1-100

Question 1

Abase

Answer 1

To humble; to disgrace
my intention was not to abase the comedian

Question 2

Abjure

Answer 2

To reject; to abandon formally
the spy abjured his allegiance to the United States when he defected to Russia

Question 3

Antipathy

Answer 3

Extreme dislike
the antipathy between fans of the rival soccer teams made the game more electrifying to watch

Question 4

Apocryphal

Answer 4

Of questionable authority or authenticity
there is no hard or authoritative evidence to support the apocryphal tales that link the Roswell, New Mex, incident to a downed UFO

Question 5

Approbation

Answer 5

Approval and praise
the approbation that Jerry Lewis received in France included a medal from the Ministry of Culture

Question 6

Arbitrary

Answer 6

Determined by chance or impulse
when you lack the information to judge what to do next, you will be forced to make an arbitrary decision

Question 7

Arbitrate

Answer 7

To judge a dispute between two opposing parties
since the couple could not come to an agreement, a judge was forced to arbitrate their divorce proceedings

Question 8

Ardor

Answer 8

Intense and passionate feeling
bishop’s ardor for landscape was evident when he passionately described the beauty of scenic Hudson Valley

Question 9

Arrogate

Answer 9

To claim without justification; to claim for oneself without right
Gretchen watched in astonishment as her boss arrogated the credit for her brilliant work on the project

Question 10

Attenuate

Answer 10

To reduce in force or degree; to weaken
the Bill of Rights attenuated the traditional power of government to change laws at will

Question 11

Augury

Answer 11

A prophecy; a prediction of events
troy hoped the rainbow was an augury of good things to come

Question 12

August

Answer 12

Dignified; grandiose
the August view of the Grand Teton summit took my breath away

Question 13

Austere

Answer 13

Sever or stern in appearance; undecorated
the lack of determination makes Zen temples seem austere to the untrained eye

Question 14

Axiom

Answer 14

Premise; postulate; self-evident truth
halle lived her life based on the axioms her grandmother had passed on to her

Question 15

Banal

Answer 15

Predictable; cliched; boring
his conversation consisted of banal phrases like “have a nice day”

Question 16

Blithe

Answer 16

Joyful, cheerful, or without appropriate thought
summer finally came, and the blithe students spent their days at the beach

Question 17

Boor

Answer 17

A crude person; one lacking manners or taste
that utter boor ruined my recital with his constant talking

Question 18

Burgeon

Answer 18

To grow and flourish
flaukner neither confirmed nor denied stories, allowing the rumors to burgeon

Question 19

Burnish

Answer 19

To polish
he burnished the silver coffee pot

Question 20

Calumny

Answer 20

A false and malicious accusation; misrepresentation
the unscrupulous politician used calumny to bring down his opponent in the senatorial race

Question 21

Capricious

Answer 21

Changing one’s mind quickly and often
The preteen was quite capricious, her parents could never figure out what she wanted

Question 22

Caustic

Answer 22

Biting in wit
dorothy Parker gained her caustic reputation from her cutting, yet witty, insults

Question 23

Chauvinist

Answer 23

Someone prejudiced in favor of a group to which he or she belongs
thinking women must obey men due to their superiority is very common amongst male chauvinists

Question 24

Chicanery

Answer 24

Deception by means of craft or guile
dishonest used car salespeople often use chicanery to sell their beat up old cars

Question 25

Cloying

Answer 25

Sickly sweet; excessive *At the start of their relationship, their cloying affection because nauseating*

Question 26

Coalesce

Answer 26

To grow together to form a single whole *the sun and planets eventually coalesced out of a vast cloud of gas and dust*

Question 27

Cogent

Answer 27

Convincing and well-reasoned *swayed by the cogent argument of the defense, the jury had no choice but to acquit the defendant*

Question 28

Contrite

Answer 28

Deeply sorrowful and repentant for a wrong *after people ran and slipped on the lifeguards watch, he felt contrite*

Question 29

Contumacious

Answer 29

Rebellious *the contumacious teenager ran away from home when her parents told her she was grounded*

Question 30

Convoluted

Answer 30

Intricate and complicated *the way the author wrote, only a few could follow its convoluted ideas and theories*

Question 31

Cosset

Answer 31

To pamper; to treat with great care *Marta just loves to cosset her first and only grandchild*

Question 32

Coterie

Answer 32

An intimate group of persons with a similar purpose *angel invited a coterie of fellow stamp enthusiasts to a stamp-trading party*

Question 33

Craven

Answer 33

Lacking courage *the craven lion ran from the mouse*

Question 34

Credulous

Answer 34

Too trusting; gullible *I can be a bit credulous when it comes to my friends*

Question 35

Cupidity

Answer 35

Greed; strong desire *the thief looked at his loot with cupidity in his eyes*

Question 36

Curmudgeon

Answer 36

A cranky person, usually an old one *ernesto was the notorious curmudgeon in the neighborhood with a short temper*

Question 37

Decorous

Answer 37

Proper; tasteful; socially correct *the princess was trained in decorous behavior to act accordingly*