6/14 Flashcards
(28 cards)
pretext
excuse/false motive used to hide true intentions, real reasons
eg. he left the party on pretext of having to work the next day
scrupuously
with great care, attention to detail
eg. scrupulously checked the order had nothing wrong with it
naysayer
someone that habitually expresses negative/pessimistic views, criticizes or opposes new ideas
eg. ignore the naysayers, follow your dreams
deliberate (2)
1) intentionally
2) to think/discuss something very carefully, before making an important decision
repulsive
causing strong feelings of dislike/aversion due to its unpleasantness
eg. his rude comments were repulsive to others in the room
solace (2)
1) a source of comfort, relief when sad or troubled
eg. found solace knowing I did my best
2) to comfort/soothe someone
eg. she tried to solace her grieving friend
thorny
literally covered by sharp points, but figuratively, also meaning a difficult of complicated/tricky situation that’s hard to handle
eg. thorny issue of immigration reform
furtive
done secretly, in a way meant to avoid notice, being stealthy
eg. exchanged furtive whispers in the back of the room
dissembling
concealing one’s thoughts, hiding truth by pretending/putting on a false appearance
eg. he was good at dissembling and nobody suspected his true intentions
tractable
easy to manage, control or deal with
eg. she is very tractable and willing to learn
intractable
difficult to manage, stubborn and resistant to change, difficult to solve
eg. her intractable attitude made teamwork very challenging
prolixity
tediously long, using too many words, verbose
eg. professors’ prolixity made the lecture very hard to follow
impetuous
acting sudden without thought/care, impulsive and hasty
eg. impetuous decision to yell without thinking about the consequences
unsparing
not limited, restrained, not holding back (could be positive or negative)
eg. unsparing in her praise for the team’s hard work
eg. critic’s review was unsparing and brutal
sunny
cheerful, happy, and optimistic in mood
eg. she has a sunny disposition that brightens the office mood
prodigal
recklessly wasteful, extravagant
eg. he was prodigal with his inheritance and soon went broke
taciturnity
reserved, saying little, uncommunicative
eg. his taciturnity made it hard for others to get to know him
volubility
quality of talking a lot, being very talkative, fluent
eg. RS’s volubility translates into his skill for presenting very well
pellucid
clear, transparent and easy to understand (literal and figurative)
eg. the lake’s pellucidity allowed us to see through all the way to the bottom
eg. her writing is known for its pellucidity and elegance
extraneous
irrelevant, unrelated to the subject being discussed
eg. extraneous material
eclipse (2)
1) to cover, obscure and make it less visible
eg. the moon will eclipse the sun tomorrow
2) to surpass, outshine and make someone less noticeable
eg. high performing senior associates and VPs often times are eclipsing the shitty and useless directors on the team
rumination
deep and repetitive thinking, thinking over something carefully and dwelling on something over and over
eg. after much rumination, she finally made her decision
utterly
completely, totally, absolutely
eg. utterly ridiculous
commonplace
ordinary, happening to often that it’s not that interesting
eg. smartphones are so commonplace in today’s world
