June 2013 Flashcards
Edify [v.]
eh-dee-fai
DEFINITIONS
- to instruct, especially to encourage intellectual, moral and spiritual improvement:* ‘It was in fact musicians who first found a way to get back to work to edify people’s souls,’ said Mayor Landrieu.*
- to build/construct: If a particular story can edify future doctors, or educate the public, there might be value in publishing it.
- to convince/persuade: But words are my forte, I think, so allow me to edify its nature with a list of things it is and it isn’t.
SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS
- synonyms: teach, improve
- antonyms: upbuild, homily, reedify
ETYMOLOGY
aedificare, meaning ‘build’ in Latin.
EXPAND
edifice, edifieth, edification
Genial [adj.]
gee-neil
DEFINITIONS
- a pleasant disposition: There was a certain genial tenderness in this atmosphere that even in the hottest day of August the eastern coast never knows.
- bringing life**, **comfort** or **growth: * ‘The genial sunshine … saturating his miserable body with its warmth’ ~Jack London*
SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS
- synonyms: teach, improve
- antonyms: upbuild, homily, reedify
ETYMOLOGY
geniālis, meaning ‘of or pertaining to marriage; festive, genial’ in Latin. It is also from ‘genius’ (‘guardian spirit’)
EXPAND
geniality
Felicitous [adj.]
fuh-lee-see-thus
DEFINITIONS
- marked by good fortune and bliss: The President of the British Empire Club… was the guest of the Club at this meeting and was introduced by President Mitchell in felicitous terms.
- a word/ sentence/ situation/ manner is used in a fitting, appropriate way: The book is hard to put down because of this kind of felicitous prose, but it is a long book and takes a long time to read.
SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS
- synonyms: prosperous, skilful, fortunate, apt, well-chosen, well-wishing
- antonyms: unfelictous
ETYMOLOGY
‘Felix’, meaning ‘luck’ in Latin.
EXPAND
felicity, felicitate
Disquiet [v. / n. / adj.]
dis-quiet
DEFINITIONS
- to have no peace, rest from trouble: What Professor Rubin does not make clear is that the disquiet is primarily fomented by military elites who fear they may be deprived of some cheap toys from Israel and who resent being told to get back to their barracks and stay out of politics.
- to have no peace, rest from emotions; restless: Note, A great deal of disquiet is often given to the world by the restless ambition and implacable resentments of proud princes.”
SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS
- synonyms: impatient, uneasy, restless, agitate, disturb
- antonyms: peaceful
Appease [v.]
uh-peez
DEFINITIONS
- to bring peace and quiet: I believing in appease the Corporate Power and the bourgeoisie.
- to satisfy or to relieve: But think: isn’t allowing people to die a kind of sacrifice to God - to “appease” Him?
SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS
- synonyms: soothe, tranquilise, lull, concilate, pacify
- antonyms: antagonise
ETYMOLOGY
‘Apeser’ (to pacify, make peace) from Old French.
EXPAND
appeasement, appeaser
Avarice [n.]
eh-vur-iss
- DEFINITIONS*
1. an excessive desire for wealth: Vanity, not avarice, is my ruling passion; and so long as young men write to me from America saying that they would rather part with their hair than with their copy of my book, I do not feel the need of food and drink. - SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS*
- synonyms: cupidity,
- antonyms: antagonise
ETYMOLOGY
‘avāritia’, ‘avārus’ (greedy) in Old French and Latin.
EXPAND
avaricious, avariciousness,
Impudent [adj.]
im-pew-dun-t
- DEFINITIONS*
1. a person who is offensively bold and insolent: She nearly sank upon the ground last night when he called the impudent wench his bride. - SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS*
- synonyms: rude, saucy, brash, insolent, arrogant
- antonyms: polite, respectful, bashful
ETYMOLOGY
impudēns (shameless) from Latin.
EXPAND
impudency
Coherent [adj.]
cou-hee-run-t
- DEFINITIONS*
1. a person who is offensively bold and insolent: She nearly sank upon the ground last night when he called the impudent wench his bride. - SYNONYMS / ANTONYMS*
- synonyms: rude, saucy, brash, insolent, arrogant
- antonyms: polite, respectful, bashful
ETYMOLOGY
impudēns (shameless) from Latin.
EXPAND
impudency
Superficial [adj.]
super-fee-sher-ll
- shallow; lacking substance
- being near the surface
- insiginificant and trivial
Venerable [adj.]
veh-nuh-ruh-ble
- Worthy of respect from age, dignity, character or position
Capricious [adj.]
keh-pree-shush
- changeable; impulsive; whimsical
Eminence [n.]
eh-mee-nance
- posiion of great distinction or superiority
- a rise of ground; hill
- A person with high station or achievements
- A part of body that protudes from surface, especially a bone
Turret [n.]
tuh-rat
- an extension of a building [as image]
- a shooting device (usually attached to the top of transport)
Savage [adj.]
seh-veg
- Not cultivated/civilised
- Fierce and ferocious
- Lack of manners
- Attack without restraint or mercy
Crenelate [v.]
creh-nuh-late
- To render a place so it is defensible by battlements
- To cut loopholes through the wall
Patent [n.]
pay-tuhn
- A grant made by the government the right to make, use or sell that invention for a set period of time
2.
Bulge [n. / v.]
bal-juh
- A protuding curve
- To be filled or overfilled
- A swell
His pockets are bulging with coins.
Pension [n.]
pen-shen
- Regularly paid retirement money
Distend (v.)
dis-tend
- to swell out or expand from pressure
Acrimonious (adj.)
eh-cree-mo-nee-us
DEFINITIONS
bitter and sharp in language or tone; rancuous: an acroimonious debate between two candidates
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: accrid, corrosive, caustic, resentful
**antonyms: **
expand: acrimony
Austere (adj.)
aw-staire
DEFINITIONS
severe or stern disposition or appearance: the austere figure of a minister
strict or severe in discipline; ascetic: a desert nomad’s austere life
having no adornment or ornamentation; bare: an austere style
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: grave, rigid, harsh, serious, unadorned, grim
antonyms: gentle
expand: austerity, austerest, austere, austerely,
facts: originate from Latin and Ancient Greek as austērus (“dry, harsh, sour, tart”). It has a specific meaning of ‘making the tongue dry.’
Bombast (adj.)
bomb-bass
DEFINITIONS
figuratively extravagant and pompous speech of writing that is not suitable for the occasion.
high-sounding; big without meaning: I am, even now, ashamed as I recall the bombast to which I treated the Countess de St. Alyre.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: stuffing, high-sounding, inflated, magniloquent
antonyms:
expand: bombastic, bombastical
Capricious (adj.)
keh-pree-scious
DEFINITIONS
characterised by or subject to whim, impulsive and unpredictable.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: changeable, whimsical, arbitrary, unsteady
antonyms: constant
expand: capriccio
Cogent (adj.)
co-journ-tt
DEFINITIONS
reasonable and convincing: You speak with a clear voice and in cogent paragraphs, and make a great case for our progressive causes.
forcefully persuasive: But I’m missing the kind of cogent argument that might give some teeth to your claim of having put sharp questions to your sparring partner
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: urgent, powerful, influential, strong
antonyms: unconvincing, incredible
**expand: **
Convolute (adj. / v. transitive)
kon-voh-lewt
DEFINITIONS
rolled** **or coiled together in overlapping whorls, like certain leaves, petals and shells:
to make unnecessarily complex: *You can divert, rationalize, convolute, and obscure the minor details to your heart’s content but one irrefutable fact remains… *
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: curled, coiled
antonyms: uncoil
expand: convolve, convlvuli, convolvulus, convolution
Credulous (adj.)
creh-due-lust
DEFINITIONS
showing a lack of judgement or experience:* **People like Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck make a huge personal profit, both politically and monetarily, by playing on the fear of the credulous, and claiming this equals that when it plainly does not.*
apt to believe on slight evidence; unsuspecting: He came down firmly against discrimination, attacking the notion of credulous sellers and conniving buyers.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: naive, unquestioning, gullible, believing
antonyms: incredulous
expand: credulity
Diffident (adj.)
dee-fee-duhnt
DEFINITIONS
lacking self-confidence: a diffident youth
reserved in manner: Mr. V.V. stood by a spindly table, carefully examining a small but costly vase, the property of Mr. Heth, of the Cheroot Works; and now he went on with a kind of diffident resolution, the air of one who gives a confidence with difficulty, but must do so now, for his honor.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: distrustful, bashful, timid, doubtful
antonyms:
expand: diffide
Dilatory
Dogmatic (adj.)
dog-meh-tik
DEFINITIONS
asserting to make positive statements of an opinion, doctrine or fact without presenting arguments or evidence: Please, it may be shocking to you, and objectionable to your religious convictions, but there IS a valid basis for accepting such a hypothesis that does not require blind faith in dogmatic scripture.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: magisterial, narrow-minded, overbearing
antonyms: empiric
expand: dogmatise, dogmatical
Eclectic (adj.)
ik-lek-tik
DEFINITIONS
selecting or employing individual elements form a variety of sources, systems or styles: an electic taste of music; an eclectic approach to manage the company
made up of or combining elements form a variety of sources: A popular bar patronized by an eclectic collection of artists, writers, secretaries and aging soldiers on reserve duty.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: selecting
**antonyms: **
expand: electicism, eclectist
Erudite (n. / adj.)
eh-roo-dite
DEFINITIONS
characterised by being learned, taught or has an extensive reading or knowledge: A**s a teacher, while he could not be called erudite, he was uncommonly interesting and inspiring.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: learned, instructed, knowledgeable, scholarly
antonyms: unlearned
expand: erudition
Estimable (adj.)
ess-tee-muh-bel
DEFINITIONS
capable of being estimated or valued: estimable damage
worthy of esteem and respect; admirable: But the action was nonetheless ‘estimable’ and the navy commandos intercept the Mavi Marmara on its way to break the…
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: valuable, previous, respectable, worshipful
antonyms: abominable, contemptible
expand: estimate
Exigent (adj.)
ex-see-journt
DEFINITIONS
an urgent occasion that requires immediate aid or remedy:* **Now, under the law, police may enter a home without knocking if certain so-called exigent circumstances exist.*
requiring much accuracy, effort or expense
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: pressing, demanding, critical, necessary
**antonyms: **
expand: exigency
Precede (v.)
pruh-ceed
DEFINITIONS
to come, exist or occur before in order of time: The poured-out bottle might suggest that he thought of me as a pocket-sized prohibitionist minister, a vocation he respected; but the nickname may precede my fears.
to surpass or outrank in rank or importance: Christ; wherefore Gregory says in a homily (Hom. vii in Evang.) that therefore did John baptize, “that, being consistent with his office of precursor, as he had preceded our Lord in birth…
to go before**, **go in front of: The answer is that their syntax had already been fixed by conventional usage when they passed into English from French, whose adjectives typically follow rather than precede nouns.
to preface; introduce: She preceded her lecture with a funny anecdote
RELATING WORDS
**synonyms: **
**antonyms: **
expand: precedent, precedence
Impervious (adj.)
im-per-vious
DEFINITIONS
Incapable of being penetrated: a material impervious to water
Incapable of being affected: impervious *to fear: *
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: impenetrable, impassable, immune, resistant
**antonyms: **
expand: imperviable
Impetuous (adj.)
im-pet-tue-us
DEFINITIONS
Characterised by sudden and forceful energy** of emotions; **impulse:
Having or marked by violent force: impetuous, heating waves
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: passionate, fierce, hotheaded, hasty, rapid, vehement
antonyms: deliberate, apathetic** **
expand: impetuosity, impetus, impetuousness
Inchoate (adj. / v. / n.)
in-coh-uht
DEFINITIONS
An initial or early stage; incipent; not completely formed or established; elementary: It was an image, a kind of inchoate anxiety about the future, rather than anything you could put your finger on.
imperfectly formed or developed: You can still hear it, loud and clear, on this messy, inchoate, rock’n’roll masterpiece; the Rolling Stones in excelsis.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: beginning, rudimentary, elementary, early
**antonyms: **
expand: inchoative, inchoation
Ingenuous (adj.)
in-jenn-you-us
DEFINITIONS
Lack of cunningness**, worldliness; **artless: Through her combination of ingenuous charm, waif-like solitude and physical attractiveness, she hypnotises all the men around her.
Unsophisicated; simple: Frank-faced, fresh-colored, almost ingenuous in expression, eyes blue and wide apart, he drew and held the gaze of more than one woman far above him in the social scale.
Demonstrating childlike simplicity: His features displayed a good deal of serene pride, self-respect, fortitude, a kind of ingenuous sensuality, and something of instinctive wisdom, without any sharpness of intellect.
Unable to mask feelings: His ingenuous delight in it was a delight to her, and a new and mutual love-thrill was theirs – because of a flower.
Openly frank; candid; straightforward: And into my face I strove to throw all the wan wistfulness of famished and ingenuous youth of mendicancy.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: open, artless, unreserved, generous
antonyms: disingenuous
expand: ingenuities, ingenue, ingenuity,
Inimical (adj.)
ee-nee-mee-kuhl
DEFINITIONS
injurious or harmful in effect**; **adhersive: But it was also important that the big windows not lure birds to their deaths with inimical reflections.
unfriendly; hostile: The two continued to look into each other’s eyes, and something, it could hardly be called inimical, rather an aloofness from the tie of blood, was visible to each in the other’s steadfast gaze.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: unfriendly, unfavourable, repugnant
**antonyms: **
expand: inimicable,
Insipid (adj.)
in-see-peed
DEFINITIONS
lacking flavour or zest; not tasty: The Hijazi is a round fruit, sweet, but insipid, which is also the reproach of the Sawadi, or black grape.
lacking flavours that stimulate, excite or interest:* **Carly Flynn, who managed to be “the nice one” without being insipid, which is a tricky balance to manage (not that I’ve ever tried).*
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: vapid, lifeless, uninteresting
**antonyms: **
expand: insipidity
Intrepid (adj.)
in-truh-peed
DEFINITIONS
resolutely courageous; invulnerable to fear: A similar danger recalled the intrepid prince to the defence of the front; and, as he galloped through the columns, the centre of the left was attacked, and almost overpowered by the furious charge of the Persian cavalry and elephants.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: daring, heroic, undaunted, valiant, brave
**antonyms: **
**expand: **
Irascible (adj.)
ee-rash-see-ble
DEFINITIONS
prone to outbursts of temper; easily angered: Recalling his irascible nature, I had to smile, and his presence was so real that I began speaking to his statue: ‘How strange it is, Father, that you who ignored English in college and read none of the great novels, who concentrated solely on your engineering work, should have written a book of such merit that they put up a statue of you.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: impatient, touchy, cranky, snappish
antonyms: calm, peaceful, patient
expand: irascibly, irascibility
Laconic (n. / adj.)
luh-co-nick
DEFINITIONS
expressing much in few words; conciseness of language - chiefly used in the plural: He brings a new meaning to the word laconic and his choice of words is as accurate as his spicing.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: concise, cruel, unflinching, pithy
antonyms: verbose, long-winded, bombastic
expand: laconism
Obdurate (adj.)
ob-due-rate
DEFINITIONS
hardened by wrongdoing or wickedness, hence unwilling to believe in anything else: obdurate conscience of the old sinner
Not giving in persuasion; intractable: George passed from life with the kind of obdurate resistance and strength of spirit with which he had lived.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: unbending, impertinent, unyielding
**antonyms: **
expand: obduracy, obduration
Obsequious (adj.)
ob-see-que-us
DEFINITIONS
promptly (or especially eager to be) obedient or submissive to the will of another:* **The waiters at the club were all white-jacketed middle-aged black men who could not be called obsequious but belonged culturally to another generation, one that knew how to be selectively deaf and to pretend that the clientele they served held them in high regard.*
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: obedient, servile, yielding, devoted
antonyms: arrogant, rebellious, self-satisfied, impudent
expand: obsequience
Perfidious (adj.)
puh-fee-dee-us
DEFINITIONS
representing perfidy; disloyal:* **If soldiers are entitled to deal harshly with wounded enemy soldiers who might be engaged in perfidious acts, surely that entitlement can’t be contingent on holding a mini-trial right there to determine the matter.*
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: treacherous, faithless, unfaithful
antonyms: perfit, perficient, perfix, perfidy
expand: imperviable
Perfunctory (adv.)
per-funk-tuh-ree
DEFINITIONS
Done routinely and with little interest or care: The perator answered the phone with a perfunctory greeting.
Acting with indifference: Sequences that could sing with tension and excitement ar done in perfunctory fashion.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: indifferent, carelss, obligatory, mechnical, automatic
**antonyms: **
expand:
Petulant (adj.)
peh-tue-lent
DEFINITIONS
unreasonably irritable or ill-tempered; peevish: The islands show dimly grey amid a welter of grey water, brekaing angrily in short, petulant seas, which buffet boats confusedly and put the helmsmen’s skills to high test.
Contemptuous in speech or behaviour: Jones declined to characterise Astro as ‘arrogant’, saying he might use the term ‘petulent’ instead.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: querulous, forward, insolent
antonyms: easyoing
expand: petulancy, petulance
Prodigal (adj.)
pro-dee-juhl
DEFINITIONS
rashly or wastefully extravagant: prodigal expenditures on unneeded weaponry
Giving or given in abundance; lavish or profuse: prodigal praise
- *
- RELATING WORDS*
synonyms: wasteful, lavish, abundant, generous
antonyms: frugal
expand: prodigality
Quiescent (adj.)
DEFINITIONS
being quiet, still or at rest; inactive: the average school seems empowered only to teach the minimum necessary to produce quiescent, docile employees who can work for a minimum wage at a fast food franchise.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: still, unagitated, resting, silent
**antonyms: **
expand: quiesce
Reticent
DEFINITIONS
Incapable of being penetrated: a material impervious to water
Incapable of being affected: impervious *to fear: *
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: impenetrable, impassable, immune, resistant
**antonyms: **
expand: imperviable
Soporific (adj.)
DEFINITIONS
Inducing sleep: enduring soporific meetings
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: drowsy, dormitive, hypnotic, opiate, narcotic
antonyms: stimulating
expand: soporiferous
Specious (adj.)
DEFINITIONS
having the ring of truth or plausibility but actually fallacious:* a specious argument.*
deceptively attractive
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: ostensible, plausible, insincere, flimsy, meretricious
antonyms: sincere
**expand: **
Stolid (adj.)
DEFINITIONS
having or revealing little emotion or sensibility: the incredibly massive and stolid bureaucracy of the Soviet system.
RELATING WORDS
synonyms: dull, impassive, foolish, stupid
**antonyms: **
**expand: **
Taciturn (adj.)
DEFINITIONS
habitually untalkative: One of the advantages of being taciturn is that it is rare for your words to get you into trouble.
Acuity (n.)
DEFINITIONS
acuteness of vision or perception: She just turned 90, and her mental acuity is better than most people half her age.
Abate (v.)
DEFINITIONS
to deduct from an amount; substract: the declines came after a strong week for the euro as worries about Greece appeared to abate.
to fall off in degree or intensity: I don’t think the protests are going to abate anytime soon short of Mubarak leaving.
Adulterate (v. / adj.)
DEFINITIONS
to make impure by adding extraneous, improper or inferior ingredients: Meanwhile anti-foreign snetiments grew in the Tang court culminating in a decree in 845 ordering monks of the ‘Religion of the Light’ to reutrn to lay life ‘so that they will not adulterate the customs of China.’
- *
Aggrandise (v. transitive)
DEFINITIONS
to make great, enlarge out conceptions, authority and distress: I’m sure every creative innovator has moments of terrible self doubbt says she, attempting to aggrandise a very unimportant issue.
