Reading...
Play button
Play button
Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
208 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
|
abject
|
Of low condition; wretched or miserable in kind
|
|
|
absolution
|
The formal remission of a sin by a priest
|
|
|
abut
|
To touch at one end or side; to border upon
|
|
|
abysmal
|
Relating to an abyss; limitless; profound
|
|
|
acerbic
|
Bitter or sharp
|
|
|
acolyte
|
A devoted follower
|
|
|
agog
|
Full of excitement; eager
|
|
|
alcove
|
A recess or partially enclosed portion of a room
|
|
|
ameliorate
|
To make better
|
|
|
antecedent
|
Going before; a preceding occurrence or event
|
|
|
antithetical
|
Diametrically opposed
|
|
|
apprise
|
To give notice to; to inform
|
|
|
ascribe
|
To attribute to a specific reason; to assign as a quality
|
|
|
aspersion
|
A damaging remark; slander
|
|
|
asunder
|
Into separate parts
|
|
|
augury
|
Omen; the art of divination
|
|
|
avow
|
To acknowledge openly
|
|
|
baneful
|
Causing death or ruin; harmful
|
|
|
bombast
|
Pompous speech or writing
|
|
|
broach
|
To bring up for discussion or debate
|
|
|
brogue
|
A strong dialectal accent
|
|
|
brook
|
To put up with or tolerate
|
|
|
burgeon
|
To grow and flourish
|
|
|
burnish
|
To make smooth or glossy; to polish
|
|
|
cajole
|
To urge with flattery or repeated appeals; to wheedle
|
|
|
chicanery
|
Deception by trickery; a trick
|
|
|
collate
|
To compare carefully to find points of disagreement; to arrange or assemble in careful order
|
|
|
contiguous
|
Touching or joining at the edge or boundary
|
|
|
contrite
|
Penitent or remorseful
|
|
|
convivial
|
Fond of feasting, drinking and good company; sociable
|
|
|
convoke
|
To call together or assemble; to convene
|
|
|
cordon
|
A lined barrier (oft. of cord or ribbon)
|
|
|
countervail
|
To act against with equal force; to counteract
|
|
|
crass
|
So crude and unrefined as to be lacking in manners and sensibility
|
|
|
cupidity
|
A keen sense of desire; avarice or greed
|
|
|
cursory
|
Performed with haste and scant attention to detail
|
|
|
dalliance
|
A frivolous spending of time; playful flirtation
|
|
|
dandy
|
A man who effects extreme elegance in clothes and manners; a fop
|
|
|
dawdle
|
To waste time by idling
|
|
|
debauch
|
To corrupt morally
|
|
|
demagogue
|
A leader who obtains power through impassioned appeals to emotions and prejudice
|
|
|
denizen
|
Inhabitant
|
|
|
dereliction
|
Deserted by an owner; run-down or dilapidated
|
|
|
dervish
|
One possessed of abundant and often frenzied energy
|
|
|
diffuse
|
To pour out and cause to spread freely; to soften; widely spread out
|
|
|
droll
|
Amusingly odd
|
|
|
eccentric
|
Departing from a recognized, conventional or established norm; off-center or odd
|
|
|
edify
|
To instruct; to help improve intellectually, spiritually or morally
|
|
|
egregious
|
Conspicuously bad or offensive
|
|
|
emblazon
|
To adorn richly with prominent markings; to make illustrious
|
|
|
enmity
|
Deep-seated, often mutual hatred
|
|
|
ensign
|
A standard or banner (oft. of a military unit); a sign or token
|
|
|
equivocal
|
Open to two or more interpretations and often intended to mislead; ambiguous
|
|
|
erudite
|
Widely learned
|
|
|
eschew
|
To avoid or shun
|
|
|
espouse
|
To marry or give/take in marriage; to give one's loyalty to (esp. a cause or principle)
|
|
|
eulogy
|
A speech or piece of writing for someone who has died; high praise or condemnation
|
|
|
euthanasia
|
The act of ending the life of an individual in great pain or doomed to great suffering
|
|
|
exemplar
|
One worthy of imitation; an archetype or example
|
|
|
exorbitant
|
Exceeding all bounds of custom or fairness
|
|
|
extrapolate
|
To infer or estimate by extending or projecting known information
|
|
|
extemporaneous
|
Done with little or no preparation
|
|
|
fastidious
|
Possessing or displaying meticulous attention to detail
|
|
|
fawn
|
A young deer; to seek favor or attention by flattery
|
|
|
flak
|
Anti-aircraft artillery; excessive or abusive criticism
|
|
|
flippant
|
Marked by disrespectful levity or casualness
|
|
|
fluke
|
A stroke of good luck; an accident
|
|
|
grievous
|
Causing grief, pain or anguish
|
|
|
hackneyed
|
Overly familiar though overuse; commonplace
|
|
|
harbinger
|
One that indicates or foreshadows what will come
|
|
|
harrow
|
To inflict great distress and torment on
|
|
|
headlong
|
Head first; rashly
|
|
|
hieroglyph
|
Written in a script in which pictorial symbols represent meanings and sounds; difficult to decipher
|
|
|
highfalutin
|
Pompous or pretentious
|
|
|
homeostasis
|
Internal equilibrium
|
|
|
idiosyncrasy
|
A quality or habit peculiar to an individual or a specific group
|
|
|
immutable
|
Unchangeable
|
|
|
impromptu
|
Prompted by the occasion rather than being planned in advance
|
|
|
imprudent
|
Unwise
|
|
|
impudent
|
Marked by offensive boldness; insolent
|
|
|
incursion
|
A raid or invasion into a foreign territory the act of entering into
|
|
|
indelible
|
Incapable of being blotted out, effaced, destroyed, or removed
|
|
|
indict
|
To accuse of or charge with wrongdoing
|
|
|
inflammable
|
Very flammable
|
|
|
insinuate
|
To introduce a thought gradually and insidiously
|
|
|
interpolate
|
To insert or introduce between other elements or parts
|
|
|
irony
|
The use of words to express something different from and often opposite to their meaning
|
|
|
itinerate
|
To travel from one place to another
|
|
|
jilt
|
To deceive or drop (a lover) suddenly or callously
|
|
|
jocular
|
Marked by joking
|
|
|
juxtapose
|
To place side-by-side
|
|
|
languid
|
Lacking energy, force or vitality
|
|
|
lascivious
|
Given to or expressing lust; salacious or lecherous
|
|
|
laud
|
To praise
|
|
|
lechery
|
Excess indulgence in sexual activity; lewdness
|
|
|
libel
|
A false publication in writing that damages another's reputation
|
|
|
liberality
|
The quality or state of being generous
|
|
|
lionize
|
To look on or treat (a person) as a celebrity
|
|
|
lithe
|
Supple; marked by effortless grace
|
|
|
lollygag
|
To waste time by puttering aimlessly; to dawdle
|
|
|
lope
|
To run or ride with a steady, easy gait; a steady, easy gait
|
|
|
loquacious
|
Talkative
|
|
|
lumber
|
Something useless or cumbersome; timber sawed into boards; to walk or move with a heavy clumsiness
|
|
|
macabre
|
Suggesting the horror of death or decay; gruesome
|
|
|
maladroit
|
Marked by a lack of adroitness; inept
|
|
|
malaise
|
A vague feeling of uneasiness or ill-being
|
|
|
maverick
|
An unbranded animal; a dissenter
|
|
|
megalomania
|
Delusion about one's own wealth, power or greatness
|
|
|
mellifluous
|
Flowing with sweetness or honey; smooth and sweet
|
|
|
mercurial
|
Quick and changeable in temperament; volatile
|
|
|
mettle
|
Courage; inherent quality of character and temperament
|
|
|
molt
|
To shed periodically all or part of a covering (esp. skin or feathers)
|
|
|
multifarious
|
Having great diversity or variety
|
|
|
nebulous
|
Cloudy, misty or hazy; vague
|
|
|
nefarious
|
Infamous by way of being extremely wicked
|
|
|
neophyte
|
A beginner or novice
|
|
|
occlude
|
To obstruct or prevent the passage of
|
|
|
odium
|
Strong dislike, contempt or aversion
|
|
|
onus
|
A burden or responsibility
|
|
|
ostensible
|
Represented or appearing as such; professed
|
|
|
pallor
|
Extreme or unnatural paleness
|
|
|
palpable
|
Capable of being touched or felt; perceivable
|
|
|
peccadillo
|
A small sin or fault
|
|
|
peruse
|
To read or examine (esp. with care)
|
|
|
petulant
|
Peevish or ill-behaved; bratty
|
|
|
pithy
|
Forceful and brief; precisely meaningful
|
|
|
plaintive
|
Expressing sorrow; melancholy or mournful
|
|
|
pluck
|
Resourceful courage in the face of danger; spirit
|
|
|
plumb
|
To determine the depth of something; a weight on the end of a line used to determine water depth
|
|
|
pomp
|
Magnificent display (oft. ostentatious)
|
|
|
preclude
|
To make impossible; to prevent
|
|
|
precocious
|
Manifesting unusually early development or maturity (esp. in mental aptitude)
|
|
|
predilection
|
A disposition in favor of something; a preference
|
|
|
preen
|
To smooth or clean feathers with the beak; to primp; to exult
|
|
|
profuse
|
Plentiful or copious; extravagant
|
|
|
proliferate
|
To increase or spread rapidly; to cause to increase or grow rapidly
|
|
|
propagation
|
To cause to multiply, spread or breed
|
|
|
prostrate
|
To bow down in humility or adoration; lying face down in submission
|
|
|
pucker
|
To gather or become gathered into small folds or wrinkles (esp. used in regard to the lips)
|
|
|
pugilist
|
Someone who fights with the fists; a boxer
|
|
|
pugnacious
|
Prone to quarrel or fight; belligerent
|
|
|
pulchritude
|
Great physical beauty
|
|
|
pundit
|
A (supposedly) learned critic or expert
|
|
|
qualm
|
A fit of nausea, sickness of faintness
|
|
|
quandary
|
A puzzling predicament
|
|
|
quibble
|
To evade the truth with trivial objections; a petty objection
|
|
|
quiescent
|
Being quiet or still; inactive
|
|
|
raze
|
To level to the ground; to demolish
|
|
|
requite
|
To make repayment; to return
|
|
|
resonant
|
Strong and deep in tone; having a prolong, subtle or stimulating effect beyond the initial impact
|
|
|
respite
|
A short interval of rest or relief
|
|
|
retinue
|
A train of people accompanying an important person
|
|
|
ruffian
|
A thug
|
|
|
ruminate
|
To chew food previously swallowed and regurgitated; to turn a matter over in the mind repeatedly
|
|
|
rumple
|
To wrinkle or fold into creases; to become wrinkled
|
|
|
sanctimony
|
Feigned piety; hypocritical devoutness
|
|
|
satyr
|
A debauched goat-man creature in Greek mythology; a very lascivious man
|
|
|
savant
|
A learned person or scholar; an idiot savant
|
|
|
seminal
|
Of or relating to semen or seed; creative; highly influential in an original way
|
|
|
seminary
|
A school for theological training
|
|
|
sentient
|
Having sense perception; conscious
|
|
|
sere
|
Withered or dry
|
|
|
serrated
|
Saw-toothed
|
|
|
shiv
|
A razor, knife or any other sharp instrument used as a weapon
|
|
|
sluggard
|
A person habitually lazy or idle
|
|
|
sodden
|
Thoroughly soaked; saturated
|
|
|
soporific
|
Causing sleep; something that causes sleep
|
|
|
spurn
|
To reject disdainfully
|
|
|
staid
|
Sedately dignified; sober
|
|
|
staunch
|
Firm and steadfast
|
|
|
stoic
|
Unaffected by joy, grief, pleasure or pain; one so
|
|
|
sublimate
|
To modify of subdue the natural expression of (usu. an impulse)
|
|
|
subterfuge
|
A deceptive stratagem or device
|
|
|
succor
|
Assistance in time of want or difficulty; to give aid to
|
|
|
sumptuous
|
Of a size or splendor suggesting great expense; lavish
|
|
|
supersede
|
To take the place of or replace; to cause to be set aside
|
|
|
supine
|
Lying on the back
|
|
|
suppliant
|
Asking humbly and earnestly; a supplicant
|
|
|
sycophant
|
A servile flatterer, especially of those in authority or influence
|
|
|
synopsis
|
A brief outline or overview; a summary
|
|
|
synergy
|
Cooperative interaction for a combined effect
|
|
|
taciturn
|
Habitually disinclined to speak
|
|
|
tangential
|
Merely touching or slightly connected; superficially relevant
|
|
|
tantalize
|
To taunt by offering something desirable while keeping it just out of reach
|
|
|
taut
|
Stretched tight
|
|
|
tawdry
|
Gaudy and cheap in nature or appearance
|
|
|
torque
|
A turning or twisting force
|
|
|
travail
|
Hard or agonizing labor; toil or tribulation; to work hard or toil
|
|
|
trepidation
|
A state of alarm or dread; apprehension
|
|
|
trifling
|
Of slight worth or importance; frivolous or idle
|
|
|
truant
|
Absent without permission (esp. from school); lazy or neglectful; one who is absent without permission
|
|
|
twit
|
A foolishly annoying person; to taunt or tease; a taunt or tease
|
|
|
undulate
|
To move or cause to move in smooth, wave-like motion
|
|
|
unkempt
|
Not combed; disorderly or rude
|
|
|
vapid
|
Lacking liveliness or interest; dull or flat
|
|
|
variegated
|
Having marks, patches or streaks of different colors; varied
|
|
|
veer
|
To turn aside or steer off course
|
|
|
vehement
|
Strong, forceful or intense in expression; fervid
|
|
|
veneer
|
A think, outside layer; a deceptive or superficial facade
|
|
|
venerate
|
To regard with respect or reverence
|
|
|
verbiage
|
An excess of words; wordiness
|
|
|
visage
|
The face, countenance, or look of a person
|
|
|
visceral
|
Affecting the intestines; profound or instinctive
|
|
|
viscous
|
Having a relatively high resistance to flow; thick and sludgy
|
|
|
wean
|
To transfer (the young) from dependence on mother's milk to another form of nourishment
|
|
|
wrest
|
To obtain or take by pulling with a violent, twisting motion
|
|
|
writ
|
A written order issued by a court; writings
|
|
|
wry
|
Dryly humorous (oft. with a touch of irony); twisted or bent to one side (e.g. a 'wry smile')
|
