Vocabulary 1

Front 1

sacrilege

Back 1

the violation or injurious treatment of a sacred object
Ex: They performed a sacrilege when they burned the bible.

Front 2

abash

Back 2

to destroy the self-confidence, poise, or self-possession of; disconcert; make ashamed or embarrassed
Ex: The bull abashed the student by making fun of his clothes.

Front 3

proximity

Back 3

nearness in place, time, order, occurrence, or relation
Ex: The proximity of the heat source allowed it to be detected by the sensor.

Front 4

auspicious

Back 4

promising success; propitious; opportune; favorable
Ex: The tennis player considered the sunny forecast an auspicious sign that she would win her match.

Front 5

succinct

Back 5

1. expressed in few words; concise; terse.
2. characterized by conciseness or verbal brevity.
3. compressed into a small area, scope, or compass.
Ex: The best diaries are rich and yet succinct.

Front 6

dexterity

Back 6

1. skill or adroitness in using the hands or body; agility.
2. mental adroitness or skill; cleverness.
Ex: Ballroom dancing, Tim has discovered, is an art form that rewards rhythm and dexterity over eyesight.

Front 7

conjecture

Back 7

1. the formation or expression of an opinion or theory without sufficient evidence for proof.
2. an opinion or theory so formed or expressed; guess; speculation.
3. Obsolete . the interpretation of signs or omens.
Ex: The physicist used his conjecture about subatomic particles to design an experiment.

Front 8

deluge

Back 8

1. a great flood of water; inundation; flood.
2. a drenching rain; downpour.
3. anything that overwhelms like a flood: a deluge of mail.
Ex: The deluge continued for hours, drenching the land and slowing traffic to a halt.

Front 9

emigrate

Back 9

to leave one country or region to settle in another; migrate
Ex: The family had to emigrate from New Jersey to Panama because of their mother’s job.

Front 10

orthodox

Back 10

1. of, pertaining to, or conforming to the approved form of any doctrine, philosophy, ideology, etc.
2. of, pertaining to, or conforming to beliefs, attitudes, or modes of conduct that are generally approved.
3. customary or conventional, as a means or method; established.
Ex: In our culture, it is orthodox to have an arranged marriage and has been a tradition for a very long time.

Front 11

fatuous

Back 11

1. foolish or inane, esp. in an unconscious, complacent manner; silly.
2. unreal; illusory.
Ex: His poetry was filled with fatuous images of flying cows and green sunflowers

Front 12

hypothetical

Back 12

1. assumed by hypothesis; supposed: a hypothetical case.
2. of, pertaining to, involving, or characterized by hypothesis: hypothetical reasoning.
Ex: Our economics assignment was to create a business plan for a hypothetical company.

Front 13

insinuate

Back 13

1. to suggest or hint slyly
2. to instill or infuse subtly or artfully, as into the mind: to insinuate doubts through propaganda.
Ex: His sly remark seemed to insinuate that they were lying.

Front 14

martyr

Back 14

1. a person who willingly suffers death rather than renounce his or her religion.
2. a person who is put to death or endures great suffering on behalf of any belief, principle, or cause: a martyr to the cause of social justice.
3. a person who undergoes severe or constant suffering: a martyr to severe headaches.
Ex: One can argue that Martin Luther King Jr. was a martyr to the civil rights movement.

Front 15

platitude

Back 15

1. a flat, dull, or trite remark, esp. one uttered as if it were fresh or profound.
2. the quality or state of being flat, dull, or trite: the platitude of most political oratory.
Ex: I think the most annoying platitude to hear while in the waiting room would be, “Patience is a virtue.”

Front 16

veracity

Back 16

1. habitual observance of truth in speech or statement; truthfulness: He was not noted for his veracity.
2. conformity to truth or fact; accuracy: to question the veracity of his account.
3. correctness or accuracy, as of the senses or of a scientific instrument.
Ex: With several agencies regulating the reports, it was difficult for Latifah to argue against its veracity.

Front 17

ambivalent

Back 17

uncertainty or fluctuation, esp. when caused by inability to make a choice or by a simultaneous desire to say or do two opposite or conflicting things.
Ex: My feelings about Calvin are ambivalent because on one hand he is a loyal friend, but on the other, he is a cruel and vicious thief.