 | Term | Definition |
| |
arduous |
strenuous;taxing;requiring significant effort;labrous |
| |
discordant |
Conflicting;dissonant or harsh in sound |
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ennui |
dissatisfaction and restlessness resulting from boredom or apathy |
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filibuster |
inentional obstruction, esp. using prolonged speechmaking to delay legislative action |
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magnanimity |
the quality of being generously noble in mind and heart, esp. in forgiving |
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nebulous |
vague;cloudy;lacking clearly defined form |
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noxious |
harmful;injurious |
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obtuse |
lacking sharpness of intellect; not clear or precise in thought or expression |
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obviate |
to anticipate and make unnecessary |
| |
perennial |
recurrent through the year or many years; happening repeatedly |
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perfidy |
intentional breach of faith; treachery |
| |
prattle |
to babble meaninglessly; to talk in an empty and idle manner |
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precipitate |
adj. acting with excessive haste or impulse n. to cause or happen before anticipated or required |
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predilection |
a disposition in favor of something; preference |
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prevaricate |
to deliberately avoid the truth; to mislead |
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qualms |
misgivings; reservations; causes for hestancy |
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recant |
to retract, esp. a previously held belief |
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refute |
to disprove; to successfully argue against |
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relegate |
to forcibly assign, esp. to a lower place or position |
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solicitous |
concerned and attentive; eager |
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sordid |
characterized by filth, grime, or squalor; foul |
| |
squander |
to waste by spending or using irresponsibly |
| |
stupefy |
to stun, baffle, or amaze |
| |
stymie |
to block; thwart |
| |
tortuous |
winding; twisting; excessively complicated |
| |
truculent |
fierce and cruel; eager to fight |
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veracity |
truthfulness; honesty |
| |
voracious |
having and insatiable appetite for an activity or pursuit; ravenous |
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accolade |
an expression of praise |
| |
adulation |
excessive praise; intense adoration |
| |
axiom |
a universally recognized principle |
| |
chary |
wary; cautious; sparing |
| |
complaisance |
the willingness to comply with the wishes of others |
| |
contentious |
argumentative; quarrelsome; causing controversy or disagreement |
| |
culpable |
deserving blame |
| |
dearth |
smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; a lack |
| |
didactic |
intended to teach or instruct |
| |
discretion |
cautious reserve in speech; ability to make responsible decisions |
| |
disinterested |
free of bias or self-interest; impartial |
| |
ebullience |
the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings |
| |
elegy |
a mournful poem, esp. one lamenting the dead |
| |
emollient |
adj. soothing, esp. to the skin; making less harsh; n. mollifying; an agent that softens or smoothes the skin |
| |
empirical |
based on observation or experiment |
| |
eulogy |
a speech honoring the dead |
| |
facetious |
playful; humorous |
| |
fallacy |
an invalid or incorrect notion; a mistake belief |
| |
harangue |
to deliver a pompous speech or tirade; a long, pompous speech |
| |
impecunious |
lacking funds; without money |
| |
incipient |
beginning to come into being or to become apparent |
| |
inert |
unmoving; lethargic; sluggish |
| |
inveigle |
to obtain by deception or flattery |
| |
morose |
sad; sullen; melancholy |
| |
odious |
evoking intense aversion or dislike |
| |
penurious |
penny-pinching; excessively thrifty; ungenerous |
| |
pernicious |
extremely harmful; potentially causing death |
| |
peruse |
to examine with great care |
| |
pious |
extremely reverent or devout; showing strong religious devotion (piety) |
| |
preen |
adj. to dress up; to primp; to groom oneself with elaborate care |
| |
prodigious |
abundant in size, force, or extent; extraordinary |
| |
putrefy |
to rot; to decay and give off a foul odor |
| |
quaff |
to drink deeply |
| |
redoubtable |
awe-inspiring; worthy of honor |
| |
sanction |
n/v. authoritative permission or approval; a penalty intended to enforce compliance; to give permission or authority to |
| |
squalid |
sordid; wretched and dirty as from neglect |
| |
stoic |
adj. indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain; steadfast |
| |
supplant |
v. to take the place of; supersede |
| |
torpid |
adj. lethargic; sluggish; dormant |
| |
torpor |
n. sluggishness |
| |
urbane |
adj. sophiscated; refined; elegant |
| |
vilify |
v. to defame; to characterize harshly |
| |
acumen |
keen, accurate judgment or insight |
| |
aver |
to state as a fact; to declare or assert |
| |
eccentric |
departing from norms or conventions |
| |
evanescent |
tending to disappear like vapor; vanishing |
| |
fervent |
greatly emotional or zealous n. fervor |
| |
germane |
relevant to the subject at hand; appropriate in subject matter |
| |
grandiloquence |
pompous speech or expression adj. grandiloquent |
| |
hackneyed |
rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage |
| |
halcyon |
calm and peaceful |
| |
hedonism |
devotion to pleasurable pursuits, esp. to the pleasures ofthe senses |
| |
hegemony |
the consistent dominance of one state or ideology over others |
| |
idolatrous |
given to intense or excessive devotion to something |
| |
impassive |
revealing no emotion |
| |
impunity |
immunity from punishment or penalty |
| |
infelicitous |
unfortunate; inappropriate |
| |
malevolent |
having or showing often vicious ill will, spite, or hatred |
| |
mendacity |
the condition of being untruthful; dishonesty |
| |
obsequious |
exhibiting a fawning attentiveness |
| |
occlude |
to obstruct or block |
| |
pedagogy |
the profession or principles of teaching, or instructing |
| |
pedantic |
the parading of learning; excessive attention to minutiae and formal rules |
| |
penury |
poverty; destitution |
| |
pervasive |
having the tendency to permeate or spread throughout |
| |
pine |
to yearn intensely; to languish; to lose vigor |
| |
pirate |
to illegally use or reproduce |
| |
pith |
the essential or central part |
| |
platitude |
a superficial remark, esp. one offered as meaningful |
| |
plummet |
to plunge or drop straight down |
| |
polemical |
controversial; argumentative |
| |
prodigal |
recklessly wasteful; extravagant; profuse; lavish |
| |
profuse |
given or coming forth abundantly; extravagant |
| |
queries |
questions; inquires; doubt in the mind; reservation |
| |
rancorous |
characterized by bitter, long-lasting resentment |
| |
recalcitrant |
obstinately defiant of authority; difficult to manage |
| |
repudiate |
to refuse to have anything to do with; disown |
| |
rescind |
to invalidate; to repeal; to retract |
| |
reverent |
marked by, feeling, or expressing a feeling of profound awe and respect |
| |
solvent |
able to meet financial obligations; able to dissolve another substance |
| |
spurious |
lacking authenticity or validity; false; counterfeit |
| |
subpoena |
a court order requiring appearance and/or testimony |
| |
succinct |
brief; concise |
| |
superfluous |
exceeding what is sufficient or necessary |
| |
tenacity |
the quality of adherence or persistence to something valued; persistent determination |
| |
tenuous |
having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak |
| |
transient |
fleeting; passing quickly; brief |
| |
acerbic |
having a sour or bitter taste or character; sharp; biting |
| |
contiguous |
sharing a border; touching; adjacent |
| |
derision |
score; ridicule; contemptuous treatment |
| |
disparage |
to slight or belittle |
| |
divulge |
to disclose something secret |
| |
flout |
to show contempt(thinking something is bad) for, as in a rule or convention |
| |
hubris |
overbearing presumption or pride; arrogance |
| |
imminent |
about to happen; impending |
| |
indifferent |
having no interest or concern; showing no bias or prejudice |
| |
maverick |
an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party |
| |
obfuscate |
to deliberately obscure; to make confusing |
| |
presumptuous |
overstepping due bounds (as of propriety or courtesy); taking liberties |
| |
proclivity |
a natural predisposition or inclination |
| |
propensity |
a natural inclination or tendency, penchant |
| |
prosaic |
dull; lacking in spirit or imagination |
| |
recondite |
hiden; concealed; dificult to understand; obscure |
| |
refulgent |
adj. radiant; shiny; brilliant |
| |
renege |
to fail to honor a commitment; to go back on a promise |
| |
sedulous |
diligent; persistent; hardworking |
| |
sparse |
thin; not dense; arranged at widely spaced intervals |
| |
spendthrift |
one who spends money wastefully |
| |
tacit |
implied; not explicitly stated |
| |
terse |
adj. brief and concise in wording |
| |
tout |
to publicly praise or promote |
| |
unfeigned |
genuine; not false or hypocritical |
| |
untenable |
indefensible; not viable; uninhabitable |
| |
variegated |
multicolored; characterized by a variety of patches of different color |
| |
vigilant |
adj. alertly watchful |
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