Book18 Flashcards
poignancy
quality of being deeply moving; keenness of emotion; ADJ. poignant: touching; deeply moving; (of sorrow, grief, etc.) painful; keenly distressing to the mind; Ex. poignant memory/anxiety; CF. prick
polarize
split into opposite extremes or camps
polarity
state of having two opposite qualities
polar
of a pole; characterized by opposite extremes; Ex. polar opposites
camp
group sharing a common cause or opinion
polemic
attack or defense of an opinion; controversy or refutation; argument in support of point of view; N. polemics: art of debate or controversy
polemical(polemic)
aggressive in verbal attack; disputatious (rather than simply expressing opinions)
politic
prudent; judicious; well judged; expedient; well devised
polity
(particular form of) political organization; form of government of nation or state; Ex. student polity
polygamist
one who has more than one spouse at a time; CF. bigamy; CF. polyandry
polyglot
speaking several languages; multilingual; Ex. polyglot person/society; N.
pomposity
self-important behavior; acting like a stuffed shirt(pompous person); ADJ. pompous: self-important
ponderous
having great weight; weighty; unwieldy; lacking lightness; dull; Ex. ponderous body/style of writing
pontifical
pertaining to a bishop or pope; pompous or pretentious; CF. pontiff: pope; bishop
pore
study industriously; ponder; scrutinize; Ex. pore over the book; N.
porous
full of pores; like a sieve
interstice
narrow space between things
portend
foretell; presage; be a sign or warning of; N. portent: sign; omen; forewarning
soothsayer
one who foretells the future
portly
stout; corpulent
stout
rather fat; strong in body; sturdy; resolute; determined; strong in determination; Ex. stout stick/supporter
poseur
person who pretends to be sophisticated, elegant, etc., to impress others; person who poses; CF. pose
pose
assume a particular posture; put forward; present; affect a particular attitude (to impress others); Ex. pose a threat; N.
posterity
descendants; future generations; Ex. go down to posterity; CF. posterior, anterior