Basic words Flashcards

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1
Q

Onerous

A

Troublesome and oppressive; burdensome

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2
Q

Obviate

A

To prevent or make unnecessary

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3
Q

Obdurate

A

Hardened in feeling; resistant to persuasion

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4
Q

Naive

A

Lacking sophistication or experience

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5
Q

Mollify

A

To calm; make less severe

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6
Q

Malinger

A

To evade responsibility; pretending to be ill. Exaggerate or feign illness to escape duty or work

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7
Q

Lavish

A

(v.) to give unsparingly
(adj.) extremely generous or extravagant

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8
Q

Laconic

A

Using few words

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9
Q

Irascible

A

Easily made angry

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10
Q

Intransigent

A

Uncompromising; refusing to be reconciled

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11
Q

Insipid

A

Lacking interest or flavor

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12
Q

Innocuous

A

Harmless

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13
Q

Inimical

A

hostile; unfriendly

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14
Q

Inchoate

A

not fully formed; disorganized

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15
Q

Impetuous

A

Quick to act without thinking

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16
Q

Iconoclast

A

One who opposes established beliefs, customs, and institutions

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17
Q

Guile

A

Deceit or trickery

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18
Q

Gregarious

A

Outgoing, sociable

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19
Q

Garrulous (antonym: laconic)

A

Tending to talk a lot

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20
Q

Foment

A

To arouse or incite

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21
Q

Florid

A

Excessively decorated or embellished

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22
Q

Fervid

A

Intensely emotional, feverish

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23
Q

Fanatical

A

acting excessively enthusiastic, filled with extreme, unquestioned devotion

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24
Q

Exculpate

A

to clear from blame; prove innocent

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25
Q

Eulogy

A

Speech in praise of someone

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26
Q

Estimable

A

admirable

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27
Q

Esoteric

A

Known or understood by only a few

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28
Q

Erudite

A

Learned, scholarly, bookish

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29
Q

Equivocate

A

To use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead

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30
Q

Equivocal

A

Open to more than one interpretation; misleading

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31
Q

Ephemeral

A

Lasting a short time

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32
Q

Enigma

A

Puzzle; mystery

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33
Q

Engender

A

To produce, cause, or bring about

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34
Q

Enervate

A

to reduce in strength

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35
Q

Eloquent

A

persuasive and moving (especially in speech)

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36
Q

Eclectic

A

Selecting from or made up from a variety of sources

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37
Q

Dogmatic

A

Dictatorial in one’s own opinions

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38
Q

Dissemble

A

to present a false appearance; to disguise one’s real intentions or character

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39
Q

Disparate (antonym: homogenous)

A

Fundamentally different; entirely unlike

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40
Q

Discern

A

to perceive; to recognize

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41
Q

Disabuse

A

to set right; to free from error

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42
Q

Dirge

A

a funeral hymn or mournful speech

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43
Q

Dilettante

A

Someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic

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44
Q

Dilatory

A

intended to delay

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45
Q

Diffident

A

Lacking self-confidence

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46
Q

Desultory

A

jumping from one thing to another; disconnected

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47
Q

Desiccate

A

to dry out thoroughly

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48
Q

Deride

A

to speak of or treat with contempt; to mock

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49
Q

Deference

A

respect, courtesy

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50
Q

Credulous

A

too trusting; gullible

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51
Q

Cogent

A

Convincing and well-reasoned

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52
Q

Chicanery

A

Deception by means of craft or guile

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53
Q

Chauvinist

A

Someone prejudiced in favor of a group to which he or she belongs

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54
Q

Caustic

A

Sarcastic in a scathing and bitter way

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55
Q

Castigate

A

To punish or criticize harshly

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56
Q

Cacophany

A

Harsh, jarring noise

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57
Q

Bombastic

A

Pompous in speech and manner

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58
Q

Austere

A

Rigorous, severe, stern in appearance

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59
Q

Audacious

A

Fearless and daring

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60
Q

Attenuate

A

To reduce in force or degree, to weaken

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61
Q

Assuage

A

to make something unpleasant, less severe

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62
Q

Ardor

A

Intense and passionate feeling

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63
Q

Antipathy

A

extreme dislike

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64
Q

Ameliorate

A

to make better; to improve

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65
Q

Amalgamate

A

to combine; mix together

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66
Q

Aggrandize

A

to increase in power, influence, and reputation

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67
Q

Adulterate

A

to make impure

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68
Q

Occlude

A

to stop up; prevent the passage of

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69
Q

Opprobrium

A

public disgrace

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70
Q

Ostentation

A

excessive showiness

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71
Q

Paragon

A

model of excellence or perfection

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72
Q

Pedant

A

someone who shows off learning

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73
Q

Perfidious

A

willing to betray one’s trust

74
Q

Prevaricate

A

to lie or deviate from the truth

75
Q

Perfunctory

A

done in a routine way, indifferent
- lack of interest, quickly and carelessly

76
Q

Plastic

A

able to be shaped, molded, altered, or bent

77
Q

Pragmatic

A

practical as opposed to idealistic

78
Q

Precipitate

A

to throw violently or bring about abruptly; lacking deliberation

79
Q

Prodigal

A

lavish; wasteful

80
Q

Proliferate

A

to increase in number quickly

81
Q

Propitiate

A

to conciliate; to appease

82
Q

Propriety

A

decorum; appropriate behavior; obedience to rules and customs

83
Q

Prudence

A

wisdom, caution, or restraint

84
Q

Quiescent

A

motionless

85
Q

Rarefy

A

to make thinner or sparser

86
Q

Repudiate

A

to reject the validity of

87
Q

Reticent

A

silent; reserved

88
Q

Rhetoric

A

effective writing or speaking

89
Q

Soporific

A

causing sleep or lethargy

90
Q

Specious

A

deceptively attractive, seemingly plausible but fallacious

91
Q

Stolid

A

unemotional; lacking sensitivity

92
Q

Sublime

A

lofty or grand

93
Q

Tacit

A

done without using words

94
Q

Taciturn

A

silent, not talkative

95
Q

Torpor

A

extreme mental and physical sluggishness

96
Q

Transitory (syn. - ephemeral)

A

temporary, lasting a brief time

97
Q

Vacillate

A

to sway physically; to be indecisive

98
Q

Venerate

A

to respect deeply

99
Q

Veracity

A

truthfulness; accuracy

100
Q

Verbose

A

wordy

101
Q

Zeal

A

passion, excitement

102
Q

Whimsical

A

acting in a fanciful or capricious manner, unpredictable

103
Q

Waver

A

to fluctuate between choices

104
Q

Volatile

A

easily aroused or changeable, lively or explosive

105
Q

Vex

A

to annoy

106
Q

Tirade

A

long, harsh speech or verbal attack

107
Q

Stigma

A

a mark of shame or discredit

108
Q

Satiate

A

to satisfy fully or overindulge

109
Q

Pungent

A

sharp and irritating to the senses

110
Q

Pristine

A

fresh and clean; uncorrupted

111
Q

Plethora

A

excess

112
Q

Placate

A

to soothe or pacify

113
Q

Philanthropy

A

charity; a desire or an effort to promote goodness

114
Q

Permeate

A

to penetrate

115
Q

Paradox

A

contradiction or dilemma

116
Q

Opaque

A

impossible to see through; preventing the passage of light

117
Q

Obstinate

A

stubborn; unyielding

118
Q

Obsequious

A

overly submissive and eager to please

119
Q

Monotony

A

lack of variation

120
Q

Mitigate

A

to soften; to lessen

121
Q

Misanthrope

A

a person who dislikes others

122
Q

Meticulous

A

extremely careful about details

123
Q

Metaphor

A

a figure of speech comparing two different things; a symbol

124
Q

Malleable

A

capable of being shaped

125
Q

Luminous

A

bright, brilliant, glowing

126
Q

Lucid

A

clear and easily understood

127
Q

Loquacious

A

talkative

128
Q

Lethargic

A

acting in an indifferent or slow, sluggish manner

129
Q

Laud

A

to praise

130
Q

Lament

A

to express sorrow; to grieve

131
Q

Inundate

A

to overwhelm; to cover with water

132
Q

Ingenuous

A

showing innocence or childlike simplicity

133
Q

Implacable

A

unable to be calmed down or made peaceful

134
Q

Impervious

A

impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected

135
Q

Imperturbable

A

not capable of being disturbed

136
Q

Homogenous

A

of a similar kind

137
Q

Gullible

A

easily deceived

138
Q

Frugality

A

a tendency to be thrifty or cheap

139
Q

Fawn

A

to grovel

140
Q

Explicit

A

Clearly stated or shown; forthright in expression

141
Q

Exonerate

A

to clear of blame

142
Q

Exigent

A

urgent; requiring immediate action

143
Q

Exacerbate

A

to make worse

144
Q

Euphemism

A

use of an inoffensive word or phrase in place of a more distasteful one

145
Q

Erratic

A

wandering and unpredictable

146
Q

Enumerate

A

to count, list, or itemize

147
Q

Emulate

A

to copy; to try to equal or excel

148
Q

Elegy

A

a sorrowful poem or speech

149
Q

Efficacy

A

effectiveness

150
Q

Dupe

A

to deceive; a person who’s easily deceived

151
Q

dogma

A

a firmly held opinion, often a religious belief

152
Q

Dissonance

A

A harsh and disagreeable combination, often of sounds

153
Q

Dilate

A

to make larger, to expand

154
Q

Diatribe

A

an abusive, condemnatory speech

155
Q

Decorum

A

appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety

156
Q

Crescendo

A

steadily increasing in volume or force

157
Q

Corroborate

A

to provide supporting evidence

158
Q

Convoluted

A

intricate and complicated

159
Q

Condone

A

to overlook, pardon, or disregard

160
Q

Chaos

A

great disorder or confusion

161
Q

Catalyst

A

something that brings about a change in something else

162
Q

Capricious

A

Changing one’s mind quickly and often

163
Q

Candid

A

Impartial and honest in speech

164
Q

Bolster

A

to support, to prop up

165
Q

Banal

A

predictable, cliched, boring

166
Q

articulate

A

able to speak clearly and expressively

167
Q

Archaic

A

ancient, old-fashioned

168
Q

Arbitrate

A

to judge a dispute between two opposing parties

169
Q

Apathy

A

lack of interest/emotion

170
Q

Antagonize

A

to annoy or provoke to anger

171
Q

Anomaly

A

deviation from what is normal

172
Q

Analogous

A

similar or alike in some way; equivalent to

173
Q

Anachronism

A

out of place in time

174
Q

Ambiguous

A

doubtful or uncertain; able to be interpreted several ways

175
Q

Alleviate

A

to make more bearable

176
Q

Aesthetic

A

concerning the appreciation of beautty

177
Q

Advocate

A

to speak in favor of

178
Q

Abyss

A

an extremely deep hole

179
Q

Abstain

A

to refrain from

180
Q

Abscond

A

to leave secretly

181
Q

Abate

A

to reduce in amount, degree, or severity