Combo with Magoosh Advanced Words

overweening

adjective: arrogant; presumptuous Synonyms : excessive , extravagant , exuberant,uppity Mark was so convinced of his basketball skills that in his overweening pride he could not fathom that his name was not on the varsity list; he walked up to the basketball coach and told her she had forgotten to add his name.

factitious

adjective: artificial; not natural The defendant's story was largely factitious and did not accord with eyewitness testimonies

peremptory

adjective: bossy and domineering Synonyms : autocratic , bossy , dominating , high-and-mighty , magisterial My sister used to peremptorily tell me to do the dishes, a chore I would either do perfunctorily or avoid doing altogether.

chary

adjective: cautious, suspiciously reluctant to do something Synonyms : cagey , cagy Having received three speeding tickets in the last two months, Jack was chary of driving at all above the speed limit, even on a straight stretch of highway that looked empty for miles ahead.

limpid

adjective: clarity in terms of expression Synonyms : crystal clear , crystalline , lucid , pellucid , transparent,perspicuous Her limpid prose made even the most recondite subjects accessible to all.

expansive

adjective: communicative, and prone to talking in a sociable manner Synonyms : talkative After a few sips of cognac, the octogenarian shed his irascible demeanor and became expansive, speaking fondly of the "good old days". This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

arrant

adjective: complete and wholly (usually modifying a noun with negative connotation) Synonyms : complete , consummate , double-dyed , everlasting , gross , perfect , pure , sodding , staring , stark , thoroughgoing , unadulterated , utter An arrant fool, Lawrence surprised nobody when he lost all his money in a pyramid scheme that was every bit as transparent as it was corrupt.

pyrrhic

adjective: describing a victory that comes at such a great cost that the victory is not worthwhile George W. Bush's win in the 2000 election was in many ways a pyrrhic victory: the circumstances of his win alienated half of the U.S. population.

sedulous

adjective: done diligently and carefully Synonyms : assiduous An avid numismatist, Harold sedulously amassed a collection of coins from over 100 countries - an endeavor that took over fifteen years, and to five continents.

perfunctory

adjective: done routinely and with little interest or care Synonyms : casual , cursory , passing The short film examines modern perfunctory cleaning rituals such as washing dishes, doing laundry and tooth-brushing.

prosaic

adjective: dull and lacking imagination Synonyms : earthbound , pedestrian , prosy,commonplace , humdrum , unglamorous , unglamourous Unlike the talented artists in his workshop, Paul had no such bent for the visual medium, so when it was time for him to make a stained glass painting, he ended up with a prosaic mosaic.

jejune

adjective: dull; lacking flavor Synonyms : insubstantial,insipid Although many top chefs have secured culinary foam's popularity in haute cuisine, Waters criticizes it for being jejune and unfilling. adjective: immature; childish Synonyms : adolescent , juvenile , puerile Her boss further cemented his reuptation for being jejune after throwing a fit when the water cooler wasn't refilled.

venial

adjective: easily excused or forgiven; pardonable Synonyms : excusable , forgivable His traffic violations ran the gamut from the venial to the egregious - on one occasion he simply did not come to a complete stop; another time he tried to escape across state lines at speeds in excess of 140 mph.

Pollyannaish

adjective: extremely optimistic Synonyms : cheerful , upbeat Even in the midst of a lousy sales quarter, Debbie remained Pollyannaish, never losing her shrill voice and wide smile, even when prospective customers hung up on her.

benighted

adjective: fallen into a state of ignorance Synonyms : nighted,dark Far from being a period of utter benightedness, The Medieval Ages produced some great works of theological speculation.

mettlesome

adjective: filled with courage or valor Synonyms : game , gamey , gamy , gritty , spirited , spunky For its raid on the Bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Seal Team Six has become, for many Americans, the embodiment of mettle.

precipitate

adjective: hasty or rash Synonyms : hasty , overhasty , precipitant , precipitous Instead of conducting a thorough investigation after the city hall break-in, the governor acted precipitately, accusing his staff of aiding and abetting the criminals. verb: to cause to happen The government's mishandling the hurricane's aftermath precipitated a widespread outbreak of looting and other criminal activity. This word has other definitions but these are the most important ones to study

supercilious

adjective: haughty and disdainful; looking down on others Synonyms : disdainful , haughty , imperious , lordly , overbearing , prideful , sniffy , swaggering Nelly felt the Quiz Bowl director acted superciliously towards the underclassmen; really, she fumed, must he act so preternaturally omniscient each time he intones some obscure fact - as though everybody knows that Mt. Aconcagua is the highest peak in South America.

truculent

adjective: having a fierce, savage nature Standing in line for six hours, she became progressively truculent, yelling at DMV employees and elbowing other people waiting in line.

phantasmagorical

adjective: illusive; unreal Synonyms : phantasmagoric , surreal , surrealistic Those suffering from malaria fall into a feverish sleep, their world a whirligig of phantasmagoria; if they recover, they are unsure of what actually took place and what was simply a product of their febrile imaginations.

insufferable

adjective: intolerable, difficult to endure Synonyms : impossible , unacceptable , unsufferable Chester always tried to find some area in which he excelled above others; unsurprisingly, his co-workers found him insufferable and chose to exclude him from daily luncheons out.

byzantine

adjective: intricate and complex Synonyms : convoluted , involved , knotty , tangled , tortuous Getting a driver's license is not simply a matter of taking a test; the regulations and procedures are so byzantine that many have found themselves at the mercy of the Department of Motor Vehicles.

fractious

adjective: irritable and is likely to cause disruption Synonyms : cranky , irritable , nettlesome , peckish , peevish , pettish , petulant , scratchy , techy , testy , tetchy We rarely invite my fractious Uncle over for dinner; he always complains about the food, and usually launches into a tirade on some touchy subject.

bilious

adjective: irritable; always angry Synonyms : atrabilious , dyspeptic , liverish Rex was bilious all morning, and his face would only take on a look of contentedness when he'd had his morning cup of coffee.

churlish

adjective: lacking manners or refinement The manager was unnecessarily churlish to his subordinates, rarely deigning to say hello, but always quick with a sartorial jab if someone happened to be wearing anything even slightly mismatching.

penurious

adjective: lacking money; poor Synonyms : hard up , impecunious , in straitened circumstances , penniless , pinched Truly penurious, Mary had nothing more than a jar full of pennies. adjective: miserly Synonyms : parsimonious Warren Buffett, famous multi-billionaire, still drives a cheap sedan, not because he is penurious, but because luxury cars are gaudy and impractical.

impecunious

adjective: lacking money; poor Synonyms : hard up , in straitened circumstances , penniless , penurious , pinched In extremely trying times, even the moderately wealthy, after a few turns of ill-fortune, can become impecunious.

feckless

adjective: lazy and irresponsible Synonyms : inept Two years after graduation, Charlie still lived with his parents and had no job, becoming more feckless with each passing day.

lascivious

adjective: lecherous; sexually perverted Synonyms : lewd , libidinous , lustful Lolita is a challenging novel for many, not necessarily because of the elevated prose style but because of the depravity of the main character, Humbert Humbert, who, as an old, lascivious man, falls in love with a girl.

contentious

adjective: likely to argue Synonyms : combative , disputatious , disputative , litigious Since old grandpa Harry became very contentious during the summer when only reruns were on T.V., the grandkids learned to hide from him at every opportunity.

tendentious

adjective: likely to lean towards a controversial view Synonyms : tendencious Because political mudslinging has become a staple of the 24-hour media cycle, most of us, despite protestations to the contrary, are tendentious on many of today's pressing issues.

malfeasance

adjective: misconduct or wrongdoing (especially by a public official) Not even the mayor's trademark pearly-toothed grin could save him from charges of malfeasance: while in power, he'd been running an illegal gambling rink in the room behind his office.

saturnine

adjective: morose or gloomy Synonyms : dark , dour , glowering , glum , moody , morose , sour , sullen Deprived of sunlight, humans become saturnine; that's why in very northerly territories people are encouraged to sit under an extremely powerful lamp, lest they become morose.

catholic

adjective: of broad scope; universal Jonah's friends said that Jonah's taste in music was eclectic; Jonah was quick to point out that not only was his taste eclectic but it was also catholic: he enjoyed music from countries as far-flung as Mali and Mongolia.

maudlin

adjective: overly emotional and sad Synonyms : bathetic , drippy , hokey , kitschy , mawkish , mushy , schmaltzy , schmalzy , sentimental , slushy , soppy , soupy Just as those who were alive during the 70's are mortified that they once cavorted about in bellbottoms, many who lived during the 80's are now aghast at the maudlin pop songs they used to enjoy - really, just what exactly is a total eclipse of the heart?

indigent

adjective: poor; having very little Synonyms : destitute , impoverished , necessitous , needy , poverty-stricken In the so-called Third World, many are indigent and only a privileged few have the resources to enjoy material luxuries. noun: a poor or needy person The indigents, huddled under the overpass, tried to start a small bonfire in the hope of staying warm.

factious

adjective: produced by, or characterized by internal dissension Synonyms : dissentious , divisive The controversial bill proved factious, as dissension even within parties resulted

choleric

adjective: prone to outbursts of temper; easily angered Synonyms : hot-tempered , hotheaded , irascible , quick-tempered , short-tempered While a brilliant lecturer, Mr. Dawson came across as choleric and unapproachable - very rarely did students come to his office hours.

protean

adjective: readily taking on different roles; versatile Peter Sellers was truly a protean actor - in Doctor Strangelove he played three very different roles: a jingoist general, a sedate President and a deranged scientist.

sartorial

adjective: related to fashion or clothes Monte was astute at navigating the world of finance; sartorially, however, he was found wanting - he typically would attempt to complement his beige tie with a gray suit and white pants.

mellifluous

adjective: smooth and sweet-sounding Synonyms : dulcet , honeyed , mellisonant , sweet Chelsea's grandmother thought Franz Schubert's music to be the most mellifluous ever written; Chelsea demurred, and to her grandmother's chagrin, would blast Rihanna on the home stereo speakers.

fell

adjective: terribly evil Synonyms : barbarous , brutal , cruel , roughshod , savage , vicious For fans of the Harry Potter series, the fell Lord Voldemort, who terrorized poor Harry for seven lengthy installments, has finally been vanquished by the forces of good - unless, that is, JK Rowling decides to come out of retirement. This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

base

adjective: the lowest, class were without any moral principles Synonyms : immoral , mean , meanspirited , baseborn , humble , lowly She was not so base as to begrudge the beggar the unwanted crumbs from her dinner plate. This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

jaundice

adjective: to be biased against due to envy or prejudice Shelly was jaundiced towards Olivia; though the two had once been best friends, Olivia had become class president, prom queen, and, to make matters worse, the girlfriend of the one boy Shelly liked.

arch

adjective: to be deliberately teasing Synonyms : condescending , patronising , patronizing The baroness was arch, making playful asides to the townspeople; yet because they couldn't pick up on her dry humor, they thought her supercilious. This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

sententious

adjective: to be moralizing, usually in a pompous sense The old man, casting his nose up in the air at the group of adolescents, intoned sententiously, "Youth is wasted on the young."

histrionic

adjective: to be overly theatrical Synonyms : melodramatic Though she received a B- on the test, she had such a histrionic outburst that one would have thought that she'd been handed a death sentence.

vituperate

adjective: to criticize harshly; to berate Synonyms : rail , revile , vilify Jason had dealt with disciplinarians before, but nothing prepared him for the first week of boot camp, as drill sergeants vituperated him for petty oversights such as forgetting to double knot the laces on his boots.

blinkered

adjective: to have a limited outlook or understanding In gambling, the addict is easily blinkered by past successes and/or past failures, forgetting that the outcome of any one game is independent of the games that preceded it.

picayune

adjective: trifling or petty (a person) Synonyms : fiddling , footling , lilliputian , little , niggling , petty , piddling , piffling , trivial English teachers are notorious for being picayune; however, the English language is so nuanced and sophisticated that often such teachers are not being contrary but are only adhering to the rules.

untoward

adjective: unfavorable; inconvenient Synonyms : indecent , indecorous , unbecoming , uncomely , unseemly,adverse , inauspicious Some professors find teaching untoward as having to prepare for lectures and conduct office hours prevents them from focusing on their research.

ponderous

adjective: weighed-down; moving slowly Synonyms : heavy , lumbering Laden with 20 kilograms of college text books, the freshman moved ponderously across the campus.

quixotic

adjective: wildly idealistic; impractical Synonyms : romantic , wild-eyed For every thousand startups with quixotic plans to be the next big name in e-commerce, only a handful ever become profitable.

artless

adjective: without cunning or deceit Synonyms : uncultivated , uncultured Despite the president's seemingly artless speeches, he was a skilled and ruthless negotiator.

imbroglio

noun: a confusing and potentially embarrassing situation Synonyms : embroilment The chef cook-off featured one gourmand who had the unfortunate distinction of mixing the wrong broths, creating an imbroglio that diners would not soon forget.

anathema

noun: a detested person; the source of somebody's hate Synonyms : bete noire Hundreds of years ago, Galileo was anathema to the church; today the church is anathema to some on the left side of the political spectrum.

juggernaut

noun: a force that cannot be stopped Synonyms : steamroller Napoleon was considered a juggernaut until he decided to invade Russia in winter; after which, his once indomitable army was decimated by cold and famine.

curmudgeon

noun: a grouchy, surly person Since Uncle Mike was the family curmudgeon, each Thanksgiving he was plied with copious amounts of wine, in the hope that he would become less grouchy.

apostate

noun: a person who has abandoned a religious faith or cause Synonyms : deserter , ratter , recreant , renegade , turncoat An apostate of the Republican Party, Sheldon has yet to become affiliated with any party and dubs himself an independent.

arriviste

noun: a person who has recently reached a position of power; a social climber Synonyms : nouveau-riche , parvenu , upstart The city center was aflutter with arrivistes who each tried to outdo one another with their ostentatious sports cars and chic evening dress.

parvenu

noun: a person who has suddenly become wealthy, but not socially accepted as part of a higher class Synonyms : arriviste , nouveau-riche , upstart The theater was full of parvenus who each thought that they were surrounded by true aristocrats.

sybarite

noun: a person who indulges in luxury Synonyms : voluptuary Despite the fact that he'd maxed out fifteen credit cards, Max was still a sybarite at heart: when the police found him, he was at a $1,000 an hour spa in Manhattan, getting a facial treatment.

jingoist

noun: a person who thinks that their country should be at war Synonyms : chauvinist , flag-waver , hundred-percenter , jingo , patrioteer In the days leading up to war, a nation typically breaks up into the two opposing camps: doves, who do their best to avoid war, and jingoists, who are only too eager to wave national flags from their vehicles and vehemently denounce those who do not do the same.

martinet

noun: a strict disciplinarian Synonyms : disciplinarian , moralist The job seemed perfect to Rebecca, until she found out that her boss was a total martinet; after each project the boss would come by to scrutinize - and inevitably criticize - every little detail of the work Rebecca had done.

diatribe

noun: a strong verbal attack against a person or institution Synonyms : fulmination Steve's mom launched into a diatribe during the PTA meeting, contending that the school was little more than a daycare in which students stare at the wall and teachers stare at the chalkboard.

quisling

noun: a traitor Synonyms : collaborationist , collaborator History looks unfavorably upon quislings; indeed they are accorded about the same fondness as Nero—he who watched his city burn down while playing the violin.

invective

noun: abusive or denunciatory language Synonyms : vitriol , vituperation The Internet has unleashed the invectives in many of us; many people post stinging criticism on the comments section underneath newspaper articles or YouTube videos.

alacrity

noun: an eager willingness to do something Synonyms : briskness , smartness The first three weeks at his new job, Mark worked with such alacrity that upper management knew it would be giving him a promotion.

pariah

noun: an outcast Synonyms : castaway , ishmael The once eminent scientist, upon being found guilty of faking his data, has become a pariah in the research community.

sangfroid

noun: calmness or poise in difficult situations The hostage negotiator exhibited a sangfroid that oftentimes was more menacing than the sword at his throat, or the gun at his head.

vicissitude

noun: change in one's circumstances, usually for the worse Even great rulers have their vicissitudes - massive kingdoms have diminished overnight, and once beloved kings have faced the scorn of angry masses.

exegesis

noun: critical explanation or analysis, especially of a text The Bible is fertile ground for exegesis - over the past five centuries there have been as many interpretations as there are pages in the Old Testament.

turpitude

noun: depravity; a depraved act During his reign, Caligula indulged in unspeakable sexual practices, so it not surprising that he will forever be remembered for his turpitude.

apotheosis

noun: exaltation to divine status; the highest point of development Synonyms : ideal , nonesuch , nonpareil , nonsuch , paragon , saint,deification , exaltation As difficult as it is to imagine, the apotheosis of Mark Zuckerberg's career, many believe, is yet to come.

cupidity

noun: greed for money Synonyms : avarice , avariciousness , covetousness Some believe people that amassing as much wealth as possible is the meaning to life - yet they often realize that cupidity brings anything but happiness.

schadenfreude

noun: joy from watching the suffering of others From his warm apartment window, Stanley reveled in schadenfreude as he laughed at the figures below, huddled together in the arctic chill.

palimpsest

noun: something that has been changed numerous times but on which traces of former iterations can still be seen The downtown was a palimpsest of the city's checkered past: a new Starbucks had opened up next to an abandoned, shuttered building, and a freshly asphalted road was inches away from a pothole large enough to swallow a small dog.

zeitgeist

noun: spirit of the times Each decade has its own zeitgeist - the 1990's was a prosperous time in which the promise of the American Dream never seemed more palpable.

malapropism

noun: the confusion of a word with another word that sounds similar Synonyms : malaprop Whenever I looked glum, my mother would offer to share "an amusing antidote" with me - an endearing malapropism of "anecdote" that never failed to cheer me up.

apogee

noun: the highest point Synonyms : culmination The apogee of the Viennese style of music, Mozart's music continues to mesmerize audiences well into the 21st century.

nadir

noun: the lowest point Synonyms : low-water mark For many pop music fans, the rap and alternative-rock dominated 90s were the nadir of musical expression.

kowtow

verb: to bow or act in a subservient manner Synonyms : bootlick , fawn , kotow , suck up , toady , truckle Paul kowtowed to his boss so often the boss herself became nauseated by his sycophancy.

hector

verb: to bully or intimidate Synonyms : ballyrag , boss around , browbeat , bully , bullyrag , push around , strong-arm The boss's hectoring manner put off many employees, some of whom quit as soon as they found new jobs.

excoriate

verb: to criticize very harshly Synonyms : condemn , decry , objurgate , reprobate Entrusted with the prototype to his company's latest smartphone, Larry, during a late night karaoke bout, let the prototype slip into the hands of a rival company - the next day Larry was excoriated, and then fired.

execrate

verb: to curse and hiss at Synonyms : accurse , anathematise , anathematize , anathemise , anathemize , comminate Though the new sitcom did decently in the ratings, Nelson railed against the show, saying that it was nothing more than an execrable pastiche of tired cliché's and canned laughter.

mulct

verb: to defraud or swindle Synonyms : bunco , con , defraud , diddle , gip , goldbrick , gyp , hornswoggle , nobble , rook , scam , short-change , swindle , victimize The so-called magical diet cure simply ended up mulcting Maria out of hundreds of dollars, but did nothing for her weight.

imbibe

verb: to drink or absorb as if drinking Synonyms : absorb , draw , soak up , sop up , suck , suck up , take in , take up Plato imbibed Socrates' teachings to such an extent that he was able to write volumes of work that he directly attributed, sometimes word for word, to Socrates.

expunge

verb: to eliminate completely Synonyms : excise , scratch , strike When I turned 18, all of the shoplifting and jaywalking charges were expunged from my criminal record.

beg

verb: to evade or dodge (a question) By assuming that Charlie was headed to college - which he was not - Maggie begged the question when she asked him to which school he was headed in the Fall. This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

defray

verb: to help pay the cost of, either in part of full In order for Sean to attend the prestigious college, his generous uncle helped defray the excessive tuition with a monthly donation.

cow

verb: to intimidate Synonyms : overawe Do not be cowed by a 3,000-word vocabulary list: turn that list into a deck of flashcards! This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

hedge

verb: to limit or qualify a statement; to avoid making a direct statement Synonyms : circumvent , dodge , duck , elude , evade , fudge , parry , put off , sidestep , skirt When asked why he had decided to buy millions of shares at the very moment the tech companies stock soared, the CEO hedged, mentioning something vague about gut instinct. This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

remonstrate

verb: to make objections while pleading Synonyms : bawl out , berate , call down , call on the carpet , chew out , chew up , chide , dress down , have words , jaw , lambast , lambaste , lecture , rag , rebuke , reprimand , reproof , scold , take to task , trounce The mothers of the kidnapped victims remonstrated to the rogue government to release their children, claiming that the detention violated human rights.

conciliate

verb: to make peace with Synonyms : appease , assuage , gentle , gruntle , lenify , mollify , pacify , placate His opponents believed his gesture to be conciliatory, yet as soon as they put down their weapons, he unsheathed a hidden sword.

gerrymander

verb: to manipulate voting districts in order to favor a particular political party Years ago, savvy politicians had gerrymandered the city center to ensure their re-election.

disabuse

verb: to persuade somebody that his/her belief is not valid As a child, I was quickly disabused of the notion that Santa Claus was a rotund benefactor of infinite largess - one night I saw my mother diligently wrapping presents and storing them under our Christmas tree.

propitiate

verb: to placate or appease The two sons, plying their angry father with cheesy neckties for Christmas, were hardly able to propitiate him - the father already had a drawer full of ones he had never worn before or ever planned to.

expurgate

verb: to remove objectionable material Synonyms : bowdlerise , bowdlerize , castrate , shorten The censor expurgated every reference to sex and drugs, converting the rapper's raunchy flow into a series of bleeps.

equivocate

verb: to speak vaguely, usually with the intention to mislead or deceive Synonyms : beat around the bush , palter , prevaricate , tergiversate After Sharon brought the car home an hour after her curfew, she equivocated when her parents pointedly asked her where she had been.

attenuate

verb: to weaken (in terms of intensity); to taper off/become thinner. Synonyms : rarefy Her animosity towards Bob attenuated over the years, and she even went so far as to invite him to her party.