 | Term | Definition |
| |
Cacophony |
Jarring, unpleasant noise |
| |
Cadence |
Rhythmic flow, marching beat |
| |
Cajole |
Flatter (complement, butter up), coax (sweet talk, charm), persuade (convince) |
| |
Calamity |
Disaster, catastrophe |
| |
Calumny |
False and malicious accusation, misrepresentation, slander |
| |
Camaraderie |
Trust, sociability amongst friends, friendship |
| |
Cantankerous |
Disagreeable, quarrelsome, bad tempered |
| |
Carnivorous |
Meat-eating |
| |
Carouse |
To partake in drunken amusement, drink excessively |
| |
Cartographer |
Someone who makes maps |
| |
Castigate |
To punish, chastise (tell off), reprimand (telling off), criticize severely |
| |
Catalyst |
Something causing change without being changed |
| |
Catastrophic |
Of, or relating to, a terrible event or complete failure |
| |
Caustic |
Biting, sarcastic, able to burn |
| |
Censor |
To examine and suppress information |
| |
Censure |
to find fault with and condemn as wrong; blame, criticize |
| |
Cerebral |
intellectual |
| |
Challenge |
take exception to, call into question, confront, test |
| |
Chapped |
rough, cracked, or reddened by cold or exposure |
| |
Cherish |
to remember fondly, treat with affection |
| |
Circuitous |
indirect, taking the longest rout |
| |
Circumlocution |
roundabout, lengthy way of saying something |
| |
Circumscribe |
to encircle; set limits on, confine |
| |
Civility |
courtesy, politeness |
| |
Clairvoyant |
exceptionally insightful, able to foresee the future |
| |
Clamp |
establish by authority, impose |
| |
Clandestine |
secretive, concealed for a darker purpose |
| |
Clarity |
clearness; clear understanding |
| |
Clientele |
body of customers or patrons |
| |
Clique |
small excusive group |
| |
Cloying |
overly sweet to the point of distaste or disgust |
| |
Cognizant |
fully informed, conscious |
| |
Coherent |
intelligible, lucid, understandable |
| |
Cohesion |
act or state of sticking together; close union |
| |
Collaborator |
someone who helps on a task |
| |
Collage |
assemblage (grouping) or diverse elements, random collection |
| |
Colloquial |
characteristic of informal speech, conversational, everyday |
| |
Collusion |
collaboration, conspiracy |
| |
Colossal |
immense (huge), enormous |
| |
Combative |
eager to fight |
| |
Combustion |
the process of burning, fire |
| |
Commemorate |
to serve as a memorial to, honor, remember |
| |
Commentary |
series of explanations or interpretations |
| |
Comparable |
similar or equivalent |
| |
Compassion |
sympathy, helpfulness, or mercy |
| |
Compelling |
urgently requiring attention, forceful |
| |
Complacence |
self-satisfaction, lack of concern |
| |
Complement |
to complete, perfect |
| |
Complex |
intricate, complicated |
| |
Compliant |
submissive and yielding (soft), obedient |
| |
Composed |
serene (tranquil, peaceful), calm |
| |
Comprehensible |
readily understood, clear, logical |
| |
Comprehensive |
very large in scope, inclusive, wide-ranging |
| |
Compulsion |
an irresistible (tempting, overpowering) impulse |
| |
Compute |
to determine by mathematics |
| |
Conceited |
holding an unduly (excessively) high opinion of oneself, vain |
| |
Conceivable |
capable of being understood |
| |
Conciliatory |
overcoming distrust or hostility, peace-making |
| |
Concoct |
to devise, using skill and intelligence |
| |
Concordant |
harmonious, agreeing |
| |
Condemnation |
an expression of strong disapproval, censure, blame |
| |
Condense |
to reduce, make more concise (brief, short), concentrate, compress |
| |
Condescending |
possessing an attitude of superiority, patronizing |
| |
Condolence |
sympathy for a person's misfortune |
| |
Condone |
to pardon or forgive; overlook, justify, or excuse a fault, disregard |
| |
Conduit |
tube, pipe, or similar passage |
| |
Configuration |
arrangement of parts or elements |
| |
Confiscation |
seizure by authorities |
| |
Conflict |
A clash, a battle |
| |
Conformity |
similarity in form or character |
| |
Confound |
to baffle (confuse), perplex (bewilder, confuse) |
| |
Confrontational |
eager to come face-to-face with in an adversarial manner, provoking |
| |
Congeal |
to become thick or solid, as a liquid freezing, thicken, solidify |
| |
Consecrate |
to declare sacred; dedicate to a goal |
| |
Consensus |
unanimity (agreement), agreement of opinion or attitude |
| |
Conservatism |
inclination (lining, liking) to maintain traditional values |
| |
Conserve |
use sparingly (carefully); protect from loss or harm |
| |
Consolation |
something providing comfort or solace (comfort) for a loss or hardship |
| |
Constellation |
a collection of stars with a perceived (apparent, obvious) design |
| |
Consummate |
accomplished, complete, perfect |
| |
Consumption |
the act of eating or taking in |
| |
Contagious |
spreading from one to another |
| |
Contaminate |
to make impure (polluted, infected) by contact, pollute (infect) |
| |
Contemplate |
to consider carefully |
| |
Contemporary |
belonging to the same period of time |
| |
Contemptuous |
scornful (disrespectful), disdainful, disapproving |
| |
Content |
satisfied |
| |
Contract |
acquire (obtain), incur (earn, gain) |
| |
Contradiction |
statement opposite to what was already said |
| |
Contrite |
deeply sorrow and repentant (regretful) for a wrong |
| |
Conundrum |
riddle, puzzle, or problem with no solution |
| |
Convention |
general acceptance of practices or attitudes |
| |
Conventional |
typical, customary, commonplace |
| |
Convergence |
the state of separate elements joining or coming together |
| |
Convey |
to transport; to make known |
| |
Convict |
to find guilty of a crime |
| |
Conviction |
fixed or strong belief |
| |
Convoluted |
twisted, complicated, involved |
| |
Cordial |
warm and sincere, friendly |
| |
Corrective |
intended to fix, remedy |
| |
Corroborate |
to confirm, verify |
| |
Corrosive |
gradually destructive, steadily harmful |
| |
Cosmopolitan |
pertinent (applicable) or common to the whole world, international |
| |
Counteract |
to oppose (be against) the effects by contrary action |
| |
Crafty |
underhanded, devious (tricky), or deceptive (misleading) |
| |
Crass |
crude (basic, rough), unrefined (raw) |
| |
Credo |
system of principle or beliefs |
| |
Crescendo |
gradual increase in volume, force, or intensity |
| |
Crude |
unrefined (raw), natural; blunt (dull), offensive |
| |
Cue |
reminder, prompt |
| |
Culpable |
guilty, responsible for wrong |
| |
Cumulative |
resulting from gradual increase |
| |
Cunning |
given to artful deception |
| |
Curator |
caretaker and overseer of an exhibition, especially in a museum |
| |
Curtail |
to shorten |
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace