Gre

Front 1

Fractious

Back 1

adj.
quarrelsome; unruly; - irritable

"What appeared to outsiders as a fractious department was actually an open and democratic team in which all opinions were heard and debated"

Front 2

Prodigious

Back 2

abundant in size, force, or extent; extraordinary; immense
adj.

"Prodigious numbers of villagers..."

Front 3

Exigent

Back 3

urgent; pressing; requiring immediate action or attention
adj.

"This is an exigent matter, it must be taken care of immediately"

Front 4

Profligate

Back 4

excessively wasteful; recklessly extravagant; -prodigal
adj.

"The profligate young man racked up quite the credit card debt"

Front 5

Prodigal

Back 5

recklessly wasteful; extravagant; - profuse; lavish
adj.

"The teacher's pet was given prodigal"

Front 6

Tout

Back 6

to publicly praise or promote -laud, herald, acclaim
v.

"Her parents always tout her achievements to their friends"

Front 7

Sanguine

Back 7

cheerful; confident; optimistic
-upbeat
adj.

"Kathleen's sanguine disposition is infectious; everyone cheers up whenever she enters the room"

Front 8

Sinuous

Back 8

winding; undulation
- serpentine
adj.

"A chill ran down my spine when I glimpsed a sinuous shape weave through the underbrush"

Front 9

Saturnine

Back 9

gloomy; dark; sullen
-melancholy
adj.

"the saturnine look on her face indicated that things had not gone well at the hospital"

Front 10

Natty

Back 10

trimly neat and tidy
-dapper
adj.

"the natty man always wore a pressed suite to the office"

Front 11

Schisim

Back 11

a split into fractions
-division

"Arguments over reading choices caused a schism in my book club; now we have separate groups"

Front 12

Fetid

Back 12

stinking; smelly
-malodorous
adj.

"i need gloves, bleach and a mask to clean the fetid refrigerator"

Front 13

Fetter

Back 13

to shackle; to put in chains
-restrain
v.

"My understanding of the argument was fettered by my lack of fluency in the language"

Front 14

Filigree

Back 14

an ornamental work, especially of delicate, lace-like pattern
-ornamentation
n.

"I appreciate the work that goes into making filigree jewelry, but I prefer a simpler modern style"

Front 15

Untenable

Back 15

indefensible; not viable; uninhabitable
-flawed, illogical
adj.

"The captain ordered soldiers to pull out from the untenable situation"

Front 16

Errant

Back 16

wandering; straying
-roving
adj.

"no amount of hair gel can tame the errant strands at the top of my head"

Front 17

Encomium

Back 17

glowing and enthusiastic praise
-tribute
n.

"The young actress received encomiums from the theater critics for her stunning debut"

Front 18

Endemic

Back 18

characteristic of or often found in a particular locality, region or ppl
-native, indigenous
adj.

"The destruction of plant and animal habitats is endemic to population growth"

Front 19

Enervate

Back 19

to weaken; to reduce in vitality
-debilitate, sap
v.

"working from 7:00-19:00 enervates me"

Front 20

Trenchant

Back 20

sharply perceptive; keen; penetrating
-incisive
adj.

"To become a world-class chess player, one must have both a trenchant strategy and an understanding of human nature"

Front 21

Engender

Back 21

to cause; to give rise to
-propagate
v,

"The president's policies have engendered arguments within the party"

Front 22

Truculent

Back 22

fierce and cruel; eager to fight
-brutal, vitriolic, belligerent
adj.

"The truculent dog always attacks"

Front 23

Equivocate

Back 23

to use ambiguous language with a deceptive intent
-prevaricate, vacillate, quibble
v.

Front 24

Sedulous

Back 24

diligent; persistent; hard-working
-assiduous
adj.

"with sedulous concentration, the chess player managed to defeat the reigning champion"

Front 25

Exonerate

Back 25

to free of blame
-acquit
v.

Front 26

Florid

Back 26

Flowery
adj.

Front 27

Elegy

Back 27

a mournful poem; especially one lamenting the dead
-lament
n.

"After Lincoln's assassination, Whitman wrote an elegy that is now one of the finest poems"

Front 28

Salutary

Back 28

wholesome, favorable to the health
-salubrious
adj.

"Salutary exercises such as stretching can keep tendonitis from getting worse"

Front 29

Salubrious

Back 29

promoting health or well being
-healthful
adj.

"I hope salubrious climate of the Bahamas will sooth my stress"

Front 30

Sanction

Back 30

authoritative permission or approval
-countenance
n.

"City officials granted a sanction to the non profit organization.

Front 31

Emollient

Back 31

soothing, especially tot he skin; making less harsh
-softening
adj.

"the emollient properties of aloe make it a popular additive to moisturizers"

Front 32

Effusive

Back 32

gushing, excessively demonstrative
-profuse
adj.

"It was hard not to feel welcomed by such an effusive greeting"

Front 33

Egress

Back 33

a path to go out of
-exit
n.

"As a result of the tragic fire, buildings must have 2 means of egress"

Front 34

Sinecure

Back 34

a job that pays a salary but requires little work
-cushy job
n.

"Many executives at Elad have sinecure positions"

Front 35

Fortuitous

Back 35

happening by fortunate accident or chance
- lucky
adj.

"It was fortuitous that I missed the bus and ended up running into an old friend on the street"

Front 36

Pith

Back 36

the essential or central part
-core, quintessence
n.

"Please stop digressing and get to the pith of your argument"

Front 37

Pithy

Back 37

precise and brief
-succinct
adj.

"The car had a banal but pithy bumper sticker" mean ppl suck"

Front 38

Superfluous

Back 38

exceeding what is sufficient or necessary
-excessive, lavish
adj.

"Even after I cut out all the superfluous details, my research paper was still longer than the recommended page limit"

Front 39

Transient

Back 39

fleeting; passing quickly; brief
-temporary, momentary
adj.

"anti inflammatory medication can provide transient relief"

Front 40

Truncate

Back 40

to cut off abruptly
-shorten
v.

"Carmen's road trip was supposed to last for two weeks, but she had to truncate her trip when she got sick"

Front 41

Deposition

Back 41

official testimony
-statement
n.

The deposition states that the defendant was at home on the night in question, but I know that's not the whole story"

Front 42

Deprecate

Back 42

to disparage or put down
-belittle
v.

"Annie has low self-esteem and always deprecates herself despite her many accomplishments"

Front 43

Proclivity

Back 43

a natural predisposition or inclination
-penchant

"His main personality flaw in his proclivity to do anything that anyone asks of him"

Front 44

Shard

Back 44

a piece of broken pottery or glass
-fragment

"I still found shards of glass in the car weeks after the windshield was repaired"

Front 45

Equanimity

Back 45

composure; self-possession
-calmness

"My mother took the news of the stolen car with surprising equanimity"

Front 47

Daunt

Back 47

to cow or dismay
-discourage
v.

"The size of the workload alone is likely to daunt even the most dedicated students"

Front 48

Debacle

Back 48

rout; fiasco; complete failure
-breakdown
n.

" Our date was a debacle; not only I forgot her name and spill wine on her, be we ran into my ex-GF, who told me I ruined her life."

Front 49

Decorous

Back 49

correct; formal; marked by decorum
-proper
n.

"I don't trust such decorous behavior; people who rely so heavily on politeness probably have something to hide"

Front 50

Decorum

Back 50

polite or appropriate conduct or behavior
-propriety
n.

"There are courses available in which one can learn the proper decorum for job interviews, such as shaking hands firmly and looking your interviewer in the eye"

Front 51

Denigrate

Back 51

to belittle; to defame
-disparage
v.

"Some tried to denigrate the hometown hero with stories of his questionable private life, but most citizens still idolized him."

Front 52

Denizen

Back 52

inhabitant; one who frequents a place
-resident
n.

"The denizens of that artists' studio are a tight knot group who don't welcome strangers"

Front 53

Captious

Back 53

calculated to confuse or entrap in argument
-tricky
adj.

"watch out for captious questions during the GRE"

Front 54

Assay

Back 54

to put to a test
- assess
v.

"Her ability to quickly assay a situation and find a solution is what makes her a great manager and troubleshooter"

Front 55

Quotidian

Back 55

occurring or recurring daily; commonplace
-ordinary, everyday
adj.

"The nonprofit organization strives to supply the quotidian need of people in remote parts of developing countries"

Front 56

Query

Back 56

question; inquiry; doubt in the mind; reservation
n.

"The magazine editor complied a list of queries for the fact checker to address"

Front 57

Sybarite

Back 57

a person who leads a life of pleasure and luxury
-hedonist
n.

"After winning the lottery, Justing quit his grueling job, and he is now living as a sybarite on a boat in the Caribbean"

Front 58

Detraction

Back 58

slandering, verbal attack; aspersion
-disparagement

"The company's representatives responded quickly to the whistleblower's detraction and hoped to deflect any bad press about the faulty product"

Front 59

Ostentatious

Back 59

characterized by or given to pretentiousness
-showy
adj.

"The economic downturn is causing some wealthy people to curtail their ostentatious lifestyles"

Front 60

Overweening

Back 60

presumptuosly arrogant; overbearing
-excessive
adj.

"The overweening pride of the celebrity is unbearable; he showed up at the restaurant with an entourage and expected to be seated immediately"

Front 61

Archaic

Back 61

Outdated
adj.

Front 62

Catalyst

Back 62

a substance that accelerates the rate of a chemical reaction without itself changing; a person who causes change
-accelerator, impetus
n.

"We hope the new ambassador will be a catalyst for reviving peace discussions"

Front 63

Nascent

Back 63

coming into being; in early developmental stages
-emerging, embryonic, burgeoning
adj.

"My novel is still in its nascent form, so I'm hesitant to describe the plot"

Front 64

Frieze

Back 64

a semi-sculptural, raised surface strip of ornamental facade on a building
-decorative band
n.

"It is ironic that a frieze depicting the Roman conquest, enslavement, and plundering of Corinth adorns the courthouse"

Front 65

Parsimonious

Back 65

cheap; miserly
-stingy

"The parsimonious man left a meager tip for the kind and overworked waitress"

Front 66

Intransigent

Back 66

refusing to compromise
-inflexible
adj.

"Sheara's intransigent stance made an out-of-court settlement unlikely"

Front 67

Itinerant

Back 67

traveling from place to place
-roving
adj.

"Long before newspapers, telephones, and Internet, itinerant salesmen were once valuable sources of news"

Front 68

Extirpate

Back 68

to destroy; to exterminate; to cut out
-abolish
v.

"After their breakup, she extirpated his face from every photo in the album"

Front 69

Peripatetic

Back 69

itinerant; traveling on foot
-roving
adj.

"It's difficult to maintain lasting relationships and long-term employment with such a peripatetic lifestyle"

Front 70

Fallow

Back 70

unseeded; inactive; dormant
-unproductive
adj.

"My creativity has lain fallow this winter; I haven't written anything in months"

Front 71

Repudiate

Back 71

to refuse to have anything to do with; to disown
-abandon, deny
v.

"Jay was forced to repudiate his heliocentric findings before the church tribunal"

Front 72

Repartee

Back 72

n.
witty conversation
-banter
"Few contemporary films have the same clever repartee between the lead characters as those screwball comedies of the 1930's"

Front 73

Platitude

Back 73

n.
a superficial remark, especially one offered as meaningful
-cliche

"The politician's speech was full of the regular tired platitudes about 'world peace'

Front 74

Recalcitrant

Back 74

adj.
obstinately resistant to authority; difficult to manage
-defiant, rebellious

"Boot camps are sometimes used as a last resort to deal with recalcitrant teenagers"

Front 75

Atrophy

Back 75

v.
to waste away or deteriorate
-wither

"Kate's leg has been in a cast for weeks, and her muscles are starting to atrophy from lack of use"

Front 76

Perigee

Back 76

n.
the point nearest to the earth in an orbit of a body
-nearest point

"At its perigee, the moon appears to be larger in our night sky"

Front 77

Fallacy

Back 77

n.
an invalid or incorrect notion; a mistaken belief
-misconception

"Scientists have exposed the fallacy that certain cigars are safe"

Front 78

Esoteric

Back 78

adj.
intended for or understood by a small, specific group
-obscure

"Her thesis on deconstructing syntax and meter of Old Norse poetry is esoteric

Front 79

Tacit

Back 79

(adj.)
implied; not explicitly stated
-implicit, unspoken

"My presentation to the investors went well and tacit agreement was made to proceed with my business plan"

Front 80

Taciturn

Back 80

(adj.)
uncommunicative; silent
-reserved

"The taciturn grandfather hardly said a word at the wedding and sate silently all evening"

Front 81

Placate

Back 81

(v.)
to appease; to calm by making concessions
-assuage, pacify

"Doctors often placate children with lollipops after giving them shots"

Front 82

Renege

Back 82

(v.)
to fail to honor a commitment; to break a promise
-withdraw

"Roommate contracts are important in case one party reneges on the agreed financial contributions to the household

Front 83

Rarefy

Back 83

to make to become thin or less dense -להדלל
-refine, purify

"It is hard for climbers to breath the rarefied air at the top Mont Everest without oxygen masks"

Front 84

Munificence

Back 84

generosity, bounteousness

"I respect Bill Gates for his munificence - he has funded much of the research to combat malaria in developing countries"

Front 85

Inert

Back 85

unmoving; lethargic; sluggish
-motionless

"The overweight dog is inert and refuses to go for a walk"

Front 86

Fracas

Back 86

noisy quarrel; brawl
-donnybrook

"the fracas outside of the nightclub caused the manager to call the police"

Front 87

Morose

Back 87

sad; sullen
-melancholy

"Alan's morose attitude made him an unpopular dinner guest"

Front 88

Irascible

Back 88

easily angered; prone to temperamental outbursts
-touchy, testy, irritable

"the hot-headed coach frequently shouted irascible comments at the referees"

Front 89

Founder

Back 89

to sink; to fail completely
-stumble

"I had a great business plan and product, but my company foundered because I couldn't attract investors"

Front 90

Mollify

Back 90

to calm or sooth; to reduce in emotional intensity
-pacify

"Mary tried to mollify her angry neighbor by offering to pay for the broken window"

Front 91

Artless

Back 91

completely without guile; unsophisticated
-naive

"A few unscrupulous people took advantage of the artless owner of the antique shop"

Front 92

Caustic

Back 92

burning or stinging, causing corrosion
-sarcastic

"We were reminded to wear gloved when handling the caustic chemicals"

Front 93

Rarefy

Back 93

(v.)
to make to become thin or less dense -להדלל
-refine, purify

"It is hard for climbers to breath the rarefied air at the top Mont Everest without oxygen masks"

Front 94

Munificence

Back 94

(n.)
generosity, bounteousness

"I respect Bill Gates for his munificence - he has funded much of the research to combat malaria in developing countries"

Front 95

Inert

Back 95

(adj.)
unmoving; lethargic; sluggish
-motionless

"The overweight dog is inert and refuses to go for a walk"

Front 96

Fracas

Back 96

(n.)
noisy quarrel; brawl
-donnybrook

"the fracas outside of the nightclub caused the manager to call the police"

Front 97

Morose

Back 97

(adj.)
sad; sullen
-melancholy

"Alan's morose attitude made him an unpopular dinner guest"

Front 98

Irascible

Back 98

(adj.)
easily angered; prone to temperamental outbursts
-touchy, testy, irritable

"the hot-headed coach frequently shouted irascible comments at the referees"

Front 99

Founder

Back 99

(v.)
to sink; to fail completely
-stumble

"I had a great business plan and product, but my company foundered because I couldn't attract investors"

Front 100

Mollify

Back 100

(v.)
to calm or sooth; to reduce in emotional intensity
-pacify

"Mary tried to mollify her angry neighbor by offering to pay for the broken window"

Front 101

Artless

Back 101

(adj.)
completely without guile; unsophisticated
-naive

"A few unscrupulous people took advantage of the artless owner of the antique shop"

Front 102

Caustic

Back 102

(adj.)
burning or stinging, causing corrosion
-sarcastic

"We were reminded to wear gloved when handling the caustic chemicals"

Front 103

Mundane

Back 103

(adj.)
of the world; typical of concerned with the ordinary
-commonplace, everyday, banal

"you might think that an office is too mundane a setting for a comedy, but popular TV shows prove otherwise"

Front 104

Astringent

Back 104

(adj.)
biting; severe
-harsh

"After hearing the director's astringent criticism of his performance, the actor stormed out of the theater"

Front 105

Nadir

Back 105

(n.)
low point
-rock bottom

"At my emotional nadir, I considered some drastic options to relieve my pain"

Front 106

Infelicitous

Back 106

(adj.)
unfortunate; inappropriate
-malapropos, ill-chosen

"An uncomfortable silence fell over the dinner table after one of the guests made an infelicitous comment to the hostess"

Front 107

Hedonism

Back 107

(n.)
devotion to pleasurable pursuits, especially to the pleasures of the senses
-debauchery, indulgence

"Monks lead a quiet, ascetic life devoid of hedonism"

Front 108

Fatuous

Back 108

(adj.)
silly; foolish
-inane

"Critics claim that fatuous reality shows have eroded standards of taste and quality in the public realm"

Front 109

Prosaic

Back 109

(adj.)
dull; unimaginative
-lackluster, commonplace

"Critics bashed the play because of its uncreative and prosaic plot"

Front 110

Plethora

Back 110

(n.)
an overabundance; a surplus
-plenty

" The plethora of pastries at the bakery made it difficult to decide"

Front 111

Rankle

Back 111

(v.)
to irritate; to cause resentment
-irk

"The critic's mixed review of the book rankled the author for days"

Front 112

Slake

Back 112

(v.)
to satisfy or quench
-abate

"I slaked my thirst by drinking a whole bottle of water"

Front 113

Erudite

Back 113

(adj.)
learned
-scholarly

"Social policy advocates, political strategists, and economists often call on the erudite professor for advice"

Front 114

Eschew

Back 114

(v.)
to avoid
"In order to reduce his cholesterol, my father must eschew foods high in saturated fat and sodium"

Front 115

Epithet

Back 115

(n.)
disparaging or descriptive word or phrase
-slur

"An old man yelled epithets at the kids who were vandalizing a wall"

Front 116

Putrefy

Back 116

(v.)
to rot; decay and give off a foul oder
-spoil

"Bacteria caused the raw meat to putrefy and stink up the who refrigerator"

Front 117

Sodden

Back 117

(adj.)
soaked or drenched
-saturated

"My shirt was sodden with rain and mud after we played soccer during the downpour"

Front 118

Solicitous

Back 118

(adj.)
concerned and attentive; eager
-ardent, considerate, desirous

"Out neighbor made solicitous inquiries about our family after my grandmother left"

Front 119

Estimable

Back 119

(adj.)
worthy; formidable
-admirable

Front 120

Untrammeled

Back 120

(adj.)
not hampered or impeded
-unrestrained

"Sometimes I miss the untrammeled life of my college years, before I had a mortgage, a job, and a family to support"

Front 121

Expurgate

Back 121

(v.)
to remove obscenity, especially from a book
-censor

"the expurgated edition of the story is far more suitable for children"

Front 122

Quagmire

Back 122

a situation that is difficult to get out of
-predicament
n.

"The company fell into a quagmire when it ran out of money after promising employees year-end bonuses"

Front 123

Reprehensible

Back 123

adj.
worthy of blame or censure
-shameful

"The principal suspended the student for his reprehensible behavior at the school"

Front 124

Rescind

Back 124

v.
to invalidate; to repeal; to retract
-void, annul

"Once he realized he had given his troops the wrong target, the captain rescinded his order to attack"

Front 125

Raffish

Back 125

adj.
unconventional and slightly disreputable; carefree; vulgar
-rakish

"Through he was raffish, there was something about his careless style that was refreshing in the stuffy boardroom"

Front 126

Sycophant

Back 126

n.
someone who tries to get ahead through flattery and fawning
-toady

"The sycophants who served on the royal court always let the queen win every croquet match"

Front 127

Rancorous
adj.

Back 127

characterized by bitter, long-lasting resentment
-acrimonious

"The rancorous feud between the rival families lasted decades"

Front 128

Surfeit
n.

Back 128

excess; overindulgence
-overabundance, surplus

"The surfeit of food at the banquet caused more than a few stomachaches that evening"

Front 129

Sidereal
adj.

Back 129

astral; relating to stars or constellations'
-stellar

"The girl loved to learn about constellations, galaxies, novas, and all things sidereal"

Front 130

Unfeigned
adj.

Back 130

genuine; not false or hypocritical
-honest, sincere

"I could not tell if his apology was unfeigned since he was smiling the entire time"

Front 131

Tyro
n.

Back 131

novice; greenhorn; rank amateur
-beginner

"The tyro was unable to stand on top of the surfboard and balance even on calm waters"

Front 132

Mendicant

Back 132

beggar; supplicant
-pauper
n.

"The humble mendicant spent his days collecting money to help others"

Front 133

Refute

Back 133

to disprove; to successfully argue against
-rebut, counter
v.

"His claim to be the child's father was refuted by DNA evidence"

Front 134

Inimical

Back 134

damaging, harmful, or injurious; hostile, adverse, or unfriendly
-deleterious
adj.

"It has been proven that asbestos has inimical effects on respiratory health"

Front 135

Obstreperous
adj.

Back 135

noisy; defiant
-unruly

"the obstreperous child ran down the aisles of the movie theater and disrupted audience members"

Front 136

Obviate
v.

Back 136

to anticipate and make unnecessary
-intervene, preclude, avert

"Streaming movies online obviates the need to go to a video store"

Front 137

Diaphanous
adj.

Back 137

transparent; gauzy
-translucent

"the celebrity's diaphanous dress was the talk of the night"

Front 138

Insensible
adj.

Back 138

unconscious; unresponsive
-indifferent

"the boxer dropped his defenses just long enough for his opponent to land a right hook that left him insensible on the canvas for a few minutes"

Front 139

Occlude
v.

Back 139

to obstruct or block
-clog, congest

"The last mile of the trail was occluded by overgrown brush and fallen trees"

Front 140

Gregarious
adj

Back 140

sociable; outgoing; enjoying the company of other people
-affable

"The gregarious employees liked to get together after work"

Front 141

Diatribe

Back 141

a harsh denunciation
-fulmination
1. a prolonged discourse
2: a bitter and abusive speech or piece of writing
3: ironic or satirical criticism
n.

"My failure to turn off the light led to my father's diatribe on saving electricity"

Front 142

Ascetic
n.

Back 142

someone practicing self-denial
-spartan

"The ascetic tried to convince others that there was virtue in the denial of worldly goods"

Front 143

Grandiloquence
n.

Back 143

pompous speech or expression
-bombast

"The nominee ended up losing votes because his grandiloquence annoyed his audience at every campaign speech"

Front 144

Obsequious
adj.

Back 144

Exhibiting a fawning attentiveness
-kowtowing

"Roger thought fawning over the boss would help him get promoted, but his obsequious behavior annoyed his co-workers"

Front 145

Obstinate
adj

Back 145

stubborn; hardheaded
-uncompromising

"Otto was obstinate and refused to compromise even on trivial issues"

Front 146

Inscrutable
adj.

Back 146

incapable of being discovered or understood
-unfathomable

"the secrets of the inscrutable Sphinx are likely to remain undiscovered forever"

Front 147

Augury
n.

Back 147

omen; portent
-indication

"The smooth test-run of the new software was a favorable augury of the product's success"

Front 148

Auspices
n.

Back 148

protection or support
-patronage

"since my project falls under the auspices of the department of Homeland Security, I no longer have to wait in airport lines"

Front 149

Auspicious
adj.

Back 149

favorable
-propitious

"the cost of failure is too great, so we must wait for the most auspicious moment to strike"

Front 150

Avarice
n.

Back 150

greed, especially for wealth
-acquisitiveness

"The investor's avarice led her to make risky moves to increase her already sizable fortune"

Front 151

Intrepid
adj.

Back 151

steadfast and courageous
-fearless
"The intrepid eater will try any regional dish wherever she travels"

Front 152

Inured
adj.

Back 152

accustomed to accepting something undesirable
-numbed, habituated, hardened

"the explorer was inured to the cold wind; she no longer noticed her chapped skin"

Front 153

Schism

Back 153

a split into fractions
-division
n.

"Arguments over reading choices caused a schism in my book club; now we have separate fiction and non-fiction groups.

Front 154

Filibuster

Back 154

intentional obstruction, especially using prolonged speechmaking to delay legislative action
-delay, impediment, hindrance
n.

"The senators decided that a filibuster was their only remaining option to block the other party's legislation"

Front 155

Empirical

Back 155

based on observation or experiment
-observed
adj.

"the researchers spent four years gathering empirical data for their study on obsessive-compulsive behaviors"

Front 156

Enigmatic

Back 156

mysterious; obscure; difficult to understand
-cryptic
adj.

"Historians have long debated the meaning of the Mona Lisa's enigmatic smile"

Front 157

Jejune

Back 157

vapid; uninteresting; immature
-childish
adj.

"Critics slammed the author's first novel for being jejune; hopefully her second will be more mature"

Front 158

Palliate

Back 158

to make something appear less serious; to make less severe
-mitigate
v.

"I tried to palliate the throbbing migraine with aspirin and deep breathing, but what I really needed to do was go home and sleep"

Front 159

Apostate

Back 159

one who abandons long-held religious or political convictions
-defector
n.

"The senator was branded an apostate after he switched political parties midterm"

Front 160

Sagacious

Back 160

having sound judgement; perceptive
-wise
adj.

"though he was not an expert, his sagacious observations made him a valuable member of the team"

Front 161

Salacious

Back 161

lascivious; lustful; obscene
-lewd
adj.

"Let's be honest: the more salacious the gossip, the more we love it"

Front 162

Prevaricate

Back 162

to deliberately avoid the truth; mislead
-misinform, deceive, hedge
v.

"when my grandmother asked about her broken vase, my brother and I began to prevaricate"

Front 163

Tirade

Back 163

a long and extremely critical speech; a harsh denunciation
-censure, harangue
n.

"After several employees arrived at work after 10:00, the boss went on a tirade about punctuality"

Front 164

Pristine

Back 164

pure; uncorrupted; clean
-untouched
adj.

"Much of the tundra in northern Canada is still pristine since the region has not been developed"

Front 165

Probity

Back 165

adherence to highest principles; uprightness
-integrity
n.

"The judge's reputation of probity is well deserved; she rescued herself from a case because she had gone to school with the defendant"

Front 166

Salient

Back 166

prominent; relevant
-conspicuous
adj.

"Perhaps the most salient features of the great white shark are ts rows of razor-sharp teeth"

Front 167

Toady

Back 167

sycophant; flatterer
-flunky
"The spineless toady in my department strokes the president's ego order to get a promotion"

Front 168

Tortuous

Back 168

winding; twisting; excessively complicated
-meandering, circuitous
adj.

"the tortuous path through the redwoods twists around dozens of tree trunks"

"

Front 169

Regale

Back 169

to delight or entertain
-amuse
v.

"I could regale you with stories from the family reunion, but lets just say I'm glad that I live on the other side of the country"

Front 170

Relegate

Back 170

to forcibly assign, especially to a lower place or position
-demote, downgrade, consign
v.

"When we moved into a smaller house, my art studio was relegated to the basement"

Front 171

Behemoth

Back 171

something enormous; a gigantic creature
-leviathan
n.

"That huge shopping mall is behemoth that ruins the charm of the historical waterfront"

Front 172

Obtuse

Back 172

lacking sharpness of intellect not clear or precise in thought or expression
-thickheaded, simple-minded, dull-witted
adj.

"My father is obtuse when it comes to computers he doesn't even know how to turn one on"

Front 173

Gratuitous

Back 173

unnecessary; uncalled for
-unprovoked
adj.

"constructive comments will help me improve, but gratuitous criticism just makes me defensive"

Front 174

Jettison

Back 174

to throw overboard
-discard
v.

"the CEO of the failing company jettisoned the entire product development department and hired a new team"

Front 175

Belie

Back 175

to give a false impression of
-contradict
v.

"The lack of school funding belies the government's claim of making education reform a top priority"

Front 176

Bellicose

Back 176

belligerent; warlike
-hostile
adj.

"The bellicose voices in the Senate grab the headlines, but unfortunately the diplomatic voices are more likely to grab the votes"

Front 177

Jibe

Back 177

to agree; to be in accord
-conform
v.

"Despite our very different backgrounds, Richard's political views jibe rather closely with my own"

Front 178

Jocular

Back 178

humorous; joking
-jesting
adj.

"His jocular attitude and hilarious take on things made him a pleasure to work with"

Front 179

Kinetic

Back 179

characterized by motion
-dynamic
adj.

"The kinetic choreography had audience members gasping during the performance"

Front 180

Laconic

Back 180

using few words
-terse
adj.

"the exhausted babysitter's laconic response was simply, 'no'"

Front 181

Bolster

Back 181

to provide support
-reinforce
v.

"Bob convinced me he was right only after he bolstered his argument with facts and date"

Front 182

Lambaste

Back 182

to excoriate; to berate
-scold
v.

"The coach lambasted his players at halftime for their bad attitude, bad decisions, and exceptionally bad performance"

Front 183

Bombast

Back 183

self-important or pompous writing or speech
-bluster
n.

"The CEO's toast at the launch party was quickly turning into bombast"

Front 184

Laud

Back 184

to praise highly
-acclaim, extol
v.

"The sea-weary crew lauded the captain's decision to stay in port for an extra day"

Front 185

Hermetic

Back 185

sealed; airtight
-impervious
adj.

"When you buy a bottle of medicine, check the hermetic seal to make sure it is not broken"

Front 186

Libertine

Back 186

someone unrestrained by morality or convention
-swinger
n.

"Libertines challenge society's understanding of mortality and sexuality"

Front 187

Limn

Back 187

to draw; to outline in detail
-describe
v.

"The artist limned the Parisian market scene so perfectly that I could imagine myself in the painting"

Front 188

Heterodox

Back 188

unorthodox; iconoclastic
-heretical
adj.

"The heterodox dessert combined bits of bacon and chocolate"

Front 189

Hallowed

Back 189

holy; consecrated
-revered
adj.

"Strawberry Fields in Central Park is hallowed ground for fans of John Lennon"

Front 190

Panegyric

Back 190

formal praise/ eulogy type
-encomium
n.

"At the retirement dinner, Juan's panegyric on loyalty and friendship brought tears to few people's eyes."

Front 191

Homily

Back 191

a sermon or morally instructive lecture
-admonition
n.

"the priest's homily encouraged people to be generous toward their enemies"

Front 192

Harangue

Back 192

to deliver a pompous speech or tirade
-hassle
v.

"Sonny harangued his brother for returning the car with no gas"

Front 193

Limpid

Back 193

transparent; serene; untroubled
-clear
adj.

"I looked into my ailing grandmother's limpid eyes and understood that she was at peace with her life"

Front 194

Hubris

Back 194

arrogant presumption or pride
-conceit
n.

"The governor's hubris was in appointing his son to lead the commission"

Front 195

Lissome

Back 195

supple; graceful
-lithe
adj.

"The ballerina's lissome form does not come easily; she spends hours practicing every day"

Front 196

Iconoclast

Back 196

one who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions
-radical, rebel

"Socrates was put on trial and accused of being an iconoclast on matters of politics and religion"
n.

Front 197

Iconoclastic

Back 197

attacking cherished beliefs
-irreverent
adj.

"The controversial artist's iconoclastic work both stunned and impressed critics"

Front 198

Loquacious

Back 198

extremely talkative
-garrulous
adj.

"My aunt is annoyingly loquacious; she speaks at great length about minor occurrences in her life"

Front 199

Boor

Back 199

a rude or insensitive person
-churl
n.

"Many people have called him a boor; his genius leaves him with little patience for social niceties"

Front 200

Burgeon

Back 200

to grow rapidly or flourish
-increase
v.

"the researcher was pleased to discover that the wolf population burgeoned only two years after the area was turned into a reserve"

Front 201

Lubricious

Back 201

lewd; wanton; slippery
-salacious
adj.

"the lubricious stare from that strange man in the park left me disgusted"

Front 202

idolatrous

Back 202

given to intense or excessive devotion to something
-committed
adj.

"My son's idolatrous adoration of his grandmother s overwhelming; I think he loves her more than me"

Front 203

Idyll

Back 203

a carefree, lighthearted pastoral or romantic episode
-carefree scene
n.

"Often while riding the subway to her monotonous job, she daydreamed of a tropical idyll"

Front 204

Harbinger

Back 204

something that signals what is to come
-forerunner
n.

"The Grim Reaper, with his cloak and scythe, is a harbinger of death"

Front 205

Burnish

Back 205

to make smooth; to rub to a shine
-polish
v.

"A few more big sales will burnish my reputation and position me well for my next salary"

Front 206

Byzantine

Back 206

labyrinthine; complex
-intricate
adj.

"In our department, byzantine filing systems are a form of job security since we are the only ones who can find key documents"

Front 207

Cabal

Back 207

a scheme or plot; a group of plotters
-coterie
n.

"the stock price of a healthy company is not likely to drop that dramatically unless a cabal of investors decides to sell the stock short"

Front 208

Cachinnate

Back 208

to laugh loudly
-guffaw
v.

"The mad scientist began to cachinnate after he thought of a brilliant plan to capture the hero"

Front 209

Cacophony

Back 209

harsh, jarring, discordant sound; dissonance
-inharmony
n.

"Gerald can't sleep because of the cacophony of car alarms going off each night"

Front 210

Ignominious

Back 210

shameful; undignified
-humiliating
adj.

"The senator's corruption scandal caste an ignominious shadow over his career"

Front 211

Maculate

Back 211

marked with spots or blotches; impure
-stained
adj.

"After the unruly holiday feast, we all laughed over the maculate tablecloth"

Front 212

Cajole

Back 212

to inveigle; to coax through flattery
-wheedle
v.

"The director had to cajole the vain actor wearing the chicken suit"

Front 213

Calumniate

Back 213

to slander
-smear
v.

"Tight political races can become very dirty in their final days, with each candidate trying to calumniate the other"

Front 214

Imbroglio

Back 214

difficult or bitter situation
-entanglement, disagreement
n.

"The governor was caught in an imbroglio over misappropriated funds"

Front 215

Abjure

Back 215

to renounce or reject solemnly
-recant
v.

"I had no choice but to abjure my allegiance to the organization after the chairman appointed his underqualified friends to the board"

Front 216

Abrogate

Back 216

to repeal; to revoke
-annul
v.

"Activists launched a statewide campaign to abrogate the death penalty"

Front 217

Rue

Back 217

to regret; to feel remorse or sorrow for
-lament
v.

"That mouse will rue the day it ever skittered into my kitchen"

Front 218

Tenuous

Back 218

having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak
-shaky, feeble
adj.

"The poor grades from the final exam demonstrated that the students had nothing more than a tenuous understanding of the material"

Front 219

Risible

Back 219

causing laughter; laughable
-ludicrous
adj.

"the teenager was embarrassed by his mother's blond highlights, her use of slang, her constant texting, and other risible attempts to seem younger"

Front 220

Preen

Back 220

to dress up; to primp; to groom oneself with elaborate care
-beautify
v.

"Male birds of paradise preen their feathers and clean their nests in order to woo females."

Front 221

Refulgent

Back 221

radiant; shining; brilliant
-luminous, resplendent
adj.

"At night, Las Vegas is a refulgent sight against the dark and vast desert sky"

Front 222

Prattle

Back 222

to babble meaninglessly; to talk in an empty and idle manner
-chatter, blather
v.

"I couldn't stand to hear my teenage sister prattle on about the prom during dinner, so I left the table"

Front 223

Recondite

Back 223

hidden; concealed; difficult to understand; obscure
-abstruse, esoteric
adj.

"The recondite speech of the guest lecturer left audience members confused and bored"

Front 224

Redress

Back 224

to set something right' to make amends for
-rectify
v.

"the waitress redressed her mistake by offering the diners a free dessert"

Front 225

Timorous

Back 225

timid; fearful
-apprehensive
adj.

"After the earthquake, our dog was so timorous that he refused to leave his spot under the kitchen table"

Front 226

Terse

Back 226

brief and concise in wording
-succinct, laconic
adj.

"My mother left me a terse message after I broke my curfew: "home now"

Front 227

Redolence

Back 227

the state of being fragrant, suggestive, or evocative
-fragrance
n.

"the redolence of dried leaves always brings me back to the colorful falls of my childhood in New England"

Front 228

Pragmatic

Back 228

practical rather than idealistic
-realistic
adj.

"Pragmatic solutions often involve cooperation and compromise"

Front 229

Reconnoiter

Back 229

to engage in reconnaissance
-investigate
v.

"The captain sent soldiers to reconnoiter the region for signs of enemy activity"

Front 230

Polemical

Back 230

controversial; argumentative
-contentious
adj.

"Paula disagrees with many of her college's policies and often sends polemical letters to the school paper"

Front 231

Tenacious

Back 231

adhering to or persisting in something valued
-adamant, persevering
adj.

"My grandfather's tenacious grip on old habits keeps him away from new experiences"

Front 232

Rhetoric

Back 232

the art or study of effective use of language for communication and persuasion
-elocution
n.

"Clearly the lawyer was skilled at the art of rhetoric; her closing arguments were lucid and moving"

Front 233

Reverent

Back 233

marked by, feeling, or expressing profound awe and respect
-respectful
adj.

"The entire audience settled into a reverent silence when the Dali Lama began to speak"

Front 234

Prescience

Back 234

knowing of events prior to their occurring
-presage, foreknowledge, insight
n.

"the fortune-teller's prescience of death prevented her from leaving the house"

Front 235

Derivative

Back 235

unoriginal; obtained from another source
-adapted
adj.

"until she developed her own style, her early paintings were derivative; their reliance on other artists' work was obvious"

Front 236

Descry

Back 236

to observe or discern
detect
v.

"The astute editor could descry a misspelling or factual error before the rest of us could even finish the sentance"

Front 237

Desecrate

Back 237

to violate the sanctity of
-defile
v.

"When folding a national flag, you should not desecrate it by letting it drag on the ground"

Front 238

Desiccate

Back 238

to dry out; to make dull or dry
-dehydrate
v.

"When you desiccate fresh herbs, they keep longer, but lose some of their flavor"

Front 239

Aggrandize

Back 239

to increase in intensity, pwer, or prestige
-strengthen, exalt
v.

"The Romans aggrandized their influence through the use of military tactics"

Front 240

Aesthetic

Back 240

dealing with, appreciative of, or responsive to art or beauty
-artistic
adj.

"Elena enjoys the aesthetic qualities of great works of literature"

Front 241

Alacrity

Back 241

eager and enthusiastic willingness
-eagerness, enthusiasm, readiness
n.

"The alacrity with which students headed for the door when the bell rang was a sure indication that the class was boring"

Front 242

Alchemy

Back 242

a medieval science aimed at the transmutation of metals, especially base metals, into gold
-sorcery
n.

"Although alchemy never produced its intended results, it led to advances in industries like metal refining and manufacturing"

Front 243

Dilettante

Back 243

one with an amateurish or superficial interest in the arts or a branch of knowledge
-amateur
n.

"these advanced cheese-tasting courses are meant for connoisseurs; dilettantes should take the beginners' class"

Front 244

Complaisance

Back 244

the willingness to comply with the wishes of others
-agreeableness
n.

"The child showed her complaisance by wearing the dress her mother chose"

Front 245

Dogmatic

Back 245

stubbornly opinionated
-adamant
adj.

"Nancy is dogmatic about food and insists that lemon makes everything taste better"

Front 246

Dormant

Back 246

inactive; in abeyance
-latent
adj.

"The separatist group, which had been dormant after the arrest of a top leader, struck last night for the first time in five years"

Front 247

Din

Back 247

loud, sustained sounds
-noise
n.

"the din in the train station rendered cell phone conversation futile, but fortunately texting saved the day"

Front 248

Connoisseur

Back 248

an informed and astute judge in matters of taste; expert
-aficionado, enthusiast, specialist
n.

"Derek is such a chocolate connoisseur that he has chocolates shipped to him from Belgium and Switzerland"

Front 249

Discomfit

Back 249

to embarrass or perplex
-disconcert
v.

"the students discomfited me with sharp questions, a sign that I wasn't prepared enough for class"

Front 250

Contiguous

Back 250

sharing a border; touching; adjacent
-bordering
adj.

"we offer free shipping to any of the forty-eight contiguous stated in the U.S"

Front 251

Discordant

Back 251

conflicting; dissonant or harsh sound
-cacophonous, inharmonious, jarring
adj.

"The sound of the opera singer's voice over the accordion was quite discordant"

Front 252

Dross

Back 252

slag; worthless matter; impurity
-waste
n.

"Meditation is a good technique for purging the dross of your everyday thoughts"

Front 253

Credulous

Back 253

tending to believe too readily
-gullible
adj.

"The con artist easily deceived his credulous victims"

Front 254

Discretion

Back 254

cautious reserve in speech ability to make responsible decisions
-carefulness
n.

"Daniel edited his article with discretion and double-checked all the facts and quotes"

Front 255

Convention

Back 255

a generally agreed-upon practice or attitude
-custom
n.

"Flouting convention, the bride word a brilliant red suit while her bridesmaids were dressed in while"

Front 256

Guile

Back 256

artfulness; trickery; duplicity
-deceit
n.

"Pulling off slight of hand tricks successfully requires dexterity and guile"

Front 257

Corrigible

Back 257

capable of being set right; correctable
-reformable
adj.

"the earlier the intervention, the more corrigible the condition; if left too long, it can't be fixed"

Front 258

Ombudsman

Back 258

a person who investigates citizens' complaints
-mediator
n.

"the newspaper's ombudsman fielded phone calls from readers who complained about factual errors int he front-page story"

Front 259

Aberrant

Back 259

deviating from the norm
-abnormal, deviant, anomalous
adj.

"The child is usually well-mannered; sticking out her tongue was aberrant behavior"

Front 260

Exacerbate

Back 260

to make worse or more severe
-aggravate, intensify
v.

"Scratching a mosquito bite will only exacerbate the itch"

Front 261

Penchant

Back 261

strong inclination; a liking
-fondness
n.

"The stylist has a penchant for expensive designer labels"

Front 262

Pellucid

Back 262

transparent; easy to understand
-clear
adj.

"If the tax code were more pellucid, thousands of accountants would be out of business"

Front 263

Pedantic

Back 263

the parading of learning; excessive attention to minutiae and formal rules
-bookish
adj.

"Pete is pedantic about grammar and will nitpick my essay for even the minutest of errors"

Front 264

Pedagogy

Back 264

the art or profession of training, teaching, or instructing
-education
n.

"the pedagogy of early primary science focuses on the development of critical thinking skills and exploration through hands on expiriments"

Front 265

Sparse

Back 265

thin; not dense; arranged at widely spaced intervals
-scarce, sporadic
adj.

"Vegetation is sparse in the Arctic, especially during the winter when the region received little sunlight for plants to flourish"

Front 266

Evince

Back 266

to show clearly
-manifest
v.

"I told the bully I was not afraid, but my knocking knees evinced otherwise"

Front 267

Variegated

Back 267

multicolored; characterized by a variety of patches of different color
-diversified
adj.

"As she flew across the country for the first time, the child marveled at the variegated landscape below"

Front 268

Evanescent

Back 268

tending to disappear like vapor; vanishing
-ephemeral
adj.

"Despite the evanescent nature of fashion, the classic look of blue jeans and t-shirt will never go out of style"

Front 269

Vacillate

Back 269

to move indecisively between one course of action or opinion and another
-waver
v.

"Ashley vacillated between the two job offers; one offered a higher salary and the other offered better benefits"

Front 270

Urbane

Back 270

sophisticated; refined; elegant
-cultivated
adj.

"The author maintained an urbane tone even in her personal letters"

Front 271

Solvent

Back 271

able to meet financial obligations; able to dissolve another substance
-sound
adj.

"It was impossible for Stephen to remain solvent after he lost his job"

Front 272

Epitome

Back 272

embodiment or quintessence
-representation
n.

"He's the epitome of a used-car salesman: slicked-back hair, toothy smile, and unctuous manner"

Front 273

Proliferate

Back 273

to grow or increase swiftly and abundantly
-burgeon, propagate
v.

"Without expedient diplomacy, nuclear weapons might proliferate"

Front 274

Denouement

Back 274

an outcome or solution; the unraveling of a plot
-resolution
n.

"The story lacks both a conflict and a denouement; it's just a description of a day in the life of the main character"

Front 275

Dearth

Back 275

smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; a lack
-deficiency
n.

"Given the dearth of food in her pantry, Rebecca considered having her pet rabbit for dinner

Front 276

Officious

Back 276

meddlesome; pushy in one's services
-intrusive
adj.

"My neighbor is extremely officious; she keeps offering to sent me up with her nephew"

Front 277

Disinterested

Back 277

unbiased, neutral, or free from personal motive
-dispassionate
adj.

"Seamus and his landlord turned to a disinterested third party to resolve their disputed over the security deposit"

Front 278

Onerous

Back 278

troubling; burdensome
-arduous, grueling, laborious
adj.

"Shoveling out the stables is a more onerous task than feeding the chickens"

Front 279

Dirge

Back 279

a song or poem of grief
-lament
n.

"At the funeral, Claudia sang a dirge she had composed in honor of her grandmother"

Front 280

Forbearance

Back 280

patience; willingness to wait
-tolerance
n.

"His forbearance in not replying to the extremely sarcastic waiter was commendable"

Front 281

Spendthrift

Back 281

one who spends money wastefully
-squanderer
n.

"Before he lost his job, he was a spendthrift who squandered his paycheck on champagne, caviar, and other luxury items"

Front 282

Sporadic

Back 282

occurring only occasionally, or in scattered instances
-intermittent, irregular, desultory
adj.

"Sporadic fire drills kept dorm residents prepared for a real emergency"

Front 283

Exemplar

Back 283

typical or standard specimen; model
archetype
n.

"'Candy Girl' is exemplar of the Jackson 5's best work"

Front 284

Celerity

Back 284

speed
-haste
n.

"the celerity which which she accepted the terms indicated that we had perhaps offered too much"

Front 285

Censure

Back 285

to criticize severely; to officially rebuke
-chastise, denounce, reprimand
v.

"When the senator was caught buying a boat with taxpayer dollars, many members of his party publicly censured him"

Front 286

Chary

Back 286

wary; cautious, sparing
-careful
adj.

"Chuck was chary about lending money to his brother, who has always mismanaged his bank accounts"

Front 287

Static

Back 287

not moving, active, or in motion; at rest
- inert, stagnant, immobile
adj.

"Although the student intensely reviews her notes, her test scores have been static"

Front 288

Stupefy

Back 288

to stun, baffle, or amaze
-astonish, bewilder, astound
v.

"The magician aimed to stupefy his audience with his amazing stunts and illusions"

Front 289

Spurious

Back 289

lacking authenticity or validity; false; counterfeit
-illegitimate, phony
adj.

"the painting sold as a da Vinci was later discovered to me a spurious - the work of a 19th century forger"

Front 290

Voracious

Back 290

having an insatiable appetite for an activity or pursuit
-avid, ravenous, rapacious
adj.

"He is a voracious reader; he finishes two books each week"

Front 291

Curmudgeon

Back 291

an irritable, ill-tempered person
-complainer
n.

"My neighbor is an old curmudgeon who complains loudly whenever anyone makes a sound"

Front 292

Cursory

Back 292

hasty; done with little attention
-hurried
adj.

"The producer took a cursory look at the script, then tossed it in the trash"

Front 293

Stentorian

Back 293

extremely loud and powerful
-booming
adj.

"The sergeant's stentorian voice and physical size made disobedience unthinkable"

Front 294

Waft

Back 294

to cause to move as if by a light breeze
-drift
v.

"The smell of freshly backed apple pie wafted into my bedroom and my mouth began to water"

Front 295

Pungent

Back 295

characterized by a strong, sharp smell or taste
-acrid, pointed
adj.

"Some people love the pungent aroma of garlic while others find it offensive"

Front 296

Venerate

Back 296

to revere; to worship
-idolize
v.

"The whole family venerates Grandma Sue because she is so generous, patient, and loving"

Front 297

Verisimilitude

Back 297

appearance of truth or reality
-authenticity
n.

"Some video games have achieved such verisimilitude that they are now being used to train pilots and soldiers"

Front 298

Vexation

Back 298

annoyance; irritation
-aggravation
n.

"my brother's pranks on the whole family are a source of vexation, not amusement"

Front 299

Excoriate

Back 299

to censure scathingly
-upbraid
v.

"The radio host excoriated the caller for defending the unpopular politician"

Front 300

Specious

Back 300

seemingly true, but actually being fallacious; misleading attractive
-deceptive
adj.

"Consumers should be wary of specious advertisements that endorse faulty products"

Front 301

Vigilant

Back 301

alertly watchful
-wary, attentive
adj.

"the new parents were vigilant over their baby and stayed up all night when she got sick"

Front 302

Viscous

Back 302

thick; sticky
-gelatinous
adj.

"The viscous batter clung to the sides of the bowl"

Front 303

Vituperate

Back 303

to use harsh, condemnatory language; to abuse severely
-berate, rebuke
v.

"I want to vituperate the company for violation pollution laws, especially since it markets itself as being ecologically conscious"

Front 304

Volatile

Back 304

readily changing to a vapor; changeable; fickle
-explosive, mercurial
adj.

"The price of the volatile stock rose and fell sharply throughout the day"

Front 305

Exculpate

Back 305

to exonerate; to clear of blame
-absolve, pardon, acquit
v.

"It took centuries for the church to officially exculpate Galileo for stating that the Earth revolved around the sun"

Front 306

Exegesis

Back 306

critical examination; explication
-interpretation
n.

"the exegesis o the ancient Rosetta Stone has contributed much to our understanding of hieroglyphic writing"

Front 307

Chasten

Back 307

to restrain or correct
-reprove
v.

"We all hoped that joining the army would chasten his wild behavior"

Front 308

Apogee

Back 308

farthest or highest point; culmination; zenith
-summit
n.

"Winning the Pulitzer Prize was an affirmation that the journalist was at the apogee of her career"

Front 309

Calumny

Back 309

slander
-defamation
n.

"Othello believed the calumny that his wife was cheating on him, setting in motion Shakespeare's tragedy"

Front 310

Meticulous

Back 310

characterized by extreme care and precision; attentive to detail
-conscientious
adj.

"Maury is a meticulous editor who will find every last typo and mistake"

Front 311

Insipid

Back 311

without taste or flavor; lacking in spirit
-bland
adj.

"Without any seasoning or sauce chicken can often be insipid and dry"

Front 312

Cosset

Back 312

to coddle
-pamper
v.

"He was a selfish child and was cosseted by his parents, so he never learned to share or compromise"

Front 313

Opaque

Back 313

impenetrable by light; not reflecting light
-turbid
adj.

"The opaque curtains prevent the early morning light from waking me up"

Front 314

Dulcet

Back 314

melodious; pleasant-sounding
-harmonious
adj.

"the dulcet tones of her voice lulled the baby to sleep"

Front 315

Crestfallen

Back 315

dejected; disappointed
-discouraged
adj.

"she interviewed for the position 3 times and was crestfallen when the job was finally offered to another candidate"

Front 316

Hackneyed

Back 316

rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage
-banal
adj.

"You win some, you lose some" is an example of a hackneyed saying'

Front 317

Ossified

Back 317

tending to become more rigid; conventional; turned into bone
-hardened
adj.

"At what point is it no longer possible to change the ossified opinions of someone from an older generation"

Front 318

Insular

Back 318

provincial; narrow-minded
-isolated
adj.

"the board was so insular in its thinking that its members were shocked to hear criticism of its policies from stockholders"

Front 319

Amalgamate

Back 319

to combine several elements into a whole
-unite
v.

"the law allows 2 or more small companies to amalgamate into one large corporation"

Front 320

Amenable

Back 320

agreeable; responsive to suggestion
-acquiescent
adj.

Front 321

Anachronistic

Back 321

out of place in terms of historical or chronological context
-misplaced
adj.

"the move, set in ancient Rome was criticized for its use of exploding projectiles, wine glasses, and other anachronistic props."

Front 322

Disparage

Back 322

to slight or belittle
-demean
v.

"the bully disparaged the classmate for her mismatched socks and outdated clothes"

Front 323

Anathema

Back 323

a solemn or ecclesiastical (religious) curse; a cursed or thoroughly loathed person or thing
-detested thing
n.

"When the soccer player's bribery scandal came to light, the signed jersey the fan once had treasured became anathema to him"

Front 324

Anomaly

Back 324

deviation from the normal order, form, or rule; abnormality
-abnormality, aberration, peculiarity
n.
" It was an anomaly that I got a D on that quiz, because my grades are usually excellent"

Front 325

Antipathy

Back 325

aversion; dislike
-abhorrence
n.

"I know my antipathy toward lawyers isn't fair, but I can't help thinking the worst of every one I meet"

Front 326

Antithetical

Back 326

diametrically opposed; as in antithesis
-opposite
adj.

"She quite her posistion as press secretary when she realized that her views on civil rights were antithetical to the senator's"

Front 327

Aver

Back 327

to state as a fact; to confirm or support
-assert, affirm
v.

"The court records show that the witness averred that she saw the defendant at the scene of the crime"

Front 328

Garner

Back 328

to gather and save; to store up
-amass
v.

"The talented actor continued to garner accolades despite his brushes with the law"

Front 329

Nonplussed

Back 329

baffled; at a loss for what to say or do
-bewildered
adj.

"When I first saw that I had the winning lottery numbers I was nonplussed, but soon recovered and went on a shopping spree"

Front 330

Impecunious

Back 330

lacking funds; without money
-destitute
adj.

"The impecunious author survived on the generosity of her friends until she sold her first manuscript"

Front 331

Imperious

Back 331

commanding; arrogant; haughty
-domineering
adj.

"Writers and photographers feared the editor-in-chief because of her imperious attitude"

Front 332

Malleable

Back 332

capable of being shaped or formed; tractable
-pliable
adj.

"Mable kneaded the malleable clay into a work of art"

Front 333

Nostrum

Back 333

panacea; questionable remedy
-cure-all
n.

"Chocolate chip cookies were an effective nostrum for the crying child"

Front 334

Germane

Back 334

Relevant to the subject at hand; appropriate in subject matter
-applicable
adj.

"Greg could have cut out several sentences from his essay that were not germane to his thesis statement"

Front 335

Malinger

Back 335

to feign illness to avoid work
-dodge
v.

"she malingered so often that when she actually fell ill, she had used up all of her sick days"

Front 336

Garrulous

Back 336

pointlessly talkative; talking too much
-loquacious
adj.

"I just wanted the garrulous waiter to stop rambling and take my order"

Front 337

Noxious

Back 337

harmful; injurious
-toxic, poisonous, deleterious
adj.

" I think my old car is leaking noxious gases because whenever I drove it, I get a headache"

Front 338

Gauche

Back 338

crude; awkward
-tactless
adj.

"Asking how much the property cost at the housewarming party was gauche"

Front 339

Noisome

Back 339

offensive, especially to one's sense of smell
-foul
adj.

"We took out the garbage, but the noisome stench remained"

Front 340

Nexus

Back 340

a connection; tie or link
-core
n.

"Greenwich Village became a nexus for artists and writers during the 1920's"

Front 341

Gambol

Back 341

to skip about playfully
-frolic
v.

"after months in their winter den, the polar bear cubs finally emerged and gamboled in the snow"

Front 342

Iniquity

Back 342

gross injustice; wickedness
-sin
n.

"The iniquity of the government bailouts angers me; large corporations are being saved, while public schools are struggling for funding"

Front 343

Mendacity

Back 343

the condition of being untruthful
-dishonesty
n.

"When his lies became public, Will lost many friends because of his mendacity"

Front 344

Indefatigable

Back 344

dogged; tireless
-unflagging
adj.

"The shark's indefatigable pursuit of the seal was eventually rewarded"

Front 345

Incipient

Back 345

beginning to come into being or to become apparent
-developing
adj.

"fortunately, the doctor detected the patient's incipient tumor during a routine check up"

Front 346

Neophyte

Back 346

a recent convert; a beginner
-tyro, novice
n.

"The freshman senator is a neophyte to the conventions of Capitol Hill"

Front 347

Magnanimous

Back 347

generous and noble in mind and heart, especially in forgiving
-altruistic, beneficent, high-minded
adj.

"Giving the employees Fridays off during the summer was a magnanimous gesture"

adj.

Front 348

Imminent

Back 348

about to happen
-impending
"The police have identified a suspect and an arrest is imminent"
adj.

Front 349

Malevolent

Back 349

having or showing often vicious ill will, spite or hatred
-evil
adj.

"Once the intruder revealed his gun, it was clear that he had malevolent intentions"

Front 350

immutable

Back 350

not capable of change
-permanent
adj.

"Gravity is an immutable law of nature"

Front 351

Aspersion

Back 351

an act of defamation or maligning
-slander
n.

"the hot headed candidate cast aspersions on his opponent's honesty"

Front 352

Furtive

Back 352

marked by stealth; covert; surreptitious
-shifty
adj.

"Jack shot a furtive glance at the celebrity who sat at the next table"

Front 353

Neologism

Back 353

a new word, expression, or usage
-coinage (of a word or phrase)
n.

"Many neologisms arise from technology, including 'spam', 'mouse' and 'internet'"

Front 354

Partisan

Back 354

biased or prejudiced
-sectarian
adj.

"Many newspapers have become increasingly partisan, and few offer objective and balanced coverage of current events"

Front 355

Heretical

Back 355

dissenting from established dogma
-unorthodox
adj.

"Some might find it heretical to put celery on a grilled cheese sandwich, but I reccommend trying it before passing judgement"

Front 356

Gainsay

Back 356

to deny; to oppose
-contradict
v.

"After I easily won the pac-man tournament, my competitors could no longer gainsay my video game dominance"

Front 357

Innocuous

Back 357

harmless;causing no damage
-inoffensive
adj.

"the movie is innocuous entertainment suitable for all ages"

Front 358

Glib

Back 358

marked by ease or informality; nonchalant; lacking in depth
-superficial
adj.

"Your glib response to my questions lets me know that you don't take me seriously"

Front 359

Imperturbable

Back 359

marked by extreme calm, impassivity, and steadiness
-unflappable
adj.

"After an hour of meditation, Ivan is imperturbable and nothing will faze him"

Front 360

Implacable

Back 360

not capable of being appeased or significantly changed
-uncompromising
adj.

"Sadly, Irina is an implacable pessimist and will never see the brighter side of any situation"

Front 361

Nugatory

Back 361

trifling; inconsequential
-piddling
adj.

"Our meeting was derailed because we discussed nugatory details instead of matters of substance"

Front 362

Obdurate

Back 362

unyielding; hardheaded
-intractable
adj.

"The obdurate ruler would not change his policies, even to ease the suffering of his people"

Front 363

Obfuscate

Back 363

to deliberately obscure; to make confusing
-confound
v.

"The politician obfuscated the truth about his corruption by accusing his opponent of having an affair"

Front 364

Maverick

Back 364

an independent individual who does not go along with a group
-nonconformist
n.

"The candidate was once considered a maverick, but now most people agree that he just follows the party line"

Front 365

Importune

Back 365

to ask incessantly; to beg; to nag
-exhort
v.

"The actor importuned the director to give to him a bigger part in the play"

Front 366

Impetuous

Back 366

hastily or rashly energetic; impulsive and vehement
-reckless
adj.

"Teenagers often make impetuous decisions that they later regret"

Front 367

Mellifluous

Back 367

sweetly flowing, often used to describe a voice
-smooth
adj.

"The grandmother's mellifluous voice soothed the crying child"

Front 368

Impugn

Back 368

to challenge; to call into question
-discredit
v.

"The candidate impugned his opponent's flawless record in office"

Front 369

Gossamer

Back 369

delicate; insubstantial or tenous
-diaphanous
adj.

"Light filtered in through the gossamer curtains"

Front 370

Impunity

Back 370

immunity from punishment or penalty
-exemption
n.

"I was granted impunity for my repeated absences from work due to serious medical problems"

Front 371

Inchoate

Back 371

in an initial stage; not fully formed
-rudimentary, amorphous
adj.

"The more experienced engineers sent his original, inchoate proposal back for revision"

Front 372

Impassive

Back 372

revealing no emotion
-apathetic, imperturbable
adj.

"The defendant looked surprisingly impassive after the judge sentenced him to life in prison"

Front 373

Baleful

Back 373

sinister; ominous
-threatening
adj.

"The set director created a baleful scene of a dark, dirty alley on a rainy night"

Front 374

Beatify

Back 374

to bless, make happy, or ascribe a virtue to
-exalt
v.

"Inductions into the Hall of Fame are ways to beatify the greatest players of the game"

Front 375

Beleaguer

Back 375

to beset; to besiege
-harass
v.

"Within a week of starting the job, she was beleaguered by complaints from clients and employees about the company's bad service"

Front 376

Inveigle

Back 376

to obtain by deception or flattery
-manipulate
v.

"The salesperson inveigled the woman to buy the outlandish and expensive hat"

Front 377

Halcyon

Back 377

calm and peaceful
-serene
adj.

"I'm looking forward to a halcyon vacation on a secluded beach"

Front 378

Ingenuous

Back 378

artless; frank and candid; lacking in sophistication; naive
-guileless, innocent, trusting
adj.

"Her fears about childbirth seemed ingenuous to the woman at the baby shower"

Front 379

Nebulous

Back 379

vague; cloudy; lacking clearly defined form
adj.

"My plans for tomorrow are nebulous, but i'll contact you later to work out the details"

Front 380

Inherent

Back 380

ingrained within one's nature
-intrinsic
adj.

"Even though lumpectomies are common, there are still dangers inherent to any surgery"

Front 381

Attenuate

Back 381

to weaken or make thinner
-rarefy
v.

"Economic hardships have attenuated the value of the dollar, making it much more expensive foe Americans to travel in Europe"

Front 382

Nefarious

Back 382

wicked
-sinful
adj.

"Some of the most nefarious criminal in the world are held in that maximum-security prison"

Front 383

Audacious

Back 383

daring and fearless; recklessly bold
-impudent, foolhardy
adj.

"The candidate made the audacious claim that his rival had mismanaged public funds"

Front 384

Infelicitous

Back 384

unfortunate; inappropriate
-malapropos, ill-chosen
adj.

"An uncomfortable silence fell over the dinner table after one of the guests made an infelicitous comment to the hostess"

Front 385

Inured

Back 385

accustomed to accepting something undesirable
-numbed, habituated, hardened
adj.

"The explorer was inured to the cold wind; she no longer noticed her chapped skin"

Front 386

Obloquy

Back 386

sharp criticism; abusively detractive language
-calumny
n.

"After the judge was arrested for accepting bribes, she became the target of public obloquy"

Front 387

Temperance

Back 387

moderation in action, thought, or feeling : restraint
-moderation

Front 388

Notoriety

Back 388

icon; celebrity; well known

Front 389

Eminence

Back 389

a position of prominence or superiority
-noteworthiness

Front 390

Tumultuous

Back 390

marked by tumult : loud, excited, and emotional
cataclysmal (or cataclysmic), stormy,

Front 391

Providential

Back 391

fortuitous, happy, heaven-sent, lucky, fortunate

Front 392

Imperceptible

Back 392

not perceptible by a sense or by the mind : extremely slight, gradual, or subtle

Front 393

Precarious

Back 393

depending on the will or pleasure of another

Front 394

Trifling

Back 394

lacking in significance or solid worth
-frivolous; trivial

Front 395

Ameliorate

Back 395

to make better

Front 396

Incongruous

Back 396

lacking congruity
-graceless;

Front 397

Fortuitous

Back 397

happens by chance
lucky; fortunate

Front 398

Equitable

Back 398

having or exhibiting equity : dealing fairly and equally with all concerned

existing or valid in equity as distinguished from law

-candid; equal; fair; disinterested

Front 399

Fastidious

Back 399

difficult to please

-demanding, dainty, exacting

Front 400

Disseminate

Back 400

to spread abroad
to disperse throughout

-broadcast, spread, circulate

Front 401

Capricious

Back 401

impulsive, unpredictable
-fickle, changeable

Front 402

Corroborate

Back 402

to support with evidence or authority : make more certain

- argue, attest, authenticate

Front 403

Debunk

Back 403

to expose the shame or falseness
- belie, confound, confute, disprove, disconfirm, discredit, falsify, rebut, refute

Front 404

Copious

Back 404

plentiful in number
full of thought, information or matter

-profuse, galore, gushing, lavish, riotous

Front 405

Scathing

Back 405

bitterly severe
- acerb, acerbic, acid, acidic, acidulous, acrid,

Front 406

Diffidence

Back 406

hesitant in acting or speaking through lack of self-confidence

- ackward, bashful, coy, demure, shy, introverted, modest, recessive, retiring, self-effacing, sheepish, withdrawn

Front 407

Thrift

Back 407

healthy and vigorous growth

careful management especially of money

-frugality, husbandry, parsimony, penny-pinching, providence, scrimping, skimping, economy

Front 408

Disquieting

Back 408

to take away the peace or tranquillity of : disturb, alarm

- agitate, ail, concern, derail, discomfort, discompose, dismay, disturb, distemper, flurry, hagride, perturb, undo, unhinge,

Front 409

Injudicious

Back 409

not judicious : indiscreet, unwise

-brash, graceless, ill-advised, imprudent, inadvisable, indelicate, indiscreet, tactless, undiplomatic, unwise

Front 410

Overshadow

Back 410

to exceed in importance : outweigh

- obscure, overcast, overcloud, cloud, shadow, shroud

Front 411

Taciturn

Back 411

temperamentally disinclined to talk

- dumb, laconic, reserved, reticent, silent, uncommunicative

Front 412

Voluble

Back 412

easily rolling or turning : rotating

characterized by ready or rapid speech

Front 413

Pellucid

Back 413

reflecting light evenly from all surfaces
easy to understand

-clear

Front 414

Intrinsic

Back 414

belonging to the essential nature

-essential, constitutional, innate

Front 415

Frivolity
/ Frivolous

Back 415

having no sound basis
lacking in seriousness

-inconsequential, insignificant

Front 416

Impenetrability

Back 416

the inability of two portions of matter to occupy the same space at the same time


incapable of being penetrated or pierced

Front 417

Penitential
/Penitent

Back 417

feeling or expressing humble or regretful pain or sorrow for sins or offense

Front 418

Austerity

Back 418

stern
morally strict
-authoritarian

Front 419

Intractable

Back 419

not easily governed, managed or manipulated
not easily cured

- balky, contrary, contumacious, defiant, froward, incompliant, insubordinate, disobedient, obstreperous, rebel, rebellious, recalcitrant, recusant,

Front 420

Prolix

Back 420

marked by or using an excess of words

-circuitous, circumlocutory, diffuse, garrulous, logorrheic, long-winded, pleonastic, wordy, rambling, verbose, windy

Front 421

Impetuous

Back 421

marked by impulsive vehemence or passion

Front 422

Eclipse

Back 422

the total or partial obscuring of one celestial body by another

Front 423

Ruminate

Back 423

to go over in the mind repeatedly and often casually or slowly

- cogitate, consider, contemplate, debate, deliberate, meditate,

Front 424

Skittish

Back 424

lively or frisky in action
capricious
easily frightened

-fiddle-footed, flighty, fluttery, high-strung, hyper, hyperactive, hyperexcitable, hyperkinetic, jittery,

Front 425

Vociferous

Back 425

marked by or given to vehement insistent outcry

- blatant, caterwauling, clamant, clamorous, obstreperous, squawking, vociferant, vociferating, yawping

Front 426

Restive

Back 426

marked by impatience or uneasiness : fidgety

- balky, contrary, contumacious, defiant, froward, incompliant, insubordinate, intractable,

Front 427

Indecorous

Back 427

conflicting with accepted standards of good conduct or good taste

- amiss, graceless, improper, inapposite, inapt, incongruous, incorrect, inappropriate, inept, infelicitous,

Front 428

Volubility

Back 428

Rapid Speech

Front 429

Intrinsic

Back 429

Innate/ Essential

Front 430

Frivolity

Back 430

Insignificant

Front 431

Impenetrability

Back 431

Not Penetrable

Front 432

Penitential

Back 432

Regretful

Front 433

Intractable

Back 433

Not Easily Managed

Front 434

Prolixity

Back 434

Excess use of words

Front 435

Impetuous

Back 435

Impulsive

Front 436

Prodigality

Back 436

Wasteful

Front 437

Rumination

Back 437

Consider

Front 438

Skittish

Back 438

Capricious

Front 439

Vociferous

Back 439

Blatant

Front 440

Restive

Back 440

Fidgety

Front 441

Indecorous

Back 441

Inappropriate

Front 442

Temperance

Back 442

Moderation

Front 443

Eminence

Back 443

Position of superiority
"your eminence"

Front 444

Tumultuous

Back 444

Emotional

Front 445

Providential

Back 445

Fortunate

Front 446

Imperceptibly

Back 446

Subtly

Front 447

Precariously

Back 447

Dependent

Front 448

Trifling

Back 448

Moderate / Trivial

Front 449

Incongruous

Back 449

Graceless

Front 450

Fortuitous

Back 450

Lucky

Front 451

Equitable

Back 451

Candid

Front 452

Iconoclasm

Back 452

Rebel
attacking cherish beliefs

Front 453

Fastidiousness

Back 453

Difficult to please

Front 454

Polemical

Back 454

Controversial

Front 455

Disseminate

Back 455

To Spread

Front 456

Corroborate

Back 456

Authenticate

Front 457

Debunk

Back 457

Discredit

Front 458

Copious

Back 458

Plenty

Front 459

Diffidence

Back 459

Timid

Front 460

Disquieting

Back 460

Agitate

Front 461

Philanderer

Back 461

Someone who cheats

Front 462

august

Back 462

Marked by Majestic Dignity

Front 463

Minutiae

Back 463

Small detail

Front 464

Proboscises

Back 464

Elephant Trunk

Front 465

Harbinger

Back 465

Forecast's the future /
Initiates change

Front 466

Assuage

Back 466

Appease / calm

Front 467

Stoicism

Back 467

Indifferent/ Impassive

Front 468

Vituperate

Back 468

Berate /
To abuse or censure

Front 469

Recidivism

Back 469

Relapse

Front 470

Recumbent

Back 470

Resting/ lying down

Front 471

Clandestine

Back 471

Secretive

Front 472

Nigh

Back 472

Near by

Front 473

Reaped

Back 473

to cut /
reaping harvest

Front 474

Squander

Back 474

Spend wastefully

Front 475

Placate

Back 475

Sooth /
Appease

Front 476

Permeate

Back 476

to diffuse through or penetrate something

Front 477

Rapacious

Back 477

Ravenous appetitie / Voracious

Front 478

Elegiac

Back 478

eulogy

Front 479

Zealous

Back 479

fervent; ardent; impassioned

"Andy is a zealous fan of the show, he will never miss an episode"

fanatical; passionate

Front 480

Natty

Back 480

Neat

Front 481

Mercurial

Back 481

rapid and unpredictable changeableness of mood
<a mercurial temper>

Front 482

Fickle

Back 482

unstable/ changeable

Front 483

Ebullient

Back 483

Agitated/ Enthusiasm

Front 484

Delirium

Back 484

(delirious)
an acute mental disturbance characterized by confused thinking and disrupted attention usually accompanied by disordered speech and hallucinations

Front 485

Dereliction

Back 485

an intentional abandonment

Front 486

Deride

Back 486

Ridicule
to laugh at contemptuously

Front 487

Asperity

Back 487

Severity
Roughness of surface or noise

Front 488

Contretemps

Back 488

Embarrassing situation /
argument

Front 489

Ail

Back 489

To suffer ill /
to give physical or emotional pain, discomfort, or trouble to

Front 490

Quietus

Back 490

Death

Front 491

Infamous

Back 491

Famous in a bad way

Front 492

Renowned

Back 492

Famous in a good way

Front 493

Rail

Back 493

to make bitter complaints

Front 494

Countenance

Back 494

Agree to

Front 495

Clemency

Back 495

Lenient

Front 496

Abstruse

Back 496

Obscure /
Recondite

Front 497

Pernicious

Back 497

Toxic /
Deadly

Front 498

Camaraderie

Back 498

Friendly

Front 499

Maunder

Back 499

to speak indistinct

Front 500

Tritest

Back 500

Stereotype /
Hackneyed

Front 501

Nihilism

Back 501

No Truth

Front 502

Repudiated

Back 502

Disown

Front 503

Opprobrium

Back 503

Harsh criticism

Front 504

Cozen

Back 504

to trick

Front 505

Dupe

Back 505

some one easy to trick

Front 506

Martyr

Back 506

Victim
a person who sacrifices something of great value and especially life itself for the sake of principle

Front 507

Ensconce

Back 507

shelter / conceal / establish

Front 508

Contemn

Back 508

to treat with contempt

Front 509

Churl

Back 509

Rude /
Boor

Front 510

Bolster

Back 510

to support

Front 511

Robust

Back 511

Rude / Sturdy/

Front 512

Plumed

Back 512

Adorned

Front 513

Miserly

Back 513

cheap

Front 514

Scurrilous

Back 514

Vulgar

Front 515

Flagrant

Back 515

burning

Front 516

Soliloquy

Back 516

monologue

Front 517

Agnostic

Back 517

a person who is unwilling to commit to an opinion about something <political agnostics>

Front 518

Queries

Back 518

Query / Question / inquiry

Front 519

Rejoinders

Back 519

Reply

Front 520

Quibbles

Back 520

Argument

Front 521

Pedantic

Back 521

Pedestrian

Front 522

Sardonic

Back 522

Sarcastic

Front 523

Trepidation

Back 523

Apprehensive/
a nervous or fearful feeling of uncertain agitation

Front 524

Sordid

Back 524

Dirty

Front 525

Accretion

Back 525

increase by external addition or accumulation

Front 526

Cantankerous

Back 526

difficult or irritating to deal with

Front 527

Irresolute

Back 527

Uncertain

Front 528

Cloying

Back 528

disgusting or distasteful by reason of excess <cloying sweetness>

Front 529

Stealth

Back 529

theft

Front 530

Arduous

Back 530

Difficult

Front 531

Pique

Back 531

to irritate
anger

Front 532

Aggrieve

Back 532

distress

Front 533

Dulcify

Back 533

to make sweet (dulce)

Front 534

Shirk

Back 534

sneak/
avoid

Front 535

Rouse

Back 535

excite/
awaken

Front 536

Cogent

Back 536

having the power to persuade
something relevant/ pertinent

Front 537

Insensate

Back 537

Lacking sense or understanding

Front 538

Cognizant

Back 538

Mindful

Front 539

Stentorian

Back 539

Loud

Front 540

Incandescent

Back 540

Luminous / brilliance

Front 541

Stygian

Back 541

Dark / gloomy

Front 542

Innocuous

Back 542

harmless

Front 543

Singularity

Back 543

Unusual / exception

Front 544

Hilarity

Back 544

Boisterous / laughter

Front 545

Ordinariness

Back 545

Normality

Front 546

Celerity

Back 546

Rapidity

Front 547

Opprobrium

Back 547

something that brings disgrace

Front 548

Fiendish

Back 548

Diabolic /cruel

Front 549

Hedge

Back 549

barrier / limit / fence

Front 550

Peroration

Back 550

long speech

Front 551

Exhortation

Back 551

Speech used to encourage

Front 552

Miscreant

Back 552

unbelievable

Front 553

Harridan

Back 553

Shrew

Front 554

Magistrate

Back 554

Official gov't power /
local judiciary

Front 555

Lax

Back 555

Loose

Front 556

Adjudicator

Back 556

to settle judicially

Front 557

Regent

Back 557

someone who reigns

Front 558

Penurious

Back 558

stingy / poor

Front 559

Penal

Back 559

relating to punishment

Front 560

Parsimonious

Back 560

frugal / stingy

Front 561

Metaphysical

Back 561

supernatural

Front 562

Ephemeral

Back 562

short lasting

Front 563

Quarry

Back 563

Prey

Front 564

Terminus

Back 564

final goal

Front 565

Guerdon

Back 565

Reward

Front 566

Accolade

Back 566

Praise

Front 567

Epitome

Back 567

ideal

Front 568

Asperity

Back 568

Severity / harsh

Front 569

Implacable

Back 569

can't appease

Front 570

sojourn

Back 570

temporary stay

Front 571

Puissance

Back 571

Power

Front 572

Demit

Back 572

Dismiss
to withdraw from office or membership

Front 573

Abdicate

Back 573

to give up a position

Front 574

Disembark

Back 574

remove from shore from a ship

Front 575

Ratify

Back 575

formally approve

Front 576

Unfetter

Back 576

Emancipate

Front 577

Consternation

Back 577

create confusion

Front 578

Refutation

Back 578

refute / disapprove

Front 579

Peroration

Back 579

rethorical speech

Front 580

mercenary

Back 580

hired soldier

Front 581

Amanuensis

Back 581

one employed to write from dictation or to copy manuscript

Front 582

Soubrette

Back 582

Maid

Front 583

Spurned

Back 583

Stumble / kick

Front 584

Fomented

Back 584

to promote the growth or development of : rouse, incite <foment a rebellion>

Front 585

Traduced

Back 585

treachery / betray

Front 586

Luculent

Back 586

Clear / easy to understand
(lucid)

Front 587

Meretricious

Back 587

falsely attractive

Front 588

Innervate

Back 588

to supply with nerves

Front 589

Inveigh

Back 589

complain

Front 590

Interdict

Back 590

forbid

Front 591

Adjudication

Back 591

a judicial decision or sentence

Front 592

Pandemonium

Back 592

hell / tumult / chaos

Front 593

Succor

Back 593

relief/aid

"We see it as our duty to give succor to those in need"

Latin: Succorer - to run to the rescue

Front 594

Gaff

Back 594

Hook

"The fish got caught on the gaff"

Front 595

Melange

Back 595

mixture of elements

"Salad is a melange of several vegetables"

French - Meler = to mix

Front 596

Feat

Back 596

act/ noticible deed

"Olympian gymists are known for their acrobatic feats"

French- fait
Latin - factum

stunt; deed; tour de force; exploit

Front 597

Victuals

Back 597

food useable by people

"The hungry dog was searching for victuals"

Latin - Vivere=to live, way of living, nourishment

Front 598

Provender

Back 598

food/ dry food for pets

"a chef who prides himself on creating all of his dislikes from local provender"

French - provende
Latin - provenda
victuals

Front 599

Maritime

Back 599

relating to sea

"The country's maritime industry is an important part of its economy"

French- mar = sea
Latin - mare

marine; nautical

Front 600

Languid

Back 600

weak, exhaustion/ lacking force

"It was a hot, languid summerday"

"The proceeded at a languid pace"

Latin - languidus = slack

enervated; lackadasical; languorous; languishing

Front 601

Tractable

Back 601

being easily taught / controlled

"This new approach should make the problem more tractable"

"The tractable woman was easily manipulated"

socile, malleable, amenable

Front 602

Edacious

Back 602

related to eating

"My edacious dining companion could always be counted on to order the largest and most expensive dish on the menu"

Latin - edac/edere=to eat

voracious; esurient; greedy; haggish; rapacious

Front 603

Emaciated

Back 603

to waste away physically
to become very thin

"In anorexia, people usually emaciate as time goes by"

Latin emaciatus/ e+macies=leaness

decay; droop; fade; languish; wilt; wither

Front 604

Solstice

Back 604

related to the 2 farthest points distance from the celestial equator

Front 605

Temerity

Back 605

unreasonable/ foolhardy
rash/ reckless

"He was punished because of his temerity"

Front 606

Tenet

Back 606

a principle of belief/ doctrine

"There are central tenets to all religions"

Latin - tenere=to hold

Front 607

Rostrum

Back 607

a platform for speakers

"He stood on a rostrum to address the huge crowd"

dais; podium; plateform; tribune

Front 608

Concatenation

Back 608

linked together

"Concatenate deveral lists of instructions into a single master file"

catenate; chain; conjugate; hitch

Front 609

Wend

Back 609

to go; to proceed

"I had to wend my way through the crowd"

meander

Front 610

Mette

Back 610

strength of spirit; courage

" The weeks of physical competition tested his mettle in unforseen ways"

fortitude

Front 611

Vagary

Back 611

unpredictable action

"Some investors prefer the relative stability of bonds to the vagaries of the stock market"

caprice

Front 612

Forswear

Back 612

to renounce; repudiate

"I decided to forswear chocolate for the sake of my diet"

disavow

Front 613

Odious

Back 613

evoking intense aversion or dislike

"Rotting eggs cause odious smell"

repugnant

Front 614

Piety

Back 614

state of being pious
conventional belief
devoutness/ fidelity

"The priest was admired for his piety"

devotion; religion

Front 615

Subsisted

Back 615

to be; persist

"The author's right to royalties shall subsist for the term of the copyright"

Front 616

Controvert

Back 616

to dispute or oppose by reasoning

"The attorny offered evidence that controverted the plaintiff's allegations"

altercate; argufy; bicker

Front 617

Rejoinders

Back 617

reply; answer to a reply

"He always has a smart-aleck rejoinder to everything"

comeback; retort

Front 618

Portend

Back 618

indicate; signify

"the distant thunder portended a storm"

"black cats portend danger"

Front 619

Palpable

Back 619

tangible; noticable

"I felt a palpable sense of relief"

"The attraction between them was palpable"

appreciable; detectable; discernable; sensible

Front 620

Indomitable

Back 620

unconquerable

"The superhero is indomitable"

bulletproof; impregnable; inuncible; insurmountable

Front 621

Circumspect

Back 621

careful to consider all circumstances

"The dedective is circumspect when investigating murder cases"

cautious; alert; guarded; waryl chary

Front 622

Pique

Back 622

resentment

"He slammed the door in pique"

offense, huff, miff, peeve, ombrage

Front 623

Acarpous

Back 623

producing no fruit

"A willow tree is an acarpous"

Front 624

Inane

Back 624

silly; lacking significance; insubstantial

"The film's plit is inane and full of cliches"

Front 625

Resolve

Back 625

to make clear/ determination
to melt

Front 626

Reproach

Back 626

discredit/ dissaproval

"His conduct hs brought shame and reproach to his family"

dishonor; reflection; disgrace

Front 627

Improvident

Back 627

spendthrift
not provident; not foreseeing and providing for the future

"Her improvident habits left her with no retierment savings"

myopic; shortsighted

Front 628

Poignant

Back 628

make an impression
eloquent/ piercing

"a poignant story of a love affair that ends in tragedy"

affecting; emotional; impactful

Front 629

Attinities

Back 629

sympathy; fondness
own preference

"Her attinities are for brand name products"

Front 630

Defunct

Back 630

no longer living or functioning

"The organizations bankrupcy has left nothing but a defunct company"

bygone; bypast; extinct; nonextant

Front 631

Reclusive

Back 631

solitary; recluse

"He reclused himself from the meeting as he wasn't feeling well"

Latin - re+clauderre= close
French - reclus= to shut away

Front 632

Regimented

Back 632

rigidly organized
to form to a regiment

"They carefully regiment their son's diet"

"She criticized the way the school regiments its students with strict rules"

Front 633

Hullabaloo

Back 633

din; uproar

"The controversal announcement caused hullabaloo"

ballyhoo; blatter; bobbery; hoopla; foss; ruckus; moil; kerfuffle; potler; squall; welter

Front 634

Sequesteration

Back 634

to set apart; to segregate
seclude
seize a property

"The jury was sequestered until a verdict was reached"

"The extremists were sequestered to their own group"

insulate; seculde; isolate

Front 635

Inveterate

Back 635

habitual; persistance

"His inveterate tendency to overlook the obvious is getting old"

Front 636

Heedlessness

Back 636

inconsiderate; thoughless

"The heedless use of natural resources will leave the earth scarce"

Front 637

Rife

Back 637

abundant; copious

"speculation about who would be fired ran rife for weeks"

"That rumor ran rife for too long"

Front 638

Meliorated

Back 638

improve; ameliorate

"New and improved laws were intended to meliorate farm labor laws"

Latin - melior=better

amend; enrich; refine; upgrade

Front 639

Seditious

Back 639

rebellious; to be gulty of sedition (rebles; protestors)

"Several rebels were jailed for what the gov't branded as seditious"

incendiary; inflammatory

Front 640

Plucky

Back 640

brave; spirited

"To go to battle the soldiers had to be plucky"

Front 641

Ribald

Back 641

vulgar; low status; scoundrel

"No one wanted to talk to that ribald person"

Front 642

Cretacrous

Back 642

chalky; resembling chalk
relating to mesozoic era/ corresponding to rocks

"The school board is always cretacrous"

Front 643

Promulgate

Back 643

to make known; to proclaim
to put into action / force

"Her ideas have been widley promolgulated on her blog on the internet"

The law was promulgated in 1945"

advertize; blare; blaze; annunciate; declare; herald; trumpet

Front 644

Ostracize

Back 644

to exile; exclude

"she was ostracized from the community because of ther radical views"

Front 645

Obliteration

Back 645

extinction; to remove from memory
to destory/ to cause to dissapear

"The march snowstorm obliterated our hopes for an early spring"

abolist; efface; expunge; extirpate; annihilate; liquidate

Front 646

Recompense

Back 646

compensation; to retun in kind
to pay for

"That company still needs to recompense the work that the contractor finished last weekd"

Latin - re+compensare= to comensate

remunerate

Front 647

Chagrin

Back 647

distress by failure

"She gained 5lbs much to her chagrin"

"He got a tatoo much to the chargin of his parents"

French - chagrin=sad

disquietude

Front 648

Hieroglyphic

Back 648

system of writing found; mainly pictorial

"The anthoropologist found ancient Egypt hieroglypic symbols on the pyramids"

Front 649

Ebb

Back 649

condition of decline
reflux of tide towards the sea

"During recession morale seems to have reached its lowest ebb"

decadence; declension; degradation; devolution; decline; eclipse

Front 650

Middling

Back 650

moderate size; mediocre; middle class

"He was dissapointed in the renowned historians latest book which is only middling"

average; intermediate

Front 651

Picayune

Back 651

something trivial

"Puberty is picayune in the grand scheme of a life time"

Picaioun=small coin
Picaio=money /Pica=jingle

bagatelle; frippery; tritle

Front 652

Paltry

Back 652

inferior; trashy
mean; dispicable (paltry trick)
meager; measly (paltry tip)

"She played a paltry underhanded scheme to get him fired"

palt=corse cloth

cheap; cruddy; deplorable; pitiable

Front 653

Quandary

Back 653

state of perplexity or doubt

"I'm in quandary about which school to go to"

Front 654

Imbibe

Back 654

to drink; soak
assimilate (imbibe moral principles)

"She imbibed lots of water"

gulp; guzzle; quaff; swig

Front 655

Effigy

Back 655

image of a person (especially someone hated)

"His effigy reminded me of Stalin"

Front 656

Arrogate

Back 656

to seize w/o justification

"They arrogated to themselves power to rule the kingdome"

appropriate; commandeerl expropriate; pirate; preempt

Front 657

Depliation

Back 657

removal of hair by chemicals

"They removed the sheep's wool by depilation"

Front 658

Mien

Back 658

appearence
expressive of attitude (arristocratice mien)

"Her has the mien of a warrior"

"The stern mien of the teacher indicated not the mess with her"

: the stern mien of the teacher indicated not to mess with her"

aspect figure ; garb

Front 659

Waggish

Back 659

to be in motion (wag)

"His waggish disposition often got him into trouble as a child"

arch; devilish; elvish; impish; knavish; pixie

Front 660

Bedlam

Back 660

madman; lunatic asylum
state of uproar & confusion

"The park had thousands of visitors it was total bedlam"

bedlam - a well known insane asylum in london

institute

Front 661

Gaudiness

Back 661

ostentatiously or tastelessly showy

" The show girls wore gaudy costumes"

"They bought the house for a gaudy cause"

flamboyent; flashy; garnish;glitzy

Front 662

Slipshod

Back 662

loose; shably; careless

"He got fired b/c of his slipshod job"

"Her scholarship is slipshod at best"

Front 663

Wheedle

Back 663

cajole

"She pleaded and whedled, but I wouldn't be swayed"

blandish; blarney; plauer

Front 664

Svelte

Back 664

sleek; suave

"She has a svelt figure like a model"

lean; skinny

Front 665

Viridian

Back 665

green pigment

"Viridian monster was douced with green paint"

Front 666

Obeisance

Back 666

bow; obey;
homage(makes obeisance to her mentors)

"The slaves were in obeisance to their masters"

Front 667

Detritus

Back 667

loose material
debris
odds & ends (sifting through ditritus of his childhood)

"The detritus of ancient civilzations"

ashes; remains; residue; rubble;flotsan

Front 668

Sardonic

Back 668

distainfuly; skeptically humours (sardonic grin)

"His sardonic jab made the guest quiet and subdued for the rest of the night"

acerbic; acidulous; barbed; caustic; corrosive

Front 669

Malfeasance

Back 669

misconduct (usually by official)

"They ran a campaign to impeech the govener for malfeasance in office"

mal (bad)+feasance(doing)

Front 670

Scourge

Back 670

whip; inflict pain/punish

"The city ravaged by the scourge of unemployment"

"The disease continues to scourge in the developing world"

Front 671

Expound

Back 671

to state; to defend w/ an argument

"The article expounds the virtues of a healthy diet"

"J never has a problem expounding in an argument"

ventilate; express

Front 672

Prurient

Back 672

marked by an immoderate or unwholesome interest (sex)

"the provocative book that appealed to the prurient curiosity of the teens"

Front 673

Kibitz

Back 673

chat

"They sat around kibiting about their children"

bable; gabble; jabber; prattle; natter

Front 674

Finicky

Back 674

meticulous; precision

"My teacher is finicky about grammer"

delicate; dainty

Front 675

Jocund

Back 675

marked by high spirits; mirthful

"old friends engaged in jocund teasing"

gleeful; jocose; merry

Front 676

Licentious

Back 676

lacking legal or moral restraints; disreagarding rules

"moralist who decried what she regarded as the licentious & corrupt culture of the entertainment industry"

concupiscent; goatish

Front 677

Rake

Back 677

to gain rapidly; touch lightly
to censure

Front 678

Puerile

Back 678

juvinile; silly

"He told the teenagers that such puerile behavior would not be tolirated in class"

jejune

Front 679

Lugubrious

Back 679

dark; dismal

"The diner's lightly makes eating a lugubrious experience"

black; bleak

Front 680

Uncouth

Back 680

uncommon; rare
mysterious
rude

"People thought he was uncouth and uncivilized"

boorish; churlish; cloddish; loutis

Front 681

Benighted

Back 681

overtaken by darkness
intellectual, moral or social darkness

"The poor benight souls do not know the joys of laughter"

ignorate; illterate

Front 682

Antipodal

Back 682

opposite

"Love is antipodal to hate"

antithetical; diametric

Front 683

Sieve

Back 683

סיבים

Front 684

Compendium

Back 684

abstract; breif summary
list of a # of items (collection)

"He published a compendium of poems"

Latin - com+pendere = to weigh

pendant, collectanea, anthology, compilation, florilegium, miscellany

Front 685

Reproach

Back 685

discredit
dissaproval

"His conduct has brought shame and reproach to his family"

dishonor, reflectio, discreace

Front 686

Divined

Back 686

to discover by intuition

"It was easy to divine his intention of asking his girlfriend to marry him"

forsee, forefeel, foreknow, prevision, anticipate

Front 687

Homage

Back 687

ceremony (for man/lord)
expression of respect; tribute

"The poem is a moving homage to all who served the armed forces"

honor; accolade; citation; commendation; encomium; dithyramb; euloquim

Front 688

Equable

Back 688

Uniform
marked by lack of noticable variation

"an area with an equitable climate is the first choice for a place to settle in"

steady; balmy; clement; genial; temperate

Front 689

Irresolute

Back 689

vibration
quality of richness
chemistry related
enriching music; evoking response

"The resonance of the singer's voice"

"His story didn't have much resonance with the audiance"