Kap final review part 1 Flashcards
abscond
to leave secretly; decamp
the patron ABSCONDED from the restaurant by sneaking out the back door without paying his bill.
ameliorate
to make better; improve
The doctor was able to AMELIORATE the patient’s suffering using painkillers.
antipathy
extreme dislike
The ANTIPATHY between the French and the English regularly erupted into open warfare.
Phlegm
apathy: lack of interest or emotion
The APATHY/PHLEGM of voters is so great that less than half the people who are eligible to vote actually bother to do so.
Intrepid
Audacious: fearless and daring
“And you, your majesty, may kiss my bum!” replied the AUDACIOUS/INTREPID peasant.
Plucky
Audacious: fearless and daring
“And you, your majesty, may kiss my bum!” replied the AUDACIOUS/PLUCKY peasant.
Trite
Banal: predictable; overused and consequently of little import
He used BANAL/TRITE phrases like “have a nice day” and “another day, another dollar.”
Underpin
Bolster: to support; top prop up
The presence of giant footprints BOLSTERED/UNDERPINNED the argument that Sasquatch was in the area.
Din
Cacophony: harsh, jarring noise
The junior high orchestra created an almost unbearable CACOPHONY/DIN as they tried to tune their instruments.
Upbraid
Castigate: to punish or criticize harshly
Many Americans are amazed at how harshly the authorities in Singapore CASTIGATE/UPBRAID perpetrators of what would be considered minor crimes in the United States.
Chide
Castigate: to punish or criticize harshly
Many Americans are amazed at how harshly the authorities in Singapore CASTIGATE/CHIDE perpetrators of what would be considered minor crimes in the United States.
Reproach
Castigate: to punish or criticize harshly
Many Americans are amazed at how harshly the authorities in Singapore CASTIGATE/REPROACH perpetrators of what would be considered minor crimes in the United States.
Mordant
Caustic: having or showing a sharp or critical quality; biting.
Dorothy Parker gained her reputation for CAUSTIC/MORDANT wit from her cutting, yet clever, insults.
Trenchant
Caustic: (of a weapon or tool) having a sharp edge.
Dorothy Parker gained her reputation for CAUSTIC/TRENCHANT wit from her cutting, yet clever, insults.
Artifice
Chicanery; deception by means of craft or guile
Dishonest used car salespeople often use CHICANERY/ARTIFICE to sell their beat-up old cars.
Pettifoggery
Chicanery; deception by means of craft or guile
Dishonest used car salespeople often use CHICANERY/PETTIFOGGERY to sell their beat-up old cars.
Subterfuge
Chicanery; deception by means of craft or guile
Dishonest used car salespeople often use CHICANERY/SUBTERFUGE to sell their beat-up old cars.
Underhandedness
Chicanery; deception by means of craft or guile
Dishonest used car salespeople often use CHICANERY/UNDERHANDEDNESS to sell their beat-up old cars.
Condone
to overlook; pardon; or disregard
Some theorists believe that failing to prosecute minor crimes is the same as CONDONING an air of lawlessness.
Corroborate
to provide supporting evidence
Fingerprints CORROBORATED the witness’s testimony that he saw the defendant in the victim’s apartment.
Crescendo
Steadily increasing in volume or force
The CRESCENDO of tension became unbearable as Evel Knievel prepared to jump his motorcycle over the school buses.
Deference
Respect, courtesy
The respectful young law clerk treated the Supreme Court justice with the utmost DEFERENCE.
Homage
Deference; respect, courtesy
The respectful young law clerk treated the Supreme Court justice with the utmost DEFERENCE/HOMAGE.
Obeisance
Deference; respect, courtesy
The respectful young law clerk treated the Supreme Court justice with the utmost DEFERENCE/OBEISANCE.
Deride
To speak of or treat with contempt; to mock
The awkward child was often DERIDED by his “cooler” peers.
Jeer
To speak of or treat with contempt; to mock
The awkward child was often DERIDED/JEERED by his “cooler” peers.
Scoff
To speak of or treat with contempt; to mock
The awkward child was often DERIDED/SCOFFED by his “cooler” peers.
Sneer
To speak of or treat with contempt; to mock
The awkward child was often DERIDED/SNEERED by his “cooler” peers.
Desiccate
Dry out thoroughly
After a few weeks of lying on the desert’s baking sands, the cow’s carcass became completely DESICCATED.
Desultory
Jumping from one thing to another; disconnected
Diane had a DESULTORY academic record; she had changed majors twelve times in three years.
Diffident
lacking self-confidence
Steve’s DIFFIDENT manner during the job interview stemmed from his nervous nature and lack of experience in the field.
Laggard
Dilatory; intended to delay
The congressman used DILATORY/LAGGARD measures to delay the passage of the bill.
Dilettante
Someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic
Jerry’s friends were such DILETTANTES that they seemed to have new jobs and hobbies every week.
Dabbler
Dilettante; Someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic
Jerry’s friends were such DILETTANTES/DABBLERS that they seemed to have new jobs and hobbies every week.
Dirge
a funeral hymn or mournful speech
Melville wrote the poem “A DIRGE for James McPherson” for the funeral of a Union general who was killed in 1864.
Disabuse
to set right; to free from error; correct
Galileo’s observations DISABUSED scholars of the notion that the sun revolved around the Earth.
Disparate
fundamentally different; entirely unlike
Although the twins appear to be identical physically, their personalities are DISPARATE.
Dissemble
to present a false appearance; to disguise one’s real intentions or character
The villain could DISSEMBLE to the police no longer–he admitted the deed and tore up the floor to reveal the body of the old man.
Dissonance
a harsh and disagreeable combination, often of sounds
Cognitive DISSONANCE is the inner conflict produced when long-standing beliefs are contradicted by new evidence.
Imperious
dogmatic; dictatorial in one’s opinions
The dictator was DOGMATIC/IMPERIOUS–he, and only he, was right.
Dupe
to deceive; a person who is easily deceived
Bugs Bunny was able to DUPE Elmer Fudd by dressing up as a lady rabbit.
Cozen; hoodwink; humbug
to deceive; a person who is easily deceived
Bugs Bunny was able to DUPE/COZEN/HOODWINK/HUMBUG Elmer Fudd by dressing up as a lady rabbit.
Dirge
Elegy: a sorrowful poem or speech
Although Thomas Gray’s “ELEGY/DIRGE Written in a Country Churchyard” is about death and loss, it urges its readers to endure this life and to trust in spirituality.
Spawn
Engender: to produce, cause, or bring about
His fear and hatred of clowns was ENGENDERED/SPAWNED when he witnessed the death of his father at the hands of a clown.
waffling
equivocate: to use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead
When faced with criticism of his policies, the politician EQUIVOCATED/WAFFLED and left all parties thinking he agreed with them.
Irresolute
Erratic: wandering and unpredictable; uncertain
The plot seemed unpredictable until it suddenly took a series of ERRATIC/IRRESOLUTE turns that surprised the audience.
Meritorious
Estimable: admirable
Most people consider it ESTIMABLE/MERITORIOUS that Mother Teresa spent her life helping the poor of India.
Exigent
Urgent; requiring immediate action
The patient was losing blood so rapidly that it was EXIGENT top stop the source of the bleeding.
Fawn
to grovel: lie or move abjectly on the ground with one’s face downward
The understudy FAWNED over the director in hopes of being cast in the part on a permanent basis.
Bootlick; Pander
Fawn; to grovel: lie or move abjectly on the ground with one’s face downward
The understudy FAWNED/BOOTLICKED/PANDERED over the director in hopes of being cast in the part on a permanent basis.
Vehement
Fervid: intensely emotional; feverish
The fans of Maria Callas were particularly FErVID, doing anything to catch a glimpse of the great opera singer.
Foment
to arouse or incite
The protesters tried to FOMENT feeling against the war through their speeches and demonstrations.
Prudence; Parsimony; Scrimping
a tendency to be thrifty or cheap
Scrooge McDuck FRUGALITY was so great that he accumulated enough wealth to fill a giant storehouse with money.
Garrulous
tending to talk a lot
The GARRULOUS parakeet distracted its owner with its continuous talking.
Guile
Deceit or trickery; artifice
Since he was not fast enough to catch the roadrunner on foot, the coyote resorted to GUILE/ARTIFICE in an effort to trap his enemy.
Dispassionate; impassive; stoical
Imperturbable: not capable of being disturbed
The counselor had so much experience dealing with distraught children that she seemed DISPASSIONATE/IMPASSIVE/STOICAL/IMPERTURBABLE, even when faced with the wildest tantrums.
Impregnable
Impervious: impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected
A good raincoat is IMPREGNABLE/IMPERVIOUS to moisture.
