A Flashcards
Abate
Verb: To reduce in amount, degree, or severity As the Hurricane’s force abated, the winds dropped and sea became calm. Synonyms: ebb; lapse; let up; moderate; relent; slacken: subside
Abase
Verb: To humble; disgrace My intention was not to abase the comedian. Synonym: demean, humiliate
Abdicate
Verb: To give up a position, right or power With the angry mob clamoring outside the palace, the king abdicated his throne and fled. Synonym: cede: relinquish; resign; quit; yield
Aberrant
Adj: Deviating from what is normal or expected: Since he had been a steady, cheerful worker for many years, his fellow postal workers did not expect his aberrant burst of rage. Synonym: abnormal; anomalous; deviant
Abeyance
Noun: Temporary suppression or suspension: The baseball game was held in abeyance while it continued to rain. Synonym: deferral; delay
Abjure
Verb: To reject; abandon formally The spy abjured his allegiance to the United States when he defected to Russia.
Abscond
Verb: To leave secretly: The patron absconded from the restaurant without paying his bill. Synonym: decamp; flee; escape
Abstain
Verb: To choose not to do something: Before the medical procedure, you must abstain from eating. Synonym: refrain; withhold
Abstemious
Adj: Moderate in appetite : Because Alice is a vegetarian, she was only able to eat an abstemious meal at the Texas steakhouse. Synonym: abstinent; sober; self-restraining
Abyss
Noun: An extremely deep hole
Accretion
Noun: A growth in size; an increase in amount : The committees strong fund-raising efforts resulted in an accretion in scholarship money. Synonym: accumulation; buildup
Acidulous
Adj: Sour in taste or manner: The acidulous taste of the spoiler milk made the young boy’s lips pucker. Synonym: acerbic; acetose; pigquant; tart
Acme
Noun: Highest point; summit; the highest level or degree attainable: Just when he reached the acme of his power, the dictator was overthrown. Synonym: apex; peak
Adulterate
Verb: To make impure The restaurant made his ketchup last longer by adulterating it with water. Synonym: decade; load; doctor
Advocate
Verb: To speak In favor of: The vegetarian advocated a dirt containing no meat. Synonym: support; bolster
Aerie
Noun: A nest built high in the air; an elevated, often secluded dwelling: Perched high among the trees, the eagle’s aerie was filled with eggs. Synonym: perch; stronghold
Aesthetic
Adj: Concerning the appreciation of beauty
Affected
Adj: Phony; artificial: The affected hairdresser spouted french phrases, though she had never been to France. Synonym: insincere; pretentious; put-on
Aggrandize
Verb: To increase in power, influence and reputation: The supervisor sought to aggrandize himself by claiming that the achievements of his staff were actually his own. Synonym: amplify; augment; elevate
Alacrity
Noun: Promptness, cheerful readiness: The restaurant won a reputation for fine service since the wait staff responded to their clients requests with alacrity. Synonym: eagerness; swiftness
Alleviate
Verb: To ease, to make more bearable
Amalgamation
Noun: A merger, a uniting of element: The amalgamation of the two giant companies worried the small mom and pop stores. Synonym: compound; fusing
Ambiguous
Adj: Doubtful or uncertain
Ameliorate
Verb: To make better; to improve: The doctor was able to ameliorate the patient’s suffering using painkillers. Synonym: pacify; upgrade; make more tolerable
Amortize
Verb: To diminish by installment payment: While college students are notorious for accumulating credit card debt, they are not as well for amortizing it.
Amulet
Noun: Ornament worn as charm against evil spirits
Anachronism
Noun Something out of place in time: The aging hippie used anachronistic phrases like ‘groovy’ and ‘far out’ that had not been popular for years. Synonym: archaism, incongruity
Analgesia
Noun A lessening of pain without loss of consciousness: After having her appendix removed, Lisa welcomed the analgesia that the painkiller provided.
Analogous
Adj: Similar or alike in some way; equivalent to: His mother argued that not going to college was analogous to throwing his life away. Synonym: alike; comparable
Anodyne
Noun Something that calms and soothes pain: The anodyne massage helper remove the knots from the lawyer’s tense shoulders. Synonym: opiate
Anomaly
Noun Deviation from what is normal: Albino animals may display too great an anomaly in their coloring to attract normally colored mates. Synonym: aberration
Antagonize
Verb To annoy or provoke to anger: This child discovered that he could antagonize the cat by pulling its tail. Synonym: vex, incite, irritate
Antipathy
Noun Extreme dislike: The antipathy between fans of rival soccer teams made the game even more electrifying to watch. Synonym: animosity, antagonism, aversion, enmity
Apathy
Noun Lack of interest or emotion
Apocryphal
Adj Of questionable authority or authenticity: There’s no hard or authoritative evidence to support the apocryphal tales that link Roswell, New Mexico incident to a downed UFO. Synonym: disputed, fictitious, doubtful
Apostate
Noun One who renounced a religious faith: So that he could divorce his wife, the king scoffed at the church doctrines and declared himself an apostate. Synonym: defector, deserter, traitor
Approbation
Noun Approval and praise The approbation that comedian jerry Lewis received in France included a metal from the ministry of culture. Synonym: acclaim, applause
Arbitrary
Adj Determined by chance or impulse
Arbitrate
Verb To judge a dispute between two opposing parties: Since the couple could not come to an agreement, a judge was forced to arbitrate their divorce proceedings. Synonym: referee
Archaic
Adj Ancient, old fashioned: Her archaic Commodores computer could not run the latest software. Synonym: obsolete, outdated, vintage, anachronistic
Ardor
Noun Intense and passionate feeling Bishop’s ardor for landscape was evident when he passionately described the beauty of the scenic Hudson valley. Synonym: fervor; fervidity; zeal
Arrogate
Verb To claim without justification; to claim for oneself without right: Gretchen watched in astonishment as he boss arrogated the credit for her brilliant work on the project. Synonym: take, presume
Articulate
Verb Able to speak clearly and expressively
Assail
Verb To attack, assault : The foreign army will try to assail our bases, but thy will not be successful in their attack. Synonym: strike, beset
Assuage
Verb To make something unpleasant less severe: Like many people, Philip used food to assuage his sense of loneliness. Synonym: alleviate, appease, ease
Attenuate
Verb To reduce in force or degree; to weaken The bill of right attenuated the traditional power of government to change law at will. Synonym: devitalize; enervate; rarefy
Audacious
Adj Fearless and daring: The audacious peasant dared to insult the king’s mother. Synonym: bold, daring
Augury
Noun Prophecy; prediction of events: Troy hoped the rainbow was an augury of good things to come. Synonym: auspices; omen
August
Adj Dignified; grandiose: The August view of the grand Teton summit took my breath away. Synonym: admirable; grand; majestic
Austere
Adj Severe or stern in appearance; undecorated: The lack of decoration makes Zen temples seem austere to the untrained eye. Synonym: bleak; harsh
Axiom
Noun Premise; postulate; self-evident truth : Lisa lived her life based on the axioms her grandmother had passed on to her. Synonym: adage; apothegm; aphorism; rule
acrimony
noun
Bitterness or ill feeling.
“a quagmire of lawsuits, acrimony, and finger-pointing”
Synonyms: bitterness, anger, rancor, resentment,
Adroit
Adj
clever or skillful in using the hands or mind.
“he was adroit at tax avoidance”
synonyms:skillful, adept, dexterous, deft, nimble
