Word List 1 Flashcards
abash
to make embarrassed
e.g. She felt terribly abashed when she walked into the wrong hotel room.
embolden
to make (someone) more confident
abate
to reduce in degree or intensity; wane
e.g. abate their rancor to win peace
abdicate
to cast off; discard to relinquish (as sovereign power) formally
aberrant
deviating from the right, usual, normal way; atypical
abet
to actively encourage (as an activity or plan)
to assist or support in the achievement of a purpose
e.g. He abetted the commission of a crime.
She abetted the thief in his getaway.
abeyance
temporary inactivity; suspension
e.g. Plans are held in abeyance.
abhor
to regard with extreme repugnance
abide
to endure without yielding; withstand
to bear patiently; tolerate
e.g. I cannot abide such bigots.
abject
miserable; wretched
degraded; base
abjure
to give up on oath
renounce
to give up by formal declaration
e.g. He renounced his old way of life.
recant
to withdraw or repudiate formally and publicly; renounce
e.g. Witnesses threatened to recant their testimony when the court released their names to the paper.
ablution
the washing of one’s body or part of it (as in religious ritual)
abnegate
deny; renounce
surrender; relinquish
e.g. He abnegated all claims to the deceased lord’s domain.
If the Congress adopted these security measures, it would be abnegating the nation’s fundamental commitment to individual rights.
abolish
to officially end or stop
abolitionism
principles or measures fostering abolition especially of slavery
aboveboard
honest(ly) and open(ly)
e.g. an aboveboard and responsible proposal
surreptitious
done, made, or acquired by stealth; clandestine
e.g. a private investigator adept at taking surreptitious pictures of adulterous couples
abrade
to scrape or rub off
e.g. The prisoner’s manacles abraded his wrists and ankles until they bled.
abrasive
causing irritation; irritating
tending to abrade
e.g. The waves had an abrasive action on the rocks.
an abrasive display of rude behavior
abreast
side by side
e.g. keep abreast of current affairs
abridge
to reduce in scope or extent
to shorten; condense
e.g. abridge a dictionary by omitting rare words
attempts to abridge the right of free speech
abrogate
to repeal by authority; abolish
e.g. The Congress can abrogate old treaties that are unfair to Native Americans.
abscission
removal
the natural separation of flowers, fruit, or leaves from plants
abscond
to depart secretly and hide oneself
e.g. Several prisoners absconded to Canada.
absenteeism
frequent absence from school or work
recondite
not understood or known by many people
e.g. Geochemistry is a recondite subject.
absolve
to set free from guilt, responsibility
forgive
e.g. No amount of remorse will absolve shoplifters who are caught.
inculpate
incriminate; to charge with involvement in a crime or fault
abstain
to refrain deliberately and often with an effort of self-denial from an action or practice
e.g. abstain from drinking
abstinence
- abstain
abstention
the act or practice of abstaining
abstemious
marked by restraint especially in the consumption of food or alcohol
e.g. Being abstemious diners, they avoid restaurants with buffets.
abstruse
difficult to understand
patent
obvious; clear
abut
to border upon
e.g. Our land abuts a nature preserve, so we see a lot of wildlife.
abysmal
having immense or fathomless extension
immeasurably great; profound
immeasurably low or wretched
e.g. an abysmal cliff
abysmal ignorance
abysmal living conditions of the poor
accede
to agree to a request or a demand
to express approval or give consent
e.g. He finally acceded to their pleas for more time to complete the project.
accentuate
to pronounce with an accent or stress
to emphasize
accessible
easy to approach
open to influences
e.g. accessible to new ideas
acclaim
applaud; praise
e.g. She has long been acclaimed by the critics for her realistic acting.
accolade
approval; appreciation
words of praise
e.g. For their exceptional bravery, the firefighters received accolades from both local and national officials.
accommodating
willing to please; obliging
e.g. an accommodating waiter who readily honored our request to make substitutions
accomplice
partner in crime
duplicity
contradictory doubleness of though, speech, or action (especially belying of one’s true intentions by deceptive words or actions)
accord
to bring into agreement; reconcile
agreement; conformity
e.g. He claims that the newspaper’s quote does not accord with what he actually said.
The two sides were able to reach an accord.
accost
to approach and speak to often in a challenging or aggressive way
e.g. She was so famous that people would accost her on the street and ask for an autograph.
accrete
to grow or become attached by accretion
to cause to adhere or become attached
e.g. silt accreting at the mouth of the river over time
accrue
to increase in value or amount gradually
e.g. investments that have accrued interest and dividends
acerbic
acid in temper, mood, or tone
e.g. acerbic commentary
an acerbic reviewer
acme
the highest point; peak; summit
e.g. His fame was at its acme.
acolyte
one who follows and admires a leader
someone who helps the person leading a church service
acorn
an oak nut
acoustic
having to do with hearing or sound
acquaint
to cause to know personally
to make familiar
e.g. This class is designed to acquaint students with the region's most important writers. He was acquainted with the mayor.
acquiesce
to accept, comply, or submit tacitly or passively
e.g. He passively acquired the reputation of being a snob, and acquiesced to it.
acquisitive
strongly desirous of acquiring and possessing; greedy
e.g. Acquisitive developers are trying to tear down the historic home and build a shopping mall.
acquit
to declare (someone) to be not guilty to discharge completely as from an obligation to pay off (as a claim or debt)
e.g. The jury acquitted the defendant of the robbery charge.
acquittal
a setting free from the charge of an offense
acrid
bitterly pungent; sharp
deeply or violently bitter
e.g. acrid smoke
acrid relations between two families
acrimony
harsh sharpness especially or words, manner, or disposition
e.g. The dispute began again with increased acrimony.
acrophobia
fear or heights
acuity
keenness of perception
e.g. a worrisome deterioration in the acuity of his hearing over the years
acumen
keenness and depth of perception
e.g. Her political acumen won her the election.
acute
sharp and severe;
keen; shrewd; sensitive
e.g. acute pain/disease/hospitals
an acute thinker/sense of humor
a politically acute film that does not oversimplify the issues
adage
an old saying accepted as a truth
adamant
unshakable or insistent especially in maintaining a position or opinion; determined
e.g. He is adamant about staying there after we tried to talk him into coming with us.
ineptitude
a lack of skill or ability
e.g. The team’s poor play is being blamed on the ineptitude of the coaching staff.
aptitude
a natural ability to do or learn something
e.g. a test to measure the aptitudes of the students
bored teenagers with an aptitude for getting into trouble
addendum
a thing added; addition
a supplement to a book
adept
thoroughly proficient; expert
e.g. adept in several languages/ at fixing cars
equable
tending to remain calm; free from sudden or harsh changes
e.g. equable climate
adjourn
to suspend indefinitely or until a later stated time
adjunct
something joined or added to another thing but not essentially part of it
e.g. Massage therapy can be used as an adjunct with to the medication.
admonish
to express warning or disapproval to especially in a gentle, earnest, or solicitous manner
to give friendly earnest advice or encouragement to
e.g. They were admonished to take the advantage of the opportunity.
My physician is always admonishing me to eat more healthy food.
admonitory
- admonish; warning
adobe
a brick of sun-dried earth and straw
abode
the place where one abides (lives)
oration
a formal speech
inexorable
not to be persuaded, moved, or stopped; relentless
e.g. inexorable progress
adorn
decorate; beautify
e.g. Her paintings adorn the walls.
suborn
to induce secretly to do an unlawful thing to obtain (perjured testimony) from a witness
e.g. He is accused of suborning a witness.
adroit
very clever or skillful; expert
e.g. adroit at handling problems
With an adroit flick of the wrist, he flipped the omelet in the air and landed it squarely back in the pan.
adulate
to praise or flatter excessively
scorn
reject or dismiss as contemptible or unworthy
to show disdain
e.g. Her actions were scorned by many people.
They were scorned as fanatics.
adumbrate
to foreshadow vaguely; intimate
to suggest, disclose, or outline partially
e.g. The strife in Bloody Kansas in the 1850s adumbrated the civil war that would follow.
adumbrate a plan
advent
a coming into being or use
e.g. the advent of spring/pasteurization/computers
adventitious
happening or carried on according to chance rather than design or inherent nature; unplanned
coming from outside; not native
e.g. My adventures were always adventitious, always thrust on me.
He felt that the conversation was not entirely adventitious.
adverse
bad or unfavorable
acting against or in a contrary direction
e.g. adverse criticism/drug effects
hindered by adverse winds
aegis
shield
protection
sponsorship
e.g. Having no claim to the land under the aegis of the law, the cattle baron decided to claim it by force.
A medical study was questioned by many because it was done under the aegis of a major pharmaceutical company.
aerate
to cause air to circulate through
aesthete
connoisseur; virtuoso
(aesthetics)
e.g. He regards art critics as a bunch of pretentious aesthetes.
philistine
a person guided by materialism and usually disdainful of intellectual or artistic values
one uninformed in a special area of knowledge
affable
pleasant and easy to approach or talk to; gentle; amiable
ineffable
incapable of being expressed in words
unspeakable; not to be uttered
e.g. ineffable joy/disgust
the ineffable name of Jehovah
irascible
marked by hot temper and easily provoked anger
affectation
artificial behavior meant to impress others
e.g. His French accent is just an affectation.
