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to humble, disgrace.
The commoner abased himself before the king. |
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miserable; pity.
The peasants live in abject poverty. |
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self-denial
The religion encourages its followers to practice abnegation periodically. |
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abhorrence; a cause of disgust
Torture is regarded as an abomination. |
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| being the first of its kind in a region |
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to express approval; agree to
"If I accede to you request for a favor, the other employees will be angry with me," the boss said |
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to approach and speak to someone
She doesn't like being accosted by strangers on the street. |
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highest point; summit; zenith
John considered wining the Pulitzer Prize to be the acme of his career in Journalism. |
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sharpness
Some people are born with excellent visual acuity. |
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to cite as an example as a means of proof
The lawyer adduced his client's good standing in the community as evidence of her good character. |
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for the present purpose only
An ad hoc committee was formed by the school to investigate the growing problem of student lateness to class. |
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appealing to prejudice or passions; attacking ones adversary rather than his or her argument
The debate moderator warned participants that she would not tolerate ad hominem arguments. |
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forever; without limit
Mathematicians believe that pi represented as a decimal continues ad infinitum. |
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to study and settle a dispute
The chief umpire was called in to adjudicate the dispute during the baseball game. |
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to a disgusting or ridiculous degree
The issue had been debated ad nausuem. |
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relating to sun-dried brick of clay and straw.
The adobe houses in that area were built over 300 years ago. |
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skillful
With an adroit move, the wrestler pinned his opponent. |
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| to sketch in a shadowy way |
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added from without
The architect confirmed that the house was Colonial, without adventitious later additions |
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protection; sponsorship; shield
Negotiations are being conducted under the aegis of the United Nations |
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relating to object moving through the air
Engineers who design cars take into consideration aerodyanamic factors. |
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for a still stronger reason
"But I do not feel that I and my fellow citizens have a religious duty to sacrifice our lives in war on behalf of our own state, and a fortiori, I do not feel that we have an obligation or a right to kill and maim citizens of other states or to devastate their land" |
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well coordinated, nimble
Gymnasts should be very agile. |
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the proportion of incident radiation reflected by surface
Fresh snow has a very high albedo. |
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a combination; a mixture of two or more metals.
Steel is an alloy of iron, carbon and other substances. |
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sphere or scope
The court ruled that the case was not within the ambit of state law. |
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something delicious; food of the gods
To some people raw oysters are ambrosia. |
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ornament worn as a charm against evil spirits
Joe's birthstone is emerald, a piece of which he wears around his neck as an amulet. |
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to comment critically
The travel writer animadvert against nearly every country he visits. |
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enthusiasm, excitement
The speakers animation was infectious; members of the audience got to their feet and began to cheer. |
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something that calms or soothes pain
I applied an anodyne to my burn to relieve the pain |
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| before or existing before the war; especially the American Civil War. |
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collection of literary works
This anthology contains the best stories published in America this year. |
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regarding man as the center of the universe
Its hard to imagine anthropocentrism surviving human contact with a vastly superior alien civilization |
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any two places on opposite sides of the earth
NYC and Singapore are nearly antipodes. |
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Too old to be fashionable; outmoded
The tenant asked his landlord to modernize the apartment's antiquated electrical system. |
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the highest point
Scientists believe that humanity is the apex reached by evolution on earth. |
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guileless
The salesperson's boss was amazed by the success of her artless employee. |
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| person who aspires to honors, high position, etc. |
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to make less severe
A piece of fruit should assuage my hunger until dinner |
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up-to-date; informed on current affairs.
Debra reads a weekly news magazine to stay au courant. |
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intense dislike
An aversion to snakes is universal in human beings. |
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to state openly
The postion he now avows contradicts his earlier statements on the issue. |
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premise; postulate; widely accepted principle
An axiom cited by many writers is that you should write about what you know. |
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taken for granted
The principle that every person has rights is regarded as axiomatic by most people. |
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