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english1-4
vocab
142
English
11th Grade
10/23/2008

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Term
APARTHEID
Definition
the abhorrent policy of racial segregation and oppression in
Term
APOCRYPHAL
Definition
of dubious authenticity; fictitious
Term
APPROBATION
Definition
approval; praise
Term
ARBITER
Definition
who decides; a judge
Term
ARCHETYPE
Definition
an original model or pattern
Term
ASCENDANCY
Definition
supremacy; domination
Term
ASSUAGE
Definition
to soothe; to pacify; to ease the pain of
Term
AUTOCRATIC
Definition
ruling with absolute authority; extremely bossy
Term
AVUNCULAR
Definition
like an uncle, especially a nice uncle
Term
BANAL
Definition
unoriginal; ordinary
Term
BELITTLE
Definition
to put someone down
Term
BENEVOLENT
Definition
generous; kind; doing good deeds
Term
BEREAVED
Definition
deprived or left desolate because of a death
Term
BLITHE
Definition
carefree; cheerful
Term
CACOPHONY
Definition
harsh-sounding mixture of words, voices, or sounds
Term
CALLOW
Definition
immature
Term
CARICATURE
Definition
a portrait or description that is purposely distorted or
exaggerated, often to prove some point about its subject
Term
CATEGORICAL
Definition
unconditional; absolute
Term
CHAGRIN
Definition
humiliation; embarrassed disappointment
Term
CHICANERY
Definition
trickery; deceitfulness, especially legal or political
Term
CIRCUITOUS
Definition
roundabout; not following a direct path
Term
COALESCE
Definition
to come together as one; to unite
Term
COGNIZANT
Definition
aware; conscious
Term
COMPLACENT
Definition
overly pleased with oneself; contented to a
fault
Term
CONCORD
Definition
harmony; agreement
Term
Euphemism
Definition
a pleasant or inoffensive expression used in place of an
unpleasant or offensive one.
Term
Exigency
Definition
an emergency
Term
Extricate
Definition
to free from difficulty
Term
Faction
Definition
a group, usually a small part of a larger group, united around some cause
Term
Fidelity
Definition
faithfulness; loyalty
Term
Forgo
Definition
to do without
Term
Genre
Definition
a type or category, especially of art, music, or writing
Term
Hackneyed
Definition
overused; trite
Term
Hypothetical
Definition
uncertain; unproven
Term
Illicit
Definition
not permitted
Term
Imminent
Definition
just about to happen
Term
Impugn
Definition
to attack, especially to attack the truth or integrity of something
Term
Incorrigible
Definition
incapable of being reformed
Term
Inert
Definition
inactive; sluggish; not reacting chemically.
Term
Inherent
Definition
part of the essential nature of something; intrinsic
Term
Instigate
Definition
to provoke
Term
Kinetic
Definition
having to do with motion; lively; active
Term
Libel
Definition
a written or published falsehood that injures the reputation of, or
defames, someone.
Term
Machinations
Definition
n scheming activity for an evil purpose
Term
Martyr
Definition
someone who gives up his or her life in pursuit of a cause,
Term
Mercenary
Definition
a hired soldier; someone who will do anything for
money
Term
Mitigate
Definition
to moderate the effect of something
Term
Narcissism
Definition
excessive love one one’s body or oneself
Term
Novel
Definition
new and original
Term
Obscure
Definition
unknown; hard to understand
Term
painstaking
Definition
extremely careful
Term
Parsimonious
Definition
stingy
Term
Pedestrian
Definition
unimaginative; banal
Term
Perfunctory
Definition
unenthusiastic; careless
Term
Petulant
Definition
rude; cranky
Term
Polarize
Definition
to break up into opposing factions or groupings
Term
Precipitate
Definition
to cause to happen abruptly
Term
Prerogative
Definition
a right or privilege connected exclusively with a
position, a person, a class, a nation, or some other group or classification
Term
Profess
Definition
to declare; to declare falsely or pretend
Term
Proprietary
Definition
characteristic of an owner of property;
Term
Proximity
Definition
nearness
Term
Ramification
Definition
a consequence
Term
Recrimination
Definition
a bitter counteraccusation, or the act of making
a bitter counteraccusation
Term
Remonstrate
Definition
to argue against; to protest; to raise objections
Term
Reproach
Definition
to scold, usually in disappointment; to blame
Term
ABATE
Definition
to subside; to reduce
Term
ABNEGATE
Definition
to deny oneself things; to renounce
Term
ADAMANT
Definition
stubborn; unyielding
Term
ADVERSE
Definition
unfavorable; antagonistic
Term
AVERSE
Definition
to be opposed to doing something
Term
AFFINITY
Definition
sympathy; attraction; kinship; similarity
Term
AGNOSTIC
Definition
one who believes that the existence of a god can be neither proven
nor disproven.
Term
ALLOCATE
Definition
to distribute; to assign
Term
ALOOF
Definition
uninvolved; keeping one’s distance
Term
AMBIENCE
Definition
atmosphere; mood; feeling
Term
AMORAL
Definition
lacking a sense of right and wrong; neither good nor bad, neither moral nor immoral; without moral sense
Term
ANARCHY
Definition
absence of government or control; lawlessness; disorder
Term
ANTECEDENT
Definition
someone or something that went before; something that
serves as a model for something that came after
Term
APATHY
Definition
lack of interest; lack of feeling
Term
APOTHEOSIS
Definition
elevation to divine status; the perfect example of
something
Term
ARCANE
Definition
mysterious; known only to a select few
Term
ASSIDUOUS
Definition
hardworking; busy; quite diligent
Term
ATTRITION
Definition
gradual wearing away, weakening, or loss
Term
AUTONOMOUS
Definition
acting independently
Term
AWRY
Definition
off course; twisted to one side
Term
BASTION
Definition
stronghold; fortress
Term
BELLIGERENT
Definition
combative; quarrelsome; waging war
Term
BENIGN
Definition
gentle; not harmful; kind; mild
Term
BLASPHEMY
Definition
irreverence; an insult to something held sacred
Term
BOURGEOIS
Definition
middle class, usually in a pejorative sense; boringly
conventional
Term
BUCOLIC
Definition
charmingly rural; rustic
Term
CAJOLE
Definition
to persuade someone to do something he or she doesn’t want to do
Term
CANDOR
Definition
truthfulness; sincere honesty
Term
CATHARSIS
Definition
purification that brings emotional relief or renewal
Term
CHASM
Definition
a deep, gaping hole
Term
CIVIL
Definition
polite
Term
COLLOQUIAL
Definition
informal in language
Term
COMPRISE
Definition
to consist of
Term
CONDUCIVE
Definition
promoting
Term
CONJECTURE
Definition
to guess based on evidence
Term
COPIOUS
Definition
abundant
Term
CREDULOUS
Definition
gullible
Term
Exacerbate
Definition
to make worse
Term
Exonerate
Definition
to free completely from blame
Term
Exult
Definition
to rejoice; to celebrate
Term
Fastidious
Definition
meticulous; demanding; finicky
Term
Finesse
Definition
skillful maneuvering; subtlety; craftiness
Term
Fortuitous
Definition
accidental; occurring by chance
Term
Gesticulate
Definition
to make gestures, especially when speaking or in place
of speaking
Term
Harbinger
Definition
a forerunner; a signal of
Term
Impartia
Definition
fair; not favoring one side or the other; unbiased
Term
Inaugurate
Definition
to begin officially; to induct formally into office
Term
Indifferent
Definition
not caring one way or the other; apathetic; mediocre
Term
Infamous
Definition
shamefully wicked; having an extremely bad reputation;
disgraceful.
Term
Innate
Definition
existing since birth; inborn; inherent
Term
Insurgent
Definition
a rebel; someone who revolts against a government
Term
Irrevocable
Definition
irreversible
Term
Laconic
Definition
using few words, especially to the point of seeming rude
Term
Loquacious
Definition
talking a lot or too much
Term
Magnate
Definition
a rich, powerful, or very successful business-person
Term
Maudlin
Definition
silly and overly sentimental
Term
Metamorphosis
Definition
a magical change in form; a striking or sudden
change.
Term
Monolithic
Definition
massive, solid, uniform, and unyielding
Term
Neologism
Definition
a new word or phrase; a new usage of a word
Term
Nuance
Definition
a subtle difference or distinction
Term
Obtuse
Definition
insensitive; blockheaded
Term
Palpable
Definition
capable of being touched; obvious; tangible
Term
Patent
Definition
obvious
Term
Penchant
Definition
a strong taste or liking for something; a predilection
Term
Periphery
Definition
the outside edge of something
Term
Philistine
Definition
a smugly ignorant person with no appreciation for intellectual or artistic matters
Term
Ponderous
Definition
so large as to be clumsy; massive; dull
Term
Precipitous
Definition
steep
Term
Pristine
Definition
original; unspoiled; pure
Term
Profligate
Definition
extravagantly wasteful and, usually, wildly immoral
Term
Proscribe
Definition
to outlaw; to prohibit
Term
Purported
Definition
rumored; claimed
Term
Querulous
Definition
complaining; grumbling; whining
Term
Rapacious
Definition
greedy; plundering; avaricious
Term
Redolent
Definition
fragrant
Term
Renounce
Definition
to give up formally or resign; to disown; to have nothing to
do with anymore
Term
Sacrosanct
Definition
sacred; held to be inviolable
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