manhattan #3 essential

Question 1

peripheral

Answer 1

Relating to or making up an outer boundary or region; not of primary importance, fringe. “My main goal is to get into grad school. Whether it has a good fitness facility is a peripheral concern”

Question 2

ambiguous

Answer 2

not clear, hard to understand, open to having several meanings or interpretations

Question 3

ubiquitous

Answer 3

Existing everywhere at the same time. “Pay phones which used to be ubiquitous in urban areas are not nearly impossible to find in operation”

Question 4

makeshift

Answer 4

a temporary, often improvised substitute; improvised for temporary use

Question 5

pristine

Answer 5

in an original, pure state; uncorrupted

Question 6

indifferent

Answer 6

not caring, having no interest, unbiased, impartial

Question 7

pragmatic

Answer 7

practical, dealing with actual facts and reality- a pragmatic sanction is a ruler’s declaration having the force of law. A ruler might issue a pragmatic sanction when the ideal situation isn’t possible, so one must be practical and just get the job done.

Question 8

savor

Answer 8

a characteristic taste or flavor (usually pleasant) appreciate fully, taste or smell with pleasure

Question 9

cynical

Answer 9

Thinking the worst of others’ motivations; bitterly pessimistic

Question 10

pronounced

Answer 10

distinct, strong, clearly indicated - can also mean declare “he pronounced the book the best thing he had ever read”

Question 11

catalyst

Answer 11

causer of change

Question 12

benign

Answer 12

harmless, favorable, kindly, gentle or beneficial, not cancerous

Question 13

culminate

Answer 13

reach the highest point or final stage

Question 14

derivative

Answer 14

derived from something else, not original - in finance a derivative is a contract, the value of which is derived from the value of stocks and bonds.

Question 15

buffer

Answer 15

something that shields, protects, absorbs shock or cushions. A buffer could also be a device for polishing (nails, cars)

Question 16

maverick

Answer 16

rebel, individualist, dissenter, “most cop movies feature heroes who are maverick police officers, breaking all the rules, blowing things up and getting there guns confiscated, but who ultimately save the day”. Lone wolf and loose canon mean the same thing (loose cannon implies the person may do something crazy) a political maverick doesn’t belong to any part, in ranching, a maverick is an unbranded animal.

Question 17

reap

Answer 17

harvest, such as by cutting, gather, get as a result of one’s effort

Question 18

retrospective

Answer 18

looking to the past or backward, applying to the past, retroactive, an art exhibit or an artist’s work over a long period of time. “The proposed law is retrospective. Anyone who violated the law before it even existed can be prosecuted”

Question 19

eccentric

Answer 19

peculiar, odd, deviating from the norm, esp in a whimsical way

Question 20

fidelity

Answer 20

faithfulness, loyalty, strict observance of duty; accuracy in reproducing a sound or image “the sound has great fidelity “ - meaning sharp sound and true, fid root means trust

Question 21

skeptic

Answer 21

person inclined to doubting or questioning generally accepted beliefs. Don’t confuse skeptical and cynical

Question 22

autonomous

Answer 22

self governing, independent - an autonomous region is independent but not considered its own country

Question 23

timely

Answer 23

well timed, happening at a suitable time

Question 24

pedestrian

Answer 24

ordinary, dull, commonplace - ped root means foot

Question 25

contention

Answer 25

controversial. Prone to causing arguments, especially gratuitous or petty ones

Question 26

lavish

Answer 26

abundant or giving in abundance; marked by excess, give very generously “although her rich banker lavished gifts on here, she didn’t’ want to be with someone she didn’t love”. Owning a lavish house, hosting a lavish banquet.

Question 27

plummet

Answer 27

plunge, fall straight down - as a noun, a plummet (plumb bomb) is a weight on the end of a cord used to sound the depths of a body of water.

Question 28

feasible

Answer 28

possible, logical or likely, suitable

Question 29

subside

Answer 29

sink, settle down, become less active; return to a normal level, abate could be a synonym

Question 30

concur

Answer 30

approve, agree, assent

Question 31

phony

Answer 31

fake, counterfeit, insincere, not genuine, synonyms include faux, spurious

Question 32

confer

Answer 32

consult, compare views, bestow or give. “ A Ph.D. confers the right to be addressed as doctor. Vest can also mean grant authority to.

Question 33

exacerbate

Answer 33

make worse (more violent, severe, etc). inflame , irritate or embitter (a person), aggravate is a synonym - to make utterly acerbic

Question 34

anomaly

Answer 34

deviation from what is common, inconsistency

Question 35

simultaneous

Answer 35

at the same time, the root simul means together

Question 36

dubious

Answer 36

doubtful, questionable, suspect “the applicant’s resume is filled with dubious qualifications”

Question 37

mitigate

Answer 37

make less severe, lesson or moderate (damage, grief, pain, etc), ameliorate, palliate and alleviate are all synonyms

Question 38

emulate

Answer 38

copy in an attempt to be equal or be better than

Question 39

aggregate

Answer 39

gather together, amount to; constituting a whole made up of constituent parts, a collection of things forming a whole

Question 40

arbitrary

Answer 40

based on entirely on one’s discretion; capricious, unreasonable or having no basis, originally something arbitrary was something that was uncertain because it depended on an arbiter’s decision.

Question 41

conversely

Answer 41

in an opposite way; on the other hand, or “to the contrary” , the converse of a statement is the reversal

Question 42

covert

Answer 42

secret, veiled, undercover - “the soldier trained to be a part of the covert operations, moving silently and remaining out of the enemy’s sight”, clandestine, surreptitious, and furtive are l synonyms

Question 43

converge

Answer 43

move towards one another or towards a point, unite

Question 44

complementary

Answer 44

completing, fitting together well, filling mutual needs

Question 45

impede

Answer 45

hold back, obstruct the progress of

Question 46

avid

Answer 46

enthusiastic, dedicated, passionate, excessively desirous

Question 47

disperse

Answer 47

scatter, spread widely, cause to vanish - use disperse for something that spreads out and disappears “the crowd dispersed and went their separate ways”. Used disseminate for something that spreads out and remains significant (writers want to disseminate their ideas, disseminating seeds to grow new plants.

Question 48

alienate

Answer 48

cause to become unfriendly, hostile or distant -”the talk show host was trying to help but only alienated her viewers when she suggested they cope with a tough economy by checking themselves into a spa” , related words include disaffected and estrange. In law alienate means to transfer property to another owner. An inalienable right is one that you cannot give away or sell (for instance, it is not possible for a person to sell himself into slavery)

Question 49

alleviate

Answer 49

lessen, make easier to endure, assuage, ameliorate, extenuate, palliate are all synonyms

Question 50

mundane

Answer 50

common, ordinary, everyday comes for the root mundo meaning earthly or world