Hit Parade Group 2 Flashcards
Abate
to lessen in intensity or degree
Accolade
an expression of praise
Adulation
excessive praise; intense adoration
Aesthetic
dealing with, appreciative of, or responsive to art or the beautiful
Ameliorate
to make better or more tolerable
Ascetic
one who practices rigid self-denial, esp. as an act of religious devotion
Avarice
greed, esp. for wealth (adj. form: avaricious)
Axiom
a universally recognized principle (adj. form: axiomatic)
Burgeon
to grow rapidly or flourish
Bucolic
rustic and pastoral; characteristic of rural areas and their inhabitants
Cacophony
harsh, jarring, discordant sound; dissonance (adj. form: cacophonous)
Canon
an established set of principles or code of laws, often religious in nature (adj. form: canonical)
Castigation
severe criticism or punishment (verb form: castigate)
Catalyst
reaction without itself changing; a person or thing that causes change
Caustic
burning or stinging; causing corrosion
Chary
wary; cautious; sparing
Cogent
appealing forcibly to the mind or reason; convincing
Complaisance
the willingness to comply to the wishes of others (adj. form: complaisant)
Contentious
argumentative; quarrelsome; causing controversy or disagreement
Contrite
regretful; penitent; seeking forgiveness (noun form: contrition)
Culpable
deserving blame (noun form: culpability)
Dearth
smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; a lack
Demur
to question or oppose
Didactic
intended to teach or instruct
Discretion
cautious reserve in speech; ability to make responsible decisions (adj. form: discrete)
Disinterested
free of bias or self-interest; impartial
Dogmatic
expressing a rigid opinion based on unproved or improvable principles (noun form: dogma)
Ebullience
the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings (adj. form: ebullience)
Eclectic
composed of elements drawn from various sources
Elegy
a mournful poem, esp. one lamenting the dead (adj. form elegiac)
Emolient
soothing, esp. to the skin; making less harsh; mollifying; an agent that softens or smooths the skin
Empirical
based on observation or experiment
Enigmatic
mysterious; obscure; difficult to understand (noun form: enigma)
Ephemeral
brief; fleeting
Esoteric
intended for or understood by a small, specific group
Eulogy
a speech honoring the dead (verb form: eulogize)
Exonerate
to remove blame
Facetious
playful; humorous
Fallacy
an invalid or incorrect notion; a mistaken belief (adj. form: fallacious)
Furtive
marked by stealth; covert; surreptitious
Gregarious
sociable; outgoing; enjoying the company of other people
Harangue
to deliver a pompous speech or tirade; a long, pompous speech
Heretical
violating accepted dogma or convention (noun form: heresy)
Hyperbole
an exaggerated statement, often used as a figure of speech (adj. form: hyperbolic)
Impecunious
lacking funds; without money
Incipient
beginning to come into being or to become apparent
Inert
unmoving; lethargic; sluggish
Innocuous
harmless; causing no damage
Intransigent
refusing to compromise (noun form: intransigence)
Inveigle
to obtain by deception or flattery
Morose
sad; sullen; melancholy
Odious
evoking intense aversion or dislike
Opaque
impenetrable by light; not reflecting light
Oscillation
the act or state of swinging back and forth with a steady, uninterrupted rhythm (verb form: oscillate)
Penurious
penny-pinching; excessively thrifty; ungenerous
Pernicious
extremely harmful; potentially causing death
Peruse
to examine with great care (noun form: perusal)
Pious
extremely reverent or devout; showing strong religious devotion (noun form: piety)
Precursor
one that precedes and indicates or announces another
Preen
to dress up; to primp; to groom oneself with elaborate care
Prodigious
abundant in size, force, or extent; extraordinary
Prolific
producing large volumes or amounts; productive
Putrefy
to rot; to decay and give off a foul odor (adj. form: putrid)
Quaff
to drink deeply
Quiescience
stillness; motionlessness; quality of being at rest (adj. form: quiescent)
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 (adj. form: satirical)
Squalid
sordid; wretched and dirty as from neglect (noun form: squalor)
Stoic
indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain; steadfast (noun form: stoicism)
Supplant
to take the place of; to supersede
Torpid
lethargic; sluggish; dormant (noun form: torpor)
Ubiquitous
existing everywhere at the same time; constantly encountered; widespread
Urbane
sophisticated; refined; elegant (noun form: urbanity)
Vilify
to defame; to characterize harshly
Viscous
thick; sticky (noun form: viscosity)
