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165 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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paean
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n; song of praise or joy
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palatable
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adj; agreeable; pleasing to the taste
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palate
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n; roof of the mouth
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palatial
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adj; magnificent
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palimpsest
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n; parchment used for second time after original writing has been erased
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pall
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v; grow tiresome
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pallet
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n; small, poor bed
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palliate
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v; ease pain; make less severe or offensive
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pallid
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adj; pale; wan
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panacea
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n; cure-all; remedy for all diseases
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panache
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n; flair; flamboyance
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panegyric
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n; formal praise
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paragon
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n; model of perfection
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paramour
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n; illicit lover
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paraphernalia
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n; equipment; odds and ends
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parlance
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n; language; idiom
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parochial
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adj; narrow in outlook; provincial
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paroxysm
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n; fit or attack of pain, laughter, rage
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parquet
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n; floor made of wood strips inlaid in a mosaic-like pattern
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parry
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v; ward off a blow; deflect
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parsimony
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n; stinginess; excessive frugality
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passe
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adj; old-fashioned; past the prime
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pastiche
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n; imitation of another's style in musical composition or in writing
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patent
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adj; open for the public to read; obvious
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pathological
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adj; pertaining to disease
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pathos
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n; tender sorrow; pity; quality in art or literature that produces these feelings
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patina
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n; green crust on old bronze works; tone slowly taken by varnished painting
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patois
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n; local or provincial dialect
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paucity
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n; scarcity
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peccadillo
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n; slight offense
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pecuniary
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adj; pertaining to money
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pedant
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n; scholar who overemphasizes book learning or technicalities
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pedantic
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adj; showing off learning; bookish
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pejorative
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adj; negative in connotation; having a belittling effect
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pell-mell
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adv; in confusion; disorderly
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pellucid
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adj; transparent; limpid; easy to understand
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pendulous
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adj; hangin; suspended
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pensive
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adj; contemplative; thoughtful with a hint of sadness
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penumbra
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n; partial shadow (in an eclipse)
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penury
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n; severe poverty; stinginess
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peon
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n; landless agricultural lworker; bond servant
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perdition
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n; damnation; complete ruin
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peregrination
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n; journey
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peremptory
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adj; demanding and leaving no choice
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perennial
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n; something long-lasting
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perfidious
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adj; treacherous; disloyal
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perfunctory
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adj; superficial; not thorough; lacking interest, care, or enthusiasm
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peripatetic
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adj; walking about; moving
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periphery
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n; edge; especially of a round surface
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pernicious
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adj; very destructive
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peroration
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n; conclusion
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perquisite
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n; any gain above stipulated salary
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personable
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adj; attractive
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perspicacity
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adj; having insight; penetrating; astute
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perspicuous
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adj; plainly expressed
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pertinacious
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adj; stubborn; persistent
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perversion
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n; corruption; turning from right to wrong
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pestilential
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adj; causing plague; baneful
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pestle
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n; tool for mashing or grinding substances in a hard bowl
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petulant
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adj; touchy; peevish
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pharisaical
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adj; pertaining to the Pharisees, who paid scrupulous attention to tradition; self-righteous; hypocritical
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phenomena
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n, PL; observable facts; subjects of scientific investigation
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philanderer
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n; faithless lover; flirt
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philatelist
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n; stamp-collector
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philistine
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n; narrow-minded person, uncultured and exclusively interested in material gain
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phlegmatic
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adj; calm; not easily disturbed
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physiognomy
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n; face
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piebald
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adj; off different colors; mottled; spotted
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pied
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adj; variegated; multicolored
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pillory
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v; to subject to criticism and ridicule; punish by placing in a wooden frame
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pinion
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v; restrain
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piquant
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adj; pleasantly tart-tasing; stimulating
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pique
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n; irritation; resentment
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piscatorial
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adj; pertaining to fishing
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pittance
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n; small allowance or wage
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plaintive
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adj; mournful
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plait
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v; braid; intertwine
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platitude
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n; trite remark; commonplace statement
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plaudit
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n; enthusiastic approval; round of applause
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plebian
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adj; common; pertaining to the common people
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plenary
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adj; complete; full
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pliant
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adj; flexible; easily influenced
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pluck
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n; courage
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plumb
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adj; vertical
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plutocracy
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n; society ruled by the wealthy
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polemic
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argument in support of point of view
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polemical
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disputatious; aggressive in verbal attack
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politic
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adj; expedient; prudent; well devised
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polity
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n; form of goverment of nation or state
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polyglot
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adj; speaking several languages
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ponderous
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adj; weighty; unwieldy
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pontifical
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adj; pompous or pretentious
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pore
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v; study industriously; ponder; scrutinize
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porous
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adj; full of pores; like a sieve
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portend
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v; foretell; presage
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portent
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n; sign; omen; forewarning
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posterity
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n; descendants; future generations
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postulate
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n; self-evident truth
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posture
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v; assume an affected pose; act artificially
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potable
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adj; suitable for drinking
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potentate
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n; monarch; sovereign
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poultice
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n; soothing application applied to sore and inflamed portions of the body
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practicable
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adj; feasible
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pragmatic
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adj; practical (as opposed) to idealistic); concerned with the practical worth or impact of something
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prate
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v; speak foolishly; boast idly
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precarious
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adj; uncertain; risky
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precept
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n; practical rule guiding conduct
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precipitant
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n; something that causes a substance in a chemical solution to separate out in solid form
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precipitate
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adj; rash; premature; hasty; sudden
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precipitate
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v; throw headlong; hasten
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precipitous
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adj; steep; overhasty
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precis
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n; concise summing up of main points
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preclude
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v; make impossible; eliminate
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precocious
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adj; advanced in development
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predilection
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n; bias; partiality; preference
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preen
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v; make oneself tidy in appearance
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prehensile
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adj; capable of grasping or holding
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prelate
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n; church dignitary
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premonitory
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adj; serving to warn
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preponderance
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n; superiority of power, quantity, etc.
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presentiment
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n; feeling something will happen; anticipatory fear; premonition
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prevaricate
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v; lie
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primogeniture
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n; seniority by birth
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privation
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n; hardship; want
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probity
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n; uprightness; incorruptibility
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problematic
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adj; doubtful; unsettled
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proclivity
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n; inclination; natural tendency
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profligate
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adj; dissipated; wasteful; wildly immoral
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profusion
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n; overabundance; lavish expenditure; excess
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progenitor
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n; ancestor
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progeny
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n; children; offspring
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prognosticate
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v; predict
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proliferate
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v; grow rapidly; spread; multiply
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prolixity
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n; tedious wordiness; verbosity
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promontory
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n; headland
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promulgate
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v; proclaim a doctrine or law; make known by official publication
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prophylactic
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adj; used to prevent disease
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propinquity
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n; nearness; kinship
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propitiate
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v; appease
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propitious
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adj; favorable; fortunate
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propriety
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n; fitness; correct conduct
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prosaic
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adj; dull and unimaginative; matter-of-fact
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proscenium
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n; part of stage in front of curtain
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proscribe
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v; ostracize; banish; outlaw
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protean
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adj; versatile; able to take on many forms
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protract
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v; prolong
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protuberance
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n; protrusion; bulge
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provenance
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n; origin or source of something
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provender
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n; dry food; fodder
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provident
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adj; displaying foresight; thrify; preparing for emergencies
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provincial
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adj; limited in outlook; unsophisticated
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provisional
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adj; tentative
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prude
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n; excessively modest or proper person
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prudent
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adj; cautious; careful
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prurient
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adj; having or causing lustful thoughts and desires
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puerile
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adj; childish
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pugilist
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n; boxer
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pugnacity
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n; combativeness; disposition to fight
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pulchritude
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n; beauty; comeliness
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pulmonary
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adj; pertaining to the lungs
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punctilious
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adj; precise; stressing niceties of conduct or form; minutely attentive to fine points
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purchase
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n; firm graps or footing
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purport
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n; intention; meaning
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purveyor
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n; caterer
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putative
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adj; supposed; reputed
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