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449 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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abase
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to humble, disgrace
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abash
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embarass
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abiding
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enduring, continuing
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abject
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miderable, pitiful
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abjure
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to reject, abandon formally
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ablution
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act of cleansing
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abnegate
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to deny, renounce
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abrogate
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to abolish or invalidate by authority
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absolve
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to forgive, free from blame
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abstemious
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moderate in appetite
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accede
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to express approval, agree to
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accost
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to approach and speak to someone
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accretion
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growth in size or amount
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acidulous
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sour in taste or manner
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acme
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highest point, summit
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acuity
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sharpness
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acumen
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sharpness of insight
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admonish
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to caution or reprimand
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adroit
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skillful, accomplished
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adumbrate
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to sketch, outline in a shadowy way
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adventitious
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accidental
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aerie
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nook or nest built high in the air
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affable
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friendly, easy to approach
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affected
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pretentious, phony
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aggrieve
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to afflict, distress
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alacrity
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cheerful willingness, eagerness
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alchemy
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medieval chemical philosophy based on the quest to turn metal into gold
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algorithm
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mechanical problem solving procedure
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allusiveness
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quality of making many indirect references
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amalgam
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mixture, combination, alloy
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amend
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to improve or correct flaws in
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amulet
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ornament worn as charm against evil
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analgesia
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a lessening of pain
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anathema
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ban, curse, something shunned or disliked
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ancillary
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accessory, subordinate
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anodyne
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something that calms or soothes pain
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anoint
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to apply oil, especially in a sacred rite
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antecedent
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coming before in place or time
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antedate
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dated prior to the actual occurance
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antediluvian
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third from last
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anterior
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preceding, previous, prior
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apace
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done quickly
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aphasia
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inability to speak or use words
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aphelion
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point in a planets orbit that it is farthest from the sun
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aphorism
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old saying or short pithy saying
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aplomb
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poise, confidence
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apocryphal
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not genuine, fictional
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apostate
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one who renounces religious faith
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apostrophe
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speech to the reader or someone not present
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apothegm
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a short instructive saying
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apotheosis
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glorification, glorified ideal
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approbation
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praise, official approval
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arable
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suitable for cultivation
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arboreal
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relating to trees, living in trees
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arraign
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to call to court to answer a charge
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arrogate
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to demand, claim arrogantly
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artless
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open and honest
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ascribe
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to attribute to, assign
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ashen
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resembling ashes, deathly pale
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asinine
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lacking intelligence or judgement
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askance
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scornfully
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asocial
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unable or unwilling to interact socially
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asperity
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harshness, roughness
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aspersion
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false rumor, damaging report
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assay
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to analyze or estimate
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assent
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to express agreement
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assiduous
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dilligent, persistent, hardworking
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assignation
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appointment for lover's meeting, assignment
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assonance
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resemblance in sound, partial rhyme
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astringent
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harsh, severe, stern
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asunder
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into different parts
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audit
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formal examination of financial records
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auditory
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having to do with hearing
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augury
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prophesy, prediction of events
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august
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dignified, awe inspiring
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auspicious
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having favorable prospects
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avarice
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greed
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avow
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to state openly or declare
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axiom
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premise, self evident truth
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balm
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soothing healing influence
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bane
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something causing ruin, death
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beatific
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appearing to be saintly, angelic
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beguile
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to decieve, mislead, charm
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beleaguer
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to harass, plague
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belie
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to misrepresent, expose as false
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bellicose
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warlike, aggrssive
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bemuse
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confuse, stupefy
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benighted
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unenlightened
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benison
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blessing
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betoken
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to indicate, signify
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bevy
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group
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billet
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board and lodging for troops
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blandish
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to coax with flattery
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blithe
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joyful, cheerful, without thought
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bonhomie
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good natured geniality, good cheer
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brigand
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bandit, outlaw
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bromide
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dull or commonplace person or idea
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buffet
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to strike or hit
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bulwark
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defense wall
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byway
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back road
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cabal
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a secret group seeking to overturn something
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callow
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immature, lacking sophistication
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calumny
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false and mallicious acusation, misrepresentation, slader
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canard
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a lie
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canny
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smart, founded on common sense
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canonize
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to declare a person a saint
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capacious
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large, roomy, extensive
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careen
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to lean to one side
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carom
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to strike and rebound
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carp
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to find fault
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catholic
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universal, broad appeal
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caucus
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smaller group within an organization, a meeting of such a group
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causality
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cause and effect relationship
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cavalcade
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a procession
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cavil
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to raise trivial objections
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celerity
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quick moving or acting
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censorious
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severely critical
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censure
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to criticize or find fault with
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cession
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act of surrendering something
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chagrin
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shame, embarrasment, humiliation
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champ
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chew noisily
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chary
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watchful, cautious, shy
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chattel
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piece of personal property
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cherubic
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sweet, innocent, resembling a cherub angel
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chide
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to scold, express disapproval
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choleric
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easily angered, short-tempered
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churlish
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rude
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circumlocution
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roundabout, lengthy way of saying something
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cleave
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to split or separate, to stick, cling
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clement
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mild
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cloying
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indulging to excess
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coffer
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strongbox, large chest for money
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cognate
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related, similar
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cognomen
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family name, any name, especially a nickname
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collateral
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accompanying
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colloquial
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characteristic of informal speech
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colloquy
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dialogue or conversation
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comeliness
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physical grace and beauty
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commodious
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roomy, spacious
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compendious
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summarizing completely and briefly
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complaisant
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agreeable, friendly
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compunctious
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feeling guilty or having misgivings
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compunction
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feeling of uneasiness caused by guilt
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concatenate
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linked together
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conciliatory
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overcoming distruct or hostility
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concomitant
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accompanying something
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conflagration
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big, destructive fire
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congenial
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similar in tastes and habits
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congenital
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existing since birth
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conjugal
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pertaining to marriage
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consanguineous
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of the same origin, related by blood
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consign
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to commit, entrust
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construe
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to explain or interpret
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consummate (adj)
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accomplished, complete, perfect
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consummate (v)
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to complete, fulfill
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contend
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to battle, clash, compete
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continence
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self control, self restraint
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contumacious
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rebellious
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contusion
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bruise
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convivial
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sociable, fond of eating, drinking and people
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convoke
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to call together, summon
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coquette
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woman who flirts
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corpulence
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obesity, fatness
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cosmography
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science that deals with the nature of the universe
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cosset
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to pamper, treat with great care
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coterie
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small group of persons with a similar purpose
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countenance (n)
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facial expression, look of approval or support
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countenance (v)
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to favor or support
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countermand
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to annul, cancel, make a contrary order
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countervail
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to counteract, to exert foece against
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covet
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ro strongly desire something possessed by another
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credence
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acceptance of something as true or real
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culpable
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guilty, responsible for wrong
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cupidity
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greed
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cygnet
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young swan
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debauch
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to corrupt, seduce from virtue
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debutante
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young woman making a debut in society
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decadence
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decline or decay
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decathlon
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athletic contest with ten events
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deciduous
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losing leaves in fall, short-lived, temporary
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declivity
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downward slope
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decorous
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proper, tasteful, socially correct
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deleterious
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harmful,destructive, detrimental
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demise
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death
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denunciation
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public condemnation
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depose
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to remove from a high position, such as a throne
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deprecate
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to belittle, disparage
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depreciate
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to lose value gradually
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derogate
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to belittle, disparage
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descry
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to discover or reveal
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desultory
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at random, rambling, unmethodical
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determinate
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having defined limits, conclusive
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diaphanous
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allowing light through, delicate
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dictum
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authoritative statement, popular saying
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didactic
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excessively instructive
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diffidence
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lacking confidence
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diffract
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to cause to separate into different parts, especially light
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disaffected
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discontented and disloyal
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disclaim
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to deny, disavow
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discomfit
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to cause perplexity and embarassment
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discompose
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to disturb composure or serenity
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disconsolate
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unable to be consoled
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discursive
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wandering from topic to topic
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disgorge
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to vomit, discharge violently
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dispirit
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to dishearten, make dejected
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dissemble
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to pretend, disguise motives
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dissimulate
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to disguise or put on false appearance
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dissipate
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to scatter, to pursue pleasure to excess
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dissociate
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to separate, remove from association
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distaff
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the female branch of the family
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distend
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to swell inflate or bloat
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diurnal
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daily
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divisive
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creating disunity or conflict
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doctrinaire
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rigidly devoted to theories
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doldrums
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a period of depondency
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doleful
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sad, mournful
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dotage
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senile condition
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dotard
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senile old person
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doughty
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courageous
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dudgeon
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angry indignation
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dulcet
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pleasant sounding, soothing to the ear
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dyspeptic
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suffering from indigestion; gloomy and irratable
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earthy
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crude
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ebullient
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exhillerated, full of enthusiasm
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edict
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law, command, offical public order
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edify
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to instruct morally and spiritually
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afface
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to erase or make illegible
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efficatious
|
effective
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effluvia
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outpouring of gas or vapors
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effrontery
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imprudent boldness, audacity
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effulgent
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brilliantly shining
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effusive
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expressing emotion without restraint
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egregious
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conspicuously bad
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emend
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to correct a text
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emollient
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having soothing qualities, esp. for skin
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encipher
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to translate a message into code
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endogamous
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marrying within a specific group due to law or custom
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enjoin
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to urge, order, command; forbid or prohibit, as by judicial order
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ennui
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boredom, lack of interest
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ensconce
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to settle comfortable into a place
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enshroud
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to cover , enclose
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epicure
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person with refined taste in food and wine
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epigram
|
short, witty saying or poem
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epigraph
|
quotation at the beginning of a book
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equanimity
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calmness, composure
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equivocal
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ambiguous, open to two interpretations
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ersatz
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fake
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esurient
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hungry, greedy
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evince
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to show clearly, display
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excoriate
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to denounce
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exculpate
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to clear of blame or fault
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exhort
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to urge or incite by strong appeals
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expatiate
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to wander; to discuss or describe at length
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exponent
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one who champions or advocates
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expurgate
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to censor
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extemporaneous
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unrehearsed, spur of the moment
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extenuate
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to loosen the seriousness, strength or effect of
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extrinsic
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not inherent or essential
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farcical
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absurd, ludicris
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fatuous
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stupid, foolishly self satisfied
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fealty
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intense loyalty
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feckless
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ineffective, careless, irresponsible
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felicitous
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suitable, appropriate; well spoken
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felicity
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feeling great happiness
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fey
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otherworldly; doomed
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fictive
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fictional, imaginary
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filial
|
appropriate for a child
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fission
|
process of splitting into 2 parts
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fixity
|
being fixed or stable
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flurried
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to become agitated or confused
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fodder
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raw material, feed for animals
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foible
|
minor weakness or character flaw
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foliate
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to grow, sprout leaves
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forbearance
|
patience, restraint, leniency
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forensic
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relating to legal proceedings
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forfend
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to prevent
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forswear
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to repudiate, renounce, disclaim, reject
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fortnight
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two weeks
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founder
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to fall helplessly, sink
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fracas
|
noisy dispute
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frond
|
leaf
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fulminate
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to explode with anger
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fulsome
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excessive, overdone
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funereal
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mournful, appropriate to a funeral
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furtive
|
sevret, stealthy
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gainsay
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to deny
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gall (v)
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to exasperate and irritate
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gall (n)
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bitterness, careless nerve
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gallant
|
fashionable young man
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gambol
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to dance or skip playfully
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game
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courageous
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garner
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to gather and store
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glib
|
fluent in an insincere manner, offhand, casual
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gnostic
|
having to do with knowledge
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gossamer
|
something light, delicate or tenuous
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grandiloquence
|
pompus talk, fancy but meaningless language
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grevious
|
causing grief or sorrow; serious and distressing
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gustatory
|
relating to sense of taste
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hackneyed
|
worn out by over use
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hallow
|
to make holy; treat as sacred
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hapless
|
unfortunate, having bad luck
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harangue
|
a pompous speech
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hector
|
a bully, a braggart
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hegemony
|
leadership, domination, usually by a country
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hemicycle
|
semicircular form or structure
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heterodox
|
unorthodox, not widely accepted
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hew
|
to cut with an ax
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hidebound
|
excessively rigid, dry and stiff
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hoary
|
very old; whitish or gray from age
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homonym
|
word identical in pronounciation but different in meaning
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husband
|
to farm; manage carefully and thriftily
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hutch
|
pen or coup for animals; shack, shanty
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ignoble
|
dishonorable
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ignominous
|
disgraceful and dishonorable
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ilk
|
type or kind
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illimitable
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limitless
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imbue
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to infuse, dye, wet
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immure
|
imprison
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impassive
|
showing no emotion
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impecunious
|
poor
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imperative
|
essential
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impolitic
|
unwise
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importune
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to ask repeatedly, beg
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imprecation
|
curse
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improvident
|
without planning or foresight, negligent
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impugn
|
to call into question
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incarnadine
|
blood-red in color
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incipient
|
beginning to exist, in an initial stage
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incisive
|
perceptive, penetrating
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incorrigible
|
incapable of being corrected
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inculcate
|
to teach, impress in the mind
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inculpate
|
to blame
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indefensible
|
inexcusable
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indenture
|
bound to another by contract
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indicative
|
showing or pointing out
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indolent
|
habitually lazy
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indomitable
|
fearless
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inestimable
|
too great to be estimated
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inexorable
|
inflexable
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inglorious
|
shameful
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ingratiate
|
to bring into good graces
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inimical
|
hostile, unfriendly
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iniquity
|
sin, evil act
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injunction
|
command, order
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inscrutable
|
impossible to understand
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insentient
|
unfeeling
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insolent
|
insulting and arrogant
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insuperable
|
unconquerable
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intemperate
|
not moderate
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inter
|
bury
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interdict
|
forbid
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interlocutor
|
someone taking part in a dialogue
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inernecine
|
deadly to both sides
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interregnum
|
interval between reigns
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intimation
|
clue
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intractable
|
not easily managed
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intramural
|
within an institution
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intrepid
|
fearless
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inure
|
to harden; accustom; become used to
|
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invective
|
verbal abuse
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inveigh
|
protest strongly
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investiture
|
ceremony conferring authority
|
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inveterate
|
confirmed
|
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invidious
|
likely to provoke ill will
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itinerant
|
wandering from place to place
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jaundice
|
yellowish discoloration of the skin
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jibe
|
to shift suddenly from one side to the other
|
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jingoism
|
belligerent support of one's country
|
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juggernaut
|
huge destructive force
|
|
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jurisprudence
|
philosophy of law
|
|
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kernel
|
innermost, essential part; seed grain, often in a shell
|
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knell
|
sound of a funeral bell; omen of death or failure
|
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kudos
|
fame, glory, honor
|
|
|
laceration
|
cut or wound
|
|
|
lachrymose
|
tearful
|
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lambaste
|
disapprove angrily
|
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languid
|
lacking energy
|
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languor
|
listlessness
|
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lapidary
|
relating to precious stones
|
|
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larder
|
place where food is stored
|
|
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lassitude
|
lethargy, sluggishness
|
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legerdemain
|
trickery
|
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|
lexicon
|
dictionary or list of words
|
|
|
libertine
|
one without moral restraint
|
|
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libidinous
|
lustful
|
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|
licentious
|
immoral
|
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limpid
|
clear and simple
|
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liniment
|
external pain relief liquid
|
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lionize
|
to treat as a celebrity
|
|
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lissome
|
easily flexed
|
|
|
lithe
|
graceful
|
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low
|
moo
|
|
|
lugubrious
|
sorrowful
|
|
|
luscious
|
good tasting
|
|
|
machination
|
plot or scheme
|
|
|
macrobiotics
|
art of prolongin life through organic non meat
|
|
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maelstrom
|
whirlpool; turmoil; agitated state
|
|
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mainstay
|
chief support
|
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|
maladroit
|
clumsy
|
|
|
malapropism
|
humorous misuse of a word
|
|
|
malediction
|
curse
|
|
|
malefactor
|
evil doer; culprit
|
|
|
manumission
|
release from slavery
|
|
|
martial
|
warlike
|
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|
martinet
|
disciplinarian
|
|
|
matriculate
|
to enroll
|
|
|
matrilineal
|
tracing and ancestry through the mother not the father
|
|
|
maudlin
|
overly sentimental
|
|
|
mawkish
|
sickeningly sentimental
|
|
|
megalith
|
huge stone in prehistoric structure
|
|
|
managerie
|
various animals exhibited together
|
|
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mandacious
|
dishonest
|
|
|
mendicant
|
beggar
|
|
|
meretricious
|
gaudy
|
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mettle
|
courageousness
|
|
|
militate
|
work against
|
|
|
inatory
|
menacing
|
|
|
mirth
|
frivolity
|
|
|
missive
|
note or letter
|
|
|
mnemonic
|
relating to memory, assisting memory
|
|
|
molt
|
to shed
|
|
|
mordacious
|
caustic
|
|
|
mordant
|
sarcastic
|
|
|
mores
|
customs or manners
|
|
|
moribund
|
dying, decaying
|
|
|
mote
|
speck, particle
|
|
|
motley
|
many colored; composed of diverse parts
|
|
|
nadir`
|
lowest point
|
|
|
nascent
|
starting to develop
|
|
|
neologism
|
new word or expression
|
|
|
neonate
|
newborn child
|
|
|
nettle
|
to irritate
|
|
|
niggling
|
trifle, petty
|
|
|
noisome
|
stinking
|
|
|
novitiate
|
period of being a beginner
|
|
|
numismatics
|
coin collecting
|
|
|
obeisance
|
show of respect
|
|
|
objurgate
|
scold
|
|
|
obloquy
|
abusive language; ill repute
|
|
|
obsequy
|
funeral ceremony
|
|
|
ontology
|
dealing with existence
|
|
|
opalescent
|
iridescent, displaying colots
|
|
|
opprobrious
|
disgraceful
|
|
|
opulence
|
wealth
|
|
|
orotund
|
pompous
|
|
|
ossify
|
to turn to bone; to become rigid
|
|
|
ostensible
|
apparent
|
|
|
overture
|
musical introduction; proposal
|
|
|
overweening
|
arrogant
|
