Book14 Flashcards
crochet
make (a piece of needlework) by looping thread with a hooked needle; N. CF. crotchet
knoll
little round hill; hillock
knotty
intricate; difficult; tangled; CF. knot
kudos
honor; glory; acclaim or praise for exceptional achievement
entourage
group of attendants; retinue; CF. surround
labile
likely to change; unstable; Ex. emotionally labile; N. lability
laborious
demanding much work or care; tedious
labyrinth
maze
laceration
torn ragged wound; V. lacerate: tear (the skin as with broken glass); wound
rip
tear or be torn quickly and violently; Ex. The sail ripped under the force of the wind; N.
rag
scrap of cloth; ADJ. ragged: old and torn; seeming unfinished and imperfect; Ex. ragged debut/performance
lachrymose
producing tears; tearful
lackadaisical
lacking interest or effort; lacking purpose or zest; lazy; halfhearted; languid
halfhearted
exhibiting little interest or enthusiasm
lackluster
lacking luster(shine; gloss); dull
laconic
brief and to the point; using few words; terse
laggard
slow; sluggish; N: one who lags; straggler
lag
move or develop more slowly; straggle; Ex. lag behind the rest; N.
straggle
stray or fall behind (a main group); spread out in a scattered group; Ex. straggling marathon racer; Ex. straggling branch
lagoon
shallow body of water or lake near a sea; lake separated from a sea by sandbars or coral reefs
laity
laypersons; laymen; persons not connected with the clergy
layman
man who is not a cleric; man who is nonprofessional
lament
grieve; express sorrow; N. lamentation
lampoon
ridicule; N: written attack ridiculing or satirizing a person, group, or institution
lancet
small surgical tool for making incisions
lance
pierce with a lance; cut into; N: spearlike weapon
languid
lacking energy or vitality; weary; sluggish; listless
languish
lose animation or strength
languor
lack of physical or mental energy; lassitude; depression
lank
long and thin; Ex. Lank, gaunt, Abraham Lincoln
lap
take in food or drink with one’s tongue; splash gently; Ex. waves lapping the shore; N: front area from the waist to the knees of a seated person
larceny
theft; Ex. petit larceny
larder
pantry; place where food is kept
largess
generous gift (given to people who do not have enough)
lascivious
lustful
lust
intense sexual desire; intense eagerness; V.
lassitude
languor; weariness; listlessness
latent
present but not yet noticeable or active; dormant; hidden; N. latency; CF. potential
lateral
of or coming from the side
latitude
freedom from narrow limitations
laud
praise; N. ADJ. laudable: praiseworthy; ADJ. laudatory: expressing praise
lavish
liberal; wasteful; generous or wasteful in giving or using; abundant; profuse; great; Ex. decorated lavishly; V. give in abundance
lax
careless; negligent; not paying enough attention; Ex. lax service
leaven
add leaven to; cause to rise or grow lighter; enliven; N: agent, such as yeast, that causes dough to rise (by fermentation); element that lightens or enlivens
enliven
make lively or spirited; animate
lechery
gross lewdness; lustfulness; ADJ. lecherous; N. lecher: lecherous man
lectern
reading desk or stand for a public speaker
leery
(of someone) suspicious; wary; cautious
leeway
room to move; margin; latitude; Ex. leeway for the deadline
margin
border; room; allowance beyond what is needed; Ex. margin of safety
marginal
of a margin; barely within a limit; Ex. marginal effect/writing ability
legacy
gift made by a will; something handed down from an ancestor
legend
explanatory list of symbols on a map
legerdemain
sleight(dexterity) of hand; CF. light of hand
leniency
mildness; permissiveness; ADJ. lenient: not severe in judgment or punishment
permissive
allowing much freedom; lenient; Ex. permissive society
leonine
like a lion
lethal
deadly
lethargic
drowsy; dull; N. lethargy: state of sluggishness and inactivity
levee
earthen or stone embankment to prevent flooding; CF. raise
levitate
rise and float in the air (especially by magical means); CF. light
levity
lack of seriousness or steadiness; frivolity; lightness of manner
levy
impose (a fine); collect (a payment); impose or collect (a tax); Ex. levy a tax on tobacco
lewd
lustful
lexicographer
compiler of a dictionary; CF. lexicography: work of compiling a dictionary
lexicon
dictionary
liability
drawback; handicap; debts; obligation; responsibility; condition of being liable; ADJ. liable: likely; responsible (for paying)
liaison
contact that keeps parties in communication; communication between groups; one that maintains communication; go-between; secret love affair; V. liaise: keep a connection
libel
defamatory written statement; act of writing something that smears a person’s character; V. ADJ. libelous
libertine
debauched person; dissolute or licentious person; rou'e; CF. free
rou'e
lecherous man
libidinous
lustful
libido
psychic and emotional energy or urges behind human activity; sexual desire
libretto
text of an opera or oratorio; CF. book
licentious
amoral; lewd and lascivious; unrestrained
license
official or legal permission; latitude of action or speech; excessive freedom that causes harm or damage; V.
lien
legal claim or right on a property
ligneous
like wood
lilliputian
extremely small; CF. Lilliput in Gulliver’s Travels
limber
flexible; supple; pliable; V.
limbo
region near heaven or hell where certain souls are kept; prison (slang); Ex. Purgatory and Limbo
abode
dwelling place; home
abide
dwell; abide by: comply with; put up with; tolerate; Ex. abide by the rules; Ex. I can’t abide rude people.
limn
draw; outline; describe; CF. line ?
limpid
crystal clear
lineage
descent; ancestry
lineaments
features especially of the face; distinctive shape or contour of the face; CF. line
feature
distinctive part of the faces (as the eyes or mouth); features: overall appearance of the face; prominent or distinctive quality; prominent article; film; V: make prominent
linger
loiter or dawdle; be slow in leaving; delay going; continue or persist; be slow to disappear; Ex. The smell lingered for days.
persist
continue in existence; last; continue in a course of action in spite of opposition; Ex. persist in/with something; ADJ. persistent
linguistic
pertaining to language
lionize
treat (a person) as a celebrity
liquidate
settle accounts; pay off (a debt); clear up; eliminate; kill or abolish
list
tilt (as of a ship); lean over (to one side)
listless
lacking in spirit or energy; languid
litany
supplicatory prayer; prayer in which the priest calls out and the people replies in the same words
lithe
flexible; supple; CF. limber
willowy
flexible; pliant; slender; CF. willow
litigation
lawsuit; N. litigant: one party in a lawsuit; V. litigate
litotes
understatement for emphasis; Ex. ``not bad(=pretty good)’’
understate
state with less truth than seems warranted by the facts; Ex. He understated the seriousness of the crime; N. understatement; OP. overstate
livid
lead-colored; black and blue (as from a bruise); ashen; enraged; extremely angry
loath
reluctant; unwilling; disinclined; Ex. Romeo and Juliet were both loath for him to go.
loathe
detest; ADJ. loathsome: arousing loathing; offensive; Ex. loathsome smell
lode
metal-bearing vein(long deposit of an ore)
lofty
very high
loft
room or space under the roof; attic
log
record of a voyage or flight; record of day-to-day activities; section of a trunk; V.
loiter
hang about/around; stand idly about; linger
loll
lounge about
lounge
stand, sit, or lie in a lazy, relaxed way
longevity
long life; long duration
loom
appear or take shape (usually in an enlarged, indistinct, or distorted form); Ex. The shadow of the gallows loomed threateningly. N: apparatus for making thread into cloth
gallows
framework from which a noose is suspended (used for execution by hanging)
noose
loop formed in a rope
lope
gallop slowly
loquacious
talkative; N. loquacity
lout
clumsy person; ADJ. loutish; CF. from countrysides ?
low
moo; make the sound of a cow
lubricate
apply a lubricant to; N. lubricant: substance that reduces friction
lucid
easily understood; clear; intelligible; N. lucidity
lucrative
profitable; producing wealth
lucre
money; profit; Ex. filthy lucre
filth
dirty matter; ADJ. filthy
ludicrous
laughable; ridiculous; trifling
lugubrious
mournful; sorrowful
lull
moment of calm; period of reduced activity; Ex. a lull in the rain; V: cause to become less active; cause to sleep or rest; Ex. lull the opponents into a false sense of security; CF. lullaby
lumber
move heavily or clumsily; Ex. The bear lumbered through the woods; N: timber
lumen
unit of light energy (one candle’s worth)
luminary
celebrity (in a specific field); dignitary; object that gives light (as a celestial body)
dignitary
person of high rank or position
luminous
shining (esp. in the dark); issuing light; Ex. luminous paint/road signs
lunar
pertaining to the moon
lunatic
insane; Ex. lunatic asylum
lurid
wild; sensational; graphic; gruesome; horrible; Ex. lurid details of the murder
lurk
stealthily lie in waiting; slink; exist unperceived
slink
move furtively; ADJ. slinky: stealthy; furtive; sneaky (as in ambush)
luscious
pleasing to taste or smell; delicious
luster
shine; gloss (of a polished surface)
lustrous
shining; brilliant; Ex. lustrous hair
luxuriant
abundant; growing healthily and in large amounts; excessively ornate; rich and splendid; fertile; Ex. luxuriant forests/prose; CF. luxurious, luxuriate
macabre
gruesome; grisly; ghastly; CF. of death
morgue
mortuary; place where bodies are kept before burial or cremation
cremate
incinerate (a corpse); N. crematory, crematorium
mace
ceremonial staff used as a symbol of authority; clublike medieval weapon
macerate
soften by soaking in liquid; waste away; Ex. macerate powdered wood to make paper
Machiavellian
crafty; double-dealing; of the political doctrine of Machiavelli, which holds that craft and deceit are justified in pursuing political power
machinations
evil schemes or plots; schemes or plots to achieve an evil end; V. machinate
maculated
spotted; stained; CF. immaculate
madrigal
pastoral song; song for several singers without instruments
maelstrom
violent whirlpool; violent or tublent situation; CF. stream
magisterial
authoritative; imperious; commanding; of a magistrate; Ex. magisterial study of Roman law; Ex. magisterial manner
magistrate
official with power to administer the law
magnanimity
generosity; ADJ. magnanimous: generous
magnate
person of prominence or influence; powerful or influential person (in business or industry); Ex. oil magnate
magniloquent
boastful; pompous
magnitude
greatness (in size or extent); extent
maim
mutilate; injure lastingly; disable; cripple; Ex. maimed for life
mangle
tear or cut to pieces; mutilate or disfigure; Ex. badly mangled bodies
maladroit
clumsy; not skillful; awkward; bungling
malady
illness
malaise
uneasiness; vague feeling of ill health (without any particular pain or appearance of disease)
malapropism
comic misuse of a word; CF. Mrs. Malaprop
malapropos
inappropriate; ADV.
malcontent
person dissatisfied with existing state of affairs; discontented person; ADJ: discontented
malediction
curse
malefactor
evildoer; criminal
maleficient
doing evil; N. maleficience
malevolent
wishing evil; exhibiting ill will; N. malevolence
malfeasance
wrongdoing; misconduct (by a public official)
malicious
hateful; spiteful; expressing malice; N. malice: desire to harm others; spite
malign
speak evil of; bad-mouth(criticize spitefully); defame; ADJ: harmful; Ex. malign influence
malignant
tending to cause death; highly injurious; aggressively malevolent; Ex. malignant tumor
malingerer
one who feigns illness to escape duty; V. malinger: feign illness to avoid work
malleable
(of a metal) capable of being shaped by pounding(beating); pliable; (of someone) impressionable(easily influenced); easily controlled; tractable
malodorous
foul-smelling
compost
mixture of decaying organic matter used as fertilizer; V: put or make compost
mammal
vertebrate animal whose female suckles its young
vertebrate
having a backbone or spinal column; N: group of animals having a segmented spinal column
suckle
give or take milk at the breast or udder
nurse
suckle; take care of (as a nurse); bear in mind; Ex. nursing mother; Ex. nurse a hope/grudge against someone
mammoth
gigantic; enormous
manacle
restrain; handcuff; N.
mandate
order; charge; authoritative command; power to govern another country; power to given to a government; region under administration; V: give a mandate to; place under a mandate; Ex. mandated territory
mandatory
obligatory; compulsory; of a mandate
mangy
shabby; wretched; suffering from mange; of bad appearance
mange
skin disease (esp. of domestic animals) marked by loss of hair
maniacal
raging mad; insane; N. maniac: insane person; CF. mania: disorder of the mind; intense enthusiasm
manifest
evident; visible; obvious; V: show plainly
manifestation
outward demonstration; manifesting; indication of the presence of something; Ex. manifestation of his pronounced musical bent
pronounced
distinct; very noticeable; Ex. pronounced limp
manifesto
public declaration of principles; statement of policy
manifold
many in number or kind; numerous; varied
manipulate
operate with one’s hands; control or play upon (people, forces, etc.) artfully; maneuver; Ex. how to manipulate publicity and men; ADJ. manipulative
mannered
affected; not natural; Ex. mannered way of speech
mannerism
distinctive behavioral trait; affected style in art (according to a set of styles)
manumit
emancipate; free from slavery or bondage
marital
pertaining to marriage
maritime
bordering on(adjacent to) the sea; nautical; of the ships or the sea; Ex. Maritime Provinces
marked
noticeable; targeted for vengeance or attack; Ex. marked improvement/man
