General Knowledge 2 Flashcards
bluster, pomposity, bravado
bombast
sent: the boy’s bombast and swagger covered up his insecurity
to reject, abstain from
boycott
sent: we will boycott that store until they pay a living wage
salty, briny
brackish
sent: brackish water filled the small inlet
curt, abupt, brisk
brusque
sent: she acts brusque when she is under stress or in a hurry
fortification, rampart, embankment
bulwark
sent: before the battle, soldiers lines up along the bulwark
to sprout, proliferate, multiply
burgeon
sent: mini-marts and fast-food sites burgeon along the highway
faction, conspiracy, plot
cabal
sent: the rebels formed a cabol that met twice a week
hiding place, hoard, store
cache
sent: they found a cache of old films in the basement of the library
inharmonious, dissonant, jarring
cacophonous
sent: the cacophonous din is his attempt to play the trombone
rhythm, pace, lilt
cadence
sent: the train’s gentle cadence soon lulled us to sleep
to coax, persuade, entice
cajole
sent: canwe cajole you into spending the day with us?
slander, defamation, slur
calumny
sent: his vile calumny against her may lead to a lawsuit
rule, law, tenet
canon
sent: the canon of the council of nicaea advises fasting for lent
roomy, voluminous, sizeable
capacious
sent: she fits her laptop and books into that capitulate carpetbag
to yield, surrender, submit
capitulate
sent: their army will soon capitulate to our demands
impulsive, whimsical, variable
capricious
sent: her capricious nature keeps us guessing what she’ll do next
caution, warning, stipulation
caveat
sent: the doctor’s only caveat was to avoid fried foods
swiftness, speed haste
celerity
sent: with incredible celerity, the pit crew replaced all four times
embarrassment, mortification, disappointment
chagrin
sent: her chagrin at losing the game was visble on her face
cahrm. magnetism, appeal
charisma
sent: a politician’s charisme can help her to attract supporters
wary, cautious, suspicios
chary
sent: after losing money, she is chary is using that stockbroker again
trickery, deception, fraud
chicanery
sent: the con men used chicanery to learn about their victims
to scold, rebuke, reprimand
chide
sent: both nannies chide their chargers after the sandbox battle
gallant, well-mannered, courteous
chivalrous
sent: his chivalrous manners seem to come from an earlier age
bad-tempered, irritable, belligerent
choleric
sent: a choleric disposition rarely leads to successful friendships
rude, coarse, boorish
churlish
sent: it would be churlish to refuse his kind hospitality
to restrict, limit, encircle
circumscribe
sent: barbed-wire fences circumscribe the ranchland
to demand, exclaim, shout
clamor
sent: excited children clamor for the pitcher’s autograph
to split, slice-chop
cleave
sent: use the sharpened axe to cleave the firewood easily
mercy, leniency. compassion
clemency
sent: the judge may grant clemency if she finds his remorse sincere
syrupy, sugary, nauseating
cloying
sent: the overly sweet sauce tasted unpleasently cloying
logical, convincing, coherent
cogent
sent: your argument is bith cogent and well-reasoned
coal miner
collier
sent: the collier descended into the shaft on a rickety elevator
conspiracy, scheme, complicity
collusion
sent: their whispered conversations seemed to imply a collusion
edible, safe to eat
comestible
sent: do you know which of the wild mushrooms are comestible?
proportionate, corresponding, matching
commensurate
sent: we expect a salary commesurate with our skills
to emphasize, sympathzise, show compassion
commiserate
sent: i commiserate with the workers who lost their jobs this week
ample, spacious, roomy
commodious
sent: one commodious handbag can hold everything you need
summary, abstract, list
compendium
sent: the appendix includes a compendium of early works
contended, self-statisfied, unconcerned
complacent
sent: knowing that she has tenure gives her a complacent air
regret, qualm, uneasiness
compunction
sent: he had no compunction about firing the sloppy painter
to pacify, appease, mollify
conciliate
sent: the boss made some changed to conciliate upset worker
to pardon, overlook, forgive
condone
sent: i could never condone their crude behavior
fire, inferno, blaze
conflagration
sent: by the time firetrucks arrived, a conflagration had erupted
guess, speculation, theory
conjecture
sent: my conjecture about his motives proved to be incorrect
to interpret, analyze, decipher
consture
sent: were you able to construe the meaning of this old text?
controversial, argumentative, debatable
contentious
sent: her contentious remarks led to a forceful and heatd discussion
adjacent, abutting, boarding
contiguous
sent: the famers fields are contiguous with state land
repentance, penitence, remorse
contrition
sent: the burglar;s obvious contrition may earn hom a short sentence
riddle, puzzle, mystery
conundrum
sent: that geometric proof is a complete conundrum to me
hospitable, cordial, sociable
convivial
sent: our hosts were convivial and made our trip delightful
flirt, tease
coquette
sent: she is shy in real life but plays a coquette on television
sophisticated, international, multi-ethnic
cosmopolitan
sent: toronto is a cosmopolitan city with foods from every land
ball, dance, prom
cotillion
sent: our club hold a formal cotillion once a year
appearance, face, expression
countenance
sent: the child’s countenance mixed excitement with fear
agreement, pledge, contract
covenant
sent: the classmates made a covenant to meet again in 20 years
believable, plausible, probable
credible
sent: is that theory credible, or does it lack substance?
puzzling, mysterious, secret
cryptic
sent: did you recieve a cryptic message from your father?
club, stick, truncheon
cudgel
sent: he used a cudgel to beat away the thorn bushes
drain, sewer, channal
culvert
sent: ducks were swimming in the culvert after the rainstorm
clergyman, cleric
curate
sent: a curate greeted us at the door of the church
superficial hasty, perfunctory
cursory
sent: i only had time to give your essay a cursory look
ire, temper, anger
dander
sent: don’t get your danger up just because he behaves rudely
to smear, spread, paint
daub
sent: to clown daub their cheeks with red face paint
refine, sauve, elegant
debonair
sent: james bond is a character known for debonair good looks
obsequious, respectful, reverant
deferential
sent: the young priest are deferential toward the bishop
harmful, injurious, damaging
deleterious
sent: caffeine may have a deleterious effect on blood pressure
bearing, behavior, conduct
demeanor
sent: a subdued demeanor is appropriate at a funeral
to object, protest, balk
demur
sent: i must demur at your description of her presentation
to belittle, vilify, disparage
denigrate
sent: try not denigrate people whom you do not understand
resident, citizen, native
denizen
sent: she is a denizen of Chicago
having lived there for decades
to condemn, denounce, criticize
deprecate
sent: some students deprecate the value of writing seminars
abandonment, denounce, criticize
deprecate
sent: some students deprecate the value of writing seminars
abandonment, neglect, desertion
dereliction
sent: parts of the city were marked by dereliction and ruin
to ruin, plunder, damage
despoil
sent: did the vikings despoil these coastal towns?
haphazard, aimless, random
desultory
sent: our conversation become desultory and finally died out
debris, remains, fragments
detritus
sent: a storm shells and other detritus along the sand
to delegate, entrust, transfer
devolve
sent: slowly, the king will devolve power to hid ministers
