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20 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
- 3rd side (hint)
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Serene |
Unruffled; tranquil; composed |
The aged empress died with a serene expression on her gentle face. |
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Skeptical |
Not easily persuaded or convinced; incredulous |
Shirley cast a skeptical look at her father when she was told she had to be home by 11 o'clock. |
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Sobriety |
Seriousness; temperance |
The extreme sobriety of five-year-old Veronica indicated a not very salutary sign of her social development. |
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Solemn |
Formal; observed or done according to ritual or tradition |
Before giving testimony in court, a witness is required to take a solemn oath that he or she will tell the whole truth. |
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Soporific |
Causing sleep; drowsy |
As a result of the heavy meal and the soporific after-dinner speaker, a chorus of mild snoring pervaded the banquet hall. |
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Sporadic |
Isolated; occurring at irregular intervals |
The distant sporadic gunfire kept the refugees awake throughout the night. |
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Spurious |
Counterfeit; false; lacking authenticity |
The first lesson to keep in mind when dealing with spurious information is that all that glitter is not gold. |
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Squalid |
Dirty or wretched; shabby |
The recluse lived in a squalid house on the edge of town and could not be persuaded to give it up for a more respectable domicile. |
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Stagnate |
To lie inactive; vegetate |
The mind must not be allowed to stagnate for it is like a tool that becomes dull if it is not used. |
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Stoic |
Resigned; indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain |
Edward accepted the reprimand in stoic silence thought he realized he was the scapegoat for the whole group. |
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Stringent |
Strict; severe; rigidly controlled or enforced |
The students objected to the stringent measure taken by the administration to enforce the dress code. |
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Stultifying |
Renderings absurd, useless, or ineffectual; to appear ridiculous |
The unhappy parents were led to understand that their own lifestyle has a stultifying influence on their relationship with their children. |
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Substantiate |
To verify; to support with proof or evidence |
It took years to prepare the experiment that would substantiate Einstein's Theory of Relativity. |
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Succibct |
Concise; clearly expressed in few words |
A person who savors action and is succinct in speech will not stagnate in a dead-end job. |
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Sullen |
Morose; gloomy; silent and keeping to oneself because one feels angry, bitter, or hurt |
It takes a stoic disposition to overcome the depressing effect of a sullen day. |
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Sumptuous |
Lavish; extravagantly or luxuriously dressed |
Nathan wanted his wedding to be as sumptuous as he could afford. |
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Supercilious |
Proud and scornful; looking down on others; arrogant |
Laurie weathered the supercilious sneer of the manager and resolved to her complaint about his misconduct. |
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Superficial |
Shallow; of or near the surface |
The duel ended with both adversaries sustaining superficial wounds. |
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Superfluous |
Extra; non-essential |
Kim's remark about her neighbor's obviously overweight son was entirely superfluous and quite inconsiderate. |
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Surmise |
To imagine or infer on slight grounds; conjecture (assumption) |
We must not surmise that gossip has a monopoly on truth. |
