Reading Comp Vocab List - Key Words Flashcards
Subjective
With bias
Objective
Without bias
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Ambivalent
Having two or multiple feelings
not sure whether you want or like something or not:
Ex. We are both somewhat ambivalent about having a child.
Reconcile
To bring to agreement
Syn. Conciliate
if you reconcile two ideas, situations, or facts, you find a way in which they can both be true or acceptable:
Ex. The possibility remains that the two theories may be reconciled.
[reconcile something with something]
Ex. Bevan tried to reconcile British socialism with a wider international vision.
Equivocal
Possibly two or more meanings
If you are equivocal, you are deliberately unclear in the way that you give information or your opinion
Syn. Ambiguous
Ex. His answer was equivocal.
Ex. She was rather equivocal about her work.
Equivocate
To avoid being straightforward
(formal) to avoid giving a clear or direct answer to a question
Disparity
Unequal
A difference between two or more things, especially an unfair one
Ex. A disparity between the rates of pay for men and women.
Irony
Difference between what is expected and what actually occurs
a situation that is unusual or amusing because something strange happens, or the opposite of what is expected happens or is true
Ex. Life is full of little ironies.
Belied
Shown to be false
Belie = to give someone a false idea about something:
Ex. Her pleasant manner belied her true character.
Characterize
To describe particular qualities of
To describe the qualities of someone or something in a particular way
[characterize somebody as (being) something]
Ex. The group was characterized as being well-educated and liberal.
Prove
To establish truth by presenting evidence
Ex. You’re wrong, and I can prove it.
Aesthetic
Pertaining to taste and appreciation of beauty
Syn. Beautiful
Dubious
Doubtful
Ex. I can see you are dubious; take some time to think about it.
Spurious
False
A spurious statement, argument etc is not based on facts or good thinking and is likely to be incorrect:
Ex. He demolished the Opposition’s spurious arguments.
Indifferent
Without care one way or another
Ex. Sarah was absolutely indifferent to him, and it hurt.
Exemplify
To show as an example
Ex. Problems are exemplified in the report.
Ambiguous
With two or more possible meanings
Ex. The language in the Minister’s statement is highly ambiguous.
Rhetoric
Structure and style in writing and speaking / argumentation
language that is used to persuade or influence people, especially language that sounds impressive but is not actually sincere or useful:
Ex. The speech was dismissed by some people as merely political rhetoric.
Discredit
To damage in reputation
To make people stop respecting or trusting someone or something:
Ex. The company’s lawyers tried to discredit her testimony.
Qualified
Limited, restricted or modified
Limited in some way
Ex. The proposal received qualified approval.
Repudiate
To reject validity of
To refuse to accept or continue with something
SYN reject
Ex. He repudiated all offers of friendship.
To state or show that something is not true or correct:
Ex. The book repudiates the racist stereotypes about black women.
Debunk
To show to be false
To show that an idea or belief is false:
Ex. His claims were later debunked by fellow academics.
Theory
A guess based on information
Hypothesis
Basically a theory
an idea that is suggested as an explanation for something, but that has not yet been proved to be true
Ex. One hypothesis is that the victim fell asleep while driving.
Dispassionate
Unaffected by emotion or bias
Devoid of personal feeling or bias
Not influenced by personal emotions and therefore able to make fair decisions
SYN impartial
Ex. a dispassionate view of the situation
Speculate
To guess
To guess about the possible causes or effects of something, without knowing all the facts or details
[speculate on/about (why/what etc)]
Ex. Jones refused to speculate about what might happen.
[speculate that]
Ex. Some analysts speculated that jobs will be lost.
Dramatize
To present in dramatic way
To make a situation seem more exciting, terrible etc than it really is:
Ex. Why do you have to dramatize everything?
Exaggerate
To overstate or enlarge to absurd degree
Ex. I couldn’t sleep for three days – I’m not exaggerating.
Undermine
To weaken
To attack by indirect, secret, or underhand means; attempt to subvert by stealth
To gradually make someone or something less strong or effective:
Ex. economic policies that threaten to undermine the health care system
[undermine somebody’s confidence/ authority/ position/ credibility etc]
Ex. The constant criticism was beginning to undermine her confidence.
Apathy
Lack of feeling or emotion
The feeling of not being interested in something, and not willing to make any effort to change or improve things:
Ex. The campaign failed because of public apathy.
Yield
To allow or give in to
Underscore
To emphasize or underline
To emphasize the fact that something is important or true
SYN underline
Rebut
To refute or repel
(formal) to prove that a statement or a charge made against you is false
SYN refute
Allusion
Indirect reference
Something said or written that mentions a subject, person etc indirectly:
[allusion to]
Ex. The committee made no allusion to the former President in its report.
Disprove
To show to be false
To show that something is wrong or not true
OPP prove
Ex. These figures disproved Smith’s argument.
Disengaged
Free from obligations and detached
not involved with or interested in something or someone, and feeling separate from them
Phenomenon
A significant or unusual event
Invalidate
To nullify or make very weak (as an argument)
To show that something such as a belief or explanation is wrong:
Ex. Later findings invalidated the theory.
Elicit
To draw or pull out
To succeed in getting information or a reaction from someone, especially when this is difficult
Digression
Deviation from the main subject
To talk or write about something that is not your main subject:
Ex. Do you mind if I digress for a moment?
Illustrate
To shed light on, explain and make clear
Resigned
A feeling of giving up and accepting something likely inescapable anyway
Justify
To demonstrate to be right and correct or free of blame
Assert
To state positively or boldly
Anecdote
A short account of an incident (especially a biographical one)
A short story based on your personal experience:
Ex. The book is full of amusing anecdotes about his life in Japan.
Assess
To place a value on; to judge the worth of something
to make a judgment about a person or situation after thinking carefully about it
SYN judge:
Concur
To agree
1 to agree with someone or have the same opinion as them:
concur with
Ex. The committee largely concurred with these views.
2 to happen at the same time
SYN coincide:
concur to do something
Ex. Everything concurred to produce the desired effect.
Contempt
Lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
A feeling that someone or something is not important and deserves no respect
Conventional
According with, sanctioned by, or based on convention; lacking originality or individuality
a conventional method, product, practice etc has been used for a long time and is considered the usual type
Convey
To impart or communicate by statements, suggestion, gesture, or appearance
To communicate or express something, with or without using words
Discern
Perceive clearly with the mind or the senses; recognize; distinguish; tell apart
Disinterested
Unbiased by personal interest or advantage
Dismissive
Indicating lack of interest; scornful; disdainful; to reject
Refusing to consider someone or something seriously:
dismissive of
Ex. Some historians have been dismissive of this argument.
Endorse
Be behind; support or vote for; give support or one’s blessing to
Interpret
To construe or understand in a particular way
Ironic
When something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning happens
Nostalgia
A sentimental longing for the happiness of a former place or time
A wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one’s life
A longing for something past; homesickness
Partisan
A person who shows a biased, emotional allegiance
Plausible
Apparently reasonable and valid; within the realm of credibility
Pragmatic
A practical approach
Provoke
To give rise to, induce, or bring about
Refute
To prove wrong by argument or evidence
Relevant
Connected with the matter in hand; pertinent
Reverent
Deeply respectful
Satire
The use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, to expose, denounce, or deride
Scornful
Full of scorn, contempt, or disdain
Scrutinize
To examine closely; to inspect or observe with critical attention; to regard narrowly
Substantiate
To support with proof or evidence
