Misc. 4 Flashcards
xeriscaping
environmental design of residential and park land using various methods for minimizing the need for water use.
absquatulate
Slang. to flee; abscond: The old prospector absquatulated with our picks and shovel.
protean
- readily assuming different forms or characters; extremely variable.
- changeable in shape or form, as an amoeba.
“A genius for the ages, a man who played wonderful yet sometimes outrageous changes with art, Pablo Picasso remains without doubt, the most original, the most protean and the most forceful personality in the visual arts….”
– Alden Whitman, “Picasso: Protean and Prodigious, the Greatest Single Force in 70 Years of Art,” New York Times, April 9, 1973
Protean comes from Proteus, the sea god noted for his ability to assume different forms.
opprobrious
- outrageously disgraceful or shameful: opprobrious conduct.
- conveying or expressing opprobrium, as language or a speaker: opprobrious invectives.
argy-bargy
Chiefly British. a vigorous discussion or dispute.
Quote:
The current argy-bargy over herring fishing seems to bring the whole issue of conservation, national fishing limits, and policing of the seas into perspective.
– Brian Gardner, “Don’t send a gunboat,” New Scientist, July 21, 1977
shibboleth
- a peculiarity of pronunciation, behavior, mode of dress, etc., that distinguishes a particular class or set of persons.
- a slogan; catchword.
donnybrook
(often initial capital letter) an inordinately wild fight or contentious dispute; brawl; free-for-all
Quotes
The crime reporter told the story in a high-pitched nasal voice that was nearly as grating as the sound of the donnybrook the Dunphys’ were having downstairs.
– Scott Phillips, The Adjustment, 2011
galumph
to move along heavily and clumsily.
minimax
a strategy of game theory employed to minimize a player’s maximum possible loss.
Quote:
This is the principle of minimax: assume that the worst may happen and act accordingly; remember that lightning always strikes twice in the same place. This is a basic law known to all successful gamblers.
– William S. Burroughs, The Adding Machine: Selected Essays, 1993
wayworn
worn or wearied by travel:
anomia
Medicine/Medical. the inability to name objects or to recognize the written or spoken names of objects.
espial
- the act of spying.
2. the act of keeping watch; observation.
amphigory
a meaningless or nonsensical piece of writing, especially one intended as a parody.
flummox
Informal. to bewilder; confound; confuse.
alexithemia
Psychiatry. difficulty in experiencing, expressing, and describing emotional responses.
jejune
- without interest or significance; dull; insipid: a jejune novel.
- juvenile; immature; childish: jejune behavior.
slugabed
a lazy person who stays in bed long after the usual time for arising.
penetralia
- the most private or secret things.
- the innermost parts or recesses of a place or thing.
Quote:
“But there are promptings of wisdom from the penetralia of human nature, which a people can hear though, the wisest of their practical Statesmen be deaf towards them.”
– William Wordsworth, “Concerning the Relations of Great Britain, Spain and Portugal…as Affected by the Convention of Cintra,” 1809
uxorious
doting upon, foolishly fond of, or affectionately submissive toward one’s wife.
gormandize
to eat greedily or ravenously
oniomania
an uncontrollable desire to buy things
propinquity
- Nearness in place; proximity.
2. affinity of nature; similarity.
spoonerism
- The transposition of usually initial sounds in a pair of words.
- the transposition of initial or other sounds of words, usually by accident, as in a blushing crow for a crushing blow.
antipodes
\an-TIP-uh-deez\
noun
1. places diametrically opposite each other on the globe.
2. those who dwell there.
fugacious
- Lasting but a short time; fleeting.
2. fleeting; transitory: a sensational story with but a fugacious claim on the public’s attention.
matutinal
- Relating to or occurring in the morning; early.
2. pertaining to or occurring in the morning; early in the day.
telluric
- of or proceeding from the earth or soil.
2. of or relating to the earth; terrestrial.
milquetoast
(sometimes initial capital letter) a very timid, unassertive, spineless person, especially one who is easily dominated or intimidated: a milquetoast who’s afraid to ask for a raise.
eudemonic
- pertaining or conducive to happiness.
- pertaining to eudemonics or eudemonism.
Quote:
Philosophers have long held that we can distinguish between eudemonic experience, or a striving towards meaning and purpose that underlies human beings’ capacity to engage in complex social and cultural behavior, in contrast to the striving for more heonic or simply pleasurable experience.
– Michael Friedman, “Would a Year of Voluntary Public Service Bring Out America’s Best?” Huffington Post, March 11, 2015
oenophile
\EE-nuh-fahyl\
noun
1. a person who enjoys wines, usually as a connoisseur.
irenic
tending to promote peace or reconciliation; peaceful or conciliatory.
munificence
the quality of being munificent, or showing unusual generosity: The museum’s collection was greatly increased by the munificence of the family’s gift.
abdominous
having a large belly; potbellied.
wing-ding
- Slang. a noisy, exciting celebration or party.
2. Slang. a fit, either induced by drugs or feigned.
clinquant
adjective
1. glittering, especially with tinsel; decked with garish finery.
noun
1. imitation gold leaf; tinsel; false glitter.
prepossessing
that impresses favorably; engaging or attractive: a confident and prepossessing young man.
salubrious
favorable to or promoting health; healthful: salubrious air.
sybaritic
- pertaining to or characteristic of a sybarite; characterized by or loving luxury or sensuous pleasure: to wallow in sybaritic splendor.
- (initial capital letter) of, relating to, or characteristic of Sybaris or its inhabitants.
inveigle
- to entice, lure, or ensnare by flattery or artful talk or inducements (usually followed by into): to inveigle a person into playing bridge.
- to acquire, win, or obtain by beguiling talk or methods (usually followed by from or away): to inveigle a theater pass from a person.
hebetude
\HEB-i-tood, -tyood\
noun
1. the state of being dull; lethargy.
