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406 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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aberration
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something not typical; a deviation from the standard
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abstemious
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sparing or moderate, especially in eating and drinking
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abstract
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theoretical; lacking substance (the opposite of concrete)
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abstruse
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hard to understand or grasp
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acclaim
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praise; applause; admiration
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accolade
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an award or honor; high praise
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accrete
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to increase by growth or addition
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acquiesce
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to give in; to agree
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acute
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sharp; shrewd
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aesthetic
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having to do with beauty; artistic
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alacrity
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cheerful readiness; liveliness or eagerness
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allocate
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to distribute; assign; allot
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amass
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to accumulate
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ambulatory
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able to walk, walking
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ameliorate
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to make better or more tolerable
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amiable
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friendly
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amity
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friendship
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animated
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alive, moving
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animosity
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resentment; hostility; ill will
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anomaly
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an aberration; an irregularity; a deviation
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antipathy
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firm dislike; dislike; hatred
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antiseptic
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free from germs; exceptionally clean
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apathy
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lack of emotion or interest
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apocryphal
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of doubtful origin; false
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appease
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to soothe; to pacify by giving in to
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apprehensive
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worried; anxious
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arbiter
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one who decides; a judge
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arid
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extremely dry; unimaginative; dull
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arrogant
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feeling superior to others; snooty
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articulate
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speaking clearly and well
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ascetic
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hermitlike; practicing self-denial
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assiduous
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hardworking; busy; diligent
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assuage
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to soothe; to pacify; to ease the pain of; to relieve
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astute
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perceptive; intelligent
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audacity
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boldness; reckless daring; impertinence
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augment
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to add to; to increase; to make bigger
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auspicious
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favorable; promising; pointing to a good result
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austere
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unadorned; stern; forbidding; without much money
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authoritarian
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like a dictator
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axiom
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a self-evident rule or truth; a widely accepted saying
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baleful
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menacing; harmful
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banal
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unoriginal; ordinary
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bastion
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stronghold; fortress; fortified place
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beget
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to cause or produce; to engender
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belittle
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to make to seem little
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belligerent
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combative; quarrelsome; waging war
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benevolent
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kind; good-hearted; generous
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bereave
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to deprive or leave desolate, especially through death
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blasphemy
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irreverence; an insult to something held sacred; profanity
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blithe
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carefree; cheerful
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brawn
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bulk; muscles
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brevity
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briefness
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brook
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to bear or tolerate; to put up with something
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cajole
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to deceptively persuade someone to do something he or she doesn't want to do
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candid
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honest, frank
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capricious
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unpredictable; likely to change at any moment
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caustic
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like acid; corrosive
burning, sarcastic, biting |
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censure
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to condemn severely for doing something bad
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chronology
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an order of events from earliest to latest
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circumlocution
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in direct expression; uses of wordy or evasive language
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coalesce
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to come together as one; to fuse; to unite
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coda
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a passage concluding a composition (in music)
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cognizant
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perceptive; observant
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complacent
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smug; self-satisfied; pleased with oneself; contented to a fault
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compliant
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yielding; submissive
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comprehensive
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covering or including everything
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conciliatory
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making peace; attempting to resolve a dispute through goodwill
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concise
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brief and to the point; succinct
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condescend
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to stoop to someone else's level, usually in an offensive way; to patronize
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condone
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to overlook; to permit to happen
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congenial
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agreeably suitable; pleasant
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conjoin
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to join or act together
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conjure
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to summon or bring into being as if by magic
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connoisseur
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an expert, particularly in matters of art of taste
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consensus
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unanimity or near unanimity
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conspicuous
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standing out; obvious
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contempt
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reproachful disdain
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contentious
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argumentative; quarrelsome
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contrite
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deeply apologetic; remorseful
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contumacious
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stubbornly rebellious or disobedient
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conundrum
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a puzzle; a riddle
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conventional
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common; customary; unexceptional
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correlate
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to find or show the relationship of two things
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corroborate
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to confirm; to back up with evidence
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credulous
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believing; gullible
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curmudgeon
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bad-tempered; difficult; cantankerous person
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cryptic
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mysterious; mystifying
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cynic
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one who deeply distrusts human nature; one who believes people are motivated only by selfishness
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dearth
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a lack of; scarcity
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debacle
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violent breakdown; sudden overthrow
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debauchery
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corruption by sensuality; intemperance; wild living
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decorous
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in good taste; orderly
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deference
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submission to another's will; respect; courtesy
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deleterious
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harmful
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eccentric
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not conventional; a little kooky; irregular
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eclectic
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choosing the best from many sources; drawn from many sources
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economical
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frugal; thrifty
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efface
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to erase; to rub away the features of
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effluvium
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a disagreeable or noxious vapor, an escaping gas
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elaborate
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detailed; careful thorough
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elusive
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hard to pin down; evasive
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emulate
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to strive to equal or excel; usually through imitation
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engender
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to create; to produce
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enigma
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mystery
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enthrall
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to thrill
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ephemeral
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short-lived; fleeting; not lasting
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equivocal
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ambiguous; intentionally confusing; capable of being interpreted in more than one way
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erratic
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unpredictable or wandering
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erudite
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scholarly; deeply learned
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esoteric
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hard to understand; understood by only a select few; peculiar
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euphony
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pleasant sound (the opposite is cacophony)
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evanescent
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vanishing or fading; scarcely perceptible
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exemplary
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outstanding; setting a great example
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exhaustive
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thorough; complete
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exigent
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demanding prompt action; urgent
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exonerate
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to free completely from blame
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exorbitance
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an exceedingly large amount
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expedient
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providing an immediate advantage; serving one's immediate self-interest
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expedite
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to make faster and easier
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exposition
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expounding or explaining; explanatory treatise
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extol
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to praise
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exuberant
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extremely joyful or vigorous; profuse in growth
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facetious
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humorous; not serious; clumsily humorous
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facilitate
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to make easier
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fallacious
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FALSE
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fanatic
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one who is extremely devoted to a cause or idea
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fastidious
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meticulous; demanding
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fecund
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fertile; productive
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fervor
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passion
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fickle
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capricious; whimsical; unpredictable
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flag
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to weaken; to slow down
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flagrant
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shocking; outstandingly bad
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flaunt
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to show off; to display ostentatiously
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flippant
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frivolously shallow and disrespectful
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forbear
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to refrain from; to abstain
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fortuitous
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accidental; occurring by chance
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foster
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to promote the growth or development of
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frenetic
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frantic; frenzied
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frivolous
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not serious; not solemn; with levity
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fulsome
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excessive, insincere and disgusting
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furtive
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secretive
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futile
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hopeless; without effect
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gainsay
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to deny; to speak or act against
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garner
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to gather and store; to earn
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garrulous
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extremely chatty or talkative; wordy o diffuse
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genial
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cheerful and pleasant; friendly; helpful
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gerrymander
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to divide a state or county into election districts to gain political advantage
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goad
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to urge forcefully; to taunt someone into doing something
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gravity
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seriousness
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guile
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cunning; duplicity
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gullible
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overly trusting; willing to believe anything
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hackneyed
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banal; overused; trite (a cliché is a hackneyed expression)
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hedonistic
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pleasure-seeking; indulgent
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heed
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to listen to
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heresy
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an opinion violently opposed to established beliefs
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hermetic
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impervious to external influence; airtight
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hindrance
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an obstruction; an annoying interference or delay
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homeostasis
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the tendency of an organic system to maintain internal stability
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hone
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to sharpen
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hypothetical
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uncertain; unproven
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idiom
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a peculiar expression
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idyllic
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charming in a rustic way; naturally peaceful
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immutable
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unchangeable; permanent
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impartial
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unbiased; neutral
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impede
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to hinder; to obstruct; to slow something down
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impervious
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not allowing anything to pass through; impenetrable
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implement
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to carry out
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implicit
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implied rather than expressly stated
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impromptu
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without preparation; on the spur of the moment
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improvident
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lacking prudent foresight; careless
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impudent
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lacking modesty; bold; impertinent
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impugn
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to attack, especially to attack the truth or integrity of something
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inadvertent
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lax; careless; without intention
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incessant
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unceasing; never-ending
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inchoate
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just beginning; not organized or orderly
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incisive
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cutting right to the heart of the matter
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incoherent
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jumbled; chaotic; impossible to understand
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incongruous
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not harmonious; not consistent; not appropriate
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incursion
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a hostile invasion
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indifferent
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not caring on way or the other; mediocre; lacking a preference; neutral
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indignant
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angry, especially as a result of something unjust or unworthy
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indolence
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laziness
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indulgent
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lenient; yielding to desire
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ineluctable
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inescapable; unavoidable
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inept
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clumsy; incompetent
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inert
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inactive; sluggish; not reacting chemically
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inevitable
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unavoidable; bound to happen
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infamous
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shamefully wicked; having an extremely bad reputation; disgraceful
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ingenuous
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unwarily simple; candid; naïve
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inherent
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part of the essential nature of something; intrinsic
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innate
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existing since birth; inborn; inherent
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innocuous
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harmless
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innovate
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to be creative; to introduce something new
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innumerable
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too many to number or count; many
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insipid
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dull; banal
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invective
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uncompromising; stubborn
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irascible
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insulting or abusive speech
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ironic
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satiric; unexpected
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jeopardy
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danger
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judicious
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exercising sound judgment
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kinship
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natural or family relationship
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laconic
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using few words, often to the point of being rude
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lament
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to mourn
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languish
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to become weak, listless, or depressed
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laudable
laudatory |
worthy of praise
Enthusiastically complimentary |
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lax
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careless; not diligent; relaxed
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lethargy
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sluggishness; laziness; drowsiness; indifference
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levee
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an embankment designed to prevent the flooding of a river
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levity
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lightness, frivolity; numerousness
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ligneous
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wood like
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litigate
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to try in court; to engage in legal proceedings
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lucid
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clear; easy to understand
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luminous
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giving off light; glowing; bright
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malleable
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easy to shape or bend
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manifest
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visible; evident
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marred
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damaged; bruised
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maverick
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a nonconformist; a rebel
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meander
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to wander slowly, like a winding river
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mellifluous
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sweetly flowing
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merger
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a joining or marriage
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mitigate
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to lessen the severity of something
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motility
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spontaneous movement
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munificent
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very generous; lavish
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negligence
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carelessness
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neophyte
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a beginner
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nostalgia
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a sentimental longing for the past; homesickness
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novel
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new; original
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nullify
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to make unimportant
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obdurate
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stubborn; inflexible
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objective
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without bias (as opposed to subjective)
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obscure
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unclear; clouded; partially hidden; hard to understand
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orthodox
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conventional; adhering to established principles or doctrines, especially in religion; by the book
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oscillate
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to swing back and forth; to fluctuate
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ossify
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to convert into bone; to become rigid
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ostentatious
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excessively conspicuous; showing off
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palliate
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to hide the seriousness of something with excuses or apologies
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panegyric
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lofty praise
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paradox
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a true statement or phenomenon that nonetheless seems to contradict itself; an untrue statement or phenomenon that nonetheless seems logical
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parallel
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a comparison
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parsimony
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stinginess
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partisan
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one who supports a particular person, cause or idea
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paucity
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scarcity
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pedagogue
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a teacher
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pedestrian
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common; ordinary; banal (secondary meaning)
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penchant
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strong taste or liking
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peripheral
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unimportant
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permeate
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to spread or seep through; to penetrate
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pervade
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to spread throughout
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petulant
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rude; cranky; ill tempered
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philanthropy
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love of mankind; donating to charity
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pious
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reverent or devout; outwardly (and sometimes falsely) reverent or devout
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piquant
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pungent
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pivotal
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crucial
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placate
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to pacify; to appease; to soothe
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placid
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pleasantly calm; peaceful
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plumb
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to measure the depth of something
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polemic
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a powerful argument made in refutation of something
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pragmatic
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practical; down-to-earth; based on experience rather than theory
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precipitate
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to cause to happen abruptly
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preclude
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to prevent; to make impossible; to shut out
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predecessor
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someone or something that came before another
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pretentious
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pompous; self-important
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pristine
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original; unspoiled; pure
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probity
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integrity; uprightness; honesty
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problematic
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doubtful or questionable
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prodigal
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extravagant; wasteful
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prodigious
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extraordinary; enormous
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prodigy
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an extremely talented child; an extraordinary accomplishment or occurrence
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profound
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deep; insightful (the opposite of superficial)
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profuse
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flowing; extravagant
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propinquity
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nearness
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propriety
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properness; good manners
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prosaic
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dull; unimaginative
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proselytize
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to convert someone from one religion or doctrine to another; to recruit converts to a religion or doctrine
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provincial
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limited in outlook to one's own small corner of the world; narrow
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provocative
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exciting; attracting attention
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prudent
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careful; having foresight
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pundit
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a learned person; an expert in a particular field
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pungent
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forceful; sharp or biting to the taste or smell
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qualify
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to modify or restrict
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rampart
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a fortification; a bulwark or defense
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recalcitrant
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stubbornly defiant of authority or control
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reciprocal
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mutual; shared; interchangeable
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recondite
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hard to understand; over one's head
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refute
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to disprove; to prove to be false
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relegate
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to banish; to send away
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relevant
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important; pertinent
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remorse
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sadness; regret
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renaissance/ renascence
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a rebirth of revival
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reprehensible
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worthy of blame or censure
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repress
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to hold own
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reproach
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to scold
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reprobate
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a wicked, sinful, depraved person
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repudiate
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to reject; to deny
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repugnant
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distasteful or offensive
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rescind
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to repeal; to take back formally
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resolute
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determined; firm; unwavering
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respite
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a rest; a period of relief
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reticent
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restrained; uncommunicative
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retract
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to take back; to withdraw; to pull back
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revere
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to worship; to honor (think of a reverend)
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ribald
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vulgar or indecent speech or language, as in a ribald joke
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rigorous
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strict; harsh; severe
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rivet
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to fix one's attention on
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saccharine
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sweet; excessively or disgustingly sweet
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sagacious
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wise; possessing wisdom derived from experience or learning
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sage
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wise; possessing wisdom derived from experience or learning; a wise person
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salubrious
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promoting health
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sanction
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authorize or approve; ratify or confirm
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satiric
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using sarcasm or irony
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saturnine
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a sluggish, gloomy temperament
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savor
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to linger on the taste or smell of something
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scanty
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inadequate; minimal
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scrupulous
|
strict; careful; hesitant for ethical reasons
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scrutinize
|
to examine closely
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servile
|
submissive and subservient; like a servant
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sinuous
|
having many curves
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skeptical
|
doubting (opposite of gullible)
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slander
|
to defame; to speak maliciously of someone
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solemn
|
serious; grave
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solicit
|
to ask for; to seek
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spendthrift
|
extravagant or wasteful, especially with money
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spurious
|
doubtful; bogus; false
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squalid
|
filthy; repulsive; wretched; degraded
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squander
|
to waste
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stagnation
|
motionlessness; inactivity
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stanza
|
a section of a poem; verse
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static
|
stationary; not changing or moving (not radio fuzz)
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sterile
|
unimaginative; unfruitful; infertile
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stoic
|
indifferent (at least outwardly) to pleasure or pain, to joy or grief, to fortune or misfortune
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stringent
|
strict; restrictive
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subjugate
|
to subdue and dominate; to enslave
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substantive
|
having substance; real; essential; solid; substantial
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sullen
|
gloomy or dismal
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supercilious
|
haughty; patronizing
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superficial
|
on the surface only; shallow; not thorough
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superfluous
|
extra; unnecessary
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surreptitious
|
sneaky, secret
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sycophant
|
one who sucks up to others
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tacit
|
implied; not spoken
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taciturn
|
untalkative by nature
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tangible
|
touchable; palpable
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taut
|
tightly drawn, as a rope; emotionally tense
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tedious
|
boring
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temerity
|
boldness; recklessness; audacity
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temperament
|
one's disposition or character
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temperate
|
moderate; restrained
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tenacious
|
tough; hard to defeat
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tentative
|
experimental; temporary; uncertain
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timbre
|
the quality of a sound independent of pitch and loudness
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torpor
|
sluggishness; inactivity; apathy
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tractable
|
easily managed or controlled; obedient
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transitory
|
not staying for a long time; temporary
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trepidation
|
fear; apprehension; nervous trembling
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truculent
|
savagely brutal; aggressively hostile
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turpitude
|
shameful wickedness or depravity
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uniform
|
consistent; unchanging; the same for everyone
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unprecedented
|
happening for the first time; novel; never seen before
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untoward
|
unfavorable or unfortunate; improper
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vacillate
|
to be indecisive; to waver back and forth
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vacuous
|
lacking ideas or intelligence
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vehement
|
urgent; passionate
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venerate
|
to revere; to treat as something holy, especially because of great age
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veracity
|
truthfulness
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verbose
|
wordy; overly talkative
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vex
|
to annoy; to pester; to confuse
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vilify
|
to say vile things about; to defame
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vindicate
|
to clear from all blame or suspicion
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virtuoso
|
masterful musician; a masterful practitioner in some other field
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virulent
|
extremely poisonous; malignant; full of hate
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viscous
|
thick and sticky
|
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visionary
|
a dreamer; someone with impractical goals or ideas about the future
|
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volatile
|
quick to evaporate; highly unstable; explosive
|
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volition
|
will; conscious choice
|
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|
voluminous
|
very large; spacious (this word has nothing to do with sound)
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welter
|
a confused mass; a commotion or turmoil
|
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willful
|
deliberate; obstinate; insistent on having one's way
|
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zealous
|
fervent; enthusiastically devoted to something
|
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|
inutile
|
Uselesss
|
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|
Auger
|
Foretell
|
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|
Epicurean
|
enjoyment of food
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|
psuillanimous
|
timid
|
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|
obloquy
|
state of disgrace
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Abet
|
Assist/Aid
|
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|
Vituperative
|
harshly criticized
|
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|
Enmity
|
hostility
|
|
|
Promulgate
|
announce
|
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|
Propitiate
|
appease/conciliate
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Ornery
|
cranky, quarrelsome
|
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Destitute
|
poor
|
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Utile
|
useful
|
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Intrinsic
|
necessary
|
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Insouciant
|
carefree, nonchalant
|
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Puissant
|
powerful, mighty
|
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Tirade
|
hateful speech
|
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Beseech
|
to plead for something
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Libertine
|
lacks restraint
|
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August
|
a person having grandeur
|
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Limpid
|
something you can see through
|
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Canard
|
false, unfound report/story, fabricated
|
|
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Portentous
|
Done in a pompously/overly solemn manor
|
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Syllogism
|
Logical appeal or logical argument
|
|
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Conviviality
|
With friends, fond of feasting and drinking
|
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Overture
|
beginning
|
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|
Hanger
|
stores airplanes
|
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Edifice
|
large building
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