Sat Hit Parade List Nine

Front 1

abhor

Back 1

to hate

Hint 1

Her jaw tensed at the sight of him; it wasn't hard to believe that she abhorred the man.

Front 2

accretion

Back 2

growth by addition

Hint 2

With the accretion of new members, the club doubled its original size.

Front 3

affable

Back 3

friendly

Hint 3

Her affable personality naturally attracted many people to her.

Front 4

alleviate

Back 4

to lessen

Hint 4

Advil or Tylenol will alleviate the pain of a headache.

Front 5

amorphous

Back 5

1. with no shape
2. unorganized

Hint 5

1. An amorphous gel seeped through the cracks.
2. The amorphous hiking group lost its way in the forest.

Front 6

arboreal

Back 6

of or pertaining to trees

Hint 6

The arboreal apes sought safety from their predators by climbing to the top of the trees.

Front 7

aspersion

Back 7

slanderous statement; a damaging or derogatory criticism

Hint 7

The aspersion damaged the credibility of the organization.

Front 8

austere

Back 8

1. having a stern look
2. having strict discipline

Hint 8

1. The old woman always has an austere look about her.
2. The headmaster was known as an austere teacher.

Front 9

boor

Back 9

a rude person

Hint 9

The boor was not invited to the party, but he came anyway.

Front 10

castigate

Back 10

to punish through public criticism

Hint 10

The mayor castigated the police chief for the rash of robberies.

Front 11

choleric

Back 11

ill-tempered; easily angered

Hint 11

The children were afraid of the choleric neighbor because he always yelled at them for being too loud.

Front 12

collusion

Back 12

a secret agreement for an illegal purpose

Hint 12

The authorities discovered collusion between the director and treasurer.

Front 13

connive

Back 13

to cooperate secretly in wrongdoing

Hint 13

They connived to take our the business.

Front 14

crass

Back 14

stupid; unrefined; gross

Hint 14

My respect for the man was lowered when he made the crass remark.

Front 15

demur

Back 15

1. to hesitate due to doubts
2. an objection raised

Hint 15

1. She demurred her decision to jump into the water when she thought she saw a shark.
2. While the defense attorney cross-examined the witness, the prosecutor stood up and offered a demur.

Front 16

diminutive

Back 16

smaller than average

Hint 16

A booklet is a diminutive form of a book.

Front 17

dubious

Back 17

1. causing doubt
2. hesitating
3. an undecided outcome

Hint 17

1. The new information was dubious enough to re-open the case.
2. Her dubious objections went unheeded.
3. Too close to call, the outcome of the fight remains somewhat dubious.

Front 18

embellish

Back 18

to improve by adding details

Hint 18

Adding beads to a garment will embellish it.

Front 19

ephemeral

Back 19

very short-lived; lasting only a short time

Hint 19

Living alone gave him ephemeral contentment soon to be replaced by utter loneliness.

Front 20

evoke

Back 20

to call forth; to provoke

Hint 20

Seeing her only daughter get married evoked tears of happiness from the mother.

Front 21

facade

Back 21

front view; false appearance

Hint 21

He acted as though he was not bothered by her rejection, but it was all a facade.

Front 22

fecund

Back 22

productive

Hint 22

The construction crew had a fecund day and was able to leave early.

Front 23

flagrant

Back 23

glaringly wrong

Hint 23

The flagrant foul was apparent to everyone.

Front 24

germane

Back 24

relevant to the point

Hint 24

Her essay lacked enough germane information to warrant a failing grade.

Front 25

imbue

Back 25

to soak or stain

Hint 25

The wound will imbue the shirt in blood.

Front 26

impromptu

Back 26

without advanced thought

Hint 26

The executive needed to make an impromptu speech.

Front 27

indict

Back 27

to formally accuse

Hint 27

The grand jury will indict the suspect when there is enough evidence.

Front 28

inimical

Back 28

hostile; unfriendly

Hint 28

The chess player directed an inimical stare at his opponent to knock him off his game.

Front 29

intermittent

Back 29

alternately stopping and beginning again

Hint 29

The intermittent sound of the hammering on the roof interrupted my concentration.

Front 30

licentious

Back 30

morally lacking in restraint

Hint 30

The people of Sodom and Gomorrah were infamous for their licentious lifestyle.

Front 31

mendacious

Back 31

not truthful; lying

Hint 31

The couple was swindled out of their lives' savings by the mendacious con men.

Front 32

obfuscate

Back 32

to darken, to confuse, to bewilder

Hint 32

The professor obfuscated the theory with extraneous information, instead of making it clearer to his students.

Front 33

palliate

Back 33

1.to alleviate or ease pain but not cure

2.to make appear less sevious

Hint 33

1. The medication will help palliate the pain.

2. The lawyer attempted to palliate the offense to the jury.

Front 34

parity

Back 34

the state of being the same in power, value, or rank

Hint 34

When the younger brother was promoted to co-president with the elder son, it established parity between the two.

Front 35

perdition

Back 35

eternal damnation of the soul

Hint 35

The woman attended church every Sunday for fear of perdition.

Front 36

portent

Back 36

to be an omen of; signify

Hint 36

The distant role of thunder portends an oncoming storm.

Front 37

prodigious

Back 37

enormous

Hint 37

The new skyscraper was a prodigious addition to the skyline.

Front 38

pugnacious

Back 38

combatant in nature; wishing to fight

Hint 38

His pugnacious spirit often landed him in trouble.

Front 39

recalcitrant

Back 39

stubbornly rebellious

Hint 39

The boy became recalcitrant when the curfew was enforced.

Front 40

reprobate

Back 40

to condemn

Hint 40

The teacher will reprobate the actions of the delinquent student.

Front 41

risible

Back 41

amusing

Hint 41

The risible speech made the audience chuckle.

Front 42

sloth

Back 42

laziness

Hint 42

The demanding nun would not tolerate sloth from her students.

Front 43

stymie

Back 43

to hinder or obstruct.

Hint 43

Large amounts of snowfall will stymie the rescue effort.

Front 44

surmise

Back 44

1. (noun) a guess
2. (verb) to guess

Hint 44

1. Was my surmise correct?
2. I surmise that we will not arrive at the party on time.

Front 45

tepid

Back 45

1. lukewarm
2. characterized by a lack of force or enthusiasm

Hint 45

1. I enjoy my bath water tepid.
2. The critics' tepid reception for the new play dismayed the actors.

Front 46

transmute

Back 46

to transform

Hint 46

Decorators transmute ordinary homes into interesting showcases.

Front 47

unobtrusive

Back 47

out of the way; remaining quietly in the background

Hint 47

The shy man found an unobtrusive seat in the far corner of the room.

Front 48

vicissitude

Back 48

unpredictable change occurring in life

Hint 48

He attributed his rise to fortune and fall into bankruptcy to the vicissitudes of life.

Front 49

waive

Back 49

1. to give up
2. to put off until later

Hint 49

1. I will waive my rights to have a lawyer present because I don't think I need one.
2. As hard as he tried, he could only waive his responsibility for so long.

Front 50

wizened

Back 50

shriveled; withered

Hint 50

The wizened face of the old man was covered by his hat.