Chapter 10 Flashcards
Attenuate
Verb
To make thin or slender; to weaken or lesson in force, intensity or value
Syn: thin out, dilute, water down
Ant: thicken, strengthen, bolster
Askance
Adverb
With suspicion, distrust, or disapproval
Syn: distrustfully, suspiciously, skeptically
Benign
Adjective
Gentle, kind; forgiving, understanding; having a favorable or beneficial effect; not malignant
Syn: benevolent, salutary, salubrious, harmless
Ant: malevolent, deleterious
Cavil
Verb To find fault in a petty way, carp Noun A trivial objection or criticism Syn:(v.) nitpick, quibble
Charlatan
Noun
One who feigns knowledge or ability; a pretender, imposter, or quack
Syn: fraud, mountebank
Decimate
Verb
To kill or destroy a large part of
Syn: ravage, devastate
Foible
Noun
A weak point, failing, minor flaw
Syn: shortcoming, defect, quirk
Ant: forte, virtue
Forgo
Verb
To do without abstain from, give up
Syn: refrain from, renounce
Ant: indulge in, partake of
Fraught
Adjective
Full of or loaded with; accompanied by
Syn: charged with
Ant: devoid of, lacking, deficient in
Inure
Verb
To toughen, harden; to render used to something by long subjection or exposure
Syn: accustom, acclimate
Luminous
Adjective
Emitting or reflecting light, glowing; illuminating
Syn: radiant, bright, refulgent, lustrous
Ant: dark, opaque, dim, murky
Obsequious
Adjective
Marked by slavish attentiveness; excessively submissive, often for purely self-interested reasons
Syn: fawning, servile, sycophantic, mealymouthed
Ant: assertive, bumptious, overbearing, candid, frank, independent
Obtuse
Adjective
Blunt, not coming to a point; slow or dull in understanding; measuring between 90 and 180 degrees, not causing a sharp impression
Syn: stupid, dumb, thick, mild, dim-witted
Ant: acute, perceptive, quick-witted
Oscillate
Verb
To swing back and forth with a steady rhythm; to fluctuate or waver
Syn: vibrate, vacillate
Pentinent
Adjective Regretful for one's sins or mistakes Noun One who is sorry for wrongdoing Syn:(adj.) remorseful, regretful, rueful, sorry Ant:(adj.) unrepentant, remorseless
Peremptory
Adjective
Having the nature of a command that leaves no opportunity for debate, denial, or refusal; offensively self-assured, dictatorial; determined, resolute
Syn: high-handed, unconditional
Ant: irresolute, tentative, mild, unassuming
Rebuff
Verb To snub; to repel, drove away Noun A curt rejection, a check Syn: (v.) spurn, repulse, reject; (n.) setback Ant: (v.) accept, welcome
Reconnoiter
Verb
To engage in reconnaissance; to make preliminary inspection
Syn: scout
Shambles
Noun
A slaughterhouse: a place of mass bloodshed; a state of complete disorder and confusion, mess
Sporadic
Adjective
Occurring at irregular intervals, having no set plan or order
Syn: intermittent, spasmodic
Ant: constant, steady, continuous, uninterrupted
