Unit 3 Vocab

Question 1

Ancillary

Answer 1

(adj.) subordinate or supplementary

Synonyms: auxiliary, subsidiary, accessory
Antonyms: central, key, primary, principal, main

Question 2

Bowdlerize

Answer 2

(v.) to remove material considered offensive (from a book, okay, film, etc.)

Synonyms: censor, purge expurgate

Question 3

Condescend

Answer 3

(v.) to come down or stoop voluntarily to a lower level; to deal with people in a patronizing manner

Synonym: deign

Question 4

Cozen

Answer 4

(v.) to trick; to cheat or swindle

Synonyms: dupe, deceive, beguile, inveigle

Question 5

Enclave

Answer 5

(n.) an enclosed district, region, or area inhabited by a particular group of people or having a special character

Synonyms: island, subgroup

Question 6

Forte

Answer 6

(n.) a person’s strong point; what a person does best

Synonyms: gift, aptitude, specialty
Antonyms: weakness, shortcoming, foible

Question 7

Gratis

Answer 7

(adj.) free; (adv.) without charge

Synonyms: (adj.) on the house; (adv.) freely
Antonyms: (adv.) for a price

Question 8

Icon

Answer 8

(n.) a representative or image of a sacred personage, often considered sacred itself; an image or picture; a symbol; a graphic symbol on a computer monitor display; an object of blind devotion

Synonyms: emblem, idol

Question 9

Interstice

Answer 9

(n.) a small, narrow space between things or parts of things

Synonyms: gap, slot, crevice, interval, lacuna

Question 10

Macrocosm

Answer 10

(n.) the universe considered as a whole; the entire complex structure of something

Synonyms: cosmos, entirety
Antonyms: model, miniature, microcosm

Question 11

Mountebank

Answer 11

(n.) a trickster or swindler; a charlatan

Synonyms: imposter, quack
Antonyms: sucker, dupe, “mark,” “pigeon”

Question 12

Paean

Answer 12

(n.) a song of praise, joy, or triumph

Synonyms: hymn, ode, anthem
Antonyms: dirge, elegy, lament, threnody

Question 13

Persiflage

Answer 13

(n.) lighthearted joking, talk, or writing

Synonyms: banter, jesting, repartee, badinage

Question 14

Plethora

Answer 14

(n.) over-fullness; superabundance; superfluity

Synonyms: surplus, surfeit, glut, excess
Antonyms: shortage, paucity, dearth, scarcity

Question 15

Pragmatic

Answer 15

(adj.) concerned with practical considerations or values; dealing with actions and results rather than with abstract theory; stiff in one’s opinions

Synonyms: down to earth, businesslike
Antonyms: idealistic, impractical, visionary

Question 16

Quizzical

Answer 16

(adj.) puzzled; mocking; odd; equivocal

Synonyms: peculiar, perplexed, mystified, derisive
Antonyms: unequivocal, crystal-clear, unambiguous

Question 17

Rapacity

Answer 17

(n.) inordinate greed; the disposition to obtain one’s desires by force, extortion, or plunder

Synonyms: avarice, cupidity, voraciousness
Antonyms: liberality, generosity, altruism

Question 18

Schism

Answer 18

(n.) a formal split within a religious organization; any division or separation of a group or organization i to hostile factions

Synonyms: rift, breach
Antonyms: united front; reconciliation

Question 19

Therapeutic

Answer 19

(adj.) having the power to heal or cure; beneficial

Synonyms: curative, salutary, salubrious
Antonyms: harmful, injurious, deleterious

Question 20

Virtuoso

Answer 20

(n.) a brilliant performer; a person with masterly skill or technique; (adj.) masterly or brilliant

Synonyms: (n.) expert, master, prodigy, maestro
Antonyms: (n.) amateur, beginner, novice; (adj.) mediocre