Monday, October 1, 2012

Vocabulary: Midterm Study Guide

adumbrate- foreshadow
apotheosis- the highest point of developement in something
ascetic- Characterized by severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of indulgence, typically for religious reasons.
bauble- something of little value or worth
beguile- trick
burgeon- to grow rapidly or flourish
complement- something that completes or brings to perfection
contumacious- stubbornly or willfully disobedient to authority 
curmudgeon- bad tempered person
didactic - intended to teach in having moral instruction as an ulterior motive

Intercede: intervene on behalf of another
intercede for people.

Hackneyed: lacking significance through having been overused
"Swag" is a hackneyed word

Approbation: approval or praise
The super bowl met with high approbation

Innuendo: an allusive or oblique remark or hint
He gave the innuendo that the kid was annoying.

Coalition: an alliance for combined action, especially a temporary alliance of political parties forming a government or of states.
The government formed a coalition.

Elicit: to bring or draw out (something latent); enduce
I couldn't elicit a response from anyone.

Hiatus: a pause or pause in a sentence, series or process
She couldn't talk without a hiatus.

Assuage: to make (an unpleasant feeling) less intense
The letter assuaged the fears of most members.

Decadence: moral or cultural decline, esp. after a peek of achievement
The ancient castle was in a state of decadence.

Expostulate: express strong disapproval or disagreement
The teacher had an expostulate look on his face.

Simulate: imitate the appearance or character of
Baseball players simulate in game situations.

Jaded: tired, bored, or lacking enthusiasm, typically after having to much of something
The football player was jaded after eating too much pizza.

Umbrage: offence or annoyance
I took umbrage to the words of the speaker.

Prerogative: a right or privilege exclusive to a particular individual or class
The king had prerogative to make all the decisions.

Lurid: very vivid in color, esp. so as to create an unpleasantly harsh or unnatural effect.
I hate lurid food coloring.

Transcend: be or go beyond the range or limits of something
Some people transcend physical abilities.

Provincial: of or concerning a province of a country or empire
It was a provincial college.

Petulant: childishly sulky or bad-tempered
My dad is petulant.

Unctuous: excessively or ingratiatingly flatterning
The food was unctuous.

Meritorious: deserving reward or prize
After the competition I felt meritorious.


encomium- speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly
The Bible is an encomium.

coherent- logical and consistent
Dr. Preston is coherent.

belabor- argue or elaborate in excessive detail
My sisters always belabor.

eschew- deliberately avoid using; abstain from
I try to eschew calculators.

acquisitive- excessively interested in collecting money or material things.
Mr. Krabs is acquisitive.

emulate- match or surpass, typically by imitation.
My friend tries to emulate my intelligence.

arrogate- take or claim for oneself, without justification.
The man tried to arrogate my wallet.

banal- so lacking in originality as to be obvious and boring
My cousin is banal.

excoriation- an abraded area where the skin is torn or worn off.
My shoe caused an excoriation on my foot.

congeal- solidify or coagulate esp. by cooling.
congealed the water.

carping- difficult to please; critical
My teacher is carping.

substantiate- provide evidence to support or prove the truth of
The prosecutor couldn't substantiate that the gum was stolen.

temporize- avoid making a decision or committing oneself in order to gain time
Sometimes the president temporizes.

largesse- generosity in bestowing money or gifts upon others
Dispensing his money was such largesse.

tenable- able to be maintained or defended against attack or objection
Talk like that is no longer tenable.

insatiable- impossible to satisfy
That teacher is insatiable.

reconnaissance- preliminary surveying or research
Continue your reconnaissance.

germane- relevant to a subject under consideration
That is not germane to what we are talking about.

ramify- spread or branch out
The canal began to ramify.

intransigent- unwilling or refusing to change one's view or to agree about something
My parents intransigent people.

taciturn- reserved or uncommunicative in speech
The boy is taciturn.

invidious- likely to arouse or incur resentment or anger in others
My brother is invidious.



melancholy- a deep, pensive, and long-lasting sadness
Why do you look so melancholy?

exemplary- serving as a desirable model; representing the best of its kind
That's an exemplary example.

peculiar- strange or odd; unusual
You look peculiar today.

dread- anticipate with great apprehension or fear
dread spiders.

bough- a main branch of a tree
The bough is creepy looking.

pious- devoutly religious
Some people show pious devotion.

communion- the sharing or exchanging of intimate thoughts and feelings
Communion of the saints.

auditor- a listener
The auditor stood still with a blank look on his face.

multitude- a large number
There's a multitude of baseball fans.

eloquence- fluent or persuasive speaking or writing.
Dr. Preston has eloquence.

despair- complete loss or absence of hope
Never despair anything.

hoary- grayish-white
The mans hair is hoary.

1. allude- refer to something the author thinks you should know
The author alludes to some much in the story.

2. clairvoyant- able to read minds
It was as if the man was clairvoyant.

3. conclusive- final, decisive
The new evidence made it conclusive the woman was guilty.

4. disreputable- of a poor reputation
Charles Bukowski was disreputable

5. endemic- natural to an environment
Aids is endemic in Africa.

6. exemplary- serving as a desirable model; best of its kind
The great white shark is exemplary to it's species.

7. fathom- to understand
Some concepts are hard to fathom.

8. guile- trick
It's hard to guile me.

9. integrity- integrating thought, speech, or action
Some people show large amounts of integrity.

10. itinerary- trip schedule, trip plan
Going to Las Vegas was itinerary.

11. misconstrue- misunderstood; misrepresenting
Don't misconstrue what I am saying.

12. obnoxious- rude, loud, abrasive
Some people are really obnoxious.

13. placate- to calm down; satisfy
Parents must placate their children.

14. placid- calm
Everybody remain placid.

15. plagiarism- to copy someone's work
You can get kicked out of college for plagiarism.

16. potent- powerful
The perfume is extremely potent.

17. pretext- reason for doing something; excuse
Please explain your pretext for your actions.

18. protrude- to stick out
The nail protruded the wood.

19. stark- obvious
It was stark that thing had sold.

20. superficial- shallow, surface
Superficial damage was done to the skin

adroit- expert or nimble in the use of the hands or body
Dancers are adroit.

amicable- characterized by or showing goodwill. friendly
I strive to be amicable.

averse- having a strong feeling of opposition
Some people averse with their parents rules.

belligerent - Hostile, aggresion
Don't be so belligerent!

benevolent- well meaning and kindly
I wish everyone was benevolent.

cursory- Hasty and therefore not thorough or detailed.
Don't do cursory inspections.

duplicity- Deceitfulness; double- dealing
The man showed duplicity.

extol- Praise;enthusiasm
Extol the efforts of people.

feasible- Able to do easily or conveniently
I wish homework was feasible.

grimace- A twisted expression on a person's face, typically expressing disgust, pain, or wry amusement.
The man always grimaces.

holocaust- a great or complete devastation or destruction, esp. by fire

impervious- not penetrable; unable to be affected by.
He was impervious to the virus.

impetus- the force, energy, or momentum with which the body moves.
Focus on the impetus.

jeopardy- danger of loss, harm, or failure
She was in jeopardy of her life.

meticulous- showing great attention to detail; very careful and precise
Nothings wrong with being meticulous.

nostalgia- a sentimental longing for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations.
He showed nostalgia for the past.

quintessence- the most perfect or typical example of a quality or class
That car is quintessence.

retrogress- to go back to an earlier state, typically a worse one
When suffering from depression, it's important not to retrogress.

scrutinize- examine or inspect closely and thoroughly
Health inspectors scrutinize the kitchen.

tepid- only slightly warm; lukewarm; showing little enthusiasm.
Make the shower tepid.

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