The mayor announced a sweeping renewal of the town and ordered enough ribbon for six ceremonies before selecting a single project. (sweeping: far-reaching, extensive, comprehensive) An influx of suggestions soon filled the council chamber, including a fountain that would announce the weather in rhyme. (influx: inflow, arrival, incoming stream) The engineer asked about the town's infrastructure, beginning with the bridge that had been closed for three months. (infrastructure: basic framework, underlying system, essential facilities) The mayor found this pertinent question less entertaining than the fountain, but the public refused to discuss poetry while carrying groceries across a field. (pertinent: relevant, applicable, germane)
A stringent spending rule required every proposal to name the problem it would solve and the people responsible for maintaining it. (stringent: strict, exacting, rigorous) One councilor offered an intricate diagram that connected the fountain to the bridge by means of a musical clock. (intricate: complex, elaborate, complicated) The engineer's subjective dislike of musical clocks was not sufficient reason to reject it, so she asked how the mechanism would work. (subjective: personal, opinion-based, individual) Its inventor conceded that the diagram expressed an aspiration rather than a machine anyone had actually built. (aspiration: ambition, hope, aim)
A fortuitous meeting at the hardware shop brought together the bridge repairer and a teacher organizing a practical science exhibition. (fortuitous: accidental, chance, unplanned) Their eclectic collection of demonstration objects included pulleys, garden tools, old maps, and one carefully labeled rubber duck. (eclectic: wide-ranging, diverse, drawn from varied sources) A soporific lecture about civic excellence was replaced by a demonstration of how a simple support carried weight. (soporific: sleep-inducing, drowsiness-producing, lulling) The children remained inquisitive, asking questions that the adults had hidden beneath much longer sentences. (inquisitive: curious, questioning, eager to learn)
The inventor delivered an effusive apology for promising more than he had tested and offered to help build the exhibition tables. (effusive: enthusiastic, gushing, exuberant) A stolid councilor surprised everyone by designing a small device that rang when a model bridge bent too far. (stolid: impassive, unemotional, unexpressive) The mayor tried an ostentatious flourish with his ceremonial scissors and accidentally cut the label from his own coat. (ostentatious: showy, pretentious, flamboyant) His assistant responded with a suave remark that returned attention to the demonstration without pretending the mistake had been planned. (suave: smooth, polished, sophisticated)
Meanwhile, an interminable argument over the fountain's color threatened to occupy the entire second meeting. (interminable: endless, ceaseless, seemingly never-ending) The teacher suggested a temporary arrangement: put the color samples aside until there was a functioning fountain to paint. (temporary: provisional, interim, short-term) An unsubstantiated rumor that the bridge could not be repaired dissolved when the repairer displayed the replacement materials. (unsubstantiated: unverified, unsupported, unconfirmed) The evidence was incontrovertible on that narrow point: the materials existed, although the work still required time and skill. (incontrovertible: indisputable, undeniable, irrefutable)
The council could supersede its original schedule without claiming that every abandoned idea had been worthless. (supersede: replace, supplant, take the place of) A salient difference emerged between a plan that sounded complete and one that identified its unfinished tasks. (salient: prominent, noticeable, striking) The mayor's singular contribution was to stop insisting that every repair begin with a photograph of himself holding scissors. (singular: unusual, exceptional, distinctive) This decision received unanimous approval from the repair crew, the teacher, and the photographer whose printer had run out of paper. (unanimous: united, undivided, fully agreed)
An insuperable obstacle existed only in the inventor's first description of the weather bell, not in the practical drawing the teacher helped him produce. (insuperable: insurmountable, overwhelming, impossible to overcome) They could simplify the mechanism by removing features that were attractive in conversation but unnecessary for a small demonstration. (simplify: clarify, make less complex, streamline) The inventor remained solicitous about the teacher's limited time and brought clear questions instead of asking her to redesign the entire project. (solicitous: attentive, concerned, considerate) A finite number of tasks made it possible to finish the bell before the exhibition opened. (finite: limited, bounded, restricted)
The mayor's rhetoric improved when it described actual progress rather than promising changes no worker had agreed to undertake. (rhetoric: oratory, public speaking, persuasive language) The engineer could substantiate each practical update with a completed inspection or a visible repair. (substantiate: support, verify, corroborate) A spurious claim that the model bridge used precious metal was corrected by a child who had watched it being assembled from scrap wood. (spurious: false, bogus, counterfeit) The correction was salutary because it reminded the adults that an interesting object did not become less interesting when described honestly. (salutary: beneficial, corrective, useful)
A sublime sunset gave the final gathering a background nobody had included in the official budget. (sublime: magnificent, awe-inspiring, exalted) The photographer adopted a discerning approach, recording the repairers and their tools rather than taking twenty versions of the mayor cutting the same ribbon. (discerning: perceptive, observant, selective) The townspeople's effusive thanks were directed toward work they had seen, which made the praise easier for the workers to accept. (effusive: enthusiastic, exuberant, gushing) An unassuming teacher declined a ceremonial title and asked instead for permission to return with another class. (unassuming: modest, unpretentious, self-effacing)
The engineer regarded that request as an auspicious sign that the exhibition might become useful beyond the day of its opening. (auspicious: promising, favorable, propitious) The mayor made a prudent decision to leave the remaining ribbon in its box until the town had another completed task worth celebrating. (prudent: judicious, sensible, careful)
At the final gathering, the repaired bridge looked resplendent in the evening light, although its most important feature was that people could cross it. (resplendent: splendid, brilliant, dazzling) The inventor presented a modest weather bell that rang when rain entered a small collecting cup. (modest: unassuming, unpretentious, restrained) The celebration achieved a harmonious mixture of music, demonstrations, and time to speak without competing with an official address. (harmonious: concordant, compatible, well-balanced) The mayor offered a succinct closing sentence, and the town discovered that a grand opening could be memorable without lasting until the next morning. (succinct: concise, brief, terse)