S-2 Flashcards
solicitous
worried- concerned (Eg: The employer was very solicitous about the health of her employees as replacements were difficult to get. )
soliloquy
talking to oneself (Eg: The soliloquy is a device used by the dramatist to reveal a character’s innermost thoughts and emotions. )
solstice
point at which the sun is farthest from the equator (Eg: The winter solstice usually occurs on December 21. )
solvent
able to pay all debts (Eg: By dint of very frugal living- he was finally able to become solvent and avoid bankruptcy proceedings. )
somatic
pertaining to the body; physical (Eg: Why do you ignore the spiritual aspects and emphasize only the corporeal and the somatic ones? )
somber
gloomy; depressing (Eg: From the doctor’s grim expression- I could tell he had somber news. )
somnambulist
sleepwalker (Eg: The most famous somnambulist in literature is Lady Macbeth; her monologue in the sleepwalking scene is )
somnolent
half asleep (Eg: The heavy meal and the overheated room made us all somnolent and indifferent to the speaker. )
sonorous
resonant (Eg: His sonorous voice resounded through the hall. )
sophist
teacher of philosophy; quibbler; employer of fallacious reasoning (Eg: You are using all the devices of a sophist in trying to prove your case; your argument is specious. )
sophistication
artificiality; unnaturalness; act of employing sophistry in reasoning (Eg: Sophistication is an acquired characteristic- found more frequently among city dwellers than among )
sophistry
seemingly plausible but fallacious reasoning (Eg: Instead of advancing valid arguments- he tried to overwhelm his audience with a flood of sophistries. )
sophomoric
immature; shallow (Eg: Your sophomoric remarks are a sign of your youth and indicate that you have not given much thought to )
soporific
sleep producing (Eg: I do not need a sedative when I listen to one of his soporific speeches. )
sordid
filthy; base; vile (Eg: The social worker was angered by the sordid housing provided for the homeless. )
spangle
small metallic piece sewn to clothing for ornamentation (Eg: The thousands of spangles on her dress sparkled in the glare of the stage lights. )
spartan
lacking luxury and comfort; sternly disciplined (Eg: Looking over the bare- unheated room with its hard cot- he wondered what he was doing in such spartan )
spasmodic
fitful; periodic (Eg: The spasmodic coughing in the auditorium annoyed the performers. )
spat
squabble; minor dispute (Eg: What had started out as a mere spat escalated into a full-blown argument. )
spate
sudden flood (Eg: I am worried about the possibility of a spate if the rains do not diminish soon. )
spatial
relating to space (Eg: It is difficult to visualize the spatial extent of our universe. )
spatula
broad-bladed instrument used for spreading or mixing (Eg: The manufacturers of this frying pan recommended the use of a rubber spatula to avoid scratching the )
spawn
lay eggs (Eg: Fish ladders had to be built in the dams to assist the salmon returning to spawn in their native streams. )
specious
seemingly reasonable but incorrect (Eg: Let us not be misled by such specious arguments. )
spectral
ghostly (Eg: We were frightened by the spectral glow that filled the room. )
spectrum
colored band produced when a beam of light passes through a prism (Eg: The visible portion of the spectrum includes red at one end and violet at the other. )
spendthrift
someone who wastes money (Eg: Easy access to credit encourages people to turn into spendthrifts who shop till they drop. )
. sphinx-like enigmatic; mysterious
(Eg: The Mona Lisa’s sphinx-like expression has puzzled art lovers for centuries. )
splice
fasten together; unite (Eg: Before you splice two strips of tape together- be sure to line them up evenly. )
spontaneity
impulsiveness; absence of premeditation (Eg: What I liked best about Dale’s parties was their spontaneity: a couple of friends would drop by- someone )
spoonerism
accidental transposition of sounds in sucessive words (Eg: When the radio announcer introduced the President as Hoobert Herver- he was guilty of spoonerism. )
sporadic
occurring irregularly (Eg: Although there are still sporadic outbursts of shooting in the streets- the rebellion is essentially over. )
sportive
playful (Eg: Such a sportive attitude is surprising in a person as serious as you usually are. )
spruce
neat and trim (Eg: Every button buttoned- tie firmly in place- young Alex Keaton looked spruce and tidy for his job interview )
spry
vigorously active; nimble (Eg: She was eighty years old- yet still spry and alert. )
spurious
false; counterfeit; forged; illogical (Eg: The hero of Jonathan Gash’s mystery novels is an antique dealer who gives the reader advice on how to tell )
spurn
reject; scorn (Eg: The heroine spurned the villain’s advances. )
squabble
minor quarrel; bickering (Eg: Children invariably get involved in petty squabbles; wise parents know when to interfere and when to let )
squalid
dirty; neglected; poor (Eg: It is easy to see how crime can breed in such a squalid neighborhood. )
squander
waste (Eg: The prodigal son squandered the family estate. )
squat
stocky; short and thick (Eg: Tolkien’s hobbits are somewhat squat- sturdy little creatures- fond of good ale- good music- and good food. )
staccato
played in an abrupt manner; marked by abrupt- sharp sound (Eg: His staccato speech reminded one of the sound of a machine gun. )
stagnant
motionless; stale; dull (Eg: The stagnant water was a breeding ground for disease )
staid
sober; sedate (Eg: Her conduct during the funeral ceremony was staid and solemn. )
stalemate
deadlock (Eg: Negotiations between the union and the employers have reached a stalemate; neither side is willing to )
stalwart
strong- brawny; steadfast (Eg: His consistent support of the party has proved that he is a stalwart and loyal member. )
stamina
strength; staying power (Eg: I doubt that she has the stamina to run the full distance of the marathon race. )
stanch
check flow of blood (Eg: It is imperative that we stanch the gushing wound before we attend to the other injuries. )
stanza
division of a poem (Eg: Do you know the last stanza of ‘‘The Star-Spangled Banner’’? )
static
unchanging; lacking development (Eg: Nothing had changed at home; things were static there )
statute
law (Eg: )
statutory
created by statute or legislative action (Eg: The judicial courts review and try statutory crimes. )
steadfast
loyal; unswerving (Eg: Penelope was steadfast in her affections- faithfully waiting for Ulysses to return from his wanderings. )
stealth
slyness; sneakiness; secretiveness (Eg: Fearing detection by the sentries on duty- the scout inched his way toward the enemy camp with great )
steep
soak; saturate (Eg: Be sure to steep the fabric in the dye bath for the full time prescribed. )
stellar
pertaining to the stars (Eg: He was the stellar attraction of the entire performance. )
stem
check the flow (Eg: The paramedic used a tourniquet to stem the bleeding from the slashed artery. )
stemfrom
arise from (Eg: Milton’s problems in school stemmed from his poor study habits. )
stentorian
extremely loud (Eg: The town crier had stentorian voice. )
streotyped
oversimplified; lacking individuality; seen as a type (Eg: My chief objection to the book is that the characters are stereotyped; they come across as ethnic )
stickler
perfectionist; person who insists things be exactly right (Eg: The Internal Revenue Service agent was a stickler for accuracy; no approximations or rough estimates )
stifle
suppress; extinguish; inhibit (Eg: Halfway through the boring lecture- Laura gave up trying to stifle her yawns. )
stigma
token of disgrace; brand (Eg: I do not attach any stigma to the fact that you were accused of this crime; the fact that you were acquitted )
stilted
bombastic; stiffly pompous (Eg: His stilted rhetoric did not impress the college audience; they were immune to bombastic utterances. )
stint
be thrifty; set limits (Eg: ‘‘Spare no expense-‘’ the bride’s father said- refusing to stint on the wedding arrangements. )
stint
supply; allotted amount; assigned portion of work (Eg: )
stipend
pay for services (Eg: There is a nominal stipend for this position. )
stipple
paint or draw with dots (Eg: Seurat carefully stippled dabs of pure color on the canvas- juxtaposing dots of blue and yellow that the )
stipulate
make express conditions- specify (Eg: Before agreeing to reduce American military forces in Europe- the president stipulated that NATO teams )
stodgy
stuffy; boringly conservative (Eg: For a young person- Winston seems remarkably stodgy: you’d expect someone of his age to have a little )
stoic
person who is indifferent to pleasure or pain (Eg: The doctor called her patient a stoic because he had borne the pain of the examination without )
stoke
stir up a fire; feed plentifully (Eg: As a Scout- Marisa learned how to light a fire- how to stoke it if it started to die down- and how to )
stolidity
dullness; impassivenss (Eg: The earthquake shattered his usual stolidity; trembling- he crouched on the no longer stable ground. )
stratified
divided into classes; arranged into strata (Eg: As the economic gap between the rich and the poor increased- Roman society grew increasingly stratified. )
stratum
layer of earth’s surface; layer of society (Eg: Unless we alleviate conditions in the lowest stratum of our society- we may expect grumbling and revolt. )
strew
spread randomly; sprinkle; scatter (Eg: Preceding the bride to the altar- the flower girl will strew rose petals along the aisle. )
striated
marked with parallel bands; grooved (Eg: The glacier left many striated rocks. )
stricture
critical comments; severe and adverse criticism (Eg: His strictures on the author’s style are prejudiced and unwarranted. )
strident
loud and harsh (Eg: She scolded him in a strident voice )
stringent
binding; rigid (Eg: I think these regulations are too stringent. )
strut
pompous walk (Eg: His strut as he marched about the parade ground revealed him for what he was: a pompous buffoon. )
strut
supporting bar (Eg: The engineer calculated that the strut supporting the rafter needed to be reinforced. )
studied
unspontaneous; deliberate; thoughtful (Eg: Given Jill’s previous slights- Jack felt that the omission of his name from the guest list was a studied insult. )
stultify
cause to appear or become stupid or inconsistent; frustrate or hinder (Eg: His long hours in the blacking factory left young Dickens numb and incurious- as if the menial labor had )
stupefy
make numb; stun; amaze (Eg: Disapproving of drugs in general- Laura refused to take sleeping pills or any other medicine that might )
stupor
state of apathy; daze; lack of awareness (Eg: In his stupor- the addict was unaware of the events taking place around him. )
stymie
present an obstacle; stump (Eg: The detective was stymied by the contradictory evidence in the robbery investigation. )
suavity
urbanity; polish (Eg: He is particulary good in roles that require suavity and sophistication. )
subaltern
subordinate (Eg: The captain treated his subalterns as though they were children rather than commissioned officers. )
subjective
occurring or taking place within the mind; unreal (Eg: Your analysis is highly subjective; you have permitted your emotions and your opinions to color your )
subjugate
conquer; bring under control (Eg: It is not our aim to subjugate our foe; we are interested only in establishing peaceful relations. )
sublimate
refine; purify (Eg: We must strive to sublimate these desires and emotions into worthwhile activities. )
sublime
exalted; noble; uplifting (Eg: Mother Teresa has been honored for her sublime deeds. )
subliminal
below the threshold (Eg: We may not be aware of the subliminal influences that affect our thinking. )
submissive
yielding; timid (Eg: Crushed by his authoritarian father- Will had no defiance left in him; he was totally submissive in the face )
suborn
persuade to act unlawfully (especially to commit perjury) (Eg: In the Godfather- the mobsters used bribery and threats to suborn the witnesses against Don Michael )
subpoena
writ summoning a witness to appear (Eg: The prosecutor’s office was ready to serve a subpoena on the reluctant witness. )
subsequent
following; later (Eg: In subsequent lessons- we shall take up more difficult problems. )
subservient
behaving like a slave; servile; obsequious (Eg: He was proud and dignified; he refused to be subservient to anyone. )
subside
settle down; descend; grow quiet (Eg: The doctor assured us that the fever would eventually subside. )
subsidiary
subordinate; secondary (Eg: This information may be used as subsidiary evidence but is not sufficient by itself to prove your argument. )
subsidy
direct financial aid by government- etc. (Eg: Without this subsidy- American ship operators would not be able to compete in world markets. )
subsistence
existence; means of support; livelihood (Eg: In those days of inflated prices- my salary provided mere subsistence. )
substantiate
verify; support (Eg: I intend to substantiate my statement by producing witnesses. )
substantive
essential; pertaining to the substance (Eg: Although the delegates were aware of the importance of the problem- they could not agree on the )
subsume
include; encompass (Eg: Does the general theory of relativity contradict Newtonian physics- or is Newton’s law of gravity subsumed )
subterfuge
pretense; evasion (Eg: As soon as we realized that you had won our support by a subterfuge we withdrew our endorsement of )
subtlety
nicety; cunning; guile; delicacy (Eg: The subtlety of his remarks was unnoticed by most of his audience. )
subversive
tending to overthrow; destructive (Eg: At first glance- the notion that Styrofoam cups may actually be more ecologically sound than paper cups )
succinct
brief; terse; compact (Eg: His remarks are always succinct and pointed. )
succor
aid; assistance; relief (Eg: We shall be ever grateful for the succor our country gave us when we were in need. )
succulent
juicy; full of richness (Eg: To some people- Florida citrus fruits are more succulent than those from California. )
succumb
yield; give in; die (Eg: I succumb to temptation whenever it comes my way. )
suffragist
advocate of voting rights (for women) (Eg: In recognition of her efforts to win the vote for women- Congress authorized coining a silver dollar )
suffuse
spread over (Eg: A blush suffused her cheeks when we teased her about her love affair. )
sully
tarnish; soil (Eg: He felt that it was beneath his dignity to sully his hands in such menial labor. )
sultry
sweltering (Eg: He could not adjust himself to the sultry climate of the tropics. )
summation
act of finding the total- summary (Eg: In his summation- the lawyer emphasized the testimony given by the two witnesses. )
sumptuous
lavish; rich (Eg: I cannot recall when I have had such a sumptuous Thanksgiving feast. )
sunder
separate; part (Eg: Northern and southern Ireland are politically and religiously sundered. )
sundry
various; several (Eg: My suspicions were aroused when I read sundry items in the newspapers about your behavior. )
superannuated
retired or disqualified because of age (Eg: The superannuated man was indignant because he felt that he could still perform a good day’s work. )
supercilious
contemptuous; haughty (Eg: I prefer Jill’s modesty to Jack’s supercilious and arrogant attitude. )
supererogatory
superfluous; more than needed or demanded (Eg: We have more than enough witnesses to corroborate your statement; to present any more would be )
superficial
trivial; shallow (Eg: Since your report gave only a superficial analysis of the problem- I cannot give you more than a passing )
superfluous
excessive; overabundant- unnecessary (Eg: Please try not to include so many superfluous details in your report; just give me the bare facts. )
superimpose
place over something else (Eg: Your attempt to superimpose another agency in this field will merely increase the bureaucratic nature of )
supernumerary
person or thing in excess of what is necessary; extra (Eg: His first appearance on the stage was as a supernumerary in a Shakespearean tragedy. )
supersede
cause to be set aside; replace (Eg: This regulation will supersede all previous rules. )
supine
lying on back (Eg: The defeated pugilist lay supine on the canvas. )
supplant
replace; usurp (Eg: Corazon Aquino supplanted Ferdinand Marcos as president of the Philippines. )
supple
flexible; pliant (Eg: The angler found a supple limb and used it as a fishing rod. )
suppliant
entreating; beseeching (Eg: He could not resist the dog’s suppliant whimpering- and he gave it some food. )
supplicate
petition humbly; pray to grant a favor (Eg: We supplicate Your Majesty to grant him amnesty. )
supposition
hypothesis; surmise (Eg: I based my decision to confide in him on the supposition that he would be discreet. )
supposititious
assumed; counterfeit; hypothetical (Eg: I find no similarity between your supposititious illustration and the problem we are facing. )
surfeit
satiate; stuff; indulge to excess in anything (Eg: Every Thanksgiving we are surfeited with an overabundance of holiday treats. )
surly
rude; cross (Eg: Because of his surly attitude- many people avoided his company. )
surmise
guess (Eg: I surmise that he will be late for this meeting. )
surmount
overcome (Eg: He had to surmount many obstacles in order to succeed. )
surpass
exceed (Eg: Her SAT scores surpassed out expectations. )
surreptitious
secret (Eg: News of their surreptitious meeting gradually leaked out. )
surrogate
substitute (Eg: For a fatherless child- a male teacher may become a father surrogate. )
surveillance
watching; guarding (Eg: The FBI kept the house under constant surveillance in the hope of capturing all the criminals at one time. )
susceptible
impressionable; easily influenced; having little resistance- as to a disease (Eg: He was a very susceptible young man- and so his parents worried that he might fall into bad company. )
sustain
experience; support; nourish (Eg: He sustained such a severe injury that the doctors feared he would be unable to work to sustain his )
sustenance
means of support- food- nourishment (Eg: In the tropics- the natives find sustenance easy to obtain because of all the fruit trees. )
suture
stitches sewn to hold the cut edges of a wound or incision; material used in sewing (Eg: We will remove the sutures as soon as the wound heals. )
swarthy
dark; dusky (Eg: Despite the stereotype- not all Italians are swarthy; many are fair and blond. )
swathe
wrap around; bandage (Eg: When I visited him in the hospital- I found him swathed in bandages. )
swelter
be oppressed by heat (Eg: I am going to buy an air conditioning unit for my apartment as I do not intend to swelter through another )
swerve
deviate; turn aside sharply (Eg: The car swerved wildly as the driver struggled to regain control of the wheel. )
swill
drink greedily (Eg: Singing- ‘‘Yo- ho- ho- and a bottle of rum-‘’ Long John Silver and his fellow pirates swilled their grog. )
swindler
cheat (Eg: She was gullible and trusting- an easy victim for the first swindler who came along. )
sybarite
lover of luxury (Eg: Rich people are not always sybarites; some of them have little taste for a life of luxury. )
sycophant
servile flatterer (Eg: The king enjoyed the servile compliments and attentions of the sycophants in his retinue. )
syllogism
logical formula consisting of a major premise- a minor premise and a conclusion; deceptive (Eg: or specious argument )
sylvan
pertaining to the woods; rustic (Eg: His paintings of nymphs in sylvan backgrounds were criticized as oversentimental. )
symbiosis
interdependent relationship (between groups- species)- often mutually beneficial (Eg: Both the crocodile bird and the crocodile derive benefit from their symbiosis; pecking away at food )
symmetry
arrangement of parts so that balance is obtained; congruity (Eg: The addition of a second tower will give this edifice the symmetry that it now lacks. )
synchronous
similary timed; simultaneous with (Eg: We have many examples of scientists in different parts of the world who have made synchronous )
synoptic
providing a general overview; summary (Eg: The professor turned to the latest issue of Dissertation Abstracts for a synoptic account of what was new )
synthesis
combining parts into a whole (Eg: Now that we have succeeded in isolating this drug- our next problem is to plan its synthesis in the )
synthetic
artificial; resulting from synthesis (Eg: During the twentieth century- many synthetic products have replaced the natural products. )
sedative
calming drug or influence (Eg: It is dangerous to drive after taking the sedative; it brings drowsiness. )
stygian
literary dark (Eg: The stygian room reminded him of an empty space. )
