Senior Vocab: 10-15

RIFE

(adj.) Abundant or common or happening often

COMPLAISANT

(adj.) Agreeable and inclined to please others

CAPTIOUS

(adj.) Always ready to find fault or criticize

DECOROUS

(adj.) Appropriate manners, characteristics or behavior for a situation

IMPECCABLE

(adj.) Blameless or faultless

BEATIFIC

(adj.) Blissful or happy; appearing to be blessed or saintly

ONEROUS

(adj.) Burdensome or oppressive or difficult

MUTABLE

(adj.) Capable of changing often or fickle

NASCENT

(adj.) Coming into existence or development

PUTATIVE

(adj.) Commonly regarded as such or accepted as true

AESTHETIC

(adj.) Concerning beauty or the appreciation of beauty; (n.) A set of principles behind the work of a particular artist or movement

DESICCATED

(adj.) Dehydrated or completely dried out

DELECTABLE

(adj.) Delightful or highly enjoyable to the senses or the taste

ABSTRUSE

(adj.) Difficult to understand

WIZENED

(adj.) Dry, shriveled or wrinkled

MORIBUND

(adj.) Dying or on the way to extinction

TANTAMOUNT

(adj.) Equivalent, as in meaning, value or effect

OMNIPRESENT

(adj.) Existing everywhere at the same time

PLAINTIVE

(adj.) Expressing sorrow, melancholy

OBSEQUIOUS

(adj.) Extremely compliant or submissive

SIMPLISTIC

(adj.) Extremely easy or oversimplified

CONTRITE

(adj.) Feeling or showing guilt or regret for sins or wrongs

REPLETE

(adj.) Filled completely; in abundance

FRAUGHT

(adj.) Filled or full of

BENIGN

(adj.) Gentleness or kindness of heart or gracious; Not malignant

MENDACIOUS

(adj.) Given to deception and lying

SPORADIC

(adj.) Happening at irregular or unplanned intervals with no no pattern or order

CACOPHONOUS

(adj.) Harsh-sounding and discordant

IMPECUNIOUS

(adj.) Having little or no money

INVIOLABLE

(adj.) Incapable of being injured or disturbed or broken

IMPROVIDENT

(adj.) Lacking foresight or failing to plan ahead

PEREMPTORY

(adj.) Leaving no opportunity for debate or refusal

ETHEREAL

(adj.) Light or airy or heavenly

IMMINENT

(adj.) Likely to happen at any moment

FLACCID

(adj.) Limp or lacking firmness

INNATE

(adj.) Natural and existing from birth; inherent

DEFUNCT

(adj.) No longer in use or no longer operating

IRREPARABLE

(adj.) Not able to be repaired or remedied

INCONGRUOUS

(adj.) Not harmonious or compatible in nature

OBTUSE

(adj.) Not quick or alert with perception

UNREGENERATE

(adj.) Not repentant, not reformed in heart or spirit

SERAPHIC

(adj.) Of or being like an angel

EBULLIENT

(adj.) Overflowing or bubbling with excitement

PERFUNCTORY

(adj.) Performed as routine without interest or care

EPICUREAN

(adj.) Pursuing the pleasure of the senses, such as eating or drinking

LUMINOUS

(adj.) Radiating or reflecting light

FEBRILE

(adj.) Relating to or characterized by fever, feverish

RESTIVE

(adj.) Resisting control and hard to manage

GREGARIOUS

(adj.) Seeking and enjoying the company of others; Social and outgoing

GHOULISH

(adj.) Showing fascination with death and decay or morbid

AMBIENT

(adj.) Surrounding or encompassing

COGNIZANT

(adj.) Taking notice or being aware

HAPLESS

(adj.) Unlucky; unfortunate

LOATH

(adj.) Unwilling to do something, strongly opposed

INEXORABLE

(adj.) Unyielding; not able to be persuaded

LACONIC

(adj.) Using few words, concise

ASKANCE

(adv.) With suspicion or mistrust or disapproval

REBUFF

(n.) A blunt or abrupt refusal, a rejection; (v.) To reject bluntly and disdainfully, to snub

MACHINATION

(n.) A crafty scheme or plot to bring about a sinister or evil end

CANARD

(n.) A false or made-up story or rumor

AMENITY

(n.) A feature that attracts or increases value

PANEGYRIC

(n.) A formal and elaborate praise, written or spoken, of a person or of an act

RUDIMENTS

(n.) A fundamental element, principle, or skill that must be learned first within a field

MORATORIUM

(n.) A halt in activity; a decided period of waiting or delay

MANIFEST

(n.) A list of cargo or passengers on a ship; (v.) To make clear to the eye or understanding, to show plainly; (adj.) Clearly perceived by the eye or understanding, obvious and apparent

NOSTRUM

(n.) A medicine considered a cure-all; a scheme with questionable effect

FOIBLE

(n.) A minor weakness or flaw of character

PENITENT

(n.) A person who feels sorrow or regret for their sins or mistakes; (adj.) Feeling or expressing sorrow or regret for one's sins or mistakes

AFFRONT

(n.) A personally offensive act or word, a deliberate act or display of disrespect; (v.) To offend openly by disrespect or insolence

CABAL

(n.) A small group of secret plotters

MINUTIAE

(n.) A small or trivial detail

BURNISH

(n.) A smooth glossy finish or appearance, luster; (v.) To make bright or smooth by polishing

DESUETUDE

(n.) A state of being no longer used or practiced

SHAMBLES

(n.) A state of complete disorder or ruin

AFFECTATION

(n.) A trait, action, or expression characterized by fakeness

CAVIL

(n.) A trivial and annoying objection or criticism; (v.) To raise irritating and trivial objections, to find fault with unnecessarily

COUP

(n.) A very successful plan or strategy

PILLORY

(n.) A wooden instrument to hold prisoners on public display as to be exposed to ridicule and scorn; (v.) To expose to public ridicule or abuse

BLANDISHMENT

(n.) An action or speech meant to coax or flatter

FACADE

(n.) An artificial or deceptive front of a building or an appearance

OBEISANCE

(n.) An attitude or gesture of respect or submission

CONCOMITANT

(n.) An event or situation that happens at the same time as or in connection with another; (adj.) Occurring or existing alongside something else

RECRIMINATION

(n.) An exchange of mutual and bitter accusations

PRESAGE

(n.) An indication of warning of a future occurrence, an omen; (v.) To foreshadow or foretell a future event

FETISH

(n.) An object of excessive attention or devotion

PITTANCE

(n.) Any small or meager amount or portion

CHICANERY

(n.) Deception or trickery

DISSIDENCE

(n.) Disagreement or a difference of opinion; discontent

OPPROBRIUM

(n.) Disgrace or reproach caused by shameful behavior

INIQUITY

(n.) Gross wrong or injustice or a sin

ASPERITY

(n.) Harshness of sound or manner

APERTURE

(n.) Hole or opening

CONJECTURE

(n.) Inference or judgment based on inconclusive or incomplete evidence, guesswork; (v.) To infer from inconclusive evidence, to guess

DETRITUS

(n.) Loose matter resulting from the wearing away or disintegration of a tissue or substance

PROGENY

(n.) Offspring, children or descendents

PARIAH

(n.) One that is avoided or rejected; a social outcast

NECROMANCER

(n.) One who communes with the dead through magic and may predict the future

VISIONARY

(n.) One who is given to impractical or speculative ideas, a dreamer; (adj.) Not practical or imaginary, as in a fantasy or a dream

CHARLATAN

(n.) One who pretends to have more knowledge or skill than he or she actually does

ECLECTIC

(n.) Someone whose beliefs come from a variety of sources and philosophies; (adj.) Combining elements from a variety of sources

BEHEMOTH

(n.) Something enormous in size or power

EUPHEMISM

(n.) Substituting a harsh or offensive expression with a more mild or indirect one

CYNOSURE

(n.) The center of attraction or interest

NADIR

(n.) The lowest point or a point of great despair

EFFICACY

(n.) The power to produce the desired effect or result

RECTITUDE

(n.) The quality of being upright or correct in principles and conduct

CONCATENATION

(n.) The state of being linked together in a series like a chain

ABROGATE

(v.) To annul or cancel or do away with

LANGUISH

(v.) To become weak or feeble; to lose strength or vigor

IMPORTUNE

(v.) To beg or demand urgently

DISCOMFIT

(v.) To confuse or perplex; also, to frustrate or defeat

GAINSAY

(v.) To contradict or deny, as in opposition

PROMULGATE

(v.) To declare or make known formally

DECIMATE

(v.) To destroy or kill a large number of

FORGO

(v.) To do without or give up

CONSIGN

(v.) To entrust to another's control or care; to devote for a special purpose

DEPRECATE

(v.) To express disapproval of

EMANATE

(v.) To flow forth or proceed, as from some source

INURE

(v.) To harden or accustom to by use or exposure

MESMERIZE

(v.) To hypnotize or fascinate or spellbind

INTERPOLATE

(v.) To insert or introduce between other things or parts

RECONNOITER

(v.) To make an examination or inspection for military or surveying

SUBSIST

(v.) To persist or continue in existence; to remain alive

ENGENDER

(v.) To produce or bring into existence

ATTENUATE

(v.) To reduce or weaken in force, value or intensity

SEQUESTER

(v.) To remove or separate, as from society or public life

REQUITE

(v.) To repay or return either good or evil, as to a person

WINNOW

(v.) To sift or sort through in order to separate the desirable from the undesirable

ESPOUSE

(v.) To support or adopt as one's own

OSCILLATE

(v.) To swing or move back and forth in a constant rhythm

PREEMPT

(v.) To take or seize for one's self in order to exclude others

DEIGN

(v.) To think appropriate or worthy of one's dignity