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318 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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abscond |
to depart clandestinely; to steal off and hide |
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alacrity |
eager & enthusiastic willingness |
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approbation |
an expression of approval or praise |
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axiomatic |
taken as a given; self-evident (noun: axiom) |
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disabuse |
to undeceive; to make set right |
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discordant |
conflicting; dissonant or harsh in sound |
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effrontery |
extreme boldness; presumptuousness (failing to observe what's appropriate |
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equivocate |
to use ambiguous language with a deceptive intent; to misrepresent |
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exigent |
urgent; require immediate action or attention |
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extemporaneous |
improvised; done without preparation |
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fulminate |
to loudly attack or denounce |
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ingenuous |
innocent; artless; frank and candid; lacking in sophistication |
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inured |
accustomed to accepting something undesirable |
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irascible |
easily angered; prone to temperamental outbursts |
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laud |
to praise highly (adj: laudatory) |
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lucid |
clear; easily understood |
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magnanimous |
generously noble; forgiving |
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martial |
associated with war and the armed forces |
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nebulous |
vague, cloudy; lacking clearly defined form |
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neologism |
the creation or use of new words or senses |
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obtuse |
lacking sharpness of intellect; not clear or precise in thought |
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obviate |
prevent/remove the need to do something |
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paean |
a song or hymn of praise and thanksgiving |
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perennial |
happens every year |
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perfidy |
intentional breach of faith; treachery |
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perfunctory |
cursory (hastily done); done without care or interest |
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perspicacious |
acutely perceptive |
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prattle |
to babble meaninglessly |
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precipitate |
adj: acting with excessive haste or impulse verb: to cause something to happen before it's necessary |
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predilection |
preference |
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relegate |
to forcibly assign (usually to a lower position) |
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reticent |
reserved, quiet |
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solicitous |
concerned or attentive; eager |
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sordid |
foul |
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stymie |
to block; to thwart |
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torturous |
excessively complicated |
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truculent |
fierce and cruel; eager to fight |
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voracious |
ravenous; having an insatiable appetite for something |
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abate |
lessen in intensity or degree |
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adulation |
extreme adoration |
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aesthetic |
dealing with, appreciative of, or responsive to art |
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ascetic |
someone who practices rigid religious self-discipline |
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avarice |
greed (for wealth) |
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burgeon |
to grow rapidly or fluorish |
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bucolic |
rustic (quality of rural areas and their inhabitants), pastoral |
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cacophony |
dissonance |
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caustic |
burning or stinging; causing corrosion |
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chary |
wary; cautious; sparing |
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cogent |
appealing forcibly; convincing |
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contentious |
causing controversy or disagreement |
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contrition |
seeking forgiveness |
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dearth |
a lack, scarcity |
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didactic |
intended to teach or instruct |
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dogmatic |
expressing a rigid opinion based on unproved/improvable principles |
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ebullence |
ethusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings |
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eclectic |
composed of elements drawn from various sources |
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elegy |
poem about the dead (adj: elegiac) |
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emollient |
mollifying, softens or smoothes (usually skin) |
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ephermeral |
brief; fleeting |
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esoteric |
intended/understood by a small, specific group |
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facetious |
playful |
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furtive |
marked by stealth; covert; surreptitious |
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heresy |
violation of accepted dogma (adj: heretical) |
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impecunious |
lacking funds; without money |
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incipient |
beginning to become [apparent] |
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intransigent |
refusing to compromise |
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inveigle (verb) |
to obtain by deception or flattery |
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odious |
evoking intense aversion or dislike |
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penurious |
frugal |
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pernicious |
extremely harmful in a way not easily noticed |
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peruse |
to examine with great care |
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pious |
showing strong religious devotion |
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preen |
to dress up, primp |
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prodigious |
abundant in size, force or extent; extraordinary |
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prolific |
productive |
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quaff |
to drink deeply |
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redoubtable |
awe-inspiring |
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squalid |
sordid, dirty as a result of neglect (squalor) |
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supplant (verb) |
to take place of; to supersede |
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torpid |
lethargic; dormant (torpor) |
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vilify |
to defame; to characterize harsly |
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adulterate |
to reduce purity by combining with inferior ingredients |
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aver |
to state as a fact; to declare or assert |
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bolster |
to provide support or reinforcement |
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bombastic |
pompous; grandiloquent (noun: bombast) |
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diatribe |
a harsh denunciation (public condemnation) |
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dissemble |
to disguise or conceal; to mislead |
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evanescent |
tending to disappear like vapour; vanishing |
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fervent |
greatly emotional or zealous (noun: fervour) |
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germane |
relevant to the subject at hand |
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hackneyed |
rendered trite (overused) or commonplace by frequent usage |
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halcyon |
calm and peaceful |
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hedonsim |
seeking pleasure |
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hegemony |
the consistent dominance of one state/group over others |
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idolatrous |
given excessive devotion to something |
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impassive |
revealing no emotion |
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implacable |
not capable of being appeased or significantly changed |
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impunity |
immunity from punishment or penalty |
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inchoate |
in an initial stage; not fully formed |
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infelicitous |
unfortunate; inappropriate |
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insipid |
lacking in qualities that interest, stimulate or challenge |
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loquacious |
extremely talkative |
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malevolent |
vicious ill will; spite; hatred |
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tractable |
malleable |
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mendacity |
the condition of being untruthful |
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misanthrope |
one who hates all other humans |
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obdurate |
intractable; unyielding; hardhearted |
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obsequious |
exhibiting a fawning attentiveness |
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occlude |
to obstruct or block |
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opprobrium |
disgrace; contempt; scorn |
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pedantic |
overly concerned with trivial details of learning; show-offish of knowledge |
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penury |
poverty, destitution |
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pervasive |
having the tendency to permeate or spread throughout |
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pith |
the essential or central part |
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pithy |
precise and brief |
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platitude |
a fake deep remark |
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polemical |
controversial, argumentative |
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prodigal |
wastefully extravagant; lavish |
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querulous |
prone to complaining or grumbling; peevish |
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rancorous |
bitter with long-lasting resentment (noun: rancour) |
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recalcitrant |
obstinately defiant of authority; difficult to manage |
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repudiate |
to refuse to have anything to do with; to disown |
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reverent |
to revere, to venerate (respect deeply) |
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rhetoric |
study of effective use of language for communication or persuasion |
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salubrious |
promoting health or well-being |
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solvent |
able to meet financial obligations; able to dissolve solute |
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specious |
seemingly true; misleadingly attractive; plausible but false |
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spurious |
lacking authenticity or validity; false; counterfeit |
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superfluous |
exceeding what is sufficient or necessary |
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surfeit |
surplus; excess of supplies |
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tenacity |
persistent determination |
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tenuous |
having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak |
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transient |
fleeting; passing quickly; brief |
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zealous |
ardent (passionate), devoted to a cause (person = zealot) |
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austere |
without adornment; bare; severely simple; ascetic |
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canonical |
following or in agreement with accepted, traditional standards |
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capricious |
inclined to change one's mind impulsively; erratic, unpredictable |
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censure |
to criticize severely; to officially rebuke |
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filibuster |
intentional obstruction, esp. using prolonged speechmaking to delay legislative action |
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veracity |
truthfulness, honesty |
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waver |
to move to and fro; to sway; to be unsettled in opinion |
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demur |
to question or oppose |
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gregarious |
sociable; outgoing; enjoying the company of other people |
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harangue |
to deliver a forceful or angry speech; ranting speech or writing |
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putrefy |
to rot; to decay and give off foul odor |
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sanction |
authoritative permission or approval; a penalty intended to enforce compliance; to give permission or authority |
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urbane |
sophisticated; refined; elegant |
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grandiloquence |
pompous speech or expression |
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iconoclast |
one who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions |
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queries |
questions; inquiries; doubts in the mind; reservation |
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acerbic |
having a sour or bitter taste or character; sharp; biting |
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aggrandize |
to increase in intensity, power, influence or prestige |
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amenable |
agreeable; responsive to suggestion |
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anachronism |
something or someone out of place in terms of historical or chronological context |
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astringent |
having a tightening effect on living tissue; harsh; severe |
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contiguous |
sharing a border; touching; adjacent |
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credulous |
tending to believe too readily; gullible |
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decorum |
polite or appropriate conduct or behaviour adj: decorous |
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derision |
scorn, ridicule, contemptuous treatment adj: derisive verb: deride |
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desiccate |
to dry out or dehydrate; to make dry or dull |
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dilettante |
one with an amateurish or superficial interest in the arts or a branch of knowledge |
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disparage |
to slight or belittle |
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flout |
to show contempt for, as in a rule or convention |
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garrulous |
pointlessly talkative |
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glib |
marked by ease or informality; nonchalant; lacking in depth; superficial |
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hubris |
overbearing presumption or pride; impending |
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immutable |
not capable or change |
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impetuous |
hastily or rashly energetic; impulsive and vehement |
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inimical |
damaging; harmful; injurious |
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intractable |
not easily managed or directed; stubborn; obstinate |
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intrepid |
steadfast and courageous |
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laconic |
using few words; terse |
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maverick |
an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party |
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mercurial |
characterized by rapid and unpredictable change in mood |
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mollify |
to calm or soothe; to reduce in emotional intensity |
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neophyte |
a recent convert; a beginner; novice |
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obfuscate |
to deliberately obscure; to make confusing |
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pervade |
to permeate throughout adj: pervasive |
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phlegmatic |
calm; sluggish; unemotional |
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pragmatic |
practical rather than idealistic |
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presumptuous |
overstepping due bounds (as of propriety or courtesy); taking liberties |
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probity |
adherence to highest principles; complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness |
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proclivity |
a natural predisposition or inclination |
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profligate |
excessively wasteful; recklessly extravagant |
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penchant |
a strong or habitual liking for something or tendency to do something |
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propensity |
a natural inclination or tendency; penchant |
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prosaic |
dull; lacking in spirit or imagination |
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quixotic |
foolishly impractical; marked by lofty romantic ideals |
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rarefy |
to make or become thin, less dense; to refine |
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recondite |
hidden; concealed; difficult to understand; obscure |
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refulgent |
radiant; shiny; brilliant |
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renege |
to fail to honour a commitment; to go back on a promise |
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sedulous |
diligent; persistent; hard-working |
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soporific |
causing drowsiness; tending to induce sleep |
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spendthrift |
one who spends money wastefully |
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tacit |
implied; not explicitly stated |
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tout |
to publicly praise or promote |
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trenchant |
sharply perceptive; keen; penetrating |
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unfeigned |
genuine; not false or hypocritical |
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untenable |
indefensible; not viable; uninhabitable |
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vacillate |
to waver indecisively between one course of action or opinion and another |
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variegated |
multicoloured |
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vituperate |
to use harsh condemnatory language |
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arrest |
to suspend; to engage; holding one's attention |
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august |
majestic, venerable (respectable) |
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bent |
leaning, inclination, proclivity, tendency |
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broach |
to bring up; to announce; to behin to talk about |
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brook |
to tolerate; to endure |
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cardinal |
major, as in cardinal sin |
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chauvinist |
a blindly devoted patriot |
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colour |
to distort, gloss or affect (usually the first) |
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consequential |
logically following; important OR pompous, self-important |
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die |
a tool used for shaping, as in a tool-and-die shop |
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essay |
to attempt; to experiment |
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exact |
to demand; to call for; to require; to take |
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fell |
to cause to fall by striking; inhumanely cruel |
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flag |
to sag or droop; to become spiritless; to decline |
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flip |
sarcastic, impertinent, as in flippant: a flippant remark |
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ford |
to wave across the shallow part of a river or stream |
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grouse |
to complain or grumble |
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guy |
a rope, cord or cable attached to something as a brace or guide; to steady or reinforce using a guy |
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list |
to tilt or lean to one side |
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lumber |
to move heavily or clumsily |
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meet |
fitting, proper |
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mince |
to pronounce or speak affectedly; to euphemize, to speak too carefuly. Also, to take tiny steps; to tiptoe |
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nice |
exacting, fastidious, extremely precise |
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occult |
hidden, concealed, beyond comprehension |
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pedestrian |
commonplace, trite, unremarkable, quotidian |
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pied |
multicoloured, usually in blotches |
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pine |
to lose vigour (as through grief); to yearn |
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pluck |
courage, spunk, fortitude |
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prize |
to pry, to press or force with a lever; something taken by force, spoils |
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rail |
to complain about bitterly |
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rent |
torn (past tense of rend); an opening or tear caused by such |
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quail |
to lose courage; to turn frightened |
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sap |
verb: to enervate or weaken the vitality of noun: a fool or nitwit |
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scurvy |
contemptible, despicable |
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singular |
exceptional, unusual, odd |
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stand |
a group of trees |
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strut |
the supporting structural cross-part of a wing |
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tender |
to proffer or offer |
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waffle |
to equivocate; to change one's position |
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wag |
wit, joker |
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abjure |
to renounce or reject solemnly; to recant; to avoid |
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adumbrate |
to foreshadow vaguely or intimate; to suggest or outline sketchily; to obscure or overshadow |
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anathema |
a solemn or ecclesiastical (religious) curse; accursed or thoroughly loathed person or thing |
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anodyne |
soothing; something that assuages or allays pain or comforts |
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apogee |
farthest or highest point; culmination; zenith |
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apostate |
one who abandons long-held religious or political convictions |
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apotheosis |
deification; glorification to godliness; an exalted example; a model of excellence or perfection |
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asperity |
severity, rigor; roughness, harhness; acrimony, irritability |
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asseverate |
to aver, allege, or assert |
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assiduous |
diligent, hard-working, sedulous |
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augury |
omen, portent |
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bellicose |
belligerent, pugnacious, warlike |
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calumniate |
to slander, to make a false accusation (calumny) |
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captious |
disposed to point out trivial faults; calculated to confuse or entrap in argument |
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cavil |
to find fault without good reason |
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celerity |
speed, alacrity |
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chimera |
an illusion; originally, an imaginary fire-breathing she monster |
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contumacious |
insubordinate, rebellious contumely: insult, scorn, aspersion |
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debacle |
rout, fiasco, complete failure |
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descry |
to discriminate or discern |
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desuetude |
disuse |
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desultory |
random; aimless; marked by a lack of plan or purpose |
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diaphanous |
transparent, gauzy |
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dirge |
a song of grief or lamentation |
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encomium |
glowing and enthusiastic praise; panegyric, tribute, eulogy |
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eschew |
to shun or avoid |
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excoriate |
to censure scathingly, to upbraid |
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execrate |
to denounce, to feel loathing for, to curse, to declare to be evil |
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exegesis |
critical examination, explication |
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expiate |
to atone or make amends for |
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extirpate |
to destroy, to exterminate, to cut out, to exscind |
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fatuous |
silly, inanely foolish |
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fractious |
quarrelsome, rebellious, unruly, refractory, irritable |
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gainsay |
to deny, to dispute, to contradict, to oppose |
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heterodox |
unorthodox, heretical, iconoclastic |
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imbroglio |
difficult or embarrassing situation |
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indefatigable |
not easily exhaustible; tireless, dogged |
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ineluctable |
certain, inevitable |
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inimitable |
one of a kind, peerless |
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insouciant |
unconcerned, carefree, heedless |
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inveterate |
deep rooted, ingrained, habitual |
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jejune |
vapid, uninteresting, nugatory; childish, immature, puerile |
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lubricious |
lewd, wanton, greasy, slippery |
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mendicant |
a beggar, supplicant |
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meretricious |
cheap, gaudy, tawdry, flashy, showy; attracting by false show |
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minatory |
menacing, threatening |
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nadir |
low point, perigee |
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nonplussed |
baffled, bewildered, at a loss for what to do or think |
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obstreperous |
noisily and stubbornly defiant, aggressively boisterous |
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ossified |
tending to become more rigid, conventional, sterile, and reactionary with age; literally turned into bone |
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palliate |
to make something seem less serious, to gloss over, to make less severe or intense |
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panegyric |
formal praise, eulogy, encomium panegyrical: expressing elaborate praise |
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parsimonious |
cheap, miserly |
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pellucid |
transparent, easy to understand, limpid |
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peroration |
the concluding part of a speech; flowery, rhetorical speech |
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plangent |
pounding, thundering, resounding |
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prolix |
long-winded, verbose |
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propitiate |
to appease; to conciliate propitious: auspicious, favourable |
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puerile |
childish, immature, jejune, nugatory |
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pusillanimous |
cowardly, craven |
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remonstrate |
to protest, to object |
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sagacious |
having sound judgement; perceptive, wise; like a sage |
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salacious |
lustful, lascivious, bawdy |
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salutary |
remedial, wholesome, causing improvement |
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sanguine |
cheerful, confident, optimistic |
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saturnine |
gloomy, dark, sullen, morose |
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sententious |
aphorisitc or moralistic; epigrammatic; tending to moralize excessively |
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stentorian |
extremely loud and powerful |
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stygian |
gloomy, dark |
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sycophant |
toady, servile, self-seeking flatterer; parasite |
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tendentious |
biased, showing marked tendencies |
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timorous |
timid, fearful, diffident |
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tyro |
novice, greenhorn, rank amateur |
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vitiate |
to corrupt, to debase, to spoil, to make ineffective |
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voluble |
fluent, verbal, having easy use of spoken language |
