Question

7 pretense (prētēns) - noun
● the robber entered peoples houses under the pretense of being a repairman.
● i asked several questions about deans illness, with the pretense of being concerned. in truth, ive never even liked dean.
pretense means a. a false claim. b. a true statement. c. a threat.
8 prolong (prə-lông) - verb
● pulling off a bandage always hurts, but pulling it off slowly prolongs the pain.
● anxiety over my test scores was prolonged because our teacher took an entire week to grade our final exams.
prolong means a. to avoid. b. to wear away. c. to make longer.
9 refrain (rī-frān) - verb
● i refrained from saying what i really thought about annes haircut because i didnt want to hurt her feelings.
● since shes on a diet, stella refrained from eating a second piece of carrot cake.
refrain means a. to stop oneself. b. to return. c. to keep going.
10 remorse (rī-môrs) - noun
● after she yelled at russell, his mother was filled with remorse. she always regrets her outbursts of temper.
● feeling remorse over losing my friends iphone, i apologized to her and promised to buy her a new one.
remorse means a. excitement. b. ambition. c. regret.

Explanation:

For "pretense", in the examples, the robber and the speaker are not being genuine (the robber isn't a repairman, the speaker doesn't like Dean), so it's a false claim. For "prolong", the examples show making pain last longer (pulling bandage slowly) and making anxiety last longer (teacher taking a week to grade), so it means to make longer. For "refrain", the examples show stopping oneself from saying something (about haircut) and stopping oneself from eating (second piece of cake). For "remorse", the examples show regret (mother regretting outburst, apologizing for losing iPhone).

Answer:

1. A. a false claim.
2. C. to make longer.
3. A. to stop oneself.
4. C. regret.