Word List 39

Question 1

warrant

Answer 1

sanction, authorization
justification
to declare or maintain with certainty
to guarantee security or immunity to; secure
to give warrant or sanction to; authorize

e.g. The writing was poor, but it hardly warrants that kind of insulting criticism.
promising enough to warrant further consideration

Question 2

wastrel

Answer 2

vagabond, waif
one who expends resources foolishly and self-indulgently; profligate

e.g. The black sheep of the family, he ended up being a wastrel and a drunkard.

Question 3

watershed

Answer 3

a crucial dividing point, line, or factor; turning point

e.g. A watershed moment in her life came when she inherited a reasonable sum of money and was able to start her own coffee shop.

Question 4

wax

Answer 4

to increase in size, numbers, strength, prosperity, or intensity
to grow or become

e.g. Discord waxed at an alarming rate.
He waxed angry at the insinuation.

Question 5

wean

Answer 5

to detach from a source of dependence
to accustom to something from an early age (used in the passive especially with on)

e.g. being weaned off the medication
wean him off his excessive drinking
students who are weaned on the Internet for research

Question 6

weasel

Answer 6

to use weasel words; equivocate
to escape from or evade a situation or obligation (oft. used with out)

e.g. The polite guest chose to weasel rather than admit that he didn’t like the meal.

Question 7

welter

Answer 7

a state of wild disorder; turmoil
a chaotic mass or jumble

e.g. a bewildering welter of data

Question 8

wheedle

Answer 8

to influence or entice by soft words or flattery
to gain or get by wheedling

e.g. He wheedled quite a bit of money from her.
wheedle one’s way into favor

Question 9

whet

Answer 9

to sharpen by rubbing on or with something (as a stone)
to make keen or more acute; excite, stimulate

e.g. whet a knife
whet the appetite / whet booksellers’ interests

Question 10

whim

Answer 10

a capricious or eccentric and often sudden idea or turn of the mind; fancy

e.g. quit his job on a whim

Question 11

whimsical

Answer 11

full of, actuated by, or exhibiting whims
resulting from or characterized by whim or caprice; especially, lightly fanciful

e.g. a whimsical sense of humor
hard to make plans with such a whimsical friend
whimsical decorations

Question 12

whimsy

Answer 12

whim, caprice
a fanciful or fantastic device, object, or creation especially in writing or art

e.g. The designer’s new line showed a touch of whimsy.
a bit of decorative whimsy

Question 13

whittle

Answer 13

to pare or cut off chips from the surface of (wood) with a knife
to reduce, remove, or destroy gradually; pare

e.g. whittle a walking stick from a maple tree branch
whittle down the company’s overhead / whittle away one’s inheritance

Question 14

willful

Answer 14

obstinately and often perversely self-willed
done deliberately; intentional

e.g. a stubborn and willful child
willful disregard for other people’s feelings

Question 15

willowy

Answer 15

pliant

gracefully tall and slender

Question 16

wily

Answer 16

full of clever tricks; crafty

e.g. a wily negotiator

Question 17

wince

Answer 17

to shrink back involuntarily (as from pain); flinch

e.g. winched at the movie’s graphic depiction of combat injuries

Question 18

windbag

Answer 18

an exhaustively talkative person

Question 19

windy

Answer 19

verbose, bombastic
lacking substance; empty

e.g. a windy politician
windy promises

Question 20

winnow

Answer 20

to get rid of (something undesirable or unwanted); remove
separate, sift; select
narrow, reduce

e.g. winnow out certain inaccuracies
an old hand at winnowing what is true and significant
The least qualified applicants were winnowed out of the initial pool.

Question 21

winsome

Answer 21

generally pleasing and engaging often because of a childlike charm and innocence
cheerful, lighthearted

e.g. a winsome smile

Question 22

wistful

Answer 22

full of yearning or desire tinged with melancholy; also, inspiring such yearning
musingly sad; pensive

e.g. a wistful memoir

Question 23

witticism

Answer 23

a clever witty and often biting or ironic remark

e.g. a drama critic who is best remembered for his biting witticisms

Question 24

wizen

Answer 24

to become dry, shrunken, and wrinkled often as a result of aging or failing vitality

e.g. a face wizened by age

Question 25

wobble

Answer 25

to move or proceed unsteadily and clumsily
tremble, quaver
waver, vacillate

Question 26

woe

Answer 26

a condition of deep suffering from misfortune, affliction, or grief
ruinous trouble; calamity, affliction

e.g. a tale of misery and woe
economic woes

Question 27

wrangle

Answer 27

to dispute angrily or peevishly; bicker

e.g. wrangling over money

Question 28

wrangler

Answer 28

a bickering disputant

a ranch hand who takes care of the saddle horses; broadly, cowboy

Question 29

wretched

Answer 29

deeply afflicted, dejected or distressed
extremely or deplorably bad or distressing
very poor in quality or ability; inferior

e.g. slums filled with poor, wretched children
in wretched health/poverty
wretched clothes/workmanship

Question 30

writ

Answer 30

something written; writing
a formal written document
the power and authority of the issuer of such a written order

e.g. The judge issued a writ of execution.
outside the United States where our writ does not run

Question 31

wrought

Answer 31

worked into shape by artistry or effort
elaborately embellished; ornamented
processed for use; manufactured
deeply stirred; excited (oft. used with up)

e.g. carefully wrought essays
gets easily wrought up over nothing

Question 32

wry

Answer 32

having a bend or twisted shape or condition; also, turned abnormally to one side
cleverly and often ironically or grimly humorous

e.g. a wry smile
noted for their wry humor

Question 33

xenophobe

Answer 33

one unduly fearful of what is foreign and especially of people of foreign origin

Question 34

xerophyte

Answer 34

a plant adapted for life and growth with a limited water supply

Question 35

yarn

Answer 35

a continuous often plied strand composed of either natural or man-made fibers or filaments and used in weaving and knitting to form cloth
a narrative of adventures; especially, a tall tale

e.g. The sheep’s wool will be spun into yarn.
a roaring good yarn about ghosts and goblins
a storyteller who spins yarns that will keep any audience riveted

Question 36

yearn

Answer 36

to long persistently, wistfully, or sadly
to feel tenderness or compassion

e.g. yearn to make a difference

Question 37

yeast

Answer 37

something that causes ferment or activity

e.g. Taxation without representation proved to be the yeast of rebellion.

Question 38

yielding

Answer 38

productive
lacking rigidity or stiffness; flexible
disposed to submit or comply

e.g. a high-yielding chemical process
a soft and yielding material
a docile and yielding temperament

Question 39

yoke

Answer 39

a bar or frame that is attached to the heads or necks of two work animals
servitude, bondage
also
to put to work

e.g. a people able at last to throw off the yoke and embrace freedom
yoked several ideas together to come up with a new theory

Question 40

yokel

Answer 40

a naive or gullible inhabitant of a rural area or small town

e.g. a lame comedy about the misadventures of yokels in the big city

Question 41

zealotry

Answer 41

excess of zeal; fanatical devotion

e.g. Cyclists do pursue a zealotry of their own.

Question 42

zenith

Answer 42

the highest point reached in the heavens by a celestial body
culminating point; acme

e.g. at the zenith of her career as a dancer

Question 43

zephyr

Answer 43

a breeze from the west; a gentle breeze

Question 44

zest

Answer 44

a piece of the peel of a citrus fruit used as flavoring
an enjoyable exciting quality; piquancy
keen enjoyment; relish, gusto

e.g. His humor added zest to the performance.
a zest for living