1. Done by many people
   Difficult and slow
2. Easy
   Delightful

The word "labor" is an obvious tip-off here. Fun fact: In Latin, there are two words for work, "labor" and "opus." The former refers to the act of work, which can be meaningful or thankless. But "opus" is always meaningful work, and sometimes refers to a finished project (the sense in which we use it today).

1. A belief system
   A mathematical treatise
2. A small, low-volume river
   A newspaper or newsmagazine

A "creed" isn't usually a single belief, but a group of related ones that provides a guide for living. Sometimes, it's a written "mission statement," as in "the Apostle's Creed." The Christian rock group Creed uses the name to refer to their faith.

1. Open door
   Open field
2. Remote location
   Safe place

You might have heard this word recently in the form of "sanctuary cities," or ones that will not give illegal immigrants up for deportation. The word had an original connotation of "holy place": note the similarity to the word "sanctified," and also the fact that the central auditorium of a church is often called a "sanctuary."

1. Something alphabetical
   Something done by hand
2. Something done by men
   Something written in stone

"Manual" is often contrasted with "automatic," as in the transmissions of cars. The root word is the Latin "manus," for "hand," not the Germanic "mann," which is why the third answer option is off base.

1. A kind of camouflage
   An existing condition
2. Peril or danger
   Rapture

Who isn't familiar with the televised announcement "This ... is ... Jeopardy!" So much so, in fact, that it's possible that some people have forgotten the original meaning of the word. The quiz show got its name when a studio executive rejected the original title, "What's the Question?" by saying that it didn't suggest "enough jeopardies."

1. Eager
   Tardy
2. Dissuaded
   Required or forced

This word is related to "impulse." If you have done something on "impulse," you felt a strong, maybe irresistible, need to do it. Note also the similarity to the words "propel" and "compel," which also have to do with actions and the forces behind them.

1. Action
   Code word
2. Project
   Story

This word has become a favorite of cable news correspondents, especially those talking about politics, where every issue has a "narrative." In fact, it's rare to hear it used in relation to fiction anymore; writers and editors are far more likely to refer to "storylines," "plots," et cetera.

1. Argues
   Fights
2. Reads
   Either argues or fights

"Pugnacious" is derived from the Latin word "pugnare," meaning "to fight," and initially had a strong connotation of physical brawling (see also the word "pugilist.") Nowadays, simply being quick to argue, verbally, also makes a person "pugnacious."

1. To accelerate
   To forecast or imagine
2. To deny
   To elevate in height or status

You'll hear this word in relation to finance. For example, "costs are projected to exceed $4 million." In its psychological sense, people "project" ideas onto someone or something. For example, a person just out of a bad marriage might see a straightforward romantic comedy as being all about the warning signs of a bad relationship; they are projecting their own experiences onto the story.

1. A boat
   A good meal
2. A business deal
   A horse and rider

"Capsize" is a word with a narrow definition; it means "to overturn," almost invariably on water. A horse and rider might both fall while running a challenging steeplechase course, but you wouldn't say they've "capsized."

1. Between friends, non-romantic
   A family relationship
2. Relatively new
   Unhealthy

The "Platonic Ideal" is named for the philosopher Plato, who viewed attraction between souls as superior to attraction between bodies, and thought that the highest love was human love for the divine. This ascent from carnal to divine is sometimes called the "Ladder of Love" ... which sounds to us like a VH1 show.

1. Feed generously
   Remain unmarried
2. Make ineffective or useless
   Sing in harmony

If you liked math in school, you might remember the concept of the "null set," or one with no numbers in it. Similarly, to "nullify" something is to make it empty or useless, like a legal contract that is no longer binding.

1. A dam or impedance
   An argument in court
2. A news item
   A series

You might have been tipped off by the similarity to the word "sequel." Fun fact: In film or TV writing, it is common to call a scene depicting a dream a "dream sequence," even though its action isn't any more sequential than any other part of a movie or a show.

1. The same size
   Happening at the same time
2. Pleasant
   Unpleasant

A fancier word for this, one which historians use, is "coeval." The simpler term "concurrent" would be used for something less important than a historic age. For example, "The new Avengers movie was so popular that it was running on three screens at one multiplex, more or less concurrently."

1. Avoided
   Eaten
2. Heard
   Seen

In other words, the closest synonym is "unavoidable." "Evade" is closer, etymologically, but there's no such word as "unevadeable." Besides, it just sounds cool to say, "Let's just do it; we're only putting off the inevitable."

1. Greed
   Wrath
2. Pride
   Sloth

Vanity was a medieval sin that put man on a footing close to God (dangerous territory!) and put his mortal soul in peril. Or, we could just be talking about a woman's table and mirror, where she does her hair and makeup. Meanings change!

1. Artificial
   Colorful
2. Round
   Tiny

This is a synonym form of the word "synthesis," meaning "blending or mixing." Something "synthetic" is a blend of two or more things, or an adaptation of them. So even if the blended materials are natural themselves, the synthetic substance is not.

1. Shadowed
   Light in color
2. Old, worn-out
   Useful

"Decrepit" is used to describe objects as well as people (the second usage being much less nice). Something that is "decrepit" is worn down and in need of refurbishing to be attractive or useful again.

1. An electric engine
   A high point or peak
2. A freezing point in chemistry
   Something spherical

You might be familiar with this one from the term "apex predator." That expression means an animal at the top of its food chain, one that has no predators to fear himself or herself. Polar bears are an apex predator.

1. Cerebral
   Hard to hear, faint
2. Odd or offbeat
   Within normal limits

This term comes to us from geometry. An eccentric line deviates from its expected path; many of the Solar System's planets do this, not orbiting the Sun in an circle, but instead in an elliptical path. Informally, the word has come to refer to a person who doesn't do what is expected of him or her, and thus strays from conventional paths.

1. Adorable
   Huge
2. Bloody
   Imaginary

Originally, this word referred to a giant statue, like the Colossus at Rhodes. This was a statue of the sun god at the mouth of a harbor, and was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Today, a mega-corporation might be called a "colossus."

1. Rooftop
   Exterior or front
2. Scent or perfume
   Writing instrument

This word has a literal and a metaphoric meaning. In architecture, a building's front is its "facade." However, a person putting on a brave face in time of trouble is also putting up "a facade." Whichever way you're using it, don't forget to pronounce the "c" as an "s."

1. To study their history
   To imitate their language or style of dress
2. To view them as superhuman
   To make them second-class citizens

This word should be used carefully, as it carries baggage from the time when "ghettos" were neighborhoods that Jews were confined to in early Europe (as well as having a complex history in the urban U.S.) However, there are times when its use is justified. For example: "Coded praise about women being 'good at detail-oriented, repetitive tasks' tends to ghettoize them into low-paying, menial jobs."

1. 'Good job, you!'
   'Hey, girlfriend!'
2. 'The Right Reverend Herbert'
   'Miss Eason'

An honorific is a title that implies a well-respected, often earned, place in society. Mr. Herbert studied to become an Anglican priest, and is now introduced as "The Right Reverend Herbert." The "Miss" in "Miss Eason" is a title, but you couldn't call it an "honorific."

1. Great
   Humorous
2. Objectionable
   Bleak

Don't confuse this word with "exceptional," which means "standing out" and often carries the meaning of "great" or "fantastic." The true meaning of "exceptionable" is related to the phrase "I take exception to --", and means that you're not pleased, or you object.

1. An astronomic object
   A phantom or mirage
2. A literary work
   A second or subsequent date

An apparition is something you think you see that isn't really there. In supernatural fiction, it often means a ghost, but in real life, it could be a hallucination. We like Ezra Pound's use of it in his haiku-like poem "In a Station of the Metro": "The apparition of these faces in the crowd/Petals on a wet, black bough."

1. Low-heat cooking
   Hair-braiding
2. Radiological imaging
   Seeing the future or the unknown

Many different cultures have ways of seeing the future or remote events. Among the more disturbing? The reading of entrails, which involved cutting open an animal (usually a bird) and examining its intestines. We'll stick to tea leaves, thanks.

1. Agreement
   Prediction
2. Privacy
   Light conversation

"Assent" and "dissent" are words for "agreement" and "disagreement" respectively. The word "consent" is related to these, but specifically means an agreement to do something or be part of something, whereas "assent" can be an agreement that is only theoretical, with ideas.

1. Water falling from the sky
   A period of ruling over something
2. Part of a horse's bridle
   None of these

We're obviously making a point here: Treat this word with caution! It's not too common for people to confuse "reign" with "rain," but they do, with relative frequency, confuse "rein" and"reign." This is understandable, as both have to do with forms of control.

1. Curiosity
   Dislike
2. Love
   Sin

If you had a solid education in the scriptures, this was probably your time to shine! "Iniquity" is commonly used in translations of the Jewish Bible/Christian Old Testament, particularly in the books of Psalms and Proverbs. It's an old-fashioned way to say "sin" or "wrongdoing."

1. A central part
   The first word of a sentence
2. The epilogue of a book
   A vertebrate animal

This one might be familiar from high-school biology. Every cell has a nucleus, which is where DNA is stored; think of it like the "brain" or "nerve center" of the cell. As with many terms in science, this one has developed a metaphoric meaning ... in this case, it means a place where all the action is happening.

1. Easily handled
   Ironic
2. Miserable
   Unavoidable

Either a situation or a person (or group of people) can be "wretched." Consider someone locked out of their home in pouring rain with no raincoat. Need to Know Dept: Unlike most shorter words ending in "-ed," this word is pronounced with two syllables: "wretch-ed."

1. Happening at an opportune time
   Instantaneous
2. Having no expiration date
   Knowledgeable about clocks and watches

This is one of many adjectives in English that are written like adverbs, with an "-ly." People will try to tell you there are only a few, but this isn't so. Consider also "kindly," "lovely," "friendly," "kingly/queenly," "manly/womanly" ... well, you get the point.

1. Brave
   Cowardly
2. Not what is desired or expected
   Not typical of an adult

An "untoward" circumstance is one that you weren't expecting, and are considerably less than delighted by. For example, sailors might face "untoward weather" at a time of year when the winds and conditions are normally good for setting sail.

1. You're physically attractive.
   You're enthusiastic.
2. You're mean.
   You're tactless.

The root word is "zeal," which kind of sounds like what it means, a let's-get-started! quality. We can imagine it being used in the old-school Marvel Comics: Zeal! as the sound of somebody rushing off to get to work. Sadly, "zealous" loses the long-e sound, rhyming with "jealous," and doesn't sound nearly so active.