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195 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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abate
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v. to lessen in intensity
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abdicate
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v. to relinquish willingly
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aberrant
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a. deviating from the norm
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abrade
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v. to rub away
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abridge
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v. to condense
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abscond
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v. to flee secretly and hide
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abstract
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a. not easily understood.
n. a summary. v. to remove. |
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abstruse
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a. hard to understand
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academic
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a. scholarly
a. theoretical and of little practical value |
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accelerate
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v. to speed up
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accolade
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n. praise
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acerbic
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a. sour or bitter tasting
a. pertaining to a bitter temperament |
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acumen
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n. insightfulness
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acute
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a. sharp or severe
a. keenly perceptive a. of great importance |
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adaptation
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n. a change for a new situation
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adhere
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v. to stick to something
v. to give allegiance or support |
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adherent
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n. a supporter of a cause
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adhesion
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n. loyalty
n. the state of sticking to something n. the fusing of normally seperate body tissues |
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admonish
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v. to caution
v. to reprimand mildly |
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adroit
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a. skillful
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adulate
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v. to praise excessively
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aesthetic
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a. artistic
a. pertaining to beauty |
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affable
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a. friendly and kind
a. gently |
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affinity
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n. an attraction to
n. a similarity to |
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affluent
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a. wealthy
b. abundant a. flowing freely |
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affront
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v. to insult openly
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aggrandize
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v. to make greater or exaggerate
v. to increase the scope of |
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aggregate
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a. gathered together into one mass
n. the total amount |
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agrarian
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a. pertaining to agricultural or rural matters
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alacrity
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n. eagerness
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alchemy
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n. the study of how to turn lead into gold
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allege
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v. to assert without proof
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allude
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v. to refer to indirectly
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altruism
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n. selflessness
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ambivalence
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a. mixed feelings
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amble
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v. to walk slowly
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ameliorate
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v. to improve
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amendable
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a. open to suggestions
a. accountable |
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anachronism
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n. something considered out of date
n. something mistakenly palced in the wrong time period |
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analgesic
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n. a medication for reducing pain
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analogous
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a. alike in a certain way
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analogy
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n. a likeness drawn between dissimilar object
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anatomy
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n. the study of the structure of plants and animals
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anecdote
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n. a brief story of an amusing incident
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annul
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v. to invalidate
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anomalous
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a. abnormal
a. having a contradiction |
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anthology
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n. collection of short literary works
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antipathy
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n. strong feeling of dislike
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apathetic
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a. indifferent; not interested or concerned
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approbate
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v. to sanction, to authorize
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appropriate
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v. to take
v. to set aside |
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arable
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a. fit for cultivation
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arbiter
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n. an arbitrator (someone selected to resolve disputes)
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arcane
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a. secret and mysterious
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archaic
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a. ancient or characteristic of the past
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archetype
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n. a prototype
n. typical example |
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ardor
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n. great emotional warmth
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arduous
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a. difficult
a. laborious |
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aria
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n. a solo vocal in opera
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arid
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a. dry
a. boring |
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aristocracy
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n. the hereditary upper-classes
n. governmental rule by the aristocracy |
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artisan
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n. craftsman
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artless
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a. simple and natural
a. without guile or deceit a. crude; poorly made |
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ascendant
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a. rising
a. superior n. state of dominance |
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ascetic
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a. self denial of life's pleasures
n. one who does this |
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ascribe
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v. to attribute
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assiduous
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a. diligent and persistent
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assimilate
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v. to absorb
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assuage
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v. to soothe
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astute
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a. shrewd
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atrophy
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n. wasting away
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audacious
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a. unrestrained by propriety
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austere
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a. plain; unadorned
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autocracy
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n. governmental rule by one person with unlimited authority
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autonomous
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a. independent
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avarice
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a. greed
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aver
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v. to affirm
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axiom
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n. accepted principle
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bacterium
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n. microscopic organism
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ballad
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n. simple poem
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base
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a. having low morals
a. of inferior quality |
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bask
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v. to lie in a pleasant warmth
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befriend
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v. to act as a friend to
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belabor
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v. to beat vigoroulsy
v. to talk too much about something |
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belie
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v. to misreprensent
v. to prove false v. to leave unfulfilled |
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benevolent
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a. helpful
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benign
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a. kind
a. mild or harmless |
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bent
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n. a natural ability
n. fondness for |
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berate
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v. to scold harshly
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bibliography
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n. list of books written by a certain author
n. list of references cited in an article or book |
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bleach
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v. to whiten
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blithe
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a. cheeful and carefree
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bolster
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v. to support
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bombastic
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n. pompous
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bouquet
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n. cluster of cut flowers
n. the fragrance of wine |
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bourgeois
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n. member of the middle class
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brief
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n. summary
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brood
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n. group of offspring
v. to worry |
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burgeon
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v. to grow
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burnish
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v. to polish a surface
n. glossy appearance |
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buttress
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n. a support
v. to support or encourage |
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by-line
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n. printed line naming an author of an article
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cacophy
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n. harsh sounds
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cajole
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v. to coax
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calibrate
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v. to adjust the scale of a measuring device
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camouflage
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v. to disguise
n. a concealment |
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canny
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a. shrew and cautions
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cantankerous
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a. quarrelsome; ill-natured
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capacious
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a. spacious
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capitulate
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v. to surrender
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caprice
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n. a sudden change
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caricature
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n. picture of someone that exatgerates certain features for comic effect
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carp
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v. to find fault with and compalin constantly
n. type of fish |
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cascade
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n. waterfall
n. anthing that falls like one |
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castigate
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v. to criticize severely
v. to punish |
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catalyst
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n. something that causes a reaction
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caustic
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a. corrosive
a. harshly sarcastic |
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cavalier
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a. arrogant
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censure
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n. expression of strong disapproval
v. to find fault with |
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centrifuge
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n. device that seperates substances of different densitities
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chauvinism
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n. biased devotion
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chimera
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n. imaginery monster
n. foolish idea |
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choreographer
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n. dance director in a performance
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chronology
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n. order in which things occur
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churl
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n. rude person
n. stingy person |
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circuitous
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v. to encircle or confine
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circumscribe
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v. to encircle or confine
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circumspect
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a. watchful and discreet
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circumvent
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v. to get around something
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cleave
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v. to cut forcefully
v. to be faithful to v. to bond to emotionally |
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cloister
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v. to seclude
n. place devoted to religious seclusion |
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coagulate
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v. to clot
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coalesce
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v. to come together into a single group
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code
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n. collection of rules or principles
n. instruction in a computer program |
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cogent
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a. believable
a. relevant |
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cognition
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n. the act of thinking
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cohere
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v. to be consisten
v. to stick together |
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collage
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n. a composite made from odd parts
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colloquial
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a. conversational
a. pertaining to informal speech |
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collusion
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n. conspiracy
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commodity
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n. anthing bought and sold regularly
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complacent
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a. contented
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complaisant
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a. agreeable
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concise
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a. brief and comprehensive
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congregate
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v. to gather together
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conjecture
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n. guesswork
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consternation
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n. state of paralyzing dismay
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construct
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n. something fabricated
n. image or theory |
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consummate
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v. to complete
a. perfect; supreme |
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contention
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n. point put forward in a debate
n. conflict |
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contrite
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a. remorseful
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conundrum
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n. problem without a suitable solution
n. riddle whose answer is a play on words |
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convalesce
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v. to recuperate
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correlate
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v. to establish a reasonable connection
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corroborate
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v. to confirm
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couch
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v. to express
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countenance
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n. lack of approval or support
n. composure n. appearance |
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coup
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n. brilliant, sudden action
n. sudden overthrow of a government |
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covert
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a. concealed
n. hiding place |
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crass
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a. crude and insensitive
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craven
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a. cowardly
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credence
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n. acceptance of something as true
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credulous
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a. gullible
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crescendo
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n. gradual increase in intensity
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culpable
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a. deserving blame
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debase
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v. to degrade or lower in value
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decadent
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a. decaying
a. self-indulgent |
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decorous
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a. conforming to prevailing customs
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decorum
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n. proper behavior
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decry
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v. to condemn or belittle publicly
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deed
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n. conspicuous act
n. document of ownership |
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defer
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v. to postpone
v. to yield to another |
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deleterious
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a. harmful
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demagogue
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n. someone who gains power by arousing an audience's emotions
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denigrate
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v. to defame
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denote
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v. to indicate
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deposition
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n. statement made under oath
n. being deposed from power n. being deposited |
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deride
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v. to mock
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derision
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n. scorn; ridicule
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desiccate
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v. to dry out
v. to make lifeless |
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despond
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v. to lose hope
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despot
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n. ruler with absolute power
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desultory
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a. occuring haphazardly
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diatribe
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n. bitter criticism
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dichotomy
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n. distinct division into two parts
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didactic
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a. excessively instructive
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diffident
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v. to spread out
a. spread out; not concentrated a. wordy and not sticky to the point |
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digress
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v. to depart from the main subject
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dilapidated
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a. ruined by neglect
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dilate
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v. to become wider or larger
v. to speak at great lenth about something |
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dilettante
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n. an amateur
n. someone who enjoys the arts |
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diminutive
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a. tiny
n. small person or thing n. word indicating smallness |
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dirge
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n. mornful song
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disabuse
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v. to free from deception or misconception
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disaffect
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v. to cause someone to lose feelings of loyalty or affection
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