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110 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
- 3rd side (hint)
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Advocate |
In favor of the underdog |
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Vocation |
Career |
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Provocative |
A deliberate action to call forth a response for someone |
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Irrevocable |
Something you cannot call back, cannot be undone. It is final, it is done |
Irrevocable promise, irrevocable decision |
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Equivocate |
When you give your voice to two opposing views in order to mislead or keep your options open |
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Pandemonium |
Utter confusion or wild uproar |
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Quixotic |
Idealistic but not practical |
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Cynical |
Doubting the goodness and sincerity of human motives |
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Stoic |
Indifferent to pain and pleasure |
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Stigma |
Mark of disgrace |
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Inspect |
Look over carefully |
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Introspection |
Contemplation of your own thoughts and desires of conduct |
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Perspective |
A way of regarding situations or topics |
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Spectacle |
Something or someone seen, especially a notable sight |
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Speculate |
Reflect deeply on a subject |
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Expidite |
Process fast and efficiently |
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Impede |
Be a hindrance or obstacle to |
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Labyrinth |
Complex system of paths in which it is easy to get lost |
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Laconic |
Brief and to the point |
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Tantalize |
Harass with persistent teasing or baiting |
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Antipathy |
Extreme, long endured hatred |
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Apathy |
Not caring about something others care about. |
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Empathy |
Feeling what others feel in a situation |
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Pathetic |
*meaning is context specific* typically in modern day, if something is pathetic, it is bad, negative, atrocious, along the lines of a loser. In some usage it means capable of evoking pity |
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Sympathy |
Intellectually understanding what others are feeling in a situation |
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Egregious |
Outstandingly bad |
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Gregarious |
Liking the company of others, social. |
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Lethargic |
Lazy, sluggish, lacking energy |
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Maudlin |
Excessively sentimental |
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Ostracize |
Exclude from society, refuse to associate with, banish |
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Benediction |
A devout expression of a wish for happiness, success, prosperity, etc. Of another person; notice that there are religious overtones to this word |
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Benefactor |
Distinguishable part of meaning is related to magnitude; a person that helps people or institutions (especially with financial help) |
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Beneficial |
Description of something that brings about good results |
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Benevolent/benevolence |
Showing or motivated by sympathy and understanding and generosity |
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Benign |
Mild or favorable; inoffensive; non-threatening. This word had different connotations depending on Wether it's applied to a person or thing |
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Cupidity |
Greed for money |
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Jeopardize |
Put in danger |
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Martial |
Warlike, military, pertaining to the armed |
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Mesmerize |
Hypotnize, fascinate |
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Precarious |
Risky, unsafe, insecure |
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Fiasco |
Complete failure |
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Foible |
Minor (and usually amusing) fault, weakness. |
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Forte |
Strength or strongest point |
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Idiosyncrasy |
Personal peculiarity, usually of personality; a quirk. Not outright or very strongly negative, it still has some judgmental overtones to it |
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Protean |
Adaptable, capable of doing Many things well |
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Eulogy |
A speech, (though occasionally in writing), in which you are speaking well of someone who has died |
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Euphemism |
A use of language to camouflage meaning, whether to soften the blow or disguise an unpleasant situation |
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Euphony |
Any agreeable, pleasing and harmonious, sounds |
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Euphoria |
A feeling of happiness, magnitude and duration are the key discriminating factors. It is a high but also a very short one |
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Euthanasia |
The killing of someone, possibly yourself, in order to spare them from a greater pain. Intent matters |
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Malinger |
To fake an illness; usually to arouse sympathy, escape work, or to continue to receive compensation. |
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Dismal |
Literally meaning bad days, dismal means depressing or dreary. Think of those gray days where you dont want to get out of bed. |
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Malice |
The intent or desire to do evil. Strong connotation. |
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Malevolent |
Having or showing a wish to do evil to others: very strong connotation. |
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Malediction |
A magical invocation meant to curse someone |
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Decimate |
Destroy or kill a large part of |
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Narcissism |
Extreme self love or self admiration |
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Quintessence |
Most essential part of quality, perfect example. |
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Rankle |
Cause bitterness, hatred, or sentiment |
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Succumb |
To give in, give up; to die. |
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monologue |
literally this translates to speaking alone. There are two ways to engage in a monologue.. One—the literature term definition—is a dramatic speech delivered by one person. Two, a one-sided conversation |
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monotonous |
negative connotation suggesting tediousness and boredom |
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monopoly |
a fairly strong negative connotation; exclusive (or near exclusive) control over a product or a market |
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monochromatic |
in photography, it refers to a shot done with b&w film; in other use, it means using only one color and its various shades and tones. Think the ombre effect. |
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monogamy |
the state of being married to only one person (in its most strict sense this means being married to only one person ever, no remarriage after they die). In the more modern sense, monogamy is about being faithful to one person at a time. You can be a serial dater and still be monogamous as long as you don’t cheat. |
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iconoclast |
attacker of traditional or cherished beliefs, institutions, ideas |
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nemesis |
agent of revenge, punishment; difficult or unbeatable opponent (because they are your opposite butequal in strength); something incapable of being achieved or overcome |
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procrastinate |
put off till later |
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sardonic |
mockingly bitter or scornful; sarcastic |
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supercilious |
scornfully looking down on others; disdainfully superior |
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deduce |
conclude by logical reasoning; to be led to an answer based on facts presented to you and knowledge that you already have. The nuance of this word suggests that the conclusion is reasonable and obvious; if you have to make some sort of logical leap then it is not a deduction but rather an inference. |
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Induction |
A formal entry into an organization, position, or office; an act that sets in motion some course of events. Note that this should be the starting point of something (like your entry into NHS) not the culmination of something. If you intend to join the National Honor Society but then do nothing with them other than put it on your college application, you really should not attend the induction ceremony. You should only be inducted if you intend to begin work with the organization (this is of course theory; reality is different) |
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conduct |
to manage; to direct the course of |
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traduce |
to speak unfavorably about someone or something. Connotation-wise this is more than trash talk; it is akin to slander or maliciously blackening someone’s name |
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conducive |
making a certain situation or outcome likely or possible; a contributing factor to achieving something. Cold temperatures, wet roads, and paranoid parents are conducive to a snow day instead of school; they are each contributing factors when combined but not triggers in and of themselves |
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atone |
to make up for a wrong |
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capricious |
changeable, unpredictable |
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introvert |
one who is mainly concerned with self-examination and one’s own inner life rather than with others |
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lewd |
lustful, indecent, obcene |
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panacea |
a remedy for all desires, sufferings, troubles |
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allude |
to touch lightly upon a subject in a joking or playful manner |
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collude |
act in unison or agreement and in secret towards a deceitful or illegal purpose; act in unison or agreement and in secret towards a deceitful or illegal purpose. |
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delude |
1) to be false or deceitful; trick or fool, often in relation to yourself; 2) impose a misleading belief upon someone else |
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elude |
to avoid or escape by speed, cleverness, trickery; 2) to escape the understanding, perception, or appreciation of |
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interlude |
traditionally, a brief show (music or dance) inserted between the sections of a play. Now, it expands to any break in an “artistic” performance. So when a radio talk segment ends early and they play a brief bit of music to fill the time before the next segment begins, it is considered an interlude. |
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aloof |
reserved, detached, unconcerned |
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curtail |
shorten, reduce, lessen |
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jovial |
full of hearty humor and fun; jolly |
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prevaricate |
mislead, stray from the truth, equivocate |
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succinct |
Briefly and clearly expressed |
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haggard |
looking worn and tired |
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havoc |
great destruction or confusion |
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mentor |
wise, trusted teacher or counselor |
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scruple |
doubt or uneasiness as to what is right or proper |
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travesty |
ridiculous representation or imitation |
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abdicate |
to give up power and authority; typically a formal renouncing of power, but it can be accomplished also by neglecting one’s duties |
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aberration |
to find loathsome or cringe-worthy (literally); to be extremely averse to something. Not a 10 on the intensity scale but a strong 8 or 9. |
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abnegate |
to disavow or deny a former belief that was wrong. This is a very culturally specific word, and you should notice that it uses two negative roots ab- and neg- So this word means to move away from a wrong-headed idea or to—in some sense—become right-thinking. |
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abrasive |
a characteristic (literally or metaphorically) that wears away at something else |
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abhor |
to find loathsome or cringe-worthy (literally); to be extremely averse to something. Not a 10 on the intensity scale but a strong 8 or 9. |
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candid |
honest, straightforward, clear |
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diffident |
unassertive, timid, perhaps lacking in self-confidence |
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hypocrisy |
pretending to be what one is not (usually related to values and morals that one does not have) |
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mercurial |
changeable, unpredictable, |
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zealous |
extremely enthusiastic, devoted |
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paternal |
of or relating to fathers or fatherhood; this is a value neutral word in contrast to the highly negative paternalistic which suggests crossing over a line of acceptable intervention. It is paternal of me to remind you to do your homework; it is paternalistic if I do it for you because I don't think you can do it yourself. |
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patronage |
the encouragement, influence, or support of a patron, as toward an artist, institution, etc. This goes beyond benevolence to suggest not just a helpful attitude but one that is protective as well. |
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patriot |
someone who is loyal to their own country (fatherland) |
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patronize |
two definitions. As a neutral term, it means to be a regular customer of a store. As a pejorative, it means to treat someone as if they were less intelligent than yourself |
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patrician |
a person of high rank, good breeding, and education |
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