< V > TOEFL Vocabulary (193)

Surrender (verb) 

to undergo capture, defeat, or ruin

As the battles continued, many of Sitting Bull's followers surrendered.

Surveillance (noun) 

close watch kept over someone or something as by a detective 

The Pentagon is developing an urban surveillance system that would use computers

and thousands of cameras to track record and analyze the movement of every vehicle in a

foreign city.

Survey (verb) 

to look over; to view broadly or from a height

Before a person reads a book, he should survey the chapter, the title, headings, and

subheadings, captions under pictures, charts, graphs or maps.

Sustaining (adjective) 

to keep in a condition of good repair, efficiency, or use

An abundant supply of water on the Moon would make establishment of a self

sustaining lunar colony much more feasible and less expensive than presently thought.

Sustenance (noun) 

the means to support life

During the early colonial years in America, many people traveled on horseback and

relied on corn for sustenance. 

Swallowing (noun) 

the act of causing food to pass from the mouth into the stomach

Our larynxes are low in our throats, and our vocal tracts have a sharp right angle bend

that creates two independently modifiable resonant cavities which is physiological design

to making breathing, swallowing, and chewing less efficient. 

Swamp (noun) 

a usually low-lying area of waterlogged ground and standing water

All lakes undergo an aging process, in which a crystal clear lake becomes a swamp full

of plant growth called algae.

Swell (verb) 

to make or become greater or larger

The wind generated swell one sees at a California beach, for example, spawned by a

storm out in the Pacific and rhythmically rolling in, one wave after another, might have a

period of about 10 seconds and a wave length of 150 m. 

Sweeping (adjective) 

marked by wholesale and indiscriminate inclusion: extensive 

In a victory for President Bush, both houses of Congress approved sweeping Medicare

legislation early Friday to give seniors a prescription drug benefit while creating a broad

new role for private insurance in the government run program.

Switch (noun) 

device for making and breaking the connection in an electrical circuit

In several famous and controversial demonstrations, chimpanzees have been taught to

use some hand signs based on American Sign Language, to manipulate colored

switches or tokens, and to understand some spoken commands.