 | Term | Definition |
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Acerbic |
having a sour or bitter taste or character; sharp; biting |
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Aggrandize |
to increase in intensity, power, influence or prestige |
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Amenable |
agreeable; responsive to suggestion |
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Astringent |
having a tightening effect on living tissue; harsh; severe |
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Bombast |
self-important or pompous writing or speech |
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Credulous |
tending to believe to readily; gullible |
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Cynicism |
attitude or quality of belief that all people are motivated by selfishness |
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Derision |
scorn; ridicule; contemptuous treatment |
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Desiccate |
to dry out or dehydrate; to make dry or dull |
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Dilettante |
one w/ amateurish or superficial interest in the arts or branch of knowledge |
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Disparage |
to slight or belittle |
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Fawn |
to flatter or praise excessively |
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Flout |
to show contempt for, as in rule or convention |
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Garrulous |
pointlessly talkative; talking too much |
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Glib |
marked by ease or informality; nonchalant; lacking in depth; superficial |
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Hubris |
overbearing presumption or pride; arrogance |
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Immutable |
incapable of change |
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Impetuous |
hastily or rashly energetic; impulsive and vehement |
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Inimical |
damaging; harmful; injurious |
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Intractable |
not easily managed or directed; stubborn; obstinate |
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Intrepid |
steadfast and courageous |
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Laconic |
using few words; terse |
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Maverick |
an independent individual who doesn't go along w/ a group or party |
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Mercurial |
marked by rapid and unpredictable changed in mood |
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Neophyte |
a recent convert; a beginner; a novice |
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Obfuscate |
to deliberately obscure; to make confusing |
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Ostentatious |
characterized by or given to pretentious display; showy |
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Pervade |
to permeate throughout |
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Phlegmatic |
calm; sluggish; unemotional |
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Pragmatic |
practical rather than idealistic |
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Presumptuous |
overstepping due bounds as of propriety or courtesy; taking liberties |
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Probity |
adherence to highest principles; complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness |
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Proclivity |
a natural predisposition or inclination |
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Profligate |
excessively wasteful; recklessly extravagant |
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Propensity |
a natural inclination or tendency; penchant |
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Prosaic |
dull; lacking in spirit or imagination |
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Quotidian |
occurring or recurring daily; commonplace |
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Rarefy |
to make or become thin; less dense; to refine |
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Recondite |
hidden; concealed; difficult to understand; obscure |
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Refulgent |
radiant, shiny, brilliant |
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Renege |
to fail to honor a commitment; to go back on a promise |
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Sedulous |
diligent; persistent; hard working |
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Soporific |
causing drowsiness; tending to induce sleep |
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Tacit |
implied; not explicitly stated |
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Tout |
to publicly praise or promote |
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Trenchant |
sharply perceptive; keen; penetrating |
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Unfeigned |
genuine; not false or hypocritical |
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Untenable |
indefensible; not viable; uninhabitable |
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Vacillate |
to waver indecisively b/w one course of action or opinion and another; waver |
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Variegated |
varying in color; multicolored |
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Vigilant |
alertly watchful |
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Vituperate |
to use harsh condemnatory language; to abuse or censure severely or abusively; berate |
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Alchemy |
a medieval science aimed at the transmutation of metals, esp. base metals into gold |
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Anachronism |
something or someone out of place in terms of historical or chronological context |
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Contiguous |
sharing a border; touching; adjacent |
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Convention |
a generally agreed-upon practice or attitude |
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Decorum |
polite or appropriate conduct or behavior |
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Divulge |
to disclose something secret |
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Imminent |
about to happen; impending |
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Indifferent |
having no interest or concern; showing now bias or prejudice |
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Mollify |
to calm or soothe; to reduce in emotional intensity |
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Obstinate |
Stubborn; hardheaded; uncompromising |
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Plethora |
an overabundance; a surplus |
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Pristine |
pure; uncorrupted; clean |
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Pungent |
characterized by a strong, sharp smell or taste |
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Quixotic |
foolishly impractical; marked by lofty romantic ideals |
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Shard |
a piece of broken pottery or glass |
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Sparse |
thin; not dense; arranged at widely spaced intervals |
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Spendthrift |
one who spends money wastefully |
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Subtle |
not obvious; elusive; difficult to discern |
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Terse |
brief and concise in wording |
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Vexation |
annoyance; irritation |
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Volatile |
readily changing to a vapor; changeable; fickle; explosive |
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