Magoosh - Final Flashcards
feckless
✓ lazy, irresponsible
Two years after graduation, Charlie still lived with his parents and had no job, becoming more feckless with each passing day.
malapropism
✓ confusing
similar words Whenever I looked glum, my mother would offer to share an amusing “antidote” with me—an endearing malapropism of anecdote that never failed to cheer me up.
objurgate
✓ scold severely
The manager spent an hour objurgating the employee in the hopes that he would not make these mistakes again.
Bewildered
to perplex or confuse especially by a complexity, variety, or multitude of objects or considerations.
the change in policy seems to have bewildered many of our customers
hector
✓ bully
The boss’s hectoring manner put off many employees, some of whom quit as soon as they found new jobs.
vilify
✓ speak ill of
Todd was noble after the divorce, choosing to say only complimentary things about Barbara, but Barbara did not hesitate to vilify Todd.
immure
محصور ✓ confine
The modern supermarket experience makes many feel claustrophobic, as they are immured in walls upon walls of products.
exhort
✓ encourage
Nelson’s parents exhorted him to study medicine, urging him to choose a respectable profession; intransigent, Nelson left home to become a graffiti artist.
poignant
✓ emotionally touching
After the Montagues and Capulets discover the dead bodies of Romeo and Juliet, in the play’s most poignant moment, the two griefstricken familes agree to end their feud once and for all.
untoward
✓ inconvenient
Some professors find teaching untoward as having to prepare for lectures and conduct office hours prevents them from focusing on their research.
culpability
✓ state of guilt
Since John had left his banana peel at the top of the stairwell, he accepted culpability for Martha’s broken leg.
anathema
✓ detested person
Hundreds of years ago, Galileo was anathema to the church; today the church is anathema to some on the left side of the political spectrum.
graft
✓ corruption
In countries with rampant graft, getting a driver’s license can require no more than paying an official.
buck
✓ resist
The profits at our firm bucked the general downturn that affected the real estate industry.
unprepossessing
Unremarkable prepossessing having qualities that people like : appealing or attractive ✓ unremarkable
World leaders coming to meet Gandhi would expect a towering sage, and often would be surprised by the unprepossessing little man dressed only in a loincloth and shawl.
Flux
✓ uncertainty
Ever since Elvira resigned as the head of marketing, everything about our sales strategy has been in a state of flux.
semblance
✓ misleading appearance While the banker maintained a semblance of respectability in public, those who knew him well were familiar with his many crimes.
stultify
✓ sap enthusiasmيفسد، يسفه، يسخر
As an undergraduate Mark felt stultified by classes outside his area of study; only in grad school, in which he could focus solely on literary analysis, did he regain his scholarly edge.
tenacious
✓ not giving up Even the most tenacious advocates for gun ownership must admit some of the dangers that firearms present.
litany
1a long list of problems, excuses etc – used to show disapproval Mr. Rogers spoke to a Senate committee and did not give a litany of reasons to keep funding the program, but instead, appealed to the basic human decency of all present.
guffaw
✓ laugh loudly Whenever the jester fell to the ground in mock pain, the king guffawed, exposing his yellow, fang-like teeth.
choleric
✓ easily angered
While a brilliant lecturer, Mr. Dawson came across as choleric and unapproachable—very rarely did students come to his office hours
internecine
internecine fighting or struggles happen between members of the same group or nation: The guerilla group, which had become so powerful as to own the state police, was finally destroyed by an internecine conflict.
proselytize
to try to persuade people to join a religion, cause, or group
Lisa loves her Mac but says little about it; by contrast, Jake will proselytize, interrogating anyone with an Android about why she didn’t purchase an iPhone.
vaunt
يتبجح ✓ boasted about
For years, Mark talked up his Ping Pong game, yet when he entered the office tournament, his much vaunted skills suddenly failed him and he lost all three games he played.
duress
✓ compulsory force
The witness said he signed the contract under duress and argued that the court should cancel the agreement.
saturnine
✓ gloomy Deprived of sunlight, humans become saturnine; that’s why in very northerly territories people are encouraged to sit under an extremely powerful lamp, lest they become morose.
untrammeled
✓ not limited
The whole notion of living untrammeled inspired the American Revolution and was enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
inclement
قاسٍ ؛ وَحْشِيّ
glut
excessive supply The Internet offers such a glut of news related stories that many find it difficult to know which story to read first
quail
تَهَيَّبَ مِمَّا لَا يُخَاف ؛ جَبُن ؛ ضَعُف قَلْبُه ؛ كان جَبَانا
✓ draw back in fear
Craig always claimed to be a fearless outdoorsman, but when the thunderstorm engulfed the valley, he quailed at the thought of leaving the safety of his cabin.
staunch
مخلص و وفي ✓ dependable
No longer a staunch supporter of Anarchism, Terry now sometimes questions whether society would be better off without defined hierarchies.
circumscribe
✓ restrict within limits
Their tour of South America was circumscribed so that they saw only popular destinations and avoided the dangerous parts of cities.
jejune
✓ immature غير ممتع؛ ضحل؛
Although many top chefs have secured culinary foam’s popularity in haute cuisine, Waters criticizes it for being jejune and unfilling.
promulgate
✓ officially make known
The President wanted to promulgate the success of the treaty negotiations, but he had to wait until Congress formally approved the agreement.
peevish
✓ irritable
Our office manager is peevish, so the rest of us tip-toe around him, hoping not to set off another one of his fits.
schadenfreude
شاودنفرويده
A feeling of enjoyment that comes from seeing or hearing about the trouble of others
✓ joy in others’ suffering From his warm apartment window, Stanley reveled in schadenfreude as he laughed at the figures below, huddled together in the arctic chill.
infelicitous
✓ inappropriate غير لبق؛غير موفّق
During the executive meeting, the marketing director continued to make infelicitous comments about the CEO’s gambling habit.
wanton
✓ showing no limits عابث، مفرط، فاسق، فاجر، مستهتر
Due to wanton behavior and crude language, the drunk man was thrown out of the bar and asked to never return.
aboveboard
✓ honest
The mayor, despite his avuncular face plastered about the city, was hardly aboveboard – some concluded that it was his ingratiating smile that allowed him to engage in corrupt behavior and get away with it.
dispensation
✓ exemption Since her father is a billionaire, she is given dispensation from many of the school’s policies.
moot
✓ irrelevant Since the Board just terminated Steve as the CEO, the finance committee’s opinion of his marketing plan for next year is now moot.
incumbent
✓ necessary Middle managers at times make important decisions, but real responsibility for the financial well-being of the corporation is ultimately incumbent on the CEO.
Harried
feeling strained as a result of having demands persistently made on one; harassed.
“harried reporters are frequently forced to invent what they cannot find out”
intimate
Hint
at At first Manfred’s teachers intimated to his parents that he was not suited to skip a grade; when his parents protested, teachers explicitly told them that, notwithstanding the boy’s precocity, he was simply too immature to jump to the 6th grade.
besmirch
✓ dishonor The prince’s distasteful choice of words besmirched not only his own name, but the reputation of the entire royal family.
Pollyannaish
✓ overly optimistic Even in the midst of a lousy sales quarter, Debbie remained Pollyannaish, never losing her shrill voice and wide smile, even when prospective customers hung up on her.
caviled
Make complaint over trivial things.
It is nice to read a movie review in which the critic raves about the entire film and does not cavil about a trivial flaw in the plot.
atavism
: recurrence of or reversion to a past style, manner, outlook, approach, or activity Much of the modern art movement was an atavism to a style of art found only in small villages through Africa and South America.
derelict
مهمل ✓ avoiding duties The teacher was derelict in her duties because she hadn’t graded a single student paper in three weeks.
deign
يتنازل ✓ stoop to The master of the house never deigned to answer questions from the servants.
disenfranchised
deprive (someone) of the right to vote. “the law disenfranchised some 3,000 voters on the basis of a residence qualification” deprived of power; marginalized. “a hard core of kids who are disenfranchised and don’t feel connected to the school” deprive (someone) of a right or privilege. “a measure that would disenfranchise people from access to legal advice”
factitious
✓ artificial The defendant’s story was largely factitious and did not accord with eyewitness testimonies
glib
✓ insincere I have found that the more glib the salesman, the worse the product.
parvenu
an insulting word for someone from a low social position who has suddenly become rich and powerful. upstart The theater was full of parvenus who each thought that they were surrounded by true aristocrats.
demure
modest, shy The portrait of her in a simple white blouse was sweet and demure.
goad
✓ aggressively urge on Doug did not want to enter the race, but Jim, through a steady stream of taunts, goaded him into signing up for it.
remonstrate
✓ forcefully protest The mothers of the kidnapped victims remonstrated to the rogue government, claiming that the detention violated human rights.
abrogate
As part of the agreement between the labor union and the company, the workers abrogated their right to strike for four years in exchange for better health insurance.
broadside
✓ verbal attack Political broadsides are usually strongest in the weeks leading up to a national election.
piquant
✓ pungent in taste The chef, with a mere flick of the salt shaker, turned the bland tomato soup into a piquant meal.
pontificate
✓ speak pompously The vice-president would often pontificate about economic theory, as if no one else in the room were qualified to speak on the topic.
cogent
✓ convincing A cogent argument will change the minds of even the most skeptical audience.
apotheosis
✓ height of development تأليه وتمجيد As difficult as it is to imagine, the apotheosis of Mark Zuckerberg’s career, many believe, is yet to come.
unstinting
very generous used to say that someone gives something (such as praise or support) in a very strong and generous way Helen is unstinting with her time, often spending hours at the house of a sick friend.
maladroit
Mal - Adroit ✓ clumsy As a child she was quite maladroit, but as an adult, she has become an adept dancer.
superfluous
✓ more than necessary How can we hope to stay open if we don’t eliminate all superfluous spending, like catered meetings and free acupucture Tuesday?
glean
✓ collect Herb has given us no formal statement about his background, but from various hints, I have gleaned that he grew up in difficult circumstances.
coterminous
having the same or coincident boundaries : مجاور
coextensive in scope or duration The border of the state is coterminous with geographic limits on travel; the east and north are surrounded by a nearly uncrossable river and the south by a desert.
checkered
✓ disreputable One by one, the presidential candidates dropped out of the race, their respective checkered pasts— from embezzlement to infidelity—sabotaging their campaigns.
excoriate
✓ criticize harshly Entrusted with the prototype to his company’s latest smartphone, Larry, during a late night karaoke bout, let the prototype slip into the hands of a rival company—the next day Larry was excoriated, and then fired.
bilious
✓ grumpy Rex was bilious all morning, and his face would only take on a look of contentedness when he’d had his morning cup of coffee.
consummate
showing a high degree of skill and flair; complete or perfect.
“she dressed with consummate elegance”
synonyms:supreme,superb,superlative,superior,accomplished,expert,proficient,skillful,skilled,masterly,master,first-class,talented,gifted,polished,practiced,perfect,ultimate;More
Gargantuan
Huge»_space; Donald Trump
Stupendous
Huge»_space; Again
behoove
ينبغي، يتوجب ✓ be one’s duty The teacher looked down at the student and said, It would behoove you to be in class on time and complete your homework, so that you don’t repeat freshman English for a third straight year.
Canard
Rumor
frivolous
✓ not serious Compared to Juliet’s passionate concern for human rights, Jake’s non-stop concern about football seems somewhat frivolous.
abstruse
Incomprehensible Physics textbooks can seem so abstruse to the uninitiated that readers feel as though they are looking at hieroglyphics.
bridle
✓ restrain New curfew laws have bridled people’s tendency to go out at night.
fractious
✓ irritable We rarely invite my fractious Uncle Nino over for dinner; he always complains about the food, and usually launches into a tirade on some touchy subject.
bumbling
✓ clumsy Within a week of starting, the bumbling new waiter was unceremoniously fired.
umbrage
امتعاض ، إساءة ✓ offense Since he was so in love with her, he took umbrage at her comments, even though she had only meant to gently tease him.
conflate
✓ mix together In her recent book, the author conflates several genres–the detective story, the teen thriller, and the vampire romance–to create a memorable read.
macabre
✓ gruesome رهيب ومروع
Edgar Allen Poe was considered the master of the macabre; his stories vividly describe the moment leading up to—and often those moments after—a grisly death.
embroiled
✓ in an argument to involve someone or something in a difficult situation These days we are never short of a D.C. politician embroiled in scandal—a welcome phenomenon for those who, having barely finished feasting on the sordid details of one imbroglio, can sink their teeth into a fresh one.
subdued
soft and restrained.
qualm
✓ uneasiness While he could articulate no clear reason why Harkner’s plan would fail, he nevertheless felt qualms about committing any resources to it.
tantamount
equivalent in seriousness to; virtually the same as.
“the resignations were tantamount to an admission of guilt”
synonyms:equivalent to,equal to,as good as,more or less,much the same as,comparable to,on a par with,commensurate with
“this istantamount tomutiny”
gumption
ذكاء والمعية Wallace Stegner lamented the lack of gumption in the U.S. during the sixties, claiming that no young person knew the value of work.
arriviste
: one that is a new and uncertain arrival (as in social position or artistic endeavor The city center was aflutter with arrivistes who each tried to outdo one another with their ostentatious sports cars and chic evening dress.
contingent
✓ small group A small contingent of those loyal to the king have gathered around the castle to defend it.
finagle
✓ get through trickery Steven was able to finagle one of the last seats on the train by convincing the conductor that his torn stub was actually a valid ticket.
feckless
✓ lazy, irresponsible Two years after graduation, Charlie still lived with his parents and had no job, becoming more feckless with each passing day.
incorrigible
✓ not reformable عنيد
Tom Sawyer seems like an incorrigible youth until Huck Finn enters the novel; even Sawyer can’t match his fierce individual spirit.
renege
✓ go back on
We will no longer work with that vendor since it has reneged on nearly every agreement.
furtive
✓ stealthy, secretive
While at work, George and his boss Regina felt the need to be as furtive as possible about their romantic relationship.
simulacrum
✓ bad imitation
The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center showcases a simulacrum of all the present and approved buildings in the city of Shanghai.
devolve
✓ delegate
The company was full of managers known for devolving tasks to lower management, but never doing much work themselves.
chortle
✓ laugh merrily
Walking into the cafe, I could hear happy, chortling people and smell the rich aroma of roasted coffee beans.
desideratum
✓ necessity
The desideratum of the environmental group is that motorists should rely on carpooling.
appurtenant
✓ supporting
In hiking Mt. Everest, sherpas are appurtenant, helping climbers both carry gear and navigate treacherous paths.
cavalier
✓ not caring
Percy dismissed the issue with a cavalier wave of his hand.
sangfroid
✓ poise under pressure
The hostage negotiator exhibited a sangfroid that oftentimes was more menacing than the sword at his throat, or the gun at his head.
underwrite
✓ support financially
The latest symphony broadcast was made possible with underwriting from the Carnegie Endowment.
fete
✓ celebrate a person
After World War II, war heroes were feted at first but quickly forgotten.
entrenched
fixed firmly
By the time we reach 60-years old, most of our habits are so entrenched that it is difficult for us to change.
expansive
✓ sociable
After a few sips of cognac, the octogenarian shed his irascible demeanor and became expansive, speaking fondly of the “good old days”.
doughty
brave, bold
I enjoy films in which a doughty group comes together to battle a force of evil.
raillery
✓ light teasing
friendly joking about someone:
The new recruit was not bothered by the raillery, finding most of it light-hearted and good-natured.
redoubtable
someone who is redoubtable is a person you respect or fear:
He had never met a more redoubtable fighter.
smattering
✓ small amount
I know only a smattering of German, but Helen is able to read German newspapers and converse with natives.
pillory
✓ ridicule publicly
After the candidate confessed, the press of the opposing party took the opportunity to pillory him, printing editorials with the most blatantly exaggerated accusations.
المُشَهِّرَة:
آلة خشبية للتعذيب تُدخل فيها يداالمجروم ورأسه.
polemic
✓ verbal attack
The professor launched into a polemic, claiming that Freudian theory was a pack of lies that absolutely destroyed European literary theory.
sordid
✓ morally questionable
The nightly news simply announced that the senator had had an affair, but the tabloid published all the sordid details of the interaction.
pyrrhic
✓ of a costly victory
George W. Bush’s win in the 2000 election was in many ways a pyrrhic victory: the circumstances of his win alienated half of the U.S. population.
posit
✓ assume as fact
Initially, Einstein posited a repulsive force to balance Gravity, but then rejected that idea as a blunder.
Enjoin
✓ prohibit
The government agency enjoined chemical companies from dumping chemical waste that had not been first securely stored in specially marked containers.
eke
1eke out a living/ existence
to manage to live with very little money or food:
They eke out a miserable existence in cardboard shacks.
Stranded in a cabin over the winter, Terry was able to eke out an existence on canned food.
travail
✓ hard work
While they experienced nothing but travails in refinishing the kitchen, they completed the master bedroom in less than a weekend.
exegesis
✓ critical analysis
The Bible is fertile ground for exegesis—over the past five centuries there have been as many interpretations as there are pages in the Old Testament.
peremptory
✓ bossy
My sister used to peremptorily tell me to do the dishes, a chore I would either do perfunctorily or avoid doing altogether.
mendacity
mendacity
✓ deceit
I can forgive her for her mendacity but only because she is a child and is seeing what she can get away with.
benighted
✓ ignorant
Far from being a period of utter benightedness, The Medieval Ages produced some great works of theological speculation.
rakish
✓ disreputable
As soon as he arrived in the city, the rakish young man bought some drugs and headed straight for the seedy parts of town.
subversive
✓ opposing authority
The ruling political party has begun a campaign to shut down subversive websites that it deems as a threat to national safety.
hamstrung
✓ made powerless
The FBI has made so many restrictions on the local police that they are absolutely hamstrung, unable to accomplish anything.
venial
✓ pardonable
His traffic violations ran the gamut from the venial to the egregious—on one occasion he simply did not come to a complete stop; another time he tried to escape across state lines at speeds in excess of 140 mph.
obtrusive
noticeable in an unpleasant or annoying way
mischievous
1someone who is mischievous likes to have fun, especially by playing tricks on people or doing things to annoy or embarrass them:
Their sons are noisy and mischievous.
mischievous smile/ look etc
Gabby looked at him with a mischievous grin.
There was a mischievous gleam in her eyes.
haste
Great speed in doing something, especially because you do not have enough time
I soon regretted my haste.
in your haste to do something
In his haste to leave, he forgot his briefcase.
forswear
to stop doing something or promise that you will stop doing something
SYN renounce
We are forswearing the use of chemical weapons for any reason.
Amulet
a small piece of jewellery worn to protect against bad luck, disease etc حرز
allay
allay (somebody’s) fear/ concern/ suspicion etc
to make someone feel less afraid, worried etc:
The president made a statement to allay public anxiety.
Beset
make someone experience serious problems or dangers:
beset somebody with/ by something
The business has been beset with financial problems.
the injuries which have beset the team all season
harbinger
a sign that something is going to happen soon:
harbinger of
These birds are considered to be harbingers of doom.
Word origin