Hit Parade 1-3 Flashcards
abate
to lessen in intensity or degree
interest in the author’s home abated as her novels waned in popularity
accolade
an expression of praise
for their exceptional bravery the firefighters received accolades from both local and national officials
aesthetic
dealing with, appreciative of, or responsible to art or the beautiful
There are practical as well as aesthetic reasons for planting trees.
ameliorate
to make better or more tolerable
trying to ameliorate the suffering of people who have lost their jobs
ascetic
one who practices rigid self-denial, especially as an act of religious devotion
“That’s where Cindy draws the line. That’s probably a real good idea,” he says. Mattsson, ascetic for a bachelor, imposes the same rule on himself. LeBeau, who has never been married, is much less restrained.
avarice
greed, especially for wealth (adj. form avaricious)
The corporate world is plagued by avarice and a thirst for power.
axiom
a universally recognized principle; a maxim widely accepted on its intrinsic merit
one of the key axioms of the theory of evolution
burgeon
to grow rapidly or flourish
the burgeoning trees
bucolic
rustic and pastoral; characteristic of rural areas and their inhabitants; of the country or country life
Pine Ridge … . Its generic blandness and vaguely bucolic quality anticipated similar names—the Oak Parks and River Groves and Lake Forests and Chestnut Hills
cacophony
a gathering of dissonant sounds
canon
an established set of principles or code of laws, often religious in nature
dogma
a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of the group without being questioned or doubted
These new findings challenge the current dogma in the field.
castigation
severe criticism or punishment
The author castigated the prime minister as an ineffective leader.
catalyst
reaction without itself changing; a person or thing that causes change
caustic
burning or stinging, causing corrosion
The chemical was so caustic that it ate through the pipes.
chary
wary, cautious, sparing; hesitant and vigilant about dangers and risks
chary investors who weren’t burned by the dot-com bust
cogent
appealing forcibly to the mind or reason; (of an argument or case) clear, logical, and convincing.
the results of the DNA fingerprinting were the most cogent evidence for acquittal
complaisance
the willingness to comply with the wishes of others
affable
friendly; being pleasant and at ease in talking to others
a lively and affable young fellow
contentious
argumentative, quarrelsome, causing controversy or disagreement
contrite
regretful; penitent; seeking forgiveness (noun form: contrition)
being contrite is not enough to spare you an arrest if you’re caught shoplifting
culpable
deserving blame
He’s more culpable than the others because he’s old enough to know better.
dearth
smallness in quantity or number; scarcity; a lack
there was a dearth of usable firewood at the campsite
demur
to question or oppose; to politely refuse to accept a request or suggestion
pretend Bartleby quote:
“But again Bartleby would demur, I prefer not to.”
didactic
intending to teach a lesson
discretion
cautious reserve in speech; the ability to make responsible decisions
disinterested
free of bias or self-interest; impartial
dogmatic
expressing a rigid opinion based on unproved or improvable principles
a critic’s dogmatic insistence that abstract expressionism is the only school of 20th century art worthy of serious study
ebullience
the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings
Team of Rivals. “Thiis horrific train of events transformed Stanton’s spirit. his natural ebullience faded.”
esoteric
intended for or understood by a small, specific group
the article was esoteric in nature; no one but those deep in the engineering community could truly understand its weight
eclectic
composed of elements drawn from various sources
her tastes in music were so eclectic that one could see her at an international music festival and a rock concert in the same day
emollient
soothing, esp. to the skin; making less harsh; mollifying; an agent that softens or soothes the skin
an emollient hand lotion
mollify
to make (someone) less angry : to calm (someone) down
All attempts to mollify the extremists have failed.
empirical
originating in or based on observation or experience
guidelines for raising children are based on empirical evidence
pragmatic
relating to matters of fact or practical affairs often to the exclusion of intellectual or artistic matters : practical as opposed to idealistic
His pragmatic view of public education comes from years of working in city schools.
enigmatic
mysterious; obscure; difficult to understand (noun form: enigma)
To his friends, he was always something of an enigma.
ephemeral
fleeting, temporary, only lasting a short time
the autumnal blaze of colors is always to be treasured, all the more so because it is so ephemeral
eulogy
a speech honoring the dead (verb: form eulogize)
exonerate
to remove blame
the culprit was exonerated of his crime when it was discovered that the victim disappeared because she had run away of her own volition
facetious
used to describe speech that is meant to be funny but that is usually regarded as annoying, silly, or not proper
a facetious and tasteless remark about people in famine-stricken countries being spared the problem of overeating
fallacy
an invalid or incorrect notion; a mistaken belief
The fallacy of their ideas about medicine soon became apparent.
furtive
done with or expressive of stealth : sly
We exchanged furtive smiles across the table
gregarious
sociable; outgoing; enjoying the company of other people
a gregarious child who ran up to every person on the playground and wanted to be their friend
harangue
a speech addressed to a public assembly; a ranting speech or writing
He delivered a long harangue about the evils of popular culture.
heretical
violating accepted dogma or convention (noun form: heresy)
The church regards them as heretics
hyperbole
an exaggerated statement; often used as a figure of speech
“enough food to feed a whole army” is a common example of hyperbole
impecunious
having very little or no money usually habitually
they were so impecunious that they couldn’t afford to give one another even token Christmas gifts
incipient
beginning to come into being or become apparent
I have an incipient dislike and distrust of that guy, and I only met him this morning.
inert
unmoving, lethargic, sluggish; lacking the ability to move
an inert and lifeless body
lethargic
of, relating to, or characterized by laziness or lack of energy : feeling or affected by lethargy
The patient is weak and lethargic.
innocuous
producing no injury : harmless
not likely to give offense or to arouse strong feelings or hostility; inoffensive
He told a few innocuous jokes.
intransigent
characterized by refusal to compromise or to abandon an extreme position or attitude; uncompromising
He has remained intransigent in his opposition to the proposal.
inveigle
to persuade someone to do something in a clever or deceptive way
We inveigled the information from him.
morose
sad, sullen, melancholy
He became morose and withdrawn and would not talk to anyone.
odious
evoking intense aversion or dislike
opaque
not letting light through : not transparent; also, difficult to understand
the opaque water of the muddy river
oscillation
the act or state of swinging back and forth with a steady, uninterrupted rhythm (verb form: oscillate)
the sound wave oscillated at a wavelength///
penurious
penny-pinching; excessively thrifty; ungenerous
The penurious school system had to lay off several teachers.
pernicious
extremely harmful; potentially causing death; causing great harm or damage often in a way that is not easily seen or noticed
More pernicious still has been the acceptance of the author’s controversial ideas by the general public.
peruse
read; especially : to read over in an attentive or leisurely manner
He perused the newspaper over breakfast.
pious
extremely reverent or devout; showing strong religious devotion (noun from: piety)
They lived a quiet, pious life.
precursor
one that precedes and indicates or announces another
18th-century lyric poets like Robert Burns were precursors of the Romantics
preen
to dress up; to primp; to groom oneself (chiefly british: pin)
prodigious
abundant in size, force, or extent; exciting amazement or wonder
a prodigious supply of canned food kept in the basement for emergencies
prolific
producing large volumes or amounts; marked by abundant inventiveness or productivity
a famously prolific author who could produce several works of fiction and nonfiction a year
putrefy
to rot; to decay and give off a foul odor (adj. form: putrid)
we traced the bad smell to a dead skunk putrefying under the house
quaff
to drink deeply; to drink a large amount of something quickly
We stopped at a bar and quaffed a few beers.
quiescence
stillness; motionlessness; quality of being at rest (adj. form quiescent)
was struck by the elk’s quiescence as it just stood there in the clearing
redoubtable
awe-inspiring; worthy of honor
sanction
authoritative permission or approval; a penalty intended to enforce compliance; to give permission or authority to
satire
a literary work that ridicules or criticizes a human vice through humor or derision
derision
the feeling that people express when they criticize and laugh at someone or something in an insulting way
The team’s awful record has made it an object of derision in the league.
squalid
sordid; wretched and dirty as from neglect
The family lived in squalid conditions.
stoic
indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain; steadfast
after waiting six years for permission to immigrate to the U.S., the family is stoic about a six-month postponement
supplant
to take the place of; to supersede
old traditions that were fading away and being supplanted by modern ways
torpid
lethargic; sluggish; dormant (noun form: torpor)
a torpid sloth that refused to budge off its tree branch
ubiquitous
existing everywhere at the same time; constantly encountered; widespread
by that time cell phones had become ubiquitous, and people had long ceased to be impressed by the sight of one
urbane
sophisticated; refined; elegant; notably polite or polished in manner
a gentlemanly and urbane host of elegant dinner parties
vilify
to defame; to characterize harshly
claimed that she had been vilified by the press because of her conservative views
viscous
thick; sticky
viscous syrup that takes forever to pour from a narrow-neck bottle
quintessence
(noun) the fifth and highest element in ancient and medieval philosophy that permeates all nature and is the substance composing the celestial bodies; the essence of a thing in its purest and most concentrated form; the most typical example or representative
the Parthenon in Greece was considered the quintessence of the perfectly proportioned building
endoscope
an illuminated usually fiber-optic flexible or rigid tubular instrument for visualizing the interior of a hollow organ or part (as the bladder or esophagus) for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes that typically has one or more channels to enable passage of instruments
tenuous
having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak
The local theater has had a tenuous existence in recent years.
tirade
a long and extremely critical speech; a harsh denunciation
He went into a tirade about the failures of the government.
transient
fleeting; brief; passing especially quickly into and out of existence : transitory
had transient thoughts of suicide but never acted on them
zealous
fervent; ardent; devoted to a cause (a zealot is a zealous person)
The detective was zealous in her pursuit of the kidnappers.
