Vocab Flashcards
collude
To act together secretly to achieve a fraudulent, illegal, or deceitful purpose; conspire.
laconic
using few words
She was a laconic poet who built her reputation on using words as sparingly as possible.
munificent
- Very liberal in giving; generous.
2. Showing great generosity: a munificent gift.
avarice
Immoderate desire for wealth; cupidity.
mendacity
- The condition of being mendacious; untruthfulness.
2. A lie; a falsehood.
prevarication
To stray from or evade the truth; equivocate.
incipient
Beginning to exist or appear:
ex. an incipient personnel problem.
dulcet
a. Pleasing to the ear; melodious.
b. Having a soothing, agreeable quality.
ingenuous
showing innocence or childlike simplicity
She was so ingenuous that her friends feared that her innocence and trustfulness would be exploited when she visited the big city.
perspicuous
Clearly expressed or presented; easy to understand: perspicuous prose.
profligate
- shamelessly immoral or debauched
- wildly extravagant or wasteful
n
a profligate person
prodigal
lavish, wasteful.
The prodigal son quickly wasted all of his inheritance on a lavish lifestyle devoted to pleasure.
parsimonious
Excessively sparing or frugal.
irascible
easily made angry
perfidious
willing to betray one’s trust
demagogue
A political leader who seeks support by appealing to popular desires and prejudices rather than by using rational argument.
(in ancient Greece and Rome) A leader or orator who espoused the cause of the common people.
pellucid
/pəˈlo͞osid/
Adjective
Translucently clear. Lucid in style or meaning; easily understood.
stalwart
Adjective
Loyal, reliable, and hardworking: “he remained a stalwart supporter of the cause”.
Noun
A loyal, reliable, and hardworking supporter or participant in an organization or team: “the stalwarts of the Ladies’ Auxiliary”.
depredation
Noun
An act of attacking or plundering.
Synonyms
pillage - rapine - robbery - ravage - despoilment - havoc
irresolute
Adjective
Showing or feeling hesitancy; uncertain.
Synonyms
indecisive - hesitant - undecided - undetermined
resplendent
Adjective
Attractive and impressive through being richly colorful or sumptuous.
Synonyms
shining - bright - brilliant - refulgent - luminous
belie
1
a : to give a false impression of
b : to present an appearance not in agreement with
2
a : to show (something) to be false or wrong
dilatory
Adjective
Slow to act. Intended to cause delay: "dilatory tactics".
Synonyms
slow - tardy - sluggish
indolence
: inclination to laziness : sloth
travail
1
a : work especially of a painful or laborious nature : toil
b : a physical or mental exertion or piece of work : task, effort
cynosure
2
: one that serves to direct or guide
3
: a center of attraction or attention
prolix
: unduly prolonged or drawn out : too long
2
: marked by or using an excess of words
extirpate
to tear up by the roots or
to destroy completely
anodyne
inoffensive
Not likely to provoke dissent or offense; uncontentious or inoffensive, often deliberately so: “anodyne New Age music”
recondite
little known, obscure, abstruse
: not understood or known by many people
augury
a declaration that something will happen in the future
anachronism
a person or a thing that is chronologically out of place;
equivocal
Open to more than one interpretation; ambiguous.
Uncertain or questionable in nature.
reprisal
: the regaining of something (as by recapture)
4
: something (as a sum of money) given or paid in restitution —usually used in plural
approbation
a : an act of approving formally or officially
vituperate
Verb
Blame or insult (someone) in strong or violent language.
Synonyms
revile - abuse - scold - inveigh - curse
cogitation
a : the act of cogitating : meditation
b : the capacity to think or reflect
to buffet
: a blow especially with the hand
2
: something that strikes with telling force
precipitous
Adjective
Dangerously high or steep.
(of a change for the worse) Sudden and dramatic.
Synonyms
steep - abrupt - sheer - bluff - headlong - precipitate
liminal
: of or relating to a sensory threshold
2
: barely perceptible
incendiary
: a person who excites factions, quarrels, or sedition : agitator
ersatz
substitute or imitation, usually inferior
diffident
hesitant in acting or speaking through lack of self-confidence
alacrity
: promptness in response : cheerful readiness <accepted the invitation with alacrity
Fulminate
To attack loudly or denounce
She was fulminating about the dangers of smoking
Ingenuous
artless; frank and candid; lacking in sophistication
Paean
song or hymn of praise and thanksgiving
Perfidy
intentional breach of faith; treachery
perspicacious
acutely perceptive; having keep discernment
Virulent
extremely harmful or poisonous; bitterly hostile or antagonistic
Chary
wary; cautious; sparing
Acumen
keen, accurate judgement or insight
Halcyon
calm and peaceful
Iconoclast
one who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions
Implacable
not capable of being appeased or significantly changed
Inchoate
in an initial stage; not fully formed
infelicitous
unfortunate; inappropriate
pedantic
overly concerned with the trivial details of learning or education; show-offish about one’s knowledge
penury
poverty; destitution
spurious
lacking authenticity or validity; false, counterfeit
descry
Catch sight of.
mawkish
Sentimental in a feeble or sickly way: “a mawkish poem”.
Having a faint sickly flavor: “the mawkish smell of warm beer”.
obloquy
disgrace or public censure
pernicious
destructive
