The apprentice arrived with an arduous plan to redesign every flowerbed before he had located the water tap. (arduous: difficult, demanding, strenuous) His mentor offered an ancillary task: mend the labels so visitors could distinguish the herbs from the weeds. (ancillary: supporting, supplementary, secondary) He considered that assignment an affront until he discovered that he could identify only three of the plants. (affront: insult, slight, offense) The mentor's didactic manner was gentle, but she would not allow confident guesses to replace observation. (didactic: instructive, educational, teaching-oriented)
The apprentice's first map was ambiguous, placing the mint somewhere between a tree and a feeling of optimism. (ambiguous: unclear, equivocal, open to interpretation) He felt ambivalent about revising it because the decorative border had taken him most of the morning. (ambivalent: conflicted, uncertain, of two minds) An astute child pointed out that the border did not help anyone find the strawberries. (astute: perceptive, shrewd, discerning) The apprentice accepted this dispassionate assessment and drew the paths before adding another butterfly. (dispassionate: impartial, objective, unemotional)
A sudden shower created adverse conditions for painting but gave everyone a useful reason to inspect the greenhouse. (adverse: unfavorable, difficult, detrimental) Inside, a dilapidated shelf threatened to spill a row of pots whenever the door was opened. (dilapidated: run-down, decrepit, ramshackle) The apprentice could ameliorate that problem with two brackets, which proved more satisfying than drawing an imaginary fountain. (ameliorate: improve, better, alleviate) His mentor offered unanimous support, although the only other member of the repair committee was a sleeping cat. (unanimous: united, undivided, fully agreed)
An anecdote about the mentor's first unsuccessful garden reassured the apprentice that an awkward beginning did not determine every later attempt. (anecdote: brief story, short account, personal narrative) She had once offered an implausible explanation for missing plants before discovering she had forgotten where she had put their trays. (implausible: unbelievable, improbable, unconvincing) The apprentice found her candor more encouraging than a claim that experienced gardeners never misplaced anything. (candor: frankness, honesty, openness) He could assimilate a practical lesson without pretending to have acquired all her knowledge in one conversation. (assimilate: absorb, incorporate, take in)
A gauche joke about his map almost discouraged him, but the mentor redirected attention to the improvements already visible. (gauche: awkward, clumsy, tactless) The apprentice chose an altruistic use for the spare wood by making low signs that younger visitors could read comfortably. (altruistic: unselfish, generous, selfless) The garden's ambiance became more welcoming without any change to the expensive entrance arch. (ambiance: atmosphere, mood, character) A discriminating eye could now distinguish a necessary addition from an attractive object that would merely block another path. (discriminating: discerning, selective, perceptive)
His mentor did not admonish him against ambition; she asked him to connect each ambitious idea with a task that could actually be tried. (admonish: warn, caution, counsel) The apprentice's auspicious progress began with that distinction rather than with the disappearance of every uncertain feeling. (auspicious: promising, favorable, propitious)
Their altruistic neighbor donated spare boards without asking to have a flowerbed named after his fence. (altruistic: unselfish, generous, selfless) The apprentice noticed a growing affinity for tasks that produced visible changes in ordinary surroundings. (affinity: attraction, liking, sympathy) His disjointed account of the morning gradually became a clear description of problems, choices, and results. (disjointed: disconnected, fragmented, incoherent) The garden remained mutable, but he no longer mistook its changing needs for evidence that no sensible plan was possible. (mutable: changeable, variable, alterable)