english class vocab

curmudgeon

A (old) bad-tempered person ("Gu was a worrier, a neurotic ______.")

sidewinder

A heavy blow from the side ("If they were kicking with their right, then swinging their left through, _________ style.")

barrens

An extent of usually level land poorly producing any vegetation ("Found one down in the ______ just recently.")

census

An official count or survey of a population ("The 1950 ______ records were gone, along with almost all of the other documents that had been stored in the City Hall basement.")

brazen

Bold and without shame ("he went about with his illegal business with a _______ reassurance.")

conceive

Form a mental representation of; imagine ("I cannot ________ he would wish to do me harm")

geraniums

Herbaceous plant/small shrub with lots of petals and usually one color; ("Look at the beautiful ______ in that vase.")

puzzlement

a feeling of confusion through a lack of understanding. ("news reports expressed ______ over the crime")

phalanx

a group of officers/troops ("six hundred marchers set off, led by a _______ of police")

herald

a person who announces important news ("they consider the first flowers as the _______ of Spring.")

caricature

a picture, description, or imitation of a person in which certain striking characteristics are exaggerated in order to create a comic or grotesque effect. ("there are elements of ________ in the portrayal of the hero")

marmalade

a preserve made from citrus fruit, especially bitter oranges, prepared like jam. ("Inge and Liesl prepare eggs, toast, and __________.")

Deer

a prewar automobile ("...I tried to remember that as my ______ bounced and banged over the dirt roads.")

fuchsias

a shrub with hanging flowers (usually two contrasting colors); native to America and New Zealand and are commonly grown as ornamentals. ("The pink and purple ______ were the most vibrant in the vase.")

taboo

a social or religious custom forbidding discussion of a particular practice and association with a particular person, place, or thing. (There's a ______ on smoking in this office.)

Premonition

a strong feeling that something (bad/unpleasant) is gonna happen ("Susan had a ________ that Ross was going to die soon.")

furtively

avoiding attention; secretively ("Vika _______ charmed the tray to keep its balance.")

obliterate

destroy utterly; wipe out ("And just like that, my last hope is __________.")

frische

fresh in German ("I step outside, inhale the ________ Luft deep into my lungs.")

disoriented

having lost one's sense of direction; confused and unable to think clearly ("she was so ________, Joe had to walk her to her room.")

synonymous

having the same/similar meaning ("Ever since this defying of gravity has always been _______ with feeling alive")

inexorable

impossible to stop or prevent ("As I looked around I realized what I had done was _________.")

Zolpidem

is a sedative drug commonly used for insomnia ("She limped to the bathroom, popped open the bottle of __________, and tucked on underneath her tongue.")

amend

make minor changes in order to make it more fair/accurate/up to date ("He was making _____ with his teammates because he wanted to win.")

impudence

marked by contemptuous/cocky boldness; disregard of others. ("The woman huffed at Vika's _________.")

fluttering

moving with a light irregular or trembling motion ("the banner is ________ in the wind")

chirrup

say something in a high-pitched voice (" 'I've got mine, Mom!' Trisha _______ in her oh-boy-waterless-cookware voice.")

Slumped

sit, lean, or fall heavily and limply, especially with bent back("I found Mary _______ against the wall.")

Quran

the Islamic sacred book ("I don't practice the teachings of the _______, but I know they do.)

Ladino

the language of some Sephardic Jews ("between the classes she'd taken in grade school and her grandmother's mishmash of _______ sayings, she'd thought it would be an easy grade.")

desecrate

treat with violent disrespect ("How dare you ________ this holy ground with foolish intentions")

unconscionable

unreasonably excessive; not right or reasonable. ("shareholders have had to wait a _______ time for the facts to be established")

cataclysmically

used to emphasize the extent of something bad or unwelcomed ("Pete sat at the table, looking ________ bored, refusing to give the brochure more than a glance.")

pontificates

when someone expresses their views in a bold way ("he was __________ about art and history")