Big Brother Vocab Ii

Front 1

stemwinder

Back 1

–noun

1. a stemwinding watch.

2. Older Slang.
a. something remarkable

b. a rousing speech or a stirring orator.

Front 2

thrall

Back 2

–noun

1. a person who is in bondage; slave.

2. a person who is morally or mentally enslaved by some power, influence, or the like:
He was the thrall of morbid fantasies.

3. slavery; thralldom.

Front 3

retinue

Back 3

–noun

a body of retainers in attendance upon an important personage; suite.

Front 4

regale

Back 4

pronunciation: re-gail (as in the woman's name, Gail)

verb

to entertain, especially with sumptuous with food and drink

Front 5

besot

Back 5

verb

1. to intoxicate or stupefy with drink.

2. to make stupid or foolish:
a mind besotted with fear and superstition.

3. to infatuate; obsess:
He is besotted by her youth and beauty.

Front 6

harridan

Back 6

hahr-i-dn

noun

a scolding, vicious woman; hag(); shrew()

Hint 6

hag: an ugly old woman

shrew: a woman of violent temper and speech

Front 7

pageboy

Back 7

–noun

1. a hair style in which the hair is rolled under, usually at shoulder-length.

2. a youth or man who works as a page, as at a hotel.

Front 8

mottle

Back 8

1. Variegated in color; consisting of different colors; dappled; party-colored
a motley coat.

2. Wearing motley or party-colored clothing.
"A motley fool."

3. Composed of different or various parts; heterogeneously made or mixed up; discordantly composite;
motley style. --Byron.

Front 9

crone

Back 9

noun

a withered, witchlike old woman.

Front 10

visage

Back 10

–noun

1. the face or facial expression; countenance.

2. appearance.

Front 11

conundrum

Back 11

–noun

1. a riddle, the answer to which involves a pun or play on words, as
What is black and white and read all over? A newspaper.

2. anything that puzzles.

Front 12

conflate

Back 12

verb

to fuse into one entity; merge:

to conflate dissenting voices into one protest.

Front 13

palliative

Back 13

pal-ee-ay-tiv (ay as in say)

adj

Relieving the symptoms of a disease without affecting cure.

Front 14

plumb

Back 14

adv

1. in a perpendicular or vertical direction.

2. exactly, precisely, or directly.

3. Informal. completely or absolutely:
She was plumb mad. You're plumb right.

Front 15

surreptitious

Back 15

adj.

clandestine

obtained by subreption()

Hint 15

subreption, noun,

A calculated misrepresentation through concealment of the facts

Front 16

ersatz

Back 16

er-zahts

adj.

serving as a substitute, usually an inferior or artificial one

ersatz coffee made from grain.

Front 17

fluff

Back 17

noun

1. Something having a very light or soft consistency or appearance:
a fluff of on a dandelion;
a fluff of cloud.

2. Something of little substance or consequence, especially:

a. Superficial entertainment: The movie was just another bit of fluff from Hollywood.

b. Inflated or padded material: The report was mostly fluff, with little new information.

c. The parts of a junked car that are not metal and cannot be recycled.

d. Informal. An error, especially in the delivery of lines, as by an actor or announcer.

Front 18

wangle

Back 18

noun

1. to accomplish or obtain by underhanded methods
to wangle an invitation.

2. to falsify or manipulate for dishonest ends:
to wangle business records

Front 19

splay

Back 19

adj.

1. Spread out.

2. Clumsy, awkward.

Front 20

halcyon

Back 20

hal-see-uhn

adj.

1. calm; peaceful; tranquil:
halcyon weather.

2. rich; wealthy; prosperous:
halcyon times of peace.

3. happy; joyful; carefree:
halcyon days of youth.

Front 21

chador

Back 21

chuhd-er

–noun

burka; the traditional garment of Muslim and Hindu women, consisting of a long, usually black or drab-colored cloth or veil that envelops the body from head to foot and covers all or part of the face.

Front 22

imam

Back 22

i-mom (soft i)

noun

the title for a Muslim religious leader, esp the officiating leader of a mosque

Front 23

debonair

Back 23

–adjective

1. having sophisticated charm; courteous, gracious
a debonair gentleman.

2. jaunty(); carefree; sprightly().

Hint 23

jaunty, adj.
1. cheerful, lively, and self-confident
2. Neat, trim, smart in appearance, esp. clothing; dapper; natty; spruce

sprightly, adj,
animated, vivacious, lively

Front 24

diffident

Back 24

adj.

timid, shy, reserved

Front 25

effusive

Back 25

–adjective

1. Excessively emotional; gushy:
effusive greetings;
an effusive person.

2. pouring out; overflowing.

Front 26

raffish

Back 26

adjective

1. marked by up-to-dateness in dress and manners; dapper; jaunty; rakish

2. mildly or engagingly disreputable or nonconformist; rakish:
a matinee idol whose raffish offstage behavior amused millions.

3. gaudily vulgar or cheap; tawdry; dissolute; lewd; debauched.

Front 27

raconteur

Back 27

rak-uhn-tur;

noun

a person who tells interesting stories; the skill of telling interesting stories

Front 28

sandbag

Back 28

verb

1. treat harshly or unfairly

2. compel by coercion or threats; dragoon
"sandbagged us to clean up their mess"

3. to thwart or cause to fail or be rejected, esp. surreptitiously or without warning:
He sandbagged our proposal by snide remarks to the boss.

4. hit something or somebody as if with a sandbag

5. downplay one's ability (towards others) in a game in order to deceive, as in gambling

6. protect or strengthen with sandbags; stop up; "The residents sandbagged the beach front"