _______ people to eat more fruit. 8. She had an _______ conversation with her friend. 9. Hunting is strictly forbidden in the wildlife _______. 10. The mystery story ______ me so that I read it in one sitting.