Vocab 981 - 1,000 Flashcards
Mien
– noun
1) demeanor: a man of noble mien.
Dragoman
– noun
1) a professional interpreter.
Contradistinction
– noun
1) distinction by opposition or contrast: plants and animals in contradistinction to humans.
Preprandial
– adjective
1) before a meal, especially before dinner: a preprandial apéritif.
Ubiety (u-bye-e-ti)
– noun
1) the property of having a definite location at any given time; state of existing and being localized in space.
Related forms
– Ubietous
Ennui (ahn-we)
– noun
1) a feeling of utter weariness and discontent resulting from satiety or lack of interest; boredom: The endless lecture produced an unbearable ennui.
Otiose [o-shee-ohs]
– adjective
1) serving no practical purpose or result.
Related forms
— Otiosity
Cavil
– verb
1) to raise irritating and trivial objections (usually followed by at or about): He finds something to cavil at in everything I say.
Inviolable
– adjective
1) secure from destruction, infringement, or desecration: an inviolable sanctuary; an inviolable promise.
Definiens
– noun (pl) definientia
1) the word or words used to define or give an account of the meaning of another word, as in a dictionary entry.
Capriole
– verb / noun
1) to / a caper or leap.
Venal
– adjective
1) susceptible to bribery: a venal judge.
Commute
– verb
1) to change (a penalty) to a less severe one: The death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment.
Writ large
– expression
1) Signified, expressed, or embodied with greater magnitude: That book on Lincoln is simply an article writ large.
– She believed that cultures are just personalities writ large.
– The genius of the story is that it’s about ordinary life writ large.
Swarthy
– adjective
1) of dark skin color/complexion
Related forms
– swarthiness, noun
Acuity
– noun
1) sharpness; acuteness; keenness: acuity of vision; acuity of mind.
Malign
– verb
1) to speak untruths of, slander or defame: to malign an honorable man.
Miscegenation
– noun
1) marriage or cohabitation between two people from different racial groups: In 1968 the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that state laws prohibiting miscegenation were unconstitutional.
Coup d’état
– noun
1) a sudden and decisive action resulting in a change of government illegally or by force.
Scurrilous
– adjective
1) grossly or obscenely abusive: a scurrilous attack on the mayor.