Stolen Vocab I (C)

Question 1

Froward

Answer 1

adj.
Difficult to deal with, contrary.

The froward student was eventually expelled for their disruptive behavior.

Late Old English frāward ‘leading away from, away’, based on Old Norse frá (see fro, from)

Question 2

Protean

Answer 2

adj.
Tending or able to change frequently/easily.

Making decisions about what is or isn’t safe in a protean pandemic is a mental workout, essentially asking your brain to do burpees in a funhouse of distorted logic.

from Greek Proteus, a prophetic sea god capable of changing his shape at will.

Question 3

Depredate

Answer 3

verb.
Lay waste, plunder.

Crows kill popular songbirds and depredate waterfowl nests.

early 17th century: from Latin depraedat- ‘plundered’, from the verb depraedari

Question 4

Pelagic

Answer 4

adj.
Of, relating to the open sea.

Large pelagic ocean dwellers swim along this reef to hunt prey.

mid 17th century: via Latin from Greek pelagikos, from pelagios ‘of the sea’ (from pelagos ‘level surface of the sea’).

Question 5

Covey

Answer 5

noun.
A small group of birds, especially partridges. A small group of people or things.

The bird did not move even as the rest of the covey wavered at the periphery.

Middle English: from Old French covee, feminine past participle of cover, from Latin cubare ‘lie down’.

Question 6

Cozen

Answer 6

verb.
To deceive, or obtain by deception

Madoff cozened scores of people by persuading them to hand over funds that he would “invest”

late 16th century: perhaps from obsolete Italian cozzonare ‘to cheat’, from cozzone ‘middleman, broker’ (also horse trader?) , from Latin cocio ‘dealer’

Question 7

Limpid

Answer 7

adj.
Transparent, clear and accessible, serene.

In places, workers dug beneath the water table, and some chambers now contain limpid pools of pure, crystalline water.

late Middle English: from Latin limpidus ; perhaps related to lymph

Question 8

Refulgence

Answer 8

noun.
Brilliance, radiance.

Songs like ‘Sunset’ and ‘Galactic Fun’ shine with the rare refulgence of fulfilled dreams.

Latin refulgentia, from refulgēre to shine brightly, from fulgēre to shine

Question 9

Factitious

Answer 9

adj.
Artificially created/developed.

Life here feels familiar—perversely, almost easy, if admittedly factitious.

mid 17th century (in the general sense ‘made by human skill or effort’): from Latin facticius ‘made by art’, from facere ‘do, make’

Question 10

Pied

Answer 10

adj.
Having two or more colors.

Dodger and Sox are similarly pied, mostly orange with a white patch.

Middle English (originally in the sense ‘black and white like a magpie’): from pie

Question 11

Stygian

Answer 11

adj.
Extremely dark, gloomy.

Fireworks should start cutting through the otherwise stygian sky starting at midnight.

from the Greek river Styx.

Question 12

Gainsay

Answer 12

verb.
Deny, contradict.

Her role in passing the Affordable Care Act was absolutely heroic and should not be gainsaid.

Middle English: from obsolete gain- ‘against’ + say

Question 13

Nostrum

Answer 13

noun.
A questionable scheme or remedy to a problem, a dodgy medicine touted by one whose qualifications are suspect.

Ivermectin, that nostrum assiduously promoted by anti-vaccine advocates and conspiracy-mongers, is utterly useless against COVID-19.

early 17th century: from Latin, used in the sense ‘(something) of our own making’, neuter of noster ‘our’

Question 14

Obstreperous

Answer 14

adj.
Noisy, unruly, difficult to control.

The United States is a big country, full of obstreperous citizens who claim, or would like to claim, a broad array of rights that can’t all be recognized.

late 16th century (in the sense ‘clamorous, vociferous’): from Latin obstreperus (from obstrepere, from ob- ‘against’ + strepere ‘make a noise’)

Question 15

Ambit

Answer 15

noun.
Scope, bounds, extent

The ambit of my world became no larger than my neighborhood.

late Middle English (in the sense ‘precincts, environs’): from Latin ambitus ‘circuit’, from ambire ‘go round

Question 16

Sophistry

Answer 16

noun
(The use of) clever-sounding but false/deceptive arguments.

Ascribing causality to any one tactic is sophistry.

late Middle English: from Old French sophime, via Latin from Greek sophisma ‘clever device’, from sophizesthai ‘become wise’

Question 17

Perspicuous

Answer 17

adj.
Possessing clarity in style and exposition.

The presentation was exceedingly perspicuous, making it easy for students to follow her argument.

late 15th century (in the sense ‘transparent’): from Latin perspicuus ‘transparent, clear’ (from the verb perspicere ‘look at closely’)

Question 18

Perspicacious

Answer 18

adj.
Shrewd, astute.

As some of the nation’s most perspicacious observers have noted, self-regulation is a crucial component of fixing what’s wrong with social media.

early 17th century: from Latin perspicax, perspicac- ‘seeing clearly’

Question 19

Fulsome

Answer 19

adj.
Abundant/generous
OR: morally/aesthetically or just generally offensive, potentially linked to below.
OR: exceeding the bounds of good taste.
OR: excessively complimentary or flattering.

After the final benediction, congregants streamed past him, eager to offer hugs or handshakes and fulsome congratulations.

Question 20

Imprecation

Answer 20

noun.
A spoken curse.

At the demonstration, the police faced down children who shouted imprecations at them.

late Middle English: from Latin imprecatio(n- ), from imprecari ‘invoke (evil)’, from in- ‘towards’ + precari ‘pray’

Question 21

Ineluctable

Answer 21

adj.
Inescapable

An increasingly urbanized, empowered, and active populace is one of the ineluctable mega trends of the 21st century.

early 17th century: from Latin ineluctabilis, from in- ‘not’ + eluctari ‘struggle out’

Question 22

Vitiate

Answer 22

verb.
Impair, debase.

Failure to file claims promptly can vitiate insurance coverage.

mid 16th century: from Latin vitiat- ‘impaired’, from the verb vitiare, from vitium

Question 23

Turpitude

Answer 23

noun.
Depravity, wickedness

Since late-stage syphilis attacked the nose, those with disfigured noses were seen to be bearing markers of moral turpitude.

late 15th century: from French, or from Latin turpitudo, from turpis ‘disgraceful, base’

Question 24

Pertinacious

Answer 24

adj.
Stubbornly tenacious, adhering strongly to a position.

Speaker Pelosi, despite her pertinacious abortion advocacy, continues to receive Holy Communion.

early 17th century: from Latin pertinax, pertinac- ‘holding fast’

Question 25

Recreant

Answer 25

noun, adj.
(One who is) cowardly, an apostate.

Traditionally armies have dealt harshly with recreants; deserters were often executed.

Middle English: from Old French, literally ‘surrendering’, present participle of recroire, from medieval Latin (se) recredere ‘surrender (oneself)’, from re- (expressing reversal) + credere ‘entrust’

Question 26

Adduce

Answer 26

verb.
Cite as evidence or reason.

The firm has been adduced as proof that Europe’s steel industry has a future—even as this future once again looks in doubt.

late Middle English: from Latin adducere, from ad- ‘towards’ + ducere ‘to lead’

Question 27

Traduce

Answer 27

Verb.
Slander, defame
OR: violate/betray, as a law or principle.

But though subsequently traduced as extreme, Friedman’s position had a fair amount of give in it.

mid 16th century (in the sense ‘transport, transmit’): from Latin traducere ‘lead in front of others, expose to ridicule’, from trans- ‘over, across’ + ducere ‘to lead’

Question 28

Apposite

Answer 28

adj.
Apt,

Mr. Obama seems an apposite speaker at Mandela’s centenary.

late 16th century: from Latin appositus, past participle of apponere ‘apply’, from ad- ‘towards’ + ponere ‘put’.

Question 29

Avocation

Answer 29

noun.
Hobby or minor occupation(?), distraction/diversion.

Vice was Monaco’s true draw, no longer just a sport of the idle rich, but an aspirational avocation for the middle class.

mid 17th century: from Latin avocatio(n- ), from avocare ‘call away’, from ab- ‘from’ + vocare ‘to call’

Question 30

Dilate (on)

Answer 30

verb.
Comment at length.

It’s no small irony that a man who made a career out of dilating on failure should have ended up a success.

late Middle English: from Old French dilater, from Latin dilatare ‘spread out’, from di- ‘apart’ + latus ‘wide’

Question 30

Dilettante

Answer 30

noun.
A person with a superficial appreciation for an art or area of knowledge.

I finished the course (I was enrolled in a course) thinking that perhaps I am better off remaining a slightly-above-average mountain dilettante. An occasional rock climber.

mid 18th century: from Italian, ‘person loving the arts’, from dilettare ‘to delight’, from Latin delectare

Question 31

Disaffect

Answer 31

verb.
Make dissatisfied, alienate.

And for the seasonally disaffected among us, that glorious big bang can’t come soon enough.

(one pathway/explanation is)
late 19th century: coined in German from Latin affectus ‘disposition’, from afficere ‘to influence’ (see affect2)

Question 32

Hackneyed

Answer 32

adj.
Overdone, trite

There’s nothing hackneyed or rote about his delirious odes to mental illness for Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.

mid 18th century: from the archaic verb hackney, meaning ‘use (a horse) for ordinary riding’, later ‘make commonplace by overuse’

Question 33

Harangue

Answer 33

noun, verb.
Lecture, rant.

Brenda continues to harangue Allen, who yells at her to shut up and smacks her in the face.

late Middle English: from Old French arenge, from medieval Latin harenga, perhaps of Germanic origin. The spelling was later altered to conform with French harangue (noun), haranguer (verb)

Question 34

Husband

Answer 34

noun, verb.
A steward, to manage resources economically.

Nigeria is the opposite of a country that has husbanded its resources well.

late Old English (in the senses ‘male head of a household’ and ‘manager, steward’), from Old Norse húsbóndi ‘master of a house’, from hús ‘house’ + bóndi ‘occupier and tiller of the soil’. The original sense of the verb was ‘till, cultivate’

Question 35

Nonplussed

Answer 35

adj.
Surprised and consequently unsure how to act
OR: (confusingly) unbothered.

Question 36

Obdurate

Answer 36

stubborn or lacking compassion

Question 37

Hidebound

Answer 37

adj.
Unable or unwilling to change because of tradition or convention.

Elizabeth was too young, too hidebound, to develop any passion projects before the death of her father, George VI, in February, 1952.

Mid 16th century (as a noun denoting a malnourished condition of cattle). This was extended to emaciated human beings, and then applied figuratively in the sense ‘narrow in outlook’

Question 38

Gaucherie

Answer 38

noun.
Tactless, awkward, unsophisticated ways.

PERRY: Mayor Coffman cooks up another gaucherie trying to French fry his political enemies.

French gauche = left , i.e. not right

Question 39

Inveterate

Answer 39

adj.
Long-established and unlikely to change.

The exploits of Marsha Sprinkle — suitcase thief, con artist, inveterate liar — could have been a film.

late Middle English (referring to disease, in the sense ‘of long standing, chronic’): from Latin inveteratus ‘made old’, past participle of inveterare (based on vetus, veter- ‘old’)

Question 40

Compendium

Answer 40

noun.
A collection of a set of similar items, a collection of concise but detailed information about a topic, particularly in a book or other publication.

Hallelujah first appears in the Book of Psalms — a compendium of sacred poems in the Jewish Bible that dates to the 5th or 4th century BC.

late 16th century: from Latin, ‘profit, saving’ (literally ‘what is weighed together’), from compendere, from com- ‘together’ + pendere ‘weigh’

Question 41

Verve

Answer 41

noun.
Vigour, enthusiasm, especially as related to artistic composition or performance.
OR: special ability or skill.

This debut collection explores and celebrates uncertain and transitory moments of gender identity with humor and verve.

late 17th century (denoting special talent in writing): from French, ‘vigour’, earlier ‘form of expression’, from Latin verba ‘words’

Question 42

Diaphanous

Answer 42

adj.
Delicate, translucent, insubstantial.

Delicate and diaphanous, the blooms signify rebirth, even if only tentatively.

early 17th century: from medieval Latin diaphanus, from Greek diaphanēs, from dia ‘through’ + phainein ‘to show’.

Question 43

Welter

Answer 43

verb, noun.
To be in turmoil/turbulence (or lie soaked in blood?).
A state of disorder, a chaotic mass of objects.

The crew was tossed about as the sea weltered.
The welter of conflicting rules left the competitors confused.

Middle English (in the sense ‘writhe, wallow’): from Middle Dutch, Middle Low German welteren (to roll).

Question 44

Voluble

Answer 44

adj.
Easily rolling or flowing, (of speech) characterized by fluency and readiness of utterance, (of a person) talking readily, fluently or incessantly.

For once, Abouzeid said while laughing, the voluble Reynolds was at a loss for words.

Middle English (in senses ‘rotating about an axis’ and ‘having a tendency to change’): from French, or from Latin volubilis, from volvere ‘to roll’.

Question 45

Eggcorn

Answer 45

noun.
A “slip of the ear”, the written expression of a plausible mishearing of a standard term.

If you didn’t know how to spell the word “acorn,” then “eggcorn” is a logical and satisfying alternative.

mid 19th century (as a misinterpretation of acorn): the modern sense is first recorded in 2003.

Question 46

Malaprop(ism)

Answer 46

noun.
The mistaken use of a word in place of a similar-sounding one, often with an amusing effect (

He has a tendency to utter childlike malaprops; he once confided he wanted to learn to ‘dance a flamingo ’ instead of flamenco

Question 47

Dovish

Answer 47

adj.
Advocating peace, compromise, conciliatory attitudes (opp. hawkish)

Kishida, once on the more dovish side of the LDP, has since tacked rightwards.

1530s, “like a dove, innocent,” from dove. The political sense, “tending toward or favoring peace” (opposed to hawkish) is by 1966

Question 48

Promulgate

Answer 48

verb.
To proclaim or promote (an idea, a law etc).

Some conservatives on the court, such as Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, have long opposed allowing federal agencies to promulgate regulations without specific authority from Congress.

mid 16th century: from Latin promulgat- ‘exposed to public view’, from the verb promulgare, from pro- ‘out, publicly’ + mulgere ‘cause to come forth’ (literally ‘to milk’).

Question 49

Casuistry

Answer 49

noun.
The use of clever but unsound arguments, especially in relation to moral questions, sophistry.
OR: resolving moral conflicts by applying theoretical rules

With his casuistry, Whitman seems intent on convincing himself, more than anyone, that this health regimen will work.

from French casuiste or Spanish casuista, Italian casista, all from Latin casus “case” in its Medieval Latin sense “case of conscience.”