Level 2 Flashcards
- ADVOCATE (AD-vuh-kayt)
To support, plead for, be in favor of, defend by argument; especially, to speak or write in favor or in defense of a person or cause. Synonyms: champion, endorse, espouse.Corresponding noun: advocate, a supporter or defender of a cause, a champion, or a person who speaks for another. Related words (from the Latin vocare, to call, summon): vocation; avocation; vocational; vocal; convoke, to call together; convocation, the act of calling together, or a group that has been summoned; evoke, to call out, call forth; and evocative, calling forth a response, especially an emotional one.
- DELEGATE (DEL-uh-gayt)
To entrust with authority or power, deliver to another’s care or management, hand over to an agent or representative.
- UNPRECEDENTED (uhn-PRES-uh-den-tid)
Unheard-of, novel, new, having no precedent or parallel, having no prior example or justification.
- POIGNANT (POYN-yint)
Piercing, sharp, penetrating; specifically, piercing or penetrating to the senses, to the emotions, or to the intellect. Synonyms: biting, cutting, keen, acute.Related words (from the Latin pungere, to pierce or prick): puncture; pungent, piercing to the smell or taste; expunge, to punch out, erase, delete.
- NEBULOUS (NEB-yuu-lus)
Unclear, vague, obscure, hazy, indefinite, indistinct. Related word: nebula, a cloudy mass of dust or gas visible between stars in space (plural, nebulae).
- CLANDESTINE (klan-DES-tin)
Kept secret, done in secrecy, especially for an evil, immoral, or illegal purpose. Synonyms: private, concealed, covert, underhand, sly, stealthy, furtive, surreptitious.
- TIRADE (TY-rayd or ty-RAYD)
A long-drawn-out speech, especially a vehement and abusive one. Additional useful words: protracted, drawn out to great length (see Level 3, Word 25);vituperative, full of harsh, abusive language; censorious, tending to censor, to blame or condemn.
- RECUR (ri-KUR or nee-KUR)
To happen again, occur again, especially at intervals or after some lapse of time. N.B. This discussion explains the distinction between the verbs recur and reoccur.
- TACIT (TAS-it)
Unspoken, silent, implied or understood without words, done or made in silence, notexpressed or declared openly. Related word: taciturn (Level 3, Word 2).
- ALLEGATION (AL-uh-GAY-shin)
An assertion or declaration, especially one made without proof. In law, an allegation is an assertion. of what one intends to prove.
- GULLIBLE (GUHL-uh-buul)
Easily deceived, fooled, or cheated. Synonym: credulous. Related words: gull and dupe, which both mean to fool, cheat, deceive, take advantage of.
- BENIGN (buh-NYN, rhymes with a sign)
(1) Kindly, good-natured, gracious, mild, having or showing a gentle disposition. (2) Favorable, positive, propitious. (3) Of the weather or climate, healthful, beneficial, wholesome, salubrious. (4) In medicine: mild, not deadly, or severe.
- PERIPHERAL (puh-RIF-uh-rul)
External, outer, lying at or forming the outside or boundary of something; hence, not essential, irrelevant.
- REBUFF (ri-BUF or ree-BUF)
To refuse bluntly, reject sharply, turn down abruptly, snub, spurn. Corresponding noun: rebuff, an abrupt refusal or rejection.
- ANIMOSITY (AN-i-MAH-si-tee)
Ill will, hostility, antagonism, strong dislike or hatred. Synonyms: malice, aversion, malevolence, antipathy, rancor, enmity.
- TENUOUS (TEN-yoo-us)
Thin, slender, slight, flimsy, weak, not dense or substantial, lacking a strong basis, having little substance or strength.
- COMPLACENT (kum-PLAY-sint)
Self-satisfied, smug, overly pleased with oneself. Usage tip: Take care to distinguish between complacent and complaisant, which ispronounced kum-PLAY-zint and means inclined to please, gracious, obliging, courteous, affable, and urbane (Level l, Word 45).
- ACME (AK-mee)
The peak, highest point, especially the point of culmination, the highest possible point inthe development or progress of something. Synonyms: summit, zenith. Corresponding adjective: acmatic.
- DEFUNCT (di-FUNGKT or dee-FUNGKT)
Dead, extinct, obsolete; no longer in existence, effect, operation, or use.
- ABET (uh-BET)
To encourage, support, help, aid, promote, assist in achieving a purpose (either good or evil). Usage tip: Abet is often used to mean assist in wrongdoing, as in the legal cliche ‘to aid and abet,’ but abet may also be used favorably to mean assist in achieving a good purpose.
- HAGGARD (HAG-urd)
Worn out, tired, drawn; wild-eyed and wasted, as from exhaustion, illness, or grief. Synonyms: gaunt, emaciated.
- WAIVE (like wave)
To relinquish voluntarily, give up, forgo; also, to postpone, defer, or dispense with.
- CARNAL (KAHR-nul)
Bodily, pertaining to the flesh as opposed to the spirit. Synonyms: sensual, corporeal. Usage tip: Carnal is used of basic physical appetities.
- SANCTION (SANGK-shin, be sure to pronounce the C)
To approve, allow, permit, authorize, certify, ratify.
- AMBIGUOUS (am-BIG-yoo-us)
Uncertain, unclear, doubtful, dubious, questionable, puzzling, having an obscure or indefinite meaning. Synonyms: enigmatic, cryptic, equivocal. Antonyms: distinct, apparent, evident, conspicuous, manifest.
- SPENDTHRIFT (pronounced as spelled, stress on spend)
Wasteful, spending extravagantly or foolishly, squandering one’s resources.Synonyms: improvident, prodigal, profligate
- MOLLIFY (MAH-li-fy)
To calm, soothe, soften in feeling or tone, make less harsh or severe.Synonyms: pacify, appease, assuage (Level 2, Word 37). Related word: emollient (adjective), softening, soothing, mollifying; (noun) a softening or soothing agent.
- UNEQUIVOCAL (UHN-i-KWIV-uh-kul)
Clear and direct, definite, straightforward, certain; having a single, obvious meaning; capable of being interpreted in only one way. Antonyms: equivocal, ambiguous (Level 2, Word 25).
- MALLEABLE (MAL-ee-uh-buul or MAL-yuhbuul)
Capable of being shaped, able to be molded or manipulated. Synonyms: adaptable, impressionable, tractable. Antonyms: inflexible, unyielding, stubborn, adamant, obstinate, intransigent.
- VERBOSE (vur-BOHS)
Wordy, having too many words, long-winded, full of verbiage. Synonyms: garrulous (Level 4, Word 8), loquacious, voluble (Level 5, Word 1), prolix(Level 9, Word 1).Corresponding noun: verbosity. Related words (from the Latin verbum, word): verbal; verbatim, expressed in precisely the same words; verbiage, an excess or overabundance of words. Additional useful word: proffer, to put forward for acceptance, present as a gift. Pronunciation tip: Carriage and marriage have two syllables, but verbiage and foliage have three. Don’t say VUR-bij and FOH-lij (or FOY-lij). Take care to pronounce these words in three syllables: VUR-bee-ij and FOH-lee-ij.
- TRANSIENT (TRAN-shint)
Temporary, passing away with time, lasting or staying only a short while, momentary, fleeting, short-lived. Synonyms: transitory, evanescent, ephemeral (Level 4, Word 12), fugitive, fugacious. Antonyms: permanent, timeless, eternal, everlasting. Also, in the words short-lived and long-lived, the second half, -lived, does not come from the verb to live but from the noun life plus the suffix -ed.
- NETTLE (NET’l)
To irritate, annoy, vex, harass, pester, provoke.
- REPUDIATE (ri-PYOO-dee-ayt)
(1) To reject, cast off, disown, renounce, refuse to accept as one’s own. (2) To reject as false, deny the authority of, refuse to accept as true.
- IMPETUOUS (im-PETCH-oo-us)
Hasty, rash, overeager; acting in a sudden, vigorous, emotional way, with little thought. Synonyms: impulsive. Antonyms: prudent (Level 1, Word 47), discreet, circumspect (Level 3, Word 21).
- FRUGAL (FROG-gul)
Spending carefully and wisely; also, involving little expense, not wasteful or lavish. Synonyms: thrifty, economical, provident, parsimonious.
- INCONGRUOUS (in-KAHNG-groo-us)
Out of place, inappropriate, inconsistent, unsuitable, lacking harmony of parts or agreement in character. Related words: congruous and congruent, which both mean coming together harmoniously, fitting in consistently.
- ASSUAGE (uh-SWAYJ)
To relieve, ease, make less severe or intense; also, to satisfy, appease, make content. Synonyms: allay, mollify (Level 2, Word 27), mitigate. Pronunciation tip: Don’t pronounce the G in assuage like the G in garage or the Z in azure. In assuage, the A is long (as in day) and the G is pronounced like J: uh-SWAYJ.
- CORROBORATE (kuh-RAHB-uh-rayt)
To confirm, support, make more certain or believable, strengthen by providing additional evidence or proof. Synonyms: authenticate, verify, substantiate.
- EMBELLISH (em-BEL-ish)
To decorate, dress up, adorn, enhance with ornamentation, make more beautiful, elegant, or interesting. Corresponding noun: embellishment, an ornament, decoration.
- AVARICIOUS (AV-uh-RISH-us)
Greedy, money-grubbing, miserly, consumed with a selfish desire to accumulate money or property.Synonyms: covetous, mercenary (Level 3, Word 14). Corresponding noun: avarice, greed, an inordinate desire for wealth.
- CURSORY (KUR-suh-ree or KUR-sur-ee)
Quick, hasty, not methodical, done rapidly with little attention to detail, passing quickly over or through something that deserves closer examination. Synonyms: hurried, haphazard, slapdash, superficial. Antonyms: thorough, careful, scrupulous, exhaustive, prolonged, protracted. Related words (from the Latin currere, to run): course, curriculum, courier.
- VACILLATE (VAS-i-layt)
To waver, fluctuate, be indecisive, show uncertainty, hesitate in making up one’s mind.
- CLEMENT (KLEM-int)
(1) Mild, calm, tranquil, moderate, temperate, not severe or extreme. (2) Merciful, lenient, inclined to pardon or forgive.Corresponding noun: clemency.
- LUCRATIVE (LOO-kruh-tiv)
Profitable, producing wealth, money-making, financially productive, remunerative. Related word: lucre (LOO-kur), money, profit, especially tainted money, ill-gotten gains(as in the cliche ‘filthy lucre’).
- ALLOCATE (AL-uh-kayt or AL-oh-kayt)
To assign, designate, earmark, set aside for a specific purpose.
- RECONCILE (REK-un-syl or rek-un-SYL)
(1) To make friendly again, restore friendly relations between, settle, resolve, bring intoharmony or agreement. (2) To bring into agreement, make consistent. (3) To resign oneself to accept something undesirable.
- PARAGON (PAR-uh-gahn)
A model of excellence, perfect example.
- ANALOGOUS (uh-NAL-uh-gus)
Similar, alike in certain ways, corresponding partially, sharing some aspects of form, function, or content. Synonyms: akin, comparable.Related word: analogy, a partial similarity, likeness, or resemblance that allows for a comparison between things.
- DIURNAL (dy-URN-‘l)
(1) Daily, recurring each day, performed or happening in the course of a day. (2) Active during the day, as opposed to nocturnal, active at night.
- PRETEXT (PREE-tekst)
An excuse, ostensible reason or motive, professed purpose; specifically, an excuse or false reason given to hide the true reason or purpose.
