Vocab 3 Flashcards
Placid
Not easily upset/excited; tranquil; calm; equable
Insidious
Something that gradually and subtly causes harmful effects
Defer(ment)
To postpone or adjourn
Contention
- An argument or debate between two parties
2. An assertion or claim expressed in an argument
Eradicate
To completely destroy/remove; put to an end
Painstaking
Done carefully and thoroughly; meticulous; assiduous; sedulous
Lackadaisical
Lacking enthusiasm and determination; careless; lazy
Accentuate
Make more noticeable or prominent
Eg; The shirt accentuated his gut
Arbitrate
3rd party (arbiter) making judgement to settle dispute b/w 2 people
Eg; The arbiter agreed to arbitrate the opposing sides
Triumvirate
Regime ruled by 3 people
Intercede
To intervene on behalf of another; arbitrate; mediate
Byzantine
- Devious and surreptitious manner of operation
2. Difficult to understand; intricate
Tortuous
Full of twists and turns; sinuous
Sloven
Person who is habitually messy or careless (appearance, hygiene, manner, etc.)
Pernickety
Over-fastidious; exacting; punctilious; finicky; dainty
Insouciant
Nonchalant lack of concern; indifferent
Eg; He gave an insouciant shrug
Morose
Sullen and bad-tempered; gloomy
Capitulate (3 syn)
To surrender or give in; acquiesce; accede; relent
Remonstrate
Reproachful protest; expostulate; objurgate; denounce
Vexation
To be annoyed, frustrated, or worried
Eg; She held her tongue in vexation
Chagrin
Feeling upset from failure/humiliation; annoyance; irritation; vexation
Eg; Jeff, much to his chagrin, wasn’t invited
Condemn
- To express disapproval of; censure; castigate; chastise
2. To sentence someone to particular punishment, especially death
Volatility
- (Finance) Degree of variation in trading price
2. (Chemistry) Tendency of substance to evaporate at normal temperatures
Deride
To insult or express contempt; ridicule; mock
Eg; The bully derided other kids on the field
Emulate
Imitate or copy
Eg; They tried to emulate his style
Virtuoso
Person highly skilled in music or other arts
Bumpkin
Stereotype of an unsophisticated/socially awkward person from the countryside; Yokel
Lugubrious
Dismal; gloomy; morose; somber
Premonitory
Sign/warning that predicts negative events; ominous; portentous
Eg; A premonitory headache that comes before a flu
Bucolic
Relating to pleasant aspects of rural life; pastoral
Eg; He was calmed by his bucolic surroundings
Surreptitious
Covert; clandestine; secret; sneaky; hidden
Eg; “They surreptitiously made their way to the cookie jar”
Hubris
Excessive self-confidence; arrogance; haughtiness
Eg; “His hubris costed him his friendship”
Perspicacity
Quality of shrewdness/acumen, acuity, or insight
Encomium
Speech/writing that praises someone; eulogy
Obloquy
Strong criticism or verbal abuse; condemnation; vilification; flak
Eg; “He endured years of contempt and obloquy”
Pastiche
Visual art/music that imitates the style of another’s work
Panegyric
Accolade; encomium; eulogy
Inscrutable
Impossible to understand/interpret; enigmatic; cryptic
Tractable
Easy to control or influence; malleable
Recalcitrant
Intractable attitude towards authority; uncooperative
Espouse
Adopt or support
Calamitous/Calamity
Cataclysm/Cataclysmic
A disaster or catastrophe
Alacrity
Brisk and cheerful enthusiasm; eager/willingness
Eg; She accepted the invitation with alacrity
Maladroit
Ineffective, bungling, or clumsy
Lubucrate
Written in scholarly fashion
Quibble
Argue about trivial matters
Eg; They wouldn’t stop quibbling about the details
Arrant
Complete; utter; downright
Eg; What arrant nonsense!
Foment
Instigate or provoke a course of action - typically undesirable/violent sentiment
Eg; He was arrested for fomenting a riot
Salacious
Undue emphasis on sexual matters; improper; obscene; lewd
Cunning
Astute; adroit; canny; devious; duplicitous; guileful; wily
Exculpate
Show or declare someone’s innocence; absolve; acquit; exonerate; vindicate
Disinterested
Uninterested/indifferent
Unbiased;impartial
Acquiesce
Accept reluctantly but without protest; permit; allow
Impecunious
Having little or no money; penurious; indigent
Dynamism
Vigorousness; activity; effectiveness
Ballad
Song or poem that tells a story
Incipient
Nascent; emerging; inceptive; initial; inchoate; rudimentary
Eg; “He could feel incipient anger building up”
Loll
Sit, lie, or stand in a lazy/relaxed way; lounge; sprawl
Heterodox
Not conforming to orthodox; heretical; unorthodox; dissenting
Inure
Accustom someone to something unpleasant; condition; toughen
Reverberate
A loud noise being echoed
Eg; “Her deep booming laugh reverberated around the room”
Abysmal
Extremely bad; appalling; awful
Court
To be romantically involved with
To pay special attention in attempt to win support
To risk, provoke, or attract
Recondite
Esoteric; arcane, abstruse; obscure
Eg; “The book is full of recondite information”
Canonize
Regard as belonging to a canon of artistic works; grouping
Eg; “They have become cult classics, canonized in American literature in many critics”
Disparate
Different in kind or not comparable; divergent; contrasting
Amiable
(adj.) Pleasant and friendly; affable
Divest
Deprive someone of something; despoil
Perfunctory
Cursory and desultory (lacking plan)
Facile
- Task done superficially; ignores true complexities of an issue
- Task done effortlessly; easily achieved
Germane
Relevant and applicable; pertinent; apposite; felicitous
Pejorative
Expressing contempt; disparaging; deprecating; derogatory
Eg; “Passiveness is used universally as a pejorative term”
Surly
Bad-tempered and unfriendly
Panacea
Cure-all remedy for all difficulties or diseases
Squalid
- Sordid; dirty (due to poverty/neglect)
2. Sordid; dishonest; debased; contemptible
Hidebound
Unwilling to change due to tradition or convention; conservative; orthodox; fundamentalist
Penchant
Habitual preference for something; predilection; proclivity
Eg; “He has a penchant for adopting stray dogs”
Outmode
Outdated or obsolete
Hortatory
Encouraging some course of conduct/action; exhorting; enjoining
Trifle
Of little value or importance; triviality; inessential
Eg; “No reason to argue over such trifles:
Unprecedented
Never done or known before; unparalleled
Impetus
The driving force; motivation; incitement
Blight
Have a detrimental effect on; devastate; frustrate; scotch
Eg; “The scandal blighted his career”