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Foundation and Empire Vocab
Vocab to Foundation and Empire by Isaac Asimov
45
English
9th Grade
06/14/2011

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Term
ameliorate
ex:the medicine should ameliorate the pain
Definition
to make better or more tolerable
Term
avail
ex: the dark fire shall not avail you!
Definition
to be of use or advantage
Term
bumptious
ex: I hate bumptious kids because their family is rich
Definition
presumptuously, obtusely, and often noisily self-assertive
Term
phlegmatic
ex: after receiving his birthday present, he looked unusually phlegmatic
Definition
having or showing a slow and stolid temperament
Term
collateral
ex: the collateral costs of the operation were accounted for
Definition
accompanying as secondary or subordinate;
parallel, coordinate, or corresponding in position, order, time, or significanc
Term
bouts
ex: a bout of swine flu has swept the nation of Mexico
Definition
a spell of activity; outbreak
Term
insipid
ex: the tofu was insipid as ever
Definition
lacking taste or savor
Term
atavism
ex: the architectural atavism seen in the cathedral resembles that of the late Gothic period
Definition
recurrence of or reversion to a past style, manner, outlook, approach, or activity
Term
quixotic
ex: they had quixotic dreams
Definition
foolishly impractical especially in the pursuit of ideals;
Term
auspices
ex: traveling to India with auspices from the Oken Fellowship Committee
Definition
kindly patronage and guidance
Term
tenuous
ex: idealists who have a tenuous grip on reality can become quixotic
Definition
not dense; not thick; having little substance or strength
Term
rudimentary
ex: to read the Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy report, you must have a rudimentary understanding of banking
Definition
fundamental; very imperfectly developed or represented only by a vestige
Term
simulacrum
ex: the song was a suitable simulacrum to the movie
Definition
image, representation
Term
prate
ex: the commentator would prate through the presentation when suddenly he woke us up with a bang
Definition
to talk long and idly
Term
paltry
ex: the hotel's shabby, outdated exercise room was its paltry attempt at a health spa
Definition
inferior, trashy
mean, despicable
trivial
meager, measly
Term
assuage
ex: the doctor, in order to assuage the pain, knocked him unconscious
Definition
to lessen the intensity of
to put to an end by satisfying, appease
Term
facsimile
ex: the museum exhibited a facsimile of the emperor's carriage
Definition
an exact copy
Term
genial
ex: at that time, looking after the tennis courts was a very genial character
Definition
marked by or diffusing sympathy or friendliness
favorable to growth or comfort
Term
condescension
ex: his condescension towards his boss earned him a severance package
Definition
patronizing attitude or behavior
Term
curt
ex: the teacher would either provide a curt answer to a question or just not respond at all
Definition
sparing of words : terse
marked by rude or peremptory shortness
Term
rigmarole
ex: the conversation was filled with rigmarole and accomplished nothing
Definition
confused or meaningless talk
a complex and sometimes ritualistic procedure
Term
magnate
ex: the studio magnate, who had all the Hollywood stars at his command, graduated from my school
Definition
a person of rank, power, influence, or distinction often in a specified area
Term
inertia
ex: growing up, he never was in a state of inertia
Definition
indisposition to motion, exertion, or change
Term
espionage
ex: he was acquitted of 7 charges of espionage
Definition
the practice of spying or using spies to obtain information about the plans and activities especially of a foreign government or a competing company
Term
farcical
ex: the farcical routine that a person has to go through to get a refund from that company
Definition
ludicrous
laughingly inept
Term
ersatz
ex: like everything else the restaurant served, the whipped cream on the dessert was ersatz>
Definition
being a usually artificial and inferior substitute or imitation
Term
meticulously
ex: the main reason for the serial killer recurrent escape was his meticulous and cautionary planning
Definition
marked by extreme or excessive care in the consideration or treatment of details
Term
fallacious
ex: her fallacious lies towards the police ended up putting her in jail for 4 years
Definition
tending to deceive or mislead : delusive ; deceiving ; misleading
Term
edifice
ex: a magnificent edifice with a domed ceiling
Definition
a large or massive structure
Term
vicissitude
ex: the vicissitudes of daily life
Definition
a favorable or unfavorable event or situation that occurs by chance
the quality or state of being changeable : mutability
Term
exigencies
ex: exceptionally quick in responding to the exigencies of modern warfare
Definition
that which is required in a particular situation
a state of affairs that makes urgent demands
Term
haphazard
ex: his haphazard trip turned out to be very boring
Definition
marked by lack of plan, order, or direction
Term
prehensile
ex: an elephant has a prehensile trunk
Definition
gifted with mental grasp or moral or aesthetic perception
Term
disconcert
ex: we were disconcerted by the unexpected changes in the program
Definition
to throw into confusion
Term
centrifugal
ex: the centrifugal society rejected the idea of a capital city
Definition
tending away from centralization : separatist
Term
multitudinous
ex: multitudinous oppurtunities
Definition
existing in a great multitude
Term
recrudescence
ex: a recrudescence of symptoms
Definition
renewal
Term
embitter
ex: Hitler was embittered by the Treaty of Versailles
Definition
to excite bitter feelings in
Term
insular
ex: the insular, archaic, sheltered community at the Girls' School was unhealthy
Definition
dwelling or situated on an island
characteristic of an isolated people
Term
bleary
ex: bleary eyes
Definition
very tired
Term
cavil
ex: the lawyer, as a habit of work, would cavil at his daughter
Definition
to raise trivial objections to
Term
brusque
ex: because he was angry at the man, he was brusque and curt
Definition
blunt in manner or speech often to the point of ungracious harshness
Term
eidetic
ex: eidetic memory is very useful
Definition
marked by or involving extraordinarily accurate and vivid recall especially of visual images
Term
unctuous
ex: an unctuous appraisal of the musical talent shown by the boss's daughte
Definition
fatty, oily
plastic
marked by a smug, ingratiating, and false earnestness or spirituality
Term
proboscis
ex: the man's proboscis stretched farther than an elephant's
Definition
the human nose especially when prominent
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