Set 28 Flashcards
Hidebound
Narrow or rigid in opinion, inflexible; oriented toward or confined to the past; extremely conservative
He was hidebound by outdated notions of chivalry
Hirsute
Hairy, shaggy
My hirsute dog sheds life-size replicas of himself and still has more hair left over
Homily
A sermon or morally instructive lecture, a platitude
Spare me the homilies; I already know why I should do the right thing
Homogeneous
Same throughout
The town had so little influx of new people and ideas that it’s population seemed homogenous
Hortatory
Urging to some course of conduct or action; encouraging
The dean’s hortatory commencement speech encouraged all graduates to seek their own true path
Hubris
Arrogant presumption or pride
Icarus was destroyed by the sun god, who melted the wax in Icarus’s wings as punishment for his hubris in daring to fly so close to the sun
Hyperbole
An exaggerated statement, often used as a figure of speech
I should have realized she was using hyperbole when she promised me the moon and stars; that way I wouldn’t have been disappointed when I only got the moon
Iconoclast
One who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions
In a sense, all great innovators are iconoclasts who challenge the prevailing assumptions of the day
Idolatrious
Given to intense or excessive devotion to something
Jim’s family realized his love of football was truly idolatrous when they discovered the Raiders shrine in his closet
Idyll
A carefree, lighthearted pastoral or romantic episode or experience, a literary or musical piece describing such
The smell of the ocean always made me nostalgic for our summer idyll on the coast two years ago
Ignominious
Shameful, dishonorable, ignoble, undignified, disgraceful
It was an ignominious, though deserved, end to all his boasting when the wheels fell off his car halfway through the race
*ignominy is dishonor or humiliation
Illiberality
Quality of being narrow-minded, bigoted
Her Illiberality against all those poorer than her became apparent when she berated the cleaning staff
Imbroglio
Difficult or embarrassing situation
Clare tried to extricate herself from the imbroglio she started at the party by sneaking out the back door
Imminent
About to happen; impending
Immutable
Not capable of change
Her position in the matter was immutable; no reasoning could convince her
