Verb Section 1 Flashcards
abate
to reduce in amount, degree, intensity; lessen; diminish; to deduct or subtract
to abate part of the cost; Acid rain began to abate when pollution contributing to it was limited.
abet
to encourage, support, or countenance by aid or approval, usually in wrongdoing
The government needs to make clear that it will no longer abet or condone this behavior.
An example of abet is to give a ride to a person who just robbed a store.
abstain
to hold oneself back voluntarily, especially from something regarded as improper or unhealthy (usually followed by from)
abstain from eating meat during Lent
You might try abstaining from coffee and other stimulants on the day of the interview.
If you don’t want to participate in the discussion, you are free to abstain.
to not vote: Abstain on the issue; Abstain in national elections.
acclaim
to welcome or salute with shouts or sounds of joy and approval; applaud
to acclaim the conquering heroes; An example of acclaim would be to give a performer a standing ovation with shouts of “Bravo.”
Each of his books won popular acclaim.
accommodate
to do a kindness or a favor to; oblige; supply (usually followed by with); to lend money to; to provide with a room and sometimes with food; to adjust to something or someone else’s needs
accommodate his friend for the night
Nowadays, a typical hotel room can accommodate a maximum of four to five people.
An example of accommodate would be a teacher changing her teaching methods to address the changing needs of her students.
adapt
to make suitable to requirements or conditions; adjust or modify fittingly
They adapted themselves to the change quickly.
He adapted the novel for movies.
Most students have little difficulty adapting to college life.
adduce
to bring forward in argument or as evidence; cite as pertinent or conclusive; to show something as a means of proof
adduce reasons in support of one’s case
The burden of proof shall be on the state to adduce the evidence.
To submit forensic evidence in court is an example of adduce.
admire
to regard with wonder, pleasure, or approval
Even in these tales, however, there is much to admire and fascinate.
Romeo gazing at Juliet from afar is an example of admire.
adore
to regard with the utmost esteem, love, and respect; honor
Everywhere he goes, crowds apparently adore him, keen to forgive his flaws.
An example of adore is a mother affectionately looking at and caring for her new baby.
adulate
to show excessive admiration or devotion to; flatter or admire servilely
To kiss up to someone and gush on and on about how beautiful, smart, funny and delightful he is is an example of adulate.
adulterate
render something poorer in quality by adding another substance, typically an inferior one
These businessmen didn’t adulterate products, putting leaves in tea or chalk in flour.
Adulterated with cheaper vegetable oils or lower grades of olive oil to increase profits.
adumbrate
to produce a faint image or resemblance of; to outline or sketch; to darken or conceal partially
Haze’s paint scheme seems to annotate, articulate and adumbrate the car’s shape.
aggravate
to make worse or more severe; intensify, as anything evil, disorderly, or troublesome
His rehab focused on balance, so he wouldn’t aggravate the injury.
Higher sea levels would aggravate storm surges or the impact of tsunamis.
alienate
to make indifferent or hostile; to turn away; transfer or divert
He has alienated his entire family.
Someone stop me before I alienate anyone else who could be on our side.
They urge us to break down the barriers that alienate us from nature.
allay
to put (fear, doubt, suspicion, anger) to rest; calm; quiet If they want to allay suspicion from those who doubt the claims, they are going about it wrong. This does not lessen anybody's grief, but it should allay some fears. A gentle breeze would allay the heat.
alleviate
to make easier to endure; lessen; mitigate
to alleviate sorrow; to alleviate pain
Cold water should be used to cover the affected area and alleviate the pain.
Researchers discover a way to briefly store data acoustically to alleviate traffic bottlenecks.
alloy
to mix (metals or metal with nonmetal) so as to form an alloy; to reduce in value by an admixture of a less costly metal; to debase, impair, or reduce by admixture; adulterate. alloy gold with copper; My pleasure in receiving the letter was somewhat alloyed by its contents.
allure
to attract or tempt by something flattering or desirable; to fascinate; charm
Rewards allure men to brave danger.
allured by hope; allure someone into something
alter
to make different in some particular, as size, style, course, or the like; modify
Some cosmetic lenses are deliberately colored to alter the appearance of the eye.
alternate
to change back and forth between conditions, states, actions: He alternates between hope and despair.
to take turns: My sister and I alternated in doing the dishes.
amalgamate
to mix or merge so as to make a combination; blend; unite; combine
There are plans to amalgamate two companies.
We were asked to amalgamate with another local group.
The three schools decided to amalgamate.
ameliorate
to make or become better, more bearable, or more satisfactory; improve; meliorate
He wanted to know if the company had a suggestion for how to ameliorate this problem.
Those who stayed on, a vast majority, are sliding deeper into the poverty the program was intended to ameliorate.
annex
to attach, append, or add, especially to something larger or more important
They allow the city to annex land and set up free trade zones.
International law decrees that no nation can annex the moon for itself.
Happiness is not always annexed to wealth.
Only one requirement is annexed to this job.
annihilate
destroy utterly; obliterate; wipe out
Each of the great powers now has enough nuclear weapons to annihilate the human race many times over.
Integration does not annihilate the immigrants’ culture.
annotate
to supply with critical or explanatory notes; comment upon in notes
annotate the works of Shakespeare
Consumers can cut and paste, annotate and bookmark their texts.
The smart students print them in advance and annotate them in lecture.
annul
declare invalid (an official agreement, decision, or result) Both families, who despise each other, try to get the newlyweds to annul their marriage. The fund has filed a lawsuit seeking to annul the sale.
antedate
to be of older date than; precede in time: His death antedated his brother’s.
to assign to an earlier date: antedate the letter by a week
The cold weather antedated their departure.
antiquate
to make obsolete, old-fashioned, or out of date by replacing with something newer or better
This latest device will antiquate the ice-cube tray.
to design in an antique style: antiquate a building
appall
to fill or overcome with horror, consternation, or fear; dismay
He was appalled by the damage from the fire.
I am appalled at your mistakes.
Many other things were going on in society then that would appall us today.
appeal
to ask for aid, support, mercy, sympathy, or the like; make an earnest entreaty: appeal for aid; The college appealed to its alumni for funds.
They appealed to the public to help the distressed children.
to be especially attractive, pleasing, interesting, or enjoyable: The red hat appeals to me.
appease
to bring to a state of peace, quiet, ease, calm, or contentment; pacify; soothe: to appease an angry king
Instead of appeasing the quarrel, the government’s action intensified it.
to satisfy, allay, or relieve; assuage: The fruit appeased his hunger; appease one’s curiosity
applaud
to clap the hands as an expression of approval, appreciation, acclamation; give praise; acclaim
The audience applauded vigorously.
We applaud his ambition, but there are two obvious problems.
appraise
to estimate the monetary value of; determine the worth of; assess; to estimate the nature, quality, importance
We had an expert appraise the house before we bought it.
Staff will be appraised twice a year.
apprise
to give notice to; inform; advise (often followed by of)
to be apprised of the death of an old friend
We were fully apprised of the situation.
approve
The plan approved itself to me.
Father approved our plan to visit Chicago.
Italians did not approve of the way the government was run, but it was part of their life.
articulate
using language easily and fluently; to utter clearly and distinctly; pronounce with clarity
Learning how to articulate a question is an important life skill.
The sisters never manage to realize or even fully articulate their respective dreams.
Brought up in a large, articulate family, she was nourished on argument.
to unite by a joint
ascertain
to find out definitely; learn with certainty or assurance; determine
to ascertain the facts
The complete answer to that question is difficult to ascertain.
assail
to attack vigorously or violently; assault
But the depth and breadth of his experience give him an authority that is hard to assail.
Some critics were quick to assail the new policy as inadequate.
assert
to state with assurance, confidence, or force; state strongly or positively; affirm; aver
Undocumented workers are easy prey for exploitation and unable to assert their rights.
I’ve never experienced it personally but I would be foolish to assert that it never happens.
Between the ages of six months and a year, a child’s natural preference begins to assert itself.
assess
to estimate officially the value of (property, income) as a basis for taxation; to estimate or judge the value, character; evaluate
assess his suitability for the job
We need to assess how much damage has been done to the building.
It’s hard to use standard criteria to assess this book.
astonish
to fill with sudden and overpowering surprise or wonder; amaze
Her easy humor and keen intellect astonished me.
I was astonished by how much she had grown.
atone
to make up, as for errors or deficiencies; to make compensation, amends or reparation, as for an offense or a crime, or for an offender(usually followed by for)
atone for a crime
We don’t have much hope that they will atone for their acts.
Colorful description atone for the story’s lack of cohesion.
attribute
consider as caused by something indicated (usually followed by to)
She attributed his bad temper to ill health.
The play is attributed to Shakespear.
attune
to bring into accord, harmony, or sympathetic relationship; adjust
attune a violin to a piano
He has attuned himself to living in the quiet country.
augment
to make larger; enlarge in size, number, strength, or extent; increase
His salary is augmented by a small inheritance.
Financial aid is used to augment (or completely cover) basic living expenses as well as tuition and fees.
avert
to turn away or aside: to avert one’s eyes
to ward off; prevent: to avert evil; to avert an accident
If you haven’t seen last night’s show yet, avert your eyes and avoid the spoilers.
Gradual steps should be taken to avert an abrupt crisis.
baffle
to confuse, bewilder, or perplex; to frustrate or confound; thwart by creating confusion or bewilderment
He was baffled by the technical language of the instructions
Dark matter, the substance no one has ever seen, continues to baffle cosmologists.
a detective’s most baffling case
balk
to stop, as at an obstacle, and refuse to proceed or to do something specified (usually followed by at); (of a horse, mule, etc.) to stop short and stubbornly refuse to go on
He balked at making the speech.
New York restaurants balk at rule requiring public posting of calories.
Forget a password, and your own computer may balk at your command.
