Utopia For Realists Flashcards
wretched
adjective
- (of a person) in a very unhappy or unfortunate state
• I felt so wretched because I thought I might never see you again. - of poor quality; very bad
• the wretched conditions of the slums. - used to express anger or annoyance
• she disliked the wretched man intensely.
solitary
I. adjective
- done or existing alone
• I live a pretty solitary life • tigers are essentially solitary. - (of a place) secluded or isolated
• solitary farmsteads. - (of a bird, mammal, or insect) living alone or in pairs, especially in contrast to related social forms
• a solitary wasp. - (of a flower or other part) borne singly.
• each spider-like bloom is solitary. - [ attrib.] [often with negative] — single; only
• we have not a solitary shred of evidence to go on.
II. noun
- a recluse or hermit.
• he had something of the solitary about him. - ‹informal› short for solitary confinement.
recluse
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.
abiding
I. adjective
(of a feeling or memory) lasting a long time; enduring
• he had an abiding respect for her.
ruminate
verb — [no obj.]
- think deeply about something
• we sat ruminating on the nature of existence. - (of a ruminant) chew the cud.
• goats ruminated nonchalantly around them.
prophecy
I. noun
- a prediction of what will happen in the future
• a bleak prophecy of war and ruin. - [ mass noun] — the faculty or practice of prophesying
• the gift of prophecy.
contention
I. noun
- [ mass noun] — heated disagreement
• the captured territory was the main area of contention between the two countries. - [ 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.
beget
verb — [with obj.]
- ‹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. - ‹literary› cause; bring about
• killings beget more killings.
transgression
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.
browbeat
I. verb — [with obj.]
- intimidate (someone), typically into doing something, with stern or abusive words
• a witness is being browbeaten under cross-examination.
immutable
I. adjective
unchanging over time or unable to be changed
• an immutable fact.
dissension
I. noun — [ mass noun]
- disagreement that leads to discord
• this manoeuvre caused dissension within feminist ranks
• [ count noun] the mill was the cause of a dissension in 1620.
procreation
noun — [ mass noun]
- the production of offspring; reproduction
• in general animals copulate purely for the purpose of procreation
• human procreation.
grasping
I. adjective
avaricious; greedy
• they were regarded as grasping landlords.
avaricious
I. adjective
having or showing an extreme greed for wealth or material gain
• an avaricious, manipulative woman.
indictment
I. noun
- (chiefly N. Amer.) a formal charge or accusation of a serious crime
• an indictment for conspiracy. - [ mass noun] — the action of indicting or being indicted • the indictment of twelve people who had imported cocaine.
- 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.
creed
I. noun
- a system of religious belief; a faith
• people of many creeds and cultures. - (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. - a set of beliefs or aims which guide someone’s actions
• liberalism was more than a political creed.
fascism
I. noun — [ mass noun]
- an authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization.
- (in general use) extreme right-wing, authoritarian, or intolerant views or practices.
• this is yet another example of health fascism in action.
incite
I. verb — [with obj.]
- encourage or stir up (violent or unlawful behaviour)
• they conspired to incite riots. - urge or persuade (someone) to act in a violent or unlawful way
• he incited loyal subjects to rebellion.
technocracy
I. noun — [ mass noun]
- the government or control of society or industry by an elite of technical experts.
• failure in the war on poverty discredited technocracy. - [ count noun] — an instance or application of technocracy.
- [ count noun] — an elite of technical experts.
swindle
I. verb — [with obj.]
- use deception to deprive (someone) of money or possessions
• a businessman swindled investors out of millions of pounds. - 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.
docile
adjective
ready to accept control or instruction; submissive
• a cheap and docile workforce
• she’s a black Labrador, gentle and docile.
archetype
I. noun
- a very typical example of a certain person or thing
• he was the archetype of the old-style football club chairman. - an original which has been imitated; a prototype
• an instrument which was the archetype of the early flute. - [Psychoanalysis] (in Jungian theory)
a primitive mental image inherited from the earliest human ancestors, and supposed to be present in the collective unconscious. - a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology
• mythological archetypes of good and evil.
zeitgeist
I. noun — [in sing.]
- 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.
lodestar
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.
bleak
adjective
- (of an area of land) lacking vegetation and exposed to the elements
• a bleak and barren moor. - (of a building or room) charmless and inhospitable; dreary
• he looked round the bleak little room in despair. - (of the weather) cold and miserable
• a bleak midwinter’s day. - (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. - (of a person’s expression) cold and forbidding
• his mouth was set and his eyes were bleak.
thrifty
I. adjective
- using money and other resources carefully and not wastefully
• he had been brought up to be thrifty and careful. - ‹chiefly archaic› ‹dialect› (of livestock or plants) strong and healthy.
• the sheep are vigorous and thrifty. - ‹archaic› prosperous.
vagrant
I. noun
- a person without a settled home or regular work who wanders from place to place and lives by begging.
- ‹archaic› a wanderer.
truancy
noun — [ mass noun]
- the action of staying away from school without good reason; absenteeism
• fines to tackle truancy.
