Set 9 Flashcards
(12 cards)
admonition
Bringing a skateboard to school is a great way to get an admonition from a teacher not to ride it down the halls. An admonition is advice with a hint of scolding, a warning not to do something.When you’re cautioned or warned about some mistake you might be just about to make, or some looming danger, you’re receiving an admonition. The strength and tone of an admonition determine whether it’s a gentle, polite suggestion or more of a stern warning. In Scotland, an admonition is an official legal term that means a verbal punishment for someone who’s been found guilty but set free.
coterie
Have you noticed how so many of the best TV shows concentrate on a group of friends who seem to mesh together perfectly, to the exclusion of all others? This, then, is a coterie, an exclusive group with common interests.The modern spelling and meaning of coterie developed in the 18th century from a French word rooted in the feudal system. When the farmers working the land of a feudal lord established an organization, they were called cotiers, or “tenants of a cote” (think “cottage”), and that idea of a select group led to the word coterie. There’s just something so French about the idea of exclusivity, isn’t there?
denizen
A denizen is an inhabitant or frequenter of a particular place: a citizen of a country, a resident in a neighborhood, a maven of a museum, a regular at a bar, or, even, a plant that is naturalized in a region.The noun denizen comes from words that mean “from” and “within” and is related to “citizen.” Denizen can be used when talking about any person or group of people that have a specific relationship with a place. It was historically used to refer to foreigners who were either naturalized or becoming citizens but now it is used much more generally, as in: “The denizens of my aunt’s neighborhood all have contracts with the same gardener.”
elucidate
If you elucidate something, you explain it very clearly. If you don’t understand fractions, a visit to the pie shop may elucidate the subject for you.Elucidate is from Late Latin elucidare, from the Latin prefix e- “thoroughly” plus lucidus “clear, bright.” This Latin adjective is the source of English lucid, which describes someone who thinks clearly or something that is clear enough to understand.
fey
Have you met someone who speaks like they’re casting spells and has a distant look in their eyes? That’s a fey person, someone who seems like they come from another world, kind of like an elf.There’s a fey girl, let’s call her Faye. Fey Faye is not an elf nor a witch, but she seems supernatural in a vague way, and her voice sounds like a magic flute. Fey comes from the Old English word fǣge, or literally “fated to die soon,” which refers to that odd good mood a person is in right before they die. Don’t worry, that definition isn’t used anymore, and fey Faye isn’t dying. But she is kind of spooky.
legacy
Use the word, legacy, for something handed down from one generation to the next. A retiring company president might leave a legacy of honesty and integrity.Legacy comes from the Latin verb, legare “to appoint by a last will, send as an ambassador.” Originally, the noun meant “ambassador” or “envoy” but soon shifted to mean the money and property a person leaves behind in his will. Many university scholarships are funded by the legacies of former students. In recent usage, political leaders are said to be concerned with their legacies, the historically significant achievements of their tenure in office.
mawkish
Mawkish means excessively sentimental or so sappy it’s sickening. Which is how you’d describe two lovebirds gushing over each other or your grandma’s cooing, cheek pinches, and sloppy-lipstick kisses.The adjective mawkish came into vogue in the 1600s. Oddly enough, it’s rooted in the Middle English word maggot and originally meant “sickly or nauseated.” But mawkish eventually evolved to mean something so overly sentimental it makes you sick. It’s not a word you hear very often these days, but feel free to use it to describe really lame love poems and annoyingly mushy Valentine’s Day cards.
monolithic
When something is monolithic it’s big, and made of one thing. A large piece of stone jutting from the earth is a monolith, and Detroit’s economy when it depended entirely on the auto industry was monolithic.Broken into its roots mono and lithic, monolithic means simply “one stone.” When monolithic is used to describe something societal — like a religion or an organization — it has a slightly negative connotation. This is because anything made up of different people with different beliefs and goals is unlikely to be able to maintain monolithic status for long without force or oppression.
obtrude
If you want to be rude, you’ll obtrude, or thrust yourself to the front of a line without waiting.Who asked you? If the answer is no one, chances are you’ve decided to obtrude or shove your ideas and opinions into everyone’s face. Obtrude has its origins in the Latin ob meaning “toward” and trudere meaning “to thrust.” An intruder climbing through your kitchen window is someone who chooses to obtrude, or forcefully enter your home
parse
When you parse a sentence, you break it into parts and analyze each element carefully. When your sweetheart shouts “You never listen!” it’s a bad idea to parse that by replying, “I just heard you, so I must be listening.”The ability to successfully parse language is important. A binding legal contract, for example, should be read very carefully so you know exactly what’s going on. You can also parse things that are more personal. You might exhaustively parse the comments of the guy you have a desperate crush on for any hint that he shares your passionate feelings. The sad truth of the matter? If you have to parse, he probably doesn’t love you. Apply your parsing skills elsewhere!
prosaic
Prosaic means ordinary or dull. Most of us lead a prosaic everyday life, sometimes interrupted by some drama or crisis.This adjective is from Latin prosa “prose,” which is ordinary writing intended to communicate ideas and information. Prose is often contrasted with poetry, which usually has a more imaginative and original style.
rebarbative
serving or tending to repel
