Page 170 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

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M – N: SAT Words
monarch (MAH nahrk) n. 1. hereditary ruler, such as a king or queen; 2. the 161
best; 3. the top performer in a certain field
• Henry VIII and Edward VIII were the highest numbered monarchs of England.
• Elvis Presley is called the king, which makes him the monarch of rock.
• Wal-Mart is the monarch of retail sales.
monopoly (muh NAH pi lee) n. 1. exclusive control of a type of product or
service; 2. exclusive possession of something
• Before its being broken up into the so-called “Baby Bells,” AT&T had a
monopoly in the telecommunications business.
• Under President Teddy Roosevelt, antitrust legislation was passed to pro-
hibit monopolies from getting a strangle hold on any one industry.
• Two-year-olds Jakob and Myles have a monopoly of their mothers’ time.
[monopolies pl.] [Syn. trust, cartel]
morality (maw RAL i tee) n. 1. code of proper behavior according to traditions,
religious laws, etc.; 2. the property of rightness in conduct or ethics
• The code of morality in the Western world is based on the Judaeo-Christian
tradition.
• The treatment of certain prisoners in Iraq violated the dictates of morality.
morose (maw ROHS) adj. 1. bad tempered; sullen; gloomy; 2. distinguished by
gloom
•A morose comic character walks around with a dark cloud over his head
wherever he goes.
• When asked what the probability was of staying out of the course of the
storm, the pilot’s facial expression was morose.
motivation (MOH ti VAY shin) n. an incitement or impelling; the cause that
makes someone do something
• Looking down the barrel of a gun is usually an adequate motivation to
hand over your money.
• A method actor needs some sort of motivation to get into the role of the
character he’s playing.
motive (MOH tiv) n. an inner drive that causes a person to do something, or to
act in a certain way; goal
• Greed is often a good motive for robbery.
• The motive for Arnold’s saving every nickel he earned was his desire to pur-
chase an automobile.
muffle (MUH fil) vt. 1. to dull a sound; stifle; 2. to wrap in a shawl or blanket
to deaden a sound
• Each motor vehicle contains a special part designed to muffle the roar that
the engine makes, but we won’t tell you its name.
• A scarf wrapped around someone’s mouth and lower face is often referred to
as a muffler, in that it muffles any speech coming from the wearer’s mouth.
• Murderers on TV often use silencers to muffle the sound of the gunshot.
[-d. muffling]