English Vocab 8 Flashcards
capsize
to turn bottom side up, upset
Syn: overturn, upend, tip over
Ant: remain upright
abnormal
not usual, not typical, strange
Syn: freakish, unnatural, irregular, anomalous
Ant: normal, usual, regular, typical
catastrophe
a large scale disaster, misfortune or failure
syn: calamity, tragedy, cataclysm
ant: triumph, victory, success
decrease
to become or make less; a lessening
syn: less, reduce, dwindle, diminish
ant: increase, grow, develop, wax
disputatious
inclined to argue or debate; provoking debate
syn: argumentative, quarrelsome, contentious
ant: nonargumentative, peaceable, pacific
eject
to drive or throw out, evict
syn: oust, expel, kick out
ant: admit, let in, insert
flourish
to grow, thrive, be prosperous; to wave in the air;
a dramatic gesture; a fanfare of horns
syn: prosper, burgeon, increase
ant: wither, die, fade, shrivel up
incentive
a reason for doing something; something that stimulates action
syn: stimulus, spur, motive, inducement
ant: curb, check, restraint, hindrance
insubordinate
disobedient, rebellious
syn: defiant, unruly, mutinous
ant: obedient, submissive, docile, tractable
legible
easily read
syn: readable, clear, decipherable
ant: unreadable, indecipherable
onslaught
a violent attack; a sudden rush of something
sn: assault, charge, foray, onset
ordain
to establish by law; to order or command; to appoint as a priest or minister; to destine
syn: anoint, consecrate, enact, decree
ant: forbid, veto, cancel
outstrip
to get ahead of, do better than, exceed
syn: outdo, outperform, outdistance, surpass
ant: trail, lag behind
pervade
to spread throughout
syn: saturate, permeate, diffuse, imbue
prudent
cautious, careful, showing good sense
syn: wary, sensible, judicious
ant: foolish, unwise, rash, reckless
quench
to put out, extinguish, end
syn: douse, stifle, slake
ant: ignite, kindle
remnant
a small part remaining behind
syn: remainder, residue, leftover, fragment
simultaneous
happening or existing at the same time
syn: occurring at the same time, concurrent
ant: occurring at different times
swerve
to turn aside sharply; a sharp or sudden turn
syn: veer, digress, sheer off
By offering customers low prices and good terms, the new store hopes to ___ the competition.
outstrip
Pollutants ____ the atmosphere of many of our nation’s large cities.
pervade
The firefighters will ___ the flames with water.
quench
It pays to make __ investments.
prudent
By the end of the war, the rebels had but a ___ of their former stregnth.
remnant
Be aware that if you ___ too sharply, you may lose control of the car.
swerve
The diplomats put on headphones so that they could listen to a ___ translation of the speech.
simultaneous
The sudden ____ of the bus caused some passengers to fall out of their seats.
swerve
It is fortunate for lovers of the arts that painting and opera still ____ in Italy.
flourish
The ___ soldier repeatedly interrupted his commanding officer.
insubordinate
Actors often enter the stage with a ___.
flourish
Because career advancement is such a strong ____, adults are usually eager and hard-working students.
incentive
In keeping with the jokes, pharmacists will tell you that most doctors’ handwriting is barely ___.
legible
To prepare for the ____ of winter, we replenished our supply of firewood and rock salt.
onslaught
Ancient astrologers believed that the stars could ___ one’s future.
ordain
The security guards arrived to ____ the troublesome spectator from the stands.
eject
For my sister, who is always late, being early for an appointment would constitute an ___ situation.
abnormal
The ____ senator had engaged in filibusters to block the passage of many a bill.
disputatious
Anyone watching could see that it was our inexperience that caused us to ___ the canoe.
capsize
The manager hopes that theft will ___ once the new security system is installed.
decrease
During the COld War, the US did everything possible to avoid a nuclear _____.
catastrophe
Because of a sharp ____ in sales, the company had to lay off two-thirds of its workers.
decrease
