Hit Parade Group 2

Question 1

Abate

Answer 1

to lessen in intensity or degree

Question 2

Accolade

Answer 2

an expression of praise

Question 3

Adulation

Answer 3

excessive praise; intense adoration

Question 4

Aesthetic

Answer 4

dealing with, appreciative of, or responsive to art or the beautiful

Question 5

Ameliorate

Answer 5

to make better or more tolerable

Question 6

Ascetic

Answer 6

one who practices rigid self-denial, esp. as an act of religious devotion

Question 7

Avarice

Answer 7

greed, esp. for wealth (adj. form: avaricious)

Question 8

Axiom

Answer 8

a universally recognized principle (adj. form: axiomatic)

Question 9

Burgeon

Answer 9

to grow rapidly or flourish

Question 10

Bucolic

Answer 10

rustic and pastoral; characteristic of rural areas and their inhabitants

Question 11

Cacophony

Answer 11

harsh, jarring, discordant sound; dissonance (adj. form: cacophonous)

Question 12

Canon

Answer 12

an established set of principles or code of laws, often religious in nature (adj. form: canonical)

Question 13

Castigation

Answer 13

severe criticism or punishment (verb form: castigate)

Question 14

Catalyst

Answer 14

reaction without itself changing; a person or thing that causes change

Question 15

Caustic

Answer 15

burning or stinging; causing corrosion

Question 16

Chary

Answer 16

wary; cautious; sparing

Question 17

Cogent

Answer 17

appealing forcibly to the mind or reason; convincing

Question 18

Complaisance

Answer 18

the willingness to comply to the wishes of others (adj. form: complaisant)

Question 19

Contentious

Answer 19

argumentative; quarrelsome; causing controversy or disagreement

Question 20

Contrite

Answer 20

regretful; penitent; seeking forgiveness (noun form: contrition)

Question 21

Culpable

Answer 21

deserving blame (noun form: culpability)

Question 22

Dearth

Answer 22

smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; a lack

Question 23

Demur

Answer 23

to question or oppose

Question 24

Didactic

Answer 24

intended to teach or instruct

Question 25

Discretion

Answer 25

cautious reserve in speech; ability to make responsible decisions (adj. form: discrete)

Question 26

Disinterested

Answer 26

free of bias or self-interest; impartial

Question 27

Dogmatic

Answer 27

expressing a rigid opinion based on unproved or improvable principles (noun form: dogma)

Question 28

Ebullience

Answer 28

the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings (adj. form: ebullience)

Question 29

Eclectic

Answer 29

composed of elements drawn from various sources

Question 30

Elegy

Answer 30

a mournful poem, esp. one lamenting the dead (adj. form elegiac)

Question 31

Emolient

Answer 31

soothing, esp. to the skin; making less harsh; mollifying; an agent that softens or smooths the skin

Question 32

Empirical

Answer 32

based on observation or experiment

Question 33

Enigmatic

Answer 33

mysterious; obscure; difficult to understand (noun form: enigma)

Question 34

Ephemeral

Answer 34

brief; fleeting

Question 35

Esoteric

Answer 35

intended for or understood by a small, specific group

Question 36

Eulogy

Answer 36

a speech honoring the dead (verb form: eulogize)

Question 37

Exonerate

Answer 37

to remove blame

Question 38

Facetious

Answer 38

playful; humorous

Question 39

Fallacy

Answer 39

an invalid or incorrect notion; a mistaken belief (adj. form: fallacious)

Question 40

Furtive

Answer 40

marked by stealth; covert; surreptitious

Question 41

Gregarious

Answer 41

sociable; outgoing; enjoying the company of other people

Question 42

Harangue

Answer 42

to deliver a pompous speech or tirade; a long, pompous speech

Question 43

Heretical

Answer 43

violating accepted dogma or convention (noun form: heresy)

Question 44

Hyperbole

Answer 44

an exaggerated statement, often used as a figure of speech (adj. form: hyperbolic)

Question 45

Impecunious

Answer 45

lacking funds; without money

Question 46

Incipient

Answer 46

beginning to come into being or to become apparent

Question 47

Inert

Answer 47

unmoving; lethargic; sluggish

Question 48

Innocuous

Answer 48

harmless; causing no damage

Question 49

Intransigent

Answer 49

refusing to compromise (noun form: intransigence)

Question 50

Inveigle

Answer 50

to obtain by deception or flattery

Question 51

Morose

Answer 51

sad; sullen; melancholy

Question 52

Odious

Answer 52

evoking intense aversion or dislike

Question 53

Opaque

Answer 53

impenetrable by light; not reflecting light

Question 54

Oscillation

Answer 54

the act or state of swinging back and forth with a steady, uninterrupted rhythm (verb form: oscillate)

Question 55

Penurious

Answer 55

penny-pinching; excessively thrifty; ungenerous

Question 56

Pernicious

Answer 56

extremely harmful; potentially causing death

Question 57

Peruse

Answer 57

to examine with great care (noun form: perusal)

Question 58

Pious

Answer 58

extremely reverent or devout; showing strong religious devotion (noun form: piety)

Question 59

Precursor

Answer 59

one that precedes and indicates or announces another

Question 60

Preen

Answer 60

to dress up; to primp; to groom oneself with elaborate care

Question 61

Prodigious

Answer 61

abundant in size, force, or extent; extraordinary

Question 62

Prolific

Answer 62

producing large volumes or amounts; productive

Question 63

Putrefy

Answer 63

to rot; to decay and give off a foul odor (adj. form: putrid)

Question 64

Quaff

Answer 64

to drink deeply

Question 65

Quiescience

Answer 65

stillness; motionlessness; quality of being at rest (adj. form: quiescent)

Question 66

Redoubtable

Answer 66

awe-inspiring; worthy of honor

Question 67

Sanction

Answer 67

authoritative permission or approval; a penalty intended to enforce compliance; to give permission or authority to

Question 68

Satire

Answer 68

a literary work that ridicules or criticizes a human vice through humor or derision (adj. form: satirical)

Question 69

Squalid

Answer 69

sordid; wretched and dirty as from neglect (noun form: squalor)

Question 70

Stoic

Answer 70

indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain; steadfast (noun form: stoicism)

Question 71

Supplant

Answer 71

to take the place of; to supersede

Question 72

Torpid

Answer 72

lethargic; sluggish; dormant (noun form: torpor)

Question 73

Ubiquitous

Answer 73

existing everywhere at the same time; constantly encountered; widespread

Question 74

Urbane

Answer 74

sophisticated; refined; elegant (noun form: urbanity)

Question 75

Vilify

Answer 75

to defame; to characterize harshly

Question 76

Viscous

Answer 76

thick; sticky (noun form: viscosity)