Hit Parade Group 4 Flashcards
Acerbic
əˈsərbik
1) tasting sour or bitter
2 )harsh or corrosive in tone
[Latin acerbus meaning “sour-tasting”]
Aggrandize
əˈgranˌdīz
increase the power, status, or wealth of
Amenable
əˈmēnəbəl
agreeable; responsive to suggestion
Anachronism
something or someone out of place in terms of historical or chronological context
Astringent
tending to draw together or constrict soft organic tissue
[can be used to describe someone’s personality. If someone is prone to biting sarcasm and cynicism, he probably has an astringent view of the world.]
Convention
a way in which something is usually done; a generally agreed upon practice or attitude
[Think of Conventional]
Credulous
krejələs
tending to believe too readily; gullible (Noun form: credulity)
[Latin credulus meaning “easily belives”]
cynicism
the feeling of distrust or that something isn’t going to work out well
Derision
diˈriZHən
the act of deriding or treating with contempt [Derision is more than just making fun of someone — it’s mocking someone so forcefully and with such venom that you discredit the person completely]
Desiccate
desiˌkāt
to dry out, dry up and dehydrate; also means to preserve something by drying it out (beef jerky, raisins)
Dilettante
diliˈtänt,-ˈtäntē
an amateur, often one who pretends to be very knowledgeable.
Disparage
diˈsparij
to belittle or degrade a person or idea; express a negative opinion of
Fawn
to flatter or praise excessively
Flout
openly disregard (a rule, law or convention)
Garrulous
a person just won’t stop talking (and talking, and talking, and talking…)
Glib
artfully persuasive in speech; having only superficial plausibility [might be used to describe the slick car salesman who uses his polished sales pitch to talk his customers into buying lemons]
Immutable
iˈmyo͞otəbəl
not capable of change; unchanging over time or unable to be changed
Impetuous
imˈpeCHo͞oəs
acting or done quickly and without thought or care
Inimical
iˈnimikəl
not friendly; tending to obstruct or harm [Latin INIMICUS meaning “enemy”]
Intractable
hard to control or deal with; difficult to manage [Think: A CONTRACT is a document that explains how a legal situation is to be managed together. When someone is tractable they are able to be managed or handled. When they are intractable, they are unmanageable]
Intrepid
invulnerable to fear or intimidation; bold, brave, courageous [Latin IN- meaning “not” and TREPIDUS meaning “alarmed”]
Maverick
a rebel; someone who exhibits great independence in thought and action
Mollify
to calm someone down, talk them off the ledge, make amends, maybe even apologize.
Neophyte
any new participant in some activity
Obfuscate
ˈäbfəˌskāt
make obscure or unclear
Obstinate
When someone is beyond stubborn; tenaciously unwilling or marked by tenacious unwillingness to yield
Ostentatious
pretentious,flamboyant,gaudy; intended to attract notice and impress others
Pervade
spread or diffuse through
Phlegmatic
flegˈmatik
showing little emotion; (of a person) having an unemotional and stolidly calm disposition
Pragmatic
dealing with things sensibly and realistically in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical considerations
Presumptuous
failing to observe the limits of what is permitted or appropriate (of a person or their behavior).
Probity
the quality of having strong moral principles; honesty and decency
Proclivity
a tendency to choose or do something regularly; an inclination or predisposition toward a particular thing.
Profligate
präfligət,-ləˌgāt
implies recklessly wasting your money on extravagant luxury.Profligatebehavior is a lot of fun, but you’ll regret it later — when you get your charge card bill.
Propensity
a natural tendency to behave in a certain way [Dogs have a propensity to bark, and many people have a propensity for getting annoyed by it.]
Pungent
1) strong and sharp taste or smell
2) And pungent can be used in a figurative sense: pungent language is stimulating and expressive.
Quotidian
occurring daily or everyday; Quotidian events are the everyday details of life.
Recondite
ˈrekənˌdīt,riˈkän-
hard for the average mind to understand; difficult to penetrate; incomprehensible to one of ordinary understanding or knowledge
Refulgent
riˈfo͝oljənt
shining brightly; radiating or as if radiating light
Renege
riˈneg,-ˈnig
fail to fulfill a promise or obligation
Soporific
säpəˈrifik
sleep inducing; inducing mental lethargy
Sparse
not dense; thin
Spendthrift
person is reckless and wasteful with his money; someone who spends money prodigally
Tacit
Somethingimplied or understood without question
Terse
brief, or using very few words; brief and to the point; effectively cut short
Tout
to praise, boast, or brag about; advertise in strongly positive terms; show off
Trenchant
ˈtrenCHənt
think or say smart, sharply worded things that cut right to the heart of the matter; having keenness and forcefulness and penetration in thought, expression, or intellect
Unfeigned
genuine; sincere; not pretended; sincerely felt or expressed
Untenable
something you can’t defend or justify; (of theories etc) incapable of being defended or justified
Vacillate
vasəˌlāt
to waver back and forth, unable to decide
Variegated
having a variety of colors
Vexation
something that causes annoyance and the state of mind that results from being annoyed [anger produced by some annoying irritation; the psychological state of being irritated or annoyed]
Vigilant
carefully observant or attentive; on the lookout for possible danger
Vituperate
vəˈt(y)o͞opəˌrāt,vī-
to speak or write in an extremely negative way about someone; blame or insult (someone) in strong or violent language
Volatile
1) liable to change rapidly and unpredictably, especially for the worse
2) (of a substance) easily evaporated at normal temperatures.
