Vocab Flashcards
(19 cards)
Repertoire (reh·puh·twaar)
1a: a list or supply of dramas, operas, pieces, or parts that a company or person is prepared to perform
1b: a supply of skills, devices, or expedients
1c: a list or supply of capabilities
2a: the complete list or supply of dramas, operas, or musical works available for performance
2b: the complete list or supply of skills, devices, or ingredients used in a particular field, occupation, or practice
Discourse
Noun: written or spoken communication or debate.
Verb: speak or write authoritatively about a topic. (Syn: hold forth, expatiate, pontificate)
Deftly
Adverb:
in a way that is neatly skillful and quick in movement.
in a clever way.
Pedigree
Pedigree has multiple meanings, including a family tree or a list of an animal’s ancestors.
A person’s pedigree can refer to their family history, education, and experience.
adjective
am·biv·a·lent | \ am-ˈbi-və-lənt \
Definition
: having or showing simultaneous and contradictory attitudes or feelings toward something or someone : characterized by ambivalence
//… people whose relationship to their job is ambivalent, conflicted.
— Terrence Rafferty
//Americans are deeply ambivalent about the country’s foreign role. Isolationist yearnings coexist uneasily with superpower policies.
— David P. Calleo
Definition
transitive verb
1 : to compel to an act or choice
//was coerced into agreeing
//abusers who coerce their victims into silence
2 : to achieve by force or threat
//coerce compliance
//coerce obedience
3 : to restrain or dominate by force
//religion in the past has tried to coerce the irreligious
adjective
sa·lient | \ ˈsā-lyənt , -lē-ənt \
Definition (Entry 1 of 2)
1 : moving by leaps or springs : JUMPING
2 : jetting upward
//a salient fountain
3 a : projecting beyond a line, surface, or level
b : standing out conspicuously : PROMINENT
especially : of notable significance
//similar to … Prohibition, but there are a couple of salient differences
— Tony Gibbs
noun
soph·ist·ry | \ ˈsä-fə-strē \
plural sophistries
Definition
1 : subtly deceptive reasoning or argumentation
adjective
sub·stan·tive | \ ˈsəb-stən-tiv , senses 3c & 4 also səb-ˈstan-tiv \
Definition (Entry 1 of 2)
1 : having substance : involving matters of major or practical importance to all concerned
//substantive discussions among world leaders
2 : considerable in amount or numbers : SUBSTANTIAL
//made substantive progress
3 a : real rather than apparent : FIRM
//need substantive evidence to prove her guilt
also : PERMANENT, ENDURING
b : belonging to the substance of a thing : ESSENTIAL
c : expressing existence
//the substantive verb is the verb to be
4 a : having the nature or function of a noun
//a substantive phrase
b : relating to or having the character of a noun or pronominal term in logic
5 : creating and defining rights and duties
//substantive law
— compare PROCEDURAL
6 : requiring or involving no mordant
//a substantive dyeing process
7 : being a totally independent entity
noun
rhet·o·ric | \ ˈre-tə-rik \
Definition
1 : the art of speaking or writing effectively: such as
a : the study of principles and rules of composition formulated by critics of ancient times
b : the study of writing or speaking as a means of communication or persuasion
2 a : skill in the effective use of speech
b : a type or mode of language or speech
also : insincere or grandiloquent language
3 : verbal communication : DISCOURSE
adjective
zeal·ous | \ ˈze-ləs \
Definition
: marked by fervent partisanship for a person, a cause, or an ideal : filled with or characterized by zeal
//zealous missionaries
Other Words
zealously adverb
zealousness noun
verb
re·sound | \ ri-ˈzau̇nd , also -ˈsau̇nd \
resounded; resounding; resounds
Definition
intransitive verb
1 : to become filled with sound : REVERBERATE
2 a : to sound loudly
//the gunshot resounded
b : to produce a sonorous or echoing sound
3 : to become renowned
transitive verb
1 : to extol loudly or widely : CELEBRATE
2 : ECHO, REVERBERATE
3 : to sound or utter in full resonant tones
verb
pos·tu·late | \ ˈpäs-chə-ˌlāt \
postulated; postulating
Definition (Entry 1 of 2)
transitive verb
1 : DEMAND, CLAIM
2 a : to assume or claim as true, existent, or necessary : depend upon or start from the postulate of
b : to assume as a postulate or axiom (as in logic or mathematics)
noun
pos·tu·late | \ ˈpäs-chə-lət , -ˌlāt \
Definition (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : a hypothesis advanced as an essential presupposition, condition, or premise of a train of reasoning
2 : AXIOM sense 2
noun
am·bit | \ ˈam-bət \
Definition
1 : CIRCUIT, COMPASS
2 : the bounds or limits of a place or district
3 : a sphere of action, expression, or influence : SCOPE
noun
par·si·mo·ny | \ ˈpär-sə-ˌmō-nē \
Definition
1 a : the quality of being careful with money or resources : THRIFT
//the necessity of wartime parsimony
b : the quality or state of being stingy
//The charity was surprised by the parsimony of some larger corporations.
2 : economy in the use of means to an end
especially : economy of explanation in conformity with Occam’s razor
//the scientific law of parsimony dictates that any example of animal behavior should be interpreted at its simplest, most immediate level
— Peter Gorner
noun
cru·ci·ble | \ ˈkrü-sə-bəl \
Definition
1 : a vessel of a very refractory (see REFRACTORY entry 1 sense 3) material (such as porcelain) used for melting and calcining a substance that requires a high degree of heat
2 : a severe test
//He’s ready to face the crucible of the Olympics.
3 : a place or situation in which concentrated forces interact to cause or influence change or development
//… conditioned by having grown up within the crucible of Chinatown …
— Tom Wolfe
//His character was formed in the crucible of war.
noun
cru·ci·ble | \ ˈkrü-sə-bəl \
Definition
1 : a vessel of a very refractory (see REFRACTORY entry 1 sense 3) material (such as porcelain) used for melting and calcining a substance that requires a high degree of heat
2 : a severe test
//He’s ready to face the crucible of the Olympics.
3 : a place or situation in which concentrated forces interact to cause or influence change or development
//… conditioned by having grown up within the crucible of Chinatown …
— Tom Wolfe
//His character was formed in the crucible of war.
