 | Term | Definition |
| |
declivity |
downward slope |
| |
deleterious |
harmful, destructive, detrimental |
| |
deluge |
flood |
| |
demagogue |
leader or rabble-rouser who usually uses appeals to emotion or prejudice |
| |
denigrate |
to slur or blacken someone's reputation |
| |
descry |
to discover or reveal |
| |
diaphanous |
allowing light to show through delicate |
| |
dictum |
authoritative statement; popular saying |
| |
didactic |
excessively instructive |
| |
diluvial |
relating to a flood |
| |
diminutive |
small |
| |
discomfit |
to cause perplexity and embarrassment |
| |
distaff |
the female branch of a family |
| |
dither |
to move or act confusedly without clear purpose |
| |
diurnal |
daily |
| |
doctrinaire |
rigidly devoted to theories |
| |
dolor |
sadness |
| |
doughty |
courageous |
| |
droll |
amusing in a wry, subtle way |
| |
dyspeptic |
suffering from indigestion gloomy and irritable |
| |
ebullient |
exhilarated, full of enthusiasm and high spirits |
| |
effluvia |
outpouring of gases or vapors |
| |
effulgent |
brilliantly shining |
| |
egregious |
conspicuously bad |
| |
emend |
to correct a text |
| |
emollient |
having soothing qualities, esp. for skin |
| |
encomium |
warm praise |
| |
endemic |
belonging to a particular area, inherent |
| |
ennui |
boredom, lack of interest and energy |
| |
epicure |
person with refined taste in food and wine |
| |
epitome |
representative of an entire group; summary |
| |
ersatz |
fake |
| |
eschew |
to abstain from, avoid |
| |
evince |
to show clearly, display, signify |
| |
exorcise |
to expel evil spirits |
| |
expatiate |
to wander to discuss or describe at length |
| |
expiate |
to atone for, make amends for |
| |
expunge |
to erase, eliminate completely |
| |
expurgate |
to censor |
| |
extemporaneous |
unrehearsed, on the spur of the moment |
| |
extol |
to praise |
| |
extrapolate |
to estimate |
| |
facetious |
witty in an inappropriate way |
| |
fatuous |
stupid smugly foolish; unconsciously foolish |
| |
fealty |
intense loyalty |
| |
fecund |
fertile, fruitful, productive |
| |
fetid |
foul-smelling, putrid |
| |
fey |
doomed |
| |
filch |
to steal |
| |
filial |
appropriate for a child |
| |
flaccid |
limp, flabby, weak |
| |
foliate |
to grow, sprout leaves |
| |
forswear |
to repudiate, renounce, disclaim, reject |
| |
fracas |
noisy dispute |
| |
fractious |
unruly, rebellious |
| |
frenetic |
wildly frantic, frenzied, hectic |
| |
fulminate |
to explode with anger |
| |
fulsome |
excessive, overdone, sickeningly abundant |
| |
furtive |
secret, stealthy |
| |
gainsay |
to deny |
| |
gambol |
to dance or skip around playfully |
| |
gauche |
crude, socially awkward |
| |
germinate |
to begin to grow (as in a seed or idea) |
| |
gibe |
to make heckling, taunting remarks |
| |
glib |
fluent in an insincere manner; offhand, causal |
| |
gnostic |
having to do with knowledge |
| |
grandiloquence |
pompous talk, fancy but meaningless language |
| |
gratuitous |
free, voluntary; unnecessary and unjustified |
| |
gustatory |
relating to sense of taste |
| |
hackneyed |
worn out by over-use |
| |
harangue |
a pompous speech |
| |
hegemony |
leadership, domination, usually by a country |
| |
heretical |
opposed to an established religious orthodoxy |
| |
hermetic |
tightly sealed |
| |
hoary |
very old; whitish or gray from age |
| |
husband |
to farm; manage carefully and thriftily |
| |
idiosyncrasy |
peculiarity of temperament, eccentricity |
| |
ignominious |
disgraceful and dishonorable |
| |
ilk |
type or kind |
| |
illusory |
unreal, deceptive |
| |
imbue |
to infuse; due; wet; moisten |
| |
impecunious |
poor, having no money |
| |
imperious |
arrogantly self-assured, domineering, overbearing |
| |
impolitic |
unwise |
| |
impromptu |
spontaneous, without rehearsal |
| |
impugn |
to call into question, attack verbally |
| |
incarnate |
having bodily form |
| |
incendiary |
combustible, flammable, burning easily |
| |
inculcate |
to teach; impress in the mind |
| |
inculpate |
to blame charge with a crime |
| |
indefatigable |
never tired |
| |
indigent |
very poor |
| |
indolent |
habitually lazy, idle |
| |
indubitable |
unquestionable |
| |
inert |
unable to move, tending to inactivity |
| |
infallible |
incapable of making a mistake |
| |
ingenious |
original, clever, inventive |
| |
ingratiate |
to bring oneself purposely into another's good graces |
| |
ingress |
entrance |
| |
innuendo |
indirect and subtle criticism, insinuation |
| |
insidious |
sly, treacherous, devious |
| |
insuperable |
insurmountable, unconquerable |
| |
interdict |
to forbid, prohibit |
| |
interlocutor |
someone taking part in a dialogue |
| |
interloper |
trespasser; meddler in others' affairs |
| |
internecine |
deadly to both sides |
| |
interpolate |
to insert; change by adding new words or material |
| |
interstice |
a space between things |
| |
intimation |
clue, suggestion |
| |
intrepid |
fearless |
| |
intrinsic |
inherent, internal |
| |
inure |
to harden, accustom become used to |
| |
inveterate |
confirmed, long-standing, deeply rooted |
| |
invidious |
likely to provoke ill will, offensive |
| |
itinerant |
wandering from place to place, unsettled |
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