Vocab list2

calamitous

A calamitous event is one that leads to a catastrophe — like the calamitous crashing of your parents' car into the garage door. Calamitous is an adjective that is generally used to describe events, and these events are disastrous or destructive. A failed election can be a calamitous event for a politician, especially if he loses by a landslide. Ever heard of Calamity Jane? She was known for her wild, calamitous behavior in the Wild West during the 19th century. Steer clear of anyone with a name like Calamity. Synonym: black, disastrous, fatal, fateful unfortunate فجیع خطرناک

catastrophe

A catastrophe is a disaster. If a wedding reception is disrupted by a fistfight between the bride and her new mother-in-law, you could call the occasion a catastrophe. Catastrophe comes from a Greek word meaning "overturn." It originally referred to the disastrous finish of a drama, usually a tragedy. The definition was extended to mean "any sudden disaster" in the 1700s. Nowadays, catastrophe can be used to refer to very tragic events as well as more minor ones. A hurricane destroying hundreds of homes is certainly a catastrophe; baking a birthday cake without following a recipe might also result in catastrophe, if you don't know anything about cooking. Synonym: a large-scale disaster, misfortune, or failure فاجعه، مصیبت و بلای ناگهانی

lexicon

A lexicon is the vocabulary of a language or subject. "No-hitter," "go-ahead run," and "Baltimore chop" are part of the baseball lexicon. Lexicons are really dictionaries, though a lexicon usually covers an ancient language or the special vocabulary of a particular author or field of study. In linguistics, the lexicon is the total stock of words and word elements that carry meaning. Lexicon is from Greek lexikon (biblion) meaning "word(book)," ultimately going back to legein, "to speak." Synonym: words, job descriptions واژه نامه

orator

A person giving a speech is called an orator, like the gifted orator who raised excellent points, making everyone in the audience want to join his revolution. The noun orator traces back to the Latin word orare, meaning to "speak before a court or assembly, plead." Orator is really just a formal way of saying "speaker." Technically, you can use it to describe anyone who is giving a speech, whether it's a speaker at the United Nations or a classmate giving a short presentation. However, orator often implies that the speaker is particularly gifted. Synonym: taking a standardized test, speaking to a large group of people سخنور

incident

An incident refers to a particular happening, sometimes criminal but always noteworthy. If there was a food fight in the cafeteria, an e-mail might be sent to the parents of all students telling of the incident at school. The word incident is quite vague. It can refer to a humorous occurrence or a violent one, something that disturbed one's routine or something unusual that happened. If a child screams in a library, it's not that unusual, but if an adult does, that's an incident! As an adjective, incident is used in the field of physics to describe particles or radiation that fall on a surface. The incident light showed how dirty the windows were. Synonym: an event or occurrence حادثه، تصادف

cabalistic

Anything cabalistic has a secret, hidden meaning. Cabalistic things are mysterious. If a group of people wearing purple robes walk by chanting, you could say they're cabalistic. Cabalistic is a way of saying "secretive or mysterious." A book of ancient, mystical texts would be considered cabalistic. Any society or practice that's secretive and somewhat spiritual or mystical could also get the cabalistic label. The root is ultimately from Hebrew qabbalah, something handed down. Synonym: intrinsic, untoward, straightforward

conducive

Conducive means tending to cause or produce something. Regular exercise is conducive to happiness and a feeling of well-being. This adjective is usually followed by the preposition to, and it refers to bringing about something favorable or helpful: A positive attitude is conducive to good health. Conducive was formed in English from the less common verb conduce "to lead or contribute to a result." The verb conduce descends from Middle English conducen, from Latin conducere, from the prefix com- "together" plus ducere "to lead." And the suffix -ive means "tending to." Synonym: contributory, contradictory, pastora, limmutable مفید و سودمند

grandiloquent

Grandiloquent is a fancy term for, well, being fancy or pretentious. In fact, you might say grandiloquent is itself a pretty grandiloquent word. The word grandiloquent generally refers to the way a person behaves or speaks. Politicians and schoolteachers are the usual suspects of this manner of behavior, known as grandiloquence, but it can refer to anything that's overbearing or pompous in style or manner. Architecture, especially, is highly guilty of being grandiloquent — if you check out just about anything built in the Baroque style, you could describe it as grandiloquent. Synonym: pompous, intensifying گزاف گوی

belligerent

If someone is belligerent, they're eager to fight. It's a good idea to avoid hardcore hockey fans after their team loses — they tend to be belligerent. Belligerent comes from the Latin word bellum, for "war." You can use it to talk about actual wars — the nations taking part in a war are called belligerents — but usually belligerent describes a psychological disposition. If you're running a school for aggressive boys, do plenty of arts and crafts to prevent them from becoming too belligerent. The stress is on the second syllable: bə-LIJ-ə-rənt. Synonym: aggressive ستيزه جو

impulsive

If someone is impulsive, it means that they act on instinct, without thinking decisions through. If you worked for an entire year to save money for a car and then suddenly decided to spend it all on a diamond tiara instead, that would be an impulsive purchase. Impulses are short, quick feelings, and if someone is in the habit of acting on them, they're impulsive. When stores stock chocolate at the checkout line, they are hoping you will impulsively decide to buy it. When you call the person you have a crush on after promising yourself all day to maintain an air of dignified reserve, that's impulsive behavior. We might also call impulsive behavior whimsical or capricious. Synonym: without forethought, having the power of driving or impelling تکانشی

aggrandize

If you are a window washer, but you refer to yourself as a "vista enhancement specialist," then you are aggrandizing your job title — that is, making it sound greater than it is. The verb aggrandize not only means "to make appear greater"; it can also be used to mean simply "to make greater." If you buy an estate and sink millions of dollars into its improvement, then you are actually aggrandizing the estate. If you are making yourself seem greater, then people may say you are "self-aggrandizing." Synonym: embellish بزرگ کردن

eschew

If you eschew something, you deliberately avoid it. If you live the bohemian life in the city, then most likely you eschew the suburbs. Eschew comes from a word meaning dread, or shun. So to eschew something isn't simply to avoid it, the way you would avoid walking in a puddle--it's stronger than that. You eschew things that you find morally or aesthetically wrong, or that you have chosen to find wrong. A dieter might eschew a chocolate sundae, not because he doesn't like it, but because he's afraid of what it will do to his waistline. Synonym: اجتناب كردن، خودداري كردنavoid, withhold, desist

declamatory

If you say something declamatory, it's full of passion and bluster, like your declamatory speech in debate club about the poor nutritional quality of your school's lunches. Things that are declamatory are strongly felt and expressed with intensity, and they're usually spoken aloud (and loudly). Sometimes this adjective has negative connotations, implying bluster and bombast: "Your essay is so long and declamatory, I felt like I was being shouted at by a showoff." Something declamatory can be called a declamation. The Latin root, declamare, means "to practice public speaking." Synonym: tumid, وابسته به دکلمه

combative

Someone combative likes to fight, whether with fists or words. See the word combat in combative? That's a clue to this word's meaning. Since combat is a type of fighting — usually in war — anyone described as combative likes to fight or just can't help getting in fights. A frequent barroom brawler is combative, but so is someone who is always starting arguments. Using swear words and constantly contradicting people could be considered combative behavior. People who are combative are also often described as hostile, angry, or pugnacious. Synonym: fighting اهل مجادله و دعوا, battleful

cataclysmic

Something that's cataclysmic is violently destructive. The word often refers to natural disasters, like a cataclysmic earthquake, but cataclysmic can describe other events as well as long as they're bad enough, like the cataclysmic failure you had making meatloaf. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, tornados, landslide . . . These natural disasters are often described as cataclysmic when they cause great devastation. Cataclysmic isn't just for describing natural disasters — personal disasters can be called cataclysmic as well if you want to emphasize just how badly something turned out. If your meatloaf is just so-so, it's not so disastrous. But if it's so spectacularly bad that no one can eat it? That's a cataclysmic failure. Synonym: destructive فاجعه آمیز

florid

Something that's elaborate and full of extra flourishes is florid, whether it's your relatives' ornate decorating style or the way they talk, using a lot of unnecessarily long, complicated words. Florid is an adjective that entered English in the 17th century, via the French floride, from the Latin flōridus, "blooming." You can probably guess how Florida and flourish are related! Something overly decorated, such as a fussy living room, is florid in the flowery sense, while pale-skinned people with rosy cheeks are florid because they appear to be flourishing with good health. Synonym: irrepressible, compatible پر گل

Allusion

That little nod to a Dylan Thomas poem that you sneaked into your PowerPoint presentation? That was an allusion, a quick reference to something that your audience will have to already know in order to "get." Novelists, magicians, and other tricksters keep these words busy. Novelists love an allusion, an indirect reference to something like a secret treasure for the reader to find; magicians heart illusions, or fanciful fake-outs; but tricksters suffer from delusions, ideas that have no basis in reality. An allusion often references a famous work of art or literature, or to something from your own life. For example, you might say, "I obviously am no expert at love" — an allusion to your failed relationships. The main thing to remember is that an allusion is a brief hint or a quick mention. It's meant to bring to mind a particular subject, but it always avoids getting into it in great depth. Synonym: mention, reference a remark that calls attention to something or someone اشاره، کنایه

expatiate

The verb expatiate means "to add details to in order to clear up." If your story is confusing to everyone who hears it, certain key parts must be missing. Better expatiate so that people can understand it. To pronounce expatiate correctly, accent the second syllable: "ex-PAY-she-ate." When you expatiate on a piece of writing, you add details. The goal is to make your ideas clearer to readers, perhaps by offering an example to help them understand.Teachers can tell when you are expatiating and when you are just adding to what you've written, say, to reach a certain length requirement. That's usually called "padding." Synonym:dilate, elaborate, enlarge, expand, exposit, expound, flesh out, lucubrate به تفصیل شرح دادن

arrogate

To arrogate is to take over. When the teacher steps out of the classroom and some bossy student marches up to the chalkboard and begins scolding the other kids? The student is trying to arrogate the teacher's authority. When someone takes control of something, often without permission, such as when a military general assumes the power of a country's government after getting rid of the previous leader, they arrogate power or control to themselves. Occasionally the verb arrogate means something like "assert one's right to," or take something that is deserved, but more often it implies a taking by force. Synonym: maximize, assume ادعاي بيجا كردن، بخود بستن

didactic

When people are didactic, they're teaching or instructing. This word is often used negatively for when someone is acting too much like a teacher. Both words relate to teaching, but didactic teaches a lesson and pedantic just shows off the facts. When you're didactic, you're trying to teach something. Just about everything teachers do is didactic: the same is true of coaches and mentors. Didactic is often used in a negative way. If you heard that a movie is overly didactic, that's probably not good. Most people want to see a story and be entertained when going to the movies, and if it feels like the movie is just telling you what to think, that's didactic in a bad way. Synonym: approachable تعلیمی، آموزشی

bigoted

When someone is acting in a bigoted way, he believes his beliefs, culture, or background is superior to others. The Civil Rights Movement fought against the bigoted behavior of whites against blacks. A bigoted person doesn't tolerate the opinions of others, and never rethinks his position. Usually when we call someone bigoted, he is hostile to people who are different than him either by race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation. While the "-ed" construction of the word might be a bit misleading, someone bigoted is the one expressing bigotry, not the one afflicted by it. Synonym: dependent, memorable, prejudice متعصب و سرسخت, intolerant

buttress

buttress You can buttress an argument with solid facts or your financial portfolio with safe investments. You may find that giving compliments to everyone you meet buttresses your popularity. To buttress is to sustain or reinforce. A buttress is a structure that adds stability to a wall or building, and this innovation played a significant role in the evolution of architecture. Think of a medieval cathedral. It's an incredibly tall, open building filled with light from vast windows. Without buttresses supporting the walls and carrying the weight of the ceiling away from the building and down to the ground, this cathedral would be impossible. Picture this when you use buttress figuratively as a verb meaning to strengthen and support. support usually of stone or brick; supports the wall of a building Synonyms: buttressing, arc-boutant, flying buttressa buttress that stands apart from the main structure and connected to it by an arch Type of:support پایه، پشتیبان

formidably (adv)

formidable What do the national debt, your old gym teacher, and your mother-in-law have in common? They're all formidable — that is, they inspire fear and respect thanks to their size, or special ability, or unusual qualities. (Or possibly all three in the case of your mother-in-law.) Formidable describes a foe you're slightly afraid of, but formative describes what formed you. Perhaps a formidable gym teacher told you to get the lead out during your formative years in grade school, and now you're a world-class athlete. (Or a bookworm, depending on how you react to formidable foes.) What's interesting about formidable is that we often tend to use it about things that, while they may scare us, we can't help being pretty impressed by all the same. A formidable opponent is almost by definition a worthy one; a formidable challenge is almost by definition one worth rising to. Not surprisingly, this word is derived from the Latin formidare, "to fear." Synonym: inclined, alarming نیرومند

convolute

rolled longitudinally upon itself practice sophistry; change the meaning of or be vague about in order to mislead or deceive. Synonym: coiled, curled or wound به هم پيچيدن

undergird

support and strengthen brace up Type of:beef up, fortify, strengthenmake strong or stronger پایه، اساس