B Flashcards
bacchanalian
adj. pertaining to riotous or drunken festivity
The secretive club’s bacchanalian celebrations have attracted the interest of the local authorities.
baleful
adj. harmful
Some people believe that the moon can exert a baleful influence on people.
balk
v. to refuse
The student balked when the teacher asked him to rewrite his essay.
ballad
n. folk song, narrative poem
The performer sang a ballad telling the story of a runaway slave.
banal
adj. commonplace; trite
Many comedies employ the same banal situations.
bane
n. something causing death or destruction
Weapons of mass destruction are one of the great banes of the modern world.
banter
n. playful conversation
“OK, cut the banter and get back to work,” the foreman shouted to the workers as their break was ending.
barbarous
adj. uncivilized; lacking refinement
War sometimes shows that human beings are capable of barbarous behavior.
bard
n. poet
Many famous bards have been Poet Laureates of Britain.
baroque
adj. highly ornate
The hotel where I stayed in Paris was too baroque for my taste; I prefer a simple style.
bastion
n. fortification
Many people regard Australia as a bastion of democracy.
bawdy
adj. obscene
Daniel Defoe’s Moll Flanders is a bawdy eighteenth-century novel.
bedevil
v. plague; annoy; spoil
The new car model was bedeviled by so many problems that the manufacturer withdrew it from production.
bedizen
v. to dress in a showy, vulgar manner
The old actress was bedizened with costume jewelry.
beguile
v. to deceive, mislead; to charm or delight
We were so beguiled by the car’s appearance that we neglected to consider whether it was really suitable.
behaviorism
n. a school of psychology that studies only observable and measurable behavior
Psychologists who subscribe to the tenets of behaviorism believe that behavior can be explained without recourse to hypothetical constructs such as mind.
behemoth
n. huge creature; anything very large and powerful
Modern aircraft carriers are behemoths with a crew the size of a small town.
belabor
v. to insist repeatedly; harp on
The English teacher belabored the point that students must write in full sentences.
belated
adj. to late
I sent my wife a belated birthday card.
beleaguer
v. to harass
The army, beleaguered by enemy troops, was forced to surrender.
belie
v. to misrepresent
Jim’s tough appearance belies his soft heart.
belittle
v. to disparage; mark
Joe’s efforts to get a perfect GRE score were belittled, but no one was laughing when he got a perfect score.
bellicosity
v. condition of being warlike or aggressive
The increased bellicosity of nations in the region worried experts at the United Nations.
belligerence
n. hostility, tendency to fight
The student’s belligerence was always getting him into fights.
bemuse
v. to confuse
The class was bemused by the new teacher’s vague directions.
benefactor
n. patron; one who helps others
Judy discovered that a wealthy benefactor was going to pay for her college education.
beneficent
adj. kindly; doing good
The billionaire is admired for his beneficent charitable contributions.
benevolent
adj. generous; charitable
The benevolent billionaire donated half of his fortune to charity.
benighted
adj. unenlightened
The poor benighted country had little success in its efforts to develop.
benign
adj. harmless, kind
Shari was relieved when the doctor said her tumor was benign.
bequeath
v. to hand down
Mr. Ford will bequeath all of his possessions to his wife.
berate
v. to scold
The teacher berated the student for not handing in her homework in time.
beseech
v. to beg, plead
The hostage beseeched his captors to release him.
bestial
adj. beastly
Many bestial acts were committed during the war.
bestow
v. to give as a gift
It is customary to bestow gifts on family and friends at Christmas.
bête noir
n. something especially dreaded or hated
The novelist described mathematics as the bête noir of his childhood years.
betoken
v. to indicate, signify
A wedding ring betokens the union of two people in marriage.
bevy
n. group
A bevy of cheerleaders gathered around the quarterback after the football game.
bias
n. prejudice
A teacher should treat students without bias.
bibliophile
n. book lover
The bibliophile has a collection of over 20,000 books.
bicameral
adj. composed of two legislative branches
The U.S. Congress is a bicameral body consisting of the senate and the House of Representatives.
bifurcate
v. to divide into two parts
Let’s bifurcate this apple so we can share it evenly.
bigotry
n. intolerance
One definition of education is the process of losing our bigotry and becoming more accepting of others and their views.
bilateral
ad. two-sided
The two countries have started bilateral talks about the dispute.
binary
adj. relating to something made of or based on two things or parts
A binary star is a system of two stars that revolve about their common center of mass.
biomass
n. the amount of living matter in a unit area of a habitat; plant materials and animal waste used especially as a source of fuel
Biomass is derived from five sources: garbage, waste, wood, landfill gases, and alcohol fuels.
bipartisan
adj. supported by two political parties
The president is working to build bipartisan support for the plan.
biped
n. two-footed animal
Human beings are bipeds.
bivouac
n. a temporary encampment
The major ordered the battalion to make a bivouac in the park.
bizarre
adj. strikingly unusual; fantastic
Dreams sometimes have bizarre events that could not occur in reality.
blandishment
n. flattery
The retired couple couldn’t resist the blandishments of the glossy travel brochure.
blasé
adj. bored because of frequent indulgence; unconcerned
The veteran movie stuntman has became blasé about his work.
blasphemy
n. profanity, irreverence
The suggestion that schools be abolished was considered blasphemy by the teacher’s union.
blatant
adj. glaring, obvious
First, eliminate blatant errors from your writing; then, worry about the small ones.
bleak
adj. cheerless; unlikely to be favorable
People with little education often face a bleak future.
blight
n. affliction
Researchers are studying the causes of the potato blight.
blithe
adj. joyful, cheerful; carefree
In her youth Karen was a blithe spirit, but as she grew older she became more serious.
blitzkrieg
n. a swift, sudden military offensive, usually by combined air and mobile land forces
Careful planning must be done to launch a successful blitzkrieg.
bludgeon
v. to hit
The referee stopped the bout after one boxer began to bludgeon his opponent mercilessly.
bohemian
adj. unconventional in an artistic way
The bohemian area of the tour attracted many artists, writers, and musicians.
boisterous
adj. rowdy, unrestrained
The Red Sox fans became boisterous after their team won the World Series.
bolster
v. to give a boost to; prop up; support
Many famous men were bolstered in their careers by the support of their wives.
bombastic
adj. pompous; using inflated language
The audience was bored by the long, bombastic speech.
bona fide
adj. good faith, sincere, authentic
“I expected each of you to make a bona fide effort in this class,” the teacher told the class.
bonanza
n. large amount
The oil company spent years drilling for oil hoping to find a bonanza – a lost store of crude oil.
bonhomie
n. atmosphere of good cheer
Dad and Mom like dinner to be filled with bonhomie.
boon
n. blessing
Summer vacation is an extra week long this year – what a boon!
boorish
adj. rude; insensitive
Everyone avoids the boorish guy.
botanist
n. scientist who studies plants
The botanist discovered a plant with the power to relieve pain.
bountiful
adj. plentiful
The bountiful harvest means that we’ll have plenty to eat this year.
bourgeois
adj. typical of the middle class
The artist denounced his critics as bourgeois fools.
bourgeoisie
n. the middle class
Television generally reflects the tastes of the bourgeoisie.
bovine
adj. cow-like
Asked to describe the students walking slowly to the auditorium the English teacher said, “Bovine.”
Brahmanism
n. Hinduism, the religious beliefs and practices of ancient India as reflected in the Vedas
The scholar is studying monistic tendencies in the Rigveda, one of Brahminism’s sacred books.
Brahmin
n. a member of a cultural and social elite
The poet T.S. Eliot was a member of a well-known family of Boston Brahmins, the Eliots.
brazen
adj. bold, shameless
The brazen girl locked her parents out of the house after being scolded for lying.
breach
n. violation
“One more breach of school rules and you’re out of here,” the principal told the student.
brigand
n. outlaw
Some brigands like Jesse James are romanticized in books and films.
broach
v. to mention for the first time
Jason decided that he would broach the subject of marriage to his girlfriend over dinner.
bromide
n. a commonplace remark; a platitude
The politician’s speech is filled with bromides.
brusque
adj. abrupt in manner
Although Professor Robinson is brusque with student, he always has their best interest at heart.
bucolic
adj. characteristic of the countryside; rustic; pastoral
The inn’s bucolic setting makes it a popular weekend retreat for city people.
buffoon
n. clown
Why is it that every class in school has a buffoon?
bulwark
n. something serving as a defense
U.S. military bases in South Korea are bulwarks against invasion by North Korea.
bureaucracy
n. government administration; management marked by diffused authority and inflexibility
Modern democracies require vast bureaucracies to carry out the many functions of government.
bureaucratic
adj. rigidly devoted to the details of administrative procedure
Fed up with bureaucratic delays, the customer sent an e-mail to the president of the company.
burgeon
v. to flourish, grow
China’s burgeoning population is putting severe strain on its natural resources.
burly
adj. brawny, husky
The burly bouncer threw Billy out of the club for starting a fight.
burnish
v. to polish
The soldier proudly burnished his medals.
bustle
n. commotion
Raised on a farm, Jim isn’t used to the bustle of a big city.
buttress
v. to reinforce, support
This argument needs to be buttressed with additional evidence.
