Set 13 Flashcards
Chaos
noun
(kay ahs)
Great disorder; a confused situation
In most religious traditions, God created an ordered universe from CHAOS.
Synonyms: clutter; confusion; disarrangement; disarray; disorder; disorderliness; disorganization; jumble; mess; muddle; scramble; snarl; turmoil
Ingenious
adj
(ihn jehn yoo uhs)
Showing innocence or childlike simplicity
She was so INGENIOUS that her friends feared that her innocence and trustfulness would be exploited when she visited the big city.
Synonyms: artless; guileless; innocent; naive; simple; unaffected
Contumacious
adj
(kahn tuh may shuhs)
Rebellious
The CONTUMACIOUS teenager ran away from home when her parents told her she was grounded.
Synonyms: factious; insubordinate; insurgent; mutinous; rebellious; seditious
Nominal
adj
(nah mihn uhl)
Existing in name only; negligible
A NOMINAL but far from devoted member of the high school yearbook committee, she rarely attends meetings.
Synonyms: minimal; titular
Coalesce
verb
(koh uh lehs)
To grow together to form a single whole
The sun and planets eventually COALESCED out of a vast cloud of gas and dust.
Synonyms: amalgamate; blend; condense; consolidate; fuse; unite
Amulet
noun
(aam yoo liht)
An ornament worn as a charm against evil spirits
Though she claimed it was not because of her superstition, Vivian always wore an AMULET around her neck.
Synonyms: fetish; talisman
Flag
verb
(flaag)
To decline in vigor, strength, or interest
The marathon runner slowed down as his strength FLAGGED.
Synonyms: dwindle; ebb; slacken; subside; wane
Debutante
noun
(dehb yoo tahnt)
A young woman making debut in high society
The DEBUTANTE spent hours dressing for her very first ball, hoping to catch the eye of an eligible bachelor.
Synonyms: lady; maiden
Opprobrium
noun
(uh pro bree uhm)
Public disgrace
After the scheme to defraud the elderly was made public, the treasurer resigned in utter OPPROBRIUM.
Synonyms: discredit; disgrace; dishonor; disrepute; ignominy; infamy; obloquy; shame
Trenchant
adj
(trehn chuhnt)
Acute, sharp, or incisive; forceful; effective
Tyrone’s TRENCHANT observations in class made him the professor’s favorite student.
Synonyms: biting; caustic; cutting; keen
Alleviate
verb
(uh lee vee ayt)
To make more bearable
Taking aspirin helps to ALLEVIATE a headache.
Synonyms: allay; assuage; comfort; ease; lessen; lighten; mitigate; palliate; relieve
Foment
verb
(foh mehnt)
To arouse or incite
The rebels tried to FOMENT revolution through their attacks on the government.
Synonyms: agitate; impassion; inflame; instigate; kindle
Decorous
adj
(deh kohr uhs)
Proper; tasteful; socially correct
The countess trained her daughters in the finer points of DECOROUS behavior, hoping they would make a good impression when she presented them at Court.
Synonyms: appropriate; comme il faut; courteous; polite
Bifurcate
verb
(bi fuhr kayt)
To divide into two parts
The large corporation just released a press statement announcing its plans to BIFURCATE.
Synonyms: bisect; split
Opaque
adj
(oh payk)
Impossible to see through; preventing the passage of light
The heavy build-up of dirt and grime on the windows made them almost OPAQUE.
Synonyms: blurred; cloudy; nontransparent
Supplant
verb
(suh plaant)
To replace (another) by force; to take the place of
The overthrow of the government meant a new leader to SUPPLANT the tyrannical former one.
Synonyms: displace; supersede
Enervate
verb
(ehn uhr vayt)
To reduce in strength
The guerrillas hoped that a series of surprise attacks would ENERVATE the regular army.
Synonyms: debilitate; enfeeble; sap; weaken
Castigate
verb
(kaa stih gayt)
To punish or criticize harshly
Martina CASTIGATED her boyfriend for not remembering her birthday.
Synonyms: admonish; chastise; chide; rebuke; reprimand; reproach; reprove; scold; tax; upbraid
Mitigate
verb
(miht ih gayt)
To soften; to lessen
A judge may MITIGATE a sentence if she decides that a person committed a crime out of need.
Synonyms: allay; alleviate; assuage; ease; lighten; moderate; mollify; palliate; temper
Perfunctory
adj
(pur fuhnk tuhr ee)
Done in a routine way; indifferent
The machine-like teller processed the transaction and gave the waiting customer a PERFUNCTORY smile.
Synonyms: apathetic; automatic; mechanical
Pulchritude
noun
(puhl kruh tood)
Beauty
The mortals gazed in admiration at Venus, stunned by her incredible PULCHRITUDE.
Synonyms: comeliness; gorgeousness; handsomeness; loveliness; prettiness
Turgid
adj
(tuhr jihd)
Swollen as from a fluid; bloated
In the process of osmosis, water passes through the walls of TURGID cells, ensuring that they never contain too much water.
Synonym: distended
Raconteur
noun
(raa cahn tuhr)
A witty, skillful storyteller
The RACONTEUR kept all the passengers entertained with his stories during the six-hour flight.
Synonyms: anectotalist; monologist
Catalyst
noun
(kaa tuh lihst)
Something that brings about a change in something else
The imposition of harsh taxes was the CATALYST ip that finally brought on the revolution.
Synonyms: accelerator; goad; impetus; impulse; incentive; motivation; spur; stimulant
Replete
adj
(rih pleet)
Abundantly supplied; complete
The gigantic supermarket was REPLETE with consumer products of every kind.
Synonyms: abounding; full
Peccadillo
noun
(pehk uh dih loh)
A minor sin or offense
Gabriel tends to harp on his brother’s PECCADILLOES and never lets him live them down.
Synonyms: failing; fault; lapse; misstep
Abjure
verb
(aab jur)
To reject; to abandon formally
The spy ABJURED his allegiance to the United States when he defected to Russia.
Synonyms: forswear; recall; recant; retract; take back
Euphony
noun
(yoo fuh nee)
Pleasant, harmonious sound
To their loving parents, the children’s orchestra performance sounded like EUPHONY, although an outside observer probably would have called it a cacophony of hideous sounds.
Synonyms: harmony; melody; music; sweetness
Syncopation
noun
(sihn cuh pay shun)
Temporary irregularity in musical rhythm
A jazz enthusiast will appreciate the use of SYNCOPATION in that musical genre.
Talon
noun
(taa luhn)
Claw of an animal, especially a bird of prey
A vulture holds its prey in its TALONS while it dismembers it with its beak.
Synonyms: claw; nail
