Reading...
Play button
Play button
Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
76 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
|
Ameliorate
[uh-meel-uh-reyt] |
verb; to make better or more tolerable
|
|
|
Ascetic
[uh-set-ik] |
noun; one who practices self-denial, esp. as an act of religious devotion
|
|
|
Avarice
[av-er-is] |
noun; greed, esp. for wealth (adj: avaricious)
|
|
|
Axiom
[ak-see-uhm] |
noun; a universally recognized principle (adj: axiomatic)
|
|
|
Abate
|
verb; to lessen in intensity or degree
|
|
|
Accolade
[ak-uh-leyd] |
noun; an expression of praise
|
|
|
Adulation
[aj-uh-leyt-ion] |
noun; expressive praise; intense adoration
|
|
|
Aesthetic
|
adjective; dealing with, appreciateive of, or responsive to art or the beautiful
|
|
|
Burgeon
[bur-juhn] |
verb; to grow rapidly or flourish
|
|
|
Bucolic
[byoo-kol-ik] |
adjective; rustic and pastoral; characteristic of rural areas and their inhabitants
|
|
|
Cacophony
[kuh-kof-uh-nee] |
noun; harsh, jarring, discordant sound; dissonance (adj: cacophonous)
|
|
|
Chary
[chair-ee] |
adjective; wary; cautious; sapring
|
|
|
Caustic
[kaw-stik] |
adjective; burning or stinging; causing corrosion
|
|
|
Canon
|
noun; an established set of principles or code of laws, often religious in nature (adj: canonical)
|
|
|
Castigation
[kas-ti-geyt] |
noun; severe criticism or punishment (verb: castigate)
|
|
|
Catalyst
|
noun; a substance that accelerates the rate of a chemical reaction without itself changing; a person or tihng that causes change
|
|
|
Cogent
|
adjective; appealing forcibly to the mind or reason; convincing
|
|
|
Complaisance
[kuhm-pley-suhns] |
noun; the willingness to comply with the wishes of others (adj: complaisant)
|
|
|
Contentious
[kuhn-ten-shuhs] |
adjective; argumentative; quarrelsome; causing controversy or disagreement
|
|
|
Contrite
|
adjective; regretful; penitent; seeking forgiveness (noun: contrition)
|
|
|
Culpable
[kuhl-puh-buhl] |
adjective; deserving blame (noun: culpability)
|
|
|
Dearth
[durth] |
noun; smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; a lack
|
|
|
Demur
[di-mur] |
verb; to question or oppose
|
|
|
Didactic
[dahy-dak-tik] |
adjective; intended to teach or instruct
|
|
|
Discretion
[di-skresh-uhn] |
noun; cautious reserve in speech; ability to make responsible dicisions (adj: discreet)
|
|
|
Disinterested
|
adjective; free of bias or self-interest; impartial
|
|
|
Dogmatic
[dawg-mat-ik] |
adjective; expressing a rigid opinion based on unproved or unprovable principles (noun: dobma)
|
|
|
Ebullience
[i-buhl-yuhns] |
noun; the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings (adj: ebullient)
|
|
|
Eclectic
[i-klek-tik] |
adjective; composed of elements drawn from various sources
|
|
|
Elegy
[el-i-jee] |
noun; a mournful poem, esp. one lamenting the dead (adj: elegiac)
|
|
|
Emollient
[i-mol-yuhnt] |
adjective/noun; soothing, esp. to the skin; making less harsh; mollifying; an agent that softens or smoothes the skin
|
|
|
Empirical
|
adjective; based on observation or experiement
|
|
|
Enigmatic
[en-ig-mat-ik] |
adjective; mysterious; obscure; difficult to understand (noun: enigma)
|
|
|
Ephemeral
[i-fem-er-uhl] |
adjective; brief; fleeting
|
|
|
Esoteric
[es-uh-ter-ik] |
adjective; intended for or understood by a small, specific group
|
|
|
Eulogy
[yoo-luh-jee] |
noun; a speech honoring the dead (verb: eulogize)
|
|
|
Exonerate
[ig-zon-uh-reyt] |
verb; to remove blame
|
|
|
Facetious
[fuh-see-shuhs] |
adjective; playful, humorous; not to be taken seriously
|
|
|
Fallacy
[fal-uh-see] |
noun; an invalid or incorrect notion; a mistaken belief (adj: fallacious)
|
|
|
Furtive
[fur-tiv] |
adjective; marked by stealth; covert; surreptitious
|
|
|
Gregarious
[gri-gair-ee-uhs] |
adjective; sociable; outgoing; enjoying the company of other people
|
|
|
Harangue
[huh-rang] |
verb/noun; to deliver a pompous speech or tirade; a long, pompous speech
|
|
|
Heretical
[huh-ret-i-kuhl] |
adjective; violating accepted dogma or convention (noun: heresy)
|
|
|
Hyperbole
|
noun; an exaggerated statement, often used as a figure of speech (adj: hyperbolic)
|
|
|
Impecunious
[im-pi-kyoo-nee-uhs] |
adjective; lacking funds; without money
|
|
|
Incipient
[in-sip-ee-uhnt] |
adjective; beginning to come into being or to become apparent
|
|
|
Inert
|
adjective; unmoving, lethargic, sluggish
|
|
|
Innocuous
[i-nok-yoo-uhs] |
adjective; harmless; causing no damage
|
|
|
Intransigent
[in-tran-si-juhnt] |
adjective; refusing to compromise (noun: intransigence)
|
|
|
Inveigle
[in-vey-guhl] |
verb; to obtain by deception or flattery
|
|
|
Morose
[muh-rohs] |
adjective; sad; sullen; melancholy
|
|
|
Odious
[oh-dee-uhs] |
adjective; evoking intense aversion or dislike
|
|
|
Opaque
|
adjective; impenetrable by light; not reflecting light
|
|
|
Oscillation
|
noun; the act or state of swinging back and forth with a steady, uninterrupted rhythm (verb: oscillate)
|
|
|
Penurious
[puh-noor-ee-uhs] |
adjective; penny-pinching; excessively thrifty; ungenerous
|
|
|
Pernicious
[per-nish-uhs] |
adjective; extremely harmful; potentially causing death
|
|
|
Peruse
[puh-rooz] |
verb; to examine with great care (noun: perusal)
|
|
|
Pious
[pahy-uhs] |
adjective; exremely reverent or devout; showing strong religious devotion (noun: piety)
|
|
|
Precursor
|
noun; one that precedes and indicates or announces another
|
|
|
Preen
|
verb; to dress up; to primp; to groom oneself with elaborate care
|
|
|
Prodigious
[pruh-dij-uhs] |
adjective; abundant in size, force or extent; extraordinary
|
|
|
Prolific
|
adjective; producing large volumes or amounts; productive
|
|
|
Putrefy
[pyoo-truh-fahy] |
verb; to rot; to decay and give off a foul odor (adj: putrid)
|
|
|
Quaff
[kwawf] |
verb; to drink deeply
|
|
|
Quiescence
[kwee-es-uhnt] |
noun; stillness; motionlessness; quality of being at rest (adj: quiescent)
|
|
|
Redoubtable
[ri-dou-tuh-buhl] |
adjective; awe-inspiring; worthy of honor
|
|
|
Sanction
|
noun/verb; authoritative permission or approval; a penalty intended to enforce compliance; to give permission or authority to
|
|
|
Satire
|
noun; a literary work that ridicules or criticizes a human vice through humor or derision (adj: satirical)
|
|
|
Squalid
[skwol-id] |
adjective; sordid; wretched and dirty as from neglect (noun: squalor)
|
|
|
Stoic
|
adjective; indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain; steadfast (noun: stoicism)
|
|
|
Supplant
[suh-plant] |
verb; to take the place of; supersede
|
|
|
Torpid
[tawr-pid] |
adjective; lethargic; sluggish; dormant (noun: torpor)
|
|
|
Ubiquitous
[yoo-bik-wi-tuhs] |
adjective; existing everywhere at the same time; constantly encountered; wide-spread
|
|
|
Urbane
[ur-beyn] |
adjective; sophisticated; refined; elegant (noun: urbanity)
|
|
|
Vilify
|
verb; to defame; to characterize harshly
|
|
|
Viscous
|
adjective; thick; sticky (noun: viscosity)
|
