Encountered Flashcards
Bulwark
External protection (n)
Wade
To go through (water, etc) –with object
Bedlam
A scene or state of wild uproar and confusion
Fiat
An authoritative decree decree, sanction, or order
Zany
(adjective)
amusingly unconventional and idiosyncratic
wormwood
(noun) a state or source of bitterness or grief
gloat
(verb)
contemplate or dwell on one’s own success or another’s misfortune with smugness or malignant pleasure
morose
(adj) sullen and ill-tempered
botch
verb [with object]
carry out (a task) badly or carelessly: the ability to take on any task without botching it | he was in a position to hire people, and he botched that up.
pundit
(noun)
an expert in a particular subject or field who is frequently called on to give opinions about it to the public: a globe-trotting financial pundit.
dank
(adjective)
disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold: huge dank caverns.
jockey
(verb) [no object]
• struggle by every available means to gain or achieve something: both men will be jockeying for the two top jobs.
[with object and adverbial] handle or manipulate (someone or something) in a skillful manner:
Jason jockeyed his machine into a dive.
sullen
adjective
bad-tempered and sulky; gloomy: a sullen pout.
• (of the sky) full of dark clouds: a sullen sunless sky.
glower
verb [no object]
have an angry or sullen look on one’s face; scow: she glowered at him suspiciously | (glowering as adjective): his father’s glowering face.
linchpin
noun
a person or thing vital to an enterprise or organization: regular brushing is the linchpin of all good dental hygiene.
veritable
**adjective [attributive] **
used as an intensifier, often to qualify a metaphor: the early 1970s witnessed a veritable price explosion.
throng
noun
a large, densely packed crowd of people or animals: he pushed his way through the throng| a throng of birds.
verb
* a crowd thronged the station* | the streets are thronged with people.
ruse
noun
an action intended to deceive someone; a trick:
Eleanor tried to think of a ruse to get Paul out of the house.
ruse
noun
an action intended to deceive someone; a trick:
Eleanor tried to think of a ruse to get Paul out of the house.
subterfuge
noun
deceit used in order to achieve one’s goal: he had to use subterfuge and bluff on many occasions | [count noun] : 1 hated all the subterfuges, I hated lying to you.
snarky
adjective informal, mainly
North American English
critical or mocking in an indirect or sarcastic way: snarky remarks.
bad-tempered or irritable: Bobby’s always a bit snarky before his nap.
