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Words 101 > Set 3 > Flashcards

Set 3 Flashcards

1
Q

burnish

A
  • (v)to polish or make shine; (n) a shiny appearance
  • (v) polish, furbish, gloss, glaze; (n) polish, sheen, gloss

The store owner’s son’s only job was to burnish the statues in the window every day.

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1
Q

buttress

A
  • (v)to support or encourage; (n) a supporting structure
  • (v)support, bolster, brace; (n)support, abutment

The parents decided to buttress the after-school programs that were in danger of ending by making donations.

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2
Q

equivocate

A
  • to make vague, unclear statements
  • prevaricate

The mayor equivocated when confronted about his use of public funds.

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3
Q

prevaricate

A
  • speak or act in an evasive way
  • evade, equivocate, lie

The guest chose to prevaricate by answering the host’s questions with unrelated anecdotes.

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4
Q

paragon

A
  • a model of excellence
  • model, example, archetype, ideal

The man was a paragon of virtue who had never stolen so much as a loaf of bread in his life.

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5
Q

cacophony

A
  • unpleasant, discordant sounds
  • noise, clamor

The orchestra’s first attempt to play together was a cacophony of jarring notes.

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6
Q

mawkish

A
  • very sentimental
  • maudlin, emotional, mushy

The group of graduating seniors was a mawkish sight, crying and taking hundreds of pictures.

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7
Q

cajole

A
  • to make someone do something with flattery or promise
  • coax, wheedle, blandish, flatter, persuade, adulate

Mother cajoled her into driving the other children to school, promising to make her favorite dinner.

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8
Q

dogmatic

A
  • rigidly fixed in opinion or expression in an arrogant manner
  • opinionated, doctrinal, peremptory, pragmatic

The dogmatic theorist refused to listen to any other possibilities.

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9
Q

calibrate

A
  • to check or balance the scale of a measuring device with a standard scale
  • graduate

The new thermometer needed to be calibrated before it could be used.

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10
Q

perdition

A
  • a state of final spiritual ruin; hell
  • bane, ruination, damnation

Poor moral choices led Johnny down the road of perdition.

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11
Q

beseech

A
  • to request urgently
  • beg, appeal, plead, implore, entreat, supplicate

The dying man beseeched his family to visit him.

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12
Q

canny

A
  • careful; shrewd
  • cunning, sly, astute, prudent, crafty, wily

John was a canny negotiator; no matter how bad his bargaining position, he would always come out on top.

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13
Q

seminal

A
  • original and heavily influential on later developments
  • innovative

The seminal works of the artist developed into a new style of interpretation.

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14
Q

cantankerous

A
  • difficult to handle; ill-tempered
  • contentious, peevish, quarrelsome, petulant

The worst part about working in customer service was having to deal with irate, cantankerous callers.

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15
Q

contentious

A
  • causing or likely to cause an argument
  • quarrelsome, litigious, controversial

Since old grandpa Harry became very contentious during the summer when only reruns were on TV, the grandkids learned to hide from him at every opportunity.

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16
Q

querulous

A
  • complaining in a petulant or whining manner
  • peevish

An example of a querulous is a child whining loudly in the grocery store that she wants to go home.

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17
Q

petulant

A
  • childishly sulky or bad-tempered
  • pettish, cantankerous, peevish, irritable

Jones declined to characterize Astro as “arrogant,” saying he might use the term “petulant” instead.

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18
Q

contention

A
  • a point or argument in a debate

-

The ceasefire is holding, but a few points of contention must still be resolved before a final peace can be reached.

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19
Q

semantic

A
  • related to the meaning of words
  • linguistic, verbal

Susan felt that the abortion debate had become too focused on semantic arguments.

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20
Q

serrate

A
  • having toothed edges
  • serrated, jagged, toothed, indented

Kate used the serrate edge of the knife to cut through the tough meat.

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21
Q

sever

A
  • to cut off
  • separate, part, cut off

Unfortunately, to prevent the infection from spreading, the doctors had to sever the infected parts of the hand.

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22
Q

sinuous

A
  • twisting and winding; not direct
  • winding, tortuous, serpentine, meandering

The sinuous path through the mountains was probably the most dangerous route to take.

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23
Q

solicitude

A
  • caring about others’ well being
  • care, worry, concern, consideration`

Though she claims not to have any feelings for Julio, she showed a great deal of solicitude when she learned of his illness.

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24
Q

solidarity

A
  • a feeling of camaraderie with others due to shared goals
  • unity

Several townspeople expressed solidarity with the union members by protesting with them.

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25
Q

soluble

A
  • capable of being dissolved; capable of being solved
  • solvable, resoluble, dissoluble, dissolvable

Certain medicines are soluble in water so they can be taken with ease.

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26
Q

solvent

A
  • (adj) able to meet financial obligations; (n) a substance that can dissolve other substances
  • dissolvent, diluent

To remain solvent, the business was forced to sell its overseas operations.

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27
Q

soporific

A
  • (adj)able to cause sleepiness; (n) a substance that causes sleepiness
  • (adj) drowsy, somniferous, sleepy; (n) narcotic, hypnotic, drug

Bill’s new cold medication has soporific side effects that interfere with his ability to drive.

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28
Q

emulate

A
  • to try to imitate or exceed another’s actions
  • imitate, surpass

Nancy wanted to emulate her older sister and so began to study more often.

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29
Q

enamor

A
  • to make infatuated; to cause to love
  • enamour, charm, fascinate, captivate

He was so enamoured of her that he thought about her every day.

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30
Q

endemic

A
  • originating in, native to, particular to

-

There are some deadly diseases that are endemic to the tropics.

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31
Q

endow

A
  • give or bequeath an income or property
  • provide, endue, give

Christine’s mother endowed her with beautiful green eyes.

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32
Q

endue

A
  • endown or provide with a quality or ability
  • endow, indue, vest

Endued with wisdom and knowledge.

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33
Q

dour

A
  • relentlessly severe, stern, or gloomy in manner or appearance
  • stern, severe, strict

The old headmaster never had anything but a dour expression to offer.

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34
Q

enervate

A
  • to make weaker
  • weaken , unnerve, debilitate, emasculate

The heat enervated the soccer players’ strength with each passing minute, and by halftime most were in no condition to continue playing.

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35
Q

insouciant

A

-unconcerned, nonchalant, lighthearted

  • carefree,
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36
Q

evince

A
  • to clearly prove something, to indicate
  • show, manifest, demonstrate

Her choice not to enter into an argument with him evinced her maturity.

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37
Q

enfranchise

A
  • to give rights of citizenship, esp. the right to vote; to free
  • liberate, emancipate

When women were finally enfranchised, spontaneous celebrations occurred throughout the country.

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38
Q

filigree

A
  • (v) to adorn; (n) an ornamental work esp. delicate and lacelike

-

The wine glass was filigreed with a delicate pattern of grape vines.

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39
Q

engender

A
  • to cause or give rise to ( a feeling, situation or condition)
  • generate, produce

The poor ventilation in the factory engendered health problems amonsgst the workers.

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40
Q

apocryphal

A
  • of dubious origin; of doubtful authenticity
  • mythic, fictitious, spurious

I believe all stories of alien abduction are apocryphal.

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41
Q

enmity

A
  • strong mutual hatred
  • hostility, animosity, hatred, feud, antagonism

Great enmity has existed between the two tribes for centuries, leading to untold bloodshed.

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42
Q

aesthete

A
  • one with artistic sensibilities
  • esthete

The aesthete was able to knowledgeably interpret the painting.

43
Q

estimable

A
  • worthy of respect
  • respectable, reputable, honourable

The team knew within the first few minutes that they faced an estimable opponent.

44
Q

revile

A
  • to criticize with harsh or abusive language
  • abuse, vituperate, swear, insult, curse

Film critics reviled the studio for gutting the director’s artistic vision and replacing it with meaningless action sequences.

45
Q

indefatigable

A
  • incapable of becoming exhausted
  • tireless, untiring

The marathon runner was seemingly indefatigable, keeping up bis brisk pace while competitiors fell behind one after the other.

46
Q

ensemble

A
  • a whole group formed by separate parts
  • together, whole

The band was an ensemble of classical violinists, guitarists and a jazz pianist.

47
Q

effervescent

A
  • emitting small bubbles; showing high spirits; vivacious
  • fizzing, sparkling, bubbly

Stacy’s effervescent mind captivated everyone she met.

48
Q

enthrall

A
  • to captivate, enslave
  • fascinate, bewitch, captivate

The singer’s voice enthralled the judges, who immediately awarded her first place in the contest.

49
Q

entreat

A
  • ask someone earnestly or anxiously to do something
  • plead, beseech, implore, supplicate, beg

The rejected boy entreated the girl to give him a second chance.

50
Q

extirpate

A
  • to destroy, annihilate totally; to cut out by the roots
  • eradicate, exterminate, uproot

Modern thinkers have proposed to extirpate religion from all political discourse.

51
Q

enumerate

A
  • to list items individually
  • count, list

Shocked by her decision, I asked her to enumerate her reasons for firing him.

52
Q

internecine

A
  • destructive to both sides in a conflict
  • homicidal, deadly, murderous

The country’s internecine struggle was only put to rest after many innocent people lost their lives.

53
Q

ephemeral

A
  • lasting only a short while
  • transitory, transient, momentary, short-lived

Our joy at being let out for the weekend was only ephemeral, for we soon realized that we had a lot of studying to do for Monday.

54
Q

variegated

A
  • multicolored, varied

The variegated leaves were a sure sign that autumn had arrived.

55
Q

venerate

A
  • to respect deeply and honor
  • revere, respect

The children venerated their grandfather and sought not to disappoint him.

56
Q

veracity

A
  • truthfulness

In order to have her article published, Susan needed to prove the veracity of her claims.

57
Q

verbiage

A
  • an overabundance of words; one’s manner of speaking

The elderly speaker’s verbiage tended toward the formal.

58
Q

vestige

A
  • a small remnant
  • trace, remnant

That abandoned well is a vestige of the manor that once stood here.

59
Q

vex

A
  • to annoy or bother
  • annoy, irritate

It was when they were allowed to horse around the house that the children vexed her the most.

60
Q

vigilant

A
  • watchful, alert

Our new dog is very vigilant when it comes to guarding the house.

61
Q

vigor

A
  • energy, force, strength

After she broke her hip dancing, Kate realized that she had lost the youthful vigor she once had.

62
Q

virtuoso

A
  • a highly skilled artist

Even at a young age, it was clear that Beethoven was a virtuoso in the making.

63
Q

viscous

A
  • thick and syrup-like
  • sticky, glutinous, gluey, adhesive

They slathered a viscous glue over the pieces to make sure they would stick.

64
Q

vituperate

A
  • blame or insult (someone) in strong or violent language
  • revile, abuse, scold

The old man vituperated the neighborhood boys who were trespassing on his lawn.

65
Q

vivacious

A
  • energetic, full of life
  • lively, sprightly, spirited, animated, alive

At ninety years old, Melinda was known for her being particularly vivacious of her age.

66
Q

meticulous

A
  • paying great attention to detail
  • scrupulous, precise, punctilious

He was a meticulous sculptor. sometimes spending hours perfecting a single fingernail on one of his figures.

67
Q

mimicry

A
  • close imitation of something else
  • imitation, mimesis

Mimicry is common in the animal kingdom, such as when harmless species assume the aspect of poisonous ones to avoid being eaten.

68
Q

minuet

A
  • a slow stately ballroom dance for two in triple time

A minuet is always danced with three beats per measure.

69
Q

minute

A
  • attentive to the smallest details
  • tiny, small,detailed, petty

The chances of such a slow horse actually winning the race are minute.

70
Q

mirth

A
  • glee, joy, amusement

The house was always full of happy laughter and other signs of mirth.

71
Q

dissipated

A
  • overindulging in sensual pleasures
  • dissolute, rakish, profligate, licentious

His life quickly became dissipated and unstructured after he won the lottery

72
Q

misanthrope

A
  • hater of humanity
  • cynic

The old man was a notorious misanthrope who loathed even his children.

73
Q

invidious

A
  • offensive, provoking resentment or ill-will
  • hateful, abominable, repugnant

The teacher’s invidious practice of playing favorites led to several parent conferences.

74
Q

misconstrue

A
  • to misunderstand
  • misinterpret, misunderstand

Eva has a habit of misconstruing compliments, reading amorous designs into the most innocent remarks.

75
Q

remit

A
  • to transmit payment

The transaction was completed after the buyer remitted the money.

76
Q

remission

A
  • a payment of money sent to someone; an abatement in intensity or degree of an illness; the act of absolving of sins by a priest
  • pardon, forgiveness

Remission of sins is a blessing not to be missed.

77
Q

opprobrium

A
  • the disgrace felt by someone who has acted in an outrageously shameful manner
  • shame, disgrace, dishonour

Oedipus Rex experienced great opprobrium after learning the true extent of his crimes.

78
Q

mollify

A
  • to decrease the strength of; to make softer, less severe
  • appease, soften, soothe, pacify

His rage was mollified by his wife’s soothing words.

79
Q

momentum

A
  • strength built up by continued movement or development
  • impetus, impulse, moment

The protest gained momentum as it passed through the city and gained new supporters.

80
Q

prodigious

A
  • having great power or size; extreme
  • stupendous, enormous

The building of the new dam is a prodigious project requiring thousands of men and millions of dollars.

81
Q

asperity

A
  • harsh qualities or conditions; harshness of tone or manner
  • severity, rigor, acrimony, irritability, harshness

The asperity of a northern winter can lead to depression.

82
Q

profligate

A
  • recklessly extravagant or wasteful in the use of resources
  • prodigal, dissolute, rakish, wasteful, licentious

She criticized her spoiled son for his profligate lifestyle.

83
Q

profuse

A
  • abundant, freely giving or spending
  • lavish, abundant,

Horrified by the consequences of her actions, Joyce offered profuse apologies to her friends.

84
Q

hapless

A
  • unlucky, unfortunate, luckless

The hapless, accident-prone child managed to break his leg for the third time.

85
Q

prognostic

A
  • (n) a prediction; (adj) indicating future events
  • (n)portent, omen, presage; (adj) predictive

Climate scientists presented a chilling prognostic of what will happen to our planet in the near future.

86
Q

proliferate

A
  • to grow or spread quickly
  • breed, propagate

Tensions in the area proliferated after the civilian casualties.

87
Q

puissant

A
  • having great power or influence
  • mighty, powerful, potent

A puissant leader can secure the success of an entire team.

88
Q

prone

A
  • likely to or liable to suffer from; lying face or front forward
  • inclined, prostate

Lucy was prone to cheat on tests, so the teachers placed her in a separate room.

89
Q

propitiate

A
  • to appease. make peace
  • placate, appease, conciliate, pacify

propitiate the Gods

90
Q

ineffable

A
  • too great or extreme to be described in words
  • unspeakable, unutterable

After a long day you can find ineffable pleasure in a hot bath.

91
Q

propitious

A
  • favorable, auspicious, opportune

The rainy weather was not propitious for the picnic they had planned.

92
Q

propound

A
  • to propose or offer for consideration
  • propose, suggest, present

To make her point about the dangers of sunburns, Kate propounded various theories about skin cancer and its links to ultraviolet radiation.

93
Q

propriety

A
  • the state of conforming to conventionally accepted standards of behavior
  • decency, decorum

A model housewife, Mary valued propriety and manners over everything else.

94
Q

precipitate

A
  • acting with haste or on impulse; to cause or hasten an event
  • accelerate, hasten, quicken, expedite

The officer took precipitate action and wound up making the situation even worse.

95
Q

prosaic

A
  • common, unimaginative
  • ordinary, common-place

Kate’s realistic paintings of household objects were criticized as being too prosaic.

96
Q

prudent

A
  • practical, careful, cautious, discreet, wary

His assistant was particularly prudent when it came to keeping the company’s secrets.

97
Q

advert

A
  • to call or direct attention towards

As soon as Jim saw the unsafe guardrail, he adverted everyone to the problem.

98
Q

excoriate

A
  • to condemn scathingly; criticize severely

After the student’s repetitive acts of bullying, the principal excoriated him.

99
Q

insipid

A
  • lacking flavor; lacking vigor or interest
  • bland, trite, vapid

The film’s insipid plot, like that of hundreds of others, centered on American agents thwarting a Russian spy ring.

100
Q

vapid

A
  • offering nothing that is stimulating or challenging
  • insipid, tasteless, dull

tuneful but vapid musical comedies

101
Q

sublimate

A
  • to change state of matter between solid and gaseous form without passing through liquid stage

Dry ice sublimates directly from its solid ice form to the gas you see rising off of it.

102
Q

expatiate

A
  • to discuss or write about at great length

-

Margie expatiated about her misfortunes until early in the morning.

103
Q

precipitous

A
  • dangerously high or steep
  • steep, abrupt

The economy suffered a precipitous decline in exports.

104
Q

necromancy

A
  • the practice of communicating with the spirits of the dead

Aunt Pam claimed that necromancy was a way you could speak to your ancestors.

105
Q

truculent

A
  • eager to argue or fight
  • cruel, ferocious, savage, brutal

The truculent dictator did not care about the well being of his people.

106
Q

depravity

A
  • moral corruption or degradation
  • corruption, perversion, depravation, perversity

Man’s depravity will not be altered by a cultural morality.

Words 101 (6 decks)

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