Set 14 Flashcards

Question 1

Q

befuddle

Question 2

Q

gawk

Question 3

Q

machismo

Question 4

Q

wharf

Question 5

Q

enfeeble

Question 6

Q

ephemeral

Answer

A

ephemeral

Question 7

Q

sop

Question 8

Q

gibbous

Question 9

Q

mollify

Question 10

Q

piazza

Question 11

Q

sag

Question 12

Q

dry run

Question 13

Q

disenfranchise

Answer

A

disenfranchise

Question 14

Q

jostle

Question 15

Q

granite

Question 16

Q

ecumenical

Answer

A

ecumenical

Question 17

Q

paragon

Question 18

Q

spillway

Question 19

Q

sojourn

Answer

A

sojourn
/ˈsɒdʒɜːn $ ˈsoʊdʒɜːrn/

verb

FORMAL
to stay somewhere temporarily
…He sojourned in Paris for three months.
…They sojourned at various monasteries during their pilgrimage.

noun

FORMAL
a temporary stay or visit
…Her sojourn in Italy lasted six weeks.
…The writer’s brief sojourn in the countryside inspired his novel.

> c. 1300, sojournen, “stay temporarily, dwell for a time; visit as a temporary resident;” also “reside permanently, dwell;” from Old French sojourner, based on Latin sub- ‘under’ + late Latin diurnum ‘day’.
> Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Oxford Dictionary of English, Etymonline

Question 20

Q

expository

Answer

A

expository

Question 21

Q

sheepish

Question 22

Q

morose

Question 23

Q

amortize

Question 24

Q

bawdy

Question 25

Q

eloquent

Question 26

Q

strung up

Answer

A

strung up

Question 27

Q

wheedle

Question 28

Q

derrick

Question 29

Q

whipsaw

Question 30

Q

increment

Answer

A

increment

Question 31

Q

twelfth

Question 32

Q

intone

Question 33

Q

ravishing

Answer

A

ravishing

Question 34

Q

dopey

Question 35

Q

olfactory

Answer

A

olfactory

Question 36

Q

thickheaded

Answer

A

thickheaded

Question 37

Q

whip up

Question 38

Q

dictum

Question 39

Q

tart

Question 40

Q

connoisseur

Answer

A

connoisseur

Question 41

Q

fecund

Question 42

Q

courteous

Answer

A

courteous

Question 43

Q

jumpy

Answer

A

jumpy
/ˈdʒʌmpi/

adjective

1 nervous, anxious, or easily startled; If you are jumpy, you are nervous or worried about something: NERVOUS, on edge, edgy, tense, anxious, ill at ease, unrelaxed, in a state of nerves, in a state of agitation, fretful, uneasy, restless, fidgety, worked up, keyed up, overwrought, wrought up, strung out; British nervy; informal with butterflies in one’s stomach, a bundle of nerves, jittery, like a cat on a hot tin roof, twitchy, in a state, in a stew, uptight, wired, het up, all of a dither, all of a doodah, all of a lather, in a tizz/tizzy, stressed out, white-knuckled; British informal strung up, stressy, windy, like a cat on hot bricks; North American informal spooky, squirrelly, antsy
…She felt jumpy before the big presentation.
…The sudden noise made him jumpy.

2 characterized by abrupt stops and starts or an irregular course: JERKY, jolting; lurching, bumpy, jarring; fitful, convulsive
…a jumpy pulse
…The film had a jumpy quality due to poor editing.
…His jumpy handwriting showed his nervousness.

> Collins English Dictionary, Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus

Question 44

Q

bullyrag

Question 45

Q

equable

Question 46

Q

filigree

Question 47

Q

blasphemy

Answer

A

blasphemy

Question 48

Q

anorexic

Question 49

Q

ovoid

Question 50

Q

indictment

Answer

A

indictment

Question 51

Q

relegate

Question 52

Q

regale

Question 53

Q

stir

Question 54

Q

hearth

Question 55

Q

juvenile

Question 56

Q

bedlam

Question 57

Q

biped

Question 58

Q

moreish

Question 59

Q

bloodcurdling

Answer

A

bloodcurdling

Question 60

Q

perpetuity

Answer

A

perpetuity

Question 61

Q

doozy

Question 62

Q

askance

Question 63

Q

plucky

Question 64

Q

ordeal

Answer 18

A

prim
/prɪm/

adjective

1 very formal, proper, or easily shocked by anything improper; If you describe someone as prim, you disapprove of them because they behave too correctly and are too easily shocked by anything rude: PRUDISH, particular, formal, proper
…She always dressed in a prim and modest style.
…His prim manners made him seem old-fashioned.

2 neat, tidy, and well-groomed; If you describe something as prim, you mean that it is very neat, tidy, or sensible.
…The prim garden had perfectly trimmed hedges.
…Her prim appearance gave the impression of strict discipline.

verb

to purse or tighten one’s lips in a formal or disapproving manner
…She primmed her lips at the rude remark.
…He primmed his mouth, refusing to respond.

> “formal, stiffly precise in speech or manners,” 1709, the sole surviving sense of a word attested first as a verb (1680s) “to assume a formal, precise demeanor,” a cant word of uncertain origin, perhaps from French prim “thin, small, delicate” (Old French prim “fine, delicate”), from Latin primus “finest,” literally “first” (see prime (adj.)).
> Later, “deck out with great nicety, dress to effect, form or dispose with affected preciseness” (1721). It also is attested as a noun from 1700, “formal, precise, or stuck-up person.” Related: Primly; primness.
> Collins English Dictionary, Etymonline

Answer 19

A

forefinger

Answer 20

A

punch-drunk

Answer 21

A

punctilious

Answer 22

A

impenetrable

Answer 23

A

antagonism

Answer 24

A

excoriate

Answer 25

A

ebullient

Answer 26

A

credulous

Answer 27

A

(n.) devotion and reverence to religious practices; devoutness

Her piety was evident in her daily prayers and regular attendance at religious services.

> late Middle English: from Latin pius ‘dutiful, pious’
> Oxford Dictionary of English

Answer 28

A

fait accompli

Answer 29

A

dissipate

Answer 30

A

commandment

Answer 31

A

infatuate
/ɪnˈfætʃueɪt/

to inspire with a foolish or extravagant love or admiration
→ infatuated with
…He was completely infatuated with his new hobby, spending hours on it every day.
…Kristen Stewart plays a small-town gym owner who becomes infatuated with a body builder played by Katy O’Brian.
—Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 5 Feb. 2025

> 1530s, “turn (something) to foolishness, frustrate by making foolish,” from Latin infatuatus, past participle of infatuare “make a fool of,” from in- “in” (from PIE root en “in”) + fatuus “foolish” (see fatuous). Specific sense of “inspire (in someone) a foolish passion beyond control of reason” is from 1620s. Related: Infatuated; infatuating.
> Merriam-Webster, Etymonline

Answer 32

A

heartthrob

Answer 33

A

off the wagon

Answer 34

A

teething problems

Answer 35

A

warm to sb/sth

Answer 36

A

get on with sth

Answer 37

A

fob sb off

Answer 38

A

sort sth/sb out

Answer 39

A

shoot off

Answer 40

A

ostentatious

Answer 41

A

scrub up well

Answer 42

A

tell sb off

Answer 43

A

fill sb in

Answer 44

A

get up to sth

Answer 45

A

take for a spin

Answer 46

A

lay sb/sth out

Answer 47

A

iron sth out

Answer 48

A

be cooking (with gas)

Answer 49

A

brush off

Answer 50

A

ineffable

Answer 51

A

monopolize

Answer 52

A

(adj.) untidy or disheveled in appearance; If you describe something or someone as unkempt, you mean that they are untidy, and not looked after carefully or kept neat.

His hair was unkempt and filthy.
His unkempt hair and wrinkled clothes made it clear he had just rolled out of bed.
the unkempt grass
He looked unkempt.

> “uncombed, disheveled,” 1570s, from un- (1) “not” + kempt “well-combed, neat,” from variant past participle of Middle English kemben “to comb,” from Old English cemban “to comb,” from Proto-Germanic *kambijan, from *kamb- “comb” (from PIE root *gembh- “tooth, nail.” ).
> Collins English Dictionary, Etymonline

Answer 53

A

faff about

Answer 54

A

retrograde

Answer 55

A

hash sth out

Answer 56

A

to have eyes like saucers

to be looking at someone or something with wide eyes, likely due to surprise or awe.
…We all had eyes like saucers when Mom and Aunt Judy started screaming at each other during dinner.

> The Free Dictionary

Answer 57

A

wake (past tense woke /wəʊk $ woʊk/, past participle woken /ˈwəʊkən $ ˈwoʊ-/)

awake (past tense awoke /əˈwəʊk $ əˈwoʊk/, past participle awoken /əˈwəʊkən $ əˈwoʊ-/)

Register

In everyday English, people usually use wake up rather than awake:
- I woke up at 4 o’clock this morning.

> Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

Answer 58

A

drive a wedge between

Answer 59

A

by the same token

Answer 60

A

gruelling

Answer 61

A

irreparable

Answer 62

A

when push comes to shove

Answer 63

A

confederate

Answer 64

A

unbeknownst

Answer 65

A

runner-up

Answer 66

A

playwright

Answer 67

A

megalomaniac

Answer 68

A

(adj.) known or understood by only a few; mysterious or obscure: Something that is arcane is secret or mysterious: MYSTERIOUS, secret, hidden, concealed, covert, clandestine, enigmatic, dark; esoteric, obscure, abstruse, recondite, little known, recherché, inscrutable, impenetrable, opaque, incomprehensible, cryptic, occult

The professor’s lecture covered arcane philosophical concepts that few students could grasp.
He was the only person who understood all the arcane details of the agreement.
This argument may seem arcane to those not closely involved in the world of finance.

> “hidden, secret,” 1540s, from Latin arcanus “secret, hidden, private, concealed,” from arcere “to close up, enclose, contain,” from arca “chest, box, place for safe-keeping,” from PIE root *ark- “to hold, contain, guard” (source also of Greek arkos “defense,” arkein “to ward off;” Armenian argel “obstacle;” Lithuanian raktas “key,” rakinti “to shut, lock”).
> Collins English Dictionary, Cambridge Dictionary, Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus, Etymonline

Answer 69

A

strapping

Answer 70

A

by and large

Answer 71

A

fever pitch

Answer 72

A

unfettered

Answer 73

A

veritable

Answer 74

A

fool’s errand

Answer 75

A

ruffle someone’s feathers

Answer 76

A

par for the course

Answer 77

A

spiel
/ʃpiːl, spiːl/

noun

a speech, especially one that is long and spoken quickly and is intended to persuade the person listening about something
…The salesman launched into his well-rehearsed spiel about the car’s features.
…I had to listen to her usual spiel about why I should take the job.
…The teacher gave his standard spiel about academic honesty.
…She delivered her spiel about the importance of voting.

verb

to speak at length, especially in a persuasive or rehearsed manner
…He spieled about his new business idea for hours.
…The tour guide spieled facts about the city’s history.

> “glib speech, pitch,” slang, 1896 (Ade), probably from the verb (1894, in a San Francisco context) meaning “to speak in a glib manner,” earlier “to play circus music” (1870, in a German-American context), from German spielen “to play,” from Old High German spilon (cognate with Old English spilian “to play”). The noun also perhaps from German Spiel “play, game.” Related: Spieler.
> Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Cambridge Dictionary, Etymonline

Answer 78

A

underling

Answer 79

A

(adj.) not asked for or requested

She received a lot of unsolicited advice after announcing her career change.

Answer 80

A

face plant

Answer 81

A

dignitary

Answer 82

A

powder keg

Answer 83

A

Pollyanna

Answer 84

A

square off

Answer 85

A

snap at sb

Answer 86

A

the jury is (still) out on sth

Answer 87

A

chafe
/tʃeɪf/

verb

1 to become or make sore by rubbing
…The rough collar chafed his neck.
…Her shoes chafed against her heels.

2 FORMAL
to feel impatient or annoyed; If you chafe at something such as a restriction, you feel annoyed about it: BE IMPATIENT, BE ANNOYED, be angry, be irritated, be incensed, be exasperated, be frustrated; fume, brood, fuss, upset oneself; informal blow one’s top, blow a fuse
…He had chafed at having to take orders from another.
…The young officer chafed under the strict rules.
…He was chafing under the company’s new ownership.

3 to warm by rubbing, especially with the hands
…The nurse chafed the patient’s cold hands.
…He chafed his arms to keep warm.

4 to rub against something repeatedly
…The rope chafed against the railing.
…The sail was chafing against the mast.

noun

irritation of the skin caused by rubbing
…The runner developed a painful chafe on his thigh.
…She applied cream to prevent chafe during the bike ride.

> From Middle English chaufen (“to warm”), borrowed from Old French chaufer (modern French chauffer), from Latin calefacere, calfacere (“to make warm”), from calere (“to be warm”) + facere (“to make”).
> Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Collins English Dictionary, Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus, Wiktionary

Answer 88

A

gravy
/ˈɡreɪvi/

noun

1 a sauce made from the juices of cooked meat
…She poured hot gravy over the roast.
…The mashed potatoes were swimming in gravy.

2 INFORMAL•NORTH AMERICAN
something pleasing, especially money or success, that is unearned or unexpected
…The bonus he received in addition to his salary was pure gravy.
…This business took care of all our expenses, and the revenue from other ads and subscriptions was gravy.
…Any profit above their goal would be gravy.

> Middle English (denoting a spicy sauce): perhaps from a misreading (as gravé) of Old French grané, probably from grain ‘spice’, from Latin granum ‘grain’.
> Cambridge Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Oxford Dictionary of English