12th July Flashcards
maverick
Samuel A. Maverick owned a lot of cattle, and he let them roam around Texas without a brand, or identification mark, seared into their skins. Samuel was a maverick for going against the common practice of tracking his animals.
Someone who acts very independently is a maverick, and individual actions that stand out are maverick, as in “her maverick jumping style on the ice was both wild and delicate.
He was a true maverick filmmaker, and remained remarkably optimistic throughout.”
Former Sen. Tom Coburn died at 72; the Oklahoma Republican was a conservative political maverick known for railing against federal earmarks.
mundane
repetitive and boring
Nancy found doing dishes a thoroughly mundane task, although Peter found a kind of Zen pleasure in the chore.
antipathy
1) Antipathy is a feeling against someone or something.
2) A feeling of intense dislike
In a paper published in Science in October by 16 prominent political scientists, the authors argue that by some measures the hatred between the two parties “exceeds longstanding antipathies around race and religion.”
banality
A trite or obvious remark
Related words -> Trite
Somewhat related -> mundane
sullen
A sullen person isn’t much fun to be around.
appease
Appease often implies abandoning your moral principles to satisfy the demands of someone who is greedy for power
Related words -> placate
capricious
Capricious is an adjective to describe a person or thing that’s impulsive and unpredictable, like a bride who suddenly leaves her groom standing at the wedding altar.
You can criticize a fickle-minded person as capricious, but it could just as well describe quickly changing weather, as in “capricious spring storms.
Nearly every month our capricious CEO had a new plan to turn the company around, and none of them worked because we never gave them the time needed for them to succeed.
transient
Transient to describe something that always changes or moves around.
Transient is most often used to modify nouns like nature, threat, source and cause. The word often shows up in formal contexts, like analysis of finance or global terrorism.
Under the best of circumstances, renters are among the hardest people to count because they tend to be more transient and are more likely to live below the poverty line.
reproach | rebuke | reprimand | admonish
Reproach means to mildly criticize, If you show poor manners at your grandmother’s dinner table, she will reproach you.
Related words -> reproach, rebuke, reprimand, admonish
posit
To posit something is to assume or suggest that it is true. You can posit an idea or opinion.
Scientists posit many ideas — called hypotheses, that they then try to prove or disprove through experimentation and research.
Positing can also mean to put something somewhere firmly — this means to deposit, fix, or situate.
The Biden administration recently proposed favoring critical race theorists who posit systemic racism exists in everything in American society, including in Department of Education grants for civics and history lessons.
Originally posited as the Museum of Women’s History, backers claimed it would be “a key addition to local culture”.
mendacity
Mendacity is a tendency to lie. Your friend might swear that he didn’t eat your secret chocolate stash, but you’ll find it hard to believe him if he’s known for his mendacity.
People often accuse government officials of mendacity, or being less than honest.
As we mourn the demise of veracity and integrity in our public discourse, perhaps we should consider the implications of requiring mendacity as a precondition for using the tools and services of modern life.
Four years of Mr. Trump’s cruelty, mendacity, narcissism and vicious fight to overturn our democracy became history, at last.
ignominious
It is nearly always attached to “defeat.” It derives from the word ignominy, which means public shame or defeat.
dilatory
Wasting time, slow
If you are always late to appointments, people may accuse you of being dilatory, especially if they think you don’t have a good excuse.
Surely, therefore, his lawyers will not engage in frivolous arguments, obfuscation, pettifoggery or dilatory tactics that would complicate uncovering the truth, right?
Lawyers use dilatory tactics so that it takes years before the case is actually decided.
pejorative
Call a word or phrase pejorative if it is used as a disapproving expression or a term of abuse.
Terms of abuse such as jerk and negative euphemisms such as bottom feeder are pejoratives, words you use when you want to call someone a bad name.
The term “foreign agent” carries strong pejorative connotations in Russia.
disparage
If you haven’t got anything nice to say, then it’s time to disparage someone. It means to belittle or degrade a person or idea.
Goren allowed him to leave on his own terms and did not disparage him after she fired him, Wright alleged, arguing that the disparate treatment was racially motivated.
