The ACT Reading Test: Multiple-Meaning Words: List 4

On the ACT Reading Test, you'll encounter questions that ask you to determine the meanings of common words in context. We've identified 200 high-frequency, multiple-meaning words of the sort that you'll see on the exam. As you practice this list, you'll have to rely on context clues in order to determine each word’s meaning in a particular sentence. Be careful! Several of a word's meanings might show up as answer choices — but only one answer will capture the meaning of the word in the context of the sentence.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. bind
    secure with or as if with ropes
  2. severe
    very harsh or strict, especially when dealing with others
  3. reflection
    the phenomenon of a wave being thrown back from a surface
  4. service
    an act of help or assistance
  5. situation
    physical position in relation to the surroundings
  6. process
    a particular course of action intended to achieve a result
  7. contain
    hold or have within
  8. thin
    of relatively small extent from one surface to the opposite
  9. source
    the place where something begins
  10. simple
    having few parts; not complex or complicated or involved
  11. blast
    a sudden, loud sound
  12. crude
    belonging to an early stage of technical development
  13. resolution
    a decision to do something or to behave in a certain manner
  14. connect
    fasten or put together two or more pieces
  15. response
    the speech act of continuing a conversational exchange
  16. determine
    find out or learn with certainty, as by making an inquiry
  17. store
    a mercantile establishment for the sale of goods or services
  18. register
    an official written record of names or events
  19. direction
    a line leading to a place or point
  20. dull
    so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
  21. center
    an area that is in the middle of some larger region
  22. swallow
    pass through the esophagus as part of eating or drinking
  23. draft
    a current of air
  24. raise
    move upwards
  25. cultivate
    adapt something wild to the environment
Created on Thu Dec 17 12:25:23 EST 2020 (updated Thu Dec 17 12:41:47 EST 2020)

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