Sadlier-Oxford Vocab Level H Unit 12
utilitarian
(adj.) stressing practicality over other considerations; relating to the belief that what is good or desirable is determined purely by its usefulness (SYN: practical, functional, pragmatic ANT: nonfunctional, ornamental, decorative)
execrable
(adj.) utterly detestable, hateful, or abhorrent; extremely inferior (SYN: odious, abominable, reprehensible ANT: commendable, praiseworthy, meritorious)
precarious
(adj.) very uncertain or unsure; dangerous or risky (SYN: perilous, dubious, ticklish ANT: secure, safe, sturdy, firm)
labyrinth
(n.) a bewildering maze; any confusing or complicated situation (SYN: tangle, mystery, enigma)
rapport
(n.) a close and harmonious relationship (SYN: bond, tie, affinity, understanding)
pastiche
(n.) a dramatic, musical, or literary work made up of bits and pieces from other sources; a hodgepodge (SYN: medley, patchwork, melange, potpourri)
zealot
(n.) a fanatical partisan; an ardent follower (SYN: fanatical, extremist)
vagary
(n.) an unpredictable, erratic, or seemingly purposeless action, occurrence, or notion (SYN: caprice, whim, quirk)
narcissism
(n.) excessive self-love; absorption in oneself (SYN: egotism, conceit, vanity, amour propre)
xenophobia
(n.) undue or unreasonable fear, hatred, or contempt of foreigners or strangers or of what is foreign or strange (SYN: provinciality, parochialism, chauvinism ANT: cosmopolitan)
bilk
(v.) to defraud, cheat, or swindle; to evade payment of; to frustrate, thwart (SYN: dupe, cozen)
debilitate
(v.) to make weak or feeble (SYN: enervate, sap, exhaust, enfeeble ANT: strengthen, fortify, invigorate)
apposite
(adj.) appropriate; suitable; apt (SYN: relevant, pertinent, material, germane ANT: irrelevant, immaterial, inappropriate)
viable
(adj.) capable of living or developing under normal circumstances (SYN: practicable, workable, feasible ANT: impracticable, unworkable, unfeasible)
zany
(adj.) clownish or funny in a crazy, bizarre, or ludicrous way; (n.) one who plays the crown (SYN: (adj.) comical, daffy; (n.) buffoon ANT: (adj.) sedate, decorous, prim, sober, grave)
vacuous
(adj.) devoid of matter, substance, or meaning; lacking ideas or intelligence; purposeless (SYN: inane, insipid, fatuous, void, empty ANT: incisive, trenchant, perceptive, intelligent)
impinge
(v.) to strike against or collide with violently (SYN: horn in, affect)
augur
(n.) a prophet or seer; (v.) to predict, foreshadow (SYN: (n.) oracle; (v.) bode)
penultimate
(adj.) next to the last (SYN: intermediate, next-to-last ANT: terminal)
charisma
(n.) the special personal magnetism that makes an individual exceptionally appealing to other people; a divinely bestowed gift or poweor (SYN: appeal, charm, mystique)