English Vocab #4

posterity

All of a persons descendants 2. All succeeding generations I want to be remembered in posterity for all the good I've done in my life.

stoic

Impassive; showing indifference to pain, joy, grief, or pleasure The widow was stoic during her husband's funeral, but she broke down once she returned home and cried for hours.

medicant

a beggar 2. A mendicant friar The mendicants outside the King's palace hoped he would throw them some coins from the balcony.

trifle

a thing of little value or importancev. 1.To talk or act jokingly 2. To toy (with) The burglars made off with only trifles, but we were sad to lose our things nonetheless. "Don't trifle with me," Mr. Darcy says to Elizabeth. "If your feelings have changed, tell me now or I will be silent on the subject forever."

profane

adj. 1. Not connected with religion; secular 2. Showing disrespect or contempt for sacred things v. 1. To treat (sacred things) with irreverence or contempt 2. To debase; defile Larry's use of profane language in his essay on Jesus seemed entirely inappropriate.

vagabond

adj. 1. Wandering 2. Living a drifting or irresponsible life; shiftless n. 1. One who wanders from place to place 2. A wandering beggar 3. An idle or shiftless person Pauline chose to live a vagabond life and never stayed anywhere longer than three months.

acquisition

an acquiring 2. Something acquired With all his new acquisitions, Harvey is in dire need of good insurance.

aversion

an intense dislike 2. The object arousing this dislike "I have an aversion to hard work," said the lazy man. "I much prefer to lie around all day."

affront

an open insult v. 1. To insult openly I consider your dislike of Justin Bieber to be an affront to my character. Anyone who doesn't like him has me to contend with.

approbation

approval We showed our approbation for Justin Bieber by cheering wildly and stamping our feet when he came on stage.

reverie

daydream or daydreaming Lost in a reverie, I almost drove my car off the road.

squalid

foul or unclean, wretched The children were removed from the squalid home and placed in foster care until their parents cleaned up their mess.

magnaminity

generosity in overlooking insult; nobility The Queen's magnanimity in dealing with the would-be assassin impressed us all. Rather than sentencing him to death, she pardoned him.

cumulative

increasing in effect, size, etc... by successive additions The cumulative impact of heavy drinking on the liver is severe, and can actually kill you.

impertinence

insolence, impudence Douglas's impertinence to the teacher got him sent to detention.

sycophant

one who seeks favor by flattering people of wealth or influence Some rulers like to surround themselves with sycophants who only tell them what they want to hear; other rulers prefer advisors who will actually help them make good decisions.

contrite

repentant: Deeply sorry for having done wrong Esmerelda was deeply contrite for having hurt her sister's feelings, and she spent the rest of the evening trying to make it up to her.

intuition

the immediate knowing of something with the ‏ conscious use of reasoning "Follow your intuition if you feel as though you're in danger," the self-defense instructor told us. "Don't go off with someone if you don't feel good about it."

endevor

to make an earnest attempt; try "We must endeavor to do our best to defeat the enemy," said the General. "If we try hard, we will conquer!"

repremand

to rebuke formally or severely n. A severe or formal rebuke The parents reprimanded their toddler for throwing a tantrum in the middle of the airport.