Week Twenty Three Flashcards
Heterogeneous
Adj: consisting of different parts or types; dissimilar
Example:
With many ethnic groups represented, the student body is very heterogeneous.
Gamut
N: a range of different things or people
Example:
the whole gamut of: In her stories, she expresses the whole gamut of emotions, from happiness to sorrow.
Perspicacious
Adj: quick in noticing, understanding, or judging things accurately; acutely perceptive; shrewd
Example:
His perspicacious grandfather had bought the land as an investment, guessing that there might be gold underground.
Analogous
Adj: having similar features to another thing and therefore able to be compared with it; comparable; similar
Example:
analogous to: The experience of a mystic trance is in a sense analogous to sleep or drunkenness.
Maladjusted
Adj: poorly adjusted; disturbed
Example:
a residential school for disturbed and maladjusted children
Scurrilous
Adj: expressing unfair or false criticism that is likely to damage someone’s reputation
Example:
a scurrilous remark/attack/article
Precedent
N: a previous action or decision that can be used as a reason for allowing something else
Example:
The ruling can serve as a precedent to challenge other similar cases.
Poignant
Adj: causing or having a very sharp feeling of sadness
Example:
-The photograph awakens poignant memories of happier days.
-It is especially poignant that he died on the day before the wedding.
Pursue
V: to try to discover information about a subject
Example:
We will not be pursuing this matter any further.
Phenomenon
N: something that exists and can be seen, felt, tasted, etc., especially something unusual or interesting; unusal occurrence
Example:
-Gravity is a natural phenomenon.
-There’s evidence to suggest that child abuse is not just a recent phenomenon.
Corroborate
V: to add information in support of an idea, opinion, or statement
Example:
Recent research seems to corroborate the theory.
Mortality
N: the way that people do not live for ever
Example:
Her death made him more aware of his own mortality.
Decade
N:
1. a period of ten years
Example:
The economy is growing at its fastest rate this decade.
- Decades means a long time
Example:
They’re enjoying new popularity after decades of neglect.
Susceptible
Adj: easily influenced or harmed by something; unusually liable
Example:
-She isn’t very susceptible to flattery.
-These plants are particularly susceptible to frost.
-Among particularly susceptible children, the disease can develop very fast.
Neurotic
Adj: behaving strangely or in an anxious (= worried and nervous) way, often because you have a mental illness; suffering from a nervous disorder
Example:
-neurotic behaviour/tendencies
-She’s neurotic about her weight - she weighs herself three times a day.
Salient
Adj: most noticeable or important
Example:
The salient fact about the case is that it involves an American.
Acrimony
N: anger, argument, and bad feeling
Example:
-The acrimony of the dispute has shocked a lot of people.
-The decision was reached without acrimony or controversy
Ponder
V: to think carefully about something, especially for a noticeable length of time
Example:
She sat back for a minute to ponder her next move in the game.
Querulous
Adj: often complaining, especially in a weak high voice
Example:
He became increasingly dissatisfied and querulous in his old age.
Paucity
N: the fact that there is too little of something; scarcity; shortage
Example:
There is a paucity of information on the ingredients of many cosmetics.
Bargain
N: something on sale at a lower price than its true value
Example:
This coat was half-price - a real bargain.
Pedagogue
N: a teacher who gives too much attention to formal rules and is not interesting; any teacher
Dismiss
V:
1.to decide that something or someone is not important and not worth considering
Example:
dismiss someone as something: I think he’d dismissed me as an idiot within five minutes of meeting me.
- to formally ask or order someone to leave
Example:
The professor dismissed the class early because she had a meeting.
Recite
V: to say a piece of writing aloud from memory
Example:
-He was nervous about reciting in front of the class.
-The children recite the Pledge of Allegiance every morning.
Enunciate
V: to express and explain a plan or principle clearly or formally; to utter; proclaim
Example:
In the speech, the leader enunciated his party’s proposals for tax reform.
Inordinate
Adj: much more than usual or expected; excessive
Example:
inordinate amount: Margot has always spent an inordinate amount of time on her appearance.
Irascible
Adj: irritable; made angry easily
Example:
She’s becoming more and more irascible as she grows older.
Jittery
Adj: nervous
Example:
He felt all jittery before the interview.
Introspective
Adj: examining and considering your own ideas, thoughts, and feelings, instead of talking to other people about them; looking into one’s own feelings
Example:
She is famous for her introspective songs about failed relationships.
Profligate
Adj: spending money or using something in a way that wastes it and is not wise
Example:
-She is well-known for her profligate spending habits.
-The profligate use of antibiotics has led to the evolution of resistant bacteria.
Gregarious
Adj: (of people) liking to be with other people; sociable
Example:
Emma’s a gregarious, outgoing sort of person.
Assiduous
Adj: showing hard work, care, and attention to detail
Example:
-assiduous research/efforts
-an assiduous student
-The government has been assiduous in the fight against inflation.
Perpetuate
V: to cause something to continue
Example:
-Increasing the supply of weapons will only perpetuate the violence and anarchy.
-The aim of the association is to perpetuate the skills of traditional furniture design.
Stem from something
Phrasal verb: to start or develop as the result of something
Example:
-Her problems stem from her difficult childhood.
-Their disagreement stemmed from a misunderstanding.
Badger
V: to persuade someone by telling them repeatedly to do something, or to question someone repeatedly
Example:
Stop badgering me - I’ll do it when I’m ready.
Mandate
N: an authoritative order or command
Example:
At the forthcoming elections, the government will be seeking a fresh mandate from the people.
Bring about something
Phrasal verb: to cause something to happen
Example:
Harold’s working to bring about changes in the industry.
Compensatory
Adj: given or paid to someone in exchange for something that has been lost or damaged, or to pay for something that has been done; serving to pay back
Example:
-The government did not put in place adequate compensatory measures to offset the negative impact of the new tax.
-When there is significant blood loss, compensatory responses occur that help to maintain the supply of oxygen to the tissues.
Neutralize
V: to produce an effect that removes the effect of something else; to counteract
Example:
Raising the sales tax will neutralize the tax cut.
Catastrophic
Adj: causing sudden and very great harm or destruction; very bad; disastrous
Example:
-An unchecked increase in the use of fossil fuels could have catastrophic results for the planet.
-A catastrophic storm made landfall on US soil.
Draconian
Adj: Draconian laws, government actions, etc. are extremely severe, or go further than what is right or necessary
Example:
-draconian laws/methods
-draconian measure: He criticized the draconian measures taken by the police in controlling the demonstrators.
Unabated
Adj: without becoming weaker in strength or force; relentless
Example:
The fighting continued unabated throughout the night.
Denote
V: to represent something
Example:
The color red is used to denote passion or danger.
