Verbal Advantage 200 Flashcards
BOON
Boon means something beneficial to a specific person, entity, or cause. “Getting called out of school on the day of the test was a boon for Sam, as he hadn’t remembered to study.”
PROLETARIAT
Proletariat is an old term for the “working class.” It was commonly used by Marxists and other people who believed that capitalism had created a class of workers who were exploited by company owners. They called those owners “the bourgeoisie.”
HETEROGENEOUS
Heterogeneous can be used to describe the diversity of nearly anything — populations, classrooms, collections. A heterogeneous array of immigrants passed through Ellis Island to help create the American “melting pot.”
PITTANCE
A pittance is a tiny payment or small reimbursement for work — generally an amount that’s inadequate. The restaurant may pay you a pittance, but you can do well if you get a lot of good tips.
GLIB
A hiring manager might think you’re being glib, or slick and insincere, if you say you’ve led a successful multinational corporation when you were actually in charge of flipping burgers for a fast-food restaurant chain.
PENCHANT
A penchant is a strong preference or tendency. If you have a penchant for pizza, you either eat it daily, or wish you did.
SOLICITOUS
When you hear the word solicitous, think of your mom — attentive, caring and concerned. It’s nice when your waiter gives you good service, but if he or she is solicitous, the hovering might annoy you.
CIRCUMSCRIBE
To circumscribe is to limit or restrict. If you spend too much time watching TV instead of fulfilling other obligations, you might circumscribe your TV-watching time to one hour daily (or two hours, if your favorite show is on).
DEARTH
If there is a dearth of something, there is not enough of it. A dearth of affordable housing is bad, but a dearth of bed bugs is a blessing.
TERSE
Terse means brief, or using very few words. If your teacher tells you to make your writing in your essay style terse and to the point, he’s saying use as few words as you can and be simple and clear.
INGRATIATING
If someone in your class places an apple on your teacher’s desk in an ingratiating manner, that means he’s making a calculated move to suck up and win your teacher’s favor.
EXTEMPORIZE
Perform without preparation.
ERUDITE
If you call someone erudite, that means they show great learning. After you’ve earned your second Ph.D., you will be truly erudite.
AUSTERE
The adjective austere is used to describe something or someone stern or without any decoration. You wouldn’t want someone to describe you or your home as austere.
LACONIC
Laconic is an adjective that describes a style of speaking or writing that uses only a few words, often to express complex thoughts and ideas. A more laconic way to write that last sentence might be this: laconic means brief.
