Semester 2 - Vocab 7

Question 0

Vicarious

Answer 0

adjective
: experienced or felt by watching, hearing about, or reading about someone else rather than by doing something yourself
Full Definition
1 a : serving instead of someone or something else
b : that has been delegated
2 : performed or suffered by one person as a substitute for another or to the benefit or advantage of another : substitutionary <a>
3 : experienced or realized through imaginative or sympathetic participation in the experience of another <a>
4 : occurring in an unexpected or abnormal part of the body instead of the usual one</a></a>

Question 1

Venerable

Answer 1

adjective
: old and respected : valued and respected because of old age, long use, etc.
Full Definition
1 : deserving to be venerated — used as a title for an Anglican archdeacon or for a Roman Catholic who has been accorded the lowest of three degrees of recognition for sanctity
2 : made sacred especially by religious or historical association
3 a : calling forth respect through age, character, and attainments <a>; broadly : conveying an impression of aged goodness and benevolence
b : impressive by reason of age
Examples
the venerable old man was a cherished source of advice and wisdom for the villagers
a venerable tradition that colleges have been maintaining for centuries
Synonyms: hallowed, revered, reverend, sacred, venerated
Antonyms: modern, new, recent</a>

Question 2

Virago

Answer 2

noun
: an angry woman who often complains about and criticizes other people
Full Definition
1 : a loud overbearing woman : termagant
2 : a woman of great stature, strength, and courage
Examples
fairy tales that typically portray stepmothers as viragoes
Synonyms: battle-ax (or battle-axe), dragon lady, fury, harpy, harridan, termagant, shrew, vixen

Question 3

Vituperate

Answer 3

transitive verb
: to abuse or censure severely or abusively : berate
intransitive verb
: to use harsh condemnatory language
Examples
every week the minister would ascend the pulpit and vituperate the parishioners for a litany of vices
Synonyms: abuse, assail, bash, belabor, blast, castigate, excoriate, jump (on), lambaste (or lambast), potshot, savage, scathe, slam, trash, attack

Question 4

Waive

Answer 4

transitive verb
: to officially say that you will not use or require something that you are allowed to have or that is usually required
Full Definition
1 archaic : give up, forsake
2 : to throw away (stolen goods)
3 archaic : to shunt aside (as a danger or duty) : evade
4 a : to relinquish voluntarily (as a legal right)
b : to refrain from pressing or enforcing (as a claim or rule) : forgo
5 : to put off from immediate consideration : postpone
6 [influenced by 1wave] : to dismiss with or as if with a wave of the hand
7 : to place (a ball player) on waivers; also : to release after placing on waivers
synonyms see relinquish
Examples
She waived her right to a lawyer.
The university waives the application fee for low-income students.

Question 5

Whim

Answer 5

noun
: a sudden wish, desire, decision, etc.
Full Definition
1 : a capricious or eccentric and often sudden idea or turn of the mind : fancy
2 : a large capstan that is made with one or more radiating arms to which a horse may be yoked and that is used in mines for raising ore or water
Examples
the whims of fashion
It’s hard to predict voters’ whims.
Her husband tries to satisfy her every whim.
Synonyms: bee, caprice, crank, fancy, freak, humor, kink, maggot, megrim, notion, vagary, vagrancy, whimsy (also whimsey), bee in one’s bonnet

Question 6

Writhe

Answer 6

: to twist your body from side to side
Full Definition
transitive verb
1 a : to twist into coils or folds
b : to twist so as to distort : wrench
c : to twist (the body or a bodily part) in pain
2 : intertwine
intransitive verb
1 : to move or proceed with twists and turns
2 : to twist from or as if from pain or struggling
3 : to suffer keenly
Examples
She lay on the floor, writhing in pain.
a nest of writhing snakes
Synonyms: enlace, entwine, implicate [archaic], interlace, intertwist, interweave, inweave, lace, ply, twist, weave, wreathe, intertwine

Question 7

Zealous

Answer 7

adjective
: feeling or showing strong and energetic support for a person, cause, etc. : filled with zeal
Full Definition
: marked by fervent partisanship for a person, a cause, or an ideal : filled with or characterized by zeal

Question 8

Abscond

Answer 8

intransitive verb
: to go away or escape from a place secretly
: to go away and take something that does not belong to you
Full Definition
: to depart secretly and hide oneself
Examples
the burglar was trying to abscond with the jewels when he tumbled down the stairs

Question 9

Aesthetic

Answer 9

adjective
: of or relating to art or beauty
Full Definition
1 a : of, relating to, or dealing with aesthetics or the beautiful
b : artistic <a>
c : pleasing in appearance : attractive
2 : appreciative of, responsive to, or zealous about the beautiful; also : responsive to or appreciative of what is pleasurable to the senses
Synonyms: beautiful (also esthetic or aesthetical or esthetical), attractive, beauteous, bonny (also bonnie) [chiefly British], comely, cute, drop-dead, fair, fetching, good, good-looking, goodly, gorgeous, handsome, knockout, likely, lovely, lovesome, pretty, ravishing, seemly, sightly, stunning, taking, well-favored
Antonyms: grotesque, hideous, homely, ill-favored, plain, ugly, unaesthetic, unattractive, unbeautiful, uncomely, uncute, unhandsome, unlovely, unpleasing, unpretty, unsightly</a>

noun
: a set of ideas or opinions about beauty or art
: the study of beauty especially in art and literature
: the artistic or beautiful qualities of something
Full Definition
1 plural but sing or plural in constr : a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste and with the creation and appreciation of beauty
2 : a particular theory or conception of beauty or art : a particular taste for or approach to what is pleasing to the senses and especially sight
3 plural : a pleasing appearance or effect : beauty

Question 10

Aggregate

Answer 10

noun
: a total amount
Full Definition
1 : a mass or body of units or parts somewhat loosely associated with one another
2 : the whole sum or amount : sum total
3 a : a rock composed of mineral crystals of one or more kinds or of mineral rock fragments : an aggregate rock
b : any of several hard inert materials (as sand, gravel, or slag) used for mixing with a cementing material to form concrete, mortar, or plaster
c : a clustered mass of individual soil particles varied in shape, ranging in size from a microscopic granule to a small crumb, and considered the basic structural unit of soil
4 : set 21
5 : monetary aggregate
in the aggregate : considered as a whole : collectively
Synonyms: whole, full, sum, summation, sum total, total, totality

Question 11

Amalgamate

Answer 11

transitive verb
: to unite (two or more things, such as two businesses) into one thing
Full Definition
: to unite in or as if in an amalgam; especially : to merge into a single body
synonyms see mix
Examples
silver amalgamated with mercury is used for tooth fillings

Question 12

Anomalous

Answer 12

adjective
: not expected or usual
Full Definition
1 : inconsistent with or deviating from what is usual, normal, or expected : irregular, unusual
2 a : of uncertain nature or classification
b : marked by incongruity or contradiction : paradoxical
Examples
that was an anomalous year for the housing industry, so the number of starts is anything but typical
an anomalous burst of anger from this usually easygoing person
Synonyms: aberrant, aberrated, abnormal, exceptional, atypical, especial, exceeding, extraordinaire, extraordinary, freak, odd, peculiar, phenomenal, preternatural, rare, singular, uncommon, uncustomary, unique, unusual, unwonted
Antonyms: common, customary, normal, ordinary, typical, unexceptional, unextraordinary, usual

Question 13

Antipathy

Answer 13

noun
: a strong feeling of dislike
Full Definition
1 obsolete : opposition in feeling
2 : settled aversion or dislike
3 : an object of aversion
Examples
I feel no antipathy towards any of my opponents in the tournament
cruelty to animals is one of my most deeply felt antipathies
Synonyms: animosity, animus, antagonism, enmity, bad blood, bitterness, gall, grudge, hostility, jaundice, rancor
Antonyms: amity

Question 14

Arduous

Answer 14

adjective
: very difficult
Full Definition
1 a : hard to accomplish or achieve : difficult
b : marked by great labor or effort : strenuous <a>
2 : hard to climb : steep
Examples
climbing Mount Everest is an arduous, exhausting challenge
the arduous task of doing the research for my term paper
Synonyms: hard, Augean, backbreaking, challenging, demanding, difficult, effortful, exacting, formidable, grueling (or gruelling), heavy, hellacious, herculean, killer, laborious, moiling, murderous, pick-and-shovel, rigorous, rough, rugged, severe, stiff, strenuous, sweaty, tall, testing, toilsome, tough, uphill
Antonyms: cheap, easy, effortless, facile, light, mindless, simple, soft, undemanding</a>

Question 15

Audacity

Answer 15

noun
: a confident and daring quality that is often seen as shocking or rude : an audacious quality
Full Definition
1 : the quality or state of being audacious: as
a : intrepid boldness
b : bold or arrogant disregard of normal restraints
2 : an audacious act — usually used in plural
Examples
I can’t believe she had the audacity to tell me to shut up!
Synonyms: audaciousness, effrontery, brashness, brass, brassiness, brazenness, cheek, cheekiness, chutzpah (also chutzpa or hutzpah or hutzpa), crust, face, gall, nerve, nerviness, pertness, presumption, presumptuousness, sauce, sauciness, temerity

Question 16

Banal

Answer 16

adjective
: boring or ordinary : not interesting
Full Definition
: lacking originality, freshness, or novelty : trite
Examples
the sort of banal woman who appeals to men not looking for intellectual stimulation
please find new ways of phrasing your thoughts instead of relying on banal expressions
Synonyms: wishy–washy, flat, insipid, milk-and-water, namby-pamby, watery
Antonyms: fresh, new, novel, original, unclichéd, unhackneyed

Question 17

Castigate

Answer 17

transitive verb
: to criticize (someone) harshly
Full Definition
: to subject to severe punishment, reproof, or criticism
synonyms see punish
Examples
castigated him for his constant tardiness
a newspaper editorial castigating the city council for approving the project in the first place
a judge who believes in castigating criminals to the full extent of the law

Question 18

Connoisseur

Answer 18

noun
: a person who knows a lot about something (such as art, wine, food, etc.) : an expert in a particular subject
Full Definition
1 : expert; especially : one who understands the details, technique, or principles of an art and is competent to act as a critical judge
2 : one who enjoys with discrimination and appreciation of subtleties <a>
Examples
a forthcoming exhibit at the art museum that is eagerly awaited by connoisseurs of ancient Greek pottery
works that are highly prized by connoisseurs of art glass
Synonyms: cognoscente, dilettante
Antonyms: amateur, inexpert, nonexpert</a>

Question 19

Contentious

Answer 19

adjective
: likely to cause people to argue or disagree
: involving a lot of arguing
: likely or willing to argue
Full Definition
1 : likely to cause disagreement or argument <a>
2 : exhibiting an often perverse and wearisome tendency to quarrels and disputes <a>
Examples
the Tartars were a contentious people who terrorized much of Asia and eastern Europe during the Middle Ages
a tiresomely contentious person who likes to argue for the sake of arguing
gun control is likely to be a contentious subject in any group discussion
Synonyms: aggressive, agonistic, argumentative, assaultive, bellicose, brawly, chippy, combative, confrontational, belligerent, discordant, disputatious, feisty, gladiatorial, militant, pugnacious, quarrelsome, scrappy, truculent, warlike
Antonyms: nonaggressive, nonbelligerent, pacific, peaceable, peaceful, unbelligerent, uncombative, uncontentious</a></a>