Section 7 (601-700) Flashcards
decry
to criticize openly
deface
to ruin or injure something’s appearance
defamatory
(adj.) harmful toward another’s reputation
defer
(v.) to postpone something; to yield to another’s wisdom
deferential
(adj.) showing respect for another’s authority
defile
to make unclean, impure
deft
(adj.) skillful, capable
defunct
(adj.) no longer used or existing
delegate
(v.) to hand over responsibility for something
deleterious
harmful (She experienced the deleterious effects of running a
marathon without stretching her muscles enough beforehand.)
delineate
(v.) to describe, outline, shed light on (She neatly delineated her reasons for
canceling the project’s funding.)
demagogue
n.) a leader who appeals to a people’s prejudices (The demagogue
strengthened his hold over his people by blaming immigrants for the lack of jobs.)
demarcation
n (n.) the marking of boundaries or categories (Different cultures have
different demarcations of good and evil.)
demean
(v.) to lower the status or stature of something (She refused to demean her secretary by making him order her lunch.)
demure
(adj.) quiet, modest, reserved
denigrate
(v.) to belittle, diminish the opinion of
denounce
(v.) to criticize publicly
depravity
(n.) wickedness
deplore
(v.) to feel or express sorrow, disapproval
deprecate
(v.) to belittle, depreciate
depreciate
diminish in value over a period of time
derelict
(adj.) abandoned, run-down
deride
(v.) to laugh at mockingly, scorn
derivative
(adj.) taken directly from a source, unoriginal
desecrate
(v.) to violate the sacredness of a thing or place
desiccated
(adj.) dried up, dehydrated
desolate
(adj.) deserted, dreary, lifeless
despondent
(adj.) feeling depressed, discouraged, hopeless
despot
(n.) one who has total power and rules brutally
destitute
(adj.) impoverished, utterly lacking
deter
(v.) to discourage, prevent from doing
dialect
(n.) a variation of a language
devious
(adj.) not straightforward, deceitful
diaphanous
(adj.) light, airy, transparent (Sunlight poured in through the diaphanous
curtains, brightening the room.)
didactic
(adj.) intended to instruct (She wrote up a didactic document showing new
employees how to handle the company’s customers.) 2. (adj.) overly moralistic (His didactic style of teaching made it seem like he wanted to persuade his students not to
understand history fully, but to understand it from only one point of view.)
diffuse
- (v.) to scatter, thin out, break up (He diffused the tension in the room by making in a joke.) 2. (adj.) not concentrated, scattered, disorganized (In her writings, she tried unsuccessfully to make others understand her diffuse thoughts.)
diligent
(adj.) showing care in doing one’s work
diminutive
(adj.) small or miniature
dirge
(n.) a mournful song, especially for a funeral
disaffected
(adj.) rebellious, resentful of authority
disavow
(v.) to deny knowledge of or responsibility for (Not wanting others to criticize her, she disavowed any involvement in the company’s hiring scandal.)
discern
(v.) to perceive, detect
disclose
(v.) to reveal, make public
discomfit
(v.) to thwart, baffle
discordant
(adj.) not agreeing, not in harmony with
discrepancy
(n.) difference, failure of things to correspond
discretion
(n.) the quality of being reserved in speech or action; good judgment
discursive
(adj.) rambling, lacking order
disdain
(to) scorn, hold in low esteem (v or n)
disgruntled
(adj.) upset, not content
disheartened
(adj.) feeling a loss of spirit or morale
disparage
(v.) to criticize or speak ill of
disparate
(adj.) sharply differing, containing sharply contrasting elements
dispatch
(v.) to send off to accomplish a duty
dispel
(v.) to drive away, scatter
disperse
(v.) to scatter, cause to scatter
disrepute
(n.) a state of being held in low regard
dissemble
(v.) to conceal, fake one’s true motives
disseminate
(v.) to spread widely
dissent
(v.) to disagree, 2. (n.) the act of disagreeing
dissipate
(v.) to disappear, cause to disappear,2. (v.) to waste
dissonance
(n.) lack of harmony or consistency
dissuade
(v.) to persuade someone not to do something
distend
(v.) to swell out
dither
(v.) to be indecisive
divine
(adj.) godly, exceedingly wonderful
divisive
(adj.) causing dissent, discord
divulge
(v.) to reveal something secret
docile
(adj.) easily taught or trained, submissive
dogmatic
(adj.) aggressively and arrogantly certain about unproved principles
dour
(adj.) stern, joyless
dubious
(adj.) doubtful, of uncertain quality
duplicity
(n.) crafty dishonesty
duress
hardship, threat
dynamic
(adj.) actively changing
ebullient
(adj.) extremely lively, enthusiastic
eclectic
(adj.) consisting of a diverse variety of elements (That bar attracts an eclectic crowd: lawyers, artists, circus clowns, and investment bankers.)
efface
(v.) to wipe out, obliterate, rub away, erase
edict
(n.) an order, decree
effervescent
(adj.) bubbly, lively
pathology
mental, social, or linguistic abnormality or malfunction, the science of the causes and effects of diseases
effervescent
(adj.) bubbly, lively
efficacious
(adj.) effective
effrontery
(n.) impudence, nerve, insolence
effulgent
(adj.) radiant, splendorous
egregious
(adj.) extremely bad
elegy
(n.) a speech given in honor of a dead person
elicit
(v.) to bring forth, draw out, evoke
eloquent
(adj.) expressive, articulate, moving
elucidate
(v.) to clarify, explain
emaciated
(adj.) very thin, enfeebled looking
embezzle
(v.) to steal money by falsifying records
eminent
- (adj.) distinguished, prominent, famous, 2. (adj.) conspicuous
emollient
(adj.) soothing (This emollient cream makes my skin very smooth.)
emote
(v.) to express emotion
empirical
- (adj.) based on observation or experience, 2. (adj.) capable of being proved or disproved by experiment
emulate
(v.) to imitate
enamor
(v.) to fill with love, fascinate, usually used in passive form followed by “of” or “with” (I grew enamored of that boy when he quoted my favorite love poem.)
encumber
(v.) to weigh down, burden
enervate
(v.) to weaken, exhaust
