Magoosh Common Words 5 and 6 Flashcards
arbitrary
based on a random, groundless choice rather than by reason
e.g. “For the tabular presentation, we used arbitrary cut-off values.”
Synonyms: accidental, haphazard, stray, sporadic
repudiate
refuse to accept; reject
e.g. “She has repudiated policies associated with previous party leaders”
Synonyms: abandon, recant, repeal, rescind, retract
prolific
present in large numbers or quantities; plentiful
e.g. “Mahogany was once prolific in the tropical forests.”
Synonyms: plentiful, abundant, bountiful, profuse, copious, fecund
haphazard
marked by great carelessness; characterized by chance
e.g. “The music business works in a haphazard fashion”
Synonyms: aimless, arbitrary, careless, random, slipshod, slapdash
scrupulous
(of a person or process) careful, thorough, and extremely attentive to details
e.g. “The research has been carried out with scrupulous attention to detail”
Synonyms: meticulous, painstaking, thorough, assiduous, sedulous
accolade
an award or privilege granted as a special honor
e.g. “She has sold millions of records and earned numerous awards and accolades over a 30-year career.”
Synonyms: distinction, award, laurels
resurgent
rising; brought up again to new life
e.g. “The resurgent Thai cinema is in love with a golden age that never really existed.”
Synonyms: renascent, revived, invigorated, reestablished, refreshed, returned
lionize
- treat as a celebrity
- give a lot of public attention and approval to (someone)
e.g. “Modern sportsmen are lionized and feted”
Synonyms: celebrate, fete, glorify, honor, exalt, acclaim
tempered
moderate in effect
act as a neutralizing or counterbalancing force to (something)
e.g. “The display is a single sheet of glass, tempered for strength”
Synonyms: moderate, mitigate, palliate, alleviate, allay, assuage
admonish
warn or reprimand someone firmly
e.g. “She admonished me for appearing at breakfast unshaven”
Synonyms: reprimand, rebuke, scold, reprove, upbraid, chastise, chide, censure, castigate, lambast, berate, reproach
ravenous
extremely hungry
e.g. “They fell on the food like a pack of ravenous wolves”
Synonyms: insatiable, rapacious, voracious
circumscribe
restrict (something) within limits
e.g. “The minister’s powers are circumscribed both by tradition and the organization of local government”
Synonyms: hamper, limit, confine, restrain.
sycophant
a person who pleases a lot in order to gain an advantage
e.g. “Because he is high-ranking, he’s surrounded by sycophants”
Synonyms: fawner, flatterer, bootlicker
gauche
unsophisticated and socially awkward
e.g. “We’re all a bit gauche when we’re young.”
Synonyms: awkward, gawky
pedestrian
lacking inspiration or excitement; dull
e.g. “disenchantment with their pedestrian lives”
Synonyms: dull, turgid, monotonous, mundane, unremarkable, insipid, humdrum
taciturn
(of a person) reserved or uncommunicative in speech
e.g. “One is more taciturn, accepting what goes on with a shrug.”
Synonyms: reticent, unresponsive, antisocial
constituent
- an abstract part of something
e.g. “the constituent minerals of the rock”
Synonyms: component, integral, elemental, essential, inherent, integrant
- being a voting member of an organization and having the power to appoint or elect.
e.g. “the constituent body has a right of veto”
hegemony
leadership or dominance, especially by one state or social group over others
e.g. “Under this strategy they are going to bring the whole world under their hegemony.”
Synonyms: leadership, dominance, dominion, supremacy, ascendancy, sovereignty
insolent
showing a rude and arrogant lack of respect
e.g. “She hated the insolent tone of his voice”
Synonyms: impertinent, impudent, ill-mannered
subversive
seeking or intending to subvert an established system or institution
e.g. “He has even banned subversive activities such as opera, ballet and the circus.”
Synonyms: riotous, insurgent, seditious, disruptive
myriad
countless or extremely great in number
e.g. “He gazed at the myriad lights of the city”
Synonyms: innumerable, countless, infinite
ostracize
exclude from a society or group
e.g. “She was ostracized from the scientific community for many years because of her radical political beliefs.”
Synonyms: blacklist, exclude, excommunicate, expel, shun
antithetical
directly opposed or contrasted
e.g. “There are people whose religious beliefs are antithetical to mine”
Synonyms: contradictory, contrasting, polar, opposing
sporadic
occurring at irregular intervals or only in a few places; scattered or isolated
e.g. “The situation is easing, although sporadic fresh outbreaks are still occurring.”
Synonyms: occasional, infrequent, irregular, desultory, intermittent, capricious, unpredictable
trite
- repeated too often
- (of a remark or idea) lacking originality or freshness
e.g. “Children need to be aware of the real world, not force-fed trite fairytales.”
Synonyms: hackneyed, banal, clichéd, platitude, vapid
reverent
feeling or showing deep and solemn respect
e.g. “They called him Uncle, their attitude reverent yet familiar.”
Synonyms: venerate, dutiful, deferential
rescind
revoke, cancel, or repeal (a law, order, or agreement)
e.g. “The navy rescinded its ban on women sailors.”
Synonyms: abolish, abrogate, annul, revoke, dismantle
irrevocable
not able to be changed, reversed, or recovered
e.g. “They are spending a fortune preparing for this irrevocable step.”
Synonyms: immutable, irreversible, permanent
inveterate
having a particular habit, activity, or interest that is long-established
e.g. “One of the pleasures of the TV show, The Simpsons is Homer’s inveterate stupidity.”
Synonyms: ingrained, deep-seated, deep-rooted, entrenched
arcane
understood by few; mysterious or secret
e.g.
Synonyms: covert, clandestine, enigmatic, recondite, esoteric
obsequious
obedient or attentive to an excessive or servile degree
e.g. “Barrow was positively obsequious to me until he learned that I too was the son of a laboring man.”
Synonyms: ingratiating, unctuous, sycophantic, fawning, toadying
tractable
(of a person) easy to control or influence
e.g. “She has always been tractable and obedient, even as a child”
Synonyms: malleable, governable, yielding, amenable, complaisant, compliant
winsome
charming in an innocent, child-like way
e.g. “This last one, in particular, wasn’t much heeded by the program’s winsome presenter.”
Synonyms: appealing, captivating
audacity
- a willingness to take bold risks
e.g. “He whistled at the sheer audacity of the plan”
- rude or disrespectful behavior; impudence
e.g. “She had the audacity to suggest I’d been carrying on with him”
intrepid
fearless
e.g. “An intrepid adventurer will persist all the way to the end of the line.”
Synonyms: dauntless, fearless, courageous
sanction
- official permission or approval for an action.
e.g. “he appealed to the bishop for his sanction”
- a threatened penalty for disobeying a law or rule.
e.g. “a range of sanctions aimed at deterring insider abuse”
prodigious
remarkably or impressively great in extent, size, or degree
e.g. “The stove consumed a prodigious amount of fuel”
Synonyms: enormous, huge, colossal, immense
brazen
bold and without shame; unphased
e.g. “He went about his illegal business with a brazen assurance”
Synonyms: presumptuous, brash, gutsy, insolent
poignant
emotionally touching
e.g. “He gave a poignant cry of despair.”
Synonyms: touching, moving
austere
- severe or strict in manner or attitude
e.g. “he was an austere man, with a rigidly puritanical outlook”
Synonyms: exacting, forbidding, formal, rigid, stringent
- (of living conditions or a way of life) having no comforts or luxuries
e.g. “conditions in the prison could hardly be more austere”
Synonyms: frugal, spartan, ascetic
- having a plain and unadorned appearance
e.g. “the cathedral is impressive in its austere simplicity”
Synonyms: sober, subdued
dilettante
an amateur engaging in an activity pretending to have knowledge
e.g. “At Athens he must have been a dilettante, an idler, without political rights or duties.”
Synonyms: amateur
foment
instigate or stir up (an undesirable or violent sentiment or course of action)
e.g. “they accused him of fomenting political unrest”
Synonyms: instigate, inspire, incite
garrulous
excessively talkative, especially on trivial matters
e.g. “Her garrulous neighbour quickly spread the news.”
Synonyms: talkative, loquacious, voluble, chatty
propitious
giving or indicating a good chance of success; favorable
e.g. “There was a brief, perfect Elizabethan moment when conditions were propitious and all was well.”
Synonyms: advantageous, auspicious, opportune
inscrutable
impossible to understand or interpret
e.g. “The relationship between artist and subject can be inscrutable.”
Synonyms: enigmatic, unreadable, impenetrable, abstruse, opaque
precipituous
done with great haste and without careful thinking
e.g. “He made a precipitous intervention in the main event of the show”
Synonyms: reckless, foolhardy, hasty
munificent
characterized by or displaying great generosity
e.g. “That position includes not only a munificent salary, but travel opportunities.”
Synonyms: generous, bountiful, beneficent
pernicious
having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way
e.g. “The pernicious effects of air pollution”
Synonyms: deleterious, harmful, inimical, detrimental
inimical
- tending to obstruct or harm
- unfriendly; hostile
e.g. “the policy was inimical to Britain’s real interests”
Synonyms: deleterious, harmful, pernicious, detrimental
vacillate
waver between different opinions or actions; be indecisive
e.g. “He vacillates between different perceptions of his life.”
Synonyms: dither, fluctuate, oscillate, seesaw, waver
nuance
a diff. facet - in meaning, opinion or attitude
e.g. “he was familiar with the nuances of the local dialect”
Synonyms: subtlety, facet
impartial
free from undue bias or preconceived opinions
e.g. “The minister cannot be impartial in the way that a judge would be”
Synonyms: dispassionate, equitable, unpartisan, neutral
arduous
demanding considerable mental effort and skill
e.g. “It was an arduous seven-hour journey to get there”
Synonyms: backbreaking, burdensome, exhausting, laborious, onerous, painful, rigorous, strenuous
bolster
to support and strengthen
e.g. “The fall in interest rates is starting to bolster confidence”
Synonyms: buoy, buttress, fortify
misconstrue
interpret (a person’s words or actions) wrongly
e.g. “She said Harris had misconstrued her comments.”
Synonyms: distort, exaggerate, misinterpret, misread, misunderstand
disseminate
spread (something, especially information) widely
e.g. “Health authorities should foster good practice by disseminating information”
Synonyms: circulate, publicize, disperse, diffuse, proclaim, promulgate
banal/banality
so lacking in originality as to be obvious and boring
e.g. “they attempted to placate the students with promises of increasing financial well-being”
Synonyms: hackneyed, trite, clichéd, platitude, vapid
flux
a state of uncertainty about what should be done
e.g. “The list is in a state of flux and will continue to be.”
Synonyms: alteration, change, flow, fluctuation, instability
mundane
repetitive and boring; relating to the ordinary world
e.g. “The truth is far more mundane and less interesting than the story might suggest.”
Synonyms: humdrum, dull, boring, tedious, monotonous, wearisome, prosaic
craven
pathetically cowardly
e.g. “They condemned the deal as a craven surrender.”
Synonyms: cowardly, timorous, timid, chicken, spineless
reproach
express criticism - to (someone) one’s disapproval of or disappointment in their actions
e.g. “The critics reproached him for his failure to tackle the deficiency”
Synonyms: rebuke, reproof, reproval, lambast, admonition, scolding
dispassionate
not influenced by strong emotion, and so able to be rational and impartial
e.g. “She dealt with life’s disasters in a calm, dispassionate way”
Synonyms: nonchalant, calm, collected, temperate, tranquil, placid
placate
make (someone) less angry or hostile.
e.g. “they attempted to placate the students with promises of increasing financial well-being”
Synonyms: appease, assuage, mollify, pacify, reconcile
elicit
bring about; call forth responses
e.g. “I tried to elicit a smile from Joanna”
Synonyms: bring out, evoke, extort, extract, wring
imprudent
not showing care for the consequences of an action
e.g. “It would be imprudent to leave her winter coat behind”
Synonyms: hasty, rash, reckless, heedless, injudicious, foolhardy
indecorous
not in keeping with good taste and propriety; improper
e.g. “a pub crawl with sundry indecorous adventures”
Synonyms: indecent, indiscreet, immoral, shameless, loose, wanton
transient
lasting only for a short time
e.g. “the transient nature of the labour force in catering”
Synonyms: ephemeral, transitory, temporary
economical
giving good value or return in relation to the money, time, or effort expended
e.g. “the book discussed the most economical way of running a home”
Synonyms: cost-effective, efficient, prudent
rebuke
an expression of sharp disapproval or criticism
e.g. “she had rebuked him for drinking too much”
Synonyms: reprimand, admonish, scold, reprove, upbraid, chastise, chide, censure, castigate, lambast, berate, reproach
jovial
cheerful and friendly
e.g. “But he was mostly in a jovial mood as he conducted a round of interviews.”
Synonyms: affable, amiable, buoyant, cheery, sanguine
maladroit
inefficient or inept; clumsy
e.g. “both men are unhappy about the maladroit way the matter has been handled”
Synonyms: inept, clumsy, incompetent
antipathy
a deep-seated feeling of dislike or aversion
e.g. “his fundamental antipathy to capitalism”
Synonyms: hostility, antagonism, animosity, aversion, abhorrence
truncate
shorten; reduce the length of something
e.g. “The river conglomerates are truncated by the sheet conglomerates.”
Synonyms: abbreviate, abridge, curtail
timorous
timid; to reveal fear
e.g. “Sarah took a timorous step forward and spilled the details of their plight in one long ramble, barely stopping for breath.”
Synonyms: apprehensive, timid, quaking, cowering, shy, diffident, bashful.
stringent
demanding strict attention to rules
e.g. “Chelsea rules are stringent, although regulars do try to test them to the limits.”
Synonyms: strict, firm, rigid, rigorous, draconian
pejorative
expressing contempt or disapproval.
e.g. “permissiveness is used almost universally as a pejorative term”
Synonyms: disparaging, vituperative, disapproving, contemptuous
fastidious
very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail.
e.g. “She dressed with fastidious care”
Synonyms: over-scrupulous, punctilious
maverick
an unorthodox or independent-minded person.
e.g. “he’s the maverick of the fashion scene”
Synonyms: trendsetter, bohemian
contrition
the state of feeling remorseful and penitent
e.g. “to show contrition for his crime he offered to do community service”
Synonyms: penance, penitence, remorse, repentance
efficacious
effective;
(of something inanimate or abstract) successful in producing a desired or intended result
e.g. “This treatment was efficacious in some cases”
Synonyms: effective
ignominous
deserving or causing public disgrace or shame
e.g. “The party risked ignominious defeat”
Synonyms: dishonourable, discreditable, ignoble, inglorious
posit
put forward as fact or as a basis for argument.
e.g. “the Confucian view posits a perfectible human nature”
Synonyms: postulate, put forward, predicate, propound
anomaly
something different, abnormal
e.g. “the apparent anomaly that those who produced the wealth were the poorest”
Synonyms: aberration, abnormality, deviation
harried
feeling strained as a result of having demands persistently made on one; harassed.
e.g. “harried detectives answer ringing phones”
Synonyms: agitated, beset, bothered, distressed
appease
appeal to the demands of a side
e.g. “amendments have been added to appease local pressure groups”
Synonyms: conciliate, placate, pacify, demand
deleterious
causing harm or damage.
e.g. “divorce is assumed to have deleterious effects on children”
Synonyms: detrimental, injurious, adverse pernicious
nonplussed
so surprised and confused that one is unsure how to react.
e.g. “Henry looked completely nonplussed”
Synonyms: bewildered, confounded, confused, dazed
opulence
great wealth or luxuriousness.
“rooms of spectacular opulence”
Synonyms: affluence, lavish
edifying
providing moral or intellectual instruction
e.g. “Seeing a person blind drunk is not an edifying sight”
Synonyms: illuminating, enlighten, indoctrinate, inspiring
erudite
having or showing great knowledge or learning.
e.g. “Ken could turn any conversation into an erudite discussion”
Synonyms: knowledgeable, literate, sagacious
askance
with an attitude or look of suspicion or disapproval.
e.g. “the reformers looked askance at the mystical tradition”
Synonyms: skeptically, suspiciously
polemic
a speech or piece of writing expressing a strongly critical attack on or controversial opinion about someone or something.
e.g. “his polemic against the cultural relativism of the Sixties”
Synonyms: argumentative, disputatious, quarrelsome
specious
plausible, but wrong
e.g. “What he required of us was that we avoided specious or muddled argument.”
Synonyms: deceptive, erroneous, false, spurious
sullen
bad-tempered and sulky
e.g. “He grew sullen and bitter; she suspected him of having an affair.”
Synonyms: churlish, dour, gloomy, glum, grumpy, petulant
dilatory
slow to act - intended to cause delay
e.g. “he had been dilatory in appointing a solicitor”
Synonyms: slow, unhurried, tardy, stalling, temporizing
mendacity
fabrication
e.g. “With characteristic mendacity, the duke spread the report that the prisoner had died a natural death.”
Synonyms: fraud, deception, duplicity, fabrication, falsehood
esoteric
intended for or likely to be understood by only a small number of people with a specialized knowledge or interest
e.g. “He is fond of pointing out how esoteric this debate is to the wider public.”
Synonyms: abstruse, arcane, mystical
capricious
given to sudden and unaccountable changes in mood or behavior
e.g. “It’s terrible to feel our livelihood hinges on a capricious boss”
Synonyms: fickle, mercurial, arbitrary, fickle
furtive
attempting to avoid notice or attention, typically because of guilt or a belief that discovery would lead to trouble; secretive
e.g. “It’s almost unbearably tempting to suggest a furtive flick on the nose.”
Synonyms: sneaky, conspiratorial, covert, surreptitious
duress
threats, violence, constraints, or other actions used to coerce someone into doing something against their will or better judgment
e.g. “I maintained that I had signed the document under duress”
Synonyms: coercion
