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Question 1

indigent

Answer 1

indigent
adjective: poor; having very little

In the so-called Third World, many are indigent and only a privileged few have the resources to enjoy material luxuries.

noun: a poor or needy person

The indigents, huddled under the overpass, tried to start a small bonfire in the hope of staying warm.

Question 2

overweening

Answer 2

overweening
adjective: arrogant; presumptuous

Mark was so convinced of his basketball skills that in his overweening pride he could not fathom that his name was not on the varsity list; he walked up to the basketball coach and told her she had forgotten to add his name.

Question 3

expansive

Answer 3

expansive
adjective: communicative, and prone to talking in a sociable manner

After a few sips of cognac, the octogenarian shed his irascible demeanor and became expansive, speaking fondly of the “good old days”.

This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

Question 4

sedulous

Answer 4

sedulous
adjective: done diligently and carefully

An avid numismatist, Harold sedulously amassed a collection of coins from over 100 countries—an endeavor that took over fifteen years across five continents.

Question 5

perfunctory

Answer 5

perfunctory
adjective: done routinely and with little interest or care

The short film examines modern perfunctory cleaning rituals such as washing dishes, doing laundry and tooth-brushing.

Question 6

malfeasance

Answer 6

malfeasance
noun: misconduct or wrongdoing (especially by a public official)

Not even the mayor’s trademark pearly-toothed grin could save him from charges of malfeasance: while in power, he’d been running an illegal gambling rink in the room behind his office.

Question 7

choleric

Answer 7

choleric
adjective: prone to outbursts of temper; easily angered

While a brilliant lecturer, Mr. Dawson came across as choleric and unapproachable—very rarely did students come to his office hours.

Question 8

turpitude

Answer 8

turpitude
noun: depravity; a depraved act

During his reign, Caligula indulged in unspeakable sexual practices, so it is not surprising that he will forever be remembered for his turpitude.

Question 9

untoward

Answer 9

untoward
adjective: unfavorable; inconvenient

Some professors find teaching untoward as having to prepare for lectures and conduct office hours prevents them from focusing on their research.

Question 10

bilous

Answer 10

bilious
adjective: irritable; always angry

Rex was bilious all morning, and his face would only take on a look of contentedness when he’d had his morning cup of coffee.

Question 11

disabuse

Answer 11

disabuse
verb: to persuade somebody that his/her belief is not valid

As a child, I was quickly disabused of the notion that Santa Claus was a rotund benefactor of infinite largess—one night I saw my mother diligently wrapping presents and storing them under our Christmas tree.

Question 12

benighted

Answer 12

benighted
adjective: fallen into a state of ignorance

Far from being a period of utter benightedness, The Medieval Ages produced some great works of theological speculation.

Question 13

sangfroid

Answer 13

sangfroid
noun: calmness or poise in difficult situations

The hostage negotiator exhibited a sangfroid that oftentimes was more menacing than the sword at his throat, or the gun at his head.

Question 14

sybarite

Answer 14

sybarite
noun: a person who indulges in luxury

Despite the fact that he’d maxed out fifteen credit cards, Max was still a sybarite at heart: when the police found him, he was at a $1,000 an hour spa in Manhattan, getting a facial treatment.

Question 15

cupidity

Answer 15

cupidity
noun: greed for money

Some people believe that amassing as much wealth as possible is the meaning to life—yet they often realize that cupidity brings anything but happiness.

Question 16

jejune

Answer 16

jejune
adjective: dull; lacking flavor

Although many top chefs have secured culinary foam’s popularity in haute cuisine, Waters criticizes it for being jejune and unfilling.

adjective: immature; childish

Her boss further cemented his reputation for being jejune after throwing a fit when the water cooler wasn’t refilled.

Question 17

sententious

Answer 17

sententious
adjective: to be moralizing, usually in a pompous sense

The old man, casting his nose up in the air at the group of adolescents, intoned sententiously, “Youth is wasted on the young.”

Question 18

schadenfreude

Answer 18

schadenfreude
noun: joy from watching the suffering of others

From his warm apartment window, Stanley reveled in schadenfreude as he laughed at the figures below, huddled together in the arctic chill.

Question 19

peremptory

Answer 19

peremptory
adjective: bossy and domineering

My sister used to peremptorily tell me to do the dishes, a chore I would either do perfunctorily or avoid doing altogether.

Question 20

parvenu

Answer 20

parvenu
noun: a person who has suddenly become wealthy, but not socially accepted as part of a higher class

The theater was full of parvenus who each thought that they were surrounded by true aristocrats.

Question 21

jaundiced

Answer 21

jaundiced
adjective: to be biased against due to envy or prejudice

Shelly was jaundiced towards Olivia; though the two had once been best friends, Olivia had become class president, prom queen, and, to make matters worse, the girlfriend of the one boy Shelly liked.

Question 22

mulct

Answer 22

mulct
verb: to defraud or swindle

The so-called magical diet cure simply ended up mulcting Maria out of hundreds of dollars, but did nothing for her weight.

Question 23

quixotic

Answer 23

quixotic
adjective: wildly idealistic; impractical

For every thousand startups with quixotic plans to be the next big name in e-commerce, only a handful ever become profitable.

Question 24

propitiate

Answer 24

propitiate
verb: to placate or appease

The two sons, plying their angry father with cheesy neckties for Christmas, were hardly able to propitiate him – the father already had a drawer full of ones he had never worn before or ever planned to.

Question 25

palimpsest

Answer 25

palimpsest
noun: something that has been changed numerous times but on which traces of former iterations can still be seen

The downtown was a palimpsest of the city’s checkered past: a new Starbucks had opened up next to an abandoned, shuttered building, and a freshly asphalted road was inches away from a pothole large enough to swallow a small dog.

Question 26

blinkered

Answer 26

blinkered
adjective: to have a limited outlook or understanding

In gambling, the blinkered addict is easily influenced by past successes and/or past failures, forgetting that the outcome of any one game is independent of the games that preceded it.

Question 27

arriviste

Answer 27

arriviste
noun: a person who has recently reached a position of power; a social climber

The city center was aflutter with arrivistes who tried to outdo one another with their ostentatious sports cars and chic evening dress.

Question 28

excoriate

Answer 28

excoriate
verb: to criticize very harshly

Entrusted with the prototype to his company’s latest smartphone, Larry, during a late night karaoke bout, let the prototype slip into the hands of a rival company—the next day Larry was excoriated, and then fired.

Question 29

execrate

Answer 29

execrate
verb: to curse and hiss at

Though the new sitcom did decently in the ratings, Nelson railed against the show, saying that it was nothing more than an execrable pastiche of tired clichés and canned laughter.

Question 30

invective

Answer 30

invective
noun: abusive or denunciatory language

The Internet has unleashed the invectives in many of us; many people post stinging criticism on the comments section underneath newspaper articles or YouTube videos.

Question 31

remonstrate

Answer 31

remonstrate
verb: to make objections while pleading

The mothers of the kidnapped victims remonstrated to the rogue government to release their children, claiming that the detention violated human rights.

Question 32

apotheosis

Answer 32

apotheosis
noun: exaltation to divine status; the highest point of development

As difficult as it is to imagine, the apotheosis of Mark Zuckerberg’s career, many believe, is yet to come.

Question 33

hedge

Answer 33

hedge
verb: to limit or qualify a statement; to avoid making a direct statement

When asked why he had decided to buy millions of shares at the very moment the tech company’s stock soared, the CEO hedged, mentioning something vague about gut instinct.

Question 34

imbroglio

Answer 34

imbroglio

confusing, potentially embarrassing situation

Question 35

mulch

Answer 35

mulch

to defraud or swindle

Question 36

tendentious

Answer 36

tendentious

likely to lean towards a controversial view

Question 37

sartorial

Answer 37

related to fashion or clothes