Vocabulary sections
Vocab test and exercises
Verb, adverb noun, promoun
adjectives
phoenotics
MY WORD LIST
ARRANGED BY SIMILAR MEANINGS
Wednesday, June 01, 2011
NITIN
IMPROVE/LESSEN
abate [V.] subside or moderate. Rather than leaving immediately, they waited for the storm to abate.
alleviate [V.] relieve. This should alleviate the pain; if it does not, we shall have to use stronger drugs.
assuage [V.] ease or lessen (pain); satisfy (hunger); soothe (anger). Jilted by Jane. Dick tried to assuage his heartache by indulging in ice cream. One gallon later, he had assuaged his appetite but not his grief. assuagement, [N.]
attenuate [V.] make thinner; weaken or lessen (in density, force, degree). The long, dry spell attenuated the creek to the merest trickle. When a meteor strikes the ground, the initially intense shock attenuates or lessens as it diverges outward.
ameliorate [V.] improve. Many social workers have attempted to ameliorate the conditions of people living in the slums.
appease [V.] pacify or soothe; relieve. Tom and Jody tried to appease the crying baby by offering him one toy after another. However, he would not calm down until they appeased his hunger by giving him a bottle. appeasement, [N.]
damp [V.] lessen in intensity; diminish; mute. Not even the taunts of his brother, who considered ballet no proper pursuit for a lad, could damp Billy Elliot’s enthusiasm for dancing.
depreciate [V.] lessen in value. If you neglect this property, it will depreciate.
diminution [N.] lessening; reduction in size. Old Jack was as sharp at eighty as he had been at fifty; increasing age led to no diminution of his mental acuity.
ebb [V.] recede; lessen[N.] Sitting on the beach, Mrs. Dalloway watched the tide ebb: the waters receded, drawing away from her as she sat there all alone. also [N.]
ebb (FEELING) verb [I] If a physical or emotional feeling ebbs, it becomes less strong or disappears: He could feel his strength ebbing (away). ebb (WATER) verb [I] When the sea or tide ebbs, it moves away from the coast and falls to a lower level. at a low ebb in a bad or weak state: Consumer confidence is currently at a low ebb. I was recently divorced and feeling at a very low ebb.
emollient [N.] soothing or softening remedy. Emollients soften the skin by slowing evaporation of water. Beeswax, spermaceti, almond oil, and rosewater were used in ancient Greece, while lanolin or sheep fat was commonly used in medieval Europe. also [ADJ.]
equable [ADJ.] tranquil; steady; uniform. After the hot summers and cold winters of New England, she found the climate of the West lndies equable and pleasant.
imperturbable [ADJ.] calm; placid. Wellington remained imperturbable and in full command of the situation in spite of the hysteria and panic all around him. imperturbability, [N.]
palliate [V.] ease pain; make less severe or offensive. If we cannot cure this disease at present, we can, at least, try to palliate the symptoms. palliation, [N.]
placid [ADJ.] peaceful; calm. After his vacation in this placid section, he felt soothed and rested.
propitiate [V.] appease. The natives offered sacrifices to propitiate the gods.
mitigate [V.] lessen in intensity; moderate; appease. Because solar energy has the power to reduce greenhouse gases and provide increased energy efficiency, conversion to the use of solar energy may help mitigate global warming.
mollify [V.] soothe. The airline customer service representative tried to mollify the angry passenger by offering her a seat in first class.
pacify [V.] soothe; make calm or quiet; subdue. Dentists criticize the practice of giving fussy children sweets to pacify them.
unassuaged [ADJ.] unsatisfied; not soothed. Her anger is unassuaged by your apology.
placate v, pacify; conciliate. The store manager tried to placate the angry customer, offering to replace the damaged merchandise or to give back her money.
quell [V.] extinguish; put down; quiet. Miss Minchin’s demeanor was so stern and forbidding that she could quell any unrest among her students with one intimidating glance.
unmitigated [ADJ.] unrelieved or immoderate; absolute. After four days of unmitigated heat, I was ready to collapse from heat prostration. The congresswoman’s husband was an unmitigated jerk: not only did he abandon her, but also he took her campaign funds!
CALM
composure [N.] mental calmness. Even the latest work crisis failed to shake her composure.
detached [ADJ.] emotionally removed; calm and objective; physically separate. A psychoanalyst must maintain a detached point of view and stay uninvolved with her patients’ personal lives. To a child growing up in an apartment or a row house, to live in a detached house was an unattainable dream. (secondary meaning) detachment, [N.]
dispassionate [ADJ.] calm; impartial. Known in the company for his cool judgment, Bill could impartially examine the causes of a problem, giving a dispassionate analysis of what had gone wrong, and go on to suggest how to correct the mess.
equanimity [N.] calmness of temperament; composure. Even the inevitable strains of caring for an ailing mother did not disturb Bea’s equanimity.
halcyon [ADJ.] calm; peaceful. In those halcyon days, people were not worried about sneak attacks and bombings.
imperturbable [ADJ.] calm; placid. Wellington remained imperturbable and in full command of the situation in spite of the hysteria and panic all around him. imperturbability, [N.]
lull [N.] moment of calm. Not wanting to get wet, they waited under the awning for a lull in the rain
pacify [V.] soothe; make calm or quiet; subdue. Dentists criticize the practice of giving fussy children sweets to pacify them.
phlegmatic [ADJ.] calm; not easily disturbed. The nurse was a cheerful but phlegmatic person, unexcited in the face of sudden emergencies.
placid [ADJ.] peaceful; calm. After his vacation in this placid section, he felt soothed and rested.
serenity [N.] calmness, placidity. The serenity of the sleepy town was shattered by a tremendous explosion
tranquillity [N.] calmness; peace. After the commotion and excitement of the city, I appreciate the tranquility of these fields and forests.
allay v, calm; pacify. The crew tried to allay the fears of the passengers by announcing that the fire had been controlled.
TRANQUIL
equable [ADJ.] tranquil; steady; uniform. After the hot summers and cold winters of New England, she found the climate of the West lndies equable and pleasant.
quietude [N.] tranquility. He was impressed by the air of quietude and peace that pervaded the valley.
tranquility [N.] calmness; peace. After the commotion and excitement of the city, I appreciate the tranquility of these fields and forests.
HATE/DETEST/LOATH
abhor v, detest; hate. She abhorred all forms of bigotry. abhorrence, [N.]
abominable [ADJ.] detestable; extremely unpleasant: very bad. Mary liked John until she learned he was also dating Susan; then she called him an abominable young man, with abominable taste in women
abominate [V.] loathe; hate. Moses scolded the idol worshippers in the tribe because he abominated the custom.
despise [V.] look on with scorn; regard as worthless or distasteful. Mr. Bond, I despise spies; I look down on them as mean, despicable, honourless men, whom I would wipe from the face of the earth with as little concern as I would scrape dog droppings from the bottom of my shoe.
scorn [skawrn] noun
aversion [N.] firm dislike. Bert had an aversion to yuppies; Alex had an aversion to punks. Their mutual aversion was so great that they refused to speak to one another.
malicious [ADJ.] hateful; spiteful. Jealous of Cinderella’s beauty, her malicious stepsisters expressed their spite by forcing her to do menial tasks. malice, [N.]
misanthrope [N.] one who hates mankind. In Gulliver’s Travels, Swift portrays human beings as vile, degraded beasts; for this reason, various critics consider him a misanthrope. misanthropic, [ADJ.]
misogynist [N.] hater of women. She accused him of being a misogynist because he had been a bachelor all his life.
odious [ADJ.] hateful; vile. Cinderella’s ugly stepsisters had the odious habit of popping their zits in public.
odium [N.] detestation; hatefulness; disrepute. Prince Charming could not express the odium he felt toward Cinderella’s stepsisters because of their mistreatment of poor Cinderella.
repugnance [N.] loathing. She looked at the snake with repugnance.
antagonism [N.] hostility; active resistance. Barry showed his antagonism toward his new stepmother by ignoring her whenever she tried talking to him. antagonistic, [ADJ.]
fester [V.] rankle; produce irritation or resentment. Joe’s insult festered in Anne’s mind for days, and made her too angry to speak to him.
HATERED
rancor N, bitterness; hatred. Thirty years after the war, she could not let go of the past but was still consumed with rancor against the foe. rancorous, [ADJ.]
animosity [N.] active enmity. He incurred the animosity of the ruling class because he advocated limitations of their power.
antipathy [N.] aversion; dislike. Tom’s extreme antipathy for disputes keeps him from getting into arguments with his temperamental wife. Noise in any form is antipathetic to him. Among his other antipathies are honking cars, boom boxes, and heavy metal rock.
apolitical [ADJ.] having an aversion or lack of concern for political affairs. It was hard to remain apolitical during the Vietnam War; even people who generally ignored public issues felt they had to take political stands.
aversion [N.] firm dislike. Bert had an aversion to yuppies; Alex had an aversion to punks. Their mutual aversion was so great that they refused to speak to one another.
execrate [V.] curse; express abhorrence for. The world execrates the memory of Hitler and hopes that genocide will never again be the policy of any nation.
inimical [ADJ.] unfriendly; hostile; harmful; detrimental. I’ve always been friendly to Martha. Why is she so inimical to me?
HARM
abusive [ADJ.] coarsely insulting; physically harmful. An abusive parent damages a child both mentally and physically.
deleterious [ADJ.] harmful. If you believe that smoking is deleterious to your health (and the Surgeon General surely does), then quit!
detrimental AOJ. harmful; damaging. The candidate’s acceptance of major financial contributions from a well known racist ultimately proved detrimental to his campaign, for he lost the backing of many of his early grassroots supporters. detriment, [N.]
inimical [ADJ.] unfriendly; hostile; harmful; detrimental. I’ve always been friendly to Martha. Why is she so inimical to me?
injurious [ADJ.] harmful. Smoking cigarettes can be injurious to your health.
noxious ADJ, harmful. We must trace the source of these noxious gases before they asphyxiate us.
innocuous [ADJ.] harmless. An occasional glass of wine with dinner is relatively innocuous and should have no ill effect on most people.
CHANGE OF FEELING
capricious [ADJ.] unpredictable; fickle. The storm was capricious: it changed course constantly. Jill was capricious, too: she changed boyfriends almost as often as she changed clothes.
fickle ADJ, changeable; faithless. As soon as Romeo saw Juliet, he forgot all about his crush on Rosaline. Was Romeo fickle?
quirk [N.] startling twist: caprice, By a quirk of fate, he found himself working for the man whom he had discharged years before.
revulsion [N.] sudden violent change of feeling; negative reaction. Many people in this country who admired dictatorships underwent a revulsion when they realized what Hitler and Mussolini were trying to do.
vagary [N.] caprice; whim. She followed every vagary of fashion.
tantrum [N.] fit of petulance; caprice. The child learned that he could have almost anything if he went into tantrums.
doldrums [N.] blues; listlessness; slack period. Once the excitement of meeting her deadline was over, she found herself in the doldrums.
mercurial [ADJ.] capricious; changing; fickle. Quick as quicksilver to change, he was mercurial in nature and therefore unreliable.
mutability [N.] ability to change in form; fickleness. Going from rags to riches, and then back to rags again, the bankrupt financier was a victim of the mutability of fortune. mutable, [ADJ.]
whimsical [N.] capricious; fanciful. In Mrs. Doubtfire, the hero is a playful, whimsical man who takes a notion to dress up as a woman so that he can look after his children, who are in the custody of his ex-wife. whimsy, [N.]
erratic [ADJ.] odd; unpredictable. Investors become anxious when the stock market appears erratic.
vacillate [V.] waver; fluctuate. Uncertain which suitor she ought to marry, the princess vacillated, saying now one, now the other. vacillation, [N.]
ANNOY/VEX/IRRITATE
badger [V.] pester; annoy. She was forced to change her telephone number because she was badgered by obscene phone calls.
beset [V.] harass or trouble; hem in Many vexing problems beset the American public school system. Sleeping Beauty’s castle was beset on all sides by dense thickets that hid it from view.
fret [V.] be annoyed or vexed. To fret over your poor grades is foolish; instead, decide to work harder in the future.
gall [V.] annoy; chafe. Their taunts galled him.
harass [V.] annoy by repeated attacks. When he could not pay his bills as quickly as he had promised, he was harassed by his creditors.
harry [V.] harass, annoy, torment; raid. The guerrilla band harried the enemy nightly.
irksome [ADJ.] annoying; tedious. He found working on the assembly line irksome because of the monotony of the operation he had to perform. irk, [V.]
nettle [V.] annoy; vex. Do not let her nettle you with her sarcastic remarks.
pique [V.] provoke or arouse; annoy. “I know something you don’t know,” said Lucy, trying to pique Ethel’s interest.
provocative [ADJ.] arousing anger or interest; annoying. In a typically provocative act, the bully kicked sand into the weaker man’s face. provoke, [V.] provocation, [N.]
vex [N.] annoy; distress. Please try not to vex your mother; she is doing the best she can.
exasperation irritation
irritation annoyance
fester [V.] rankle; produce irritation or resentment. Joe’s insult festered in Anne’s mind for days, and made her too angry to speak to him.
rankle [V.] irritate; fester. The memory of having been jilted rankled him for years.
cantankerous [ADJ.] ill-humored; irritable. Constantly complaining about his treatment and refusing to cooperate with the hospital staff, he was a cantankerous patient.
fractious [ADJ.] unruly; disobedient; irritable. Bucking and kicking, the fractious horse unseated its rider.
gadfly [N.] animal-biting fly; an irritating person Like a gadfly, he irritated all the guests at the hotel; within forty eight hours, everyone regarded him as an annoying busybody.
irascible [ADJ.] irritable; easily angered. Miss Minchin’s irascible temper intimidated the younger schoolgirls, who feared she’d burst into a rage at any moment.
rile [V.] vex; irritate; muddy. Red had a hair-trigger temper: he was an easy man to rile.
testy [ADJ.] irritable; short-tempered. My advice is to avoid discussing this problem with her today as she is rather testy and may shout at you. testiness, [N.]
grate [V.] make a harsh noise: have an unpleasant effect; shred. The screams of the quarreling children grated on her nerves. When a noise or behaviour grates, it annoys you:
After a while her voice really started to grate on me. It’s the way she’s always talking about herself - it just grates on me
chagrin [N.] vexation (caused by humiliation or injured pride); disappointment. Embarrassed by his parents’ shabby, working-class appearance, Doug felt their visit to his school would bring him nothing but chagrin. A person filled with chagrin doesn’t grin: he’s too mortified. exasperate [V.] vex. Johnny often exasperates his mother with his pranks.
ATTACK/RAID
aggressor N, attacker. Before you punish both boys for fighting, see whether you can determine which one was the aggressor.
beleaguer [V.] besiege or attack; harass. The babysitter was surrounded by a crowd of unmanageable brats who relentlessly beleaguered her.
bombardment [N.] attack (as with missiles). The enemy bombardment demolished the town. Members of the opposition party bombarded the prime minister with questions about the enemy attack.
coup [N.] highly successful action or sudden attack. As the news of his coup spread throughout Wall Street, his fellow brokers dropped by to congratulate him.
harass [V.] annoy by repeated attacks. When he could not pay his bills as quickly as he had promised, he was harassed by his creditors.
inviolable ADJ, secure from corruption, attack, or violation; unassailable. Batman considered his oath to keep the people of Gotham City safe inviolable: nothing on earth could make him break this promise. inviolability, [N.]
offensive [ADJ.] attacking; insulting; distasteful. Getting into street brawls is no minor offense for professional boxers, who are required by law to restrict their offensive impulses to the ring.
paroxysm [N.] fit or attack of pain, laughter, rage. When he heard of his son’s misdeeds, he was seized by a paroxysm of rage.
polemical [ADJ.] aggressive in verbal attack; disputatious. Lexy was a master of polemical rhetoric; she should have worn a T-shirt with the slogan “Born to Debate.”
unassailable [ADJ.] not subject to question; not open to attack. Penelope’s virtue was unassailable; while she waited for her husband to come back from the war, no other guy had a chance.
besiege [V.] surround with armed forces; harass (with requests). When the bandits besieged the village, the villagers holed up in the town hall and prepared to withstand a long siege. Members of the new administration were besieged with job applications from people who had worked on the campaign.
ANXIETY
disquietude [N.] uneasiness; anxiety. When Holmes had been gone for a day, Watson felt only a slight sense of disquietude, but after a week with no word, Watson’s uneasiness about his missing friend had grown into a deep fear for Holmes’s safety. disquiet, [V.], [N.]
distrait [ADJ.] inattentive; distracted, often by anxiety. Jane was so caught up in her wedding plans that her family and friends considered her absent-minded, distrait, aloof and generally useless.
distraught [ADJ.] upset; distracted by anxiety. The distraught parents frantically searched the ravine for their lost child.
AMUSE
disport [V.] amuse. The popularity of Florida as a winter resort is constantly increasing: each year, thousands more disport themselves at Miami and Palm Beach.
regale [V.] entertain; amuse others. John regaled us with tales of his adventures in Africa.
droll [ADJ.] queer and amusing. He was a popular guest because his droll anecdotes were always entertaining.
anecdote [N.] short account of an amusing or interesting event. Rather than make concrete proposals for welfare reform, President Reagan told anecdotes about poor people who became wealthy despite their impoverished backgrounds
EMOTION/FEELINGS
ardent adjective [before noun] showing strong feelings: an ardent supporter of Manchester United an ardent feminist ardently adverb
fervent [ADJ.] ardent; hot. She felt that the fervent praise was excessive and somewhat undeserved.
fervid [ADJ.] ardent. Her fervid enthusiasm inspired all of us to undertake the dangerous mission.
fervor [N.] glowing ardor; intensity of feeling. At the protest rally, the students cheered the strikers and booed the dean with equal fervor.
ambivalence [N.] the state of having contradictory or conflicting emotional attitudes. Torn between loving her parents one minute and hating them the next, she was confused by the ambivalence of her feelings. ambivalent, [ADJ.]
anticlimax [N.] letdown in thought or emotion After the fine performance in the first act, the rest of the play was an anticlimax. anticlimactic, [ADJ.]
detached [ADJ.] emotionally removed; calm and objective; physically separate. A psychoanalyst must maintain a detached point of view and stay uninvolved with her patients’ personal lives. To a child growing up in an apartment or a row house, to live in a detached house was an unattainable dream. (secondary meaning) detachment, [N.]
ecstasy [N.] rapture; joy; any overpowering emotion When Allison received her long-hoped-for letter of acceptance from Harvard, she was in ecstasy. ecstatic, [ADJ.]
entrance [V.] put under a spell; carry away with emotion. Shafts of sunlight on a wall could entrance her and leave her spellbound.
evocative AD,J tending to call up (emotions, memories). Scent can be remarkably evocative. The aroma of pipe tobacco evokes the memory of my father; a whiff of talcum powder calls up images of my daughter as a child.
fraught [ADJ.] filled or charged with; causing emotional distress. “Parenting, like brain surgery, is now all-consuming, fraught with anxiety, worry, and self-doubt. We have allowed what used to be simple and natural to become bewildering and intimidating.” (Fred Gosman)
gale [N.] windstorm; gust of wind; emotional outburst (laughter, tears). The Weather Channel warned viewers about a rising gale, with winds of up to 60 miles per hour.
libido [N.] emotional urges behind human activity. The psychiatrist maintained that suppression of the libido often resulted in maladjustment and neuroses.
objective [ADJ.] not influenced by emotions; fair. Even though he was her son, she tried to be objective about his behavior.
poignancy [N.] quality of being deeply moving; keenness of emotion. Watching the tearful reunion of the long separated mother and child, the social worker was touched by the poignancy of the scene. poignant, [ADJ.]
rapport [N.] emotional closeness; harmony. In team teaching, it is important that all teachers in the group have good rapport with one another.
temperament [N.] characteristic frame of mind; disposition; emotional excess. Although the twins look alike, they differ markedly in temperament: Tod is calm, but Rod is excitable.
transport [N.] strong emotion. Margo was a creature of extremes, at one moment in transports of joy over a vivid sunset, at another moment in transports of grief over a dying bird. also [V.]
vehement [ADJ.] forceful; intensely emotional; with marked vigor. Alfred became so vehement in describing what was wrong with the Internal Revenue Service that he began jumping up and down and gesticulating wildly. vehemence, [N.]
vent [V.] express; utter. He vented his wrath on his class.
Root or Stem
pass to feel dispassionate free of emotion impassioned emotion-filled impassive showing no feeling
FEEL
animus [N.] hostile feeling or intent. The animus of the speaker became obvious to all when he began to indulge in sarcastic and insulting remarks.
callous [ADJ.] hardened; unfeeling. He had worked in the hospital for so many years that he was callous to the suffering in the wards. callus, [N.]
commiserate [V.] feel or express pity or sympathy for. Her friends commiserated with the widow.
constraint [N.] compulsion; repression of feelings. There was a feeling of constraint in the room because no one dared to criticize the speaker. constrain, [V.]
empathy [N], ability to identify with another’s feelings, ideas, etc. What made Ann such a fine counselor was her empathy, her ability to put herself in her client’s place and feel his emotions as if they were her own. empathize, [V.]
euphoria [N.] feeling of exaggerated (or unfounded) well-being. “Jill’s been on cloud nine ever since Jack asked her out,” said Betty, dismissing her friend’s euphoria.
fervor [N.] glowing ardor; intensity of feeling. At the protest rally, the students cheered the strikers and booed the dean with equal fervor.
grimace [N.] a facial distortion to show feeling such as pain, disgust, etc. Even though he remained silent, his grimace indicated his displeasure. also [V.]
impassive ADJ, without feeling; imperturbable; stoical. Refusing to let the enemy see how deeply shaken he was by his capture: the prisoner kept his face impassive.
insensate [ADJ.] without feeling. She lay there as insensate as a log.
malaise N, uneasiness; vague feeling of ill health. Feeling slightly queasy before going onstage, Carol realized that this touch of malaise was merely stage fright.
pathos [N.] tender sorrow; pity; quality in art or literature that produces these feelings. The quiet tone of pathos that ran through the novel never degenerated into the maudlin or the overly sentimental
preen [V.] make oneself tidy in appearance; feel self satisfaction. As Kitty preened before the mirror, carefully smoothing her shining hair, she couldn’t help preening herself on her good looks.
presentiment [N.] feeling something will happen; anticipatory fear; premonition. Saying goodbye at the airport, Jack had a sudden presentiment that this was the last time he would see Jill.
revulsion [N.] sudden violent change of feeling; negative reaction. Many people in this country who admired dictatorships underwent a revulsion when they realized what Hitler and Mussolini were trying to do.
Path disease, feeling pathology study of diseased tissue apathetic lacking feeling; indifferent antipathy hostile feeling
sent, sens to think, to feel sedentary inactive (sitting) resent show indignation sensitive showing feeling
SLANDER/VILIFICATION
aspersion [N.] slanderous remark. Rather than attacking President Cleveland’s arguments with logic, his opponent resorted to casting aspersions on the president’s moral character.
calumny [N.] malicious misrepresentation; slander. He could endure his financial failure, but he could not bear the calumny that his foes heaped upon him. According to Herodotus, someone calumniated is doubly injured, first by the person who utters the calumny, and then by the person who believes the slander.
defame [V.] harm someone’s reputation; malign; slander. If you try to defame my good name, my lawyers will see you in court. If rival candidates persist in defaming one another, the voters may conclude that all politicians are crooks, defamation, [N.]
denigrate v, blacken. All attempts to denigrate the character of our late president have failed; the people still love him and cherish his memory.
detraction [N.] slandering; aspersion.Because Susan 6. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton dared to fight for women’s rights, their motives, manners, dress, personal appearance, and character were held up to ridicule and detractio[N.]
obloquy [N.] slander; disgrace; infamy. I resent the obloquy that you are casting upon my reputatio[N.]
opprobrium [N.] infamy; vilification.He refused to defend himself against the slander and opprobrium hurled against him by the newspapers; he preferred to rely on his record.
slander’ [N.] defamation; utterance of false and malicious statements. Considering the negative comments politicians make about each other, it’s a wonder that more of them aren’t sued for slander. also [V.] slanderous, A ~ J .
slur [N.] insult to one’s character or reputation; slander. Polls revealed that the front-runner’s standing had been damaged by the slurs and innuendoes circulated by his opponent’s staff. (secondary meaning) also [V.]
traduce [V.] expose to slander. His opponents tried to traduce the candidate’s reputation by spreading rumors about his past.
vilify [V.] slander. Waging a highly negative campaign, the candidate attempted to vilify his opponent’s reputation. vilification, [N.]
revile [V.] attack with abusive language: vilify. Though most of his contemporaries reviled Captain Kidd as a notorious, bloody-handed pirate, some of his fellow merchant- captains believed him innocent of his alleged crimes.
ignominy [N.] deep disgrace; shame or dishonor. To lose the Ping-Pong match to a trained chimpanzee! How could Rollo endure the ignominy of his defeat? ignomin- ~OUS, [ADJ.]
stigma K, token of disgrace; brand. I do not attach any stigma to the fact that you were accused of this crime; the fact that you were acquitted clears you completely. stigmatize, [N.]
INSULT
abusive [ADJ.] coarsely insulting; physically harmful. An abusive parent damages a child both mentally and physically.
affront [N.] insult; offense; intentional act of disrespect. When Mrs. Proudie was not seated beside the Archdeacon at the head table, she took it as a personal affront and refused to speak to her hosts for a week. also [V.]
impugn [V.] dispute or contradict (often in an insulting way); challenge; gainsay. Our treasurer was furious when the finance committee’s report impugnedthe accuracy of his financial records and recommended that he take bonehead math.
indignity [N.] offensive or insulting treatment. Although he seemed to accept cheerfully the indignities heaped upon him, he was inwardly very angry.
offensive [ADJ.] attacking; insulting; distasteful. Getting into street brawls is no minor offense for professional boxers, who are required by law to restrict their offensive impulses to the ring.
slight [N.] insult to one’s dignity; snub. Hypersensitive and ready to take offense at any discourtesy, Bertha was always on the lookout for real or imaginary slights. also [V.]
slur [N.] insult to one’s character or reputation; slander. Polls revealed that the front-runner’s standing had been damaged by the slurs and innuendoes circulated by his opponent’s staff. (secondary meaning) also [V.]
umbrage [N.] resentment; anger; sense of injury or insult. She took umbrage at his remarks and stormed away in a huff.
DISTASTEFUL
unpalatable [ADJ.] distasteful; disagreeable. “I refuse to swallow your conclusion,” she said, finding his logic unpalatable.
unsavory [ADJ.] distasteful; morally offensive. People with unsavory reputations should not be allowed to work with young children.
cloying [ADJ.] distasteful (because excessive); excessively sweet or sentimental. Disliking the cloying sweetness of standard wedding cakes, Jody and Tom chose a homemade carrot cake for their reception. cloy, [V.]
despise [V.] look on with scorn; regard as worthless or distasteful. Mr. Bond, I despise spies; I look down on them as mean, despicable, honour less men, whom I would wipe from the face of the earth with as little concern as I would scrape dog droppings from the bottom of my shoe.
august [ADJ.] impressive; majestic. Visiting the palace at Versailles, she was impressed by the august surroundings in which she found herself.
grandeur [N.] impressiveness; stateliness; majesty. No matter how often he hiked through the mountains, David never failed to be struck by the grandeur of the Sierra Nevada range.
grandiose [ADJ.] pretentious; high-flown; ridiculously exaggerated; impressive. The aged matinee idol still had grandiose notions of his supposed importance in the theatrical world.
GREED
avid [ADJ.] greedy; eager for. He was avid for learning and read everything he could get. avidity, [N.]
avarice [N.] greediness for wealth. Montaigne is correct in maintaining that it is not poverty, but rather abundance, that breeds avarice: the more shoes Imelda Marcos had, the more she craved.
cupidity [N.] greed. The defeated people could not satisfy the cupidity of the conquerors, who demanded excessive tribute.
insatiable [ADJ.] not easily satisfied; unquenchable; greedy. The young writer’s thirst for knowledge was insatiable; she was always in the library.
swill [V.] drink greedily. Singing “Yo, ho, ho, and a bottle of rum,” Long John Silver and his fellow pirates swilled their grog.
accost [V.] approach and speak first to a person. When the two young men accosted me. I was frightened because I thought they were going to attack me.
babble [V.] chatter idly. The little girl babbled about her doll. also [N.]
drone [V.] talk dully; buzz or murmur like a bee. On a gorgeous day, who wants to be stuck in a classroom listening to the teacher drone?
drone N, idle person; male bee. Content to let his wife support him, the would-be writer was in reality nothing but a drone.
jabber v, chatter rapidly or unintelligibly. Why does the fellow insist on jabbering away in French when I can’t understand a word he says?
badinage [N.] teasing conversation. Her friends at work greeted the news of her engagement with cheerful badinage.
bandy [V.] discuss lightly or glibly; exchange (words) heatedly. While the president was happy to bandy patriotic generalizations with anyone who would listen to him, he refused to bandy words with unfriendly reporters at the press conference.
bantering [ADJ.] good-naturedly ridiculing. They resented his bantering remarks because they misinterpreted his teasing as sarcasm.
blurt [V.] utter impulsively. Before she could stop him, he blurted out the news.
chaffing ADJ, bantering; joking. Sometimes Chad’s flippant, chaffing remarks annoy us. Still, Chad’s chaffing keeps us laughing.
enunciate [V.] utter or speak, especially distinctly. Stop mumbling! How will people understand you if you do not enunciate clearly?
orator [N.] public speaker. The abolitionist Frederick Douglass was a brilliant orator whose speeches brought home to his audience the evils of slavery.
polyglot [ADJ.] speaking several languages. New York City is a polyglot community because of the thousands of immigrants who settle there.
prate [V.] speak foolishly; boast idly. Let us not prate about our qualities; rather, let our virtues speak for themselves.
prattle [V.] babble. Baby John prattled on and on about the cats and his ball and the Cookie Monster. also [N.]
gibberish [N.] nonsense; babbling. Did you hear that foolish boy spouting gibberish about monsters from outer space?
rhapsodize [V.] to speak or write in an exaggeratedly enthusiastic manner. She greatly enjoyed her Hawaiian vacation and rhapsodized about it for weeks.
slur [V.] speak indistinctly; mumble. When Sol has too much to drink, he starts to slur his words: “Washamatter? Cansh you undershtand what I shay?”
waffle [V.] speak equivocally about an issue. When asked directly about the governor’s involvement in the savings and loan scandal, the press secretary waffled, talking all around the issue.
quizzical [ADJ.] teasing: bantering; mocking; curious. When the skinny teenager tripped over his own feet stepping into the bullpen, Coach raised one quizzical eyebrow, shook his head, and said, “Okay, kid. You’re here; let’s see what you’ve got.”
warble [V.] sing; babble. Every morning the birds warbled outside her window. also [N.]
TALK
discourse [N.] formal discussion; conversation. The young Plato was drawn to the Agora to hear the philosophical discourse of Socrates and his followers. also [V.]
blowhard [N.] talkative boaster. After all Sol’s talk about his big show business connections led nowhere, Sally decided he was just another blowhard.
expatiate [V.] talk at length. At this time, please give us a brief resume of your work; we shall permit you to expatiate later.
garrulous [ADJ.] loquacious; wordy; talkative. My Uncle Henry can out-talk any other three people I know. He is the most garrulous person in Cayuga County. garrulity, [N.]
rant [V.] rave; talk excitedly; scold; make a grandiloquent speech. When he heard that I’d totaled the family car, Dad began to rant at me like a complete madman.
soliloquy [N.] talking to oneself. The soliloquy is a device used by the dramatist to reveal a character’s innermost thoughts and emotions.
taciturn [ADJ.] habitually silent; talking little. The stereotypical cowboy is a taciturn soul, answering lengthy questions with a “Yep” or “Nope.”
voluble [ADJ.] fluent; glib; talkative. An excessively voluble speaker suffers from logorrhea: he continually runs off at the mouth! volubility, [N.]
gloss over [V.] explain away. No matter how hard he tried to talk around the issue, President Bush could not gloss over the fact that he had raised taxes after all.
altercation [N.] noisy quarrel; heated dispute. In that hot tempered household, no meal ever came to a peaceful conclusion; the inevitable altercation sometimes even ended in blows.
belligerent [ADJ.] quarrelsome. Whenever he had too much to drink, he became belligerent and tried to pick fights with strangers. belligerence, [N.]
gruff
choleric
contenkerous
dyspeptic
splenetic
grouchy
fractious
contentious [ADJ.] quarrelsome. Disagreeing violently with the referees’ ruling, the coach became so contentious that the referees threw him out of the game.
bicker [V.] quarrel. The children bickered morning, noon and night, exasperating their parents.
skirmish N, minor fight. Custer’s troops expected they might run into a skirmish or two on maneuvers; they did not expect to face a major battle. also [V.]
squabble N, minor quarrel; bickering. Children invariably get involved in petty squabbles; wise parents know when to interfere and when to let the children work things out on their own.
wrangle [V.] quarrel; obtain through arguing; herd cattle. They wrangled over their inheritance.
querulous [ADJ.] fretful; whining. Even the most agreeable toddlers can begin to act querulous if they miss their nap.
revile [V.] attack with abusive language: vilify. Though most of his contemporaries reviled Captain Kidd as a notorious, bloody-handed pirate, some of his fellow merchant- captains believed him innocent of his alleged crimes.
shrew [N.] scolding woman. No one wanted to marry Shakespeare’s Kate because she was a shrew.
Xanthippe
Amazon N, female warrior. Ever since the days of Greek mythology we refer to strong and aggressive women as amazons.
spat [N.] squabble; minor dispute. What had started out as a mere spat escalated into a full-blown argument.
squabble N, minor quarrel; bickering. Children invariably get involved in petty squabbles; wise parents know when to interfere and when to let the children work things out on their own.
truculence [N.] aggressiveness; ferocity. Tynan’s reviews were noted for their caustic attacks and general tone of truculence. truculent, [ADJ.]
fracas N, brawl, melee. The military police stopped the fracas in the bar and arrested the belligerents.
brawl noun [C] a noisy, rough, uncontrolled fight: a drunken brawl brawl The young men had nothing better to do than brawl (= fight) in the streets.
melee [N.] fight. The captain tried to ascertain the cause of the melee that had broken out among the crew members.
don·ny·brook (plural don·ny·brooks) noun brawl: a riotous brawl [Mid-19th century. Named for Donnybrook Fair, an annual event known for its brawls, which was formerly held in Donnybrook, a suburb of Dublin in the Republic of Ireland.]
beatific [ADJ.] showing or producing joy; blissful. When Johnny first saw the new puppy, a beatific smile spread across his face. In his novel, Waugh praises Limbo, not Heaven: “Limbo is the place. In Limbo one has natural happiness without the beatific vision; no harps; no communal order; but wine and conversation and imperfect, various, humanity.”
elysian ADJ, relating to paradise; blissful. An afternoon sail on the bay was for her an elysian journey.
con·tent adjective
ecstasy [N.] rapture; joy; any overpowering emotion. When Allison received her long-hoped-for letter of acceptance from Harvard, she was in ecstasy. ecstatic, [ADJ.]
elated [ADJ.] overjoyed; in high spirits. Grinning from ear to ear, Bonnie Blair was clearly elated by her fifth Olympic gold medal, elation, [N.]
exuberance N, overflowing abundance; joyful enthusiasm; flamboyance; lavishness. I was bowled over by the exuberance of Amy’s welcome. Cheeks glowing, she was the picture of exuberant good health.
festive [ADJ.] joyous; celebratory. Their wedding in the park was a festive occasion.
gusto [N.] enjoyment; enthusiasm. He accepted the assignment with such gusto that I feel he would have been satisfied with a smaller salary.
paean [N.] song of praise or joy. Paeans celebrating the victory filled the air.
relish [V.] savor; enjoy. Watching Peter enthusiastically chow down, I thought, “Now there’s a man who relishes a good dinner!” also [N.]
savor [V.] enjoy; have a distinctive flavor, smell, or quality. Relishing his triumph, Costner especially savored the chagrin of the critics who had predicted his failure.
chortle [V.] chuckle with delight. When she heard that her rival had just been jailed for embezzlement, she chortled with joy. She was not a nice lady.
blithe [ADJ.] carefree and unconcerned (perhaps foolishly so); cheerful and gay. Micawber’s blithe optimism that something would turn up proved unfounded, and he wound up in debtors’ prison. Marie Antoinette’s famous remark, “Let them eat cake!” epitomizes her blithe ignorance of the harsh realities endured by the common people.
convivial [ADJ.] festive; gay; characterized by joviality. The convivial celebrators of the victory sang their college songs.
frolicsome [ADJ.] prankish; gay. The frolicsome puppy tried to lick the face of its master.
jovial ADJ, good-natured; merry. A frown seemed out of place on his invariably jovial face.
sanguine [ADJ.] cheerful; hopeful. Let us not be too sanguine about the outcome; something could go wrong.
orgy [N.] wild, drunken revelry; unrestrained indulgence. The Roman emperor’s orgies were far wilder than the toga party in the movie Animal House. When her income tax refund check finally arrived, Sally indulged in an orgy of shopping.
revelry [N.] boisterous merrymaking. New Year’s Eve is a night of revelry.
exult [V.] rejoice. We exulted when our team won the victory.
felicity [N.] happiness; appropriateness (of a remark, choice, etc.). She wrote a note to the newlyweds wishing them great felicity In their wedded life.
enrapture [V.] please intensely. The audience was enraptured by the freshness of the voices and the excellent orchestration.
levity [N.] lack of seriousness or steadiness; frivolity. Stop giggling and wriggling around in the pew: such levity is improper in church.
jaunty [ADJ.] lighthearted; animated; easy and carefree. In Singing in the Rain, Gene Kelly sang and danced his way through the lighthearted title number in a properly jaunty style.
jocose [ADJ.] given to joking. The salesman was so jocose that many of his customers suggested that he become a stand-up comic.
jollity [N.] gaiety; cheerfulness. The festive Christmas dinner was a merry one, and old and young alike joined in the general jollity.
exhilarating [ADJ.] invigorating and refreshing; cheering. Though some of the hikers found tramping through the snow tiring, Jeffrey found the walk on the cold, crisp day exhilarating. His exhilaration was so great that, at the hike’s end, he wanted to walk another five miles.
furor [N.] frenzy; great excitement. The story of her embezzlement of the funds created a furor on the stock exchange.
hilarity [N.] boisterous mirth. This hilarity is improper on this solemn day of mourning. hilarious, [ADJ.]
roseate [ADJ.] rosy; optimistic. I am afraid you will have to alter your roseate views in the light of the distressing news that has just arrived.
bombastic [ADJ.] pompous; using inflated language. Puffed up with conceit, the orator spoke in such a bombastic manner that we longed to deflate him. bombast, [N.]
grandiloquent [ADJ.] pompous; bombastic; using high-sounding language. The politician could never speak simply; she was always grandiloquent.
tumid [ADJ.] swollen; pompous; bombastic. I especially dislike his tumid style; I prefer writing that is less swollen and bombastic.
stilted [ADJ.] bombastic; stiffly pompous. His stilted rhetoric did not impress the college audience; they were immune to bombastic utterances.
blowhard [N.] talkative boaster. After all Sol’s talk about his big show business connections led nowhere, Sally decided he was just another blowhard.
braggart [N.] boaster. Modest by nature, she was no braggart, preferring to let her accomplishments speak for themselves.
braggadocio [N.] boasting. He was disliked because his manner was always full of braggadocio.
SUPERIORITY OF POWER
preponderance [N.] superiority of power, quantity, etc. The rebels sought to overcome the preponderance of strength of the government forces by engaging in guerr- illa tactics. preponderate, [V.] preponderant, [ADJ.]
presumptuous [ADJ.] arrogant; taking liberties. It seems presumptuous for one so relatively new to the field to challenge the conclusions of its leading experts. presumption, [N.]
pretentious [ADJ.] ostentatious; pompous; making unjustified claims; overambitious. The other prize winner isn’t wearing her medal; isn’t it a bit pretentious of you to wear yours?
ostentatious [ADJ.] showy; pretentious; trying to attract attention. Trump’s latest casino in Atlantic City is the most ostentatious gambling palace in the East: it easily out-glitters its competitors. ostentation, [N.]
arrogance [N.] pride: haughtiness. Convinced that Emma thought she was better than anyone else in the class, Ed rebuked her for her arrogance.
haughtiness [N.] pride; arrogance. When she realized that Darcy believed himself too good to dance with his inferiors, Elizabeth took great offense at his haughtiness.
imperious [ADJ.] domineering; haughty. Jane rather liked a man to be masterful, but Mr. Rochester seemed so bent on getting his own way that he was actually imperious! imperiousness, [N.]
insolence [N.] impudent disrespect; haughtiness. How dare you treat me so rudely! The manager will hear of your insolence. insolent, [ADJ.]
flaunt [V.] display ostentatiously. Mae West saw nothing wrong with showing off her considerable physical charms, saying, “Honey, if you’ve got it, flaunt it!”
supercilious [ADJ.] arrogant; condescending; patronizing. The supercilious headwaiter sneered at customers who he thought did not fit the image of a restaurant catering to an ultrafashionable crowd.
condescend [V.] bestow courtesies with a superior air. The king condescended to grant an audience to the friends of the condemned ma[N.] condescension [N.]
cavalier [ADJ.] casual and offhand; arrogant. Sensitive about having her ideas taken lightly, Marcia felt insulted by Mark’s cavalier dismissal of her suggestion
hubris [N.] arrogance; excessive self-conceit. Filled with hubris, Lear refused to heed his friends’ warnings.
overbearing [ADJ.] bossy; arrogant; decisively important. Certain of her own importance and of the unimportance of everyone else, Lady Bracknell was intolerably overbearing in manner. “In choosing a husband,” she said, “good birth is of overbearing importance; compared to that, neither wealth nor talent signifies.”
overweening [ADJ.] presumptuous; arrogant. His overweening pride in his accomplishments was not justified.
narcissist [N.] conceited person. A narcissist is his own best friend.
vainglorious [ADJ.] boastful; excessively conceited. She was a vainglorious and arrogant individual.
egotistical [ADJ.] excessively self-centered; self-important; conceited.
con·ceit·ed adjective
vaunted [ADJ.] boasted; bragged; highly publicized. This much vaunted project proved a disappointment when it collapsed.
BLUNDER
blunder [N.] error. The criminal’s fatal blunder led to his capture. also [V.]
bungle [V.] mismanage; blunder. Don’t botch this assignment, Bumstead; if you bungle the job, you’re fired!
gaffe [N.] social blunder. According to Miss Manners, to call your husband by your lover’s name is worse than a mere gaffe; it is a tactical mistake.
faux pas [fō p] noun (plural faux pas) social blunder: an embarrassing blunder that breaks a social convention of some kind (literary)
bloop·er noun (plural bloop·ers)
BOOKS
addendum [N.] addition; appendix to book. Jane’s editor approved her new comparative literature text but thought it would be even better with an addendum on recent developments in literary criticism.
anthology [N.] book of literary selections by various authors. This anthology of science fiction was compiled by the late Isaac Asimov. anthologize, [V.]
bowdlerize [V.] expurgate. After the film editors had bowdlerized the language in the script, the motion picture’s rating was changed from “R” to “PG.”
canon [N.] collection or authoritative list of books (e.g., by author, Or accepted as scriptures). Scholars hotly debated whether the newly discovered sonnet should be accepted as part of the Shakespearean canon.
catechism [N.] book for religious instruction; instruction by question and answer. He taught by engaging his pupils in a catechism until they gave him the correct answer.
docket [N.] program as for trial; book where such entries are made. The case of Smith [V.] Jones was entered in the docket for July 15. also [V.]
expurgate [V.] clean; remove offensive parts of a book. The editors felt that certain passages in the book had to be expurgated before it could be used in the classroom.
tome [N.] large volume. She spent much time in the libraries poring over ancient tomes.
treatise [N.] article treating a subject systematically and thoroughly. He is preparing a treatise on the Elizabethan playwrights for his graduate degree.
BURDEN
encumber [V.] burden; Some people encumber themselves with too much luggage when they take short trips.
incubus [N.] burden; mental care; nightmare. The incubus of financial worry helped bring on her nervous breakdown
onerous ADJ, burdensome. She asked for an assistant because her work load was too onerous.
onus [N.] burden; responsibility. The emperor was spared the onus of signing the surrender papers; instead, he relegated the assignment to his generals.
barefaced [ADJ.] shameless; bold; unconcealed. Shocked by Huck Finn’s barefaced lies, Miss Watson prayed the good Lord would give him a sense of his unregenerate wickedness.
brazen [ADJ.] insolent. Her brazen contempt for authority angered the officials.
in·so·lent [ínsələnt] adjective disrespectful: showing an aggressive lack of respect in speech or behavior
bravado [N.] swagger; assumed air of defiance. The bravado of the young criminal disappeared when he was confronted by the victims of his brutal attack.
swag·ger [swággər] intransitive verb (past swag·gered, past participle swag·gered, present participle swag·ger·ing, 3rd person present singular swag·gers)
buccaneer [N.] pirate. At Disneyland the Pirates of the Caribbean sing a song about their lives as bloody buccaneers.
ape [V.] imitate or mimic. In the comedy Young Frankenstein, when the servant lgor limps off, saying, “Walk this way,” the hero apes him, hobbling after lgor in an imitation of his walk.
mimicry [N.] imitation. Her gift for mimicry was so great that her friends said that she should be in the theater.
burlesque [V.] give an imitation that ridicules. In Galaxy Quest, Alan Rickman burlesques Mr. Spock of Star Trek, outrageously parodying Spock’s unemotional manner and stiff bearing. also [N.]
parody [N.] humorous imitation; spoof; takeoff; travesty. The show Forbidden Broadway presents parodies spoofing the year’s new productions playing on Broadway. also [V.]
travesty [N.] harshly distorted imitation; parody; debased likeness. Phillips’s translation of Don Quixote is so inadequate and clumsy that it seems a travesty of the original.
mock [V.] ridicule; imitate, often in derision. It is unkind to mock anyone; it is stupid to mock anyone significantly bigger than you. mockery, [N.]
parody [N.] humorous imitation; spoof; takeoff; travesty. The show Forbidden Broadway presents parodies spoofing the year’s new productions playing on Broadway. also [V.]
spoof (COPY) noun [C] an amusing and ridiculous piece of writing, music, theatre, etc. that copies the style of an original work: They did a spoof on/of the Nine O’Clock News. It was a spoof cowboy film.
farce [N.] broad comedy; mockery. Nothing went right; the entire interview degenerated into a farce. farcical, [ADJ.]
CAREFREE/INDIFFERENCE
apathy [N.] lack of caring: indifference. A firm believer in democratic government, she could not understand the apathy of people who never bothered to vote. apathetic, [ADJ.]
indifferent ADJ. unmoved or unconcerned by; mediocre. Because Ann felt no desire to marry, she was indifferent to Carl’s constant proposals. Not only was she indifferent to him personally, but she felt that, given his general inanity, he would make an indifferent husband.
nonchalance [N.] indifference; lack of concern; composure. Cool, calm, and collected under fire, James Bond shows remarkable nonchalance in the face of danger. nonchalant, [ADJ.]
insouciant [ADJ.] indifferent; without concern or care. Your insouciant attitude at such a critical moment indicates that you do not understand the gravity of the situation.
callous [ADJ.] hardened; unfeeling. He had worked in the hospital for so many years that he was callous to the suffering in the wards. callus, [N.]
flippant [ADJ.] lacking proper seriousness. When Mark told Mona he loved her, she dismissed his earnest dec- laration with a flippant “Oh, you say that to all the girls!” flippancy, [N.]
frivolous [ADJ.] lacking in seriousness; self-indulgently carefree; relatively unimportant. Though Nancy enjoyed Bill’s frivolous, lighthearted companionship, she sometimes wondered whether he could ever be serious. frivolity, [N.]
blithe [ADJ.] carefree and unconcerned (perhaps foolishly so); cheerful and gay. Micawber’s blithe optimism that something would turn up proved unfounded, and he wound up in debtors’ prison. Marie Antoinette’s famous remark, “Let them eat cake!” epitomizes her blithe ignorance of the harsh realities endured by the common people.
debonair [ADJ.] urbane and suave; amiable; cheerful and carefree. Reporters frequently describe polished and charming leading men-Cary Grant or Pierce Brosnan, for example-as debonair.
frivolous [ADJ.] lacking in seriousness; self-indulgently carefree; relatively unimportant. Though Nancy enjoyed Bill’s frivolous, lighthearted companionship, she sometimes wondered whether he could ever be serious. frivolity, [N.]
idyllic [ADJ.] charmingly carefree; simple. Far from the city, she led an idyllic existence in her rural retreat.
jaunty [ADJ.] lighthearted; animated; easy and carefree. In Singing in the Rain, Gene Kelly sang and danced his way through the lighthearted title number in a properly jaunty style.
COPY
facsimile [N.] copy. Many museums sell facsimiles of the works of art on display.
replica [N.] copy. Are you going to hang this replica of the Declaration of Independence in the classroom or in the auditorium?
transcribe [V.] copy. When you transcribe your notes, please send a copy to Mr. Smith and keep the original for our files. transcription, [N.]
SCOLD
berate [V.] scold strongly. He feared she would berate him for his forgetfulness.
chasten [V.] correct by punishment or scolding; restrain. No matter how much a child deserves to be chastened for doing wrong, the maxim “Spare the rod and spoil the child” never justifies physical abuse. Someone sadder but wiser has been chastened or subdued by experience.
chastise [V.] punish or scold; reprimand. Miss Watson liked nothing better than to chastise Huck for his alleged offenses.
chide [V.] scold. Grandma began to chide Steven for his lying.
diatribe [N.] bitter scolding; invective. During the lengthy diatribe delivered by his opponent he remained calm and self-controlled.
excoriate [V.] scold with biting harshness; strip the skin off. Seeing the rips in BIll’s new pants, his mother furiously excoriated him for ruining his good clothes. The tight, starched collar chafed and excoriated his neck, rubbing it raw.
rail [V.] scold; rant. You may rail at him all you want; you will never change him.
rant [V.] rave; talk excitedly; scold; make a grandiloquent speech. When he heard that I’d totaled the family car, Dad began to rant at me like a complete madman.
rebuke [V.] scold harshly; criticize severely. No matter how sharply Miss Watson rebuked Huck for his misconduct, he never talked back but just stood there like a stump. also [N.]
reprimand [N.] strong rebuke; formal reproof; scolding. Every time Ermengarde made a mistake in class, she was terrified that she would receive a harsh reprimand from Miss Minchin.
shrew [N.] scolding woman. No one wanted to marry Shakespeare’s Kate because she was a shrew.
tirade [N.] extended scolding; denunciation; harangue. Every time the boss holds a meeting, he goes into a lengthy tirade, scolding us for everything from tardiness to padding our expenses.
upbraid [V.] severely scold; reprimand. Not only did Miss Minchin upbraid Ermengarde for her disobedience, but also she hung her up by her braids from a coat rack in the classroom.
vituperative [ADJ.] abusive; scolding. He became more vituperative as he realized that we were not going to grant him his wish.
denounce [V.] condemn; criticize. The reform candidate denounced the corrupt city officers for having betrayed the public’s trust. denunciation, h.
invective [N.] abuse. He had expected criticism but not the invective that greeted his proposal.
condemn verb [T] to criticize something or someone strongly, usually for moral reasons: The terrorist action has been condemned as an act of barbarism and cowardice. The film was condemned for its sexism. condemnation US noun [C or U] when you condemn something or someone: The shooting of the policeman has received universal condemnation. condemnatory US adjective a condemnatory speech/tone condemned adjective 1 A condemned person is someone who is going to be killed, especially as a punishment for having committed a very serious crime, such as murder. 2 describes a building that has been officially judged not safe for people to live in or to use, or food that has been officially judged not safe to eat
fulminate v, denounce thunderously; explode. Known for his “fire and brimstone” sermons, the preacher fulminated against sinners and backsliders, consigning them to the flames of hell.
inveigh [V.] denounce; utter censure or invective. He inveighed against the demagoguery of the previous speaker and urged that the audience reject his philoso- phy as dangerous.
disapprobation N, disapproval; condemnation. The conservative father viewed his daughter’s radical boyfriend with disapprobation.
revile [V.] attack with abusive language: vilify. Though most of his contemporaries reviled Captain Kidd as a notorious, bloody-handed pirate, some of his fellow merchant- captains believed him innocent of his alleged crimes.
CRITICIZE/ REMARKS
abrasive [ADJ.] rubbing away; tending to grind down. Just as abrasive cleaning powders can wear away a shiny finish, abrasive remarks can wear away a listener’s patience. abrade, [V.]
acidulous [ADJ.] slightly sour, sharp; caustic. James was unpopular because of his sarcastic and acidulous remarks.
acerbic [ADJ.] bitter or sour in nature; sharp and cutting. Noted for her acerbic wit and gossiping. Alice Roosevet Longwortk, had a pillow in her home embroidered with the legend “If you can’t say something good about someone. sit right here by me.”
acerbity [N.] bitterness of speech and temper. The meeting of the United Nations Assembly was marked with such acerbity that observers held little hope of reaching any useful settlement of the problem.
animadversion [N.] critical remark. He resented the animadversions of his critics, particularly because he realized they were true.
asinine [ADJ.] stupid. Your asinine remarks prove that you have not given this problem any serious consideration.
aspersion [N.] slanderous remark. Rather than attacking President Cleveland’s arguments with logic, his opponent resorted to casting aspersions on the president’s moral character.
bantering [ADJ.] good-naturedly ridiculing.hey resented his bantering remarks because they misinterpreted his teasing as sarcasm.
barb [N.] sharp projection from fishhook or other object; openly cutting remark. If you were a politician, which would you prefer, being caught on the barb of a fishhook or being subjected to malicious verbal barbs? Who can blame the president if he’s happier fishing than he is listening to his critics’ barbed remarks?
bawdy [ADJ.] indecent; obscene. Jack took offense at Jill’s bawdy remarks. What kind of young man did she think he was?
caustic [ADJ.] burning; sarcastically biting. The critic’s caustic remarks angered the hapless actors who were the subjects of his sarcasm.
chaffing ADJ, bantering; joking. Sometimes Chad’s flippant, chaffing remarks annoy us. Still, Chad’s chaffing keeps us laughing. cryptic [ADJ.] mysterious; hidden; secret. Thoroughly baffled by Holmes’s cryptic remarks, Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.
discursive ADJ, digressing; rambling. As the lecturer wandered from topic to topic, we wondered what if any point there was to his discursive remarks.
earthy [ADJ.] unrefined; coarse. His earthy remarks often embarrassed the women in his audience.
elliptical [ADJ.] oval; ambiguous, either purposely or because key words have been left out. An elliptical billiard ball wobbles because it is not perfectly round; an elliptical remark baffles because it is not perfectly clear.
extemporaneous [ADJ.] not planned; impromptu. Because her extemporaneous remarks were misinterpreted, she decided to write all her speeches in advance.
felicitous [ADJ.] apt; suitably expressed; well chosen. He was famous for his felicitous remarks and was called upon to serve as master-of-ceremonies at many a banquet.
inane [ADJ.] silly; senseless. There’s no point in what you’re saying. Why are you bothering to make such inane remarks? inanity, [N.]
incisive [ADJ.] cutting; sharp. Her incisive remarks made us see the fallacy in our plans. incision, [N.]
invidious ADJ, designed to create ill will or envy. We disregarded her invidious remarks because we realized how jealous she was.
jocular [ADJ.] said or done in jest. Although Bill knew the boss hated jokes, he couldn’t resist making one jocular remark; his jocularity cost him the job.
pejorative [ADJ.] negative in connotation; having a belittling effect. Instead of criticizing Clinton’s policies, the Republicans made pejorative remarks about his character.
pert [ADJ.] impertinent; forward. I think your pert and impudent remarks call for an apology.
pithy [ADJ.] concise; meaningful; substantial; meaty. While other girls might have gone on and on about how uncool Elton was, Cher summed it up in one pithy remark: “He’s bogus!”
platitude [N.] trite remark; commonplace statement. In giving advice to his son, old Polonius expressed himself only in platitudes; every word out of his mouth was a truism.
prefatory ADJ, introductory. The chairman made a few prefatory remarks before he called on the first speaker. sarcasm [N.] scornful remark; stinging rebuke. Though Ralph pretended to ignore the mocking comments of his supposed friends, their sarcasm wounded him deeply. sarcastic, [ADJ.]
scurrilous [ADJ.] obscene; indecent. Your scurrilous remarks are especially offensive because they are untrue.
Stricture: limit, something that restrains
tangential [ADJ.] peripheral; only slightly connected; digressing. Despite Clark’s attempts to distract her with tangential remarks, Lois kept on coming back to her main question: Why couldn’t he come out to dinner with Superman and her?
vacuous [ADJ.] empty; lacking in ideas; stupid. The candidate’s vacuous remarks annoyed the audience, who had hoped to hear more than empty platitudes. vacuity, [N.]
vitriolic [ADJ.] corrosive; sarcastic. Such vitriolic criticism is uncalled for.
trenchant [ADJ.] forceful and vigorous; cutting. With his trenchant wit, reviewer Frank Rich cut straight to the heart of the matter, panning a truly dreadful play.
CRITICISMS/DISAPPROVAL
bemoan [V.] lament; express disapproval of. The widow bemoaned the death of her beloved husband. Although critics bemoaned the serious flaws in the author’s novels, each year his latest book topped the best-seller list.
catcall [N.] shout of disapproval; boo. Every major league pitcher has off days during which he must learn to ignore catcalls and angry hisses from the crowd.
carping [N.] petty criticism; fault-finding. Welcoming constructive criticism, Lexy appreciated her editor’s comments, finding them free of carping. also ADJ
niggle [V.] spend too much time on minor points; carp. Let’s not niggle over details. niggling, [ADJ.]
animadversion [N.] critical remark. He resented the animadversions of his critics, particularly because he realized they were true.
castigation N, punishment; severe criticism. Sensitive even to mild criticism, Woolf could not bear the castigation that she found in certain reviews. Ben Jonson was a highly moral playwright: in his plays, his purpose was to castigate vice and hypocrisy by exposing them publicly.
censure [V.] blame; criticize. The senator was censured for behavior inappropriate to a member of Congress. also [N.]
deprecate [V.] express disapproval of; protest against; belittle. A firm believer in old-fashioned courtesy, Miss Post deprecated the modern tendency to address new acquaintances by their first names. deprecatory, [ADJ.]
reproach [V.] express disapproval or disappointment. He never could do anything wrong without imagining how the look on his mother’s face would reproach him afterwards. also [N.] reproachful, [ADJ.] vr feel blameworthy: to feel ashamed because you know you have done something wrong • There’s no reason to reproach yourself, because there was nothing you could do.
decry [V.] express strong disapproval of; disparage. The founder of the Children’s Defense Fund, Marian Wright Edelman, strongly decries the lack of financial and moral support for children in America today.
denounce [V.] condemn; criticize. The reform candidate denounced the corrupt city officers for having betrayed the public’s trust. denunciation, h.
disapprobation N, disapproval; condemnation. The conservative father viewed his daughter’s radical boyfriend with disapprobation.
flay [V.] strip off skin; plunder; whip; attack with harsh criticism. The reviewer’s stinging comments flayed the actress’s sensitive spirit. How could she go on, after such a vicious attack?
pan [V.] criticize harshly. Hoping for a rave review of his new show, the playwright was miserable when the critics panned it unanimously.
pillory [V.] punish by placing in a wooden frame; subject to criticism and ridicule. Even though he was mocked and pilloried, he maintained that he was correct in his beliefs. also [N.]
rebuke [V.] scold harshly; criticize severely. No matter how sharply Miss Watson rebuked Huck for his misconduct, he never talked back but just stood there like a stump. also [N.]
reprobation [N.] severe disapproval. The students showed their reprobation of his act by refusing to talk with him.
unexceptionable [ADJ.] not offering any basis for criticism; entirely acceptable. Objecting to Jack’s lack of a respectable family background, Lady Bracknell declared that Cecily could marry only a man of unexceptionable lineage and character.
ultra critical exceedingly critical
artifice [N.] deception; trickery. The Trojan War proved to the Greeks that cunning and artifice were often more effective than military might.
beguile [V.] mislead or delude; cheat; pass time. With flattery and big talk of easy money, the con men beguiled Kyle into betting his allowance on the shell game. The men quickly beguiled poor Kyle of his money. Broke, he beguiled himself during the long hours by playing solitaire.
bilk v, swindle; cheat. The con man specialized in bilking insurance companies.
chisel [V.] swindle or cheat; cut with a chisel. That crook chiseled me out of a hundred dollars when he sold me that “marble” statue he’d chiseled out of some cheap hunk of rock. chicanery [N.] trickery; deception. Those sneaky lawyers misrepresented what occurred, made up all sorts of implausible alternative scenarios to confuse the jurors, and in general depended on chicanery to win the case.
cozen [V.] cheat; hoodwink; swindle. He was the kind of individual who would cozen his friends in a cheap card game but remain eminently ethical in all his business dealings.
feint [N.] trick; shift; sham blow. The boxer was fooled by his opponent’s feint and dropped his guard. also [V.]
fraudulent [ADJ.] cheating; deceitful. The government seeks to prevent fraudulent and misleading advertising.
gull v, trick; hoodwink. Confident no one could gull him, Paul prided himself on his skeptical disposition.
hoax [N.] trick; practical joke. Embarrassed by the hoax, she reddened and left the room. also [V.]
mulct [V.] defraud a person of something. The lawyer was accused of trying to mulct the boy of his legacy.
outwit [V.] outsmart; trick. By disguising himself as an old woman, Holmes was able to outwit his pursuers and escape capture.
ruse [N.] trick; stratagem. You will not be able to fool your friends with such an obvious ruse.
stratagem [N.] clever trick; deceptive scheme. What a gem of a stratagem! Watson, I have the perfect plan to trick Moriarty into revealing himself.
swindler [N.] cheat. She was gullible and trusting, an easy victim for the first swindler who came along.
waggish [ADJ.] mischievous; humorous; tricky. He was a prankster who, unfortunately, often overlooked the damage he could cause with his waggish tricks. wag, [N.]
wheedle [V.] cajole; coax; deceive by flattery. She knows she can wheedle almost anything she wants from her father.
bamboozle verb [T] INFORMAL to trick or deceive someone, often by confusing them: She was bamboozled into telling them her credit card number.
con [kon] transitive verb (past conned, past participle conned, present participle con·ning, 3rd person present singular cons)
embezzle verb [I or T] to secretly take money that is in your care or that belongs to an organization or business you work for: She embezzled thousands of dollars from the charity. embezzlement noun [U] They were arrested for embezzlement of company funds.
knell [N.] tolling of a bell, especially to indicate a funeral, disaster, etc.; sound of the funeral bell. “The curfew tolls the knell of parting day.” also [V.]
clangor [N.] loud, resounding noise. The blacksmith was accustomed to the clangor of hammers on steel.
clarion [ADJ.] shrill, trumpet like sound. We woke to the clarion call of the bugle.
carillon [N.] a set of bells capable of being played. The carillon in the bell tower of the Coca-Cola pavilion at the New York World’s Fair provided musical entertainment every hour.
clapper [N.] striker (tongue) of a bell. Wishing to be undisturbed by the bell, Dale wound his scarf around the clapper to muffle its striking.
NOISE
commotion US noun [S or U] a sudden short period of noise, confusion or excited movement: His arrival caused quite a commotion. He looked up to see what all the commotion was about.
clamor [N.] noise. The clamor of the children at play outside made it impossible for her to take a nap. also [V.]
ferment [N.] agitation; commotion. With the breakup of the Soviet Union, much of Eastern Europe was in a state of ferment, also [V.]
tumult [N.] commotion; riot; noise. She could not make herself heard over the tumult of the mob.
turmoil [N.] great commotion and confusion. Lydia running off with a soldier! Mother fainting at the news! The Benet household was in turmoil.
uproarious [ADJ.] marked by commotion; extremely funny; very noisy. The uproarious comedy hit Ace Ventura: Pet Detective starred Jim Carrey, whose comic mugging provoked gales of uproarious laughter from audiences coast to coast.
ruckus [rúkəss] (plural ruck·us·es) noun disturbance: a noisy and unpleasant disturbance vociferous [ADJ.] clamorous; noisy. The crowd grew vociferous in its anger and threatened to take the law into its own hands.
welter [N.] turmoil; bewildering jumble. The existing welter of overlapping federal and state proclaims cries out for immediate reform.
hubbub [N.] confused uproar. The marketplace was a scene of hubbub and excitement; in all the noise, we could not distinguish particular voices.
hue and cry [N.] outcry. When her purse was snatched, she raised such a hue and cry that the thief was captured.
amok (also amuck) AD[V.] in a state of rage. The police had to be called in to restrain him after he ran amok in the department store.
boisterous [ADJ.] violent; rough; noisy. The unruly crowd became even more boisterous when he tried to quiet them.
obstreperous [ADJ.] boisterous; noisy. What do you do when an obstreperous horde of drunken policemen carouses through your hotel, crashing into potted plants and singing vulgar songs?
raucous [ADJ.] harsh and shrill; disorderly and boisterous. The raucous crowd of New Year’s Eve revelers grew progressively noisier as midnight drew near.
din [N.] continued loud noise. The din of the jackhammers outside the classroom window drowned out the lecturer’s voice. also [V.]
pandemonium [N.] wild tumult. When the ships collided in the harbor, pandemonium broke out among the passengers.
COAT
incrustation [N.] hard coating or crust. In dry dock, we scraped off the incrustation of dirt and barnacles that covered the hull of the ship.
verdigris [N.] green coating on copper that has been exposed to the weather. Despite all attempts to protect the statue from the elements, it became coated with verdigris.
veneer [N.] thin layer; cover. Casual acquaintances were deceived by his veneer of sophistication and failed to recognize his fundamental shallowness.
COMPLAIN/OBJECTION/PROTEST
grievance [N.] cause of complaint. When her supervisor ignored her complaint, she took her grievance to the union.
grouse [V.] complain; fuss. Students traditionally grouse about the abysmal quality of “mystery meat” and similar dormitory food.
quibble [N.] minor objection or complaint. Aside from a few hundred teensy-weensy quibbles about the set, the script, the actors, the director, the costumes. the lighting, and the props, the hypercritical critic loved the play. also [V.]
repine [V.] fret; complain. There is no sense repining over the work you have left undone.
fret (WORRY) verb [I] -tt- to be anxious or worried: Don’t fret - I’m sure he’s OK. She spent the day fretting about/over what she’d said to Nicky. fretful adjective By midnight the children were tired and fretful (= complaining a lot because they were unhappy). fretfully adverb
cavil [V.] make frivolous objections. I respect your sensible criticisms, but I dislike the way you cavil about unimportant details. also [N.]
demur N, objection; protest. Michelangelo regularly denied that Leonardo Da Vinci had influenced him, and critics have usually accepted his statements without demur.
exceptionable [ADJ.] objectionable. Do you find the punk rock band Green Day a highly exceptionable, thoroughly distasteful group, or do you think they are exceptionally talented performers?
remonstrance [N.] protest; objection. The authorities were deaf to the pastor’s remonstrances about the lack of police protection in the area. remonstrate, v
PUZZLE/RIDDLE/DIFFICULY
arcane [ADJ.] secret; mysterious; known only to the initiated. Secret brotherhoods surround themselves with arcane rituals and trappings to mystify outsiders. So do doctors. Consider the arcane terminology they use and the impression they try to give that what is arcane to us is obvious to them.
cryptic [ADJ.] mysterious; hidden; secret. Thoroughly baffled by Holmes’s cryptic remarks, Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.
conundrum [N.] riddle; difficult problem. During the long car ride, she invented conundrums to entertain the children.
predicament [N.] tricky or dangerous situation; dilemma. Tied to the railroad tracks by the villain, Pauline strained against her bonds. How would she escape from this terrible predicament? predicament US noun [C] SLIGHTLY FORMAL an unpleasant situation which is difficult to get out of: She is hoping to get a loan from her bank to help her out of her financial predicament. I’m in a bit of a predicament because I’ve accidentally accepted two invitations to dinner on the same night.
pre·dic·a·ment [prə díkəmənt] (plural pre·dic·a·ments) noun
impasse [N.] predicament from which there is no escape. In this impasse, all turned to prayer as their last hope.
plight [N.] condition, state (especially a bad state or condition); predicament. Loggers, unmoved by the plight of the spotted owl, plan to keep on felling trees whether or not they ruin the bird’s habitat.
vortex [N.] whirlwind; whirlpool; center of turbulence; predicament into which one is inexorably plunged. Sucked into the vortex of the tornado, Dorothy and Toto were carried from Kansas to Oz.
enigma [N.] puzzle; mystery. “What do women want?” asked Dr. Sigmund Freud. Their behavior was an enigma to him.
rebus [N.] puzzle in which pictures stand for words. A coven of witches beside a tree is a possible rebus for the town Coventry.
confound [V.] confuse; puzzle. No mystery could confound Sherlock Holmes for long.
nonplus [V.] bring to a halt by confusion; perplex. Jack’s uncharacteristic rudeness nonplussed Jill, leaving her uncertain how to react.
baffle [V.] frustrate; perplex. The new code baffled the enemy agents.
perplex US verb [T] to confuse and worry someone slightly by being difficult to understand or solve: The disease has continued to perplex doctors. perplexed US adjective The students looked perplexed, so the teacher tried to explain once again. perplexing US adjective They find the company’s attitude perplexing and unreasonable. perplexity US noun [C or U] She stared at the instruction booklet in complete perplexity. the perplexities of life
sphinx-like [ADJ.] enigmatic; mysterious. The Mona Lisa’s sphinx-like expression has puzzled art lovers for centuries.
hermetic [ADJ.] obscure and mysterious; occult. It is strange to consider that modern chemistry originated in the hermetic teachings of the ancient alchemists. (secondary meaning)
occult [ADJ.] mysterious; secret; supernatural. The occult rites of the organization were revealed only to members. also [N.]
inscrutable [ADJ.] impenetrable; not readily understood; mysterious. Experienced poker players try to keep their expressions inscrutable, hiding their reactions to the cards behind a so-called poker face.
oracular [ADJ.] prophetic; uttered as if with divine authority; mysterious or ambiguous. Like many others who sought divine guidance from the oracle at Delphi, Oedipus could not understand the enigmatic oracular warning he received. oracle, [N.]
runic [ADJ.] mysterious; set down in an ancient alphabet. Tolkien’s use of Old English words and inscriptions in the runic alphabet give The Lord of the Rings its atmosphere of antiquity.
unaccountable [ADJ.] inexplicable; unreasonable or mysterious. I have taken an unaccountable dislike to my doctor: “I do not love thee, Doctor Fell. The reason why, I cannot tell.”
uncanny [ADJ.] strange: mysterious. You have the uncanny knack of reading my innermost thoughts.
CONFUSE
befuddle [V.] confuse thoroughly. His attempts to clarify the situation succeeded only in befuddling her further.
bemused [ADJ.] confused; lost in thought; preoccupied. Jill studied the garbled instructions with a bemused look on her face.
conflate [V.] meld or fuse; confuse; combine into one. In his painting White Crucifixion, which depicts German Jews terrorized by a Nazi mob. Chagall conflates Jewish and Christian symbols, portraying the crucified Christ wrapped in a tallith, a Jewish prayer shawl. The anthropologist Mahmood Mamdani maintains that terrorism is a unique product of the modern world and should not be conflated with Islam.
confound [V.] confuse; puzzle. No mystery could confound Sherlock Holmes for long.
discombobulated [ADJ.] confused; discomposed. The novice square dancer became so discombobulated that he wandered into the wrong set.
disconcert [V.] confuse; upset; embarrass. The lawyer was disconcerted by the evidence produced by her adversary.
fluster [V.] confuse. The teacher’s sudden question flustered him and he stammered his reply.
indiscriminate [ADJ.] choosing at random; confused. She disapproved of her son’s indiscriminate television viewing and decided to restrict him to educational programs.
muddle [V.] confuse; mix up. Her thoughts were muddled and chaotic. also [N.]
obfuscate [V.] confuse; muddle; cause confusion; make needlessly complex. Was the president’s spokesman trying to clarify the Whitewater mystery, or was he trying to obfuscate the issue so the voters would never figure out what went on?
scuffle [V.] struggle confusedly; move off in a confused hurry. The twins briefly scuffled, wrestling to see which of them would get the toy. When their big brother yelled, “Let go of my Gameboy!” they scuffled off down the hall.
SEIZE/CONFISCATE
arrest [V.] stop or check; seize or capture (the attention). According to Connolly’s “Theory of Permanent Adolescence,” the triumphs and disappointments that boys experience at the great British public schools are so intense as to dominate their lives and to arrest their development.
confiscate [V.] seize; commandeer. The army confiscated all available supplies of uranium.
commandeer [V.] to draft for military purposes; to take for public use. The policeman commandeered the first car that approached and ordered the driver to go to the nearest hospital.
usurp [V.] seize another’s power or rank. The revolution ended when the victorious rebel general succeeded in his attempt to usurp the throne. usurpation, [N.]
capture seize
expropriate [V.] take possession of. He questioned the government’s right to expropriate his land to create a wildlife preserve.
Impound verb [T] If the police or someone in authority impounds something that belongs to you, they take it away because you have broken the law: The police impounded cars and other personal property belonging to the drug dealers. The vehicle was impounded by customs.
annex [V.] attach; take possession of. Mexico objected to the United States’ attempts to annex the territory that later became the state of Texas.
appropriate [V.] acquire; take possession of for one’s own use. The ranch owners appropriated the lands that had originally been set aside for the Indians’ use.
appurtenances [N.] subordinate possessions. He bought the estate and all its appurtenances.
title [N.] right or claim to possession; mark of rank; name (of a book, film, etc.). Though the penniless Duke of Ragwort no longer held title to the family estate, he still retained his title as head of one of England’s oldest families.
unprepossessing [ADJ.] unattractive. During adolescence many attractive young people somehow acquire the false notion that their appearance is unprepossessing.
sequester [V.] isolate; retire from public life; segregate; seclude. To prevent the jurors from hearing news broadcasts about the case, the judge decided to sequester the jury.
sequester (TAKE) US verb [T] (ALSO sequestrate) LEGAL to take temporary possession of someone’s property until they have paid back the money that they owe or until they have obeyed a court order sequestration noun [U] LEGAL
req·ui·si·tion [rèkwi zísh’n] noun (plural req·ui·si·tions)
anoint [V.] consecrate. The prophet Samuel anointed David with oil, crowning him king of Israel.
chalice [N.] goblet; consecrated cup. In a small room adjoining the cathedral, many ornately decorated chalices made by the most famous European goldsmiths were on display.
consecrate [V.] dedicate; sanctify. In 1804, Napoleon forced Pope Pius VII to come to Paris to consecrate him as emperor, only to humiliate Pius at the last minute by taking the crown from the pope’s hands and crowning himself.
hallowed [ADJ.] blessed; consecrated. Although the dead girl’s parents had never been active churchgoers, they insisted that their daughter be buried in hallowed ground.
beatitude [N.] blessedness; state of bliss. Growing closer to God each day, the mystic achieved a state of indescri- bable beatitude.
unction [N.] the act of anointing with oil. The anointing with oil of a person near death is called extreme unction.
coeval [ADJ.] living at the same time as; contemporary. Coeval with the dinosaur, the pterodactyl flourished during the Mesozoic era.
coincidence [N.] the chance occurrence, at the same time, of two or more seemingly connected events. Was it just a coincidence that John and she had met at the market for three days running, or was he deliberately trying to seek her out? coincidental, [ADJ.]
concurrent [ADJ.] happening at the same time. In America, the colonists were resisting the demands of the mother country; at the concurrent moment in France, the middle class was sowing the seeds of rebellion.
contemporary at same time.
NOTICEABLE
con·spic·u·ous [kən spíkyoo əss] adjective
evince [V.] show clearly. When he tried to answer the questions, he evinced his ignorance of the subject matter.
obtrude [V.] push (oneself or one’s ideas) forward or intrude; butt in; stick out or extrude. Because Fanny was reluctant to obtrude her opinions about child-raising upon her daughter-in-law, she kept a close watch on her tongue. obtrusive, [ADJ.] obtrusion, [N.]
prominent [ADJ.] conspicuous; notable; protruding. Have you ever noticed that Prince Charles’s prominent ears make him resemble the big-eared character in Mad comics?
salient [ADJ.] prominent. One of the salient features of that newspaper is its excellent editorial page.
protrude verb [I] to stick out from or through something: A rotting branch protruded from the swamp like a ghostly arm. protruding ears/teeth protrusion noun [C or U] something that sticks out from a surface, or the act of doing this: It has a series of protrusions along its back. The condition results in weight loss, rapid heartbeat and protrusion of the eyes.
protrude [V.] stick out. His fingers protruded from the holes in his gloves.
glaring [ADJ.] highly conspicuous; harshly bright. Glaring spelling or grammatical errors in your resume will unfavorably impress potential employers.
evince [V.] show clearly. When he tried to answer the questions, he evinced his ignorance of the subject matter.
HIDDEN
cryptic [ADJ.] mysterious; hidden; secret. Thoroughly baffled by Holmes’s cryptic remarks, Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime. covert [ADJ.] secret; hidden; implied. Investigations of the Central Intelligence Agency and other secret service networks reveal that such covert operations can get out of control.
privy [ADJ.] secret; hidden; not public. We do not care for privy chamber government.
surreptitious [ADJ.] secret; furtive; sneaky; hidden. Hoping to discover where his mom had hidden the Christmas presents, Timmy took a surreptitious peek into the master bedroom closet.
crypt [N.] secret recess or vault usually used for burial. Until recently only bodies of rulers and leading statesmen were interred in this crypt.
liaison [N.] contact that keeps parties in communication; go-between; secret love affair.
occult [ADJ.] mysterious; secret; supernatural. The occult rites of the organization were revealed only to members. also [N.]
recondite [ADJ.] abstruse; profound; secret. He read many recondite books in order to obtain the material for his scholarly thesis.
stealth [N.] slyness; sneakiness; secretiveness. Fearing detection by the sentries on duty, the scout inched his way toward the enemy camp with great stealth.
arcane [ADJ.] secret; mysterious; known only to the initiated. Secret brotherhoods surround themselves with arcane rituals and trappings to mystify outsiders. So do doctors. Consider the arcane terminology they use and the impression they try to give that what is arcane to us is obvious to them.
cabal [N.] small group of persons secretly united to promote their own interests. The cabal was defeated when its scheme was discovered.
cipher [N.] secret code. Lacking his code book, the spy was unable to decode the message sent to him in cipher.
clandestine [ADJ.] secret. After avoiding their chaperon, the lovers had a clandestine meeting.
tryst [N.] meeting. The lovers kept their tryst even though they realized their danger. also [V.]
ulterior [ADJ.] situated beyond; unstated and often questionable. You must have an ulterior motive for your behavior, since there is no obvious reason for it.
COWARD/FEAR
acrophobia [N.] fear of heights. A born salesman, he could convince someone with a bad case of acrophobia to sign up for a life membership in a sky-diving club.
apprehensive [ADJ.] fearful; discerning. His apprehensive glances at the people who were walking in the street revealed his nervousness.
claustrophobia N, fear of being locked in.His fellow classmates laughed at his claustrophobia and often threatened to lock him in his room.
cower [V.] shrink quivering, as from fear. The frightened child cowered in the corner of the room.
craven [ADJ.] cowardly. Lillian’s craven refusal to join the protest was criticized by her comrades, who had expected her to be brave enough to stand up for her beliefs.
cringe [V.] shrink back, as if in fear. The dog cringed, expecting a blow.
flinch v, hesitate; shrink. She did not flinch in the face of danger but fought back bravely.
formidable [ADJ.] inspiring fear or apprehension; difficult; awe-inspiring. In the film Meet the Parents, the hero is understandably nervous around his fiancée’s father, a formidable CIA agent.
hydrophobia [N.] fear of water; rabies. A dog that bites a human being must be observed for symptoms of hydrophobia.
intrepid [ADJ.] fearless. For her intrepid conduct nursing the wounded during the war, Florence Nightingale was honored by Queen Victoria.
pusillanimous [ADJ.] cowardly; fainthearted. You should be ashamed of your pusillanimous conduct during this dispute. pusillanimity, [N.]
quail [V.] cower; lose heart. He was afraid that he would quail in the face of danger.
phobia [N.] morbid fear. Her fear of flying was more than mere nervousness; it was a real phobia.
timorous [ADJ.] fearful; demonstrating fear. Her timorous manner betrayed the anxiety she felt at the moment.
trepidation [N.] fear; nervous apprehension. As she entered the office of the dean of admissions, Sharon felt some trepidation about how she would do in her interview.
timidity [N.] lack of self-confidence or courage. If you are to succeed as a salesperson, you must first lose your timidity and fear of failure.
qualms [N.] misgivings; uneasy fears, especially about matters of conscience. I have no qualms about giving this assignment to Helen; I know she will handle it admirably.
redoubtable [ADJ.] formidable; causing fear. During the Cold War period, neighboring countries tried not to offend the Russians because they could be redoubtable foes.
submissive [ADJ.] yielding; timid. When he refused to permit Elizabeth to marry her poet, Mr. Barrett expected her to be properly submissive; instead, she eloped with the guy!
wince [V.] shrink back; flinch. The screech of the chalk on the blackboard made her wince.
INTIMIDATE
browbeat [V.] bully; intimidate. Billy resisted Ted’s attempts to browbeat him into handing over his lunch money.
cow [V.] terrorize; intimidate. The little boy was so cowed by the hulking bully that he gave up his lunch money without a word of protest.
daunt [V.] intimidate; frighten.”Boast all you like of your prowess. Mere words cannot daunt me,” the hero answered the villain.
intimidate [V.] frighten. I’ll learn karate and then those big bullies won’t be able to intimidate me anymore. intimidation, [N.]
COURAGE
fortitude [N.] bravery; courage. He was awarded the medal for his fortitude in the battle.
gamely AD[V.] in a spirited manner; with courage. Because he had fought gamely against a much superior boxer, the crowd gave him a standing ovation when he left the arena.
mettle [N.] courage; spirit. When challenged by the other horses in the race, the thoroughbred proved its mettle by its determination to hold the lead. mettlesome, [ADJ.]
pluck [N.] courage. Even the adversaries of young Indiana Jones were impressed by the boy’s pluck in trying to rescue the archeological treasure they had stole[N.]
chivalrous [ADJ.] courteous; faithful; brave. Chivalrous behavior involves noble words and good deeds.
exploit N, deed or action, particularly a brave deed. Raoul Wallenberg was noted for his exploits in rescuing Jews from Hitler’s forces.
prowess [N.] extraordinary ability; military bravery. Performing triple axels and double lutzes at the age of six, the young figure skater was world famous for her prowess on the ice.
valor [N.] bravery. He received the Medal of Honor for his valor in battle.
DEBRIS
debris N, rubble. A full year after the earthquake in Mexico City, workers were still carting away the debris.
rubble [N.] fragments. Ten years after World War II, some of the rubble left by enemy bombings could still be see[N.]
shard [N.] fragment, generally of pottery. The archaeologist assigned several students the task of reassembling earthenware vessels from the shards he had brought back from the expedition.
shambles [N.] wreck; mess. After the hurricane, the Carolina coast was a shambles. After the New Year’s Eve party, the host’s apartment was a shambles.
whit [N.] smallest speck; shred; tiny bit. There’s not one whit of truth in your allegations.
scintilla [N.] shred; least bit. You have not produced a scintilla of evidence to support your argument.
detritus US noun [U] 1 FORMAL waste material or rubbish, especially that left after a particular event: The stadium was littered with the detritus of yesterday’s rock concert. 2 SPECIALIZED a loose mass of decaying material
crumb noun [C] 1 a very small piece of bread, cake or biscuit See also breadcrumbs. 2 a small amount of something: a crumb of hope/comfort
DESOLATE
desolate [ADJ.] unpopulated; joyless. After six months in the crowded, bustling metropolis, David was so sick of people that he was ready to head for the most desolate patch of wilderness he could find.
desolate [V.] rob of joy; lay waste to; forsake. The bandits desolated the countryside, burning farms and carrying off the harvest.
futile [ADJ.] useless; hopeless; ineffectual. It is futile for me to try to get any work done around here while the telephone is ringing every 30 seconds. futility, [N.]
forlorn ADJ, sad and lonely: wretched. Deserted by her big sisters and her friends, the forlorn child sat sadly on the steps awaiting their return.
wretched adjective 1 unhappy, unpleasant or of low quality: a wretched childhood The house was in a wretched state. 2 used to express annoyance: My wretched car’s broken down again. 3 very ill or very unhappy: I think I must be coming down with flu - I’ve been feeling wretched all day. wretchedly adverb extremely, when referring to something unpleasant or of low quality: wretchedly inadequate wretchedness noun [U]
SHABBY
tatty [ADJ.] worn and shabby; bedraggled. Cinderella’s stepsisters sneered at her in her frayed apron and tatty old gown.
threadbare [ADJ.] worn through till the threads show; shabby and poor. The poorly paid adjunct professor hid the threadbare spots on his jacket by sewing leather patches on his sleeves.
mangy [ADJ.] shabby; wretched. We finally threw out the mangy rug that the dog had destroyed.
hovel [N.] shack; small, wretched house. She wondered how poor people could stand living in such a hovel.
slipshod ADJ, untidy or slovenly; shabby As a master craftsman, the carpenter prided himself on never doing slipshod work.
slovenly [ADJ.] untidy; careless in work habits. Unshaven, sitting around in his bathrobe all afternoon, Gus didn’t care about the slovenly appearance he presented. solvent, [N.]
unkempt [ADJ.] disheveled; uncared for in appearance. Jeremy hated his neighbor’s unkempt lawn: he thought its neglected appearance had a detrimental effect on neighborhood property values.
disarray [N.] a disorderly or untidy state. After the New Year’s party, the once orderly house was in total disarray.
disheveled [ADJ.] untidy. Your disheveled appearance will hurt your chances in this interview.
dowdy [ADJ.] slovenly; untidy. She tried to change her dowdy image by buying a fashionable new wardrobe.
podium [N.] pedestal; raised platform. The audience applauded as the conductor made her way to the podium.
da·is [dáy iss, d iss] (plural da·is·es) noun raised platform: a raised platform at the end of a hall or large room
lectern [N.] reading desk. The chaplain delivered his sermon from a hastily improvised lectern
rostrum [N.] platform for speech-making; pulpit. The crowd murmured angrily and indicated that they did not care to listen to the speaker who was approaching the rostrum.
DULL
bovine [ADJ.] cowlike; placid and dull. Nothing excites Esther; even when she won the state lottery, she still preserved her air of bovine calm.
cliché [N.] phrase dulled in meaning by repetition; High school compositions are often marred by such clichés as “strong as an ox.”
dingy [ADJ.] dull; not fresh; cheerless. Refusing to be depressed by her dingy studio apartment. Bea spent the weekend polishing the floors and windows and hanging bright posters on the walls.
drab [ADJ.] dull; lacking color; cheerless. The Dutch woman’s drab winter coat contrasted with the distinctive, colorful native costume she wore beneath it.
drone [V.] talk dully; buzz or murmur like a bee. On a gorgeous day, who wants to be stuck in a classroom listening to the teacher drone?
humdrum [ADJ.] dull; monotonous. After her years of adventure, she could not settle down to a humdrum existence.
insipid [ADJ.] lacking in flavor; dull. Flat prose and flat ginger ale are equally insipid: both lack sparkle.
lackluster [ADJ.] dull. We were disappointed by the lackluster performance.
lethargic [ADJ.] drowsy; dull. In class, she tried to stay alert and listen to the professor, but the stuffy room made her lethargic; she felt as if she was about to nod off. lethargy, [N.]
prosaic [ADJ.] dull and unimaginative; matter-of-fact; factual. Though the ad writers had come up with a highly creative campaign to publicize the company’s newest product, the head office rejected it for a more prosaic, down-to-earth approach
sodden [ADJ.] soaked; dull, as if from drink. He set his sodden overcoat near the radiator to dry.
stagnant [ADJ.] motionless; stale; dull. Mosquitoes commonly breed in ponds of stagnant water. Mike’s career was stagnant; it wasn’t going anywhere, and neither was he! stagnate, [V.]
stolid [ADJ.] dull; impassive. The earthquake shattered Stuart’s usual stolid demeanor; trembling, he crouched on the no longer stable ground, stolidity, [N.]
vapid [ADJ.] dull and unimaginative; insipid and flavorless. “Bor-ing!” said Cher, as she suffered through yet another vapid lecture about Dead White Male Poets.
bourgeois [ADJ.] middle class; selfishly materialistic; dully conventional. Technically, anyone who belongs to the middle class is bourgeois, but, given the word’s connotations, most people resent it if you call them that.
plebeian adjective FORMAL DISAPPROVING belonging to a low social class: He used to make fun of what he called her ‘plebeian origins’. He retained a plebeian taste in food and drink.
plebeian [ADJ.] common; pertaining to the common people. His speeches were aimed at the plebeian minds and emotions; they disgusted the more refined.
proletarian (adj) popular, grassroots, people’s, working-class, blue-collar, plebeian, democratic antonym: aristocratic
proletarian [N.] member of the working class; blue collar guy. “Workers of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains” is addressed to proletarians, not preppies. also [ADJ.] proletariat, [N.]
gentry [N.] people of standing; class of people just below nobility. The local gentry did not welcome the visits of the summer tourists and tried to ignore their presence in the community.
snob US noun [C] MAINLY DISAPPROVING a person who respects and likes only people who are of a high social class, and/or a person who has extremely high standards who is not satisfied by the things that ordinary people like: He’s a frightful snob - if you haven’t been to the right school he probably won’t even speak to you. I’m afraid I’m a bit of a wine snob/a snob where wine is concerned. snobbish US adjective (INFORMAL snobby) DISAPPROVING like a snob: My brother is very snobbish about cars. snobbishly US adverb (ALSO snobbily) DISAPPROVING in a snobbish way snobbery US noun [U] (ALSO snobbishness) DISAPPROVING behaviour and opinions that are typical of a snob: She accused me of snobbery because I sent my sons to a private school.
DISDAIN
disdain noun [U] FORMAL when you dislike someone or something and think that they do not deserve your interest or respect: intense scorn: extreme contempt or disgust for something or somebody He regards the political process with disdai[N.] disdain verb [T] FORMAL 1 to feel disdain for someone or something: The older musicians disdain the new, rock-influenced music. 2 disdain to do sth to refuse to do something because you feel too important to do it disdainful adjective FORMAL a disdainful expression disdainfully adverb
contempt [N.] scorn; disdain. The heavyweight boxer looked on ordinary people with contempt, scorning them as weaklings who couldn’t hurt a fly. We thought it was contemptible of him to be contemptuous of people for being weak.
disdain [V.] view with scorn or contempt. In the film Funny Face, the bookish heroine disdained fashion models for their lack of intellectual interests. also [N.]
flout [V.] reject; mock; show contempt for. The painter Julian Schnabel is known for works that flout the conventions of high art, such as paintings on velvet or linoleum. Do not confuse flout with flaunt: to flaunt something is to show it off; to flout something is to show your scorn for it. Perhaps by flouting the conventions of high art, Schnabel was flaunting his ability to get away with breaking the rules.
sardonic [ADJ.] disdainful; sarcastic; cynical. The sardonic humor of nightclub comedians who satirize or ridicule patrons in the audience strikes some people as amusing and others as rude.
scurvy ADJ, despicable; contemptible. Peter Pan sneered at Captain Hook and his scurvy crew.
spurn [V.] reject; scorn The heroine spurned the villain’s advances.
OBEDIENT/DOCILE
tractable [ADJ.] docile; easily managed. Although Susan seemed a tractable young woman, she had a stubborn streak of independence that occasionally led her to defy the powers-that-be when she felt they were in the wrong. tractability, [N.]
docile [ADJ.] obedient; easily managed; obedient; easily taught As docile as he seems today, that old lion was once a ferocious, snarling beast. docility, [N.]
dutiful [ADJ.] respectful; obedient. When Mother told Billy to kiss Great-Aunt Hattie, the boy obediently gave the old woman a dutiful peck on her cheek.
DISOBEDIENT
fractious [ADJ.] unruly; disobedient; irritable. Bucking and kicking, the fractious horse unseated its rider.
froward [ADJ.] stubbornly contrary; obstinately disobedient. Miss Watson declared that Huck was a froward child, stubborn in his wickedness, and that no good would come of condoning his disobedience.
unruly [ADJ.] disobedient; lawless. The only way to curb this unruly mob is to use tear gas.
intractable [ADJ.] unruly; stubborn; unyielding. Charlie Brown’s friend Pigpen was intractable: he absolutely refused to take a bath.
mutinous [ADJ.] unruly; rebellious. The captain had to use force to quiet his mutinous crew. mutiny, [N.]
recalcitrant [ADJ.] obstinately stubborn; determined to resist authority; unruly. Which animal do you think is more recalcitrant, a pig or a mule?
DISOBEDIENT
dusky adjective LITERARY dark in colour: In autumn, the leaves turn a dusky red.
murky [ADJ.] dark and gloomy; thick with fog; vague. The murky depths of the swamp were so dark that you couldn’t tell the vines and branches from the snakes. murkiness, [N.]
swarthy [ADJ.] dark; dusky. Despite the stereotype. not all Italians are swarthy; many are fair and blond.
muddy adjective 1 covered by or containing mud: Don’t bring those muddy boots inside! muddy water 2 describes colours that are dark and not bright: The sitting-room has been painted in muddy browns and greens. muddy verb [T] to put mud into something or cover something with mud: Industrial activity has muddied the river. muddy the waters to make a situation more confused and less easy to understand or deal with
rile [V.] vex; irritate; muddy. Red had a hair-trigger temper: he was an easy man to rile.
turbid [ADJ.] muddy; having the sediment disturbed. The water was turbid after the children had waded through it.
hazy [ADJ.] slightly obscure. In hazy weather, you cannot see the top of this mountain.
DISPUTE
altercation [N.] noisy quarrel; heated dispute. In that hot tempered household, no meal ever came to a peaceful conclusion; the inevitable altercation sometimes even ended in blows.
arbiter [N.] person with power to decide a matter in dispute; judge. As an arbiter in labor disputes, she has won the confidence of the workers and the employers.
contest [V.] dispute. The defeated candidate attempted to contest the election results.
impugn [V.] dispute or contradict (often in an insulting way); challenge; gainsay. Our treasurer was furious when the finance committee’s report impugned the accuracy of his financial records and recommended that he take bonehead math.
indisputable [ADJ.] too certain to be disputed. In the face of these indisputable statements, I withdraw my complaint.
mediate [V.] settle a dispute through the services of an outsider. King Solomon was asked to mediate a dispute between two women, each of whom claimed to be the mother of the same child.
spat [N.] squabble; minor dispute. What had started out as a mere spat escalated into a full-blown argument.
DRENCH
bedraggle [V.] wet thoroughly. We were so bedraggled by the severe storm that we had to change into dry clothing. bedraggled, [ADJ.]
douse [V.] plunge into water; drench; extinguish. They doused each other with hoses and water balloons.
sodden [ADJ.] soaked; dull, as if from drink. He set his sodden overcoat near the radiator to dry.
saturate [V.] soak thoroughly. Thorough watering is the key to lawn care: you must saturate your new lawn well to encourage its growth.
steep [V.] soak; saturate. Be sure to steep the fabric in the dye bath for the full time prescribed.
quagmire [N.] soft, wet, boggy land; complex or dangerous situation from which it is difficult to free oneself. Up to her knees in mud, Myra wondered how on earth she was going to extricate herself from this quagmire.
swamp (WET LAND) US noun [C or U] (an area of) very wet soft land: an alligator-infested swamp The Everglades are an area of swamp in southern Florida. swampy US adjective describes land that is soft and very wet
ECHO
resonant [ADJ.] echoing; resounding; deep and full in sound. The deep, resonant voice of the actor James Earl Jones makes him particularly effective when he appears on stage.
reverberate [V.] echo; resound. The entire valley reverberated with the sound of the church bells.
rotundity [N.] roundness; sonorousness of speech. Washington Irving emphasized the rotundity of the governor by describing his height and circumference.
sonorous [ADJ.] resonant. His sonorous voice resounded through the hall.
MAVERICK
bizarre ADJ, fantastic; violently contrasting. The plot of the novel was too bizarre to be believed.
bohemian [ADJ.] unconventional (in an artistic way). Gertrude Stein ran off to Paris to live an eccentric, bohemian life with her writer friends. Oakland was not bohemian: it was too bourgeois, too middle-class.
crotchety [ADJ.] eccentric; whimsical. Although he was reputed to be a crotchety old gentleman, I found his ideas substantially sound and sensible.
crotchety US adjective INFORMAL bad-tempered and easily annoyed: By the time the meal began, the youngest children were getting tired and crotchety.
crotch·et·y [króchətee] adjective irritable: irritable and difficult to please (informal) eccentric [ADJ.] irregular; odd; whimsical; bizarre. The comet veered dangerously close to the earth in its eccentric orbit. People came up with some eccentric ideas for dealing with the emergency: one kook suggested tying a knot in the comet’s tail!
eccentricity [N.] oddity; idiosyncrasy. Some of his friends tried to account for his rudeness to strangers as the eccentricity of genius.
idiosyncrasy [N.] individual trait, usually odd in nature; eccentricity. One of Richard Nixon’s little idiosyncrasies was his liking for ketchup on cottage cheese. One of Hannibal Lecter’s little idiosyncrasies was his liking for human flesh. idiosyncratic, ADJ
maverick [N.] rebel; nonconformist. To the masculine literary establishment, George Sand with her insistence on wearing trousers and smoking cigars was clearly a maverick who fought her proper womanly role. .
outlandish [ADJ.] bizarre; peculiar; unconventional. The eccentric professor who engages in markedly outlandish behavior is a stock figure in novels with an academic setting.
whimsical adjective unusual and strange in a way that might be amusing or annoying: a whimsical tale Despite his kindly, sometimes whimsical air, he was a shrewd observer of people. whimsically adverb whimsicality US noun [U] FORMAL
heterodox [ADJ.] unorthodox; unconventional. To those who upheld the belief that the earth did not move, Galileo’s theory that the earth circled the sun was disturbingly heterodox.
nonconformist US noun [C] 1 someone who lives and thinks in a way which is different from other people 2 a member of a Christian group which is Protestant but does not belong to the Church of England nonconformist US adjective nonconformist behaviour a Nonconformist minister nonconformity US noun [U] (ALSO nonconformism) Her clothes were an immediate signal of her nonconformity.
the avant’garde group noun [S] (the work of) the painters, writers, musicians and other artists whose ideas, styles and methods are highly original or modern in comparison to the period in which they live: New York is the international capital of the musical avantgarde. avant-garde US adjective avant-garde art/cinema/painting It was one of the first avant-garde works to appeal to a wide audience.
articulate [ADJ.] effective; distinct. Her articulate presentation of the advertising campaign impressed her employers. also [V.]
effectual [ADJ.] able to produce a desired effect; valid. Medical researchers are concerned because of the development of drug-resistant strains of bacteria; many once-useful antibiotics are no longer effectual in curing bacterial infections.
efficacy [N.] power to produce desired effect. The efficacy of this drug depends on the regularity of the dosage. efficacious. [ADJ.] emancipate [V.] set free. At first, the attempts of the Abolitionists to emancipate the slaves were unpopular in New England as well as in the South.
unfettered [ADJ.] liberated; freed from chains. Chained to the wall for months on end, the hostage despaired that he would ever be unfettered. unfetter, [V.]
emboss v, produce a design in raised relief. The secretary of the corporation uses a special stamp to emboss the corporate seal on all official documents.
tesselated [ADJ.] inlaid; mosaic. I recall seeing a table with a tesselated top of bits of stone and glass in a very interesting patter[N.]
embroider [V.] decorate with needlework; ornament with fancy or fictitious details. For her mother’s birthday, Beth embroidered a lovely design on a handkerchief. When asked what made her late getting home, Jo embroidered her account with tales of runaway horses and rescuing people from a ditch. embroidery, [N.]
chase [V.] ornament a metal surface by indenting. With his hammer, he carefully chased an intricate design onto the surface of the chalice. (secondary meaning)
engrave verb [T] to cut words, pictures or patterns into the surface of metal, stone, etc: The jeweller skillfully engraved the initials on the ring. The bracelet was engraved with his name and date of birth. be engraved on your memory/mind to be very difficult to forget: That last conversation we had is engraved on my memory forever. engraver US noun [C] a person whose job is to engrave things engraving noun 1 [U] the activity of engraving 2 [C] a picture printed onto paper from a piece of wood or metal into which the design has been cut
mosaic [N.] picture made of small, colorful inlaid tiles. The mayor compared the city to a beautiful mosaic made up of people of every race and religion on earth. also [ADJ.]
parquet [N.] floor made of wood strips inlaid in a mosaic like patter[N.] In laying the floor, the carpenters combined redwood and oak in elegant parquet.
filigree [N.] delicate, lacelike metalwork. The pendant with gold filigree that she wore round her neck trembled with each breath she took.
FASHION/APPEARANCE fop [fop] (plural fops) noun fashion-conscious man: a man who is so obsessed by fashion and vain about his own appearance that he becomes ridiculous fop [N.] dandy; man excessively preoccupied with his clothes. People who dismissed young Mizrahi as a fop for his exaggerated garments felt chagrined when he turned into one of the top fashion designers of his day. foppish, [ADJ.]
don [V.] put o[N.] When Clark Kent had to don his Superman outfit, he changed clothes in a convenient phone booth.
preen [V.] make oneself tidy in appearance; feel self satisfaction. As Kitty preened before the mirror, carefully smoothing her shining hair, she couldn’t help preening herself on her good looks.
vogue [N.] popular fashion. Jeans became the vogue on many college campuses.
haute cou’ture noun [U] (the business of making) expensive clothes of original design and high quality
rakish [ADJ.] stylish; sporty. He wore his hat at a rakish and jaunty angle.
semblance [N.] outward appearance; guise. Although this book has a semblance of wisdom and scholarship, a careful examination will reveal many errors and omissions.
outmoded [ADJ.] no longer stylish; old-fashioned. Unconcerned about keeping in style, Lenore was perfectly happy to wear outmoded clothes as long as they were clean and unfrayed.
passé [ADJ.] old-fashioned; past the prime. Her style is passé and reminiscent of the Victorian era.
WEAKEN emasculate verb [T] 1 FORMAL to weaken or to reduce the effectiveness of something: They were accused of trying to emasculate the report’s recommendations. 2 FORMAL to make a man feel less male by taking away his power and confidence: A lot of men would feel emasculated if they stayed at home while their wives went out to work. 3 SPECIALIZED to remove the male parts of something emasculation noun [U] FORMAL
debilitate [V.] weaken; enfeeble. Michael’s severe bout of the flu debilitated him so much that he was too tired to go to work for a week.
enervate [V.] weaken. She was slow to recover from her illness; even a short walk to the window enervated her. enervation, [N.]
extenuate [V.] weaken; mitigate. It is easier for us to extenuate our own shortcomings than those of others.
flag [V.] droop; grow feeble. When the opposing hockey team scored its third goal only minutes into the first period, the home team’s spirits flagged. flagging, [ADJ.]
droop [droop] verb (past drooped, past participle drooped, present participle droop·ing, 3rd person present singular droops)
droop verb [I] 1 to bend or hang down heavily: The flowers were drooping in the heat. I can see you’re tired because your eyelids have started to droop. 2 If your spirits (= feelings of happiness) droop, you start to feel less happy and energetic. drooping adjective drooping branches Bloodhounds have drooping eyes and floppy ears. droopy adjective INFORMAL He had a long droopy moustache.
foible [N.] weakness; slight fault. We can overlook the foibles of our friends; no one is perfect.
frail [ADJ.] weak. The delicate child seemed too frail to lift the heavy carton frailty, [N.]
imbecility N weakness of mind. I am amazed at the imbecility of the readers of these trashy magazines.
impuissance [N.] powerlessness; feebleness. The lame duck president was frustrated by his shift from enormous power to relative impuissance.
indolent [ADJ.] lazy. Couch potatoes lead an indolent life lying back in their Lazyboy recliners watching T[V.] indolence, [N.]
infirmity vi. weakness. Her greatest infirmity was lack of willpower.
impotent [ADJ.] weak; ineffective. Although he wished to break the nicotine habit, he found himself impotent in resisting the craving for a cigarette.
invalidate [V.] weaken; destroy. The relatives who received little or nothing sought to invalidate the will by claiming that the deceased had not been in his right mind when he signed the document.
irresolute [ADJ.] uncertain how to act; weak. Once you have made your decision, don’t waver; a leader should never appear irresolute.
puny [ADJ.] insignificant; tiny; weak. Our puny efforts to stop the flood were futile.
doddering [ADJ.] shaky; infirm from old age. Lear’s cruel daughters treat him as a doddering old fool, too aged and infirm to be taken seriously.
undermine [V.] weaken; sap. The recent corruption scandals have undermined many people’s faith in the city government.
attenuate [V.] make thinner; weaken or lessen (in density, force, degree). The long, dry spell attenuated the creek to the merest trickle. When a meteor strikes the ground, the initially intense shock attenuates or lessens as it diverges outward.
embryonic Adj, undeveloped; rudimentary. The CEO reminisced about the good old days when the computer industry was still in its embryonic stage and start-up companies were being founded in the family garage.
inception [N.] start; beginning. She was involved with the project from its inception.
inchoate ADJ, recently begun; rudimentary; elementary. Before the Creation, the world was an inchoate mass.
incipient ADJ. beginning; in an early stage. I will go to sleep early for I want to break an incipient cold.
nascent [ADJ.] incipient; coming into being. If we could identify these revolutionary movements in their nascent state, we would be able to eliminate serious trouble in later years.
primordial [ADJ.] existing at the beginning (of time); rudimentary. The Neanderthal Man is one of our primordial ancestors.
rudimentary [ADJ.] not developed; elementary; crude. Although my grandmother’s English vocabulary was limited to a few rudimentary phrases, she always could make herself understood.
emaciated AOJ. thin and wasted. A severe illness left him acutely emaciated, and he did not recover fully until he had regained most of his lost weight.
gaunt [ADJ.] lean and angular; barren. His once-round face looked surprisingly gaunt after he had lost weight.
haggard ADJ, wasted away; gaunt. After his long illness, he was pale and haggard.
lank ADJ, long and thin. Lank, gaunt, Abraham Lincoln was a striking figure.
ENCROACH
encroachment [N.] gradual intrusion. The encroachment of the factories upon the neighborhood lowered the value of the real estate.
infringe [V.] violate; encroach. I think your machine infringes on my patent and I intend to sue.
infraction [N.] violation (of a rule or regulation); breach. When basketball star Dennis Rodman butted heads with the referee, he committed a clear infraction of LIBA rules.
intrude [V.] trespass; enter as an uninvited person. She hesitated to intrude on their conversation.
trespass (BREAK LAW) US verb [I] to go onto someone’s land or enter their building without permission: I hope this is a public footpath and we’re not trespassing on someone’s land. trespass US noun [C or U] trespasser US noun [C] Can’t you read the sign? It says ‘Trespassers will be prosecuted!’
transgression [N.] violation of a law; sin. Although Widow Douglass was willing to overlook Huck’s minor transgressions, Miss Watson refused to forgive and forget.
flout verb [T] to intentionally disobey a rule, law, or custom: Many motorcyclists flout the law by not wearing helmets. The orchestra decided to flout convention/tradition, and wear their everyday clothes for the concert.
flout [V.] reject; mock; show contempt for. The painter Julian Schnabel is known for works that flout the conventions of high art, such as paintings on velvet or linoleum. Do not confuse flout with flaunt: to flaunt something is to show it off; to flout something is to show your scorn for it. Perhaps by flouting the conventions of high art, Schnabel was flaunting his ability to get away with breaking the rules.
contravene v contradict; oppose: infringe on or transgress. Mr. Barrett did not expect his frail daughter Elizabeth to contravene his will by eloping with Robert Browning.
contravene US verb [T] FORMAL to do something that a law or rule does not permit, or to break a law or rule: This contravenes the Race Relations Act. contravention US noun [C or U] FORMAL By accepting the money, she was in contravention of company regulations. breach (BROKEN PROMISE/RULE) noun [C] an act of breaking a law, promise, agreement or relationship: They felt that our discussions with other companies constituted a breach of/in our agreement. He was sued for breach of contract. There have been serious security breaches (= breaks in our security system). (a) breach of the ‘peace LEGAL (an example of) illegal noisy or violent behaviour in a public place be in breach of sth FORMAL to be breaking a particular law or rule: The cinema was in breach of the Health and Safety Act for having no fire doors.
breach verb [T] FORMAL to break a law, promise, agreement or relationship: They breached the agreement they had made with their employer.
breach [N.] breaking of contract or duty; fissure or gap. Jill sued Jack for breach of promise, claiming he had broken their engagement. The attackers found a breach in the enemy’s fortifications and penetrated their lines. also [V.]
ENTANGLE
embroil [V.] throw into confusion; involve in strife; entangle. He became embroiled in the heated discussion when he tried to arbitrate the dispute.
enmesh verb [T] to catch or involve someone in something unpleasant or dangerous from which it is difficult to escape: The whales are caught by being enmeshed in nets. She has become enmeshed in a tangle of drugs and petty crime.
ensnare US verb [T] LITERARY to catch or get control of something or someone: Spiders ensnare flies and other insects in their webs. They wanted to make a formal complaint about their doctor, but ended up ensnared in the complexities of the legal system.
mire [V.] entangle; stick in swampy ground. Their rear wheels became mired in mud. also [N.]
ravel [V.] fall apart into tangles; unravel or untwist; entangle. A single thread pulled loose, and the entire scarf started to ravel.
DISENTANGLE
unravel [V.] disentangle; solve. With equal ease Miss Marple unraveled tangled balls of yarn and baffling murder mysteries.
extricate [V.] free; disentangle. Icebreakers were needed to extricate the trapped whales from the icy floes that closed them in.
BLAME/PUNISH
impute [V.] attribute; ascribe. If I wished to impute blame to the officers in charge of this program, I would state my feelings definitely and immediately.
censure [V.] blame; criticize. The senator was censured for behavior inappropriate to a member of Congress. also [N.]
culpable [ADJ.] deserving blame. Corrupt politicians who condone the activities of the gamblers are equally culpable.
reprehensible [ADJ.] deserving blame. Shocked by the viciousness of the bombing, politicians of every party uniformly condemned the terrorists’ reprehensible deed.
scapegoat [N.] someone who bears the blame for others. After the Challenger disaster, NASA searched for scapegoats on whom they could cast the blame.
chastise [V.] punish or scold; reprimand. Miss Watson liked nothing better than to chastise Huck for his alleged offenses.
chasten [V.] correct by punishment or scolding; restrain. No matter how much a child deserves to be chastened for doing wrong, the maxim “Spare the rod and spoil the child” never justifies physical abuse. Someone sadder but wiser has been chastened or subdued by experience.
condign [ADJ.] appropriate; deserved (almost always, in the sense of deservedly severe, as in condign punishment). To be concerned about a possible miscarriage of justice is rational; to brood over a guilty man’s just and condign punishment makes no sense.
mortify [V.] humiliate; punish the flesh. She was so mortified by her blunder that she ran to her room in tears.
penance [N.] self-imposed punishment for sin. The Ancient Mariner said, “I have penance done and penance more will do,” to atone for the sin of killing the albatross.
pillory [V.] punish by placing in a wooden frame; subject to criticism and ridicule. Even though he was mocked and pilloried, he maintained that he was correct in his beliefs. also [N.]
punitive [ADJ.] punishing. He asked for punitive measures against the offender
castigation N, punishment; severe criticism. Sensitive even to mild criticism, Woolf could not bear the castigation that she found in certain reviews. Ben Jonson was a highly moral playwright: in his plays, his purpose was to castigate vice and hypocrisy by exposing them publicly.
retribution [N.] vengeance; compensation; punishment for offenses. The evangelist maintained that an angry deity would exact retribution from the sinners.
scourge [N.] lash; whip; severe punishment. They feared the plague and regarded it as a deadly scourge. also [V.]
unfettered [ADJ.] liberated; freed from chains. Chained to the wall for months on end, the hostage despaired that he would ever be unfettered. unfetter, [V.]
enfranchise make free or set free
CLEAR FROM BLAME/SET FREE
absolve free from blame
emancipate [V.] set free. At first, the attempts of the Abolitionists to emancipate the slaves were unpopular in New England as well as in the South.
extricate [V.] free; disentangle. Icebreakers were needed to extricate the trapped whales from the icy floes that closed them in.
exculpate [V.] clear from blame. She was exculpated of the crime when the real criminal confessed.
exonerate [V.] acquit; exculpate. The defense team feverishly sought fresh evidence that might exonerate their client.
purge [V.] remove or get rid of something unwanted; free from blame or guilt; cleanse or purify. The Communist government purged the party to get rid of members suspected of capitalist sympathies, sending those believed to be disloyal to labor camps in Siberia. also [N.]
impunity [N.] freedom from punishment or harm. A 98- pound weakling can’t attack a beachfront bully with impunity: the poor, puny guy is sure to get mashed.
irreproachable [ADJ.] blameless; impeccable. Homer’s conduct at the office party was irreproachable; even Marge had nothing bad to say about how he behaved.
unimpeachable [ADJ.] blameless and exemplary. Her conduct in office was unimpeachable and her record is spotless.
vindicate [V.] clear from blame; exonerate; justify or support. The lawyer’s goal was to vindicate her client and prove him innocent on all charges. The critics’ extremely favorable reviews vindicate my opinion that The Madness of King George is a brilliant movie.
FORGIVE/PARDON
absolve [V.] pardon (an offense). The father confessor absolved him of his sins. absolution, [N.]
condone [V.] overlook; forgive; give tacit approval; excuse. Unlike Widow Douglass, who condoned Huck’s minor offenses, Miss Watson did nothing but scold.
amnesty N, pardon. When his first child was born, the king granted amnesty to all in prison.
remission [N.] temporary moderation of disease symptoms; cancellation of a debt; forgiveness or pardon Though Senator Tsongas had been treated for cancer, his symptoms were in remission, and he was considered fit to handle the strains of a presidential race.
venial [ADJ.] forgivable; trivial. When Jean Valjean stole a loaf of bread to feed his starving sister, he committed a venial offense.
discount [V.] disregard. Be prepared to discount what he has to say about his ex-wife.
heedless [ADJ.] not noticing; disregarding. She drove on, heedless of the warnings that the road was dangerous. heed, [V.]
OFFENCE
affront [N.] insult; offense; intentional act of disrespect. When Mrs. Proudie was not seated beside the Archdeacon at the head table, she took it as a personal affront and refused to speak to her hosts for a week. also [V.]
blatant [ADJ.] extremely obvious; loudly offensive. Caught in a blatant lie, the scoundrel had only one regret: he wished that he had lied more subtly. blatancy, [N.]
expurgate [V.] clean; remove offensive parts of a book. The editors felt that certain passages in the book had to be expurgated before it could be used in the classroom.
indignity [N.] offensive or insulting treatment. Although he seemed to accept cheerfully the indignities heaped upon him, he was inwardly very angry.
obnoxious [ADJ.] offensive. I find your behavior obnoxious; please mend your ways.
offensive [ADJ.] attacking; insulting; distasteful. Getting into street brawls is no minor offense for professional boxers, who are required by law to restrict their offensive impulses to the ring.
CRIME
accomplice [N.] partner in crime. Because he had provided the criminal with the lethal weapon, he was arrested as an accomplice in the murder.
complicity [N.] involvement in a crime; participation. Queen Mary’s marriage to Lord Darnley, her suspected complicity in his murder, and her hasty marriage to the earl of Bothwell stirred the Protestant lords to revolt. Although Spanish complicity in the sinking of the battleship Maine was not proved, U.S. public opinion was aroused and war sentiment rose.
connivance N, pretense of ignorance of something wrong; assistance; permission to offend. With the connivance of his friends, he plotted to embarrass the teacher. connive, [V.]
conviction [N.] judgment that someone is guilty of a crime; strongly held belief. Even her conviction for murder did not shake Lord Peter’s conviction that Harriet was innocent of the crime.
felon [N.] person convicted of a grave crime. A convicted felon loses the right to vote.
firebrand [N.] hothead; troublemaker. The police tried to keep track of all the local firebrands when the president came to tow[N.]
impeach v, charge with crime in office; indict. The angry congressman wanted to impeach the president for his misdeeds.
misdemeanor [N.] minor crime. The culprit pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor rather than face trial for a felony.
peccadillo [N.] slight offense. Whenever Huck swiped a cookie from the jar, Miss Watson reacted as if he were guilty of armed robbery, not of some mere peccadillo.
perpetrate [V.] commit an offense. Only an insane person could perpetrate such a horrible crime.
recidivism [N.] habitual return to crime. Prison reformers in the United States are disturbed by the high rate of recidi- vism; the number of persons serving second and third terms indicates the failure of the prisons to rehabilitate the inmates.
ACCUSE
Incriminate [V.] accuse; serve as evidence against. The witness’s testimony against the racketeers incriminates some high public officials as well.
indict [V.] charge. The district attorney didn’t want to indict the suspect until she was sure she had a strong enough case to convince a jury. indictment, N.
arraignment indictment
arraign [V.] charge in court; indict. After his indictment by the Grand Jury, the accused man was arraigned in the County Criminal Court.
impeach [V.] charge with crime in office; indict. The angry congressman wanted to impeach the president for his misdeeds.
EULOGISTIC/PRAISING
encomiastic [ADJ.] praising; eulogistic. Some critics believe that his encomiastic statements about Napoleon were inspired by his desire for material advancement rather than by an honest belief in the Emperor’s genius.
encomium [N.] high praise; eulogy. Uneasy with the encomiums expressed by his supporters, Tolkien felt unworthy of such high praise.
eulogistic [ADJ.] praising. To everyone’s surprise, the speech was eulogistic rather than critical in tone.
eulogy [N.] expression of praise, often on the occasion of someone’s death. Instead of delivering a spoken eulogy at Genny’s memorial service, Jeff sang a song he had written in her honor. eulogize, [V.]
exalt [V.] raise in rank or dignity; praise. The actor Sean Connery was exalted to the rank of knighthood by the Queen; he now is known as Sir Sean Connery.
extol [V.] praise; glorify. The president extolled the astronauts, calling them the pioneers of the Space Age.
anthem [N.] song of praise or patriotism. Let us now all join in singing the national anthem.
kudos [N.] honor; glory; praise. The singer complacently received kudos on his performance from his entourage.
laud [V.] praise. The NFL lauded Boomer Esiason’s efforts to raise money to combat cystic fibrosis. also [N.] laudable, laudatory. [ADJ.]
paean [N.] song of praise or joy. Paeans celebrating the victory filled the air.
panegyric [N.] formal praise. Blushing at all the praise heaped upon him by the speakers, the modest hero said, “I don’t deserve such panegyrics.”
tout [V.] publicize; praise excessively. I lost confidence in my broker after he touted some junk bonds that turned out to be a bad investment.
EXCESS
belabor [V.] explain or go over excessively or to a ridiculous degree; assail verbally. The debate coach warned her student not to bore the audience by belaboring his point.
cloying [ADJ.] distasteful (because excessive); excessively sweet or sentimental. Disliking the cloying sweetness of standard wedding cakes, Jody and Tom chose a homemade carrot cake for their reception. cloy, [V.]
dote [V.] be excessively fond of; show signs of mental decline. Not only grandmothers bore you with stories about their brilliant grandchildren; grandfathers dote on the little rascals, too.
egoism [N.] excessive interest in one’s self; belief that one should be interested in one’s self rather than in others. His egoism prevented him from seeing the needs of his colleagues.
egotistical [ADJ.] excessively self-centered; self-important; conceited. Typical egotistical remark: “But enough of this chitchat about you and your little problems. Let’s talk about what’s really important: me!” egotistic, [ADJ.] egotism. [N.]
exorbitant [ADJ.] excessive. The people grumbled at his exorbitant prices but paid them because he had a monopoly.
fanaticism [N.] excessive zeal; extreme devotion to a belief or cause. When Islamic fundamentalists demanded the death of Salman Rushdie because his novel questioned their faith, world opinion condemned them for their fanaticism, fanatic, [ADJ.], [N.]
fop [N.] dandy; man excessively preoccupied with his clothes. People who dismissed young Mizrahi as a fop for his exaggerated garments felt chagrined when he turned into one of the top fashion designers of his day. foppish, [ADJ.]
fulsome [ADJ.] disgustingly excessive. Disgusted by her fans’ fulsome admiration, the movie star retreated from the public, crying, “I want to be alone!”
glut [V.] overstock; fill to excess. The many manufacturers glutted the market and could not find purchasers for the many articles they had produced. also [N.]
gourmand [N.] epicure; person who takes excessive pleasure in food and drink. Gourmands lack self-restraint; if they enjoy a particular cuisine, they eat far too much of it.
hubris [N.] arrogance; excessive self-conceit. Filled with hubris, Lear refused to heed his friends’ warnings.
hypercritical [ADJ.] excessively exacting. You are hypercritical in your demands for perfection; we all make mistakes.
idolatry [N.] worship of idols; excessive admiration. Such idolatry of singers of country music is typical of the excessive enthusiasm of youth.
inordinate ADJ, unrestrained; excessive. She had an inordinate fondness for candy, eating two or three boxes in a single day.
meticulous [ADJ.] excessively careful; painstaking; scrupulous. Martha Stewart was a meticulous housekeeper, fussing about each and every detail that went into making up her perfect home.
mollycoddle [V.] pamper; indulge excessively. Don’t mollycoddle the boy, Maud! You’ll spoil him.
obese [ADJ.] excessively fat. It is advisable that obese people try to lose weight. obesity, [N.]
officious [ADJ.] meddlesome; excessively pushy in offering one’s services. After her long flight, Jill just wanted to nap, but the officious bellboy was intent on showing her all the special features of the deluxe suite.
ornate [ADJ.] excessively or elaborately decorated. With its elaborately carved, convoluted lines, furniture of the Baroque period was highly ornate.
parsimony [N.] stinginess; excessive frugality. Silas Marner’s parsimony did not allow him to indulge in any luxuries. parsimonious, [ADJ.]
plethora [N.] excess; overabundance. She offered a plethora of excuses for her shortcomings.
profusion [N.] overabundance; lavish expenditure; excess. Freddy was so overwhelmed by the profusion of choices on the menu that he knocked over his wine glass and soaked his host. He made profuse apologies to his host, the waiter, the busboy, the people at the next table, and the man in the men’s room giving out paper towels.
prude [N.] excessively modest or proper person. The X-rated film was definitely not for prudes.
rapacious [ADJ.] excessively grasping; plundering. Hawks and other rapacious birds prey on a variety of small animals.
redundant [ADJ.] superfluous; repetitious; excessively wordy. The bottle of wine I brought to Bob’s party was certainly redundant how was I to know Bob owned a winery? In your essay, you repeat several points unnecessarily; try to avoid redundancy in the future.
superfluous [ADJ.] excessive; overabundant, unnecessary. Please try not to include so many superfluous details in your report; just give me the bare facts. superfluity, [N.]
supernumerary [N.] person or thing in excess of what is necessary; extra. His first appearance on the stage was as a supernumerary in a Shakespearean tragedy.
surfeit [V.] satiate; stuff; indulge to excess in anything. Every Thanksgiving we are surfeited with an overabundance of holiday treats. also [N.]
tightwad [N.] excessively frugal person; miser. Jill called Jack a tightwad because he never picked up the check.
tout [V.] publicize; praise excessively. I lost confidence in my broker after he touted some junk bonds that turned out to be a bad investment.
unconscionable [ADJ.] unscrupulous; excessive. She found the loan shark’s demands unconscionable and impossible to meet.
vainglorious [ADJ.] boastful; excessively conceited. She was a vainglorious and arrogant individual.
zealot [N.] fanatic; person who shows excessive zeal. Though Glenn was devout, he was no zealot; he never tried to force his religious beliefs on his friends.
EXPLAIN
attribute [V.] ascribe; explain. I attribute her success in science to the encouragement she received from her parents.
belabor [V.] explain or go over excessively or to a ridiculous degree; assail verbally. The debate coach warned her student not to bore the audience by belaboring his point.
construe [V.] explain; interpret. If I construe your remarks correctly, you disagree with the theory already advanced.
elucidate [V.] explain; enlighten. He was called upon to elucidate the disputed points in his article.
explicate [V.] explain; interpret; clarify. Harry Levin explicated James Joyce’s novels with such clarity that even Finnegan’s Wake seemed comprehensible to his students.
expository [ADJ.] explanatory; serving to explain. The manual that came with my VCR was no masterpiece of expository prose: its explanations were so garbled that I couldn’t even figure out how to rewind a tape.
gloss over [V.] explain away. No matter how hard he tried to talk around the issue, President Bush could not gloss over the fact that he had raised taxes after all.
Luc light elucidate enlighten lucid clear translucent allowing some light to pass through
EXAMPLE
apotheosis [N.] elevation to godhood; an ideal example of something. The Roman empress Lidia envied the late emperor Augustus his apotheosis; she hoped that on her death she, too, would be exalted to the ranks of the gods. The hero of the novel Generation X was the apotheosis of a slacker, the quintessential example of a member of His generation.
epitome N, perfect example or embodiment. Singing “I am the very model of a modern Major-General” in The Pirates of Penzance, Major-General Stanley proclaimed himself the epitome of an officer and a gentleman. epitomize, [V.]
exemplify [V.] show by example; furnish an example. Three-time winner of the Super Bowl, Joe Montana exemplifies the ideal quarterback.
paradigm [N.] model; example; patter[N.] Pavlov’s experiment in which he trains a dog to salivate on hearing a bell is a paradigm of the conditioned-response experiment in behavioral psychology. paradigmatic. [ADJ.]
touchstone [N.] stone used to test the fineness of gold alloys; criterion.What touchstone can be used to measure the character of a person?
EXTINGUISH
douse [V.] plunge into water; drench; extinguish. They doused each other with hoses and water balloons.
eclipse [V.] darken; extinguish; surpass. The new stock market high eclipsed the previous record set in 1985.
quell [V.] extinguish; put down; quiet. Miss Minchin’s demeanor was so stern and forbidding that she could quell any unrest among her students with one intimidating glance.
quench [V.] douse or extinguish; assuage or satisfy. What’s the favorite song of the Fire Department? “Baby, Quench My Fire!” After Bob ate the heavily salted popcorn, he had to drink a pitcherful of water to quench his thirst.
stifle [V.] suppress; extinguish; inhibit. Halfway through the boring lecture, Laura gave up trying to stifle her yawns.
RESTRICTED
inhibit verb [T] to prevent someone from doing something, or to slow down a process or the growth of something: Some workers were inhibited (from speaking) by the presence of their managers. This drug inhibits the growth of tumours. inhibited US adjective not confident enough to say or do what you want: The presence of strangers made her feel inhibited. inhibition noun [C or U] a feeling of embarrassment or worry that prevents you from saying or doing what you want: After a couple of drinks he lost his inhibition and started talking and laughing loudly. She was determined to shed her inhibitions and have a good time.
inhibit [V.] restrain; retard or prevent. Only two things inhibited him from taking a punch at Nlike Tyson: Tyson’s left hook, and Tyson’s right jab. The protective undercoating on my car inhibits the formation of rust. inhibition, [N.]
immure [V.] imprison; shut up in confinement. For the two weeks before the examination, the student immured himself in his room and concentrated upon his studies.
indenture [V.] bind as servant or apprentice to master. Many immigrants could come to America only after they had indentured themselves for several years. also [N.]
bate [V.] let down; restrain. Until it was time to open the presents, the children had to bate their curiosity. bated. [ADJ.]
check [V.] stop motion; curb or restrain. Thrusting out her arm, Grandma checked Bobby’s lunge at his sister. “Young man,” she said, “you’d better check your temper.” (secondary meaning)
qualified [ADJ.] limited; restricted. Unable to give the candidate full support, the mayor gave him only a qualified endorsement. (secondary meaning)
circumscribe [V.] limit narrowly; confine or restrict; define. The great lords of state tried to circumscribe the queen’s power by having her accept a set of conditions that left the decisive voice in all important matters to the privy council.
confine [V.] shut in; restrict. The terrorists had confined their prisoner in a small room. However, they had not chained him to the wall or done anything else to confine his movements. confinement. [N.]
restraint [N.] moderation or self-control; controlling force; restriction. Show some restraint, young lady! Three desserts is quite enough!
apocryphal [ADJ.] spurious; not authentic; invented rather than true. Although many versions exist of the famous story of Emerson’s visit to Thoreau in jail, in his writings Thoreau never mentions any such visit by Emerson, and so the tale is most likely apocryphal.
spurious [ADJ.] false; counterfeit; forged; illogical. The hero of Jonathan Gash’s mystery novels is an antique dealer who gives the reader advice on how to tell spurious antiques from the real thing.
spurious US adjective false and not what it appears to be, or (of reasons and judgments) based on something that has not been correctly understood and therefore false: Some of the arguments in favour of shutting the factory are questionable and others downright spurious.
bogus [ADJ.] counterfiet; not authentic. The police quickly found the distributors of the bogus twenty-dollar bills.
supposititious [ADJ.] assumed: counterfeit; hypothetical. I find no similarity between your supposititious illustration and the problem we are facing.
counterfeit US adjective made to look like the original of something, usually for dishonest or illegal purposes: counterfeit jewellery/passports/coins counterfeit US noun [C] This watch may be a counterfeit, but it looks just like the original. counterfeit US verb [T] Two women and a man have been convicted of counterfeiting $100 bills.
IMPRISON
incarcerate v. imprison. The civil rights workers were willing to be arrested and even incarcerated if by their imprisonment they could serve the cause.
immure v. imprison; shut up in confinement. For the two weeks before the examination, the student immured himself in his room and concentrated upon his studies.
FEIGN
dissimulate [V.] pretend; conceal by feigning. Although the governor tried to dissimulate his feelings about the opposing candidate, we all knew he despised his rival.
feign [V.] pretend. Lady Macbeth feigned illness in the courtyard although she was actually healthy.
malingerer [N.] one who feigns illness to escape duty. The captain ordered the sergeant to punish all malingerers and force them to work. malinger, [V.]
simulate [V.] feign She simulated insanity in order to avoid punishment for her crime.
unfeigned [ADJ.] genuine; real. She turned so pale that I am sure her surprise was unfeigned.
factitious [ADJ.] artificial, sham. Hollywood actresses often create factitious tears by using glycerine.
sham [V.] pretend. She shammed sickness to get out of going to school. also [N.]
shoddy [ADJ.] sham; not genuine; inferior. You will never get the public to buy such shoddy material.
DISGUISE
camouflage [V.] disguise; conceal. In order to rescue Han Solo, Princess Leia camouflaged herself in the helmet and cloak of a space bandit. also [N.]
dissemble [V.] disguise; pretend. Even though John tried to dissemble his motive for taking modern dance, we all knew he was there not to dance but to meet girls.
quack [N.] charlatan; impostor. Do not be misled by the exorbitant claims of this quack; he cannot cure you.
incognito ADV with identity concealed; using an assumed name. The monarch enjoyed traveling through the town incognito and mingling with the populace. also ADJ.
incognito US adverb avoiding being recognized, by changing your name or appearance: The prince often travelled abroad incognito.
in·cog·ni·to [ìn kog n tō] adjective , adverb in disguise: with the identity disguised or hidden, for example, under an assumed name imposture [N.] assuming a false identity; masquerade. She was imprisoned for her imposture of a doctor.
mountebank [N.] charlatan: boastful pretender. The patent medicine man was a mountebank.
charlatan [N.] quack; pretender to knowledge. When they realized that the Wizard didn’t know how to get them back to Kansas, Dorothy and her friends were sure they’d been duped by a charlatan.
masquerade as sb/sth phrasal verb to pretend or appear to be someone or something: Hooligans masquerading as football fans have once again caused disturbances.
TRICK/DECEIVE
feint [N.] trick; shift; sham blow. The boxer was fooled by his opponent’s feint and dropped his guard. also [V.]
hoax [N.] trick; practical joke. Embarrassed by the hoax, she reddened and left the room. also [V.]
swindle verb [T] to obtain money dishonestly from someone by deceiving or cheating them: They swindled local businesses out of thousands of pounds. swindle noun [C] Fraud-squad officers are investigating a £5.6 million swindle. swindler US noun [C]
ruse [N.] trick; stratagem. You will not be able to fool your friends with such an obvious ruse.
artifice [N.] deception; trickery. The Trojan War proved to the Greeks that cunning and artifice were often more effective than military might.
chisel [V.] swindle or cheat; cut with a chisel. That crook chiseled me out of a hundred dollars when he sold me that “marble” statue he’d chiseled out of some cheap hunk of rock.
chicanery [N.] trickery; deception. Those sneaky lawyers misrepresented what occurred, made up all sorts of implausible alternative scenarios to confuse the jurors, and in general depended on chicanery to win the case.
gull v, trick; hoodwink. Confident no one could gull him, Paul prided himself on his skeptical disposition.
outwit [V.] outsmart; trick. By disguising himself as an old woman, Holmes was able to outwit his pursuers and escape capture.
stratagem [N.] clever trick; deceptive scheme. What a gem of a stratagem! Watson, I have the perfect plan to trick Moriarty into revealing himself
waggish [ADJ.] mischievous; humorous; tricky. He was a prankster who, unfortunately, often overlooked the damage he could cause with his waggish tricks. wag, N
con (TRICK) US verb [T] -nn- INFORMAL to make someone believe something false, usually so that they will give you their money or possessions: She felt she had been conned into buying the car. Thieves conned him out of his life savings. He managed to con £20 out of them (= get that amount from them by deceiving them).
con US noun [C] INFORMAL a trick to get someone’s money, or make them do what you want: It’s a con - you get half the food for twice the price! a con trick
dupe US verb [T] to deceive someone, usually making them do something they did not intend to do: The girls were duped by drug smugglers into carrying heroin for them. dupe US noun [C] someone who has been tricked: an innocent dupe
hoodwink verb [T] to deceive or trick someone: He hoodwinked us into agreeing.
CLEVER/CUNNING
astute [ADJ.] wise; shrewd; keen. The painter was an astute observer, noticing every tiny detail of her model’s appearance and knowing exactly how important each one was.
canny [ADJ.] shrewd; thrifty. The canny Scotsman was more than a match for the swindlers.
ingenious [ADJ.] clever; resourceful. Kit admired the ingenious way that her computer keyboard opened up to reveal the built-in CD-ROM below. ingenuity, [N.]
repartee [N.] clever reply. He was famous for his witty repartee and his sarcasm.
sagacious [ADJ.] perceptive; shrewd; having insight. My father was a sagacious judge of character: he could spot a phony a mile away. sagacity, [N.]
shrewd [ADJ.] clever; astute. A shrewd investor, she took clever advantage of the fluctuations of the stock market.
artifice [N.] deception; trickery. The Trojan War proved to the Greeks that cunning and artifice were often more effective than military might.
guile [N.] deceit; duplicity; wiliness; cunning. lago uses considerable guile to trick Othello into believing that Desdemona has been unfaithful. guile noun [U] FORMAL clever but sometimes dishonest behaviour that you use to deceive someone: The President will need to use all her political guile to stay in power. He is a simple, honest man, totally lacking in guile. guileless adjective FORMAL honest, not able to deceive: She regarded him with wide, guileless blue eyes.
wily [ADJ.] cunning; artful. She is as wily as a fox in avoiding trouble.
artful [ADJ.] cunning; crafty; sly. By using accurate details to suggest a misleading picture of the whole, the artful propagandist turns partial truths into more effective instruments of deception than lies.
SEPARATE/
bifurcated [ADJ.] divided into two branches; forked. With a bifurcated branch and a piece of elastic rubber, he made a crude but effective slingshot.
ramify [V.] divide into branches or subdivisions. When the plant begins to ramify, it is advisable to nip off most of the new branches.
schism [N.] division; split. Let us not widen the schism by further bickering.
dichotomy [N.] split; branching into two parts (especially contradictory ones). Willie didn’t know how to resolve the dichotomy between his ambition to go to college and his childhood longing to run away and join the circus. Then he heard about Ringling Brothers Circus College, and he knew he’d found his school.
cleave [V.] split or sever; cling to; remain faithful to. With her heavy cleaver, Julia Child can cleave a whole roast duck in two. Soaked through, the soldier tugged at the uniform that cleaved annoyingly to his body. He would cleave to his post, come rain or shine. cleavage, [N.] cloven, [ADJ.]
cleft [N.] split. Trying for a fresh handhold, the mountain climber grasped the edge of a cleft in the sheer rockface. also [ADJ.]
polarize [V.] split into opposite extremes or camps. The abortion issue has polarized the country into pro-choice and anti-abortion camps.
rend [V.] split; tear apart. In his grief, he tried to rend his garments. rent, [N.]
rent [N.] rip; split. Kit did an excellent job of mending the rent in the lining of her coat. rend, [V.]
abscission [N.] removal by cutting off, as in surgery; separation. Gas gangrene spreads so swiftly and is so potentially deadly that doctors advise abscission of the gangrenous tissue. When a flower or leaf separates naturally from the parent plant, this process is called abscission or leaf fall.
alienate [V.] make hostile; separate. Her attempts to alienate the two friends failed because they had complete faith in each other.
discrete [ADJ.] separate; unconnected; consisting of distinct parts. In programmed instruction, the information to be learned is presented in discrete units; you must respond correctly to each unit before you may advance to the next. Because human populations have been migrating and intermingling for hundreds of centuries, it is hard to classify humans into discrete racial groups. Do not confuse discrete (separate) with discreet (prudent in speech and actions).
disengage [V.] uncouple; separate; disconnect. A standard movie routine involves the hero’s desperate attempt to disengage a railroad car from a moving train.
disjointed [ADJ.] lacking coherence; separated at the joints. Unable to think of anything to say about the assigned topic, the unprepared student scribbled a few disjointed sentences on his answer sheet.
disjunction N, act or state of separation; disunity. Believing the mind could greatly affect the body’s health, the holistic doctor rejected the notion of a necessary disjunction of mind and body.
estranged [ADJ.] separated; alienated. The estranged wife sought a divorce. estrangement, [N.]
sever v, cut: separate. Dr. Guillotin invented a machine that could neatly sever an aristocratic head from its equally aristocratic body. Unfortunately, he couldn’t collect any severance pay.
sunder [V.] separate; part. Northern and southern Ireland are politically and religiously sundered.
winnow [V.] sift; separate good parts from bad. This test will winnow out the students who study from those who don’t bother.
amputate [V.] cut off part of body; prune. When the doctors had to amputate Ted Kennedy’s leg to prevent the spread of cancer, he did not let the loss of his leg keep him from participating in sports.
dismember v, cut into small parts. When the Austrian Empire was dismembered, several new countries were established.
dissection [N.] analysis; cutting apart in order to examine. The dissection of frogs in the laboratory is particularly unpleasant to some students.
excise v, cut away; cut out. When you excise the dead and dying limbs of a tree, you not only improve its appearance but also enhance its chances of bearing fruit. excision, [N.]
fell [V.] cut or knock down: bring down (with a missile). Crying “Timber!” Paul Bunyan felled the mighty redwood tree. Robin Hood loosed his arrow and felled the king’s deer.
hew [V.] cut to pieces with ax or sword. The cavalry rushed into the melee and hewed the enemy with their swords, [N.]
prune [V.] cut away; trim. With the help of her editor, she was able to prune her manuscript into publishable form.
retrench [V.] cut down; economize. If they were to be able to send their children to college, they would have to retrench.
whittle [V.] pare; cut off bits. As a present for Aunt Polly, Tom whittled some clothespins out of a chunk of wood.
FREE
gratis AD[V.] free. The company offered to give one package gratis to every purchaser of one of their products. also [ADJ.]
gratuitous [ADJ.] given freely; unwarranted; uncalled for. Quit making gratuitous comments about my driving; no one asked you for your opinion.
gratuity N, tip. Many service employees rely more on gratuities than on salaries for their livelihood.
garish [ADJ.] over bright in color; gaudy. She wore a rhinestone necklace with a garish red and gold dress trimmed with sequins.
meretricious [ADJ.] flashy; tawdry. Her jewels were inexpensive but not meretricious.
tawdry ADJ, cheap and gaudy. He won a few tawdry trinkets at Coney Island.
gaudy [ADJ.] flashy; showy. The newest Trump skyscraper is typically gaudy, covered in gilded panels that gleam in the sun.
baroque [ADJ.] highly ornate. Accustomed to the severe, angular lines of modern skyscrapers, they found the flamboyance of baroque architecture amusing.
rococo [ADJ.] ornate; highly decorated. The rococo style in furniture and architecture, marked by scrollwork and excessive decoration, flourished during the middle of the eighteenth century.
flamboyant ADJ, ornate. Modern architecture has discarded the flamboyant trimming on buildings and emphasizes simplicity of line.
ornate [ADJ.] excessively or elaborately decorated. With its elaborately carved, convoluted lines, furniture of the Baroque period was highly ornate.
LOOK
Wink: aankh maarna wink [wingk] verb (past winked, past participle winked, present participle wink·ing, 3rd person present singular winks)
ogle [V.] look at amorously; make eyes at. At the coffee house, Walter was too shy to ogle the pretty girls openly; instead, he peeked out at them from behind a rubber plant.
glower v, scowl. The angry boy glowered at his father. scowl verb [I] to look at someone or something with a very annoyed expression: The boy scowled at her and reluctantly followed her back into school. scowl noun [C]
FLUENT/TALK
facile [ADJ.] easily accomplished; ready or fluent; superficial. Words came easily to Jonathan: he was a facile speaker and prided himself on being ready to make a speech at a moment’s notice. facility, [N.]
glib [ADJ.] fluent; facile; slick. Keeping up a steady patter to entertain his customers, the kitchen gadget salesman was a glib speaker, never at a loss for a word.
voluble [ADJ.] fluent; glib; talkative. An excessively voluble speaker suffers from logorrhea: he continually runs off at the mouth! volubility, [N.]
TALK/DISCUSS
drone [V.] talk dully; buzz or murmur like a bee. On a gorgeous day, who wants to be stuck in a classroom listening to the teacher drone?
expatiate [V.] talk at length. At this time, please give us a brief resume of your work; we shall permit you to expatiate later.
garrulous [ADJ.] loquacious; wordy; talkative. My Uncle Henry can out-talk any other three people I know. He is the most garrulous person in Cayuga County. garrulity, N
rant [V.] rave; talk excitedly; scold; make a grandiloquent speech. When he heard that I’d totaled the family car, Dad began to rant at me like a complete madman.
soliloquy [N.] talking to oneself. The soliloquy is a device used by the dramatist to reveal a character’s innermost thoughts and emotions.
taciturn [ADJ.] habitually silent; talking little. The stereotypical cowboy is a taciturn soul, answering lengthy questions with a “Yep” or “Nope.”
voluble [ADJ.] fluent; glib; talkative. An excessively voluble speaker suffers from logorrhea: he continually runs off at the mouth! volubility, [N.]
address [V.] direct a speech to; deal with or discuss. Due to address the convention in July, Brown planned to address the issue of low-income housing in his speech.
bandy [V.] discuss lightly or glibly; exchange (words) heatedly. While the president was happy to bandy patriotic generalizations with anyone who would listen to him, he refused to bandy words with unfriendly reporters at the press conference.
colloquy [N.] informal discussion. While a colloquium often is a formal seminar or conference, a colloquy traditionally is merely a conversational exchange.
discourse [N.] formal discussion; conversation. The young Plato was drawn to the Agora to hear the philosophical discourse of Socrates and his followers. also [V.]
elicit [V.] draw out by discussion. the detectives tried to elicit where he had hidden his loot.
gambol [V.] romp; skip about; leap playfully. Watching the children gambol in the park, Betty marveled at their youthful energy and zest. also [N.]
frisky adjective INFORMAL (of a person or an animal) playful or full of activity: It’s a beautiful horse but a bit too frisky for an inexperienced rider. friskily adverb friskiness noun [U] frisk verb [I] to move around in a happy, energetic way: a postcard with a picture of lambs frisking in the fields
prance US verb 1 [I + adverb or preposition] to walk in an energetic way and with more movement than necessary: It’s pathetic to see fifty-year-old rock stars prancing around on stage as if they were still teenagers. She pranced into the office and demanded to speak to the manager. 2 [I] When a horse prances it takes small, quick steps and raises its legs higher than usual.
romp US verb [I usually + adverb or preposition] to play in a rough, excited and noisy way: The children romped happily around/about in the garden. romp home/in UK to win easily: She is riding the fastest horse and is certain to romp home. romp US noun [C usually singular] an amusing, energetic and often sexual entertainment or situation: The newspaper headline was ‘Vicar Caught In Sex Romp’.
romp through sth phrasal verb INFORMAL to successfully do something, quickly and easily: Rory expected to romp through the test and interviews.
HAIR
ciliated [ADJ.] having minute hairs. The paramecium is a ciliated, one-celled animal.
coiffure [N.] hairstyle. You can make a statement with your choice of coiffure: in the ‘60’s many African-Americans affirmed their racial heritage by wearing their hair in Afros.
hackles [N.] hairs on back and neck, especially of a dog. The dog’s hackles rose and he
hirsute AD.). hairy. He was a hirsute individual with a heavy black beard.
molt [V.] shed or cast off hair or feathers. When Molly’s canary molted, he shed feathers all over the house.
HINT
implication [N.] something hinted at or suggested. When Miss Watson said she hadn’t seen her purse since the last time Jim was in the house, the implication was that she suspected Jim had taken it.
inkling [N.] hint. This came as a complete surprise to me as I did not have the slightest inkling of your plans.
innuendo [N.] hint; insinuation. I can defend myself against direct accusations; innuendos and oblique attacks on my character are what trouble me.
insinuate [V.] hint; imply; creep in. When you said I looked robust, did you mean to insinuate that I’m getting fat?
intimate [V.] hint. She intimated rather than stated her preferences.
whiff [N.] puff or gust (of air, scent, etc.); hint. The slightest whiff of Old Spice cologne brought memories of George to her mind.
ROBBERY/PLUNDER/STEAL
heist noun [C] INFORMAL a crime in which valuable items are taken illegally and often violently from a place or person: a $2 million jewellery heist
larceny [N.] theft. Because of the prisoner’s record, the district attorney refused to reduce the charge from grand larceny to petty larceny.
embezzlement [N.] stealing. The bank teller confessed his embezzlement of the funds.
filch [V.] steal. The boys filched apples from the fruit stand.
kleptomaniac N, person who has a compulsive desire to steal. They discovered that the wealthy customer was a kleptomaniac when they caught her stealing some cheap trinkets.
plagiarize [V.] steal another’s ideas and pass them off as one’s own. The teacher could tell that the student had plagiarized parts of his essay; she recognized whole paragraphs straight from Barron’s Book Notes. plagiarism, [N.]
depredation [N.] plundering. After the depredations of the invaders, the people were penniless.
flay [V.] strip off skin; plunder; whip; attack with harsh criticism. The reviewer’s stinging comments flayed the actress’s sensitive spirit. How could she go on, after such a vicious attack?
fleece [V.] rob; plunder. The tricksters fleeced him of his inheritance.
pillage [V.] plunder. The enemy pillaged the quiet village and left it in ruins. also [N.]
ravage [V.] plunder; despoil. The marauding army ravaged the countryside.
HESITATE
demur [V.] object (because of doubts, scruples); hesitate. When offered a post on the board of directors, David demurred: he had scruples about taking on the job because he was unsure he could handle it in addition to his other responsibilities.
falter [V.] hesitate. When told to dive off the high board. she did not falter, but proceeded at once.
flinch v, hesitate; shrink. She did not flinch in the face of danger but fought back bravely.
scruple [V.] fret about; hesitate, for ethical reasons. Fearing that her husband had become involved in an affair, she did not scruple to read his diary, also [N.]
ABOUT TO HAPPEN
imminent [ADJ.] near at hand; impending. Rosa was such a last-minute worker that she could never start writing a paper till the deadline was imminent.
impending [ADJ.] nearing; approaching. The entire country was saddened by the news of his impending death.
loom (WORRY) verb [I] If an unwanted or unpleasant event looms, it seems likely to happen soon and causes worry: Her exams are looming. Here, too, the threat of unemployment has been looming on the horizon. The threat of closure looms over the workforce. loom large If something looms large, it becomes very important and often causes worry: The issue of pay will loom large at this Easter’s teacher conference. looming adjective (of something unwanted or unpleasant) happening soon and causing worry: the looming crisis
forthcoming (SOON) US adjective [before noun] happening soon: We have just received the information about the forthcoming conference.
IMPARTIAL
dispassionate [ADJ.] calm; impartial. Known in the company for his cool judgment, Bill could impartially examine the causes of a problem, giving a dispassionate analysis of what had gone wrong, and go on to suggest how to correct the mess.
equitable [ADJ.] fair; impartial. I am seeking an equitable solution to this dispute, one that will be fair and acceptable to both sides.
evenhanded [ADJ.] impartial; fair. Do men and women receive evenhanded treatment from their teachers, or, as recent studies suggest, do teachers pay more attention to male students than to females?
impartial [ADJ.] not biased; fair. Knowing she could not be impartial about her own child, Jo refused to judge any match in which Billy was competing. impartiality, [N.]
disinterested ADJ, unprejudiced. Given the judge’s political ambitions and the lawyers’ financial interest in the case, the only disinterested person in the courtroom may have been the court reporter.
equity [N.] fairness; justice. Our courts guarantee equity to all.
objective [ADJ.] not influenced by emotions; fair. Even though he was her son, she tried to be objective about his behavior.
PARTIAL/BIASED
discriminating [ADJ.] able to see differences; prejudiced. A superb interpreter of Picasso, she was sufficiently discriminating to judge the most complex works of modern art. discrimination, [N.]
disinterested ADJ, unprejudiced. Given the judge’s political ambitions and the lawyers’ financial interest in the case, the only disinterested person in the courtroom may have been the court reporter.
jaundiced [ADJ.] prejudiced (envious, hostile, or resentful); yellowed. Because Sue disliked Carolyn, she looked at Carolyn’s paintings with a jaundiced eye, calling them formless smears. Newborn infants afflicted with jaundice look slightly yellow: they have jaundiced ski[N.]
partiality [N.] inclination; bias. As a judge, not only must I be unbiased, but I must also avoid any evidence of partiality when I award the prize.
partisan [ADJ.] one-sided; prejudiced; committed to a party. Rather than joining forces to solve our nation’s problems, the Democrats and Republicans spend their time on partisan struggles. also [N.]
tendentious [ADJ.] having an aim; biased; designed to further a cause. The editorials in this periodical are tendentious rather than truth-seeking.
stereotype [N.] fixed and unvarying representation; standardized mental picture, often reflecting prejudice. Critics object to the character of Jim in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because he seems to reflect the stereotype of the happy, ignorant slave. also [V.]
ADDICTED
ingrained [ADJ.] deeply established; firmly rooted. Try as they would, the missionaries were unable to uproot the ingrained superstitions of the natives.
inveterate [ADJ.] deep-rooted; habitual. She is an inveterate smoker and cannot break the habit.
incorrigible ADJ. uncorrectable; impossible to correct or reform. Though Widow Douglass hoped to reform Huck, Miss Watson pronounced him incorrigible and said he would come to no good end.
inured [ADJ.] accustomed; hardened. She became inured to the Alaskan cold.
mendacious [ADJ.] lying; habitually dishonest. Distrusting Huck from the start, Miss Watson assumed he was mendacious and refused to believe a word he said. mendacity, [N.]
wont [N.] custom; habitual procedure. As was her wont, she jogged two miles every morning before going to work.
unwonted [ADJ.] unaccustomed. He hesitated to assume the unwonted role of master of ceremonies at the dinner.
TRIP
jaunt [N.] trip; short journey. He took a quick jaunt to Atlantic City.
junket [N.] trip, especially one taken for pleasure by an official at public expense. Though she maintained she had gone abroad to collect firsthand data on the Common Market, the opposition claimed that her trip was merely a political junket.
itinerary [N.] plan of a trip. Disliking sudden changes in plans when she traveled abroad, Ethel refused to make any alterations in her itinerary.
peregrination N, journey. Auntie Mame was a world traveler whose peregrinations took her from Tijuana to Timbuktu.
trek [N.] travel; journey. The tribe made their trek further north that summer in search of game. also [V.]
embark [V.] commence; go on board a boat; begin a journey. In devoting herself to the study of gorillas, Dian Fossey embarked on a course of action that was to cost her life.
malingerer [N.] one who feigns illness to escape duty. The captain ordered the sergeant to punish all malingerers and force them to work. malinger, [V.]
shirk [V.] avoid (responsibility, work, etc.); malinger. Brian has a strong sense of duty; he would never shirk any responsibility.
shun [V.] keep away from; AVOID CONSTANTLY. Cherishing his solitude, the recluse shunned the company of other human beings.
slovenly [ADJ.] untidy; careless in work habits. Unshaven, sitting around in his bathrobe all afternoon, Gus didn’t care about the slovenly appearance he presented. sloven, [N.]
tru·an·cy [tr ənsee] (plural tru·an·cies) noun
doleful [ADJ.] mournful; causing sadness. Eeyore, the lugubrious donkey immortalized by A. A. Milne, looked at his cheerful friend Tigger and sighed a doleful sigh.
lugubrious [ADJ.] mournful. The lugubrious howling of the dogs added to our sadness.
melancholy [ADJ.] gloomy; morose; blue. To Eugene, stuck in his small town, a train whistle was a melancholy sound, for it made him think of all the places he would never get to see.
melancholy [ADJ.] gloomy; morose; blue. To Eugene, stuck in his small town, a train whistle was a melancholy sound, for it made him think of all the places he would never get to see.
somber [ADJ.] gloomy; depressing. From the doctor’s grim expression, I could tell he had somber news.
plaintive AUJ. mournful. The dove has a plaintive and melancholy call.
rue [V.] regret; lament; mourn. Tina rued the night she met Tony and wondered how she ever fell for such a jerk. also [N.] rueful, [ADJ.]
stygian [ADJ.] gloomy; hellish; deathly. Shielding the flickering candle from any threatening draft. Tom and Becky descended into the stygian darkness of the underground caver[N.] Stygian derives from Styx, the chief river in the subterranean land of the dead.
TYPES OF MEAT
bacon noun [U] (thin slices of) meat from the back or sides of a pig which is often eaten fried: a bacon sandwich a slice/rasher of bacon bacon and eggs
beef (MEAT) noun [U] 1 the flesh of cattle which is eaten: The spaghetti sauce is made with UK minced/US ground beef. People in England often have roast beef and Yorkshire pudding for lunch on Sundays. He is a beef cattle farmer.
broiler noun [C] a young chicken suitable for roasting or grilling
chicken (BIRD) noun [C or U] a type of bird kept on a farm for its eggs or its meat, or the meat of this bird which is cooked and eaten: In battery farms, chickens are kept in tiny cages. A male chicken is called a cock and a female chicken is called a he[N.] We’re having roast/fried chicken for dinner.
gammon MAINLY UK noun [U] (US USUALLY ham) meat taken from the back leg or side of a pig and preserved with smoke or salt
ham (MEAT) noun [C or U] pig’s meat from the leg or shoulder, preserved with salt or smoke
lamb noun [C or U] a young sheep, or the flesh of a young sheep eaten as meat: lambs gamboling about in the fields lamb chops roast lamb See also mutton.
mutton noun [U] the meat from an adult sheep eaten as food
pork noun [U] meat from a pig, eaten as food: a pork chop pork sausages
turkey (BIRD) noun [C or U] a large bird grown for its meat on farms, or its flesh used as food: (a) roast turkey a wild turkey
veal noun [U] meat from a very young cow
venison noun [U] meat that comes from a deer
mottled ADJ, blotched in coloring; spotted. When old Falstaff blushed, his face became mottled, all pink and purple and red.
piebald [ADJ.] of different colors; mottled; spotted. You should be able to identify Polka Dot in this race; he is the only piebald horse running.
pied [ADJ.] variegated; multicolored. The Pied Piper of Hamelin got his name from the multicolored clothing he wore.
variegated [ADJ.] many-colored. Without her glasses, Gretchen saw the fields of tulips as a variegated blur.
fleck [V.] spot. Pollack’s coveralls, flecked with paint, bore witness to the sloppiness of the spatter school of art.
brindled [ADJ.] tawny or grayish with streaks or spots. He was disappointed in the litter because the puppies were brindled; he had hoped for animals of a uniform color.
dappled [ADJ.] spotted. The sunlight filtering through the screens created a dappled effect on the wall.
neophyte [N.] recent convert; beginner. This mountain slope contains slides that will challenge experts as well as neophytes.
rookie noun [C] MAINLY US INFORMAL a person who is new to an organization or an activity: These rookie cops don’t know anything yet.
amateur US adjective 1 taking part in an activity for pleasure, not as a job: an amateur astronomer/boxer/historian He was an amateur singer until the age of 40, when he turned professional. Compare professional at profession. 2 relating to an activity, especially a sport, where the people taking part do not receive money: amateur athletics amateur US noun [C] 1 a person who takes part in an activity for pleasure, not as a job: This tennis tournament is open to both amateurs and professionals. Compare professional at profession. 2 DISAPPROVING someone who lacks skill in what they do: I won’t be giving them any more work - they’re a bunch of amateurs. amateurish US adjective DISAPPROVING lacking skill, or showing a lack of skill: Their website looks amateurish. amateurishly US adverb DISAPPROVING amateurishness US noun [U] DISAPPROVING
dilettante [N.] aimless follower of the arts; amateur; dabbler. According to Turgenev, without painstaking work, any writer or artist remains a dilettante. In an age of increasing professionalism, the terms amateur and dilettante have taken on negative connotations they did not originally possess.
tyro [N.] beginner; novice. For a mere tyro, you have produced some marvelous results.
dabble (TRY) verb [I] to take a slight and not very serious interest in a subject, or try a particular activity for a short period: He first dabbled in politics when he was at law school. She dabbled with drugs at university. dabbler US noun [C]
novice [N.] beginner. Even a novice at working with computers can install Barron’s Computer Study Program for the GRE by following the easy steps outlined in the users manual.
unfledged [ADJ.] immature. It is hard for an unfledged writer to find a sympathetic publisher.
fledgling [ADJ.] inexperienced. The folk dance club set up an apprentice program to allow fledgling dance callers a chance to polish their skills. also [N.]
callow [ADJ.] youthful; immature; inexperienced. As a freshman, Jack was sure he was a man of the world; as a sophomore, he made fun of freshmen as callow youths. In both cases, his judgment showed just how callow he was.
jejune adjective FORMAL DISAPPROVING very simple or childish: He made jejune generalizations about how all students were lazy and never did any work.
SMALL AMOUNT
exiguous [ADJ.] small; minute. Grass grew here and there, an exiguous outcropping among the rocks
minute [ADJ.] extremely small. The twins resembled one another closely; only minute differences set them apart.
meager [ADJ.] scanty; inadequate. Still hungry after his meager serving of porridge, Oliver Twist asked for a second helping.
scanty [ADJ.] meager; insufficient. Thinking his helping of food was scanty, Oliver Twist asked for more.
skimp [V.] provide scantily; live very economically. They were forced to skimp on necessities in order to make their limited supplies last the winter.
sparse [ADJ.] not thick; thinly scattered; scanty. No matter how carefully Albert combed his hair to make it appear as full as possible, it still looked sparse.
dearth N, scarcity. The dearth of skilled labor compelled the employers to open trade schools.
paucity [N.] scarcity. They closed the restaurant because the paucity of customers made it uneconomical to operate.
iota [N.] very small quantity. She hadn’t an iota of common sense.
whit [N.] smallest speck; shred; tiny bit. There’s not one whit of truth in your allegations.
infinitesimal [ADJ.] very small. In the twentieth century, physicists have made their greatest discoveries about the characteristics of infinitesimal objects like the atom and its parts.
Lilliputian ADJ, extremely small. Tiny and delicate, the model was built on a Lilliputian scale. also [N.]
mote [N.] small speck. The tiniest mote in the eye is very painful.
petty [ADJ.] trivial; unimportant; very small. She had no major complaints to make about his work, only a few petty quibbles that were almost too minor to state.
pittance [N.] a small allowance or wage. He could not live on the pittance he received as a pension and had to look for an additional source of revenue.
MARRIAGE RELATED
nuptial ADJ, related to marriage. Reluctant to be married in a traditional setting, they decided to hold their nuptial ceremony at the carousel in Golden Gate Park. nuptials, [N.] PL.
marital [ADJ.] pertaining to marriage. After the publication of his book on marital affairs, he was often consulted by married people on the verge of divorce.
troth [N.] pledge of good faith especially in betrothal. He gave her his troth and vowed to cherish her always.
conjugal [ADJ.] pertaining to marriage. Their dreams of conjugal bliss were shattered as soon as their temperaments clashed.
connubial [ADJ.] pertaining to marriage or the matrimonial state. In his telegram, he wished the newlyweds a lifetime of connubial bliss.
DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND/MYSTERIOUS
arcane [ADJ.] secret; mysterious; known only to the initiated. Secret brotherhoods surround themselves with arcane rituals and trappings to mystify outsiders. So do doctors. Consider the arcane terminology they use and the impression they try to give that what is arcane to us is obvious to them.
abstruse [ADJ.] obscure; profound; difficult to understand. Baffled by the abstruse philosophical texts assigned in class, Dave asked Lexy to explain Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason.
cryptic [ADJ.] mysterious; hidden; secret. Thoroughly baffled by Holmes’s cryptic remarks, Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.
esoteric [ADJ.] hard to understand; known only to the chosen few. New Yorker short stories often include esoteric allusions to obscure people and events. The implication is, if you are in the in-crowd you’ll get the reference; if you come from Cleveland, you won’t. esoterica, [N.]
illuminate [V.] brighten; clear up or make understandable; enlighten. Just as a lamp can illuminate a dark room, a perceptive comment can illuminate a knotty problem.
inscrutable [ADJ.] impenetrable; not readily understood; mysterious. Experienced poker players try to keep their expressions inscrutable, hiding their reactions to the cards behind a so-called poker face.
occult [ADJ.] mysterious; secret; supernatural. The occult rites of the organization were revealed only to members. also [N.]
plumb [V.] examine critically in order to understand; measure depth (by sounding). Try as he would, Watson could never fully plumb the depths of Holmes’s thought processes.
profound [ADJ.] deep; not superficial; complete. Freud’s remarkable insights into human behavior caused his fellow scientists to honor him as a profound thinker. profundity, [N.]
recondite [ADJ.] abstruse; profound; secret. He read many recondite books in order to obtain the material for his scholarly thesis.
runic [ADJ.] mysterious; set down in an ancient alphabet. Tolkien’s use of Old English words and inscriptions in the runic alphabet give The Lord of the Rings its atmosphere of antiquity.
enigmatic [ADJ.] obscure; puzzling. Many have sought to fathom the enigmatic smile of the Mona Lisa.
hermetic [ADJ.] obscure and mysterious; occult. It is strange to consider that modern chemistry originated in the hermetic teachings of the ancient alchemists. (secondary meaning)
obscure [ADJ.] dark; vague; unclear. Even after I read the poem a fourth time, its meaning was still obscure. obscurity, [N.]
obscure [V.] darken; make unclear. At times he seemed purposely to obscure his meaning, preferring mystery to clarity.
unaccountable [ADJ.] inexplicable; unreasonable or mysterious. I have taken an unaccountable dislike to my doctor: “I do not love thee, Doctor Fell. The reason why, I cannot tell.”
uncanny [ADJ.] strange: mysterious. You have the uncanny knack of reading my innermost thoughts.
SLAVISH/SERVILE
obsequious AOJ. slavishly attentive; servile; sycophantic. Helen valued people who behaved as if they respected themselves; nothing irritated her more than an excessively obsequious waiter or a fawning salesclerk.
servile [ADJ.] slavish; cringing. Constantly fawning on his employer, humble Uriah Heep was a servile creature. servility, [N.]
subservient [ADJ.] behaving like a slave; servile; obsequious. She was proud and dignified; she refused to be subservient to anyone. subservience, [N.]
thrall [N.] slave; bondage. ‘The captured soldier was held in thrall by the conquering army.
minion [N.] a servile dependent. He was always accompanied by several of his minions because he enjoyed their subservience and flattery.
sycophant N, servile flatterer; bootlicker; yes ma[N.] Fed up with the toadies and brownnosers who made up his entourage, the star cried, “Get out, all of you! I’m sick of sycophants!” sycophantic, [ADJ.]
toady [N.] servile flatterer; yes ma[N.] Never tell the boss anything he doesn’t wish to hear: he doesn’t want an independent adviser, he just wants a toady. also [V.]
adulation [N.] flattery; admiration. The rock star thrived on the adulation of his groupies and yes-me[N.] adulate, [V.]
blandish [V.] cajole; coax with flattery. Despite all their sweet-talking, Suzi and Cher were unable to blandish the doorman into letting them into the hot new club.
blandishment [N.] flattery. Despite the salesperson’s blandishments, the customer did not buy the outfit.
fawning [ADJ.] trying to please by behaving obsequiously, flattering, or cringing. In Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Collins is the archetypal fawning clergyman, wholly dependent for his living on the goodwill of his patron, Lady Catherine, whom he flatters shamelessly. Courtiers fawn upon princes; groupies fawn upon rock stars.
wheedle [V.] cajole; coax; deceive by flattery. She knows she can wheedle almost anything she wants from her father.
cringe [krinj] intransitive verb (past cringed, past participle cringed, present participle cring·ing, 3rd person present singular cring·es)
opalescent [ADJ.] iridescent; lustrous. ‘The oil slick on the water had an opalescent, rainbow like sheen. opalescence, [N.]
iridescent [ADJ.] exhibiting rainbow like colors. She admired the iridescent hues of the oil that floated on the surface of the water. iridescence, [N.]
resplendent [ADJ.] dazzling; glorious; brilliant. While all the adults were commenting how glorious the emperor looked in his resplendent new clothes, one little boy was heard to say, “But he’s naked!”
scintillate [V.] sparkle; flash. I enjoy her dinner parties because the food is excellent and the conversation scintillates.
shimmer [V.] glimmer intermittently. The moonlight shimmered on the water as the moon broke through the clouds for a moment. also [N.]
glimmer [V.] shine erratically; twinkle. In the darkness of the cavern, the glowworms hanging from the cavern roof glimmered like distant stars.
incandescent ADJ, strikingly bright; shining with intense heat. If you leave on an incandescent light bulb. it quickly grows too hot to touch.
DELICIOUS
palatable [ADJ.] agreeable; pleasing to the taste. Neither Jack’s underbaked opinions nor his overcooked casseroles were palatable to me.
unpalatable [ADJ.] distasteful; disagreeable. “I refuse to swallow your conclusion,” she said, finding his logic unpalatable.
delectable adjective beautiful; giving great pleasure: a delectable cheesecake delectably adverb delectation noun [U] FORMAL great pleasure and amusement
luscious adjective 1 having a pleasant sweet taste or containing a lot of juice: luscious ripe figs 2 INFORMAL (of a woman) very sexually attractive: a luscious blonde 3 (of an area of countryside) very green and attractive: luscious landscapes lusciously adverb lusciousness noun [U]
succulent [ADJ.] juicy; full of richness. To some people, Florida citrus fruits are more succulent than those from California. also [N.]
savory [ADJ.] tasty; pleasing, attractive, or agreeable. Julia Child’s recipes enable amateur chefs to create savory delicacies for their guests.
POOR
penury [N.] severe poverty; stinginess. When his pension fund failed, George feared he would end his days in penury. He became such a penny-pincher that he turned into a closefisted, penurious miser.
impecunious [ADJ.] without money. Though Scrooge claimed he was too impecunious to give alms, he easily could have afforded to be charitable.
pecuniary [ADJ.] pertaining to money. Seldom earning enough to cover their expenses, folk-dance teachers work because they love dancing, not because they expect any pecuniary reward.
skimp [V.] provide scantily; live very economically. They were forced to skimp on necessities in order to make their limited supplies last the winter.
skinflint [N.] stingy person; miser. Scrooge was an ungenerous old skinflint until he reformed his ways and became a notable philanthropist.
indigence [N.] poverty. Neither the economists nor the political scientists have found a way to wipe out the inequities of wealth and eliminate indigence from our society. indigent, AOJ.N,
indigent ADJ, poor; destitute. Someone who is truly indigent can’t even afford to buy a pack of cigarettes. [Don’t mix up indigent and indigenous. See preceding entry.] also [N.]
adversity [N.] poverty; misfortune. We must learn to meet adversity gracefully.
destitute AOJ. extremely poor. Because they had no health insurance, the father’s costly illness left the family destitute. destitution, [N.]
doggerel [N.] poor verse. Although we find occasional snatches of genuine poetry in her work, most of her writing is mere doggerel.
pallet [N.] small, poor bed. The weary traveler went to sleep on his straw pallet.
pauper [N.] very poor person. Though Widow Brown was living on a reduced income, she was by no means a pauper.
threadbare [ADJ.] worn through till the threads show; shabby and poor. The poorly paid adjunct professor hid the threadbare spots on his jacket by sewing leather patches on his sleeves.
PEEVISH
peeved adjective INFORMAL annoyed: He was peeved because we didn’t ask him what he thought about the idea. peeve verb [T] What peeved her most was his thoughtlessness. [+ that] It peeves me that she didn’t bother to phone. peevish adjective easily annoyed: a peevish, bad-tempered person peevishly adverb “I thought you might have helped, “ she replied peevishly.
crabbed [ADJ.] sour; peevish. The children avoided the crabbed old man because he scolded them when they made noise.
cantankerous [ADJ.] ill-humored; irritable. Constantly complaining about his treatment and refusing to cooperate with the hospital staff, he was a cantankerous patient.
fractious [ADJ.] unruly; disobedient; irritable. Bucking and kicking, the fractious horse unseated its rider.
irascible [ADJ.] irritable; easily angered. Miss Minchin’s irascible temper intimidated the younger schoolgirls, who feared she’d burst into a rage at any moment.
petulant [ADJ.] touchy; peevish. If you’d had hardly any sleep for three nights and people kept on phoning and waking you up, you’d sound petulant, too. petulance, [N.]
testy [ADJ.] irritable; short-tempered. My advice is to avoid discussing this problem with her today as she is rather testy and may shout at you. testiness, [N.]
fret [V.] be annoyed or vexed. To fret over your poor grades is foolish; instead, decide to work harder in the future.
TREACHEROUS
conspiracy [N.] treacherous plot. Brutus and Cassius joined in the conspiracy to kill Julius Caesar.
insidious [ADJ.] treacherous; stealthy; sly. The fifth column is insidious because it works secretly within our territory for our defeat.
perfidious [ADJ.] treacherous; disloyal. When Caesar realized that Brutus had betrayed him, he reproached his perfidious friend. perfidy, [N.]
quisling [N.] traitor who aids invaders. In his conquest of Europe, Hitler was aided by the quislings who betrayed their own people and served in the puppet governments established by the Nazis.
mutineer person who rebels
turncoat [N.] traitor. The British considered Benedict Arnold a loyalist; the Americans considered him a turncoat.
mutinous [ADJ.] unruly; rebellious. The captain had to use force to quiet his mutinous crew. mutiny, [N.]
dissident [ADJ.] dissenting; rebellious. In the purge that followed the student demonstrations at Tiananmen Square, the government hunted down the dissident students and their supporters. also [N.]
insubordination [N.] disobedience; rebelliousness. At the slightest hint of insubordination from the sailors on the Bounty, Captain Bligh had them flogged; finally, they mutinied. insubordinate, [ADJ.]
insurgent [ADJ.] rebellious. Because the insurgent forces had occupied the capital and had gained control of the railway lines, several of the war correspondents covering the uprising predicted a rebel victory. also [N.] insurgency. [N.]
insurrection [N.] rebellion; uprising. In retrospect, given how badly the British treated the American colonists, the eventual insurrection seems inevitable.
maverick [N.] rebel; nonconformist. To the masculine literary establishment, George Sand with her insistence on wearing trousers and smoking cigars was clearly a maverick who fought her proper womanly role.
reg, rect to rule regent ruler insurrection rebellion; overthrow of a ruler
subversive [ADJ.] tending to overthrow; destructive. At first glance, the notion that Styrofoam cups may actually be more ecologically sound than paper cups strikes most environmentalists as subversive.
expostulation [N.] protest; remonstrance. Despite the teacher’s scoldings and expostulations, the class remained unruly.
remonstrance [N.] protest; objection. The authorities were deaf to the pastor’s remonstrances about the lack of police protection in the area. remonstrate, [V.]
foment [V.] stir up; instigate. Cher’s archenemy Heather spread some nasty rumors that fomented trouble in the club. Do you think Cher’s foe meant to foment such discord?
sedition [N.] resistance to authority; insubordination. Her words, though not treasonous in themselves, were calculated to arouse thoughts of sedition.
elusive [ADJ.] evasive; baffling; hard to grasp. No matter how hard Tom tried to lure the trout into taking the bait, the fish was too elusive for him to catch. elude, [V.]
evade verb [T] 1 SLIGHTLY FORMAL to avoid or escape from someone or something: Just give me an answer and stop evading the question! The police have assured the public that the escaped prisoners will not evade recapture for long. She leant forward to kiss him but he evaded her by pretending to sneeze. An Olympic gold medal is the only thing that has evaded her in her remarkable career. [+ ing form of verb] He can’t evade doing military service forever. 2 evade the issue/question, etc. to intentionally not talk about something or not answer something evasion noun [C or U] when you avoid something or someone: Her speech was full of excuses and evasions and never properly addressed the issue. tax evasion (= illegally not paying tax) evasive adjective done in order to avoid something or someone: By the time the pilot realised how close the plane was to the building, it was too late to take evasive action. The Minister was her usual evasive self, skillfully dodging reporters’ questions about her possible resignation. evasively adverb evasiveness noun [U]
temporize [V.] act evasively to gain time; avoid committing oneself. Ordered by King John to drive Robin Hood out of Sherwood Forest, the sheriff temporized, hoping to put off any confrontation with the outlaw band.
HYPOCRITICAL
duplicity [N.] double-dealing; hypocrisy. When Tanya learned that Mark had been two-timing her, she was furious at his duplicity. duplicitous, [ADJ.]
hypocritical [ADJ.] pretending to be virtuous; deceiving. Because he believed Eddie to be interested only in his own advancement, Greg resented Eddie’s hypocritical protestations of friendship. hypocrisy, [N.]
mealy-mouthed [ADJ.] indirect in speech; hypocritical; evasive. Rather than tell Jill directly what he disliked, Jack made a few mealy-mouthed comments and tried to change the subject.
sanctimonious [ADJ.] displaying ostentatious or hypocritical devoutness. You do not have to be so sanctimonious to prove that you are devout.
pharisaical [ADJ.] pertaining to the Pharisees, who paid scrupulous attention to tradition; self-righteous; hypocritical. Walter Lippmann has pointed out that moralists who do not attempt to explain the moral code they advocate are often regarded as pharisaical and ignored.
pharisee US noun 1 Pharisee a member of an ancient group of Jews, written about in the Bible, who believed in obeying religious laws very carefully and separated themselves from the ordinary people 2 DISAPPROVING a person who thinks they are very religious, but who does not care about others
PONDER
deliberate [V.] consider; ponder. Offered the new job, she asked for time to deliberate before she made her decision.
muse [V.] ponder. For a moment he mused about the beauty of the scene, but his thoughts soon changed as he recalled his own personal problems. also [N.]
ponderous [ADJ.] weighty; unwieldy. His humor lacked the light touch; his jokes were always ponderous.
imponderable [ADJ.] weightless. I can evaluate the data gathered in this study; the imponderable items are not so easily analyzed.
pore [V.] study industriously; ponder; scrutinize. Determined to become a physician, Beth spends hours poring over her anatomy text.
ruminate v, chew over and over (mentally or, like cows, physically); mull over; ponder. Unable to digest quickly the baffling events of the day, Reuben ruminated about them till four in the morning.
cogitate [V.] think over. Cogitate on this problem; the solution will come.
contemplate US verb [I or T] to spend time considering a possible future action, or to consider one particular thing for a long time in a serious and quiet way: [+ ing form of verb] I’m contemplating going abroad for a year. You’re not contemplating a change of job, are you? It’s too awful/horrific/dangerous to contemplate. contemplation US noun [U] She was staring out over the lake, lost in contemplation. The nuns have an hour for silent contemplation every morning. contemplative US adjective Her mood was calm and contemplative. contemplatively US adverb
reckon (THINK) verb [I] INFORMAL to think or believe: I reckon it’s going to rain. [+ (that)] How much do you reckon (that) it’s going to cost? “Can you fix my car today?” “I reckon not/so (= probably not/probably).”
reckon (CONSIDER) verb [T] to consider or have the opinion that something is as stated: I don’t reckon much UK to/US of their chances of winning (= I do not think they will win). She was widely reckoned (to be) the best actress of her generation.
brood (THINK) verb [I] to think for a long time about things that make you sad, worried or angry: I wish she wouldn’t sit brooding in her room all day. brooding adjective He stood there in the corner of the room, a dark, brooding (= worrying) presence. broody adjective always thinking unhappy thoughts
devise [V.] think up: invent; plan. How clever he must be to have devised such a devious plan! What ingenious inventions might he have devised if he had turned his mind to science rather than crime.
FORERUNNERS
harbinger [N.] forerunner. The crocus is an early harbinger of spring.
harbinger US noun [C] LITERARY someone or a thing that shows that something is going to happen soon, especially something bad: a harbinger of doom
precursor [N.] forerunner. Though Gray and Burns share many traits with the Romantic poets who followed them, most critics consider them precursors of the Romantic Movement, not true Romantics.
prelude [N.] introduction; forerunner. I am afraid that this border raid is the prelude to more serious attacks.
vanguard [N.] forerunners; advance forces. We are the vanguard of a tremendous army that is following us.
herald verb [T] FORMAL to be a sign that something important, and often good, is starting to happen, or to make something publicly known, especially by celebrating or praising it: The president’s speech heralds a new era in foreign policy. This drug has been heralded as a major breakthrough in the fight against breast cancer. herald noun [C] 1 FORMAL a sign that something will happen, change, etc: If this first opera of the season is a herald (= sign) of what is to come, we can expect great things. 2 in the past, a person who delivered important messages and made announcements
potable [ADJ.] suitable for drinking. The recent drought in the Middle Atlantic States has emphasized the need for extensive research in ways of making sea water potable. also [N.]
edible adjective suitable or safe for eating: Only the leaves of the plant are edible. Compare eatable at eat. NOTE: The opposite is inedible.
comestible [N.] something fit to be eaten. The roast turkey and other comestibles, the wines, and the excellent service made this Thanksgiving dinner particularly memorable.
pal·at·a·ble [pállətəb’l] adjective
vi·and [v ənd] noun (formal)
prov·en·der [próvvəndər] noun
comestibles plural noun FORMAL things which are to be eaten
vortex [N.] whirlwind; whirlpool; center of turbulence; predicament into which one is inexorably plunged. Sucked into the vortex of the tornado, Dorothy and Toto were carried from Kansas to Oz.
impasse [N.] predicament from which there is no escape. In this impasse, all turned to prayer as their last hope.
plight [N.] condition, state (especially a bad state or condition); predicament. Loggers, unmoved by the plight of the spotted owl, plan to keep on felling trees whether or not they ruin the bird’s habitat.
predicament [N.] tricky or dangerous situation; dilemma. Tied to the railroad tracks by the villain, Pauline strained against her bonds. How would she escape from this terrible predicament?
abyss N, enormous chasm; vast, bottomless pit. Darth Vader seized the evil emperor and hurled him into the abyss.
abyss noun [C usually singular] 1 LITERARY a very deep hole which seems to have no bottom 2 a difficult situation that brings trouble or destruction: The country is sinking/plunging into an abyss of violence and lawlessness. She found herself on the edge of an abyss.
exigency [N.] urgent situation; pressing needs or demands; state of requiring immediate attention. The exigencies of war gave impetus and funding to computer research in general and in particular to the development of code-breaking machines. Denmark’s Gustav I proved to be a harsh master and an exigent lord, known for his heavy taxes and capricious demands.
quagmire [N.] soft, wet, boggy land; complex or dangerous situation from which it is difficult to free oneself. Up to her knees in mud, Myra wondered how on earth she was going to extricate herself from this quagmire.
imbroglio [N.] complicated situation; painful or complex misunderstanding; entanglement; confused mass (as of papers). The humor of Shakespearean comedies often depends on cases of mistaken identity that involve the perplexed protagonists in one comic imbroglio after another. embroil, [V.]
WASTE
dawdle [V.] loiter; waste time. We have to meet a deadline. Don’t dawdle; just get down to work.
dissipate [V.] squander; waste; scatter. He is a fine artist, but I fear he may dissipate his gifts if he keeps wasting his time playing Trivial Pursuit.
fritter [V.] waste. He could not apply himself to any task and frittered away his time in idle conversation.
lavish [ADJ.] liberal; wasteful. The actor’s lavish gifts pleased her. also [V.]
prodigal [ADJ.] wasteful; reckless with money. Don’t be so prodigal spending my money; when you’ve earned some money, you can waste as much of it as you want! also [N.]
profligate [ADJ.] dissipated; wasteful; wildly immoral. Although surrounded by wild and profligate companions, she managed to retain some sense of decency. also [N.] profligacy, [N.]
spendthrift [N.] someone who wastes money. Easy access to credit encourages people to turn into spendthrifts who shop till they drop.
squander [V.] waste. If you squander your allowance on candy and comic books, you won’t have any money left to buy the new box of crayons you want.
wastrel [N.] profligate. He was denounced as a wastrel who had dissipated his inheritance.
prohibitive [ADJ.] tending to prevent the purchase or use of something; inclined to prevent or forbid. Susie wanted to buy a new Volvo but had to settle for a used Dodge because the new car’s price was prohibitive. prohibition, [N.]
gouge [V.] overcharge. During the World Series, ticket scalpers tried to gouge the public, asking astronomical prices even for bleacher seats.
fleece [V.] rob; plunder. The tricksters fleeced him of his inheritance.
ANXIETY
angst US noun [U] strong anxiety and unhappiness, especially about personal problems: All my children went through a period of late-adolescent angst.
Foreboding [N.] premonition of evil. Suspecting no conspiracies against him, Caesar gently ridiculed his wife’s forebodings about the Ides of March.
premonition [N.] forewarning. We ignored these premonitions of disaster because they appeared to be based on childish fears.
premonitory [ADJ.] serving to war[N.] You should have visited a doctor as soon as you felt these premonitory chest pains.
presentiment [N.] feeling something will happen; anticipatory fear; premonition. Saying goodbye at the airport, Jack had a sudden presentiment that this was the last time he would see Jill.
trepidation [N.] fear; nervous apprehension. As she entered the office of the dean of admissions, Sharon felt some trepidation about how she would do in her interview.
augury [N.] omen; prophecy. He interpreted the departure of the birds as an augury of evil. augur, [V.]
portent [N.] sign; omen; forewarning. He regarded the black cloud as a portent of evil.
portend [V.] foretell; presage. The king did not know what these omens might portend and asked his soothsayers to interpret them.
presage [V.] foretell. The vultures flying overhead presaged the discovery of the corpse in the desert.
prescience [N.] ability to foretell the future. Given the current wave of Japan-bashing, it does not take prescience for me to foresee problems in our future trade relations with Japan.
sibylline [ADJ.] prophetic; oracular. Until their destruction by fire in 83 B.c., the sibylline books were often consulted by the Romans.
bode [V.] foreshadow; portend. The gloomy skies and the sulfurous odors from the mineral springs seemed to bode evil to those who settled in the area.
clairvoyant [ADJ.], [N.] having foresight; fortuneteller. Cassandra’s clairvoyant warning was not heeded by the Trojans. clairvoyance, [N.]
hunch (IDEA) noun [C] an idea which is based on feeling and for which there is no proof: [+ that] I had a hunch that you’d be here. Sometimes you have to be prepared to act on/follow a hunch.
GUESS
conjecture [V.] infer on the basis of insufficient data: surmise; guess. In the absence of any eyewitness reports,
surmise [V.] guess. I surmise that he will be late for this meeting. also [N.]
hypothetical [ADJ.] based on assumptions or hypotheses; supposed. Suppose you are accepted by Harvard. Stanford, and Yale. Which graduate school will you choose to attend? Remember, this is only a hypothetical situation. hypothesis, [N.]
supposition [N.] hypothesis; surmise. I based my decision to confide in him on the supposition that he would be discreet. suppose, [V.]
supposititious [ADJ.] assumed: counterfeit; hypothetical. I find no similarity between your supposititious illustration and the problem we are facing.
theoretical [ADJ.] not practical or applied; hypothetical. Bob was better at applied engineering and computer programming than he was at theoretical physics and math. While I can still think of some theoretical objections to your plan, you’ve convinced me of its basic soundness.
PRETENSE
affected [ADJ.] artificial; pretended; assumed in order to impress. His affected mannerisms-his “Harvard” accent, his air of boredom, his use of obscure foreign words-bugged us: he acted as if he thought he was too good for his old high school friends. affectation, [N.]
bluff N, pretense (of strength); deception; high cliff. Claire thought Lord Byron’s boast that he would swim the Hellespont was just a bluff; she was astounded when he dove from the high bluff into the waters below.
charlatan [N.] quack; pretender to knowledge. When they realized that the Wizard didn’t know how to get them back to Kansas, Dorothy and her friends were sure they’d been duped by a charlatan.
connivance N, pretense of ignorance of something wrong; assistance; permission to offend. With the connivance of his friends, he plotted to embarrass the teacher. connive, [V.]
dissemble [V.] disguise; pretend. Even though John tried to dissemble his motive for taking modern dance, we all knew he was there not to dance but to meet girls.
dissimulate [V.] pretend; conceal by feigning. Although the governor tried to dissimulate his feelings about the opposing candidate, we all knew he despised his rival.
feign [V.] pretend. Lady Macbeth feigned illness in the courtyard although she was actually healthy.
grandiose [ADJ.] pretentious; high-flown; ridiculously exaggerated; impressive. The aged matinee idol still had grandiose notions of his supposed importance in the theatrical world.
hypocritical [ADJ.] pretending to be virtuous; deceiving. Because he believed Eddie to be interested only in his own advancement, Greg resented Eddie’s hypocritical protestations of friendship. hypocrisy, [N.]
mountebank [N.] charlatan: boastful pretender. The patent medicine man was a mountebank.
ostensible [ADJ.] apparent; professed; pretended. Although the ostensible purpose of this expedition is to discover new lands, we are really interested in finding new markets for our products.
ostentatious [ADJ.] showy; pretentious; trying to attract attention. Trump’s latest casino in Atlantic City is the most ostentatious gambling palace in the East: it easily out-glitters its competitors. ostentation, [N.]
pontifical [ADJ.] pertaining to a bishop or pope; pompous or pretentious. From the very beginning of his ministry it was clear from his pontifical pronouncements that John was destined for a high pontifical office.
poseur [N.] person who pretends to be sophisticated, elegant, etc., to impress others. Some thought Dali was a brilliant painter; others dismissed him as a poseur.
pretentious [ADJ.] ostentatious; pompous; making unjustified claims; overambitious. The other prize winner isn’t wearing her medal; isn’t it a bit pretentious of you to wear yours?
sham [V.] pretend. She shammed sickness to get out of going to school. also [N.]
subterfuge [N.] pretense; evasion. As soon as we realized that you had won our support by a subterfuge, we withdrew our endorsement of your candidacy.
GROWTH
deploy [V.] spread out [troops] in an extended though shallow battle line. The general ordered the battalion to deploy in order to meet the enemy offensive.
diffuse [ADJ.] wordy; rambling; spread out (Iike a gas). If you pay authors by the word, you tempt them to produce diffuse manuscripts rather than brief ones. also [V.] diffusion, [N.]
disseminate v, distribute; spread; scatter (like seeds). By their use of the Internet, propagandists have been able to disseminate their pet doctrines to new audiences around the globe.
endemic [ADJ.] prevailing among a specific group of people or in a specific area or country. This disease is endemic in this part of the world; more than 80 percent of the population are at one time or another affected by it.
pandemic [ADJ.] widespread; affecting the majority of people. They feared the AIDS epidemic would soon reach pandemic proportions.
pervasive [ADJ.] spread throughout. Despite airing them for several hours, she could not rid her clothes of the pervasive odor of mothballs that clung to them. pervade, [V.]
prevalent [ADJ.] widespread; generally accepted. A radical committed to social change, Reed had no patience with the conservative views prevalent in the America of his day.
proliferate [V.] grow rapidly; spread; multiply. Times of economic hardship inevitably encourage countless get-rich-quick schemes to proliferate. proliferation, [N.]
propagate [V.] multiply; spread. Since bacteria propagate more quickly in unsanitary environments, it is important to keep hospital rooms clean.
quarantine [N.] isolation of a person, place, or ship to prevent spread of infection. We will have to place this house under quarantine until we determine the exact nature of the disease. also [V.]
riddle [V.] pierce with holes; permeate or spread throughout. With his machine gun, Tracy riddled the car with bullets till it looked like a slice of Swiss cheese. During the proofreaders’ strike, the newspaper was riddled with typos.
spatula [N.] broad-bladed instrument used for spreading or mixing. The manufacturers of this frying pan recommend the use of a rubber spatula to avoid scratching the specially treated surface.
strew [V.] spread randomly; sprinkle; scatter. Preceding the bride to the altar, the flower girl will strew rose petals along the aisle.
suffuse [V.] spread over. A blush suffused her cheeks when we teased her about her love affair.
inordinate ADJ, unrestrained; excessive. She had an inordinate fondness for candy, eating two or three boxes in a single day.
rampant [ADJ.] growing in profusion; unrestrained. The rampant weeds in the garden choked the asters and marigolds until the flowers died. rampancy, [N.]
untrammeled [ADJ.] without limits or restrictions; unrestrained. The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum. The free-spirited young radical led an unconventional life, untrammeled by rigid norms of ideological orthodoxy.
RECOUPERATE
rally [V.] call up or summon (forces, vital powers, etc.); revive or recuperate. Washington quickly rallied his troops to fight off the British attack. The patient had been sinking throughout the night, but at dawn she rallied and made a complete recovery. also [N.]
recuperate [V.] recover. The doctors were worried because the patient did not recuperate as rapidly as they had expected.
recuperate US verb [I] SLIGHTLY FORMAL to become well again after an illness; to get back your strength, health, etc: She spent a month in the country recuperating from/after the operation. recuperation US noun [U] SLIGHTLY FORMAL recuperative US adjective FORMAL helping you to become well again after illness: The doctor reminded her of the recuperative power of a good night’s sleep.
resuscitate [V.] revive. The lifeguard tried to resuscitate the drowned child by applying artificial respiration.
resurge [V.] rise again; flow to and fro. It was startling to see the spirit of nationalism resurge as the Soviet Union disintegrated into a loose federation of ethnic and national groups. resurgence, [N.] resurgent, ADJ
galvanize [V.] stimulate by shock; stir up; revitalize. News that the prince was almost at their door galvanized the ugly stepsisters into a frenzy of combing and primping.
REFUGE
asylum [N.] place of refuge or shelter; protection. The refugees sought asylum from religious persecution in a new land.
harbor [V.] provide a refuge for; hide. The church harbored illegal aliens who were political refugees. also [N.]
sanctuary [N.] refuge; shelter; shrine; holy place. The tiny attic was Helen’s sanctuary to which she fled when she had to get away from her bickering parents and brothers.
haven [N.] place of safety; refuge. For Ricardo, the school library became his haven, a place to which he could retreat during chaotic times.
REMORSE/
atone [V.] make amends for; pay for. He knew no way in which he could atone for his brutal crime.
begrudge [V.] resent. I begrudge every minute I have to spend attending meetings.
bemoan [V.] lament; express disapproval of. The widow bemoaned the death of her beloved husband. Although critics bemoaned the serious flaws in the author’s novels, each year his latest book topped the best-seller list.
compunction [N.] remorse. The judge was especially severe in his sentencing because he felt that the criminal had shown no compunction for his heinous crime.
contrite [ADJ.] penitent. Her contrite tears did not influence the judge when he imposed sentence. contrition, [N.]
dirge [N.] lament with music. The funeral dirge stirred us to tears.
deplore [V.] regret. Although I deplore the vulgarity of your language, I defend your right to express yourself freely.
expiate [V.] make amends for (a sin). Jean Valjean tried to expiate his crimes by performing acts of charity.
elegy [N.] poem or song expressing lamentation. On the death of Edward King, Milton composed the elegy “Lycidas.” elegiacal, [ADJ.]
lament [V.] grieve; express sorrow. Even advocates of the war lamented the loss of so many lives in combat. lamentation, [N.]
penitent ADJ, repentant. When he realized the enormity of his crime, he became remorseful and penitent. also [N.]
impenitent [ADJ.] not repentant. We could see by his brazen attitude that he was impenitent.
remorse [N.] guilt; self-reproach. The murderer felt no remorse for his crime.
rue [V.] regret; lament; mourn. Tina rued the night she met Tony and wondered how she ever fell for such a jerk. also [N.] rueful, [ADJ.]
fester [V.] rankle; produce irritation or resentment. Joe’s insult festered in Anne’s mind for days, and made her too angry to speak to him.
Jaundiced [ADJ.] prejudiced (envious, hostile, or resentful); yellowed. Because Sue disliked Carolyn, she looked at Carolyn’s paintings with a jaundiced eye, calling them formless smears. Newborn infants afflicted with jaundice look slightly yellow: they have jaundiced ski[N.]
pique [N.] irritation; resentment. She showed her pique at her loss by refusing to appear with the other contestants at the end of the competition.
resentment [N.] indignation; bitterness; displeasure. Not wanting to appear a sore loser, Bill tried to hide his resentment of Barry’s success.
umbrage [N.] resentment; anger; sense of injury or insult. She took umbrage at his remarks and stormed away in a huff.
ABANDON
apostate N, one who abandons his religious faith or political beliefs. Because he switched from one party to another, his former friends shunned him as an apostate. An apostle passionately adheres to a belief or cause; an apostate passionately renounces or abandons one. apostasy, [N.]
disclaim [V.] disown; renounce claim to. If I grant you this privilege, will you disclaim all other rights?
forswear [V.] renounce; abandon. The captured knight could escape death only if he agreed to forswear Christianity and embrace Islam as the one true faith.
renounce [V.] abandon; disown; repudiate. Even though she knew she would be burned at the stake as a witch, Joan of Arc refused to renounce her belief that her voices came from God. renunciation, [N.]
abjure renounce abdicate renounce
abdicate [V.] renounce; give up. When Edward Vlll abdicated the British throne, he surprised the entire world.
derelict ADJ, abandoned; negligent. The derelict craft was a menace to navigation. Whoever abandoned it in the middle of the harbor was derelict in living up to his responsibilities as a boat owner. also [N.]
repudiate [V.] disown; disavow. On separating from Tony, Tina announced that she would repudiate all debts incurred by her soon-to-be ex-husband.
defect (LEAVE) verb [I] to leave a country, political party, etc., especially in order to join an opposing one: When the national hockey team visited America, half the players defected. The British spy, Kim Philby, defected to the Soviet Union/defected from Britain in 1963. defection noun [C or U] Over the years there were hundreds of defections to the West/defections from the East. Recent changes in policy have resulted in large-scale defection from the party. defector US noun [C] She was one of many Communist Party defectors.
desert (RUN AWAY) US verb [I or T] to leave the armed forces without permission and with no intention of returning: Soldiers who deserted and were caught were shot. How many people desert from the army each year? deserter US noun [C] a person who leaves the armed forces without permission desertion US noun [C or U] During the war, desertion was punishable by death. There were thousands of desertions in the last weeks of the war. FIGURATIVE There have been mass desertions from (= a lot of people have left) the party in recent months.
desert (LEAVE BEHIND) US verb [T] 1 to leave someone without help or in a difficult situation and not come back: He deserted his wife and family for another woman. 2 If a quality deserts you, you suddenly and temporarily lose it: All my confidence/courage deserted me when I walked into the exam room. deserted US adjective a deserted wife desertion US noun [U] Roger got his divorce on the grounds of desertion (= because his wife had left him).
MOCK/RIDICULE
gibe v . mock. As you gibe at their superstitious beliefs, do you realize that you, too, are guilty of similarly foolish thoughts?
flout [V.] reject; mock; show contempt for. The painter Julian Schnabel is known for works that flout the conventions of high art, such as paintings on velvet or linoleum. Do not confuse flout with flaunt: to flaunt something is to show it off; to flout something is to show your scorn for it. Perhaps by flouting the conventions of high art, Schnabel was flaunting his ability to get away with breaking the rules.
scoff [V.] mock; ridicule. He scoffed at dentists until he had his first toothache.
debunk [V.] expose as false, exaggerated, worthless, etc.; ridicule. Pointing out that he consistently had voted against strengthening antipollution legislation, reporters debunked the candidate’s claim that he was a fervent environmentalist.
deride [V.] ridicule; make fun of. The critics derided his pretentious dialogue and refused to consider his play seriously. Despite the critics’ derision, however, audiences were moved by the play, cheering its unabashedly sentimental conclusion. derisive, [ADJ.]
lampoon [V.] ridicule. This article lampoons the pretensions of some movie moguls. also [N.]
pillory [V.] punish by placing in a wooden frame; subject to criticism and ridicule. Even though he was mocked and pilloried, he maintained that he was correct in his beliefs. also [N.]
preposterous ADJ, absurd; ridiculous. When the candidate tried to downplay his youthful experiments with marijuana by saying he hadn’t inhaled, we all thought, “What a preposterous excuse!”
quizzical [ADJ.] teasing; bantering; mocking; curious. When the skinny teenager tripped over his own feet stepping into the bullpen, Coach raised one quizzical eyebrow, shook his head, and said, “Okay, kid. You’re here; let’s see what you’ve got.”
mock [V.] ridicule; imitate, often in derision. It is unkind to mock anyone; it is stupid to mock anyone significantly bigger than you. mockery, [N.]
SMILE
simper [V.] smirk; smile affectedly. Complimented on her appearance, Stella self-consciously simpered. simper US verb [I] to smile in a foolish or silly way: She gave her teacher a simpering smile. simper US noun [C]
smirk [N.] conceited smile. Wipe that smirk off your face! also [V.]
smirk US noun [C] DISAPPROVING a smile that expresses satisfaction or pleasure about having done something or knowing something which is not known by someone else: “Maybe your husband does things that you don’t know about, “ he said with a smirk. “I told you it would end in disaster, “ said Polly with a self-satisfied smirk on her face. smirk US verb [I or T] DISAPPROVING I don’t like the way he winks and smirks at me whenever he sees me. He smirked his way through the interview.
snicker [N.] half-stifled laugh. The boy could not suppress a snicker when the teacher sat on the tack. also [V.] snigger US verb [I] (US ALSO snicker) to laugh at someone or something childishly and often unkindly: They spent half the time sniggering at the clothes people were wearing. What are you two sniggering at/about? snigger US noun [C] We were having a snigger at the bride who was rather large and dressed in a tight pale pink dress. titter [N.] nervous laugh. Her aunt’s constant titter nearly drove her mad. also [V.]
giggle verb [I] to laugh repeatedly in a quiet but uncontrolled and childish way, often at something silly or rude or when you are nervous: Stop that giggling at the back! giggle noun 1 [C] a nervous or silly laugh: There were a few nervous giggles from people in the audience. I caught Roz having a giggle over some of Janet’s awful poetry. 2 [S] UK INFORMAL something which is amusing, often when it involves laughing at someone else: Just for a giggle, we hid his trousers while he was in the water. the ‘giggles plural noun INFORMAL when you can’t stop giggling: I often used to get/have the giggles in lectures when I was at college. giggler US noun [C] a person who often giggles giggly adjective MAINLY DISAPPROVING giggling a lot: There were a load of giggly school-kids at the back of the bus.
guffaw [N.] boisterous laughter. The loud guffaws that came from the closed room indicated that the members of the committee had not yet settled down to serious business. also [V.] guffaw US verb [I] to laugh loudly, especially at something stupid that someone has said or done: He guffawed with delight when he heard the news. guffaw US noun [C] She let out a loud guffaw.
chortle [V.] chuckle with delight. When she heard that her rival had just been jailed for embezzlement, she chortled with joy. She was not a nice lady. chortle US verb [I] to laugh, showing pleasure and satisfaction, often at someone else’s bad luck: She chortled with glee at the news. chortle US noun [C] I thought I heard a chortle at the back of the room.
ludicrous [ADJ.] laughable; trifling. Let us be serious; this is not a ludicrous issue.
hilarity [N.] boisterous mirth. This hilarity is improper on this solemn day of mourning. hilarious, [ADJ.]
mirth US noun [U] LITERARY laughter, amusement or happiness: Her impersonations of our teachers were a source of considerable mirth. mirthless US adjective LITERARY not showing real amusement or happiness: a mirthless laugh/smile mirthlessly US adverb LITERARY
paroxysm [N.] fit or attack of pain, laughter, rage. When he heard of his son’s misdeeds, he was seized by a paroxysm of rage.
paroxysm US noun [C] a sudden and powerful expression of strong feeling, especially one that you cannot control: In a sudden paroxysm of jealousy he threw her clothes out of the window. paroxysms of laughter
CORRUPT
debauch v, corrupt; seduce from virtue. Did Socrates’ teachings lead the young men of Athens to be virtuous citizens, or did they debauch the young men, causing them to question the customs of their fathers? Clearly, Socrates’ philosophical talks were nothing like the wild debauchery of the toga parties in Animal House.
depravity [N.] extreme corruption; wickedness. The depravity of Caligula’s behavior eventually sickened even those who had willingly participated in his earlier, comparatively innocent orgies. deprave, [V.]
inviolable ADJ, secure from corruption, attack, or violation; unassailable. Batman considered his oath to keep the people of Gotham City safe inviolable: nothing on earth could make him break this promise. inviolability, [N.]
perversion [N.] corruption; turning from right to wrong. Inasmuch as he had no motive for his crimes, we could not understand his perversion.
probity [N.] uprightness; incorruptibility. Everyone took his probity for granted; his defalcations, therefore, shocked us all.
seemly adjective OLD USE socially suitable and polite NOTE: The opposite is unseemly.
unseemly [ADJ.] unbecoming; indecent; in poor taste. When Seymour put whoopee cushions on all the seats in the funeral parlor, his conduct was most unseemly.
INTERMITTENT
spasmodic [ADJ.] fitful; periodic. The spasmodic coughing in the auditorium annoyed the performers.
sporadic [ADJ.] occurring irregularly. Although you can still hear sporadic outbursts of laughter and singing outside, the big Halloween parade has passed; the party’s over till next year. intermittent US adjective not happening regularly or continuously; stopping and starting repeatedly or with periods in between: intermittent rain an intermittent noise Although she made intermittent movie appearances, she was essentially a stage actress. intermittently US adverb We’ve discussed this problem intermittently, but so far we’ve failed to come up with a solution.
SENSE
tactile AOJ. pertaining to the organs or sense of touch. His callused hands had lost their tactile sensitivity.
gustatory [ADJ.] affecting the sense of taste. The Thai restaurant offered an unusual gustatory experience for those used to a bland cuisine. gustatory US adjective SPECIALIZED connected with taste: gustatory pleasures
olfactory [ADJ.] concerning the sense of smell. A wine taster must have a discriminating palate and a keen olfactory sense, for a good wine appeals both to the taste buds and to the nose.
STUBBORN
bigotry [N.] stubborn intolerance. Brought up in a democratic atmosphere, the student was shocked by the bigotry and narrowness expressed by several of his classmates.
dogged [ADJ.] determined; stubborn. Les Miserables tells of Inspector Javert’s long, dogged pursuit of the criminal Jean Valjean.
dour [ADJ.] sullen; stubborn. The man was dour and taciturn.
froward [ADJ.] stubbornly contrary; obstinately disobedient. Miss Watson declared that Huck was a froward child, stubborn in his wickedness, and that no good would come of condoning his disobedience.
headstrong [ADJ.] stubborn; willful; unyielding. Because she refused to marry the man her parents had chosen for her, everyone scolded Minna and called her a foolish, headstrong girl.
intractable [ADJ.] unruly; stubborn; unyielding. Charlie Brown’s friend Pigpen was intractable: he absolutely refused to take a bath.
intransigence [N.] refusal of any compromise; stubbornness. The negotiating team had not expected such intransigence from the striking workers, who rejected any hint of a compromise. intransigent. [ADJ.]
obdurate [ADJ.] stubborn. He was obdurate in his refusal to listen to our complaints.
obstinate [ADJ.] stubborn; hard to control or treat. We tried to persuade him to give up smoking, but he was obstinate and refused to change. Blackberry stickers are the most obstinate weeds I know: once established in a yard, they’re extremely hard to root out. obstinacy. [N.]
pertinacious [ADJ.] stubborn; persistent. She is bound to succeed because her pertinacious nature will not permit her to quit.
perverse [ADJ.] stubbornly wrongheaded; wicked and unacceptable. When Jack was in a perverse mood, he would do the opposite of whatever Jill asked him. When Hannibal Lecter was in a perverse mood, he ate the flesh of his victims. perversity, [N.]
recalcitrant [ADJ.] obstinately stubborn; determined to resist authority; unruly. Which animal do you think is more recalcitrant, a pig or a mule?
refractory [ADJ.] stubborn; unmanageable. The refractory horse was eliminated from the race when he refused to obey the jockey.
REPLACE/MAKE OBSOLETE
supersede [V.] cause to be set aside; replace; make obsolete. Bulk mailing postal regulation 326D supersedes bulk mailing postal regulation 326C. If, in bundling your bulk mailing, you follow regulation 326C, your bulk mailing will be returned. supersession, [N.]
supplant [V.] replace; usurp. Did the other woman actually supplant Princess Diana in Prince Charles’s affections, or did Charles never love Diana at all? Bolingbroke, later to be known as King Henry IV, fought to supplant his cousin, Richard Ill, as King of England.
preempt [V.] head off; forestall by acting first; appropriate for oneself; supplant. Hoping to preempt any attempts by the opposition to make educational reform a hot political issue, the candidate set out her own plan to revitalize the public schools. preemptive, [ADJ.]
surrogate [N.] substitute. For a fatherless child, a male teacher may become a father surrogate.
lieu US noun FORMAL in lieu (of) instead (of): The paintings were left to the nation by the Duke of Norfolk in lieu of inheritance taxes.
stead (IN PLACE OF) noun FORMAL in sb’s stead in place of someone: The marketing manager was ill and her deputy ran the meeting in her stead.
proxy [N.] authorized agent. Please act as my proxy and vote for this slate of candidates in my absence. proxy US noun [C or U] authority given to a person to act for someone else, such as by voting for them in an election, or the person who this authority is given to: a proxy vote My brother’s voting for me by proxy in the club elections. Can I nominate someone as a proxy to sign for me?
redeem (EXCHANGE) verb redeem a coupon/voucher, etc. to exchange a piece of paper representing a particular sum of money for that amount of money or for goods to this value
redeem (IMPROVE) verb [T] FORMAL to make something or someone seem less bad: A poor game was redeemed in the second half by a couple of superb goals from Anthony Edwards. [R] He was an hour late, but he redeemed himself in her eyes by giving her a huge bunch of flowers. She took me to see a really dull film, the only redeeming feature of which (= the only thing which prevented it from being completely bad) was the soundtrack. redemption noun be beyond/past redemption to be too bad to be improved or saved by anyone
redeem (GET BACK) verb [T] to get something back: She managed to save enough money to redeem her jewellery from the pawn shop. re·demp·tion [ri démpshən] noun
SURRENDER/YIELD capitulate [V.] surrender. The enemy was warned to capitulate or face annihilation.
cede [V.] yield (title, territory) to; surrender formally. Eventually the descendants of England’s Henry II were forced to cede their French territories to the King of France. cession, [N.]
cession [N.] yielding (something) to another; ceding. The Battle of Lake Erie, a major U.S. naval victory in the War of 1812, ensured U.S. control over Lake Erie and ruled out any territorial cession in the Northwest to Great Britain in the peace settlement.
concede [V.] admit; yield. Despite all the evidence Monica had assembled, Mark refused to concede that she was right
concession [N.] an act of yielding. Before they could reach an agreement, both sides had to make certain concessions.
defiance [N.] refusal to yield; resistance. When John reached the “terrible two’s,” he responded to every parental request with howls of defiance. defy, [V.] defiant, [ADJ.] headstrong [ADJ.] stubborn; willful; unyielding. Because she refused to marry the man her parents had chosen for her, everyone scolded Minna and called her a foolish, headstrong girl.
indomitable [ADJ.] unconquerable; unyielding. Focusing on her game despite all her personal problems, tennis champion Steffi Graf displayed an indomitable will to win.
inexorable [ADJ.] relentless; unyielding; implacable. After listening to the pleas for clemency, the judge was inexorable and gave the convicted man the maximum punishment allowed by law.
intractable [ADJ.] unruly; stubborn; unyielding. Charlie Brown’s friend Pigpen was intractable: he absolutely refused to take a bath.
monolithic [ADJ.] solidly uniform; unyielding. Knowing the importance of appearing resolute, the patriots sought to present a monolithic front.
rigid [ADJ.] stiff and unyielding; strict; hard and unbending. By living with a man to whom she was not married, George Eliot broke Victorian society’s most rigid rule of respectable behavior.
disgorge [V.] surrender something; eject; vomit. Unwilling to disgorge the cash he had stolen from the pension fund, the embezzler tried to run away.
extradition [N.] Surrender of prisoner by one state to another. The lawyers opposed the extradition of their client on the grounds that for more than five years he had been a model citizen.
indulgent [ADJ.] humoring; yielding; lenient. Jay’s mom was excessively indulgent: she bought him every computer game on the market. In fact, she indulged Jay so much, she spoiled him rotten.
meek [ADJ.] submissive; patient and long-suffering. Mr. Barrett never expected his meek daughter would dare to defy him by eloping with her suitor.
pliable [ADJ.] flexible; yielding; adaptable. In remodeling the bathroom, we replaced all the old, rigid lead pipes with new, pliable copper tubing.
submissive [ADJ.] yielding; timid. When he refused to permit Elizabeth to marry her poet, Mr. Barrett expected her to be properly submissive; instead, she eloped with the guy!
succumb [V.] yield; give in; die. I succumb to temptation whenever it comes my way.
yield [N.] amount produced; crop; income on investment. An experienced farmer can estimate the annual yield of his acres with surprising accuracy. also [V.]
yield [V.] give in; surrender. The wounded knight refused to yield to his foe.
waive [V.] give up temporarily; yield. I will waive my rights in this matter in order to expedite our reaching a proper decision.
relinquish [V.] give up something with reluctance; yield. Once you get used to fringe benefits like expense account meals and a company car, it’s very hard to relinquish them.
LUCK
fluke [N.] unlikely occurrence; stroke of fortune. When Douglas defeated Tyson for the heavyweight championship, some sportscasters dismissed his victory as a fluke. fluke noun [C usually singular] INFORMAL something good that has happened that is the result of chance instead of skill or planning: The first goal was just a fluke. flukey (flukier, flukiest), fluky adjective INFORMAL
hap [N.] chance; luck. In his poem Hap. Thomas Hardy objects to the part chance plays in our lives. also [V.]
hapless ADJ, unfortunate. This hapless creature had never known a moment’s pleasure.
misadventure [N.] mischance; ill luck. The young explorer met death by misadventure.
untoward [ADJ.] unfortunate or unlucky; adverse; unexpected. Trying to sneak out of the house, Huck had a most untoward encounter with Miss Watson, who thwarted his escape.
jinx noun [S] bad luck, or a person or thing that is believed to bring bad luck: There’s a jinx on this computer - it’s gone wrong three times this morning! jinxed adjective I must be jinxed - whenever I wash a wine glass, it breaks.
Murphy’s law US noun [U] (UK OFFENSIVE ALSO Sod’s law) HUMOROUS the tendency of things to go wrong: The bus is always late but today when I was late it came on time - that’s Murphy’s law I suppose!
Murphy’s Law noun law of low expectations: the law or principle that if anything can go wrong, it will (informal) U.K. term Sod’s law Parkinson’s law US noun [U] HUMOROUS the idea that any piece of work will increase to fill as much time as you have to do it in
mischance [N.] ill luck. By mischance, he lost his week’s salary.
serendipity [N.] gift for finding valuable or desirable things by accident; accidental good fortune or luck. Many scientific discoveries are a matter of serendipity: Newton was not sitting there thinking about gravity when the apple dropped on his head.
stumble across/on/upon sth/sb phrasal verb to discover something by chance, or to meet someone by chance: Workmen stumbled upon the mosaic while digging foundations for a new building.
beginner’s luck US noun [U] unexpected success experienced by a person who is just starting a particular activity: When I won the first contest I entered, he put it down to beginner’s luck.
windfall [N.] fallen fruit; unexpected lucky event. This huge tax refund is quite a windfall.
Fort luck, chance fortuitous accidental, occurring by chance fortunate lucky
HINDER/PROHIBIT
hamper [V.] obstruct. The new mother hadn’t realized how much the effort of caring for an infant would hamper her ability to keep an immaculate house.
hindrance [N.] block; obstacle. Stalled cars along the highway are a hindrance to traffic that tow trucks should remove without delay. hinder, [V.]
impede [V.] hinder; block. The special prosecutor determined that the Attorney General, though inept, had not intentionally set out to impede the progress of the investigation.
interdict [V.] prohibit; forbid. Civilized nations must interdict the use of nuclear weapons if we expect our society to live.
scotch [V.] stamp out; thwart; hinder. Heather tried to scotch the rumor that she had stolen her best friend’s fiancé.
stultify [V.] cause to appear or become stupid or inconsistent; frustrate or hinder. His long hours in the blacking factory left young Dickens numb and incurious, as if the menial labor had stultified his mind.
frustrate v, thwart; defeat. Constant partisan bickering frustrated the governor’s efforts to persuade the legislature to approve his proposed budget.
baffle [V.] frustrate; perplex. The new code baffled the enemy agents.
enjoin [V.] command; order; forbid. The owners of the company asked the court to enjoin the union from picketing the plant.
SUPRESS
squelch [skwelch] verb (past squelched, past participle squelched, present participle squelch·ing, 3rd person present singular squelch·es)
THRIFTY
economy [N.] efficiency or conciseness in using something. Reading the epigrams of Pope, I admire the economy of his verse: in few words he conveys worlds of meaning. (secondary meaning)
frugality N, thrift; economy. In economically hard times, anyone who doesn’t learn to practice frugality risks bankruptcy. frugal. [ADJ.]
husband [V.] use sparingly; conserve; save. Marathon runners must husband their energy so that they can keep going for the entire distance.
husbandry [N.] frugality; thrift; agriculture. He accumulated his small fortune by diligence and husbandry. husband, [V.]
improvident [ADJ.] thriftless. He was constantly being warned to mend his improvident ways and begin to “save for a rainy day.” improvidence, [N.]
parsimony [N.] stinginess; excessive frugality. Silas Marner’s parsimony did not allow him to indulge in any luxuries. parsimonious, [ADJ.]
provident [ADJ.] displaying foresight; thrifty; preparing for emergencies. In his usual provident manner, he had insured himself against this type of loss.
improvident [ADJ.] thriftless. He was constantly being warned to mend his improvident ways and begin to “save for a rainy day.” improvidence, [N.]
spendthrift [N.] someone who wastes money. Easy access to credit encourages people to turn into spendthrifts who shop till they drop.
skinflint [N.] stingy person; miser. Scrooge was an ungenerous old skinflint until he reformed his ways and became a notable philanthropist. stint [V.] be thrifty; set limits. “Spare no expense,” the bride’s father said, refusing to stint on the wedding arrangements.
miserly [ADJ.] stingy; mea[N.] Transformed by his vision on Christmas Eve, mean old Scrooge ceased being miserly and became a generous, kind old ma[N.] miser, [N.]
tightwad [N.] excessively frugal person; miser. Jill called Jack a tightwad because he never picked up the check.
niggardly [ADJ.] meanly stingy; parsimonious. The niggardly pittance the widow receives from the government cannot keep her from poverty.
canny [ADJ.] shrewd; thrifty. The canny Scotsman was more than a match for the swindlers.
grudging [ADJ.] unwilling; reluctant; stingy. We received only grudging support from the mayor despite his earlier promises of aid.
EXTREMELY HOT WEATHER
torrid [ADJ.] passionate; hot or scorching. The novels published by Harlequin Romances feature torrid love affairs, some set in torrid climates.
sultry [ADJ.] sweltering. He could not adjust himself to the sultry climate of the tropics.
muggy [ADJ.] warm and damp. August in New York City is often mugg,y.
inclement ADJ. stormy; unkind. In inclement weather, I like to curl up on the sofa with a good book and listen to the storm blowing outside.
scorch·ing [skáwrching] adjective hot: extremely hot (informal) siz·zling [sízzling] adjective (informal)
HARD WORK
lu·cu·bra·tion [lkyə bráysh’n] (plural lu·cu·bra·tions) noun
sedulous ADJ, diligent. The young woman was so sedulous that she received a commendation for her hard work. sedulity, N.
assiduous Am. diligent. It took Rembrandt weeks of assiduous labor before he was satisfied with his portrait of his son.
diligent persistent and hard-working: showing persistent and hard-working effort in doing something conscientious painstaking: thorough and diligent in performing a task
travail [N.] painful physical or mental labor; drudgery; torment. Like every other recent law school graduate she knew, Shelby hated the seemingly endless travail of cramming for the bar exam.
drudgery [N.] menial work. Cinderella’s fairy godmother rescued her from a life of drudgery.
tra·vail [trə váyl, trá vàyl] noun (plural tra·vails)
be in labor: to be in labor (archaic) (refers to a woman)
trials and tribulations LITERARY OR HUMOROUS troubles and events that cause suffering: the trials and tribulations of marriage
toil noun [U] hard work, especially that which is physically tiring: Lindi has achieved her comfortable life only after years of hard toil. HUMOROUS Well, after a day’s toil in the office I like to relax a little. toil verb [I] 1 to work hard: England’s cricketers have been toiling in the 100-degree heat over the past week. I was relaxing in the bath, having toiled away in the garden all afternoon. 2 to move in a particular direction, slowly and with great effort: I was toiling up the hill with four heavy bags when he took pity on me.
don·key·work [dáwngkee wùrk, dóngkee wùrk] noun hard work: hard or boring work (informal)
REVENGE
avenge [V.] take vengeance for something (or on behalf of someone). Hamlet vowed he would avenge his father’s murder and punish Claudius for his horrible crime.
vindictive [ADJ.] out for revenge; malicious. Divorce sometimes brings out a vindictive streak in people; when Tony told Tina he was getting a divorce, she poured green Jell-0 into his aquarium and turned his tropical fish into dessert.
nemesis [N.] someone seeking revenge. Abandoned at sea in a small boat, the vengeful Captain Bligh vowed to be the nemesis of Fletcher Christian and his fellow mutineers.
requite [V.] repay; revenge. The wretch requited his bene- factors by betraying them.
malicious [ADJ.] hateful; spiteful. Jealous of Cinderella’s beauty, her malicious stepsisters expressed their spite by forcing her to do menial tasks. malice, [N.]
marked [ADJ.] noticeable; targeted for vengeance. He walked with a marked limp, a souvenir of an old IRA attack. As British ambassador, he knew he was a marked man.
retribution [N.] vengeance; compensation; punishment for offenses. The evangelist maintained that an angry deity would exact retribution from the sinners.
retaliate verb [I] to hurt someone or do something harmful to them because they have done or said something harmful to you: If someone insults you, don’t retaliate as it only makes the situation worse. The demonstrators threw rocks at the police, who retaliated by firing blanks into the crowd. The terrorists retaliated against the government with a bomb attack. retaliation noun [U] The bomb attack was in retaliation for the recent arrest of two well-known terrorists. retaliatory US adjective describes an action that is harmful to someone who has done something to harm you: retaliatory measures He urged people not to resort to retaliatory violence.
re·pri·sal [ri prz’l] (plural re·pri·sals) noun
VORACIOUS
voracious [ADJ.] ravenous. The wolf is a voracious animal, its hunger never satisfied.
ravenous [ADJ.] extremely hungry. The ravenous dog upset several garbage pails in its search for food.
rapacious adjective FORMAL having or showing a strong desire to take things for yourself, usually using unfair methods or force: a rapacious landlord/businessman her rapacious appetite for fame
glut [V.] overstock; fill to excess. The many manufacturers glutted the market and could not find purchasers for the many articles they had produced. also [N.]
glutton [N.] someone who eats too much. When Mother saw that Bobby had eaten all the cookies, she called him a little glutton. gluttonous, [ADJ.]
gorge [V.] stuff oneself. The gluttonous guest gorged himself with food as though he had not eaten for days. e·da·cious [i dáyshəss] adjective greedy: voracious, or devoted to gluttony (formal)
WANDER
errant [ADJ.] wandering. Many a charming tale has been written about the knights-errant who helped the weak and punished the guilty during the Age of Chivalry.
itinerant [ADJ.] wandering; traveling. He was an itinerant peddler and traveled through Pennsylvania and Virginia selling his wares. also [N.]
migrant [ADJ.] changing its habitat; wandering. These migrant birds return every spring. also [N.]
migratory [ADJ.] wandering. The return of the migratory birds to the northern sections of this country is a harbinger of spring.
nomadic [ADJ.] wandering. Several nomadic tribes of Indians would hunt in this area each year. nomad, [N.]
ramble [V.] wander aimlessly (physically or mentally). Listening to the teacher ramble. Judy wondered whether he’d ever get to his point, also [N.]
vagabond [N.] wanderer; tramp. In summer, college students wander the roads of Europe like carefree vagabonds. also [ADJ.]
vagrant [N.] homeless wanderer. Because he was a stranger in town with no visible means of support, Martin feared he would be jailed as a vagrant. vagrancy, [N.]
wanderlust [N.] strong longing to travel. Don’t set your heart on a traveling ma[N.] He’s got too much wanderlust to settle down.
peregrination wandering (through fields)
err to wander error mistake erratic not reliable, wandering knight-errant wandering knight
saunter v, stroll slowly. As we sauntered through the park, we stopped frequently to admire the spring flowers.
ambulatory [ADJ.] able to walk; not bedridden. Calvin was a highly ambulatory patient; not only did he refuse to be confined to bed, but also he insisted on riding his skateboard up and down the halls.
gait [N.] manner of walking or running; speed. The lame man walked with an uneven gait.
peripatetic [ADJ.] walking about; moving. The peripatetic school of philosophy derives its name from the fact that Aristotle walked with his pupils while discussing philosophy with them.
somnambulist [N.] sleepwalker. The most famous somnambulist in literature is Lady Macbeth; her monologue in the sleepwalking scene is one of the highlights of Shakespeare’s play.
strut [N.] pompous walk. His strut as he marched about the parade ground revealed him for what he was: a pompous buffoo[N.] also [V.]
dawdle [V.] loiter; waste time. We have to meet a deadline. Don’t dawdle; just get down to work.
linger v, loiter or dawdle; continue or persist. Hoping to see Juliet pass by, Romeo lingered outside the Capulet house for hours. Though Mother made stuffed cabbage on Monday, the smell lingered around the house for days.
loiter [V.] hang around; linger. The policeman told him not to loiter in the alley.
lumber [V.] move heavily or clumsily. Still somewhat torpid after its long hibernation, the bear lumbered through the woods.
motility [N.] ability to move spontaneously. Certain organisms exhibit remarkable motility; motile spores, for example, may travel for miles before coming to rest. motile, ADJ
scurry [V.] move briskly. The White Rabbit had to scurry to get to his appointment on time.
skulk v, move furtively and secretly. He skulked through the less fashionable sections of the city in order to avoid meeting any of his former friends.
totter [V.] move unsteadily; sway, as if about to fall. On unsteady feet, the drunk tottered down the hill to the nearest bar.
flit [V.] fly; dart lightly; pass swiftly by. Like a bee flitting from flower to flower. Rose flitted from One boyfriend to the next.
flounder v, struggle and thrash about; proceed clumsily or falter. Up to his knees in the bog, Floyd floundered about, trying to regain his footing. Bewildered by the new software, Flo floundered until Jan showed her how to get started.
OUTLOOK
parochial [ADJ.] narrow in outlook; provincial; related to parishes. Although Jane Austen writes novels set in small rural communities, her concerns are universal, not parochial.
provincial [ADJ.] pertaining to a province; limited in outlook; unsophisticated. As provincial governor, Sir Henry administered the Queen’s law in his remote corner of Canada. Caught up in local problems, out of touch with London news, he became sadly provincial.
FANATIC
berserk ADV. frenzied. Angered, he went berserk and began to wreck the room.
frenetic [ADJ.] frenzied; frantic. The novels of the beat generation reflect a frenetic, restless pursuit of new sensation and experience, and a disdain for the conventional measures of economic and social success.
frenzied [ADJ.] madly excited. As soon as they smelled smoke, the frenzied animals milled about in their cages.
furor [N.] frenzy; great excitement. The story of her embezzlement of the funds created a furor on the stock exchange.
rabid [ADJ.] like a fanatic; furious. He was a rabid follower of the Dodgers and watched them play whenever he could go to the ballpark.
zealot [N.] fanatic; person who shows excessive zeal. Though Glenn was devout, he was no zealot; he never tried to force his religious beliefs on his friends.
DETERMINATION
tenacious adjective holding tightly onto something, or keeping an opinion in a determined way: The baby took my finger in its tenacious little fist. There has been tenacious local opposition to the new airport. tenaciously adverb tenacity US noun [U] the determination to continue what you are doing
stubborn, obstinate, resolute, firm, persistent, insistent, dogged, determined, steadfast, inflexible antonym: irresolute
INSIGNIFICANT
incidental ADJ. not essential; minor. The scholarship covered his major expenses at college and some of his incidental expenses as well.
inconsequential ADJ. insignificant; unimportant. Brushing off Ali’s apologies for having broken the wine glass, Tamara said, “Don’t worry about it; it’s inconsequential.”
insubstantial ADJ, lacking substance; insignificant: frail. His hopes for a career in acting proved insubstantial; no one would cast him, even in an insubstantial role.
paltry ADJ. insignificant; petty; trifling. “One hundred dollars for a genuine imitation Rolex watch! Lady, this is a paltry sum to pay for such a high-class piece of jewelry.”
puny ADJ. insignificant; tiny; weak. Our puny efforts to stop the flood were futile.
WANTON
ribald ADJ. wanton; profane. He sang a ribald song that offended many of the more prudish listeners. ribaldry, rd.
wanton ADJ. unrestrained; willfully malicious; unchaste. Pointing to the stack of bills, Sheldon criticized Sarah for her wanton expenditures. In response, Sara accused Sheldon of making an unfounded, wanton attack.
incontinent ADJ. lacking self-restraint; licentious. His incontinent behavior off stage so shocked many people that they refused to attend the plays and movies in which he appeared.
COMPENASTION
emolument N. salary; compensation. In addition to the emolument this, position offers, you must consider the social prestige it carries with it.
indemnify v. make secure against loss; compensate for loss. The city will indemnify all home owners whose property is spoiled by this project.
redress N. remedy; compensation. Do you mean to tell me that I can get no redress for my injuries? also v.
reimburse v. repay. Let me know what you have spent and I will reimburse you.
re·im·burse pay back money to somebody: to pay somebody back money spent for an official or approved reason or taken as a loan, or give somebody money as compensation for loss or damage remunerative ADJ. compensating; rewarding. I find my new work so remunerative that I may not return to my previous employment. remuneration, N.
re·mu·ner·ate
pay somebody: to pay somebody for goods or services, or compensate somebody for losses sustained or inconvenience caused in money reparation lu. amends; compensation. At the peace conference, the defeated country promised to pay reparations to the victors.
retribution N. vengeance; compensation; punishment for offenses. The evangelist maintained that an angry deity would exact retribution from the sinners.
QUESTIONABLE
inevitable ADJ. unavoidable. Though death and taxes are both supposedly inevitable, some people avoid paying taxes for years.
ineluctable ADJ. irresistible; not to be escaped; unavoidable. He felt that his fate was ineluctable and refused to make any attempt to improve his lot.
MEETING
confab US noun [C usually singular] OLD-FASHIONED HUMOROUS an informal discussion, usually about one particular subject: They had a quick confab to decide on a possible design.
confabulation
potentate N. monarch; sovereign. The potentate spent more time at Monte Carlo than he did at home on his throne. potential
CAREFUL
Punctilious:
conscientious ADJ. scrupulous; careful. A conscientious editor, she checked every definition for its accuracy.
gingerly ADV, very carefully. To separate egg whites, first crack the egg gingerly. also ADJ.
meticulous ADJ. excessively careful; painstaking; scrupulous. Martha Stewart was a meticulous housekeeper, fussing about each and every detail that went into making up her perfect home.
prudent ADJ, cautious; careful. A miser hoards money not because he is prudent but because he is greedy. prudence, N.
TRITE REMARK
platitude N. trite remark; commonplace statement. In giving advice to his son, old Polonius expressed himself only in platitudes; every word out of his mouth was a truism.
banal ADJ. hackneyed; commonplace; trite; lacking originality. The hack writer’s worn-out cliches made his comic sketch seem banal. He even resorted to the banality of having someone slip on a banana peel!
trite ADJ. hackneyed; commonplace. The trite and predictable situations in many television programs turn off many viewers, who, in turn, turn off their sets.
TRITE REMARK
apothegm N. pithy, compact saying. Proverbs are apothegms that have become familiar sayings.
adage N. wise saying; proverb. There is much truth in the old adage about fools and their money.
aphorism N. pithy maxim or saying. An aphorism is usually philosophic or scientific, as compared to an adage, which is usually more homely and concrete. “Absolute power corrupts absolutely” is an aphorism. “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink” is an adage. aphoristic, ADJ. dictum N. authoritative and weighty statement; saying; maxim. University administrations still follow the old dictum “Publish or perish.” They don’t care how good a teacher you are; if you don’t publish enough papers. you’re out of a job.
epigram N. witty thought or saying, usually short. Poor Richard’s epigrams made Benjamin Franklin famous
witticism N. witty saying; wisecrack. I don’t mean any criticism, but your last supposed witticism really hurt my feelings.
pithy ADJ. concise; meaningful; substantial; meaty. While other girls might have gone on and on about how uncool Elton was, Cher summed it up in one pithy remark: “He’s bogus!”
precept wise saying (originally a command)