Week #4 Flashcards
Define
Alacrity
(ə lakˊrə ti)
Briskness, lively action
The waiter moved with alacrity because he perceived
they were big tippers.
Define
Disdain
(dis dānˊ)
Contempt
When the curtain came down, the critic’s face
registered disdain he felt for the lackluster play.
Define
Belligerent
(bə lijˊər ənt)
Warlike
His belligerent manner caused him to lose one friend
after another.
Define
Intimidate
(in timˊə dāt)
To overawe
The motorist tried to intimidate the police officer,
telling him of his eminent friends in high places.
Define
Feint
(fānt)
A false show
The Germans were duped by the Allies feint toward
the south, leaving the way open for the Normandy
invasion.
Define
To Throw Down the Gauntlet
To challenge someone
The principal of our rival school threw down the
gauntlet, and we had no choice but to accept the
challenge.
Define
Pugnacious
(pug nāˊshəs)
Quarrelsome
Since everyone can outpunch my cousin, he cannot
afford to be pugnacious.
Define
Promulgate
(prō mulˊgāt or promˊəl gāt)
To make known officially
We implored the faculty advisor to promulgate the
requirements for the presidency of the club.
Define
Brash
(brash)
Impudent, rude
My mother liked the salesman’s brash personality,
but he irritated most people.
Define
Scoff
(skof)
To sneer at
I don’t understand modern art, but I neither loathe nor
scoff at it.
Define
Belittle
(bi litˊl)
To make seem less important
Although Ralph can’t play, he doesn’t hesitate to belittle the efforts of our football team.
Define
Feeling No Pain
Drunk
Although the party had just begun, after his first drink he was feeling no pain.
Define
Tangible
(tanˊjə bl)
Having actual form
Mr. Dixon belittled our request for tangible proof of his
loyalty.
Define
Laceration
(las ər āˊshən)
Jagged wound
The medic reached into his kit to find a bandage for the
ugly laceration.
Define
Castigate
(kāsˊtə gāt)
To correct by punishing
The kindly foreman was too reticent to openly castigate the clumsy new worker.
Define
Sordid
(sôrˊdid)
Dirty, base
Stories of their sordid youth poured forth from the
unhappy felons.
Define
Octogenarian
(okˊ tə jə nãrˊiən)
Person in his eighties
When the teenager announced her engagement to the
octogenarian the public suspected it to be a publicity stunt.
Define
Hobson’s Choice
To have no choice at all
Despite all the talk about democracy in my family, my
father usually gives the rest of us Hobson’s choice.
Define
Solace
(solˊis)
Easing of grief
In trying to offer solace to the pilot’s wife, the reporter
inadvertently made the situation worse.
Define
Aspirant
(əs pīrˊənt)
Candidate for high position
The publisher scoffed at the reports that he was an
aspirant for the job of Secretary of State.
Define
Dregs
(dregz)
Most worthless part
At the bottom of the beautiful wine bottle, only the dregs remained.
Define
Frenzy
(frenˊzē)
Wild fit
In a frenzy, the housewife overturned every drawer while searching for the car keys.
Define
Scurrilous
(skėrˊə ləs)
Coarse
Vigilant censors protect the public from listening to
scurrilous language on television.
Define
To Rule the Roost
To be in charge, to be master
Although he is a lowly private in the army, at home he
rules the roost.
