Book17 Flashcards
parallelism
state of being parallel; similarity; analogy
parallel
similar; analogous; corresponding; N: parallel line; person or thing that is parallel (to another); similarity; Ex. know of no parallel to the case; Ex. without parallel; V: be similar to; make parallel; Ex. Your experience parallels mine; CF. unparalleled
parameter
limit; independent variable; Ex. parameters of the problem; Ex. within the parameters of the budget
paramount
foremost in importance; supreme; CF. para-: beyond; above; Ex. paranormal
paramour
illicit lover
inamorata
woman whom a man loves
paranoia
psychosis marked by delusions of grandeur or persecution; N: ADJ: paranoid, paranoiac
paraphernalia
equipment; odds and ends used in a particular activity; personal belongings; Ex. photographic paraphernalia; CF. married woman’s property exclusive of her dowry
dowry
money or property brought by a bride to her husband at marriage
paraphrase
restate a passage in one’s own words while retaining thought of author; N: restatement of a text in other words
parasite
animal or plant living on another; toady; sycophant; CF. para-: beside
infest
inhabit in numbers large enough to be harmful; Ex. Mice infested the house; Ex. shark-infested waters
parched
extremely dry; very thirsty; V. parch: make or become extremely dry (by exposure to heat)
pariah
social outcast; Ex. Mariah the pariah
outcast
one that has been excluded from a society; ADJ.
parity
equality; close resemblance; CF. disparate
parlance
language; manner of speaking; idiom; Ex. in legal/common parlance
parley
conference (between opponents); CF. speak
parochial
narrow in scope or outlook; provincial; related to parishes
parish
area in the care of a single priest and served by one main church
outlook
point of view; view from a particular place; expectation for the future; prospect; Ex. outlook on life; Ex. pleasing outlook; Ex. weather outlook
parody
humorous imitation; spoof; takeoff; travesty; V.
spoof
parody
takeoff
burlesque; act of leaving the ground
paroxysm
fit or attack of pain, laughter, rage; sudden outburst
parquet
floor made of wood strips inlaid in a mosaic like matter; CF. strip: long narrow piece
parry
ward off a blow; deflect; Ex. He parried the unwelcome question very skillfully; N.
ward
administrative division of a city; division in a hospital or prison; incompetent person placed under the protection of a guardian; V: guard; ward off: avert
parsimony
stinginess; excessive frugality; ADJ. parsimonious
partial
incomplete; favoring one side over another; having a liking for something
partiality
state of being partial; inclination; favorable bias; special fondness; preference
partisan
one-sided; prejudiced; committed to a party (with dislike of any others); N: strong supporter of a party; guerrilla
parvenu
upstart; newly rich person
partition
divide into parts
pass'e
old-fashioned; past the prime
passive
not active; acted upon; receiving an action without acting in return; accepting without resistance
pastiche
imitation of another’s style in musical composition or in writing; work of art openly imitating the works of other artists
pastoral
rural; of rural life; idyllic; of a pastor
patent
obvious; easily seen; open for the public to read; of or protected by a patent; Ex. patent to everyone; N.
pathetic
causing sadness, compassion, pity; touching
touching
causing a feeling of pity or sympathy; pathetic; V. touch: cause to feel pity or sympathy; ADJ. touched
pathological
pertaining to disease; N. pathology: study of disease
pathos
tender sorrow; pity; quality in art or literature that produces these feelings; Ex. pathos that runs through the novel
patina
green crust on old bronze works or copper; tone slowly taken by varnished painting
varnish
paint used to coat a surface with a glossy film; glossy coating produced by using this substance; Ex. nail varnish; V.
patois
local or provincial dialect
patriarch
father and ruler of a family or tribe
patrician
noble; aristocratic; N: person of high rank; aristocrat; CF. member of the governing classes in ancient Rome; CF. plebian
patronize
support; act superior toward; treat in a condescending manner; be a customer of; N. patron: one that supports; regular customer; N. patronage; CF. boycott
paucity
scarcity; dearth
pauper
very poor person
peccadillo
slight offense or fault; CF. sin
swipe
hit with a sweeping motion; N.
pecuniary
pertaining to money
pedagogue
teacher; CF. child leader
pedagogy
teaching; art of education
pedant
scholar who overemphasizes book learning, trivial details of learning, or technicalities
pedantic
bookish; showing off learning; marked by an excessive ostentatious concern for book learning; N. pedantry
bookish
fond of books and reading
studious
given to diligent study
pedestrian
ordinary; dull; unimaginative(lacking in imagination); going on foot; Ex. pedestrian prose; N.
precinct
division of a city for election or police purposes; precincts: space that surrounds a building; Ex. precincts of the college
pedigree
ancestry; lineage
pediatrician
physician specializing in children’s diseases; N. pediatrics
peerless
having no equal; incomparable
peer
one who has equal standing with another; nobleman; V: look intently; N. peerage; CF. peeress
pejorative
(of a word or phrase) suggesting that someone is of little value; negative in connotation; having a belittling effect; Ex. Many women now considers ``housewife’’ a pejorative expression, because it patronized them.
pell-mell
in confusion; disorderly; Ex. dash pell-mell
pellucid
transparent; limpid(crystal clear); clear in meaning; easy to understand
penance
self-imposed punishment for sin; Ex. do penance for one’s sins; CF. penitent
penchant
strong inclination; strong liking (esp. for something that is disapproved of by other people); Ex. penchant for fast cars
pendant(pendent)
hanging down from something; pending; N: ornament (hanging from a necklace etc.)
pending
not yet decided or settled; impending; Ex. pending decision; PREP. while awaiting; until; Ex. delay the decision pending his return
pendulous
hanging; suspended
suspend
cause to stop for a period; interrupt; hold in abeyance; defer; hang from above; exclude for a period from a position; Ex. suspended state; Ex. suspend judgment; Ex. suspended from the team; N. suspension
suspense
state of being undecided; anxiety or apprehension resulting from uncertainty
penitent
repentant; N.
pensive
dreamily or deeply thoughtful; sadly thoughtful; thoughtful with a hint of sadness; contemplative; CF. think over
penumbra
partial shadow (in an eclipse); CF. almost shadow
penury
extreme poverty; stinginess; ADJ. penurious: very poor; stingy
peon
landless agricultural worker; bond servant; menial worker; N. peonage
perceptive
insightful; showing a good ability at perceiving and understanding; aware; wise; of perception
percussion
striking one object against another sharply; Ex. percussion instrument; N: striking together of two bodies; sound caused by percussion
perdition
damnation; complete ruin; hell
damn
condemn; criticize severely; condemn to everlasting punishment; doom; bring to ruin; N. damnation
doom
condemnation to a severe penalty; ruin; fate (esp. a tragic or ruinous one); V.
peregrination
journey; V. peregrinate
peremptory
demanding and leaving no choice; imperative; Ex. peremptory decree/knock
perennial
something long-lasting; perennial plant; ADJ: lasting through the year or many years; lasting for a long time; enduring
perfidious
treacherous; disloyal; N. perfidy: treachery
perforate
pierce; put a hole through
perfunctory
done routinely and with little care; superficial; not thorough; lacking interest, care, or enthusiasm; Ex. perfunctory kiss
perigee
point of moon’s orbit when it is nearest the earth; CF. apogee
perimeter
outer boundary; length of the outer boundary; circumference
bound
leap or spring; limit or confine; constitute the limit of; Ex. bounded by Canada; N: leap or jumping; boundary; ADJ: certain; having a duty to do something (legally or morally); confined by bonds; Ex. We are bound to be late; Ex. I am bound to say my opinion; CF. bounce, rebound
peripatetic
walking about from place to place (to work); moving; Ex. peripatetic school of philosophy
peripheral
of a periphery; marginal; outer; of minor importance; not central; Ex. peripheral nerve/interest
periphery
outside edge especially of a round surface; perimeter; Ex. periphery of the town
perjury
false testimony while under oath; V. perjure oneself: testify falsely under oath
permeable
that can be permeated; penetrable; porous; allowing liquids or gas to pass through; V. permeate: spread or flow throughout; charge
pernicious
very harmful; deadly; very destructive; Ex. pernicious effect/anemia
peroration
conclusion of an oration; perorating; V. perorate: conclude a speech; speak at great length
perpetrate
commit an offense; do (something wrong)
perpetual
everlasting
perpetuate
make perpetual; make something last for a long time; preserve from extinction; N. perpetuity
perquisite(perk)
any gain above stipulated salary; Ex. perquisites such as free meals and a car
personable
attractive (in personality or appearance)
perspicacious
(of someone) having insight; penetrating; astute
perspicuity
clearness of expression; freedom from ambiguity
perspicuous
(of something) plainly expressed; easy to understand; Ex. perspicuous comments
pert
(esp. of a girl or young woman) impertinent; forward; trim; jaunty; Ex. pert young miss/hat
forward
presumptuous or bold
pertinacious
holding tenaciously to an action; stubborn; persistent
pertinent
suitable; to the point; relevant
perturb
disturb greatly
peruse
read through with care; N. perusal
pervasive
spread throughout; V. pervade: (of smells, ideas, feelings) spread throughout; charge; permeate
perverse
purposely continuing to do something wrong; stubbornly wrongheaded; perverted; directed away from what is right; wicked and unacceptable; Ex. perverse satisfaction; Ex. Hannibal Lecter in a perverse mood; N. perversity
perversion
corruption; turning from right to wrong
pervert
corrupt; turn from right to wrong; misuse; Ex. perverted sexual desire/scientific knowledge; N: person whose sexual behavior is not natural
wrongheaded
stubbornly wrong
pessimism
belief that life is basically bad or evil; gloominess; tendency to take the gloomiest possible view of a situation; ADJ. pessimistic
pestilential(pestilent)
causing plague; tending to cause death; baneful; N. pestilence: fatal epidemic disease (esp. bubonic plague)
pestle
tool for mashing or grinding substances in a hard bowl or mortar
mortar
vessel in which substances are crushed with a pestle
mash
crush into mash; convert into mash; N: mixture of ground grain and nutrients fed to livestock and fowl
petrify
turn to stone; cause to become stonelike; stun or paralyze
petty
trivial; unimportant; very small; small-minded; petty-minded
petulant
touchy; peevish; ill-tempered
phalanx
formation of infantry carrying overlapping shields and long spears; group of men packed together (for attack or defense)
pharisaical
pertaining to the Pharisees, who paid scrupulous attention to tradition; self-righteous; hypocritical
pharisee
Pharisee: member of an ancient Jewish group that emphasized strict observance of the Mosaic law (considering themselves very holy); hypocritical self-righteous person
self-righteous
sure of one’s own righteousness; moralistic
phenomena
observable facts; subjects of scientific investigation; SG. phenomenon: observable fact; very unusual person, thing, or event; marvel; wonder; CF. phenomenons; ADJ. phenomenal: very unusual; extraordinary; of a phenomenon; Ex. phenomenal strength
philanderer
faithless lover; flirt
philanthropist
lover of mankind; doer of good; N. philanthropy
philatelist
stamp-collector; N. philately: stamp collecting
philistine
narrow-minded person, uncultured and exclusively interested in material gain; uncultured person who is indifferent to artistic and cultural values; member of an ancient people in Palestine; OP. aesthete
philology
study of language or words
phlegmatic
calm and unexcitable; not easily disturbed; CF. phlegm: sticky mucus produced in the respiratory tract
phobia
morbid fear
phoenix
symbol of immortality or rebirth; Ex. phoenix rising from its ashes
phylum
major classification, second to kingdom, of plants and animals; category ranking below a kingdom and above a class; division
physiognomy
face (as showing the character and the mind); art of judging human character from facial features
physiological
pertaining to the science of the function of living organisms; N. physiology
piebald
of different colors; mottled; spotted in different colors (esp. in black and white); Ex. piebald horse; CF. pie+bald
piecemeal
one part at a time; gradually; in stages; Ex. read a novel piecemeal
pied
piebald; variegated(many-colored); multicolored
piety
devoutness; reverence for God; ADJ. pious
pigment
coloring matter (usually powder to be mixed with water or oil)
pillage
plunder
pillory
punish by placing in a wooden frame or pillory; subject or expose to criticism and ridicule; N.
pine
long for; yearn; languish from longing or grief; decline
pinion
restrain or immobilize by binding the wings or legs; N: bird’s wing
pinnacle
peak; highest point; acme; Ex. pinnacle of fame
pious
devout; religious; N. piety
piquant
pleasantly tart-tasting; spicy; pleasantly stimulating; Ex. piquant situation when my old enemy asked for my help
tart
sharp to the taste; acid-tasting; caustic; sarcastic; Ex. tart apple/reply
sour
having a sharp or acid taste; acid; tart; bad-tempered; V.
pique
irritation; resentment from wounded pride (eg. loss in a contest); V: provoke; arouse; annoy; cause to feel resentment; Ex. pique her curiosity
piscatorial
pertaining to fishing; CF. Pisces
pitfall
hidden danger; concealed trap
beware
be cautious (of)
pith
core or marrow; spongelike substance in the center of stems; essence; substance
marrow
soft fatty tissue that fills most bone cavities and is the source of blood cells
pithy
concise and meaningful; substantial; meaty
pittance
small amount (of money); small allowance or wage
pivotal
of a pivot; central; critical; crucial
placate
pacify; bring peace to; conciliate; appease
placebo
harmless substance prescribed as a dummy pill
tablet
small round piece of medicine; flat piece of stone or metal bearing an inscription; Ex. stone tablet on the wall
placid
peaceful; calm; Ex. placid child/lake
plagiarize
steal another’s ideas or writings and pass them off as one’s own; Ex. ideas plagiarized from my article; N. plagiarism; CF. kidnap
plaintive
expressing sorrow; mournful; Ex. plaintive song
plait
braid; interwine; interweave strands or lengths of; make by weaving strands together; Ex. plaited hair; N: braided length as of hair o fabric; CF. pigtail, ponytail
plasticity
ability to be molded; ADJ. plastic: capable of being shaped or molded; Ex. plastic material such as clay
platitude
trite remark; commonplace statement; ADJ. platitudinous
commonplace
ordinary; N: something ordinary or common; trite remark
commonwealth
nation governed by the people; republic; people of a nation
platonic
purely spiritual; theoretical; without sensual desire
plaudit
praise; enthusiastic approval; round(succession or series) of applause; ADJ. plauditory; CF. applaud
plausible
conceivably true; having a show of truth but open to doubt; specious
plebeian
common; vulgar; pertaining to the common people; N: common people in ancient Rome; CF. patrician
plebiscite
direct vote by the entire electorate (on an important issue)
referendum
direct vote by all the people
plenary
(of power) complete; full; fully attended by all qualified members; Ex. plenary power
plenitude
abundance; plenty; great amount; completeness; fullness; CF. plenary, plenty
plethora
excess; overabundance; Ex. a plethora of excuses
pliable
flexible; easily influenced; yielding; adaptable
pliant
flexible; easily influenced
plight
difficult condition; condition or state (esp. a bad state or condition); predicament
pluck
courage; V: pull off or out; pull out the hair or feathers of; ADJ. plucky: courageous; brave
plumage
feathers of a bird;
plumb
exactly vertical; N: weight on the end of a line; V: examine very carefully or critically in order to understand; measure depth (by sounding); Ex. plumb the depth of
plumber
one who installs and repairs pipes and plumbing(pipes)
plummet
fall sharply; fall straight down; Ex. Stock prices plummeted.
plutocracy
society ruled by the wealthy
podiatrist
doctor who treats ailments of the feet; chiropodist; N. podiatrics
podium
pedestal; raised platform
pedestal
support or base as for a pillar or statue
