Adj. Section 1 Flashcards
1
Q
aberrant
A
departing from the right, normal, or usual course.
aberrant behavior
2
Q
abstinent
A
forbearance from any indulgence of appetite, especially from the use of alcoholic beverages
abstinent from alcohols
3
Q
abstruse
A
hard to understand
abstruse theory
4
Q
abundant
A
present in great quantity
an abundant harvest; an abundant year; be abundant in (minerals)
5
Q
accessible
A
easy to approach, reach
accessible by rail; accessible price, people; accessible stories
6
Q
accountable
A
responsible; answerable
Every person is accountable for his own work
7
Q
acerbic
A
sour or astringent in taste: Lemon juice is acerbic.
harsh or severe, as of temper or expression: acerbic criticism.
8
Q
acute
A
sharp or severe in effect
acute pain; an acute thinker
9
Q
adamant
A
Refusing to be persuaded or to change one’s mind.
adamant to temptation
Once he had made his decision, he was adamant and would not change his mind.
10
Q
adept
A
very skilled; proficient
be adept in; the human brain is more adept at comparing lengths than areas.
11
Q
adequate
A
as much or as good as necessary for some requirement or purpose
an adequate performance; the supply is not adequate to the demand;
12
Q
advertent
A
attentive; heedful
He adverted briefly to the news of the day.
13
Q
affected
A
acted upon; influenced in a harmful way
His manners are affected; affected airs; affected laugh
14
Q
agreeable
A
to one’s liking; pleasing
agreeable to the taste; be agreeable to a proposal; be agreeable to reason
15
Q
allusive
A
having reference to something implied or inferred
a story allusive to her history
16
Q
aloof
A
at a distance, especially in feeling or interest
an aloof church; The girl’s manner was aloof
17
Q
ambiguous
A
open to or having several possible meanings or interpretations
an ambiguous answer; an ambiguous future
18
Q
ambivalent
A
having mixed feelings about someone or something
an ambivalent attitude to private enterprise
19
Q
amiable
A
having or showing pleasant
an amiable manner
20
Q
amorphous
A
lacking definite form; having no specific shape
an amorphous cloud mass, segment of society, style of writing
21
Q
ample
A
fully sufficient or more than adequate for the purpose or needs
ample evidence
We have ample money for the journey.
He believes he has ample evidence to convict.
22
Q
anachronistic
A
a person or thing that belongs or seems to belong to another time
Sadly, the anachronistic conventions of bookselling and copyright law lag the technology.
23
Q
ancillary
A
providing necessary support to the primary activities or operation of an organization, institution, industry, or system; subordinate; subsidiary
ancillary staff, workers
24
Q
anomalous
A
deviating from or inconsistent with the common order, form, or rule; irregular; abnormal
a highly anomalous situation; anomalous(aberrant) result
25
answerable
liable to be asked to give account; responsible
| answerable for an act, damages; the government answerable to the people; achievements answerable to expectation
26
antagonistic
acting in opposition
| Cats and dogs are antagonistic.
27
antithetical
directly opposed or contrasted
| The self-assertive element and the self-transcending element are antithetical.
28
apathetic
having or showing little or no emotion
| the crowd seemed to be unimpressed, almost apathetic.
29
apocalyptic
affording a revelation or prophecy
But the in-air bird deaths aren't due to some apocalyptic plague or insidious experiment-they happen all the time, scientists say.
30
appalling
causing dismay or horror
| an appalling accident; appalling ignorance
31
appealing
evoking or attracting interest, desire, curiosity, sympathy, or the like; attractive
an appealing smile
32
apposite
suitable; well-adapted; pertinent; relevant
an apposite answer; be apposite to the case
I find his speech wholly apposite to the current debate.
33
appreciable
sufficient to be readily perceived or estimated; considerable
There is an appreciable difference between socialism and communism.
34
apprehensive
uneasy or fearful about something that might happen
| be apprehensive for someone's safety; be apprehensive of danger; be apprehensive of one's folly
35
appropriate
an appropriate example; each played his appropriate part; be appropriate for
36
apropos
fitting; at the right time; to the purpose; opportunely
| Your telegram comes apropos.
37
arbitrary
subject to individual will or judgment without restriction
| arbitrary and unreasonable; arbitrary argument
38
arcane
known or understood by very few; mysterious; secret; obscure; esoteric
a theory filled with arcane details; Stay tuned for a very arcane discussion of Latin grammar.
39
archetypal
of or having the nature of an archetype, or original model or prototype
an archetypal English gentleman
40
ardent
intensely devoted, eager, or enthusiastic
| an ardent admirer; ardent passion; an ardent protest; ardent hate; ardent spirits
41
arduous
requiring great exertion; laborious; difficult
| arduous paths; an arduous task, worker
42
arrogant
making claims or pretensions to superior importance or rights; overbearingly assuming; insolently proud
arrogant and unreasonable demands
43
artless
free from deceit, cunning, or craftiness; ingenuous
| the artless sincerity of a young child
44
ascendant
a position of dominance or controlling influence: possession of power, superiority, or preeminence
be in the ascendant
45
ascetic
a person who leads an austerely simple life, especially one who abstains from the normal pleasures of life or denies himself or herself material satisfaction.
The monks lived a very ascetic life. Living hidden away in the mountains suited his ascetic character.
46
assertive
confidently aggressive or self-assured
John is an assertive boy, always insisting on his own rights and opinions.
A clear mind: be assertive, but mindful of others.
47
assiduous
constant; working diligently at a task
| He is assiduous in his studies; He is assiduous over his visitor
48
astute
clever; cunning; ingenious; shrewd
| an astute investor, businesswoman; an astute manipulation of facts
49
audacious
extremely bold or daring; recklessly brave: an audacious demand, explorer
extremely original; without restriction to prior ideas: an audacious vision of the city's bright future
50
auspicious
promising success; propitious; fortunate
| It's been an auspicious morning for the new facility.
51
austere
severe in manner or appearance; ascetic; abstinent; without excess, luxury
My father was a distant, austere man; the monks' austere way of life; her austere bedroom with its simple narrow bed
52
authentic
not false or copied
| authentic news, signature; an authentic deed
53
available
he is not available for the job; employ all available means
54
avant-garde
the advance group in any field, especially in the visual, literary, or musical arts, whose works are characterized chiefly by unorthodox and experimental methods.
avant-garde writers; avant-garde art, cinema, painting
55
avaricious
greedy; covetous
| avaricious of wealth
56
averse
having a strong dislike of or opposition to something
It's not too hard, as long as you aren't averse to knocking a hole in the wall.
For the fish averse, there is buttermilk fried chicken.
He was averse to revealing the sources of his information.
57
avid
showing great enthusiasm for or interest in
| avid for food; be avid of money; an avid reader of books
58
awe-inspiring
causing awe; spectacular; magnificent
| an awe-inspiring mountain
59
axiomatic
pertaining to or of the nature of an axiom; self-evident; obvious
It is axiomatic that life is not always easy
60
backhanded
oblique or ambiguous in meaning; indirect; insincere or malicious; wry
backhanded compliment
61
banal
so lacking in originality as to be obvious and boring
| a banal conversation about the weather; The architecture is, for the most part, banal.
62
barefaced
shameless; impudent
| barefaced falsehood; a barefaced lie
63
baroque
extravagantly ornate, florid, and convoluted in character or style
It's very baroque, romantic and deliciously sentimental in a retro way.
64
barren
not producing or incapable of producing offspring; sterile
| a barren desert, landscape; the team will come through this barren patch and start to win again
65
bashful
uncomfortably diffident and easily embarrassed; shy; timid
| Charities are not bashful about looking a gift horse in the mouth.
66
bathetic
commonplace; producing an unintentional effect of anticlimax
The end of the libel case was, in a way, rather bathetic.
The scene, which could have been bathetic, is a killer.
67
belated
coming or happening later than should have been the case
| belated efforts; belated travelers; a belated view of world politics
68
belligerent
warlike; given to waging war; hostile and aggressive
| belligerent powers; a belligerent tone
69
beneficent
doing good or causing good to be done
| For those in a beneficent mood, the centre is also accepting donations.
70
benign
showing or expressive of gentleness or kindness
| a benign climate; a benign tumor
71
bereft
deprived
Alone now and almost penniless, he was bereft of hope.
After the last of their children had left home the couple felt utterly bereft.
72
biased
having or showing bias or prejudice
| Their outlook was biased , although not intentionally so.
73
bizarre
bizarre clothing; the story has a certain bizarre interest
74
bland
lacking strong features or characteristics and therefore uninteresting; pleasantly gentle or agreeable
bland background music; a rather bland diet of soup, fish and bread; a bland smile
75
blasé
indifferent to or bored with life; nonchalant
| He reports his new-found notoriety with the blasé tone of someone reading a train schedule.
76
blasphemous
irreverent; profane; sacrilegious
| Whatever your reasoning, your comment was both blasphemous and irrational.
77
bleak
bare, desolate, and often windswept
| a bleak wind; a bleak prospect; a bleak plain
78
blighted
to cause to wither or decay; frustrate
| blighted hopes; blighted love
79
blithe
joyous, merry, or gay in disposition
| a blithe and carefree girl
80
blooming
blooming cheeks; blooming business
81
blunt
having a thick, or dull edge or point; not sharp; slow in perception or understanding; obtuse
short, blunt nose; blunt about the feeling of others; to be blunt
82
bogus
not genuine; counterfeit
| a bogus doctor; bogus claims of injury by workers
83
boisterous
rough and noisy
| the boisterous entertainment area; a boisterous wind
84
bombastic
(of speech, writing, etc.) high-sounding; high-flown; inflated; pretentious
a bombastic speech
85
booming
to boost; to progress, grow, or flourish vigorously
| a booming population
86
boorish
unmannered; crude; insensitive
| a drunk's boorish behavior
87
bootless
without result, gain, or advantage; unavailing; useless
| efforts to convince him were bootless
88
brazen
made of brass; shameless or impudent
| a brazen image of Buddha; a brazen liar
89
brusque
abrupt in manner; blunt; rough
| a brusque refusal; She was offended by his brusque reply.
90
callous
made hard; insensitive; indifferent; unsympathetic
| a callous killer, attitude, act; callous disregard for other's feelings
91
callow
immature or inexperienced; (of a young bird) featherless
| I believed a lot of things in my callow youth that I don't believe now.
92
cantankerous
disagreeable to deal with; contentious; peevish
| a cantankerous old woman who insisted that nothing should ever be allowed to change
93
capricious
given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior
a movie star who was capricious and difficult to please; The love of girls is uncertain, capricious.
94
categorical
without exceptions or conditions; absolute; definite
| a categorical denial; The judgement was harsh and categorical.
95
catholic
broad or wide-ranging in tastes, interests, or the like; having sympathies with all
his tastes are very catholic
96
caustic
capable of burning, corroding, or destroying living tissue; severely critical or sarcastic
a caustic cleaning product; caustic liquid which blisters the skin; caustic comments
97
celebrated
renowned; well-known
| celebrated movie star
98
censorious
severely critical; faultfinding; carping
censorious comments; a censorious critic
His treatment of him is sympathetic rather than readily censorious.
99
ceremonious
formally or elaborately polite
| she read the announcement in a very ceremonious way
100
chary
cautious or careful; wary
be chary of offense; Reluctant to give money to poor countries, rich countries' governments became equally chary of collecting debts from them.
101
chic
cleverly stylish
| the woman who is chic adapts fashion to her own personality; a chic restaurant
102
chimerical
unreal; imaginary
| chimerical dreams of future progress
103
chivalrous
having the qualities of chivalry, as courage, courtesy, and loyalty
a kind and chivalrous man; he still engages in chivalrous behavior, such as holding doors for people
104
chronic
continuing a long time or recurring frequently
a chronic disease; a chronic grumbler; a chronic liar
He drifted off into a discussion of Lebanon's chronic crisis.
105
circumlocutory
a roundabout or indirect way of speaking
| a circumlocutory excuss
106
clairvoyant
having or claiming to have the power of seeing objects or actions beyond the range of natural vision
To make such a confident prediction you would have to be clairvoyant.
107
clandestine
kept secret or done secretively, especially because illicit
| clandestine dealings; a clandestine marriage
108
clannish
(of a group or their activities) tending to exclude others outside the group
Let's face it, we became ingrown, clannish, and retarded. Cut off from the mainstream of humanity, we came to believe that pink is "flesh-color", that mayonnaise is a nutrient, and that Barry Manilow is a musician.
109
clement
mild or merciful in disposition or character
| a clement judge; clement weather for November
110
clinical
concerned with or based on actual observation and treatment of disease in patients rather than experimentation or theory; extremely objective and realistic; unemotionally critical
her voice was calm, almost clinical(cold), as she told us what happened; a formal marriage agreement sounds clinical, but it can be a good idea
111
clumsy
the first mobile phone were heavy and clumsy to use; my attempt to apologize were very clumsy
112
cogent
she offers some cogent(convincing, persuasive) reasons for building school; a cogent(reasonable) argument
113
coherent
logically connected; consistent
| a coherent narrative, account, explanation; a coherent policy for the transport system
114
commonplace
ordinary; undistinguished or uninteresting
| a commonplace work
115
compassionate
having or showing compassion
| politicians are not usually regarded as warm or compassionate people
116
compatible
capable of existing or living together in harmony
| the new system will be compatible with existing equipment
117
compelling
having a powerful and irresistible effect; tending to compel; overpowering
a compelling argument; a compelling smile; a compelling gaze
118
compendious
containing or presenting the essential facts of something in a comprehensive but concise way; concise
a compendious report
119
complacent
pleased, especially with oneself or one's merits, advantages, situation; self-satisfied
we must not become complacent about progress
120
complaisant
inclined or disposed to please; obliging; agreeable or gracious
Their effect here is to soften the satire and make it complaisant.
