Latin and French phrases used in English

Grade 11 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. 1.

   Owning a drone is not illegal per se; flying one over a crowded stadium is. Bo reads a ruling. In this sentence, what does per se add?

   • Owning a drone is not illegal unless a crowd is present.
   • Owning a drone is not illegal for each person who owns one.
   • Owning a drone, taken by itself, is not the offense.
   • Owning a drone is not illegal in any place or case.

2. Read this first

   Audit report

   The auditor compared the three branches and found one modus operandi: each skipped the monthly count and relied on the manager's memory.

3. 2.

   Esme reads an audit report. In this sentence, what does modus operandi mean?

   • A habitual way of doing a job.
   • The branch's reason for existing.
   • A modest budget for running the branch.
   • A failure to count stock at month's end.

4. Profile

   The senator returned to her alma mater to give the commencement speech, then toured the library where she had once worked.

5. 3.

   Jun reads a profile. In this sentence, what does alma mater mean?

   • The senator's mother, who taught at the college.
   • The school or college a person graduated from.
   • The library where the senator once worked.
   • A degree awarded with the highest honors.

6. Entry (our words)

   Carte blanche [French carte, "paper"; blanche, "blank"] noun. Full freedom to act as one thinks best. Example: The board gave the director carte blanche to redesign the program.

7. 4.

   Kira reads a dictionary entry. Which note uses the entry correctly?

   • French; carte means card game and blanche means white; today the phrase means full freedom to act.
   • Latin; carte means paper and blanche means blank; today the phrase means full freedom to act.
   • French; carte means paper and blanche means blank; today the phrase means full freedom to act.
   • French; carte means paper and blanche means blank; today the phrase means an empty sheet of paper.

8. Entry (our words)

   Ad lib [Latin ad libitum, "at one's pleasure"] verb. To speak or play without a script or plan. Example: When the microphone failed, the host had to ad lib for ten minutes.

9. 5.

   Milo reads a dictionary entry. Which note uses the entry correctly?

   • Latin; the full phrase means at one's pleasure; today it means to improvise without a script.
   • Latin; the full phrase means at a library; today it means to improvise without a script.
   • Latin; the full phrase means at one's pleasure; today it means to do whatever pleases oneself.
   • French; the full phrase means at one's pleasure; today it means to improvise without a script.

10. Entry (our words)

    Terra firma [Latin terra, "land"; firma, "firm"] noun. Solid ground, as opposed to water or air. Example: After three days at sea, the crew stepped onto terra firma again.

11. 6.

    Noah reads a dictionary entry. Which note uses the entry correctly?

    • French; terra means land and firma means firm; today the phrase means solid ground.
    • Latin; terra means land and firma means firm; today the phrase means a firm land purchase.
    • Latin; terra means land and firma means firm; today the phrase means solid ground.
    • Latin; terra means fear and firma means firm; today the phrase means solid ground.

12. Annual report

    The firm's partners spent two hundred unpaid hours defending tenants who could not afford a lawyer, work the report lists as ___ service.

13. 7.

    Pia finishes a report sentence. Which phrase fits the blank?

    • bona fide
    • pro bono
    • ex officio
    • per se

14. Profile

    The new ambassador's ___ was clear at the reception: she knew whom to seat together, when to change the subject and how to thank a host without fuss.

15. 8.

    Ren finishes a profile sentence. Which phrase fits the blank?

    • joie de vivre
    • noblesse oblige
    • terra firma
    • savoir-faire

16. News

    The new owners promised to keep the ___ at the bakery: the same recipes, the same hours and the same staff.

17. 9.

    Tala finishes a news sentence. Which phrase fits the blank?

    • terra firma
    • status quo
    • quid pro quo
    • de facto
18. 10.

    The reporter's notes were copied ___ from the recording, with each pause and false start left in. Zee finishes a newsroom sentence. Which phrase fits the blank?

    • verbatim
    • ad hoc
    • in toto
    • sic