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126 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Ad Hominem
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Criticizes an idea by pointing out the person who holds the idea
"Of course that writer supports gun control; she's a Demoncrat!" |
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Argument from authority
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tempts the reader to agree with the writer's assumptions based on the authority of a famous person or entity or on his or her own character
"It is absurd to believe that professional baseball players have used steroids because the most famous slugger of our time has repeatedy asserted that such a claim is false." |
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Faulty causality
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the setting up of a cause-and-effect relationship when none exsts.
"Violent crime among adolescents has risen in the past decade, and that is the result of increased sales of violent video games" |
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Straw Man
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an oversimplification of an opponent's argument to make it easier to attack.
"Students who want to eliminate the scshool uniform are exhibitionists who want to show off bare midriffs." |
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Sentimental Appeal
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attempts to appeal to the "hearts" of readers so that they forget to use their "minds"
"The assignment that I gave you last night was much too long, but just think how pleased your parents and I will be when you score a 5 on the AP exam. Think about the pride you'll feel when tears of joy stream down our faces!" |
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Red Herring
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attempts to shift attention away from an imprtant issue by introducing an issue that has no logical connection to the discussion at hand.
"My opponent talks about the poor quality of military intelligence, but this is a time for decisiveness, not for weakness. We must stick together and present a common frot as the other nations look on. If we do not, we could jepordize our position as a global leader." |
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Scare Tactics
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used to frighten readers or listeners into agreeing with the speaker; often, the speaker has no logical argument on which to fall back.
"My opponent talks about the need to explore stem cell research, but this would bring about an end to ethical uses of technology, and, before long, scientists will be creating superraces - the Nazi dream of an Aryan Nation will ensue!" |
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Appeal to ignorance
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based on the assumption that whatever has not been proven false must be true (or, similarly, whatver has not been proven true must be false).
"No one can prove that the Loch Ness monster exits (or does not exist); therefore the Loch Ness monster does not exist (or exists)." |
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Begging the question
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argument which someone assumes that parts (or all) of what the person claimes to be proving are proven facts.
"The Loch Ness monster spoke to me in my dreams, so it must exist." |
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Hasty generalization
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when a writer deliberately leads the reader to a conclusion by providing insufficient, selective evidence.
"Ping-pong is an extremely dangerous sport; last year, my friend got hit in the eye with a ping-pong ball and almost lost his vision in that eye." |
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Non sequitur
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a statement that does not relate logically to what comes before it.
"If you really wanted to earn a 5 on the AP English Language and Composition exam, you wouldn't spend so much time reading Isabel Allende's novels." |
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Flase Dichotomy
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consists of a combination of only two extremes when there are one or more intermediate possibilities
"AP Calculus BC class is impossible; either you get it or you don't" |
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Slippery Slope
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suggest dire consequences from relatively minor causes
"If we stop wear coats and ties in the dining room, pretty soon they'll start coming in dressed in beachwear." |
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Bandwagon Appeals
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encourages the listener to agree with a position because everyone else does.
"It's time for our county to repeal the ban on strip mining - every other county in the state has already done so!" |
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Dogmatism
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does not allow for discussion because the speaker presumes that his or her beliefs are beyond question
"We are members of the Wombat Party and, as such, know that we are right when we asser that Wombats are the best!" |
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Equivocation
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telling part of the truth, while deliberately hiding the entire truth
"Hey, does your dog bite." "No" [pets dog] "Hey, it bit me!" "That's not my dog." |
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assertion
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a declaration or statement
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cogent
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concinving; reasonable
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didactic
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intended to instruct
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discourse
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verbal expression or exchange; conversation
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fluid
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easily flowing
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implication
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the act of suggesting or hinting
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lucid
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easily understood; clear
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exculpate
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to free from guilt or blame
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penitent
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expressing remorse for one's misdeeds
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despotic
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exercising absolute power; tyrannical
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disdain
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to look down on
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haughty
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arrogant; vainly proud
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imperious
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arrogantly domineering or overbearing
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cryptic
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difficult to understand
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futile
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have no useful purpose; pointless
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quandary
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a state of uncertainty or perplexity
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indolent
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lazy
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insipid
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uninteresting; unchallenging
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listless
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lacking energy
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torpor
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laziness; inactivity; dullness
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disparity
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inequality in age, rank, or degree; difference
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opulent
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exhibiting a display of great wealth
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poignant
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profoundly moving; touching
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ebullience
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intense enthusiasm
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effusive
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emotionally unrestrained; gushy
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egregious
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conspiciously bad or offensive
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auspicious
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favorable; promising
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mollify
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to calm or soothe
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sanction
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to give official authorization or approval
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slander
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false charges and malicious oral statements about someone
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spurious
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not genuine
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astute
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shrwed; clever
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clandestine
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secretive
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coup
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a brilliantly executed plan
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wily
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cunning
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ambiguous
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open to more than more interpretation
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ambivalent
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simutaneously having opposed feelings; uncertain
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arbitrary
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determined by impulse rather than reason
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capricous
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impulsive and unpredictable
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trivial
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of little importanceor significance
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assiduous
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hard-working
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dogged
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stubbornly preservering
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intrepid
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courageous; fearless
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maverick
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one who is independent and resists adherence to a group
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obdurate
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stubborn; inflexible
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malleable
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easily shaped or formed; easily influenced
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subdue
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to restrain
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conviction
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a fixed or strong belief
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inherent
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inborn; built-in
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innate
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possessed from birth
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inveterate
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long established; deep-rooted; habitual
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omnipotent
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all-powerful
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elusive
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difficuly to capture
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transient
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passing away with time; passing from one place to another
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transitory
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short-lived or temporary
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affable
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easy-going; friendly
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amenable
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responsive; agreeable
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lament
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express grief for; mourn
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dillettante
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one with an amateurish or superficial understanding of a field of knowledge
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eclectic
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made up of a variety of sources or styles
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decorous
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proper; marked by good taste
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equanimity
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the quality of being calm and even-tempered; composure
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staid
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unemotional; serious
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disparage
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to speak of in a slighting way or negatively; to belittle
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vilify
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to mkae vicous statements about
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busque
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rudely abrupt
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caustic
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bitingly sarcastic or witty
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fractious
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quarrelsome; unruly
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incorrigible
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unable to be reformed
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insolent
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insulting in manner or speech
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enmity
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mutual hatred or ill-will
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malfeasance
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wrongdoing, misconduct
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rancorous
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hateful
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archaic
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characteristic of an earlier period; old-fashioned
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hackneyed
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worn out through overuse
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austere
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without decoration; strict
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ponderous
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extremely dull
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apprehension
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anxiety or fear about the future
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harbringer
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something that indicates what is to come
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ominous
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menacing; threatening
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trepidation
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uncertainty; apprehension
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nascent
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strikingly new or unusual
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candor
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sincerity; openness
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conflagration
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a widespread fire
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sonorous
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producing a deep or full sound
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ample
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describing a large amount of something
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copious
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plentiful
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permeated
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spread ir flowing throughout
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pervasive
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dispersed throughout
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prodigious
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enormous
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replete
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abundantly supplied; filled to capacity
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laudatory
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giving praise
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paramount
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of chief concern or importance
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venerated
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highly respected
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fastidious
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possessing careful attention to detail; difficult to please
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solvent
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able to pay one's debts
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anachronism
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something out of place in time or sequence
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anthropomorphism
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the attribute of humanlike characteristics to innimate objects, animals, or forces of nature
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apposition
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a grammar construction in which a noun (or noun phrase) is plced with another as an explanation
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archtype
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a perfect example
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chiasmus
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an inversion in the second of two parallel phrases
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metonymy
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s type of figuative language in which one term is substituted for another term with which it is closely associated
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panegyric
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statement of high praise
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period
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long, complex, grammatically correct sentence
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pernicious
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causing great harm
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propitious
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presenting favorable circumstances
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sardonic
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disdainfully or ironically humorous
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syllogism
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a form of deductive reasoning: a minor premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion
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synecdoche
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a form of metonymy that's resticted to cases where a part is usd to signify the whole
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Faulty analogy
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an illogical, misleading comparison between two things
"Why should we invade that county?" "Let me explain it to you like this. What if you looked out the window and saw a 20-dollar bill in the street? Wouldn't you go outside and take it?" |