Key Terms Group 1 Flashcards
Aberrant
going off the usual, normal, or right way; deviating from the usual or normal type
Synonyms: abnormal, atypical, deviant, unusual
Abscond
to leave secretly and suddenly
Synonyms: disappear, escape, vanish
Alacrity
cheerful readiness
Synonyms: liveliness, promptness, willingness
Anomaly
something different, irregular
Synonyms: aberration, exception, irregularity, oddity
Approbation
formal approval
Synonyms: approval, commendation, endorsement, recognition
Arduous
extremely difficult; requiring much energy or effort
Synonyms: exhausting, grueling, strenuous
Assuage
to decrease the intensity or severity of
Synonyms: calm, ease, relieve
Audacious
daring, recklessly brave; inventive,
unconventional
Synonyms: adventurous, bold, rash
Austere
somber, strict, or stern in manner or appearance
Synonyms: ascetic, rigorous, serious, solemn
Axiomatic
taken as an axiom, or self-evident truth
Synonyms: accepted, fundamental, given, obvious
Canonical
following or in agreement with accepted, traditional standard
noun form: canon
a body of fundamental rules or standards; a set of sacred texts or other comprehensive list of texts
Capricious
impulsive, tending to act according to whim
Synonyms: arbitrary, erratic, unpredictable
Censure
blame, formal condemnation
Synonyms: criticism, disapproval, reprimand
Chicanery
deception through trickery
Synonyms: artifice, cheating, subterfuge
Connoisseur
one who understands, appreciates, and can make judgments of an art or matter of taste
Synonyms: aficionado, expert, specialist
Convoluted
full of twists and turns, complicated
Synonyms: complex, intricate, puzzling
Disabuse
to clear up an error or confusion
Synonyms: correct, debunk, enlighten
Discordant
not in harmony, quarrelsome
Synonyms: cacophonous, contradictory, inconsistent
Disparate
essentially different
Synonyms: dissimilar, diverse, various
Effrontery
shameless boldness
Synonyms: arrogance, disrespect, insolence
Eloquent
beautifully and fluently expressive
Synonyms: articulate, expressive
Enervate
to reduce the strength of
Synonyms: debilitate, enfeeble, weaken
Ennui
a feeling of weariness
Synonyms: boredom, dullness, languor
Equivocate
to speak without committing oneself
Synonyms: dodge, evade, prevaricate
Erudite
learned
Synonyms: educated, knowledgeable, studious
Exclupate
to clear from guilt or blame
Synonyms: absolve, exonerate, vindicate
Exigent
that which is necessary in a given situation; an urgent situation
Synonyms: necessity, requirement; crisis, emergency
Extemporaneous
made, done, or said at the spur of the moment
Synonyms: impromptu, improvised, unrehearsed
Filibuster
the use of obstruction to prevent action, especially the passage of a law
Synonyms: delay, hindrance, interference, opposition
Fulminate
to denounce strongly
Synonyms: attack, condemn, criticize
Ingenuous
characterized by childlike innocence or sincerity
Synonyms: artless, candid, naive
Inured
accustomed to difficulty or pain
Synonyms: hardened, toughened
Irascible
having a hot temper, easily angered
Synonyms: cranky, fractious, grouchy, irritable, touchy
Laud
to praise
Synonyms: acclaim, celebrate, extol
Lucid
full of light; clear to the understanding
Synonyms: bright, brilliant, radiant, shining;
evident, intelligible, obvious
Magnanimity
the possession of a courageous spirit and noble mind
Synonyms: chivalry, generosity, philanthropy
Martial
having to do with war or military life
Synonyms: military, soldierly, warlike
Mundane
earthly, practical, ordinary
Synonyms: banal, common, everyday, prosaic, unimaginative
Nascent
just coming into existence
Synonyms: burgeoning, fledgling, incipient
Nebulous
vague
Synonyms: confused, hazy, indefinite, indistinct, unclear
Nelogism
a new word
Noxious
poisonous or corrupting
Synonyms: deadly, injurious, harmful, pernicious, toxic
Obtuse
lacking quickness or insight in perception or intelligence
Synonyms: dense, dull, imperceptive, stupid
Obviate
to prevent or make unnecessary through anticipation
Synonyms: avert, hinder, preclude
Onerous
burdensome
Synonyms: arduous, oppressive, troublesome
Paean
a song of praise, thanksgiving, or triumph
Synonyms: anthem, hymn, laud, ode
Parody
a work of literature, music, theater, or film that imitates the style of another, for humorous or
satirical effect
Perennial
lasting a long time, persistent, constant
Synonyms: continuing, everlasting, perpetual, recurrent
Perfidy
an act of disloyalty, treachery
Synonyms: betrayal, duplicity, infidelity
Perfunctory
done in a routine, superficial, or indifferent way
Synonyms: automatic, mechanical, offhand, unthinking
Perspicacious
extremely perceptive
Synonyms: discerning, intelligent, keen, shrewd
Prattle
chatter or babble
Synonym: idle talk
Precipitate
to cause, to bring about in a rushed or sudden way; to come out of solution
Synonyms: hasten, hurry, speed
Predilection
a preference for something
Synonyms: bias, inclination, penchant, tendency
Prescience
foresight, through either divine means or normal human anticipation
Synonym: foreknowledge
Prevaricate
to lie
Synonyms: deceive, equivocate, misrepresent
Qualms
a feeling of apprehension or uneasiness, often for reasons of conscience or propriety
Synonyms: apprehension, misgiving, uncertainty
Recant
to openly and formally withdraw or disavow a statement or belief
Synonyms: nullify, retract, void
Refute
to prove wrong, to deny
Synonyms: disprove, invalidate, repudiate
Relegate
to banish, to assign to an insignificant or inferior
place or role
Synonyms: demote, displace
Reticent
tending to be uncommunicative or silent
Synonyms: reserved, restrained
Solicitous
showing concern or care; eager
Synonyms: anxious, attentive, careful, worried
Sordid
characterized by baseness, filthy
Synonyms: degenerate, miserable, squalid, vile
Sporadic
happening occasionally or irregularly
Synonyms: isolated, occasionally, scattered
Squander
to spend or use wastefully, to scatter
Synonyms: dissipate, misuse, waste
Static
Not moving, active, or in motion; at rest
Stupefy
to stun, baffle, or amaze
Stymie
to block; to thwart
Synthesis
the combination of parts to make a whole
Torque
A force that causes rotation
Tortuous
Winding, twisting; excessively complicated
Truculent
fierce and cruel; eager to fight
Veracity
truthfulness, honesty
Virulent
extremely harmful or poisonous; bitterly hostile or antagonistic
Voracious
Having an insatiable appetite for an activity or pursuit; ravenous
Waver
To move to and fro; to sway; to be unsettled in opinion
