Diocesan Spelling BeeStage 2 Preliminary Round – Non elimination

Word: quiz

Pronunciation (say kwiz)Sentence We had a music quiz at school yesterday.

Word: beach

Pronunciation (say beech)Sentence We grabbed our towels and raced down to the beach. Word: silver

Pronunciation (say sil-vuh)Sentence My new ring is made of silver.

Word: bridge

Pronunciation (say brij)Sentence As we drove over the bridge we could see the river below.

Word: scar

Pronunciation (say skah)Sentence She had a scar on her knee from her bike accident.

(5 words)

Stage 2 – Round 1

Word: walk

Pronunciation (say wawk)Sentence Will we walk to the train station or catch the bus?

Word: breed

Pronunciation (say breed)Sentence The zoo keepers are hoping that the new elephants will breed.

Word: dawn

Pronunciation (say dawn)Sentence I had to get up at dawn to go on the school camp.

Word: church

Pronunciation (say cherch)Sentence We sat in the church waiting for the minister to begin the

service.

Word: plane

Pronunciation (say playn)Sentence We are going to fly to Fiji on a plane.

Word: enjoy

Pronunciation (say en-joy)Sentence I enjoy science fiction films.

Word: thumb

Pronunciation (say thum)Sentence She hit her thumb with the hammer.

Word: early

Pronunciation (say er-lee)Sentence We set out early in the morning.

Word: marble

Pronunciation (say mah-buhl)

2

Sentence (The grand staircase was made of marble.

Word: coach

Pronunciation (say kohch)Sentence The coach made us swim twenty laps to warm up.

Word: bush

Pronunciation (say boosh)Sentence We drove through open country, then through bush.

Word: mime

Pronunciation (say muym)Sentence You have to train for years to learn to mime well.

Word: control

Pronunciation (say kuhn-trohl)Sentence She used the control to turn the temperature up.

Word: buy

Pronunciation (say buy)Sentence I need to buy some new shoes.

Word: twig

Pronunciation (say twig)Sentence When we were camping, we used a twig to stir our tea.

Word: rash

Pronunciation (say rash)Sentence He wasn’t supposed to scratch his rash even though it was really

itchy.

Word: trust

Pronunciation (say trust)Sentence She’s been my friend for many years and I can trust her to help.

Word: cash

Pronunciation (say kash)3

Sentence I left some cash on the table to pay my paino teacher and now it’s gone.

Word: pain

Pronunciation (say payn)Sentence The pain in his leg made walking difficult.

Word: brain

Pronunciation (say brayn)Sentence An elephant’s brain is four times larger than a human’s.

Word: banjo

Pronunciation (say ban-joh)Sentence My uncle plays his banjo in a band.

Word: taxi

Pronunciation (say tak-see)Sentence We decided to take a taxi to the airport.

Word: skill

Pronunciation (say skil)Sentence She has many talents, but her greatest skill is singing.

Word: actor

Pronunciation (say ak-tuh)Sentence The actor who played the killer was frightening.

Word: story

Pronunciation (say staw-ree)Sentence We read a story about pirates in class today.

Word: above

Pronunciation (say uh-bove)Sentence Look above – there’s a possum in the tree!

Word: polite

Pronunciation (say puh-luyt)

4

Sentence Even though she was very angry she tried to remain polite.

Word: verse

Pronunciation (say vers)Sentence We usually only sing the first verse of the National Anthem.

Word: creed

Pronunciation (say kreed)Sentence It is wrong to discriminate on the basis of race or creed.

Word: yellow

Pronunciation (say yel-oh)Sentence I painted my room yellow because it makes me feel happy.

Word: letter

Pronunciation (say let-uh)Sentence She received a letter from her friend in Vietnam.

Word: flask

Pronunciation (say flahsk)Sentence Our science teacher warned us to be very careful when we

poured the acid solution into the flask.

Word: timber

Pronunciation (say tim-buh)Sentence The builder said the timber would be delivered the next day.

Word: power

Pronunciation (say pow-uh)Sentence We lost all electrical power in the blackout.

Word: data

Pronunciation (say day-tuh or dah-tuh)Sentence We collected data on the number of insects we found in the

school’s playground and then entered it into the computer.

Word: smile

Pronunciation (say smuyl)

5

Sentence We all had to smile for the camera.

Word: unit

Pronunciation (say yooh-nuht)Sentence The gram is the basic unit of weight.

Word: target

Pronunciation (say tah-guht)Sentence She hit the target with the ball and won a prize.

Word: laptop

Pronunciation (say lap-top)Sentence My dad took his laptop on holiday in case he needed to do any

work.

Word: wisp

Pronunciation (say wisp)Sentence A wisp of smoke rose from the chimney.

Word: wild

Pronunciation (say wuyld)Sentence There are wild mushrooms growing in the paddock.

Word: waste

Pronunciation (say wayst)Sentence Don’t waste water by leaving the tap running.

Word: goal

Pronunciation (say gohl)Sentence Dad put a ring up on a tree to use as a goal so we could practise

our netball.

Word: tide

Pronunciation (say tuyd)Sentence When the tide is low, you can see all the shells washed up on the

shore.

Word: learn

6

Pronunciation (say lern)Sentence I would like to learn more about the speed of light and sound.

Word: golf

Pronunciation (say golf)Sentence Playing golf is good exercise because it involves a lot of walking.

Word: wombat

Pronunciation (say wom-bat)Sentence The wombat looked cute and cuddly but it had sharp claws so I

stayed away.

Word: talent

Pronunciation (say tal-uhnt)Sentence The teacher said that my paintings show a talent for art.

Word: quiet

Pronunciation (say kwuy-uht)Sentence The lake is quiet early in the morning.

Word: paint

Pronunciation (say paynt) Sentence We asked our teacher for some more purple paint.

(50 words)

7

Stage 2 – Round 2

Word: flea

Pronunciation (say flee)Sentence A bite from a flea can make you very itchy.

Word: computer

Pronunciation (say kuhm-pyooh-tuh)Sentence Our new computer allows us to access the internet very quickly.

Word: sensor

Pronunciation (say-sen-suh)Sentence The sensor detected smoke, and set off the fire alarm.

Word: neither

Pronunciation (say nuy-thuh or nee- thuh)Sentence Neither colour suits me – I look awful in both orange and purple.

Word: sinew

Pronunciation (say sin-yooh) Sentence She strained a sinew in her knee playing netball.

Word: niece

Pronunciation (say nees) Sentence My aunt has five nephews, but only one niece – me!

Word: shriek

Pronunciation (say shreek)Sentence With a shriek of excitement the children ran into the waves.

Word: paddock

Pronunciation (say pad-uhk) Sentence During the flood, the sheep were moved to a higher paddock.

Word: dew

Pronunciation (say dyooh) Sentence The dew looked pretty, glistening on the grass in the early sun.

8

Word: steady

Pronunciation (say sted-ee)Sentence He is making steady progress in music. Word: fathom

Pronunciation (say fath-uhm)Sentence One fathom is equal to six feet.

Word: altar

Pronunciation (say awl-tuh)Sentence The bride and her father walked into the church and up towards

the altar. Word: heal

Pronunciation (say heel)Sentence The job of a doctor is to try to heal sick people.

Word: engine

Pronunciation (say en-juhn) Sentence Our car’s engine stopped because we had run out of petrol.

Word: pencil

Pronunciation (say pen-suhl) Sentence I need a red pencil for this drawing.

Word: entire

Pronunciation (say en-tuy-uh) Sentence Michelle ate the entire cake all by herself.

Word: zebra

Pronunciation (say zeb-ruh or zee-bruh) Sentence My friend brought me back a painting of a zebra from Africa.

Word: earn

Pronunciation (say ern) Sentence He wants to earn some money by doing a paper run.

Word: router

9

Pronunciation (say rowt-er) Sentence We had to follow the instructions to set up the router.

Word: fresco

Pronunciation (say fress-koh)Sentence The council hired an artist to paint a fresco on the ceiling of our

new town hall. Word: tepid

Pronunciation (say tep-uhd)Sentence The water in his drink bottle was tepid because he had left it in

the sun.

Word: season

Pronunciation (say see-zuhn) Sentence My favourite season is summer, because it’s warm and sunny.

Word: script

Pronunciation (say script) Sentence I practised my part for the play by reading the script in the bath.

Word: citrus

Pronunciation (say sit-ruhs)Sentence The citrus we planted last year is starting to produce fruit.

Word: sleeve

Pronunciation (say sleev) Sentence In art, I spilt red paint all over the sleeve of my white shirt.

Word: cornet

Pronunciation (say kaw-nuht) Sentence Luca plays the cornet in the school band.

Word: blazer

Pronunciation (say blay-zuh) Sentence The band uniform is a bright red blazer.

Word: composer

10

Pronunciation (say kuhm-poh-zuh)Sentence Sergei Rachmaninoff was a famous Russian composer. Word: bushfire

Pronunciation (say boosh-fuy-uh)Sentence Several houses were destroyed before the firefighters could

control the bushfire.

Word: engross

Pronunciation (say en-grohs) Sentence That book will engross you for days.

Word: buoy

Pronunciation (say boy) Sentence We swam around the buoy and then back to the shore.

Word: predict

Pronunciation (say pruh-dikt) Sentence The weather bureau tries to predict when it will rain, but it’s not

always right.

Word: ferret

Pronunciation (say fe-ruht) Sentence It’s becoming more and more popular to keep a ferret as a pet.

Word: fever

Pronunciation (say fee-vuh) Sentence She had a fever for three days and had to stay at home.

Word: zoning

Pronunciation (say zoh-ning) Sentence The council changed the zoning of the land so that houses could

be built there.

Word: braid

Pronunciation (say brayd)Sentence I will braid my hair for the school photos.Word: vibrant

Pronunciation (say vuy-bruhnt)11

Sentence The vibrant colours in the fashion parade were a completely new look.

Word: unclean

Pronunciation (say un-kleen) Sentence They chose not to eat at that restaurant because it was so

unclean inside.

Word: comfort

Pronunciation (say kum-fuht)Sentence I tried to comfort my little brother after he hurt his foot.

Word: movie

Pronunciation (say mooh-vee)Sentence Would you like to see a movie during the holidays.

Word: python

Pronunciation (say puy-thuhn)Sentence I like visiting the python at the zoo, but I wouldn’t want to meet

one anywhere else!

Word: magpie

Pronunciation (say mag-puy) Sentence We wore empty ice-cream buckets on our heads to avoid being

hurt if a magpie swooped while we were walking through the park.

Word: tidings

Pronunciation (say tuy-dings)Sentence The days had lengthened to weeks, and still we had not heard

any tidings.

Word: strum

Pronunciation (say strum)Sentence The audience clapped as the musician started to strum his

guitar.

Word: stadium

Pronunciation (say stay-dee-uhm)12

Sentence We are going to the stadium to watch tennis.

Word: mutiny

Pronunciation (say myooh-tuh-nee) Sentence We watched a film about the mutiny on the Bounty.

Word: peace

Pronunciation (say pees) Sentence Everyone celebrated when the war ended and there was peace

at last.

Word: courage

Pronunciation (say ku-rij) Sentence She showed great courage when she saved the child from the

fire.

Word: tomato

Pronunciation (say tuh-mah-toh) Sentence He made a tomato and cheese sandwich.

Word: melodic

Pronunciation (say muh-lod-ik) Sentence He played us a melodic tune on his clarinet.

(50 words)

13

Stage 2 - Round 3

Word: nocturnal

Pronunciation: (say nok-ter-nuhl) Sentence Possums and bats are nocturnal animals.

Word: telescope

Pronunciation (say tel-uh-skohp)Sentence The stars looked much brighter through the telescope. Word: recuperate

Pronunciation (say ruh-kooh-puh-rayt or ree-koo-puh-rayt)Sentence It did not take her long to recuperate from the virus because she

was so fit.

Word: faucet

Pronunciation (say faw-suht) Sentence Water was dripping from the tap because the faucet hadn’t been

turned off completely.

Word: plateau

Pronunciation (say plat-oh) Sentence From the plateau, at the top of the mountain, we could see the

endless plain beyond.

Word: relic

Pronunciation (say rel-ik) Sentence This ancient statue is a relic of a great civilisation.

Word: exercise

Pronunciation (say eks-uh-suyz) Sentence Walking is good exercise.

Word: communist

Pronunciation (say kom-yuh-nist) Sentence Citizens aren’t always treated equally in a communist regime.

14

Word: utmost

Pronunciation (say ut-mohst) Sentence The festivities would strain the small town’s resources to the

utmost.

Word: bovine

Pronunciation (say boh-vuyn)Sentence Cattle, water buffalo and yaks are all part of the bovine family. Word: blizzard

Pronunciation (say bliz-uhd)Sentence We got caught in a blizzard on the way back from our skiing trip.

Word: petunia

Pronunciation (say puh-tyoohn-yah) Sentence The nursery potted the petunia for us so we didn’t have to do it

ourselves at home.

Word: incisor

Pronunciation (say in-suy-zuh) Sentence When the ball hit her in her mouth, her left incisor was knocked

loose.

Word: eminence

Pronunciation (say em-uh-nuhns) Sentence After many years of hard work, she had reached a position of

eminence in her profession.

Word: frieze

Pronunciation (say freeze) Sentence A frieze had been carved all the way around the ancient building.

Word: organic

Pronunciation (say aw-gan-ik) Sentence They only use organic fertilizers on their crops.

Word: correlate

15

Pronunciation (say ko-ruh-layt) Sentence We had to correlate one set of figures with another.

Word: chariot

Pronunciation (say char-ree-uht)Sentence The actor had to learn to control a chariot for his role in the film

about ancient Rome. Word: endemic

Pronunciation (say en-dem-ik)Sentence Malaria is endemic in many tropical countries.

Word: abscond

Pronunciation (say uhb-skond) Sentence The treasurer planned to abscond with the club’s money.

Word: bizarre

Pronunciation (say buh-zah) Sentence The doctors were very worried by his bizarre behaviour.

Word: inflation

Pronunciation (say in-flay-shuhn) Sentence When inflation occurs, your money can buy less and less.

Word: republic

Pronunciation (say ruh-pub-lik) Sentence Australia is not a republic but the United States is.

Word: loofah

Pronunciation (say looh-fah) Sentence The gift basket contained two scented soaps, a loofah, and a

moisturiser.

Word: obesity

Pronunciation (say oh-bee-suh-tee) Sentence Rates of obesity are increasing in Australia.

Word: raisin

Pronunciation (say ray-zuhn)16

Sentence It’s nice to have a raisin or two with cheese. Word: fatigue

Pronunciation (say fuh-teeg)Sentence The rescued bushwalkers were suffering from fatigue.

Word: epidemic

Pronunciation (say ep-uh-dem-ik) Sentence Before vaccinations, an epidemic of flu could kill thousands of

people.

Word: mollusc

Pronunciation (say mol-uhsk) Sentence A snail is a mollusc, and so is an oyster.

Word: dugong

Pronunciation (say dyooh-gong) Sentence The dugong was hunted for its meat and oil by some Aboriginal

people.

Word: italics

Pronunciation (say i-tal-iks or uy-tal-iks) Sentence I use italics in my essays when I want to emphasise something.

Word: paraplegia

Pronunciation (say pa-ruh-plee-juh)Sentence My brother suffers from paraplegia and represents Australia in

wheelchair basketball.

Word: census

Pronunciation (say sen-suhs) Sentence The government conducts a census of the whole country every

five years.

Word: quantitative

Pronunciation (say kwon-tuh-tuh-tiv or kwon-tuh-tay-tiv)

17

Sentence The analysts used quantitative data to make their comparisons. Word: ultimate

Pronunciation (say ul-tah-muht)Sentence The ultimate objective is to get to the finals.

Word: briefcase

Pronunciation (say breef-kays) Sentence Mum could never fit her lunch in her briefcase, so she always

had to take another bag.

Word: telecast

Pronunciation (say tel-uh-kahst) Sentence The telecast was to be screened at eight o’clock that night so we

made sure we got home in time.

Word: misspell

Pronunciation (say mis-spel) Sentence You can’t afford to misspell a word in this competition if you

want to do well.

Word: redolent

Pronunciation (say red-uh-luhnt)Sentence The night air was redolent of the scent of roses.

Word: appetite

Pronunciation (say ap-uh-tuyt) Sentence Your appetite is always good after you go hiking in the bush.

Word: modular

Pronunciation (say mod-yuh-luh) Sentence The library has modular furniture which can easily be moved

around for different purposes.

Word: species

Pronunciation (spee-seez)18

Sentence Chimpanzees are a species of monkey. Word: lyrics

Pronunciation (say li-riks)Sentence Can you remember the lyrics of that song we heard last night?

Word: trombone

Pronunciation (say trom-bohn)Sentence Joe gets very annoyed when his sister practises her trombone

while he is trying to poach eggs.

(44 words)

19

Stage 2 - Round 4

Word: narrowcast

Pronunciation (say na-roh-kahst)Sentence We didn’t see the program because it was narrowcast on a pay-

TV station only.

Word: fraternal

Pronunciation (say fruh-ter-nuhl)Sentence They weren’t brothers, but they had a fraternal relationship

because they had been close friends all their lives.

Word: witness

Pronunciation (say wit-nuhs) Sentence Because Mum was the first witness at the scene of the accident,

the police wanted to ask her lots of questions.

Word: coolamon

Pronunciation (say kooh-luh-mon)Sentence The coolamon was full of yams and nuts.

Word: dramatist

Pronunciation (say dram-uh-tust)Sentence The actor was overwhelmed to be chosen by the dramatist to

perform in his new play.

Word: dynasty

Pronunciation (say din-uh-stee)Sentence The Ming dynasty ruled in China for over two hundred years

from the 14th-17th century. Word: tetanus

Pronunciation (say tet-nuhs or tet-uh-nuhs)Sentence These days, most people in Australia are immunised against

tetanus, so it is not very common.

Word: tabulate 20

Pronunciation (say tab-yuh-layt) Sentence We had to tabulate the amount of rain that fell each day over

the whole month.

Word: arsenic

Pronunciation (say ah-suh-nik) Sentence Arsenic was often used as a poison in old murder mysteries.

Word: fauna

Pronunciation (say faw-nuh) Sentence The fauna of Australia includes the kangaroo.

Word: rueful

Pronunciation (say rooh-ful) Sentence She had a rueful look on her face as she looked at the broken

window.

Word: dissolute

Pronunciation (say dis-uh-looht)Sentence The film was about a dissolute man who gambled and drank too

much.

Word: anchor

Pronunciation (say ang-kuh)Sentence We threw the anchor over the side and started baiting our

hooks.

Word: amplify

Pronunciation (say am-pluh-fuy)Sentence We used a microphone to amplify our voices so that we could be

heard at the back of the hall. Word: hangar

Pronunciation (say hang-uh)Sentence The plane was moved into the hangar for regular maintenance.

Word: citizen

21

Pronunciation (say sit-uh-zuhn) Sentence A baby born to Australian parents is automatically an Australian

citizen.

Word: cleanse

Pronunciation (say klenz) Sentence The nurse started to cleanse the wound with a mild antiseptic.

Word: narrative

Pronunciation (say na-ruh-tiv)Sentence Her narrative was about two children who got lost but managed

to find their way home.

Word: bight

Pronunciation (say buyt) Sentence The Great Australian Bight is the widest inlet on our coast.

Word: sombre

Pronunciation (say som-buh)Sentence He wore sombre robes in shades of brown and black.

Word: dungeon

Pronunciation (say dun-juhn) Sentence The soldiers were held captive in the cold, dark dungeon of the

castle.

Word: whisker

Pronunciation (say wis-kuh)Sentence The cat was so afraid that every hair and every whisker was

sticking straight up. Word: injustice

Pronunciation (say in-jus-tuhs)Sentence She is always angered by injustice.

Word: methodology

Pronunciation (say meth-uh-dol-uh-jee) 22

Sentence The success of the experiment was helped by a sound methodology.

Word: lasso

Pronunciation (say lass-ooh) Sentence The cowboy threw a lasso around the cow’s neck.

Word: ignorant

Pronunciation (say ig-nuh-ruhnt)Sentence Growing up in the city, he was ignorant of life in the country.

Word: propulsion

Pronunciation (say pruh-pul-shuhn) Sentence The missile was under rocket propulsion.

Word: prognosis

Pronunciation (say prog-noh-suhs)Sentence She was very relieved when the doctor gave her a good

prognosis.

Word: quokka

Pronunciation (say kwok-uh) Sentence The quokka is only found on a small island off the western coast

of Australia.

Word: gangrene

Pronunciation (say gang-green)Sentence My grandfather suffered gangrene during the war and lost his

left leg. Word: absolutely

Pronunciation (say ab-suh-looht-lee)Sentence I absolutely agree with you that apples taste better than grapes.

Word: constabulary

Pronunciation (say kuhn-stab-yuhl-uh-ree) Sentence The local constabulary tried to bring an end to the riot.

23

Word: devious

Pronunciation (say dee-vee-uhs) Sentence His devious ways made him a lot of enemies.

Word: deceit

Pronunciation (say duh-seet) Sentence We were well aware of her deceit and no longer trusted her.

Word: variety

Pronunciation (say vuh-ruy-uh-tee) Sentence This shop sells a variety of cakes.

Word: competitor

Pronunciation (say kuhm-pet-uh-tuh) Sentence He was the only competitor not to fall down in the skating race,

so he won!

Word: bassoon

Pronunciation (say buh-soohn) Sentence He plays the bassoon in the school band)

Word: queasy

Pronunciation (say kwee-see)Sentence Driving along the winding mountain road made me feel very

queasy. Word: performance

Pronunciation (say puh-faw-muhns)Sentence The Year Six students put on a great performance at the end of

the year.

Word: equality

Pronunciation (say ee-kwol-uh-tee or uh-kwol-uh-tee)Sentence My mother says that in the interests of equality, everyone in the

family should take turns in taking out the garbage bin.24

Word: flamboyant

Pronunciation (say flam-boy-uhnt) Sentence The peacock is known for its flamboyant displays of feathers.

Word: foliage

Pronunciation (say foh-lee-ij) Sentence In autumn, the foliage of some trees turns orange and red.

Word: ricotta

Pronunciation (say ruh-kot-uh) Sentence On cold winter evenings, my sister in-law cooks her spinach and

ricotta pie.

Word: haughty

Pronunciation (say haw-tee) Sentence His haughty manner didn’t fit in with the friendly atmosphere of

the meeting.

(44 words)

25

Stage 2 - Round 5

Word: suspicious

Pronunciation (say suh-spish-uhs)Sentence We were suspicious when we heard a window shatter followed

by footsteps running down the road.

Word: baklava

Pronunciation (say bak-luh-vuh or bah-kluh-vuh)Sentence When we go to our favourite café, I always have a piece of

sweet, sticky baklava Word: sluggard

Pronunciation (say slug-uhd)Sentence The sluggard refused to work and spent the day in his hammock.

Word: askance

Pronunciation (say uh-skance) Sentence I realised that I had said something wrong when the teacher

looked askance at me.

Word: municipality

Pronunciation (say myooh-nuh-suh-pal-uh-tee) Sentence We have some good parks in our municipality.

Word: disinfectant

Pronunciation (say dis-uhn-fek-tuhnt) Sentence The vet sprays the examining table with disinfectant after each

patient.

Word: solstice

Pronunciation (say sol-stuhs) Sentence The winter solstice occurs around the 22nd of June.

Word: mysterious

Pronunciation (say muh-steer-ree-uhs)Sentence We were woken by mysterious noises in the night.

Word: obliterate 26

Pronunciation (say uh-blit-uh-rayt) Sentence The thieves thought that the fire would obliterate all evidence of

their crime but they were wrong.

Word: organism

Pronunciation (say aw-guh-niz-uhm)Sentence She saw the tiny organism under the microscope. Word: repulsive

Pronunciation (say ruh-pul-siv)Sentence The smell of the garbage bin was repulsive.

Word: quandary

Pronunciation (say kwon-dree or kwon-duh-ree) Sentence I’m in a quandary about what to wear to this party.

Word: macaw

Pronunciation (say muh-kaw) Sentence The bright colours of the macaw caught their eyes as it flew

away.

Word: nonentity

Pronunciation (say non-en-tuh-tee) Sentence I felt like a complete nonentity at the film premiere.

Word: cyberspace

Pronunciation (say suy-buy-space)Sentence She spent hours at the computer, lost in cyberspace.

Word: apparatus

Pronunciation (say ap-uh-rah-tuhs)Sentence We set up the apparatus for the experiment.

Word: stiletto

Pronunciation (say stuh-let-oh)Sentence She tripped when her stiletto wedged tightly in the drain. Word: ferocity

27

Pronunciation (say fuh-ross-uh-tee)Sentence The attack was executed with frightening ferocity.

Word: hypocrite

Pronunciation (say hip-uh-krit) Sentence The outspoken conservationist was branded a hypocrite when it

was discovered that she did not recycle her paper and plastic.

Word: impunity

Pronunciation (say im-pyoohn-uh-tee)Sentence Despite his wealth and connections, the disgraced judge found

he could not flout the law with impunity.

Word: montage

Pronunciation (say mon-tahzh)Sentence In our art class we are cutting up old magazines to make a

montage.

Word: recoup

Pronunciation (say ruh-koohp or ree-koohp) Sentence After the drought it was impossible for the farmers to recoup

their losses.

Word: conceited

Pronunciation (say kuhn-seet-uhd) Sentence Unfortunately, his huge success as a writer has made him very

conceited.

Word: hygienic

Pronunciation (say huy-jeen-ik)Sentence It is important to have a hygienic kitchen.

Word: paisley

Pronunciation (say payz-lee)Sentence My mother still has the paisley shirt that she wore before I was

born.

Word: satisfactory

28

Pronunciation (say sat-uhs-fak-tuh-ree)Sentence That was a very satisfactory meal.

Word: krypton

Pronunciation (say krip-ton) Sentence Krypton is a gas which is used in some camera flashes.

Word: volatile

Pronunciation (say vol-uh-tuyl) Sentence It was a volatile situation which could lead to war.

Word: transcend

Pronunciation (say tran-send) Sentence His success after this show is sure to transcend any he has had

before.

Word: anatomy

Pronunciation (say uh-nat-uh-mee) Sentence The anatomy of an alpaca is very similar to that of a llama,

vicuna and guanaco.

Word: shrewd

Pronunciation (say shroohd) Sentence People often asked him for advice because they thought he was

shrewd.

Word: predicament

Pronunciation (say pruh-dik-uh-muhnt) Sentence It was a real predicament for Rosie the dog when she was

accidentally locked in the cupboard.

Word: warfare

Pronunciation (say waw-fair)Sentence Many towns were destroyed during the warfare between the

two countries.

Word: conductivity

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Pronunciation (say kon-duk-tiv-uh-tee)Sentence Copper is commonly used for electrical wiring because it has

high conductivity.

Word: shiralee

Pronunciation (say shi-ruh-lee)Sentence All the swagman needed was in his shiralee.

Word: circuitry

Pronunciation (say ser-kuh-tree)Sentence The toaster stopped working because of a problem in the

circuitry.

Word: programming

Pronunciation (say proh-gram-ing) Sentence My sister is studying programming because she loves working

with computers.

Word: whirlwind

Pronunciation (say werl-wind) Sentence The roar of the whirlwind filled the air.

Word: mollycoddle

Pronunciation (say mol-ee-kod-uhl) Sentence Caitlin didn’t think it was a good idea to mollycoddle her

teenage daughter so she encouraged her interest in rock climbing.

Word: albatross

Pronunciation (say al-buh-tross) Sentence Many sailors believe that it is bad luck to harm an albatross.

Word: generous

Pronunciation (say jen-uh-ruhs)Sentence Damien is so generous that he shared his lunch with me when I

forgot mine.

Word: guava

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Pronunciation (say gwah-vuh)Sentence She explained that the tree was a guava, and we could eat the

delicious fruit.

Word: queue

Pronunciation (say kyooh) Sentence The queue for the hamburgers was too long so we decided to

make do with the chips.

Word: magnetism

Pronunciation (say mag-nuh-tiz-uhm) Sentence We learned lots about magnetism by moving the poles of the

magnets around.

(44 words)

31

Stage 2 - Round 6

Word: petticoat

Pronunciation (say pet-ee-koht)Sentence Women used to always wear a petticoat under their dresses.

Word: scythe

Pronunciation (say suyth) Sentence He used a scythe to cut the long grass.

Word: magician

Pronunciation (say muh-jish-uhn) Sentence The magician was able to make a coin disappear and then

appear again.

Word: ocarina

Pronunciation (say ok-uh-ree-nuh) Sentence The ocarina is not a very difficult instrument to learn.

Word: egotism

Pronunciation (say ee-guh-tiz-uhm)Sentence His egotism has lost him all his friends. Word: transmitter

Pronunciation (say trans-mit-uh)Sentence The radio transmitter was out of order.

Word: mahogany

Pronunciation (say muh-hog-uh-nee) Sentence The house was full of old furniture made of cedar and

mahogany.

Word: incandescent

Pronunciation (say in-kan-dess-uhnt) Sentence This metal is so hot it is incandescent.

Word: serrated

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Pronunciation (say suh-ray-tuhd) Sentence A bread knife has a serrated blade.

Word: ambulance

Pronunciation (say am-byuh-luhns) Sentence An ambulance took her to hospital when she fell out of the tree

and hurt her back.

Word: combustion

Pronunciation (say kuhm-bus-chuhn) Sentence The heater worked on a process of slow combustion.

Word: cygnet

Pronunciation (say sig-nuht) Sentence The cygnet paddled across the lake behind adult swans.

Word: ridiculous

Pronunciation (say ruh-dik-yuh-luhs)Sentence The idea may sound ridiculous, but I actually think it will work. Word: simulator

Pronunciation (say sim-yah-lay-tuh)Sentence Pilots begin their training on a simulator before actually flying a

plane.

Word: theatre

Pronunciation (say thear-tuh) Sentence The play opens at the local theatre on Friday.

Word: hypothesis

Pronunciation (say huy-poth-uh-suhs) Sentence The scientist proposed the hypothesis that the earth was much

older than commonly thought.

Word: cormorant

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Pronunciation (say kaw-muh-ruhnt) Sentence A cormorant landed on the rock and spread its wings out to dry.

Word: exhibition

Pronunciation (say eks-uh-bish-uhn) Sentence All their parents and friends came to see the students’ art

exhibition.

Word: proponent

Pronunciation (say pruh-poh-nuhnt) Sentence Our member of parliament is a proponent of tax reform.

Word: violin

Pronunciation (say vuy-uh-lin) Sentence The violin is a very different instrument to learn to play.

Word: sanitary

Pronunciation (say san-uh-tree)Sentence All procedures at the hospital must be sanitary, or germs will

quickly spread. Word: knowledge

Pronunciation (say nol-ij)Sentence She had a good knowledge of the rules of the games so they

asked her to be referee.

Word: semibreve

Pronunciation (say sem-ee-breev) Sentence In our music class we learned that a semibreve is a note which is

four times as long as a crotchet.

Word: terracotta

Pronunciation (say te-ruh-kot-uh) Sentence The tiles were in warm shades of terracotta.

Word: stationary

Pronunciation (say stay-shuhn-ree) 34

Sentence She waited until the car was stationary before opening the door.

Word: tourism

Pronunciation (say toouh-riz-uhm)Sentence She loves travelling and hopes to get some sort of job in tourism.

Word: liana

Pronunciation (say lee-ahn-uh) Sentence In the rainforest, tangled liana jostled with strangler figs and

massive tree ferns.

Word: vegetation

Pronunciation (say vej-uh-tay-shuhn)Sentence Much of the vegetation was cleared for grazing animals.

Word: broccoli

Pronunciation (say brok-uh-lee or brok-uh-luy)Sentence Albert added some broccoli to the stir fry. Word: overwhelm

Pronunciation (say oh-vuh-welm)Sentence They knew that the arduous trek might overwhelm them but

decided to start off anyway.

Word: amnesty

Pronunciation (say am-nuh-stee)Sentence During the amnesty, people could hand in their illegal weapons

without being charged.

Word: chorister

Pronunciation (say ko-ruhs-tuh) Sentence She loved singing and wanted to be a chorister in the cathedral

choir.

Word: reputable

Pronunciation (say rep-yuh-tuh-buhl)

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Sentence My uncle is looking for a good second-hand car from a reputable dealer.

Word: samskara

Pronunciation (say sam-skah-ruh) Sentence In Hinduism, the samskara are the special ceremonies that are

carried out at significant times in a person’s life.

Word: geography

Pronunciation (say jee-og-ruh-fee)Sentence In his geography class, my big brother learns about things like

how mountains were formed.

Word: etiquette

Pronunciation (say et-ee-kuht)Sentence We were taught the etiquette of addressing the governor when

she visited our school.

Word: scheming

Pronunciation (say skee-ming)Sentence The scheming young politician took aim at his own party leader. Word: morose

Pronunciation (say muh-rohs)Sentence He became very morose when he found out that dinner was to

be lentil burgers.

Word: whim

Pronunciation (say wim) Sentence I just bought the dress on a whim.

Word: pillion

Pronunciation (say pil-yuhn) Sentence He rode as pillion behind his dad on the motorcycle – it was

great fun!

Word: encapsulate

Pronunciation (say en-kap-shuh-layt or en-kap-syuh-layt) 36

Sentence She managed to encapsulate all the theories about the cause of the war in a one-hour lecture.

Word: palette

Pronunciation (say pal-uht) Sentence The artist mixed different paints on his palette until he created

the perfect colour for the sunset.

Word: sewerage

Pronunciation (say sooh-rij or soohuh-rij)Sentence This government minister is in charge of water and sewerage.

(43 words)

37