January D-E

Question 1

dearth

Answer 1

n. lack, scarcity: “The prosecutor complained about the dearth of concrete evidence against the suspect.”

Question 2

deference

Answer 2

n. submission or courteous yielding: “He held his tongue in deference to his father.” (n:deferential. v. defer)

Question 3

depict

Answer 3

v. to show, create a picture of.

Question 4

deprecation

Answer 4

n. belittlement. (v. deprecate)

Question 5

depredation

Answer 5

n. the act of preying upon or plundering: “The depredations of the invaders demoralized the population.”

Question 6

descry

Answer 6

v. to make clear, to say

Question 7

desiccate

Answer 7

v. to dry out thoroughly (adj: desiccated)

Question 8

diatribe

Answer 8

n. a bitter abusive denunciation.

Question 9

diffident

Answer 9

adj. lacking self-confidence, modest (n: diffidence)

Question 10

disabuse

Answer 10

adj. to free a person from falsehood or error: “We had to disabuse her of the notion that she was invited.”

Question 11

disparaging

Answer 11

adj. belittling (n: disparagment. v. disparage)

Question 12

dispassionate

Answer 12

adj. calm; objective; unbiased

Question 13

dissemble

Answer 13

v. to conceal one’s real motive, to feign

Question 14

dogged

Answer 14

adj. stubborn or determined: “Her dogged pursuit of the degree eventually paid off.”

Question 15

dogmatic

Answer 15

adj. relying upon doctrine or dogma, as opposed to evidence

Question 16

eclectic

Answer 16

adj. selecting or employing individual elements from a variety of sources: “many modern decorators prefer an eclectic style.” (n: eclecticism)

Question 17

efficacy

Answer 17

n. effectiveness; capability to produce a desired effect

Question 18

effluent

Answer 18

adj.,n. the quality of flowing out. something that flows out, such as a stream from a river (n: effluence)

Question 19

emollient

Answer 19

adj., n. softening; something that softens

Question 20

emulate

Answer 20

v. to strive to equal or excel (n: emulation)

Question 21

encomium

Answer 21

n. a formal eulogy or speech of praise

Question 22

endemic

Answer 22

adj. prevalent in or native to a certain region, locality, or people: “The disease was endemic to the region.” Don’t confuse this word with epidemic.

Question 23

enervate

Answer 23

v. to weaken or destroy the strength or vitality of: “The heat enervated everyone.” (adj: enervating)

Question 24

engender

Answer 24

v. to give rise to, to propagate, to cause: “His slip of the tongue engendered much laughter.”

Question 25

enigma

Answer 25

n. puzzle; mystery: “Math is an enigma to me.” (adj: enigmatic)

Question 26

ephemeral

Answer 26

adj. lasting for only a brief time, fleeting (n: ephemera)

Question 27

equivocal

Answer 27

adj. ambiguous; unclear; subject to more than one interpretation– often intentionally so: “Republicans complained that Bill Clinton’s answers were equivocal.” (V. equivocate)

Question 28

erudite

Answer 28

adj. scholarly; displaying deep intensive learning. (n: erudition)

Question 29

esoteric

Answer 29

adj. intended for or understood by only a few: “The esoteric discussion confused some people.” (n: esoterica)

Question 30

eulogy

Answer 30

n. a spoken or written tribute to the deceased (v. eulogize)

Question 31

exacerbate

Answer 31

v. to increase the bitterness or violence of; to aggravate: “The decision to fortify the border exacerbated tensions.”

Question 32

exculpate

Answer 32

v. to demonstrate or prove to be blameless: “The evidence tended to exculpate the defendant.” (adj: exculpatory)

Question 33

exorbitant

Answer 33

adj. exceeding customary or normal limits, esp. in quantity or price: “The cab fare was exorbitant.”

Question 34

explicit

Answer 34

adj. fully and clearly expressed

Question 35

extant

Answer 35

adj. in existence, still existing: “The only extant representative of that species.”