Pink Flashcards
adversary
a person, group, or force that opposes or attacks; opponent; enemy; foe
antagonist, attacker, bad person, bandit
Your adversary is someone you are competing with or arguing or fighting against.
Tybalt considered Romeo to be his adversary because they came from opposing households.
bounty
a premium or reward, esp. one offered by a government
gratuity, largess, pay
You can refer to something that is provided in large amounts as bounty; a bounty is money that is offered as a reward for doing something, especially for finding or killing a particular person.
The sheriff put a bounty of $10,000 for the capture and return of the bank robber.
commendable
praise as worthy of confidence, notice, kindness
admirable, creditable, deserving
If you describe someone’s behavior as commendable, you approve of it or are praising it.
His performance was commendable and the entire play received rave reviews.
discord
disagreement; difference of opinion
disharmony, dissonance, harshness
Discord is a disagreement or argument between people.
I doubt there is anything that can mend the discord between the two opposing speakers.
equilibrium
a state of rest or balance due to the equal action of opposing forces
balance, evenness, steadiness
Equilibrium is a balance between several different influences or aspects of a situation; someone’s equilibrium is their normal calm state of mind.
When I suffered from an inner ear infection, my equilibrium was disturbed and I stumbled continuously.
flaunt
to parade or display oneself conspicuously, defiantly, or boldly
advertise, brandish, flash
If you say that someone flaunts their possessions, abilities, or qualities, you mean that they display them in a very obvious way, esp. in order to obtain other people’s admiration; if you say that someone is flaunting themselves, they are behaving in a very confident way, or in a way that is intended to attract sexual attention.
Don’t flaunt your successes by continually bragging about how much money you have made.
guise
general external appearance
cloak ,cover, appearance
You use guise to refer to the outward appearance or form of someone or something, which is often temporary or different from their real nature.
In the guise of grandmother, the wolf tried to lure Little Red Riding Hood into becoming dessert.
husbandry
the science of raising crops or food animals
management, administration
Husbandry is farming animals, esp. when it is done carefully and well.
UC Davis has an agricultural department that teaches husbandry and farming to a high standard.
ingenious
characterized by cleverness or originality
creative, cunning, intelligent
Something that is ingenious is very clever & involves new ideas, methods, or equipment.
The microwave oven is an ingenious device that makes everyday life easier.
lugubrious
[luh-goo-bree-us]
mournful, dismal, or gloomy
mournful, plaintive, sad
If you say that someone or something is lugubrious, you mean that they are sad rather than lively or cheerful.
Romeo is in a depressed, lugubrious mood, weeping over the loss of his lover.
myriad
[mih-ree-uhd]
a very great or indefinitely great number of persons or things
immeasurable, incalculable, infinite
A myriad or myriads of people or things is a very large number or great variety of them.
Myriads of butterflies filled the skies on their journey to Argentina.
euphoric
characterized by feeling intense excitement and happiness
elated, joyful, delighted
If you describe someone as euphoric, you mean that they are in a state of intense happiness and confidence.
The actress was absolutely euphoric when she received her Academy Award.
poach
to take game or fish illegally
intrude, pilfer, plunder
If someone poaches fish, animals, or birds, they illegally catch them on someone else’s property.
If one poaches animals in a protected area, the penalty can be quite high.
realm
a royal domain; kingdom
domain, empire
A realm is a country that has a king or queen; you can use realm to refer to any area of activity, interest, or thought.
The king stood on the palace balcony, observing his vast realm with pride.
invective
insulting, abusive, or highly critical language
insults, expletives, swearing
As a noun, invective is a steady stream of swear words or abusive language. As an adjective, language, such as the wording of something, could be described as invective wording or language.
The email from the man’s boss was quite lengthy and full of invective, chastising the employee for his breach of company policy.
mercurial
changeable; volatile; fickle; flighty; erratic
unpredictable, unstable, up-and-down
If you describe someone as mercurial, you mean that they frequently change their mind or mood without warning.
The mother observed her teenage daughter’s mercurial mood swings with practiced patience.
metabolic
of, pertaining to, or affected by metabolism;
the bodies process of changing food into energy
Metabolic means relating to a person’s or animal’s metabolism (your metabolism is the way that chemical processes in your body cause food to be used in an efficient way).
The diet was supposed to speed up one’s metabolic rate, assuming one increased exercise on a regular basis.
mitigate
to lessen in force or intensity, as wrath, grief, harshness, or pain
alleviate, appease, subdue
To mitigate something means to make it less unpleasant, serious, or painful.
In an effort to mitigate the negative effects of the poison, the doctor made his patient drink a charcoal liquid.
moiety
[moy-eh-tee]
half; an indefinite portion, part, or share
part, piece, portion
A moiety is a smaller piece or part of something larger.
In a fair settlement of the estate, each of the two sons received a moiety of the father’s property.
nascent
beginning to exist or develop
Nascent things or processes are just beginning and are expected to become stronger or to grow bigger.
The nascent buds on the trees hinted that the growing period was about to begin.
necrology
a list of persons who have died within a certain time
A necrology lists the dead from a particular event or period of time.
The necrology listed the dead recovered from the sinking of the Titanic.
nepotism
favoritism shown on the basis of family relationship
bias, discrimination, inequity
Nepotism is the unfair use of power in order to get jobs or other benefits for your family or friends.
Nepotism gives unfair hiring advantages to relatives of those in charge of personnel.
portentous
very serious and significant, especially with regard to the future events; pompous, inspiring wonder and amazement
significant, arrogant, pompous
If someone’s way of speaking, writing, or behaving is portentous, they speak, write, or behave more seriously than necessary because they want to impress other people; something that is portentous is important in indicating or affecting future events.
Romeo believed that the stars revealed a portentous event that might happen in the future.
propitious
presenting favorable conditions; favorable
fortunate, happy, hopeful, lucky
If something is propitious, it is likely to lead to success.
I waited for a propitious moment to ask my boss for an increase in salary.
pungent
sharply affecting the organs of taste or smell, as if by a penetrating power; biting
stinking, strong, tangy
Something that is pungent has a strong, sharp smell or taste which is often so strong that it is unpleasant; if you describe what someone has said or written as pungent, you approve of it because it has a direct & powerful effect & often criticizes something very cleverly.
The pungent smell of garlic permeated the Italian restaurant.
