1. Her stress over spending so much money on a house abated when the real broker told her the property's 15 year tax abatement.

2-a. King Edward of England famously abdicated the throne in order to marry an American divorcee.

2-b. Parents can be charged with neglect for abdicating their responsibilities towards their children.

3-a. The teen's aberrant behavior made his family suspect that he was using drugs.

3-b. Losing rather than gaining weight over the holidays is certainly an aberration.

4. "Go out with you?" she replied. "I abhor you!" I would rather stab myself with a rusty bread knife than be your girlfriend!

5-a. To become a citizen of the United States, you must abjure loyalty to the nation of your birth.

5-b. Since enrolling in that nutrition class, she has abjured sager and saturated fats.

6. Could the inside of this mascot costume be any more abrasive? It's rubbing my skin raw! I have some seriously abrasive remarks for whoever designed this thing.

7-a. Our romantic vacation was abridged when the babysitter called to say that the kids were sick and we should come home.

7-b. Audio books are almost always abridged, since few people want to listen to a 200-hour book.

8. The church board voted on whether to hold an abstinence rally to encourage young people not to become sexually active; while most members voted in favor, one voted against and two abstained, with one abstainer commenting that, as far as she knew, the church's teens were pretty abstemious.

9. The acme of my vacation was when I finally climbed to the acme of the mountain and enjoyed the gorgeous vista.

10. Lindsay's parents had a hard time accepting that, after incurring $100,000 in student loans, their daughter had decided to enter the low-paying field of environmental activism.

11. I have a message board that adheres to my refrigerator with magnets; on it, I've written some affirmations to help me adhere to my diet plan.

12. She was exacting boss who upbraided an employee for jamming the copier, yet she merely admonished her five-year-old for hte same offense.

13. Pioneer women persevered despite adverse circumstances, even when fording a river - baby in one arm, leading a horse with the other - against an adverse current.

14. Speak or argue vote for a candidate who advocates oil drilling in federally protected nature preserves.

14. Children often have advocates appointed to represent them in court.

15. The twins were so different - one possessed a truly baroqueaesthetic, preferring golden, gilded decor. The other lived in a world of pure logic, untouched by ant aesthetic sense whatever; art did not move him, his house was bare, and he married his wife solely because his wife solely because she was a master of calculus.

16. The professional wrestler played at belligerence in the ring, but in real life he was quite an affable fellow - sociable, and always ready to lend a land.

17. I'm annoyed whenever Americans move to England and suddenly start speaking with an affected British accent; such affectations, when practiced by celebrities, are only likely to alienate their fans.

18-a. I can't stand when my coworker aggrandizes her role in our group projects.

18-b. Stop it with your constant self-aggrandizing - we don't care how many automobiles you own.

19-a. While some of the company's divisions did better than others, in aggregate, we made a profit.

19-b. Concrete is created when crushed rock or glass is aggregated with cement; in aggregate, concrete is stronger than cement alone.

20. Any boss wants an employee to respond with alacrity to his or her requests, handing promptly and with enthusiasm.

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① abate: 〈勢い・苦痛などを〉やわらげる，弱める.

② abdicate: 〈王位などを〉捨てる，退く. 〈権利・責任などを〉放棄する，捨てる

③ aberrant: 正道をはずれた; 常軌を逸した.

④ abhor: (ab・horred; ab・hor・ring) 〈…を〉ぞっとするほど嫌う.

⑤ abjure: 〈権利・忠誠などを〉誓って放棄する.

⑥ abrasive: すりむく，すり減らす(作用をする); 研磨する. 〈声など〉耳障りな; 〈人・態度など〉いらいらさせる，逆なでするような，不快な

⑦ abridge: 〈書物・話を〉要約する

⑧ abstinence: 断つこと，節制，禁欲; 禁酒 〔from〕abstain: 〔飲酒などを〕慎む，控える，やめる; 禁酒する abstemious: (飲食を)節制する; 〈生活など〉節制した

⑨ acme: [通例 the acme] 絶頂，極点，極致，全盛期 〔of〕.

⑩ activism: 行動[実行]主義

⑪ adhere: 〈二つの面が〉(互いにしっかりと)くっつく，くっついて離れない 〔+to+(代)名詞〕〔信仰・考え・計画などに〕執着[固執]する; 〔…を〕支持[信奉]する 《★受身可》

⑫ admonish: 〈人を〉さとす，〈人に〉注意する，忠告する. exacting: 〈人が〉無理な要求をする，苛酷(かこく)な，厳しい upbraid: 〔…のことで〕〈人を〉とがめる，しかる 〔for，with〕.