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300 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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nebulous
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Use the adjective nebulous for situations that are "hazy, indistinct" and also "cloudy" or "fuzzy." Nebulous comes from the noun form "nebula" which is a "mist" or "fog."
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cynicism
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Cynicism is the feeling of distrust or that something isn't going to work out well. Some people feel cynicism when politicians make big promises.
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neologism
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A neologism is a made-up or new word. Neologisms can be fun-ti-ful, but the problem is making sure others understand what you mean. Random neologisms coined in 2003 include: adultolescence, pastability, pre-zactly, and neomaxizoomdweebie.
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elegy
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An elegy is a sad poem, usually written to praise and express sorrow for someone who is dead. Although a speech at a funeral is a eulogy, you might later compose an elegy to someone you have loved and lost to the grave.
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arduous
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Use the adjective, arduous, to describe an activity that takes a lot of effort. Writing all those college essays and filling out the applications is an arduous process!
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recondite
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It's rather difficult to penetrate the meaning of recondite. Fitting, because it's an adjective that basically means hard for the average mind to understand. In the same family as "abstruse," "esoteric" and "totally deep, man," recondite is a very serious word that you could use to describe obscure philosophy books, high level mathematical theory, and the series finale of The Sopranos — you know, things that make your brain hurt.
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ingenuous
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Someone who is ingenuous shows a childlike innocence, trust, and openness. Kindergarten teachers value working with kids while they're still relatively ingenuous––their open, trusting natures are a joy. A near synonym is naive. Its opposite is disingenuous, which means "giving a false impression of being honest and sincere." Don't confuse the word ingenuous with the similarly spelled ingenious, which means "very smart or clever."
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enigmatic
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Something that's enigmatic is tough to figure out. It's puzzling and even mysterious, like those weird secret college societies, Mona Lisa's smile or the New York Times crossword.
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abscond
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Abscond is to escape, often taking something along. As a kid, you may have absconded from the kitchen with a stolen cookie. Abscond is generally used to describe someone running from law or capture. Dogs who get off the leash and dart into the woods are not necessarily absconding; they are simply making a break for it. On the other hand, the Ponzi schemer who went to live in the South of France with his client's money? He absconded.
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renege
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To renege is to go back on your word or fail to keep a promise. In card games, you are said to renege if you play against the rules. To renege on a promise may be wrong, but it's not necessarily a punishable offense (unless you put that promise legally binding in writing). Still, it certainly doesn't make you look good!
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prattle
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If your little brother won't stop talking about his latest crush and you don't want to hear it, you might say, "Stop prattling on about that loser!" To prattle is go on and on about something unimportant.
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inveigle
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When you tell your boyfriend he’s the world's best driver, and this makes him offer to drive the whole way on your upcoming road trip, then congratulations. You know how to inveigle, or use charm to coax someone into doing something.
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ameliorate
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To ameliorate is to step in and make a bad situation better. You could try introducing a second lollipop to ameliorate a battle between two four-year-olds over a single lollipop. Food drives can ameliorate hunger. Aspirin can ameliorate a headache. A sympathy card can ameliorate grief. Anything that can lift a burden can ameliorate.
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sparse
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Something that’s sparse is thin, not dense. If you’re looking for the perfect place to build a tree house, a sparse forest is probably not your best bet.
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irascible
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If you're irascible, you get angry easily — perhaps blowing up in rage when someone brushes into you. Irascible comes from the same Latin root that gives us the word ire, meaning "anger."
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cogent
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When you make a cogent argument, it means your argument is clear and persuasive. If you try to convince your mayor to build a new park by saying that playgrounds are good, seeing the sky is nice, and raccoons are cool…well that’s not a cogent argument; it’s just random. But you could cogently argue that parks contribute to civic happiness by providing space for exercise, community, and encounters with nature.
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austere
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The adjective austere is used to describe something or someone stern or without any decoration. For example, if you go on an austere diet, it's likely you wouldn't ever have candy.
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refulgent
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Refulgent is a poetic way of saying "bright." If someone tells you that you have refulgent eyes, they mean that your eyes shine like the stars. On a bright day, the sun can be described as refulgent, and the beautiful, sunny weather might cause you to break into a refulgent smile. You'll typically encounter refulgent in literature and poetry, but using this word is a great way to show off your refulgent mind.
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ennui
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The French word ennui describes a feeling that combines tiredness and boredom, or "the blahs." A fancy word from French, ennui is a common feeling that everybody experiences: being bored and tired. School and work fill lots of people with ennui. If you feel like your life is going nowhere, ennui could set in. When you're feeling ennui, you might as well take a nap, because you're too drowsy and uninterested to do much of anything else.
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fervent
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Use fervent to describe a person or thing that shows very strong feelings or enthusiasm. If you have a fervent desire to become an actress, you'll stop at nothing to realize your dream.
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culpable
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Culpable is being deserving of blame. If you are culpable of a crime, you are the culprit, or the one who did it. Culpable can be used when looking for the root of the problem rather than a simple who done it. If a teacher leaves the room during a difficult test, and the students decide to cheat, parents might ask whether or not the teacher was also somewhat culpable for the outcome.
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spendthrift
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A spendthrift person is reckless and wasteful with his money. Spendthrift was created by sticking two opposite words together: spend and thrift, which means “savings, wealth.” So a spendthrift spends all of his savings.
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prescience
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Do you already know what happens tomorrow? Next week? Next year? If you can see into the future, then you have prescience. Don't assume it's a crystal ball kind of power that lets someone with prescience see the future. It's more like a state of mind or level of expertise that allows for excellent foresight and planning.
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fawn
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A fawn is a young deer, but it's also a verb meaning to try and win favor by flattering. You might fawn over Bambi if you want to hang out with the cute and fuzzy gang.
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axiom
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An axiom is a statement that everyone believes is true. Many axioms are so widely used they become clichés--a police officer interrogating a witness might just as easily say, "Stick to the axioms," as "Stick to the facts, ma'am."
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subtle
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Something that is subtle is not obvious: a professional food taster might be able to perceive subtle differences of flavor that most people don't notice.
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waver
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To waver is to move back and forth, like when you waver, one minute thinking you'll stay home, planning to go meet your friends the next, until you finally make your decision.
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germane
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Germane means relevant; it fits in. You might want to bring up all sorts of complaints during an argument with your best friend, but she says the two of you should only discuss issues that are germane to the current fight.
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bucolic
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Used as an adjective, bucolic can refer to an idealized rural life (think life with cows) or to herdsmen (more cows). And that’s no bull. If your parents wanted to raise you in a bucolic environment, you may find yourself living 45 minutes away from the nearest movie theater .
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pristine
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If something is pristine it's immaculately clean or has never been used. So please check your shoes before walking on a pristine white carpet.
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truculent
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To be truculent is to be defiant, aggressive, and always looking for a fight. This word has no connection to truck, but the similar sound is still a good way to remember it: truculent folks are like monster trucks, ready to run over anything that gets in their way. In a violent sport like football, it helps to be truculent, but it's usually not a great quality.
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cacophony
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A cacophony is a jarring, discordant mix of sounds that have no business being played together. When the orchestra tunes up before a show, it sounds like a cacophony because each musician is playing something completely different. Once the show begins, that cacophony had better turn into a melody, or audiences will demand a refund.
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ascetic
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Want to live an ascetic lifestyle? Then you better ditch the flat panel TV and fuzzy slippers. To be ascetic, you learn to live without; it's all about self-denial. It is derived from a Greek word meaning “monk.”
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pungent
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Use pungent to describe a taste or smell that gives a sharp sensation. "What is that pungent odor?" is a polite way of suggesting that someone in the room has BO. The ultimate source of the word pungent is Latin "to prick, sting." Ginger and mustard seed are examples of pungent spices--they have a sharp, distinct smell.
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noxious
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Something noxious is harmful. People are called noxious too when they hurt others with cruelty or mental anguish. English and Latin roots: "harm," "damage," and "injury." Example: "The noxious gas fumes made the dog pass out."
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virulent
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Two meanings come out of the roots for virulent: one being "poisonous" and the other, "spiteful." The virus-carrying meaning of virulent often gets combined with strain, such as in a "virulent strain of the flu." Those who aren’t carrying disease but are still considered virulent most likely lash out at others with a biting tone. Unleashing acid-tongued words on someone would be considered a virulent attack.
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axiomatic
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An axiom is a proposition that we don’t generally question because it seems plain enough that it’s true. And axiomatic means evident without proof or argument. The stereotype that women are crazy about chocolate has become virtually axiomatic.
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immutable
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If you can't change it, it's immutable. There are many things in life that are immutable; these unchangeable things include death, taxes, and the laws of physics.
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garrulous
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A garrulous person just won’t stop talking (and talking, and talking, and talking...). If you discover that you have a garrulous neighbor sitting next to you on the plane, you might just want to feign sleep, unless you really want to hear everything going through his mind for the entire trip.
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disabuse
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Disabuse means to free someone of a belief that is not true. Many teachers of health find that when they teach, they spend as much energy disabusing kids of false beliefs as they doing giving them the facts. In the first year of college, many people are disabused of the idea that they way they are is "normal," by meeting so many people who represent other ways to be.
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dilettante
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Though dilettante might sound like a nice French word, don't use it on your friend who thinks he can play the guitar after several short lessons. A dilettante is an amateur, often one who pretends to be very knowledgeable. So if you call your friend who likes to paint a dilettante, it's like you're calling him or her a poser.
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censure
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Noun: very strong criticism! Verb: to criticize very strongly! If you take your dad's car without telling him, you can expect him to censure you severely, and maybe even ground you as well. Most closely associated with official expressions of disapproval, as when Congress censures a senator.
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esoteric
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Pssst... do you know the secret handshake? If you haven't been brought into the inner circle of those with special knowledge, esoteric things will remain a mystery to you. Americans might find the sport of cricket to be esoteric, but the rules of baseball can be just as impenetrable to outsiders. The infield fly rule? Totally esoteric.
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convoluted
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If something is convoluted, it's intricate and hard to understand. You'll need to read over your brother's convoluted investment scheme a few times before deciding whether or not to go in on it.
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probity
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Being morally and ethically above reproach, having integrity. If you show fiscal probity, it means you are responsible and ethical with your money. The story of George Washington chopping down the cherry tree and refusing to lie about it is a story of probity. The story was first told by a pastor, who may have made the whole thing up according today's scholars, possibly to sell books –– no act of probity.
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exigent
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When you describe something as exigent, you are saying it requires attention: it can't be ignored. If there's a runaway train driving straight at you, that's an exigent situation — not a good time to stop and write a poem.
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burgeon
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to grow rapidly or flourish. If you have a green thumb, your flower gardens will burgeon in a cacophony of color. Your town can have burgeoning downtown development. You may have a burgeoning career as a villain if you overthrow a planet by using your mind-controlling ray gun on the populace.
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canonical
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following accepted standards. If something's canonical, it follows a principle or rule, usually in a religious or church-related situation. It comes from the Latin cononicus, or "according to rule." Also used in math, music and can refer to something reduced to its most basic form. In canonical music, a melody is repeated at intervals throughout a piece: the most familiar of these is Pachebel's "Canon in D."
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profligate
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Profligate, as a noun or as an adjective, implies recklessly wasting your money on extravagant luxury. Profligate behavior is a lot of fun, but you'll regret it later — when you get your charge card bill.
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perfunctory
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Perfunctory means done as part of a routine or duty. A person who does something in a perfunctory way shows little enthusiasm or interest in what they are doing. Many of our everyday greetings are perfunctory. For example, when we say hello and how are you, it's usually done out of habit.
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bolster
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When you cheer up a friend who's feeling down, you bolster them. To bolster is to offer support or strengthen. When you're trying to bolster your credibility, you find people and/or documents that support you or your view. Bolster efforts to learn this word!
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contentious
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A contentious issue is one that people are likely to argue about, and a contentious person is someone who likes to argue or fight. Some issues — like abortion, the death penalty, and gun control — are very contentious, because people tend to argue about them. On the other hand, some people always seem to be in a fighting mood, no matter what the issue is. People like that are contentious too.
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derision
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Derision is mean and attacking — it's a form of contempt. You know how celebrities and politicians do embarrassing things from time to time? They're usually treated with derision afterward: people mock them, treat them with contempt, and try to make the person who messed up seem completely worthless.
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approbation
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Approbation is an official, important-sounding, and somewhat old-fashioned word for approval or praise. How is it possible that approbation means approval when probation is a form of being in trouble in school? Remember that probation is a testing period, to see if you can be good. Approbation means it's all good. Or you can remember this rhyme: "Filled with approbation, the audience gave a standing ovation."
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gregarious
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If you know someone who's outgoing, sociable, and fond of the company of others, you might want to call her gregarious. It's from the Latin word grex, meaning "herd." Not surprisingly, people began using it to describe humans who liked being in groups. Despite what you might suspect, it has no historical connection to the name Gregory — but if you know an outgoing fellow with that name, you could call him Greg-arious.
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malleable
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A malleable personality is capable of being changed or trained, and a malleable metal is able to be pounded or pressed into various shapes. It's easier to learn when you're young and malleable.
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alchemy
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A medeival science aimed at the transmutation of metals, especially base metals into gold. Alchemists often got a bad rap for their obsession with trying to turn base metals into gold, but in fact true alchemy was concerned with a far loftier ideal — that of finding a "universal elixir" that could overcome death.
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salubrious
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Something that’s good for you! But it need not be limited to describing healthy foods or liquids. We salute each other with the cheer, "To your health!" as we chug down something that probably isn’t that good for us. The two words, salute and salubrious stem from the same salus, meaning "welfare, health.” Maybe next time, raise a glass of wheatgrass instead of vino!
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lucid
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When you call something lucid, you mean it's "easy to understand" or "sensible." "The singer's lucid style was obscured by backup singers chanting 'Shama-lama-ding-dong.'" Based on "lux" meaning "light" and the original meaning "shining, luminous."
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indifferent
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If you are indifferent about something it means that you don't much care one way or another. In particular, we want to consider the law as indifferent.
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desiccate
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The verb desiccate means to dry out, dry up and dehydrate. It's helpful to desiccate weeds but certainly not crops. As anyone who's been stuck in the desert will tell you, being desiccated by the burning sun isn't much fun. Without desiccation, raisins or beef jerky would not be possible!
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assuage
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If you assuage an unpleasant feeling, you make it go away. Assuaging your hunger by eating a bag of marshmallows may cause you other unpleasant feelings. The most common things that we assuage are fears, concerns, guilt, grief, anxiety, and anger. That makes a lot of sense — these are all things we seek relief from.
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fallacy
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A fallacy is a misleading argument or belief based on a falsehood. If you oppose state testing in schools, you think it is a fallacy that educational quality can be measured by standardized tests.
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opprobrium
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disgrace; contempt; scorn. Bad behavior leads to opprobrium. If you throw a soft drink off the theater balcony, the opprobrium might keep you from getting dates to the movies. ("infamy" is a synonym)
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convention
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The normal or accepted way of doing things. It's the convention, for example, for your employer to give you a three-day weekend around the Fourth of July.
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sedulous
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A sedulous person is someone who works hard and doesn't give up easily. Rhanda is one of the most sedulous students I know, and her grades show it.
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predilection
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A predilection is a preference for or bias toward something. If you have a predilection for wool clothing, you should take up knitting.
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meticulous
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People who are meticulous can be pretty annoying, what with their extreme attention to detail. But if that person is, say, your surgeon or your accountant, you'll want them to be meticulous. "Detail oriented" and "perfectionist" are other ways of describing someone who cares deeply about the small things and about getting things exactly right, every time.
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neophyte
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Neo- means new, and -phyte is from the Greek phuton "plant"––like a baby plant, a neophyte is someone who is new to an activity. Although Rhanda is a grad app neophyte, she stands a good chance at becoming a grad student neophyte!
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voracious
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Voracious is an adjective used to describe a wolflike appetite. Pierre Salinger referred to President Kennedy as a "voracious reader," while Robert Bakker once likened the IRS to a "voracious, small-minded predator.
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veracity
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Truthfulness. If you question the veracity of a statement or story, you wonder whether it is truthful or accurate. The strongest truth serum in Harry Potter is called "veritaserum" and makes people who normally wouldn't be that veracious spill their guts.
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implacable
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An implacable person just can’t be appeased. Implacable is derived from the verb to placate, which means to soothe, or to appease. If you’re babysitting and the kid starts screaming the moment that his parents leave the house, and nothing you give him, be it a toy or ice cream, can calm him down, he might seem implacable. But try the TV. It tends to turn screaming kids into silent, happy zombies.
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inimical
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Censorship is inimical to freedom. So, most teenagers would argue, are curfews. To be inimical is to be harmful, antagonistic, or opposed to — like smoking two packs a day is to healthy lungs.
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enervate
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to weaken; to reduce in vitality. "to faze or unnerve," like public speaking, which is known to enervate many people, or "make weak," like crazy bargains that enervate holiday shoppers. Don't confuse enervate with innervate. The words are antonyms: something that enervates saps your energy, while something that innervates stimulates, or gives you energy.
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paean
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a song or hymn of praise and thanks. Paean was originally a song of praise for Apollo, or Paian as he was sometimes called. You can now use paean to mean any song of praise. At your mother's birthday dinner, it might be nice for you and your brothers and sisters to write and sing a paean to her good-natured love and support of you over many years.
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pervasive
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When something is pervasive, it's everywhere. Common things are pervasive — like greed and cheap perfume.
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rarefy
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v. to make or become thin, less dense; to refine. In the mountains, it's harder to breathe the rarefied air.
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mundane
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An ordinary, unexciting thing can be called mundane: "Superman hid his heroic feats by posing as his mundane alter ego, Clark Kent."
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torpid
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Torpid comes from the Latin word torpere, meaning "numb," which is exactly how torpid things act. A hibernating bear and a caterpillar holed up in a cocoon are two good examples. You might feel torpid sitting in front of the fire after a big meal. The mind, too, can become torpid. The writer Samuel Johnson said, “It is a man’s own fault, it is from want of use, if his mind grow torpid in old age.”
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phlegmatic
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It may be their training more than their natural behavior, but those palace guards who wear the red coats and big hats and show absolutely no expression on their faces are phlegmatic. Attempts to make them laugh, smile, or twist their faces in irritation won’t work, because being phlegmatic is important to their role as stone-faced keepers of the palace.
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quotididan
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Quotidian is a fancy way of saying "daily" or "ordinary." The everyday details of life: Going to the store, doing chores, working or going to school, and brushing your teeth are all quotidian.
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anomaly
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An anomaly is an abnormality, a blip on the screen of life that doesn’t fit with the rest of the pattern. If you are an Olympian who comes from a family of bookish types who all find it strenuous to walk the dog, you are an anomaly.
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pious
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If someone is deeply religious and visibly follows all the moral and ethical codes of his religion, he is pious. If someone believes deeply in something, and lets everyone see it through their behavior, then they are pious, whether they're pious Christians or pious environmentalists. (Its synonym "devout" implies deep religious sentiment; "pious" emphasizes the public display of feeling)
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imperturbable
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If you're imperturbable you are not easily upset. If something really annoying is going on, like a neighbor is jack-hammering his driveway while you're trying to sleep because you were up all night studying and you really really need a nap, but you stay calm and don’t get upset, you are imperturbable.
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presumptuous
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When someone takes liberties, doing things too boldly, you can describe them with the adjective presumptuous. It means taking for granted your access to someone or power to do something.
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magnanimity
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Magnanimous behavior is noble, generous, or unselfish. He showed great magnanimity in not pressing charges when I drove his car into the pond. "Accidents happen my friend," he said, and patted me on the back.
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perfidy
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If you shared your most embarrassing secrets with a friend who then told them to everyone he knows, his betrayal could be described as perfidy. It means "deceitfulness" or "treachery," so it's not just being mean, but deliberately betraying a trust.
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laconic
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Laconic is an adjective that describes a style of speaking or writing that uses only a few words, often to express complex thoughts and ideas. A more laconic way to write that last sentence might be this: laconic means brief.
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quixotic
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Use quixotic for someone or something that is romantic and unrealistic, or possessed by almost impossible hopes. Your quixotic task is easy to understand, if difficult to achieve: establish world peace.
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eloquent
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Being eloquent is about using words well. All the great writers from English class — such as Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Emily Dickinson, and Virginia Woolf — were eloquent. A great orator or speaker like Martin Luther King was eloquent. When something is beautifully, gorgeously, perfect said (or written), it's eloquent.
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pernicious
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Pernicious means harmful and subtle, such as a poison gas that causes cancer in those exposed to it over the course of years.
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impetuous
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Someone impetuous acts too hastily or carelessly. Hotheaded, impulsive folks are impetuous. If you're impetuous, you act quickly and thoughtlessly when you should just take a deep breath, relax, and think about the best thing to do.
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divulge
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If you've been sneaking around with your best friend's boyfriend, that's probably one secret you don't want to divulge, because revealing that tidbit of information will probably cut your friendship short. Divulge often precedes the word secret, because it means to reveal something, and that something is often of a personal or private nature.
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exculpate
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To exculpate means to find someone not guilty of criminal charges. If you've been wrongly convicted of robbery, you better hope a judge will exculpate you, unless you want to go to jail because you've heard prison food is amazing.
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bombastic
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Bombast was cotton padding in the 1500s. Bombastic evolved as an adjective to describe something (or someone!) that is overly wordy, pompous, or pretentious, but the adjective is most often used to describe language (speech or writing). Still not seeing the connection to cotton padding? Think of writing or speech that is overly padded and you'll understand how the meaning came about.
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halcyon
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An old man watching his grandchildren play might look back fondly on his halcyon days, remembering the peaceful, happy time of his youth. People often use the phrase halcyon days to refer idyllically to a calmer, more peaceful time in their past.
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anachronism
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An anachronism is something that doesn't fit its time period, like if you say you'll "dial" your smartphone. You see anachronisms all the time in the movies — they occur when you see a jet fly over a Civil War battle!
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connoisseur
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An authority in his field, someone who has expert knowledge and training, especially in the arts. Also, someone with an extremely developed sense of taste, like the connoisseur who can identify rare wine by a flavor others can't even detect. And some people call themselves connoisseurs of just about anything they like because they know so much about it.
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contrite
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We are sorry to inform you that the adjective contrite means to feel regret, remorse, or even guilt.
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intrepid
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Intrepid is just a fancy word for describing a person or action that is bold and brave. Super heroes are intrepid in their struggle for truth, justice and the American way.
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shard
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If you break a mirror, the thin sharp pieces you want to avoid are shards. A shard is simply a broken piece of metal, glass, stone, or pottery with sharp edges.
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audacious
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This adjective is very bold — if you are audacious, you are daring and unconventional! It can also mean challenging conventions and doing things that most people don't do: Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in the US to become a doctor.
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demur
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Your mother asks you to pick up your room. You refuse: you demur. Your friend wants to go to the Death Metal Forever concert, but you hesitate: you demur. Whether you strongly object, politely disagree, or hesitate to agree, you demur.
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obstinate
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When someone is beyond stubborn, use the word obstinate instead: "You obstinate old mule! Get out of my way!"
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decorum
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Decorum is proper and polite behavior. If you let out a big belch at a fancy dinner party, you're not showing much decorum.
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chicanery
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Have you ever gotten the sense that politicians or corporate leaders will say anything to turn public opinion their way? This tricky kind of deceit and manipulation is called chicanery.
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emollient
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Something with a softening or soothing effect. For example, the annoying child on the airplane might be soothed by the emollient sound of the pilot’s voice over the intercom.
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imminent
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Something that is imminent is just about to happen: if you light a firecracker and then stick it down your pants, a very bad situation is imminent.
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proclivity
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A proclivity is a natural tendency to like something, such as your sister's proclivity for restaurants that serve hot, spicy food.
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perennial
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Perennial typically describes things that are permanent, constant, or repeated: a perennial conflict. A perennial plant lasts more than two years because it produces flowers and seeds from the same root structure every year. An annual plant lives only one year or season.
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redoubtable
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Redoubtable means intimidatingly honorable. It isn't the redoubtable person that you doubt — it's yourself or your ability compared to her. If your grandmother worked tirelessly to start her own taxi cab business and to this day, keeps all of her cabbies in line, she is redoubtable.
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maverick
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A maverick is a rebel, someone who shows a lot of independence. A maverick on a motorcycle might blaze his own trail.
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aggrandize
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If you are a window washer, but you refer to yourself as a "vista enhancement specialist," then you are aggrandizing your job title — that is, making it sound greater than it is.
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static
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Static means not moving or changing. "The troops were moving all over the country, engaged in skirmishes, but the army's overall position remained static."
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odious
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If something is odious it's hateful. If you become a historian of slavery, you'll learn all the details of that odious trade.
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mendacity
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Mendacity is a tendency to lie. Your friend might swear that he didn't eat your secret chocolate stash, but you'll find it hard to believe him if he's known for his mendacity.
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intractable
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Can't manage your stubborn little brother who won't do what anyone says? You could call him intractable, or you could call your mother. Problems are intractable when they can't be solved.
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disparate
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The trunk of some people's cars may contain items as disparate as old clothes, rotting food, and possibly a missing relative. Disparate things are very different from each other.
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furtive
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If you're looking for a formal adjective to describe something sly or secret, sneak in furtive. Let's hope the teacher doesn't see your furtive attempts to pass notes in class!
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obdurate
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Obdurate is a formal word meaning stubborn. If you want to major in English, but your parents are obdurate that you should go premed, they might go so far as to threaten not to pay your tuition.
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propensity
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n.
a natural inclination or tendency; penchant |
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onerous
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adj.
troubling; burdensome |
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quaff
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v.
to drink deeply |
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ostentatious
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adj.
characterized by or given to pretentiousness |
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astringent
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adj.
having a tightening effect on living tissue; harsh; severe |
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capricious
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adj.
inclined to change one's mind impulsively; erratic; unpredictable |
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qualms
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n.
misgivings; reservations; causes for hesitancy |
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pedantic
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adj;
the parading of learning; excessive attention to minutiae and formal rules |
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disparage
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v.
to slight or belittle |
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solvent
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adj.
able to meet financial obligations; able to dissolve another substance |
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canon
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n.
an established set of principles or code of laws, often religious in nature |
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glib
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adj.
marked by ease or informality; nonchalant; lacking in depth; superficial |
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prosaic
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adj.
dull; unimaginative |
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soporific
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adj.
causing drowsiness; tending to induce sleep |
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preen
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v.
to dress up; to primp; to groom oneself with elaborate care |
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polemical
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adj.
controversial; argumentative |
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contiguous
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adj.
sharing a border; touching; adjacent |
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aberrant
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adj.
deviating from the norm |
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eclectic
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adj.
composed of elements drawn from various sources |
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mercurial
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adj.
characterized by rapid and unpredictabe change in mood |
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exacerbate
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v.
to make worse or more severe |
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relegate
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v.
to forcibly assign, especially to a lower place or position |
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oscillation
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n.
the act or state of swinging back and froth with a steady, uninterrupted rhythm |
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mollify
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v.
to calm or soothe; to reduce in emotional intensity |
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pith
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n.
the essential or central part |
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tortuous
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adj.
winding; twisting; excessively complicated |
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reticent
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adj.
quiet; reserved; reluctant to express thoughts and feelings |
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idolatrous
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adj.
given to intense or excessivedeviotion to something |
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platitude
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n.
a superficial remark, especially one offered as meaningful |
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sporadic
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adj;
occurring only occasionally or in scattered instances |
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erudite
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adj.
very learned; scholarly |
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obfuscate
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v.
to deliberately obscure; to make confusing |
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tirade
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n.
a long and extremely critical speech; a harsh denunciation |
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solicitous
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concerned and attentive; eager
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harangue
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v.
to deliver a pompous speech or tirade |
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pervade
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v.
to permeate throughout |
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prodigal
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adj.
recklessly wasteful; extravagant; profuse; lavish |
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obtuse
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adj.
lacking sharpness of intellect; not clear or precise in thought or expression |
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dogmatic
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adj.
stubbornly opinionated |
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hubris
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n.
arrogant presumption or pride |
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plummet
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v.
to plunge or drop straight down |
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martial
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adj.
associated with war and the armed forces |
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hyperbole
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n.
an exaggerated statement, often used as a figure of speech |
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obsequious
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adj.
exhibiting a fawning attentiveness |
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eulogy
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n.
a speech honoring the dead |
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filibuster
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n.
intentional obstruction, especialy using prolonged speechmaking to delay legislative action |
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opaque
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adj.
impenetrable by light; not reflecting light |
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pirate
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v.
to illegally use or reproduce |
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pedagogy
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n.
the art or profession of training, teaching or instructing |
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alacrity
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n.
eager and enthusiastic willingness |
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morose
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adj.
sad; sullen; melancholy |
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plethora
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n.
an overabundance; a surplus |
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recalcitrant
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adj.
obstinately defiant of authority; difficult to manage |
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stupefy
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v.
to stun, baffle or amaze |
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credulous
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adj.
tending to believe too readily; gullible |
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pragmatic
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adj.
practical rather than idealistic |
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tout
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v.
to publicly praise or promote |
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nascent
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adj.
coming into being; in early developmental stages |
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prodigious
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adj.
abundant in size, force, or extent; extraordinary |
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rhetoric
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n.
the art or study of effective use of language for communication and persuasion |
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subpoena
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n.
a court order requring appearance and/or testimony |
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prevaricate
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v.
to deliberately avoid the truth; to mislead |
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chary
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adj.
wary; cautious; sparing |
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rancorous
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adj.
characterized by bitter, long-lasting resentment |
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luminous
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adj.
characterized by brightness and the emission of light |
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inured
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adj.
accustomed to accepting something undesirable |
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diatribe
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n.
a harsh denunciation |
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refute
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v.
to disprove; to successfully argue against |
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vigilant
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adj.
alertly watchful |
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parody
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n.
a humorous imitation intended for ridicule or comic effect, especially in literature and art |
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complaisance
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n.
the willingness to comply with the wishes of others |
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equivocate
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v.
to use ambiguous language with a deceptive intent |
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vexation
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n.
annoyance; irritation |
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obviate
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v.
to anticipate and make unnecessary |
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satire
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n.
a literary work that ridicules or criticizes a human vice through humor or derision |
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discordant
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adj.
conflicting; dissonant or harsh in sound |
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aver
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v.
to state as a fact; to confirm or support |
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laud
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v.
to praise highly |
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putrefy
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v.
to rot; to decay and give off a foul odor |
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profuse
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adj.
given or coming forth abundantly; extravagant |
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intransigent
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adj.
refusing to compromise |
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pine
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v.
to yearn intensely; to languish; to lose vigor |
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pernurious
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adj.
penny-pinching; excessively thrifty; ungenerous |
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eccentric
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adj.
departing from norms or conventions |
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extemporaneous
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adj.
improvised; done without preparation |
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succinct
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adj.
brief; concise |
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torque
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n.
a force that causes rotation |
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queries
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n.
questions; inquiries; doubts in the mind; reservations |
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exonerate
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v.
to remove blame |
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spurious
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adj.
lacking authenticity or validity; false; counterfeit |
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fulminate
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v.
to loudly attack or denounce |
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loquacious
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adj.
extremely talkative |
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impecunious
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adj.
lacking funds; without money |
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hegemony
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n.
the consistent dominance of one state or ideology over others |
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perspicacious
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adj.
acutely perceptive; having keen discernment |
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malevolent
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adj.
having or showing often vicious ill will, spite, or hatred |
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flout
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v.
to demonstrate contempt for, as in a rule or convention |
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hackneyed
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adj.
rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage |
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facetious
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adj.
playful; humorous |
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placate
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v.
to appease; to calm by making concessions |
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urbane
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adj.
sophisticated;; refined; elegant |
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unfeigned
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adj.
genuine; not false or hypocritical |
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dearth
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n.
smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; a lack |
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tacit
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adj.
implied; not explicitly stated |
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heretical
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adj.
vioating accepted dogma or convention |
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mitigate
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v.
to make or become less severe or intense; to moderate |
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percursor
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n.
one that precedes and indicates or announces another |
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trenchant
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adj.
sharply perceptive; keen; penetrating |
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bombast
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n.
self important or pompous in writing or speech |
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misanthrope
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n.
one who hates all other humans |
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ephemeral
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adj.
brief; fleeting |
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tenuous
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adj.
having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak |
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adulation
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n.
excessive praise; intense adoration |
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occlude
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v.
to obstruct or block |
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disinterested
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adj.
indifferent; free from self-interest |
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impassive
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adj.
revealing no emotion |
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aesthetic
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adj.
dealing with, appreciative of, or responsive to art or the beautiful |
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superfluous
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adj.
exceeding what is sufficient or necessary |
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catalyst
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n.
a person or thing that causes change |
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tenacity
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n.
the quality of adherence or persistence to something valued |
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sordid
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adj.
characterize by filth, grime or squalor; foul |
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insipid
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adj.
without taste or flavor; lacking in spirit; bland |
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innocuous
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adj.
harmless; causing no damage |
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vituperate
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v.
to use harsh condemnatory language; to abuse or censure severely or abusively; berate |
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effrontery
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n.
extreme boldness; presumptuousness |
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pithy
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adj.
precise and brief |
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prolific
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adj.
producing large volumes or amounts; productive |
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rescind
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v.
to invalidate; to repeal; to retract |
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accolade
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n.
an expression of praise |
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acumen
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n.
quick, keen or accurate knowledge or insight |
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incipient
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adj.
beginning to come into being or to become apparent |
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transient
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adj.
fleeting; passing quickly; brief |
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ubiquitous
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adj.
existing everywhere at the same time; constantly encountered; widespread |
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volatile
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adj.
readily changing to a vapor; changeable; fickle; explosive |
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squalid
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adj.
sordid; wretched and dirty as from neglect |
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specious
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adj.
seeming true, but actually being fallacious; misleadingly attractive |
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caustic
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adj.
burning or stinging; causing corrosion |
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adulterate
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v.
to reduce purity by combining with inferior ingredients |
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stoic
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adj.
indifferent to or unaffected by pleaure or pain; steadfast |
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variegated
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adj.
multicolored; characterized by a variety of patches of different color |
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castigation
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n.
severe criticism or punishment |
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grandiloquence
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n.
pompous speech or expression |
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didactic
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adj.
intended to teach or instruct |
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infelicitous
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adj.
unfortunate; inappropriate |
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avarice
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n.
greed, especially for wealth |
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penury
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n.
poverty; destitution |
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stymie
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v.
to block; thwart |
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hedonism
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n.
devotion to pleasurable pursuits, especially to the pleasures of the senses |
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peruse
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v.
to examine with great care |
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zealous
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adj.
fervent; ardent; impassioned |
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acerbic
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adj.
having a sour or bitter taste or character |
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reverent
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adj.
marked by, feeling, or expressing a feeling of profound awe and respect |
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precipitate
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v.
to cause or happen before anticipated or required |
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inchoate
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adj.
in an initial stage; not fully formed |
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synthesis
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n.
the combination of parts to make a whole |
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vacillate
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v.
to waver indecisively between one course of action or opinion and another; waver |
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sanction
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n.
authoritative permission or approval; a penalty intended to enforce compliance |
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untenable
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adj.
indefensible; not viable; uninhabitable |
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inert
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adj.
unmoving; lethargic; sluggish |
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surfeit
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v.
excess; iverindulgence |
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supplant
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v.
to take the place of; supercede |
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impunity
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n.
immunity from punishment or penalty |
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empirical
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adj.
based on observation or experiment |
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proliferate
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v.
to grow or increase swiftly and abundantly |
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fortuitous
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adj.
happening by fortunate accident or chance |
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iconoclast
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n.
one who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions |
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vilify
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v.
to defame; to characterize harshly |
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dissemble
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v.
to disguise or conceal; to mislead |
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abate
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v.
to lessen in intensity or degree |
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archaic
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adj.
outdated; associated with an earlier, perhaps more primitive, time |
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amalgamate
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v.
to combine several elements into a whole |
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terse
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adj.
brief and concise in wording |
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recant
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v.
to retract, especially a previously held belief |
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repudiate
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v.
to refuse to have anything to do with; disown |
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ebullience
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adj.
the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings |
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endemic
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adj.
characteristic of or often found in a particular locality, region or people |
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discretion
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n.
cautious reserve in speech; ability to make responsible decisions |
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evanescent
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adj.
tending to disappear like vapor; vanishing |
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viscous
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adj.
thick; sticky |
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querulous
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adj.
prone to complaining or grumbling; quarrelsome |
