C1 Mneomonics Flashcards
cacophony
(noun): a harsh, unharmonious sound. “kuh KAW fun ee”
Think: cough symphony
The sounds from the tuberculosis ward were a cacophony- a unpleasant cough symphony
cadge
(verb): to beg or get via begging. “Cadj”
Think: locked in a cage
If you’re locked in a cage, you’ll cadge for food and water
cajole
(verb): to coax. “ka JOLE”
Think: cage hole
At the vet, I have to cajole my cat out of the cage hole so he can be examined
calamitous
(adjective): related to a terrible event “ka LAM it us”
Think: calamari vomit
It’s calamitous when you eat undercooked calamari, become votimous, and puke on your date
callous
(adjective): unsympathetic; hard-hearted. “KAL us”
Think: callus
The callous dictator thought nothing of executing his rivals; he must have had a callus on his soul
callow
(adjective); inexperienced; immature. “KAL owe”
Think: shallow
Popping her gum while reading Cosmo, the callow teenager was shallow only because she hadn’t seen much of the world yet
calumnious
(adjective): slanderous, defamatory, an untrue statement intended to injure one’s repuation.
“kuh-LUM-nee us”
Think: gossip column
The author of the famous gossip column was less concerned with provoking lawsuits through his calumnious statements than he was with attracting hordes of readers through salacious headlines
camaraderie
(noun): togetherness. “ com uh ROD er ee”
Think: comrades
The russian camera factory workers shared a sense of camaraderie, calling each other comrades
canard
(noun) : a false report or rumor. “cuh NARD”
think: Qatar
There’s widespread canard that Qatar bribed FIFA to host the World Cup
canny
(adjective): clever “CAN knee”
Think: can knee
I’m canny because I can use my knee to drive my car when I need both hands for something else
canonize
(verb) : to make a saint (literal) or to put someone beyond reproach (figurative). “CAN nun eyes”
think: can on ice
In order to properly canonize St. Patrick, one must keep a beer can on ice at all times
capacious
(adjective): spacious. “ka PAY shus”
Think: Batman’s cape is spacious
Batman is a big guy, so his cape is spacious and capacious
capitulate
(verb): to surrender. “ka PIT chew late”
Think: capsized? it’s to late
Once your boat has capsized, it’s too late to think about winning the race: capitulate and just try not to drown
capricious
(adjective) : impulsive; done without forethought. “ka PRISH us”
think: capri pants
Jenny made the capricious decision to buy five pairs of capri pants, which she later regretted when they went out of style
captious
(adjective): overly critical. “CAP shus”
Think: red CAPS
Our English teacher is captious: our papers come back with lots of red writing that’s in all CAPS
cardinal
(adjective): of main importance. “KAR din ull”
Think: cardinal bird
You’d think the bright red male cardinal (noun) was the most cardinal (adjective) bird because of its vivid color
caricatured
(verb): distorted, often comically, “care ick cah chured”
Think: cartoon character
Check out any political cartoon character and you’ll see someone caricatured: any cartoon of Trump will have enormous hair
castigate
(verb) : to criticize severely. “KAS tig ate”
think: castrate
The worst way for a Mafia boss to castigate someones is to castrate him
caterwaul
(verb): to cry or to complain loudly
Think: cat in wall
if there’s a cat in your wall it will probably caterwaul since it wants to get out
causal
(adjective): relating to the cause of something or causing something “KAW zul”
Think: cause
There is a causal link between laziness and poor grades; being lazy causes less studying and therefore lower marks. (dont confuse causal with casual)
celerity
(noun) : quickness. “suh lear it ee”
think: accelerate
After Cee Lo switched to an all -celery diet, he lost 30 pounds and his ability to accelerate increased,, as did his celerity
censure
(verb): to criticize harshly. “SEN sure”
Think: censor
If you really wanted to censure your rival’s editorial you could just censor is completely
Cerebral
(adjective) : intellectual. “suh REE brul”
think: cerebrum
Einstein was so cerebral that they studied the cerebrum of his brain after he died
chagrin
(noun): distress caused by disappointment. “shuh GRIN”
Think: chuggin’ tragic
you wont believe this, but to my chagrin, Chad is chuggin’ a bottle of mouthwash right now- this is a tragic date
