Vocab 1-40 Flashcards
Affable
Adjective
* friendly, good-natured, or easy to talk to
“ he was affable and easy to approach”
Indignant
Adjective
*to be upset or perceived about something you think is not right/ something you are angry about
-feeling or showing anger or annoyance at what is perceived as unfair treatment
“At first she was very indignant, and said the little creatures were very wrong;
But she seems pleased when I explained to her that birds and beeds. We’re hungry and did not know that it was selfish to eat all the fruit”
Prowess
Noun
*great ability or skill
-skill or expertise in a particular activity or field
“Her athletic prowess, caused her to be ok a bunch of teams”
Reproach
Noun
*an expression of disapproval/ disappointment OR to lightly scold
-address someone in such a way as to express disappointment or disapproval
“She looked at him with reproach”
“His conduct brought shame and reproach to his family”
Tremulous
Adjective
* showing a lack of courageous confidence/ timid or nervous
Literally- shaking or quivering slightly
“She opened the letter with tremulous hands or she spoke with a tremulous voice”
Malleable
Adjective
*changeable
-easily influenced/pliable
-of metal-chemistry hammered it bend out of shape
“The cult leader took advantage of the Malleable, complaint personalities of his followers”
Commiserate
Verb
*express or feel sympathy or pity, sympathize
-feel, show or express pity for someone
“The players commiserated over their loss in the champion game”
Lament
Verb
*openly expressing grieve or openly mourn a person’s death/loss
-noun- a passionate expression of grief or sorrow
“She lamented over the loss of her best friend”
Haughty
Adjective
*snobbish or arrogant OR disdainfully proud
-arrogantly superior and disdainful
“The haughty waiter smirked when I remarked that is was odd that a French restaurant didn’t even have french fries on the menu”
Dearth
Noun
*a scarcity or lack of something
“There was a dearth of usable firewood at the campsite”
Imprudent
Adjective
* lacking discretion, wisdom, or sound judgement
Not smart
-not showing care for the consequences of an action; rash
“It’s politically imprudent to stir up such controversy during an election year”
Estranged
Adjective
*no longer associated with someone
-a person no longer close or affectionate to someone; alienated
“She estranged several of her coworkers when she let her promotion go to her head”
Assail
Verb
*To attack or criticize someone or something in a violent angry way ( usually with words)
“The movie was assailed by critics”
Derision
Noun
*Scorn, ridicule, or contemptuous treatment
-the feeling that people express when they criticize and laugh at someone for something in an insulting way
“One of the students laughed in derision at my error”
“The teams awful record has made it an object of derision in the league”
Perfunctory
Adjective
*something done without energy or due to force of habit
-an action or gesture carried out with a minimum of effort or reflection
“The violinist delivered a perfunctory performance that displayed none of the passion and warmth he was once known for”
Loquacious
Adjective
*talk a lot
-tending to talk a great deal; talkative
“The loquacious host of a radio talk show”
Ascertain
verb
* to deduce; to figure out
-to learn or find out something out for certain, make sure of
“The information can be ascertained by anyone with a computer”
Opaque
Adjective
* difficult to understanding explain/ figure out
-literally-not able to be seen through
“Somehow listeners seem to connect with the songwriter, despite his deeply personal, often opaque lyrics”
Shackled
Verb
*to restrain or limit
-literally shackled
“The shackles of illiteracy can be just as confining as leg irons”
Melancholy
Noun
*great sadness or depression/ a sad mood or feeling
-a feeling of pensive sadness, typically with no obvious cause
“The bleakness of winter sometimes gives me cause for melancholy”
Ephemeral
Adjective
* lasting a very short time/ short lived
“The autumn colors is always to be treasured, all the more so because it is so ephemeral”
Punctilio
Noun
*detail/ a fine point of something/ a minute detail
- a fine or petty point of conduct or procedure
“Why will you let pride and punctilio wreck your own life?”
Perilous
Adjective
*full of danger or risk/ dangerous
-exposed to imminent risk of disaster or ruin
“A perilous journey through hostile territory”
Excursion
Noun
* a short journey or trip
-especially one engaged in as a leisure activity
“They went on a brief excursion to the coast”
Maxim
Noun
*a short statement expressing a general truth
- a short pithy statement expressing a general truth or rule of conduct
-a well known phrase that expresses a general truth about life or a rule about behavior
“So, too, in his great maxim “bear and forbear,” the last is a command to refrain from the external advantages”
Retrench
Verb
*to cut down or reduce
-reduce or finish something in extent or quantity
-to change the way things are some in order to spend less money
“When the economy slowed, the company was forced to retrench”
Reticence
Noun
*restraint/ reluctance to speak
Silence
-the state of being reserved, especially with regard to speaking freely; restraint
“ the publishers reticence to make content available online for free”
Bespoke
Adjective
*custom made
-made to fit a particular person
“A wealthy man can easily afford bespoke suits”
Laden
Adjective
* heavily loaded or weighed down
(Could be a verb)
“Laden a ship with emergency medical supplies”
Languor
Noun
* lack of energy/ weakness/ weariness
-tired and relaxed
-the state or feeling, often pleasant, of tiredness or inertia OR an oppressive stillness of the air
“They enjoyed the languor brought on by a hot summer afternoon”
Corollary
Noun
*something that follows or is the result of something
- something that follows in a natural order
Effect
“One corollary of the rise of television was a massive makeover of radios programming”
Expose
Verb
*to reveal
-make something visible, typically by uncovering it
“The shingles has fallen off, exposing the wood underneath”
Exposé
Noun
*something written that reveals something about somebody else
- a public reveal or exposure
“Certain cheap magazines make a fortune out of sensational exposés”
Guillotine
Noun
*a machine for beheading people
“The queen demanded that the peasant be sent to the guillotine”
Coefficient
Noun
*something/ a factor derived from a variable
-a numerical or constant(number in like 2x)
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Impunity
Noun
*exemption or freedom** from punishment
-freedom from punishment harm or loss
“He has impunity from the law anyway”
Denounce
Verb *criticize publicly -publicly declare to be wrong or evil -say say it's wrong or bad "The film was denounced for the way it portrayed it's female characters"
Equivocal
Adjective
*containing two or more interpretations/ often confusing or conflicting
-open to more than one interpretation
“He responded to the reporters with equivocal answers”
Stentorian
Adjective
*very loud
-of a person’s voice-loud and powerful
“The professors stentorian voice was enough to keep even the drowsiest student awake”
Corroborate
Verb
* to support with evidence
-confirm or give supper to( a statement, theory, or finding)
“The information was corroborated by diplomatic sources”
Scornful
Adjective
*full of harsh criticism/ feeling or expressing contempt
