Vocab Unit 6 Flashcards
Anomalous
(adj.) abnormal, irregular, departing from the usual
Example Sentence: Feeling protective of my friend but knowing of his difficulties placed me in an ___ position.
Synonyms: exceptional, unusual, aberrant
Antonyms: normal, regular, customary
Aspersion
(n.) a damaging or derogatory statement; the act of slandering or defaming
Example Sentence: Think twice before casting ___ on his honesty, for he might be telling the truth.
Synonyms: innuendo, calumny
Antonyms: endorsement, praise
Bizarre
(adj.) extremely strange, unusual, atypical
Example Sentence: Years from now I will look at this picture and wonder what sort of ___ costume I was wearing.
Synonyms: grotesque, fantastic, outlandish
Antonyms: normal, typical, ordinary
Brusque
(adj.) abrupt, blunt, with no formalities
Example Sentence: His request for a large loan for an indefinite length of time was met with a ___ refusal.
Synonyms: tactless, ungracious
Antonyms: tactful, diplomatic
Cajole
(v.) to coax, persuade through flattery or artifice; to deceive with soothing thoughts or false promises
Example Sentence: With a smile, a joke, and a second helping of pie, she would ___ him into doing what she wanted.
Synonyms: wheedle, inveigle
Antonyms: coerce, force
Castigate
(v.) to punish severely; to criticize severely
Example Sentence: After he ___ the unruly children, they settled down to study quietly.
Synonyms: chastise, censure
Antonyms: honor, praise, laud
Contrive
(v.) to plan with ingenuity; to bring about through a plan
Example Sentence: She can ___ wonderful excuses; but when she tries to offer them, her uneasiness gives her away.
Synonyms: think up, concoct, fabricate
Demagogue
(n.) a leader who exploits popular prejudices and false claims and promises in order to gain power
Example Sentence: Often a show of angry concern conceals the self-serving tactics of a ___.
Synonyms: rabble-rouser, firebrand
Disabuse
(v.) to free from deception or error, set right in ideas or thinking
Example Sentence: He thinks that all women adore him, but my sister will probably ___ him of that idea.
Synonyms: undeceive, enlighten
Antonyms: deceive, delude, pull wool over one’s eyes
Ennui
(n.) weariness and dissatisfaction from lack of occupation or interest; boredom
Example Sentence: Some people seem to confuse sophistication with ___.
Synonyms: languor, world-weariness, listlessness
Antonyms: enthusiasm, liveliness, excitement, intensity
Fetter
(n.) a chain or shackle placed on the feet (often used in plural); anything that confines or restrains
(v.) to chain or shackle; to render helpless or impotent
Example Sentence: The old phrase “chain gang” refers to a group of prisoners forced to work, each one joined to the next by linked ___.
Synonyms: (n.) bond, restraint; (v.) bind, hamper
Antonyms: (v.) free, liberate, emancipate
Heinous
(adj.) very wicked, offensive, hateful
Example Sentence: A town so peaceful, quiet, and law-abiding was bound to be horrified by so ___ a crime.
Synonyms: evil, odious, outrageous
Antonyms: excellent, wonderful, splendid
Immutable
(adj.) not subject to change, constant
Example Sentence: Scientists labored to discover a set of ___ laws of the universe.
Synonyms: unchangeable, unalterable, fixed, invariable
Antonyms: changeable, inconstant, variable, fickle
Insurgent
(n.) one who rebels or rises against authority
(adj.) rising in revolt, refusing to accept authority; surging or rushing in or on
Example Sentence: George Washington and his contemporaries were ___ against Britain.
Synonyms: (n.) revolutionary, rebellious, mutinous
Antonyms: (adj.) loyalist, loyal, faithful
Megalomania
(n.) a delusion marked by a feeling of power, wealth, talent, etc., far in excess of reality
Example Sentence: Sudden fame and admiration can make people feel unworthy—or it can bring on feelings of ___.
Synonym: delusions of grandeur
Antonyms: modesty, self-abasement
Sinecure
(n.) a position requiring little or no work; an easy job
Example Sentence: The office of Vice President of the United States was once considered little more than a ___.
Synonyms: “no-show” job, cushy job, “plum”
Surreptitious
(adj.) stealthy, secret, intended to escape observation; made or accomplished by fraud
Example Sentence: The movie heroine blushed when she noticed the ___ glances of her admirer.
Synonyms: furtive, covert, clandestine, concealed
Antonyms: open, frank, aboveboard, overt
Transgress
(v.) to go beyond a limit or boundary; to sin, violate a law
Example Sentence: The penitent citizens promised never again to ___ the laws of the land.
Synonyms: overstep, trespass
Antonyms: obey, toe the line
Transmute
(v.) to change from one nature, substance, or form to another
Example Sentence: To ___ distrust into cooperation along that war-torn border will take more than talk and treaties.
Synonyms: transform, convert
Antonyms: preserve, maintain
Vicarious
(adj.) performed, suffered, or otherwise experienced by one person in place of another
Example Sentence: In search of ___ excitement, we watched movies of action and adventure.
Synonyms: surrogate, secondhand
Antonyms: actual, firsthand
