Basic 6, 7 Flashcards
quip
Witty saying or remark; Make a witty saying or say in jest.
In one of the most famous quips about classical music, Mark Twain said: “Wagner’s music is better than it sounds.”
convoluted
Highly complex or intricate.
Instead of solving the math problem in three simple steps, Kumar used a convoluted solution requiring fifteen steps.
devolve
Pass on or delegate to another; Grow worse.
The company was full of managers known for devolving tasks to lower management, but never doing much work themselves; The dialogue between the two academics devolved into a downright bitter argument.
unseemly
Not keeping with accepted standards of what is right or proper in polite society.
He acted in an unseemly manner, insulting the hostess and then speaking ill of her deceased husband.
exemplify
Be characteristic of; Clarify by giving an example of.
Mozart exemplified the poor, starving artist who dies young; Please present some case studies that exemplify the results that you claim in your paper.
connive
Taking part in immoral and unethical plots; Conspire or collude.
With the help of the prince, the queen connived to overthrow the king.
eke
To live off meager resources, to scrape by.
Stranded in a cabin over the winter, Terry was able to eke out an existence on canned food.
savvy
Perceptive understanding; Get the meaning of something; Well-informed or perceptive.
Although a great CEO, he did not have the political savvy to win the election; The student savvies the meaning of astrophysics with little effort; With his savvy business partner, the company was able to turn a profit within a year.
rash
Marked by defiant disregard for danger or consequences; Incurring risk.
Although Bruce was able to make the delivery in time with a nighttime motorcycle ride in the rain, Susan criticized his actions as rash.
serene
Calm and peaceful.
I’d never seen him so serene; usually, he was a knot of stress and anxiety from hours of trading on the stock exchange.
perturb
Disturb in mind or cause to be worried or alarmed.
Now that Henry is recovering from a major illness, he no longer lets the little trivialities, such as late mail, perturb him.
leery
Openly distrustful and unwilling to confide.
Without checking his references and talking to previous employers, I am leery of hiring the candidate.
collusion
Agreement on a secret plot.
Many have argued the Lee Harvey Oswald, JFK’s assassin, was in collusion with other criminals; others maintain that Oswald was a lone gunman.
smug
Marked by excessive complacency or self-satisfaction.
When Phil was dating the model, he had a smug attitude that annoyed his buddies.
impregnable
Immune to attack; incapable of being tampered with.
As a child, Amy would build pillow castles and pretend they were impregnable fortresses.
tact
Consideration in dealing with others and avoiding giving offense.
In a tremendous display of tact, Shelly was able to maintain a strong friendship with Marcia, even though Marcia’s husband, Frank, confessed to finding Shelley more attractive than Marcia.
aphoristic
Something that is concise and instructive of a general truth or principle.
Sometimes I can’t stand Nathan because he tries to impress everyone by being aphoristic, but he just states the obvious.
irk
Irritate or vex.
My little sister has a way of irking and annoying me like no other person.
ploy
Clever plan to turn a situation to one’s advantage; Ruse.
Dennis arranged an elaborate ploy, involving 14 different people lying for him in different situations, so that it could appear that he was meeting Mary completely by chance at the wedding reception.
elude
Escape understanding.
While some physics concepts might elude newbies, with a little grit and a good teacher, almost anyone can develop a deep understanding of the subject.
derogative
Expressed as worthless or in negative terms.
Never before have we seen a debate between two political candidates that was so derogative and filthy.
tout
Advertise in strongly positive terms; Show off.
At the conference, the CRO touted the extraordinary success of his company’s Research & Development division.
enmity
State of deep-seated ill-will; Animosity.
The rude remark Charles made toward Sarah yesterday was due to his illness, not due to any real enmity toward Sarah.
steadfast
Marked by firm determination or resolution; Not shakable.
A good captain needs to be steadfast, continuing to hold the wheel and stay the course even during the most violent storm.
exasperate
To irritate intensely; Annoy.
As a child, I exasperated my mother with strings of never-ending questions.
placid
Not easily irritated.
Doug is normally placid, so we were all shocked to see him yelling at the television when the Mets lost the game.
foible
A behavioral attribute that is distinctive and peculiar to an individual.
When their new roommate sat staring at an oak tree for an hour, Marcia thought it indicated a mental problem, but Jeff assured her it was a harmless foible.
goad
Urge on with unpleasant comments.
Doug did not want to enter the race, but Jim, through a steady stream of taunts, goaded him into signing up for it.
impending
Close in time; About to occur.
The impending doom of our world has been discussed and debated for 2000 years - maybe even longer.
taxing
Use to the limit; Exhaust.
The hike to the summit of Mt. Whitney was so taxing that I could barely speak or stand up.
pastoral
Relating to the countryside in a pleasant sense.
Those who imagine America’s countryside as a pastoral region are often disappointed to learn that much of rural US is filled with cornfields extending as far as the eye can see.
discord
Lack of agreement or harmony; Friction.
Despite all their talented players, the team was filled with discord - some players refused to talk to others - and lost most of their games.
complacent
Contented to a fault with oneself or one’s actions; self-satisfied.
After the water polo team won their sixth championship, they became complacent and didn’t even make it to the playoffs the next year.
maxim
Short saying expressing a general truth; Adage; Aphorism.
Johnson initially suggests that the secret to business can be summarized in a single maxim but the requires a 300-page book to explain exactly what he means.
obstinate
Resistant to guidance or discipline; Stubbornly persistent.
The coach suggested improvements Sarah might make on the balance beam, but she remained obstinate, unwilling to modify any of the habits that made her successful in the past.
brusquely
In a blunt, direct manner.
Not one for social pleasantries, the Chief of Staff would brusquely ask his subordinates for anything he wanted, even coffee.
credulity
Tendency to believe readily; Gullibility; Naivety.
Virginia’s wide-eyed credulity as a five-year old was replaced by suspicion after she learned that Santa Claus didn’t really exist.
malevolent
Wishing or appearing to wish evil to others; Arising from intense ill will or hatred.
Villains are known for their malevolent nature, oftentimes inflicting cruelty on others just for enjoyment.
tarnish
Make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air; Also used metaphorically.
Pete Rose was one of the best baseball players of his generation, but his involvement with gambling on baseball games has tarnished his image in the eyes of many.
reservation
Unstated doubt that prevents you from accepting something wholeheartedly.
I was initially excited by the idea of a trip to Washington, DC but now that I have read about the high crime statistics there, I have some reservations.
