NW Week 2 Flashcards
Incite
Encourage sb do do st illegal or unpleasant, esp by making them angry or excited
E: He incited the crowd to violence. She incited her colleagues to go on strike.
Insipid
Flavorless; not interesting = dull
E: The coffee is insipid. The group is an insipid imitation of Queen.
Dis’parage
Belittle
E: I don’t mean to disparage your achievements.
Ad’versity
Hardship; poverty; misfortune
E: He overcame many personal adversities. His struggle for life makes a compelling example of courage in the face of adversity. We must learn to meet adversity gracefully.
E’xuberance
Full of excitement; joyful enthusiasm; flamboyance; lavishness; overflowing abundance
E: We can excuse his behavior as youthful exuberance.
I was bowled over by the exuberance of her welcome. What an enthusiastic greeting!
Opaque
Dark; not transparent = impenetrable
E: The opaque glass make it hard to see what is inside the bottle.
Her essay was too opaque to understand. The system is completely opaque to non-specialists.
Acclaim (v)
Applaud; announce with great approval
E: This book was highly acclaimed as a modern classic.
The NBC sportscasters acclaimed every American victory in the Olympics and decried every American defeat.
Decry
Publicly criticize st severely = condemn
E: The measure was decried as useless.
Exhaustive
Thorough; comprehensive
E: We have made an exhaustive study of all published GMAT tests and are happy to share our research with you.
‘Reprimand (v)
Reprove severely; rebuke
E: The officers were severely reprimanded for their unprofessional behaviors.
‘Adversary (n)
Opponent
E: The young wrestler struggled to defeat his adversary.
Im’pede
Hinder, hamper; block; delay
E: Work on the building was impeded by severe weather.
Instigate
Urge; start; provoke
E: Rumors of police corruption led the mayor to instigate an investigation into the department’s activities.
He was accused of instigating racial violence.
Affirmation
Positive assertion; confirmation: solemn pledge by one who refuses to take an oath.
E: She nodded in affirmation.
Despite Tom’s affirmations of innocent, Aunt Polly still suspected he had eaten the apple.
Adulation
Flattery; admiration
E: The band enjoys the adulation of their fans wherever they go.
The rock star thrived on the adulation of his groupies and yes-men.
As’tute
Wise; shrewd; keen
E: She was astute enough to see that in some ways they are similar.
The painter was an astute observer, noticing every tiny detail of her model’s appearance.
su’perfluous
unnecessary; excessive; overabundant.
E: She gave him a look that made words superfluous.
Betsy lacked the heart to tell June that the wedding present was superfluous; they had already received five toasters.
‘transient
momentary; temporary; fleeting; staying for a short time.
E: the transient nature of speech It didn’t take him long to find out that his happiness was transient.
Located near the airport, this hotel caters to a largely transient trade.
terse
concise; abrupt; pithy // gọn lỏn (not really polite)
E: a terse style The President issued a terse statement denying the charges.
He just gave me a terse reply,
profound
deep; not superficial; complete // sâu thăm thẳm; uyên bác, uyên thâm; sâu rộng
E: The way his mother treated him as a child has a profound impact on his behaviors.
Freud’s remarkable insights into human behavior caused his fellow scientists to honor him as a profound thinker.
rectify
(frm) correct, set right, put right smt that is wrong
E: The mistake can be easily rectified.
The company must take steps to rectify the situation.
redundant (adj)
superfluous; repetitious; excessively wordy.
E: With the new technology; he was made redundant from his job.
Your story has too much redundant detail.
surpass (v)
exceed
dis’dain (v) (1)
+ sb/st: to think that sb/st is not good enough to deserve your respect; to view with scorn or contempt // xem thường, coi khinh, khinh thị
E: She disdained his offer of help.
dis’dain (v) (2)
+ to do st: refuse to do st bcos you think you’re too important to do it
E: He disdained to do the cooking.
compliance (n)
+ w/ st: readiness to yield; conformity in fulfilling requirements
E: Safety measures were carried out in compliance with paragraph the company policies.
He was not noted for easy compliance with the demands of others.
censure (v)
(form) +sb (for st): blame; criticize severely (often publicly); = rebuke
E: He was censured for making the company lose an important contract.
The senator was censured for behavior inappropriate to a member of Congress.
coercion
(frm) use of force to get someone to obey.
E: The accused claimed he only acted under coercion.
The creditors used both physical and psychological coercion to force him to pay the debt with his house.
erudite (adj)
(frm) learned; scholarly // thông thái, uyên bác, bộc lộ học vấn sâu rộng
E: Though his fellow students thought him erudite, Paul knew he would have to spend many years in serious study before he could consider himself a scholar.
She could turn any conversation into an erudite discussion.
advocate (v)
urge; plead for.
E: The abolitionists advocated freedom for the slaves.
abstract (adj)
theoretical; not concrete; nonrepresentational.
E: To him, hunger was an abstract concept; he had never missed a meal.
concencus (n)
(unc) (among sb) (abt/on st) / that…: general agreement.
E: He is skilled at achieving consensus on sensitive issues.
There is a growing consensus of opinion on this issue. an attempt to reach a consensus
constraint
compulsion; repression of feelings.
E: There was a feeling of constraint in the room because no one dared to criticize the speaker.
ascendancy
(unc) (frm) (+ over sb/st): controlling influence; domination.
E: The dictator had maintained ascendancy over the country for 10 years before being forced to relinquish his title to his youngest son.
apathy (n)
lack of caring; indifference.
E: A person with great compassion for suffered people, she could not fathom the apathy of people who never offer a helping hand.
cryptic (adj)
mysterious; hidden; secret.
E: a cryptic remark/smile/message
Thoroughly baffled by Holmes’s cryptic remarks, Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.
cursory
(adj) casual; hastily done; perfunctory; brief. a cursory glance/examination/inspection
E: He gave the report a rather cursory look.
con’tentious
(adj) (frm) quarrelsome; argumentative; likely to cause disagreement between people; # uncontentious
a contentious issue/topic/subject
E: The government’s treatment of refugees remains a highly contentious issue.
per’vasive
(adj) pervading; spread throughout every part
E: A sense of social change is pervasive in her novels.
prolife’ration (n) pro’liferate (v)
(unc)(sing) rapid growth; spread; multiplication.
E: Times of economic hardship inevitably encourage the proliferation of countless get-rich-quick schemes.
relegate
(v) + sb/st (to st): banish to an inferior position; delegate; assign; # promote
E: After Ralph dropped his second tray of drinks that week, the manager relegated him to a minor post, cleaning behind the bar.
‘prodigal
(adj)(frm, disa) wasteful; extravagant; reckless with money
E: Don’t be so prodigal spending my money; when you’ve earned some money yourself, you can waste it as you want!
impair
(v)(frm) injure; hurt; damage; harm (sb’s health, abilities, or chances)
E: Drinking alcohol can impair your ability to drive safely.
brevity
(n) conciseness
E: Brevity is essential when you send a telegram or cablegram; you are charged for every word.//
censorious
(adj)(frm) critical, tending to criticize people or things a lot
E: She fixed her daughter with a censorious eye.
Censorious people delight in casting blame.//
innate
(adj) inborn
E: Mozart’s parents soon recognized young Wolfgang’s innate talent for music.
