Vocabulary Flashcards
(TO) ABATE
(to) reduce/diminish
Example: Her stress over spending so much money on a house abated when the real estate broker told her about the property’s 15-year tax abatement.
ACCLAIM
praise/approval
Example: Despite critical acclaim, the TV show always ran third in the ratings.
ABERRATION
anomaly/abnormal
Example: The election of a liberal candidate in the conservative county was an aberration, made possible only by the sudden death of the conservative candidate two days before the election.
ACCORD/DISCORD
agreement/disagreement
Example: Our management is in accord with regulatory agencies about tightening standards.
ACQUISITIVENESS
a desire to acquire more, especially an excessive desire
Example: The firm did well in buying up its competitors as a means of growth, but its acquisitiveness ultimately resulted in problems related to growing too quickly.
ACREAGE
land measured in acres
Example: Our property is large, but much of the acreage is swampland not suitable for building.
(TO) ADHERE
(to) stick to (plan or belief)
Example: Employees who do not adhere to the policy will be subject to disciplinary action.
ADHERENT
a person who sticks to a belief or cause
Example: The adherents of the plan wont admit that, in the long term, such a policy would bankrupt our state.
AD-LIB
(to) do smth without preparation or planning, give an unprepared speech / freely,as needed
Example: We have ended our policy of rationing office supplies—pens may now be given to employees ad-lib.
(TO) ADAPT
(to) take and make one’s own/vote to accept
Example: To adopt a plan implies that you didn’t come up with it yourself.
ADVENT
arrival
Example: Before the advent of the Internet, people often called reference librarians to look up information for them in the library’s reference section.
ADVERSE
unfavorable/opposed
Example: A noisy environment is adverse to studying, and lack of sleep can have further adverse effects.
AGENCY
the ability to use power of influence
Example: Some global warming deniers acknowledge that the planet is heating up, but argue that human agency does not affect the climate.
(TO) AGGRAVATE
(to) make worse
Example: Allowing your band to practice in our garage has greatly aggravated my headache.
ALTOGETHER (adv)
completely/overall
Example: It was an altogether stunning new design.
AMBIVALENT
uncertain,unable to decide/want to do two contradictory things at once
Example: My wife loves the opera, but I have ambivalent feelings about it.
(TO) AMORTIZE
gradually pay off a debt/gradually write off an asset
Example: A mortgage is a common form of amortized debt—spreading the payments out over as long as 30 years is not uncommon.
ANALOGOUS
corresponding in a particular way/making a good analogy
Example: Our situation is analogous to one in a case study I read in business school. Maybe what worked for that company will work for us.
(TO) ANNEX
(to) add on
Example: The United States annexed parts of Texas and New Mexico, which belonged to Mexico.
(TO) ANNIHILATE
(to) destroy completely
Example: The approaching tornado was annihilating everything in its path.
(TO) ANNUAL
(to) make void/cancel/abolish
Example: Can we appreciate the art of a murderer? For many, the value of these paintings is annulled by the artist s crimes.
(TO) ANOINT
(to) choose someone for a particular job
Example: He anointed his eldest son as his successor.
ANTITHETICAL TO
totally opposed/opposite
Example: The crimes of our chairman are totally antithetical to what the Society for Ethical Leadership stands for.
APPLICATION
act/result of applying
Example: The attempted application of American-style democracy in Iraq may ultimately prove unsuccessful.
APPRENTICE
a person who works for someone else in order to learn smth
Example: He worked for two years as a plumber’s apprentice
ARBITER
judge/umpire/person empowered to decide matters at hand
Example: Professional mediators arbitrate disputes.
ARCHAIC
ancient/primitive
Example: The schools archaic computer system predated even floppy disks—it stored records on tape drives!
ARISTOCRACY
nobility
Example: His aristocratic manner alienated many voters.
ARTIFACT
any object made by humans, especially those from an earlier time, such as those excavated by archaeologists
Example: The archaeologists dug up countless artifacts, from simple pottery shards and coins to complex written tablets.
(TO) ASCRIBE TO
(to) give credit
Example: He ascribed his good grades to diligent studying.
(TO) ASSERT
(to) affirm/claim/state
Example: The companies have asserted that everything they did was appropriate.
ASSIMILATION
the process by which a minority group adopts the customs and way of life of a larger group
Example: The assimilation of immigrants into American culture has been a constant feature of US history.
(TO) ATTAIN
(to) achieve
Example: You need financial security in order to attain emotional well-being.
(TO) ATTRIBUTE TO
(to) give credit to
Example: Her success can be attributed to three main factors.
ATYPICAL
Not typical
Example: The sociable behaviour of lions is considered atypical of the cat family.
(TO) BACKFIRE
(to) produce an unexpected and unwanted result
Example: The company’s new efficiency measures backfired when workers protested and staged a walkout, thus stopping production completely.
BALANCE
the remaining part/leftover amount
Example: The publishing division accounted for 25% of the profits, and the film division for the balance. This means that the film division provided 75% of the profits.
BALDLY
plainly/explicitly
Example: An article in Mother Jones explained that Maine is not very diverse: “It is, to put it baldly, one of the whitest states in the union.”
(TO) BALLOON
(to) swell /(to) increase rapidly
Example: During the dot-com bubble, the university’s investments ballooned to three times’ their former value.
(TO) BEFALL
(to) happen to (used with something bad)
Example: Disaster befell the company once again when the CEO was thrown from a horse.
(TO) BELIE
(to) contradict/misrepresent
Example: The data belie the accepted theory—either we’ve made a mistake, or we have an amazing new discovery on our hands!
BENEVOLENT
expressing goodwill
Example: I grew up happily under the benevolent influence of my Uncle Walt.
BENIGN
harmless/kind or beneficial
Example: He was relieved when the biopsy results came back, informing him that the growth was benign.
BLIGHT
disease that kills plants rapidly/any cause of decay or destruction
Example: Many potato farmers have fallen into poverty as a result of blight killing their crops.
Example: Gang violence is a blight on our school system, causing innocent students to fear even attending classes. In fact, violence has blighted our town.
(TO) BLUNT
(to) dull/weaken/ make less effective
Example: The new therapy has severe side effects, but they can be blunted somewhat with anti-nausea medication and painkillers.
(TO) BLUR
(to) make blurry, unclear, indistinct
Example: In Japan, company titles are taken very seriously and roles are sharply defined, whereas in the U.S.—especially in smaller firms—roles are often blurred as everyone is expected to pitch in on a variety of projects.
BOGUS
fake, fraudulent
Example: The back of this bodybuilding magazine is just full of ads for bogus products—this one promises 22-inch biceps just from wearing magnetic armbands!
(TO) BOLSTER
(to) strengthen, support
Example: Many people use alcohol to bolster their confidence before approaching an attractive person in a bar.
(TO) BROOK
(to) suffer, tolerate
Example: The dictator will not brook dissent.
BUFFER
Something that separates two groups, people, etc., who potentially do not get along
BUREAUCRACY
1) government characterized by many bureaus and petty administrators
2) excessive, seemingly meaningless requirements.
BYGONE
past, former; that which is in the past
Example: At the nursing home, the time to reminisce about bygone days was pretty much all the time.
BYPASS
avoid, go around; ignore
CANON
body of accepted rules, standards
CHANCY
risky, not having a certain outcome
(TO) CHANNEL
(to) direct or guide along a particular course
Example: You might channel your energy towards productive purposes.
CHECKED (HELD IN CHECK)
restrained, held back
Example: Once the economy took a turn for the worse, the investors began to hold spending in check.
Example: The situation isn’t so simple—while the warlords are surely criminals o f the worst degree, they are the only force checking the power of the dictator.
CHRONOLOGICAL
arranged in or relating to time order
Example: Joey, I’m afraid you’ve done the assignment wrong—the point of making a timeline is to put the information in chronological order. You’ve made an alphabetical-order-line instead!
CLAMOR
noisy uproar or protest, as from a crowd; a loud, continuous noise
Example: As soon as a scent o f scandal emerged, the press was clamoring for details.
Example: The mayor couldn’t even make herself heard over the clamor of the protestors.
CLAN
traditional social unit or division of a tribe consisting of a number of families derived from a
common ancestor.
(TO) CLOAK IN
(to) cover, conceal
Example: Apple’s new products are often cloaked in mystery before they are released; before the launch of the iPad, even tech reviewers had little idea what the new device would be.
(TO) COALESCE
(to) come together, unite; fuse together
Example: East and West Germany coalesced into a single country in 1990.
COERCION
force; use o f pressure, threats, etc. to force someone to do something
COEXISTENCE
existing at the same time or in the same place
Example: The goal of the Camp David Accords was the coexistence of Israel and Egypt.
COGENT
logical
(TO) COLLUDE
(to) conspire; cooperate for illegal or fraudulent purposes
Example: After two competing software companies doubled their prices on the same day, leaving consumers no lower-priced alternative, the federal government investigated the companies for collusion.
COMPLIANT
obeying; following the requirements
Example: Those who are not compliant with the regulations will be put on probation and possibly expelled.
(TO) COMPROMISE
(to) reduce the quality or value of something
Example: It is unacceptable that safety is being compromised in the name of profits.
(TO) CONCEDE
(to) give in, yield;
Example: The negotiations were pointless, with each side’s representatives instructed by their home countries to make no concessions whatsoever.
(TO) CONDONE
(to) overlook, tolerate, regard as harmless
Example: While underage drinking is illegal, at many universities, it is tacitly condoned by administrations that neglect to enforce anti-drinking policies.
(TO) CONFER
(to) consult; bestow
Example: Excuse me for a moment to make a call— I can’t buy this car until I confer with my spouse.
Example: A Ph.D. confers upon a person the right to be addressed as “Doctor” as well as eligibility to pursue tenure-track professorship.
CONSEQUENTLY
as a result, therefore
Example: The new medicine is not only a failure, but a dangerous one; consequently, drug trials were halted immediately.
CONSIDERABLE
large, significant
CONSIDERATIONS
factors to be considered in making a decision
Example: The book began with a thorough consideration of the history of the debate.
(TO) CONSOLIDATE
(to) unite, combine, solidify, make coherent
Example: As group leader, Muriel will consolidate all of our research into a single report.
CONTEMPLATIVE
contemplating, thoughtful, meditative
(TO) CONTEND
(to) assert; compete
Example: I contend that a novel should tell a story and tell it well.
Example: The top tennis players in the world are contending for this title.
(TO) CONTEXTUALIZE
(to) place in context, such as by giving the background or circumstances
Example: Virginia Woolf’s feminism is hard to truly understand unless contextualized within the mores of the highly restrained, upper-class English society of her time.
(TO) CONTRACT
(to) shrink
CONVENTIONAL
traditional, customary
Example: Her family was
surprised that she had eschewed the conventional wedding ceremony in favor o f a bohemian ceremony on the beach
(TO) CONVERGE
(to) move towards one another or towards a point; unite
Example: I know we’re driving in to the wedding from different states, but our routes ought to converge
when each of us hits 1-95— maybe we could converge at a Cracker Barrel for lunch!
CONVERSELY
in an opposite way; on the other hand
Example: I am not here to argue that lack of education causes poverty. Conversely, I am here to argue that poverty causes lack of education.
CONVOLUTED
twisted; very complicated
Example: Your argument is so convoluted that I’m not even able to understand it enough to start critiquing it.
COPIOUS
plentiful, bountiful
Example: Although she took copious notes in class, she found that she was missing a big picture that would have tied all the information together.
CORRESPONDING
accompanying; having the same or almost the same relationship
Example: Our profit-sharing plan means that increases in profit will be matched by corresponding increases in employee compensation.
(TO) CORROBORATE
(to) support, add evidence to
Example: You’re telling me you were thirty miles away riding a roller coaster when the school was vandalized?
I have a hard time believing that—is there anyone who can corroborate your story?
(TO) COUNTENANCE
(to) approve, tolerate
Example: I saw you cheating off my paper, and I cant countenance cheating—either you turn yourself in or I’ll report you.
COUNTERINTUITIVE
against what a person would intuitively expect
Example: Although it seems counterintuitive, for some extreme dieters, eating more can actually help them to lose weight, since the body is reassured that it is not facing a period o f prolonged starvation.
COUNTERPOINT
contrasting item, opposite; a complement; the use of contrast or interplay in a work of art.
Example: The plays lighthearted, witty narrator provides a welcome counterpoint to the seriousness and grief expressed by the other characters.
Example: The hot peppers work in counterpoint to an otherwise sweet dish.
COUNTERPRODUCTIVE
defeating the purpose; preventing the intended goal
Example: The candidate’s attempt to win swing votes in Ohio was actually counterproductive—following his speech in Toledo, his poll numbers actually went down 5%.
CREDIBILITY
believability, trustworthiness
Example: Many famous “experts” with “Dr.” before their names are not medical doctors at all. Any television “doctor” who turns out to have a Ph.D. in botany, for instance, ought to suffer a serious drop in credibility.
(TO) CULMINATE
(to) reach the highest point or final stage
Example: A Ph.D. program generally culminates in a written dissertation and its defense to a committee
(TO) CURTAIL
(to) cut short, reduce
CYNICAL
Thinking the worst of others’ motivations; bitterly pessimistic
Example: Listening to politicians for too long can make you cynical.
(TO) DEBASE
(to) degrade; lower in quality, value, rank, etc.; lower in moral quality
Example: Members o f the mainstream church argued that the fringe sect was practicing a debased version of the religion, twisting around its precepts and missing the point.
Example: You have debased yourself by accepting bribes.
DEBILITATING
weakening, disabling
Example: Strokes are a common debilitating condition of old age.
(TO) DEBUNK
(to) expose, ridicule, or disprove false or exaggerated claims
Example: Galileo spent his last years under house arrest for debunking the widely held idea that the Sun revolved around the Earth.
Example: The show MythBusters debunks pseudoscientific claims.
(TO) DECRY
(to) condemn openly, criticize
Example: The activist decried the destruction of the animals’ habitat.
(TO) DEEM
(to) judge, consider
Example: “You can take the black belt exam when I deem you ready, and not a moment before,” said the karate instructor.
(TO) DEFLECT
(to) cause to curve; turn aside, especially from a straight course; avoid
Example: The purpose of a shield is to deflect arrows or bullets from an enemy.
Example: Every time he was asked a difficult question, Senator Warrington deflected by changing the topic, saying he’d answer later, or even— insincerely, it seemed—calling for a moment of prayer
(TO) DELIMIT
(to) fix, mark, or define the boundaries of
Example: The role o f an executive coach is delimited by our code of conduct—we may not counsel people for psychological conditions, for instance.
(TO) DENOTE
(to) be a name or symbol for, represent smth
Example: His angry tone denoted extreme displeasure.
(TO) DERIDE
(to) mock, scoff at, laugh at contemptuously
Example: The manager really thought that deriding his employees as “stupid” or “lazy” would motivate them to work harder; instead, it motivated them to hide his office supplies as an act of revenge.
DETERRENT
something that restrains or discourages
Example: Some argue that the death penalty is a deterrent to crime—that is, the point is not just to punish the guilty, but to frighten other prospective criminals.
