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30 Cards in this Set

  • Front
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recondite
adj.深奥的, 隐藏的, 晦涩的

1. Difficult to understand; abstruse.
2. Concerned with obscure subject matter.

"Reginald enjoyed the daily emails as a way to keep his already recondite vocabulary satisfyingly obscure."

Recondite is from Latin reconditus, past participle of recondere, "to store back," i.e., "out of the way," hence "to hide"; itself from re-, "back, again" + condere, "to put away, to store." Thus, recondite knowledge is "hidden" (because of obscurity or difficulty) from the understanding of the average person.
bissextile
adj.闰的
Of or pertaining to the leap year or the extra day in the leap year.

n.闰年 leap year

From Latin bisextilis annus (leap year), from Latin bissextus (February
29: leap day), from bi- (two) + sextus (sixth), from the fact that the sixth day before the Calends of March (February 24) appeared twice every leap year.
disquisition
n.专题论文

A formal discourse on a subject.

The new book club member was partial to eye-glazing disquisitions on "new wave" authors from the 1960's.

Disquisition comes from Latin disquisitio, from disquirere, "to inquire into, to investigate," from dis- + quaerere "to seek." It is related to inquire ("to seek into") and exquisite, which describes something that is "sought out" (ex-, "out") because of beauty, delicacy, or perfection.
intercalary
adj.插在中间的, 被夹于中间的
Inserted in a calendar (for example, a day or a month).

From Latin inter- (between) + calare (to proclaim).
parse
vt.解析
n.分列

1. To resolve (as a sentence) into its component parts of speech with an explanation of the form, function, and syntactical relationship of each part.
2. To describe grammatically by stating its part of speech, form, and syntactical relationships in a sentence.
3. To examine closely or analyze critically, especially by breaking up into components.
4. To make sense of; to comprehend.
5. (Computer Science) To analyze or separate (input, for example) into more easily processed components.
6. To admit of being parsed.

We must learn to parse sentences and to analyse the grammar of our text, for, as Roman Jakobson has taught us, there is no access to the grammar of poetry, to the nerve and sinew of the poem, if one is blind to the poetry of grammar.

There are too many spots where the rhythm goes momentarily awry; where words are used with murk, sloppiness or phonetic imprecision; where sentences are so twisted around that they become hard to parse; even times where it's hard to be sure just who or what is being referred to.

The American Constitution, for example, says that "Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech." . . . once we parse notions like "abridging" and "the freedom of speech," perhaps we will decide cases on the basis of an inquiry into two, three, or more relevant considerations.
doppelganger
A ghostly counterpart or double of a living person.

From German, literally a double goer.

The classic doppelganger experience is a common theme in fiction where the appearance of the double often announces the hero's death by suicide. Probably the most dramatic illustration is Edgar Allan
Poe's William Wilson, who in an attempt to stab his double, kills himself.
dishabille
n.便服, 便装, 穿着随便的状况

1. The state of being carelessly or partially dressed.
2. Casual or lounging attire. 3. An intentionally careless or casual manner.

Marta's parents were utterly scandalized when they toured her dorm, seeing all the people who should have been fully clothed lounging around in dishabille.

Dishabille comes from French déshabiller, "to undress," from dés-, "dis-" + habiller, "to clothe, to dress."
approbation
n.官方批准, 认可, 嘉许

1. The act of approving; formal or official approval. 2. Praise; commendation.

The candidate's speech struck a responsive chord among the crowd of well-wishers and won him much approbation.

Approbation is from Latin approbatio, from approbare, "to approve or cause to be approved," from ap- (for ad-), used intensively + probare, "to make or find good," from probus, "good, excellent, fine."
mackle
n.墨污, 污斑[点], 重叠印刷
A blur, as from a double impression in printing.

v. To blur.

From Latin macula (spot or stain).
brackish
adj.有盐味的, 可厌的
1. Somewhat salty.
2. Distasteful; unpalatable.

Just a few villages dot the dangerous beaches where the Sepik [River] meets the sea, a brackish zone where sharks and saltwater crocodiles lurk
wayworn
adj.旅行累了的
Wearied by traveling.

The wayworn Battalions halt in the Avenue: they have, for the present, no wish so pressing as that of shelter and rest.

These beautiful and verdant recesses, running through and softening the rugged mountains, were cheering and refreshing to the wayworn travellers.
parlous
adj.危险的, 不易对付的, 精明的, 狡猾的
adv.非常地, 极

Attended with peril; fraught with danger; hazardous.

It was a parlous time in the schoolyard, when preppies and goths vied brutally for supremacy.

Parlous derives from Old French perillous, perilleus, from Latin periculosus, adjective form of periculum, "peril, danger, hazard."
stasis
plural stases
n.停滞, 郁积.
A state of balance, equilibrium, or stagnation.
2. Stoppage of the normal flow of a bodily fluid or semifluid.

The reality of governance was not stasis but change; institutions did not operate according to mechanical laws, they evolved organically.
nonage
n.青年时期, 早期, 未成熟, 未成年

1. The time of life before a person becomes legally of age.
2. A period of youth or immaturity.

He was an adept in politics, even in his nonage, and an accomplished statesman before the laws regarded him as a man.

It occasionally puts children over men, and the conceits of nonage over wisdom and experience.
subfusc
adj.暗淡的, 单调的
n.深暗色衣着
Dark or dull in color; drab, dusky.

Mela never dressed in anything but drab or dull colors, and her room was decorated in similarly subfusc hues, all the better to maintain her trendily affected, gloomy mood.

Subfusc comes from Latin subfuscus, "brownish, dark," from sub-, "under" + fuscus, "dark-colored."
imprecation
n.祈求, 诅咒

1. The act of imprecating, or invoking evil upon someone. 2. A curse.

While everyone assumed Calvin's daily regular statements to be little more than amusing entreaties, in his mind they were the foulest of imprecations meant to bring them and their entire business down.

Imprecation derives from Latin imprecatio, from imprecari, "to invoke harm upon, to pray against," from in- + precari, "to pray."
didymous
adj.双胎的, [植]成对的

Occurring in pairs; twin.

From Greek didymos (twin). Ultimately from the Indo-European root dwo- (two)
that also gave us dual, double, dubious, doubt, diploma, twin, and between.
haboob
n.(发生在非洲北部或印度的)哈布沙暴(或尘暴)

A violent dust storm or sandstorm, especially in Sudan

From Arabic habub (strong wind).

"What appellant labors to portray as a robust haboob is not even a gentle
zephyr. The house, we think, is sturdy enough to withstand the prevailing
winds."
Excerpt from opinion of the court (Selya, J.) in Aoude v. Mobil Oil Corp.
1988.
gadabout
n.游荡者 adj.游荡的
Someone who roams about in search of amusement or social activity.

After striking it big in the stock market, Hanson's years of talk of all the social good he would do should he become rich went by the wayside and he spent the remainder of his days as a shiftless gadabout.

Gadabout is formed from the verb gad, "to rove or go about without purpose or restlessly" (from Middle English gadden, "to hurry") + about.
bibelot
n.<法>小摆设,小装饰品,微型书
A small decorative object without practical utility; a trinket.
pastiche
n.混成曲, 模仿画
1. An artistic piece, for example a literary, musical, or dramatic work, that imitates works of other artists.
2. A hodgepodge of incongruous parts taken from various sources.

From French, from Italian pasticcio (pastiche), from Vulgar Latin pasticium (pasty), from Late Latin pasta (dough).
gewgaw
n.便宜货
adj.华而不实的, 便宜货的

A showy trifle; a trinket; a bauble.

Many in the office felt that new secretary's tendency to be festooned with gewgaws, as well as her gaudy makeup, reflected poorly on the company's image.

The origin of gewgaw is uncertain.
gallimaufry
n.杂凑, 搀杂
A medley; a hodgepodge.

Today bilingual programs are conducted in a gallimaufry of around 80 tongues, ranging from Spanish to Lithuanian to Micronesian Yapese.
louche
adj.品德有问题的, 声名狼籍的
Of questionable taste or morality; disreputable or indecent; dubious; shady.

Jason was obsessed with the concept of keeping himself free of any suggestion of louche behavior as he wanted to run for public office one day.

Louche is from French louche, "shady, suspicious," from Old French losche, "squint-eyed," from Latin luscus, "one-eyed."
propitiate
v.劝解
To render favorably inclined; to appease; to conciliate (one offended).

Azorka, a black house-dog, probably conscious of his guilt in barking for nothing and anxious to propitiate us, approached us, diffidently wagging his tail.

Propitiate derives from Latin propitius, "favorable."
fructuous
adj.多果实的, 多产的, 会结果实的Fruitful; productive.
Fructuous comes from Latin fructuosus, from fructus, "enjoyment, product, fruit," from the past participle of frui, "to enjoy."

Theory does not provide us worthy Marching orders for a fructuous future, for theory in itself tells us nothing about how and when it is applicable.
aposematic
adj.警戒色的
Serving as a warning or alarm.

From Greek apo- (away, off) + sematic (serving as a sign of danger), from sema (sign). The term is especially used in case of insects, referring to features such as bright colors or markings to warn a
predator that they may be poisonous.

Winslow departed port in utter disregard of an aposematic forecast, and then stayed overlong in worsening seas before turning back."
pleochroic
adj.(晶体等)多向色性的,多色的(指从不同方向看具有不同颜色的
Showing different colors when viewed from different directions.

From Greek pleo- (more) + -chroic (having a color).
providential
adj.幸运的
1. Of or resulting from divine direction or superintendence.
2. Occurring through or as if through divine intervention; peculiarly fortunate or appropriate.

The laws of nature seem to have been carefully arranged so that they can be discovered by beings with our level of intelligence. That not only fits the idea of design, but it also suggests a providential purpose for humankind -- that is, to learn about our habitat and to develop science and technology.
tortuous
adj.曲折的, 转弯抹角的

1. Marked by repeated turns and bends; as, "a tortuous road up the mountain."
2. Not straightforward; devious; as, "his tortuous reasoning."
3. Highly involved or intricate; as, "tortuous legal procedures."

... the tortuous, narrow streets of Jerusalem's Old City.

... however tortuous and unfamiliar the pattern