Peripatetic - Recondite Flashcards
Peripatetic
Adj. moving or traveling from place to place. n. one who travels frequently from place to place; ex) My grandmother loves to hear stories from the __________ salespeople who occasionally come to her door.
Periphery
The outermost boundary of an area; ex) Paul jogged daily along the __________ of the lake, enjoying the view of the water as he worked out.
Perjury
Knowingly lying under oath; ex) Witnesses whose intent is to deceive the court with their testimony may later be found guilty of __________.
Perpetuate
To prolong the existence or idea of; to make everlasting; ex) That a high grade point average leads to a high standardized test score is a myth __________ed among some educators.
Pertinent
Relevant or appropriate; ex) Our professor warned us to read chapter eight very carefully; the information was __________ to what would be found on our exam.
Peruse
To examine or review something; ex) Each day Liz wanted to __________ the want ads in the newspaper, desperately trying to find a job.
Pervasive
Capable of spreading or flowing throughout; ex) Because we lived on a farm, it was impossible to avoid the __________ smell of cow manure at certain times during the year.
Phenomenon
Observable fact or event; an unusual, significant, or outstanding occurrence. ex) Many a cosmological __________ has yet to be fully explained.
Pith
Significance, importance; ex) Politicians seem to have a knack for obscuring the __________ of an issue.
Placate
To calm; ex) The waitress tried to __________ her angry patron by offering him a free meal.
Placid
Calm or quiet; ex) The _________ lakeside resort in the mountains of Colorado was my favorite place to get away from it all.
Plagiarize
To copy another’s work and pretend that it is original; ex) The journalist was sued for _________ing an article from another writer and selling it to a national magazine.
Plausible
Reasonable, likely; ex) Her reasons seemed highly _________; nonetheless, her friends found it hard to accept her unusual tardiness.
Plethora
Excess or overabundance; ex) The library has a _________ of books on the Civil War.
Poignant
Profoundly moving; incisive; ex) The audience sat stunned, moved to silence by the speaker’s _________ remarks.
Polarity
The possession of two opposing attributes or ideas; ex) The novel was based on the ironic _________ of the identical twins.
Postulate
To put forth or assert; ex) Karl Marx _________ed that Communism was the only successful way to organize the economy; he was wrong.
Pragmatic
Practical; ex) She was _________ in her approach to applying for the job; she thoroughly researched the company prior to her interview.
Precarious
In a dangerous state, lacking security or stability; ex) Many start-up companies find themselves in a very _________ position when seeking additional funding.
Precedent
An example or event that is used to justify similar occurrences at a later time; custom arising from long-term practice; ex) The student broke her family’s long-running _________ and attended the University of Colorado instead of Colorado State.
Precept
A guiding rule or principle; ex) The fraternity’s founding _________ is love and equality among all of its brothers.
Precipitate
To cause something to happen very suddenly or prematurely; ex) The bombings _________ed a massive wave of antiterrorism among the people of the target country.
Preclude
To prevent or make impossible; ex) John’s embezzlement conviction _________ed him from getting another highpowered accounting job.
Precursor
One that precedes or suggests the approach of another; ex) The peasant uprisings of earlier decades are now considered to be _________s of the French Revolution.
Presage
An omen or other warning sign; ex) Some sailors believe that a red sky in the morning is a _________ of storms coming that day.
Prescience
Foresight; the power to see the future; ex) The captain’s _________ for trouble at sea prompted him to replace the old life jackets he had on board.
Presume
To take something for granted as being fact; ex) Many college graduates with high grade point averages _________ that finding employment will be easy.
Prevaricate
To lie; ex) It was obvious that Emily was _________ing when her story changed slightly every time she told it.
Probity
Integrity and uprightness; ex) It is important that those working at the clothing store display _________, for it would be far too easy for greedy employees to take whatever they wanted from inventory.
Prodigal
Wasteful; extravagant; ex) Gone are the days of _________ expenditures on social services by the government.
Profuse
Plentiful or abundant; ex) After her foolish mistake, Maria offered _________ apologies.
Progeny
Offspring or product; ex) My great-grandfather is proud of his extensive _________.
Prognosis
Forecast or prediction; ex) The economic _________ was bleak; it looked like the recession had only just begun.
Proliferate
To grow or increase rapidly; ex) Computers, like any other technology, _________ rapidly as production costs decrease and materials availability increases.
Promulgate
To proclaim; usually in reference to rules or laws; ex) At the Board meeting, the town trustees _________ed some new zoning regulations.
Propagate
To cause to multiply or spread; ex) The newly introduced plant species began to _________ quickly in the humid environment.
Prototype
An original form of something; ex) The new _________ sports car will be debuted at the auto show next week.
Protract
To lengthen or prolong; ex) Our train trip was annoyingly _________ed by a series of unexplained delays.
Prowess
Great skill or ability in something; ex) Chandler’s athletic _________ was overshadowed by that of his legendary older brother, who was named MVP all four years of his high school football career.
Prudish
Exaggeratedly proper; righteous; ex) My _________ mother wouldn’t allow me to wear miniskirts, no matter how hot it got in the summer.
Quaff
To drink heartily; ex) After a long day at work, Chad _________ed multiple beers while waiting for his dinner.
Querulous
Characterized by constant complaining or whining; ex) The losing candidate’s _________ remarks regarding his opponent were not included in the newspaper article.
Quixotic
Unpredictable and impractical; ex) The _________ nature of the weather in April requires that you carry an umbrella with you wherever you go.
Quotidian
Ordinary, occurring daily; ex) Cell phone use has become a _________ part of our existence; it’s hard to imagine that only 20 years ago cell phones were used primarily in emergencies.
Rancor
Bitter resentment; ex) The prisoner’s _________ was increasingly evident in his malicious glance at the warden.
Recalcitrant
Stubbornly resistant; defiant; ex) Joanna seemed to morph overnight from a polite child to a _________ teen.
Recluse
Someone who is withdrawn from society; ex) Although the movie star has been in countless blockbusters, she lives as a _________ and refuses to give interviews or appear at publicity events.
Recompense
N. payment in return for something. v. to award compensation to; ex) You are certainly entitled to some _________ after all of your hours of hard work.
Reconciliation
The reestablishing of cordial relations; ex) It took hours of negotiations to bring about _________ between the two parties.
Recondite
Difficult to understand; ex) Many students feel it is more helpful to read the textbook than attend the professor’s _________ lectures.
