Vocab Units 10-12 Definitions

Question 1

abrogate

Answer 1

(v) to repeal, cancel, declare null and void

Question 2

ambient

Answer 2

(adj) completely surrounding, encompassing

Question 3

asperity

Answer 3

(n) roughness, severity; bitterness or tartness

Question 4

burnish

Answer 4

(v) to make smooth or glossy by rubbing, polish; (n) gloss, brightness, lustor

Question 5

cabal

Answer 5

(n) a small goup working in secret

Question 6

delectable

Answer 6

(adj) delightful, highly enjoyable; deliciously flavored, savory; (n) an appealing or appetizing food or dish

Question 7

deprecate

Answer 7

(v) to express mild disapproval; to belittle

Question 8

detritus

Answer 8

(n) loose bits and pieces of material resulting from disintegration or wearing away; fragments that result from any destruction

Question 9

ebullient

Answer 9

(adj) overflowing with enthusiasm and excitement; boiling, bubbling

Question 10

eclectic

Answer 10

(adj) drawn from different sources; (n) one whose beliefs are drawn from various sources

Question 11

flaccid

Answer 11

(adj) limp, not firm; lacking vigor or effectivenss

Question 12

impecunious

Answer 12

(adj) having little or no money

Question 13

inexorable

Answer 13

(adj) inflexible, beyond influence; relentless, unyielding

Question 14

moribund

Answer 14

(adj) dying, on the way out

Question 15

necromancer

Answer 15

(n) one who claims to reveal or influence the future through magic, especially communication with the dead; in general, a magician or wizard

Question 16

onerous

Answer 16

(adj) burdensome; involving hardship or difficulty

Question 17

rife

Answer 17

(adj) common, prevalent, widespread, happening often; full, abounding; plentiful, abundant, replete

Question 18

rudiments

Answer 18

(n. pl.) the parts of any subject or discipline that are learned first; the earliest stages of anything

Question 19

sequester

Answer 19

(v) to set apart, separate for a special purpose; to take possession of and hold in custody

Question 20

winnow

Answer 20

(v) to get rid of something unwanted, delete; to sift through to obtain what is desirable; to remove the chaff from the wheat by blowing air on it; to blow on, fan

Question 21

aesthetic

Answer 21

(adj) pertaining to beauty; sensitive or responsive to beauty

Question 22

defunct

Answer 22

(adj) no longer in existence or functioning, dead

Question 23

discomfit

Answer 23

(v) to frustrate, thwart, or defeat; to confuse, perplex, or embarrass

Question 24

espouse

Answer 24

(v) to take up and support; to become attached to, adopt; to marry

Question 25

fetish

Answer 25

(n) an object believed to have magical powers; an object of unreasoning devotion or reverence

Question 26

gregarious

Answer 26

(adj) living together in a herd or group; sociable, seeking the company of others

Question 27

hapless

Answer 27

(adj) marked by a persistent absence of good luck

Question 28

impeccable

Answer 28

(adj) faultless, beyond criticism or blame

Question 29

importune

Answer 29

(v) to trouble with demands; to beg for insistently

Question 30

interpolate

Answer 30

(v) to insert between other parts or things; to present as an addition or correction

Question 31

irreparable

Answer 31

(adj) incapable of being repaired or rectified

Question 32

laconic

Answer 32

(adj) concise, using few words

Question 33

languish

Answer 33

(v) to become weak, feeble, or dull; to droop; to be depressed or dispirited; to suffer neglect

Question 34

mendacious

Answer 34

(adj) given to lying or deception; untrue

Question 35

nadir

Answer 35

(n) the lowest point

Question 36

omnipresent

Answer 36

(adj) present in all places at all times

Question 37

perfunctory

Answer 37

(adj) done in a superficial or halfhearted manner; without interest or enthusiasm

Question 38

plaintive

Answer 38

(adj) expressive of sorrow or woe, melancholy

Question 39

requite

Answer 39

(v) to make suitable repayment, as for a kindness, service, or favor; to make retaliation, as for an injury or wrong; to reciprocate

Question 40

tantamount

Answer 40

(adj) equivalent, having the same meaning, value, or effect

Question 41

askance

Answer 41

(adv) with suspicion, distrust, or disapproval

Question 42

attenuate

Answer 42

(v) to make thin or slender; to weaken or lessen in force, intensity, or value

Question 43

benign

Answer 43

(adj) gentle, kind; forgiving, understanding; having a favorable or beneficial effect; not malignant

Question 44

cavil

Answer 44

(v) to find fault in a petty way, carp; (n) a trivial objection or criticism

Question 45

charlatan

Answer 45

(n) one who feigns knowledge or ability; a pretender, impostor, or quack

Question 46

decimate

Answer 46

(v) to kill or destroy a large part of

Question 47

foible

Answer 47

(n) a weak point, failing, minor flaw

Question 48

forgo

Answer 48

(v) to do without, abstain from, give up

Question 49

fraught

Answer 49

(adj) full of or loaded with; accompanied by

Question 50

inure

Answer 50

(v) to toughen, harden; to render used to something by long subjection or exposure

Question 51

luminous

Answer 51

(adj) emitting or reflecting light, glowing; illuminating

Question 52

obsequious

Answer 52

(adj) marked by slavish attentiveness; excessively submissive, often for purely self-interested reasons

Question 53

obtuse

Answer 53

(adj) blunt, not coming to a point; slow or dull in understanding; measuring between 90 degrees and 180 degrees; not causing a sharp impression

Question 54

oscillate

Answer 54

(v) to swing back and forth with a steady rhythm; to fluctuate or waver

Question 55

penitent

Answer 55

(adj) regretful for one's sins or mistakes; (n) one who is sorry for wrongdoing

Question 56

peremptory

Answer 56

(adj) having the nature of a command that leaves no opportunity for debate, denial, or refusal; offensively self-assured, dictatorial; determined, resolute

Question 57

rebuff

Answer 57

(v) to snub; to repel, drive away; (n) a curt rejection, a check

Question 58

reconnoiter

Answer 58

(v) to engage in reconnaissance; to make a preliminary inspection

Question 59

shambles

Answer 59

(n) a slaughterhouse; a place of mass bloodshed; a state of complete disorder and confusion, mess

Question 60

sporadic

Answer 60

(adj) occurring at irregular intervals, having no set plan or order