Word List 43 Flashcards
expropriate
to deprive of possession or proprietary rights to transfer (the property of another) to one's own possession
e.g. Dissidents were shot, and their lands expropriated under his regime.
The state will have to expropriate scores of homeowners in order to build the new road.
extradite
to deliver up to extradition
to obtain the extradition of
e.g. He will be extradited from the U.S. to Canada to face criminal charges there.
facsimile
an exact copy
e.g. The family resemblance is so strong that the boy is virtually a pint-size facsimile of his father.
factitious
produced by humans rather than by natural forces
produced by special effort; sham
e.g. creating a factitious demand by spreading rumors of shortage
fail-safe
incorporating some feature for automatically counteracting the effect of an anticipated possible source of failure
having no chance of failure; infallibly problem-free
e.g. the little black dress that has consistently been the fail-safe solution for night
fanfare
a short and lively sounding of trumpets
a showy outward display
fealty
the fidelity of a vassal or feudal tenant to his lord
intense fidelity
e.g. swear fealty to the king
As much as I wanted to back my friend up, my fealty to the truth was greater.
febrile
marked or caused by fever; feverish
having or showing a great deal of nervous excitement or energy
e.g. a febrile imagination
feisty
having or showing a lively aggressiveness; spunky
felicitate
to consider happy or fortunate
to offer congratulations to
e.g. The other pianists rushed to felicitate the winner of the piano competition.
festal
of or relating to a feast or festival; festive
fetish
a strong and unusual need or desire for something
an object that is believed to have magical
e.g. a fetish for secrecy
wear a fetish to ward off evil spirits
fiend
devil, demon; a person of great wickedness
a person extremely devoted to a pursuit or study; fanatic
addict
wizard
e.g. a golf fiend / a dope fiend
a fiend at mathematics
filch
to appropriate furtively or casually (something small or of little value)
e.g. filch a cookie/pack of gum
filial
of or relating to a son or daughter; appropriate or assuming the relation of a child or offspring
e.g. filial obedience
firebrand
a piece of burning wood
one that creates unrest or strife (as in aggressively promoting a cause); agitator
e.g. a firebrand who urged crowds to riot during the blackouts
fissile
capable of or prone to being split
capable of undergoing fission
e.g. fissile wood/crystals
fitful
having an erratic or intermittent character; irregular
e.g. have a few fitful hours of sleep
several fitful attempts at negotiation
flabby
lacking resilience or firmness; flaccid
weak and ineffective; feeble
flair
a skill or instinctive ability to appreciate or make good use of something; talent
inclination, tendency
a uniquely attractive quality; style
e.g. a flair for making friends quickly
a restaurant with a European flair
flay
to strip off the skin or surface of; skin
to criticize harshly; excoriate
to strike or beat with or as if with a whip; lash
e.g. Her husband flayed her constantly for her incessant shopping.
The wind whipped up to gale fury, flaying his face.
floppy
tending to flop; especially, being both soft and flexible
florescence
a state or period of flourishing
e.g. the florescence of Mayan art in the seventh century A.D.
footle
to talk or act foolishly
to waste time; trifle, fool
e.g. spent the morning footling about
fop
a man who is devoted to or vain about his appearance or dress; coxcomb, dandy
foray
to make raid or brief invasion
raid
a brief excursion or attempt especially outside one’s accustomed sphere
e.g. forayed into enemy territory
a quick foray into town for some supplies
the novelist’s foray into nonfiction
foreclose
to shut out; preclude
to hold exclusively
to deal with or close in advance
a subject to foreclosure proceedings
e.g. They’ve been unable to make their mortgage payments, and the bank has threatened to foreclose.
forensic
belonging to, used in, or suitable to courts of judicature or to public discussion and debate
argumentative, rhetoric
relating to or dealing with the application of scientific knowledge to legal problems
e.g. In his first forensic arguments his rapid utterance was as indistinct as if he had mush in his mouth.
forensic science/pathologist
forswear
to reject or renounce under oath
to renounce earnestly
to deny under oath
e.g. She forswore her allegiance to the old regime.
fray
a usually disorderly or protracted fight, struggle, or dispute
to wear by or as if by rubbing; fret
strain, irritate
frisk
to leap, skip, or dance in a lively or playful way; gambol
to search (a person) for something
also
e.g. carefree kids laughing and frisking about in their backyard
fritter
to spend or waste bit by bit, on trifles, or without commensurate return (oft. used with away)
dissipate, dwindle
e.g. fritter away one’s money / an afternoon
watch one’s fortune fritter away
frowzy
musty, stale
having a slovenly or uncared-for appearance
e.g. a frowzy smell of stale beer and stale smoke
The abandoned house was dank and frowzy and barely fit for human habitation.
fructify
to bear fruit
e.g. No partnership can fructify without candor on both sides.
fustian
a strong cotton and linen fabric
high-flown or affected writing or speech; broadly, anything high-flown or affected in style
e.g. a speech awash in old-fashioned fustian and bereft of all substance
gab
to talk in a rapid or thoughtless manner; chatter
also
gabble
to talk fast or foolishly; jabber
to utter inarticulate or animal sounds
babble
gallows
a structure on which a criminal who has been sentenced to death is killed by being hanged
gamut
the whole series of recognized musical notes
an entire range or series
e.g. experience the full gamut of human emotions
The actress’s work runs the gamut from goofy comedies to serious historical dramas.
gander
an adult male goose
simpleton
(slang) look, glance
gangling
awkwardly tall and spindly; lank and loosely built
gangrene
local death of soft tissues due to loss of blood supply
pervasive decay or corruption; rot
e.g. moral gangrene
garland
a circular or spiral arrangement of intertwined material
anthology, collection
e.g. a garland of flowers
gauche
lacking social experience or grace; also, not tactful; crude
crudely made or done
e.g. His loud talking at the opera marked him as gauche and uncultured.
a gauche turn of phrase
gaunt
excessively thin and angular
barren, desolate
e.g. a long gaunt face
a gaunt factory on the edge of town
genuflect
to bend the knee (especially in worship)
to be servilely obedient or respectful
e.g. his essential instinct to genuflect to the ultra-rich
gestate
to carry in the uterus during pregnancy
to conceive and gradually develop in the mind
e.g. a research trip he made while gestating his new book
gesticulate
to make gestures especially when speaking
girdle
to move around; circle
e.g. girdled the world
gleam
a transient appearance of subdued or partly obscured light
a brief or faint appearance
e.g. the gleam of dawn in the east / a gleam in his eyes
a gleam of hope
gloaming
twilight, dusk
e.g. With the gloaming came the familiar chirping of the whip-poor-will.
gnome
maxim, aphorism
gnomic
characterized by aphorism
e.g. a gnomic utterance about death
gormandize
to eat gluttonously or ravenously
to eat greedily; devour
e.g. hungry hockey players who will gormandize whatever they happen to find in the fridge
goggle
to stare with wide or protuberant eyes
e.g. He goggled in amazement at the elaborate costumes.
gosling
a young goose
a foolish or callow person
granary
a storehouse for threshed grain
a region producing grain in abundance
a chief source or storehouse
gratis
without charge or recompose; free
e.g. The food was supplied gratis.
greenhorn
an inexperienced or naive person a newcomer (as to a country) unacquainted with local manners and customs
e.g. He’s not the most sophisticated businessman you’ll ever meet, but he’s no greenhorn.
gruff
rough, brusque, or stern in manner, speech, or aspect
being deep and harsh; hoarse
e.g. a gruff reply / a gruff voice
gulch
a deep or precipitous cleft; ravine; especially, one occupied by a torrent
e.g. The gulch floods in the spring with a runoff from the mountains, so wait until later in the summer to hike it.
gull
a usually gray and white aquatic bird
to take advantage of; deceive
a gullible person; dupe
e.g. We were gulled into believing that…
gusto
an individual or special taste
enthusiastic and vigorous enjoyment or appreciation
e.g. have the gusto to go on a strenuous hike
guttle
to eat ravenously
gynecocracy
government by women
haft
the handle of a weapon or tool
haggard
having a worn or emaciated appearance; gaunt
haggle
to cut roughly or clumsily; hack
bargain, wrangle
e.g. haggling over the price
hamstring
a tendon/muscle at the back of a person’s knee / upper leg
to make ineffective or powerless; cripple
e.g. a company hamstrung by government regulations
hard-bitten
seasoned or steeled by difficult experience; tough
e.g. They were a hard-bitten lot, burned to a brick red by the untempered sun.
hardy
bold, brave
audacious, brazen
inured to fatigue or hardships; robust
hassle
a heated often protracted argument; wrangle
a violent skirmish; fight
a state of confusion; turmoil
an annoying or troublesome concern
e.g. deal with flight delays and all of the other hassles
got into a hassle with his landlord
heave
life, raise throw, cast to utter with obvious effort or with a deep breath labor, struggle pull, push
e.g. heaved the door shut
heaved the ball down the field
heaved a sigh of relief
