TC_SE_practice_words_1 Flashcards
collegial
- (adj) relating to a friendly relationship between colleagues (= people who work together):
- example: The organization has a welcoming collegial atmosphere.
- (adj) used to describe a method of working in which responsibility is shared between several people:
- example: The new chair quickly upset committee members, who were used to a more collegial style.
terse
- (adj) A terse statement or comment is brief and unfriendly.
- example: His tone was terse as he asked the question.
antagonistic
- (adj) If a person is antagonistic to someone or something, they show hatred or dislike towards them.
- example: Nearly all the women I interviewed were aggressively antagonistic to the idea.
animated
- (adj) Someone who is animated or who is having an animated conversation is lively and is showing their feelings.
- example: She was seen in animated conversation with the singer.
intrigued
- (adj) If you are intrigued by something, especially something strange, it interests you and you want to know more about it.
- example: I would be intrigued to hear others’ views.
despondent
- (adj) If you are despondent, you are very unhappy because you have been experiencing difficulties that you think you will not be able to overcome.
- example: I feel despondent when my work is rejected.
discomposed
- (verb) to disturb the composure of
- example: He appeared calm, but the unexpected question discomposed him, making his hands tremble slightly.
frail
- (adj) Someone who is frail is not very strong or healthy.
- example: She lay in bed looking particularly frail.
- (adj) Something that is frail is easily broken or damaged.
- example: The frail craft rocked as he clambered in.
stymie
(verb) to prevent something from happening or someone from achieving a purpose:
example: In our search for evidence, we were stymied by the absence of any recent documents.
conflate
- (verb) If you conflate two or more descriptions or ideas, or if they conflate, you combine them in order to produce a single one.
- example: Unfortunately the public conflated fiction with reality and made her into a saint.
belabor
- (verb) If you say that someone belabors the point, you mean that they keep on talking about it, perhaps in an annoying or boring way.
- example: I won’t belabor the point, for this is a familiar story.
aggrandize
(verb) to make someone more powerful or important
example: At the dinner table, my father would go on and on, showing off, aggrandising himself.
disenchantment
- (noun) Disenchantment is the feeling of being disappointed with something, and no longer believing that it is good or worthwhile.
- example: There’s growing disenchantment with the Government.
passivity
- (noun) the state or quality of being passive; esp., inaction, inertia, submissiveness, etc.
- example: His passivity in the meeting frustrated his colleagues, as he neither contributed ideas nor opposed any decisions.
flip
- (adj) not serious about a serious subject, in an attempt to be funny or to appear clever:
- example: The tone of the book is sometimes too flip.
neoscholastic
- Neoscholastic refers to the revival of medieval Scholastic philosophy, especially in the context of Catholic thought, emphasizing logic, metaphysics, and theology.
woo
(verb) to try to persuade someone to support you or to use your business:
example: The party has been trying to woo the voters with promises of electoral reform.
cow
- (verb) to frighten someone into doing something, using threats or violence:
- example: The protesters refused to be cowed into submission by the army.
playwright
- (noun) a person who writes plays
- example: She dreams of becoming a playwright and writing her own plays.
rugged
- (adj) strong and simple; not delicate:
- example: Jeeps are rugged vehicles, designed for rough conditions.
courted
- (verb) to try to please someone because you want them to join you:
- example: Adams is being courted by a number of football clubs.
startlingly
- (adverb) in a way that is surprising and often slightly worrying:
- example: High school dropout rates are startlingly high.
canonize
- (verb) to accept something as belonging to a canon (= an official list) of respected works, ideas, etc.:
- example: This view is based on the conception that the main function of criticism is to define and canonize the genuine classics of literature.
- (verb) to praise and admire someone very much, especially in a way that is too much or that they do not deserve:
- example: The rebel leader was canonized by left-wingers in the late 1960s.
Renaissance
- (noun) a new growth of activity or interest in something, especially art, literature, or music:
- example: Popular art is experiencing a renaissance.
epitome
- (noun) If you say that a person or thing is the epitome of something, you are emphasizing that they are the best possible example of a particular type of person or thing.
- example: Maureen was the epitome of psychopath.
luminary
- (noun) If you refer to someone as a luminary, you mean that they are an expert in a particular subject or activity.
- example: Einstein was a luminary in the field of physics.
efflorescence
- (noun) the production of a lot of art, especially of a high quality
- example: The efflorescence of art during the Renaissance led to many great masterpieces.
excise
- (noun) a tax made by a government on some types of goods produced and used within their own country:
- example: The excise (duty) on beer was increased under the last government.
- (noun) to remove something, especially by cutting:
- example: During a three-hour operation six tumours were excised from the wall of the patient’s stomach.
clangorous
- (adj) related to the continuous loud noise of something, especially something made of metal, being hit or rung:
- example: The clangorous sound filled the air and conversation was impossible.
tepid
- (adj) (of liquid) not very warm, or (of feelings or actions) not very strong:
- example: There is only tepid support in Congress for the proposal.
acquisitiveness
- (noun) eagerness to own and collect things: (often disapproving tone)
- example: He was known for his acquisitiveness, buying any work of art that caught his eye.
undoing
- (noun) the cause of someone’s failure, or of someone’s loss of power or money:
- example: Greed has been the undoing of many a businessman.
indictment
- (noun) If you say that one thing is an indictment of another thing, you mean that it shows how bad the other thing is.
- example: It’s a sad indictment of society that police officers are regarded as easy targets by thugs.
- (noun) An indictment is a formal accusation that someone has committed a crime.
- example: Prosecutors may soon seek an indictment on racketeering and fraud charges.
blemish
- (adj) You use blemished to describe something such as someone’s skin or a piece of fruit when its appearance is spoiled by small marks.
- example: …a skin tonic for oily, blemished complexions.
pretension
- (noun) If you say that someone has pretensions, you disapprove of them because they claim or pretend that they are more important than they really are.
- example: The NY Giants’ Super Bowl pretensions were dashed when they were beaten last week.
- (noun) If someone has pretensions to something, they claim to be or do that thing.
- example: The city has unrealistic pretensions to world-class status.
kindred
- (adj) similar or related:
- example: They sell dried fruit and nuts and other kindred goods.
mortified
- (adj) very embarrassed:
- example: She was absolutely mortified to hear her son swearing at the teacher.
prolix
- (adj) (formal disapproving) using too many words and therefore boring or difficult to read or listen to:
- example: The author’s prolix style has done nothing to encourage sales of the book.
long-winded
- (adj) A long-winded speech, letter, article, etc. is too long, or uses too many words.
acute
(adj) If a bad situation is acute, it causes severe problems or damage:
example: The problem of poverty is particularly acute in rural areas.
(adj) An acute pain or illness is one that quickly becomes very severe:
acute abdominal pains
example: an acute attack of appendicitis
promulgate
- (verb) to spread beliefs or ideas among a lot of people
- example: The government will promulgate a new law to improve road safety.
witty
- (adj) Someone or something that is witty is amusing in a clever way.
- example: His plays were very good, very witty.
provocative
- (adj) causing thought about interesting subjects:
- (adj) causing an angry reaction, usually intentionally:
ironic
(adj) “Ironic” means something happens in a way that is the opposite of what you expect, often with a twist of humor or contradiction.
example: It’s ironic that the fire station burned down
gulf
- (noun) an important difference between the ideas, opinions, or situations of two groups of people:
- example: There is a widening gulf between the rich and the poor in our society.
normative
- (adj) relating to rules, or making people obey rules, especially rules of behaviour
dissemble
- (verb) to hide your real intentions and feelings or the facts:
- example: He accused the government of dissembling.
fleeting
- (adj) short or quick:
- example: a fleeting glimpse
norms
(noun) an accepted standard or a way of behaving or doing things that most people agree with:
example: Europe’s varied cultural, political and ethical norms
passport
- (noun) If you say that a thing is a passport to success or happiness, you mean that this thing makes success or happiness possible.
- example: Victory would give him a passport to the riches he craves.
distaste
- (noun) a dislike of something that you find unpleasant or unacceptable:
- example: She looked at the advertisement with distaste before walking quickly on.
malign
- (adj) causing or intending to cause harm or evil:
- example: Foreign domination had a malign influence on local politics.
rationalize
- (verb) to try to find reasons to explain your behaviour, decisions, etc.:
- example: She rationalized the cost by saying that an expensive carpet would last longer than a cheaper one.
untapped
- (adj) If a supply of something valuable is untapped, it is not yet used or taken advantage of:
- example: untapped assets/resources/markets/talent
restrained
- (adj) acting in a calm and controlled way:
- example: I was expecting him to be furious but he was very restrained.
- (adj) controlled:
- example: a more restrained policy on mortgage lending
harbinger
- (noun) a person or thing that shows that something is going to happen soon, especially something bad:
- example: a harbinger of doom
shrewd
- (adj) A shrewd person is able to understand and judge a situation quickly and to use this understanding to their own advantage.
- example: She’s a shrewd businesswoman.
canny
- (adj) A canny person is clever and able to think quickly.
- example: He was far too canny to risk giving himself away.
outmoded
- (adj) If you describe something as outmoded, you mean that you think it is old-fashioned and no longer useful or relevant to modern life.
- example: The country badly needs aid to modernize its outmoded industries.
compelled
- (adj) having to do something, because you are forced to or feel it is necessary:
- example: He felt compelled to report the incident.
statutory
(adj) Statutory means relating to rules or laws which have been formally written down.
example: We had a statutory duty to report to Parliament.
prevalence
(noun) the fact that something is very common or happens often:
example: the prevalence of smoking among teenagers
transgression
(noun) the act or process of breaking a law or moral rule, or an example of this:
example: Who is supposed to have committed these transgressions?
incensed
(adj) extremely angry:
example: The villagers are incensed at the decision to close the railway station.
imperative
(adj) extremely important or urgent:
example: he president said it was imperative that the release of all hostages be secured.
efflorescence
(noun) the production of a lot of art, especially of a high quality
luminary
(noun) a person who is famous and important in a particular area of activity:
example: Luminaries of stage and screen (= famous actors) assembled for last night’s awards ceremony.
assiduous
(adj) showing hard work, care, and attention to detail:
example: assiduous research/efforts
