Vocab. 2 Flashcards
officious
too helpful; meddlesome (synonyms: eager, intrusive, unwanted)
occlude
to stop up; to prevent the passage of. (synonyms: barricade, block, close, obstruct)
obviate
to prevent; to make unnecessary (synonyms: forestall, preclude, prohibit)
obstinate
stubborn; unyielding (synonyms: intransigent, mulish, persistent, pertinacious, stubborn, tenacious)
obsequious
overly submissive and eager to please (synonyms: compliant, deferential, servile, subservient)
oblique
indirect or evasive; misleading or devious (synonyms: glancing, slanted, tangential)
obdurate
hardened in feeling; resistant to persuasion (synonyms: inflexible, intransigent, recalcitrant, tenacious, unyielding)
numismatics
coin collecting
nuance
a subtle expression of meaning or quality (synonyms: gradation, subtlety, tone)
nominal
existing in name only; negligible (synonyms: minimal, titular)
noisome
stinking; putrid (synonyms: disgusting, foul, malodorous)
nettle
to irritate (synonyms: annoy, vex)
neophyte
noice; beginner (synonyms: apprentice, greenhorn, tyro)
neologism
new word or expression (synonyms: slang, coinage)
nascent
starting to develop; coming into existence (synonyms: embryonic, emerging, inchoate, incipient)
naïve
lacking sophistication or experience (synonyms: artless, credulous, guileless, ingenuous, simple, unaffected, unsophisticated)
nadir
lowest point (synonyms: bottom, depth, pit)
myopic
lacking foresight; having a narrow view or short-range perspective (synonyms: short-sighted, unthinking)
multifarious
diverse (synonyms: assorted, heterogenous, indiscriminate, legion, motley, multifold, multiform, multiplex, populous, varied)
mores
fixed customs or manners; moral attitudes (synonyms: conventions, practices)
monotony
no variation; tediously the same (synonyms: drone, tedium)
monostatic
extremely plain or secluded, as in a monastery (synonyms: austere, contemplative, disciplined, regimented, self-abnegating)
molt
to shed hair, skin, or an outer layer periodically (synonyms: cast, defoliate, desquamate)
mollify
to calm or make less severe (synonyms: appease, assuage, conciliate, pacify)
mitigate
to soften; to lessen (synonyms: allay, alleviate, assuage, ease, lighten, moderate, mollify, palliate, temper)
missive
a written note or letter (synonyms: message)
misanthrope
a person who dislikes others (synonyms: curmudgeon)
mirth
frivolity; gaiety; LAUGHTER (synonyms: glee, hilarity, jollity, merriment)
militate
to operate against; work against (synonyms: affect, change, influence)
meticulous
extremely careful; fastidious, painstaking (synonyms: finicky, fussy, picky, precise, punctilious, scrupulous)
perfunctory
done in a routine way; indifferent (synonyms: apathetic, automatic, mechanical)
perfidious
willing to betray someone’s trust (synonyms: disloyal, faithless, traitorous, treacherous)
peregrinate
to wander from place to place; to travel, especially on foot (synonyms: journey, traverse, trek)
penury
an oppressive lack of resources (as money); severe poverty (synonyms: destitution, impoverishment)
pejorative
having bad connotations; disparaging (synonyms: belittling, dismissive, insulting)
pedant
someone who shows off learning (synonyms: doctrinaire, nitpicker, pedagogue, sophist)
peccadillo
a minor sin or offense (synonyms: failing, fault, lapse, misstep)
pathogenic
causing disease (synonyms: infecting, noxious)
pastiche
a piece of literature or music imitating other works (synonyms: medley, spoof)
parry
to ward off or deflect, especially by a quick-witted answer (synonyms: avoid, evade, repel)
parley
discussion, usually between enemies (synonyms: debate, dialogue, negotiations, talks)
pariah
an outcast (synonyms: castaway, derelict, leper, offscouring, untouchable)
pare
to trim off excess; to reduce (synonyms: clip, peel)
paragon
model of excellence or perfection (synonyms: apotheosis, ideal, quintessence, standard)
paradox
a contradiction or dilemma (synonyms: ambiguity, incongruity)
panoply
impressive array (synonyms: array, display, fanfare, parade, pomp, shine, show)
panegyric
elaborate praise; formal hymn of praise (synonyms: compliment, homage)
panache
flamboyance or dash in style and action; verve (synonyms: flair)
pallid
lacking color or liveliness (synonyms: ashen, blanched, ghostly, pale, wan)
palliate
to make less serious; to ease (synonyms: alleviate, assuage, extenuate, mitigate)
palatial
relating to a palace; magnificent (synonyms: grand, stately)
overwrought
agitated; overdone (synonyms: elaborate, excited, nervous, ornate)
ostentation
excessive showiness (synonyms: conspicuousness, flashiness, pretentiousness, showiness)
ostensible
apparent (synonyms: represented, supposed, surface)
ossify
to change into bone; to become hardened or set in a rigidly conventional pattern
orotund
pompous; full or rich in sound (synonyms: aureate, bombastic, declamatory, euphuistic, flowery, grandiloquent, magniloquent, oratorical, overblown, sonorous)
opprobrium
public disgrace (synonyms: discredit, disgrace, dishonor, disrepute, ignominy, infamy, obloquy, shame)
opine
to express an opinion (synonyms: point out, voice)
opaque
impossible to see through; preventing the passage of light (synonyms: blurred, cloudy, nontransparent)
onerous
troublesome and oppressive; burdensome (synonyms: arduous, backbreaking, burdensome, cumbersome, difficult, exacting, formidable, hard, laborious, oppressive, rigorous, taxing, trying)
profligate
corrupt; degenerate (synonyms: dissolute, extravagant, improvident, prodigal, wasteful)
prodigal
lavish; wasteful (synonyms: extravagant, lavish, profligate, spendthrift, wasteful)
proclivity
a natural inclination or predisposition (synonyms: bias, leaning, partiality, penchant, predilection, predisposition, prejudice, propensity)
probity
complete honest and integrity (synonyms: morality, rectitude, uprightness, virtue)
pristine
fresh and clean; uncorrupted (synonyms: innocent, undamaged)
prevaricate
to lie or deviate from the truth (synonyms: equivocate, lie, perjure)
prescient
having foresight (synonyms: augural, divinatory, mantic, oracular)
précis
short summary of facts (synonyms: summary)
precipitate
throwing violently or brought about abruptly; lacking deliberation (synonyms: abrupt, hasty, headlong, hurried, ill-considered, impetuous, impulsive, prompt, rash, reckless, sudden)
prattle
meaningless; foolish talk (synonyms: babble, blather, chatter, drivel, gibberish)
pragmatic
practical, as opposed to idealistic (synonyms: rational, realistic)
potentate
a monarch or ruler with great power (synonyms: dominator, leader)
posit
to assume as real or conceded; to propose as an explanation (synonyms: hypothesize, postulate, presuppose)
polyglot
a speaker of many languages
politic
shrewed and practical in managing or dealing with things; diplomatic (synonyms: tactful)
polemic
controversy; argument; verbal attack (synonyms: denunciation, refutation)
plucky
courageous; spunky (synonyms: bold, brave, gutsy)
plethora
excess (synonyms: glut, overabundance, superfluity, surfeit)
plebeian
crude or coarse; characteristic of commoners (synonyms: conventional, unrefined)
plastic
able to be molded, altered, or bent (synonyms: adaptable, ductile, malleable, pliant)
placate
to soothe or pacify (synonyms: appease, conciliate, mollify)
pithy
profound or substantial yet concise, succinct, and to the point (synonyms: brief, compact, laconic, terse)
phlegmatic
clam and unemotional in temperament (synonyms: apathetic, calm, emotionless, impassive, indifferent, passionless, unemotional)
philistine
a person who is guided by materialism and is disdainful of intellectual or artistic values (synonyms: boor, bourgeois, capitalist, materialist, vulgarian)
philanthropy
charity; a desire or effort to promote goodness
phalanx
a compact or close-knit body of people, animals, or things (synonyms: legion, mass)
pervade
to be present throughout; to permeate (synonyms: imbue, infuse, penetrate, permeate, suffuse)
perspicacious
shrewd, astute, or keen-witted (synonyms: insightful, intelligent, sagacious)
permeate
to penetrate (synonyms: imbue, infuse, pervade, suffuse)
peripatetic
wandering form place to place, especially on foot (synonyms: itinerant, nomadic, wayfaring)
sagacious
shrewd; wise (synonyms: astute, judicious, perspicacious, sage, wise)
sacrosanct
extremely sacred; beyond criticism (synonyms: holy, inviolable, off-limits)
rustic
rural (synonyms: bucolic, pastoral)
rococo
very highly ornamented; relating to an 18th-century artistic style of elaborate ornamentation (synonyms: intricate, ornate)
ribald
humorous in a vulgar way (synonyms: coarse, gross, indelicate, lewd, obscene)
rhetoric
effective writing or speaking (synonyms: eloquence, oratory)
reticent
silent; reserved (synonyms: cool, introverted, laconic, standoffish, taciturn, undemonstrative)
restive
impatient, uneasy, or restless (synonyms: agitate, anxious, fretful)
requite
to return or repay (synonyms: compensate, reciprocate)
repudiate
to reject the validity of (synonyms: deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, renounce)
repose
relaxation; leisure (synonyms: calmness, tranquility)
replete
abundantly supplied; complete (synonyms: abounding, full)
repast
meal or mealtime (synonyms: banquet, feast)
rejoinder
response (synonyms: retort, riposte)
redress
relief from wrong or injury (synonyms: amends, indemnity, quittance, reparation, restitution)
rarefy
to become thinner or sparse (synonyms: attenuate, thin)
raconteur
a witty, skillful storyteller (synonyms: anecdotalist, monologist)
quotidian
occurring daily; commonplace (synonyms: everyday, normal, usual)
quixotic
overly idealistic; impractical (synonyms: capricious, impulsive, romantic, unrealistic)
quiescent
motionless (synonyms: dormant, latent)
querulous
inclined to complain; irritable (synonyms: peevish, puling, sniveling, whiny)
pusillanimous
cowardly; without courage (synonyms: timid)
pungent
sharp and irritating to the senses (synonyms: acrid, caustic, piquant, poignant)
pulchritude
beauty (synonyms: comeliness, gorgeousness, handsomeness, loveliness, prettiness)
pugilism
boxing (synonyms: fighting, sparring)
puerile
childish, immature, or silly (synonyms: infantile, jejune, juvenile)
prudence
wisdom, caution, or restraint (synonyms: astuteness, circumspection, discretion, frugality, judiciousness, providence, thrift)
propriety
the quality of behaving in a proper manner; obeying rules and customs (synonyms: appropriateness, decency, decorum, modesty)
propitiate
to conciliate; to appease (synonyms: mollify, pacify, placate)
proliferate
to increase in number quickly (synonyms: breed, multiply, procreate, propagate, reproduce, spawn)
symbiosis
cooperation; mutual helpfulness (synonyms: association, interdependence)
sycophant
a self-serving flatterer; a yes-man (synonyms: bootlicker, fawner, lickspittle, toady)
sybarite
a person devoted to pleasure and luxury (synonyms: hedonist, sensualist)
surly
rude and bad-tempered (synonyms: gruff, grumpy, testy)
surfeit
excessive amount (synonyms: glut, plethora, repletion, superfluity, surplus)
supplant
to replace (another) by force; to take the place of (synonyms: displace, supersede)
sully
to tarnish; to taint (synonyms: besmirch, defile)
sublime
lofty or grand (synonyms: august, exalted, glorious, grand, magnificent, majestic, noble, resplendent, superb)
stratagem
trick designed to deceive an enemy (synonyms: artifice, feint, maneuver, ruse, wile)
stolid
unemotional; lacking sensitivity (synonyms: apathetic, impassive, indifferent, phlegmatic, stoic, unconcerned)
stigma
a mark of shame or discredit (synonyms: blemish, blot, opprobrium, stain, taint)
stentorian
extremely loud (synonyms: clamorous, noisy)
stasis
a state of static balance or equilibrium; stagnation (synonyms: inertia, standstill)
sportive
frolicsome; playful (synonyms: frisky, merry)
specious
deceptively attractive; seemingly plausible but fallacious (synonyms: illusory, ostensible, plausible, sophistic, spurious)
spartan
highly self-disciplined; frugal; austere (synonyms: restrained, simple)
soporific
causing sleep or lethargy (synonyms: hypnotic, narcotic, slumberous, somnolent)
solecism
grammatical mistake (synonyms: blooper, faux, pas, vulgarism)
sobriquet
nickname (synonyms: alias, pseudonym)
slake
to calm down or moderate (synonyms: quench, satisfy)
sinecure
a well-paying job or office that requires little or not work
seraphic
angelic; sweet (synonyms: cherubic, heavenly)
sentient
aware; conscious; able to perceive (synonyms: feeling, intelligent, thinking)
sedition
behavior that promotes rebellion or civil disorder against the state (synonyms: conspiracy, insurrection)
scintilla
trace amount (synonyms: atom, iota, mote, spark, speck)
satiate
to satisfy fully or overindulge (synonyms: cloy, glut, gorge, surfeit)
sardonic
cynical; scornfully mocking (synonyms: acerbic, caustic, sarcastic, satirical, snide)
sanguine
ruddy; cheerfully optimistic (synonyms: confident, hopeful, positive, rosy, rubicund)
salubrious
healthful (synonyms: bracing, curative, medicinal, therapeutic, tonic)
salient
prominent; of notable significance (synonyms: marked, noticeable, outstanding)
vex
to annoy, irritate, puzzle, or confuse (synonyms: annoy, bother, chafe, exasperate, irk, nettle, peeve, provoke)
vestige
a trace; a remnant (synonyms: relic, remains, sign)
vernal
related to spring; fresh (synonyms: springlike, youthful)
verdant
green with vegetation; inexperienced (synonyms: grassy, leafy, naive, wooded, unsophisticated)
verbose
wordy (synonyms: long-winded, loquacious, prolix, superfluous)
veracity
filled with truth and accuracy (synonyms: candor, exactitude, fidelity, probity)
venerate
to respect deeply (synonyms: adore, honor, idolize, revere)
venerable
worthy of respect or reverence due to age, wisdom, dignity, or position (synonyms: distinguished, elderly, esteemed, respectable)
variegated
varied; marked with different color (synonyms: diversified)
vacillate
to physically sway; to be indecisive (synonyms: dither, falter, fluctuate, oscillate, waver)
usury
the practice of lending money at exorbitant rates
upbraid
to scold sharply (synonyms: berate, chide, rebuke, reproach, tax)
unequivocal
absolute; certain (synonyms: categorical, clear, explicit, express, unambiguous)
unconscionable
unscrupulous; shockingly unfair or unjust (synonyms: dishonorable, indefensible)
umbrage
offense; resentment (synonyms: asperity, dudgeon, ire, pique, rancor)
tyro
beginner; novice (synonyms: apprentice, fledgling, greenhorn, neophyte, tenderfoot)
turgid
swollen as from a fluid; bloated (synonyms: distended)
trenchant
acute, sharp, or incisive; forceful; effective (synonyms: biting, caustic, cutting, keen)
transitory
temporary; lasting a brief time (synonyms: ephemeral, evanescent, fleeting, impermanent, momentary)
torpor
extreme mental and physical sluggishness (synonyms: apathy, languor)
tome
a book, usually a large and academic one (synonyms: codex, volume)
toady
one who flatters in the hope of gaining favors (synonyms: parasite, sycophant)
tirade
a long, harsh speech or verbal attack (synonyms: diatribe, fulmination, harangue, obloquy, revilement, vilification)
terrestrial
earthly; down-to-earth; commonplace (synonyms: earthbound, mundane, sublunary, tellurian, terrene)
tawdry
gaudy, cheap, or showy (synonyms: flashy, loud, meretricious)
tangential
distressing; diverting (synonyms: digressive, extraneous, inconsequential, irrelevant, peripheral)
talon
claw of an animal, especially a bird of prey (synonyms: claw, nail)
taciturn
silent; not talkative (synonyms: laconic, reticent)
tacit
done without using words (synonyms: implicit, implied, undeclared, unsaid, unuttered)
syncopation
temporary irregularity in musical rhythm
zephyr
a gentle breeze; something airy or unsubstantial (synonyms: breath, draft)
zenith
the point of culmination; peak (synonyms: acme, pinnacle)
zealot
someone passionately devoted to a cause (synonyms: enthusiast, fanatic, militant, radical)
zeal
passion; excitement (synonyms: ardency, fervor, fire, passion)
yoke
to join together (synonyms: bind, harness, pair)
xenophobia
a fear or hatred of foreigners or strangers (synonyms: bigotry, chauvinism, prejudice)
wraith
a ghost or specter; a ghost of a living person seen just before his or her death (synonyms: apparition, bogeyman, phantasm, shade, spirit)
wizened
shriveled; withered; wrinkled (synonyms: atrophied, desiccated, gnarled, wasted)
winsome
charming; happily engaging (synonyms: attractive, delightful)
wily
clever; deceptive (synonyms: crafty, cunning, tricky)
whimsical
lightly acting in a fanciful or capricious manner; unpredictable; playful (synonyms: erratic, flippant, frivolous)
waver
to fluctuate between choices (synonyms: dither, falter, fluctuate, oscillate, vacillate)
wanton
undisciplined; unrestrained; reckless (synonyms: capricious, lewd, licentious)
wan
sickly pale (synonyms: ashen, sickly)
voluble
talkative; speaking easily; glib (synonyms: loquacious, verbose)
volatile
easily aroused or changeable; lively or explosive (synonyms: capricious, erratic, fickle, inconsistent, inconstant, mercurial, temperamental)
vituperate
to abuse verbally; to berate (synonyms: castigate, reproach, scold)
viscous
thick and adhesive, like a slow-flowing liquid (synonyms: gelatinous, glutinous, thick)
vim
vitality and energy (synonyms: force, power)
vicissitude
a change or variation (synonyms: inconstancy, mutability)
