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63 Cards in this Set
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abduct
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to carry off or lead away (a person) illegally and in secret or by force, esp. to kidnap.
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kidnap, snatch, spirit away
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adduce
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to bring forward in argument or as evidence; cite as pertinent or conclusive: to adduce reasons in support of a constitutional amendment.
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cite, lay,
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androgynous
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having both masculine and feminine characteristics; having an ambiguous sexual identity.
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apostasy
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a total desertion of or departure from one's religion, principles, party, cause, etc.
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defection
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auguries
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the art or practice of an augur; divination; an omen, token, or indication.
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foretoken, portent, presage, prognostication
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bask
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to lie in or be exposed to a pleasant warmth: to bask in the sunshine; to enjoy a pleasant situation: He basked in royal favor.
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indulge, revel, wallow,
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boorish
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unmannered; crude; insensitive.
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barbarian, churlish, crass uncivilized, vulgar
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bursar
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a treasurer or business officer, esp. of a college or university.
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caulking
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To make watertight or airtight by filling or sealing: caulk a pipe joint; caulked the cracks between the boards with mud.
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clarity
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clearness or lucidity as to perception or understanding; freedom from indistinctness or ambiguity. ; the state or quality of being clear or transparent to the eye; pellucidity: the clarity of pure water.
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distinctness, limpidity, lucidity, perspicuity
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congenial
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agreeable, suitable, or pleasing in nature or character: congenial surroundings; suited or adapted in spirit, feeling, temper, etc.; compatible: a congenial couple.
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favorable, good, grateful, gratifying, nice, pleasant, pleasing, pleasurable, satisfying, welcome,
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convivial
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friendly or agreeable; fond of feasting, drinking, and merry company
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sociable, social, jovial
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cringe
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to shrink, bend, or crouch, esp. in fear or servility; to fawn.
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blench, quail, recoil, shrink, shy, start, wince
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daunt
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to overcome with fear; intimidate: to daunt one's adversaries; to lessen the courage of: Don't be daunted by the amount of work still to be done.
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appall, consternate, horrify, shake, shock,
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defoliate
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to strip (a tree, bush, etc.) of leaves.
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desultory
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lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation; digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.
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pointless, purposeless
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disconcerted
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to disturb the self-possession of; perturb; ruffle: Her angry reply disconcerted me completely; to throw into disorder or confusion; disarrange: He changed his mind and disconcerted everybody's plans.
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abash, chagrin, confound, faze
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dovish
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an innocent, gentle, or tender person.
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embittered
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To make bitter in flavor; To arouse bitter feelings in: was embittered by years of unrewarded labo
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acrimonious, hard, rancorous, virulent
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euphonious
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pleasant in sound; agreeable to the ear; characterized by euphony: a sweet, euphonious voice.
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dulcet, melodic
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expurgation
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to amend by removing words, passages, etc., deemed offensive or objectionable: Most children read an expurgated version of Grimms' fairy tales; to purge or cleanse of moral offensiveness.
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excise, censor, purge
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fanciful
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characterized by or showing fancy; capricious or whimsical in appearance: a fanciful design of butterflies and flowers; led by fancy rather than by reason and experience; whimsical: a fanciful mind.
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fantastical, imaginative, whimsical
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frivolous
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characterized by lack of seriousness or sense: frivolous conduct; of little or no weight, worth, or importance; not worthy of serious notice: a frivolous suggestion.
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flighty, harebrained, lighthearted
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fulminate
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to explode with a loud noise; to issue denunciations or the like (usually fol. by against): The minister fulminated against legalized vice.
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blast, detonate
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garrote
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strangulation or throttling, esp. in the course of a robbery; an instrument, usually a cord or wire with handles attached at the ends, used for strangling a victim.
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grating
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A fixed frame of bars or the like covering an opening to exclude persons, animals, coarse material, or objects while admitting light, air, or fine material.
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impromptu
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made or done without previous preparation: an impromptu address to the unexpected crowds; having the character of an improvisation.
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ad-lib, improvised, spur-of-the-moment, unrehearsed
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indebted
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committed or obligated to repay a monetary loan: He was indebted to his friend for a large sum; obligated for favors or kindness received: He was indebted to her for nursing him through pneumonia.
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beholden, bound, obligated,
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ingest
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To take into the body by the mouth for digestion or absorption
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consume, devour, fare, partake,
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interim
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An intervening time; interval; meantime: in the interim.
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break, hiatus, lacuna, void,
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iridescence
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Iridescent quality; a play of lustrous, changing colors
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laminate
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to separate or split into thin layers; to form (metal) into a thin plate, as by beating or rolling.
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listless
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Having or showing little or no interest in anything; spiritless; indifferent: a listless mood; a listless handshake.
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detached, lethargic, phlegmatic, stolid, languid
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mantel
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a construction framing the opening of a fireplace and usually covering part of the chimney breast in a more or less decorative manner.
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membrane
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A thin, pliable sheet or layer of animal or vegetable tissue, serving to line an organ, connect parts, etc.
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lamina, sheath, sheathing
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monosyllabic
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having only one syllable, as the word no; very brief; terse or blunt: a monosyllabic reply.
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naysayer
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a person who habitually expresses negative or pessimistic views: Despite a general feeling that things were going well, a few naysayers tried to cast gloom.
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obfuscation
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to make obscure or unclear: to obfuscate a problem with extraneous information
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muddle, perplex, cloud.
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omnipresent
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present everywhere at the same time: the omnipresent God.
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pageantry
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ubiquitous, universal
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peevishness
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showing annoyance, irritation, or bad mood: a peevish reply; a peevish frown.
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petulant, irritable, snappish
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pertinent
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pertaining or relating directly and significantly to the matter at hand; relevant: pertinent details.
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applicable, apposite, apropos, germane
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plebeian
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belonging or pertaining to the common people; common, commonplace, or vulgar: a plebeian joke.
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ponderous
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of great weight; heavy; massive.
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elephantine, heavy-handed, labored
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procurement
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to obtain or get by care, effort, or the use of special means: to procure evidence; to bring about, esp. by unscrupulous and indirect means: to procure secret documents.
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acquire, gain, obtain, secure
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proselyte
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a person who has changed from one opinion, religious belief, sect, or the like, to another; convert.
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quagmire
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an area of miry or boggy ground whose surface yields under the tread; a bog; a situation from which extrication is very difficult: a quagmire of financial indebtedness.
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dilemma, fix, plight
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regressive
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regressing or tending to regress; retrogressive.
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backslide, lapse, retrogress, revert,
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requiem
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Any musical service, hymn, or dirge for the repose of the dead.
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risible
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causing or capable of causing laughter; having the ability, disposition, or readiness to laugh.
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comical, humorous, laughable, zany
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salvo
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a simultaneous or successive discharge of artillery, bombs, etc; a round of fire given as a salute; a round of cheers or applause.
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bombardment, cannonade, fusillade
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seditious
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of, pertaining to, or of the nature of sedition.
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traitorous, treasonable,
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slander
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a malicious, false, and defamatory statement or report: a slander against his good name; Law. defamation by oral utterance rather than by writing, pictures, etc.
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calumniation, defamation, denigration, vilification
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spartan
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sternly disciplined and rigorously simple, frugal, or austere; brave; undaunted.
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harsh, severe, stark, austere
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succinct
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expressed in few words; compressed into a small area, scope, or compass.
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compendious, concise, laconic, terse
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swindle
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to cheat (a person, business, etc.) out of money or other assets; to obtain by fraud or deceit.
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trick, victimize
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tidal
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of, pertaining to, characterized by, or subject to tides: a tidal current.
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current, flux, spate, surge
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treacly
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Contrived or unrestrained sentimentality: a movie plot of the most shameless treacle.
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unequivocal
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Unambiguous; clear; having only one possible meaning or interpretation: an unequivocal indication of assent; unequivocal proof.
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explicit, precise, specific, unambiguous
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utopian
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founded upon or involving idealized perfection; an ardent but impractical political or social reformer; visionary
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idealist, visionary,
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vex
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to annoy: His noisy neighbors often vexed him; to discuss or debate (a subject, question, etc.) with vigor or at great length: to vex a question endlessly without agreeing.
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aggravate, exasperate, irk, irritate, provoke
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wizen
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to wither; shrivel; dry up.
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mummify, sear
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entrenched
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To fix firmly or securely: "Today managed care plans are entrenched in the economy, enrolling 61 percent of the population" (Peter T. Kilborn).
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ineradicable, ingrained, set
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