M's Flashcards
Machination or machinations
Crafty schemes or plots.
It’s cute to think that teen idols became famous because their talent was simply so great that the music industry reached out to them, but usually, any teen idol is the product of intense coaching and parental machinations.
Magma
Molten material (such as very hot liquid rock) beneath or within the Earth’s crust.
Magnate
Very important or influential person, esp. in business.
Many students pursue MBAs in hopes of becoming wealthy and powerful magnates; some students never quite make it there, instead spending their careers staring at spreadsheets and taking orders from magnates.
Makeshift
Improvised, relating to a temporary substitute. The expressions thrown together or slapped together express a similar idea of a making do with the resources on hand. Similarly, to jury rig something is to assemble it quickly with whatever materials you have available.
Lost in the woods for over 24 hours, the children were eventually found sleeping under a makeshift tent made form branches and old plastic bags.
Malleable
Able to be bent, shaped, or adapted. Tractable, pliable, and plastic can also mean physically bendable, or metaphorically bendable, as in “easily influenced or shaped by others.” Mutable means changeable.
The more malleable the material, the easier it is to bend into jewelry - and the easier it is to damage that jewelry.
She is a little too malleable; she said she liked all the things her first boss liked, and now she says she likes all the things her new boss likes.
Manifest
Obvious, apparent, perceptible to the eye (adj) or to become obvious, apparent, perceptible to the eye (verb). Also to show, make clear, or prove (verb). As a noun, a manifest is a list of people or goods aboard a plane, ship, train, etc. A manifestation is often when something “under the surface” breaks out or becomes apparent.
Lupus is difficult to diagnose, but sometimes manifests as muscular weakness or joint pain.
The protest was a manifestation of a long-brewing discontent.
Mantle (of the Earth)
Layer of the Earth between the crust and the core.
Maxim
A general truth or fundamental principle, exp. expressed as a proverb or saying.
My favorite maxim is “Seize the day!” How much would it cost to get a tattoo with that saying? How much more for “Curiosity killed the cat”?
Max out
Take to the limit (in a good or a bad way). To max out your credit cards is to incur as much debt as is permitted: to max out your productivity is to achieve maxim productivity.
Meditated by
Brought about by means of; assisted as an intermediary. Of course, to mediate a dispute is to bring about a resolution, but mediated in science also has the idea of being “in the middle.” For instance, a study might show that poverty leads to inattentiveness in school. But how? Research might reveal that poverty leads to inattentiveness, mediated by poor nutrition. That is, poverty causes poor nutrition, which causes inattentiveness (because the kids are hungry). Mediation can help make sense of what seems like an indirect correlation.
Mercurial
Quickly and unpredictably changing moods; fickle, flighty.
It’s tough being married to someone so mercurial. I do pretty much the same thing every day - some days, she thinks I’m great, and other days, the exact same behaviors make her inexplicably angry.
Militarism
Glorification of the military, government in which the military has a lot of power or in which the military is the top priority.
Mired
Stuck, entangled (in something, like a swamp or muddy area), soiled. Morass and quagmire are also words (often used metaphorically) for soft, swampy ground that a person can sink into. The Vietnam War was famously called a quagmire. The expression muck and mire means, literally, “animal waste and mud” and can be used metaphorically. To muck up is to mess up or get dirty, and to muck about or muck around is to waste time.
Mired in her predecessor’s mess and mistakes, the new CEO found it difficult to take the company in a new direction.
The federal prosecutor spent weeks wading through the muck and mire of the scandal - every uncovered document showed that the corruption was deeper and worse than previously thought.
Modest
Humble; simple rather than showy; decent (esp. “covering up” in terms of dress); small, limited.
The reporter was surprised that the celebrity lived in such a modest house, one that looked just like every other plain, two-story house on the block.
Her first job out of college was a rude awakening - her modest salary was barely enough for rent, much less going out and having fun.
Moreover
In addition to what has been said; besides.
His actions cost us the job; moreover, he seriously offended our client.
