Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Nw Pin's Sharing Vocabs > Utopia For Realists > Flashcards

Utopia For Realists Flashcards

1
Q

wretched

A

adjective

  1. (of a person) in a very unhappy or unfortunate state
    • I felt so wretched because I thought I might never see you again.
  2. of poor quality; very bad
    • the wretched conditions of the slums.
  3. used to express anger or annoyance
    • she disliked the wretched man intensely.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

solitary

A

I. adjective

  1. done or existing alone
    • I live a pretty solitary life • tigers are essentially solitary.
  2. (of a place) secluded or isolated
    • solitary farmsteads.
  3. (of a bird, mammal, or insect) living alone or in pairs, especially in contrast to related social forms
    • a solitary wasp.
  4. (of a flower or other part) borne singly.
    • each spider-like bloom is solitary.
  5. [ attrib.] [often with negative] — single; only
    • we have not a solitary shred of evidence to go on.

II. noun

  1. a recluse or hermit.
    • he had something of the solitary about him.
  2. ‹informal› short for solitary confinement.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

recluse

A

I. noun

a person who lives a solitary life and tends to avoid other people.
• she has turned into a virtual recluse.
• he’s a bit of a recluse.

II. adjective
‹archaic› favouring a solitary life.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

abiding

A

I. adjective

(of a feeling or memory) lasting a long time; enduring
• he had an abiding respect for her.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

ruminate

A

verb — [no obj.]

  1. think deeply about something
    • we sat ruminating on the nature of existence.
  2. (of a ruminant) chew the cud.
    • goats ruminated nonchalantly around them.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

prophecy

A

I. noun

  1. a prediction of what will happen in the future
    • a bleak prophecy of war and ruin.
  2. [ mass noun] — the faculty or practice of prophesying
    • the gift of prophecy.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

contention

A

I. noun

  1. [ mass noun] — heated disagreement
    • the captured territory was the main area of contention between the two countries.
  2. [ count noun] — an assertion, especially one maintained in argument
    • Freud’s contention that all dreams were wish fulfilment.

II. phrases in (or out of) contention
having (or not having) a good chance of success in a contest.
• three penalties kept the team firmly in contention.
• Heather’s error in the race put her out of contention.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

beget

A

verb — [with obj.]

  1. ‹literary› (especially of a man) bring (a child) into existence by the process of reproduction
    • they hoped that the King might beget an heir by his new queen.
  2. ‹literary› cause; bring about
    • killings beget more killings.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

transgression

A

noun

an act that goes against a law, rule, or code of conduct; an offence
• I’ll be keeping an eye out for further transgressions
• few ministers now stand down because of sexual transgressions
• [ mass noun] her transgression of genteel etiquette.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

browbeat

A

I. verb — [with obj.]

  1. intimidate (someone), typically into doing something, with stern or abusive words
    • a witness is being browbeaten under cross-examination.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

immutable

A

I. adjective

unchanging over time or unable to be changed
• an immutable fact.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

dissension

A

I. noun — [ mass noun]

  1. disagreement that leads to discord
    • this manoeuvre caused dissension within feminist ranks
    • [ count noun] the mill was the cause of a dissension in 1620.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

procreation

A

noun — [ mass noun]

  1. the production of offspring; reproduction
    • in general animals copulate purely for the purpose of procreation
    • human procreation.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

grasping

A

I. adjective

avaricious; greedy
• they were regarded as grasping landlords.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

avaricious

A

I. adjective

having or showing an extreme greed for wealth or material gain
• an avaricious, manipulative woman.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

indictment

A

I. noun

  1. (chiefly N. Amer.) a formal charge or accusation of a serious crime
    • an indictment for conspiracy.
  2. [ mass noun] — the action of indicting or being indicted • the indictment of twelve people who had imported cocaine.
  3. a thing that serves to illustrate that a system or situation is bad and deserves to be condemned
    • these rapidly escalating crime figures are an indictment of our society.
17
Q

creed

A

I. noun

  1. a system of religious belief; a faith
    • people of many creeds and cultures.
  2. (often the Creed) — a formal statement of Christian beliefs, especially the Apostles’ Creed or the Nicene Creed.
    • the godparents will then swear that they believe in the Creed and the Commandments.
  3. a set of beliefs or aims which guide someone’s actions
    • liberalism was more than a political creed.
18
Q

fascism

A

I. noun — [ mass noun]

  1. an authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization.
  2. (in general use) extreme right-wing, authoritarian, or intolerant views or practices.
    • this is yet another example of health fascism in action.
19
Q

incite

A

I. verb — [with obj.]

  1. encourage or stir up (violent or unlawful behaviour)
    • they conspired to incite riots.
  2. urge or persuade (someone) to act in a violent or unlawful way
    • he incited loyal subjects to rebellion.
20
Q

technocracy

A

I. noun — [ mass noun]

  1. the government or control of society or industry by an elite of technical experts.
    • failure in the war on poverty discredited technocracy.
  2. [ count noun] — an instance or application of technocracy.
  3. [ count noun] — an elite of technical experts.
21
Q

swindle

A

I. verb — [with obj.]

  1. use deception to deprive (someone) of money or possessions
    • a businessman swindled investors out of millions of pounds.
  2. obtain (money) fraudulently
    • he was said to have swindled £62.5 million from the state-owned cement industry.

II. noun
a fraudulent scheme or action
• he is mixed up in a £10 million insurance swindle.

22
Q

docile

A

adjective

ready to accept control or instruction; submissive
• a cheap and docile workforce
• she’s a black Labrador, gentle and docile.

23
Q

archetype

A

I. noun

  1. a very typical example of a certain person or thing
    • he was the archetype of the old-style football club chairman.
  2. an original which has been imitated; a prototype
    • an instrument which was the archetype of the early flute.
  3. [Psychoanalysis] (in Jungian theory)
    a primitive mental image inherited from the earliest human ancestors, and supposed to be present in the collective unconscious.
  4. a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology
    • mythological archetypes of good and evil.
24
Q

zeitgeist

A

I. noun — [in sing.]

  1. the defining spirit or mood of a particular period of history as shown by the ideas and beliefs of the time
    • the story captured the zeitgeist of the late 1960s.
25
Q

lodestar

A

I. noun

a star that is used to guide the course of a ship, especially the pole star.
• ‹figurative› she dominated his existence as chief muse and intellectual lodestar.

26
Q

bleak

A

adjective

  1. (of an area of land) lacking vegetation and exposed to the elements
    • a bleak and barren moor.
  2. (of a building or room) charmless and inhospitable; dreary
    • he looked round the bleak little room in despair.
  3. (of the weather) cold and miserable
    • a bleak midwinter’s day.
  4. (of a situation) not hopeful or encouraging; unlikely to have a favourable outcome
    • he paints a bleak picture of a company that has lost its way • the future looks bleak.
  5. (of a person’s expression) cold and forbidding
    • his mouth was set and his eyes were bleak.
27
Q

thrifty

A

I. adjective

  1. using money and other resources carefully and not wastefully
    • he had been brought up to be thrifty and careful.
  2. ‹chiefly archaic› ‹dialect› (of livestock or plants) strong and healthy.
    • the sheep are vigorous and thrifty.
  3. ‹archaic› prosperous.
28
Q

vagrant

A

I. noun

  1. a person without a settled home or regular work who wanders from place to place and lives by begging.
  2. ‹archaic› a wanderer.
29
Q

truancy

A

noun — [ mass noun]

  1. the action of staying away from school without good reason; absenteeism
    • fines to tackle truancy.

Nw Pin's Sharing Vocabs (6 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions