Magoosh Basic Word List 4/7

detrimental

adjective: (sometimes followed by "to") causing harm or injury Synonyms : damaging , prejudicial , prejudicious Many know that smoking is detrimental to your health, but processed sugar in large quantities is equally bad.

pristine

adjective: Unspoiled, untouched (usu. of nature) The glacial lake was pristine and we filled our canteens to drink deeply. adjective: Immaculately clean and unused Drill sergeants are known for demanding pristine cabinets, uniforms, and beds, and often make new recruits clean and clean and clean until they meet the expected high standards.

derisive

adjective: abusing vocally; expressing contempt or ridicule Synonyms : gibelike , jeering , mocking , taunting I was surprised by her derisive tone; usually, she is sweet, soft spoken, and congenial.

genial

adjective: agreeable, conducive to comfort Synonyms : kind Betty is a genial young woman: everyone she meets is put at ease by her elegance and grace.

facetious

adjective: cleverly amusing in tone Synonyms : bantering , tongue-in-cheek Facetious behavior will not be tolerated during sex eduation class; it's time for all of you to treat these matters like mature adults.

illicit

adjective: contrary to or forbidden by law Synonyms : illegitimate , outlaw , outlawed , unlawful Though Al Capone was engaged in many illicit activities, he was finally arrested for income tax evasion, a relatively minor offense.

whimsical

adjective: determined by impulse or whim rather than by necessity or reason Synonyms : capricious , impulsive Adults look to kids and envy their whimsical nature at times, wishing that they could act without reason and play without limitation.

vacuous

adjective: devoid of intelligence, matter, or significance Synonyms : asinine , fatuous , inane , mindless,empty , hollow To the journalist's pointed question, the senator gave a vacuous response, mixing a few of his overall campaign slogans with platitudes and completely avoiding the controversial subject of the question.

sentimental

adjective: effusively or insincerely emotional, especially in art, music, and literature Synonyms : bathetic , drippy , hokey , kitschy , maudlin , mawkish , mushy , schmaltzy , schmalzy , slushy , soppy , soupy I don't like romanticism for the same reason I don't like melodramatic acting and soap operas - overly sentimental.

pertinent

adjective: having precise or logical relevance to the matter at hand Synonyms : apposite , apt While the salaries of the players might draw attention in the media, such monetary figures are not pertinent to the question of who plays the best on the field.

surly

adjective: inclined to anger or bad feelings with overtones of menace Synonyms : ugly Every morning, Bhavin was a surly unhappy person, but once he ate breakfast, he became loving, laughing, and a joy to be around.

benign

adjective: kind I remember my grandfather's face was wrinkled, benign, and calm. adjective: (medicine) not dangerous to health; not recurrent or progressive The tumor located in your ear lobe seems to be benign and should not cause you any trouble.

perennial

adjective: lasting an indefinitely long time; eternal; everlasting Even at the old-timers games, Stan Musial would get the loudest cheer: he was a perennial favorite of the fans there. This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

fickle

adjective: liable to sudden unpredictable change, esp. in affections or attachments Synonyms : erratic , mercurial , quicksilver She was so fickle in her politics, it was hard to pinpoint her beliefs; one week she would embrace a side, and the next week she would denounce it.

conducive

adjective: making a situation or outcome more likely to happen Studying in a quiet room is conducive to learning; studying in a noisy environment makes learning more difficult.

elaborate

adjective: marked by complexity and richness of detail Synonyms : luxuriant Thomas, on returning from Morocco, replaced his dirty gray carpet with an elaborate one he'd brought back with him. verb: explain in more detail Synonyms : dilate , enlarge , expand , expatiate , exposit , expound , flesh out , lucubrate Most high school physics teachers find themselves elaborating the same point over and over again, since many concepts confuse students.

genteel

adjective: marked by refinement in taste and manners Synonyms : civilised , civilized , cultivated , cultured , polite A live string quartet would provide a more genteel air to the wedding than would a folk singer.

uncompromising

adjective: not making concessions Synonyms : inflexible , sturdy The relationship between Bart and Hilda ultimately failed because they were both so uncompromising, never wanting to change their opinions.

urbane

adjective: showing a high degree of refinement and the assurance that comes from wide social experience Synonyms : polished , refined , svelte Because of his service as an intelligence officer and his refined tastes, W. Somerset Maugham became the inspiration for the urbane and sophistcate spy James Bond.

martial

adjective: suggesting war or military life Synonyms : warlike,soldierlike , soldierly , warriorlike Americans tend to remember Abraham Lincoln as kindly and wise, not at all martial, despite the fact that he was involved in the fiercest war America has even fought.

tawdry

adjective: tastelessly showy; cheap and shoddy Synonyms : brassy , cheap , flash , flashy , garish , gaudy , gimcrack , loud , meretricious , tacky , tatty , trashy,cheapjack , shoddy Carol expected to find New York City magical, the way so many movies had portrayed it, but she was surprised how often tawdry displays took the place of genuine elegance.

irresolute

adjective: uncertain how to act or proceed He stood irresolute at the split in the trail, not sure which route would lead back to the camp.

impeccable

adjective: without fault or error Synonyms : faultless , immaculate He was impeccably dressed in the latest fashion without a single crease or stain.

commendable

adjective: worthy of high praise Synonyms : applaudable , laudable , praiseworthy The efforts of the firefighters running into the burning building were commendable.

jargon

noun: a characteristic language of a particular group Synonyms : argot , cant , lingo , patois , slang , vernacular To those with little training in medicine, the jargon of doctors can be very difficult to understand.

egotist

noun: a conceited and self-centered person Synonyms : egoist , swellhead An egotist, Natasha had few friends because of her inability to talk about anything except her dream of becoming the next American Idol.

euphoria

noun: a feeling of great (usually exaggerated) elation Synonyms : euphory The euphoria of winning her first gold medal in the 100 meter dash overwhelmed Shelly-Ann Fraser and she wept tears of immense joy.

label

noun: a name or phrase given to a group of things to identify them (often negative) verb: to give a label to something Synonyms : mark , tag The meaning of the label ""punk"" has changed greatly in the last 30 years. Children are often unkind and label others who look different as outsiders.

smattering

noun: a slight or superficial understanding of a subject; a small amount of something Synonyms : handful I know only a smattering of German, but Helen is able to read German newspapers and converse with natives.

tumult

noun: a state of chaos, noise and confusion Synonyms : garboil , tumultuousness , uproar,commotion , din , ruckus , ruction , rumpus Riots broke out just in front of our apartment building, and the tumult continued late into the night.

cornucopia

noun: an abundant supply of something good Synonyms : profuseness , profusion , richness The International Food Expo was a cornucopia of culinary delights: gourmet foods from every continent were under one roof.

precedent

noun: an example that is used to justify similar occurrences at a later time Synonyms : case in point The principal explained that even though one student had done modelling work outside of school, the outfits that student wore in those photographs in no way established a precedent for what could be worn at school dances.

credence

noun: belief in something He placed no credence in psychics, claiming that they offered no special powers beyond the ability to make people part with their money.

altruism

noun: the quality of unselfish concern for the welfare of others Synonyms : selflessness Albert Schweitzer spent most of his life doing missionary work as a doctor in Africa, seeking no reward, apparently motivated only by altruism.

assail

verb: attack in speech or writing Synonyms : assault , attack , lash out , round , snipe In the weekly paper, the editor assailed the governor for wasting hundreds of thousands of dollars in public projects that quickly failed.

perpetuate

verb: cause to continue If you do not let him do things for himself, you are merely perpetuating bad habits that will be even harder to break in the future.

augment

verb: enlarge or increase; improve Ideally, the restaurant's augmented menu will expand its clientele and increase its profits.

banish

verb: expel from a community, residence, or location; drive away Synonyms : ban , blackball , cast out , ostracise , ostracize , shun The most difficult part of the fast was banishing thoughts of food. This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

rankle

verb: gnaw into; make resentful or angry Synonyms : eat into , fret , grate His constant whistling would rankle her, sometimes causing her to leave in a huff.

hamstrung

verb: made ineffective or powerless The FBI has made so many restrictions on the local police that they are absolutely hamstrung, unable to accomplish anything.

assuage

verb: make something intense less severe Her fear that the new college would be filled with unknown faces was assuaged when she recognized her childhood friend standing in line.

spurn

verb: reject with contempt Synonyms : disdain , freeze off , pooh-pooh , reject , scorn , turn down She spurned all his flattery and proposals, and so he walked off embarrassed and sad.

buck

verb: resist Synonyms : go against The profits at our firm bucked the general downturn that affected the real estate industry.

grovel

verb: show submission or fear Synonyms : cower , crawl , creep , cringe , fawn Every time Susan comes to the office, Frank grovels as if she were about to fire.

glib

adjective: (of a person) speaking with ease but without sincerity Synonyms : pat , slick I have found that the more glib the salesman, the worse the product.

lucid

adjective: (of language) transparently clear; easily understandable Synonyms : crystal clear , limpid , luculent , pellucid , perspicuous Though Walters writes about physics and time travel, his writing is always lucid, so readers with little scientific training can understand difficult concepts.

unruly

adjective: (of persons) noisy and lacking in restraint or discipline; unwilling to submit to authority Synonyms : boisterous , rambunctious , robustious , rumbustious,disobedient Walk in to any preschool and I am sure that you will find an unruly and chaotic scene - unless it's nap time.

inadvertent

adjective: happening by chance or unexpectedly or unintentionally Synonyms : accidental Although Prohibition was rooted in noble ideals, the inadvertent and costly consequences of making alcohol illegal in the U.S. led its the repeal.

contemptuous

adjective: scornful, looking down at others with a sneering attitude Synonyms : disdainful , insulting , scornful Always on the forefront of fashion, Vanessa looked contemptuously at anyone wearing dated clothing.

empathetic

adjective: showing understanding and ready comprehension of other peoples' states and emotions Synonyms : empathic Most discrimination and hatred is based on a lack of empathetic awareness of people that have the same aspirations and fears.

debase

verb: reduce the quality or value of something Synonyms : adulterate , dilute , load , stretch The third-rate script so debased the film that not even the flawless acting could save it from being a flop.