May 28 (part 1)

Question 1

interminable

Answer 1

unending, tiresomely long, endless, so long as to seem endless

Question 2

adroit

Answer 2

skillful, expert in the use of the hands or mind

Question 3

alacrity

Answer 3

briskness, liveliness and eagerness

Question 4

promulgate

Answer 4

to make known officially

Question 5

brash

Answer 5

impudent

harsh, loud, and maybe a little rude.

Question 6

castigate

Answer 6

to correct by punishing

Question 7

egregious

Answer 7

remarkably bad (not flagrant)

Question 8

pernicious

Answer 8

harmful, causing injury

Pernicious means harmful and subtle, such as a poison gas that causes cancer in those exposed to it over the course of years.

Question 9

impunity

Answer 9

freedom from punishment

If doing something usually results in punishment, but you do it with impunity, you will not be punished for the deed. Students are not allowed to chew gum in school, but teachers do it with impunity. Not fair!

Question 10

sally

Answer 10

suddenly rush forth (not surge)

Question 11

precocious

Answer 11

reaching maturity early

That high school hoops phenom who plays like an NBA pro? The sixth grader who’s already asking questions about organic chemistry? They’re both precocious — meaning they’re way beyond their years in skill or knowledge.

Question 12

masticate

Answer 12

to chew up

To masticate is to chew your food or to bite and grind stuff with your teeth.

Question 13

obsolescence

Answer 13

Fashion trends come and go, and often return after a time. But gimmicky fads quickly fall into obsolescence, losing appeal and falling out of sight — do you know anyone who still has a pet rock?

Question 14

paroxysm

Answer 14

a fit, sudden outburst

A paroxysm is a convulsion or sudden fit, brought on because you’re freaking out or coming down with something.

Question 15

indigent

Answer 15

poor, needy

An indigent person is extremely poor, lacking the basic resources of a normal life. Often the indigent lack not only money but homes.

Question 16

emaciated

Answer 16

abnormally thin, wasted away

Someone who is dangerously skinny and skeletal-looking can be described as emaciated. It’s probably how you’d start to look after a few weeks in the wilderness with only berries and bugs for dinner.

Question 17

privation

Answer 17

lack of necessities

If you’re lacking the basic necessities of life — food, water, political freedom, and so on — you’re suffering from privation.

Question 18

impresario

Answer 18

one who presents cultural series, organizer

An impresario is a promoter: someone who books, promotes, and organizes shows such as concerts.

Question 19

inclement

Answer 19

unfavorable, stormy

Inclement usually refers to severe or harsh weather that is cold and wet. When packing for a trip to the Caribbean bring tank tops and shorts, but don’t forget a raincoat in case of inclement weather.

Question 20

mastiff

Answer 20

large dog

an old breed of powerful deep-chested smooth-coated dog used chiefly as a watchdog and guard dog

Question 21

doleful

Answer 21

sad, melancholy

To be doleful is to be down in the dumps, to have a hole in your soul, to be full of woe.

Question 22

wan

Answer 22

sickly pale

Someone who is wan is visibly unwell and lacking in energy. If you’ve had the flu for over a week, and you finally get out of bed looking pale and tired, your mother might say that you look wan.

Question 23

phlegmatic

Answer 23

calm, hard to rouse to action

Yes, phlegmatic has roots in that colorless, mucousy stuff called phlegm, but people who are phlegmatic aren’t called that because they have lots of mucus. They are just a little dull in expressing feelings or showing emotion.

Question 24

anathema

Answer 24

Something that one absolutely and positively cannot stand is anathema. Garlic is anathema to vampires (ditto for stakes and daylight). So is kryptonite to Superman or a silver bullet to a werewolf.

something greatly detested

Question 25

importune

Answer 25

Sure, to importune is to beg, but use it only when you’re talking about going beyond mere begging into more urgent territory. The woman importuned the judge to release her innocent brother from jail.

ask urgently

Question 26

incontrovertible

Answer 26

When something is incontrovertible, it is undeniably, absolutely, 100 percent, completely true. That rain is wet is an incontrovertible fact.

undeniable

Question 27

eventuate

Answer 27

come out in the end

to result finally

Question 28

propitious

Answer 28

When the timing of something is propitious, it’s likely to turn out well. A propitious time for taking a big test is when you’ve studied hard and had a good night’s sleep.

favorable

Question 29

inveigh

Answer 29

Picture an old man banging his fist on the dinner table, inveighing against the evils of teenagers being allowed to listen to music and dance. Inveigh means to rail against something with hostility and passion.

attack verbally

Question 30

nettle

Answer 30

If you know what a nettle is—it’s a plant with stinging hairs—then you’ll have no trouble remembering the verb nettle: it means to annoy, bother, irritate, or bedevil.

irritate

Question 31

abrogate

Answer 31

Abrogate means to abolish or avoid. When someone cuts in front of you in line, they are abrogating your right to be the next one served. When you cut in line, you are abrogating your responsibility to those who were in line before you.

abolish (not obviate)

Question 32

declaim

Answer 32

speak loudly

Use the verb declaim when someone is speaking very passionately against something, like when you declaim having to be home at an early hour.

Question 33

asperity

Answer 33

Asperity is the harsh tone or behavior people exhibit when they’re angry, impatient, or just miserable. When your supervisor’s “Late again!” greeting causes your entire future to pass before your eyes, he is speaking with asperity.

harshness of temper

Question 34

epithet

Answer 34

The noun epithet is a descriptive nickname, such as “Richard the Lionhearted,” or “Tommy the Terrible.” When it takes a turn for the worse, it can also be a word or phrase that offends.

descriptive name

Question 35

bulwark

Answer 35

protection

A bulwark is a wall built for protection or defense. If you and your pals build a secret fort for girls only, you might want to build a bulwark to surround it — with a “No Boys Allowed” sign posted prominently.

Question 36

coterie

Answer 36

Have you noticed how so many of the best TV shows concentrate on a group of friends who seem to mesh together perfectly, to the exclusion of all others? This, then, is a coterie, an exclusive group with common interests.

small group having something in common

Question 37

cupidity

Answer 37

Remember the saying “Greed is good”? It could just as easily be “Cupidity is good,” though admittedly it doesn’t roll off the tongue quite the same way. Cupidity means a burning desire to have more wealth than you need.

greed

Question 38

exalt / exult

Answer 38

Sometimes you might feel so happy about something you could just burst. This is the time to exult, or rejoice, and you might show your great happiness by laughing, dancing, and shouting with pure joy.

rejoice greatly

Question 39

urbane

Answer 39

Urbane people are sophisticated, polished, cultured, refined. Spend enough time in an urban setting–-going to concerts and museums, spending time in crowds––and you’ll be urbane too.

polished, witty

Question 40

itinerant

Answer 40

An itinerant is a person who moves from place to place, typically for work, like the itinerant preacher who moves to a new community every few years.

wandering (not nomadic)

Question 41

peregrination

Answer 41

If you went backpacking through Europe last summer, you could call your travels a peregrination. A peregrination is a long journey or period of wandering.
travel

Question 42

profligate

prodigal

Answer 42

Profligate, as a noun or as an adjective, implies recklessly wasting your money on extravagant luxury. Profligate behavior is a lot of fun, but you’ll regret it later — when you get your charge card bill.

Question 43

fiat

Answer 43

You might think a fiat is just an Italian car, but it actually means a legal, authoritative decision that has absolute sanction.

an official order, a decree

Question 44

mendacious

Answer 44

A mendacious person is one who tells lies habitually and intentionally. Don’t get stuck at the water cooler or bus stop next to someone you consider mendacious!

lying, untrue

Question 45

parsimonious

Answer 45

A parsimonious person is unwilling to spend a lot of money. You know those people who count up every penny when it’s time to split a restaurant bill? You can call them parsimonious. Or cheap.

miserly