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24 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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inconsequential
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insignificant; unimportant
The meeting of the two woman seemed inconsequential at the time, but in retrospect it let of one of literature's great collaborations. |
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internecine
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deadly to both sides
The US civil war was an internecine conflict that lead to the death of 620000 soldiers out of 2.4 million who fought in the war. |
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inveigh
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to disapprove; protest vehemently
The conservative writer inveighed against the school board's decision to exclude moral education from the curriculum. |
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jocose
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fond of joking; jocular; playful
The English word jocose, jocular, and joke all come from derivatives of the Latin word Jocus which means jest or joke. |
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latent
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present but hidden; potential
some experts in human psychology believe that we are just beginning to explore the latent powers of the human mind. |
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limpid
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clear; transparent
At the bottom of the limpid pond we could see hundred of fish swimming. |
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mettlesome
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full of courage and fortitude; spirited
The mettlesome young officer was well regarded by all the senior officers. |
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mitigate
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To cause to become less harsh, severe, or painful; alleviate
The decisions did mitigate the effects of some of the rulings of the Warren court. |
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obsequy
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funeral ceremony
Solemn obsequies were help for president JFK following his assassination |
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opprobrium
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disgrace; contempt
It is difficult to imagine the opprobrium heaped on a person who is a traitor to his or her group. |
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perennial
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present throughout the years; persistent
Perennial warfare had left most of the people o f the country in poverty. |
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physiognomy
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facial fear
The art teacher assigned her students to make drawings of people with a wide variety of physiognomy |
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precarious
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uncertain
the prime minister's precarious hold on power ended when she lost a vote of confidence in Parliament. |
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preternatural
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Beyond the normal cause of nature; supernatural
Most scientists believe that putative preternatural phenomena are outside the scope of scientific inquiry |
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quagmire
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marsh; difficult situation
The federal government's antitrust suit in the 1990s against Microsoft created a legal quagmire. |
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raiment
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clothing
It took two hours for the princess's handmaidens to help her put on her splendid raiment for her coronation as queen. |
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refractory
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stubborn; unmanageable; resisting ordinary methods of treatment
The general practitioner called in specialists to help determine the cause of the patient's refractory illness. |
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reproach
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to find fault with; blame
The speaker in Andrew's poem "To his coy mistress" reproached his beloved for ignoring the passing of time. |
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singular
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unique; extraordinary; odd
The defendant's singular appearance made it easy for the witness to identify his as the person at the scene of the crime. |
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stygian
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dark and gloomy; hellish
The poem describes an unfortunate soldier who was unable to get his gas mask on in time, seem through the stygian gloom of poison gas. |
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supersede
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to replace, especially to displace as inferior or antiquated
Malay was the lingua franca of the Malay peninsula for centuries, but in many parts of that region it is being superseded in that role by a European interloper, English. |
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travail
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work, especially arduous work; tribulation; anguish
America's early pioneers endured great travail, but perserved and eventually settled much of the vast continent. |
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tutelary
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serving as a guardian or protector
most of the people of ancient Rome believed in existence of tutelary spirits. |
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vapid
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tasteless; dull
To relax in the evening the judge likes to watch vapid situation comedies on TV. |
