English Vocab 3

Impute

v. to attribute or ascribe Syn. accredit, accuse, adduce, ascribe, censure, insinuate, Ant. defend, guard, protect

Impugn

v. to challenge as false; to assail a person by words or arguments; to attack a person physically Syn. assail, contradict, contravene, dispute, question, vilify Ant. flatter, praise

Wheedle

v. to endeavor to influence by smooth, flattering or beguiling words or acts, to persuade a person by such words or acts, to obtain something by artful persuasions Syn. banter, blandish, butter up, cajole, entice, inveigle, persuade

Altruistic

adj. Unselfishly concerned for or devoted to the welfare of others Syn. benevolent, magnanimous, philanthropic Ant. selfish, unsacrificing

Poignant

adj. keenly distressing to the feelings; keen or strong in mental appeal; affecting or moving the emotions; pungent to the smell Syn. agitating, disturbing, heartbreaking, pathetic, perturbing, piteous, sentimental Ant. calm, numb, pleasant.

Internecine

adj. of or pertaining to conflict or struggle within a group; mutually destructive Syn. civil, domestic, fratricidal

Ostensible

adj. outwardly appearing as such; professed pretended; apparent, evident, or conspicuous Syn. avowed, illusive, plausible, superficial Ant. improbable, obscure, vague

Eclectic

adj. selecting or choosing from various sources; made up of what is selected from difference sources; not following any one system, as of philosophy, medicine, etc., but selecting and using what are considered the best elements of all systems Syn. assorted, heterogeneous, mixed Ant. in comprehensive, specific, particular

Progenitor

n. a biologically related ancestor; a person or thing that first indicates a direction, originates something ,or serves as a model, predecessor, precursor. Syn. ancestor, begetter, parent, predecessor Ant. successor.

Shibboleth

n. a peculiarity or pronunciation, behavior, mode of dress, etc., that distinguishes a particular class or set of persons; a slogan; catchword; a common saying or belief with little current meaning or truth. Syn. catchword, custom, party cry, phrase, practice

Philistine

n. a person who is lacking in or hostile or smugly indifferent to cultural values, intellectual pursuits, aesthetic refinement, or is contentedly commonplace in ideas Syn. barbarian, boorish, brutish, crass, improper Ant. civilized, cultured

Dilettante

n. a person who takes up an art, activity, or subject merely for amusement, especially in a desultory or superficial way; a lover of art or science, especially of a fine art. Syn. dabbling, half-baked, rookie, unskilled Ant. Professional

Philologist

n. lover of linguistics, words, and literature Syn. grammatists, rhetorician

Temerity

n. reckless boldness; rashness Syn. assurance, effrontery, imprudence, impudence, indiscretion, presumption. Ant. care, caution, cowardice, forethought

Chicanery

n. trickery or deception by quibbling or sophistry; A quibble or subterfuge used to trick, deceive, or evade Syn. artifice, chicane, duplicity, gambit, stratagem Ant. forthrightness, honesty, truthfulness