VSP VOCAB 1-6 Flashcards
retribution
n. punishment for offenses; compensation
s: chastisement, condemnation, discipline
a: acquittal, forgiveness, overlooking, pardoning
reticence
n. inclination to be silent
s: reserve, silence, taciturnity, uncommunicativeness
a: frankness, ingenuousness, openness, talkativeness
respite
n. an interval of relief or rest; a delay of punishment
s: intermission, lull, pause, postponement, recess, suspension
a: activity, continuity, movement; action, execution
reprisal
n. forcible seizure in retaliation for injuries received; injury done in return for injury received
s: counterattack, retaliation, revenge
a: compromise, reconciliation, submission
reprehensible
adj. deserving of blame, rebuke, or censure
s: blameworthy, condemnable, reprovable
a: blameless, commendable, laudatory
replete
adj. abundantly supplied; well-filled
s: bountiful, complete, full, plenary
a: drained, empty, insufficient
renunciation
n. the act of formally or voluntarily giving up a claim or title
s: abnegation, sacrifice, self-denial, surrender
a: assertion, claim, demand
remonstrance
n. the act of objecting or protesting
s: expostulation, objection, protestation
a:acquiescence, agreement, assent, consent
recumbent
adj. reclining; lying down; resting
s: couchant, dormant, prone, prostrate, supine
a: erect, standing, upright
discomfit
v. to cause uneasiness, embarrassment, or confusion
s: disconcert, fluster, unnerve
v. to thwart the plans or purposes of
s: foil, frustrate, hinder
a: accomplish, effect,fulfill
corroborate
v. to strengthen or confirm by agreeing statements or new evidence
s: authenticate, certify, document, substantiate, validate, verify
a: contradict, invalidate, negate, nullify
coerce
v. to force someone to comply or obey, as by pressure, threats or intimidation; to effect by force
s: bully, compel, constrain, extort, oblige
a: blandish, cajole, coax, entreat, inveigle, persuade
sporadic
adj. occuring in occasional or isolated instances
s: infrequent, irregular, occasional, random, spotty
a: frequent, regular, unbroken, unremitting
pseudonym
n. a fictitious name ,as one assumed by an author
s: alias cryptonym, nom de plume, pen name
plethora
n. excess, superabundance
s: oversupply, profusion, superfluity
a: dearth, inadequacy, insufficiency, scantiness
panacea
n. a supposed remedy for all diseases or ills
s: cure-all, elixir, nostrum
idiosyncrasy
n. a temperament peculiar to an individual; any personal peculiarity or mannerism
s: eccentricity, oddity, pecularity, singularity
a: commonness, normality, ordinariness
epithet
n. a name or title used to describe or characterize a person or thing
s: appellation, designation, label, nickname
eon
n. an indefinitely long time
s: ages, eternity, forever, years
demagogue
n. a leader who appeals to the emotions and prejudices of the populace in order to obtain power
s: agitator, haranguer, rabble-rouser
criterion
n. a test, rule, or standard by which something is judged
s: barometer, gauge, guideline, norm, touchstone, yardstick
caustic
adj. capable of burning, corroding, or destroying tissue by chemical action
s: acidic, cankerous, corrosive
a: healing, restorative
adj. cutting or sarcastic in utterance
s: sardonic, scathing
a: amiable, cordial, gracious, kind
anathema
n. a person or thing accursed or consigned to damnation; a formal ecclesiastical curse or ban
s: banishment, damnation, excommunication, interdiction
a: acceptance, reception, sanction
n. a person or thing greatly detested
s: abhorrence, abomination, nuisance
a: admiration, delight, joy
n. a curse or imprecation generally
s: denunciation, execration, malediction
a: benediction, blessing, praise
agnostic
n. one who holds that the existence of God is unknown and unknowable; one who asserts that all claims to knowledge are uncertain
s: nonbeliever, skeptic
a: believer
trajectory
n. the direction of an object through space
n. a course taken
s: curve, direction, flight, flow, movement, route, track, trail
a: deviation, misdirection
sanction
n. authoritative permission for an action
s: approcal, authorization, endorsement, ratification
a: disapprobation, disapproval
n. a penalty imposed to encourage compliance to law
s: ban, injunction
precursor
n. a person or thing that goes before and heralds the coming of another person or thing; one who precedes another in a course or office
s: harbinger, herald, messenger; forerunner, predecessor
plagiarism
n. ** the act of stealing and using the ideas or writings of another as one’s own**
s: appropriation, arrogation, theft