Day 1 Flashcards
Abase
lower; humiliate. Defeated, Queen Zenobia was forced to abase herself before the
conquering Romans, who made her march in chains before the emperor in the procession
celebrating his triumph. abasement,
Abash
embarrass. He was not at all abashed by her open admiration.
Abate
/subside; decrease, lessen. Rather than leaving immediately, they waited for the storm to
abate. abatement,
Abdicate
/renounce; give up. When Edward VIII abdicated the British throne to marry the woman he
loved, he surprised the entire world.
Aberrant
abnormal or deviant. Given the aberrant nature of the data, we doubted the validity of the
entire experiment.
Abet
aid, usually in doing something wrong; encourage. She was unwilling to abet him in the
swindle he had planned.
Abeyance
suspended action. The deal was held in abeyance until her arrival.
Abject
/wretched; lacking pride. On the streets of New York the homeless live in abject
poverty, huddling in doorways to find shelter from the wind
Abjure
renounce upon oath. He abjured his allegiance to the king. abjuration,
Ablution
washing. His daily ablutions were accompanied by loud noises that he humorously labeled
“Opera in the Bath.”
Abnegation
repudiation; self-sacrifice. No act of abnegation was more pronounced than his
refusal of any rewards for his discovery.
Abortive
/unsuccessful; fruitless. Attacked by armed troops, the Chinese students had to
abandon their abortive attempt to democratize Beijing peacefully. abort
Abrade
wear away by friction; scrape; erode. The sharp rocks abraded the skin on her legs, so
she put iodine on her abrasions.
Abridge
condense or shorten. Because the publishers felt the public wanted a shorter version of
War and Peace, they proceeded to abridge the novel.
Abrogate
abolish. He intended to abrogate the decree issued by his predecessor.
Abscond
depart secretly and hide. The teller who absconded with the bonds went
uncaptured until someone recognized him from his photograph on “America’s Most Wanted.”
Abstemious
sparing in eating and drinking; temperate. Concerned whether her vegetarian
son’s abstemious diet provided him with sufficient protein, the worried mother pressed food on him.
Abstruse
/obscure; profound; difficult to understand. She carries around abstruse works
of philosophy, not because she understands them but because she wants her friends to think she
does.
Abut
border upon; adjoin. Where our estates abut, we must build a fence.
Abysmal
bottomless. His arrogance is exceeded only by his abysmal ignorance.
