Unit 13 Flashcards
Affront
An open or intentional insult; a slight; to insult to one’s face; to face in defiance, confront
Abstruse
Extremely difficult to understand
Canard
A false rumor, fabricated story
Captious
Excessively ready to find fault; given to petty criticism; intended to trap, confuse, or show up
Cognizant
Aware, knowledgeable, informed; having jurisdiction
Contrite
Regretful for some misdeed or sin; plagued by sense of guilt; thoroughly penitent
Cynosure
The center of attention, attraction, or interest; something that serves to guide or direct
Decorous
Well behaved, dignified, socially proper
Deign
To think it appropriate or suitable to one’s dignity to do something; to condescend
Desiccated
Thoroughly dried out; divested of spirit or vitality; arid and uninteresting
Efficacy
The power to produce a desired result
Engender
To bring into existence, give rise to, produce; to come into existence, assume form
Ethereal
Light, airy, delicate; highly refined; suggesting what is heavenly (rather than earthbound)
Façade
The front or face of the building; a surface appearance (as opposed to what may lie behind)
Ghoulish
Revolting in an unnatural or morbid way; suggestive of someone who robs graves or otherwise preys on the dead
