Hit Parade A-M

Front 1

abate

Back 1

to lessen in intensity or degree

Front 2

aberrant

Back 2

deviating from the norm

Front 3

abscond

Back 3

to depart clandestinely; to steal off and hide

Front 4

accolade

Back 4

an expression of praise

Front 5

acerbic

Back 5

having a sour or bitter taste or character

Front 6

acumen

Back 6

quick, keen, or accurate knowledge or insight

Front 7

adulation

Back 7

excessive praise; intense adoration

Front 8

adulterate

Back 8

to reduce purity by combining with inferior ingredients

Front 9

aesthetic

Back 9

dealing with, appreciative of, or responsive to art or the beautiful

Front 10

aggrandize

Back 10

to increase in intensity, power, or prestige

Front 11

alacrity

Back 11

eager and enthusiastic willingness

Front 12

alchemy

Back 12

a medieval science aimed at the transmutation of metal, esp. base metals into gold

Front 13

amalgamate

Back 13

to combine several elements into a whole

Front 14

ameliorate

Back 14

to make better or more tolerable

Front 15

amenable

Back 15

agreeable; responsive to suggestion

Front 16

anachronism

Back 16

something or someone out of place in terms of historical or chronological context

Front 17

anomaly

Back 17

deviation from the norm order, form, or rule; abnormality

Front 18

approbation

Back 18

an expression of approval or praise

Front 19

archaic

Back 19

outdated; associated with an earlier, perhaps more primitive, time

Front 20

arduous

Back 20

strenuous, taxing, requiring significant effort

Front 21

ascetic

Back 21

one who practices rigid self-denial, esp. as an act of religious devotion

Front 22

assuage

Back 22

to ease or lessen; to appease or pacify

Front 23

astringent

Back 23

having a tightening effect on living tissue; harsh; severe

Front 24

audacious

Back 24

daring and fearless; recklessly bold

Front 25

austere

Back 25

without adornment; bare; severely simple; ascetic

Front 26

avarice

Back 26

greed, esp. for wealth

Front 27

aver

Back 27

to state as a fact; to confirm or support

Front 28

axiom

Back 28

a universally recognized principle, law

Front 29

axiomatic

Back 29

take as a given; possessing self-evident truth

Front 30

bolster

Back 30

to provide support or reinforcement

Front 31

bombast

Back 31

self-important or pompous writing or speech

Front 32

bombastic

Back 32

pompous; grandiloquent

Front 33

bucolic

Back 33

rustic and pastoral; characteristic of rural areas and their inhabitants

Front 34

burgeon

Back 34

to grow rapidly or flourish

Front 35

cacophony

Back 35

harsh, jarring, discordant sound; dissonance

Front 36

canon

Back 36

an established set of principles or code of laws, often religious in nature

Front 37

canonical

Back 37

following or in agreement with accepted, traditional standards

Front 38

capricious

Back 38

inclined to change one's mind impulsively; erratic; unpredictable

Front 39

castigation

Back 39

severe criticism or punishment

Front 40

catalyst

Back 40

a substance that accelerates the rate of a chemical reaction without itself changing

Front 41

catalyst

Back 41

a person or thing that causes change

Front 42

caustic

Back 42

burning or stinging; causing corrosion

Front 43

censure

Back 43

to criticize severely; to officially rebuke

Front 44

chary

Back 44

wary; cautious; sparing

Front 45

chicanery

Back 45

trickery or subterfuge

Front 46

cogent

Back 46

appealing forcibly to the mind or reason; convincing

Front 47

complaisance

Back 47

the willingness to comply with the wishes of others

Front 48

connoisseur

Back 48

an informed and astute judge in matters of taste; expert

Front 49

contentious

Back 49

argumentative; quarrelsome; causing controversy or disagreement

Front 50

contiguous

Back 50

sharing a border; touching adjacent

Front 51

contrite

Back 51

regretful; penitent; seeking forgiveness

Front 52

convention

Back 52

a generally agreed-upon practice or attitude

Front 53

convoluted

Back 53

complex or complicated

Front 54

credulous

Back 54

tending to believe too readily; gullible

Front 55

culpable

Back 55

deserving blame

Front 56

cynicism

Back 56

an attitude or quality of belief that all people are motivated by selfishness

Front 57

dearth

Back 57

smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; a lack

Front 58

decorum

Back 58

polite or appropriate conduct or behavior

Front 59

demur

Back 59

to question or oppose

Front 60

derision

Back 60

scorn, ridicule, contemptuous treatment

Front 61

desiccate

Back 61

to dry out or dehydrate; to make dry or dull

Front 62

diatribe

Back 62

a harsh denunciation

Front 63

didactic

Back 63

intended to teach or instruct

Front 64

dilettante

Back 64

one with an amateurish or superficial interest in the arts or a branch of knowledge

Front 65

disabuse

Back 65

to undeceive; to set right

Front 66

discordant

Back 66

conflicting; dissonant or harsh in sound

Front 67

discretion

Back 67

cautious reserve in speech; ability to make responsible decision

Front 68

disinterested

Back 68

indifferent; free from self-interest

Front 69

disparage

Back 69

to slight or belittle

Front 70

disparate

Back 70

fundamentally distinct or dissimilar

Front 71

dissemble

Back 71

to disguise or conceal; to mislead

Front 72

divulge

Back 72

to disclose something secret

Front 73

dogmatic

Back 73

stubbornly opinionated

Front 74

ebullience

Back 74

the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings

Front 75

eccentric

Back 75

departing from norms or conventions

Front 76

eclectic

Back 76

composed of elements drawn from various sources

Front 77

effrontery

Back 77

extreme boldness; presumptuousness

Front 78

elegy

Back 78

a mournful poem, esp. one lamenting the dead

Front 79

emollient

Back 79

soothing, esp. to the skin; making less harsh; mollifying

Front 80

empirical

Back 80

based on observation or experiment

Front 81

endemic

Back 81

characteristic of or often found in a particular locality, region, or people

Front 82

enervate

Back 82

to weaken; to reduce in vitality

Front 83

enigmatic

Back 83

mysterious; obscure; difficult to understand

Front 84

ennui

Back 84

dissatisfaction and restlessness resulting from boredom or apathy

Front 85

ephemeral

Back 85

brief; fleeting

Front 86

equivocate

Back 86

to use ambiguous language with a deceptive intent

Front 87

erudite

Back 87

very learned; scholarly

Front 88

esoteric

Back 88

intended for or understood by a small, specific group

Front 89

eulogy

Back 89

a speech honoring the dead

Front 90

evanescent

Back 90

tending to disappear like vapor; vanishing

Front 91

exacerbate

Back 91

to make worse or more severe

Front 92

exculpate

Back 92

exonerate; to clear of blame

Front 93

exigent

Back 93

urgent; pressing; requiring immediate action or attention

Front 94

exonerate

Back 94

to remove blame

Front 95

extemporaneous

Back 95

improvised; done without preparation

Front 96

facetious

Back 96

playful; humorous

Front 97

fallacy

Back 97

an invalid or incorrect notion; a mistaken belief

Front 98

fawn

Back 98

to flatter or praise excessively

Front 99

fervent

Back 99

greatly emotional or zealous

Front 100

filibuster

Back 100

intentional obstruction, esp. using prolonged speechmaking to delay legislative action

Front 101

flout

Back 101

to demonstrate contempt for, as in a rule or convention

Front 102

fortuitous

Back 102

happening by fortunate accident or chance

Front 103

fulminate

Back 103

to loudly attack or denounce

Front 104

furtive

Back 104

marked by stealth; covert; surreptitious

Front 105

garrulous

Back 105

pointlessly talkative, talking too much

Front 106

germane

Back 106

relevant to the subject at hand; appropriate in subject matter

Front 107

glib

Back 107

marked by ease or informality; nonchalant; lacking in depth; superficial

Front 108

grandiloquence

Back 108

pompous speech or expression

Front 109

gregarious

Back 109

sociable; outgoing; enjoying the company of other people

Front 110

hackneyed

Back 110

rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage

Front 111

halcyon

Back 111

calm and peaceful

Front 112

harangue

Back 112

to deliver a pompous speech or tirade

Front 113

hedonism

Back 113

devotion to pleasurable pursuits, esp. to the pleasures of the senses

Front 114

hegemony

Back 114

the consistent dominance of one state or ideology over others

Front 115

heretical

Back 115

violating accepted dogma or convention

Front 116

hubris

Back 116

arrogant presumption or pride

Front 117

hyperbole

Back 117

an exaggerated statement, often used as a figure of speech

Front 118

iconoclast

Back 118

one who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions

Front 119

idolatrous

Back 119

given to intense or excessive devotion to something

Front 120

imminent

Back 120

about to happen; impending

Front 121

immutable

Back 121

not capable of change

Front 122

impassive

Back 122

revealing no emotion

Front 123

impecunious

Back 123

lacking funds; without money

Front 124

imperturbable

Back 124

marked by extreme calm, impassivity and steadiness

Front 125

impetuous

Back 125

hastily or rashly energetic; impulsive and vehement

Front 126

implacable

Back 126

not capable of being appeased or significantly changed

Front 127

impunity

Back 127

immunity from punishment or penalty

Front 128

inchoate

Back 128

in an initial stage; not fully formed

Front 129

incipient

Back 129

beginning to come into being or to become apparent

Front 130

indifferent

Back 130

having not interest or concern; showing no bias or prejudice

Front 131

inert

Back 131

unmoving; lethargic; sluggish

Front 132

infelicitous

Back 132

unfortunate; inappropriate

Front 133

ingenuous

Back 133

artless; frank and candid; lacking in sophistication

Front 134

inimical

Back 134

damaging; harmful; injurious

Front 135

innocuous

Back 135

harmless; causing no damage

Front 136

insipid

Back 136

without taste or flavor; lacking in spirit; bland

Front 137

intractable

Back 137

not easily managed or directed; stubborn; obstinate

Front 138

intransigent

Back 138

refusing to compromise

Front 139

intrepid

Back 139

steadfast and courageous

Front 140

inured

Back 140

accustomed to accepting something undesirable

Front 141

inveigle

Back 141

to obtain by deception or flattery

Front 142

irascible

Back 142

easily angered; prone to temperamental outbursts

Front 143

laconic

Back 143

using few words; terse

Front 144

laud

Back 144

to praise highly

Front 145

loquacious

Back 145

extremely talkative

Front 146

lucid

Back 146

clear, easily understood

Front 147

luminous

Back 147

characterized by brightness and the emission of light

Front 148

magnanimity

Back 148

the quality of being generously noble in mind and heart, esp. in forgiving

Front 149

malevolent

Back 149

having or showing often vicious ill-will, spite, or hatred

Front 150

malleable

Back 150

capable of being shaped or formed; tractable; pliable

Front 151

maverick

Back 151

an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party

Front 152

mendacity

Back 152

the condition of being untruthful; dishonesty

Front 153

mercurial

Back 153

characterized by rapid and unpredictable change in mood

Front 154

meticulous

Back 154

characterized by extreme care and precision; attentive to detail

Front 155

misanthrope

Back 155

one who hates all other humans

Front 156

mitigate

Back 156

to make or become less severe or intense; to moderate

Front 157

mollify

Back 157

to calm or soothe; to reduce in emotional intensity

Front 158

morose

Back 158

sad; sullen; melancholy

Front 159

mundane

Back 159

of the world; typical of or concerned with the ordinary