Words Of The Day-Ms. Alexis

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Abstruse

Back 1

adj
hard to comprehend

Although classic literature can be fun to read, some students find it as ____ as a foreign language

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affinity

Back 2

noun
a spontaneous feeling of closeness

Roger didn't known why but he had an ___ for children that made him want to be a father.

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behemoth

Back 3

noun
something of tremendous power or size

the new prinicpal had to fill the shoes of a ____

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calumny

Back 4

noun
an attempt to spoil someone else's reputation by spreading lies

The tabloid papers ____ ended up ruining the politician's chance at reelection

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despot

Back 5

noun
one who has total power and rules brutally

some people view Fidel Castro as a ___ who has runined the lives of many by running a communist government

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ennui

ahn-wee

Back 6

noun
boredom; weariness

i feel such ___ that i'm on the verge of depression and i feel as low as a worm

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foil

Back 7

verb
to thwart, frustrate, defeat

what the pirates thought to be a treasure map was actually a ruse to ____ anyone attempting to find the real thing

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goad

Back 8

verb
to urge, spur, incite to action

Using peer pressure, the boys tried to ____ Jim to smoke

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hardy

Back 9

adj
robust; capable of surviving through adverse conditions

Everyone expected Tina's business to fail during the recession but she proved how ___ she was by holding on and surviving the storm

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incessant

Back 10

adj
unending; continuous

few people know what's beyond a trillion, but its a well-known fact that numbers are ______

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lithe

Back 11

adj
graceful, flexible, supple
(bending easy)

Although the divers were all outstanding, Dana's control of her ____ body was particularly impressive.

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mercurial

Back 12

adj
characterized by rapid change; fickle

women are often perceived as ___ because of their ever changing minds

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nomadic

Back 13

adj
wandering from place to place

the runaway teenager ended up living a ___ life by hitchhiking throughout the united states

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officious

Back 14

adj
offering one's services when they are neither wanted nor needed

I'd be willing to bet that pets think their owners are ____ when suggesting the removal of their reproductive organs!

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palliate

Back 15

verb
to reduce the severity of

the doctor trusted that the new medication would ____ her patient's discomfort

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polemic

Back 16

noun
an aggressive argument against a specific opinion

the men launched into a ____ against each other's stance on which NFL team was better

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querulous

Back 17

adj
whiny, complaining


everyone hated bob in the finace department because he ws so ____-he found fault and complained about everything

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restive

Back 18

adj
resistant, stubborn, impatient


the ____ dog refused to be trained by his owner

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sinuous

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adj
lithe, serpentine


with the ___ movements of her limbs, the yoga instructor mimicked the motion of a snake.

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solipsistic

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adj
believing oneself is all that exists


sentence?

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tome

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noun
a large book


sentence?

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upbraid

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verb
to criticize or scold severely


Mr Mann was a harsh teacher, known to___ students who couldn't understand the lesson

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vituperate

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verb
to scold or address with harsh, abusive language



The employee was immediately sorry for mixing up the order because he knew his boss was prone to__ him severely.

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Wane

Back 24

verb
to decrease in size, dwindle


When corporations began to downsize, the employment rate began to ___ at a speed Americans hadn't witnessed in a long time

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winsome

Back 25

adj
charm; pleasing



The ___ businessman was able to exert his magic on women as well as technology.

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yoke

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verb
to join, link



The entity of marriage is an attempt to ___ two people together for life

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Accede

Back 27

verb
to agree


Although the team was usually very resistant, Rachel convinced everyone to accede with the new proposal.

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Benign

Back 28

adj
favorable; non-threatening, mild


Although the teddy bear was fashioned as a devil, he still had a benign presence.

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Carp

Back 29

to annoy or pester; to find fault or criticize unreasonably


The students all left the table when Anthony, notorious for his tendency to __ incessantly, sat in the extra seat

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Cogent

Back 30

adj
intellectually convincing; appealing to the powers of reason



The teacher insisted that the capstone research paper be __ to be deemed relevant and earn a high degree

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depravity

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noun
wickedness or moral corruption



The __ of the business man caused him to cheat all of his employees out of their holiday bonuses

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Equanimity

Back 32

noun
composure; calmness



When the frustrated store clerk encountered the rude customer, it was a part of his job to maintain his ____.

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flout

Back 33

verb
to disregard or disobey openly

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garish

Back 34

gaudy (showy, tasteless, flashy), in bad taste

adj

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hallowed

Back 35

adj

revered, consecrated
sacred, regareded with respect

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idiosyncratic

Back 36

adj

peculiar to one person; highly individuallized

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linchpin

Back 37

noun

something that holds separate pieces together

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multifarious

Back 38

adj
having great diversity or variety

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noisome

Back 39

adj

unpleasant, offensive, esp to the sense of smell

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oblique

Back 40

adj

diverging from a straight line or course, not straight forward

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pacific

Back 41

adj
soothing

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paradigm

Back 42

noun

an example that is a perfect pattern or model

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rail

Back 43

verb

to scold, protest

the professor wanted to ____rail against the injustice of the college's tenure policy.

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relish

Back 44

verb

to enjoy

Pete always tended to relish his bedtime snack