Vocabulary 1 Flashcards
plethora (n.)
Superabundance, excess
Plethora means an abundance or excess of something. If you have 15 different people who want to take you on a date, you have a plethora of romantic possibilities.
oscillate (v.)
To swing back and forth steadily; to vary between alternate extremes
be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action
On a hot day, you’ll be happy to have a fan that can oscillate, meaning it moves back and forth in a steady motion.
awry (adj.)
Askew, wrong
When something goes wrong with a decent plan, you say it has gone awry. Losing your backpack is a mistake, but when you realize it contained your ticket and your passport, your vacation plans really go awry.
esoteric (adj.)
Understood by only a few; not publicly disclosed
Pssst… do you know the secret handshake? If you haven’t been brought into the inner circle of those with special knowledge, esoteric things will remain a mystery to you.
paradox (n.)
Seemingly contradicting statement
Here’s a mind-bender: “This statement is false.” If you think it’s true, then it must be false, but if you think it’s false, it must be true. Now that’s a paradox!
encognito (adj.)
With one’s identity disguised
When you want to do something and not be recognized, go incognito — hiding your true identity.
paradigm (n.)
A pattern of thought; a model
A paradigm is a standard, perspective, or set of ideas. A paradigm is a way of looking at something.
flabbergast (v.)
the overwhelm with astonishment
To flabbergast is to shock, awe, bowl over. For something to flabbergast you, it ought to leave you sputtering in amazement.
pugnacious (adj.)
Combative in nature; belligerent
Pugnacious means ready for a fight. If you’re pugnacious, you might find it hard to make friends. On the other hand, you might be a very successful professional boxer one day.
magnanimous (adj.)
generous and noble, especially in forgiving
A magnanimous person has a generous spirit. Letting your little sister have the last of the cookies, even though you hadn’t eaten since breakfast, would be considered a magnanimous act.
splendiferous (adj.)
Splendid, great
Even though it sounds like a made-up word, splendiferous is a word for wonderful things. You may have seen a splendiferous sunset or a splendiferous velvet gown in your day.
ominous (adj.)
menacing or foreboding
If something looks or sounds ominous, be careful: a threat or an unpleasant event is at hand. If you see an ominous frown on your boss’s face, you’re in trouble!
oblivion (n.)
The condition of being completely forgotten
Oblivion is the state of being forgotten. If you slip into oblivion after selling one record, then your only hope is becoming a “VH1 one-hit wonder.”
homogenous (adj.)
of the same or similar nature; uniform in composition.
Homogenous describes things that are all of the similar kind. If you have a homogenous group of friends, you probably wear the same outfits, talk the same way, live in the same kind of neighborhood, and like the same music. Boring.
Misogynist (n.)
Woman-hater
If you’re someone who believes women belong in the kitchen and shouldn’t be accorded the same respect as men, you might be a misogynist. A misogynist is a person who hates or doesn’t trust women.
heterogeneous (adj.)
of different or dissimilar nature
Heterogeneous can be used to describe the diversity of nearly anything — populations, classrooms, collections. A heterogeneous array of immigrants passed through Ellis Island to help create the American “melting pot.”
festoon (n.)
A garland hanging between two points. (as in flags, leaves, webs)
A festoon is a decorative string of flowers that you drape across a room, dropping in curves between support points. If you’re decorating for Halloween, why not try a creatively spooky festoon of dried roses covered in cobwebs?
epiphany (n.)
the revelation of a divine being; feast of the Magi; a moment of sudden awareness
When inspiration hits you out of the blue, call it an epiphany.
effervescent (adj.)
emitting small bubbles (as in carbonated liquid); to show high spirits or excitement
Something effervescent has bubbles or froth, like a sparkling cider or a bubble bath. If you have a happy, light, cheerful personality — if you are “bubbly” — you too are effervescent.
innuendo (n.)
an indirect or subtle (usually derogatory) insinuation
Speaking in innuendo is when you say something indirectly — often of a hurtful or sexual nature.
visceral (adj.)
of, situated in, or affecting the viscera (internal organs); extremely emotional
When something’s visceral, you feel it in your guts. A visceral feeling is intuitive — there might not be a rational explanation, but you feel that you know what’s best, like your visceral reaction against egg salad.
eviscerate (v.)
to remove the viscera, to remove the vital part of something.
Eviscerate is not a pretty word. To eviscerate can mean to remove the entrails of a creature. On the Discovery Channel you can watch a vulture eviscerate or take out the guts of a dead animal.
poignant (adj.)
evoking a keen sense of sadness or regret
Something that is poignant touches you deeply. Watching a poignant YouTube video about baby penguins chasing their mothers, for example, might give you a lump in your throat.
eclectic (adj.)
deriving ideas, style, or taste from a broad and diverse range of sources
She listens to hip-hop, Gregorian chant, and folk music from the ’60s. He’s been seen wearing a handmade tuxedo jacket over a thrift-store flannel shirt. They both have eclectic tastes.
cosmopolitan ( adj.)
including or containing people from many different countries
Your Aunt Eleanor, who’s lived in six different countries and speaks four languages fluently, might be described as cosmopolitan, or comfortable and familiar with different cultures and people.
precipice (n.)
overhanging or extremely steep cliff
Cartoon characters often end up on a precipice, the edge of a steep cliff, where their chubby toes curl and cling as they totter and eventually fall, making a hole in the ground below and getting up again. Most real people avoid precipices.
labyrinth (n.)
a maze
A labyrinth is a structure with many connected paths or passages in which it is hard to find your way. In figurative use, a labyrinth is a complicated situation: our tax code is a labyrinth of rules and regulations.
succulent (adj.)
full of juice or sap; juicy
Succulent means “juicy” and is often used to describe food. Think a succulent piece of meat, or berries so succulent you’re left sucking juice off your fingertips when you eat them.
ostracize (v.)
to banish or exclude from a group
If you banish someone or ignore him, you ostracize him. When the Iranian president claimed that the Holocaust was a hoax, he was ostracized by the international community.
pretentious (adj.)
extravagantly showy; ostentatious
Use the adjective pretentious as a way to criticize people who try to act like they are more important or knowledgeable than they really are.
ostentatious (adj.)
pretentious
Reach for the adjective ostentatious when you want a flashy way to say — well, “flashy” or “showy.”
bucolic (adj.)
rustic; country-like
As an adjective, bucolic refers to an ideal country life that many yearn for. If your parents wanted to raise you in a bucolic environment, you may find yourself living 45 minutes away from the nearest movie theater or person your age. Not ideal.
misanthropic (adj.)
misanthrope (n.)
to hate mankind/ one who hates mankind
A misanthropic person does not like people and expects the worst of them. It would be misanthropic of you to say that every human being is a greedy, selfish liar.
flummox (v.)
to confuse or perplex
Does the word flummox bewilder, confound, dumbfound and generally mystify you? Well, fear no more, because flummox means all of these things!
xenophobe (n.)
one who is unduly fearful of strangers or foreigners
Getting a job as a greeter with the United Nations is probably not the best career option for someone who suffers from xenophobia, a fear of foreigners or strangers.
mnemonic (adj.)
assisting or intended to assist the memory
- after Mnemosyne, Greek goddess of memory
A mnemonic is a memory aid for something, often taking the form of a rhyme or an acronym. I before E except after C, is a mnemonic to help you remember how to spell words like “piece” and “receive.”
conflagration (n.)
large, destructive fire
A conflagration isn’t just a few flames; it’s an especially large and destructive fire that causes devastation.
inundation (n.)
inundate (v.)
large, overwhelming flood/ to overwhelm (someone) with things or people to be dealt with; to flood
An overabundance of something is an inundation. If you got an inundation of requests for your famous chocolate cupcakes, you better get baking!
metamorphosis (n.)
a transformation
In Kafka’s novel entitled Metamorphosis, a man wakes up to find he has turned into a cockroach. That kind of complete and startling change pretty much sums up the word.
sentinel (n.)
a guard or a sentry
A sentinel is a guard, a lookout, a person keeping watch. It’s often a soldier, but not always. If you’re watching a pot, waiting for it to boil, you’re standing sentinel over it — and incidentally, it won’t boil until you leave.
exacerbate (v.)
to increase the severity of
For a formal-sounding verb that means to make worse, try exacerbate. If you’re in trouble, complaining about it will only exacerbate the problem.
lackadaisical (adj.)
lacking spirit, liveliness, or interest
Even though lackadaisical sounds like it has something to do with a shortage of daisies, know that what it really means is lacking in spirit or liveliness.
construe (v.)
to interpret; to translate; to explain
If you interpret something or make sense of it, you construe its meaning. If the new girl in your class asks to sit with you at lunch, you could construe that she wants to be friends. You can never have too many friends!
paragon (n.)
a model of excellence
Paragon applies to someone who is a model of perfection in some quality or trait. We link paragon with other words that follow it, such as “paragon of virtue” or “paragon of patience.”
duplicity (n.)
duplicitous (adj.)
deliberate deceptiveness/ deceitful
Though he said he didn’t know anything about the footprints in the new sidewalk, his duplicity, or deceitfulness, was obvious from the cement caking his shoes. His mouth said one thing, his feet said another.
ubiquitous (adj.)
being or seeming to be everywhere at the same time; omnipresent
It’s everywhere! It’s everywhere! When something seems like it’s present in all places at the same time, reach for the adjective ubiquitous.
aesthetic (adj.)
pertaining to what is beautiful or artistic
The adjective aesthetic comes in handy when the subject at hand is beauty or the arts. A velvet painting of dogs playing poker might have minimal aesthetic appeal.
deride (v.)
to ridicule
The verb deride means to speak to someone with contempt or show a low opinion of someone or something. A bully might constantly deride other kids in his class — which might lead to many afternoons spent in the principal’s office.
consummate (adj.) (v.)
complete or perfect in every respect/ to bring to completion; conclude
Consummate means complete, finished, or masterful. If you refer to someone as a consummate chef, then you are saying he is the ultimate chef. If you say someone is a consummate jerk, then you are saying he is the ultimate jerk.
conundrum (n.)
a riddle or dilemma
The tricky word conundrum is used to describe a riddle or puzzle, sometimes including a play on words or pun.
gargantuan (adj.)
of immense size; gigantic
Whether you’re talking about your gargantuan appetite or a gargantuan building, use the word gargantuan to describe something so big that big just isn’t, well, big enough to accurately describe it.
quintessential (adj.)
the purest, most essential, perfect example of
If someone tells you you’re the quintessential rock musician, that means they think that everything about you screams “rock and roll.” Quintessential means embodying or possessing the essence of something.
edifice (n.)
a building of imposing size
Edifice means a building, but it doesn’t mean just any building. To merit being called an edifice, a building must be important. A mini temple can be an edifice, or a towering sky scraper.
auxiliary (adj.)
giving assistance or support; supplementary; held in reserve
When you’re offering something in support of an already existing thing, you’re offering something auxiliary. The auxiliary police will help out the regular police with things like directing traffic and crowd control when there’s a special event in town.
hullabaloo (n.)
a great noise or excitement
Hullabaloo is a lovely term for a fuss or commotion, usually over something of little or no importance, like a celebrity’s new hair style.
tribulation (n.)
a great affliction or distress
Tribulation is suffering or trouble, usually resulting from oppression. The tribulations of a coal miner include a dangerous work environment, lung disease from black dust and a cramped, dark work space.
omnipotent (adj.)
having unlimited power, authority, or force
If you want to describe someone who can do absolutely anything, reach for the adjective omnipotent.
sublime (adj.)
of high spiritual, moral, or intellectual worth; inspiring awe; impressive
In common use, sublime is an adjective meaning “awe-inspiringly grand, excellent, or impressive,” like the best chocolate fudge sundae you’ve ever had.
pandemonium (n.)
wild uproar or noise; chaos; capital of hell in Milton’s Paradise Lost
Pandemonium is chaos, total and utter craziness — like the stampede after your team won the championship, when everyone spilled onto the field at once, bouncing off each other.
heinous (adj.)
grossly wicked or abominable.
onomatopoeia
A heinous crime is very evil or wicked. Of course, some people only use the term as an exaggeration, claiming that their parents’ requirement that they write thank you notes after their birthdays is a heinous form of torture.
onomatopoeia (n.)
word that imitates the sound associated with the object/action to which it
refers.
Boom! Bang! Crash! When a word is formed from the sound that an associated thing makes, call it an example of onomatopoeia.
counterintuitive (adj.)
contrary to what intuition and common sense would indicate.
If something is counterintuitive it means it’s the opposite of “intuitive” — in other words it’s not easily understood in an instinctive, unconscious way. A red light for “go” and a green light for “stop” would be highly counterintuitive, for example.
sonorous (adj.)
having or producing sound; full, deep, or rich sound.
Used to describe sound or speech that is full, rich, and deep, sonorous is a great word for snoring, for bass voices, and for low notes on the tuba.
resonate (v.)
to exhibit or produce resonance (strong, deep tone).
If you have a loud, deep voice, then your voice has resonance, and if your words are powerful and meaningful, then your words have resonance, too. Something with resonance has a deep tone or a powerful lasting effect.
sordid (adj.)
filthy or foul; depressingly squalid; wretched; morally degraded.
Describe a person’s actions as sordid if they are so immoral or unethical that they seem dirty. Think of the worst parts of a bad soap opera!
paraphernalia (n.)
personal belongings; the articles or equipment used for a particular activity.
Having lunch in the park might require you to first gather together a lot of picnic paraphernalia, such as blankets, coolers, Frisbees, and other miscellaneous items that are relevant to that activity.
zenith (n.)
the point on the celestial sphere that is directly above; the highest point attained; the
point of culmination.
Zenith means the high point — it comes from astronomy, where it describes the highest point in an arc traveled by a star or a planet or another celestial body. The sun reaches its zenith when it is as high in the sky as it is going to go on that day.
nadir (n.)
the point on the celestial sphere diametrically opposed to the zenith; the lowest point.
If a highly forgetful person loses his phone, his wallet, and then his car keys in separate instances all in one day, you could say that he has reached an organizational nadir. This means “lowest point.”
benevolent (adj.)
well meaning, kindly
Choose the adjective benevolent for someone who does good deeds or shows goodwill. If your teacher collects homework with a benevolent smile, she’s hoping that you’ve done a good job.
malevolent (adj.)
having or exhibiting ill-will
If someone is malevolent, they wish evil on others. If you find yourself approaching someone with a malevolent look in her eye, best to run the other way.
