The Great Gatsby Vocabulary

Front 1

abstracted

Back 1

withdrawn in mind; inattentive to one's surroundings

Front 2

abyss

Back 2

1.the bottomless gulf, pit, or chaos of the old cosmogonies
2.(a)an immeasurably deep gulf or great space (b)intellectual or moral depths

Front 3

acute

Back 3

1.(a)characterized by sharpness or severity (b)lasting a short time
2.an angle less than 90 degress
3.marked with an acute accent
4.felt, perceived, or experienced intensely
5.seriously demanding urgent attention

Front 4

addenda

Back 4

1.a thing added; addition
2.a supplement to a book

Front 5

aesthetic

Back 5

1.(a)of, relating to, or dealing with aesthetics or the beautiful (b)artistic (c)pleasing in appearance; attractive

Front 6

ambiguously

Back 6

1.(a)doubtful or uncertain esp. from obscurity or indistinctness (b)inexplicable
2.capable of being understood in two or more possible senses or ways

Front 7

amorphous

Back 7

1.(a)having no definite form; shapeless (b)being without definite character or nature; unclassifiable (c)lacking organization or unity
2.having no real or apparent crystalline form

Front 8

antecendents

Back 8

1.a word or phrase replaced by a substitute
2.the conditional element in a proposition
3.the first term of a mathematical ratio
4.the significant events, conditions, and traits of one's earlier life
5.(a)predecessor esp. a model or stimulus for later developments (b)ancestors; parents

Front 9

apathetically

Back 9

1.having or showing little or no feeling or emotion; spiritless
2.having little or no interest or concern; indifferent

Front 10

appended

Back 10

1.attach; affix
2.to add as a suplement or appendix (as in a book)

Front 11

bantering

Back 11

1.to speak in a witty and teasing manner
2.delude
3.challenge

Front 12

bizarre

Back 12

strikingly out of the ordinary as (a)odd, extravagent, or eccentric in style or mode (b)involving sensational contrasts or incongruities

Front 13

boisterously

Back 13

1.(a)coarse (b)durable, strong (c)massive
2.(a)noisily turbulent; rowdy (b)marked by or expressive of exuberance and high spirits
3.stormy; tumultuous

Front 14

buoyed

Back 14

1.to mark by or as if by a buoy
2.(a)to keep afloat (b)support, uplift
3.to raise the spirits of

Front 15

clamor

Back 15

1.(a)noisy shouting (b)a loud continuous noise
2.Insistent public expression (as of support or protest)

Front 16

combustion

Back 16

1.an act or instance of burning
2.a usually rapid chemical process (oxidation) that produces heat and usually light
3.violent agitation; tumult

Front 17

commensurate

Back 17

1.equal in measure or extent; coextensive
2.corresponding in size, extent, amount, or degree; proportionate

Front 18

complacency

Back 18

self-satisfaction esp. when accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiences

Front 19

confounding

Back 19

1.(a)to bring to ruin; destroy (b)baffle, frustrate
2.consume, waste
3.(a)to put to shame; discomfit (b)refute
4.to throw (a person) into confusion or perplexity
5.(a)to fail to discern differences between; mix up (b)to increase the confusion of

Front 20

contemptuous

Back 20

manifesting, feeling, or expressing contempt (the act of despising; the state of mind of one who despises; disdain)

Front 21

convivial

Back 21

relating to, occupied with, or fond of feasting, drinking, and good company

Front 22

corpulent

Back 22

having a large bulky body; obese

Front 23

corroborated

Back 23

to support with evidence or authority; make more certain

Front 24

corrugated

Back 24

having corrugations (a ridge or groove of a surface)

Front 25

credulity

Back 25

readiness or willingness to believe esp. on slight or uncertain evidence

Front 26

crescendo

Back 26

1.(a)a gradual increase (in volume of a musical passage) (b)the peak of a gradual increase; climax
2.a crescendo musical passage

Front 27

cynical

Back 27

1.captious; peevish
2.having or showing the attitude or temper of a cynic as (a)contemptuously distrustful of human nature and motives (b)based on or reflecting a belief that human conduct is motivated primarily by self-interest

Front 28

debauchee

Back 28

one given to debauchery (extreme indulgence in sensuality)

Front 29

deft

Back 29

characterized by facility and skill; dexterous

Front 30

defunct

Back 30

no longer living, existing, or functioning