Words From Gre Word Groups

Front 1

audacious

Back 1

bold

Hint 1

1.
extremely bold or daring; recklessly brave; fearless: an audacious explorer.
2.
extremely original; without restriction to prior ideas; highly inventive: an audacious vision of the city's bright future.
3.
recklessly bold in defiance of convention, propriety, law, or the like; insolent; brazen.
4.
lively; unrestrained; uninhibited: an audacious interpretation of her role.

Front 2

courageous

Back 2

bold

Hint 2

possessing or characterized by courage; brave: a courageous speech against the dictator.

Front 3

dauntless

Back 3

bold

Hint 3

1.
not to be daunted or intimidated; fearless; intrepid; bold: a dauntless hero.

Front 4

capricious

Back 4

changing quickly

Hint 4

1.
subject to, led by, or indicative of caprice or whim; erratic: He's such a capricious boss I never know how he'll react.
2.
Obsolete . fanciful or witty.

Front 5

mercurial

Back 5

changing quickly

Hint 5

1.
changeable; volatile; fickle; flighty; erratic: a mercurial nature.
2.
animated; lively; sprightly; quick-witted.
3.
pertaining to, containing, or caused by the metal mercury.
4.
( initial capital letter ) of or pertaining to the god Mercury.
5.
( initial capital letter ) of or pertaining to the planet Mercury.

Front 6

volatile

Back 6

changing quickly

Hint 6

1.
evaporating rapidly; passing off readily in the form of vapor: Acetone is a volatile solvent.
2.
tending or threatening to break out into open violence; explosive: a volatile political situation.
3.
changeable; mercurial; flighty: a volatile disposition.
4.
(of prices, values, etc.) tending to fluctuate sharply and regularly: volatile market conditions.
5.
fleeting; transient: volatile beauty.

Front 7

dither

Back 7

hesitate

Hint 7

1.
a trembling; vibration.
2.
a state of flustered excitement or fear.
3.
to act irresolutely; vacillate.
4.
North England . to tremble with excitement or fear.

Front 8

oscillate

Back 8

hesitate

Hint 8

1.
to swing or move to and fro, as a pendulum does.
2.
to vary or vacillate between differing beliefs, opinions, conditions, etc.: He oscillates regularly between elation and despair.
3.
Physics . to have, produce, or generate oscillations.
4.
Mathematics . (of a function, sequence, etc.) to tend to no limit, including infinity: The sequence 0, 1, 0, 1, … oscillates.
5.
to cause to move to and fro; vibrate.

Front 9

teeter

Back 9

hesitate

Hint 9

1.
to move unsteadily.
2.
to ride a seesaw; teetertotter.
3.
to tip (something) up and down; move unsteadily.

Front 10

vacillate

Back 10

hesitate

Hint 10

1.
to waver in mind or opinion; be indecisive or irresolute: His tendency to vacillate makes him a poor leader.
2.
to sway unsteadily; waver; totter; stagger.
3.
to oscillate or fluctuate.

Front 11

waver

Back 11

hesitate

Hint 11

1.
to sway to and fro; flutter: Foliage wavers in the breeze.
2.
to flicker or quiver, as light: A distant beam wavered and then disappeared.
3.
become unsteady; begin to fail or give way: When she heard the news her courage wavered.
4.
to shake or tremble, as the hands or voice: Her voice wavered.
5.
to feel or show doubt, indecision, etc.; vacillate: He wavered in his determination.

Front 12

abrupt

Back 12

act quickly

Hint 12

1.
sudden or unexpected: an abrupt departure.
2.
curt or brusque in speech, manner, etc.: an abrupt reply.
3.
terminating or changing suddenly: an abrupt turn in a road.
4.
having many sudden changes from one subject to another; lacking in continuity or smoothness: an abrupt writing style.
5.
steep; precipitous: an abrupt descent.

Front 13

apace

Back 13

act quickly

Hint 13

with speed; quickly; swiftly.

Front 14

headlong

Back 14

act quickly

Hint 14

1.
with the head foremost; headfirst: to plunge headlong into the water.
2.
without delay; hastily: to plunge headlong into work.
3.
without deliberation; rashly: to rush headlong into battle.
4.
undertaken quickly and suddenly; made precipitately; hasty: a headlong flight.
5.
rash; impetuous: a headlong denunciation.
6.
done or going with the head foremost: a headlong dive into the pool.

Front 15

impetuous

Back 15

act quickly

Hint 15

1.
of, pertaining to, or characterized by sudden or rash action, emotion, etc.; impulsive: an impetuous decision; an impetuous person.
2.
having great impetus; moving with great force; violent: the impetuous winds.

Front 16

precipitate

Back 16

act quickly

Hint 16

1.
to hasten the occurrence of; bring about prematurely, hastily, or suddenly: to precipitate an international crisis.
2.
to cast down headlong; fling or hurl down.
3.
to cast, plunge, or send, especially violently or abruptly: He precipitated himself into the struggle.
4.
Chemistry . to separate (a substance) in solid form from a solution, as by means of a reagent.
5.
Meteorology . to fall to the earth's surface as a condensed form of water; to rain, snow, hail, drizzle, etc.
6.
to separate from a solution as a precipitate.
7.
to be cast or thrown down headlong.

Front 17

credulous

Back 17

innocent/inexperienced

Hint 17

1.
willing to believe or trust too readily, especially without proper or adequate evidence; gullible.
2.
marked by or arising from credulity: a credulous rumor.

Front 18

gullible

Back 18

innocent/inexperienced

Hint 18

easily deceived or cheated.

Front 19

ingenuous

Back 19

innocent/inexperienced

Hint 19

1.
free from reserve, restraint, or dissimulation; candid; sincere.
2.
artless; innocent; naive.
3.
Obsolete . honorable or noble.

Front 20

naive

Back 20

innocent/inexperienced

Hint 20

1.
having or showing unaffected simplicity of nature or absence of artificiality; unsophisticated; ingenuous.
2.
having or showing a lack of experience, judgment, or information; credulous: She's so naive she believes everything she reads. He has a very naive attitude toward politics.
3.
having or marked by a simple, unaffectedly direct style reflecting little or no formal training or technique: valuable naive 19th-century American portrait paintings.
4.
not having previously been the subject of a scientific experiment, as an animal.

Front 21

novitiate

Back 21

innocent/inexperienced
beginner/amateur

Hint 21

1.
the state or period of being a novice of a religious order or congregation.
2.
the quarters occupied by religious novices during probation.
3.
the state or period of being a beginner in anything.
4.
a novice.

Front 22

tyro

Back 22

innocent/inexperienced
beginner/amateur

Hint 22

a beginner in learning anything; novice.

Front 23

abstruse

Back 23

difficult to understand

Hint 23

1.
hard to understand; recondite; esoteric: abstruse theories.
2.
Obsolete . secret; hidden.

Front 24

ambiguous

Back 24

difficult to understand

Hint 24

1.
open to or having several possible meanings or interpretations; equivocal: an ambiguous answer.
2.
Linguistics . (of an expression) exhibiting constructional homonymity; having two or more structural descriptions, as the sequence Flying planes can be dangerous.
3.
of doubtful or uncertain nature; difficult to comprehend, distinguish, or classify: a rock of ambiguous character.
4.
lacking clearness or definiteness; obscure; indistinct: an ambiguous shape; an ambiguous future.

Front 25

arcane

Back 25

difficult to understand

Hint 25

known or understood by very few; mysterious; secret; obscure; esoteric: She knew a lot about Sanskrit grammar and other arcane matters.

Front 26

bemusing

Back 26

difficult to understand

Hint 26

to bewilder or confuse (someone).

Front 27

cryptic

Back 27

difficult to understand

Hint 27

1.
mysterious in meaning; puzzling; ambiguous: a cryptic message.
2.
abrupt; terse; short: a cryptic note.
3.
secret; occult: a cryptic writing.
4.
involving or using cipher, code, etc.
5.
Zoology . fitted for concealing; serving to camouflage.
6.
a cryptogram, especially one designed as a puzzle.

Front 28

enigmatic

Back 28

difficult to understand

Hint 28

resembling an enigma; perplexing; mysterious.

Front 29

esoteric

Back 29

difficult to understand
insincere

Hint 29

1.
understood by or meant for only the select few who have special knowledge or interest; recondite: poetry full of esoteric allusions.
2.
belonging to the select few.
3.
private; secret; confidential.
4.
(of a philosophical doctrine or the like) intended to be revealed only to the initiates of a group: the esoteric doctrines of Pythagoras.

Front 30

inscrutable

Back 30

difficult to understand

Hint 30

1.
incapable of being investigated, analyzed, or scrutinized; impenetrable.
2.
not easily understood; mysterious; unfathomable: an inscrutable smile.
3.
incapable of being seen through physically; physically impenetrable: the inscrutable depths of the ocean.

Front 31

obscure

Back 31

difficult to understand

Hint 31

1.
(of meaning) not clear or plain; ambiguous, vague, or uncertain: an obscure sentence in the contract.
2.
not clear to the understanding; hard to perceive: obscure motivations.
3.
(of language, style, a speaker, etc.) not expressing the meaning clearly or plainly.
4.
indistinct to the sight or any other sense; not readily seen, heard, etc.; faint.
5.
inconspicuous or unnoticeable: the obscure beginnings of a great movement.
12.
to conceal or conceal by confusing (the meaning of a statement, poem, etc.).
13.
to make dark, dim, indistinct, etc.
14.
to reduce or neutralize (a vowel) to the sound usually represented by a schwa (ə).

Front 32

opaque

Back 32

difficult to understand

Hint 32

1.
not transparent or translucent; impenetrable to light; not allowing light to pass through.
2.
not transmitting radiation, sound, heat, etc.
3.
not shining or bright; dark; dull.
4.
hard to understand; not clear or lucid; obscure: The problem remains opaque despite explanations.
5.
dull, stupid, or unintelligent.

Front 33

paradoxical

Back 33

difficult to understand

Hint 33

6.
something that is opaque.
7.
Photography . a coloring matter, usually black or red, used to render part of a negative opaque.

Front 34

perplexing

Back 34

difficult to understand

Hint 34

1.
to cause to be puzzled or bewildered over what is not understood or certain; confuse mentally: Her strange response perplexed me.
2.
to make complicated or confused, as a matter or question.
3.
to hamper with complications, confusion, or uncertainty.

Front 35

recondite

Back 35

difficult to understand

Hint 35

1.
dealing with very profound, difficult, or abstruse subject matter: a recondite treatise.
2.
beyond ordinary knowledge or understanding; esoteric: recondite principles.
3.
little known; obscure: a recondite fact.

Front 36

turbid

Back 36

difficult to understand

Hint 36

1.
not clear or transparent because of stirred-up sediment or the like; clouded; opaque; obscured: the turbid waters near the waterfall.
2.
thick or dense, as smoke or clouds.
3.
confused; muddled; disturbed.

Front 37

articulate

Back 37

easy to understand

Hint 37

1.
uttered clearly in distinct syllables.
2.
capable of speech; not speechless.
3.
using language easily and fluently; having facility with words: an articulate speaker.
4.
expressed, formulated, or presented with clarity and effectiveness: an articulate thought.
5.
made clear, distinct, and precise in relation to other parts: an articulate form; an articulate shape; an articulate area.
10.
Phonetics . to make the movements and adjustments of the speech organs necessary to utter (a speech sound).
11.
to give clarity or distinction to: to articulate a shape; to articulate an idea.
12.
Dentistry . to subject to articulation.
13.
to unite by a joint or joints.
15.
to pronounce clearly each of a succession of speech sounds, syllables, or words; enunciate: to articulate with excessive precision.
16.
Phonetics . to articulate a speech sound.
17.
Anatomy, Zoology . to form a joint.
18.
Obsolete . to make terms of agreement.
19.
a segmented invertebrate.

Front 38

cogent

Back 38

easy to understand

Hint 38

1.
convincing or believable by virtue of forcible, clear, or incisive presentation; telling.
2.
to the point; relevant; pertinent.

Front 39

eloquent

Back 39

easy to understand

Hint 39

1.
having or exercising the power of fluent, forceful, and appropriate speech: an eloquent orator.
2.
characterized by forceful and appropriate expression: an eloquent speech.
3.
movingly expressive: looks eloquent of disgust.

Front 40

evident

Back 40

easy to understand

Hint 40

plain or clear to the sight or understanding: His frown made it evident to all that he was displeased. It was evident that the project was a total failure.

Front 41

limpid

Back 41

easy to understand

Hint 41

1.
clear, transparent, or pellucid, as water, crystal, or air: We could see to the very bottom of the limpid pond.
2.
free from obscurity; lucid; clear: a limpid style; limpid prose.
3.
completely calm; without distress or worry: a limpid, emotionless existence.

Front 42

lucid

Back 42

easy to understand

Hint 42

1.
easily understood; completely intelligible or comprehensible: a lucid explanation.
2.
characterized by clear perception or understanding; rational or sane: a lucid moment in his madness.
3.
shining or bright.
4.
clear; pellucid; transparent.

Front 43

pellucid

Back 43

easy to understand

Hint 43

1.
allowing the maximum passage of light, as glass; translucent.
2.
clear or limpid: pellucid waters.
3.
clear in meaning, expression, or style: a pellucid way of writing.

Front 44

astute

Back 44

smart/learned

Hint 44

1.
of keen penetration or discernment; sagacious: an astute analysis.
2.
clever; cunning; ingenious; shrewd: an astute merchandising program; an astute manipulation of facts.

Front 45

canny

Back 45

smart/learned

Hint 45

1.
careful; cautious; prudent: a canny reply.
2.
astute; shrewd; knowing; sagacious: a canny negotiator.
3.
skilled; expert.
4.
frugal; thrifty: a canny housewife.
5.
Scot.
a.
safe to deal with, invest in, or work at (usually used with a negative).
b.
gentle; careful; steady.
c.
snug; cozy; comfortable.
d.
pleasing; attractive.
e.
Archaic . having supernatural or occult powers.
6.
in a canny manner.
7.
Scot. carefully; cautiously.

Front 46

erudite

Back 46

smart/learned

Hint 46

characterized by great knowledge; learned or scholarly: an erudite professor; an erudite commentary.

Front 47

perspicacious

Back 47

smart/learned

Hint 47

1.
having keen mental perception and understanding; discerning: to exhibit perspicacious judgment.
2.
Archaic . having keen vision.

Front 48

aspersion

Back 48

criticize/criticism

Hint 48

1.
a damaging or derogatory remark or criticism; slander: casting aspersions on a campaign rival.
2.
the act of slandering; vilification; defamation; calumniation; derogation: Such vehement aspersions cannot be ignored.
3.
the act of sprinkling, as in baptism.
4.
Archaic . a shower or spray.

Front 49

belittle

Back 49

criticize/criticism

Hint 49

to regard or portray as less impressive or important than appearances indicate; depreciate; disparage.

Front 50

berate

Back 50

criticize/criticism

Hint 50

to scold; rebuke: He berated them in public.

Front 51

calumny

Back 51

criticize/criticism

Hint 51

1.
a false and malicious statement designed to injure the reputation of someone or something: The speech was considered a calumny of the administration.
2.
the act of uttering calumnies; slander; defamation.

Front 52

castigate

Back 52

criticize/criticism

Hint 52

1.
to criticize or reprimand severely.
2.
to punish in order to correct.

Front 53

decry

Back 53

criticize/criticism

Hint 53

1.
to speak disparagingly of; denounce as faulty or worthless; express censure of: She decried the lack of support for the arts in this country.
2.
to condemn or depreciate by proclamation, as foreign or obsolete coins.

Front 54

defame/defamation

Back 54

criticize/criticism

Hint 54

1.
to attack the good name or reputation of, as by uttering or publishing maliciously or falsely anything injurious; slander or libel; calumniate: The newspaper editorial defamed the politician.
2.
Archaic . to disgrace; bring dishonor upon.
3.
Archaic . to accuse.

Front 55

denounce

Back 55

criticize/criticism

Hint 55

1.
to condemn or censure openly or publicly: to denounce a politician as morally corrupt.
2.
to make a formal accusation against, as to the police or in a court.
3.
to give formal notice of the termination or denial of (a treaty, pact, agreement, or the like).
4.
Archaic . to announce or proclaim, especially as something evil or calamitous.
5.
Obsolete . to portend.

Front 56

deride/derisive

Back 56

criticize/criticism

Hint 56

to laugh at in scorn or contempt; scoff or jeer at; mock.

Front 57

diatribe

Back 57

criticize/criticism

Hint 57

a bitter, sharply abusive denunciation, attack, or criticism: repeated diatribes against the senator.

Front 58

disparage

Back 58

criticize/criticism

Hint 58

1.
to speak of or treat slightingly; depreciate; belittle: Do not disparage good manners.
2.
to bring reproach or discredit upon; lower the estimation of: Your behavior will disparage the whole family.

Front 59

excoriate

Back 59

criticize/criticism

Hint 59

1.
to denounce or berate severely; flay verbally: He was excoriated for his mistakes.
2.
to strip off or remove the skin from: Her palms were excoriated by the hard labor of shoveling.

Front 60

gainsay

Back 60

criticize/criticism

Hint 60

1.
to deny, dispute, or contradict.
2.
to speak or act against; oppose.

Front 61

harangue

Back 61

criticize/criticism
nag

Hint 61

1.
a scolding or a long or intense verbal attack; diatribe.
2.
a long, passionate, and vehement speech, especially one delivered before a public gathering.
3.
any long, pompous speech or writing of a tediously hortatory or didactic nature; sermonizing lecture or discourse.
4.
to address in a harangue.

Front 62

impugn

Back 62

criticize/criticism

Hint 62

1.
to challenge as false (another's statements, motives, etc.); cast doubt upon.
2.
Archaic . to assail (a person) by words or arguments; vilify.
3.
Obsolete . to attack (a person) physically.

Front 63

inveigh

Back 63

criticize/criticism

Hint 63

to protest strongly or attack vehemently with words; rail (usually followed by against ): to inveigh against isolationism.

Front 64

lambaste

Back 64

criticize/criticism

Hint 64

1.
to beat or whip severely.
2.
to reprimand or berate harshly; censure; excoriate.

Front 65

obloquy

Back 65

criticize/criticism

Hint 65

1.
censure, blame, or abusive language aimed at a person or thing, especially by numerous persons or by the general public.
2.
discredit, disgrace, or bad repute resulting from public blame, abuse, or denunciation.

Front 66

objurgate

Back 66

criticize/criticism

Hint 66

to reproach or denounce vehemently; upbraid harshly; berate sharply.

Front 67

opprobrium

Back 67

criticize/criticism

Hint 67

1.
the disgrace or the reproach incurred by conduct considered outrageously shameful; infamy.
2.
a cause or object of such disgrace or reproach.

Front 68

pillory

Back 68

criticize/criticism

Hint 68

1.
a wooden framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, formerly used to expose an offender to public derision.
2.
to set in the pillory.
3.
to expose to public derision, ridicule, or abuse: The candidate mercilessly pilloried his opponent.

Front 69

rebuke

Back 69

criticize/criticism

Hint 69

1.
to express sharp, stern disapproval of; reprove; reprimand.
2.
sharp, stern disapproval; reproof; reprimand.

Front 70

remonstrate

Back 70

criticize/criticism
nag

Hint 70

1.
to say or plead in protest, objection, or disapproval.
2.
Obsolete . to show.
3.
to present reasons in complaint; plead in protest.

Front 71

reprehend

Back 71

criticize/criticism

Hint 71

to reprove or find fault with; rebuke; censure; blame.

Front 72

reprove

Back 72

criticize/criticism

Hint 72

1.
to criticize or correct, especially gently: to reprove a pupil for making a mistake.
2.
to disapprove of strongly; censure: to reprove a bad decision.
3.
Obsolete . to disprove or refute.
4.
to speak in reproof; administer a reproof.

Front 73

revile

Back 73

criticize/criticism

Hint 73

1.
to assail with contemptuous or opprobrious language; address or speak of abusively.
2.
to speak abusively.

Front 74

tirade

Back 74

criticize/criticism

Hint 74

1.
a prolonged outburst of bitter, outspoken denunciation: a tirade against smoking.
2.
a long, vehement speech: a tirade in the Senate.
3.
a passage dealing with a single theme or idea, as in poetry: the stately tirades of Corneille.

Front 75

vituperate

Back 75

criticize/criticism

Hint 75

to use or address with harsh or abusive language; revile.

Front 76

bacchanalian

Back 76

carousal

Hint 76

1.
( sometimes used with a plural verb ) a festival in honor of Bacchus. Compare Dionysia.
2.
( lowercase ) a drunken feast; orgy.

Front 77

depraved

Back 77

carousal

Hint 77

corrupt, wicked, or perverted.

Front 78

dissipated

Back 78

carousal

Hint 78

indulging in or characterized by excessive devotion to pleasure; intemperate; dissolute.

Front 79

iniquity

Back 79

carousal

Hint 79

1.
gross injustice or wickedness.
2.
a violation of right or duty; wicked act; sin.

Front 80

libertine

Back 80

carousal

Hint 80

1.
a person who is morally or sexually unrestrained, especially a dissolute man; a profligate; rake.
2.
a freethinker in religious matters.
3.
a person freed from slavery in ancient Rome.
4.
free of moral, especially sexual, restraint; dissolute; licentious.
5.
freethinking in religious matters.
6.
Archaic . unrestrained; uncontrolled.

Front 81

libidinous

Back 81

carousal

Hint 81

1.
full of sexual lust; lustful; lewd; lascivious.
2.
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of the libido.

Front 82

licentious

Back 82

carousal

Hint 82

1.
sexually unrestrained; lascivious; libertine; lewd.
2.
unrestrained by law or general morality; lawless; immoral.
3.
going beyond customary or proper bounds or limits; disregarding rules.

Front 83

reprobate

Back 83

carousal

Hint 83

1.
a depraved, unprincipled, or wicked person: a drunken reprobate.
2.
a person rejected by God and beyond hope of salvation.
3.
morally depraved; unprincipled; bad.
4.
rejected by God and beyond hope of salvation.

Front 84

ribald

Back 84

carousal

Hint 84

1.
vulgar or indecent in speech, language, etc.; coarsely mocking, abusive, or irreverent; scurrilous.
2.
a ribald person.

Front 85

salacious

Back 85

carousal

Hint 85

1.
lustful or lecherous.
2.
(of writings, pictures, etc.) obscene; grossly indecent.

Front 86

sordid

Back 86

carousal

Hint 86

1.
morally ignoble or base; vile: sordid methods.
2.
meanly selfish, self-seeking, or mercenary.
3.
dirty or filthy.
4.
squalid; wretchedly poor and run-down: sordid housing.

Front 87

turpitude

Back 87

carousal

Hint 87

1.
vile, shameful, or base character; depravity.
2.
a vile or depraved act.

Front 88

candor/candid

Back 88

truth

Hint 88

1.
the state or quality of being frank, open, and sincere in speech or expression; candidness: The candor of the speech impressed the audience.
2.
freedom from bias; fairness; impartiality: to consider an issue with candor.
3.
Obsolete . kindliness.
4.
Obsolete . purity.
1.
frank; outspoken; open and sincere: a candid critic.
2.
free from reservation, disguise, or subterfuge; straightforward: a candid opinion.
3.
informal; unposed: a candid photo.
4.
honest; impartial: a candid mind.
5.
Archaic . white.

Front 89

fealty

Back 89

truth

Hint 89

1.
History/Historical .
a.
fidelity to a lord.
b.
the obligation or the engagement to be faithful to a lord, usually sworn to by a vassal.
2.
fidelity; faithfulness.

Front 90

frankness

Back 90

truth

Hint 90

plainness of speech; candor; openness.

Front 91

indisputable

Back 91

truth

Hint 91

1.
not disputable or deniable; uncontestable. indisputable evidence.
2.
unquestionably real, valid, or the like.

Front 92

indubitable

Back 92

truth

Hint 92

that cannot be doubted; patently evident or certain; unquestionable.

Front 93

legitimate

Back 93

truth

Hint 93

1.
according to law; lawful: the property's legitimate owner.
2.
in accordance with established rules, principles, or standards.
3.
born in wedlock or of legally married parents: legitimate children.
4.
in accordance with the laws of reasoning; logically inferable; logical: a legitimate conclusion.
5.
resting on or ruling by the principle of hereditary right: a legitimate sovereign.
9.
to make lawful or legal; pronounce or state as lawful: Parliament legitimated his accession to the throne.
10.
to establish as lawfully born: His bastard children were afterward legitimated by law.
11.
to show or declare to be legitimate or proper: He was under obligation to legitimate his commission.
12.
to justify; sanction or authorize: His behavior was legitimated by custom.

Front 94

probity

Back 94

truth

Hint 94

integrity and uprightness; honesty.

Front 95

sincere

Back 95

truth

Hint 95

1.
free of deceit, hypocrisy, or falseness; earnest: a sincere apology.
2.
genuine; real: a sincere effort to improve; a sincere friend.
3.
pure; unmixed; unadulterated.
4.
Obsolete . sound; unimpaired.

Front 96

veracious

Back 96

truth

Hint 96

1.
habitually speaking the truth; truthful; honest: a veracious witness.
2.
characterized by truthfulness; true, accurate, or honest in content: a veracious statement; a veracious account.

Front 97

verity

Back 97

truth

Hint 97

1.
the state or quality of being true; accordance with fact or reality: to question the verity of a statement.
2.
something that is true, as a principle, belief, idea, or statement: the eternal verities.

Front 98

apocryphal

Back 98

falsehood

Hint 98

1.
of doubtful authorship or authenticity.
2.
Ecclesiastical .
a.
( initial capital letter ) of or pertaining to the Apocrypha.
b.
of doubtful sanction; uncanonical.
3.
false; spurious: He told an apocryphal story about the sword, but the truth was later revealed.

Front 99

canard

Back 99

falsehood

Hint 99

1.
a false or baseless, usually derogatory story, report, or rumor.
2.
Cookery . a duck intended or used for food.
3.
Aeronautics .
a.
an airplane that has its horizontal stabilizer and elevators located forward of the wing.
b.
Also called canard wing . one of two small lifting wings located in front of the main wings.
c.
an early airplane having a pusher engine with the rudder and elevator assembly in front of the wings.

Front 100

chicanery

Back 100

falsehood

Hint 100

1.
trickery or deception by quibbling or sophistry: He resorted to the worst flattery and chicanery to win the job.
2.
a quibble or subterfuge used to trick, deceive, or evade.

Front 101

dissemble

Back 101

falsehood
insincere

Hint 101

1.
to give a false or misleading appearance to; conceal the truth or real nature of: to dissemble one's incompetence in business.
2.
to put on the appearance of; feign: to dissemble innocence.
3.
Obsolete . to let pass unnoticed; ignore.
4.
to conceal one's true motives, thoughts, etc., by some pretense; speak or act hypocritically.

Front 102

duplicity

Back 102

falsehood

Hint 102

1.
deceitfulness in speech or conduct; speaking or acting in two different ways concerning the same matter with intent to deceive; double-dealing.
2.
a twofold or double state or quality.

Front 103

equivocate

Back 103

falsehood

Hint 103

to use ambiguous or unclear expressions, usually to avoid commitment or in order to mislead; prevaricate or hedge: When asked directly for his position on disarmament, the candidate only equivocated.

Front 104

erroneous

Back 104

falsehood

Hint 104

1.
containing error; mistaken; incorrect; wrong: an erroneous answer.
2.
straying from what is moral, decent, proper, etc.

Front 105

ersatz

Back 105

falsehood

Hint 105

1.
serving as a substitute; synthetic; artificial: an ersatz coffee made from grain.
2.
an artificial substance or article used to replace something natural or genuine; a substitute.

Front 106

fallacious

Back 106

falsehood

Hint 106

1.
containing a fallacy; logically unsound: fallacious arguments.
2.
deceptive; misleading: fallacious testimony.
3.
disappointing; delusive: a fallacious peace.

Front 107

feigned

Back 107

falsehood

Hint 107

1.
pretended; sham; counterfeit: feigned enthusiasm.
2.
assumed; fictitious: a feigned name.
3.
disguised: a feigned voice.

Front 108

guile

Back 108

falsehood

Hint 108

insidious cunning in attaining a goal; crafty or artful deception; duplicity.

Front 109

mendacious

Back 109

falsehood

Hint 109

1.
telling lies, especially habitually; dishonest; lying; untruthful: a mendacious person.
2.
false or untrue: a mendacious report.

Front 110

mendacity

Back 110

falsehood

Hint 110

1.
the quality of being mendacious; untruthfulness; tendency to lie.
2.
an instance of lying; falsehood.

Front 111

perfidy

Back 111

falsehood

Hint 111

1.
deliberate breach of faith or trust; faithlessness; treachery: perfidy that goes unpunished.
2.
an act or instance of faithlessness or treachery.

Front 112

prevaricate

Back 112

falsehood

Hint 112

to speak falsely or misleadingly; deliberately misstate or create an incorrect impression; lie.

Front 113

specious

Back 113

falsehood

Hint 113

1.
apparently good or right though lacking real merit; superficially pleasing or plausible: specious arguments.
2.
pleasing to the eye but deceptive.
3.
Obsolete . pleasing to the eye; fair.

Front 114

spurious

Back 114

falsehood

Hint 114

1.
not genuine, authentic, or true; not from the claimed, pretended, or proper source; counterfeit.
2.
Biology . (of two or more parts, plants, etc.) having a similar appearance but a different structure.
3.
of illegitimate birth; bastard.

Front 115

acerbic

Back 115

biting (as in wit or temperament)

Hint 115

1.
sour or astringent in taste: Lemon juice is acerbic.
2.
harsh or severe, as of temper or expression: acerbic criticism.

Front 116

acidulous

Back 116

biting (as in wit or temperament)

Hint 116

1.
slightly sour.
2.
sharp; caustic: his acidulous criticism of the book.
3.
moderately acid or tart; subacid.

Front 117

acrimonious

Back 117

biting (as in wit or temperament)

Hint 117

caustic, stinging, or bitter in nature, speech, behavior, etc.: an acrimonious answer; an acrimonious dispute.

Front 118

asperity

Back 118

biting (as in wit or temperament
heardhearted

Hint 118

1.
harshness or sharpness of tone, temper, or manner; severity; acrimony: The cause of her anger did not warrant such asperity.
2.
hardship; difficulty; rigor: the asperities of polar weather.
3.
roughness of surface; unevenness.
4.
something rough or harsh.

Front 119

caustic

Back 119

biting (as in wit or temperament)

Hint 119

1.
capable of burning, corroding, or destroying living tissue.
2.
severely critical or sarcastic: a caustic remark.
3.
a caustic substance.
4.
Optics .
a.
caustic curve.
b.
caustic surface.

Front 120

mordant

Back 120

biting (as in wit or temperament)
hardhearted

Hint 120

1.
sharply caustic or sarcastic, as wit or a speaker; biting.
2.
burning; corrosive.
3.
having the property of fixing colors, as in dyeing.
4.
a substance used in dyeing to fix the coloring matter, especially a metallic compound, as an oxide or hydroxide, that combines with the organic dye and forms an insoluble colored compound or lake in the fiber.
5.
an adhesive substance for binding gold or silver leaf to a surface.
6.
an acid or other corrosive substance used in etching to eat out the lines, areas, etc.
7.
Music . mordent.

Front 121

mordacious

Back 121

biting (as in wit or temperament)

Hint 121

1.
biting or given to biting.
2.
sharp or caustic in style, tone, etc.

Front 122

trenchant

Back 122

biting (as in wit or temperament)

Hint 122

1.
incisive or keen, as language or a person; caustic; cutting: trenchant wit.
2.
vigorous; effective; energetic: a trenchant policy of political reform.
3.
clearly or sharply defined; clear-cut; distinct.

Front 123

acclaim

Back 123

praise

Hint 123

1.
to welcome or salute with shouts or sounds of joy and approval; applaud: to acclaim the conquering heroes.
2.
to announce or proclaim with enthusiastic approval: to acclaim the new king.
3.
to make acclamation; applaud.

Front 124

accolade

Back 124

praise

Hint 124

1.
any award, honor, or laudatory notice: The play received accolades from the press.
2.
a light touch on the shoulder with the flat side of the sword or formerly by an embrace, done in the ceremony of conferring knighthood.
3.
the ceremony itself.
4.
Music . a brace joining several staves.
5.
Architecture .
a.
an archivolt or hood molding having more or less the form of an ogee arch.
b.
a decoration having more or less the form of an ogee arch, cut into a lintel or flat arch.

Front 125

aggrandize

Back 125

praise

Hint 125

1.
to widen in scope; increase in size or intensity; enlarge; extend.
2.
to make great or greater in power, wealth, rank, or honor.
3.
to make (something) appear greater.

Front 126

encomium

Back 126

praise

Hint 126

a formal expression of high praise; eulogy: An encomium by the President greeted the returning hero.

Front 127

eulogize

Back 127

praise

Hint 127

1.
to praise highly.
2.
to speak or write a eulogy about.

Front 128

extol

Back 128

praise

Hint 128

to praise highly; laud; eulogize: to extol the beauty of Naples.

Front 129

fawn

Back 129

praise

Hint 129

1.
a young deer, especially an unweaned one.
2.
a light yellowish-brown color.
3.
light yellowish-brown. a

Front 130

laud/laudatory

Back 130

praise

Hint 130

1.
to praise; extol.
2.
a song or hymn of praise.
3.
lauds, ( used with a singular or plural verb ) Ecclesiastical . a canonical hour, marked especially by psalms of praise, usually recited with matins.

containing or expressing praise: overwhelmed by the speaker's laudatory remarks.

Front 131

venerate

Back 131

praise

Hint 131

to regard or treat with reverence; revere.

Front 132

baleful

Back 132

harmful
heardhearted

Hint 132

1.
full of menacing or malign influences; pernicious.
2.
Obsolete . wretched; miserable.

Front 133

deleterious

Back 133

harmful

Hint 133

1.
injurious to health: deleterious gases.
2.
harmful; injurious: deleterious influences.

Front 134

inimical

Back 134

harmful

Hint 134

1.
adverse in tendency or effect; unfavorable; harmful: a climate inimical to health.
2.
unfriendly; hostile: a cold, inimical gaze.

Front 135

injurious

Back 135

harmful

Hint 135

1.
harmful, hurtful, or detrimental, as in effect: injurious eating habits.
2.
doing or involving injury or wrong, as to another: injurious behavior.
3.
insulting; abusive; defamatory; offensive: an injurious statement.

Front 136

insidious

Back 136

harmful

Hint 136

1.
intended to entrap or beguile: an insidious plan.
2.
stealthily treacherous or deceitful: an insidious enemy.
3.
operating or proceeding in an inconspicuous or seemingly harmless way but actually with grave effect: an insidious disease.

Front 137

minatory

Back 137

harmful

Hint 137

menacing; threatening.

Front 138

perfidious

Back 138

harmful

Hint 138

deliberately faithless; treacherous; deceitful: a perfidious lover.

Front 139

pernicious

Back 139

harmful

Hint 139

1.
causing insidious harm or ruin; ruinous; injurious; hurtful: pernicious teachings; a pernicious lie.
2.
deadly; fatal: a pernicious disease.
3.
Obsolete . evil; wicked.

Front 140

craven

Back 140

timid/timidity

Hint 140

1.
cowardly; contemptibly timid; pusillanimous.
2.
a coward.

Front 141

diffident

Back 141

timid/timidity

Hint 141

1.
lacking confidence in one's own ability, worth, or fitness; timid; shy.
2.
restrained or reserved in manner, conduct, etc.
3.
Archaic . distrustful.

Front 142

pusillanimous

Back 142

timid/timidity

Hint 142

1.
lacking courage or resolution; cowardly; faint-hearted; timid.
2.
proceeding from or indicating a cowardly spirit.

Front 143

recreant

Back 143

timid/timidity

Hint 143

1.
cowardly or craven.
2.
unfaithful, disloyal, or traitorous.
3.
a coward.
4.
an apostate, traitor, or renegade.

Front 144

timorous

Back 144

timid/timidity

Hint 144

1.
full of fear; fearful: The noise made them timorous.
2.
subject to fear; timid.
3.
characterized by or indicating fear: a timorous whisper.

Front 145

trepidation

Back 145

timid/timidity

Hint 145

1.
tremulous fear, alarm, or agitation; perturbation.
2.
trembling or quivering movement; tremor.

Front 146

banal

Back 146

boring

Hint 146

devoid of freshness or originality; hackneyed; trite: a banal and sophomoric treatment of courage on the frontier.

Front 147

fatuous

Back 147

boring

Hint 147

1.
foolish or inane, especially in an unconscious, complacent manner; silly.
2.
unreal; illusory.

Front 148

hackneyed

Back 148

boring

Hint 148

made commonplace or trite; stale; banal: the hackneyed images of his poetry.

Front 149

insipid

Back 149

boring

Hint 149

1.
without distinctive, interesting, or stimulating qualities; vapid: an insipid personality.
2.
without sufficient taste to be pleasing, as food or drink; bland: a rather insipid soup.

Front 150

mundane

Back 150

boring

Hint 150

1.
of or pertaining to this world or earth as contrasted with heaven; worldly; earthly: mundane affairs.
2.
common; ordinary; banal; unimaginative.
3.
of or pertaining to the world, universe, or earth.

Front 151

pedestrian

Back 151

boring

Hint 151

1.
a person who goes or travels on foot; walker.
3.
of or pertaining to walking.
4.
lacking in vitality, imagination, distinction, etc.; commonplace; prosaic or dull: a pedestrian commencement speech.

Front 152

platitude

Back 152

boring
wisdom

Hint 152

1.
a flat, dull, or trite remark, especially 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.

Front 153

prosaic

Back 153

boring

Hint 153

1.
commonplace or dull; matter-of-fact or unimaginative: a prosaic mind.
2.
of or having the character or form of prose rather than poetry.

Front 154

quotidian

Back 154

boring

Hint 154

1.
daily: a quotidian report.
2.
usual or customary; everyday: quotidian needs.
3.
ordinary; commonplace: paintings of no more than quotidian artistry.
4.
(of a fever, ague, etc.) characterized by paroxysms that recur daily.
5.
something recurring daily.
6.
a quotidian fever or ague.

Front 155

trite

Back 155

boring

Hint 155

1.
lacking in freshness or effectiveness because of constant use or excessive repetition; hackneyed; stale: the trite phrases in his letter.
2.
characterized by hackneyed expressions, ideas, etc.: The commencement address was trite and endlessly long.
3.
Archaic . rubbed or worn by use.

Front 156

adulterate

Back 156

weaken

Hint 156

1.
to debase or make impure by adding inferior materials or elements; use cheaper, inferior, or less desirable goods in the production of (any professedly genuine article): to adulterate food.

Front 157

enervate

Back 157

weaken

Hint 157

1.
to deprive of force or strength; destroy the vigor of; weaken.

Front 158

exacerbate

Back 158

weaken

Hint 158

1.
to increase the severity, bitterness, or violence of (disease, ill feeling, etc.); aggravate.
2.
to embitter the feelings of (a person); irritate; exasperate.

Front 159

inhibit

Back 159

weaken
prevent/obstruct

Hint 159

1.
to restrain, hinder, arrest, or check (an action, impulse, etc.).
2.
to prohibit; forbid.
3.
Psychology . to consciously or unconsciously suppress or restrain (psychologically or sociologically unacceptable behavior).
4.
Chemistry . to decrease the rate of action of or stop (a chemical reaction).

Front 160

obviate

Back 160

weaken

Hint 160

to anticipate and prevent or eliminate (difficulties, disadvantages, etc.) by effective measures; render unnecessary: to obviate the risk of serious injury.

Front 161

stultify

Back 161

weaken

Hint 161

1.
to make, or cause to appear, foolish or ridiculous.
2.
to render absurdly or wholly futile or ineffectual, especially by degrading or frustrating means: Menial work can stultify the mind.
3.
Law . to allege or prove (oneself or another) to be of unsound mind.

Front 162

undermine

Back 162

weaken

Hint 162

1.
to injure or destroy by insidious activity or imperceptible stages, sometimes tending toward a sudden dramatic effect.
2.
to attack by indirect, secret, or underhand means; attempt to subvert by stealth.
3.
to make an excavation under; dig or tunnel beneath, as a military stronghold.
4.
to weaken or cause to collapse by removing underlying support, as by digging away or eroding the foundation.

Front 163

vitiate

Back 163

weaken

Hint 163

1.
to impair the quality of; make faulty; spoil.
2.
to impair or weaken the effectiveness of.
3.
to debase; corrupt; pervert.
4.
to make legally defective or invalid; invalidate: to vitiate a claim.

Front 164

abet

Back 164

assist

Hint 164

to encourage, support, or countenance by aid or approval, usually in wrongdoing: to abet a swindler; to abet a crime.

Front 165

advocate

Back 165

assist

Hint 165

1.
to speak or write in favor of; support or urge by argument;
recommend publicly: He advocated higher salaries for teachers.
2.
a person who speaks or writes in support or defense of a person, cause, etc. (usually followed by of ): an advocate of peace.
3.
a person who pleads for or in behalf of another; intercessor.
4.
a person who pleads the cause of another in a court of law.

Front 166

ancillary

Back 166

assist

Hint 166

1.
subordinate; subsidiary.
2.
auxiliary; assisting.
3.
something that serves in an ancillary capacity: Slides, records, and other ancillaries can be used with the basic textbook.

Front 167

bolster

Back 167

assist

Hint 167

1.
a long, often cylindrical, cushion or pillow for a bed, sofa, etc.
2.
anything resembling this in form or in use as a support.
3.
any pillow, cushion, or pad.
4.
Nautical .
a.
Also called bolster plate . a circular casting on the side of a vessel, through which an anchor chain passes.
b.
a timber used as a temporary support.
c.
a beam for holding lines or rigging without chafing.
d.
a bag filled with buoyant material, fitted into a small boat.
5.
Metalworking . an anvillike support for the lower die of a drop forge.
9.
to support with or as with a pillow or cushion.
10.
to add to, support, or uphold (sometimes followed by up ): They bolstered their morale by singing. He bolstered up his claim with new evidence.

Front 168

corroborate

Back 168

assist

Hint 168

1.
to make more certain; confirm: He corroborated my account of the accident.
2.
Archaic . confirmed.

Front 169

countenance

Back 169

assist

Hint 169

1.
appearance, especially the look or expression of the face: a
sad countenance.
2.
the face; visage.
3.
calm facial expression; composure.
4.
approval or favor; encouragement; moral support.
5.
Obsolete . bearing; behavior.
6.
to permit or tolerate: You should not have countenanced his rudeness.
7.
to approve, support, or encourage.

Front 170

espouse

Back 170

assist

Hint 170

1.
to make one's own; adopt or embrace, as a cause.
2.
to marry.
3.
to give (a woman) in marriage.

Front 171

mainstay

Back 171

assist

Hint 171

1.
Nautical . the stay that secures the mainmast forward.
2.
a person or thing that acts as a chief support or part: Coffee is the mainstay of the country's economy.

Front 172

munificent

Back 172

assist
generous/kind

Hint 172

1.
extremely liberal in giving; very generous.
2.
characterized by great generosity: a munificent bequest.

Front 173

proponent

Back 173

assist

Hint 173

1.
a person who puts forward a proposition or proposal.
2.
a person who argues in favor of something; an advocate.
3.
a personwho supports a cause or doctrine; adherent.
4.
a person who propounds a legal instrument, such as a will for probate.

Front 174

stalwart

Back 174

assist

Hint 174

1.
strongly and stoutly built; sturdy and robust.
2.
strong and brave; valiant: a stalwart knight.
3.
firm, steadfast, or uncompromising: a stalwart supporter of the U.N.
4.
a physically stalwart person.
5.
a steadfast or uncompromising partisan: They counted on the party stalwarts for support in the off-year campaigns.

Front 175

sustenance

Back 175

assist

Hint 175

1.
means of sustaining life; nourishment.
2.
means of livelihood.
3.
the process of sustaining.
4.
the state of being sustained.

Front 176

antithetic

Back 176

hostile

Hint 176

1.
of the nature of or involving antithesis.
2.
directly opposed or contrasted; opposite.

Front 177

churlish

Back 177

hostile

Hint 177

1.
like a churl; boorish; rude: churlish behavior.
2.
of a churl; peasantlike.
3.
niggardly; mean.
4.
difficult to work or deal with, as soil.

Front 178

curmudgeon

Back 178

hostile

Hint 178

a bad-tempered, difficult, cantankerous person.

Front 179

irascible

Back 179

hostile
bad mood

Hint 179

1.
easily provoked to anger; very irritable: an irascible old man.
2.
characterized or produced by anger: an irascible response.

Front 180

malevolent

Back 180

hostile
hardhearted

Hint 180

1.
wishing evil or harm to another or others; showing ill will; ill-disposed; malicious: His failures made him malevolent toward those who were successful.
2.
evil; harmful; injurious: a malevolent inclination to destroy the happiness of others.
3.
Astrology . evil or malign in influence.

Front 181

misanthropic

Back 181

hostile

Hint 181

1.
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a misanthrope.
2.
characterized by misanthropy.

Front 182

truculent

Back 182

hostile

Hint 182

1.
fierce; cruel; savagely brutal.
2.
brutally harsh; vitriolic; scathing: his truculent criticism of her work.
3.
aggressively hostile; belligerent.

Front 183

vindictive

Back 183

hostile

Hint 183

1.
disposed or inclined to revenge; vengeful: a vindictive person.
2.
proceeding from or showing a revengeful spirit: vindictive rumors.

Front 184

implacable

Back 184

stubborn

Hint 184

not to be appeased, mollified, or pacified; inexorable: an implacable enemy.

Front 185

inexorable

Back 185

stubborn

Hint 185

1.
unyielding; unalterable: inexorable truth; inexorable justice.
2.
not to be persuaded, moved, or affected by prayers or entreaties: an inexorable creditor.

Front 186

intractable

Back 186

stubborn

Hint 186

1.
not easily controlled or directed; not docile or manageable; stubborn; obstinate: an intractable disposition.
2.
(of things) hard to shape or work with: an intractable metal.
3.
hard to treat, relieve, or cure: the intractable pain in his leg.
4.
an intractable person.

Front 187

intransigent

Back 187

stubborn

Hint 187

1.
refusing to agree or compromise; uncompromising; inflexible.
2.
a person who refuses to agree or compromise, as in politics.

Front 188

obdurate

Back 188

stubborn

Hint 188

1.
unmoved by persuasion, pity, or tender feelings; stubborn; unyielding.
2.
stubbornly resistant to moral influence; persistently impenitent: an obdurate sinner.

Front 189

obstinate

Back 189

stubborn

Hint 189

1.
firmly or stubbornly adhering to one's purpose, opinion, etc.; not yielding to argument, persuasion, or entreaty.
2.
characterized by inflexible persistence or an unyielding attitude; inflexibly persisted in or carried out: obstinate advocacy of high tariffs.
3.
not easily controlled or overcome: the obstinate growth of weeds.
4.
not yielding readily to treatment, as a disease.

Front 190

recalcitrant

Back 190

stubborn

Hint 190

1.
resisting authority or control; not obedient or compliant; refractory.
2.
hard to deal with, manage, or operate.
3.
a recalcitrant person.

Front 191

refractory

Back 191

stubborn

Hint 191

1.
hard or impossible to manage; stubbornly disobedient: a refractory child.
2.
resisting ordinary methods of treatment.
3.
difficult to fuse, reduce, or work, as an ore or metal.
4.
a material having the ability to retain its physical shape and chemical identity when subjected to high temperatures.
5.
refractories, bricks of various shapes used in lining furnaces.

Front 192

renitent

Back 192

stubborn

Hint 192

1.
resisting pressure; resistant.
2.
persistently opposing; recalcitrant.

Front 193

untoward

Back 193

stubborn

Hint 193

1.
unfavorable or unfortunate: Untoward circumstances forced him into bankruptcy.
2.
improper: untoward social behavior.
3.
Archaic . froward; perverse.

Front 194

vexing

Back 194

stubborn

Hint 194

1.
to irritate; annoy; provoke: His noisy neighbors often vexed him.
2.
to torment; trouble; distress; plague; worry: Lack of money vexes many.
3.
to discuss or debate (a subject, question, etc.) with vigor or at great length: to vex a question endlessly without agreeing.
4.
to disturb by motion; stir up; toss about.
5.
to afflict with physical pain.

Front 195

burgeoning

Back 195

beginning/young

Hint 195

1.
to grow or develop quickly; flourish: The town burgeoned into a city. He burgeoned into a fine actor.
2.
to begin to grow, as a bud; put forth buds, shoots, etc., as a plant (often followed by out, forth ).
3.
to put forth, as buds.

Front 196

callow

Back 196

beginning/young

Hint 196

1.
immature or inexperienced: a callow youth.
2.
(of a young bird) featherless; unfledged.
3.
a recently hatched worker ant.

Front 197

engender

Back 197

beginning/young

Hint 197

1.
to produce, cause, or give rise to: Hatred engenders violence.
2.
to beget; procreate.
3.
to be produced or caused; come into existence: Conditions for a war were engendering in Europe.

Front 198

inchoate

Back 198

beginning/young

Hint 198

1.
not yet completed or fully developed; rudimentary.
2.
just begun; incipient.
3.
not organized; lacking order: an inchoate mass of ideas on the subject.

Front 199

incipient

Back 199

beginning/young

Hint 199

beginning to exist or appear; in an initial stage: an incipient cold.

Front 200

nascent

Back 200

beginning/young

Hint 200

1.
beginning to exist or develop: the nascent republic.
2.
Chemistry . (of an element) in the nascent state.

Front 201

altruistic

Back 201

generous/kind

Hint 201

1.
unselfishly concerned for or devoted to the welfare of others ( opposed to egoistic).
2.
Animal Behavior . of or pertaining to behavior by an animal that may be to its disadvantage but that benefits others of its kind, often its close relatives.

Front 202

beneficent

Back 202

generous/kind

Hint 202

doing good or causing good to be done; conferring benefits; kindly in action or purpose.

Front 203

clement

Back 203

generous/kind

Hint 203

1.
mild or merciful in disposition or character; lenient; compassionate: A clement judge reduced his sentence.
2.
(of the weather) mild or temperate; pleasant.

Front 204

largess

Back 204

generous/kind

Hint 204

1.
generous bestowal of gifts.
2.
the gift or gifts, as of money, so bestowed.
3.
Obsolete . generosity; liberality.

Front 205

magnanimous

Back 205

generous/kind

Hint 205

1.
generous in forgiving an insult or injury; free from petty resentfulness or vindictiveness: to be magnanimous toward one's enemies.
2.
high-minded; noble: a just and magnanimous ruler.
3.
proceeding from or revealing generosity or nobility of mind, character, etc.: a magnanimous gesture of forgiveness.

Front 206

philanthropic

Back 206

generous/kind

Hint 206

of, pertaining to, engaged in, or characterized by philanthropy; benevolent: a philanthropic foundation.

Front 207

unstinting

Back 207

generous/kind

Hint 207

1.
to be frugal; get along on a scanty allowance: Don't stint on the food. They stinted for years in order to save money.
2.
Archaic . to cease action; desist.
3.
to limit to a certain amount, number, share, or allowance, often unduly; set limits to; restrict.
4.
Archaic . to bring to an end; check.

Front 208

avaricious

Back 208

greedy

Hint 208

characterized by avarice; greedy; covetous.

Front 209

covetous

Back 209

greedy

Hint 209

1.
inordinately or wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions; greedy.
2.
eagerly desirous.

Front 210

mercenary

Back 210

greedy

Hint 210

.
working or acting merely for money or other reward; venal.
2.
hired to serve in a foreign army, guerrilla organization, etc.
3.
a professional soldier hired to serve in a foreign army.
4.
any hireling.

Front 211

miserly

Back 211

greedy

Hint 211

of, like, or befitting a miser; penurious; stingy; niggardly.

Front 212

penurious

Back 212

greedy

Hint 212

1.
extremely stingy; parsimonious; miserly.
2.
extremely poor; destitute; indigent.
3.
poorly or inadequately supplied; lacking in means or resources.

Front 213

rapacious

Back 213

greedy

Hint 213

1.
given to seizing for plunder or the satisfaction of greed.
2.
inordinately greedy; predatory; extortionate: a rapacious disposition.
3.
(of animals) subsisting by the capture of living prey; predacious.

Front 214

venal

Back 214

greedy

Hint 214

1.
willing to sell one's influence, especially in return for a bribe; open to bribery; mercenary: a venal judge.
2.
able to be purchased, as by a bribe: venal acquittals.
3.
associated with or characterized by bribery: a venal administration; venal agreements.

Front 215

compendious

Back 215

terse

Hint 215

of or like a compendium; containing the substance of a subject, often an exclusive subject, in a brief form; concise: a compendious history of the world.

Front 216

curt

Back 216

terse

Hint 216

1.
rudely brief in speech or abrupt in manner.
2.
brief; concise; terse; laconic.
3.
short; shortened.

Front 217

laconic

Back 217

terse

Hint 217

using few words; expressing much in few words; concise: a laconic reply.

Front 218

pithy

Back 218

terse

Hint 218

.
brief, forceful, and meaningful in expression; full of vigor, substance, or meaning; terse; forcible: a pithy observation.
2.
of, like, or abounding in pith.

Front 219

succinct

Back 219

terse

Hint 219

1.
expressed in few words; concise; terse.
2.
characterized by conciseness or verbal brevity.
3.
compressed into a small area, scope, or compass.
4.
Archaic .
a.
drawn up, as by a girdle.
b.
close-fitting.
c.
encircled, as by a girdle.

Front 220

taciturn

Back 220

terse

Hint 220

1.
inclined to silence; reserved in speech; reluctant to join in conversation.
2.
dour, stern, and silent in expression and manner.

Front 221

bombastic

Back 221

overblown/wordy

Hint 221

(of speech, writing, etc.) high-sounding; high-flown; inflated; pretentious.

Front 222

circumlocution

Back 222

overblown/wordy

Hint 222

1.
a roundabout or indirect way of speaking; the use of more words than necessary to express an idea.
2.
a roundabout expression.

Front 223

garrulous

Back 223

overblown/wordy

Hint 223

1.
excessively talkative in a rambling, roundabout manner, especially about trivial matters.
2.
wordy or diffuse: a garrulous and boring speech.

Front 224

grandiloquent

Back 224

overblown/wordy

Hint 224

speaking or expressed in a lofty style, often to the point of being pompous or bombastic.

Front 225

loquacious

Back 225

overblown/wordy

Hint 225

1.
talking or tending to talk much or freely; talkative; chattering; babbling; garrulous: a loquacious dinner guest.
2.
characterized by excessive talk; wordy: easily the most loquacious play of the season.

Front 226

periphrastic

Back 226

overblown/wordy

Hint 226

1.
circumlocutory; roundabout.
2.
Grammar . noting a construction of two or more words having the same syntactic function as an inflected word, as of Mr. Smith in the son of Mr. Smith, which is equivalent to Mr. Smith's in Mr. Smith's son.

Front 227

prolix

Back 227

overblown/wordy

Hint 227

1.
extended to great, unnecessary, or tedious length; long and wordy.
2.
(of a person) given to speaking or writing at great or tedious length.

Front 228

rhetoric

Back 228

overblown/wordy

Hint 228

1.
(in writing or speech) the undue use of exaggeration or display; bombast.
2.
the art or science of all specialized literary uses of language in prose or verse, including the figures of speech.
3.
the study of the effective use of language.
4.
the ability to use language effectively.
5.
the art of prose in general as opposed to verse.

Front 229

turgid

Back 229

overblown/wordy

Hint 229

1.
swollen; distended; tumid.
2.
inflated, overblown, or pompous; bombastic: turgid language.

Front 230

verbose

Back 230

overblown/wordy

Hint 230

characterized by the use of many or too many words; wordy: a verbose report.

Front 231

authoritarian

Back 231

dictatorial

Hint 231

1.
favoring complete obedience or subjection to authority as opposed to individual freedom: authoritarian principles; authoritarian attitudes.
2.
of or pertaining to a governmental or political system, principle, or practice in which individual freedom is held as completely subordinate to the power or authority of the state, centered either in one person or a small group that is not constitutionally accountable to the people.
3.
exercising complete or almost complete control over the will of another or of others: an authoritarian parent.
4.
a person who favors or acts according to authoritarian principles.

Front 232

despotic

Back 232

dictatorial

Hint 232

of, pertaining to, or of the nature of a despot or despotism; autocratic; tyrannical.

Front 233

dogmatic

Back 233

dictatorial

Hint 233

1.
of, pertaining to, or of the nature of a dogma or dogmas; doctrinal.
2.
asserting opinions in a doctrinaire or arrogant manner; opinionated.

Front 234

hegemonic

Back 234

dictatorial

Hint 234

1.
leadership or predominant influence exercised by one nation over others, as in a confederation.
2.
leadership; predominance.
3.
(especially among smaller nations) aggression or expansionism by large nations in an effort to achieve world domination.

Front 235

imperious

Back 235

dictatorial

Hint 235

1.
domineering in a haughty manner; dictatorial; overbearing: an imperious manner; an imperious person.
2.
urgent; imperative: imperious need.

Front 236

peremptory

Back 236

dictatorial

Hint 236

1.
leaving no opportunity for denial or refusal; imperative: a peremptory command.
2.
imperious or dictatorial.
3.
positive or assertive in speech, tone, manner, etc.
4.
Law .
a.
that precludes or does not admit of debate, question, etc.: a peremptory edict.
b.
decisive or final.
c.
in which a command is absolute and unconditional: a peremptory writ.

Front 237

tyrannical

Back 237

dictatorial

Hint 237

1.
of or characteristic of a tyrant.
2.
unjustly cruel, harsh, or severe; arbitrary or oppressive; despotic: a tyrannical ruler.

Front 238

abhorrence

Back 238

hatred

Hint 238

1.
a feeling of extreme repugnance or aversion; utter loathing; abomination.
2.
something or someone extremely repugnant or loathsome.

Front 239

anathema

Back 239

hatred

Hint 239

1.
a person or thing detested or loathed: That subject is anathema to him.
2.
a person or thing accursed or consigned to damnation or destruction.
3.
a formal ecclesiastical curse involving excommunication.
4.
any imprecation of divine punishment.
5.
a curse; execration.

Front 240

antagonism

Back 240

hatred

Hint 240

.
an active hostility or opposition, as between unfriendly or conflicting groups: the antagonism between the liberal and the conservative parties.
2.
an opposing force, principle, or tendency: Her plan to become an actress met with the antagonism of her family.
3.
Physiology . an opposing action, as by one muscle in relation to another.
4.
the opposing action of substances, as drugs, that when taken together decrease the effectiveness of at least one of them ( contrasted with synergism).
5.
Ecology .
a.
a relationship between two species of organisms in which the individuals of each species adversely affect the other, as in competition.
b.
the inhibition of the growth of one type of organism by a different type that is competing for the same ecological niche.

Front 241

antipathy

Back 241

hatred

Hint 241

1.
a natural, basic, or habitual repugnance; aversion.
2.
an instinctive contrariety or opposition in feeling.
3.
an object of natural aversion or habitual dislike.

Front 242

detestation

Back 242

hatred

Hint 242

1.
abhorrence; hatred.
2.
a person or thing detested.

Front 243

enmity

Back 243

hatred

Hint 243

a feeling or condition of hostility; hatred; ill will; animosity; antagonism.

Front 244

loathing

Back 244

hatred

Hint 244

strong dislike or disgust; intense aversion.

Front 245

malice

Back 245

hatred

Hint 245

1.
desire to inflict injury, harm, or suffering on another, either because of a hostile impulse or out of deep-seated meanness: the malice and spite of a lifelong enemy.
2.
Law . evil intent on the part of a person who commits a wrongful act injurious to others.

Front 246

odium

Back 246

hatred

Hint 246

1.
intense hatred or dislike, especially toward a person or thing regarded as contemptible, despicable, or repugnant.
2.
the reproach, discredit, or opprobrium attaching to something hated or repugnant: He had to bear the odium of neglecting his family.
3.
the state or quality of being hated.

Front 247

rancor

Back 247

hatred

Hint 247

bitter, rankling resentment or ill will; hatred; malice.

Front 248

dilettante

Back 248

beginner/amateur

Hint 248

1.
a person who takes up an art, activity, or subject merely for amusement, especially in a desultory or superficial way; dabbler.
2.
a lover of an art or science, especially of a fine art.
3.
of or pertaining to dilettantes.

Front 249

fledgling

Back 249

beginner/amateur

Hint 249

1.
a young bird just fledged.
2.
an inexperienced person.
3.
young, new, or inexperienced: a fledgling diver.

Front 250

neophyte

Back 250

beginner/amateur

Hint 250

1.
a beginner or novice: He's a neophyte at chess.
2.
Roman Catholic Church . a novice.
3.
a person newly converted to a belief, as a heathen, heretic, or nonbeliever; proselyte.
4.
Primitive Church . a person newly baptized.

Front 251

proselyte

Back 251

beginner/amateur

Hint 251

1.
a person who has changed from one opinion, religious belief, sect, or the like, to another; convert.

Front 252

indolent

Back 252

lazy/sluggish

Hint 252

1.
having or showing a disposition to avoid exertion; slothful: an indolent person.
2.
Pathology . causing little or no pain; inactive or relatively benign: an indolent ulcer that is not painful and is slow to heal.

Front 253

inert

Back 253

lazy/sluggish

Hint 253

1.
having no inherent power of action, motion, or resistance ( opposed to active): inert matter.
2.
Chemistry . having little or no ability to react, as nitrogen that occurs uncombined in the atmosphere.
3.
Pharmacology . having no pharmacological action, as the excipient of a pill.
4.
inactive or sluggish by habit or nature.

Front 254

lackadaisical

Back 254

lazy/sluggish

Hint 254

1.
without interest, vigor, or determination; listless; lethargic: a lackadaisical attempt.
2.
lazy; indolent: a lackadaisical fellow.

Front 255

languid

Back 255

lazy/sluggish

Hint 255

1.
lacking in vigor or vitality; slack or slow: a languid manner.
2.
lacking in spirit or interest; listless; indifferent.
3.
drooping or flagging from weakness or fatigue; faint.

Front 256

lassitude

Back 256

lazy/sluggish

Hint 256

1.
weariness of body or mind from strain, oppressive climate, etc.; lack of energy; listlessness; languor.
2.
a condition of indolent indifference: the pleasant lassitude of the warm summer afternoon.

Front 257

lethargic

Back 257

lazy/sluggish

Hint 257

1.
of, pertaining to, or affected with lethargy; drowsy; sluggish.
2.
producing lethargy.

Front 258

phlegmatic

Back 258

lazy/sluggish

Hint 258

1.
not easily excited to action or display of emotion; apathetic; sluggish.
2.
self-possessed, calm, or composed.
3.
of the nature of or abounding in the humor phlegm.

Front 259

quiescent

Back 259

lazy/sluggish

Hint 259

being at rest; quiet; still; inactive or motionless: a quiescent mind.

Front 260

slothful

Back 260

lazy/sluggish

Hint 260

sluggardly; indolent; lazy.

Front 261

ameliorate

Back 261

pacify/satisfy

Hint 261

to make or become better, more bearable, or more satisfactory; improve; meliorate.

Front 262

appease

Back 262

pacify/satisfy

Hint 262

1.
to bring to a state of peace, quiet, ease, calm, or contentment; pacify; soothe: to appease an angry king.
2.
to satisfy, allay, or relieve; assuage: The fruit appeased his hunger.
3.
to yield or concede to the belligerent demands of (a nation, group, person, etc.) in a conciliatory effort, sometimes at the expense of justice or other principles.

Front 263

assuage

Back 263

pacify/satisfy

Hint 263

1.
to make milder or less severe; relieve; ease; mitigate: to assuage one's grief; to assuage one's pain.
2.
to appease; satisfy; allay; relieve: to assuage one's hunger.
3.
to soothe, calm, or mollify: to assuage his fears; to assuage her anger.

Front 264

defer

Back 264

pacify/satisfy

Hint 264

1.
to put off (action, consideration, etc.) to a future time: The decision has been deferred by the board until next week.
2.
to exempt temporarily from induction into military service.
3.
to put off action; delay.

Front 265

mitigate

Back 265

pacify/satisfy

Hint 265

1.
to lessen in force or intensity, as wrath, grief, harshness, or pain; moderate.
2.
to make less severe: to mitigate a punishment.
3.
to make (a person, one's state of mind, disposition, etc.) milder or more gentle; mollify; appease.
4.
to become milder; lessen in severity.

Front 266

mollify

Back 266

pacify/satisfy

Hint 266

1.
to soften in feeling or temper, as a person; pacify; appease.
2.
to mitigate or reduce; soften: to mollify one's demands.

Front 267

placate

Back 267

pacify/satisfy

Hint 267

to appease or pacify, especially by concessions or conciliatory gestures: to placate an outraged citizenry.

Front 268

propitiate

Back 268

pacify/satisfy
luck

Hint 268

to make favorably inclined; appease; conciliate.

Front 269

satiate

Back 269

pacify/satisfy

Hint 269

1.
to supply with anything to excess, so as to disgust or weary; surfeit.
2.
to satisfy to the full; sate.
3.
satiated.

Front 270

slake

Back 270

pacify/satisfy

Hint 270

1.
to allay (thirst, desire, wrath, etc.) by satisfying.
2.
to cool or refresh: He slaked his lips with ice.
3.
to make less active, vigorous, intense, etc.: His calm manner slaked their enthusiasm.
4.
to cause disintegration of (lime) by treatment with water. Compare slaked lime.
5.
Obsolete . to make loose or less tense; slacken.
6.
(of lime) to become slaked.
7.
Archaic . to become less active, intense, vigorous, etc.; abate.

Front 271

absolve

Back 271

forgive

Hint 271

verb (used with object), -solved, -solv·ing.
1.
to free from guilt or blame or their consequences: The court absolved her of guilt in his death.
2.
to set free or release, as from some duty, obligation, or responsibility (usually followed by from ): to be absolved from one's oath.
3.
to grant pardon for.
4.
Ecclesiastical .
a.
to grant or pronounce remission of sins to.
b.
to remit (a sin) by absolution.
c.
to declare (censure, as excommunication) removed.

Front 272

acquit

Back 272

forgive

Hint 272

1.
to relieve from a charge of fault or crime; declare not guilty: They acquitted him of the crime. The jury acquitted her, but I still think she's guilty.
2.
to release or discharge (a person) from an obligation.
3.
to settle or satisfy (a debt, obligation, claim, etc.).
4.
to bear or conduct (oneself); behave: He acquitted himself well in battle.
5.
to free or clear (oneself): He acquitted himself of suspicion.

Front 273

exculpate

Back 273

forgive

Hint 273

to clear from a charge of guilt or fault; free from blame; vindicate.

Front 274

exonerate

Back 274

forgive

Hint 274

1.
to clear, as of an accusation; free from guilt or blame; exculpate: He was exonerated from the accusation of cheating.
2.
to relieve, as from an obligation, duty, or task.

Front 275

expiate

Back 275

forgive
embarrass

Hint 275

to atone for; make amends or reparation for: to expiate one's crimes.

Front 276

palliate

Back 276

forgive

Hint 276

1.
to relieve or lessen without curing; mitigate; alleviate.
2.
to try to mitigate or conceal the gravity of (an offense) by excuses, apologies, etc.; extenuate.

Front 277

redress

Back 277

forgive

Hint 277

1.
the setting right of what is wrong: redress of abuses.
2.
relief from wrong or injury.
3.
compensation or satisfaction for a wrong or injury.
4.
to set right; remedy or repair (wrongs, injuries, etc.).
5.
to correct or reform (abuses, evils, etc.).
6.
to remedy or relieve (suffering, want, etc.).
7.
to adjust evenly again, as a balance.

Front 278

vindicate

Back 278

forgive

Hint 278

1.
to clear, as from an accusation, imputation, suspicion, or the like: to vindicate someone's honor.
2.
to afford justification for; justify: Subsequent events vindicated his policy.
3.
to uphold or justify by argument or evidence: to vindicate a claim.
4.
to assert, maintain, or defend (a right, cause, etc.) against opposition.
5.
to claim for oneself or another.

Front 279

destitute

Back 279

poor

Hint 279

1.
without means of subsistence; lacking food, clothing, and shelter.
2.
deprived of, devoid of, or lacking (often followed by of ): destitute of children.
3.
to leave destitute.

Front 280

esurient

Back 280

poor

Hint 280

hungry; greedy.

Front 281

impecunious

Back 281

poor

Hint 281

having little or no money; penniless; poor.

Front 282

indigent

Back 282

poor

Hint 282

1.
lacking food, clothing, and other necessities of life because of poverty; needy; poor; impoverished.
2.
Archaic .
a.
deficient in what is requisite.
b.
destitute (usually followed by of ).
3.
a person who is indigent.

Front 283

ardent/ardor

Back 283

favoring/not impartial

Hint 283

1.
having, expressive of, or characterized by intense feeling; passionate; fervent: an ardent vow; ardent love.
2.
intensely devoted, eager, or enthusiastic; zealous: an ardent theatergoer. an ardent student of French history.
3.
vehement; fierce: They were frightened by his ardent, burning eyes.
4.
burning, fiery, or hot: the ardent core of a star.

Front 284

doctrinaire

Back 284

favoring/not impartial

Hint 284

1.
a person who tries to apply some doctrine or theory without sufficient regard for practical considerations; an impractical theorist.
2.
dogmatic about others' acceptance of one's ideas; fanatical: a doctrinaire preacher.
3.
merely theoretical; impractical.
4.
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a doctrinaire.

Front 285

fervid

Back 285

favoring/not impartial

Hint 285

1.
heated or vehement in spirit, enthusiasm, etc.: a fervid orator.
2.
burning; glowing; intensely hot.

Front 286

partisan

Back 286

favoring/not impartial

Hint 286

1.
an adherent or supporter of a person, group, party, or cause, especially a person who shows a biased, emotional allegiance.
2.
Military . a member of a party of light or irregular troops engaged in harassing an enemy, especially a member of a guerrilla band engaged in fighting or sabotage against an occupying army.
3.
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of partisans; partial to a specific party, person, etc.: partisan politics.
4.
of, pertaining to, or carried on by military partisans or guerrillas.

Front 287

tendentious

Back 287

favoring/not impartial

Hint 287

having or showing a definite tendency, bias, or purpose: a tendentious novel.

Front 288

zealot

Back 288

favoring/not impartial

Hint 288

1.
a person who shows zeal.
2.
an excessively zealous person; fanatic.
3.
( initial capital letter ) a member of a radical, warlike, ardently patriotic group of Jews in Judea, particularly prominent from a.d. 69 to 81, advocating the violent overthrow of Roman rule and vigorously resisting the efforts of the Romans and their supporters to heathenize the Jews.

Front 289

abnegate

Back 289

denying of self

Hint 289

1.
to refuse or deny oneself (some rights, conveniences, etc.); reject; renounce.
2.
to relinquish; give up.

Front 290

abstain

Back 290

denying of self

Hint 290

1.
to hold oneself back voluntarily, especially from something regarded as improper or unhealthy (usually followed by from ): to abstain from eating meat.
2.
to refrain from casting one's vote: a referendum in which two delegates abstained.

Front 291

ascetic

Back 291

denying of self

Hint 291

1.
a person who dedicates his or her life to a pursuit of contemplative ideals and practices extreme self-denial or self-mortification for religious reasons.
2.
a person who leads an austerely simple life, especially one who abstains from the normal pleasures of life or denies himself or herself material satisfaction.
3.
(in the early Christian church) a monk; hermit.
4.
pertaining to asceticism.
5.
rigorously abstinent; austere: an ascetic existence.
6.
exceedingly strict or severe in religious exercises or self-mortification.

Front 292

spartan

Back 292

denying of self

Hint 292

1.
Also, Spar·tan·ic  [spahr-tan-ik] Show IPA. of or pertaining to Sparta or its people.
2.
suggestive of the ancient Spartans; sternly disciplined and rigorously simple, frugal, or austere.
3.
brave; undaunted.
4.
a native or inhabitant of Sparta.
5.
a person of Spartan characteristics.

Front 293

stoic

Back 293

denying of self

Hint 293

1.
of or pertaining to the school of philosophy founded by Zeno, who taught that people should be free from passion, unmoved by joy or grief, and submit without complaint to unavoidable necessity.
2.
( lowercase ) stoical.
3.
a member or adherent of the Stoic school of philosophy.
4.
( lowercase ) a person who maintains or affects the mental attitude advocated by the Stoics.

Front 294

temperate

Back 294

denying of self

Hint 294

1.
moderate or self-restrained; not extreme in opinion, statement, etc.: a temperate response to an insulting challenge.
2.
moderate as regards indulgence of appetite or passion, especially in the use of alcoholic liquors.
3.
not excessive in degree, as things, qualities, etc.
4.
moderate in respect to temperature; not subject to prolonged extremes of hot or cold weather.
5.
Microbiology . (of a virus) existing in infected host cells but rarely causing lysis.

Front 295

ambulatory

Back 295

walking about

Hint 295

1.
of, pertaining to, or capable of walking: an ambulatory exploration of the countryside.
2.
adapted for walking, as the limbs of many animals.
3.
moving about or from place to place; not stationary: an ambulatory tribe.
4.
Also, ambulant. Medicine/Medical .
a.
not confined to bed; able or strong enough to walk: an ambulatory patient.
b.
serving patients who are able to walk: an ambulatory care center.
5.
Law . not fixed; alterable or revocable: ambulatory will.
6.
Also called deambulatory. Architecture .
a.
an aisle surrounding the end of the choir or chancel of a church.
b.
the covered walk of a cloister.

Front 296

itinerant

Back 296

walking about
wandering

Hint 296

1.
traveling from place to place, especially on a circuit, as a minister, judge, or sales representative; itinerating; journeying.
2.
characterized by such traveling: itinerant preaching.
3.
working in one place for a comparatively short time and then moving on to work in another place, usually as a physical or outdoor laborer; characterized by alternating periods of working and wandering: an itinerant farm hand.
4.
a person who alternates between working and wandering.
5.
a person who travels from place to place, especially for duty or business.

Front 297

meander

Back 297

walking about
not a straight line

Hint 297

1.
to proceed by or take a winding or indirect course: The stream meandered through the valley.
2.
to wander aimlessly; ramble: The talk meandered on.
3.
Surveying . to define the margin of (a body of water) with a meander line.

Front 298

peripatetic

Back 298

walking about
wandering

Hint 298

1.
walking or traveling about; itinerant.
2.
( initial capital letter ) of or pertaining to Aristotle, who taught philosophy while walking in the Lyceum of ancient Athens.
3.
( initial capital letter ) of or pertaining to the Aristotelian school of philosophy.
4.
a person who walks or travels about.
5.
( initial capital letter ) a member of the Aristotelian school.

Front 299

disingenuous

Back 299

insincere

Hint 299

lacking in frankness, candor, or sincerity; falsely or hypocritically ingenuous; insincere: Her excuse was rather disingenuous.

Front 300

fulsome

Back 300

insincere

Hint 300

1.
offensive to good taste, especially as being excessive; overdone or gross: fulsome praise that embarrassed her deeply; fulsome décor.
2.
disgusting; sickening; repulsive: a table heaped with fulsome mounds of greasy foods.
3.
excessively or insincerely lavish: fulsome admiration.
4.
encompassing all aspects; comprehensive: a fulsome survey of the political situation in Central America.
5.
abundant or copious.

Front 301

ostensible

Back 301

insincere

Hint 301

1.
outwardly appearing as such; professed; pretended: an ostensible cheerfulness concealing sadness.
2.
apparent, evident, or conspicuous: the ostensible truth of their theories.

Front 302

unctuous

Back 302

insincere

Hint 302

1.
characterized by excessive piousness or moralistic fervor, especially in an affected manner; excessively smooth, suave, or smug.
2.
of the nature of or characteristic of an unguent or ointment; oily; greasy.
3.
having an oily or soapy feel, as certain minerals.

Front 303

discomfit

Back 303

prevent/obstruct

Hint 303

1.
to confuse and deject; disconcert: to be discomfited by a question.
2.
to frustrate the plans of; thwart; foil.
3.
Archaic . to defeat utterly; rout: The army was discomfited in every battle.
4.
Archaic . rout; defeat.

Front 304

encumber

Back 304

prevent/obstruct

Hint 304

1.
to impede or hinder; hamper; retard: Red tape encumbers all our attempts at action.
2.
to block up or fill with what is obstructive or superfluous: a mind encumbered with trivial and useless information.
3.
to burden or weigh down: She was encumbered with a suitcase and several packages.
4.
to burden with obligations, debt, etc.

Front 305

fetter

Back 305

prevent/obstruct

Hint 305

1.
a chain or shackle placed on the feet.
2.
Usually, fetters. anything that confines or restrains: Boredom puts fetters upon the imagination.
3.
to put fetters upon.
4.
to confine; restrain.

Front 306

forfend

Back 306

prevent/obstruct

Hint 306

1.
to defend, secure, or protect.
2.
to fend off, avert, or prevent.
3.
Archaic . forbid.

Front 307

hinder

Back 307

prevent/obstruct

Hint 307

1.
to cause delay, interruption, or difficulty in; hamper; impede: The storm hindered our progress.
2.
to prevent from doing, acting, or happening; stop: to hinder a man from committing a crime.
3.
to be an obstacle or impediment.

Front 308

impede

Back 308

prevent/obstruct

Hint 308

to retard in movement or progress by means of obstacles or hindrances; obstruct; hinder.

Front 309

occlude

Back 309

prevent/obstruct

Hint 309

1.
to close, shut, or stop up (a passage, opening, etc.).
2.
to shut in, out, or off.
3.
Physical Chemistry . (of certain metals and other solids) to incorporate (gases and other foreign substances), as by absorption or adsorption.
4.
Dentistry . to shut or close, with the cusps of the opposing teeth of the upper and lower jaws fitting together.
5.
Meteorology . to form an occluded front.

Front 310

aberrant

Back 310

eccentric/dissimilar

Hint 310

1.
departing from the right, normal, or usual course.
2.
deviating from the ordinary, usual, or normal type; exceptional; abnormal.
3.
an aberrant person, thing, group, etc.

Front 311

anachronism

Back 311

eccentric/dissimilar
time/order/duration

Hint 311

1.
something or someone that is not in its correct historical or chronological time, especially a thing or person that belongs to an earlier time: The sword is an anachronism in modern warfare.
2.
an error in chronology in which a person, object, event, etc., is assigned a date or period other than the correct one: To assign Michelangelo to the 14th century is an anachronism.

Front 312

anomalous

Back 312

eccentric/dissimilar

Hint 312

1.
deviating from or inconsistent with the common order, form, or rule; irregular; abnormal: Advanced forms of life may be anomalous in the universe.
2.
not fitting into a common or familiar type, classification, or pattern; unusual: He held an anomalous position in the art world.
3.
incongruous or inconsistent.
4.
Grammar . irregular.

Front 313

eclectic

Back 313

eccentric/dissimilar

Hint 313

1.
selecting or choosing from various sources.
2.
made up of what is selected from different sources.
3.
not following any one system, as of philosophy, medicine, etc., but selecting and using what are considered the best elements of all systems.
4.
noting or pertaining to works of architecture, decoration, landscaping, etc., produced by a certain person or during a certain period, that derive from a wide range of historic styles, the style in each instance often being chosen for its fancied appropriateness to local tradition, local geography, the purpose to be served, or the cultural background of the client.
5.
Also, ec·lec·ti·cist  [ih-klek-tuh-sist] Show IPA. a person who follows an eclectic method, as in philosophy or architecture.

Front 314

discrete

Back 314

eccentric/dissimilar

Hint 314

1.
apart or detached from others; separate; distinct: six discrete parts.
2.
consisting of or characterized by distinct or individual parts; discontinuous.
3.
Mathematics .
a.
(of a topology or topological space) having the property that every subset is an open set.
b.
defined only for an isolated set of points: a discrete variable.
c.
using only arithmetic and algebra; not involving calculus: discrete methods.

Front 315

iconoclast

Back 315

eccentric/dissimilar
unusual

Hint 315

1.
a person who attacks cherished beliefs, traditional institutions, etc., as being based on error or superstition.
2.
a breaker or destroyer of images, especially those set up for religious veneration.

Front 316

chortle

Back 316

funny

Hint 316

1.
to chuckle gleefully.
2.
to express with a gleeful chuckle: to chortle one's joy.

Front 317

droll

Back 317

funny

Hint 317

1.
amusing in an odd way; whimsically humorous; waggish.
2.
a droll person; jester; wag.

Front 318

facetious

Back 318

funny

Hint 318

1.
not meant to be taken seriously or literally: a facetious remark.
2.
amusing; humorous.
3.
lacking serious intent; concerned with something nonessential, amusing, or frivolous: a facetious person.

Front 319

flippant

Back 319

funny

Hint 319

1.
frivolously disrespectful, shallow, or lacking in seriousness; characterized by levity: The audience was shocked by his flippant remarks about patriotism.
2.
Chiefly Dialect . nimble, limber, or pliant.
3.
Archaic . glib; voluble.

Front 320

gibe

Back 320

funny

Hint 320

1.
to utter mocking or scoffing words; jeer.
2.
to taunt; deride.

Front 321

jocular

Back 321

funny

Hint 321

given to, characterized by, intended for, or suited to joking or jesting; waggish; facetious: jocular remarks about opera stars.

Front 322

levity

Back 322

funny

Hint 322

1.
lightness of mind, character, or behavior; lack of appropriate seriousness or earnestness.
2.
an instance or exhibition of this.
3.
fickleness.
4.
lightness in weight.

Front 323

ludicrous

Back 323

funny

Hint 323

causing laughter because of absurdity; provoking or deserving derision; ridiculous; laughable: a ludicrous lack of efficiency.

Front 324

raillery

Back 324

funny

Hint 324

1.
good-humored ridicule; banter.
2.
a bantering remark.

Front 325

riposte

Back 325

funny

Hint 325

1.
a quick, sharp return in speech or action; counterstroke: a brilliant riposte to an insult.
2.
Fencing . a quick thrust given after parrying a lunge.
3.
to make a riposte.
4.
to reply or retaliate.

Front 326

simper

Back 326

funny

Hint 326

1.
to smile in a silly, self-conscious way.
2.
to say with a simper.

Front 327

disconsolate

Back 327

sorrow

Hint 327

1.
without consolation or solace; hopelessly unhappy; inconsolable: Loss of her pet dog made her disconsolate.
2.
characterized by or causing dejection; cheerless; gloomy: disconsolate prospects.

Front 328

doleful

Back 328

sorrow

Hint 328

sorrowful; mournful; melancholy: a doleful look on her face.

Front 329

dolor

Back 329

sorrow

Hint 329

sorrow; grief.

Front 330

elegiac

Back 330

sorrow

Hint 330

1.
used in, suitable for, or resembling an elegy.
2.
expressing sorrow or lamentation: elegiac strains.
3.
Classical Prosody . noting a distich or couplet the first line of which is a dactylic hexameter and the second a pentameter, or a verse differing from the hexameter by suppression of the arsis or metrically unaccented part of the third and the sixth foot.
4.
an elegiac or distich verse.
5.
a poem in such distichs or verses.

Front 331

forlorn

Back 331

sorrow

Hint 331

1.
desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable, as in feeling, condition, or appearance.
2.
lonely and sad; forsaken.
3.
expressive of hopelessness; despairing: forlorn glances.
4.
bereft; destitute: forlorn of comfort.

Front 332

lament

Back 332

sorrow
death/mourning

Hint 332

1.
to feel or express sorrow or regret for: to lament his absence.
2.
to mourn for or over.
3.
to feel, show, or express grief, sorrow, or regret.
4.
to mourn deeply.

Front 333

lugubrious

Back 333

sorrow

Hint 333

mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner: lugubrious songs of lost love.

Front 334

melancholy

Back 334

sorrow

Hint 334

1.
a gloomy state of mind, especially when habitual or prolonged; depression.
2.
sober thoughtfulness; pensiveness.
3.
Archaic .
a.
the condition of having too much black bile, considered in ancient and medieval medicine to cause gloominess and depression.
b.
black bile.
4.
affected with, characterized by, or showing melancholy; mournful; depressed: a melancholy mood.
5.
causing melancholy or sadness; saddening: a melancholy occasion.
6.
soberly thoughtful; pensive.

Front 335

morose

Back 335

sorrow

Hint 335

1.
gloomily or sullenly ill-humored, as a person or mood.
2.
characterized by or expressing gloom.

Front 336

plaintive

Back 336

sorrow

Hint 336

expressing sorrow or melancholy; mournful: a plaintive melody.

Front 337

threnody

Back 337

sorrow

Hint 337

a poem, speech, or song of lamentation, especially for the dead; dirge; funeral song.

Front 338

defile

Back 338

disgusting/offensive

Hint 338

1.
to make foul, dirty, or unclean; pollute; taint; debase.
2.
to violate the chastity of.
3.
to make impure for ceremonial use; desecrate.
4.
to sully, as a person's reputation.

Front 339

fetid

Back 339

disgusting/offensive
nasty

Hint 339

having an offensive odor; stinking.

Front 340

invidious

Back 340

disgusting/offensive

Hint 340

1.
calculated to create ill will or resentment or give offense; hateful: invidious remarks.
2.
offensively or unfairly discriminating; injurious: invidious comparisons.
3.
causing or tending to cause animosity, resentment, or envy: an invidious honor.
4.
Obsolete . envious.

Front 341

noisome

Back 341

disgusting/offensive
nasty

Hint 341

1.
offensive or disgusting, as an odor.
2.
harmful or injurious to health; noxious.

Front 342

odious

Back 342

disgusting/offensive

Hint 342

1.
deserving or causing hatred; hateful; detestable.
2.
highly offensive; repugnant; disgusting.

Front 343

putrid

Back 343

disgusting/offensive

Hint 343

1.
in a state of foul decay or decomposition, as animal or vegetable matter; rotten.
2.
of, pertaining to, or attended by putrefaction.
3.
having the odor of decaying flesh.
4.
thoroughly corrupt, depraved, or evil.
5.
of very low quality; rotten.

Front 344

rebarbative

Back 344

disgusting/offensive

Hint 344

causing annoyance, irritation, or aversion; repellent.

Front 345

abeyance

Back 345

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 345

1.
temporary inactivity, cessation, or suspension: Let's hold that problem in abeyance for a while.
2.
Law . a state or condition of real property in which title is not as yet vested in a known titleholder: an estate in abeyance.

Front 346

abjure

Back 346

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 346

1.
to renounce, repudiate, or retract, especially with formal solemnity; recant: to abjure one's errors.
2.
to renounce or give up under oath; forswear: to abjure allegiance.
3.
to avoid or shun.

Front 347

abnegation

Back 347

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 347

1.
the act or an instance of abnegating, or denying oneself some rights, conveniences, etc.: It was a time of austerity and abnegation.
2.
the act of reliquishing or giving up a right, possession, etc.: abnegation of parental responsibilities.

Front 348

abortive

Back 348

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 348

1.
failing to succeed; unsuccessful: an abortive rebellion; an abortive scheme.
2.
born prematurely.
3.
imperfectly developed; rudimentary.
4.
Medicine/Medical .
a.
producing or intended to produce abortion; abortifacient.
b.
acting to halt progress of a disease.
5.
Pathology . (of the course of a disease) short and mild without the usual, pronounced clinical symptoms.

Front 349

abrogate

Back 349

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 349

1.
to abolish by formal or official means; annul by an authoritative act; repeal: to abrogate a law.
2.
to put aside; put an end to.

Front 350

decamp

Back 350

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 350

1.
to depart from a camp; to pack up equipment and leave a camping ground: We decamped before the rain began.
2.
to depart quickly, secretly, or unceremoniously: The band of thieves decamped in the night.

Front 351

demur

Back 351

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 351

1.
to make objection, especially on the grounds of scruples; take exception; object: They wanted to make him the treasurer, but he demurred.
2.
Law . to interpose a demurrer.
3.
Archaic . to linger; hesitate.
4.
the act of making objection.
5.
an objection raised.
6.
hesitation.
7.
Law. Obsolete . a demurrer.

Front 352

recant

Back 352

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 352

1.
to withdraw or disavow (a statement, opinion, etc.), especially formally; retract.
2.
to withdraw or disavow a statement, opinion, etc., especially formally.

Front 353

recidivism

Back 353

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 353

1.
repeated or habitual relapse, as into crime.
2.
Psychiatry . the chronic tendency toward repetition of criminal or antisocial behavior patterns.

Front 354

remission

Back 354

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 354

1.
the act of remitting.
2.
pardon; forgiveness, as of sins or offenses.
3.
abatement or diminution, as of diligence, labor, intensity, etc.
4.
the relinquishment of a payment, obligation, etc.
5.
Medicine/Medical .
a.
a temporary or permanent decrease or subsidence of manifestations of a disease.
b.
a period during which such a decrease or subsidence occurs: The patient's leukemia was in remission.

Front 355

renege

Back 355

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 355

1.
Cards . to play a card that is not of the suit led when one can follow suit; break a rule of play.
2.
to go back on one's word: He has reneged on his promise.
3.
Archaic . to deny; disown; renounce.

Front 356

rescind

Back 356

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 356

1.
to abrogate; annul; revoke; repeal.
2.
to invalidate (an act, measure, etc.) by a later action or a higher authority.

Front 357

retrograde

Back 357

withdrawal/retreat

Hint 357

1.
moving backward; having a backward motion or direction; retiring or retreating.
2.
inverse or reversed, as order.
3.
Chiefly Biology . exhibiting degeneration or deterioration.
4.
Astronomy .
a.
moving in an orbit in the direction opposite to that of the earth in its revolution around the sun.
b.
appearing to move on the celestial sphere in the direction opposite to the natural order of the signs of the zodiac, or from east to west. Compare direct ( def. 25 ) .
5.
Music . proceeding from the last note to the first: a melody in retrograde motion.
7.
to move or go backward; retire or retreat.
8.
Chiefly Biology . to decline to a worse condition; degenerate.
9.
Astronomy . to have a retrograde motion.

Front 358

bereave

Back 358

death/mourning

Hint 358

1.
to deprive and make desolate, especially by death (usually followed by of ): Illness bereaved them of their mother.
2.
to deprive ruthlessly or by force (usually followed by of ): The war bereaved them of their home.
3.
Obsolete . to take away by violence.

Front 359

cadaver

Back 359

death/mourning

Hint 359

a dead body, especially a human body to be dissected; corpse.

Front 360

defunct

Back 360

death/mourning

Hint 360

1.
no longer in effect or use; not operating or functioning: a defunct law; a defunct organization.
2.
no longer in existence; dead; extinct: a defunct person; a defunct tribe of Indians.
3.
the defunct, the dead person referred to: the survivors of the defunct.

Front 361

demise

Back 361

death/mourning

Hint 361

1.
death or decease.
2.
termination of existence or operation: the demise of the empire.
3.
Law .
a.
a death or decease occasioning the transfer of an estate.
b.
a conveyance or transfer of an estate.
4.
Government . transfer of sovereignty, as by the death or deposition of the sovereign.
5.
Law . to transfer (an estate or the like) for a limited time; lease.
6.
Government . to transfer (sovereignty), as by the death or abdication of the sovereign.

Front 362

dolorous

Back 362

death/mourning

Hint 362

full of, expressing, or causing pain or sorrow; grievous; mournful: a dolorous melody; dolorous news.

Front 363

elegy

Back 363

death/mourning

Hint 363

1.
a mournful, melancholy, or plaintive poem, especially a funeral song or a lament for the dead.
2.
a poem written in elegiac meter.
3.
a sad or mournful musical composition.

Front 364

knell

Back 364

death/mourning

Hint 364

1.
the sound made by a bell rung slowly, especially for a death or a funeral.
2.
a sound or sign announcing the death of a person or the end, extinction, failure, etc., of something: the knell of parting day.
3.
any mournful sound.
4.
to sound, as a bell, especially a funeral bell.
5.
to give forth a mournful, ominous, or warning sound.

Front 365

macabre

Back 365

death/mourning

Hint 365

1.
gruesome and horrifying; ghastly; horrible.
2.
of, pertaining to, dealing with, or representing death, especially its grimmer or uglier aspect.
3.
of or suggestive of the allegorical dance of death.

Front 366

moribund

Back 366

death/mourning

Hint 366

1.
in a dying state; near death.
2.
on the verge of extinction or termination.
3.
not progressing or advancing; stagnant: a moribund political party.

Front 367

obsequies

Back 367

death/mourning

Hint 367

a funeral rite or ceremony.

Front 368

sepulchral

Back 368

death/mourning

Hint 368

1.
of, pertaining to, or serving as a tomb.
2.
of or pertaining to burial.
3.
proper to or suggestive of a tomb; funereal or dismal.
4.
hollow and deep: sepulchral tones.

Front 369

wraith

Back 369

death/mourning

Hint 369

1.
an apparition of a living person supposed to portend his or her death.
2.
a visible spirit.

Front 370

counterpart

Back 370

copy

Hint 370

1.
a person or thing closely resembling another, especially in function: Our president is the counterpart of your prime minister.
2.
a copy; duplicate.
3.
Law . a duplicate or copy of an indenture.
4.
one of two parts that fit, complete, or complement one another.

Front 371

emulate

Back 371

copy

Hint 371

1.
to try to equal or excel; imitate with effort to equal or surpass: to emulate one's father as a concert violinist.
2.
to rival with some degree of success: Some smaller cities now emulate the major capitals in their cultural offerings.
3.
Computers .
a.
to imitate (a particular computer system) by using a software system, often including a microprogram or another computer that enables it to do the same work, run the same programs, etc., as the first.
b.
to replace (software) with hardware to perform the same task.
4.
Obsolete . emulous.

Front 372

facsimile

Back 372

copy

Hint 372

1.
an exact copy, as of a book, painting, or manuscript.
2.
Also called fax. Telecommunications .
a.
a method or device for transmitting documents, drawings, photographs, or the like, by means of radio or telephone for exact reproduction elsewhere.
b.
an image transmitted by such a method.
3.
dropout ( def. 5 ) .
4.
to reproduce in facsimile; make a facsimile of.

Front 373

factitious

Back 373

copy

Hint 373

1.
not spontaneous or natural; artificial; contrived: factitious laughter; factitious enthusiasm.
2.
made; manufactured: a decoration of factitious flowers and leaves.

Front 374

paradigm

Back 374

copy

Hint 374

1.
Grammar .
a.
a set of forms all of which contain a particular element, especially the set of all inflected forms based on a single stem or theme.
b.
a display in fixed arrangement of such a set, as boy, boy's, boys, boys'.
2.
an example serving as a model; pattern.

Front 375

precursor

Back 375

copy
predict

Hint 375

1.
a person or thing that precedes, as in a job, a method, etc.; predecessor.
2.
a person, animal, or thing that goes before and indicates the approach of someone or something else; harbinger: The first robin is a precursor of spring.
3.
Chemistry, Biochemistry . a chemical that is transformed into another compound, as in the course of a chemical reaction, and therefore precedes that compound in the synthetic pathway: Cholesterol is a precursor of testosterone.
4.
Biology . a cell or tissue that gives rise to a variant, specialized, or more mature form.

Front 376

quintessence

Back 376

copy

Hint 376

1.
the pure and concentrated essence of a substance.
2.
the most perfect embodiment of something.
3.
(in ancient and medieval philosophy) the fifth essence or element, ether, supposed to be the constituent matter of the heavenly bodies, the others being air, fire, earth, and water.

Front 377

simulated

Back 377

copy

Hint 377

1.
to create a simulation, likeness, or model of (a situation, system, or the like): to simulate crisis conditions.
2.
to make a pretense of; feign: to simulate knowledge.
3.
to assume or have the appearance or characteristics of: He simulated the manners of the rich.
4.
Archaic . simulated.

Front 378

vicarious

Back 378

copy

Hint 378

1.
performed, exercised, received, or suffered in place of another: vicarious punishment.
2.
taking the place of another person or thing; acting or serving as a substitute.
3.
felt or enjoyed through imagined participation in the experience of others: a vicarious thrill.
4.
Physiology . noting or pertaining to a situation in which one organ performs part of the functions normally performed by another.

Front 379

equitable

Back 379

equal

Hint 379

1.
characterized by equity or fairness; just and right; fair; reasonable: equitable treatment of all citizens.
2.
Law .
a.
pertaining to or valid in equity.
b.
pertaining to the system of equity, as distinguished from the common law.

Front 380

equity

Back 380

equal

Hint 380

1.
the quality of being fair or impartial; fairness; impartiality: the equity of Solomon. Synonyms: disinterest, equitableness, impartiality, fair-mindedness, fairness, justness, evenhandedness, objectivity; justice, probity. Antonyms: bias, discrimination, inequity, injustice, partiality, partisanship, prejudice, unfairness, unreasonableness; injustice.
2.
something that is fair and just: the equities of our criminal-justice system.
3.
Law .
a.
Also called chancery . the application of the dictates of conscience or the principles of natural justice to the settlement of controversies.
b.
Also called chancery . a system of jurisprudence or a body of doctrines and rules developed in England and followed in the U.S., serving to supplement and remedy the limitations and the inflexibility of the common law.
c.
an equitable right or claim.
d.
equity of redemption.
4.
the monetary value of a property or business beyond any amounts owed on it in mortgages, claims, liens, etc.: Over the years, they have carefully avoided tapping into their home equity for unnecessary expenses.
5.
Informal . ownership, especially when considered as the right to share in future profits or appreciation in value.

Front 381

tantamount

Back 381

equal

Hint 381

equivalent, as in value, force, effect, or signification: His angry speech was tantamount to a declaration of war.

Front 382

aberration

Back 382

unusual

Hint 382

1.
the act of departing from the right, normal, or usual course.
2.
the act of deviating from the ordinary, usual, or normal type.
3.
deviation from truth or moral rectitude.
4.
mental irregularity or disorder, especially of a minor or temporary nature; lapse from a sound mental state.
5.
Astronomy . apparent displacement of a heavenly body, owing to the motion of the earth in its orbit.

Front 383

anomaly

Back 383

unusual

Hint 383

1.
a deviation from the common rule, type, arrangement, or form.
2.
someone or something anomalous: With his quiet nature, he was an anomaly in his exuberant family.
3.
an odd, peculiar, or strange condition, situation, quality, etc.
4.
an incongruity or inconsistency.
5.
Astronomy . a quantity measured in degrees, defining the position of an orbiting body with respect to the point at which it is nearest to or farthest from its primary.

Front 384

idiosyncrasy

Back 384

unusual

Hint 384

1.
a characteristic, habit, mannerism, or the like, that is peculiar to an individual.
2.
the physical constitution peculiar to an individual.
3.
a peculiarity of the physical or the mental constitution, especially susceptibility toward drugs, food, etc. Compare allergy ( def. 1 ) .

Front 385

discursive

Back 385

wandering

Hint 385

1.
passing aimlessly from one subject to another; digressive; rambling.
2.
proceeding by reasoning or argument rather than intuition.

Front 386

expatiate

Back 386

wandering

Hint 386

1.
to enlarge in discourse or writing; be copious in description or discussion: to expatiate upon a theme.
2.
Archaic . to move or wander about intellectually, imaginatively, etc., without restraint.

Front 387

forage

Back 387

wandering

Hint 387

1.
food for horses or cattle; fodder; provender.
2.
the seeking or obtaining of such food.
3.
the act of searching for provisions of any kind.
4.
a raid.
5.
to wander or go in search of provisions.
6.
to search about; seek; rummage; hunt: He went foraging in the attic for old mementos.
7.
to make a raid.

Front 388

peregrination

Back 388

wandering

Hint 388

1.
travel from one place to another, especially on foot.
2.
a course of travel; journey.

Front 389

sojourn

Back 389

wandering

Hint 389

1.
a temporary stay: during his sojourn in Paris.
2.
to stay for a time in a place; live temporarily: to sojourn on the Riviera for two months.

Front 390

abatement

Back 390

gaps/openings

Hint 390

1.
the act or state of abating or the state of being abated; reduction; decrease; alleviation; mitigation.
2.
suppression or termination: abatement of a nuisance; noise abatement.
3.
an amount deducted or subtracted, as from the usual price or the full tax.
4.
Law .
a.
a reduction of a tax assessment.
b.
the termination of a nuisance.
c.
a wrongful entry on land made by a stranger, after the owner's death and before the owner's heir or devisee has obtained possession.
d.
a decrease in the legacies of a will when the assets of an estate are insufficient to pay all general legacies in full.
5.
Also called rebatement. Heraldry . a charge or mark that, when introduced into a coat of arms, indicates the owner's disgrace.

Front 391

aperture

Back 391

gaps/openings

Hint 391

1.
an opening, as a hole, slit, crack, gap, etc.
2.
Also called aperture stop . Optics . an opening, usually circular, that limits the quantity of light that can enter an optical instrument.

Front 392

fissure

Back 392

gaps/openings

Hint 392

1.
a narrow opening produced by cleavage or separation of parts.
2.
cleavage ( def. 1 ) .
3.
Anatomy . a natural division or groove in an organ, as in the brain.
4.
to make fissures in; cleave; split.

Front 393

hiatus

Back 393

gaps/openings

Hint 393

1.
a break or interruption in the continuity of a work, series, action, etc.
2.
a missing part; gap or lacuna: Scholars attempted to account for the hiatus in the medieval manuscript.
3.
any gap or opening.
4.
Grammar, Prosody . the coming together, with or without break or slight pause, and without contraction, of two vowels in successive words or syllables, as in see easily.
5.
Anatomy . a natural fissure, cleft, or foramen in a bone or other structure.

Front 394

interregnum

Back 394

gaps/openings

Hint 394

1.
an interval of time between the close of a sovereign's reign and the accession of his or her normal or legitimate successor.
2.
any period during which a state has no ruler or only a temporary executive.
3.
any period of freedom from the usual authority.
4.
any pause or interruption in continuity.

Front 395

interstice

Back 395

gaps/openings

Hint 395

1.
an intervening space.
2.
a small or narrow space or interval between things or parts, especially when one of a series of alternating uniform spaces and parts: the interstices between the slats of a fence.
3.
Roman Catholic Church . the interval of time that must elapse, as required by canon law, before promotion to a higher degree of orders.
4.
an interval of time.

Front 396

lull

Back 396

gaps/openings

Hint 396

1.
to put to sleep or rest by soothing means: to lull a child by singing.
2.
to soothe or quiet.
3.
to give or lead to feel a false sense of safety; cause to be less alert, aware, or watchful.
4.
to quiet down, let up, or subside: furious activity that finally lulled.
5.
a temporary calm, quiet, or stillness: a lull in a storm.
6.
a soothing sound: the lull of falling waters.
7.
a pacified or stupefied condition: The drug had put him in a lull.

Front 397

orifice

Back 397

gaps/openings

Hint 397

an opening or aperture, as of a tube or pipe; a mouthlike opening or hole; mouth; vent.

Front 398

rent

Back 398

gaps/openings

Hint 398

1.
an opening made by rending or tearing; slit; fissure.
2.
a breach of relations or union between individuals or groups; schism.
3.
simple past tense and past participle of rend.

Front 399

respite

Back 399

gaps/openings

Hint 399

1.
a delay or cessation for a time, especially of anything distressing or trying; an interval of relief: to toil without respite.
2.
temporary suspension of the execution of a person condemned to death; reprieve.
3.
to relieve temporarily, especially from anything distressing or trying; give an interval of relief from.
4.
to grant delay in the carrying out of (a punishment, obligation, etc.).

Front 400

rift

Back 400

gaps/openings

Hint 400

1.
an opening made by splitting, cleaving, etc.; fissure; cleft; chink.
2.
an open space, as in a forest or cloud mass, or a clear interval.
3.
a break in friendly relations: a rift between two people; a rift between two nations.
4.
a difference in opinion, belief, or interest that causes such a break in friendly relations.
5.
Geology .
a.
a fault.
b.
a graben of regional extent.
8.
to burst open; split.

Front 401

beneficial

Back 401

healthy

Hint 401

1.
conferring benefit; advantageous; helpful: the beneficial effect of sunshine.
2.
Law .
a.
helpful in the meeting of needs: a beneficial association.
b.
involving the personal enjoyment of proceeds: a beneficial owner.

Front 402

salubrious

Back 402

healthy

Hint 402

favorable to or promoting health; healthful: salubrious air.

Front 403

salutary

Back 403

healthy

Hint 403

1.
favorable to or promoting health; healthful.
2.
promoting or conducive to some beneficial purpose; wholesome.

Front 404

abridge

Back 404

abbreviated communication

Hint 404

1.
to shorten by omissions while retaining the basic contents: to abridge a reference book.
2.
to reduce or lessen in duration, scope, authority, etc.; diminish; curtail: to abridge a visit; to abridge one's freedom.
3.
to deprive; cut off.

Front 405

compendium

Back 405

abbreviated communication

Hint 405

1.
a brief treatment or account of a subject, especially an extensive subject; concise treatise: a compendium of medicine.
2.
a summary, epitome, or abridgment.
3.
a full list or inventory: a compendium of their complaints.

Front 406

cursory

Back 406

abbreviated communication

Hint 406

going rapidly over something, without noticing details; hasty; superficial: a cursory glance at a newspaper article.

Front 407

curtail

Back 407

abbreviated communication

Hint 407

to cut short; cut off a part of; abridge; reduce; diminish.

Front 408

syllabus

Back 408

abbreviated communication

Hint 408

1.
an outline or other brief statement of the main points of a discourse, the subjects of a course of lectures, the contents of a curriculum, etc.
2.
Law .
a.
a short summary of the legal basis of a court's decision appearing at the beginning of a reported case.
b.
a book containing summaries of the leading cases in a legal field, used especially by students.
3.
( often initial capital letter ) Also called Syllabus of Errors. Roman Catholic Church . the list of 80 propositions condemned as erroneous by Pope Pius IX in 1864.

Front 409

synopsis

Back 409

abbreviated communication

Hint 409

1.
a brief or condensed statement giving a general view of some subject.
2.
a compendium of heads or short paragraphs giving a view of the whole.
3.
a brief summary of the plot of a novel, motion picture, play, etc.

Front 410

terse

Back 410

abbreviated communication

Hint 410

1.
neatly or effectively concise; brief and pithy, as language.
2.
abruptly concise; curt; brusque.

Front 411

adage

Back 411

wisdom

Hint 411

a traditional saying expressing a common experience or observation; proverb.

Front 412

aphorism

Back 412

wisdom

Hint 412

a terse saying embodying a general truth, or astute observation, as “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” (Lord Acton).

Front 413

apothegm

Back 413

wisdom

Hint 413

a short, pithy, instructive saying; a terse remark or aphorism.

Front 414

axiom

Back 414

wisdom

Hint 414

1.
a self-evident truth that requires no proof.
2.
a universally accepted principle or rule.
3.
Logic, Mathematics . a proposition that is assumed without proof for the sake of studying the consequences that follow from it.

Front 415

bromide

Back 415

wisdom

Hint 415

1.
Chemistry .
a.
a salt of hydrobromic acid consisting of two elements, one of which is bromine, as sodium bromide, NaBr.
b.
a compound containing bromine, as methyl bromide.
2.
Pharmacology . potassium bromide, known to produce central nervous system depression, formerly used as a sedative.
3.
a platitude or trite saying.
4.
a person who is platitudinous and boring.

Front 416

dictum

Back 416

wisdom

Hint 416

1.
an authoritative pronouncement; judicial assertion.
2.
a saying; maxim.
3.
obiter dictum.

Front 417

epigram

Back 417

wisdom

Hint 417

1.
any witty, ingenious, or pointed saying tersely expressed.
2.
epigrammatic expression: Oscar Wilde had a genius for epigram.
3.
a short, often satirical poem dealing concisely with a single subject and usually ending with a witty or ingenious turn of thought.

Front 418

platitude

Back 418

wisdom

Hint 418

1.
a flat, dull, or trite remark, especially 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.

Front 419

sententious

Back 419

wisdom

Hint 419

1.
abounding in pithy aphorisms or maxims: a sententious book.
2.
given to excessive moralizing; self-righteous.
3.
given to or using pithy sayings or maxims: a sententious poet.
4.
of the nature of a maxim; pithy.

Front 420

truism

Back 420

wisdom

Hint 420

a self-evident, obvious truth.

Front 421

conjugal

Back 421

family

Hint 421

1.
of, pertaining to, or characteristic of marriage: conjugal vows.
2.
pertaining to the relation of husband and wife.

Front 422

consanguine

Back 422

family

Hint 422

having the same ancestry or descent; related by blood.

Front 423

distaff

Back 423

family

Hint 423

1.
a staff with a cleft end for holding wool, flax, etc., from which the thread is drawn in spinning by hand.
2.
a similar attachment on a spinning wheel.
3.
Archaic .
a.
a woman or women collectively.
b.
woman's work.
4.
Sometimes Offensive . noting, pertaining to, characteristic of, or suitable for a woman; female.
"the female sex, female authority in the family,"

Front 424

endogamous

Back 424

family

Hint 424

marriage within a specific tribe or similar social unit. Compare exogamy ( def. 1 ) .

Front 425

filial

Back 425

family

Hint 425

1.
of, pertaining to, or befitting a son or daughter: filial obedience.
2.
noting or having the relation of a child to a parent.
3.
Genetics . pertaining to the sequence of generations following the parental generation, each generation being designated by an F followed by a subscript number indicating its place in the sequence.

Front 426

fratricide

Back 426

family

Hint 426

1.
a person who kills his or her brother.
2.
the act of killing one's brother.

Front 427

progenitor

Back 427

family

Hint 427

1.
a biologically related ancestor: a progenitor of the species.
2.
a person or thing that first indicates a direction, originates something, or serves as a model; predecessor; precursor: the progenitor of modern painting.

Front 428

scion

Back 428

family

Hint 428

1.
a descendant.
2.
Also, cion. a shoot or twig, especially one cut for grafting or planting; a cutting.

Front 429

askance

Back 429

not a straight line

Hint 429

1.
with suspicion, mistrust, or disapproval: He looked askance at my offer.
2.
with a side glance; sidewise; obliquely.

Front 430

awry

Back 430

not a straight line

Hint 430

1.
with a turn or twist to one side; askew: to glance or look awry.
2.
away from the expected or proper direction; amiss; wrong: Our plans went awry.

Front 431

careen

Back 431

not a straight line

Hint 431

1.
(of a vehicle) to lean, sway, or tip to one side while in motion: The car careened around the corner.
2.
(of a ship) to heel over or list.
3.
career ( def. 7 ) .
4.
South Midland U.S. to lean or bend away from the vertical position: The barn was careening a little.
5.
to cause (a ship) to lie over on a side, as for repairs or cleaning; heave down.
6.
to clean or repair (a ship lying on its side for the purpose).
7.
to cause (a ship) to heel over or list, as by the force of a beam wind.

Front 432

carom

Back 432

not a straight line

Hint 432

1.
Billiards, Pool . a shot in which the cue ball hits two balls in succession.
2.
any strike and rebound, as a ball striking a wall and glancing off.
3.
to make a carom.
4.
to strike and rebound.

Front 433

circuitous

Back 433

not a straight line

Hint 433

roundabout; not direct: a circuitous route; a circuitous argument.

Front 434

circumvent

Back 434

not a straight line

Hint 434

1.
to go around or bypass: to circumvent the lake; to circumvent the real issues.
2.
to avoid (defeat, failure, unpleasantness, etc.) by artfulness or deception; avoid by anticipating or outwitting: He circumvented capture by anticipating their movements.
3.
to surround or encompass, as by stratagem; entrap: to circumvent a body of enemy troops.

Front 435

gyrate

Back 435

not a straight line

Hint 435

1.
to move in a circle or spiral, or around a fixed point; whirl.
2.
Zoology . having convolutions.

Front 436

labyrinth

Back 436

not a straight line

Hint 436

1.
an intricate combination of paths or passages in which it is difficult to find one's way or to reach the exit.
2.
a maze of paths bordered by high hedges, as in a park or garden, for the amusement of those who search for a way out.
3.
a complicated or tortuous arrangement, as of streets or buildings.
4.
any confusingly intricate state of things or events; a bewildering complex.
5.
( initial capital letter ) Classical Mythology . a vast maze built in Crete by Daedalus, at the command of King Minos, to house the Minotaur.

Front 437

oblique

Back 437

not a straight line

Hint 437

1.
neither perpendicular nor parallel to a given line or surface; slanting; sloping.
2.
(of a solid) not having the axis perpendicular to the plane of the base.
3.
diverging from a given straight line or course.
4.
not straight or direct, as a course.
5.
indirectly stated or expressed; not straightforward: oblique remarks about the candidate's honesty.
14.
Military . at an angle of 45°.

Front 438

serrated

Back 438

not a straight line

Hint 438

1.
having a notched edge or sawlike teeth, especially for cutting; serrate: the serrated blade of a bread knife.
2.
serrate.

Front 439

sidle

Back 439

not a straight line

Hint 439

1.
to move sideways or obliquely.
2.
to edge along furtively.
3.
a sidling movement.

Front 440

sinuous

Back 440

not a straight line

Hint 440

1.
having many curves, bends, or turns; winding: a sinuous path.
2.
indirect; devious: sinuous questions.
3.
characterized by a series of graceful curving motions: a sinuous dance.
4.
Botany . sinuate, as a leaf.

Front 441

undulating

Back 441

not a straight line

Hint 441

1.
to move with a sinuous or wavelike motion; display a smooth rising-and-falling or side-to-side alternation of movement: The flag undulates in the breeze.
2.
to have a wavy form or surface; bend with successive curves in alternate directions.
3.
(of a sound) to rise and fall in pitch: the wail of a siren undulating in the distance.
4.
to cause to move in waves.
5.
to give a wavy form to.

Front 442

vortex

Back 442

not a straight line

Hint 442

1.
a whirling mass of water, especially one in which a force of suction operates, as a whirlpool.
2.
a whirling mass of air, especially one in the form of a visible column or spiral, as a tornado.
3.
a whirling mass of fire, flame, etc.
4.
a state of affairs likened to a whirlpool for violent activity, irresistible force, etc.
5.
something regarded as drawing into its powerful current everything that surrounds it: the vortex of war.

Front 443

appraise

Back 443

investigate

Hint 443

1.
to estimate the monetary value of; determine the worth of; assess: We had an expert appraise the house before we bought it.
2.
to estimate the nature, quality, importance, etc.: He tried to appraise the poetry of John Updike.

Front 444

ascertain

Back 444

investigate

Hint 444

1.
to find out definitely; learn with certainty or assurance; determine: to ascertain the facts.
2.
Archaic . to make certain, clear, or definitely known.

Front 445

assay

Back 445

investigate

Hint 445

1.
to examine or analyze: to assay a situation; to assay an event.
2.
Metallurgy . to analyze (an ore, alloy, etc.) in order to determine the quantity of gold, silver, or other metal in it.
3.
Pharmacology . to subject (a drug) to an analysis for the determination of its potency or composition.
4.
to judge the quality of; assess; evaluate: to assay someone's efforts.
5.
to try or test; put to trial: to assay one's strength; to assay one's debating abilities.
7.
to contain, as shown by analysis, a certain proportion of usually precious metal.

Front 446

descry

Back 446

investigate

Hint 446

1.
to see (something unclear or distant) by looking carefully; discern; espy: The lookout descried land.
2.
to discover; perceive; detect.

Front 447

peruse

Back 447

investigate

Hint 447

1.
to read through with thoroughness or care: to peruse a report.
2.
to read.
3.
to survey or examine in detail.

Front 448

antecede

Back 448

time/order/duration

Hint 448

to go before, in time, order, rank, etc.; precede: Shakespeare antecedes Milton.

Front 449

anterior

Back 449

time/order/duration

Hint 449

1.
situated before or at the front of; fore ( opposed to posterior).
2.
going before in time or sequence; preceding; earlier: events anterior to the outbreak of war.
3.
Linguistics . (in distinctive feature analysis) articulated in the region extending from the alveolar ridge to the lips; alveolar, dental, or labial.
4.
(in animals and embryos) pertaining to or toward the head or forward end of the body.
5.
(in humans) pertaining to or toward the front plane of the body, equivalent to the ventral surface of quadrupeds.

Front 450

archaic

Back 450

time/order/duration

Hint 450

1.
marked by the characteristics of an earlier period; antiquated: an archaic manner; an archaic notion.
2.
(of a linguistic form) commonly used in an earlier time but rare in present-day usage except to suggest the older time, as in religious rituals or historical novels. Examples: thou; wast; methinks; forsooth.
3.
forming the earliest stage; prior to full development: the archaic period of psychoanalytic research.
4.
( often initial capital letter ) pertaining to or designating the style of the fine arts, especially painting and sculpture, developed in Greece from the middle 7th to the early 5th century b.c., chiefly characterized by an increased emphasis on the human figure in action, naturalistic proportions and anatomical structure, simplicity of volumes, forms, or design, and the evolution of a definitive style for the narrative treatment of subject matter. Compare classical ( def. 6 ) , Hellenistic ( def. 5 ) .
5.
primitive; ancient; old: an archaic form of animal life.

Front 451

diurnal

Back 451

time/order/duration

Hint 451

1.
of or pertaining to a day or each day; daily.
2.
of or belonging to the daytime ( opposed to nocturnal).
3.
Botany . showing a periodic alteration of condition with day and night, as certain flowers that open by day and close by night.
4.
active by day, as certain birds and insects ( opposed to nocturnal).
5.
Liturgy . a service book containing offices for the daily hours of prayer.
6.
Archaic . a diary.
7.
Archaic . a newspaper, especially a daily one.

Front 452

eon

Back 452

time/order/duration

Hint 452

1.
an indefinitely long period of time; age.
2.
the largest division of geologic time, comprising two or more eras.
3.
Astronomy . one billion years.

Front 453

ephemeral

Back 453

time/order/duration

Hint 453

1.
lasting a very short time; short-lived; transitory: the ephemeral joys of childhood.
2.
lasting but one day: an ephemeral flower.
3.
anything short-lived, as certain insects.

Front 454

epoch

Back 454

time/order/duration

Hint 454

1.
a particular period of time marked by distinctive features, events, etc.: The treaty ushered in an epoch of peace and good will.
2.
the beginning of a distinctive period in the history of anything: The splitting of the atom marked an epoch in scientific discovery.
3.
a point of time distinguished by a particular event or state of affairs; a memorable date: His coming of age was an epoch in his life.
4.
Geology . any of several divisions of a geologic period during which a geologic series is formed. Compare age ( def. 12 ) .
5.
Astronomy .
a.
an arbitrarily fixed instant of time or date, usually the beginning of a century or half century, used as a reference in giving the elements of a planetary orbit or the like.
b.
the mean longitude of a planet as seen from the sun at such an instant or date.

Front 455

fortnight

Back 455

time/order/duration

Hint 455

the space of fourteen nights and days; two weeks.

Front 456

millennium

Back 456

time/order/duration

Hint 456

1.
a period of 1000 years.
2.
the millennium, the period of a thousand years during which Christ will reign on earth. Rev. 20:1–7.
3.
a period of general righteousness and happiness, especially in the indefinite future.
4.
a thousandth anniversary.

Front 457

penultimate

Back 457

time/order/duration

Hint 457

1.
next to the last: the penultimate scene of the play.
2.
of or pertaining to a penult.
3.
a penult.

Front 458

synchronous

Back 458

time/order/duration

Hint 458

1.
occurring at the same time; coinciding in time; contemporaneous; simultaneous.
2.
going on at the same rate and exactly together; recurring together.
3.
Physics, Electricity . having the same frequency and zero phase difference.
4.
Computers, Telecommunications . of, pertaining to, or operating using fixed-time intervals controlled by a clock ( opposed to asynchronous).
5.
Aerospace . geostationary.

Front 459

temporal

Back 459

time/order/duration

Hint 459

1.
of or pertaining to time.
2.
pertaining to or concerned with the present life or this world; worldly: temporal joys.
3.
enduring for a time only; temporary; transitory ( opposed to eternal).
4.
Grammar .
a.
of, pertaining to, or expressing time: a temporal adverb.
b.
of or pertaining to the tenses of a verb.
5.
secular, lay, or civil, as opposed to ecclesiastical.
noun Usually, temporals.
6.
a temporal possession, estate, or the like; temporality.
7.
something that is temporal; a temporal matter or affair.

Front 460

bilious

Back 460

bad mood

Hint 460

1.
Physiology, Pathology . pertaining to bile or to an excess secretion of bile.
2.
Pathology . suffering from, caused by, or attended by trouble with the bile or liver.
3.
peevish; irritable; cranky.
4.
extremely unpleasant or distasteful: a long scarf of bright, bilious green.

Front 461

dudgeon

Back 461

bad mood

Hint 461

a feeling of offense or resentment; anger: We left in high dudgeon.

Front 462

pettish

Back 462

bad mood

Hint 462

petulantly peevish: a pettish refusal.

Front 463

petulant

Back 463

bad mood

Hint 463

moved to or showing sudden, impatient irritation, especially over some trifling annoyance: a petulant toss of the head.

Front 464

pique

Back 464

bad mood

Hint 464

1.
to affect with sharp irritation and resentment, especially by some wound to pride: She was greatly piqued when they refused her invitation.
2.
to wound (the pride, vanity, etc.).
3.
to excite (interest, curiosity, etc.): Her curiosity was piqued by the gossip.
4.
to arouse an emotion or provoke to action: to pique someone to answer a challenge.
5.
Archaic . to pride (oneself) (usually followed by on or upon ).
6.
to arouse pique in someone: an action that piqued when it was meant to soothe.

Front 465

querulous

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bad mood

Hint 465

1.
full of complaints; complaining.
2.
characterized by or uttered in complaint; peevish: a querulous tone; constant querulous reminders of things to be done.

Front 466

umbrage

Back 466

bad mood

Hint 466

1.
offense; annoyance; displeasure: to feel umbrage at a social snub; to give umbrage to someone; to take umbrage at someone's rudeness.
2.
the slightest indication or vaguest feeling of suspicion, doubt, hostility, or the like.
3.
leaves that afford shade, as the foliage of trees.
4.
shade or shadows, as cast by trees.
5.
a shadowy appearance or semblance of something.

Front 467

waspish

Back 467

bad mood

Hint 467

1.
like or suggesting a wasp, especially in behavior.
2.
quick to resent a trifling affront or injury; snappish.
3.
irascibly or petulantly spiteful: waspish writing.
4.
having a slight or slender build.

Front 468

abash

Back 468

embarrass

Hint 468

to destroy the self-confidence, poise, or self-possession of; disconcert; make ashamed or embarrassed: to abash someone by sneering.

Front 469

chagrin

Back 469

embarrass

Hint 469

1.
a feeling of vexation, marked by disappointment or humiliation.
2.
to vex by disappointment or humiliation: The rejection of his proposal chagrined him deeply.
3.
Obsolete . shagreen ( def. 1 ) .

Front 470

compunction

Back 470

embarrass

Hint 470

1.
a feeling of uneasiness or anxiety of the conscience caused by regret for doing wrong or causing pain; contrition; remorse.
2.
any uneasiness or hesitation about the rightness of an action.

Front 471

contrition

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embarrass

Hint 471

1.
sincere penitence or remorse.
2.
Theology . sorrow for and detestation of sin with a true purpose of amendment, arising from a love of God for His own perfections (perfect contrition), or from some inferior motive, as fear of divine punishment (imperfect contrition).

Front 472

diffidence

Back 472

embarrass

Hint 472

lacking self-confidence; timid; shy

Front 473

foible

Back 473

embarrass

Hint 473

1.
a minor weakness or failing of character; slight flaw or defect: an all-too-human foible.
2.
the weaker part of a sword blade, between the middle and the point ( opposed to forte).

Front 474

gaucherie

Back 474

embarrass

Hint 474

1.
lack of social grace, sensitivity, or acuteness; awkwardness; crudeness; tactlessness.
2.
an act, movement, etc., that is socially graceless, awkward, or tactless.

Front 475

rue

Back 475

embarrass

Hint 475

1.
to feel sorrow over; repent of; regret bitterly: to rue the loss of opportunities.
2.
to wish that (something) had never been done, taken place, etc.: I rue the day he was born.
3.
to feel sorrow, repentance, or regret.

Front 476

baleful

Back 476

heardhearted

Hint 476

1.
full of menacing or malign influences; pernicious.
2.
Obsolete . wretched; miserable.

Front 477

dour

Back 477

hardhearted

Hint 477

1.
sullen; gloomy: The captain's dour look depressed us all.
2.
severe; stern: His dour criticism made us regret having undertaken the job.
3.
Scot. (of land) barren; rocky, infertile, or otherwise difficult or impossible to cultivate.

Front 478

fell

Back 478

hardhearted

Hint 478

1.
fierce; cruel; dreadful; savage.
2.
destructive; deadly: fell poison; fell disease.

Front 479

sardonic

Back 479

hardhearted

Hint 479

characterized by bitter or scornful derision; mocking; cynical; sneering: a sardonic grin.

Front 480

scathing

Back 480

hardhearted

Hint 480

1.
bitterly severe, as a remark: a scathing review of the play.
2.
harmful, injurious, or searing.

Front 481

truculent

Back 481

hardhearted

Hint 481

1.
fierce; cruel; savagely brutal.
2.
brutally harsh; vitriolic; scathing: his truculent criticism of her work.
3.
aggressively hostile; belligerent.

Front 482

vitriolic

Back 482

hardhearted

Hint 482

1.
of, pertaining to, or resembling vitriol.
2.
obtained from vitriol.
3.
very caustic; scathing: vitriolic criticism.

Front 483

vituperation

Back 483

hardhearted

Hint 483

verbal abuse or castigation; violent denunciation or condemnation.

Front 484

admonish

Back 484

nag

Hint 484

1.
to caution, advise, or counsel against something.
2.
to reprove or scold, especially in a mild and good-willed manner: The teacher admonished him about excessive noise.
3.
to urge to a duty; remind: to admonish them about their obligations.

Front 485

cavil

Back 485

nag

Hint 485

1.
to raise irritating and trivial objections; find fault with unnecessarily (usually followed by at or about ): He finds something to cavil at in everything I say.
2.
to oppose by inconsequential, frivolous, or sham objections: to cavil each item of a proposed agenda.

Front 486

belabor

Back 486

nag

Hint 486

1.
to explain, worry about, or work at (something) repeatedly or more than is necessary: He kept belaboring the point long after we had agreed.
2.
to assail persistently, as with scorn or ridicule: a book that belabors the provincialism of his contemporaries.
3.
to beat vigorously; ply with heavy blows.
4.
Obsolete . to labor at.

Front 487

enjoin

Back 487

nag

Hint 487

1.
to prescribe (a course of action) with authority or emphasis: The doctor enjoined a strict diet.
2.
to direct or order to do something: He was enjoined to live more frugally.
3.
Law . to prohibit or restrain by an injunction.

Front 488

exhort

Back 488

nag

Hint 488

1.
to urge, advise, or caution earnestly; admonish urgently.
2.
to give urgent advice, recommendations, or warnings.

Front 489

hector

Back 489

nag

Hint 489

1.
Classical Mythology . the eldest son of Priam and husband of Andromache: the greatest Trojan hero in the Trojan War, killed by Achilles.
2.
( lowercase ) a blustering, domineering person; a bully.
3.
a male given name.
4.
( lowercase ) to treat with insolence; bully; torment: The teacher hectored his students incessantly.
5.
( lowercase ) to act in a blustering, domineering way; be a bully.

Front 490

martinet

Back 490

nag

Hint 490

1.
a strict disciplinarian, especially a military one.
2.
someone who stubbornly adheres to methods or rules.

Front 491

reproof

Back 491

nag

Hint 491

1.
the act of reproving, censuring, or rebuking.
2.
an expression of censure or rebuke.

Front 492

augur

Back 492

predict

Hint 492

1.
one of a group of ancient Roman officials charged with observing and interpreting omens for guidance in public affairs.
2.
soothsayer; prophet.
3.
to divine or predict, as from omens; prognosticate.
4.
to serve as an omen or promise of; foreshadow; betoken: Mounting sales augur a profitable year.

Front 493

auspice

Back 493

predict

Hint 493

1.
Usually, auspices. patronage; support; sponsorship: under the auspices of the Department of Education.
2.
Often, auspices. a favorable sign or propitious circumstance.
3.
a divination or prognostication, originally from observing birds.

Front 494

fey

Back 494

predict

Hint 494

1.
British Dialect . doomed; fated to die.
2.
Chiefly Scot. appearing to be under a spell; marked by an apprehension of death, calamity, or evil.
3.
supernatural; unreal; enchanted: elves, fairies, and other fey creatures.
4.
being in unnaturally high spirits, as were formerly thought to precede death.
5.
whimsical; strange; otherworldly: a strange child with a mysterious smile and a fey manner.

Front 495

harbinger

Back 495

predict

Hint 495

1.
a person who goes ahead and makes known the approach of another; herald.
2.
anything that foreshadows a future event; omen; sign: Frost is a harbinger of winter.
3.
a person sent in advance of troops, a royal train, etc., to provide or secure lodgings and other accommodations.
4.
to act as harbinger to; herald the coming of.

Front 496

portentous

Back 496

predict
luck

Hint 496

1.
of the nature of a portent; momentous.
2.
ominously significant or indicative: a portentous defeat.
3.
marvelous; amazing; prodigious.

Front 497

presage

Back 497

predict

Hint 497

1.
a presentiment or foreboding.
2.
something that portends or foreshadows a future event; an omen, prognostic, or warning indication.
3.
prophetic significance; augury.
4.
foresight; prescience.
5.
Archaic . a forecast or prediction.
6.
to have a presentiment of.
7.
to portend, foreshow, or foreshadow: The incidents may presage war.
8.
to forecast; predict.

Front 498

prescient

Back 498

predict

Hint 498

having prescience, or knowledge of things or events before they exist or happen; having foresight: The prescient economist was one of the few to see the financial collapse coming.

Front 499

prognosticate

Back 499

predict

Hint 499

1.
to forecast or predict (something future) from present indications or signs; prophesy.
2.
to foretoken; presage: birds prognosticating spring.
3.
to make a forecast; prophesy.

Front 500

adventitious

Back 500

luck

Hint 500

1.
associated with something by chance rather than as an integral part; extrinsic.
2.
Botany, Zoology . appearing in an abnormal or unusual position or place, as a root.

Front 501

amulet

Back 501

luck

Hint 501

a small object worn to ward off evil, harm, or illness or to bring good fortune; protecting charm.

Front 502

auspicious

Back 502

luck

Hint 502

1.
promising success; propitious; opportune; favorable: an auspicious occasion.
2.
favored by fortune; prosperous; fortunate.

Front 503

fortuitous

Back 503

luck

Hint 503

1.
happening or produced by chance; accidental: a fortuitous encounter.
2.
lucky; fortunate: a series of fortuitous events that advanced her career.

Front 504

kismet

Back 504

luck

Hint 504

fate; destiny.

Front 505

optimum

Back 505

luck

Hint 505

1.
the best or most favorable point, degree, amount, etc., as of temperature, light, and moisture for the growth or reproduction of an organism.
2.
the greatest degree or best result obtained or obtainable under specific conditions.
3.
most favorable or desirable; best: optimum conditions.

Front 506

propitious

Back 506

luck

Hint 506

1.
presenting favorable conditions; favorable: propitious weather.
2.
indicative of favor; auspicious: propitious omens.
3.
favorably inclined; disposed to bestow favors or forgive: propitious gods.

Front 507

providential

Back 507

luck

Hint 507

1.
of, pertaining to, or resulting from divine providence: providential care.
2.
opportune, fortunate, or lucky: a providential event.

Front 508

talisman

Back 508

luck

Hint 508

1.
a stone, ring, or other object, engraved with figures or characters supposed to possess occult powers and worn as an amulet or charm.
2.
any amulet or charm.
3.
anything whose presence exercises a remarkable or powerful influence on human feelings or actions.

Front 509

noxious

Back 509

nasty

Hint 509

1.
harmful or injurious to health or physical well-being: noxious fumes.
2.
morally harmful; corrupting; pernicious: a noxious plan to spread dissension.

Front 510

assonance

Back 510

harsh-sounding

Hint 510

1.
resemblance of sounds.
2.
Also called vowel rhyme. Prosody . rhyme in which the same vowel sounds are used with different consonants in the stressed syllables of the rhyming words, as in penitent and reticence.
3.
partial agreement or correspondence.

Front 511

cacophony

Back 511

harsh-sounding

Hint 511

1.
harsh discordance of sound; dissonance: a cacophony of hoots, cackles, and wails.
2.
a discordant and meaningless mixture of sounds: the cacophony produced by city traffic at midday.
3.
Music . frequent use of discords of a harshness and relationship difficult to understand.

Front 512

din

Back 512

harsh-sounding

Hint 512

1.
a loud, confused noise; a continued loud or tumultuous sound; noisy clamor.
2.
to assail with din.
3.
to sound or utter with clamor or persistent repetition.

Front 513

dissonant

Back 513

harsh-sounding

Hint 513

1.
disagreeing or harsh in sound; discordant.
2.
out of harmony; incongruous; at variance.
3.
Music . characterized by dissonance.

Front 514

raucous

Back 514

harsh-sounding

Hint 514

1.
harsh; strident; grating: raucous voices; raucous laughter.
2.
rowdy; disorderly: a raucous party.

Front 515

strident

Back 515

harsh-sounding

Hint 515

1.
making or having a harsh sound; grating; creaking: strident insects; strident hinges.
2.
having a shrill, irritating quality or character: a strident tone in his writings.
3.
Linguistics . (in distinctive feature analysis) characterized acoustically by noise of relatively high intensity, as sibilants, labiodental and uvular fricatives, and most affricates.

Front 516

euphonious

Back 516

pleasant-sounding

Hint 516

pleasant in sound; agreeable to the ear; characterized by euphony: a sweet, euphonious voice.

Front 517

harmonious

Back 517

pleasant-sounding

Hint 517

1.
marked by agreement in feeling, attitude, or action: a harmonious group.
2.
forming a pleasingly consistent whole; congruous: harmonious colors.
3.
pleasant to the ear; tuneful; melodious.

Front 518

melodious

Back 518

pleasant-sounding

Hint 518

1.
of the nature of or characterized by melody; tuneful.
2.
producing melody; sweet-sounding; musical.

Front 519

sonorous

Back 519

pleasant-sounding

Hint 519

1.
giving out or capable of giving out a sound, especially a deep, resonant sound, as a thing or place: a sonorous cavern.
2.
loud, deep, or resonant, as a sound.
3.
rich and full in sound, as language or verse.
4.
high-flown; grandiloquent: a sonorous speech.