Vocabulary Building

Front 1

acrimonious

Back 1

angry; bitter; disputed.

Front 2

ad nauseam

Back 2

something that goes on and on, or is done over and over again, to a ridiculous, even sickening degree

Front 3

adulatory

Back 3

complimentary; giving of effusive praise

Front 4

akimbo

Back 4

with hands on hips and elbows turned outward

Front 5

ameliorate

Back 5

to correct a deficiency or defect; to make right a wrong; to take actions that make up, at least in part, for negative actions or failure to take action previously.

Front 6

anachronism

Back 6

a person, place, thing, or idea whose time is past, and that seem to belong to an earlier age.

Front 7

antidisestablishmentarianism

Back 7

a movement or protest against an established institution or authority.

Front 8

apocryphal

Back 8

an event, story, legend, or rumor that has been told so often, and so long after the fact, that one has good reason to doubt its authenticity, nor can it be verified through research.

Front 9

apostasy

Back 9

the act of abandoning, ignoring, or openly flaunting an accepted principle or belief.

Front 10

approbation

Back 10

official approval or commendation

Front 11

artifice

Back 11

the use of clever strategies and cunning methods to fool or best others and tip an outcome in your favor

Front 12

asunder

Back 12

a whole that has been split into parts; a union that has been eliminated, leaving the people or things once joined now seperate.

Front 13

avant-grande

Back 13

new and experimental; especially referring to art, writing, architecture, and music

Front 14

aver

Back 14

to assert the truthfulness of a statement

Front 15

axiom

Back 15

a truth or fact that is seen as self-evident, leaving no room for question or debate

Front 16

bailwick

Back 16

a person's specific area of expertise, experience, skill, knowledge, education or authority

Front 17

belles lettres

Back 17

Novels, short stories, poems, and other writings read for their grace and literary style and not necessarily their content

Front 18

bellicose

Back 18

belligerent, surly, ready to argue or fight at the slightest provocation

Front 19

bereft

Back 19

lacking a certain characteristic, possession, or trait; isolated and lonely.

Front 20

bifurcate

Back 20

to divide something into two branches or forks

Front 21

bourgeois

Back 21

Pertaining or relating to the middle class, as opposed to the upper class or royalty on one end and the peasants or common laborers on the other.

Front 22

braggadocio

Back 22

empty boasting or bragging

Front 23

brouhaha

Back 23

a confusing, exciting, and turmoil-rife event.

Front 24

bulwark

Back 24

a defensive, protective barrier, wall or force.

Front 25

byzantine

Back 25

a convoluted plan; a scheme that is overly complicated; a puzzle or task that's difficult to figure out because of its complexity

Front 26

caducous

Back 26

transitory; short-lived; perishable.

Front 27

capitulation

Back 27

the act of surrendering or giving up.

Front 28

capricious

Back 28

prone to quickly change one's mind, decision, or course of action at the drop of a hat or on impulse.

Front 29

circumspect

Back 29

prudent, cautious, and well considered

Front 30

cognizant

Back 30

aware of the realities of a situation

Front 31

concomitant

Back 31

something that exists or occurs with something else

Front 32

concupiscence

Back 32

unbridled lust in the extreme--horniness.

Front 33

confabulate

Back 33

to chat or converse informally

Front 34

contiguous

Back 34

adjacent; sharing a common border; sitting next to one another in a row or sequence

Front 35

convivial

Back 35

fond of feasting, drinking, and companionship.

Front 36

coup

Back 36

when a person already in a position of power forcibly seizes control.

Front 37

cull

Back 37

to gather, amass, or collect.

Front 38

dauntless

Back 38

frequent indulgence in sensual pleasures

Front 39

de facto

Back 39

existing in fact

Front 40

defunct

Back 40

an institution, object, etc., that has ceased to exist

Front 41

demagogue

Back 41

a politician who owes his popularity largely to pandering to popular opinion and catering to the wishes of his constituency.

Front 42

demur

Back 42

to make an objection on the grounds of scruples

Front 43

deprecate

Back 43

to express sever disapproval of another's actions

Front 44

de rigueur

Back 44

conforming to current standards or behavior, fashion, style, and etiquette.

Front 45

desultory

Back 45

acting without plan or purpose; activity that seems random or haphazard.

Front 46

dichotomy

Back 46

division into two parts, especially into two seemingly contradictory parts

Front 47

dilettante

Back 47

a person who studies a subject in a casual fashion, learning the topic for the fun of it rather than to apply it to solve real problems.

Front 48

disenfranchise

Back 48

to deny someone a right or privilege; to make someone feel rejected and apart.

Front 49

disparate

Back 49

describes two or more things that differ greatly from one another and cannot be logically reconciled.

Front 50

Draconian

Back 50

strict; mean-spirited; excessively harsh; cruel; punishment or restriction meant to cause misery to those receiving it.