Deck 1

Question 1

froward

Answer 1

intractable, stubbornly disobedient, difficult to manage

Question 2

aphorism

Answer 2

a tersely phrased truth or opinion; adage; epigram.

a brief statement of principle; or general truth

Question 3

purloin

Answer 3

to steal

Question 4

callous

Answer 4

insensitive; having no feeling

Question 5

denouement

Answer 5

an outcome or solution to a complex series of events

Question 6

supercilious

Answer 6

arrogant, haughty, displaying condescending superiority over someone else, disdainful and overbearing

“raising one’s eyebrows”

Question 7

miscegenation

Answer 7

the interbreeding of different races

any mixture or hybrid

Question 8

cozen

Answer 8

cheat, beguile, or deceive

Question 9

limpid

Answer 9

calm, untroubled, serene

transparent, clear (as in water, air or crystal)

clarity in terms of extrusion: writing or music. “limpid prose”

Question 10

militate

Answer 10

to have substantial weight or bearing on

to argue for or against

Question 11

palliate

Answer 11

to make something appear less serious

to mitigate, to alleviate

Question 12

ambit

Answer 12

the extent, boundary, or scope of something

Question 13

apostate / apostasy

Answer 13

one who abandons a belief, cause, party, or religion

when believers turn against their faith and renounce it

the act of this: apostasy, those who commit it: apostates

it can also apply to politics

Question 14

sophistry

Answer 14

the use of fallacious arguments, esp. with the intention of deceiving

Question 15

fallacious

Answer 15

based on a mistaken belief, illogical, erroneous

Question 16

perspicuity

Answer 16

clarity or perceptiveness in speech, writing, or thought

Question 17

enjoin

Answer 17

to command or direct an action with authority

to prohibit or forbid an action

Question 18

extenuate

Answer 18

to make less guilty or more forgivable

to lessen the magnitude or seriousness of, to mitigate

Question 19

ineluctable

Answer 19

certain, inevitable, unavoidable

Question 20

vitiate

Answer 20

to reduce the quality of

to corrupt

Question 21

turpitude

Answer 21

depravity (moral corruption or degradation)

baseness

a vile act

synonym for depravity, turpitude is only reserved for those acts deemed to be downright wicked and immoral.

Question 22

plaintive

Answer 22

mournful, sorrowful, melancholy

Question 23

pertinacious

Answer 23

holding tenaciously to a belief (adj)

stubbornly unyielding

Question 24

adduce

Answer 24

to offer as proof in an argument

Question 25

traduce

Answer 25

to slander or speak maliciously of

Question 26

apposite

Answer 26

relevant, suitable, or fitting

Question 27

avocation

Answer 27

an extracurricular activity; a hobby

Question 28

adumbrate

Answer 28

to foreshadow vaguely

to produce a faint outline or resemblance of something

Question 29

alchemy

Answer 29

the medieval study of transforming lead into gold

Question 30

allege

Answer 30

to state that something is true without providing proof

Question 31

ambivalence / ambivalent

Answer 31

indifference or confused feelings

Students often believe that to be ambivalent towards something is to be indifferent. The truth is almost the opposite. See, when you are ambivalent you have mixed or conflicting emotions about something.

Question 32

amble

Answer 32

to walk slowly

Question 33

ameliorate

Answer 33

to make better

Question 34

amenable

Answer 34

open to suggestion or criticism; accountable

Amenable means easily persuaded. If someone is cooperative and goes along with the program, so to speak, that person is amenable.
Amenable can also be used in the medical sense: if a disease is amenable to treatment, that disease can be treated.

Even though she did not like bad weather, Shirley was generally amenable and decided to accompany her brother to the picinc.

Question 35

attenuate

Answer 35

Attenuate means to weaken (in terms of intensity), to taper off/become thinner. Attenuate can refer to both abstract and tangible things.

Her animosity towards Bob attenuated over the years, and she even went so far as to invite him to her party.

The stick is attenuated at one end to allow the villagers to forage for ants.

Question 36

analgesic

Answer 36

pain reliever

Question 37

didactic

Answer 37

overly instructive or preachy

Question 38

diffident

Answer 38

lacking confidence; retrained or reserved

Question 39

dilapidated

Answer 39

ruined, worn down

Question 40

disabuse

Answer 40

to free from misconception or error in thought

To disabuse is to persuade somebody that his/her belief is not valid. Often, disabuse goes together with the word -notion-

Question 41

disaffect

Answer 41

to make someone lose loyalty or affection

Question 42

discomfit

Answer 42

unsettle; upset or prevent from succeeding

Question 43

heretical

Answer 43

differing from official beliefs

Question 44

hone

Answer 44

to perfect; to sharpen

Question 45

obdurate

Answer 45

stubborn; inflexible and unyielding

emotionally cold; not compassionate

Question 46

obsequious

Answer 46

very submissive and flattering

Question 47

obviate

Answer 47

to anticipate and prevent

to make obsolete

Question 48

occlude

Answer 48

to close or block off

to combine opposite surfaces