Unit 8 Vocabulary

In all aspects of their behavior, Raina and Joe showed the self-indulgence and gross indifference to others that is characteristic of the true (malcontent, hedonist)

hedonist

It was hard to believe that the eager, vibrant youth I had known was now this shabby derelict, staring into space with _____ eyes.

lackluster

True, we won the game, but i think our team gave a rather (lackluster, malcontent) performance in beating a weak opponent by so narrow a margin

lackluster

lacking brilliance or vitality; dull

lackluster

The (mellifluous, malcontent) citizens formed a committee to disseminate a petition, to organize a general strike, and to monitor legislative proceedings

malcontent

discontented with or in open defiance of prevailing conditions; such a person

malcontent

Since they have followed a policy of bringing in executives and supervisors from the outside, instead of promoting from within their own ranks, the office is filled with grumbling _____.

malcontents

We may find (malcontents, hedonists) annoying, but the fact is that they often serve as "gadflies" to bring about desirable changes

malcontents

Like everyone else, I was charmed by the _____ tones of the speaker, but afterwards I could extract very little real meaning from what she said.

mellifluous

Said Churchill to the British people after the Munich agreement: "We must reject these (mellifluous, malcontent) assurances of 'peace in our time'"

mellifluous

antonym- awakened by the SHRILL sound

mellifluous

flowing sweetly or smoothly

mellifluous

synonym- the MUSICAL tone of the announcer's voice

mellifluous

"Am I to be accused of (casuistry, nepotism)," queried the Mayor, "just because my wife, daughter, brother, and nephew happen to be the best applicants for the jobs?"

nepotism

Yes, I believe in helping out relatives, but I haven't spent a lifetime building this business to make it a monument to _____.

nepotism

antonym- the refreshing IMPARTIALITY of the manager

nepotism

synonym- charged with FAVORITISM by his opponents

nepotism

undue favoritism to or excessive patronage of one's relatives

nepotism

the man in the gray cap is a (pander, bane) who engages in all kinds of illegal activities but somehow never gets caught

pander

to cater to or provide satisfaction for the low tastes of others; a person who does this

pander

A candidate for high public office should seek to debate issues on an object level, instead of (remanding, pandering) to the prejudices of the time

pandering

Yes, you have scored a quick commercial success, but you have done it only by _____ to low and depraved tastes.

pandering

How can you compare a mere social (peccadillo, depredation) with a misdeed that has caused such great harm to people

peccadillo

I think you are showing poor judgment in condemning them so severely for what is, after all, little more than a(n) _____.

peccadillo

a minor sin; trifling fault or shortcoming

peccadillo

synonym- committed several INDISCRETIONS

peccadillos

Then came Miss Bolton's cornet solo which we all recognized immediately as the (pièce de résistance, casuistry) of that long musical evening

pièce de résistance

principal dish of a meal; principal event or tem; outstanding accomplishment

pièce de résistance

to send or order back; to send back to jail or to a lower court

remand

Those cases that call for further attention will be _____ to the proper agencies.

remanded

We learned with dismay that our application had been neither approved or rejected, but (pandered, remanded) to a "higher authority for further consideration"

remanded

A high temperature, yellowish complexion, and general feeling of fatigue are all characteristic of the mononucleosis _____.

syndrome

The (syndrome, bathos) of poverty, drug addiction, and crime that afflicts our cities calls for remedial action of a truly national scale

syndrome

a group of symptoms or signs that collectively characterize a disease

syndrome

antonym- the ISOLATED SIDE EFFECT caused by the medicine

syndrome

synonym- suffers from a recognizable GROUPS OF SYMPTOMS

syndrome

Is it too optimistic to hope that your willingness to undertake that thankless task is the _____ of a new maturity and a more responsible attitude?

harbinger

With the extreme cold and the deep snows still holding on, the gradual lengthening of days was the only (aberration, harbinger) of spring

harbinger

forerunner; to herald the approach of

harbinger

synonym- is a HERALD of the coming of winter

harbinger

the movement of the red fox north into Arctic fox territory (harbingers, remands) the continuation of warming climate

harbingers

Though he had embraced a creed of unabashed _____ in his youth, he ended his life among a group of ascetics living in the desert.

hedonism

antonym- never experienced SELF-DENIAL

hedonism

belief that the attainment of pleasure is life's chief aim; devotion to or pursuit of pleasure

hedonism

synonym- SYBARITISM that is indulged in Las Vegas

hedonism

Would it be ungracious of me to suggest that the _____ of the feast, given on the menu as "filet mignon," had the taste and texture of old shoe leather?

Pièce de Résistance

someone who is cantankerous is not a amiable b repugnant c grumpy d saturnalian

a

sympathetic understanding of or identification with the feelings of someone else

empathy

we must not assume that their behavior (aberrant, mellifluous) by conventional standards, is a sign of mental illness

aberrant

How is one to explain that strange _____ from the habits and standards which he had followed for so many years?

aberration

Since you've been spending time with these new friends, i sense in you a sort of mental (bane, aberration) that both worries and disappoints me

aberration

departure from what is proper; lapse from a sound mental state

aberration

synonym- seen by scientists as an ANOMALY

aberration

Our fundraising committee formed (de facto, ad hoc) in order to more efficiently help the displaced or uninsured families hurt by the floods

ad hoc

Since there was no agency concerned with race relations, the Mayor created a(n) _____ committee to deal with such matters.

ad hoc

The negotiators agreed not to try to draw up an overall treaty but to deal with the specific problem on a(n) (de facto, ad hoc) basis

ad hoc

for this specific purpose; with respect to this

ad hoc

an aberration is a(n) a. plundering b irregularity c poison d argument

b

The pitcher's lightning fastball has proved the _____ of many a celebrated home-run hitter.

bane

source or cause of fatal injury, death, or ruin; death or ruin itself; poison

bane

the (baneful, mellifluous) looks that they directed at us made it only too clear that we had little hope for mercy at their hands

baneful

In many respects it is a good movie, but sadly, the director has allowed sentiment to spill over into sentimentality, and sentimentality into (bathos, casuistry)

bathos

Those sentimentalized effusions introduced a note of _____ into what should have been an occasion marked by dignity and restraint.

bathos

antonym- the SUBLIMITY of the story's concluison

bathos

synonym- dismissed as SCHMALTZ by critics

bathos

the intrusion of commonplace or trite material into a context whose tone is lofty or elevated; grossly insincere or exaggerated sentimentality; the lowest phase, nadir; an anticlimax, comedown

bathos

to be remanded is to be a protected b maligned c detained d scolded

c

He had been happy-go-lucky as a young man, but years of disappointment and misfortune have turned him sour and _____.

cantankerous

The car was forever breaking down, but its owner seemed to derive a sort of perverse satisfaction out of battling with the (mellifluous, cantankerous) old heap

cantankerous

The history of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy teaches us that we should never let ourselves be blinded by the meretricious _____ of a demagogue, no matter how appealing it may appear at first glance.

casuistry

Your efforts to prove that because "no one is perfect" all moral standards are relative and therefore meaningless, struck me as sheer (casuistry, hedonism)

casuistry

determination of right and wrong in questions of conduct by the application of general ethical principles

casuistry

synonym- struck me as utter SOPHISTRY

casuistry

ill-tempered and quarrelsome; difficult to get along with

contankerous

a bane is a(n) a embarrassment b accomplisment c nadir d tribulation

d

a malcontent is a a simpleton b benefactor c scoundrel d troublemaker

d

Although the law forbids residential separation of the races we all know that a state of (de facto, ad hoc) segregation exists in some communities

de facto

I find myself in the position of a(n) _____ supervisor; now I would like to have the title, salary, and privileges that go along with the job.

de facto

actually existing or in effect; in reality, actually

de facto

It took years for that country to recover from the _____ wrought by the Second World War and its concomitant social and economic dislocations.

depredation

synonym- victims of the PILLAGE

depredation

the act of preying upon or plundering

depredation

The (aberrations, depredations) of the terrible disease could be seen only too clearly in her extreme emaciation and feebleness

depredations

Her visits to the nursing home are motivated not by a detached sense of duty but by a genuine _____ for those who are lonely.

empathy

so strong is my (empathy, casuistry) with the poems of Robert Frost that I often feel as though I could have written them myself

empathy