vocab 3 Flashcards
morpheme
We are talking about elemental (=basic) meaning units here, as in: chairwoman has (2) morphemes in it, “chair” and “woman”. Consider the morphemes in the word keyhole, blacksmith, or carport. We are also talking about meaning units like this: baked has both bake + -ed. The -ed carries a meaning: past action.
elucidate
Means “to make clear.” The etymology goes back to the Latin word lux, for “light.” If you elucidate something, you shed light on it, make it clear. Your teacher might elucidate a concept with an example or an explanation, for example.
boilerplate
In this context, we are talking about standardized, prepackaged language. My friend wanted to rent out a room in his house, so once he found a renter, he looked up boilerplate language for a rental contract.
sine qua non
The condition of possibility. Without X, no. A high school diploma is, today, a sine qua non for many, perhaps most jobs in the US. Some would say that, in the modern age, a college degree is also now a sine qua non for getting a lucrative job. Usually, A is a sine qua non of B. Do you agree that love and attraction are a sine qua non of a good marriage?
ad hoc
on the fly, impromptu, unplanned, uncoordinated, informal. As in, I was supposed to meet with my teacher for a conference yesterday, but she ran out of time; we ran into each other during lunch, so we had an ad hoc conference. Or: I have a student I am concerned about; I ran into their parents in the parking lot yesterday and we held an ad hoc parent-teacher conference.
obfuscate
To make more confusing to mystify. Opposite of elucidate or clarify. Some people say that politicians often try to obfuscate the issues instead of clarifying them. Someone’s approach or explanation can be obfuscatory, the practice of it is obfuscation. The worst math or science teachers might try their best to explain, but they end up obfuscating the concept more than elucidating it. Politicians, when confronted with issues they want to avoid, find ways to obfuscate, since they don’t want the public to understand the truth about the issue.
castigate
A harsh kind of criticism. Not just a soft scolding, but real criticism with a hint of moral judgment.
As in, My mother castigated me for walking over the white carpet in my muddy shoes.
canon, canonical
A canonical text is one in the “canon,” or the officially accepted “good” texts. There are plenty of discussions about which books belong in the canon. Shakespeare is ever a part of the canon because his work is considered the height of literary excellence. Since the 1970s, there has been a concerted effort to diversify the literary canon.
de facto
As a matter of fact. As in: Tony quickly became the de facto leader of our group. Or, the American Revolution is usually depicted as a whole-country rejection of British rule, but it was actually a de facto civil war, between so-called “Loyalists” and so-called “Patriots.”
highbrow, lowbrow
One of the appeals of some entertainers are their lowbrow persona.
trepidation
Fear, anxiety, apprehension. When the student forgot to study for the test, they felt a wave of trepidation wash over me. You can also be trepidatious. The opposite, fearless or unintimidated, is intrepid.
internalize
Bring something from the outside in.
subversive
Going against authority in a way that attempts to undermine it.
genesis
Just means “origin.”
pro forma
Going through the motions, without authenticity or genuine substance. When I saw my “ex,” she gave me a pro forma smile. A student asked her teacher for a letter of recommendation, but the student literally failed the class! So, the wrote her a pro forma letter, signaling weakly and vaguely that they support her acceptance into college.
