Vocabulary From Classical Roots

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Caput, Capitis

Back 1

<L. "head"

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1. capitalist

Back 2

n. 1. A person who has invested personal wealth in business.
2. A very wealthy person

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2. capitulation

Back 3

n. Surrender; ending in resistance

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3. decapitate

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[de <L. "from," "away from"]
tr. v. To cut off the head of; to behead

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4. precipice

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[pre = prae <L. "before"]
n. A very steep or vertical face of a cliff or rock.
2. The edge of a dangerous situation

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5. precipitate

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[pre = prae <L. "before"]
tr. v. 1. To throw down from a great height.
2. To make happen suddenly or quickly
3. adj. Speeding along heedlessly; headstrong

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6. recapitulation

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[re <L. "back," again"]
n. 1. The restatement of a main idea.
2. A summary or concise review.

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Cerebrum

Back 8

<L. "brain"

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7. cerebral

Back 9

adj. 1. Pertaining to the brain.
2. Intellectual

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8. cerebration

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n. The action of thinking; thought

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Facies

Back 11

<L. "face," "form," "shape"

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9. deface

Back 12

[de <L. "from," "away from"]
tr. v. To mar or spoil the appearance or surface of (something)

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10. efface

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[e = ex <L. "from," "out of"]
tr. v. 1. To wipe out; to obliterate. Also, to make less clear, as if rubbing out.
2. To make oneself inconspicuous

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11. facade

Back 14

n. 1. A face of a building.
2. The face or front of anything, especially an artificial or false front

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12. facet

Back 15

n. 1. One of the many sides of a cut stone or jewel.
2. One aspect of a situation, or of a tooth

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Frons, Frontis

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<L. "front," "forehead," "face"

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13. affront

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[af = ad <L. "to," "toward"]
tr. v. To insult intentionally; to offend or embarrass.
n. An insult or offensive act

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14. confront

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[con = cum <L. "with"]
tr. v. 1. To stand or come directly in front of.
2. To face with defiance or hostility

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15. effrontery

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[e = ex <L. "from," "out of"]
n. Flippant or insulting boldness; audacity

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Supercilium

Back 20

<L. "eyebrow"

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1. supercilius

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[super <L. "above" + cilium <L. eyelid." (A lifted eyebrow conveys an impression of haughtiness.)
adj. Disdainful; haughty and aloof

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Os, Oris

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<L. "mouth"

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Oro, Orare, Oravi, Oratum

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<L. "to speak"

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2. inexorable

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[in <L. "not"; ex <L. "out," "forth"]
adj. Relentless; unyielding

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3. oracle

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n. 1. A shrine where the ancient Greeks consulted one of their gods for advice or prophecy.
2. A prophecy made at such a shrine.
3. A person who transmits prophecy from a deity.
4. A person or thing regarded as able to give wise advice

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4. oration

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n. An address or formal speech given on a special occasion.

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5. orifice

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[-fice <L. ficere or facere, "to make"]
n. A mouth or vent; an opening

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6. osculate

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[osculum <L. "kiss"]
tr. and intr. v. To kiss (usually used playfully)

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Dens, Dentis

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<L. "tooth"

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7. indentation

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[in <L. "in"]
n. A cut or notch

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8. indenture

Back 31

[in <L. "in" (Indenture takes its meaning from the practice of cutting a document in half with identifying notches or by making identical notches in copies of a contract.)]
n. 1. A written contract between two parties.
2. (usually plural) An agreement binding an apprentice to work for a master.
tr. v. To bind by written contract

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9. trident

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[tri = tres <L. "three"]
n. A long three-pronged fork or weapon

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Odon, Odontis

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<G. "teeth"

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10. orthodontist

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[ortho <G. "straight," "correct"]
n. A specialist who corrects irregularly positioned teeth

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Gurges, Gurgitis

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<L. "throat," "whirlpool"

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11. gorge

Back 36

n. 1. A deep, narrow passage with rocky sides, enclosed between mountains.
2. Gluttonous eating.
3. A feeling of nausea (used with rise).
intr. v. 1. To eat greedily.
2. To fill full; to stuff

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12. disgorge

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[dis <L. "away from," "apart"]
tr. v. 1. To expel from the throat or stomach; to vomit.
2. To discharge violently

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13. gargantuan

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adj. Of immense size; gigantic. (This word is based on the name of the legendary giant Gargantua, whose name Francois Rabelais used in his satire Gargantua about a character who had enormous intellectual and physical appetites. Although this word is not directly linked with classical Latin, its literary association and surmised derivation from gurges warrant it a place here.)

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14. gargoyle

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n. A grotesque carved human or animal figure, especially one used as a rainspout carrying water clear of a wall.

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15. regurgitate

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[re <L. "back," "again"]
tr. v. 1. To cause to pour back or cast up partially digested food; to vomit.
2. To rush or surge back