ELEVATE (adjectives) Flashcards
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quixotic (adjective)
overly idealistic, impractical, or romantic.
e.g. His quixotic approach to life led to rash decisions.
provincial (adjective)
unsophisticated, having a narrow point of view.
e.g. City folk unkindly mocked her provincial accent.
Pyrrhic (adjective)
ultimately victorious, but after significant losses.
e.g. The politician felt hopeless just before her Pyrrhic win.
disgruntled (adjective)
dɪsˈgrʌntld
annoyed and unsatisfied.
e.g. Our chef was disgruntled when we ran out of eggs.
risible (adjective)
causing laughter, sometimes due to foolishness.
e.g. His risible attempts at flattery made me cringe.
perspicacious (adjective)
perceptive and able to understand new things easily.
e.g. The perspicacious sleuth easily identified the thief.
addlepated (adjective)
confused or perplexed.
e.g. He was addlepated by the city’s winding streets.
incongruous (adjective)
not in harmony with what is around or typical.
e.g. Her outburst was incongruous with her typical kindness.
brackish (adjective)
slightly salty; mixing salty seawater and freshwater.
e.g. Crocodiles sometimes live in brackish water.
labile (adjective)
prone to changes and instability.
e.g. The labile weather made planning difficult.
mellifluous (adjective)
musical, sweet-sounding, and pleasant to hear.
e.g. The singer’s mellifluous voice filled the stadium.
sinuous (adjective)
winding or having many curves.
e.g. Driving on a sinuous cliffside road is terryfying.
grandiose (adjective)
impressive or striking in size or appearance.
e.g. He carved a grandiose ice sculpture for the party.
ebullient (adjective)
cheerful, enthusiastic, or full of energy.
e.g. The football player was ebullient after the game.
pathological (adjective)
extreme or obsessive beyond control.
e.g. As a pathological liar, he can’t seem to tell the truth.
lachrymose (adjective)
crying or causing one to cry.
e.g. The lachrymose film left no dry eye in the house.
facetious (adjective)
treating serious issues with humor or sarcasm.
e.g. Not everyone appreciated her facetious comment.
antiquated (adjective)
old and not worth using; outdated.
e.g. The unproductive office used antiquated practices.
congruous (adjective)
balanced, in harmonious agreement.
e.g. His opinion was congruous with his past statement.
exigent (adjective)
demanding immediate attention.
e.g. I dropped everything to tend to the exigent matter.
aleatory (adjective)
unplanned or dependent on chance.
e.g. The tree’s aleatory fall onto the roof cost us a lot.
provident (adjective)
providing for future needs, sparing with money.
e.g. It’s provident to buy supplies before a storm.
inchoate (adjective)
not fully developed or in early stages.
e.g. She didn’t grasp the aim of the inchoate project.
florid (adjective)
elaborately decorated, flowery, or showy.
e.g. He modernized the room by eliminating its florid decor.
protean (adjective)
able to change frequently or easily; adaptable.
e.g. He has a protean ability to manage crises.
itinerant (adjective)
roaming or traveling from place to place.
e.g. He lives an itinerant lifestyle ouf of an RV.
haughty (adjective)
snobby, arrogantly superior.
e.g. She gave the waiter a haughty huff.
obstinate (adjective)
stubborn about keeping an opinion or behavior.
e.g. New riders shouldn’t pick an obstinate horse.
demonstrable (adjective)
able to be shown, clear.
e.g. Her skills are demonstrable in her work.
peremptory (adjective)
urgent, demanding immediate attention or response.
e.g. The teacher issued a peremptory order to the students.
nimble (adjective)
quick and light in movement or thought.
e.g. The nimble fox jumped over the fence.
garrulous (adjective)
extremely talkative, often to an annoying degree.
e.g.My garrulous cousin dominated the conversation.
abashed (adjective)
ashamed or emabarrassed.
e.g. I’m abashed to be serving this underbaked cake.
somnolent (adjective)
sleepy or drowsy.
e.g. The somnolent puppy cured up in its bed.
dubious (adjective)
doubtful or uncertain; questionable.
effusive (adjective)
expressing excessive emotion, often of praise or thanks.
e.g. He was effusive in his praise for his dog.
manifest (adjective)
plainly clear, obvious
e.g. Her interest was manifest in her eager tone of voice.
colloquial (adjective)
used in casual or everyday speech.
e.g. Colloquial phrases are common in text messages.
piquant (adjective)
sharply flavored or intellectually stimulating.
e.g. Their piquant comments inspired a lively debate.
integral (adjective)
essential or necessary as part of a whole.
e.g. Teamwork is an integral part of success.
raucous (adjective)
unpleasantly loud or rowdy.
e.g. Raucous laughter filled the room.
fraught (adjective)
filled with something, often that which is stressful.
e.g.The leader’s speech was fraught with emotion.
crepuscular (adjective)
resembling or relating to twilight.
e.g. The crepuscular light painted the valley purple.
riant (adjective)
laughing or smiling brightly.
e.g. His riant disposition delights us all.
exorbitant (adjective)
unreasonably high in cost.
e.g. An exorbitant fee was charged for the service.
implicit (adjective)
understood without being expressed.
e.g. Their silence was taken as implicit agreement.
aggrieved (adjective)
feeling resentment over unfair treatment.
e.g. The aggrieved workers filed a complaint.
frivolous (adjective)
lacking serious purpose or value.
e.g. That toy was a frivolous expense.
maudlin (adjective)
excessively emotional, often in a self-pitying way.
e.g. He wrote a maudlin poem about lost love.
inveterate (adjective)
deeply ingrained and unlikely to change.
e.g. I have an inveterate habit of trusting everyone I meet.
feral (adjective)
wild and untamed, not domesticated.
e.g. The feral cat roamed the empty streets.
