Top 12 Words Flashcards
Anomaly
deviation from what is normal
Albino animals may display too great an anomaly in their coloring to attract normally colored mates.
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anomalous: deviating from what is normal
aberrance, aberration, abnormality, deviance, deviation, irregularity, preternaturalness
Assuage
to make something unpleasant less severe
Like many people, Philip Larkin used alchohol to assuage his sense of meaninglessness and despair.
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allay, alleviate, appease, comfort, conciliate, ease, lighten, mitigate, mollify, pacify, palliate, placate, propitiate, relieve, soothe, sweeten
Enigma
a puzzle; a mistery
Speaking in riddles and dressed in old robes, the artist gained a reputation as something of an enigma.
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conundrum, perplexity
Equivocate
to use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead
When faced with criticism of his policies, the politician equivocated and left all parties thinking he agreed with them.
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equivocal: undecided; trying to deveive
equivocation: the act or state of equivocating
ambiguous, evasive, waffling
Erudite
learned, scholarly, bookish
The annual meeting of philosophy professors was a gathering of the most erudite, well-published individuals in the world.
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erudition: extensive knowledge or learning
scholastic, learned, wise
Fervid
intensely emotional; feverish
The fans of Maria Callas were particularly fervid, doing anything to catch a glimpse of the great opera singer.
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fervent: enthusiastic
fervor: passion
burning, impassioned, passionate, vehement, zealous
Lucid
clear and easily understood
The explanations were written in a simple and lucid manner so that students were immediately able to apply what they learned.
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lucidity: clarity
lucent: glowing with light
clear, coherent, explicit, intelligible, limpid
Opaque
impossible to see through; preventing the passage of light
The heavy buildup of dirt and grime on the windows almost made them opaque.
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opacity: the quality of being obscure and indecipherable
obscure
Placate
to soothe or pacify
The burglar tried to placate the snarling dog by saying, “Nice doggy,” and offering it a treat.
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placid: tolerant; calm
implacable: unable to be made peaceful
appease, conciliate, mollify
Precipitate
to throw violently or bring about abruptly; lacking deliberation
Upon learning that the couple married after knowing each other only two months, friends and family members expected such a precipitate marriage to end in divorce.
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precipice: a steep cliff
precipitation: weather phenomena, like rain or snow, that falls from the sky
precipitous: very steep
abrupt, hasty, headlong, hurried, ill-considered, impetuous, impulsive, prompt, rash, reckless, sudden
Prodigal
lavish; wasteful
The prodigal son quickly wasted all of his inheritance on a lavish lifestyle devoted to pleasure.
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prodigality: excessive or reckless spending
extravagant, lavish, profligate, spendthrift, wasteful
Zeal
passion, excitement
She brought her typical zeal to the project, sparking enthusiasm in the other team members.
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zealot: a fanatic
ardency, fervor, fire, passion
