I Flashcards
1
Q
ichthyology
A
study of fish
Jacques Cousteau’s rpograms about sea life have advanced the cause of ichthyology.
2
Q
iconoclastic
A
attacking cherished traditions
George Bernard Shaw’s iconoclastic plays often startled more conventional people.
3
Q
idiom
A
spcial usage in language
I could not understand their idioms because literal translation made no sense.
4
Q
idolatry
A
worship of idols; excessive admiration
Such idolatry of singers of country music is typical of the excessive enthusiasm of youth.
5
Q
idyllic
A
charmingly carefree; simple
Far from the city, she led an idyllic existence in her rural retreat.
6
Q
igneous
A
produced by fire; volcanic
Lava, pumice, and other igneous rocks are found in great abundance around Mount Vesuvius near Naples.
7
Q
ignoble
A
of lowly origin; unworthy
This plan is inspired by ignoble motives and I must, therefore, oppose it.
8
Q
ignominious
A
disgraceful
The country smarted under the ignominious defeat and dreamed of the day when it would be victorious.
9
Q
illimitable
A
infinite
Human beings, having explored the far corners of the earth, are now reaching out into illimitable space.
10
Q
illusive
A
deceiving
This is only a mirage; let us not be fooled by its illusive effect.
11
Q
illusory
A
deceptive; not real
Unfortunately, the costs of running the lemonade stand were so high that Tom’s profits proved illusory.
12
Q
imbecility
A
weakness of mind
I am amazed at the imbecility of the readers of these trashy magazines.
13
Q
imbibe
A
drink in
The dry soil imbibed the rain quickly.
14
Q
imbroglio
A
complicated situation; perplexity; entanglement
He was called in to settle the imbroglio but failed to bring harmony into the situation.
15
Q
imbue
A
saturate, fill
His visits to the famous Gothic cathedrals imbued him with feelings of awe and reverence.
16
Q
immaculate
A
pure; spotless
The West Point cadets were immaculate as they lined up for inspection.
17
Q
immolate
A
offer as a sacrifice
The tribal kind offered to immolate his daughter to quiet the angry gods.
18
Q
immure
A
imprison; shut up in confinement
For the two weeks before the examination, the student immureed himself in his room and concentrated upon his studies.
19
Q
impale
A
pierce
He was impaled by the spear hurled by his adversary.
20
Q
impalpable
A
imperceptible; intangible
The ash is so fine that it is impalpable to the touch but it can be seen as a fine layer covering the window ledge.
21
Q
impasse
A
predicament from which there is no escape
In this impasse, all turned to prayer as their last hope.
22
Q
impassive
A
without feeling; not affected by pain
The Native American has been incorrectly depicted as an impassive individual, undemonstrative and stoical.
23
Q
impeach
A
charge with crime in office; indict
The angry congressman wanted to impeach the President for his misdeeds.
24
Q
impecunious
A
without money
Now that he was wealthy, he gladly contributed to funds to assist impecunious and disbled persons.
25
impede
hinder; block
The special prosecutor determined that the Attorney General, though inept, had not intentionally set out to impede the progress of the investigation.
26
impending
nearing; approaching
The entire country was saddened by the news of his impending death.
27
impenitent
not repentant
We could see by his brazen attitude that he was impenitent.
28
imperiousness
lordliness; domineering manner; arrogance
His imperiousness indicated that he had long been accustomed to assuming command.
29
impertinent
insolent
I regard your remarks as impertinent and I resent them.
30
imperturbable
calm; placid
Wellington remained imperturbable and in full command of the situation in spite of the hyteria and panic all around him.
31
impetuous
violent; hasty; rash
We tried to curb his impetuous behavior because we felt that in his haste he might offend some people.
32
impetus
moving force; incentive; stimulus
A new federal highway program would create jobs and five added impetus to our economic recovery.
33
impiety
irreverence; wickedness
We must regard your blasphemy as an act of impiety.
34
impinge
infringe; touch; collide with
How could they be married without impinging on one another's freedom?
35
impious
irreverent
The congregation was offended by her impious remarks.
36
implacable
incapable of being pacified
Madame Defarge was the implacable enemy of the Evremonde family.
37
implausible
unlikely; unbelievable
Though her alibi seened implausible, it in fact turned out to be true.
38
implore
beg
He implored her to give him a second chance.
39
impolitic
not wise
I think it is impolitic to raise this issue at the present time because the public is too angry.
40
imponderable
weightless
I can evaluate the data gathered in this study; the imponderable items are not so easily analyzed.
41
import
significance
I feel that you have not grasped the full import of the message sent tous by the enemy.
42
importunate
urging; demanding
He tried to hide from his importunate creditors until his allowance arrived.
43
importune
beg persistently
Democratic and Republican phone solicitors importuned her for contributions so frequently that she decided to give nothing to either party.w
44
impotent
weak; ineffective
Although he wished to break the nicotine habit, he found himself impotent in resisisting the craving for a cigarette.
45
imprecation
curse
Roused from the bed at what he considered an ungodly hour, Roy muttered imprecations under his breath.
46
impregnable
invulnerable
Until the development of the airplane as a military weapon, the fort was considered impregnable.
47
impromtu
without previous preparation
Her listeners were amazed that such a thorough presentation could be made in an impromptu speech.
48
impropriety
state of being inappropriate
Because of the impropriety of his costume, he was denied entrance into the dining room.
49
improvident
thriftless
He was constantly being warned to mend his improvident ways and begin to "save for a rainy day."
50
imprudent
lacking caution; injudicious
It is imprudent to exercise vigorously and become overheated when you are unwell.
51
impugn
doubt; challenge; gainsay
I cannot impugn your honesty without evidence.
52
impuissance
powerlessness; feebleness
The lame duck President was frustrated by his shift from enormous power to relative impuissance.
53
impute
attribute; ascribe
If I wished to impute blame to the officers in charge of this program, I would state my feelings definitely and immediately.
54
inadvertently
carelessly; unintentionally; by oversight
She inadvertently omitted two questions on the examination and mismarked her answer sheet.
55
inalienable
not to be taken away; nontransferable
The Declaration of Independence mentions the inalienable rights that all of us possess.
56
inane
silly; senseless
Such comments are inane because they do not help us solve our program.
57
inaugurate
begin formally; install in office
The candidate promised that he would inaugurate a new nationwide health care plan as soon as he was inaugurated as president.
58
incandescent
stikingly bright; shining with intense heat
If you leave on an incandescent light bulb, it quickly grows too hot to touch.
59
incantation
singing or chanting of magical formula
Uttering incantations to make the brew more potent, the witch doctor stirred the liquid in the caldron.
60
incense
enrage; infuriate
Unkindness to children incensed her.
61
inception
start; beginning
She was involved with the project from its inception.
62
incessant
uninterrupted
The crickets kept up an incessant chirping that disturbed our attempts to fall asleep.
63
inchoate
recently begun; rudimentary; elementary
Before the Creation, the world was an inchoate mass.
64
incicental
not essential; minor
The scholarship covered his major expenses at college and some of his incidental expenses as well.
65
incipient
beginning; in an early stage
I will go to sleep early for I want to break an incipient cold.
66
incisive
cutting; sharp
His incisive remarks made us see the fallacy in our plans.
67
incite
arouse to action
The demogogue incited the mob to take action into its own hands.
68
inclement
stormy; unkind
I like to read a good book in inclement weather.
69
incommodious
not spacious; inconvenient
In their incommodious quarters, they had to improvise for closet space.
70
incontinent
lacking self-restraint
His incontinent behavior off stage shocked many people and they refused to attend the plays and movies in which he appeared.
71
incontrovertible
indisputable
We must yield to the incontrovertible evidence that you have presented and free your client.
72
incorporeal
immaterial; without a material body
We must devote time to the needs of our incorporeal mind as well as our corporeal body.
73
incorrigible
uncorrectable
Though Widow Douglass hoped to reform Huck, Miss Watson pronounced him incorrigible and said he would come to no good end.
74
incubus
burden; mental care; nightmare
The incubus of financial worry helped bring on her nervous breakdown.
75
incumbent
officeholder
The newly elected public official received valuable advice from the present incumbent.
76
incur
bring upon oneself
His parents refused to pay any future debts he might incur.
77
incursion
temporary invasion
The nightly incursions and hit-and-run raids of our neighbors across the border tried the patience of the country to the point where we decided to retaliate in force.
78
indefatigable
tireless
He was indefatigable in his constant efforts to raise funds for the Red Cross.
79
indemnify
make secure against loss; compensate for loss
The city will indemnify all home owners whose property is spoiled by this project.
80
indenture
bind as servant or apprentice to master
Many immigrants could come to America only after they had indentured themselves for several years.
81
indeterminate
uncertain; not clearly fixed; indefinite
That interest rates shall rise appears certain; when they will do so, however, remains indeterminate.
82
indict
charge
If the grand jury indicts the suspect, he will go to trial.
83
indigence
poverty
Neither the economists nor the political scientists have found a way to wipe out the inequities of wealth and eliminate indigence from our society.
84
indignation
anger ar an injustice
He felt indignation at the ill-treatment of the helpless animals.
85
indignity
offensive or insulting treatment
Although he seemed to accept cheerfully the indignities heaped upon him, he was inwardly very angry.
86
indissoluble
permanent
The indissoluble bonds of marriage are all too often being dissolved.
87
indite
write; compose
Cyrano indited many letters for Christian.
88
indolence
laziness
He outgrew his youthful indolence to become a model of industry and alertness on the job.
89
indomitable
unconquerable
The founders of our country had indomitable willpower.
90
indubitably
beyond a doubt
Because her argument was indubitably valid, the judge accepted it.
91
inductive
pertaining to induction or preceeding from the specific to the general
The discovery of the planet Pluto is an excellent example of the results that can be obtained from inductive reasoning.
92
indulgent
humoring; yielding; lenient
indulgent parents spoil their children by giving in to their every whim.
93
inebriety
habitual intoxication
Because of his inebriety, he was discharged from his position as family chauffeur.
94
ineffable
unutterable; cannot be expressed in speech
Such ineffable joy must be experienced; it cannot be described.
95
ineluctable
irresistable; not to be escaped
He felt that his fate was ineluctible and refused to make any attempt to improve his lot.
96
inequity
unfairness
In demanding equal pay for equal work, women protest the basic inequity of a system that allots greater financial rewards to men.
97
inerrancy
infallibility
Jane refused to believe in the pope's inerrancy, reasoning: "All human beings are capable of error. The pope is a human being. Therefore, he pope is capable of error.
98
inexorable
relentless; unyielding; implacable
After listening to the pleas for clemency, the judge was inexorable and gave the convicted man the maximum punishment allowed by law.
99
infallible
unerring
We must remember that none of us is infallible; we all make mistakes.
100
infamous
notoriously bad
Jesse James was an infamous outlaw.
101
infidel
unbeliever
The Saracens made war against tne infidels.
102
infirmity
weakness
Her greatest infirmity was lack of willpower.
103
infraction
violation
Because of his many infractions of school regulations, he was suspended by the dean.
104
infringe
violate; encroach
I think your machine infringes on my patent and intend to sue.
105
ingrate
ungrateful person
That ingrate Bob sneered at the tie I gave him.
106
ingratiate
become popular with
He tried to ingratiate himself into her parents' good graces.
107
inherent
firmly established by nature or habit
His inherent love of justice compelled him to come to their aid.
108
inimical
unfriendly; hostile
She felt that they were inimical and were hoping for her downfall.
109
iniquitous
unjust; wicked
I cannot approve of the iniquitous methods you used to gain your present position.
110
injurious
harmful
Smoking cigarettes can be injurious to your health.
111
inkling
hint T
his came as a complete surprise to me as I did not have the slightest inkling of your plans.
112
innocuous
harmless
Let him drink it; it is innocuous and will have no ill effect.
113
innuendo
hint; insinuation
I can defend myself against direct accusations; innuendos and oblique attacks on my character are what trouble me.
114
inopportune
untimely; poorly chosen
A rock concert is an inopportune setting for a quiet conversation.
115
inordinate
unrestrained; excessive
She had an inordinate fondness for candy.
116
inquisitor
questioner (specially harsh); investigator
Fearing being grilled ruthlessly by the secret police, Marsha faced her inquisitors with trepidation.
117
insalubrious
unwholesome; not healthful
The mosquito-ridden swamp was an insalubrious place, a breeding ground for malarial contagion.
118
inscrutable
impenetrable; not readily understood; mysterious
Experienced poker players try to keep their expressions inscrutable, hiding their reactions to the cards behind a so-called poker face.
119
insensate
without feeling
She lay there as insensate as a log.
120
insidious
treacherous; stealthy; sly
The fifth column is insidious because it works secretly within our territory for our defeat.
121
insolence
imprudent disrespect; haughtiness
How dare you treat me so rudely! The manager will hear of you insolence.
122
insouciant
indifferent; without concern or care
Your insouciant attitude at such a critical moment indicates that you do not understand the gravity of the situation.
123
instigate
urge; start; provoke
I am afraid that this statement will instigate a revolt.
124
insularity
narrow-mindedness; isolation
The insularity of the islanders manifested itself in their suspicion of anyuthing foreign.
125
insurgent
rebellious
We will not discuss reforms until the insurgent troops have returned to their homes.
126
intelligentsia
intellectuals; members of the educated elite
She preferred discussions about sports and politics to the literary conversations of the intelligentsia.
127
inter
bury
They are going to inter the body tomorrow ar Broadlawn Cemetry.
128
interdict
prohibit; forbid
Civilized nations must interdict the use of nuclear weapons if we expect out society to live.
129
interim
meantime
The company will not consider our proposal until next week; in the interim, let us proceed as we have in the past.
130
interloper
intruder
The merchant thought of his competitors as interlopers who were stealing away his trade.
131
internecine
mutually destructive
The rising death toll on both sides indicates the internecine natire of his conflict.
132
interpolate
insert between
She talked so much that I could not interpolate a single remark.
133
interregnum
period between two reigns
Henry VIII desperately sought a male heir because he feared the civil strife that might occur if any prolonged interregum succeeded his death.
134
intimate
hint
She intimated rather than stated her preferences.
135
intractable
unruly; refractory
The horse was intractable and refused to enter the starting gate.
136
intransigence
state of stubborn unwillingness to compromise
The intransigence of both parties in the dispute makes an early settlement almost impossible to obtain.
137
inured
accustomed; hardened
She became inured to the Alaskan cold.
138
invective
abuse
He had expected criticism but not the invective that greeted his proposal.
139
inveigh
denounce; utter censure or invective
He inveighed against the demagoguery of the previous speaker and urged that the audience reject his philosophy as dangerous.
140
inveigle
lead astray; wheedle
She was inveigled into joining the club after an initial reluctance.
141
inveterate
deep-rooted; habitual
She is an inveterate smoker and cannot break the habit.
142
invidious
designed to create ill will or envy
We disregarded her invidious remarks because we realized how jealous she was.
143
invoke
call upon; ask for
She invoked her advisor's aid in filling out her financial aid forms.
144
iota
very small quantity
She hadn't an iota of common sense.
145
irascible
irritable; easily angered
Her irascible temper frightened me.
146
irate
angry
When John's mother found out that he had overthrown his checking account for the third month in a row, she was so irate that she could scarcely speak to him.
147
iridescent
exhibiting rainbowlike colors
She admired the iridescent hues of the oil that floated on the surface of the water.
148
irksome
annoying; tedious
He found working on the assembly line irksome because of the monotony of the operation he had to perform.
149
irreconsilable
incompatible; not able to be resolved
Because the separated couple were irreconcilable, the marriage counselor recommended a divorce.
150
irreparable
not able to be corrected or repaired
Your apology cannot atone for the irreparable damage you have done to her reputation.
151
irresolute
uncertain how to act; weak
She had no respect for him because he seemed weak-willed and irresolute.
152
irrevocable
unalterable
Let us not brood over past mistakes since they are irrevocable.
153
isthmus
narrow neck of land connecting two larger bodies of land
In a magnificent feat of engineering, Goethals and his men cut through the isthmus of Panama in constructing the Panama Canal.
154
itinerant
wandering; traveling
He was an itinerant peddler and traveled through Pennsylvania and Virginia selling his wares.
155
intersperse
scatter
The molecules will intersperse throughout the space according to the second law of thermodynamics.
156
inquisitive
unduly curious; prying; seeking knowledge
We need more inquisitive students in this school; lectures are dull.
157
