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;
18 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
- 3rd side (hint)
|
acerbic
a |
having a sour or bitter taste or character; sharp; biting
|
The letters show the acerbic wit for which Parker was both admired and feared.
|
|
|
aggranize
v |
to increase in intensity, power, influence or prestige
|
aggrandizement, UK USUALLY aggrandisement
noun [U] FORMAL DISAPPROVING increase in power, importance or wealth: He gives a lot of money to charity, but personal aggrandizement/self-aggrandizement is his motive. |
|
|
alchemy
n |
a medieval science aimed as the transmutation of metals, esp. base metals into gold
(an alchemist is one who practices alchemy) |
alchemy / noun [U]
1 a type of chemistry, especially from about 1100 to 1500, which dealt with trying to find a way to change ordinary metals into gold and with trying to find a medicine which would cure any disease 2 a process that is so effective that it seems like magic: She manages, by some extraordinary alchemy, to turn the most ordinary of ingredients into the most delicious of dishes. alchemist / noun [C] |
|
|
amenable
a |
agreeable; responsive suggestion
|
amenable / adjective
willing to accept or be influenced by a suggestion: She might be more amenable to the idea if you explained how much money it would save. Do you think the new manager will prove more amenable to our proposals? |
|
|
anachronism
n |
something or someone out of place in terms of historical or chronological context
|
anachronism / noun [C]
a person, thing or idea which exists out of its time in history, especially one which happened or existed later than the period being shown, discussed, etc: For some people, marriage is an anachronism from the days when women needed to be protected. anachronistic /@%n{k.r@"nIs.tIk/ adjective He described the law as anachronistic (= more suitable for an earlier time) and ridiculous. anachronistically / adverb |
|
|
astringent
a/n |
having a tightening effect on living tissue; harsh; severe; something with a tightening effect on tissue
|
astringent (SEVERE) /@"strIn.dZ@nt/ adjective
describes remarks which are clever but very critical or unkind: astringent criticism her astringent wit astringently /@"strIn.dZ@nt.li/ adverb astringency /@"strIn.dZ@nt.si/ noun [U] astringent (MEDICINE) /@"strIn.dZ@nt/ noun [C or U] a drug or cream that causes the skin or other tissue to tighten so that the flow of blood or other liquids stops: You can use (an) astringent to make your skin less oily. astringent /@"strIn.dZ@nt/ adjective |
|
|
contiguous
a |
sharing a border; touching; adjacent
|
contiguous /k@n"tIg.ju.@s/ adjective FORMAL
next to or touching another, usually similar, thing: The two states are contiguous with/to each other, but the laws are quite different. contiguity /%kQn.tI"gju:.I.ti/ US /%kA:n.º@"gju:.@.ºi/ noun [U] FORMAL |
|
|
convention
n |
a generally agreed-upon practice or attitude
|
convention (CUSTOM) /k@n"vent.S@n/ noun
1 [C or U] (an example of) a usual or accepted way of behaving, especially in social situations, often following an old way of thinking or a custom in one particular society: They defied/flouted/broke with convention by giving up their jobs and becoming self-sufficient. Convention dictates that it is the man who asks the woman to marry him and not the reverse. In many countries, it is the/a convention to wear black at funerals. 2 [C] a common way of showing something in art or writing: an artistic convention conventional /k@n"vent.S@n.@l/ adjective 1 traditional and ordinary: conventional behaviour/attitudes/clothes conventional medicine/farming a conventional wedding DISAPPROVING I find his art rather dull and conventional. NOTE: The opposite is unconventional. 2 describes weapons which are not nuclear, or methods of fighting a war that do not involve nuclear weapons: conventional weapons/bombs conventionally /k@n"vent.S@n.@l.i/ adverb conventionality /k@n%vent.S@n"{l.I.ti/ US /-@.ºi/ noun [U] |
|
|
credulous
a |
tending to believe too readily; gullible
(noun form: credulity) |
credulous /"kred.jU.l@s/ adjective SLIGHTLY FORMAL
too willing to believe what you are told; easily deceived credulously /"kred.jU.l@.sli/ adverb SLIGHTLY FORMAL credulity /kr@"dju:.l@.ti/ US /-"du:.l@.ºi/ noun [U] (ALSO credulousness) SLIGHTLY FORMAL willingness to believe that something is real or true |
|
|
cynicism
n |
an attitude or quality of belief that all people are motivated by selfishness
(noun form: cynical) |
cynic /"sIn.Ik/ noun [C] DISAPPROVING
a person who believes that people are only interested in themselves and are not sincere: I'm too much of a cynic to believe that he'll keep his promise. A cynic might say that the government has only taken this measure because it is concerned about its declining popularity. cynicism /"sIn.I.sI.z@m/ noun [U] DISAPPROVING He's often been accused of cynicism in his attitude towards politics. |
|
|
decorum
n |
polite or appropriate conduct or behavior
(adjective form: decorous) |
decorum /dI"kO:.r@m/ US /-"kO:r.@m/ noun [U] FORMAL
behaviour that is controlled, calm and polite: As young ladies we were expected to act/behave with proper decorum. |
|
|
derision
n |
scorn, ridicule, contemptuous treatment
(adjective form: derisive; verb form: deride) |
deride /dI"raId/ verb [T] FORMAL
to laugh at someone or something in a way which shows you think they are ridiculous or of no value: He derided my singing as pathetic. This building, once derided by critics, is now a major tourist attraction. derision /dI"rIZ.@n/ noun [U] FORMAL when someone or something is laughed at and considered ridiculous or of no value: They treated his suggestion with derision. Her speech was met with hoots/howls of derision. derisive /dI"raI.sIv/ adjective (ALSO derisory) FORMAL showing derision: derisive laughter a derisive comment/remark See also derisory. derisively /dI"raI.sIv.li/ adverb FORMAL |
|
|
desiccate
v |
to dry out or dehydrate;
to make dry or dull |
desiccated /"des.I.keI.tId/ US /-ºId/ adjective
1 dried: 100g of desiccated (= dried and broken into small pieces) coconut 2 DISAPPROVING not interesting or completely lacking in imagination: All the party seems to have to offer is the same desiccated old ideas. desiccation /%des.I"keI.S@n/ noun [U] SPECIALIZED the process of becoming completely dried |
|
|
dilettante
n |
one with amateurish or superficial interest in the arts or a branch of knowledge
|
dilettante /%dIl.@"t{n.ti/ noun [C] plural dilettantes or dilettanti USUALLY DISAPPROVING
a person who is or seems to be interested in a subject, but whose understanding of it is not very deep: He's a bit of a dilettante as far as wine is concerned. |
|
|
disparage
v |
to slight or belittle
|
disparage /dI"sp{r.IdZ/ US /-"sper-/ verb [T]
to criticize someone or something in a way that shows you do not respect or value them: The actor's work for charity has recently been disparaged in the press as an attempt to get publicity. disparaging /dI"sp{r.I.dZIN/ US /-"sper-/ adjective critical, in a way that shows you do not respect or value someone: disparaging remarks disparagingly /dI"sp{r.I.dZIN.li/ US /-"sper-/ adverb disparagement /dI"sp{r.IdZ.m@nt/ US /-"sper-/ noun [U] |
|
|
divulge
v |
to disclose something secret
|
divulge /daI"vVldZ/ verb [T]
to make something secret known: Journalists do not divulge their sources. [+ question word] The managing director refused to divulge how much she earned. |
|
|
fawn
v |
to flatter or praise excessively
|
fawn over/on sb phrasal verb DISAPPROVING
to praise someone too much and give them a lot of attention which is not sincere in order to get a positive reaction: I hate waiters who fawn over you. fawning /fO:.nIN/ US /fA:-/ adjective DISAPPROVING a fawning young man fawn on/upon sb phrasal verb If an animal such as a dog fawns on/upon you, it is very friendly towards you and rubs itself against you. fawn (BROWN) /fO:n/ US /fA:n/ adjective, noun [U] (having) a pale yellowish brown colour fawn (BROWN) /fO:n/ US /fA:n/ adjective, noun [U] (having) a pale yellowish brown colour fawn (DEER) /fO:n/ US /fA:n/ noun [C] a young deer |
|
|
flout
v |
to show contempt for, as in a rule or convention
|
flout /flaUt/ verb [T]
to intentionally disobey a rule, law, or custom: Many motorcyclists flout the law by not wearing helmets. The orchestra decided to flout convention/tradition, and wear their everyday clothes for the concert. |
