Book17 Flashcards
(200 cards)
1
Q
parallelism
A
state of being parallel; similarity; analogy
2
Q
parallel
A
similar; analogous; corresponding; N: parallel line; person or thing that is parallel (to another); similarity; Ex. know of no parallel to the case; Ex. without parallel; V: be similar to; make parallel; Ex. Your experience parallels mine; CF. unparalleled
3
Q
parameter
A
limit; independent variable; Ex. parameters of the problem; Ex. within the parameters of the budget
4
Q
paramount
A
foremost in importance; supreme; CF. para-: beyond; above; Ex. paranormal
5
Q
paramour
A
illicit lover
6
Q
inamorata
A
woman whom a man loves
7
Q
paranoia
A
psychosis marked by delusions of grandeur or persecution; N: ADJ: paranoid, paranoiac
8
Q
paraphernalia
A
equipment; odds and ends used in a particular activity; personal belongings; Ex. photographic paraphernalia; CF. married woman’s property exclusive of her dowry
9
Q
dowry
A
money or property brought by a bride to her husband at marriage
10
Q
paraphrase
A
restate a passage in one’s own words while retaining thought of author; N: restatement of a text in other words
11
Q
parasite
A
animal or plant living on another; toady; sycophant; CF. para-: beside
12
Q
infest
A
inhabit in numbers large enough to be harmful; Ex. Mice infested the house; Ex. shark-infested waters
13
Q
parched
A
extremely dry; very thirsty; V. parch: make or become extremely dry (by exposure to heat)
14
Q
pariah
A
social outcast; Ex. Mariah the pariah
15
Q
outcast
A
one that has been excluded from a society; ADJ.
16
Q
parity
A
equality; close resemblance; CF. disparate
17
Q
parlance
A
language; manner of speaking; idiom; Ex. in legal/common parlance
18
Q
parley
A
conference (between opponents); CF. speak
19
Q
parochial
A
narrow in scope or outlook; provincial; related to parishes
20
Q
parish
A
area in the care of a single priest and served by one main church
21
Q
outlook
A
point of view; view from a particular place; expectation for the future; prospect; Ex. outlook on life; Ex. pleasing outlook; Ex. weather outlook
22
Q
parody
A
humorous imitation; spoof; takeoff; travesty; V.
23
Q
spoof
A
parody
24
Q
takeoff
A
burlesque; act of leaving the ground
25
paroxysm
fit or attack of pain, laughter, rage; sudden outburst
26
parquet
floor made of wood strips inlaid in a mosaic like matter; CF. strip: long narrow piece
27
parry
ward off a blow; deflect; Ex. He parried the unwelcome question very skillfully; N.
28
ward
administrative division of a city; division in a hospital or prison; incompetent person placed under the protection of a guardian; V: guard; ward off: avert
29
parsimony
stinginess; excessive frugality; ADJ. parsimonious
30
partial
incomplete; favoring one side over another; having a liking for something
31
partiality
state of being partial; inclination; favorable bias; special fondness; preference
32
partisan
one-sided; prejudiced; committed to a party (with dislike of any others); N: strong supporter of a party; guerrilla
33
parvenu
upstart; newly rich person
34
partition
divide into parts
35
pass\'e
old-fashioned; past the prime
36
passive
not active; acted upon; receiving an action without acting in return; accepting without resistance
37
pastiche
imitation of another's style in musical composition or in writing; work of art openly imitating the works of other artists
38
pastoral
rural; of rural life; idyllic; of a pastor
39
patent
obvious; easily seen; open for the public to read; of or protected by a patent; Ex. patent to everyone; N.
40
pathetic
causing sadness, compassion, pity; touching
41
touching
causing a feeling of pity or sympathy; pathetic; V. touch: cause to feel pity or sympathy; ADJ. touched
42
pathological
pertaining to disease; N. pathology: study of disease
43
pathos
tender sorrow; pity; quality in art or literature that produces these feelings; Ex. pathos that runs through the novel
44
patina
green crust on old bronze works or copper; tone slowly taken by varnished painting
45
varnish
paint used to coat a surface with a glossy film; glossy coating produced by using this substance; Ex. nail varnish; V.
46
patois
local or provincial dialect
47
patriarch
father and ruler of a family or tribe
48
patrician
noble; aristocratic; N: person of high rank; aristocrat; CF. member of the governing classes in ancient Rome; CF. plebian
49
patronize
support; act superior toward; treat in a condescending manner; be a customer of; N. patron: one that supports; regular customer; N. patronage; CF. boycott
50
paucity
scarcity; dearth
51
pauper
very poor person
52
peccadillo
slight offense or fault; CF. sin
53
swipe
hit with a sweeping motion; N.
54
pecuniary
pertaining to money
55
pedagogue
teacher; CF. child leader
56
pedagogy
teaching; art of education
57
pedant
scholar who overemphasizes book learning, trivial details of learning, or technicalities
58
pedantic
bookish; showing off learning; marked by an excessive ostentatious concern for book learning; N. pedantry
59
bookish
fond of books and reading
60
studious
given to diligent study
61
pedestrian
ordinary; dull; unimaginative(lacking in imagination); going on foot; Ex. pedestrian prose; N.
62
precinct
division of a city for election or police purposes; precincts: space that surrounds a building; Ex. precincts of the college
63
pedigree
ancestry; lineage
64
pediatrician
physician specializing in children's diseases; N. pediatrics
65
peerless
having no equal; incomparable
66
peer
one who has equal standing with another; nobleman; V: look intently; N. peerage; CF. peeress
67
pejorative
(of a word or phrase) suggesting that someone is of little value; negative in connotation; having a belittling effect; Ex. Many women now considers ``housewife'' a pejorative expression, because it patronized them.
68
pell-mell
in confusion; disorderly; Ex. dash pell-mell
69
pellucid
transparent; limpid(crystal clear); clear in meaning; easy to understand
70
penance
self-imposed punishment for sin; Ex. do penance for one's sins; CF. penitent
71
penchant
strong inclination; strong liking (esp. for something that is disapproved of by other people); Ex. penchant for fast cars
72
pendant(pendent)
hanging down from something; pending; N: ornament (hanging from a necklace etc.)
73
pending
not yet decided or settled; impending; Ex. pending decision; PREP. while awaiting; until; Ex. delay the decision pending his return
74
pendulous
hanging; suspended
75
suspend
cause to stop for a period; interrupt; hold in abeyance; defer; hang from above; exclude for a period from a position; Ex. suspended state; Ex. suspend judgment; Ex. suspended from the team; N. suspension
76
suspense
state of being undecided; anxiety or apprehension resulting from uncertainty
77
penitent
repentant; N.
78
pensive
dreamily or deeply thoughtful; sadly thoughtful; thoughtful with a hint of sadness; contemplative; CF. think over
79
penumbra
partial shadow (in an eclipse); CF. almost shadow
80
penury
extreme poverty; stinginess; ADJ. penurious: very poor; stingy
81
peon
landless agricultural worker; bond servant; menial worker; N. peonage
82
perceptive
insightful; showing a good ability at perceiving and understanding; aware; wise; of perception
83
percussion
striking one object against another sharply; Ex. percussion instrument; N: striking together of two bodies; sound caused by percussion
84
perdition
damnation; complete ruin; hell
85
damn
condemn; criticize severely; condemn to everlasting punishment; doom; bring to ruin; N. damnation
86
doom
condemnation to a severe penalty; ruin; fate (esp. a tragic or ruinous one); V.
87
peregrination
journey; V. peregrinate
88
peremptory
demanding and leaving no choice; imperative; Ex. peremptory decree/knock
89
perennial
something long-lasting; perennial plant; ADJ: lasting through the year or many years; lasting for a long time; enduring
90
perfidious
treacherous; disloyal; N. perfidy: treachery
91
perforate
pierce; put a hole through
92
perfunctory
done routinely and with little care; superficial; not thorough; lacking interest, care, or enthusiasm; Ex. perfunctory kiss
93
perigee
point of moon's orbit when it is nearest the earth; CF. apogee
94
perimeter
outer boundary; length of the outer boundary; circumference
95
bound
leap or spring; limit or confine; constitute the limit of; Ex. bounded by Canada; N: leap or jumping; boundary; ADJ: certain; having a duty to do something (legally or morally); confined by bonds; Ex. We are bound to be late; Ex. I am bound to say my opinion; CF. bounce, rebound
96
peripatetic
walking about from place to place (to work); moving; Ex. peripatetic school of philosophy
97
peripheral
of a periphery; marginal; outer; of minor importance; not central; Ex. peripheral nerve/interest
98
periphery
outside edge especially of a round surface; perimeter; Ex. periphery of the town
99
perjury
false testimony while under oath; V. perjure oneself: testify falsely under oath
100
permeable
that can be permeated; penetrable; porous; allowing liquids or gas to pass through; V. permeate: spread or flow throughout; charge
101
pernicious
very harmful; deadly; very destructive; Ex. pernicious effect/anemia
102
peroration
conclusion of an oration; perorating; V. perorate: conclude a speech; speak at great length
103
perpetrate
commit an offense; do (something wrong)
104
perpetual
everlasting
105
perpetuate
make perpetual; make something last for a long time; preserve from extinction; N. perpetuity
106
perquisite(perk)
any gain above stipulated salary; Ex. perquisites such as free meals and a car
107
personable
attractive (in personality or appearance)
108
perspicacious
(of someone) having insight; penetrating; astute
109
perspicuity
clearness of expression; freedom from ambiguity
110
perspicuous
(of something) plainly expressed; easy to understand; Ex. perspicuous comments
111
pert
(esp. of a girl or young woman) impertinent; forward; trim; jaunty; Ex. pert young miss/hat
112
forward
presumptuous or bold
113
pertinacious
holding tenaciously to an action; stubborn; persistent
114
pertinent
suitable; to the point; relevant
115
perturb
disturb greatly
116
peruse
read through with care; N. perusal
117
pervasive
spread throughout; V. pervade: (of smells, ideas, feelings) spread throughout; charge; permeate
118
perverse
purposely continuing to do something wrong; stubbornly wrongheaded; perverted; directed away from what is right; wicked and unacceptable; Ex. perverse satisfaction; Ex. Hannibal Lecter in a perverse mood; N. perversity
119
perversion
corruption; turning from right to wrong
120
pervert
corrupt; turn from right to wrong; misuse; Ex. perverted sexual desire/scientific knowledge; N: person whose sexual behavior is not natural
121
wrongheaded
stubbornly wrong
122
pessimism
belief that life is basically bad or evil; gloominess; tendency to take the gloomiest possible view of a situation; ADJ. pessimistic
123
pestilential(pestilent)
causing plague; tending to cause death; baneful; N. pestilence: fatal epidemic disease (esp. bubonic plague)
124
pestle
tool for mashing or grinding substances in a hard bowl or mortar
125
mortar
vessel in which substances are crushed with a pestle
126
mash
crush into mash; convert into mash; N: mixture of ground grain and nutrients fed to livestock and fowl
127
petrify
turn to stone; cause to become stonelike; stun or paralyze
128
petty
trivial; unimportant; very small; small-minded; petty-minded
129
petulant
touchy; peevish; ill-tempered
130
phalanx
formation of infantry carrying overlapping shields and long spears; group of men packed together (for attack or defense)
131
pharisaical
pertaining to the Pharisees, who paid scrupulous attention to tradition; self-righteous; hypocritical
132
pharisee
Pharisee: member of an ancient Jewish group that emphasized strict observance of the Mosaic law (considering themselves very holy); hypocritical self-righteous person
133
self-righteous
sure of one's own righteousness; moralistic
134
phenomena
observable facts; subjects of scientific investigation; SG. phenomenon: observable fact; very unusual person, thing, or event; marvel; wonder; CF. phenomenons; ADJ. phenomenal: very unusual; extraordinary; of a phenomenon; Ex. phenomenal strength
135
philanderer
faithless lover; flirt
136
philanthropist
lover of mankind; doer of good; N. philanthropy
137
philatelist
stamp-collector; N. philately: stamp collecting
138
philistine
narrow-minded person, uncultured and exclusively interested in material gain; uncultured person who is indifferent to artistic and cultural values; member of an ancient people in Palestine; OP. aesthete
139
philology
study of language or words
140
phlegmatic
calm and unexcitable; not easily disturbed; CF. phlegm: sticky mucus produced in the respiratory tract
141
phobia
morbid fear
142
phoenix
symbol of immortality or rebirth; Ex. phoenix rising from its ashes
143
phylum
major classification, second to kingdom, of plants and animals; category ranking below a kingdom and above a class; division
144
physiognomy
face (as showing the character and the mind); art of judging human character from facial features
145
physiological
pertaining to the science of the function of living organisms; N. physiology
146
piebald
of different colors; mottled; spotted in different colors (esp. in black and white); Ex. piebald horse; CF. pie+bald
147
piecemeal
one part at a time; gradually; in stages; Ex. read a novel piecemeal
148
pied
piebald; variegated(many-colored); multicolored
149
piety
devoutness; reverence for God; ADJ. pious
150
pigment
coloring matter (usually powder to be mixed with water or oil)
151
pillage
plunder
152
pillory
punish by placing in a wooden frame or pillory; subject or expose to criticism and ridicule; N.
153
pine
long for; yearn; languish from longing or grief; decline
154
pinion
restrain or immobilize by binding the wings or legs; N: bird's wing
155
pinnacle
peak; highest point; acme; Ex. pinnacle of fame
156
pious
devout; religious; N. piety
157
piquant
pleasantly tart-tasting; spicy; pleasantly stimulating; Ex. piquant situation when my old enemy asked for my help
158
tart
sharp to the taste; acid-tasting; caustic; sarcastic; Ex. tart apple/reply
159
sour
having a sharp or acid taste; acid; tart; bad-tempered; V.
160
pique
irritation; resentment from wounded pride (eg. loss in a contest); V: provoke; arouse; annoy; cause to feel resentment; Ex. pique her curiosity
161
piscatorial
pertaining to fishing; CF. Pisces
162
pitfall
hidden danger; concealed trap
163
beware
be cautious (of)
164
pith
core or marrow; spongelike substance in the center of stems; essence; substance
165
marrow
soft fatty tissue that fills most bone cavities and is the source of blood cells
166
pithy
concise and meaningful; substantial; meaty
167
pittance
small amount (of money); small allowance or wage
168
pivotal
of a pivot; central; critical; crucial
169
placate
pacify; bring peace to; conciliate; appease
170
placebo
harmless substance prescribed as a dummy pill
171
tablet
small round piece of medicine; flat piece of stone or metal bearing an inscription; Ex. stone tablet on the wall
172
placid
peaceful; calm; Ex. placid child/lake
173
plagiarize
steal another's ideas or writings and pass them off as one's own; Ex. ideas plagiarized from my article; N. plagiarism; CF. kidnap
174
plaintive
expressing sorrow; mournful; Ex. plaintive song
175
plait
braid; interwine; interweave strands or lengths of; make by weaving strands together; Ex. plaited hair; N: braided length as of hair o fabric; CF. pigtail, ponytail
176
plasticity
ability to be molded; ADJ. plastic: capable of being shaped or molded; Ex. plastic material such as clay
177
platitude
trite remark; commonplace statement; ADJ. platitudinous
178
commonplace
ordinary; N: something ordinary or common; trite remark
179
commonwealth
nation governed by the people; republic; people of a nation
180
platonic
purely spiritual; theoretical; without sensual desire
181
plaudit
praise; enthusiastic approval; round(succession or series) of applause; ADJ. plauditory; CF. applaud
182
plausible
conceivably true; having a show of truth but open to doubt; specious
183
plebeian
common; vulgar; pertaining to the common people; N: common people in ancient Rome; CF. patrician
184
plebiscite
direct vote by the entire electorate (on an important issue)
185
referendum
direct vote by all the people
186
plenary
(of power) complete; full; fully attended by all qualified members; Ex. plenary power
187
plenitude
abundance; plenty; great amount; completeness; fullness; CF. plenary, plenty
188
plethora
excess; overabundance; Ex. a plethora of excuses
189
pliable
flexible; easily influenced; yielding; adaptable
190
pliant
flexible; easily influenced
191
plight
difficult condition; condition or state (esp. a bad state or condition); predicament
192
pluck
courage; V: pull off or out; pull out the hair or feathers of; ADJ. plucky: courageous; brave
193
plumage
feathers of a bird;
194
plumb
exactly vertical; N: weight on the end of a line; V: examine very carefully or critically in order to understand; measure depth (by sounding); Ex. plumb the depth of
195
plumber
one who installs and repairs pipes and plumbing(pipes)
196
plummet
fall sharply; fall straight down; Ex. Stock prices plummeted.
197
plutocracy
society ruled by the wealthy
198
podiatrist
doctor who treats ailments of the feet; chiropodist; N. podiatrics
199
podium
pedestal; raised platform
200
pedestal
support or base as for a pillar or statue
