Vocab Compiled, with Sentences! Flashcards
lucid
clear, coherent
“The explanations were written in a simple and LUCID manner so that students were immediately able to apply what they learned.”
loquacious
talkative, garrulous, voluble, unreserved
“She was naturally LOQUACIOUS, which was a problem in situations in which listening was more important than talking.”
lavish
extremely generous/extravagant (adj) or giving a lot (verb)
“She LAVISHED the puppy with so many treats that it soon became overweight and spoiled.”
precipitate
cause, give rise to (esp. abruptly), lacking deliberation
“Upon learning that the couple married after knowing each other only two months, friends and family members expected such a PRECIPITATE marriage to end in divorce.”
assuage
alleviate, relieve, ease, soothe, mitigate
“Serena used aspirin to ASSUAGE her pounding headache.”
erudite
learned, scholarly, educated, bookish
“The annual meeting of philosophy professors was a gathering of the most ERUDITE, well-published individuals in the field.”
prodigal
wasteful, lavish, extravagant, imprudent, profligate
“The PRODIGAL son quickly wasted all of his inheritance on a lavish lifestyle devoted to pleasure.”
enigma
mystery, puzzle, conundrum
“Speaking in riddles and dressed in old robes, the artist gained a reputation as something of an ENIGMA.”
fervid
intensely emotional, passionate, ardent, intense, vehement, wholehearted
“The fans of Maria Callas were unusually FERVID, doing anything to catch a glimpse of the great opera singer.”
placate
pacify, soothe, calm, appease, conciliate, propitiate
“The burglar tried to PLACATE the snarling dog by saying ‘Nice doggy,’ and offering it a treat.”
zeal
passion, excitement, ardor, love, fervor, avidity, enthusiasm
“She brought her typical ZEAL to the project, sparking enthusiasm in the other team members.”
anomaly
oddity, peculiarity, abnormality
“Albino animals may display too great an ANOMALY in their coloring to attract normally colored mates.”
equivocal
ambiguous, indefinite, vague
“The EQUIVOCAL nature of his remarks left his audience with many questions.”
equivocate
be evasive, prevaricate, be ambiguous
“When faced with criticism of her policies, the politician EQUIVOCATED and left all parties thinking she agreed with them.”
opaque
cloudy, blurred, hazy
“The heavy buildup of dirt and grime on the windows almost made them OPAQUE.”
abstain
refrain from, desist from, forbear
“She ABSTAINED from choosing a mouthwatering dessert from the tray.”
audacious
daring, bold, fearless, intrepid, valiant, courageous
“Her AUDACIOUS nature allowed her to fulfill her dream of skydiving.”
desiccate
dry, dehydrated, powdered
“After a few weeks of lying on the desert’s baking sands, the cow’s carcass became completely DESICCATED.”
gullible
easily deceived, naive, overtrusting, credulous, exploitable
“The con man pretended to be a bank officer so as to fool GULLIBLE bank customers into giving him their account information.”
laudable
praiseworthy, commendable, admirable, meritorious
“LAUDABLE though the aim might be, the results have been criticized.”
laud
praise, glorify
“Parades and fireworks were staged to LAUD the success of the rebels.”
pedant
dogmatist, purist, someone who shows off learning
“The graduate instructor’s tedious and excessive commentary on the subject soon gained her a reputation as a PEDANT.”
vacillate
waver, sway (physically), be indecisive, undecided, ambivalent
“The customer held up the line as he VACILLATED between ordering chocolate chip or rocky road ice cream.”
adulterate
contaminate, make impure, degrade, debase, taint
“The chef made his ketchup last longer by ADULTERATING it with water.”
capricious
whimsical, unpredictable, fickle, inconstant
“Queen Elizabeth I was quite CAPRICIOUS; her courtiers could never be sure which of their number would catch her fancy.”
engender
produce, cause, bring about, provoke, inspire
“His fear and hatred of clowns was ENGENDERED when he witnessed the death of his father at the hands of a clown.”
homogenous
uniform, identical, indistinguishable "The class was fairly HOMOGENOUS, since almost all of the students were senior journalism majors."
pragmatic
practical, sensible, matter-of-fact
“While daydreaming gamblers think they can get rich by frequenting casinos, PRAGMATIC gamblers realize that the odds are heavily stacked against them.”
volatile
easily aroused or changeable, explosive, lively
“His VOLATILE personality made it difficult to predict his reaction to anything.”
