Barron's GRE Master Words Random 2000 (1)

heinous

ADJ. atrocious; hatefully bad. Hitler's heinous crimes will never be forgotten.

personable

ADJ. attractive. The man I am seeking to fill this position must be personable since he will be representing us before the public.

convex

ADJ. curving outward. She polished the convex lens of her telescope.

inveterate

ADJ. deep-rooted; habitual. She is an inveterate smoker and cannot break the habit.

diverse

ADJ. differing in some characteristics; various. The professor suggested diverse ways of approaching the assignment and recommended that we choose one of them. diversity, N.

facile

ADJ. easily accomplished; ready or fluent; superficial. Words came easily to Jonathan: he was a facile speaker and prided himself on being ready to make a speech at a moment's notice.

feckless

ADJ. feeble and ineffective; careless and irresponsible. Richard II proved such a feckless ruler that Bolingbroke easily convinced Parliament to elect him king in Richard's place. The film The Perfect Circle tells the tale of a feckless poet who, unwillingly saddled with two war orphans, discovers a sense of responsibility and community that had eluded him in his own previous family life.

fatuous

ADJ. foolish; inane. He is far too intelligent to utter such fatuous remarks.

innocuous

ADJ. harmless. An occasional glass of wine with dinner is relatively innocuous and should have no ill effect on you.

plausible

ADJ. having a show of truth but open to doubt; specious. Your mother made you stay home from school because she needed you to program the VCR? I'm sorry, you'll have to come up with a more plausible excuse than that.

fluted

ADJ. having vertical parallel grooves (as in a pillar). All that remained of the ancient building were the fluted columns.

choleric

ADJ. hot-tempered. His flushed, angry face indicated a choleric nature.

insouciant

ADJ. indifferent; without concern or care. Your insouciant attitude at such a critical moment indicates that you do not understand the gravity of the situation.

knotty

ADJ. intricate; difficult; tangled. What to Watson had been a knotty problem, to Sherlock Holmes was simplicity itself.

incorporeal

ADJ. lacking a material body; insubstantial. While Casper the friendly ghost is an incorporeal being, nevertheless he and his fellow ghosts make quite an impact on the physical world.

listless

ADJ. lacking in spirit or energy. We had expected him to be full of enthusiasm and were surprised by his listless attitude.

tepid

ADJ. lukewarm. During the summer, I like to take a tepid bath, not a hot one.

forthright

ADJ. outspoken; straightforward; frank. Never afraid to call a spade a spade, she was perhaps too forthrightto be a successful party politician.

elated

ADJ. overjoyed; in high spirits. Grinning from ear to ear, Bonnie Blair was clearly elated by her fifth Olympic gold medal. elation, N.

germane

ADJ. pertinent; bearing upon the case at hand. The judge refused to allow the testimony to be heard by the jury because it was not germane to the case.

abundant

ADJ. plentiful; possessing riches or resources. At his immigration interview, Ivan listed his abundant reasons for coming to America: the hope of religious freedom, the prospect of employment, the promise of a more abundant life.

maniacal

ADJ. raging mad; insane. Though Mr. Rochester had locked his mad wife in the attic, he could still hear her maniacal laughter echoing throughout the house.

dutiful

ADJ. respectful; obedient. When Mother told Billy to kiss Great-Aunt Hattie, the boy obediently gave the old woman a dutiful peck on her cheek.

gruff

ADJ. rough-mannered. Although he was blunt and gruff with most people, he was always gentle with children.

funereal

ADJ. sad; solemn. I fail to understand why there is such a funereal atmosphere; we have lost a battle, not a war.

estranged

ADJ. separated; alienated. The estranged wife sought a divorce. estrangement, N.

angular

ADJ. sharp-cornered; stiff in manner. Mr. Spock's features, though angular, were curiously attractive, in a Vulcan way.

clarion

ADJ. shrill, trumpetlike sound. We woke to the clarion call of the bugle.

soporific

ADJ. sleep-causing; marked by sleepiness. Professor Pringle's lectures were so soporific that even he fell asleep in class. also N.

perfunctory

ADJ. superficial; not thorough; lacking interest, care, or enthusiasm. The auditor's perfunctory inspection of the books overlooked many errors. Giving the tabletop only a perfunctory swipe with her dust cloth, Betty promised herself she'd clean it more thoroughly tomorrow.

methodical

ADJ. systematic. An accountant must be methodical and maintain order among his financial records.

opportune

ADJ. timely; well-chosen. Sally. looked at her father struggling to balance his checkbook; clearly this would not be an opportune moment to ask him for a raise in her allowance.

lofty

ADJ. very high. Though Barbara Jordan's fellow students used to tease her about her lofty ambitions, she rose to hold one of the highest positions in the land.

ribald

ADJ. wanton; profane. He sang a ribald song that offended many of the more prudish listeners.-

haggard

ADJ. wasted away; gaunt. After his long illness, he was pale and haggard.

foresight

N. ability to foresee future happenings; prudence. A wise investor, she had the foresight to buy land just before the current real estate boom.

chasm

N. abyss. They could not see the bottom of the chasm.

incarnation

N. act of assuming a human body and human nature. The incarnation of Jesus Christ is a basic tenet of Christian theology.

orientation

N. act of finding oneself in society. Freshman orientation provides the incoming students with an opportunity to learn about their new environment and their place in it.

disjunction

N. act or state of separation; disunity. Believing the mind could greatly affect the body's health, the holistic doctor rejected the notion of a necessary disjunction of mind and body.

sheaf

N. bundle of stalks of grain; any bundle of things tied together. The lawyer picked up a sheaf of papers as he rose to question the witness.

precipice

N. cliff; dangerous position. Suddenly Indiana Jones found himself dangling from the edge of a precipice.

stalemate

N. deadlock. Negotiations between the union and the employers have reached a stalemate; neither side is willing to budge from previously stated positions.

lineage

N. descent; ancestry. He traced his lineage back to Mayflower days.

schism

N. division; split. Let us not widen the schism by further bickering.-

exertion

N. effort; expenditure of much physical work. The exertion spent in unscrewing the rusty bolt left her exhausted.

opulence

N. extreme wealth; luxuriousness; abundance. The glitter and opulence of the ballroom took Cinderella's breath away. opulent, ADJ.

justification

N. good or just reason; defense; excuse. The jury found him guilty of the more serious charge because they could see no possible justification for his actions,

magnitude

N. greatness; extent. It is difficult to comprehend the magnitude of his crime.

ardor

N. heat; passion; zeal. Katya's ardor was contagious; soon all her fellow demonstrators were busily making posters and handing out flyers, inspired by her ardent enthusiasm for the cause. ardent, ADJ.

potpourri

N. heterogenous mixture; medley. The folk singer offered a potpourri of songs from many lands.

cache

N. hiding place. The detectives followed the suspect until he led them to the cache where he had stored his loot. He had cached the cash in a bag for trash: it was a hefty sum.

impudence

N. impertinence; insolence. Kissed on the cheek by a perfect stranger, Lady Catherine exclaimed, "Of all the nerve! Young man, I should have you horse-whipped for your impudence."

complicity

N. involvement in a crime; participation. Queen Mary's marriage to Lord Darnley, her suspected complicity in his murder, and her hasty marriage to the earl of Bothwell stirred the Protestant lords to revolt. Although Spanish complicity in the sinking of the battleship Maine was not proved, U.S. public opinion was aroused and war sentiment rose.

anvil

N. iron block used in hammering out metals. After heating the iron horseshoe in the forge, the blacksmith picked it up with his tongs and set it on the anvil.

terminus

N. last stop of railroad. After we reached the railroad terminus, we continued our journey into the wilderness on saddle horses.

furlough

N. leave of absence; vacation granted a soldier or civil servant. Dreaming of her loved ones back in the States, the young soldier could hardly wait for her upcoming furlough.

aphasia

N. loss of speech due to injury or illness. After the automobile accident, the victim had periods of aphasia when he could not speak at all or could only mumble incoherently.

requiem

N. mass for the dead; dirge. They played Mozart's Requiem at the funeral.

lull

N. moment of calm. Not wanting to get wet, they waited under the awning for a lull in the rain.

potentate

N. monarch; sovereign. The potentate spent more time at Monte Carlo than he did at home on his throne.

pacifist

N. one opposed to force; antimilitarist. During the war, pacifists, though they refused to bear arms, served in the front lines as ambulance drivers and medical corpsmen. also ADJ. pacifism, N.

exuberance

N. overflowing abundance; joyful enthusiasm; flamboyance; lavishness. I was bowled over by the exuberance of Amy's welcome. What an enthusiastic greeting!

obstetrician

N. physician specializing in delivery of babies. In modern times, the delivery of children has passed from the midwife to the more scientifically trained obstetrician,

cavalcade

N. procession; parade. As described by Chaucer, the cavalcade of Canterbury pilgrims was a motley group.

assurance

N. promise or pledge; certainty; self-confidence. When Guthrie gave Guinness his assurance that rehearsals were going well, he spoke with such assurance that Guinness felt relieved. assure, V.

protuberance

N. protrusion; bulge. A ganglionic cyst is a fluid-filled tumor that develops near a joint membrane or tendon sheath, and that bulges beneath the skin, forming a protuberance.

ecstasy

N. rapture; joy; any overpowering emotion. When Allison received her long-hoped-for letter of acceptance from Harvard, she was in ecstasy. ecstatic, ADJ.

toady

N. servile flatterer; yes man. Never tell the boss anything he doesn't wish to hear: he doesn't want an independent adviser, he just wants a toady. also V.

gorge

N. small, steep-walled canyon. The white-water rafting guide warned us about the rapids farther downstream, where the river cut through a narrow gorge.

abeyance

N. suspended action. The deal was held in abeyance until her arrival.

conspiracy

N. treacherous plot. Brutus and Cassius joined in the conspiracy to kill Julius Caesar.

propitiate

V. appease. The natives offered sacrifices to propitiate the gods.

betray

V. be unfaithful; reveal (unconsciously or unwillingly). The spy betrayed his country by selling military secrets to the enemy. When he was taken in for questioning, the tightness of his lips betrayed his fear of being caught.

initiate

V. begin; originate; receive into a group. The college is about to initiate a program in reducing math anxiety among students.

belie

V. contradict; give a false impression. His coarse, hard-bitten exterior belied his inner sensitivity.

hurtle

V. crash; rush. The runaway train hurtled toward disaster.

fulminate

V. denounce thunderously; explode. Known for his "fire and brimstone" sermons, the preacher fulminated against sinners and backsliders, consigning them to the flames of hell.

gainsay

V. deny. She was too honest to gainsay the truth of the report.

deprecate

V. express disapproval of; protest against; belittle. A firm believer in old-fashioned courtesy, Miss Post deprecated the modern tendency to address new acquaintances by their first names. deprecatory, ADJ.

harry

V. harass, annoy, torment; raid. The guerrilla band harried the enemy nightly.

prevail

V. induce; triumph over. He tried to prevail on her to type his essay for him.

impair

V. injure; hurt. Drinking alcohol can impair your ability to drive safely; if you're going to drink, don't drive.

interpolate

V. insert between. She talked so much that I could not interpolate a single remark.

daunt

V. intimidate; frighten. "Boast all you like of your prowess. Mere words cannot daunt me," the hero answered the villain.

languish

V. lose animation; lose strength. Left at Miss Minchin's school for girls while her father went off to war, Sarah Crewe refused to languish; instead, she hid her grief and actively befriended her less fortunate classmates.

cite

V. quote; command. She could cite passages in the Bible from memory. citation, N.

resuscitate

V. revive someone from unconsciousness or apparent death. The lifeguard tried to resuscitate the drowned child by applying artificial respiration.

quiver

V. tremble; shake. The bird dog's nose twitched and his whiskers quivered as he strained eagerly against the leash. also N.

lithe

ADJ. flexible; supple. Her figure was lithe and willowy.

aromatic

ADJ. fragrant. Medieval sailing vessels brought aromatic herbs from China to Europe.

frenetic

ADJ. frenzied; frantic. His frenetic activities convinced us that he had no organized plan of operation.

blithe

ADJ. gay; joyous; heedless. Shelley called the skylark a "blithe spirit" because of its happy song.

benevolent

ADJ. generous; charitable. Mr. Fezziwig was a benevolent employer, who wished to make Christmas merrier for young Scrooge and his other employees.

headlong

ADJ. hasty; rash. The slave seized the unexpected chance to make a headlong dash across the border to freedom.

décolleté

ADJ. having a low-necked dress. Current fashion decrees that evening gowns be decollete this season; bare shoulders are again the vogue.

blandish

ADJ. cajore; coax with flattery. Despite all their sweet-talking, Suzi and Cher were unable to blandish the doorman into letting them into the hot new club.

dispassionate

ADJ. calm; impartial. Known in the company for his cool judgment, Bill could impartially examine the causes of a problem, giving a dispassionate analysis of what had gone wrong, and go on to suggest how to correct the mess.

outspoken

ADJ. candid; blunt. The candidate was too outspoken to be a successful politician; he had not yet learned to weigh his words carefully.

downcast

ADJ. disheartened; sad. Cheerful and optimistic by nature, Beth was never downcast despite the difficulties she faced.

corollary

N. consequence; accompaniment. Brotherly love is a complex emotion, with sibling rivalry its natural corollary.

liaison

N. contact keeping parts of an organization in communication; go-between; secret love affair. As the liaison between the American and British forces during World War II, the colonel had to ease tensions between the leaders of the two armies. Romeo's romantic liaison with Juliet ended in tragedy.

antithesis

N. contrast; direct opposite of or to. This tyranny was the antithesis of all that he had hoped for, and he fought it with all his strength.

ascendancy

N. controlling influence; domination. Leaders of religious cults maintain ascendancy over their followers by methods that can verge on brainwashing.

pith

N. core or marrow; essence; substance. In preparing a pineapple for the table, first slice it in half and remove the woody central pith.

ordinance

N. decree. Passing a red light is a violation of a city ordinance.

defection

N. desertion; abandonment. The children, who had made him an idol, were hurt most by his defection from our cause. (secondary meaning)

demolition

N. destruction. One of the major aims of the air force was the complete demolition of all means of transportation by bombing of rail lines and terminals. demolish, V.

lexicon

N. dictionary. I cannot find this word in any lexicon in the library.

quandary

N. dilemma. When both Harvard and Stanford accepted Laura, she was in a quandary as to which school she should attend.

application

N. diligent attention. Pleased with how well Tom had whitewashed the fence, Aunt Polly praised him for his application to the task. apply, V. (secondary meaning)

beeline

N. direct, quick route. As soon as the movie was over, Jim made a beeline for the exit.

sinuous

ADJ. winding; bending in and out; not morally honest. The snake moved in a sinuous manner.

gusty

ADJ. windy. The gusty weather made sailing precarious.

pendulous

ADJ. hanging; suspended. The pendulous chandeliers swayed in the breeze as if they were about to fall from the ceiling.

checkered

ADJ. marked by changes in fortune. During his checkered career he had lived in palatial mansions and in dreary boardinghouses.

ceremonious

ADJ. marked by formality. Ordinary dress would be inappropriate at so ceremonious an affair.

humane

ADJ. marked by kindness or consideration. It is ironic that the Humane Society sometimes must show its compassion toward mistreated animals by killing them to put them out of their misery.

striated

ADJ. marked with parallel bands; grooved. The glacier left many striated rocks. striate,V.

nubile

ADJ. marriageable. Mrs. Bennet, in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, was worried about finding suitable husbands for her five nubile daughters.

cerebral

ADJ. pertaining to the brain or intellect. The content of philosophical works is cerebral in nature and requires much thought.

pulmonary

ADJ. pertaining to the lungs. In his researches on pulmonary diseases, he discovered many facts about the lungs of animals and human beings.

ruthless

ADJ. pitiless; cruel. Captain Hook was a dangerous, ruthless villain who would stop at nothing to destroy Peter Pan.

staccato

ADJ. played in an abrupt manner; marked by abrupt sharp sound. His staccato speech reminded one of the sound of a machine gun.

congenial

ADJ. pleasant; friendly. My father loved to go out for a meal with congenial companions.

piquant

ADJ. pleasantly tart-tasting; stimulating. The piquant sauce added to our enjoyment of the meal. piquancy, N.

euphonious

ADJ. pleasing in sound. Euphonious even when spoken, the Italian language is particularly pleasing to the ear when sung. euphony. N.

gesticulation

N. motion; gesture. Operatic performers are trained to make exaggerated gesticulations because of the large auditoriums in which they appear.

regicide

N. murder of a king or queen. The beheading of Mary Queen of Scots was an act of regicide.

brawn

N. muscular strength; sturdiness. It takes brawn to become a champion weightlifter. brawny, ADJ.

appellation

N. name; title. Macbeth was startled when the witches greeted him with an incorrect appellation. Why did they call him Thane of Cawdor, he wondered, when the holder of that title still lived?

isthmus

N. narrow neck of land connecting two larger bodies of land. In a magnificent feat of engineering. Goethals and his men cut through the isthmus of Panama in constructing the Panama Canal.

momentous

ADJ. very important. When Marie and Pierre Curie discovered radium, they had no idea of the momentous impact their discovery would have upon society.

lexicographer

N. compiler of a dictionary. The new dictionary is the work of many lexicographers who spent years compiling and editing the work.

constraint

N. compulsion; repression of feeling. There was a feeling of constraint in the room because no one dared to criticize the speaker. constrain, V.

narcissist

N. conceited person; someone in love with his own image. A narcissist is her own best friend.

précis

N. concise summing up of main points. Before making her presentation at the conference, Ellen wrote up a neat précis of the major elements she would cover.

peroration

N. conclusion of an oration. The peroration was largely hortatory and brought the audience to its feet clamoring for action at its close.

parley

N. conference. The peace parley has not produced the anticipated truce. also V.

epicure

N. connoisseur of food and drink. Epicures frequent this restaurant because it features exotic wines and dishes. epicurean, ADJ.

gourmet

N. connoisseur of food and drink. The gourmet stated that this was the best onion soup she had ever tasted.

amenities

N. convenient features; courtesies. In addition to the customary amenities for the business traveler - fax machines, modems, a health club - the hotel offers the services of a butler versed in the social amenities.

cadaver

N. corpse. In some states, it is illegal to dissect cadavers.

congruence

N. correspondence of parts; harmonious relationship. The student demonstrated the congruence of the two triangles by using the hypotenuse-leg theorem.

perversion

N. corruption; turning from right to wrong. Inasmuch as he had no motive for his crimes, we could not understand his perversion.

barrister

N. counselor-at-law. Galsworthy started as a barrister, but, when he found the practice of law boring, turned to writing.

recrimination

N. countercharges. Loud and angry recriminations were her answer to his accusations.

comity

N. courtesy; civility. A spirit of comity should exist among nations.

crevice

N. crack; fissure. The mountain climbers found footholds in the tiny crevices in the mountainside.

fissure

N. crevice. The mountain climbers secured footholds in tiny fissures in the rock.

animadversion

N. critical remark. He resented the animadversions of his critics, particulary because he realized they were true.

diadem

N. crown. The king's diadem was on display at the museum.

panacea

N. cure-all; remedy for all diseases. The rich youth cynically declared that the panacea for all speeding tickets was a big enough bribe.

imprecation

N. curse. Roused from bed at what he considered an ungodly hour, Roy muttered imprecations under his breath.

malediction

N. curse. When the magic mirror revealed that Snow White was still alive, the wicked queen cried out in rage and uttered dreadful maledictions.

perdition

N. damnation; complete ruin. Praying for salvation, young Steven Daedalus feared he was damned to eternal perdition.

reverie

N. daydream; musing. He was awakened from his reverie by the teacher's question.

decomposition

N. decay. Despite the body's advanced state of decomposition, the police were able to identify the murdered man.

guile

N. deceit; duplicity; wiliness; cunning. lago uses considerable guile to trick Othello into believing that Desdemona has been unfaithful.

artifice

N. deception; trickery. The Trojan War proved to the Greeks that cunning and artifice were often more effective than military might.

stratagem

N. deceptive scheme. We saw through his clever stratagem.

hatch

N. deck opening; lid covering a deck opening. The latch on the hatch failed to catch, so the hatch remained unlatched.

manifesto

N. declaration; statement of policy. The Communist Manifesto by Marx and Engels proclaimed the principles of modern communism.

exploit

N. deed or action, particularly a brave deed. Raoul Wallenberg was noted for his exploits in rescuing Jews from Hitler's forces.

rampart

N. defensive mound of earth. "From the ramparts we watched" as the fighting continued.

extent

N. degree; magnitude; scope. What is the extentof the patient's injuries? If they are not too extensive, we can treat him on an outpatient basis.

finesse

N. delicate skill. The finesse and adroitness with which the surgeon wielded her scalpel impressed all the observers in the operating room.

swarm

N. dense moving crowd; large group of honeybees. At the height of the city hall scandals, a constant swarm of reporters followed the mayor everywhere. also V.

posterity

N. descendants; future generations. We hope to leave a better world to posterity.

protocol

N. diplomatic etiquette. We must run this state dinner according to protocol if we are to avoid offending any of our guests.

dissonance

N. discord. Composer Charles Ives often used dissonance-clashing or unresolved chords-for special effects in his musical works.

rebate

N. discount. We offer a rebate of ten percent to those who pay cash.

insubordination

N. disobedience; rebelliousness. At the slightest hint of insubordination from the sailors of the Bounty, Captain Bligh had them flogged; finally, they mutinied.

disarray

N. disorderly or untidy state. After the New Year's party, the once orderly house was in total disarray.

girth

N. distance around something; circumference. It took an extra-large cummerbund to fit around Andrew Carnegie's considerable girth.

charisma

N. divine gift; great popular charm or appeal of a political leader Political commentators have deplored the importance of a candidate's charisma in these days of television campaigning.

cardiologist

N. doctor specializing in the heart. When the pediatrician noticed Philip had a slight heart murmur, she referred him to a cardiologist for further tests.

bolt

N. door bar; fastening pin or screw; length of fabric. The carpenter shut the workshop door, sliding the heavy metal bolt into place. He sorted through his toolbox for the nuts and bolts and nails he would need. Before he cut into the bolt of canvas, he measured how much fabric he would need.

duplicity

N. double-dealing; hypocrisy. When Tanya learned that Mark had been two-timing her, she was furious at his duplicity.

misgivings

N. doubts. Hamlet described his misgivings to Horatio but decided to fence with Laertes despite his foreboding of evil.

declivity

N. downward slope. The children loved to ski down the declivity.

conscript

N. draftee; person forced into military service. Did Rambo volunteer to fight in Vietnam, or was he a conscript, drafted against his will? also, V.

liability

N. drawback; debts. Her lack of an extensive vocabulary was a liability that she was eventually able to overcome.

anodyne

N. drug that relieves pain; opiate. His pain was so great that no anodyne could relieve it.

carousal

N. drunken revel. Once the beer-chugging contests started, the drinking got out of control, and the party degenerated into an ugly carousal.

provender

N. dry food; fodder. I am not afraid of a severe winter because I have stored a large quantity of provender for the cattle.

effigy

N. dummy. The mob showed its irritation by hanging the judge in effigy.

gnome

N. dwarf; underground spirit. In medieval mythology, gnomes were the special guardians and inhabitants of subterranean mines.

bulwark

N. earthwork or other strong defense; person who defends. The navy is our principal bulwark against invasion.

economy

N. efficiency or conciseness in using something. Reading the epigrams of Pope, I admire the economy of his verse: in few words he conveys worlds of meaning. (secondary meaning)

medium

N. element that is a creature's natural environment; nutrient setting in which microorganisms are cultivated. We watched the dolphins sporting in the sea and marveled at their grace in their proper medium. The bacteriologist carefully observed the microorganisms' rapid growth in the culture medium.

component

N. element; ingredient. I wish all the components of my stereo system were working at the same time.

termination

N. end. Though the time for termination of the project was near, we still had a lot of work to finish before we shut up shop. terminate,V.

gusto

N. enjoyment; enthusiasm. He accepted the assignment with such gusto that I feel he would have been satisfied with a smaller salary.

abyss

N. enormous chasm; vast bottomless pit. Darth Vader seized the evil emperor and hurled him down into the abyss,

ovation

N. enthusiastic applause. When the popular tenor Placido Domingo came on stage in the first act of La Boheme, he was greeted by a tremendous ovation.

plaudit

N. enthusiastically worded approval; round of applause. The theatrical company reprinted the plaudits of the critics in its advertisements. plauditory, ADJ.

milieu

N. environment; means of expression. Surrounded by smooth preppies and arty bohemians, the country boy from Smalltown, USA, felt out of his milieu. Although he has produced excellent oil paintings and lithographs, his proper milieu is watercolor.

gourmand

N. epicure; person who takes excessive pleasure in food and drink. Gourmands lack self-restraint; if they enjoy a particular cuisine, they eat far too much of it.

paraphernalia

N. equipment; odds and ends. His desk was cluttered with paper, pen, ink, dictionary and other paraphernalia of the writing craft.

blunder

N. error. The criminal's fatal blunder led to his capture. also V.

crux

N. essential or main point. This is the crux of the entire problem: everything centers on its being resolved. crucial, ADJ.

attribute

N. essential quality. His outstanding attribute was his kindness.

hyperbole

N. exaggeration; overstatement. As far as I'm concerned, Apple's claims about the new computer are pure hyperbole: no machine is that good!

autopsy

N. examination of a dead body; post-mortem. The medical examiner ordered an autopsy to determine the cause of death. alsoV.

audit

N. examination of accounts. When the bank examiners arrived to hold their annual audit, they discovered the embezzlements of the chief cashier. also V.

egoism

N. excessive interest in one's self; belief that one should be interested in one's self rather than in others. His egoism prevented him from seeing the needs of his colleagues.

coterie

N. group that meets socially; select circle. After his book had been published, he was invited to join the literary coterie that lunched daily at the hotel.

accretion

N. growth; increase. The accretion of wealth marked the family's rise in power.

remorse

N. guilt; self-reproach. The murderer felt no remorse for his crime.

recidivism

N. habitual return to crime. Prison reformers in the United States are disturbed by the high rate of recidivism; the number of men serving second and third terms in prison indicates the failure of prisons to rehabilitate the inmates.

hackles

N. hairs on back and neck, especially of a dog. The dog's hackles rose and he began to growl as the sound of footsteps grew louder.

coiffure

N. hairstyle. You can make a statement with your choice of coiffure: in the sixties many AfricanAmericans affirmed their racial heritage by wearing their hair in Afros.

titter

N. half-suppressed laugh; giggle. Her aunt's constant titter nearly drove her mad. also V.

gavel

N. hammerlike tool; mallet. "Sold!" cried the auctioneer, banging her gavel on the table to indicate she'd accepted the final bid.

factotum

N. handyman; person who does all kinds of work. Although we had hired him as a messenger, we soon began to use him as a general factotum around the office.

felicity

N. happiness; appropriateness (of a remark, choice, etc.). She wrote a note to the newlyweds wishing them great felicity in their wedded life.

incrustation

N. hard coating or crust. In dry dock, we scraped off the incrustation of dirt and barnacles that covered the hull of the ship.

consonance

N. harmony; agreement. Her agitation seemed out of consonance with her usual calm. The 1815 so-called "Holy Alliance" of the emperors of Russia and Austria and the king of Prussia accomplished nothing, since it was merely a vague agreement that the sovereigns would conduct themselves in consonance with Christian principles.

anachronism

N. having an error involving time in a story. The reference to clocks in Julius Caesar is anachronistic: clocks did not exist in Caesar's time. anachronistic, ADJ.

promontory

N. headland. They erected a lighthouse on the promontory to warn approaching ships of their nearness to the shore.

ballast

N. heavy substance used to add stability or weight. The ship was listing badly to one side; it was necessary to shift the ballast in the hold to get her back on an even keel. alsoV.

recluse

N. hermit; loner. Disappointed in love, Miss Emily became a recluse; she shut herself away in her empty mansion and refused to see another living soul. reclusive, ADJ.

irony

N. hidden sarcasm or satire; use of words that seem to mean the opposite of what they actually mean. Gradually his listeners began to realize that the excessive praise he was lavishing on his opponent was actually irony, he was in fact ridiculing the poor fool.

sluggard

N. lazy person. "You are a sluggard, a drone, a parasite," the angry father shouted at his lazy son.

moratorium

N. legal delay of payment. If we declare a moratorium and delay collection of debts for six months, I am sure the farmers will be able to meet their bills.

duration

N. length of time something lasts. Because she wanted the children to make a good impression on the dinner guests, Mother promised them a treat if they'd behave for the duration of the meal.

anticlimax

N. letdown in thought or emotion. After the fine performance in the first act, the rest of the play was an anticlimax. anticlimactic, ADJ.

diorama

N. life-size, three-dimensional scene from nature or history. Because they dramatically pose actual stuffed animals against realistic painted landscapes, the dioramas at the Museum of Natural History particularly impress high school biology students.

flick

N. light stroke as with a whip. The horse needed no encouragement; one flick of the whip was all the jockey had to apply to get the animal to run at top speed.

modicum

N. limited quantity. Although his story is based on a modicum of truth, most of the events he describes are fictitious.

repertoire

N. list of works of music, drama, etc., a performer is prepared to present. The opera company decided to include Madame Butterfly in its repertoire for the following season.

compilation

N. listing of statistical information in tabular or book form. The compilation of available scholarships serves a very valuable purpose.

knoll

N. little round hill. Robert Louis Stevenson's grave is on a knoll in Samoa; to reach the grave site, you must climb uphill and walk a short distance along a marked path.

epic

N. long heroic poem, or similar work of art. Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai is an epic portraying the struggle of seven warriors to destroy a band of robbers. alsoADJ.

eon

N. long period of time; an age. It has taken eons for our civilization to develop.

odyssey

N. long, eventful journey. The refugee's journey from Cambodia was a terrifying odyssey.

amnesia

N. loss of memory. Because she was suffering from amnesia, the police could not get the young girl to identify herself.

hybrid

N. mongrel; mixed breed. Mendel's formula explains the appearance of hybrids and pure species in breeding. also ADJ.

mausoleum

N. monumental tomb. His body was placed in the family mausoleum.

phobia

N. morbid fear. Her fear of flying was more than mere nervousness; it was a real phobia.

filing

N. particle removed by a file. As the prisoner filed away at the iron bar on the ceil window, a small heap of filings accumulated on the window sill.

awe

N. solemn wonder. The tourists gazed with awe at the tremendous expanse of the Grand Canyon.

stint

N. supply; allotted amount; assigned portion of work. He performed his daily stint cheerfully and willingly. also V.

adage

N. wise saying; proverb. There is much truth in the old adage about fools and their money.

impute

V. attribute; ascribe. If I wished to impute blame to the officers in charge of this program, I would state my feelings definitely and immediately.

shirk

V. avoid (responsibility, work, etc.); malinger. Brian has a strong sense of duty; he would never shirk any responsibility.

eschew

V. avoid. Hoping to present himself to his girlfriend as a totally reformed character, he tried to eschew all the vices, especially chewing tobacco and drinking bathtub gin.

rusticate

V. banish to the country; dwell in the country. I like city life so much that I can never understand how people can rusticate in the suburbs.

reprove

V. censure; rebuke. The principal severely reproved the students whenever they talked in the halls.

abjure

V. renounce upon oath. He abjured his allegiance to the king. abjuration, N.

prehensile

ADJ. capable of grasping or holding. Monkeys use not only their arms and legs but also their prehensile tails in traveling through the trees.

sentient

ADJ. capable of sensation; aware; sensitive. In the science fiction story, the hero had to discover a way to prove that the rocklike extraterrestrial creature was actually a sentient, intelligent creature. sentience, N.

ambidextrous

ADJ. capable of using either hand with equal ease. A switch-hitter in baseball should be naturally ambidextrous.

mercurial

ADJ. capricious; changing; fickle. Quick as quicksilver to change, he was mercurial in nature and therefore unreliable.

lax

ADJ. careless. We dislike restaurants where the service is lax and inattentive.

pestilential

ADJ. causing plague; baneful. People were afraid to explore the pestilential swamp. pestilence, N.

pathetic

ADJ. causing sadness, compassion, pity; touching. Everyone in the auditorium was weeping by the time he finished his pathetic tale about the orphaned boy.

chary

ADJ. cautious; sparing or restrained about giving. A prudent, thrifty, New Englander, DeWitt was as chary of investing money in junk bonds as he was chary of paying people unnecessary compliments.

engaging

ADJ. charming; attractive. Everyone liked Nancy's pleasant manners and engaging personality.

idyllic

ADJ. charmingly carefree; simple. Far from the city, she led an idyllic existence in her rural retreat.

tawdry

ADJ. cheap and gaudy. He won a few tawdry trinkets in Coney Island.

fraudulent

ADJ. cheating; deceitful. The government seeks to prevent fraudulent and misleading advertising.

sanguine

ADJ. cheerful; hopeful. Let us not be too sanguine about the outcome; something could go wrong.

puerile

ADJ. childish. His puerile pranks sometimes offended his more mature friends.

limpid

ADJ. clear. A limpid stream ran through his property.

ingenious

ADJ. clever; resourceful. Kit admired the ingenious way that her computer keyboard opened up to reveal the built-in CD-ROM below. ingenuity, N.

saccharine

ADJ. cloyingly sweet. She tried to ingratiate herself, speaking sweetly and smiling a saccharine smile.

gauche

ADJ. clumsy; coarse and uncouth. Compared to the sophisticated young ladies in their elegant gowns, tomboyish Jo felt gauche and out of place.

abusive

ADJ. coarsely insulting; physically harmful. An abusive parent damages a child both mentally and physically.

ingrained

ADJ. deeply established; firmly rooted. Try as they would, the missionaries were unable to uproot the ingrained superstitions of the natives.

pensive

ADJ. dreamily thoughtful; thoughtful with a hint of sadness; contemplative. The pensive lover gazed at the portrait of his beloved and deeply sighed.

repellent

ADJ. driving away; unattractive. Mosquitoes find the odor so repellent that they leave any spot where this liquid has been sprayed. also N.

lethargic

ADJ. drowsy; dull. The stuffy room made her lethargic: she felt as if she was about to nod off.

bacchanalian

ADJ. drunken. Emperor Nero attended the bacchanalian orgy.

arid

ADJ. dry; barren. The cactus has adapted to survive in an arid environment.

prosaic

ADJ. dull and unimaginative; matter-of-fact; factual. Though the ad writers came up with an original way to publicize the product, the head office rejected it for a more prosaic, ordinary slogan.

lackluster

ADJ. dull. We were disappointed by the lackluster performance.

stolid

ADJ. dull; impassive. The earthquake shattered Stuart's usual stolid demeanor; trembling, he crouched on the no longer stable ground.

humdrum

ADJ. dull; monotonous. After his years of adventure, he could not settle down to a humdrum existence.

inebriated

ADJ. habitually intoxicated; drunk. Abe was inebriated more often than he was sober. Because of his inebriety, he was discharged from his job as a bus driver.

somnolent

ADJ. half asleep. The heavy meal and the overheated room made us all somnolent and indifferent to the speaker.

pendant

ADJ. hanging down from something. Her pendant earrings glistened in the light.

ravine

N. narrow valley with steep sides. Steeper than a gully, less precipitous than a canyon, a ravine is, like them, the product of years of erosion.

insularity

N. narrow-mindedness; isolation. The insularity of the islanders manifested itself in their suspicion of anything foreign. insular, ADJ.

sextant

N. navigation tool used to determine a ship's latitude and longitude. Given a clear night, with the aid of his sextant and compass he could keep the ship safely on course.

negligence

N. neglect; failure to take reasonable care. Tommy failed to put back the cover on the well after he fetched his pail of water; because of his negligence, Kitty fell in.

aerie

N. nest of a large bird of prey (eagle, hawk). The mother eagle swooped down on the unwitting rabbit and bore it off to her aerie high in the Rocky Mountains.

seine

N. net for catching fish. When the shad run during the spring, you may see fishermen with seines along the banks of our coastal rivers.

agility

N. nimbleness. The agility of the acrobat amazed and thrilled the audience.

clamor

N. noise. The clamor of the children at play outside made it impossible for her to take a nap. also V.

harangue

N. noisy speech. In her lengthy harangue, the principal berated the offenders. also V.

cipher

N. nonentity; worthless person or thing. She claimed her ex-husband was a total cipher and wondered why she had ever married him.

drivel

N. nonsense; foolishness. Why do I have to spend my days listening to such idiotic drivel? Drivel is related to dribble: think of a dribbling, driveling idiot.

indentation

N. notch; deep recess. You can tell one tree from another by examining their leaves and noting the differences in the indentations along the edges of the leaves. indent,V.

fancy

N. notion; whim; inclination. Martin took a fancy to paint his toenails purple. Assuming he would outgrow such fanciful behavior, his parents ignored his fancy feet. also ADJ.

nutrient

N. nourishing substance. As a budding nutritionist, Kim has learned to design diets that contain foods rich in important basic nutrients.

gentry

N. people of standing; class of people just below nobility. The local gentry did not welcome the visits of the summer tourists and tried to ignore their presence in the community.

brochure

N. pamphlet. This brochure on farming was issued by the Department of Agriculture.

genre

N. particular variety of art or literature. Both a short story writer and a poet, Langston Hughes proved himself equally skilled in either genre.

accomplice

N. partner in crime. Because he had provided the criminal with the lethal weapon, he was arrested as an accomplice in the murder.

coalition

N. partnership; league; union. The Rainbow Coalition united people of all races in a common cause.

faction

N. party; clique; dissension. The quarrels and bickering of the two small factions within the club disturbed the majority of the members.

forbearance

N. patience. We must use forbearance in dealing with him because he is still weak from his illness.

pinnacle

N. peak. We could see the morning sunlight illuminate the pinnacle while the rest of the mountain lay in shadow.

podium

N. pedestal; raised platform. The audience applauded as the conductor made his way to the podium.

pseudonym

N. pen name. Samuel Clemens' pseudonym was Mark Twain.

doggerel

N. poor verse. Although we find occasional snatches of genuine poetry in her work, most of her writing is mere doggerel.

affirmation

N. positive assertion; confirmation; solemn pledge by one who refuses to take an oath. Despite Tom's affirmations of innocence, Aunt Polly still suspected he had eaten the pie.

effusion

N. pouring forth. The critics objected to her literary effusion because it was too flowery.

indigence

N. poverty. Neither the economists nor the political scientists have found a way to wipe out the inequities of wealth and eliminate indigence from our society. indigent, ADJ., N.

efficacy

N. power to produce desired effect. The efficacy of this drug depends on the regularity of the dosage. efficacious, ADJ.

impuissance

N. powerlessness; feebleness. The lame duck president was frustrated by his shift from enormous power to relative impuissance.

pragmatist

N. practical person. No pragmatist enjoys becoming involved in a game he can never win.

precept

N. practical rule guiding conduct. "Love thy neighbor as thyself" is a worthwhile precept.

teetotalism

N. practice of abstaining totally from alcoholic drinks. Though the doctor warned Bert to cut down his booze intake, she didn't insist that he practice teetotalism. teetotaler, N.

escapade

N. prank; flighty conduct. The headmaster could not regard this latest escapade as a boyish joke and expelled the young man.

invocation

N. prayer for help; calling upon as a reference or support. The service of Morning Prayer opens with an invocation during which we ask God to hear our prayers.

nicety

N. precision; minute distinction. I cannot distinguish between such niceties of reasoning.

foreboding

N. premonition of evil. Suspecting no conspiracies against him, Caesar gently ridiculed his wife's forebodings about the Ides of March.

spangle

N. small metallic piece sewn to clothing for ornamentation. The thousands of spangles on her dress sparkled in the glare of the stage lights.

asteroid

N. small planet. Asteroids have become commonplace to the readers of interstellar travel stories in science fiction magazines.

mote

N. small speck. The tiniest mote in the eye is very painful.

rivulet

N. small stream. As the rains continued, the small trickle of water running down the hillside grew into a rivulet that threatened to wash away a portion of the slope.

pariah

N. social outcast. If everyone ostracized singer Mariah Carey, would she then be Mariah the pariah?

plutocracy

N. society ruled by the wealthy. From the way the government caters to the rich, you might think our society is a plutocracy rather than a democracy.

anathema

N. solemn curse; someone or something regarded as a curse. The Ayatolla Khomeini heaped anathema upon "the Great Satan," that is, the United States. To the Ayatolla, America and the West were anathema; he loathed the democratic nations, cursing them in his dying words. anathematize,V.

dupe

N. someone easily fooled. While the gullible Watson often was made a dupe by unscrupulous parties, Sherlock Holmes was far more difficult to fool. also V.

glutton

N. someone who eats too much. When Mother saw that Bobby had eaten all the cookies, she called him a little glutton. gluttonous, ADJ.

paradox

N. something apparently contradictory in nature; statement that looks false but is actually correct. Richard presents a bit of a paradox, for he is a card-carrying member of both the National Rifle Association and the relatively pacifist American Civil Liberties Union.

comestible

N. something fit to be eaten. The roast turkey and other comestibles, the wines, and the excellent service made this Thanksgiving dinner particularly memorable.

novelty

N. something new; newness. The computer is no longer a novelty at work; every desk in our office has one. novel, ADJ.

deterrent

N. something that discourages; hindrance. Does the threat of capital punishment serve as a deterrent to potential killers? deter, V.

paean

N. song of praise or joy. Paeans celebrating the victory filled the air.

anthem

N. song of praise or patriotism. Let us now all join in singing the national anthem.

poultice

N. soothing application applied to sore and inflamed portions of the body. She was advised to apply a flaxseed poultice to the inflammation.

emollient

N. soothing or softening remedy. The nurse applied an emollientto the inflamed area. also ADJ.

psyche

N. soul; mind. It is difficult to delve into the psyche of a human being.

tempo

N. speed of music. I find the band's tempo too slow for such a lively dance.

celerity

N. speed; rapidity. Hamlet resented his mother's celerity in remarrying within a month after his father's death.

regeneration

N. spiritual rebirth. Modern penologists strive for the regeneration of the prisoners.

dichotomy

N. split; branching into two parts (especially contradictory ones). Willie didn't know how to resolve the dichotomy between his ambition to go to college and his childhood longing to run away and join the circus. The he heard about Ringling Brothers Circus College, and he knew he'd found his school.

deadlock

N. standstill; stalemate. Because negotiations had reached a deadlock, some of the delegates had begun to mutter about breaking off the talks. also V.

solitude

N. state of being alone; seclusion. Much depends on how much you like your own company. What to one person seems fearful isolation to another is blessed solitude.

immobility

N. state of being immovable. Modern armies cannot afford the luxury of immobility, as they are vulnerable to attack while standing still.

multiplicity

N. state of being numerous. He was appalled by the multiplicity of details he had to complete before setting out on his mission.

parallelism

N. state of being parallel; similarity. Although the twins were separated at birth and grew up in different adoptive families, a striking parallelism exists between their lives.

inconsistency

N. state of being self-contradictory; lack of uniformity or steadiness. How are lawyers different from agricultural inspectors? While lawyers check inconsistencies in witnesses' statements, agricultural inspectors check inconsistencies in Grade A eggs. inconsistent, ADJ.

affliction

N. state of distress; cause of suffering. Even in the midst of her affliction, Elizabeth tried to keep up the spirits of those around her.

responsiveness

N. state of reacting readily to appeals, orders, etc. The audience cheered and applauded, delighting the performers by its responsiveness.

embezzlement

N. stealing. The bank teller confessed his embezzlement of the funds.

suture

N. stitches sewn to hold the cut edges of a wound or incision; material used in sewing. We will remove the sutures as soon as the wound heals. also V.

arsenal

N. storage place for military equipment. People are forbidden to smoke in the arsenal for fear that a stray spark might setoff the munitions stored there.

repository

N. storehouse. Libraries are repositories of the world's best thoughts.

allegory

N. story in which characters are used as symbols; fable. Pilgrim's Progress is an allegory of the temptations and victories of man's soul. allegorical,ADJ.

martinet

N. strict disciplinarian. No talking at meals! No mingling with the servants! Miss Minchin was a martinet who insisted that the schoolgirls in her charge observe each regulation to the letter.

clapper

N. striker (tongue) of a bell. Wishing to be undisturbed by the bell, Dale wound his scarf around the clapper to muffle the noise of its striking.

penchant

N. strong inclination; liking. Dave has a penchant for taking risks: one semester he went steady with three girls, two of whom were stars on the school karate team.

bigotry

N. stubborn intolerance. Brought up in a democratic atmosphere, the student was shocked by the bigotry and narrowness expressed by several of his classmates.

archaeology

N. study of artifacts and relics of early mankind. The professor of archaeology headed an expedition to the Gobi Desert in search of ancient ruins.

ornithology

N. study of birds. Audubon's studies of American birds greatly influenced the course of ornithology.

ichthyology

N. study of fish. Jacques Cousteau's programs about sea life have advanced the cause of ichthyology

ethnology

N. study of humankind. Sociology is one aspect of the science of ethnology.

entomology

N. study of insects. Kent found entomology the most annoying part of his biology course; studying insects bugged him.

paleontology

N. study of prehistoric life. The paleontology instructor had a superb collection of fossils.

oaf

N. stupid, awkward person. "Watch what you're doing, you clumsy oaf!" Bill shouted at the waiter who had drenched him with iced coffee.

cuisine

N. style of cooking. French cuisine is noted for its use of sauces and wines.

arabesque

N. style of decoration involving intertwined plants and abstract curves; ballet position with one leg supporting the weight of the body, while the other legs is extended in back. Because the Koran prohibits the creation of human and animal images, Moorish arabesques depict plants but no people. The statue of winged Mercury stands poised on on foot, frozen in an eternal arabesque.

propellant

N. substances that propel or drive forward. The development of our missile program has forced our scientists to seek more powerful propellants. also ADJ.

larceny

N. theft. Because of the prisoner's record, the district attorney refused to reduce the charge from grand larceny to petty larceny.

pachyderm

N. thick-skinned animal. The elephant is probably the best-known pachyderm.

gentility

N. those of gentle birth; refinement. Her family was proud of its gentility and elegance.

cerebration

N. thought. Mathematics problems sometimes require much cerebration.

millennium

N. thousand-year period; period of happiness and prosperity. I do not expect the millennium to come during my lifetime.

heyday

N. time of greatest success; prime. In their heyday, the San Francisco Forty-Niners won the Super Bowl two years running.

gratuity

N. tip. Many service employees rely more on gratuities than on salaries for their livelihood.

harping

N. tiresome dwelling on a subject. After he had reminded me several times about what he had done for me I told him to stop his harping on my indebtedness to him. harp, V.

caption

N. title; chapter heading; text under illustration. The captions that accompany The Far Side cartoons are almost as funny as the pictures. also V.

stigma

N. token of disgrace; brand. I do not attach any stigma to the fact that you were accused of this crime; the fact that you were acquitted clears you completely.

knell

N. tolling of a bell, especially to indicate a funeral, disaster, etc.; sound of the funeral bell. "The curfew tolls the knell of parting day." also V.

pestle

N. tool for mashing or grinding substances in a hard bowl. From the way in which the elderly pharmacist pounded the drug with his pestle, young George could tell that his employer was agitated about something.

cog

N. tooth projecting from a wheel. A bicycle chain moves through a series of cogs in order to propel the bike.

laceration

N. torn, ragged wound. The stock car driver needed stitches to close up the lacerations he received in the car crash.

engage

V. attract; hire; pledge oneself; confront. "Your case has engaged my interest, my lord," said Holmes. "You may engage my services."

pulverize

V. crush or grind into dust. Before sprinkling the dried herbs into the stew, Michael first pulverized them into a fine powder.

execrate

V. curse; express abhorrence for. The world execrated the memory of Hitler and hopes that genocide will never again be the policy of any nation.

prune

V. cut away; trim. With the help of her editor, she was able to prune her overlong manuscript into publishable form.

retrench

V. cut down; economize. In order to be able to afford to send their children to college, they would have to retrench. retrenchment, N.

dismember

V. cut into small parts. When the Austrian Empire was dismembered, several new countries were established.

shear

V. cut or clip (hair, fleece); strip of something. You may not care to cut a sheep's hair, but Sarah shears sheep for Little Bo Peep.

fell

V. cut or knock down; bring down (with a missile). Crying "Timber!" Paul Bunyan felled the mighty redwood tree. Robin Hood loosed his arrow and felled the king's deer.

eclipse

V. darken; extinguish; surpass. The new stock market high eclipsed the previous record set in 1995.

bolt

V. dash or dart off; fasten (a door); gobble down. Jack was set to bolt out the front door, but Jill bolted the door. "Eat your breakfast," she said, "don't bolt your food."

delude

V. deceive. His mistress may have deluded herself into believing that he would leave his wife and marry her.

resolve

V. decide; settle; solve. Holmes resolved to travel to Bohemia to resolve the dispute between Irene Adler and the king.

embroider

V. decorate with needlework; ornament with fancy or fictitious details. For her mother's birthday, Beth embroidered a lovely design on a handkerchief. When asked what made her late getting home, Jo embroidered her account with tales of runaway horses and rescuing people from a ditch. embroidery, N.

garnish

V. decorate. Parsley was used to garnish the boiled potato. also N.

infuriate

V. enrage; anger. Her big brother's teasing always infuriated Margaret; no matter how hard she tried to keep her temper, he always got her goat.

incense

V. enrage; infuriate. Cruelty to defenseless animals incensed Kit: the very idea brought tears of anger to her eyes.

accoutre

V. equip. The fisherman was accoutred with the best that the sporting goods store could supply. accoutrements, N.

delete

V. erase; strike out. Less is more: if you delete this paragraph, your whole essay will have greater appeal.

substantiate

V. establish by evidence; verify; support. These endorsements from satisfied customers substantiate our claim that Barron's How to Prepare for the SAT I is the best SAT-prep book on the market.

appraise

V. estimate value of. It is difficult to appraise the value of old paintings; it is easier to call them priceless. appraisal, N.

gestate

V. evolve, as in prenatal growth. While this scheme was being gestated by the conspirators, they maintained complete silence about their intentions.

scrutinize

V. examine closely and critically. Searching for flaws, the sergeant scrutinized every detail of the private's uniform.

collate

V. examine in order to verify authenticity; arrange in order. They collated the newly found manuscripts to determine their age.

ostracize

V. exclude from public favor; ban. As soon as the newspapers carried the story of his connection with the criminals, his friends began to ostracize him. ostracism, N.

distend

V. expand; swell out. I can tell when he is under stress by the way the veins distend on his forehead.

oust

V. expel; drive out. The world wondered if Aquino would be able to oust Marcos from office. ouster, N.

sustain

V. experience; support; nourish. He sustained such a severe injury that the doctors feared he would be unable to work to sustain his growing family.

gloss over

V. explain away. No matter how hard he tried to talk around the issue, President Bush could not gloss over the fact that he had raised taxes after all.

primp

V. groom oneself with care; adorn oneself. The groom stood by idly while his nervous bride-to-be primped one last time before the mirror.

burgeon

V. grow forth; send out buds. In the spring, the plants that burgeon are a promise of the beauty that is to come.

pall

V. grow tiresome. The study of word lists can eventually pall and put one to sleep.

maul

V. handle roughly. The rock star was mauled by his over-excited fans.

hover

V. hang about; wait nearby. The police helicopter hovered above the accident.

beset

V. harass or trouble; hem in. Many vexing problems beset the American public school system. Sleeping Beauty's castle was beset on all sides by dense thickets that hid it from view.

defame

V. harm someone's reputation; malign; slander. If you try to defame my good name, my lawyers will see you in court. If rival candidates persist in defaming one another, the voters may conclude that all politicians are crooks. defamation, N.

incubate

V. hatch; scheme. Inasmuch as our supply of electricity is cut off, we shall have to rely on the hens to incubate these eggs.

facilitate

V. help bring about; make less difficult. Rest and proper nourishment should facilitate the patient's recovery.

shroud

V. hide from view; wrap for burial. Fog shrouded Dracula's castle, hiding the ruined tower beneath sheets of mist.

immure

V. imprison; shut up in confinement. For the two weeks before the examination, the student immured himself in his room and concentrated upon his studies.

ameliorate

V. improve. Many social workers have attempted to ameliorate the conditions of people living in the slums.

subsume

V. include; encompass. Does the general theory of relativity contradict Newtonian physics, or is Newton's law of gravity subsumed into Einstein's larger scheme?

gouge

V. overcharge. During the World Series, ticket scalpers tried to gouge the public, asking astronomical prices even for bleacher seats.

surmount

V. overcome. Could Helen Keller, blind and deaf since childhood, surmount her physical disabilities and lead a productive life?

condone

V. overlook; forgive; give tacit approval; excuse. Unlike Widow Douglass, who condoned Huck's minor offenses, Miss Watson did nothing but scold.

glut

V. overstock; fill to excess. The many manufacturers glutted the market and could not find purchasers for the excess articles they had produced. also N.

inundate

V. overwhelm; flood; submerge. This semester I am inundated with work: You should see the piles of paperwork flooding my desk. Until the great dam was built, the waters of the Nile used to inundate the river valley like clockwork every year.

appease

V. pacify or soothe; relieve. Tom and Jody tried to appease the crying baby by offering him one toy after another, but he would not calm down until they appeased his hunger by giving him a bottle.

placate

V. pacify; conciliate. The store manager tried to placate the angry customer, offering to replace the damaged merchandise or to give back her money right away.

absolve

V. pardon (an offense). The father confessor absolved him of his sins. absolution, N.

permeate

V. pass through; spread. The odor of frying onions permeated the air.

heed

V. pay attention to; consider. We hope you heed our advice and get a good night's sleep before the test. also N.

divine

V. perceive intuitively; foresee the future. Nothing infuriated Tom more than Aunt Polly's ability to divine when he was telling the truth.

dissuade

V. persuade not to do; discourage. Since Tom could not dissuade Huck from running away from home, he decided to run away with him. dissuasion, N.

badger

V. pester; annoy. She was forced to change her telephone number because she was badgered by obscene phone calls.

supplicate

V. petition humbly; pray to grant a favor. We supplicate Your Majesty to grant him amnesty.

riddle

V. pierce with holes (esp. gunshot); permeate or spread throughout; fill with something unpleasant. With his machine gun, Tracy riddled the car with bullets till it looked like a slice of Swiss cheese. During the proofreaders' strike, the newspaper was riddled with typos.

sheathe

V. place into a case. As soon as he recognized the approaching men, he sheathed his dagger and hailed them as friends.

juxtapose

V. place side by side. Comparison will be easier if you juxtapose the two objects.

premeditate

V. plan in advance. She had premeditated the murder for months, reading about common poisons and buying weed killer that contained arsenic.

entreat

V. plead; ask earnestly. She entreated her father to let her stay out till midnight.

enrapture

V. please intensely. The audience was enraptured by the freshness of the voices and the excellent orchestration.

gratify

V. please. Lori's parents were gratified by her successful performance on the SAT.

despoil

V. plunder. If you do not yield, I am afraid the enemy will despoil the countryside.

douse

V. plunge into water; drench; extinguish. They doused each other with hoses and water balloons.

contaminate

V. pollute. The sewage system of the city so contaminated the water that swimming was forbidden.

defile

V. pollute; profane. The hoodlums defiled the church with their scurrilous writing.

depict

V. portray. In this sensational exposé, the author depicts Beatle John Lennon as a drug-crazed neurotic. Do you question the accuracy of this depiction of Lennon?

delineate

V. portray; depict; sketch. Using only a few descriptive phrases, Austen delineates the character of Mr. Collins so well that we can predict his every move. delineation, N.

decant

V. pour off gently. Be sure to decant this wine before serving it.

laud

V. praise. The NFL lauded Boomer Esiason's efforts to raise money to combat cystic fibrosis. laudable, laudatory, ADJ.

predetermine

V. predestine; settle or decide beforehand; influence markedly. Romeo and Juliet believed that Fate had predetermined their meeting. Bea gathered estimates from caterers, florists, and stationers so that she could predetermine the costs of holding a catered buffet. Philip's love of athletics predetermined his choice of a career in sports marketing.

stymie

V. present an obstacle; stump. The detective was stymied by the contradictory evidence in the robbery investigation. also N.

dissimulate

V. pretend; conceal by feigning. She tried to dissimulate her grief by her exuberant attitude.

forestall

V. prevent by taking action in advance. By setting up a prenuptial agreement, the prospective bride and groom hoped to forestall any potential arguments about money in the event of a divorce.

avert

V. prevent; turn away. She averted her eyes from the dead cat on the highway.

promulgate

V. proclaim a doctrine or law; make known by official publication. When Moses came down from the mountain top all set to promulgate God's commandments, he freaked out on discovering his followers worshipping a golden calf.

desecrate

V. profane; violate the sanctity of. Shattering the altar and trampling the holy objects underfoot, the invaders desecrated the sanctuary.

protract

V. prolong. Seeking to delay the union members' vote, the management team tried to protract the negotiations endlessly.

thrive

V. prosper; flourish. Despite the impact of the recession on the restaurant trade, Philip's cafe thrived.

authenticate

V. prove genuine. An expert was needed to authenticate the original Van Gogh painting, distinguishing it from its imitation.

endue

V. provide with some quality; endow. He was endued with a lion's courage.

document

V. provide written evidence. She kept all the receipts from her business trip in order to document her expenses for the firm. also N.

purse

V. pucker; contract into wrinkles. Miss Watson pursed her lips to show her disapproval of Huck's bedraggled appearance.

obtrude

V. push (oneself or one's ideas) forward or intrude; butt in; stick out or extrude. Because Fanny was reluctant to obtrude her opinions about child-raising upon her daughter-in-law, she kept a close watch on her tongue. obtrusive, ADJ.

marshal

V. put in order. At a debate tournament, extemporaneous speakers have only a minute or two to marshal their thoughts before they address their audience.

implement

V. put into effect; supply with tools. The mayor was unwilling to implement the plan until she was sure it had the governor's backing. also N.

bicker

V. quarrel. The children bickered morning, noon, and night, exasperating their parents.

slake

V. quench; sate. When we reached the oasis, we were able to slake our thirst.

exalt

V. raise in rank or dignity; praise. The actor Alec Guinness was exalted to the rank of knighthood by the queen.

rummage

V. ransack; thoroughly search. When we rummaged through the trunks in the attic, we found many souvenirs of our childhood days. also N.

foster

V. rear; encourage. According to the legend, Romulus and Remus were fostered by a she-wolf who raised the abandoned infants with her own cubs. also ADJ.

ebb

V. recede; lessen. Sitting on the beach, Mrs. Dalloway watched the tide ebb: the waters receded, drawing away from her as she sat there all alone. also N.

compute

V. reckon; calculate. He failed to compute the interest, so his bank balance was not accurate.

acknowledge

V. recognize; admit. Although I acknowledge that the Beatles' tunes sound pretty dated today, I still prefer them to the "gangsta rap" songs my brothers play.

recuperate

V. recover. The doctors were worried because the patient did not recuperate as rapidly as they had expected.

retrieve

V. recover; find and bring in. The dog was intelligent and quickly learned to retrieve the game killed by the hunter.

anneal

V. reduce brittleness and improve toughness by heating and cooling. After the glass is annealed, it will be less subject to chipping and cracking.

deplete

V. reduce; exhaust. We must wait until we deplete our present inventory before we order replacements.

allude

V. refer indirectly. Try not to mention divorce in Jack's presence because he will think you are alluding to his marital problems with Jill.

ascribe

V. refer; attribute; assign. I can ascribe no motive for her acts.

sublimate

V. refine; purify. We must strive to sublimate these desires and emotions into worthwhile activities.

abstain

V. refrain; hold oneself back voluntarily from an action or practice. After considering the effect of alcohol on his athletic performance, he decided to abstain from drinking while he trained for the race. abstinence, N.

deplore

V. regret; disapprove of. Although I deplore the vulgarity of your language, I defend your right to express yourself freely.

rue

V. regret; lament; mourn. Tina rued the night she met Tony and wondered how she ever fell for such a jerk. rueful, ADJ.

flout

V. reject; mock. The headstrong youth flouted all authority; he refused to be curbed.

spurn

V. reject; scorn. The heroine spurned the villain's advances.

exult

V. rejoice. We exulted when our team won the victory.

revert

V. relapse; backslide; turn back to. Most of the time Andy seemed sensitive and mature, but occasionally he would revert to his smart-alecky, macho, adolescent self.

alleviate

V. relieve. This should alleviate the pain; if it does not, we shall have to use stronger drugs.

purge

V. remove or get rid of something unwanted; free from blame or guilt; cleanse or purify. When the Communist government purged the party to get rid of members suspected of capitalist sympathies, they sent the disloyal members to labor camps in Siberia.

defuse

V. remove the fuse of a bomb; reduce or eliminate a threat. Police negotiators are trained to defuse dangerous situations by avoiding confrontational language and behavior.

abdicate

V. renounce; give up. When Edward VIII abdicated the British throne to marry the woman he loved, he surprised the entire world.

solder

V. repair or make whole by using a metal alloy. The plumber fixed the leak in the pipes by soldering a couple of joints from which water had been oozing.

reciprocate

V. repay in kind. If they attack us, we shall be compelled to reciprocate and bomb their territory. reciprocity, N.

requite

V. repay; revenge. The wretch requited his benefactors by betraying them.

reiterate

V. repeat. He reiterated the warning to make sure everyone understood it.

replicate

V. reproduce; duplicate. Because he had always wanted a palace, Donald decided to replicate the Tai Mahal in miniature on his estate.

dissipate

V. squander; waste; scatter. He is a fine artist, but I fear he may dissipate his gifts if he keeps wasting his time playing games.

rout

V. stampede; drive out. The reinforcements were able to rout the enemy. also N.

precipitate

V. throw headlong; hasten. The removal of American political support appears to have precipitated the downfall of the Marcos regime.

enfranchise

V. to admit to the rights of citizenship (especially the right to vote). Although Blacks were enfranchised shortly after the Civil War, women did not receive the right to vote until 1920.

harass

V. to annoy by repeated attacks. When he could not pay his bills as quickly as he had promised, he was harassed by his creditors.

commandeer

V. to draft for military purposes; to take for public use. The policeman commandeered the first car that approached and ordered the driver to go to the nearest hospital.

defer

V. to give in respectfully in judgement or opinion; to submit for a decision. When it comes to making decisions about purchasing software, we must defer to Michael, our computer guru; he gets the final word. Michael, however, can defer these questions to no one; only he can decide.

exasperate

V. to irritate or annoy to an extreme degree; infuriate; vex. Johnny often exasperates his mother with his pranks.

nullify

V. to make invalid. Once the contract was nullified, it no longer had any legal force.

roil

V. to make liquids murky by stirring up sediment. Be careful when you pour not to roil the wine; if you stir up the sediment you'll destroy the flavor.

defrock

V. to strip a priest or minister of church authority. We knew the minister had violated church regulations, but we had not realized his offense was serious enough to cause him to be defrocked.

coddle

V. to treat gently. Don't coddle the children so much; they need a taste of discipline.

intrude

V. trespass; enter as an uninvited person. She hesitated to intrude on their conversation.

dally

V. triffle with; procrastinate. Laertes told Ophelia that Hamlet would only dally with her affections.

deflect

V. turn aside. His life was saved when his cigarette case deflected the bullet.

shunt

V. turn aside; divert; sidetrack. If the switchman failed to shunt the Silver Streak onto a side track, the train would plow right into Union Station.

deviate

V. turn away from (a principle, norm); depart; diverge. Richard never deviated from his daily routine: every day he set off for work at eight o'clock, had his sack lunch (peanut butter on whole wheat) at 12:15, and headed home at the stroke of five.

cloister

N. monastery or convent. The nuns lived a secluded life in the cloister.

iota

N. very small quantity. She hadn't an iota of common sense.

fleck

V. spot. Her cheeks, flecked with tears, were testimony to the hours of weeping.

ample

ADJ. abundant. Bond had ample opportunity to escape. Why did he let us catch him?

invincible

ADJ. unconquerable. Superman is invincible.

covenant

N. agreement. We must comply with the terms of the covenant.

missive

N. letter. The ambassador received a missive from the secretary of state.

composure

N. mental calmness. Even the latest work crisis failed to shake her composure.

savant

N. scholar. Our faculty includes many worldfamous savants.

implore

V. beg. He implored her to give him a second chance.

feign

V. pretend. Lady Macbeth feigned illness although she was actually healthy.

salvage

V. rescue from loss. All attempts to salvage the wrecked ship failed. also N.

fervent

ADJ. ardent; hot. She felt that the fervent praise was excessive and somewhat undeserved.

disputatious

ADJ. argumentative; fond of arguing. Convinced he knew more than his lawyers, Alan was a disputatious client, ready to argue about the best way to conduct the case. disputant, N.

provocative

ADJ. arousing anger or interest; annoying. In a typically provocative act, the bully kicked sand into the weaker man's face.

synthetic

ADJ. artificial; resulting from synthesis. During the twentieth century, many synthetic products have replaced their natural counterparts. also N.

regatta

N. boat or yacht race. Many boating enthusiasts followed the regatta in their own yachts.

aesthetic

ADJ. artistic; dealing with or capable of appreciation of the beautiful. The beauty of Tiffany's stained glass appealed to Esther's aesthetic sense. aesthete, N.

iconoclastic

ADJ. attacking cherished traditions. Deeply iconoclastic, Jean Genet deliberately set out to shock conventional theatergoers with his radical plays.

litigation

N. lawsuit. Try to settle this amicably; I do not want to become involved in litigation. litigant, N.

magisterial

ADJ. authoritative; imperious. The learned doctor laid down the law to his patient in a magisterial tone of voice.

covetous

ADJ. avaricious; eagerly desirous of. The poor man wants many things; the covetous man, all. During the Civil War, the Confederates cast covetous eyes on California, hoping to seize ports for privateers, as well as gold and silver to replenish the South's sagging treasury. covet, V.

reparable

ADJ. capable of being repaired. Fortunately, the damages we suffered in the accident were reparable and our car looks brand new.

sever

. cut; separate. The released prisoner wanted to begin a new life and sever all connections with his criminal past. Dr. Guillotin invented a machine that could neatly sever an aristocratic head from its equally aristocratic body. Unfortunately, he couldn't collect any severance pay. severance, N.

spartan

ADJ. avoiding luxury and comfort; sternly disciplined. Looking over the bare, unheated room, with its hard cot, he wondered what he was doing in such spartan quarters. Only his spartan sense of duty kept him at his post.

chaffing

ADJ. bantering; joking. Sometimes Chad's flippant, chaffing remarks annoy us. Still, Chad's chaffing keeps us laughing. also N.

deciduous

ADJ. falling off as of leaves. The oak is a deciduous tree; in winter it looks quite bare.

eminent

ADJ. famous; outstanding; high; lofty. After his appointment to this eminent position, he seldom had time for his former friends.

rampant

ADJ. growing in profusion; unrestrained. The rampant weeds in the garden choked the flowers until they died.

hypothetical

ADJ. based on assumptions or hypotheses; supposed. Suppose you are accepted by Harvard, Stanford, and Brown. Which one would you choose to attend? Remember, this is only a hypothetical situation. hypothesis, N.

incipient

ADJ. beginning; in an early stage. I will go to sleep early for I want to break an incipient cold.

subservient

ADJ. behaving like a slave; servile; obsequious. He was proud and dignified; he refused to be subservient to anyone.

subliminal

ADJ. below the threshold. We may not be aware of the subliminal influences that affect our thinking.-

mordant

ADJ. biting; sarcastic; stinging. Actors feared the critic's mordant pen.

acerbic

ADJ. bitter or sour in nature; sharp and cutting. Noted for her acerbic wit and gossiping, Alice Roosevelt Longworth had a pillow in her home embroidered with the legend "If you can't say something good about someone, sit right here by me."

irreproachable

ADJ. blameless; impeccable. Homer's conduct at the office party was irreproachable; even Marge didn't have anything bad to say about how he behaved.

gory

ADJ. bloody. The audience shuddered as they listened to the details of the gory massacre.

sanguinary

ADJ. bloody. The battle of lwo Jima was unexpectedly sanguinary, with many casualties.

brusque

ADJ. blunt; abrupt. Was Bruce too brusque when he brushed off Bob's request with a curt "Not now!"?

obtuse

ADJ. blunt; stupid. What can you do with somebody who's so obtuse that he can't even tell that you're insulting him?

obstreperous

ADJ. boisterous; noisy. What do you do when an obstreperous horde of drunken policemen goes carousing through your hotel, crashing into potted plants and singing vulgar songs?

dauntless

ADJ. bold. Despite the dangerous nature of the undertaking, the dauntless soldier volunteered for the assignment.

blasé

ADJ. bored with pleasure or dissipation. Although Beth was as thrilled with the idea of a trip to Paris as her classmates were, she tried to act super cool and blasé, as if she'd been abroad hundreds of times.

succinct

ADJ. brief; terse; compact. Don't bore your audi ence with excess verbiage: be succinct.

refulgent

ADJ. brightly shining; gleaming. The squire polished the knight's armor until it gleamed in the light like the refulgent moon.

catholic

ADJ. broadly sympathetic; liberal. He was extremely catholic in his taste and read everything he could find in the library.

onerous

ADJ. burdensome. He asked for an assistant because his work load was too onerous.

substantial

ADJ. ample; solid; in essentials. The generous scholarship represented a substantial sum of money.

irate

ADJ. angry. When John's mother found out he had overdrawn his checking account for the third month in a row, she was so irate she could scarcely speak to him.

irksome

ADJ. annoying; tedious. He found working on the assembly line irksome because of the monotony of the operation he had to perform. irk, V.

archaic

ADJ. antiquated. "Methinks," "thee," and "thou" are archaic words that are no longer part of our normal vocabulary.

aloof

ADJ. apart; reserved. Shy by nature, she remained aloof while all the rest conversed.

ostensible

ADJ. apparent; professed; pretended. Although the ostensible purpose of this expedition is to discover new lands, we are really interested in finding new markets for our products.

derelict

ADJ. abandoned; negligent. The derelict craft was a menace to navigation. Whoever abandoned it in the middle of the harbor was derelict in living up to his responsibilities as a boat owner. also N.

soluble

ADJ. able to be dissolved; able to be explained. Sugar is soluble in water; put a sugar cube in water and it will quickly dissolve.

tangible

ADJ. able to be touched; real; palpable. Although Tom did not own a house, he had several tangible assets-a car, a television, a PC-that he could sell if he needed cash.

solvent

ADJ. able to pay all debts. By dint of very frugal living, he was finally able to become solvent and avoid bankruptcy proceedings.

effectual

ADJ. able to produce a desired effect; valid. Medical researchers are concerned because of the development of drug-resistant strains of bacteria; many once useful antibiotics are no longer effectual in curing bacterial infections.

discriminating

ADJ. able to see differences; prejudiced. A superb interpreter of Picasso, she was sufficiently discriminating to judge the most complex works of modern art. (secondary meaning) discrimination, N.

anomalous

ADJ. abnormal; irregular. He was placed in the anomalous position of seeming to approve procedures which he despised.

rapt

ADJ. absorbed; enchanted. Caught up in the wonder of the storyteller's tale, the rapt listeners sat motionless, hanging on his every word.

riveting

ADJ. absorbing; engrossing; fascinating. The reviewer described Byatt's novel Possession as a riveting tale, one so absorbing that he had finished it in a single night.

resigned

ADJ. accepting one's fate; unresisting; patiently submissive. Resigned to his downtrodden existence, Bob Cratchit was too meek to protest Scrooge's bullying. resignation, N.

inured

ADJ. accustomed; hardened. She became inured to the Alaskan cold.

contiguous

ADJ. adjacent to; touching upon. The two countries are contiguous for a few miles; then they are separated by the gulf.

precocious

ADJ. advanced in development. Listening to the grown-up way the child discussed serious topics, we couldn't help remarking how precocious she was. precocity, N.

mincing

ADJ. affectedly dainty. Yum-Yum walked across the stage with mincing steps.

gustatory

ADJ. affecting the sense of taste. The Thai restaurant offered an unusual gustatory experience for those used to a bland cuisine.

posthumous

ADJ. after death (as of child born after father's death or book published after author's death). The critics ignored his works during his lifetime; it was only after the posthumous publication of his last novel that they recognized his great talent.

palatable

ADJ. agreeable; pleasing to the taste. Neither Jack's underbaked opinions nor his overcooked casseroles were palatable to Jill.

desultory

ADJ. aimless; haphazard; digressing at random. In prison Malcolm X set himself the task of reading straight through the dictionary; to him, reading was purposeful, not desultory.

attentive

ADJ. alert and watchful; considerate; thoughtful. Spellbound, the attentive audience watched the final game of the tennis match, never taking their eyes from the ball. A cold wind sprang up; Stan's attentive daughter slipped a sweater over his shoulders without distracting his attention from the game.

omniscient

ADJ. all-knowing. I do not pretend to be omniscient, but I am positive about this fact.

equivocal

ADJ. ambiguous; intentionally misleading. Rejecting the candidate's equivocal comments on tax reform, the reporters pressed him to state clearly where he stood on the issue. equivocate, V.

bleak

ADJ. cold or cheerless; unlikely to be favorable. The frigid, inhospitable Aleutian Islands are bleak military outposts. It's no wonder that soldiers assigned there have a bleak attitude toward their posting.

hackneyed

ADJ. commonplace; trite. When the reviewer criticized the movie for its hackneyed plot, we agreed; we had seen similar stories hundreds of times before.

plenary

ADJ. complete; full. The union leader was given plenary power to negotiate a new contract with the employers.

intricate

ADJ. complex; knotty; tangled. Philip spent many hours designing mazes so intricate that none of his classmates could solve them. intricacy, N.

eclectic

ADJ. composed of elements drawn from disparate sources. His style of interior decoration was eclectic: bits and pieces of furnishings from widely divergent periods, strikingly juxtaposed to create a unique decor. eclecticism, N.

sedate

ADJ. composed; grave. The parents were worried because they felt their son was too quiet and sedate.

pithy

ADJ. concise; meaningful; substantial; meaty. While other girls might have gone on and on about how uncool Elton was, Liz summed it up in one pithy remark: "He's bogus!"

bemused

ADJ. confused; lost in thought; preoccupied. Jill studied the garbled instructions with a bemused look on her face.

scrupulous

ADJ. conscientious; extremely thorough. Though Alfred is scrupulous in fulfilling his duties at work, he is less conscientious about his obligations to his family and friends.

epistolary

ADJ. consisting of letters. Mark Harris's Wake Up, Stupid! is a modern epistolary novel that uses letters, telegrams, and newspaper clippings to tell the hero's story. The movie You've Got Mail tells a story using e-mail; does that make it an e-pistolary movie? epistle, N.

flagrant

ADJ. conspicuously wicked; blatant; outrageous. The governor's appointment of his brother-in-law to the State Supreme Court was a flagrant violation of the state laws against nepotism (favoritism based on kinship).

cogent

ADJ. convincing. It was inevitable that David chose to go to Harvard: he had several cogent reasons for doing so, including a full-tuition scholarship. Katya argued her case with such cogency that the jury had to decide in favor of her client.

commensurate

ADJ. corresponding in extent, degree, amount, etc.; proportionate. By the close of World War II much progress had been made in assigning nurses rank and responsibilities commensurate with their training and abilities. Critics in the industry charged that imposing new meat inspection regulations without dismantling the traditional system would raise costs without bringing about a commensurate improvement in safety.

bogus

ADJ. counterfeit; not authentic. The police quickly found the distributors of the bogus twenty-dollar bills.

fawning

ADJ. courting favor by cringing and flattering. She was constantly surrounded by a group of fawning admirers who hoped to win some favor. fawn, V.

craven

ADJ. cowardly. Lillian's craven refusal to join the protest was criticized by her comrades, who had expected her to be brave enough to stand up for her beliefs.

bovine

ADJ. cowlike; placid and dull. Nothing excites Esther; even when she won the state lottery, she still preserved her air of bovine calm.

pivotal

ADJ. crucial; key; vital. The new "smart weapons" technology played a pivotal role in the quick resolution of the war with Iraq.

artful

ADJ. cunning; crafty; sly. By using accurate details to suggest a misleading picture of the whole, the artful propagandist turns partial truths into more effective instruments of deception than lies.

therapeutic

ADJ. curative. Now better known for its racetrack, Saratoga Springs first gained attention for the therapeutic qualities of its famous "healing waters." therapy, N.

remedial

ADJ. curative; corrective. Because he was a slow reader, he decided to take a course in remedial reading.

aquiline

ADJ. curved, hooked. He can be recognized by his aquiline nose, curved like the beak of the eagle.

diurnal

ADJ. daily. A farmer cannot neglect his diurnal tasks at any time; cows, for example, must be milked regularly.

marred

ADJ. damaged; disfigured. She had to refinish the marred surface of the table. mar,V.

hazardous

ADJ. dangerous. Your occupation is too hazardous for insurance companies to consider your application.

murky

ADJ. dark and gloomy; thick with fog; vague. The murky depths of the swamp were so dark that one couldn't tell the vines and branches from the snakes.

swarthy

ADJ. dark; dusky. Despite the stereotypes, not all Italians are swarthy, many are fair and blond.

opaque

ADJ. dark; not transparent. The opaque window shade kept the sunlight out of the room. opacity, N.

resplendent

ADJ. dazzling; glorious; brilliant. While all the adults were commenting how glorious the emperor looked in his resplendent new clothes, one little boy was heard to say, "But he's naked!"

obituary

ADJ. death notice. I first learned of her death when I read the obituary column in the newspaper. also N.

illusory

ADJ. deceptive; not real. Unfortunately, the costs of running the lemonade stand were so high that Tom's profits proved illusory.

crestfallen

ADJ. dejected; dispirited. We were surprised at his reaction to the failure of his project; instead of being crestfallen, he was busily engaged in planning new activities.

belated

ADJ. delayed. He apologized for his belated note of condolence to the widow of his friend and explained that he had just learned of her husband's untimely death.

calculated

ADJ. deliberately planned; likely. Lexy's choice of clothes to wear to the debate tournament was carefully calculated. Her conventional suit was one calculated to appeal to the conservative judges.

delectable

ADJ. delightful; delicious. We thanked our host for a most delectable meal.

peremptory

ADJ. demanding and leaving no choice. From Jack's peremptory knock on the door, Jill could tell he would not give up until she let him in.

laborious

ADJ. demanding much work or care; tedious. In putting together his dictionary of the English language, Doctor Johnson undertook a laborious task.

despondent

ADJ. depressed; gloomy. To the dismay of his parents, William became seriously despondent after he broke up with Jan; they despaired of finding a cure for his gloom. despondency, N.

sacrilegious

ADJ. desecrating; profane. His stealing of the altar cloth was a very sacrilegious act.

culpable

ADJ. deserving blame. Corrupt politicians who condone the activities of the gamblers are equally culpable.

reprehensible

ADJ. deserving blame. Shocked by the viciousness of the bombing, politicians of every party uniformly condemned the terrorists' reprehensible deed.

barren

ADJ. desolate; fruitless and unproductive; lacking. Looking out at the trackless, barren desert, Indiana Jones feared that his search for the missing expedition would prove barren.

scurvy

ADJ. despicable; contemptible. Peter Pan sneered at Captain Hook and his scurvy crew.

abominable

ADJ. detestable; extremely unpleasant; very bad. Mary liked John until she learned he was dating Susan; then she called him an abominable young man, with abominable taste in women.

sensual

ADJ. devoted to the pleasures of the senses; carnal; voluptuous. I cannot understand what caused him to abandon his sensual way of life and become so ascetic.

fastidious

ADJ. difficult to please; squeamish. Bobby was such a fastidious eater that he would eat a sandwich only if his mother first cut off every scrap of crust.

discursive

ADJ. digressing; rambling. As the lecturer wandered from topic to topic, we wondered what if any point there was to his discursive remarks.

assiduous

ADJ. diligent. He was assiduous, working at this task for weeks before he felt satisfied with his results. assiduity, N.

industrious

ADJ. diligent; hard-working. Look busy when the boss walks by your desk; it never hurts to appear industrious. industry, N.

sedulous

ADJ. diligent; hardworking. After weeks of patient and sedulous labor, we completed our detailed analysis of every published SAT examination.

dire

ADJ. disastrous. People ignored her dire predictions of an approaching depression.

insightful

ADJ. discerning; perceptive. Sol thought he was very insightful about human behavior, but he was actually clueless as to why people acted the way they did.

cacophonous

ADJ. discordant; inharmonious. Do the students in the orchestra enjoy the cacophonous sounds they make when they're tuning up? I don't know how they can stand the racket. cacophony, N.

sardonic

ADJ. disdainful; sarcastic; cynical. The sardonic humor of nightclub comedians who satirize or ridicule patrons in the audience strikes some people as amusing and others as rude.

contumacious

ADJ. disobedient; resisting authority. The contumacious mob shouted defiantly at the police. contumacy, N.

provident

ADJ. displaying foresight; thrifty; preparing for emergencies. In his usual provident manner, he had insured himself against this type of loss.

dissident

ADJ. dissenting; rebellious. In the purge that followed the student demonstrations at Tiananmen Square, the government hunted down the dissident students and their supporters. also N.

heterogeneous

ADJ. dissimilar; mixed. This year's entering class is a remarkably heterogeneous body: it includes students from forty different states and twenty-six foreign countries, some the children of billionaires, others the offspring of welfare families. heterogenity, N.

cloying

ADJ. distasteful (because excessive); excessively sweet or sentimental. Disliking the cloying sweetness of standard wedding cakes, Jody and Tom chose to have homemade carrot cake at the reception. cloy, V.

discernible

ADJ. distinguishable; perceivable. The ships in the harbor were not discernible in the fog.

homespun

ADJ. domestic; made at home. Homespun wit, like homespun cloth, was often coarse and plan.

imperious

ADJ. domineering; haughty. Jane rather liked a man to be masterful, but Mr. Rochester seemed so bent on getting his own way that he was actually imperious!

problematic

ADJ. doubtful; unsettled; questionable; perplexing. Given the way building costs have exceeded estimates for the job, whether the arena will ever be completed is problematic.

fetid

ADJ. malodorous. The neglected wound became fetid.

dingy

ADJ. dull; not fresh; cheerless. Refusing to be depressed by her dingy studio apartment, Bea spent the weekend polishing the floors and windows and hanging bright posters on the walls.

terrestrial

ADJ. earthly (as opposed to celestial); pertaining to the land. In many science fiction films, alien invaders from outer space plan to destroy all terrestrial life.

gullible

ADJ. easily deceived. Overly gullible people have only themselves to blame if they fall for con artists repeatedly. As the saying goes, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."

lucid

ADJ. easily understood; clear; intelligible. Ellen makes an excellent teacher: her explanations of technical points are lucid enough for a child to grasp.

omnivorous

ADJ. eating both plant and animal food; devouring everything. Some animals, including man, are omnivorous and eat both meat and vegetables; others are either carnivorous or herbivorous.

articulate

ADJ. effective; distinct. Her articulate presentation of the advertising campaign impressed her employers. alsoV.

ovoid

ADJ. egg-shaped. At Easter she had to cut out hundreds of brightly colored ovoid shapes.

resilient

ADJ. elastic; having the power of springing back. Highly resilient, steel makes excellent bedsprings. resilience, N.

detached

ADJ. emotionally removed; calm and objective; physically unconnected. A psychoanalyst must maintain a detached point of view and stay uninvolved with his or her patients' personal lives. To a child growing up in an apartment or a row house, to live in a detached house was an unattainable dream.

hortatory

ADJ. encouraging; exhortative. The crowd listened to his hortatory statements with ever-growing excitement; finally they rushed from the hall to carry out his suggestions.

interminable

ADJ. endless. Although his speech lasted for only twenty minutes, it seemed interminable to his bored audience.

incarnate

ADJ. endowed with flesh; personified. Your attitude is so fiendish that you must be a devil incarnate.

dynamic

ADJ. energetic; vigorously active. The dynamic aerobics instructor kept her students on the run; she was a little dynamo.

intrinsic

ADJ. essential; inherent; built-in. Although my grandmother's china has little intrinsic value, I shall always cherish it for the memories it evokes.

substantive

ADJ. essential; pertaining to the substance. Although the delegates were aware of the importance of the problem, they could not agree on the substantive issues.

elusive

ADJ. evasive; baffling; hard to grasp. Trying to pin down exactly when the contractors would be finished remodeling the house, Nancy was frustrated by their elusive replies. elude, V.

perpetual

ADJ. everlasting. Ponce de Leon hoped to find the legendary fountain of perpetual youth.

biennial

ADJ. every two years. Seeing no need to meet more frequently, the group held biennial meetings instead of annual ones. Plants that bear flowers biennially are known as biennials.

sinister

ADJ. evil. We must defeat the sinister forces that seek our downfall.

precise

ADJ. exact. If you don't give me precise directions and a map, I'll never find your place.

inflated

ADJ. exaggerated; pompous; enlarged (with air or gas). His claims about the new product were inflated, it did not work as well as he had promised.

sublime

ADJ. exalted or noble and uplifting; utter. Lucy was in awe of Desi's sublime musicianship, while he was in awe of her sublime naiveté.

hypercritical

ADJ. excessively exacting. You are hypercritical in your demands for perfection; we all make mistakes.

egotistical

ADJ. excessively self-centered; self-important; conceited. Typical egotistical remark: "But enough of this chit-chat about you and your little problems. Let's talk about what's really important: Me!"

congenital

ADJ. existing at birth. Doctors are able to cure some congenital deformities such as cleft palates by performing operations of infants.

politic

ADJ. expedient; prudent; well advised. Even though he was disappointed by the size of the bonus he was offered, he did not think it politic to refuse it.

adept

ADJ. expert at. She was adept at the fine art of irritating people. also N.

expository

ADJ. explanatory; serving to explain. The manual that came with my VCR was no masterpiece of expository prose: its explanations were so garbled that I couldn't even figure out how to rewind a tape. exposition, N.

extrinsic

ADJ. external; not essential; extraneous. A criti?cally acclaimed extrinsic feature of the Chrysler Building is its ornate spire. The judge would not admit the testimony, ruling that it was extrinsic to the matter at hand.

antic

ADJ. extravagantly odd. Putting on an antic disposition, Hamlet acts so odd that the Danish court thinks him mad. also N.

stentorian

ADJ. extremely loud. The town crier had a stentorian voice.

destitute

ADJ. extremely poor. Because they had no health insurance, the father's costly illness left the family destitute.

equitable

ADJ. fair; impartial. I am seeking an equitable solution to this dispute, one that will be fair and acceptable to both sides.

celebrated

ADJ. famous; well-known. Thanks to their race to break Roger Maris's home-run record, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire are two of America's most celebrated baseball players. celebrity, N.

bizarre

ADJ. fantastic; violently contrasting. The plot of the novel was too bizarre to be believed.

chimerical

ADJ. fantastically improbable; highly unrealistic; imaginative. As everyone expected, Ted's chimerical scheme to make a fortune by raising ermines in his back yard proved a dismal failure.

obese

ADJ. fat. It is advisable that obese people try to lose weight.

jaded

ADJ. fatigued; surfeited. He looked for exotic foods to stimulate his jaded appetite.

impeccable

ADJ. faultless. The uncrowned queen of the fashion industry, Diana was acclaimed for her impeccable taste.

propitious

ADJ. favorable; fortunate; advantageous. Chloe consulted her horoscope to see whether Tuesday would be a propitious day to dump her boyfriend.

auspicious

ADJ. favoring success. With favorable weather conditions, it was an auspicious moment to set sail. Thomas, however, had doubts about sailing: a paranoid, he became suspicious whenever conditions seemed auspicious.

intrepid

ADJ. fearless. For her intrepid conduct nursing the wounded during the war, Florence Nightingale was honored by Queen Victoria.

febrile

ADJ. feverish. In his febrile condition, he was subject to nightmares and hallucinations.

demoniac

ADJ. fiendish. The Spanish Inquisition devised many demoniac means of torture. demon, N.

fraught

ADJ. filled. Since this enterprise is fraught with danger, I will ask for volunteers who are willing to assume the risks.

definitive

ADJ. final; complete. Carl Sandburg's Abraham Lincoln may be regarded as the definitive work on the life of the Great Emancipator.

arable

ADJ. fit for growing crops. The first settlers wrote home glowing reports of the New World, praising its vast acres of arable land ready for the plow.

spasmodic

ADJ. fitful; periodic. The spasmodic coughing in the auditorium annoyed the performers.

gaudy

ADJ. flashy; showy. The newest Trump skyscraper is typically gaudy, covered in gilded panels that gleam in the sun.

fugitive

ADJ. fleeting or transitory; roving. The film brought a few fugitive images to her mind, but on the whole it made no lasting impression upon her.

evanescent

ADJ. fleeting; vanishing. Brandon's satisfaction in his new job was evanescent, for he immediately began to notice its many drawbacks. evanescence, N.

pliant

ADJ. flexible; easily influenced. Pinocchio's disposition was pliant, he was like putty in his tempters' hands.

pliable

ADJ. flexible; yielding; adaptable. In remodeling the bathroom, we have replaced all the old, rigid lead pipes with new, pliable copper tubing.

sleazy

ADJ. flimsy; unsubstantial. This is a sleazy fabric; it will not wear well.

paramount

ADJ. foremost in importance; supreme. Proper nutrition and hygiene are of paramount importance in adolescent development and growth.

redoubtable

ADJ. formidable; causing fear. During the Cold War period, neighboring countries tried not to offend the Russians because they could be redoubtable foes.

malodorous

ADJ. foul-smelling. The compost heap was most malodorous in summer.

putrid

ADJ. foul; rotten; decayed. The gangrenous condition of the wound was indicated by the putrid smell when the bandages were removed. putrescence, N.

nugatory

ADJ. futile; worthless. This agreement is nugatory for no court will enforce it.

grisly

ADJ. ghastly. She shuddered at the grisly sight.

spectral

ADJ. ghostly; We were frightened by the spectral glow that filled the room.

gratuitous

ADJ. given freely; unwarranted; uncalled for. Quit making gratuitous comments about my driving; no one asked you for your opinion.

jocose

ADJ. given to joking. The salesman was so jocose that many of his customers suggested that he become a stand-up comic.

odoriferous

ADJ. giving off an odor. The odoriferous spices stimulated her jaded appetite.

melancholy

ADJ. gloomy; morose; blue. To Eugene, stuck in his small town, a train whistle was a melancholy sound, for it made him think of all the places he would never get to see.

raspy

ADJ. grating; harsh. The sergeant's raspy voice grated on the recruits' ears.

avid

ADJ. greedy; eager for. He was avid for learning and read everything he could get. avidity, N.

gruesome

ADJ. grisly; horrible. His face was the stuff of nightmares: all the children in the audience screamed when Freddy Kruger's gruesome countenance was flashed on the screen.

concurrent

ADJ. happening at the same time. In America, the colonists were resisting the demands of the mother country; at the concurrent moment in France, the middle class was sowing the seeds of rebellion.

adamant

ADJ. hard; inflexible. Bronson played the part of a revenge-driven man, adamant in his determination to punish the criminals who destroyed his family. adamancy, N.

arduous

ADJ. hard; strenuous. Her arduous efforts had sapped her energy.

callous

ADJ. hardened; unfeeling. He had worked in the hospital for so many years that he was callous to the suffering in the wards. callus, N.

injurious

ADJ. harmful. Smoking cigarettes can be injurious to your health.

compatible

ADJ. harmonious; in harmony with. They were compatible neighbors, never quarreling over unimportant matters. compatibility, N.

malicious

ADJ. hateful; spiteful. Jealous of Cinderella's beauty, her malicious stepsisters expressed their spite by forcing her to do menial tasks. malice, N.

odious

ADJ. hateful; vile. Cinderella's ugly stepsisters had the odious habit of popping their zits in public.

determinate

ADJ. having a fixed order of procedure; invariable. At the royal wedding, the procession of the nobles followed a determinate order of precedence.

tendentious

ADJ. having an aim; biased; designed to further a cause. The editorials in this periodical are tendentious rather than truth-seeking.

odorous

ADJ. having an odor. This variety of hybrid tea rose is more odorous than the one you have in your garden.

perspicacious

ADJ. having insight; penetrating; astute. The brilliant lawyer was known for his perspicacious deductions. perspicacity, N.

multilingual

ADJ. having many languages. Because they are bordered by so many countries, the Swiss people are multilingual.

ciliated

ADJ. having minute hairs. The paramecium is a ciliated, one-celled animal.

monochromatic

ADJ. having only one color. Most people who are color blind actually can distinguish several colors; some, however, have a truly monochromatic view of a world all in shades of gray.

civil

ADJ. having to do with citizens or the state; courteous and polite. Although Internal Revenue Service agents are civil servants, they are not always civil to suspected tax cheats.

cognitive

ADJ. having to do with knowing or perceiving; related to the mental processes. Though Jack was emotionally immature, his cognitive development was admirable; he was very advanced intellectually.

effeminate

ADJ. having womanly traits. "Effeminate men intrigue me more than anything in the world. I see them as my alter egos. I feel very drawn to them. I think like a guy, but I'm feminine. So I relate to feminine men." (Madonna).

calorific

ADJ. heat-producing. Coal is much more calorific than green wood.

celestial

ADJ. heavenly. She spoke of the celestial joys that awaited virtuous souls in the hereafter.

cumbersome

ADJ. heavy; hard to manage. He was burdened down with cumbersome parcels.

communal

ADJ. held in common; a group of people. When they were divorced, they had trouble dividing their communal property.

auxiliary

ADJ. helper, additional or subsidiary. To prepare for the emergency, they built an auxiliary power station. also N.

beneficial

ADJ. helpful; useful. Tiny Tim's cheerful good nature had a beneficial influence on Scrooge's onceuncharitable disposition.

agog

ADJ. highly excited; intensely curious. We were all agog at the news that the celebrated movie star was giving up his career in order to enter monastery.

baroque

ADJ. highly ornate. Accustomed to the severe lines of contemporary buildings, the architecture students found the flamboyance of baroque architecture amusing. They simply didn't go for baroque.

tenacious

ADJ. holding fast. I had to struggle to break his tenacious hold on my arm.

concave

ADJ. hollow. having an outline or surface that curves inward like the interior of a circle or sphere. The back-packers found partial shelter from the storm by huddling against the concave wall of the cliff.

ghastly

ADJ. horrible. The murdered man was a ghastly sight.

aghast

ADJ. horrified. He was aghast at the nerve of the speaker who had insulted his host.

gargantuan

ADJ. huge; enormous. The gargantuan wrestler was terrified of mice.

chastened

ADJ. humbled; subdued; rebuked. After a series of meddlesome and unsuccessful attempts at matchmaking among her friends, a chastened Emma finds her destiny in marriage to her protective neighbor George Knightley, long her mentor and friend.

plumb

ADJ. vertical. Before hanging wallpaper it is advisable to drop a plumb line from the ceiling as a guide. also N.

indulgent

ADJ. humoring; yielding; lenient. Jay's mom was excessively indulgent she bought him every Nintendo cartridge and video game on the market. She indulged Jay so much, she spoiled him rotten.

fictitious

ADJ. imaginary. Although this book purports to be a biography of George Washington, many of the incidents are fictitious.

fancied

ADJ. imagined; unreal. One of the carpal (wrist) bones, the navicular bone was given its name because of its fancied resemblance to a boat.

stoic

ADJ. impassive; unmoved by joy or grief. I wasn't particularly stoic when I had my flu shot; I squealed like a stuck pig. also N.

impervious

ADJ. impenetrable; incapable of being damaged or distressed. The carpet salesman told Simone that his most expensive brand of floor covering was warranted to be impervious to ordinary wear and tear. Having read so many negative reviews of his acting, the movie star had learned to ignore them, and was now impervious to criticism.

inscrutable

ADJ. impenetrable; not readily understood; mysterious. Experienced poker players try to keep their expressions inscrutable, hiding their reactions to the cards behind a so-called "poker face."

impalpable

ADJ. imperceptible; intangible. The ash is so fine that it is impalpable to the touch but it can be seen as a fine layer covering the window ledge.

pert

ADJ. impertinent; forward. I think your pert and impudent remarks call for an apology.

causal

ADJ. implying a cause-and-effect relationship. The psychologist maintained there was a causal relationship between the nature of one's early childhood experiences and one's adult personality. causality, N.

august

ADJ. impressive; majestic. Visiting the palace at Versailles, she was impressed by the august surroundings in which she found herself.

enamored

ADJ. in love. Narcissus became enamored of his own beauty.

inert

ADJ. inactive; lacking power to move. "Get up, you lazybones," she cried to her husband, who lay in bed inert. inertia, N.

implacable

ADJ. incapable of being pacified. Madame Defarge was the implacable enemy of the Evremonde family.

factious

ADJ. inclined to form factions; causing dissension. The pollsters' practice of dividing up the map of America into Red and Blue states reinforces factious feelings among Americans, who increasingly define themselves as members of one of the two major political parties. Do not confuse factious with fractious (unruly; unmanageable) or with factitious (not natural; not genuine; bogus).

partial

ADJ. incomplete; having a liking for something. In this issue we have published only a partial list of contributors because we lack space to acknowledge everyone. I am extremely partial to chocolate eclairs.

irremediable

ADJ. incurable; uncorrectable. The error she made was irremediable; she could see no way to repair it.

bawdy

ADJ. indecent; obscene. Jack took offense at Jill's bawdy remarks. What kind of young man did she think he was?

incontrovertible

ADJ. indisputable; not open to question. Unless you find the evidence against my client absolutely incontrovertible, you must declare her not guilty of this charge.

malignant

ADJ. injurious; tending to cause death; aggressively malevolent. Though many tumors are benign, some are malignant, growing out of control and endangering the life of the patient.

tessellated

ADJ. inlaid; mosaic. I recall seeing a table with a tessellated top of bits of stone and glass in a very interesting pattern.

paltry

ADJ. insignificant; petty; trifling. One hundred dollars for a genuine imitation Rolex watch! Lady, this is a paltry sum to pay for such a high-class piece of jewelry.

puny

ADJ. insignificant; tiny; weak. Our puny efforts to stop the flood were futile.

brazen

ADJ. insolent. Her brazen contempt for authority angered the officials.

insuperable

ADJ. insurmountable; unbeatable. Though the odds against their survival seemed insuperable, the Apollo 13 astronauts reached earth safely.

prefatory

ADJ. introductory. The chairman made a few prefatory remarks before he called on the first speaker.

tonic

ADJ. invigorating; refreshing. The tart homemade ginger ale had a tonic effect on Kit: she perked right up. also N.

opalescent

ADJ. iridescent; lustrous. The oil slick on the water had an opalescent, rainbow-like sheen.

extraneous

ADJ. irrelevant; not essential; superfluous. No wonder Ted can't think straight! His mind is so cluttered up with extraneous trivia, he can't concentrate on the essentials.

ineluctable

ADJ. irresistible; not to be escaped. He felt that his fate was ineluctable and refused to make any attempt to improve his lot.

irascible

ADJ. irritable; easily angered. Miss Minchin's irascible temper intimidated the younger schoolgirls, who feared she'd burst into a rage at any moment.

festive

ADJ. joyous; celebratory. Their wedding in the park was a festive occasion.

succulent

ADJ. juicy; full of richness. To some people, Florida citrus fruits are more succulent than those from California. also N.

benign

ADJ. kindly; favorable; not malignant. Though her benign smile and gentle bearing made Miss Marple seem a sweet little old lady, in reality she was a tough-minded, shrewd observer of human nature. benignity, N.

frivolous

ADJ. lacking in seriousness; self-indulgently carefree; relatively unimportant. Though Nancy enjoyed Bill's frivolous, lighthearted companionship, she sometimes wondered whether he could ever be serious. frivolity, N.

dispirited

ADJ. lacking in spirit. The coach used all the tricks at his command to buoy up the enthusiasm of his team, which had become dispirited at the loss of the star player.

flippant

ADJ. lacking proper seriousness. When Mark told Mona he loved her, she dismissed his earnest declaration with a flippant "Oh, you say that to all the girls!" flippancy, N.

inept

ADJ. lacking skill; unsuited; incompetent. The inept glovemaker was all thumbs.

effete

ADJ. lacking vigor; worn out; sterile. Is the Democratic Party still a vital political force, or is it an effete, powerless faction, wedded to outmoded liberal policies?

devoid

ADJ. lacking. You may think her mind is a total void, but she's actually not devoid of intelligence. She just sounds like an airhead.

enduring

ADJ. lasting; surviving. Keats believed in the enduring power of great art, which would outlast its creators' brief lives.

ludicrous

ADJ. laughable; trifling. Let us be serious; this is not a ludicrous issue.

sumptuous

ADJ. lavish; rich. I cannot recall when I have had such a sumptuous Thanksgiving feast.

indolent

ADJ. lazy. Couch potatoes lead an indolent life lying back on their Lazyboy recliners watching Tv. indolence, N.

erudite

ADJ. learned; scholarly. Though his fellow students thought him erudite, Paul knew he would have to spend many years in serious study before he could consider himself a scholar.

fallible

ADJ. liable to err. I know I am fallible, but I feel confident that I am right this time.

lavish

ADJ. liberal; wasteful. The actor's lavish gifts pleased her. also V.

ethereal

ADJ. light; heavenly; unusually refined. In Shakespeare's The Tempest, the spirit Ariel is an ethereal creature, too airy and unearthly for our mortal world.

jaunty

ADJ. lighthearted; animated; easy and carefree. In An American in Paris, Gene Kelly sang and danced his way through "Singing in the Rain" in a properly jaunty style.

rabid

ADJ. like a fanatic; furious. He was a rabid follower of the Dodgers and watched them play whenever he could go to the ball park.

leonine

ADJ. like a lion. He was leonine in his rage.

imperial

ADJ. like an emperor; related to an empire. When hotel owner Leona Helmsley appeared in ads as Queen Leona standing guard over the Palace Hotel, her critics mocked her imperial fancies.

avuncular

ADJ. like an uncle. Avuncular pride did not prevent him from noticing his nephew's shortcomings.

labile

ADJ. likely to change; unstable. Because the hormonal changes they undergo affect their spirits, adolescents may become emotionally labile and experience sudden shifts of mood. lability, N.

animated

ADJ. lively; spirited. Jim Carrey's facial expressions are highly animated: when he played Ace Ventura, he looked practically rubber-faced.

rousing

ADJ. lively; stirring. "And now, let's have a rousing welcome for TV's own Roseanne Barr, who'll lead us in a rousing rendition of 'The Star-Spangled Banner."'

repugnant

ADJ. loathsome; hateful. She found the snake repugnant and looked on it with loathing and fear.

chronic

ADJ. long established as a disease. The doctors were finally able to attribute his chronic headaches and nausea to traces of formaldehyde gas in his apartment.

retrospective

ADJ. looking back on the past. The Museum of Graphic Arts is holding a retrospective showing of the paintings of Michael Whelan over the past two decades.

introspective

ADJ. looking within oneself. Though young Francis of Assisi led a wild and worldly life, even then he had introspective moments during which he examined his soul. introspection, N.

lewd

ADJ. lustful. They found his lewd stories objectionable.

libidinous

ADJ. lustful. They objected to his libidinous behavior.

supine

ADJ. lying on back. The defeated pugilist lay supine on the canvas.

osseous

ADJ. made of bone; bony. The hollow "soft spot" found at the top of the infant's skull gradually closes as new osseous tissue fills in the gap.

frenzied

ADJ. madly excited. As soon as they smelled smoke, the frenzied animals milled about in their cages.

palatial

ADJ. magnificent. He proudly showed us through his palatial home.

ductile

ADJ. malleable; flexible; pliable. Copper is an extremely ductile material: you can stretch it into the thinnest of wires, bend it, even wind it into loops.

prodigious

ADJ. marvelous; enormous. Watching the champion weight lifter heave the weighty barbell to shoulder height and then boost it overhead, we marveled at his prodigious strength.

monumental

ADJ. massive. Writing a dictionary is a monumental task.

hulking

ADJ. massive; bulky; great in size. Despite his hulking build, the heavyweight boxing champion was surprisingly light on his feet. hulk, N.

niggardly

ADJ. meanly stingy; parsimonious. The niggardly pittance the widow receives from the government cannot keep her from poverty.

carnivorous

ADJ. meat-eating. The lion's a carnivorous beast. A hunk of meat makes up his feast. A cow is not a carnivore. She likes the taste of grain, not gore.

molten

ADJ. melted. The city of Pompeii was destroyed by volcanic ash rather than by molten lava flowing from Mount Vesuvius.

minatory

ADJ. menacing; threatening. Jabbing a minatory forefinger at Dorothy, the Wicked Witch cried, "I'll get you, and your little dog, too!"

bourgeois

ADJ. middle class; selfishly materialistic; dully conventional. Technically, anyone who belongs to the middle class is bourgeois, but, given the word's connotations, most people resent it if you call them that.

erroneous

ADJ. mistaken; wrong. I thought my answer was correct, but it was erroneous.

promiscuous

ADJ. mixed indiscriminately; haphazard; irregular, particularly sexually. In the opera La Boheme, we get a picture of the promiscuous life led by the young artists of Paris.

retiring

ADJ. modest; shy. Given Susan's retiring personality, no one expected her to take up public speaking; surprisingly enough, she became a star of the school debate team,

simian

ADJ. monkeylike. Lemurs are nocturnal mammals and have many simian characteristics, although they are less intelligent than monkeys.

optimum

ADJ. most favorable. If you wait for the optimum moment to act, you may never begin your project. also N.

piebald

ADJ. mottled; spotted. You should be able to identify Polka Dot in this race; it is the only piebald horse running.

plaintive

ADJ. mournful. The dove has a plaintive and melancholy call.

lugubrious

ADJ. mournful. The lugubrious howling of the dogs added to our sadness.

doleful

ADJ. mournful; causing sadness. Eeyore, the lugubrious donkey immortalized by A. A. Milne, looked at his cheerful friend Tigger and sighed a doleful sign.

mobile

ADJ. movable; not fixed. The mobile blood bank operated by the Red Cross visited our neighborhood today. mobility, N.

amorous

ADJ. moved by sexual love; loving. "Love them and leave them" was the motto of the amorous Don Juan.

mawkish

ADJ. mushy and gushy; icky-sticky sentimental; maudlin. Whenever Gigi and her boyfriend would sigh and get all lovey-dovey, her little brother would shout, "Yuck!" protesting their mawkish behavior.

reciprocal

ADJ. mutual; exchangeable; interacting. The two nations signed a reciprocal trade agreement.

concerted

ADJ. mutually agreed on; done together. All the Girl Scouts made a concerted effort to raise funds for their annual outing. When the movie star appeared, his fans let out a concerted sigh.

internecine

ADJ. mutually destructive. The rising death toll on both sides indicates the internecine nature of this conflict.

occult

ADJ. mysterious; secret; supernatural. The occult rites of the organization were revealed only to members. also N.

runic

ADJ. mysterious; set down in an ancient alphabet. Tolkien's use of Old English words and inscriptions in the runic alphabet give The Lord of the Rings its atmosphere of antiquity.

parochial

ADJ. narrow in outlook; provincial; related to parishes. Although Jane Austen sets her novels in small rural communities, her concerns are universal, not parochial,

imminent

ADJ. near at hand; impending. Rosa was such a last-minute worker that she could never start writing a paper till the deadline was imminent.

impending

ADJ. nearing; approaching. The entire country was saddened by the news of his impending death.

myopic

ADJ. nearsighted; lacking foresight. Stumbling into doors despite the coke bottle lenses on his glasses, the nearsighted Mr. Magoo is markedly myopic. In playing all summer long and ignoring to store up food for winter, the grasshopper in Aesop's fable was myopic as well.

spruce

ADJ. neat and trim. Every button buttoned, tie firmly in place, young Alex Keaton looked spruce and tidy for his job interview at the bank. also V.

deft

ADJ. neat; skillful. The deft waiter uncorked the champagne without spilling a drop.

natty

ADJ. neatly or smartly dressed. Priding himself on being a natty dresser, the gangster Bugsy Siegel collected a wardrobe of imported suits and ties.

tautological

ADJ. needlessly repetitious. In the sentence "It was visible to the eye, " the phrase "to the eye" is tautological.

obsolete

ADJ. no longer useful; outmoded; antiquated. The invention of the pocket calculator made the slide rule used by generations of engineers obsolete.

intangible

ADJ. not able to be perceived by touch; vague. Though the financial benefits of his Oxford post were meager, Lewis was drawn to it by its intangible rewards: prestige, intellectual freedom, the fellowship of his peers.

impenetrable

ADJ. not able to be pierced or entered; beyond understanding. How could the murderer have gotten into the locked room? To Watson, the mystery, like the room, was impenetrable.

passive

ADJ. not active; acted upon. Mahatma Gandhi urged his followers to pursue a program of passive resistance as he felt that it was more effective than violence and acts of terrorism.

irrelevant

ADJ. not applicable; unrelated. No matter how irrelevant the patient's mumblings may seem, they give us some indications of what he has on his mind.

impartial

ADJ. not biased; fair. Knowing she could not be impartial about her own child, Jo refused to judge any match in which Billy was competing.

incorrigible

ADJ. not correctable. Though Widow Douglass hoped to reform Huck, Miss Watson called him incorrigible and said he would come to no good end.

insatiable

ADJ. not easily satisfied; unquenchable; greedy. David's appetite for oysters was insatiable: he could easily eat four dozen at a single sitting.

ineffectual

ADJ. not effective; weak. Because the candidate failed to get across his message to the public, his campaign was ineffectual.

discordant

ADJ. not harmonious; conflicting. Nothing is quite so discordant as the sound of a junior high school orchestra tuning up.

figurative

ADJ. not literal, but metaphorical; using a figure of speech. "To lose one's marbles" is a figurative expression; if you're told that Jack has lost his marbles, no one expects you to rush out to buy him a replacement set.

atypical

ADJ. not normal. The child psychiatrist reassured Mrs. Keaton that playing doctor was not atypical behavior for a child of young Alex's age. "Yes," she replied, "but not charging for house calls!"

optional

ADJ. not obligatory; left to one's choice. Most colleges require applicants to submit SAT I scores; at some colleges, however, submitting SAT I scores is optional.

incommodious

ADJ. not spacious; inconvenient. In their incommodious quarters, they had to improvise for closet space.

exempt

ADJ. not subject to a duty, obligation. Because of his flat feet, Foster was exempt from serving in the armed forces. also V.

sparse

ADJ. not thick; thinly scattered; scanty. No matter how carefully Albert combed his hair to make it look as full as possible, it still looked sparse.

impolitic

ADJ. not wise. I think it is impolitic to raise this issue at the present time because the public is too angry.

marked

ADJ. noticeable or pronounced; targeted for vengeance. He walked with a marked limp, a souvenir of an old I.R.A. attack. As British ambassador, he knew he was a marked man, for he knew the Irish Republican Army wanted him dead.

docile

ADJ. obedient; easily managed. As docile as he seems today, that old lion was once a ferocious, snarling beast. docility, N.

exceptionable

ADJ. objectionable. Do you find the punk rock band Green Day a highly exceptionable, thoroughly distasteful group, or do you think they are exceptionally talented performers?

mandatory

ADJ. obligatory. These instructions are mandatory, any violation will be severely punished.

incumbent

ADJ. obligatory; currently holding an office. It is incumbent upon all incumbent elected officials to keep accurate records of expenses incurred in office. also N.

recalcitrant

ADJ. obstinately stubborn; determined to resist authority; unruly. Which animal do you think is more recalcitrant, a pig or a mule?

subordinate

ADJ. occupying a lower rank; inferior; submissive. Bishop Proudie's wife expected all the subordinate clergy to behave with great deference to the wife of their superior.

recurrent

ADJ. occurring again and again. Richard's recurrent asthma attacks disturbed us and we consulted a physician.

sporadic

ADJ. occurring irregularly. Although you can still hear sporadic outbursts of laughter and singing outside, the big Halloween parade has passed; the party's over till next year.

subjective

ADJ. occurring or taking place within the subject; unreal. Your analysis is highly subjective; you have permitted your emotions and your opinions to color your thinking.

erratic

ADJ. odd; unpredictable. Investors become anxious when the stock market appears erratic.

ignoble

ADJ. of lowly origin; unworthy. This plan is inspired by ignoble motives and I must, therefore, oppose it.

antiquated

ADJ. old-fashioned; obsolete. Philip had grown so accustomed to editing his papers on word processors that he thought typewriters were too antiquated for him to use.

passé

ADJ. old-fashioned; past the prime. Her style is passé and reminiscent of the Victorian era.

partisan

ADJ. one-sided; prejudiced; committed to a party. On certain issues of principle, she refused to take a partisan stand, but let her conscience be her guide. Rather than joining forces to solve our nation's problems, the Democrats and Republicans spend their time on partisan struggles. also N.

dogmatic

ADJ. opinionated; arbitrary; doctrinal. We tried to discourage Doug from being so dogmatic, but never could convince him that his opinions might be wrong.

inverse

ADJ. opposite. There is an inverse ratio between the strength of light and its distance.

conventional

ADJ. ordinary; typical. His conventional upbringing left him wholly unprepared for his wife's eccentric family.

rococo

ADJ. ornate; highly decorated. The rococo style in furniture and architecture, marked by scrollwork and excessive decoration, flourished during the middle of the eighteenth century.

pretentious

ADJ. ostentatious; pompous; making unjustified claims; overly ambitious. None of the other prize winners are wearing their medals; isn't it a bit pretentious of you to wear yours?

elliptical

ADJ. oval; ambiguous, either purposely or because key words have been left out. An elliptical billiard ball wobbles because it is not perfectly round; an elliptical remark baffles because it is not perfectly clear.

garish

ADJ. over-bright in color; gaudy. She wore a gaudy rhinestone necklace with an excessively garish gold lame dress.

compelling

ADJ. overpowering; irresistible in effect. The prosecutor presented a well-reasoned case, but the defense attorney's compelling arguments for leniency won over the jury.

simplistic

ADJ. oversimplified. Though Jack's solution dealt adequately with one aspect of the problem, it was simplistic in failing to consider various complications that might arise.

insurmountable

ADJ. overwhelming; unbeatable; insuperable. Faced by almost insurmountable obstacles, the members of the underground maintained their courage and will to resist.

pallid

ADJ. pale; wan. Because his job required that he work at night and sleep during the day, he had an exceptionally pallid complexion.

placid

ADJ. peaceful; calm. After his vacation in this placid section, he felt soothed and rested.

contrite

ADJ. penitent. Her contrite tears did not influence the judge when he imposed sentence. contrition, N.

tangential

ADJ. peripheral; only slightly connected; digressing. Despite Clark's attempts to distract her with tangential remarks, Lois kept on coming back to her main question: why couldn't he come out to dinner with Superman and her?

indissoluble

ADJ. permanent. The indissoluble bonds of marriage are all too often being dissolved.

pontifical

ADJ. pertaining to a bishop or pope; pompous or pretentious. From his earliest days at the seminary, John seemed destined for a high pontifical office. However, he sounded so pompous when he pontificated that he never was chosen pontiff after all.

germinal

ADJ. pertaining to a germ; creative. Such an idea is germinal, I am certain that it will influence thinkers and philosophers for many generations.

provincial

ADJ. pertaining to a province; limited in outlook; unsophisticated. As provincial governor, Sir Henry administered the Queen's law in his remote corner of Canada. Caught up in local problems, out of touch with London news, he became sadly provincial.

rustic

ADJ. pertaining to country people; uncouth. The backwoodsman looked out of place in his rustic attire.

horticultural

ADJ. pertaining to cultivation of gardens. When he bought his house, he began to look for flowers and decorative shrubs, and began to read books dealing with horticultural matters.

thespian

ADJ. pertaining to drama. Her success in the school play convinced her she was destined for a thespian career. also N.

rhetorical

ADJ. pertaining to effective communication; insincere in language. To win his audience; the speaker used every rhetorical trick in the book.

inductive

ADJ. pertaining to induction or proceeding from the specific to the general. The discovery of the planet Pluto is an excellent example of the results that can be obtained from inductive reasoning.

agrarian

ADJ. pertaining to land or its cultivation. The country is gradually losing its agrarian occupation and turning more and more to an industrial point of view.

linguistic

ADJ. pertaining to language. The modern tourist will encounter very little linguistic difficulty as English has become an almost universal language.

mnemonic

ADJ. pertaining to memory. He used mnemonic tricks to master new words.

pecuniary

ADJ. pertaining to money. Seldom earning enough to cover their expenses, folk dance teachers work because they love dancing, not because they expect any pecuniary reward.

erotic

ADJ. pertaining to passionate love. The erotic passages in this novel should be removed as they are merely pornographic.

nautical

ADJ. pertaining to ships or navigation. The Maritime Museum contains many models of clipper ships, logbooks, anchors and many other items of a nautical nature.

metaphysical

ADJ. pertaining to speculative philosophy. The modern poets have gone back to the fanciful poems of the metaphysical poets of the seventeenth century for many of their images. metaphysics, N.

pharisaical

ADJ. pertaining to the Pharisees, who paid scrupulous attention to tradition; self-righteous; hypocritical. Walter Lippmann has pointed out that moralists who do not attempt to explain the moral code they advocate are often regarded as pharisaical and ignored.

graphic

ADJ. pertaining to the art of delineating; vividly described. I was particularly impressed by the graphic presentation of the storm.

metallurgical

ADJ. pertaining to the art of removing metals from ores. During the course of his metallurgical research, the scientist developed a steel alloy of tremendous strength.

fallow

ADJ. plowed but not sowed; uncultivated. Farmers have learned that it is advisable to permit land to lie fallow every few years.

buxom

ADJ. plump; vigorous; jolly. The soldiers remembered the buxom nurse who had always been so pleasant to them.

grandiloquent

ADJ. pompous; bombastic; using highsounding language. The politician could never speak simply; she was always grandiloquent.

consequential

ADJ. pompous; self-important. Convinced of his own importance, the actor strutted about the dressing room with a consequential air.

bombastic

ADJ. pompous; using inflated language. Puffed up with conceit, the orator spoke in such a bombastic manner that we longed to deflate him. bombast, N.

latent

ADJ. potential but undeveloped; dormant; hidden. Polaroid pictures are popular at parties, because you can see the latent photographic image gradually appear before your eyes.

potent

ADJ. powerful; persuasive; greatly influential. Looking at the expiration date on the cough syrup bottle, we wondered whether the medication would still be potent. potency, N.

puissant

ADJ. powerful; strong; potent. We must keep his friendship for he will make a puissant ally.

ascetic

ADJ. practicing self-denial; austere. The wealthy, self-indulgent young man felt oddly drawn to the strict, ascetic life led by members of some monastic orders. also N.

eulogistic

ADJ. praising. To everyone's surprise, the speech was eulogistic rather than critical in tone.

encomiastic

ADJ. praising; eulogistic. Some critics believe that his encomiastic statements about Napoleon were inspired by his desire for material advancement rather than by an honest belief in the Emperor's genius.

hypocritical

ADJ. pretending to be virtuous; deceiving. Believing Eddie to be interested only in his own advancement, Greg resented his hypocritical posing as a friend. hypocrisy, N.

grandiose

ADJ. pretentious; high-flown; ridiculously exaggerated; impressive. The aged matinee idol still had grandiose notions of his supposed importance in the theatrical world.

endemic

ADJ. prevailing among a specific group of people or in a specific area or country. This disease is endemic in this part of the world; more than 80 percent of the population are at one time or another affected by it.

aseptic

ADJ. preventing infection; having a cleansing effect. Hospitals succeeded in lowering the mortality rate as soon as they introduced aseptic conditions.

lucrative

ADJ. profitable. He turned his hobby into a lucrative profession.

seemly

ADJ. proper; appropriate. Lady Bracknell did not think it was seemly for Ernest to lack a proper family: no baby abandoned on a doorstep could grow up to be a fit match for her daughter.

sibylline

ADJ. prophetic; oracular. Until their destruction by fire in 83 B.C., the sibylline books were often consulted by the Romans.

synoptic

ADJ. providing a general overview; summary. The professor turned to the latest issue of Dissertation Abstracts for a synoptic account of what was new in the field. synopSiS, N.

chaste

ADJ. pure; virginal; modest. To ensure that his bride would stay chaste while he was off to the wars, the crusader had her fitte out with a chastity belt. chastity, N.

platonic

ADJ. purely spiritual; theoretical; without sensual desire. Accused of impropriety in his dealings with female students, the professor maintained he had only a platonic interest in the women involved.

septic

ADJ. putrid; producing putrefaction. The hospital was in such a filthy state that we were afraid that many of the patients would suffer from septic poisoning. sepsis, N.

belligerent

ADJ. quarrelsome. Whenever he had too much to drink, he became belligerent and tried to pick fights with strangers. belligerence, N.

foolhardy

ADJ. rash. Don't be foolhardy. Get the advice of experienced people before undertaking this venture.

precipitate

ADJ. rash; premature; hasty; sudden. Though I was angry enough to resign on the spot, I had enough sense to keep myself from quitting a job in such a precipitate fashion.

amenable

ADJ. readily managed; willing to be led. He was amenable to any suggestions that came from those he looked up to; he resented advice from his inferiors.

inchoate

ADJ. recently begun; rudimentary; elementary. Before the Creation, the world was an inchoate mass.

conciliatory

ADJ. reconciling; soothing. She was still angry despite his conciliatory words. conciliate, V.

anthropocentric

ADJ. regarding human beings as the center of the universe. Without considering any evidence that might challenge his anthropocentric viewpoint, Hector categorically maintained that dolphins could not be as intelligent as men. anthropocentrism, N.

cognate

ADJ. related linguistically: allied by blood: similar or akin in nature. The English word "mother" is cognate to the Latin word "mater," whose influence is visible in the words "maternal" and "maternity." also N.

canine

ADJ. related to dogs; dog-like. Some days the canine population of Berkeley seems almost to outnumber the human population,

monastic

ADJ. related to monks or monasteries; removed from worldly concerns. Withdrawing from the world, Thomas Merton joined a contemplative religious order and adopted the monastic life.

narrative

ADJ. related to telling a story. A born teller of tales, Tillie Olsen used her impressive narrative skills to advantage in her story "I Stand Here Ironing." narrate, V.

pathological

ADJ. related to the study of disease; diseased or markedly abnormal. Jerome's pathological fear of germs led him to wash his hands a hundred times a day. pathology, N.

kindred

ADJ. related; belonging to the same family. Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn were two kindred spirits. also N.

thematic

ADJ. relating to a unifying motif or idea. Those who think of Moby Dick as a simple adventure story about whaling miss its underlying thematic import.

schematic

ADJ. relating to an outline or diagram; using a system of symbols. In working out the solution to this logic puzzle, you may find it helpful to construct a simple schematic diagram outlining the order of events.

culinary

ADJ. relating to cooking. Many chefs attribute their culinary success to the wise use of spices.

spatial

ADJ. relating to space. NASA is engaged in an ongoing program of spatial exploration. When Jay says he's studying spatial relations, that doesn't mean he has relatives in outer space.

dialectical

ADJ. relating to the art of debate; mutual or reciprocal. The debate coach's students grew to develop great forensic and dialectical skill. Teaching, however is inherently a dialectical situation: the coach learned at least as much from her students as they learned from her. dialectics, N.

dorsal

ADJ. relating to the back of an animal. A shark may be identified by its dorsal fin, which projects above the surface of the ocean.

sidereal

ADJ. relating to the stars. Although hampered by optical and mechanical flaws, the orbiting Hubble space telescope has relayed extraordinary images of distant sidereal bodies.

astral

ADJ. relating to the stars. She was amazed at the number of astral bodies the new telescope revealed.

inexorable

ADJ. relentless; unyielding; implacable. After listening to the pleas for clemency, the judge was inexorable and gave the convicted man the maximum punishment allowed by law.

loath

ADJ. reluctant; disinclined. Romeo and Juliet were both loath for him to go.

remediable

ADJ. reparable. Let us be grateful that the damage is remediable.

penitent

ADJ. repentant. When he realized the enormity of his crime, he became remorseful and penitent, also N.

equine

ADJ. resembling a horse. His long, bony face had an equine look to it.

distant

ADJ. reserved or aloof; cold in manner. His distant greeting made me feel unwelcome from the start. (secondary meaning)

sonorous

ADJ. resonant. His sonorous voice resounded through the hall.

temperate

ADJ. restrained; self-controlled; moderate in respect to temperature. Try to be temperate in your eating this holiday season; if you control your appetite, you won't gain too much weight.

ironic

ADJ. resulting in an unexpected and contrary outcome. It is ironic that his success came when he least wanted it.

ramshackle

ADJ. rickety; falling apart. The boys propped up the ramshackle clubhouse with a couple of boards.

roseate

ADJ. rosy; optimistic. I am afraid you will have to alter your roseate views in the light of the distressing news that has just arrived.

circuitous

ADJ. roundabout. To avoid the traffic congestion on the main highways, she took a circuitous route. circuit, N.

devious

ADJ. roundabout; erratic; not straightforward. The Joker's plan was so devious that it was only with great difficulty we could follow its shifts and dodges.

regal

ADJ. royal. Prince Albert had a regal manner.

florid

ADJ. ruddy; reddish; flowery. If you go to Florida and get a sunburn, your complexion will look florid.

surly

ADJ. rude; cross. Because of his surly attitude, many people avoided his company.

dilapidated

ADJ. ruined because of neglect. The dilapidated old building needed far more work than just a new coat of paint. dilapidation, N.

seedy

ADJ. run-down; decrepit; disreputable. I would rather stay in dormitory lodgings in a decent youth hostel than have a room of my own in a seedy downtown hotel.

bucolic

ADJ. rustic; pastoral. Filled with browsing cows and bleating sheep, the meadow was a charmingly bucolic sight.

disconsolate

ADJ. sad. The death of his wife left him disconsolate.

jocular

ADJ. said or done in jest. Although Bill knew the boss hated jokes, he couldn't resist making one jocular remark.

saline

ADJ. salty. The slightly saline taste of this mineral water is pleasant.

hermetic

ADJ. sealed by fusion so as to be airtight. After you sterilize the bandages, place them in a container and seal it with a hermetic seal to protect them from contamination by airborne bacteria.

clandestine

ADJ. secret. After avoiding their chaperon, the lovers had a clandestine meeting.

surreptitious

ADJ. secret; furtive; sneaky; hidden. Hoping to discover where his mom had hidden the Christmas presents, Timmy took a surreptitious peek into the master bedroom closet.

arcane

ADJ. secret; mysterious; known only to the initiated. Secret brotherhoods surround themselves with arcane rituals and trappings to mystify outsiders. So do doctors. Consider the arcane terminology they use and the impression they try to give that what is arcane to us is obvious to them.

autonomous

ADJ. self-governing. Although the University of California at Berkeley is just one part of the state university system, in many ways Cal Berkeley is autonomous, for it runs several programs that are not subject to outside control. autonomy, N.

discrete

ADJ. separate; unconnected. The universe is composed of discrete bodies.

complementary

ADJ. serving to complete something. John's and Lexy's skills are complementary: he's good at following a daily routine, while she's great at improvising and handling emergencies. Together they make a great team.

insulated

ADJ. set apart; isolated. A well-to-do bachelor, James spent his money freely, insulated from the cares of his friends, who had families to support.

mangy

ADJ. shabby; wretched. We finally threw out the mangy rug that the dog had destroyed.

bareface

ADJ. shameless, bold, unconcealed. Shocked by Huck Finn's barefaced lies, Miss Watson prayed the good Lord would give him a sense of his unregenerate wickedness.

gossamer

ADJ. sheer; like cobwebs. Nylon can be woven into gossamer or thick fabrics. also N.

luminous

ADJ. shining; issuing light. The sun is a luminous body.

ephemeral

ADJ. short-lived; fleeting. The mayfly is an ephemeral creature: its adult life lasts little more than a day.

painstaking

ADJ. showing hard work; taking great care. The new high-frequency word list is the result of painstaking efforts on the part of our research staff.

pedantic

ADJ. showing off learning; bookish. Leavening his decisions with humorous, down-to-earth anecdotes, Judge Walker was not at all the pedantic legal scholar. pedant, pedantry, N.

beatific

ADJ. showing or producting joy; blissful. When Johny first saw the new puppy, a beatific smile spread across his face. In his novel, Waugh praises Limbo, not Heaven: "Limbo is the place. In Limbo one has natural happiness without the beatific vision; no harps; no communal order; but wine and conversation and imperfect, various, humanity."

ostentatious

ADJ. showy; pretentious; trying to attract attention. Donald Trump's latest casino in Atlantic City is the most ostentatious gambling palace in the East: it easily outglitters its competitors. ostentation, N.

canny

ADJ. shrewd; thrifty. The canny Scotsman was more than a match for the swindlers.

coy

ADJ. shy; modest; coquettish. Reluctant to commit herself so early in the game, Kay was coy in her answers to Ken's offer.

muted

ADJ. silent; muffled; toned down. Thanks to the thick, sound-absorbing walls of the cathedral, only muted traffic noise reached the worshippers within.

inane

ADJ. silly; senseless. There's no point to what you're saying. Why are you bothering to make such inane remarks?

cynical

ADJ. skeptical or distrustful of human motives. Cynical from birth, Sidney was suspicious whenever anyone gave him a gift "with no strings attached." cynic, N.

obsequious

ADJ. slavishly attentive; servile; sycophantic. Helen liked to be served by people who behaved as if they respected themselves; nothing irritated her more than an excessively obsequious waiter or a fawning salesclerk.

acidulous

ADJ. slightly sour; sharp, caustic. James was unpopular because of his sarcastic and acidulous remarks.

dowdy

ADJ. slovenly; untidy. She tried to change her dowdy image by buying a new fashionable wardrobe.

negligible

ADJ. so small, trifling, or unimportant that it may be easily disregarded. Because the damage to his car had been negligible, Michael decided he wouldn't bother to report the matter to his insurance company.

sodden

ADJ. soaked; dull, as if from drink. He set his sodden overcoat near the radiator to dry.

staid

ADJ. sober; sedate. Her conduct during the funeral ceremony was staid and solemn.

gregarious

ADJ. sociable. Typically, partygoers are gregarious; hermits are not.

monolithic

ADJ. solidly uniform; unyielding. Knowing the importance of appearing resolute, the patriots sought to present a monolithic front.

brackish

ADJ. somewhat saline. He found the only wells in the area were brackish; drinking the water made him nauseous.

bland

ADJ. soothing or mild; agreeable. Jill tried a bland ointment for her sunburn. However, when Jack absentmindedly patted her on the sunburned shoulder, she couldn't maintain a bland disposition.

dolorous

ADJ. sorrowful. The conflict between Lancelot's love for Guinevere and his loyalty to King Arthur led to Arthur's "dolorous death and departing out of this world."

judicious

ADJ. sound in judgment; wise. At a key moment in his life, he made a judicious investment that was the foundation of his later wealth.

commodious

ADJ. spacious and comfortable. After sleeping in small roadside cabins, they found their hotel suite commodious.

abstemious

ADJ. sparing in eating and drinking; temperate. Concerned whether her vegetarian son's abstemious diet provided him with sufficient protein, the worried mother pressed food on him.

fitful

ADJ. spasmodic; intermittent. After several fitful attempts, he decided to postpone the start of the project until he felt more energetic.

inarticulate

ADJ. speechless; producing indistinct speech. He became inarticulate with rage and uttered sounds without meaning.

immaculate

ADJ. spotless; flawless; absolutely clean. Ken and Jessica were wonderful tenants and left the apartment in immaculate condition when they moved out.

maculated

ADJ. spotted; stained. Instead of writing that Gorbachev had a birthmark on his forehead, the pompous young poet sang of the former premier's maculated brow.

musty

ADJ. stale; spoiled by age. The attic was dark and musty.

furtive

ADJ. stealthy; sneaky. Noticing the furtive glance the customer gave the diamond bracelet on the counter, the jeweler wondered whether he had a potential shoplifter on his hands.

glutinous

ADJ. sticky; viscous. Molasses is a glutinous substance.

rigid

ADJ. stiff and unyielding; strict; hard and unbending. By living with a man to whom she was not married, George Eliot broke Victorian society's most rigid rule of respectable behavior.

extant

ADJ. still in existence. Although the book is out of print, some copies are still extant. Unfortunately, all of them are in libraries or private collections; none are for sale.

miserly

ADJ. stingy; mean. Transformed by his vision on Christmas Eve, mean old Scrooge ceased being miserly and became a generous, kind old man.

squat

ADJ. stocky; short and thick. Tolkien's hobbits are somewhat squat, sturdy little creatures, fond of good ale, good music, and good mushrooms.

tempestuous

ADJ. stormy; impassioned; violent. Racketthrowing tennis star John McEnroe was famed for his displays of tempestuous temperament.

inclement

ADJ. stormy; unkind. In inclement weather, I like to curl up on the sofa with a good book and listen to the storm blowing outside.

incandescent

ADJ. strikingly bright; shining with intense heat. If you leave on an incandescent light bulb, it quickly grows too hot to touch.

obdurate

ADJ. stubborn. He was obdurate in his refusal to listen to our complaints.

obstinate

ADJ. stubborn; hard to control or treat. We tried to persuade him to give up smoking, but he was obstinate and refused to change. Blackberry stickers are the most obstinate weeds I know: once established in a yard, they're extremely hard to root out. obstinacy, N.

pertinacious

ADJ. stubborn; persistent. He is bound to succeed because his pertinacious nature will not permit him to quit.

refractory

ADJ. stubborn; unmanageable. The refractory horse was eliminated from the race when he refused to obey the jockey.

stodgy

ADJ. stuffy; boringly conservative. For a young person, Winston seems remarkably stodgy: you'd expect someone his age to show a little more life.

asinine

ADJ. stupid. Your asinine remarks prove that you have not given this problem any serious consideration.

hardy

ADJ. sturdy; robust; able to stand inclement weather. We asked the gardening expert to recommend particularly hardy plants that could withstand our harsh New England winters.

authoritarian

ADJ. subordinating the individual to the state; completely dominating another's will. The leaders of the authoritarian regime ordered the suppression of the democratic protest movement. After years of submitting to the will of her authoritarian father, Elizabeth Barrett ran away from home with the poet Robert Browning.

blighted

ADJ. suffering from a disease; destroyed. The extent of the blighted areas could be seen only when viewed from the air.

bilious

ADJ. suffering from indigestion; irritable. His bilious temperament was apparent to all who heard him rant about his difficulties.

potable

ADJ. suitable for drinking. The recent drought in the Middle Atlantic states has emphasized the need for extensive research in ways of making sea water potable. also N.

menial

ADJ. suitable for servants; lowly; mean. Her wicked stepmother forced Cinderella to do menial tasks around the house while her ugly stepsisters lolled around painting their toenails.

expedient

ADJ. suitable; practical; politic. A pragmatic politician, he was guided by what was expedient rather than by what was ethical. expediency, N.

dour

ADJ. sullen; stubborn. The man was dour and taciturn.

supererogatory

ADJ. superfluous; more than needed or demanded. We have more than enough witnesses to corroborate your statement; to present any more would be supererogatory.

alimentary

ADJ. supplying nourishment. The alimentary canal in our bodies is so named because digestion of foods occurs there. When asked for the name of the digestive tract, Sherlock Holmes replied, "Alimentary, my dear Watson."

reputed

ADJ. supposed. Though he is the reputed father of the child, no one can be sure. repute, N.

putative

ADJ. supposed; reputed. Although there are some doubts, the putative author of this work is Massinger.

dulcet

ADJ. sweet sounding. The dulcet sounds of the birds at dawn were soon drowned out by the roar of traffic passing our motel.

mellifluous

ADJ. sweetly or smoothly flowing; melodious. Italian is a mellifluous language, especially suited to being sung.

sultry

ADJ. sweltering. He could not adjust himself to the sultry climate of the tropics.

meteoric

ADJ. swift; momentarily brilliant. We all wondered at his meteoric rise to fame.

loquacious

ADJ. talkative. Though our daughter barely says a word to us these days, put a phone in her hand and see how loquacious she can be: our phone bills are out of sight! loquacity, N.

palpable

ADJ. tangible; easily perceptible; unmistakable. The patient's enlarged spleen was palpable: even the first year medical student could feel it.

brindled

ADJ. tawny or grayish with streaks or spots. He was disappointed in the litter because the puppies were brindled, he had hoped for animals of a uniform color.

didactic

ADJ. teaching; instructional. Pope's lengthy poem An Essay on Man is too didactic for my taste: I dislike it when poets turn preachy and moralize. didacticism, N.

inclined

ADJ. tending or leaning toward; bent. Though I am inclined to be skeptical, the witness's manner inclines me to believe his story. also V.

evocative

ADJ. tending to call up (emotions, memories). Scent can be remarkably evocative: the aroma of pipe tobacco evokes the memory of my father; a whiff of talcum powder calls up images of my daughter as a child.

dilatory

ADJ. tending to delay; intentionally delaying. If you are dilatory in paying your bills, your credit rating may suffer.

salutary

ADJ. tending to improve; beneficial; wholesome. The punishment had a salutary effect on the boy, as he became a model student.

prohibitive

ADJ. tending to prevent the purchase or use of something; inclined to prevent or forbid. Susie wanted to buy a new Volvo but had to settle for a used Dodge because the new car's price was prohibitive. prohibition, N.

invasive

ADJ. tending to spread aggressively; intrusive. Giving up our war with the invasive blackberry vines that had taken over the back yard, we covered the lawn with concrete. invade, V.

provisional

ADJ. tentative. Kim's acceptance as an American Express card holder was provisional: before issuing her a card, American Express wanted to check her employment record and credit history.

tenuous

ADJ. thin; rare; slim. The allegiance of our allies is held by rather tenuous ties.

exhaustive

ADJ. thorough; comprehensive. We have made an exhaustive study of all published SAT tests and are happy to share our research with you.

ominous

ADJ. threatening. Those clouds are ominous; they suggest a severe storm is on the way.

improvident

ADJ. thriftless. He was constantly being warned to mend his improvident ways and begin to "save for a rainy day." improvidence, N.

taut

ADJ. tight; ready. The captain maintained that he ran a taut ship.

compact

ADJ. tightly packed; firm; brief. His short, compact body was better suited to wrestling than to basketball.

indisputable

ADJ. too certain to be disputed. In the face of these indisputable statements, I withdraw my complaint.

finicky

ADJ. too particular; fussy. The little girl was finicky about her food, leaving over anything that wasn't to her taste.

explicit

ADJ. totally clear; definite; outspoken. Don't just hint around that you're dissatisfied: be explicit about what's bugging you.

petulant

ADJ. touchy; peevish. If you'd had hardly any sleep for three nights and people kept phoning and waking you up, you'd sound pretty petulant, too.

orthodox

ADJ. traditional; conservative in belief. Faced with a problem, he preferred to take an orthodox approach rather than shock anyone. orthodoxy, N.

equable

ADJ. tranquil; steady; uniform. After the hot summers and cold winters of New England, he found the climate of the West Indies equable and pleasant.

insidious

ADJ. treacherous; stealthy; sly. The fifth column is insidious because it works secretly within our territory for our defeat.

complaisant

ADJ. trying to please; overly polite; obliging. Fearing that the king might become enraged if his will were thwarted, the complaisant Parliament recognized Henry VIII as king of Ireland. Someone complaisant is not smug or complacent; he yields to others because he has an excessive need to please.

stock

ADJ. typical; standard; kept regularly in supply. Victorian melodramas portrayed stock characters - the rich but wicked villain, the sweet young ingenue, the poor but honest young man - in exaggerated situations. Although the stationery store kept only stock sizes of paper on hand, the staff would special-order any items not regularly in stock.

indubitable

ADJ. unable to be doubted; unquestionable. Auditioning for the chorus line, Molly was an indubitable hit: the director fired the leading lady and hired Molly in her place!

irrevocable

ADJ. unalterable; irreversible. As Sue dropped the "Dear John" letter into the mailbox, she suddenly had second thoughts and wanted to take it back, but she could not: her action was irrevocable.

inevitable

ADJ. unavoidable. Though death and taxes are both supposedly inevitable, some people avoid paying taxes for years.

irresolute

ADJ. uncertain how to act; weak. Once you have made your decision, don't waver; a leader should never appear irresolute.

immutable

ADJ. unchangeable. All things change over time; nothing is immutable.

insensible

ADJ. unconscious; unresponsive. Sherry and I are very different; at times when I would be covered with embarrassment, she seems insensible to shame.

bohemian

ADJ. unconventional (in an artistic way). Gertrude Stein ran off to Paris to live an eccentric, bohemian life with her writer friends. Oakland was not bohemian: it was too bourgeois, too middle-class.

implicit

ADJ. understood but not stated. Jack never told Jill he adored her; he believed his love was implicit in his actions.

tacit

ADJ. understood; not put into words. We have a tacit agreement based on only a handshake.

infallible

ADJ. unerring. We must remember that none of us is infallible; we all make mistakes.

adverse

ADJ. unfavorable; hostile. The recession had a highly adverse effect on Father's investment portfolio: he lost so much money that he could no longer afford the butler and the upstairs maid. adversity, N.

inimical

ADJ. unfriendly; hostile; harmful; detrimental. I've always been friendly to Martha. Why is she so inimical to me?

implausible

ADJ. unlikely; unbelievable. Though her alibi seemed implausible, it in fact turned out to be true.

celibate

ADJ. unmarried; abstaining from sexual intercourse. The perennial bachelor vowed to remain celibate. celibacy, N.

imperceptible

ADJ. unnoticeable; undetectable. Fortunately, the stain on the blouse was imperceptible after the blouse had gone through the wash.

derivative

ADJ. unoriginal; derived from another source. Although her early poetry was clearly derivative in nature,the critics thought she had promise and eventually would find her own voice.

desolate

ADJ. unpopulated. After six months in the crowded, bustling metropolis, David was so sick of people that he was ready to head for the most desolate patch of wilderness he could find.

capricious

ADJ. unpredictable; fickle. The storm was capricious: it changed course constantly. Jill was capricious, too: she changed boyfriends almost as often as she changed clothes.

disinterested

ADJ. unprejudiced. Given the judge's political ambitions and the lawyers' financial interest in the case, the only disinterested person in the courtroom may have been the court reporter.

arbitrary

ADJ. unreasonable or capricious; randomly chosen; tyrannical. The coach claimed the team lost because the umpire made some arbitrary calls.

earthy

ADJ. unrefined; coarse. His earthy remarks often embarrassed the women in his audience.

inordinate

ADJ. unrestrained; excessive. She had an inordinate fondness for candy, eating two or three boxes in a single day.

fractious

ADJ. unruly; disobedient; irritable. Bucking and kicking, the fractious horse unseated its rider.

intractable

ADJ. unruly; stubborn; unyielding. Charlie Brown's friend Pigpen was intractable: he absolutely refused to take a bath.

slipshod

ADJ. untidy or slovenly; shabby. As a master craftsman, the carpenter prided himself on not doing slipshod work.

inopportune

ADJ. untimely; poorly chosen. A rock concert is an inopportune setting for a quiet conversation.

grudging

ADJ. unwilling; reluctant; stingy. We received only grudging support from the mayor despite his earlier promises of aid.

prophylactic

ADJ. used to prevent disease. Despite all prophylactic measures introduced by the authorities, the epidemic raged until cool weather set in. prophylaxis, N.

futile

ADJ. useless; hopeless; ineffectual. It is futile for me to try to get any work done around here while the telephone is ringing every thirty seconds. futility, N.

multifarious

ADJ. varied; greatly diversified. A career woman and mother, she was constantly busy with the multifarious activities of her daily life.

pied

ADJ. variegated; multicolored. The Pied Piper of Hamelin got his name from the multicolored clothing he wore.

protean

ADJ. versatile; able to take on many shapes. A remarkably protean actor, Alec Guinness could take on any role.

sheer

ADJ. very thin or transparent; very steep; absolute. Wearing nothing but an almost sheer robe, Delilah draped herself against the sheer temple wall. Beholding her, Samson was overcome by her sheer beauty. Then she sheared his hair.

robust

ADJ. vigorous; strong. After pumping iron and taking karate for six months, the little old lady was so robust that she could break a plank with her fist.

acetic

ADJ. vinegary. The salad had an exceedingly acetic flavor.

nomadic

ADJ. wandering. Several nomadic tribes of Indians would hunt in this area each year.

migratory

ADJ. wandering. The return of the migratory birds to the northern sections of this country is a harbinger of spring. migrate,V.

itinerant

ADJ. wandering; traveling. He was an itinerant peddler and traveled through Pennsylvania and Virginia selling his wares. also N.

bellicose

ADJ. warlike. His bellicose disposition alienated his friends.

martial

ADJ. warlike. The sound of martial music inspired the young cadet with dreams of military glory.

impotent

ADJ. weak; ineffective. Although he wished to break the nicotine habit, he found himself impotent in resisting the craving for a cigarette.

consummate

ADJ. wholly without flaw; supremely skilled; complete and utter. Free of her father's autocratic rule, safely married to the man she loved, Elizabeth Barrett Browning felt consummate happiness. Da Vinci depicted in his drawings, with scientific precision and consummate artistry, subjects ranging from flying machines to intricate anatomical studies of people, animals, and plants. There is no one as boring as Boris; he is a consummate bore.

iniquitous

ADJ. wicked; immoral; unrighteous. Whether or not King Richard III was responsible for the murder of the two young princes in the Tower, it was an iniquitous deed. iniquity, N.

navigable

ADJ. wide and deep enough to allow ships to pass through; able to be steered. So much sand had built up at the bottom of the canal that the waterway was barely navigable.

pandemic

ADJ. widespread; affecting the majority of people. They feared the AIDS epidemic would soon reach pandemic proportions.

lurid

ADJ. wild; sensational; graphic; gruesome. Do the lurid cover stories in the Enquirer actually attract people to buy that trashy tabloid?

astute

ADJ. wise; shrewd; keen. The painter was an astute observer, noticing every tiny detail of her model's appearance and knowing exactly how important each one was.

malevolent

ADJ. wishing evil. lago is a malevolent villain who takes pleasure in ruining Othello.

askance

ADJ. with a sideways or indirect look. Looking askance at her questioner, she displayed her scorn.

incredulous

ADJ. withholding belief; skeptical. When Jack claimed he hadn't eaten the jelly doughnut, Jill took an incredulous look at his smeared face and laughed. incredulity, N.

guileless

ADJ. without deceit. He is naive, simple, and guileless; he cannot be guilty of fraud.

random

ADJ. without definite purpose, plan, or aim; haphazard. Although the sponsor of the raffle claimed all winners were chosen at random, people had their suspicions when the grand prize went to the sponsor's brother-in-law.

categorical

ADJ. without exceptions; unqualified; absolute. Though the captain claimed he was never, never sick at sea, he finally had to qualify his categorical denial: he was "hardly ever" sick at sea.

insensate

ADJ. without feeling. She lay there as insensate as a log.

deadpan

ADJ. wooden; impersonal. We wanted to see how long he could maintain his deadpan expression.

mundane

ADJ. worldly as opposed to spiritual; everyday. Uninterested in philosophical or spiritual discussions, Tom talked only of mundane matters such as the daily weather forecast or the latest basketball results.

tatty

ADJ. worn and shabby; bedraggled. Cinderella's stepsisters sneered at her in her frayed apron and tatty old gown.

threadbare

ADJ. worn through till the threads show; shabby and poor. The poor adjunct professor hid the threadbare spots on his jacket by sewing leather patches on his sleeves.

abject

ADJ. wretched; lacking pride. On the streets of New York the homeless live in abject poverty, huddling in doorways to find shelter from the wind.

amiss

ADJ. wrong; faulty. Seeing her frown, he wondered if anything were amiss. also ADV.

sallow

ADJ. yellowish; sickly in color. We were disturbed by her sallow complexion, which was due to jaundice.

compliant

ADJ. yielding; conforming to requirements. Because Joel usually gave in and went along with whatever his friends desired, his mother worried that he might be too compliant.

submissive

ADJ. yielding; timid. When he refused to permit Elizabeth to marry her poet, Mr. Barrett expected her to be properly submissive; instead, she eloped!

callow

ADJ. youthful; immature; inexperienced. As a freshman, Jack was sure he was a man of the world; as a sophomore, he made fun of freshmen as callow youths. In both cases, his judgment showed just how callow he was.

fauna

N. animals of a period or region. The scientist could visualize the fauna of the period by examining the skeletal remains and the fossils.

aboriginal

ADJ., N. being the first of its kind in a region; primitive; native. Her studies of the primitive art forms of the aboriginal Indians were widely reported in the scientific journals. aborigines, N.

gamely

ADV. bravely; with spirit. Because he had fought gamely against a much superior boxer, the crowd gave him a standing ovation when he left the arena.

piecemeal

ADV. one piece at a time; gradually. Tolstoy's War and Peace is too huge to finish in one sitting; I'll have to read it piecemeal.

inadvertently

ADV. unintentionally; by oversight; carelessly. Judy's great fear was that she might inadvertently omit a question on the exam and mismark her whole answer sheet.

aloft

ADV. upward. The sailor climbed aloft into the rigging. To get into a loft bed, you have to climb aloft.

incognito

ADV. with identity concealed; using an assumed name. The monarch enjoyed traveling through the town incognito and mingling with the populace. also ADJ.

canker

N. any ulcerous sore; any evil. Poverty is a canker in the body politic; it must be cured.

gyroscope

N. apparatus used to maintain balance, ascertain direction, etc. By using a rotating gyroscope, they were able to stabilize the vessel, counteracting the rolling movements of the sea.

conduit

N. aqueduct; passageway for fluids. Water was brought to the army in the desert by an improvised conduit from the adjoining mountain.

hierarchy

N. arrangement by rank or standing; authoritarian body divided into ranks. To be low man on the totem pole is to have an inferior place in the hierarchy.

advent

N. arrival. Most Americans were unaware of the advent of the Nuclear Age until the news of Hiroshima reached them.

hubris

N. arrogance; excessive self-conceit. Filled with hubris, Lear refused to heed his friends' warnings.

incendiary

N. arsonist. The fire spread in such an unusual manner that the fire department chiefs were certain that it had been set by an incendiary. alsoADJ.

guffaw

N. boisterous laughter. The loud guffaws that came from the closed room indicated that the members of the committee had not yet settled down to serious business. also V.

diagnosis

N. art of identifying a disease; analysis of a condition. In medical school Margaret developed her skill at diagnosis, learning how to read volumes from a rapid pulse or a hacking cough. diagnose, V.; diagnostic,ADJ.

imposture

N. assuming a false identity; masquerade. She was imprisoned for her imposture of a doctor.

premise

N. assumption; postulate. Based on the premise that there's no fool like an old fool, P. T. Barnum hired a ninety-year-old clown for his circus.

bombardment

N. attack with missiles. The enemy bombardment demolished the town. Members of the opposition party bombarded the prime minister with questions about the enemy attack.

culmination

N. attainment of highest point. His inauguration as President of the United States marked the culmination of his political career.

dictum

N. authoritative and weighty statement; saying; maxim. University administrations still follow the old dictum "Publish or perish." They don't care how good a teacher you are; if you don't publish enough papers, you are out of a job.

pundit

N. authority on a subject; learned person; expert. Some authors who write about SAT I as if they are pundits actually know very little about the test.

proxy

N. authorized agent. Please act as my proxy and vote for this slate of candidates in my absence.

catechism

N. book for religious instruction; instruction by question and answer. He taught by engaging his pupils in a catechism until they gave him the correct answer.

anthology

N. book of literary selections by various authors. This anthology of science fiction was compiled by the late Isaac Asimov. anthologize, V.

ennui

N. boredom. The monotonous routine of hospital life induced a feeling of ennui that made him moody and irritable.

obeisance

N. bow. She made an obeisance as the king and queen entered the room.

fortitude

N. bravery; courage. He was awarded the medal for his fortitude in the battle.

fracas

N. brawl, melee. The military police stopped the fracas in the bar and arrested the belligerents.

antipathy

N. aversion; dislike. Tom's extreme antipathy for disputes keeps him from getting into arguments with his temperamental wife. Noise in any form is antipathetic to him. Among his other antipathies are honking cars, boom boxes, and heavy metal rock.

accolade

N. award of merit. In Hollywood, an "Oscar" is the highest accolade.

hinterlands

N. back country. They seldom had visitors, living as they did way out in the hinterlands.

equilibrium

N. balance. After the divorce, he needed some time to regain his equilibrium.

barrage

N. barrier laid down by artillery fire. The company was forced to retreat through the barrage of heavy cannons.

nib

N. beak; pen point. The nibs of fountain pens often become clotted and corroded.

onset

N. beginning; attack. Caught unprepared by the sudden onset of the storm, we rushed around the house closing windows and bringing the garden furniture into shelter. Caught unprepared by the enemy onset, the troops scrambled to take shelter.

arrears

N. being in debt. He was in arrears with his payments on the car.

monotheism

N. belief in one God. Abraham was the first to proclaim his belief in monotheism.

fray

N. brawl. The three musketeers were in the thick of the fray.

credulity

N. belief on slight evidence; gullibility; naiveté. Con artists take advantage of the credulity of inexperienced investors to swindle them out of their savings. credulous, ADJ.

harbinger

N. forerunner. The crocus is an early harbinger of spring.

laity

N. laypersons; persons not connected with the clergy. The laity does not always understand the clergy's problems.

pessimism

N. belief that life is basically bad or evil; gloominess. Considering how well you have done in the course so far, you have no real reason for such pessimism about your final grade.

credence

N. belief. Do not place any credence in his promises.

refraction

N. bending of a ray of light. When you look at a stick inserted in water, it looks bent because of the refraction of the light by the water.

lummox

N. big, clumsy, often stupid person. Because he was highly overweight and looked ungainly, John Candy often was cast as a slow-witted lummox.

diatribe

N. bitter scolding; invective. During the lengthly diatribe delivered by his opponent he remained calm and self-controlled.

acerbity

N. bitterness of speech and temper. The meeting of the United Nations General Assembly was marked with such acerbity that informed sources held out little hope of reaching any useful settlement of the problem.

necromancy

N. black magic; dealings with the dead. The evil sorceror performed feats of necromancy, calling on the spirits of the dead to tell the future.

beatitude

N. blessedness; state of bliss. Growing closer to God each day, the mystic achieved a state of indescribable beatitude.

benediction

N. blessing. The appearance of the sun after the many rainy days was like a benediction.

doldrums

N. blues; listlessness; slack period. Once the excitement of meeting her deadline was over, she found herself in the doldrums.

palette

N. board on which painter mixes pigments. At the present time, art supply stores are selling a paper palette that may be discarded after use.

braggadocio

N. boasting. He was disliked because his manner was always full of braggardocio.

compact

N. agreement; contract. The signers of the Mayflower Compact were establishing a form of government.

seminal

DJ. germinal; influencing future developments; related to seed or semen. Although Freud has generally been regarded as a seminal thinker who shaped the course of psychology, his psychoanalytic methods have come under attack recently.

pact

N. agreement; treaty. Tweedledum and Tweedledee made a pact not to quarrel anymore.

concession

N. an act of yielding. Before they could reach an agreement, both sides had to make certain concessions.

contention

N. an assertion, esp. one maintained in argument; claim; thesis. It is our contention that, if you follow our tactics, you will boost your score on the GRE. contend, V.

alias

N. an assumed name. John Smith's alias was Bob Jones. also ADV.

progenitor

N. ancestor. The Roth family, whose progenitors emigrated from Germany early in the nineteenth century, settled in Peru, Illinois.

papyrus

N. ancient paper made from stem of papyrus plant. The ancient Egyptians were among the first to write on papyrus.

indignation

N. anger at an injustice. He felt indignation at the ill-treatment of helpless animals.

parasite

N. animal or plant living on another; toady; sycophant. The tapeworm is an example of the kind of parasite that may infest the human body.

espionage

N. Spying. In order to maintain its power, the government developed a system of espionage that penetrated every household.

psychiatrist

N. a doctor who treats mental diseases. A psychiatrist often needs long conferences with his patient before a diagnosis can be made.

grimace

N. a facial distortion to show feeling such as pain, disgust, etc. Even though he remained silent, his grimace indicated his displeasure. alsoV.

disquisition

N. a formal systematic inquiry; an explanation of the results of a formal inquiry. In his disquisition, he outlined the steps he had taken in reaching his conclusions.

legacy

N. a gift made by a will. Part of my legacy from my parents is an album of family photographs.

tome

N. a large, heavy, scholarly book. He spent much time in the libraries poring over ancient tomes.

collation

N. a light meal. Tea sandwiches and cookies were offered at the collation.

alloy

N. a mixture as of metals. Alloys of gold are used more frequently than the pure metal.

ecologist

N. a person concerned with the interrelationship between living organisms and their environment. The ecologist was concerned that the new dam would upset the natural balance of the creatures living in Glen Canyon.

apiary

N. a place where bees are kept. Although he spent many hours daily in the apiary, he was very seldom stung by a bee.

anthropologist

N. a student of the history and science of mankind. Anthropologists have discovered several relics of prehistoric man in this area.

plasticity

N. ability to be molded. When clay dries out, it loses its plasticity and becomes less malleable.

prescience

N. ability to foretell the future. Given the current wave of Japan-bashing, it does not take prescience for me to foresee problems in our future trade relations with Japan.

empathy

N. ability to identify with another's feelings, ideas, etc. What made Ann such a fine counselor was her empathy, her ability to put herself in her client's place and feel his emotions as if they were her own. empathize, V.

motility

N. ability to move spontaneously. Certain organisms exhibit remarkable motility; motile spores, for example, may travel for miles before coming to rest. motile, ADJ.

consistency

N. absence of contradictions; dependability; uniformity; degree of thickness. Holmes judged puddings and explanations on their consistency: he liked his puddings without lumps and his explanations without improbabilities.

plenitude

N. abundance; completeness. Looking in the pantry, we admired the plenitude of fruits and pickles we had preserved during the summer.

affluence

N. abundance; wealth. Foreigners are amazed by the affluence and luxury of the American way of life.

mishap

N. accident. With a little care you could have avoided this mishap.

animosity

N. active enmity. He incurred the animosity of the ruling class because he advocated limitations of their power.

elaboration

N. addition of details; intricacy. Tell what happened simply, without any elaboration. elaborate, V.

suffragist

N. advocate of voting rights (for women). In recognition of her efforts to win the vote for women, Congress authorized coining a silver dollar honoring the suffragist Susan B. Anthony

catalyst

N. agent which brings about a chemical change while it remains unaffected and unchanged. Many chemical reactions cannot take place without the presence of a catalyst.

emissary

N. agent; messenger. The secretary of state was sent as the president's special emissary to the conference on disarmament.

discomposure

N. agitation; loss of poise. Perpetually poised, Agent 007 never exhibited a moment's discomposure.

dissolution

N. breaking of a union; decay; termination. Which caused King Lear more suffering: the dissolution of his kingdom into warring factions, or the dissolution of his aged, failing body?

fancier

N. breeder or dealer of animals. The dog fancier exhibited her prize collie at the annual Kennel Club show.

glossary

N. brief explanation of words used in the text. I have found the glossary in this book very useful; it has eliminated many trips to the dictionary.

farce

N. broad comedy; mockery. Nothing went right; the entire interview degenerated into a farce. farcical, ADJ.

rubble

N. broken fragments. Ten years after World War II, some of the rubble left by enemy bombings could still be seen.

sibling

N. brother or sister. We may not enjoy being siblings, but we cannot forget that we still belong to the same family.

contusion

N. bruise. Black and blue after her fall, Sue was treated for contusions and abrasions.

bagaboo

N. bugbear; object of baseless terror. If we become frightened by such bugaboos, we are no wiser than the birds who fear scarecrows.

ruffian

N. bully; scoundrel. The ruffians threw stones at the police.

onus

N. burden; responsibility. The emperor was spared the onus of signing the surrender papers; instead, he relegated the assignment to his generals.

entrepreneur

N. businessman; contractor. Opponents of our present tax program argue that it discourages entrepreneurs from trying new fields of business activity.

guy

N. cable or chain attached to something that needs to be braced or steadied. If the guys holding up the mast on that derrick snap, the mast will topple.

catastrophe

N. calamity; disaster. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake was a catastrophe that destroyed most of the city. A similar earthquake striking today could have even more catastrophic results.

taper

N. candle. She lit the taper on the windowsill.

marquee

N. canopy above an entrance, under which one can take shelter; rooflike shelter above a theater entrance. On stormy days, the hotel doorman keeps dry by standing directly beneath the marquee. The title of Arthur Kopit's play Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Momma's Hung You in the Closet and I'm Feeling So Sad was too long to fit on the marquee.

quiver

N. case for arrows. Robin Hood reached back and plucked one last arrow from his quiver. (secondary meaning)

grievance

N. cause of complaint. When her supervisor ignored her complaint, she took her grievance to the union.

mace

N. ceremonial staff; club-like medieval weapon. The Grand Marshal of the parade raised his mace to signal that it was time for the procession to begin.

formality

N. ceremonious quality; something done just for form's sake. The president received the visiting heads of state with due formality: flags waving, honor guards standing at attention, anthems sounding at full blast. Signing this petition is a mere formality; it does not obligate you in any way.

hap

N. chance; luck. In his poem Hap, Thomas Hardy objects to the part chance plays in our lives. also V.

metamorphosis

N. change of form; major transformation. The metamorphosis of caterpillar to butterfly is typical of many such changes in animal life. metamorphose,V.

amulet

N. charm; talisman. Around her neck she wore the amulet that the witch doctor had given her.

swindler

N. cheat. She was gullible and trusting, an easy victim for the first swindler who came along.

alacrity

N. cheerful promptness. Phil and Dave were raring to get off to the mountains; they packed up their ski gear and climbed into the van with alacrity.

geniality

N. cheerfulness; kindliness; sympathy. This restaurant is famous and popular because of the geniality of the proprietor who tries to make everyone happy.

rotunda

N. circular building or hall covered with a dome. His body lay in state in the rotunda of the Capitol.

friction

N. clash in opinion; rubbing against. At this time when harmony is essential, we cannot afford to have any friction in our group.

clavicle

N. collarbone. Even though he wore shoulder pads, the football player broke his clavicle during a pracice scrimmage.

canon

N. collection or authoritative list of books (e.g., by an author, or accepted as scripture). Scholars hotly debated whether the newly discovered sonnet should be accepted as part of the Shakespearean cannon.

agglomeration

N. collection; heap. It took weeks to assort the agglomeration of miscellaneous items she had collected on her trip.

hue

N. color; aspect. The aviary contained birds of every possible hue.

spectrum

N. colored band produced when beam of light passes through a prism. The visible portion of the spectrum includes red at one end and violet at the other.

pigment

N. coloring matter. Van Gogh mixed various pigments with linseed oil to create his paints.

synthesis

N. combining parts into a whole. Now that we have succeeded in isolating this drug, our next problem is to plan its synthesis in the laboratory. synthesize, V.

fanaticism

N. excessive zeal; extreme devotion to a belief or cause. When Islamic fundamentalists demanded the death of Salman Rushdie because his novel questioned their faith, world opinion condemned them for their fanaticism.

prude

N. excessively modest person. The X-rated film was definitely not for prudes, prudish, ADJ.

pretext

N. excuse. He looked for a good pretext to get out of paying a visit to his aunt.

expatriate

N. exile; someone who has withdrawn from his native land. Henry James was an American expatriate who settled in England.

egress

N. exit. Barnum's sign "To the Egress" fooled many people who thought they were going to see an animal and instead found themselves in the street.

pediatrician

N. expert in children's diseases. The family doctor advised the parents to consult a pediatrician about their child's ailment.

detonation

N. explosion. The detonation of the bomb could be heard miles away.

idiom

N. expression whose meaning as a whole differs from the meanings of its individual words; distinctive style. The phrase "to lose one's marbles" is an idiom: if I say that Joe's lost his marbles, I'm not asking you to find some for him. I'm telling you idiomatically that he's crazy.

eloquence

N. expressiveness; persuasive speech. The crowds were stirred by Martin Luther King's eloquence. eloquent, ADJ.

jingoist

N. extremely aggressive and militant patriot; warlike chauvinist. Always bellowing "America first!," the congressman was such a jingoist you could almost hear the sabers rattling as he marched down the halls. jingoism, N.

astigmatism

N. eye defect that prevents proper focus. As soon as his parents discovered that the boy suffered from astigmatism, they took him to the optometrist for corrective glasses.

physiognomy

N. face. He prided himself on his ability to analyze a person's character by studying his physiognomy.

countenance

N. face. When Jose saw his newborn daughter, a proud smile spread across his countenance.

equity

N. fairness; justice. Our courts guarantee equity to all.

philanderer

N. faithless lover; flirt. Swearing he had never so much as looked at another woman, Ralph assured Alice he was no philanderer.

renown

N. fame. For many years an unheralded researcher, Barbara McClintock gained international renown when she won the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. renowned, ADJ.

kismet

N. fate. Kismet is the Arabic word for "fate."

nepotism

N. favoritism (to a relative). John left his position with the company because he felt that advancement was based on nepotism rather than ability.

claustrophobia

N. fear of being locked in. His fellow classmates laughed at his claustrophobia and often threatened to lock him in his room.

lineaments

N. features, especially of the face. She quickly sketched the lineaments of his face.

euphoria

N. feeling of great happiness and well-being (sometimes exaggerated). Delighted with her SAT scores, sure that the university would accept her, Allison was filled with euphoria. euphoric, ADJ.

ewe

N. female sheep. The flock of sheep was made up of dozens of ewes, together with only a handful of rams.

amazon

N. female warrior. Ever since the days of Greek mythology we refer to strong and aggressive women as amazons.

frond

N. fern leaf; palm or banana leaf. After the storm the beach was littered with the fronds of palm trees.

fecundity

N. fertility; fruitfulness. The fecundity of his mind is illustrated by the many vivid images in his poems.

squalor

N. filth; degradation; dirty, neglected state. Rusted, broken-down cars in its yard, trash piled up on the porch, tar paper peeling from the roof, the shack was the picture of squalor. squalid, ADJ.

moodiness

N. fits of depression or gloom. Her recurrent moodiness left her feeling as if she had fallen into a black hole.

stereotype

N. fixed and unvarying representation; standardized mental picture, often reflecting prejudice. Critics object to the character of Jim in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because he seems to reflect the stereotype of the happy, ignorant slave.

delta

N. flat plain of mud or sand between branches of a river. His dissertation discussed the effect of intermittent flooding on the fertility of the Nile delta.

blandishment

N. flattery. Despite the salesperson's blandishments, the customer did not buy the outfit.

adulation

N. flattery; admiration. The rock star thrived on the adulation of his groupies and yes men. adulate,V.

sherbet

N. flavored dessert ice. I prefer raspberry sherbet to ice cream since it is less fattening.

influx

N. flowing into. The influx of refugees into the country has taxed the relief agencies severely.

flux

N. flowing; series of changes. While conditions are in such a state of flux, I do not wish to commit myself too deeply in this affair.

ambrosia

N. food of the gods. Ambrosia was supposed to give immortality to any human who ate it.

duress

N. forcible restraint, especially unlawfully. The hostages were held under duress until the prisoners' demands were met.

satire

N. form of literature in which irony, sarcasm, and ridicule are employed to attack vice and folly. Gulliver's Travels, which is regarded by many as a tale for children, is actually a bitter satire attacking man's folly.

discourse

N. formal discussion; conversation. The young Plato was drawn to the Agora to hear the philosophical discourse of Socrates and his followers. also V.

dissertation

N. formal essay. In order to earn a graduate degree from many of our universities, a candidate is frequently required to prepare a dissertation on some scholarly subject.

bastion

N. fortress; defense. The villagers fortified the town hall, hoping this improvised bastion could protect them from the guerilla raids.

quadruped

N. four-footed animal. Most mammals are quadrupeds.

outskirts

N. fringes; outer borders. We lived, not in central London, but in one of those peripheral suburbs that spring up on the outskirts of a great city.

husbandry

N. frugality; thrift; agriculture. He accumulated his small fortune by diligence and husbandry. husband, V.

rationale

N. fundamental reason or justification; grounds for an action. Her need to have someplace to hang her earring collection was Dora's rationale for piercing fifteen holes in each ear.

obsequy

N. funeral ceremony. Hundreds paid their last respects at his obsequies.

purveyor

N. furnisher of foodstuffs; caterer. As purveyor of rare wines and viands, he traveled through France and Italy every year in search of new products to sell.

consensus

N. general agreement; opinion reached by a group as a whole. Letty Cottin Pogrebin argues that, although the ultra-right would like us to believe that families disintegrate because of secular education and sexual liberation, the consensus of American is that what tears families apart is unemployment, inflation, and financial worries.

fervor

N. glowing ardor; intensity of feeling. At the protest rally, the students cheered the strikers and booed the dean with equal fervor.

chalice

N. goblet; consecrated cup. In a small room adjoining the cathedral, many ornately decorated chalices made by the most famous European goldsmiths were on display.

bullion

N. gold and silver in the form of bars. Much bullion is stored in the vaults at Fort Knox.

prosperity

N. good fortune; financial success; physical well-being. Promising to stay together "for richer, for poorer," the newlyweds vowed to be true to one another in prosperity and hardship alike.

oligarchy

N. government by a privileged few. One small clique ran the student council: what had been intended as a democratic governing body had turned into an oligarchy.

gerontocracy

N. government ruled by old people. Gulliver visited a gerontocracy in which the young people acted as servants to their elders, all the while dreaming of the day they would be old enough to have servants of their own.

theocracy

N. government run by religious leaders. Though some Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower favored the establishment of a theocracy in New England, many of their fellow voyagers preferred a nonreligious form of government.

monarchy

N. government under a single ruler. Though England today is a monarchy, there is some question whether it will be one in twenty years, given the present discontent at the prospect of Prince Charles as king.

encroachment

N. gradual intrusion. The encroachment of the factories upon the neighborhood lowered the value of the real estate.

reprieve

N. grant a stay of execution; temporary stay; a cancellation or postponement of a punishment. During the twenty-four-hour reprieve, the lawyers sought to make the stay of execution permanent. also V.

clout

N. great influence (especially political or social). Gatsby wondered whether he had enough clout to be admitted to the exclusive club.

host

N. great number; person entertaining guests; animal or plant from which a parasite gets its nourishment. You must attend to a host of details if you wish to succeed as host of a formal dinner party. Leeches are parasites that cling to their hosts and drink their hosts' blood.

cataract

N. great waterfall; eye abnormality. She gazed with awe at the mighty cataract known as Niagara Falls.

avarice

N. greediness for wealth. King Midas is a perfect example of avarice, for he was so greedy that he wished everything he touched would turn to gold.

killjoy

N. grouch; spoilsport. At breakfast we had all been enjoying our bacon and eggs until that killjoy John started talking about how bad animal fats were for our health.

entourage

N. group of attendants; retinue. Surrounded by the members of his entourage, the mayor hurried into city hall, shouting a brusque "No comment!" to the reporters lining the steps.

archipelago

N. group of closely located islands. When Gauguin looked at the map and saw the archipelagoes in the South Seas, he longed to visit them.

junta

N. group of men joined in political intrigue; cabal. As soon as he learned of its existence, the dictator ordered the execution of all of the members of the junta.

contingent

N. group that makes up part of a gathering. The New York contingent of delegates at the Democratic National Convention was a boisterous, sometimes rowdy lot.

encomium

N. high praise; eulogy. Uneasy with the encomiums expressed by his supporters, Tolkien felt unworthy of such high praise.

apogee

N. highest point. When the moon in its orbit is farthest away from the earth, it is at its apogee.

coup

N. highly successful action or sudden attack. As the news of his coup spread throughout Wall Street, his fellow brokers dropped by to congratulate him.

inkling

N. hint. This came as a complete surprise to me as I did not have the slightest inkling of your plans.

innuendo

N. hint; insinuation. I can defend myself against direct accusations; innuendos and oblique attacks on my character are what trouble me.

hermitage

N. home of a hermit. Even in his remote hermitage he could not escape completely from the world.

nostalgia

N. homesickness; longing for the past. My grandfather seldom spoke of life in the old country; he had little patience with nostalgia. nostalgic, ADJ.

distinction

N. honor; contrast; discrimination. A holder of the Medal of Honor, George served with great distinction in World War II. He made a distinction, however, between World War II and Vietnam, which he considered an immoral conflict.

kudos

N. honor; glory; praise. The singer complacently received kudos from his entourage on his performance.

homage

N. honor; tribute. In her speech she tried to pay homage to a great man.

animus

N. hostile feeling or intent. The animus of the speaker became obvious to all when he began to indulge in sarcastic and insulting remarks.

antagonism

N. hostility; active resistance. Barry showed his antagonism toward his new stepmother by ignoring her whenever she tried talking to him. antagonistic,ADJ.

firebrand

N. hothead: troublemaker. The police tried to keep track of all the local firebrands when the President came to town.

limerick

N. humorous short verse. The limerick form is the best; its meter is pure anapest. A limerick's fun for most everyone, and the word may occur on your test.

supposition

N. hypothesis; the act of supposing. I based my decision to confide in him on the supposition that he would be discreet. suppose, V.

mischance

N. ill luck. By mischance, he lost his week's salary.

contraband

N. illegal trade; smuggling; smuggled goods. The Coast Guard tries to prevent contraband in U.S. waters. also ADJ.

mimicry

N. imitation. Her gift for mimicry was so great that her friends said that she should be in the theater.

prestige

N. impression produced by achievements or reputation. Many students want to go to Harvard College not for the education offered but for the prestige of Harvard's name.

impropriety

N. improperness; unsuitableness. Because of the impropriety of the punk rocker's slashed T-shirt and jeans, the management refused to admit him to the hotel's very formal dining room.

insolence

N. impudent disrespect; haughtiness. How dare you treat me so rudely! The manager will hear of your insolence. insolent, ADJ.

nirvana

N. in Buddhist teachings, the ideal state in which the individual loses himself in the attainment of an impersonal beatitude. Despite his desire to achieve nirvana, the young Buddhist found that even the buzzing of a fly could distract him from his meditation.

partiality

N. inclination; bias. As a judge, not only must I be unbiased, but I must also avoid any evidence of partiality when I award the prize.

crescendo

N. increase in the volume or intensity, as in a musical passage; climax. The overture suddenly changed from a quiet pastoral theme to a crescendo featuring blaring trumpets and clashing cymbals.

increment

N. increase. The new contract calls for a 10 percent increment in salary for each employee for the next two years.

nonchalance

N. indifference; lack of concern; composure. Cool, calm, and collected under fire, James Bond shows remarkable nonchalance in the face of danger.

circumlocution

N. indirect or roundabout expression. He was afraid to call a spade a spade and resorted to circumlocutions to avoid direct reference to his subject.

allusion

N. indirect reference. When Amanda said to the ticket scalper, "One hundred bucks? What do you want, a pound of flesh?," she was making an allusion to Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice.

idiosyncrasy

N. individual trait, usually odd in nature; eccentricity. One of Richard Nixon's little idiosyncrasies was his liking for ketchup on cottage cheese. One of Hannibal Lecter's little idiosyncrasies was his liking for human flesh. idiosyncratic, ADJ.

opportunist

N. individual who sacrifices principles for expediency by taking advantage of circumstances. Joe is such an opportunist that he tripled the price of bottled water at his store as soon as the earthquake struck. Because it can break water pipes, an earthquake is, to most people, a disaster; to Joe, it was an opportunity.

contagion

N. infection. Fearing contagion, they took drastic steps to prevent the spread of disease.

denizen

N. inhabitant or resident; regular visitor. In The Untouchables, Eliot Ness fights AI Capone and the other denizens of Chicago's underworld. Ness's fight against corruption was the talk of all the denizens of the local bars.

effervescence

N. inner excitement or exuberance; bubbling from fermentation or carbonation. Nothing depressed Sue for long; her natural effervescence soon reasserted itself. Soda that loses its effervescence goes flat. effervescent, ADJ. effervesce, V.

query

N. inquiry; question. In her column "Ask Beth," the columnist invites young readers to send her their queries about life and love.

epitaph

N. inscription in memory of a dead person. In his will, he dictated the epitaph he wanted placed on his tombstone.

cant

N. insincere expressions of piety; jargon of thieves. Shocked by news of the minister's extramarital love affairs, the worshippers dismissed his talk about the sacredness of marriage as mere cant. Cant is a form of hypocrisy: those who can, pray; those who cant, pretend.

slight

N. insult to one's dignity; snub. Hypersensitive and ready to take offense at any discourtesy, Bertha was always on the lookout for real or imaginary slights. also V.

purport

N. intention; meaning. If the purport of your speech was to arouse the rabble, you succeeded admirably. also V.

symbiosis

N. interdependent relationship (between groups, species), often mutually beneficial. Both the crocodile bird and the crocodile derive benefit from their symbiosis: pecking away at food particles embedded in the crocodile's teeth, the bird receives nourishment; the crocodile, meanwhile, receives proper dental hygiene. symbiotic, ADJ.

respite

N. interval of relief; time for rest; delay in punishment. After working nonstop on this project for three straight months. I need a respite! For David, the two weeks vacationing in New Zealand were a delightful respite from the pressures of his job.

preamble

N. introductory statement. In the Preamble to the Constitution, the purpose of the document is set forth.

interloper

N. intruder; unwanted meddler. The merchant thought of his competitors as interlopers who were stealing away his trade.

figment

N. invention; imaginary thing. That incident never took place; it is a figment of your imagination.

anomaly

N. irregularity. A bird that cannot fly is an anomaly.

blasphemy

N. irreverence; sacrilege; cursing. In my father's house, the Dodgers were the holiest of holies; to cheer for another team was to utter words of blasphemy. blasphemous, ADJ.

pique

N. irritation; resentment. She showed her pique at her loss by refusing to appear with the other contestants at the end of the competition. also V.

seclusion

N. isolation; solitude. One moment she loved crowds; the next, she sought seclusion. seclude,V.

agenda

N. items of business at a meeting. We had so much difficulty agreeing upon an agenda that there was very little time for the meeting.

hodgepodge

N. jumble; mixture of ill-suited elements. The reviewer roundly condemned the play as a hodgepodge of random and purposeless encounters carried out by a cast lacking any uniformity of accent or style.

realm

N. kingdom; field or sphere. In the animal realm, the lion is the king of beasts.

consanguinity

N. kinship. Wanting to be rid of yet another wife, Henry VIII sought a divorce on the grounds of consanguinity, claiming their blood relationship was improperly close.

cognizance

N. knowledge. During the election campaign, the two candidates were kept in full cognizance of the international situation.

irreverence

N. lack of proper respect. Some audience members were amused by the irreverence of the comedian's jokes about the Pope; others felt offended by his lack of respect for their faith. irreverent, ADJ.

timidity

N. lack of self-confidence or courage. If you are to succeed as a salesman, you must first lose your timidity and fear of failure.

dirge

N. lament with music. The funeral dirge stirred us to tears.

parlance

N. language; idiom. All this legal parlance confuses me; I need an interpreter.

caldron

N. large kettle. "Why, Mr. Crusoe," said the savage heating the giant caldron, "we'd love to have you for dinner!"

slew

N. large quantity or number. Although Ellen had checked off a number of items on her "To Do" list, she still had a whole slew of errands left.

galleon

N. large sailing ship. The Spaniards pinned their hopes on the galleon, the large warship; the British, on the smaller and faster pinnace.

galaxy

N. large, isolated system of stars, such as the Milky Way; any collection of brilliant personalities. Science fiction stories speculate about the possible existence of life in other galaxies. The deaths of such famous actors as John Candy and George Burns tells us that the galaxy of Hollywood superstars is rapidly disappearing.

languor

N. lassitude; depression. His friends tried to overcome the languor into which he had fallen by taking him to parties and to the theater.

blare

N. loud, harsh roar or screech; dazzling blaze of light. I don't know which is worse: the steady blare of a boom box deafening your ears or a sudden blare of flashbulbs dazzling your eyes.

clangor

N. loud, resounding noise. The blacksmith was accustomed to the clangor of hammers on steel.

nadir

N. lowest point. Although few people realized it, the Dow-Jones averages had reached their nadir and would soon begin an upward surge.

allegiance

N. loyalty. Not even a term in prison could shake Lech Walesa's allegiance to Solidarity, the Polish trade union he had helped to found.

decoy

N. lure or bait. The wild ducks were not fooled by the decoy. also V.

lechery

N. lustfulness; impurity in thought and deed. In his youth he led a life of lechery and debauchery; he did not mend his ways until middle age. lecherous, ADJ.

centrifuge

N. machine that separates substances by whirling them. At the dairy, we employ a centrifuge to separate cream from milk. also V.

brunt

N. main impact or shock. Tom Sawyer claimed credit for painting the fence, but the brunt of the work fell on others. However, he bore the brunt of Aunt Polly's complaints when the paint began to peel.

phylum

N. major class of plants; primary branch of animal kingdom; division. In sorting out her hundreds of packets of seeds, Katya decided to file them by phylum.

optician

N. maker and seller of eyeglasses. The patient took the prescription given him by his oculist} o the optician.

testator

N. maker of a will. The attorney called in his secretary and his partner to witness the signature of the testator.

megalomania

N. mania for doing grandiose things. Developers who spend millions trying to build the world's tallest skyscraper suffer from megalomania.

cartographer

N. map-maker. Though not a professional cartographer, Tolkien was able to construct a map of his fictional world.

pylon

N. marking post to guide aviators; steel tower supporting cables or telephone lines. Amelia Earhart carefully banked her airplane as she followed the line of pylons set up to mark the course of the Great Plane Race.

exodus

N. mass departure of people. The exodus from the hot and stuffy city was particularly noticeable on Friday evenings.

floe

N. mass of floating ice. The ship made slow progress as it battered its way through the ice floes.

repast

N. meal; feast; banquet. The caterers prepared a delicious repast for Fred and Judy's wedding day.

dint

N. means; effort. By dint of much hard work, the volunteers were able to control the raging forest fire.

interim

N. meantime. The company will not consider our proposal until next week; in the interim, let us proceed as we have in the past.

antidote

N. medicine to counteract a poison or disease. When Marge's child accidentally swallowed some cleaning fluid, the local poison control hotline instructed Marge how to administer the antidote.

opiate

N. medicine to induce sleep or deaden pain; something that relieves emotions or causes inaction. To say that religion is the opiate of the people is to condemn religion as a drug that keeps the people quiet and submissive to those in power.

alchemy

N. medieval chemistry. The changing of baser metals into gold was the goal of the students of alchemy. alchemist, N.

psychosis

N. mental disorder. We must endeavor to find an outlet for the patient's repressed desires if we hope to combat this psychosis. psychotic, ADJ.

capacity

N. mental or physical ability; role; ability to accommodate. Mike had the capacity to handle several jobs at once. In his capacity as president of SelecTronics he marketed an electronic dictionary with a capacity of 200,000 words.

leniency

N. mildness; permissiveness. Considering the gravity of the offense, we were surprised by the leniency of the sentence.

misdemeanor

N. minor crime. The culprit pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor rather than face trial for a felony.

quibble

N. minor objection or complaint. Aside from a few hundred teensy-weensy quibbles about the set, the script, the actors, the director, the costumes, the lighting, and the props, the hypercritical critic loved the play. also V.

squabble

N. minor quarrel; bickering. Children invariably get involved in petty squabbles; wise parents know when to interfere and when to let the children work things out on their own.

misadventure

N. mischance; ill luck. The young explorer met death by misadventure.

fallacy

N. mistaken idea based on flawed reasoning; invalid argument. The challenge that today's social scientists face is to use computers in ways that are most suited to them without falling into the fallacy that, by themselves, computers can guide and organize the study of human society.

paragon

N. model of perfection. Her fellow students disliked Lavinia because Miss Minchin always pointed her out as a paragon of virtue.

sobriety

N. moderation (esp. regarding indulgence in alcohol); seriousness. Neither falling-down drunks nor stand-up comics are noted for sobriety. sober, ADJ.

artifact

N. object made by human beings, either handmade or mass-produced. Archaeologists debated the significance of the artifacts discovered in the ruins of Asia Minor but came to no conclusion about the culture they represented.

phenomena

N. observable facts; subjects of scientific investigation. We kept careful records of the phenomena we noted in the course of these experiments.

procurement

N. obtaining. The personnel department handles the procurement of new employees.

eccentricity

N. oddity; idiosyncrasy. Some of his friends tried to account for his rudeness to strangers as the eccentricity of genius.

indignity

N. offensive or insulting treatment. Although he seemed to accept cheerfully the indignities heaped upon him, he was inwardly very angry.

gazette

N. official periodical publication. He read the gazettes regularly for the announcement of his promotion.

senility

N. old age; feeblemindedness of old age. Most of the decisions are being made by the junior members of the company because of the senility of the president. senile, ADJ.

augury

N. omen; prophecy. He interpreted the departure of the birds as an augury of evil. augur,V.

ellipsis

N. omission of words from a text. Sometimes an ellipsis can lead to a dangling modifier, as in the sentence "Once dressed, you should refrigerate the potato salad."

marsupial

N. one of a family of mammals that nurse their offspring in a pouch. The most common marsupial in North America is the opossum.

caste

N. one of the hereditary classes in Hindu society, social stratification; prestige. The differences created by caste in India must be wiped out if true democracy is to prevail in that country.

nihilist

N. one who believes traditional beliefs to be groundless and existence meaningless; absolute skeptic; revolutionary terrorist. In his final days, Hitler revealed himself a power-mad nihilist, ready to annihilate all of Western Europe, even to destroy Germany itself, in order that his will might prevail. The root of the word nihilist is nihil, Latin for nothing. nihilism, N.

malingerer

N. one who feigns illness to escape duty. The captain ordered the sergeant to punish all malingerers and force them to work. malinger,V.

optometrist

N. one who fits glasses to remedy visual defects. Although and optometrist is qualified to treat many eye disorders, she may not use medicines or surgery in her examinations.

convert

N. one who has adopted a different religion or opinion. On his trip to Japan, though the president spoke at length about the merits of American automobiles, he made few converts to his beliefs. also V.

misanthrope

N. one who hates mankind. In Gulliver's Travels, Swift portrays an image of humanity as vile, degraded beasts; for this reason, various critics consider him a misanthrope.

agnostic

N. one who is skeptical of the existence or knowability of a god or any ultimate reality. Agnostics say we can neither prove nor disprove the existence of god; we simply just can't know. alsoADJ.

liberator

N. one who sets free. Simon Bolivar, who led the South American colonies in their rebellion against Spanish rule, is known as the great liberator. liberate,V.

rift

N. opening; break. The plane was lost in the stormy sky until the pilot saw the city through a rift in the clouds.

aria

N. operatic solo. At her Metropolitan Opera audition, Marian Anderson sang an aria from Norma.

heresy

N. opinion contrary to popular belief; opinion contrary to accepted religion. Galileo's assertion that the earth moved around the sun directly contradicted the religious teachings of his day; as a result, he was tried for heresy. heretic, N.

converse

N. opposite. The inevitable converse of peace is not war but annihilation.

provenance

N. origin or source of something. I am not interested in its provenance; I am more concerned with its usefulness than with its source.

prototype

N. original work used as a model by others. The crude typewriter on display in this museum is the prototype of the elaborate machines in use today.

epaulet

N. ornament worn on the shoulder (of a uniform, etc). The shoulder loops on Sam Spade's trench coat are the nonmilitary counterparts of the fringed epaulets on George Washington's uniform.

frieze

N. ornamental band on a wall. The frieze of the church was adorned with sculpture.

brooch

N. ornamental clasp. She treasured the brooch because it was an heirloom.

denouement

N. outcome; final development of the plot of a play. The play was childishly written; the denouement was obvious to sophisticated theatergoers as early as the middle of the first act.

perimeter

N. outer boundary. To find the perimeter of any quadrilateral, we add the lengths of the four sides.

manifestation

N. outward demonstration; indication. Mozart's early attraction to the harpsichord was the first manifestation of his pronounced musical bent.

fresco

N. painting on plaster (usually fresh). The cathedral is visited by many tourists who wish to admire the frescoes by Giotto.

stickler

N. perfectionist; peson who insists things be exactly right. The Internal Revenue Service agent was a stickler for accuracy; no approximations or rough estimates would satisfy him.

epoch

N. period of time. The glacial epoch lasted for thousands of years.

sage

N. person celebrated for wisdom. Hearing tales of a mysterious Master of All Knowledge who lived in the hills of Tibet, Sandy was possessed with a burning desire to consult the legendary sage. also ADJ.

connoisseur

N. person competent to act as a judge of art, etc.; a lover of an art. Bernard Berenson, the American art critic and connoisseur of Italian art, was hired by wealthy art lovers to select paintings for their collections.

felon

N. person convicted of a grave crime. A convicted felon loses the right to vote.

reprobate

N. person hardened in sin, devoid of a sense of decency. I cannot understand why he has so many admirers if he is the reprobate you say he is.

extrovert

N. person interested mostly in external objects and actions. A good salesman is usually an extrovert, who likes to mingle with people.

magnate

N. person of prominence or influence. Growing up in Pittsburgh, Annie Dillard was surrounded by the mansions of the great steel and coal magnates who set their mark on that city.

supernumerary

N. person or thing in excess of what is necessary; extra. His first appearance on the stage was as a supernumerary in a Shakespearean tragedy.

numismatist

N. person who collects coins. The numismatist had a splendid collection of antique coins.

masochist

N. person who enjoys his own pain. The masochist begs, "Hit me." The sadist smiles and says, "I won't."

founder

N. person who establishes (an organization, business). Among those drowned when the Titanic sank was the founder of the Abraham & Straus department store.

kleptomaniac

N. person who has a compulsive desire to steal. They discovered that the wealthy customer was a kleptomaniac when they caught her stealing some cheap trinkets.

optimist

N. person who looks on the good side. The pessimist says the glass is half-empty; the optimist says it is half-full.

poseur

N. person who pretends to be sophisticated, elegant, etc., to impress others. Some thought Salvador Dali was a brilliant painter; others dismissed him as a poseur.

carping

N. petty criticism, finding fault. Welcoming constructive criticism, Lexy appreciated her editor's comments, finding them free of carping. also ADJ.

minutiae

N. petty details. She would have liked to ignore the minutiae of daily living.

graft

N. piece of transplanted tissue; portion of plant inserted in another plant. After the fire, Greg required skin grafts to replace the badly damaged areas on his forearms. also V.

conifer

N. pine tree; cone-bearing tree. According to geologists, the conifers were the first plants to bear flowers.

aphorism

N. pithy maxim. An aphorism differs from an adage in that it is more philosophical or scientific. "The proper study of mankind is man" is an aphorism. "There's no smoke without a fire" is an adage. aphoristic, ADJ.

apothegm

N. pithy, compact saying. Proverbs are apothegms that have become familiar sayings.

forum

N. place of assembly to discuss public concerns; meeting for discussion. The film opens with a shot of the ancient Forum in Rome, where several senators are discussing the strange new sect known as Christians. At the end of the movie, its director presided over a forum examining new fashions in filmmaking.

asylum

N. place of refuge or shelter; protection. The refugees sought asylum from religious persecution in a new land.

haven

N. place of safety; refuge. For Ricardo, the school library became his haven, a place to which he could retreat during chaotic times.

purgatory

N. place of spiritual expiation. In this purgatory, he could expect no help from his comrades.

arboretum

N. place where different varieties of trees and shrubs are studied and exhibited. Walking along the tree-lined paths of the arboretum, Rita noted poplars, firs, and some particularly fine sycamores.

itinerary

N. plan of a trip. Disliking sudden changes in plans when she traveled abroad, Ethel refused to make any alterations in her itinerary.

rostrum

N. platform for speech-making; pulpit. The crowd murmured angrily and indicated that they did not care to listen to the speaker who was approaching the rostrum.

scenario

N. plot outline; screenplay; opera libretto. Scaramouche startled the other actors in the commedia troupe when he suddenly departed from their customary scenario and began to improvise.

elegy

N. poem or song expressing lamentation. On the death of Edward King, Milton composed the elegy "Lycidas." elegiacal, ADJ.

solstice

N. point at which the sun is farthest from the equator. The winter solstice usually occurs on December 21.

perigee

N. point of moon's orbit when it is nearest the earth. The rocket which was designed to take photographs of the moon was launched as the moon approached its perigee.

matrix

N. point of origin; array of numbers or algebraic symbols; mold or die. Some historians claim the Nile Valley was the matrix of Western civilization.

materialism

N. preoccupation with physical comforts and things. By its nature, materialism is opposed to idealism, for where the materialist emphasizes the needs of the body, the idealist emphasizes the needs of the soul.

bluff

N. pretense (of strength); deception; high cliff. Claire thought Lord Byron's boast that he would swim the Hellespont was just a bluff; she was astounded when he dove from the high bluff into the waters below.

connivance

N. pretense of ignorance of something wrong; assistance; permission to offend. With the connivance of his friends, he plotted to embarrass the teacher. connive, v.

subterfuge

N. pretense; evasion. As soon as we realized that you had won our support by a subterfuge, we withdrew our endorsement of your candidacy.

mode

N. prevailing style; manner; way of doing something. The rock star had to have her hair done in the latest mode: frizzed, with occasional moussed spikes for variety. Henry plans to adopt a simpler mode of life: he is going to become a mushroom hunter and live off the land.

haughtiness

N. pride; arrogance. When she realized that Darcy believed himself too good to dance with his inferiors, Elizabeth took great offense at his haughtiness.

arrogance

N. pride; haughtiness. Convinced that Emma thought she was better than anyone else in the class, Ed rebuked her for her arrogance.

dilemma

N. problem; choice of two unsatisfactory alternatives. In this dilemma, he knew no one to whom he could turn for advice.

cornice

N. projecting molding on building (usually above columns). Because the stones forming the cornice had been loosened by the storms, the police closed the building until repairs could be made.

remonstrance

N. protest; objection. The authorities were deaf to the pastor's remonstrances about the lack of police protection in the area. remonstrate,V.

archives

N. public records; place where public records are kept. These documents should be part of the archives so that historians may be able to evaluate them in the future.

castigation

N. punishment; severe criticism. Sensitive even to mild criticism, Woolf could not bear the castigation that she found in certain reviews. Ben Jonson was a highly moral playwright: in his plays, his purpose was to castigate vice and hypocrisy by exposing them publicly.

catharsis

N. purging or cleansing of any passage of the body. Aristotle maintained that tragedy created a catharsis by purging the soul of base concepts.

timbre

N. quality of a musical tone produced by a musical instrument. We identify the instrument producing a musical sound by its timbre.

poignancy

N. quality of being deeply moving; keenness of emotion. Watching the tearful reunion of the long-separated mother and child, the social worker was touched by the poignancy of the scene. poignant, ADJ.

naiveté

N. quality of being unsophisticated; simplicity; artlessness; gullibility. Touched by the naivetd of sweet, convent-trained Cosette, Marius pledges himself to protect her innocence. naive, ADJ.

nostrum

N. questionable medicine. No quack selling nostrums is going to cheat me.

inquisitor

N. questioner (especially harsh); investigator. Fearing being grilled ruthlessly by the secret police, Masha faced her inquisitors with trepidation.

hydrophobia

N. rabies; fear of water. A dog that bites a human being must be observed for symptoms of hydrophobia.

ken

N. range of knowledge. I cannot answer your question since this matter is beyond my ken.

proliferation

N. rapid growth; spread; multiplication. Times of economic hardship inevitably encourage the proliferation of countless get-rich-quick schemes. proliferate,V.

scamp

N. rascal; a child, who is mischievous in a likable or amusing way. Despite his mischievous behavior, Malcolm was such an engaging scamp that his mother almost lacked the heart to punish him.

incidence

N. rate of occurrence; particular occurrence. Health professionals expressed great concern over the high incidence of infant mortality in major urban areas.

compliance

N. readiness to yield; conformity in fulfilling requirements. Bullheaded Bill was not noted for his easy compliance to the demands of others. As an architect, however, Bill recognized that his design for the new school had to be in compliance with the local building code.

lectern

N. reading desk. The chaplain delivered his sermon from a hastily improvised lectern.

insurrection

N. rebellion; uprising. In retrospect, given how badly the British treated the American colonists, the eventual insurrection seems inevitable.

repercussion

N. rebound; reverberation; reaction. I am afraid that this unfortunate incident will have serious repercussions.

recipient

N. receiver. Although he had been the recipient of many favors, he was not grateful to his benefactor.

log

N. record of a voyage or flight; record of day to day activities. "Flogged two seamen today for insubordination" wrote Captain Bligh in the Bounty's log. To see how much work I've accomplished recently, just take a look at the number of new files listed on my computer log.

sanctuary

N. refuge; shelter; shrine; holy place. The tiny attic was Helen's sanctuary to which she fled when she had to get away from the rest of her family.

defiance

N. refusal to yield; resistance. When John reached the "terrible two's," he responded to every parental request with howls of defiance. defy, V.

clime

N. region; climate. His doctor advised him to move to a milder clime.

residue

N. remainder; balance. In his will, he requested that after payment of debts, taxes, and funeral expenses, the residue be given to his wife. residual, ADJ.

redress

N. remedy; compensation. Do you mean to tell me that I can get no redress for my injuries? also v.

compunction

N. remorses; a feeling of guilt. The judge was especially severe in his sentencing because he felt that the criminal had shown no compunction for his heinous crime.

atavism

N. resemblance to remote ancestors rather than to parents; deformity returning after passage of two or more generations. The doctors ascribed the child's deformity to an atavism.

cistern

N. reservoir or water tank. The farmers were able to withstand the dry season by using rainwater they had stored in an underground cistern.

sedition

N. resistance to authority; insubordination. His words, though not treasonous in themselves, were calculated to arouse thoughts of sedition.

determination

N. resolve; measurement or calculation; decision. Nothing could shake his determination that his children would get the best education that money could buy. Thanks to my pocket calculator, my determination of the answer to the problem took only seconds of my time.

recourse

N. resorting to help when in trouble. The boy's only recourse was to appeal to his father for aid.

stricture

N. restriction; adverse criticism. Huck regularly disobeyed Miss Watson's rules and strictures upon his behavior: he wouldn't wear shoes, no matter what she said.

reprisal

N. retaliation. I am confident that we are ready for any reprisals the enemy may undertake.

brocade

N. rich, figured fabric. The sofar was covered with expensive brocade.

equestrian

N. rider on horseback. These paths in the park are reserved for equestrians and their steeds. also ADJ.

entitlement

N. right to claim something; right to benefits. While Bill was entitled to use a company car while he worked for the firm, the company's lawyers questioned his entitlement to the vehicle once he'd quit his job.

leeway

N. room to move; margin. When you set a deadline, allow a little leeway.

carrion

N. rotting flesh of a dead body. Buzzards are nature's scavengers; they eat the carrion left behind by other predators.

rotundity

N. roundness; sonorousness of speech. Washington Irving emphasized the rotundity of the governor by describing his height and circumference.

debris

N. rubble. A full year after the earthquake in Mexico City, they were still carting away the debris.

canon

N. rule or principle, frequently religious. "One catastrophe, one locality, one day" - these are Aristotle's rules for tragedy, and classic French plays strictly follow them; Shakespeare, however, disregards all these canons. A born rebel, Katya was constitutionally incapable of abiding by the canons of polite society.

emolument

N. salary; compensation. In addition to the emolument this position offers, you must consider the social prestige it carries with it.

monotony

N. sameness leading to boredom. What could be more deadly dull than the monotony of punching numbers into a computer hour after hour?

dearth

N. scarcity. The dearth of skilled labor compelled the employers to open trade schools.

pedant

N. scholar who overemphasizes book learning or technicalities. Her insistence that the book be memorized marked the teacher as a pedant rather than a scholar.

conservatory

N. school of the fine arts (especially music or drama). A gifted violinist, Marya was selected to study at the conservatory.

shrew

N. scolding woman. No one wanted to marry Shakespeare's Kate because she was a shrew.

crypt

N. secret recess or vault usually used for burial. Until recently only bodies of rulers and leading statesmen were interred in this crypt.

clip

N. section of filmed material. Phil's job at Fox Sports involved selecting clips of the day's sporting highlights for later broadcast. also V.

collateral

N. security given for loan. The sum you wish to borrow is so large that it must be secured by collateral.

sophistry

N. seemingly plausible but fallacious reasoning. Instead of advancing valid arguments, he tried to overwhelm his audience with a flood of sophistries.

excerpt

N. selected passage (written or musical). The cinematic equivalent of an excerpt from a novel is a clip from a film. also V.

reserve

N. self-control; formal but distant manner. Although some girls were attracted by Mark's air of reserve, Judy was put off by it, for she felt his aloofness indicated a lack of openness. reserved, ADJ.

pulsate

V. throb. We could see the blood vessels in his temple pulsate as he became more angry.

pomposity

N. self-important behavior; acting like a stuffed shirt. Although the commencement speaker had some good things to say, we had to laugh at his pomposity and general air of parading his own dignity. POMPOUS, ADJ.

penance

N. self-imposed punishment for sin. The Ancient Mariner said, "I have penance done and penance more will do." to atone for the sin of killing the albatross.

continence

N. self-restraint; sexual chastity. At the convent, Connie vowed to lead a life of continence. The question was, could Connie be content with always being continent?

complacency

N. self-satisfaction; smugness. Full of complacency about his latest victories, he looked smugly at the row of trophies on his mantelpiece. complacent, ADJ.

sentinel

N. sentry; lookout. Though camped in enemy territory, Bledsoe ignored the elementary precaution of posting sentinels around the encampment.

sect

N. separate religious body; faction. As university chaplain, she sought to address universal religious issues and not limit herself to the concerns of any one sect. sectarian, ADJ.

gravity

N. seriousness. We could tell we were in serious trouble from the gravity of the principal's expression. (secondary meaning) grave, ADJ.

homily

N. sermon; serious warning. His speeches were always homilies, advising his listeners to repent and reform. homiletic, ADJ.

sycophant

N. servile flatterer; bootlicker; yes man. Fed up with the toadies and flunkies who made up his entourage, the star cried, "Get out, all of you! I'm sick of sycophants!" sycophancy, N.

reprobation

N. severe disapproval. The students showed their reprobation of his act by refusing to talk with him.

penury

N. severe poverty; stinginess. When his pension fund failed, George feared he would end his days in penury. He became such a penny pincher that he turned into a closefisted, penurious miser.

hovel

N. shack; small, wretched house. He wondered how poor people could stand living in such a hovel.

nuance

N. shade of difference in meaning or color; subtle distinction. Jody gazed at the Monet landscape for an hour, appreciating every subtle nuance of color in the painting.

effrontery

N. shameless boldness. She had the effrontery to insult the guest.

acclivity

N. sharp upslope of a hill. The car would not go up the acclivity in high gear.

carapace

N. shell covering the back (of a turtle, crab, etc.). At the children's zoo, Richard perched on top of the giant turtle's hard carapace as the creature slowly made its way around the enclosure.

catcall

N. shout of disapproval; boo. Every major league pitcher has off days during which he must learn to ignore the catcalls and angry hisses from the crowd.

scintilla

N. shred; least bit. You have not produced a scintilla of evidence to support your argument.

diffidence

N. shyness. You must overcome your diffidence if you intend to become a salesperson.

portent

N. sign; omen; forewarning. He regarded the black cloud as a portent of evil.

analogy

N. similarity; parallelism. A well-known analogy compares the body's immune system with an army whose defending troops are the lymphocytes or white blood cells.

incantation

N. singing or chanting of magic spells; magical formula. Uttering incantations to make the brew more potent, the witch doctor stirred the liquid in the caldron.

obloquy

N. slander; disgrace; infamy. I resent the obloquy that you are casting upon my reputation.

detraction

N. slandering; aspersion. He is offended by your frequent detractions of his ability as a leader.

servitude

N. slavery; compulsory labor. Born a slave, Frederick Douglass resented his life of servitude and plotted to escape to the North.

somnambulist

N. sleepwalker. The most famous somnambulist in literature is Lady Macbeth; her monologue in the sleepwalking scene is one of the highlights of Shakespeare's play.

legerdemain

N. sleight of hand. The magician demonstrated his renowned legerdemain.

smattering

N. slight knowledge. I don't know whether it is better to be ignorant of a subject or to have a mere smattering of information about it.

peccadillo

N. slight offense. When Peter Piper picked a peck of Polly Potter's pickles, did Pete commit a major crime or just a peccadillo?

canter

N. slow gallop. Because the racehorse had outdistanced its competition so easily, the reporter wrote that the race was won in a canter. also V.

stealth

N. slyness; sneakiness; secretiveness. Fearing detection by the sentries on duty, the scout inched his way toward the enemy camp with great stealth.

dinghy

N. small boat (often ship's boat). In the film Lifeboat, an ill-assorted group of passengers from a sunken ocean liner are marooned at sea in a dinghy.

clique

N. small exclusive group. Fitzgerald wished that he belonged to the clique of popular athletes and big men on campus who seemed to run Princeton's social life.

cabal

N. small group of persons secretly united to promote their own interests. The cabal was defeated when their scheme was discovered.

debacle

N. sudden downfall; complete disaster. In the Airplane movies, every flight turns into a debacle, with passengers and crew members collapsing, engines falling apart, and carry-on baggage popping out of the overhead bins.

spate

N. sudden flood or strong outburst; a large number or amount. After the spate of angry words that came pouring out of him, Mary was sure they would never be reconciled.

caprice

N. sudden, unexpected fancy; whim. On a caprice, Jack tried drag-racing, but paid the price-his father took his Chevy Caprice away from him.

connotation

N. suggested or implied meaning of an expression. Foreigners frequently are unaware of the connotations of the words they use.

aureole

N. sun's corona; halo. Many medieval paintings depict saintly characters with aureoles around their heads.

codicil

N. supplement to the body of a will. Miss Havisham kept her lawyers busy drawing up codicils to add to her already complicated will.

advocacy

N. support; active pleading on something's behalf. No threats could dissuade Bishop Desmond Tutu from his advocacy of the human rights of black South Africans.

constituent

N. supporter. The congressman received hundreds of letters from angry constituents after the Equal Rights Amendment failed to pass.

proponent

N. supporter; backer; opposite of opponent. In the Senate, proponents of the universal health care measure lobbied to gain additional support for the controversial legislation.

adherent

N. supporter; follower. In the wake of the scandal, the senator's one-time adherents quickly deserted him.

strut

N. supporting bar. The engineer calculated that the strut supporting the rafter needed to be reinforced. (secondary meaning)

extradition

N. surrender of prisoner by one state to another. The lawyers opposed the extradition of their client on the grounds that for more than five years he had been a model citizen.

reconnaissance

N. survey of enemy by soldiers; reconnoitering. If you encounter any enemy soldiers during your reconnaissance, capture them for questioning.

relic

N. surviving remnant; memento. Egypt's Department of Antiquities prohibits tourists from taking mummies and other ancient relics out of the country. Mike keeps his photos of his trip to Egypt in a box with other relics of his travels.

miasma

N. swamp gas; heavy, vaporous atmosphere, often emanating from decaying matter; pervasive corrupting influence. The smog hung over Victorian London like a dark cloud; noisome, reeking of decay, it was a visible miasma.

phoenix

N. symbol of immortality or rebirth. Like the legendary phoenix rising from its ashes, the city of San Francisco rose again after its destruction during the 1906 earthquake.

ideology

N. system of ideas of a group. For people who had grown up believing in the communist ideology, it was hard to adjust to capitalism.

flair

N. talent. She has an uncanny flair for discovering new artists before the public has become aware of their existence.

obelisk

N. tall column tapering and ending in a pyramid. Cleopatra's Needle is an obelisk in New York City's Central Park.

prey

N. target of a hunt; victim. In Stalking the Wild Asparagus, Euell Gibbons has as his prey not wild beasts but wild plants. also V.

quip

N. taunt. You are unpopular because you are too free with your quips and sarcastic comments. also V.

tithe

N. tax of one-tenth. Because he was an agnostic, he refused to pay his tithes to the clergy. also V.

sophist

N. teacher of philosophy; quibbler; employer of fallacious reasoning. You are using all the devices of a sophist in trying to prove your case; your argument is specious.

pedagogue

N. teacher. He could never be a stuffy pedagogue; his classes were always lively and filled with humor.

pedagogy

N. teaching; art of education. Though Maria Montessori gained fame for her innovations in pedagogy, it took years before her teaching techniques were common practice in American schools.

doctrine

N. teachings, in general; particular principle (religious, legal, etc.) taught. He was so committed to the doctrines of his faith that he was unable to evaluate them impartially.

incursion

N. temporary invasion. The nightly incursions and hit-and-run raids of our neighbors across the border tried the patience of the country to the point where we decided to retaliate in force.

enclave

N. territory enclosed within an alien land. The Vatican is an independent enclave in Italy.

libretto

N. text of an opera. The composer of an opera's music is remembered more frequently than the author of its libretto.

Occident

N. the West. It will take time for the Occident to understand the ways and customs of the Orient.

prosody

N. the art of versification. This book on prosody contains a rhyming dictionary as well as samples of the various verse forms.

intelligentsia

N. the intelligent and educated classes [often used derogatorily]. She preferred discussions about sports and politics to the literary conversations of the intelligentsia.

ambivalence

N. the state of having contradictory or conflicting emotional attitudes. Torn between loving her parents one minute and hating them the next, she was confused by the ambivalence of her feelings. ambivalent,ADJ.

quisling

N. traitor who aids invaders. In his conquest of Europe, Hitler was aided by the quislings who betrayed their own people and served in the puppet governments established by the Nazis.

rendition

N. translation; artistic interpretation of a song, etc. The audience cheered enthusiastically as she completed her rendition of the aria.

hoax

N. trick; practical joke. Embarrassed by the hoax, he reddened and left the room. also V.

chicanery

N. trickery; deception. Those sneaky lawyers misrepresented what occurred, made up all sorts of implausible alternative scenarios to confuse the jurors, and in general depended on chicanery to win the case.

junket

N. trip, especially one taken for pleasure by an official at public expense. Though she maintained she had gone abroad to collect firsthand data on the Common Market, the opposition claimed that her trip was merely a political junket.

jaunt

N. trip; short journey. He took a quick jaunt to Atlantic City.

confidant

N. trusted friend. He had no confidants with whom he could discuss his problems at home.

kaleidoscope

N. tube in which patterns made by the reflection in mirrors of colored pieces of glass, etc., produce interesting symmetrical effects. People found a new source of entertainment while peering through the kaleidoscope; they found the ever-changing patterns fascinating.

contortions

N. twistings; distortions. As the effects of the opiate wore away, the contortions of the patient became more violent and demonstrated how much pain she was enduring.

coincidence

N. two or more things occurring at the same time by chance. Was it just a coincidence that John and she had chanced to meet at the market for three days running, or was he deliberately trying to seek her out? coincidental, ADJ.

ethos

N. underlying character of a culture, group, etc. Seeing how tenderly ordinary Spaniards treated her small daughter made author Barbara Kingsolver aware of how greatly children were valued in the Spanish ethos.

litotes

N. understatement for emphasis. To say, "He little realizes," when we mean that he does not realize at all, is an example of the kind of understatement we call litotes.

mortician

N. undertaker. The mortician prepared the corpse for burial.

malaise

N. uneasiness; vague feeling of ill health. Feeling slightly queasy before going onstage, Carol realized that this touch of malaise was merely stage fright.

hostility

N. unfriendliness; hatred. A child who has been the sole object of his parents' affection often feels hostility toward a new baby in the family, resenting the newcomer who has taken his place.

consolidation

N. unification; process of becoming firmer or stronger. The recent consolidation of several small airlines into one major company has left observers of the industry wondering whether room still exists for the "little guy" in aviation. consolidate, V.

fusion

N. union; coalition. The opponents of the political party in power organized a fusion of disgruntled groups and became an important element in the election.

fluke

N. unlikely occurrence; stroke of fortune. When Dou- glas defeated Tyson for the heavyweight championship, some sportscasters dismissed his victory as a fluke.

tautology

N. unnecessary repetition. "Joyful happiness" is an illustration of tautology.

mirage

N. unreal reflection; optical illusion. The lost prospector was fooled by a mirage in the desert.

knave

N. untrustworthy person; rogue; scoundrel. Any politician nicknamed Tricky Dick clearly has the reputation of a knave. knavery, N.

disinclination

N. unwillingness. Some mornings I feel a great disinclination to get out of bed

cataclysm

N. upheaval; deluge. A cataclysm such as the French Revolution affects all countries. cataclysmic, ADJ.

integrity

N. uprightness; wholeness. Lincoln, whose personal integrity has inspired millions, fought a civil war to maintain the integrity of the Republic, that these United States might remain undivided for all time.

suavity

N. urbanity; polish. The elegant actor is particularly good in roles that require suavity and sophistication.

summit

N. utmost height or pinnacle; highest point (of a mountain, etc.) The summit of the amateur mountain climber's aspirations was someday to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

generality

N. vague statement. This report is filled with generalities; be more specific in your statements.

conceit

N. vanity or self-love; whimsical idea; extravagant metaphor. Although Jack was smug and puffed up with conceit, he was an entertaining companion, always expressing himself in amusing conceits and witty turns of phrase.

diversity

N. variety; dissimilitude. The diversity of colleges in this country indicates that many levels of ability are being cared for.

isotope

N. varying form of an element. The study of the isotopes of uranium led to the development of the nuclear bomb.

conveyance

N. vehicle; transfer. During the transit strike, commuters used various kinds of conveyances.

retribution

N. vengeance; compensation; punishment for offenses. The evangelist maintained that an angry deity would exact retribution from the sinners.

myriad

N. very large number. Myriads of mosquitoes from the swamps invaded our village every twilight. alsoADJ.

chagrin

N. vexation (caused by humiliation or injured pride); disappointment. Embarrassed by his parents' shabby, working-class appearance, Doug felt their visit to his school would bring him nothing but chagrin. Someone filled with chagrin doesn't grin: he's too mortified.

onslaught

N. vicious assault. We suffered many casualties during the unexpected onslaught of the enemy troops.

quarry

N. victim; object of a hunt. The police closed in on their quarry.

throes

N. violent anguish. The throes of despair can be as devastating as the spasms accompanying physical pain.

mural

N. wall painting. The walls of the Chicano Community Center are covered with murals painted in the style of Diego Rivera, the great Mexican artist.

digression

N. wandering away from the subject. Nobody minded when Professor Renoir's lectures wandered away from their official theme; his digressions were always more fascinating than the topic of the day. digress, V.

admonition

N. warning. After the student protesters repeatedly rejected Chairman Deng's admonitions, the government issued an ultimatum: either the students would end the demonstration at once or the soldiers would fire on the crowd.

ablution

N. washing. His daily ablutions were accompanied by loud noises that he humorously labeled "Opera in the Bath."

dross

N. waste matter; worthless impurities. Many methods have been devised to separate the valuable metal from the dross.

atrophy

N. wasting away. Polio victims need physiotherapy to prevent the atrophy of affected limbs. alsoV.

surveillance

N. watching; guarding. The FBI kept the house under constant surveillance in the hope of capturing all the criminals at one time,

infirmity

N. weakness. Her greatest infirmity was lack of willpower.

foible

N. weakness; slight fault. We can overlook the foibles of our friends; no one is perfect.

maelstrom

N. whirlpool. The canoe was tossed about in the maelstrom.

pandemonium

N. wild tumult. When the ships collided in the harbor, pandemonium broke out among the passengers.

dormer

N. window projecting from roof. In remodeling the attic into a bedroom, we decided that we needed to put in dormers to provide sufficient ventilation for the new room.

secession

N. withdrawal. The secession of the Southern states provided Lincoln with his first major problem after his inauguration. secede, V.

recession

N. withdrawal; retreat; time of low economic activity. The slow recession of the flood waters created problems for the crews working to restore power to the area. recede,V.

epigram

N. witty thought or saying, usually short. Poor Richard's epigrams made Benjamin Franklin famous.

fleece

N. wool coat of a sheep. They shear sheep of their fleece, which they then comb into separate strands of wool.

opus

N. work. Although many critics hailed his Fifth Symphony as his major work, he did not regard it as his major opus.

shambles

N. wreck; mess. After the hurricane, the Carolina coast was a shambles. After the New Year's Eve party, the apartment was a shambles.

context

N. writings preceding and following the passage quoted. Because these lines are taken out of context, they do not convey the message the author intended.

affidavit

N. written statement made under oath. The court refused to accept his statement unless he presented it in the form of an affidavit.

misnomer

N. wrong name; incorrect designation. His tyrannical conduct proved to all that his nickname, King Eric the Just, was a misnomer.

debutante

N. young woman making formal entrance into society. As a debutante, she was often mentioned in the society columns of the newspapers.

allocate

V. assign. Even though the Red Cross had allocated a large sum for the relief of the sufferers of the disaster, many people perished.

absorb

V. assimilate or incorporate; suck or drink up; wholly engage. During the nineteenth century, America absorbed hordes of immigrants, turning them into productive citizens. Can Huggies diapers absorb more liquid than Pampers can? This question does not absorb me; instead, it bores me. absorption, N.

consort

V. associate with. We frequently judge people by the company with whom they consort.

append

V. attach. When you append a bibliography to a text, you have just created an appendix.

annex

V. attach; take possession of. Mexico objected to the United States' attempts to annex the territory that later became the state of Texas.

impale

V. Pierce. He was impaled by the spear hurled by his adversary.

renounce

V. abandon; disown; repudiate. Even though she knew she would be burned at the stake as a witch, Joan of Arc refused to renounce her belief that her voices came from God. renunciation, N.

refrain

V. abstain from; resist. Whenever he heard a song with a lively chorus, Sol could never refrain from joining in on the refrain.

incriminate

V. accuse. The evidence gathered against the racketeers incriminates some high public officials as well.

habituate

V. accustom or familiarize; addict. Macbeth gradually habituated himself to murder, shedding his scruples as he grew accustomed to his bloody deeds.

attain

V. achieve or accomplish; gain. The scarecrow sought to attain one goal: he wished to obtain a brain.

arbitrate

V. act as judge. She was called upon to arbitrate the dispute between the union and the management.

embellish

V. adorn; ornament. The costume designer embellished the leading lady's ball gown with yards and yards of ribbon and lace.

concur

V. agree. Did you concur with the decision of the court or did you find it unfair?

accede

V. agree. If I accede to this demand for blackmail, I am afraid that I will be the victim of future demands.

assent

V. agree; accept. It gives me great pleasure to assentto your request.

jibe

V. agree; be in harmony with. Moe says Curly started the fight; Curly insists it was Moe. Their stories just don't jibe.

abet

V. aid, usually in doing something wrong; encourage. She was unwilling to abet him in the swindle he had planned.

disport

V. amuse. The popularity of Florida as a winter resort is constantly increasing; each year, thousands more disport themselves at Miami and Palm Beach.

assay

V. analyze; evaluate. When they assayed the ore, they found that they had discovered a very rich vein. also N.

accost

V. approach and speak first to a person. When the two young men accosted me, I was frightened because I thought they were going to attack me.

ratify

V. approve formally; confirm; verify. Party leaders doubted that they had enough votes in both houses of Congress to ratify the constitutional amendment.

sanction

V. approve; ratify. Nothing will convince me to sanction the engagement of my daughter to such a worthless young man.

endorse

V. approve; support. Everyone waited to see which one of the rival candidates for the city council the mayor would endorse. (secondary meaning) endorsement, N.

countenance

V. approve; tolerate. Miss Manners refused to countenance such rude behavior on their part.

haggle

V. argue about prices. I prefer to shop in a store that has a one-price policy because, whenever I haggle with a shopkeeper, I am never certain that I paid a fair price for the articles I purchased.

codify

V. arrange (laws, rules) as a code; classify. We need to take the varying rules and regulations of the different health agencies and codify them into a national health code.

attribute

V. ascribe; explain. I attribute her success in science to the encouragement she received from her parents.

assail

V. assault. He was assailed with questions after his lecture.

compile

V. assemble; gather; accumulate. We planned to compile a list of words most frequently used on the GRE.

acquiesce

V. assent; agree without protesting. Although she appeared to acquiesce to her employer's suggestions, I could tell she had reservations about the changes he wanted made. acquiescence, N.; acquiescent, ADJ.

aver

V. assert confidently or declare; as used in law, state formally as a fact. The self-proclaimed psychic averred that, because he had extrasensory perception on which to base his predictions, he needed no seismographs or other gadgets in order to foretell earthquakes.

dote

V. be excessively fond of; show signs of mental decline. Not only grandmothers bore you with stories about their brilliant grandchildren; grandfathers dote on the little rascals, too. Poor old Alf clearly doted: the senile old dotard was past it; in fact, he was in his dotage.

behoove

V. be necessary or proper for; be incumbent upon. Because the interest of the ruler and the ruled are incompatible, it behooves the ruler to trust no one; to be suspicious of sycophants; to permit no one to gain undue power or influence; and, above all, to use guile to unearth plots against the throne.

swelter

V. be oppressed by heat. I am going to buy an air conditioning unit for my apartment as I do not intend to swelter through another hot and humid summer.

appreciate

V. be thankful for; increase in worth; be thoroughly conscious of. Little Orphan Annie truly appreciated the stocks Daddy Warbucks gave her, which appreciated in value considerably over the years.

pummel

V. beat or pound with fists. Swinging wildly, Pam pummeled her brother around the head and shoulders.

lambaste

V. beat; thrash verbally or physically. It was painful to watch the champion lambaste his opponent, tearing into him mercilessly.

betroth

V. become engaged to marry. The announcement that they had become betrothed surprised their friends who had not suspected any romance. betrothal, N.

ingratiate

V. become popular with. He tried to ingratiate himself into her parents' good graces.

cadge

V. beg; mooch; panhandle. While his car was in the shop, Bob had to cadge a ride to work each day. Unwilling to be a complete moocher, however, he offered to pay for the gas.

beseech

V. beg; plead with. The workaholic executive's wife beseeched him to spend more time with their son.

beleaguer

V. besiege or attack; harassed. The babysitter was surrounded by a crowd of unmanageable brats who relentlessly beleaguered her.

mystify

V. bewilder purposely. When doctors speak in medical jargon, they often mystify their patients, who have little knowledge of medical terminology.

indenture

V. bind as servant or apprentice to master. Many immigrants could come to America only after they had indentured themselves for several years. also N.

denigrate

V. blacken. All attempts to denigrate the character of our late president have failed; the people still love him and cherish his memory.

blanch

V. bleach; whiten. Although age had blanched his hair, he was still vigorous and energetic.

beatify

V. bless or sanctify; proclaim someone dead to be one of the blessed. In 1996 Pope John Paul II traveled to Belgium to beatify Joseph De Veuster, better known as Father Damien, who died in 1889 after caring for lepers in Hawaii. How can you tell the pope from a cosmetologist? A cosmetologist beautifies someone living; the Pope beatifies someone dead.

bluster

V. blow in heavy gusts; threaten emptily; bully. "Let the stormy winds bluster," cried Jack, "we'll set sail tonight." Jill let Jack bluster. she wasn't going anywhere, no matter what he said.

abut

V. border upon; adjoin. Where our estates abut, we must build a fence.

compendium

V. brief, comprehensive summary. This text can serve as a compendium of the tremendous amount of new material being developed in this field.

nonplus

V. bring to halt by confusion; perplex. Jack's uncharacteristic rudeness nonplussed Jill, leaving her uncertain how to react.

incur

V. bring upon oneself. His parents refused to pay any future debts he might incur.

amplify

V. broaden or clarify by expanding; intensify; make stronger. Charlie Brown tried to amplify his remarks, but he was drowned out by jeers from the audience. Lucy was smarter: she used a loudspeaker to amplify her voice.

encumber

V. burden. Some people encumber themselves with too much luggage when they take short trips.

cauterize

V. burn with hot iron or caustic. In order to prevent infection, the doctor cauterized the wound.

smolder

V. burn without flame; be liable to break out at any moment. The rags smoldered for hours before they burst into flame.

implode

V. burst inward. If you break a vacuum tube, the glass tube implodes, implosion, N.

convoke

V. call together. Congress was convoked at the outbreak of the emergency. convocation, N.

negate

V. cancel out; nullify; deny. A sudden surge of adrenalin can negate the effects of fatigue: there's nothing like a good shock to wake you up.

revoke

V. cancel; retract. Repeat offenders who continue to drive under the influence of alcohol face having their driver's licenses permanently revoked.

enthrall

V. capture; enslave. From the moment he saw her picture, he was enthralled by her beauty.

slough

V. cast off. Each spring, the snake sloughs off its skin.

descry

V. catch sight of. In the distance, we could barely descry the enemy vessels.

pander

V. cater to the low desires of others. The reviewer accused the makers of Lethal Weapon of pandering to the masses' taste for violence.

stultify

V. cause to appear or become stupid or inconsistent; frustrate or hinder. His long hours in the blacking factory left young Dickens numb and incurious, as if the menial labor had stultified his brain.

germinate

V. cause to sprout; sprout. After the seeds germinate and develop their permanent leaves, the plants may be removed from the cold frames and transplanted to the garden.

engender

V. cause; produce. To receive praise for real accomplishments engenders self-confidence in a child.

prompt

V. cause; provoke; provide a cue for an actor. Whatever prompted you to ask for such a big piece of cake when you're on a diet?

ossify

V. change or harden into bone. When he called his opponent a "bonehead," he implied that his adversary's brain had ossified to the point that he was incapable of clear thinking.

gerrymander

V. change voting district lines in order to favor a political party. The illogical pattern of the map of this congressional district is proof that the state legislature gerrymandered this area in order to favor the majority party. also N.

captivate

V. charm or enthrall. Bart and Lisa were captivated by their new nanny's winning manner.

babble

V. chatter idly. The little girl babbled about her doll. also N.

jabber

V. chatter rapidly or unintelligibly. Why does the fellow insist on jabbering away in French when I can't understand a word he says?

cozen

V. cheat; hoodwink; swindle. He was the kind of individual who would cozen his friends in a cheap card game but remain eminently ethical in all his business dealing.

stem

V. check, stop or restrict the flow of something. The paramedic used a tourniquet to stem the bleeding from the slashed artery.

ruminate

V. chew over and over (mentally, or, like cows, physically); mull over; ponder. Unable to digest quickly the baffling events of the day, Reuben ruminated about them till four in the morning.

masticate

V. chew. We must masticate our food carefully and slowly in order to avoid digestive disorders.

expurgate

V. clean; remove offensive parts of a book. The editors felt that certain passages in the book had to be expurgated before it could be used in the classroom.

array

V. clothe; adorn. She liked to watch her mother array herself in her finest clothes before going out for the evening. also N.

compound

V. combine; constitute; pay interest; increase. The makers of the popular cold remedy compounded a nasal decongestant with an antihistamine. also N.

coalesce

V. combine; fuse. The brooks coalesce into one large river. When minor political parties coalesce, their coalescence may create a major coalition.

amalgamate

V. combine; unite in one body. The unions will attempt to amalgamate their groups into one national body.

accrue

V. come about by addition. You must pay the interest that has accrued on your debt as well as the principal sum. accrual, N.

memorialize

V. commemorate. Let us memorialize his great contribution by dedicating this library in his honor.

embark

V. commence; go on board a boat or airplane; begin a journey. In devoting herself to the study of gorillas, Dian Fossey embarked on a course of action that was to cost her her life.

perpetrate

V. commit an offense. Only an insane person could perpetrate such a horrible crime.

improvise

V. compose on the spur of the moment. She would sit at the piano and improvise for hours on themes from Bach and Handel.

fathom

V. comprehend; investigate. I find his motives impossible to fathom; in fact, I'm totally clueless about what goes on in his mind.

denounce

V. condemn; criticize. The reform candidate denounced the corrupt city officers for having betrayed the public's trust. denunciation, N.

abridge

V. condense or shorten. Because the publishers felt the public wanted a shorter version of War and Peace, they proceeded to abridge the novel.

deign

V. condescend; stoop. The celebrated fashion designer would not deign to speak to a mere seamstress; his overburdened assistant had to convey the master's wishes to the lowly workers assembling his great designs.

corroborate

V. confirm; support. Though Huck was quite willing to corroborate Tom's story, Aunt Polly knew better than to believe either of them.

fluster

V. confuse. The teacher's sudden question flustered him and he stammered his reply.

disconcert

V. confuse; upset; embarrass. The lawyer was disconcerted by the evidence produced by her adversary.

contravene

V. contradict; oppose; infringe on or transgress. Mr. Barrett did not expect his frail daughter Elizabeth to contravene his will by eloping with Robert Browning.

debauch

V. corrupt; seduce from virtue. Did Socrates' teachings lead the young men of Athens to be virtuous citizens, or did they debauch the young men, causing them to question the customs of their fathers? Clearly, Socrates' philosophical talks were nothing like the wild debauchery of the toga parties in Animal House.

pan

V. criticize harshly. Hoping for a rave review of his new show, the playwright was miserable when the critics panned it unanimously.

ordain

V. decree or command; grant holy orders; predestine. The king ordained that no foreigner should be allowed to enter the city. The Bishop of Michigan ordained David a deacon in the Episcopal Church. The young lovers felt that fate had ordained their meeting.

infer

V. deduce; conclude. From the students' glazed looks, it was easy for me to infer that they were bored out of their minds. inference, N.

discredit

V. defame; destroy confidence in; disbelieve. The campaign was highly negative in tone; each candidate tried to discredit the other.

tarry

V. delay; dawdle. We can't tarry if we want to get to the airport on time.

renege

V. deny; go back on. He reneged on paying off his debt.

disenfranchise

V. deprive of a civil right. The imposition of the poll tax effectively disenfranchised poor Southern blacks, who lost their right to vote.

forsake

V. desert; abandon; renounce. No one expected Foster to forsake his wife and children and run off with another woman.

obliterate

V. destroy completely. The tidal wave obliterated several island villages,

abhor

V. detest; hate. She abhorred all forms of bigotry. abhorrence, N.

quarry

V. dig into. They quarried blocks of marble out of the hillside. also N.

disinter

V. dig up; unearth. They disinterred the body and held an autopsy.

delve

V. dig; investigate. Delving into old books and manuscripts is part of a researcher's job.

sap

V. diminish; undermine. The element kryptonite has an unhealthy effect on Superman: it saps his strength.

address

V. direct a speech to; deal with or discuss. Due to address the convention in July, Brown planned to address the issue of low-income housing in his speech.

exude

V. discharge; give forth. We get maple syrup from the sap that exudes from the trees in early spring. exudation, N.

recant

V. disclaim or disavow; retract a previous statement; openly confess error. Those who can, keep true to their faith; those who can't, recant. Hoping to make Joan of Arc recant her sworn testimony, her English captors tried to convince her that her visions had been sent to her by the Devil.

faze

V. disconcert; dismay. No crisis could faze the resourceful hotel manager.

dishearten

V. discourage; cause to lose courage or hope. His failure to pass the bar exam disheartened him.

descant

V. discuss fully. He was willing to descant upon any topic of conversation, even when he knew very little about the subject under discussion. also N.

dissemble

V. disguise; pretend. Even though John tried to dissemble his motive for taking modern dance, we all knew he was there not to dance but to meet girls.

disclaim

V. disown, renounce claim to. If I grant you this privilege, will you disclaim all other rights?

flaunt

V. display ostentatiously. Mae West saw nothing wrong with showing off her considerable physical charms, saying, "Honey, if you've got it, flaunt it!"

discount

V. disregard; dismiss. Be prepared to discount what he has to say about his ex-wife.

perturb

V. disturb greatly. The thought that electricity might be leaking out of the empty light bulb sockets perturbed my aunt so much that at night she crept about the house screwing fresh bulbs in the vacant spots. perturbation, N.

ramify

V. divide into branches or subdivisions. When the plant begins to ramify, it is advisable to nip off most of the new branches.

partition

V. divide into parts. Before their second daughter was born, Jason and Lizzie decided each child needed a room of her own, and so they partitioned a large bedroom into two small but separate rooms. also N.

bedizen

V. dress with vulgar finery. The witch doctors were bedizened in all their gaudiest costumes.

impel

V. drive or force onward. A strong feeling of urgency impelled her; if she failed to finish the project right then, she knew that she would never get it done.

ferret

V. drive or hunt out of hiding. She ferreted out their secret.

flag

V. droop; grow feeble. When the opposing hockey team scored its third goal only minutes into the first quarter, the home team's spirits flagged. flagging, ADJ.

assuage

V. ease or lessen (pain); satisfy (hunger); soothe (anger). Jilted by Jane, Dick tried to assuage his heartache by indulging in ice cream. One gallon later, he had assuaged his appetite but not his grief.

reek

V. emit (odor). The room reeked with stale tobacco smoke. also N.

embed

V. enclose; place in something. Tales of actual historical figures like King Alfred have become embedded in legends.

encipher

V. encode; convert a message into code. One of Bond's first lessons was how to encipher the messages he sent to Miss Moneypenny so that none of his other lady friends could decipher them.

jeopardize

V. endanger; imperil; put at risk. You can't give me a D in chemistry: you'll jeopardize my chances of getting into M.I.T. jeopardy, N.

explicate

V. explain; interpret; clarify. Harry Levin explicated James Joyce's often bewildering novels with such clarity that even Finnegan's Wake seemed comprehensible to his students.

condole

V. express sympathetic sorrow. His friends gathered to condole with him over his loss. condolence, N.

bowdlerize

V. expurgate. After the film editors had bowdlerized the language in the script, the motion picture's rating was changed from "R" to "PG."

quell

V. extinguish; put down; quiet. Miss Minchin's demeanor was so stern and forbidding that she could quell any unrest among her students with one intimidating glance.

ravel

V. fall apart into tangles; unravel or untwist; entangle. A single thread pulled loose, and the entire scarf started to ravel.

plummet

V. fall sharply. Stock prices plummeted as Wall Street reacted to the crisis in the economy.

fabricate

V. falsify; make up; lie. If we fabricate the buildings in this project out of standardized sections, we can reduce construction costs considerably. Because of Jack's tendency to fabricate, Jill had trouble believing a word he said.

splice

V. fasten together; unite. Before you splice two strips of tape together, be sure to line them up evenly. also N.

affix

V. fasten; attach; add on. First the registrar had to affix her signature to the license; then she had to affix her official seal.

simulate

V. feign. He simulated insanity in order to avoid punishment for his crime.

replenish

V. fill up again. Before she could take another backpacking trip, Carla had to replenish her stock of freeze-dried foods.

ascertain

V. find out for certain. Please ascertain her present address.

flit

V. fly; dart lightly; pass swiftly by. Like a bee flitting from flower to flower, Rose flitted from one boyfriend to the next.

balk

V. foil; When the warden learned that several inmates were planning to escape, he took steps to balk their attempt.

ensue

V. follow as a consequence; result. What a holler would ensue if people had to pay the minister as much to marry them as they have to pay a lawyer to get them a divorce. (Claire Trevor)

extrude

V. force or push out. Much pressure is required to extrude these plastics.

presage

V. foretell. The vultures flying overhead presaged the discovery of the corpse in the desert.

intimidate

V. frighten. I'll learn karate and then those big bullies won't be able to intimidate me any more.

baffle

V. frustrate; perplex. The new code baffled the enemy agents.

aggregate

V. gather; accumulate. Before the Wall Street scandals, dealers in so-called junk bonds managed to aggregate great wealth in short periods of time. aggregation, N.

garner

V. gather; store up. She hoped to garner the world's literature in one library.

orient

V. get one's bearings; adjust. Philip spent his first day in Denver orienting himself to the city.

misrepresent

V. give a false or incorrect impression, often deliberately; serve unsatisfactorily as a representative. In his job application, Milton misrepresented his academic background; he was fired when his employers discovered the truth. The reformers accused Senator Gunbucks of misrepresenting his constituents and claimed he took bribes from the NRA.

rationalize

V. give a plausible reason for an action in place of a true, less admirable one; offer an excuse. When David told gabby Gabrielle he couldn't give her a ride to the dance because he had no room in the car, he was rationalizing; actually, he couldn't stand being cooped up in a car with anyone who talked as much as she did.

burlesque

V. give an imitation that ridicules. In Spaceballs, Rick Moranis burlesques Darth Vader of Star Wars, outrageously parodying Vader's stiff walk and hollow voice.

predispose

V. give an inclination toward; make susceptible to. Oleg's love of dressing up his big sister's Barbie doll may have predisposed him to become a fashion designer. Genetic influences apparently predispose people to certain forms of cancer.

relent

V. give in. When her stern father would not relent and allow her to marry Robert Browning, Elizabeth Barrett eloped with her suitor. relentless, ADJ.

relinquish

V. give up something with reluctance; yield. Denise never realized how hard it would be for her to relinquish her newborn son to the care of his adoptive parents. Once you get used to fringe benefits like expense account meals and a company car, it's very hard to relinquish them.

forgo

V. give up; do without. Determined to lose weight for the summer, Ida decided to forgo dessert until she could fit into a size eight again.

bestow

V. give. He wished to bestow great honors upon the hero.

shimmer

V. glimmer intermittently. The moonlight shimmered on the water as the moon broke through the clouds for a moment. also N.

disembark

V. go ashore; unload cargo from a ship. Before the passengers could disembark, they had to pick up their passports from the ship's purser.

retrograde

V. go backwards; degenerate. instead of advancing, our civilization seems to have retrograded in ethics and culture. also ADJ.

aggrandize

V. increase or intensify. The history of the past quarter century illustrates how a President may aggrandize his power to act aggressively in international affairs without considering the wishes of Congress.

enhance

V. increase; improve. You can enhance your chances of being admitted to the college of your choice by learning to write well; an excellent essay can enhance any application.

implicate

V. incriminate; show to be involved. Here's the deal: if you agree to take the witness stand and implicate your partners in crime, the prosecution will recommend that the judge go easy in sentencing you.

conjecture

V. infer on the basis of insufficient data; surmise; guess. In the absence of any eyewitness reports, we can only conjecture what happened in the locked room on the night of the 13th. Would it be a reasonable conjecture to decide that the previous sentence is an excerpt from a mystery novel?

impinge

V. infringe; touch;. collide with. How could they be married without impinging on one another's freedom?

pry

V. inquire impertinently; use leverage to raise or open something. Though Nora claimed she didn't mean to pry, everyone knew she was just plain nosy. With a crowbar Long John Silver pried up the lid of the treasure chest.

foist

V. insert improperly; palm off. I will not permit you to foist such ridiculous ideas upon the membership of this group.

incorporate

V. introduce something into a larger whole; combine; unite. Breaking with precedent, President Truman ordered the military to incorporate blacks into every branch of the armed services. also ADJ.

energize

V. invigorate; make forceful and active. Rather than exhausting Maggie, dancing energized her.

sequester

V. isolate; retire from public life; segregate; seclude. Banished from his kingdom, the wizard Prospero sequestered himself on a desert island. To prevent the jurors from hearing news broadcasts about the case, the judge decided to sequester the jury.-

couple

V. join; unite. The Flying Karamazovs couple expert juggling and amateur joking in their nightclub act.

decimate

V. kill, usually one out of ten. We do more to decimate our population in automobile accidents than we do in war.

bemoan

V. lament; express disapproval of. The widow bemoaned the death of her beloved husband. Although critics bemoaned the serious flaws in the author's novels, each year his latest book topped the best-seller list.

spawn

V. lay eggs. Fish ladders had to be built in the dams to assist the salmon returning to spawn in their native streams. also N.

inveigle

V. lead astray; wheedle. She was inveigled into joining the club after an initial reluctance.

bequeath

V. leave to someone by a will; hand down. Though Maud had intended to bequeath the family home to her nephew, she died before changing her will. bequest, N.

depreciate

V. lessen in value. If you neglect this property, it will depreciate.

console

V. lessen sadness or disappointment; give comfort. When her father died, Marius did his best to console Cosette. consolation, N.

prevaricate

V. lie. Some people believe that to prevaricate in a good cause is justifiable and regard such a statement as a "white lie."

equivocate

V. lie; mislead; attempt to conceal the truth. The audience saw through his attempts to equivocate on the subject under discussion and ridiculed his remarks.

concatenate

V. link as in a chain. It is difficult to understand how these events could concatenate as they did without outside assistance.

gruel

V. liquid food made by boiling oatmeal, etc., in milk or water. Our daily allotment of gruel made the meal not only monotonous but also unpalatable.

cohabit

V. live together. Many unwed couples who cohabit peacefully for years wind up fighting night and day once they marry.

dawdle

V. loiter; waste time. We have to meet a deadline so don't dawdle; just get down to work.

despise

V. look on with scorn; regard as worthless or distasteful. Mr. Bond, I despise spies; I look down on them as mean, despicable, honorless men, whom I would wipe from the face of the earth with as little concern as I would scrape dog droppings from the bottom of my shoe.

loll

V. lounge about. They lolled around in their chairs watching television.

entice

V. lure; attract; tempt. She always tried to entice her baby brother into mischief.

bask

V. luxuriate; take pleasure in warmth. Basking on the beach, she relaxed so completely that she fell asleep.

outwit

V. outsmart; trick. By disguising himself as an old woman, Holmes was able to outwit his pursuers and escape capture.

palpitate

V. throb; flutter. As he became excited, his heart began to palpitate more and more erratically.

essay

V. make an attempt at; test. In an effort to enrich the contemporary operatic repertoire, the Santa Fe Opera commissioned three new operas by American composers who had not previously essayed the form. Although Lydgate essayed courtly verse in Chaucer's manner, his imitations of the master's style rarely succeeded. In 1961 the actor Paul Newman essayed the role that perhaps best defined his screen persona, that of pool shark "Fast" Eddie Felson in The Hustler.

disgruntle

V. make discontented. The passengers were disgruntled by the numerous delays.

stipulate

V. make express conditions; specify. Before agreeing to reduce American military forces in Europe, the president stipulated that NATO inspection teams be allowed to inspect Soviet bases.

adulterate

V. make impure by adding inferior or tainted substances. It is a crime to adulterate foods without informing the buyer; when consumers learned that Beech-Nut had adulterated their apple juice by mixing it with water, they protested vigorously.

stupefy

V. make numb; stun; amaze. Disapproving of drugs in general, Laura refused to take sleeping pills or any other medicine that might stupefy her. stupefaction, N.

preen

V. make oneself tidy in appearance; feel self-satisfaction. As Kitty preened before the mirror, carefully smoothing her shining hair, she couldn't help preening over how pretty she looked.

burnish

V. make shiny by rubbing; polish. The maid burnished the brass fixtures until they reflected the lamplight.

exploit

V. make use of, sometimes unjustly. Cesar Chavez fought attempts to exploit migrant farmworkers in California. exploitation, N. exploitative, ADJ.

annul

V. make void. The parents of the eloped couple tried to annul the marriage.

caulk

V. make watertight by filling in cracks. Jack had to caulk the tiles in the shower stall to stop the leak into the basement below.

integrate

V. make whole; combine; make into one unit. She tried to integrate all their activities into one program.

rejuvenate

V. make young again. The charlatan claimed that his elixir would rejuvenate the aged and weary.

deface

V. mar; disfigure. If you deface a library book, you will have to pay a hefty fine.

array

V. marshal; draw up in order. His actions were bound to array public sentiment against him. also N.

mete

V. measure; distribute. He tried to be impartial in his efforts to mete out justice.

conflate

V. meld or fuse; confuse; combine into one. In his painting White Crucifixion, which depicts German Jews terrorized by a Nazi mob, Chagall conflates Jewish and Christian symbols, portraying the crucified Christ wrapped in a tallith, a Jewish prayer shawl. The anthropologist Mahmood Mamdani maintains that terrorism is a unique product of the modern world and should not be conflated with Islam.

beguile

V. mislead or delude; pass time. With flattery and big talk of easy money, the con men beguiled Kyle into betting his allowance on the shell game. Broke, he beguiled himself during the long hours by playing solitaire.

gibe

V. mock. As you gibe at their superstitious beliefs, do you realize that you, too, are guilty of similarly foolish thoughts?

scoff

V. mock; ridicule. He scoffed at dentists until he had his first toothache.

temper

V. moderate; tone down or restrain; toughen (steel). Not even her supervisor's grumpiness could temper Nancy's enthusiasm for her new job.

actuate

V. motivate. I fail to understand what actuated you to reply to this letter so nastily.

accelerate

V. move faster. In our science class, we learn how falling bodies accelerate.

lumber

V. move heavily or clumsily. Still somewhat torpid after its long hibernation, the bear lumbered through the woods.

propagate

V. multiply; spread. Since bacteria propagate more quickly in unsanitary environments, it is important to keep hospital rooms clean.

maim

V. mutilate; injure. The hospital could not take care of all who had been wounded or maimed in the railroad accident.

recount

V. narrate or tell; count over again. A born storyteller, my father loved to recount anecdotes about his early years in New York.

demur

V. object (because of doubts, scruples); hesitate. When offered a post on the board of directors, David demurred: he had scruples about taking on the job because he was unsure he could handle it in addition to his other responsibilities.

accommodate

V. oblige or help someone; adjust or bring into harmony; adapt. Mitch always did everything possible to accommodate his elderly relatives, from driving them to medical appointments to helping them with paperwork. (secondary meaning)

hamper

V. obstruct. The new mother didn't realize how much the effort of caring for an infant would hamper her ability to keep an immaculate house.

immolate

V. offer as a sacrifice. The tribal king offered to immolate his daughter to quiet the angry gods.

tender

V. offer; extend. Although no formal charges had been made against him, in the wake of the recent scandal the mayor felt he should tender his resignation.

seep

V. ooze; trickle. During the rainstorm, water seeped through the crack in the basement wall and damaged the floor boards. seepage, N.

controvert

V. oppose with arguments; attempt to refute; contradict. The witness's testimony was so clear and her reputation for honesty so well established that the defense attorney decided it was wiser to make no attempt to controvert what she said.

reprimand

V. reprove severely; rebuke. Every time Ermengarde made a mistake in class, she was afraid that Miss Minchin would reprimand her and tell her father how badly she was doing in school. also N.

exact

V. require or demand, often forcibly; take. In feudal times, landowners exacted heavy payments from their peasants in both goods and labor. Asa Philip Randolph proclaimed, "Freedom is never granted; it is won. Justice is never given; it is exacted." The war in Algeria exacted a heavy toll in casualties.

entail

V. require; necessitate; involve. Building a collegelevel vocabulary will entail some work on your part.

begrudge

V. resent. I begrudge every minute I have to spend attending meetings; they're a complete waste of time.

esteem

V. respect; value. Jill esteemed Jack's taste in music, but she deplored his taste in clothes.

paraphrase

V. restate a passage in one's own words while retaining thought of author. In 250 wordsaor less, paraphrase this article. also N.

manacle

V. restrain; handcuff. The police immediately manacled the prisoner so he could not escape. also V.

inhibit

V. restrain; retard or prevent. Only two things inhibited him from taking a punch at Mike Tyson: Tyson's left hook, and Tyson's right jab. The protective undercoating on my car inhibits the formation of rust.

disclose

V. reveal. Although competitors offered him bribes, he refused to disclose any information about his company's forthcoming product. disclosure, N.

fleece

V. rob; plunder. The tricksters fleeced him of his inheritance.

extirpate

V. root up. The Salem witch trails were a misguided attempt to extirpate superstition and heresy.

satiate

V. satisfy fully. Having stuffed themselves until they were satiated, the guests were so full they were ready for a nap.

relish

V. savor; enjoy. Watching Peter enthusiastically chow down, I thought, "Now there's a man who relishes a good dinner!" also N.

disperse

V. scatter. The police fired tear gas into the crowd to disperse the protesters. dispersion, N.

rail

V. scold; rant. You may rail at him all you want; you will never change him.

glower

V. scowl. The angry boy glowered at his father.

aspire

V. seek to attain; long for. Because he aspired to a career in professional sports, Philip enrolled in a graduate program in sports management. aspiration, N.

confiscate

V. seize; commandeer. The army confiscated all available supplies of uranium.

rectify

V. set right; correct. You had better send a check to rectify your account before American Express cancels your credit card.

mediate

V. settle a dispute through the services of an outsider. King Solomon was asked to mediate a dispute between two women, each of whom claimed to be the mother of the same child.

liquidate

V. settle accounts; clearup. He was able to liquidate all his debts in a short period of time.

ensconce

V. settle comfortably. Now that their children were ensconced safely in the private school, the jet-setting parents decided to leave for Europe.

molt

V. shed or cast off hair or feathers. When Molly's canary molted, he shed feathers all over the house.

glimmer

V. shine erratically; twinkle. In the darkness of the cavern, the glowworms hanging from the cavern roof glimmered like distant stars,

abbreviate

V. shorten. Because we were running out of time, the lecturer had to abbreviate her speech.

curtail

V. shorten; reduce. When Herb asked Diane for a date, she said she was really sorry she couldn't go out with him, but her dad had ordered her to curtail her social life.

dwindle

V. shrink; reduce. The food in the life boat gradually dwindled away to nothing; in the end, they ate the ship's cook.

betoken

V. signify; indicate. The well-equipped docks, tall piles of cargo containers, and numerous vessels being loaded all betoken Oakland's importance as a port.

decelerate

V. slow down. Seeing the emergency blinkers in the road ahead, he decelerated quickly.

mollify

V. soothe. The airline customer service representative tried to mollify the angry passenger by offering her a seat in first class.

lull

V. soothe; cause one to relax one's guard; subside. The mother's gentle song lulled the child to sleep. Malcolm tried to come up with a plausible story to lull his mother's suspicions, but she didn't believe a word he said.

scintillate

V. sparkle; flash. I enjoy her dinner parties because the food is excellent and the conversation scintillates.

enunciate

V. speak distinctly. Stop mumbling! How will people understand you if you do not enunciate?

malign

V. speak evil of; bad-mouth; defame. Putting her hands over her ears, Rose refused to listen to Betty malign her friend Susan.

prate

V. speak foolishly; boast idly. Let us not prate about our good qualities; rather, let our virtues speak for themselves.

slur

V. speak indistinctly; mumble. When Sol has too much to drink, he starts to slur his words: "Washamatter? Cansh you undershtand what I shay?"

kindle

V. start a fire; inspire. One of the first things Ben learned in the Boy Scouts was how to kindle a fire by rubbing two dry sticks together. Her teacher's praise for her poetry kindled a spark of hope inside Maya.

plagiarize

V. steal another's ideas and pass them off as one's own. The teacher could tell that the student had plagiarized parts of his essay; she could recognize whole paragraphs straight from Barron's Book Notes.

filch

V. steal. The boys filched apples from the fruit stand.

adhere

V. stick fast. I will adhere to this opinion until proof that I am wrong is presented. adhesion, N.

protrude

V. stick out. His fingers protruded from the holes in his gloves. protrusion, N.

provoke

V. stir to anger; cause retaliation. In order to prevent a sudden outbreak of hostilities, we must not provoke our foe. provocation, N; provocative, ADJ.

stoke

V. stir up a fire; feed plentifully. As a Scout Marisa learned how to light a fire, how to stoke it if it started to die down, and how to extinguish it completely.

hoard

V. stockpile; accumulate for future use. Whenever there are rumors of a food shortage, many people are tempted to hoard food. also N.

stanch

V. stop a flow of blood from a wound. It is imperative that we stanch the gushing wound before we attend to the other injuries.

check

V. stop motion; curb or restrain. Thrusting out her arm, Grandma checked Bobby's lunge at his sister. "Young man," she said, "you'd better check your temper." (secondary meaning)

nip

V. stop something's growth or development; snip off; bite; make numb with cold. The twins were plotting mischief, but Mother intervened and nipped that plan in the bud. The gardener nipped off a lovely rose and gave it to me. Last week a guard dog nipped the postman in the leg; this week the extreme chill nipped his fingers till he could barely hold the mail.

flounder

V. struggle and thrash about; proceed clumsily or falter. Up to his knees in the bog, Floyd floundered about, trying to regain his footing. Bewildered by the new software, Flo floundered until Jan showed her how to get started.

scuffle

V. struggle confusedly; move off in a confused hurry. The twins briefly scuffled, wrestling to see which of them would get the toy. When their big brother yelled, "Let go of my Gameboy!"; they scuffled off down the hall.

contend

V. struggle; compete; assert earnestly. In Revolt of the Black Athlete; sociologist Harry Edwards contends that young black athletes have been exploited by some college recruiters. contention, N.

quash

V. subdue; crush; squash. The authorities acted quickly to quash the student rebellion, sending in tanks to cow the demonstrators.

abate

V. subside; decrease, lessen. Rather than leaving immediately, they waited for the storm to abate. abatement, N.

imply

V. suggest a meaning not expressed; signify. When Aunt Millie said, "My! That's a big piece of pie, young man!" was she implying that Bobby was being a glutton in helping himself to such a huge piece?

conjure

V. summon a devil; practice magic; imagine or invent. Sorcerers conjure devils to appear. Magicians conjure white rabbits out of hats. Political candidates conjure up images of reformed cities and a world at peace.

champion

V. support militantly. Martin Luther King, Jr., won the Nobel Peace Prize because he championed the oppressed in their struggle for equality.

buttress

V. support; prop up. The attorney came up with several far-fetched arguments in a vain attempt to buttress his weak case. also N.

bolster

V. support; reinforce. The debaters amassed file boxes full of evidence to bolstertheir arguments.

stifle

V. suppress; extinguish; inhibit. Halfway through the boring lecture, Laura gave up trying to stifle her yawns.

outstrip

V. surpass; outdo. Jesse Owens easily outstripped his white competitors to win the gold medal at the Olympic Games.

besiege

V. surround with armed forces; harass (with requests). When the bandits besieged the village, the villagers holed up in the town hall and prepared to withstand a long siege. Members of the new administration were besieged with job applications from people who had worked on the campaign.

encompass

V. surround. Although we were encompassed by enemy forces, we were cheerful for we were well stocked and could withstand a siege until our allies joined us.

chisel

V. swindle or cheat; cut with a chisel. That crook chiseled me out of a hundred dollars when he sold me that "marble" statue he'd chiseled out of some cheap hunk of rock.

bilk

V. swindle; cheat. The con man specialized in bilking insurance companies.

dismantle

V. take apart. When the show closed, they dismantled the scenery before storing it.

doff

V. take off. A gentleman used to doff his hat to a lady.

avenge

V. take vengeance for something (or on behalf of someone). Hamlet vowed he would avenge his father's murder and punish Claudius for his horrible crime.

sully

V. tarnish; soil. He felt that it was beneath his dignity to sully his hands in such menial labor.

inculcate

V. teach; instill. In an effort to inculcate religious devotion, the officials ordered that the school day begin with the singing of a hymn.

cow

V. terrorize; intimidate. The little boy was so cowed by the hulking bully that he gave up his lunch money without a word of protest. (secondary meaning)

invert

V. turn upside down or inside out. When he inverted his body in a handstand, he felt the blood rush to his head. inveterate ADJ. deep-rooted; habitual. An inveterate smoker, Bob cannot seem to break the habit, no matter how hard he tries.

distort

V. twist out of shape. It is difficult to believe the newspaper accounts of the riots because of the way some reporters distort and exaggerate the actual events. distortion, N.

advocate

V. urge; plead for. The abolitionists advocated freedom for the slaves. also N.

husband

V. use sparingly; conserve; save. Marathon runners must husband their energy so that they can keep going for the entire distance.

diverge

V. vary; go in different directions from the same point. The spokes of the wheel diverge from the hub.

rile

V. vex; irritate; muddy. Red had a hair-trigger temper: he was an easy man to rile.

oscillate

V. vibrate pendulumlike; waver. It is interesting to note how public opinion oscillates between the extremes of optimism and pessimism.

disdain

V. view with scorn or contempt. In the film Funny Face, the bookish heroine disdained fashion models for their lack of intellectual interests. also N.

profane

V. violate; desecrate; treat unworthily. The members of the mysterious Far Eastern cult sought to kill the British explorer because he had profaned the sanctity of their holy goblet by using it as an ashtray. alsoADJ.

ramble

V. wander aimlessly (physically or mentally). Listening to the teacher ramble, Judy wondered whether he'd ever get to his point.

parry

V. ward off a blow; deflect. Unwilling to injure his opponent in such a pointless clash, Dartagnan simply tried to parry his rival's thrusts. What fun it was to watch Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy parry each other's verbal thrusts in their classic screwball comedies!

squander

V. waste. If you squander your allowance on candy and comic books, you won't have any money left to buy the new box of crayons you want.

invalidate

V. weaken; destroy. The relatives who received little or nothing sought to invalidate the will by claiming that the deceased had not been in his right mind when he had signed the document.

extenuate

V. weaken; mitigate; make guilt or an offense seem less or more forgivable. It is easier for us to extenuate our own shortcomings than those of others.

exacerbate

V. worsen; embitter. The latest bombing exacerbated England's already existing bitterness against the IRA, causing the prime minister to break off the peace talks abruptly.

swathe

V. wrap around; bandage. When I visited him in the hospital, I found him swathed in bandages.

grapple