Group 1 Flashcards
privation
n. deprivation, lack of usual comforts or necessities of life; his life of __ began to affect his health.
concupiscence
n. lust, sexual desire; ardent, usually sensuous, longing.
badinage
n. light playful banter or raillery. The __ ceased instantly and an ominous silence fell on the people.
troubadour
n. wandering singer or minstrel. He is a __ that happens to be in grief.
reconnoiter
v. inspect, examine, explore (a region, area, etc.). He immediately sent a detachment of men to __.
ablution
n. cleansing with water esp. as religious ritual. The __ ought, strictly, to be performed once every 24 hours.
vulgate
n. the Latin version of the Bible, used as the authorized version of the Catholic Church
pentateuch
n. first 5 books of the Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.
morass
n. marshy ground; quagmire. The act straightened out a __ of legal requirements.
affected
adj. feigned, inclined to, fancy something. New students __ing a nonchalance they didn’t feel.
pedant
n. egghead, someone who makes an excessive display of learning; stickler. He talks pleasantly, and nothing of a pedant, as I half dreaded he would be.
vicinage
n. vicinity, proximity. It was available in the public libraries of the __
nomenclature
n. vocabulary, terminology. But because they wanted something friendlier, they came up with the nomenclature of “screen name”
hortatory
adj. urging, exhorting, encouraging. A __ speech.
posterity
n. future generations. Judgment of this age must be left to _. His fortune was gradually dissipated by his _.
lapidary
adj. refinement (suggestive of gem cutting). Lincoln is one of whom no one expected __ style
pecuniary
adj. monetary. Fitzgerald 18 yrs old, able bodied, but without _ means.
lyceum
n. college, institution. Consider this episode from a __ lecture written when Lincoln was 29…
crucible
n. melting pot. A severe test/trial. His letters on diverse subjects are the __ in which Lincoln cast his style
epigram
n. witticism, aphorism, quip. The story is short without crackling like an __
terse
adj. effectively consise. abruptly consies, curt. She offered a _ description of how her asthmatic brother had come to die.
evince
v. show, manifest. Sarah __s tremendous intellectual potential
edify
v. uplift, benefit morally, spiritually. Listen to _ing talks!
crass
adj. gross, obtuse, stupid. A _ misrepresentation of the facts. __ commercialism.
non sequitur
n. paradox, statement of illogical conclusion. A response that isn’t clearly related to anything previously said
behest
n. command, strongly worded request. I quit sinning at the _ of Jesus
rheumy
n. mucousy
bough
n. big tree branch. He saw a bird sitting on a __
rote
n. routine, mechanical. The _ of daily living is not very exciting.
coxcomb
n. conceited, foolish dandy. He could not be mistaken for a pedant unless a _ is a sort of pedant.
appellate
adj. dealing with decision reversal applications
anomalous
adj. abnormal, atypical. an _ situation
deviant
adj. different, aberrant.
usurious
adj. lending money at high interest rates. A _ moneylender.
piecemeal
adv. gradual, piece by piece. The village was slowly killed off by _ development.
consign
v. commit decisively, entrust. She _ed the letter to the wastebasket.
parley
n. conference btw opposing sides in a dispute, eps. for terms of armistice.
prefect
n. a chief officer, regional governor in countries. I met the girl’s _.
magistrate
n. civil officer who administers the law, deals w minor offenses, holds preliminary hearings for serious offenses.
sunset law
n. law that will be eliminated in a set amount of time. He would have _ a guest worker program after 5 years.
moratorium
n. temporary prohibition of an activity; legal authorization to debtors to postpone payment.
tort
n. wrongful act leading to legal liability and compensation.
fetters
n. anything that restrains or confines. Drowning in __.
connoisseur
n. authority, adept, someone especially competent to pass critical judgments in an art.
confederacy
n. coalition, alliance between people for a purpose
carte blanche
n. complete freedom to act as one wishes or thinks best. We were given complete _ in our new offices.
despot
n. dictator, ruler who holds power in oppressive way.
impunity
n. exception from punishment, consequences.
maven
n. connoisseur, expert
cavalcade
n. formal procession of people walking, horseback, vehicles.
