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62 Cards in this Set
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abate
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(v) to decrease; reduce
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NASA announced that it would delay the launch of the manned spacecraft until the radiation from the solar flares ABATED.
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abdicate
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(v) to give up a position, right, or power
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The appeals judge has ABDICATED his responsibility to review the findings of the high court.
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de facto
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in fact, whether by right or not; exercising power without being legally established
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(latin: from the fact)
(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences) |
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aberrant
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(adj) deviating from what is normal
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When a person's behavior becomes ABERRANT, his or her peers may become concerned that the individual is becoming a deviant.
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aberration
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(n) something different from the usual or normal
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For centuries, solar eclipses were regarded as serious ABERRATIONS in the natural order.
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deviant
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a person whose behavior differs from the accepted standards
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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abeyance
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(n) temporary suppression or suspension
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A good judge must hold his or her judgment in ABEYANCE until all the facts in a case have been presented.
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abject
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(adj) miserable; pitiful
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John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath portrays the ABJECT poverty of many people during the Great Depression.
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abjure
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(v) to reject; abandon formally
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Most members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) ABJURE the use of violence to settle disputes between nations.
For a foreigner to become a U.S. citizen, he or she must take an oath ABJURING allegiance to any other country. |
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abscission
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(n) the act of cutting; the natural separation of a leaf or other part of a plant
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Two scientists have hypothesized that premature leaf ABSCISSION is an adaptive plant response to herbivorous attack.
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abscise
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(v) to cut off or away
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The surgeon ABSCISED a small growth on the patient's hand.
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hypothesized
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form a hypothesis. that is a proposition put forward as a starting point for further investigation
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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adaptive
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relating to adaptation, an alteration in structure or habits by which a species improves its condition in relationship to its environment
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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herbivorous
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feeding mainly on plants
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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abscond
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(v) to depart secretly
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A warrant is out for the arrest of a person believed to have ABSCONDED with three million dollars.
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abstemious
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(adj) moderate in appetite
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Some research suggests that people with an ABSTEMIOUS lifestyle tend to live longer than people who indulge their appetites.
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abstinence
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(n) the giving up of certain pleasures
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The monk's vow of ABSTINENCE includes all intoxicating substances.
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abysmal
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(adj) very bad
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The ABYSMAL failure of the free market system in Russia has led some people to argue that the planned economy of the Soviet Union, while not perfect, was better suited to Russia's history and culture than Western-style capitalism.
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free market
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an economic market in which the demand and supply of goods and services is either not regulated or is slightly regulated
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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planned economy
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an economic system in which the production, allocation, and consumption of goods and services is planned in advance. Another terms for planned economy is "command economy"
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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capitalism
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an economic and political system in which a country's industry and trade are controlled by private owners rather than the government.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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accretion
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(n) growth in size or increase in amount
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In the 1960's, the American geophysicist Harry Hess conceived the idea of sea-floor spreading, a process in which the new crust in the ocean is continually generated by igneous processes at the crests of the mid-oceanic ridges, causing a steady ACCRETION of the crust.
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geophysicist
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one who specializes in the physics of the earth and its environment.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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igneous
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in geology, relating to the formation of rocks by solidification from a molten state. The word igneous is from Latin ignis (fire).
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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accrue
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(v) to accumulate; grow by additions
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Regulating the growth of large companies when they begin to become monopolistic is a difficult task for government in a capitalist county; if it limits monopolies too much, the nation's firms could become less competitive than foreign companies that enjoy the advantages ACCRUING from greater monopolies.
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monopolistic
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having exclusive control over a commercial activity.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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adamant
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(adj) uncompromising; unyielding
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Despite widespread opposition to his plan, the political party's leader is ADAMANT that the party must move to the center to appeal to moderate voters.
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adjunct
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(n) something added, attached, or joined
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Speed walking, cross-country running, and marathons are normally regarded as ADJUNCTS of track and field athletics since races in theses sports are not normally held on a track.
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admonish
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(v) to caution or reprimand
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The judge ADMONISHED the jury to discount testimony that had been ruled inadmissible.
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adulterate
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(v) to corrupt or make impure
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The unscrupulous company sells an ADULTERATED version of the drug, and doesn't inform consumers that they are getting a less efficacious drug than they think they are getting.
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aesthetic
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(adj) relating to beauty or art
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Members of the English AESTHETIC movement were proponents of the doctrine of art for art's sake, which is the belief that art cannot and should not be useful for any purpose other than that of creating beauty.
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aesthetic
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(n) a conception of what is artistically beautiful
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The Gothic AESTHETIC dominated European art and architecture from approximately the twelfth to the fifteenth century.
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Gothic
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a style of architecture that was very popular in the late Middle Ages characterized by such features as pointed arches, soaring spaces, and light. In literature the term refers to a genre of fiction that was popular in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Gothic novels have an atmosphere of gloom, mystery, and horror.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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affected
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(adj) pretentious, phony
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It has been argued that the emphasis on so-called "proper English" leads to unnatural and AFFECTED speech.
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affinity
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(n) fondness; liking; similarity
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The female students in the class felt an AFFINITY for the ancient Greek playwright Euripides because he sympathized with women, slaves, and other despised members of his society.
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aggrandize
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(v) to make larger or greater
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One of the concerns of the framers of the U.S. Constitution was that one branch of government would try to AGGRANDIZE itself at the expense of others.
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aggregate
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(adj) amounting to a whole; total
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The AGGREGATE wealth of a country includes private as well as public resources and possessions.
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aggregate
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(v) to collect into a mass
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Portals are web sites designed to AGGREGATE information and are used as a starting point on the Web.
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aggregate
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(n) collective mass or sum
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Aggregate can be an adjective, verb or noun.
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alacrity
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(n) cheerful willingness; eagerness; speed
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The football coach was pleased to see the team get to work on the task of improving its tackling skills with ALACRITY.
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alchemy
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(n) medieval chemical philosophy based on changing metal into gold; a seemingly magical power or process of transmutation
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ALCHEMY was the forerunner of the modern science of chemistry.
None of their friends could understand the mysterious ALCHEMY that cuased two people as different from one another as Rob and Barbara to fall in love. |
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alchemy
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modern scientists believe alchemy was not a true science since there's no evidence that anyone succeeded in turning as base metal into gold. Interestingly, however, the word for the modern science of 'chemistry' is derived directly from the word 'alchemy'.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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allay
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(v) to lessen; ease; soothe
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Improvements in antivirus software have ALLAYED many people's fears of having their computers 'infected' with malicious software.
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alleviate
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(v) to relieve; improve partially
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According to some commentators, one of the weaknesses of capitalism is that, although it is very efficient at increasing absolute wealth, it is not as successful at ALLEVIATING relative poverty.
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bourgeoisie
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the social order dominated by the property-owning class. The term is associated with Marxism, but today it is often used disparagingly to suggest materialism and philistinism (an unenlightened and smug attitude toward culture).
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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alloy
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(n) a combination; a mixture of two or more metals
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Scientists formulate ALLOYS to create properties that are not possessed by natural metals or other substances.
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allure
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(n) the power to entice by charm
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Political groups in the U.S. often lobby Congress to use the ALLURE of America's vast market as an incentive for countries to pursue policies in accordance with American policies.
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lobby
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a group whose members share certain goals and work to bring about the passage, modification, or defeat of laws that affect these goals.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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clockwork universe
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a theory of the origin of the universe that compares the universe to a mechanical clock created by God. According to this theory, once created, the universe continues to run according to the laws of nature and does not require further Divine intervention. This idea was very popular in the Enlightenment, an eighteenth-century philosophical movement that emphasized the use of reason to examine accepted beliefs and traditions.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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amalgamate
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(v) to combine into a unified whole
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In early 1999, six municipalities were AMALGAMATED into an enlarged city of Toronto, Canada.
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ambiguous
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(adj) unclear or doubtful in meaning
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The gender of the Mahayana Buddhist deity Avalokitesuara, the god of infinite mercy, is AMBIGUOUS in both China and Japan, where the god is sometimes called a goddess.
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Mahayana Buddhist
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one of three major traditions of Buddhism. It regards the historical Buddha as a manifestation of the celestial Buddha.
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(Terms from the Arts, Sciences, and Social Sciences)
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ambivalence
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(n) the state of having conflicting emotional attitudes.
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John felt some AMBIVALENCE about getting married before finishing college.
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ambrosia
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(n) something delicious; the food of the gods
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The combination of flavors in the Moroccan baked eggplant was pure AMBROSIA.
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ameliorate
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(v) to improve
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Knowing they could not stop the spread of a contagion in a few days, health authorities worked o inhibit its spread and to AMELIORATE its effects by issuing warnings to the public and initiating immunization programs.
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amenable
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(adj) agreeable; cooperative; suited
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The young writer is AMENABLE to suggestions for improving her prose style to make it more interesting.
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amenity
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(n) something that increases comfort
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Many AMENITIES considered normal and necessary by people in developed countries, such as indoor plumbing, were luxuries only a few generations ago.
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amulet
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(n) ornament worn as a charm against evil spirits
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The early Chrisitan Church forbade the use of AMULETS, which had become common in the Roman Empire at the time the Christian Church began to develop.
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anachronism
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(n) something out of the proper time
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Some experts regard the retirement age of 65 as an ANACHRONISM at a time when people in the developed world have much longer life expectancies than previously.
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analgesic
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(n) medication that reduces or eliminates pain
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Aspirin is a powerful ANALGESIC that was introduced in 1899 and is still one of the most effective medicines available to alleviate pain, fever, and inflammation.
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analogous
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(adj) comparable
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The psychology researcher's experiment postulates that the brain is ANALOGOUS to a digital computer.
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anarchy
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(n) absence of government; state of disorder
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The American philosopher Robert Nozick does not advocate ANARCHY; rather, he argues for the merits of a minimal state that would not violate the natural rights of individuals.
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