Vocab #12

Question 1

Alleviate

Answer 1

(v – used with object) To make easier to endure; lessen; mitigate: to alleviate sorrow; to alleviate pain.
• Cold water can help alleviate the pain of a burn.

Question 2

Blandishment

Answer 2

(n) Often, blandishments. Something, as an action or speech, that tends to flatter, coax, entice, etc.: Our blandishments left him unmoved. We succumbed to the
blandishments of tropical living.

Question 3

Blighted

Answer 3

(adj) Affected by blight; anything that mars or prevents growth or prosperity. Deteriorated; dilapidated; decayed.
• Blighted neighborhoods are being rebuilt after years of neglect.

Question 4

Clandestine

Answer 4

(adj) Characterized by, done in, or executed with secrecy or concealment, especially for purposes of subversion or deception; private or surreptitious: Their clandestine meetings went undiscovered for two years.

Question 5

Discern

Answer 5

(v – used with object) To perceive by the sight or some other sense or by the intellect; see, recognize, or apprehend: They discerned a sail on the horizon.

To distinguish mentally; recognize as distinct or different; discriminate: He is incapable of discerning right from wrong.

(v – without an object) To distinguish or discriminate.

Question 6

Fallacious

Answer 6

(adj) Containing a fallacy; logically unsound: fallacious arguments.

Deceptive; misleading: fallacious testimony. Disappointing; delusive: a fallacious peace.

Question 7

Gratuitous

Answer 7

(adj) Given, done, bestowed, or obtained without charge
or payment; free; voluntary. Being without apparent reason, cause, or justification: a gratuitous insult.
• The U.K. is stricter than the U.S. in rating movies with gratuitous violence, although it tends to be more lenient in allowing sexual content in films.

Question 8

Gregarious

Answer 8

(adj) Fond of the company of others; sociable.

Question 9

Haggard

Answer 9

(adj) Having a gaunt, wasted, or exhausted appearance, as from prolonged suffering, exertion, or anxiety; worn: the haggard faces of the tired troops.

Wild; wild-looking: haggard eyes.

Question 10

Imminent

Answer 10

(adj) Likely to occur at any moment; impending: Her death is imminent. Projecting or leaning forward; overhanging.

Question 11

Jingoism

Answer 11

(n) The spirit, policy, or practice of professing patriotism loudly and excessively, favoring vigilant preparedness for war and an aggressive foreign policy.

Question 12

Laud

Answer 12

(v – used with object) To praise; extol. A song or hymn of praise.

Question 13

Morbid

Answer 13

(adj) Suggesting an unhealthy mental state or attitude; unwholesomely gloomy, sensitive, extreme, etc.: a morbid interest in death.

Affected by, caused by, causing, or characteristic of disease. Pertaining to diseased parts: morbid anatomy.

Gruesome; grisly.
• Traditionally, women have been discouraged from wearing black to weddings as many believe the color is too morbid for a celebration of marriage.

Question 14

Pensive

Answer 14

(adj) Dreamily or wistfully thoughtful: a pensive mood. Expressing or revealing thoughtfulness, usually marked by some sadness: a pensive adagio.

Question 15

Pragmatic

Answer 15

(adj) Of or pertaining to a practical point of view or practical considerations.

Question 16

Rampant

Answer 16

(adj) Violent in action or spirit; raging; furious: a rampant leopard.

Growing luxuriantly, as weeds. In full sway; prevailing or unchecked: a rampant rumor.

• The mob is running rampant; they’ve even infiltrated the police department.

Question 17

Requisite

Answer 17

(adj) Required or necessary for a particular purpose, position, etc.; indispensable: the requisite skills of an engineer.
(n) Something requisite; a necessary quality, thing, etc.

Question 18

Sinister

Answer 18

(adj) Threatening or portending evil, harm, or trouble; ominous: a sinister remark.

Bad, evil, base, or wicked; fell: his sinister purposes.

Unfortunate; disastrous; unfavorable: a sinister accident. Of or on the left side; left.

Question 19

Verbose

Answer 19

(adj) Characterized by the use of many or too many words; wordy: a verbose report.

Question 20

Vindicate

Answer 20

(v – used with object) To clear, as from an accusation, imputation, suspicion, or the like: to vindicate someone’s honor.

To uphold or justify by argument or evidence: to vindicate a claim. Subsequent events vindicated his policy.

To assert, maintain, or defend (a right, cause, etc.) against opposition. To claim for oneself or another.