Vocab List 3 Flashcards
Morpheme
The morpheme -less connotes without (something)
The most basic form of language with any standalone meaning
ad hoc
The city council held an ad hoc meeting in the Waffle House, when their usual meeting place was destroyed by the hurricane.
When needed, created when needed
sine qua non
You cannot have a sandwich without bread and still call it a sandwich, it is a sine qua non.
Something essential, literally “with which, nothing”
obfuscate
The purpose of a good lawyer is to obfuscate any truth that could work against their client.
To make less clear, to make ambiguous
castigate
The wait staff at the Waffle House were castigated by the owner for seating the city council in a pool of syrup.
Punished severely
Boilerplate
The Smalltown Herald has been churning out magnificent quantities of drivel and boilerplate work without value.
Writing that does not express any new positions, only widely held ones.
conceit (of a film, novel, plot)
In Das Boot, the director’s conceit to film the movie within the crowded area of an actual U-Boat was pure genius.
An artistic device or technique
Allude, allusion
The movie had plot beats that were allusions to classic stories like Romeo and Juliet.
In a work, a reference to something without explicitly mentioning it.
reification, reify
The abstract concept of time is reified by the clock.
To make something abstract a real thing.
elucidate
The Watergate scandal also served to elucidate President Nixon’s other shady activities.
To make clear, to disambiguate
canon, canonical
Romeo and Juliet is generally considered a core part of the Shakespeare canon.
A set of authentic works in an intellectual property, fictional universe, religious set, or common authorship.
De facto
The general took no orders from the congress; he now ruled as a de facto dictator.
In fact; the situation on the ground, as opposed to de jure, “by law” a theoretical situation defined by law.
Highbrow, lowbrow
Many consider tuxedos and caviar highbrow, while t-shirts and burgers to be lowbrow.
(of lowbrow) Unsophisticated, lower class
(of highbrow) Sophisticated, higher class
trepidation
The horror movie had us on the edge of our seats in trepidation, waiting for a jumpscare.
Anxiety, fear in anticipation of something.
subversive
Much of their music is subversive, raging against authority and criticizing authority figures.
Something that subverts (challenges, mocks, foils) established norms or rules.
internalize
Racism and misogyny can be internalized and turned back on oneself.
To make something part of you through learning or passive assimilation
genesis
The genesis of racial hatred in the United States goes back longer than the United States itself.
The beginning or creation of something.
pro forma
The director got more pro forma reports, telling him nothing had changed on site.
As a matter of courtesy or politeness, literally “for form”
