Vocabulary Flashcards
Callous
(n): not caring about other people’s feelings or suffering
SYN = cruel, unfeeling
e.g. a callous killer/attitude/act
Perpetrate
(v): (formal) to commit a crime or do sth wrong or evil
e.g. to perpetrate a crime/fraud/massacre
violence perpetrated against women and children
Neurotic
(adj) : not behaving in a reasonable, calm way, because you are worried about sth
e. g. She became neurotic about keeping the house clean.
Denigrate
(v) : (formal) to criticize sb/sth unfairly; to say sb/sth does not have any value or is not important
e. g. I didn’t intend to denigrate her achievements
Patsy
(n): a weak person who is easily cheated or tricked, or who is forced to take the blame for sth that sb else has done wrong
Audit
(n) : 1. an official examination of business and financial records to see that they are true and correct
2. an official examination of the quality or standard of sth
(v) : 1. to officially examine the financial accounts of a company
2. to attend a course at college or university but without taking any exams or receiving credit
e.g. an annual audit - a tax audit
Loathe
(v): to dislike sb/sth very much
= detest
e.g. I loathe modern art
Rudderless
(adj): (formal) with nobody in control; not knowing what to do
Half mast
(n): flown at the middle of the mast as a sign of respect for a person who has just died
Hindsight
(n): the understanding that you have of a situation only after it has happened and that means you would have done things in a different way
!= foresight
e. g. 1. what looks obvious in hindsight was not at all obvious at the time
2. it is easy to criticize with the benefit of hindsight
Alimony
(n): the money that a court orders sb to pay regularly to their former wife or husband when the marriage is ended
SIMILAR WORDS: maintenance - palimony
Bric-a-brac
(n): ornaments and other small decorative objects of little values
Ordain
(v) : to order or command sth; to decide sth in advance
e. g. fate has ordained that they would never meet again.
Delineate
(v) : to describe, draw or explain sth in detail
e. g. the ship’s route is clearly delineated on the map.
Recollection
(n) : 1. the ability to remember sth; the act of remembering sth
2. a thing that you remember from past
Bestow
(v) : to give sth to sb, especially to show how much they are respected
e. g. it was a title bestowed upon him by the king.
Derogatory
(adj): showing a critical attitude toward sb
SYN = insulting
e.g. derogatory remarks/comments.
Confiscate
(v) : to officially take sth away from sb, especially as a punishment
e. g. Their land was confiscated after the war.
Insatiable
(adj): always wanting more of sth; not able to be satisfied
Flabbergasted
(adj): extremely surprised or shocked
SYN = astonished, astounded
Astounded
(adj): very surprised or shocked by sth because it seems very unlikely
Mystify
(v): to make sb confused because they do not understand sth
SYN = baffle, bamboozle, confound
Dumbfounded
(adj) : unable to speak because of surprise
e. g. the news left her dumbfounded
Dumbfound
(v): to surprise or shock sb so much that they are unable to speak
Ambivalent
(adj): having or showing both good and bad feelings about sb/sth
Croak
(v): to die
Contingency
(n): an event that may or may not happen.
SYN = possibility
Contingency plan: plans for what to do if a particular event happens or does not happen
Sulk
(v) : to look angry and refuse to speak or smile because you want people to know that you are upset about sth
e. g. he went off to sulk in his room.
Slob
(n) : a person who is lazy and dirty or untidy
(v) : slob around; to spend time being lazy and doing nothing
e.g. get out of bed, you fat slob
Hooch
(n): strong alcoholic drink, especially one that been made illegally
Fond
(adj) : 1. feeling affection for sb, especially sb you have known for a long time
2. finding sth peasant or enjoyable, especially sth you have liked or enjoyed for a long time
e.g. over the years, I have grown quite fond of her
Pathological
(adj) : not reasonable or sensible; impossible to control
e. g. pathological fear/hatred/violence
Sordid
(adj) : 1. immoral or dishonest
2. very dirty and unpleasant
e. g. 1. people living in sordid condition
2. it was a shock to discover the truth about his sordid past
Schmuck
(n): (informal) a stupid person
Shtick
(n) : 1. a style of humour that is typical of a particular performer
2. a particular ability that sb has
Snip
(v) : to cut sth with scissors using short quick strokes
e. g. snip a tiny hole in the paper
Sleazy
(adj) : (informal) 1. (of a place) dirty, unpleasant and not socially acceptable, especially because sex is involved
2. (of people) immoral and unpleasant
e.g. a sleazy reporter
Spew
(v) : 1. to flow out quickly, or to make sth flow out quickly. in large amounts
2. (BRE, informal) to vomit
e. g. 1. flames spewed from the aircraft’s engine
2. she spewed out the entire meal
Sullen
(adj) : bad-tempered and not speaking, either on a particular occasion or because it is part of your character
e. g. she gave him a sullen glare
Patter
(n): fast continuous talk by sb who is trying to sell you sth or entertain you
patter(v)
Debauchery
(n): immoral behaviour involving sex, alcohol or drugs
Rage
(n): a feeling o violent anger that is difficult to control
rage (v)
e.g. 1. he flies into a rage if you even mention the subject
2. to be shaking/trembling/speechless with rage
Harry
(v): 1. to annoy or upset sb by continuously asking them questions or for sth
2. to make repeated attacks on an enemy
= harass
Culpable
(adj): responsible and deserving blame for having done sth wrong
Demeaning
(adj): putting sb in a position that does not give them the respect that they should have
= humiliating
demean = degrade
Condescend
(v) : 1. to do sth that you think it is below your social or professional position to do = deign
2. to behave towards sb as though you are more important and more intelligent than they are
e. g. 1. we had to wait almost an hour before he condescended to see us
2. when giving a talk, be careful not to condescend to your audience
Escapade
(n) : an exciting adventure (often one that people think is dangerous or stupid)
e. g. Isabel’s latest romantic escapade
Oaf
(n): a stupid, unpleasant or awkward person, especially a man
oafish (adj)
e.g. mind that cup, you clumsy oaf!
Concubine
(n): a woman who lives with a man, often in addition to his wife or wives, but who is less important than they are
Cherish
(v) : (formal) 1. to love sb/sth very much and want to protect them or it
2. to keep an idea, a hope or a pleasant feeling in your mind for a long time
e. g. 1. children need to be cherished
2. cherish the memory of those days in Paris
Excrement
(n) : (formal) solid waste matter that is passed from the body through the bowels = faeces
e. g. the pollution of drinking water by untreated human excrement
Loiter
(v) : to stand or wait somewhere especially with no obvious reason = hang around
e. g. teenagers were loitering in the street outside
