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180 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Abate
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to reduce in amount, degree, or severity
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Abscond
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to leave secretly
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Abstain
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to choose not to do something
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Abyss
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an extremely deep hole
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Adulterate
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to make impure
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Advocate
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to speak in favor of
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Aesthetic
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concerning the appreciation of beauty
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Aggrandize
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to increase in power, influence and reputation
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Alleviate
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to make more bearable
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Amalgamate
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to combine; to mix together
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Ambiguous
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doubtful or uncertain
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Ameliorate
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to make better; improve
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Anachronism
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something out of place in time
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Analogous
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similar or alike in some way
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Anomaly
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deviation from what is normal
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Antagonize
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To annoy or provoke to anger
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Antipathy
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extreme dislike
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Apathy
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lack of interest or emotion
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Arbitrate
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to judge a dispute between two opposing parties
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Archaic
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ancient, old-fashioned
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Ardor
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intense and passionate feeling
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Articulate
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able to speak clearly and expressively
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Assuage
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to make something unpleasant less severe
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Attenuate
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to reduce in force or degree; to weaken
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Audacious
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fearless or daring
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Austere
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severe or stern in appearance; undecorated
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Banal
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predictable, cliched, boring
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Bolster
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to support, prop up
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Bombastic
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pompous in speech and manner
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Cacophony
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harsh, jarring noise
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Candid
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impartial and honest in speech
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Capricious
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changing one's mind quickly and often
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Castigate
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to punish or criticize harshly
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Catalyst
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something that brings about a change in something else
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Caustic
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biting in wit
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Chaos
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great disorder or confusion
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Chauvinist
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someone prejudiced in favor of a group to which he or she belongs
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Chicanery
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deception by means of craft or guile
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Cogent
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convincing and well reasoned
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Condone
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to overlook, pardon, or disregard
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Convoluted
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intricate and complicated
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Corroborate
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to provide supporting evidence
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Credulous
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too trusting; gullible
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Crescendo
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steadily increasing volume or force
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Decorum
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Appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety
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Deference
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Respect, courtesy
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Deride
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To speak of or treat with contempt; to mock
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Desiccate
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to dry out thoroughly
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Desultory
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jumping from one thing to another; disconnected
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Diatribe
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an abusive, condemnatory
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Diffident
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lacking self-confidence
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Dilate
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to make larger; to expand
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Dilatory
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intended to delay
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Dilettante
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someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic
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Dirge
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a funeral hymn or mournful speech
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Disabuse
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to set right; to free from error
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Discern
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to perceive or recognize
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Disparate
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fundamentally different; entirely unlike
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Dissemble
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to present a false appearance; to disguise one's real intentions or character
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Dissonance
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a harsh and disagreeable combination, often of sounds
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Dogma
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a firmly held opinion, often a religious believe
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Dogmatic
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dictatorial in one's opinions
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Dupe
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to deceive; a person who is easily deceived
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Eclectic
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Selecting from or made up from a variety of sources
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Efficacy
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effectiveness
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Elegy
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a sorrowful poem or speech
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Eloquent
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persuasive and moving, especially in speech
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Emulate
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to copy
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Enervate
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to reduce in strength
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Engender
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to produce, cause or bring out
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Enigma
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a puzzle or mystery
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Enumerate
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to count, list, or itemize
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Ephemeral
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lasting a short time
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Equivocate
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to use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead
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Erratic
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Wandering and unpredictable
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Erudite
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learned, scholarly, bookish
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Esoteric
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known or understood by only a few
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Estimable
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admirable
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Eulogy
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speech in praise of someone
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Euphemism
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use of an inoffensive word or phrase in place of a more distasteful one
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Exacerbate
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to make worse
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Exculpate
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to clear from blame; prove innocent
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Exigent
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urgent; requiring immediate action
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Exonerate
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to clear of blame
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Explicit
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clearly stated or shown; forthright in expression
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Fanatical
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acting excessively enthusiastic
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Fawn
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to grovel
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Fervid
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intensely emotional
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Florid
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excessively decorated or embellished
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Foment
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to arouse or excite
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Frugality
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a tendency to be thrifty or cheap
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Garrulous
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tending to talk a lot
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Gregarious
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outgoing; sociable
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Guile
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deceit or trickery
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Gullible
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easily deceived
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Homogenous
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of a similar kind
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Iconoclast
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one who opposes established beliefs, customs, and institutions
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Imperturbable
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not capable of being disturbed
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Impervious
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impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected
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Impetuous
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quick to act without thinking
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Implacable
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unable to be calmed down or made peaceful
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Inchoate
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not fully formed; disorganized
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Ingenuous
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showing innocence or childlike simplicity
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Inimical
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hostile, unfriendly
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Innocuous
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harmless
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Insipid
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lacking interest or flavor
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Intransigent
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uncompromising; refusing to be reconciled
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Inundate
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to overwhelm; to cover with water
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Irascible
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easily made angry
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Laconic
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using few words
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Lament
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to express sorrow; to grieve
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Laud
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to give praise
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Lavish
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to give unsparingly; extremely generous or extravagant
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Lethargic
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acting in an indifferent or slow, sluggish manner
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Loquacious
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talkative
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Lucid
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clear and easily understood
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Luminous
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bright, brilliant, glowing
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Malinger
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to evade responsibility by pretending to be ill
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Malleable
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capable of being shaped
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Metaphor
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a figure of speech comparing two different things; a symbol
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Meticulous
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extremely careful about details
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Misanthrope
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a person who dislikes others
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Mitigate
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to soften; to lessen
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Mollify
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to calm or make less severe
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Monotony
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lack of variation
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Naive
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lacking sophistication or experience
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Obdurate
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hardened in feeling; resistant to persuasion
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Obsequious
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overly submissive and eager to please
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Obstinate
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stubborn
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Obviate
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to prevent; to make unnecessary
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Occlude
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to stop up; to prevent the passage of
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Onerous
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troublesome and oppressive; burdensome
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Opaque
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impossible to see through
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Opprobrium
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public disgrace
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Ostentation
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excessive showiness
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Paradox
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a contradiction or dilemna
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Paragon
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model of excellence of perfection
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Pedant
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someone who shows off learning
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Perfidious
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willing to betray one's trust
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Perfunctory
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done in a routine way; indifferent
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Permeate
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to penetrate
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Philanthropy
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charity; a desire or effort to promote goodness
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Placate
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to soothe or pacify
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Plastic
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able to be molded, altered or bend
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Plethora
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excess
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Pragmatic
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practical as opposed to idealistic
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Precipitate
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to throw violently or being about abruptly
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Prevaricate
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to lie or deviate from the truth
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Pristine
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fresh and clean
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Prodigal
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lavish; wasteful
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Proliferate
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to increase in number quickly
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Propitiate
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to conciliate; to appease
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Propriety
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correct behavior;
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Prudence
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wisdom, caution or restraint
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Pungent
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sharp and irritating to the senses
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Quiescent
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motionless
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Rarefy
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to make thinner or sparser
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Repudiate
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to reject the validity of
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Reticent
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silent; reserved
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Rhetoric
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effective writing or speaking
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Satiate
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to satisfy fully or overindulgence
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Soporific
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causing sleep or lethargy
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Specious
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deceptively attractive
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Stigma
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a mark of shame or discredit
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Stolid
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unemotional
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Sublime
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lofty or grand
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Tacit
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done without using words
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Taciturn
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silent, not talkative
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Tirade
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long, harsh speech
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Torpor
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extreme mental and physical sluggishness
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Transitory
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temporary, lasting a brief time
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Vacillate
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to sway physically; to be indecisive
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Venerate
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to respect deeply
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Veracity
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filled with truth and accuracy
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Verbose
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wordy
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Vex
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to annoy
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Volatile
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easily aroused or changeable
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Waver
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to fluctuate between choices
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Whimsical
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acting in a fanciful or capricious manner
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Zeal
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passion; excitement
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