Words From Sparknotes 2

Front 1

fetid

Back 1

having a foul odour

Hint 1

I can tell from the fetid smell in your refrigerator that your milk has spoiled.

Front 2

fractious

Back 2

troublesome or irritable

Hint 2

Although the child insisted he wasn't tired, his fractious behaviour -especially his decision to crush his cheese and crackers all over the floor - convinced everyone present that it was time to put him to bed.

Front 3

garrulous

Back 3

talkative, wordy

Hint 3

Some talk-show hosts are so garrulous that their guests can't get a word in edgewise.

Front 4

grandiloquence

Back 4

lofty, pompous language

Hint 4

The student thought her grandiloquence would make her sound smart, but neither the class nor the teacher bought it.

Front 5

gregarious

Back 5

drawn to the company of others, sociable

Hint 5

Well, if you're not gregarious, I don't know why you would want to go to a single party!

Front 6

hapless

Back 6

unlucky

Hint 6

My poor, hapless family never seems to pick a sunny week to go on vacation.

Front 7

hegemony

Back 7

domination over others

Hint 7

Britain's hegamony over its colonies was threatened once nationalist sentiment began to spread around the world.

Front 8

iconoclast

Back 8

one who attacks common beliefs or institutions

Hint 8

Jane goes to one protest after another, but she seems to be an iconoclast rather than an activist with a progressive agenda.

Front 9

ignominious

Back 9

humiliating, disgracing

Hint 9

It was really ignominious to be kicked out of the dorm for having an illegal gas stove in my room.

Front 10

imperious

Back 10

commanding, domineering

Hint 10

The imperious nature of your manner led me to dislike you at once.

Front 11

impertinent

Back 11

rude, insolent

Hint 11

Most of your comments are so impertinent that I don't wish to dignify them with an answer.

Front 12

impervious

Back 12

impenetrable, incapable of being affected

Hint 12

Because of their thick layer of fur, many seals are almost impervious to the cold.

Front 13

impetuous

Back 13

rash; hastily done

Hint 13

Hilda's hasty slaying of the king was an impetuous, thoughtless action.

Front 14

impinge

Back 14

to impact, affect, make an impression

Hint 14

The hail impinged the roof, leaving large dents.

Front 15

implacable

Back 15

incapable of being appeased or mitigated

Hint 15

Watch out: Once you shun Grandma's cooking, she is totally implacable.

Front 16

impudent

Back 16

casually rude, insolent, impertinent

Hint 16

The impudent young man looked the princess up and down and told her she was hot even though she hadn't asked him.

Front 17

inchoate

Back 17

unformed or formless, in a begining stage

Hint 17

The country's government is still inchoate and, because it has no great emotion, quite unstable.

Front 18

incontrovertible

Back 18

indisputable

Hint 18

Only stubborn Tina would attempt to disprove the incontrovertible laws of physics.

Front 19

inimical

Back 19

hostile

Hint 19

I don't see how I could ever work for a company that was so cold and inimical to me during my interviews.

Front 20

iniquity

Back 20

wickedness or sin

Hint 20

Your iniquity, said the priest to the practical jokester, will be forgiven

Front 21

intransigent

Back 21

refusing to compromise, often on an extreme opinion

Hint 21

The intransigent child said he would have 12 scoops of ice cream or he would bang his head against the wall.

Front 22

inure

Back 22

To cause someone or something to become accustomed to a situation.

Hint 22

Twenty years in the salt mines inured the man to the discomforts of dirt and grime.

Front 23

invective

Back 23

an angry verbal attack

Hint 23

My mother's irrational invective against the way I dress only made me decide to dye my hair green.

Front 24

inveterate

Back 24

stubbornly established by habit

Hint 24

I'm the first to admit that I'm an inveterate coffee drinker - I drink four cups a day.

Front 25

laconic

Back 25

terse in speech or writing

Hint 25

The author's laconic style has won him many followers who dislike wordiness.

Front 26

languid

Back 26

sluggish from fatigue or weakness

Hint 26

In the summer months, the great heat makes people languid and lazy.

Front 27

largess

Back 27

the generous giving of lavish gifts

Hint 27

My boss demostrated great largess by giving me a new car.

Front 28

legerdemain

Back 28

deception, slight-of-hand

Hint 28

Smuggling the French plants through customs by claiming that they were fake was a remarkable bit of legerdemain.

Front 29

licentious

Back 29

displaying a lack of moral or legal restraints

Hint 29

Marilee has always been fascinated by the licentious private lives of politicians.

Front 30

limpid

Back 30

clear, transparent

Hint 30

Mr. Johnson's limpid writing style greatly pleased readers who disliked complicated novels.