Membean Vocabulary

rectify

"cause it to become guided or ruled or directed" in the right way.

impending

"continuously hanging on" you

fruitless

"lacking in fruit or enjoyment" because it is unsuccessful.

impenetrable

"not capable of gaining entrance" into a place

unsightly

"opposite of something" one would want "seen."

malignant

"produces or brings forth something bad" We were hoping that the veterinarian would tell us the tumor was not malignant or harmful.

dispel

"pushed apart" so that it no longer has any effect.

potency

"state of being powerful."

distortion

"state of being twisted apart" from its normal condition.

senile

"tends to be elderly."

versatile

"tends towards turning," that is, can be "turned" towards multiple uses. In today's job market it is a good idea to be highly versatile or skillful at doing many different things.

generic

A generic description or attribute is not specific to any one thing but applies to all members of an entire class or group. A generic drug or product is something that does not have a trademark and can be sold without a brand name.

sanction

A sanction is an official authorization or approval to do something, such as a showing of support or acceptance. A sanction can also be an official measure taken by one country to punish another because it is doing something socially unacceptable.

impoverished

An impoverished person or nation is very poor and stricken by poverty. Impoverished soil has been exhausted or drained of its nutrients.

patronize

If people patronize you they talk or behave in a way that seems friendly, but nevertheless show that they think they are more intelligent or important than you. If you patronize something, such as a restaurant, club, or the arts, it means that you are a regular customer or supporter of it.

novice

It is a person who is just starting to do an activity of some kind. I was a novice statistician for the girls basketball team.

dominion

One possesses the "state of (being) lord or master" over one's dominion.

consensus

When everyone in a group has reached a similar opinion that they have "felt with" other members of the group. The consensus is that we want to look for a new cleaning service; since we have all agreed on this, let's go ahead and get started.

disentangle

When you disentangle a knot, you untie it completely; when you disentangle yourself from a problem, you get yourself out of it.

rectify

When you rectify something you correct it or make it right once more. I needed to rectify or correct my mistake for yelling at my girlfriend because I was feeling mad myself.

stature

Your stature in society is your standing, that is, how society views your level of importance relative to your position in life or your character. Your stature can also be your physical height, or the height of an animal in an upright position.

ratification

a measure or agreement is its official approval or confirmation by all involved. The ratification or official approval of the Global Green Plan requires that all nations work to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 20% over the next decade.

malice

an "act of evil" against another The villain Iago's malice or wish to do harm to Othello is a central aspect of Shakespeare's play Othello.

formulate

an action you carefully plan or work it out in great detail ahead of time. The thieves formulated or carefully planned out the perfect way to steal the Mona Lisa, the most precious painting in the world.

traverse

an area or land you go across or travel through it. We traversed or went across the landscape by foot.

chronological

arranges events in the correct order in which they happened. In order to understand the correct sequence of events, we must first put everything in chronological order.

chronicle

book which records "little" bits of "time" in history, usually ones that stand out I have kept a chronicle or familial history of events that have happened to us all since the day I got married.

erratic

crazy or not stable

statutory

created and controlled by rules and laws and hence is legally punishable if violated. Stella knew that the statutory, legal age for a driver's license was sixteen.

unquenchable

desire or thirst cannot be satisfied or gotten rid of. There was nothing that could satisfy my unquenchable or unable to be satisfied thirst—I think I had eaten too much salty pizza.

longevity

either be having a long life or the life span of a person or object. The longevity of the computer battery is about two years; after that, it can die at any time.

monumental

event is very great, impressive, or of considerable historical significance. One of the great monumental or historically significant events in French history was the storming of the Bastille during the French Revolution.

notorious

famous for criminal acts

nurture

feed and take care of

perilous

full of danger

purge

get rid of

adversity

in life, you suffer from trouble, misfortune, and hardship. She said that she had dedicated her run to her mother, and so was able to overcome any adversity or trouble she otherwise might have encountered.

genre

is a category, type, or class of artistic work. The horror film is a genre or category of movie that has a huge following.

dissension

is a disagreement or conflict of opinion amongst a group of people. The church I attend has been recently torn apart by dissension and disagreement among its members.

adversary

is a person who goes against you in some way, such as an opponent in a contest or a personal enemy in a conflict.

fortification

is a structure or building that is used in defense against an invading army. The fortification or defense is strong and solid.

conjecture

is a theory or guess that is based on information that is not certain or complete. Based upon the limited information that he had, the pilot formed a quick conjecture or theory about how the plane's flight path should proceed.

artifact

is a weapon, tool, or piece of art that is created by human beings which is historically and culturally interesting.

subtle

is clever or so fine or slight that it is not obvious, and can be deep or highly sophisticated. The composer chose to insert these subtle or understated changes to tease the trained ear.

vintage

is first-rate, often of a past time, of excellent quality, or is a classic representative of its kind.

morale

is her current state of self-confidence, how she feels emotionally, and her state of determination to complete tasks in a motivated way. The coach tried to boost his team's morale, or feelings of determination and strength, by being positive and optimistic.

predecessor

is one who precedes someone else in a job, or is an ancestor. This teacher's predecessor makes school much more fun.

viable

is practical or can be accomplished, and so is worth doing. Building a cross-country train system that connects every city in the United States within the next two years is not a viable or practical plan.

imposition

is putting an extra burden or duty on someone that is unwelcome by that person.

norm

is the standard, model, or rule by which people conduct themselves. We all must follow societal norms or rules so that we can live together in peace and harmony.

regime

is the system of government currently in power in a given area, or a given controlling group or management of an organization. When the new regime or government came into power in our country, conditions actually improved.

convene

is to either call people to gather together, or when the people come together for the meeting. Then, we will also need to convene or bring together everyone at the end of the day, so we need to decide on a place for that event as well.

deficit

is when a person or government spends more than they take in in income or tax revenue. The kind of mismanagement present in the government accountants to account for such a monstrous deficit.

disposition

is your personality or the way in which you tend to react to the various events in your life, or the mood that you generally have. His disposition or personality tends to have a positive effect on everyone around him.

rationale

is your reason or explanation for why you did something. So what is the rationale or reason for changing our work hours?

luminous

it is bright and glowing. Summer was Tessa's favorite season because everything seemed to be luminous or shine.

credible

it is easy to believe or trust. If someone always tells the truth, that person becomes a credible and trustworthy person.

laborious

job or process takes a long time, a lot of effort, and is often boring. Gwen spent her Saturdays that autumn shelving books at the local library, which was a lengthy and laborious task.

mediocre

just average or adequate in quality. Melanie sighed, removed the tray of mediocre, commonplace cookies and fed them to her dogs.

sovereign

nation rules itself because it is its own supreme or superior power. For a long time Britain held sovereign or superior power over many nations of the world.

remnant

of something are the small remaining parts of it after the main part has been used or destroyed. The remnants or remains of the energetic party for her young son would take much longer to clean up!

temperance

one's behavior is "mixed properly," or "exercises moderation."

belligerent

person or country is hostile, aggressive, very unfriendly, and prone to fight. Schools try at all costs to stop belligerent and mean conduct since it tends to ruin a peaceful learning atmosphere.

interim

position at a school or business, for example, is only temporary until the position can be filled by someone who is more qualified. Ms. P's interim teacher will only be here for the remainder of the school year.

unsightly

presents an ugly, unattractive, or disagreeable face to the world. Since his mouth had become so unhealthy, his teeth had become unsightly or not very pretty.

communal

property is those goods or items which are shared in common by a community. Do you think it would be fine if everything in the world were owned by everyone on a communal or common basis?

sedentary

resting or inactive

formative

shapes or influences the growth of something else. Another one of my formative influences that helped develop my character was my friend Stan, who taught me confidence.

animated

she is energetic, lively, and filled with excited activity. Her animated, lively facial expressions are comical and entertaining.

memorandum

short note to help remember something one has to do or that one has done, or can also be a communication sent around an office complex. I wrote myself a memorandum or reminder the other day that I had to remember to pick Marguerite up from the university.

judicious

shows good judgment because she is wise and careful in making a decision. Since the societal tension was so high, it was important to make a judicious or carefully considered decision about the most recent public issue.

contemplate

something you either think about it deeply or gaze at it intently. Let's contemplate or carefully consider a plan of action and spend time working it out.

concise

statement is short, clear, and gets right to the point. Keep your vocabulary concise and clear by not using flowery language.

surge

swells, rapidly increases, or suddenly rises. My confidence surged or swelled when I was asked by our school to join the academic team.

dubious

there is a great deal of disbelief or doubt about it. I had even more reason to be dubious or unsure about her true intentions when I learned that she found out that I had won the lottery.

fidelity

towards something, such as a marriage or promise, is faithfulness or loyalty towards those things. She demands this kind of fidelity or devotion because she believes that no one can or should question what comes from the top.

flucuate

vary or change often, rising or falling seemingly at random. Many things in life fluctuate or change widely.

satire

way of criticizing people or ideas in a humorous way through the use of exaggeration, and is often used to make people see their faults. The famous theatrical satire made fun of King Faldric by portraying him as a greedy fool.

conventional

way of thinking or behaving is the one that is most commonly accepted by social groups. The conventional or socially accepted ideal for sleeping is to go to bed between 9 and 11 p.m.

contemporary

with something else exists at the same "time with" it, or exists "together" at the same "time."

constrain

you are forced to do something, or are kept from doing it. We are constrained or limited by a lack of funding.

predicament

you are in a difficult situation or unpleasant mess that is hard to get out of. I realized that there was no easy way out of this predicament or jam, so I just decided to own up and tell the truth.

plight

you are in trouble of some kind, or in a state of unfortunate circumstances. We were really in a plight or difficult situation when we were caught in a blizzard on top of the mountain.

naive

you are too trusting, either because you don't have enough experience with life, or because you are childlike and simple. Despite the fact that my kid brother is twenty-five years old, he is still naive or too trusting in his interactions with people.

tenacious

you do not quit until you have finished what you have started. The dog was tenacious in his persistent efforts to get all the meat off the bone.

moderation

you do nothing to excess, but rather live in a balanced and measured way. Even the good foods we eat should be eaten in moderation or in a balanced way.

gratification

you experience satisfaction or pleasure about a job well done. He felt such gratification or enjoyment because he had had to solve a particularly difficult problem.