Brainscape's 1000: Set 1 Review (100/1000) Flashcards
Depredate (v)
to plunder, pillage, or destroy; to exploit
Wend (v)
to go, proceed, or walk
Pelagic (adj.)
relating to open seas rather than areas of water adjacent to land
Froward (adj.)
intractable; stubbornly disobedient
The froward mule sat down in the middle of the field and refused to move all day.
Purloin (v)
to steal
The thief purloined the diamonds and hid them in his loins.
Succor (n)
relief during a time of struggle
The Red Cross provided succor to the refugees.
Protean (adj.)
readily assuming different forms or characters
boggarts; exceptional actresses
Proscribe (v)
to prohibit; to make unlawful (often due to danger)
Supercilious (adj.)
arrogant; overbearing
His supercilious behavior drove away many of his peers.
Apoplectic (adj.)
furious; enraged; relating to a stroke
When Marlin found out that he had been suspended from school, he apoplectically stormed out of the classroom.
Simper (v)
to smirk; to say with a coy smile
Miscegenation (n)
the interbreeding of different races; any mixture or hybrid
Supine (adj.)
lying on one’s back (duh); morally slack
Covey (v)
a small group of people; a group of partridges
Limpid (adj.)
transparent/clear; calm; untroubled; serene
Refulgent (adj.)
shining radiantly; brilliant
The refulgence of the sequined dress shocked ALL of the sorority girls.
Factitious (adj.)
artificially produced; ersatz; fake
Militate (v)
to have substantial bearing on; to work against (or for)
Gainsay (v)
to deny, declare false, or contradict
nostrum (n)
a questionable remedy/cure-all, or a placebo
Head-on was a nostrum.
Obstreperous (adj.)
loudly stubborn; unruly; noisy
The obstreperous two-year-old kept everyone on the plane up for hours.
Regale (v)
to entertain; to feast
Stygian (adj.)
hellish; dark; gloomy
Cozen (v)
to cheat; beguile
ambit (n)
the extent, boundary, or scope of something
Though I find his actions reprehensible, he was acting within the ambit of the law; thus, my hands were tied.
apostate (n)
one who abandons belief, cause, party or religion
Sophistry (n)
fallacious, though seemingly plausible, reasoning
Perspicuity (n)
clarity of perceptiveness in speech, thought, or writing
Sarah was looking for a perspicuous candidate, in speech, writing, and thought
Enjoin (v)
to command or direct an action with authority (often to forbid an action)
fulsome (adj.)
offensively flattering; insincere; offensive to the taste; generous or abundant
I prefer Rachel’s sincere criticism to all the fulsome praise I receive from Lauren.
Extenuate (v)
to lessen the magnitude; to mitigate
ineluctable (adj.)
unavoidable; inevitable
A hectic lifestyle seems to be the ineluctable product of modernity.
vitiate (v)
to corrupt; to reduce the quality of
turpitude (n)
baseness; depravity; a vile act
Plaintive (adj.)
mournful; sorrowful; melancholy
Los Campesinos!’s lyrics are oh so plaintive.
Pertinacious (adj.)
stubbornly unyielding (often in a belief)
Her pertinacious devotion to the debunked theory led her to be marginalized in the scientific community.
Recreant (adj./n)
a–>cowardly; n–> a coward
The recreant knight ran from battle.
Adduce (v)
to offer as proof in an argument
Seth adduced several recent studies in support of his hypothesis.
traduce (v)
to slander
Many students are guilty of traducing their teachers in the hallways between classes; hopefully none of the teachers hear them!
apposite (adj.)
Appropriate for the circumstance
Though clever, Sarah’s pun was not apposite to the solemn conversation.
discursive (adj.)
rambling aimlessly through a wide range of subjects
OR
drawing conclusions based on reason (as opposed to intuition)
The poor speaker gave a rambling, discursive speech; his conclusions, however, were discursive and concrete.
Avocation (noun)
an extracurricular activity; a hobby
My favorite avocation is playing the piano.
Adumbrate (v)
to outline; to indicate vaguely or foreshadow
Allege (v)
assume; state true w/o providing proof
The neighbors alleged that it was the store owner who started the fire, but it turned out that he had been out of town after speaking with him.
Altruism (n)
selfless concern for others
Amenable (adj.)
open to suggestion; susceptible
A good manager is amenable to his employee’s new ideas.
Didactic (adj.)
overly-instructive; preachy
He may mean well, but pat’s efforts to help come across as fussy and didactic.
Dilapidated (adj.)
ruined; worn down
Dilate (v)
to widen; to give a long speech on a subject
Dirge (n)
a mournful song
Disaffect (v)
to make someone lose loyalty or affection
Her attention-seeking behavior disaffected many of her classmates.
Discomfit (v)
to unsettle; to make someone feel uneasy or embarrassed
The presence of the victim’s family at the trial discomfited the accused.
Harangue (n/v)
n–> a rant; v –> to speak with intense emotions
Tan (v)
to whip
Heretical (adj.)
differing from official beliefs
Galileo’s discoveries of the nature of Earth’s place in the universe were considered heretical at the time.
Jesus was considered a heretic because his views stood outside of the official beliefs of Judaism.
Hieroglyphic (adj.)
difficult to understand; mysterious
The student could not read the teacher’s hieroglyphic writing on the board.
Husband (v)
to conserve; to manage financially
Nonplussed (adj.)
confused to the point of being uncertain how to act; unperturbed
She was nonplussed when her mother scolded her for no apparent reason.
Noxious (adj.)
harmful in a physical or moral way
Obdurate (adj.)
hardened in feeling; emotionally cold
