G's Flashcards
Glacial
Slow, cold, icy, unsympathetic. Glacial can also just mean “related to glaciers.”
Progress happened, but at a glacial pace everyone found frustrating.
He had wanted to appear on the reality singing competition his whole young life, but he was not encouraged by the judges’ glacial response to his audition.
Grade, Gradation
To grade is to slant (the road grades steeply) or to bled (the dress’s fabric grades from blue to green). A gradation is a progression or process taking place gradually, in stages.
The hill’s gradation was so gradual that even those on crutches were able to enjoy the nature trail.
The marshland grades into the water so gradually that it is difficult to tell the land from the bay.
Graft
Join together plant parts or skin so that two living things grow together (e.g., a skin graft for a burn victim); the act of acquiring money or other benefit through illegal means, especially by abusing one’s power.
the part of the book describing the financial crisis is good, but the “What You Can Do” section seems grafted on, almost as though written by a different author.
It’s not cool for your boss to pressure you into buying Girl Scout cookies from his daughter. If she were selling something larger, we’d call that graft.
Grandstand
Perform showily in an attempt to impress onlookers.
I was really passionate about the candidate when he spoke at our school, but now that I think about it, he was just grandstanding. I mean, who could disagree that young people are the future? And doing a cheer for the environment doesn’t actually signify a commitment to changing any public policies about it.
Guesswork
A set of guesses or estimates; work based on guesses or estimates.
Guile
Clever deceit, cunning, craftiness.
The game of poker is all about guile, manipulating your own body language and patterns to lead other players to erroneous conclusions about the cards you’re holding.
