Chapter 5

Front 1

ad hoc

Back 1

adjective

concerned or dealing with a specific subject, purpose, or end

Front 2

ad hominem

Back 2

adjective

appealing to one's prejudices, emotions, or special interests rather than to one's intellect or reason; attacking an opponent's character rather than answering his argument

Front 3

ad infinitum

Back 3

adjective

without an end or limit

Front 4

ad nauseam

Back 4

to a sickening or disgusting degree

Front 5

antebellum

Back 5

adjective

before or existing before a war, especially the American Civil War; prewar

Front 6

ardently

Back 6

adjective

having or expressive of, or characterized by intense feeling, passionate, fervent; intensely devoted, eager, or enthusiastic, zealous; vehement, fierce; burning, fiery, or hot

Front 7

avocation

Back 7

noun

something a person does in addition to a principal occupation, especially for pleasure, hobby; a person's regular occupation, calling, or vocation

Front 8

belie

Back 8

verb

to show to be false, contradict; to misrepresent

Front 9

bellicose

Back 9

adjective

inclines or eager to fight, aggressively hostile, belligerent, pugnacious

Front 10

bereft

Back 10

adjective

sad because a family member or friend has died

Front 11

berserk

Back 11

adjective

violently or destructively frenzied, wild, crazed, deranged

noun

an ancient Scandinavian warrior frenzied in battle and held to be invulnerable

Front 12

bona fide

Back 12

adjective

made, done, presented, etc., in good faith, without deception or fraud; made or done in an honest and sincere way

Front 13

churlish

Back 13

adjective

not polite, rude

Front 14

culpable

Back 14

adjective

deserving blame, guilty of doing something wrong

Front 15

de facto

Back 15

adjective

in fact, in reality; actually existing, especially when without lawful authority

Front 16

deleterious

Back 16

adjective

damaging or harmful

Front 17

dictatorial

Back 17

adjective

inclined to dictate or command, imperious, overbearing

Front 18

ebullient

Back 18

adjective

overflowing with fervor, enthusiasm, or excitement, high-spirited

Front 19

epiphany

Back 19

noun

a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple, homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience

Front 20

evanescent

Back 20

adjective

vanishing, fading away, fleeting

Front 21

facetious

Back 21

adjective

not meant to be taken seriously or literally; amusing, humorous

Front 22

genocide

Back 22

noun

the deliberate and systematic extermination of a national, racial, political, or cultural group

Front 23

gregarious

Back 23

adjective

fond of the company off others, sociable; living in flocks or herds, as animals

Front 24

heterogeneous

Back 24

adjective

made up of parts that are different

Front 25

homogeneous

Back 25

adjective

composed of parts or elements that are all of the same kind

Front 26

hubris

Back 26

noun

excessive pride or self-confidence, arrogance

Front 27

hypotenuse

Back 27

noun

the side of a right triangle opposite the right angle

Front 28

impeach

Back 28

verb

to charge (a public official) with a crime done while in office

Front 29

ipse dixit

Back 29

noun

an assertion made but not proved

Front 30

ipso facto

Back 30

adverb

by the fact itself, by the very nature of the deed

Front 31

loquacious

Back 31

adjective

talking or tending to talk much or freely, talkative

Front 32

mea culpa

Back 32

noun

my fault; an acknowledgment of one's responsibility for a fault or error

Front 33

modus operandi

Back 33

noun

mode of operating or working

Front 34

non sequitur

Back 34

noun

a statement containing an illogical conclusion

Front 35

nonsectarian

Back 35

adjective

not affiliated with or limited to a specific religious denomination

Front 36

oligarchy

Back 36

noun

a form of government in which all power vested in a few persons or in a dominant class or clique, government by the few

Front 37

parabola

Back 37

noun

a plane curve formed by the intersection of a right circular cone with a plane parallel to a generator of the cone, the set of points in a plan that are equidistant from a fixed line and a fixed point in the same plane or in a parallel plan

Front 38

polymer

Back 38

noun

a chemical compound that is made of small molecules that are arranged in a simple repeating structure to form a larger molecule

Front 39

pseudonym

Back 39

noun

a fictitious name used by an author to conceal his or her identity

Front 40

quid pro quo

Back 40

noun

something that is given or taken in return for something else

Front 41

quotidian

Back 41

adjective

daily; usual or customary, everyday; ordinary, commonplace

Front 42

sanguine

Back 42

adjective

cheerfully optimistic, hopeful, or confident

Front 43

soliloquy

Back 43

noun

an utterance of discourse by a person who is talking to himself or herself is disregardful of or oblivious to any hearers present; the act of talking while or as if alone

Front 44

status quo

Back 44

noun

the existing state or condition

Front 45

stereotype

Back 45

noun

a simplified and standardized conception or image invested with special meaning and held in common by members of a group

Front 46

supercilious

Back 46

adjective

having or showing the proud and unpleasant attitude of people who think that they are better or more important than other people; haughtily disdainful or contemptuous, as a person or a facial expression

Front 47

transient

Back 47

adjective

not lasting, enduring, or permanent, transitory; lasting only a short time, existing briefly, temporary

Front 48

vortex

Back 48

noun

a whirling mass of water, especially one in which a force of suction operates, as a whirlpool; a whirling mass of air/fire

Front 49

xenophobe

Back 49

noun

a person who fears or hates foreigners, strange customs, etc.

Front 50

yeoman

Back 50

noun

an officer in the US Navy who works as a clerk