Book6 Flashcards
creed
system of religious or ethical belief
crescendo
increase in the volume or intensity as in a musical passage; climax; CF. crescent
far-fetched
too improbable to be believed; implausible; Ex. far-fetched story
overture
musical introduction to a long musical piece; first offer or proposal (to begin talks in the hope of reaching an agreement); Ex. overtures for peace
crestfallen
dejected; dispirited
crest
top (as of a hill or wave); showy feathers on the head of a bird
crevice
crack; fissure
cringe
shrink back as if in fear; cower
criteria
standards used in judging; CF. criterion
crone
hag; ugly old woman
crotchety
(of someone old) eccentric; odd; whimsical; bad-tempered; N. crotchet: odd or whimsical notion
crux
essential or main point; Ex. the crux of the problem; ADJ. crucial: of deciding importance
crypt
secret recess or vault usually used for burial; underground room (under a church)
cryptic
mysterious; hidden; secret
cubicle
small chamber used for sleeping or work
compartment
one of the parts into which an enclosed space is divided
cuisine
style of cooking; Ex. French cuisine
culinary
relating to cooking or kitchen
cull
pick out from others (to kill the weakest members); reject; select; collect (information); N.
culmination
highest point; climax; V. culminate in: reach the highest point in; end in; Ex. a series of minor clashes culminating in war
culpable
deserving blame; blameworthy
culprit
one guilty of a crime
culvert
artificial channel for water; drain crossing under a road
cumbersome
heavy and awkward to carry or wear; burdensome; Ex. cumbersome parcel/uniform
cumulative
growing by addition; accumulative
cupidity
greed (for wealth); CF. cupid; CF. Cupid
curator
superintendent; manager (in charge of a museum or a library)
curmudgeon
churlish, miserly individual; bad-tempered old person
cursive
(of writing) flowing; running; having the successive letters joined
cursory
casual; hastily done with little attention to detail
curtail
shorten; reduce
cynical
skeptical or distrustful of human motives; N. cynicism; CF. cynic: person who believes all people are motivated by selfishness
cynosure
object of general attention; person or thing that is a center of attention; CF. Ursa Minor
dabble
work at in a nonserious fashion; splash around; move noisily in a liquid
dais
raised platform for speakers or other important people
dally
trifle with; toy with; treat without the necessary seriousness; procrastinate; waste time
dank
damp; unpleasantly wet
dapper
neat and trim (in appearance); (of small men) neat in appearance and quick in movements; neat; spry
dappled
spotted
daub
smear (as with paint); cover with something sticky; Ex. daub one’s clothes with mud/paint; N: small bit of sticky substance; Ex. a daub of paint
smear
spread or cover with a sticky substance; N: mark made by smearing
smudge
dirty mark with unclear edges made by rubbing; V.
daunt
intimidate; frighten; discourage; dishearten
dauntless
bold; fearless
dawdle
loiter; hang around; waste time doing nothing
deadlock
standstill resulting from the opposition of two unrelenting forces; stalemate
standstill
condition of no movement or activity; stop
deadpan
wooden; impassive; with no show of feeling; with an expressionless face
dearth
scarcity
d'eb\^acle
sudden disastrous downfall or defeat; complete disaster
debase
degrade; reduce in quality or value; degenerate; lower in esteem; disgrace; N. debasement
kneel
go down on one’s knee(s)
debauch
corrupt morally; seduce from virtue; N. debauchery: wild behavior (with sex and alcohol)
seduce
lead away from proper conduct; entice; ADJ. seductive
debilitate
weaken (esp. through heat, hunger, illness); enfeeble
bout
match; short period of great activity; Ex. wrestling bout; bout of drinking/flu
debonair
(of men) friendly, charming, and fashionably dressed; aiming to please; CF. of good disposition
d'ebris
rubble; wreckage; scattered remains of something broken or destroyed
debunk
expose as false, exaggerated, worthless, etc.; ridicule
debutante
young woman making formal entrance into society
debut
d'ebut; first public appearance; formal presentation of a young woman to society
decadence
decay; fall to a lower level (of morality, civilization, or art); ADJ. decadent
decant
pour off gently (wine or liquid)
decapitate
behead
decelerate
slow down
deciduous
falling off at a specific season or stage of growth as of leaves; Ex. deciduous tree/teeth
decimate
kill (usually one out of ten or every tenth man); destroy or kill a large part of
decipher
decode; CF. indecipherable
declivity
downward slope
d'ecollet'e
(of a dress) having a low-cut neckline; CF. d'ecolletage: low neckline (on a dress)
decree
authoritative order; edict; judgment of a court of law; V: order or judge by decree
decomposition
decay; V. decompose: decay; break and separate into simple parts
decorum
propriety; orderliness and good taste in manners; appropriateness of behavior or conduct
decorous
proper (in behavior, conduct, or appearance)
decoy
lure or bait; V.
decrepitude
state of collapse or weakness caused by illness or old age
decrepit
weak and in bad condition from old age or hard use; Ex. decrepit old chair/man
decry
express strong disapproval of; condemn openly (something dangerous to the public); disparage; Ex. decry the violence of modern films
deducible
derived by reasoning; V. deduce: infer; derive by reasoning
deface
mar; disfigure
mar
spoil the appearance of
defame
harm someone’s reputation; malign; speak evil of; slander; N. defamation; ADJ. defamatory
default
failure to act; failure to perform a task or be present; V.
defeatist
resigned to defeat or failure; accepting defeat or failure as a natural outcome; N. CF. defeatism
defection
desertion
defect
shortcoming; V: desert (in order to join the opposite one)
defer
give in respectfully; submit; delay till later; exempt temporarily; N. deferment; CF. show respect, comply with, courteous
deference
courteous regard for another’s wish; courteous yielding to another’s wish or opinion (showing respect); ADJ. deferential; OP. effrontery
defiance
refusal to yield; resistance; V. defy; ADJ. defiant
defile
pollute; make filthy or dirty; corrupt morally; profane; desecrate; N: narrow passage or gorge through mountains
definitive
most reliable; authorative and complete; that cannot be improved; conclusive; decisive; definite; Ex. definitive decision by the supreme court
deflect
turn aside; turn away from a straight course
defoliate
destroy leaves; deprive of leaves (by the use of chemicals); N. defoliant
defray
provide for the payment of; undertake the payment of; pay
defrock
strip a priest or minister of church authority; unfrock
frock
long loose garment (worn by monks)
deft
neat; skillful
defunct
dead; no longer in use or existence
degenerate
become worse in quality; deteriorate; ADJ: having become worse; Ex. a degenerate species; N: depraved or corrupt person
degradation
humiliation; debasement; degeneration; V. degrade: debase; disgrace; degenerate; reduce (something) in worth; demote (someone); reduce in rank
dishonor
disgrace; N. ADJ. dishonorable
dehydrate
remove water from; dry out
deify
turn into a god; make a god of; idolize; Ex. Kings were deified; CF. deity
deign
condescend; stoop
stoop
bend forward and down; lower or debase oneself; fall to a lower standard of behavior by doing something; condescend; Ex. stoop to lying
delete
erase; strike out
deleterious
harmful
deliberate
consider; ponder; ADJ: done on purpose; slow
delineate
portray; depict; sketch; describe; N. delineation
delirium
mental disorder marked by confusion; uncontrolled excitement; ADJ. delirious
delta
flat plain of mud or sand between branches of a river
delude
deceive
deluge
flood; rush; V.
delusion
false belief; hallucination; deluding; Ex. delusions of grandeur; Ex. under the delusion that
delusive
deceptive; likely to delude; misleading; raising vain hopes; Ex. delusive promises
delve
dig; search deeply; investigate
demagogue
person who appeals to people’s prejudice; false leader of people; CF. demagoguery
demean
disgrace; humiliate; debase in dignity; behave
demeanor
behavior; bearing
demented
insane
demise
death
demographic
related to population balance; N. demography: statistical study of human population
demolition
destruction; V. demolish
demoniac(demoniacal)
fiendish; cruel; N. demon: evil supernatural being; devil
fiend
evil spirit; devil
demotic
of or pertaining to the people
demur
object (because of doubts, scruples); raise an objection (showing qualms); hesitate; Ex. demur at the idea of working on Sunday
demure
(of a woman or child) grave; quiet and serious; coy; pretending to be demure
denigrate
blacken; defame
denizen
(animal, person, or plant) inhabitant or resident of a particular place; regular visitor
denotation
meaning; distinguishing by name; V. denote: indicate; refer to directly; mean; CF. connotation
d'enouement
final outcome; final development of the plot of a play or other literary work; the end of a story when everything is explained
denounce
condemn; criticize; N. denunciation
depict
portray
expos'e
public revelation of something discreditable
deplete
reduce; exhaust
deplore
regret; express sorrow and severe disapproval for something bad; Ex. deplore their violent behavior; ADJ. deplorable: very bad; deserving severe disapproval; Ex. deplorable living condition
deploy
spread out (troops) in an extended though shallow battle line; distribute (persons or forces) systematically or strategically
battalion
army unit made up of four or more companies
depose
dethrone; remove from office; give a deposition; testify
deposition
testimony under oath; deposing; dethroning
depravity
extreme corruption; wickedness; V. deprave
deprecate
express disapproval of; deplore; protest against; belittle; ADJ. deprecatory
depreciate
lessen in value; belittle; represent as of little value
depredation
plundering; destruction
deranged
insane
institute
organization for a special purpose; V: establish
institution
instituting; (building for the) organization; established custom, practice, or relationship in a society; mental hospital; Ex. institution of marriage
institutionalize
make into an institution; put or confine in an institution
derelict
negligent; (of someone) neglectful of duty; (of something) deserted by an owner; abandoned; N: abandoned property; homeless or vagrant person
dereliction
neglect of duty; abandonment
deride
ridicule; treat with contempt; make fun of; OP. respect
derision
ridicule; ADJ. derisive; CF. derisory
derivative
unoriginal; obtained from another source; Ex. derivative prose style; N.
derivation
deriving; origin or source of something; Ex. the derivation of the word
dermatologist
one who studies the skin and its diseases
acne
skin disease (on the face)
derogatory
expressing a low opinion; disparaging; V. derogate: detract; disparage
descry
catch sight of (something distant)
desecrate
profane; violate the sanctity of
violate
break (a law); defile; desecrate; assault sexually; Ex. violate graves
desiccate
dry up
desolate
(of a place) deserted; unpopulated; (of a person) lonely; forlorn; joyless
desolate
make desolate; forsake; abandon and desert
desperado
reckless, desperate outlaw
desperate
having lost all hope; despairing; reckless and violent because of loss of hope or despair; undertaken as a last resort
despise
look on with scorn; regard as worthless or distasteful; ADJ. despicable: contemptible
despoil
plunder; sack; Ex. despoil the village
despondent
without hope and courage; depressed; gloomy; N. despondency: loss of hope with gloom; dejection
despot
tyrant; harsh, authoritarian ruler; CF. despotism
destitute
extremely poor; lacking means of subsistence; utterly lacking; devoid; Ex. destitute of any experience
impoverish
make poor; deprive of natural strength or something important; Ex. impoverished soil
desultory
aimless; haphazard; digressing at random
detached
emotionally removed; free from emotional involvement; calm and objective; physically separate; N. detachment; CF. attachment
detain
keep waiting; prevent from leaving or going; N. detention
determinate
having a fixed order of procedure; precisely defined; invariable; fixed; conclusive; final
determination
resolve; firmness of purpose; measurement or calculation; decision
deterrent
something that discourages or deters
detonation
explosion
detraction
slandering; aspersion; detracting; CF. detractor
detrimental
harmful; damaging; N. detriment
deviate
turn away from (a principle, norm); move away from an accepted standard; swerve; depart; diverge; N. deviation; Ex. deviation of the path of light by a prism
devious
roundabout; erratic; deviating from the straight course; not straightforward; not completely honest; Ex. devious route
devise
think up; invent; plan; bequeath; N: bequest
devoid
empty; lacking
devolve
deputize; pass or be passed to others (power, work, or property); Ex. devolve on/upon/to
deputize
work or appoint as a deputy; N. deputy: person who has the power to take charge when the leading person is away
devotee
enthusiastic follower; enthusiast; Ex. devotee of Bach
devout
pious; deeply religious; sincere; earnest; Ex. my devout hope
dexterous
skillful; skill in using hands or mind; N. dexterity
diabolical
diabolic; devilish; fiendish
diadem
crown
dialectical
relating to the art of debate; mutual or reciprocal; Ex. dialectical situation; N. dialectic: art of arriving at the truth by the exchange of logical arguments
diaphanous
sheer; transparent
diatribe
bitter scolding or denunciation; invective; abuse
dichotomy
division into two opposite parts; split; branching into two parts (especially contradictory ones)
dictum
authoritative and weighty statement (made by a judge in court); saying; maxim; CF. obiter dictum: incidental, nonbinding remark (something said in passing)
didactic
(of speech or writing) intended to teach a moral lesson; teaching; instructional; N. didacticism
die
metal block used for shaping metal or plastic; device for stamping or impressing; mold; CF. dice
diffidence
shyness; lack of self-confidence; timidity; ADJ. diffident
