Week #1 Flashcards
Define
Voracious
(və rāˊshəs)
Desiring or consuming great quantities
After skiing, I find that I have a voracious appetite.
Define
Indiscriminate
(inˊdis krimˊə nit)
Choosing at random w/o careful selection
Modern warfare often results in the indiscriminate killing of combatants and innocent civilians alike.
Define
Eminent
(emˊə nənt)
Of high reputation, outstanding
The eminent author received the Nobel Prize for literature.
Define
Steeped
(stēpt)
Soaked, drenched, saturated
My cousin is so steeped in schoolwork that his friends
call him a bookworm.
Define
Replete
(riˊplētˊ)
Completely filled or supplied with
A good library is replete with many different kinds of books.
Define
To Eat Humble Pie
To admit my error and apologize
After his candidate had lost the election, the boastful
campaign manager had to eat humble pie.
Define
Abound
(ə bound)
To exist in great numbers
The Western Plains used to be abound with bison before they were slaught
Define
Technology
(tek nolˊ ə ji)
Branch of knowledge dealing w/engineering, applied science, etc.
Man may be freed from backbreaking labor by the
products of scientific technology.
Define
Prognosticate
(prog nosˊ tə kāt)
To predict or foretell a future event
The mayor refused to prognosticate to his margin of
victory in the election.
Define
Automaton
(ô tomˊə ton)
A robot
A mechanical person
The time is approaching when human workers may be
replaced by automatons.
Matron
(māˊtrən)
An older married woman
A clever salesman will always ask a matron if her
mother is at home.
Define
A Pig In A Poke
To buy something w/o having seen it
A disappointment
The mail-order bicycle that my nephew bought turned
out to be a pig in a poke, and he is now trying to get his
money back.
Define
Paradox
(parˊə doks)
A statement which as first seems to be absurd or self-contradictory but which may in fact turn out to be true
One of the great paradoxes of American life is that
though minority groups have suffered injustices,
nowwhere in the world have so many varied groups
lived together as harmoniously.
Define
Realm
Special field of someone or something
Kingdom
The cruel king would not allow the prince to enter his
realm, restricting him to the forest which abounded
with wild animals.
Define
Annals
(anˊnəlz)
Historical records
The annals of sports are replete with the names of great
Negro athletes.
Define
Compound
(komˊpound)
To increase or add to
His gloom was now compounded by the failing mark on his geometry test.
Define
Tinge
(tinj)
A trace, smattering or slight degree
A tinge of garlic is all that’s necessary in most recipes.
Define
A Flash In The Pan
Promising at the start but then disappointing
The rookie hit many home runs in spring training, but
once the season began he proved to be a flash in the
pan.
Define
Badger
(bajˊər)
To pester, nag, annoy persistently
The teacher continally badgers the pupil for missing
assignments.
Define
Implore
(im plôrˊ)
To plead urgently for aid or mercy
The sick child’s mother implored the doctor to come
immediately.
Define
Drudgery
(drujˊər ē)
Unpleasant, dull or hard work
She does her homework on Fridays to save herself from the drudgery of having to do it during the weekend.
Define
Interminable
(in terˊmə nə bəl)
Unending
I listened to the boring lecture for what seemed an interminable minutes.
Define
Perceive
(pər sēvˊ)
To understand, know, become aware of
The eminent scientist perceive difficulties in putting the
invention into practice.
Define
To Pour Oil on Troubled Waters
To make peace, to calm someone down
When I tried to pour oil on troubled waters, both the
angry husband and his wife stopped their quarrel and
began to attack me.
