WORDBOOK Flashcards
Postprandial
postprandial /pəʊs(t)ˈprandɪəl /
▸ adjective formal or humorous during or relating to the period after dinner or lunch:
we were jolted from our postprandial torpor.
▪ Medicine occurring or done after a meal:
an annual postprandial blood glucose test.
–ORIGIN early 19th century : from post- ‘after’ + Latin prandium ‘a meal’ + -al.
Iterate
iterate /ˈɪtəreɪt /
▸ verb [with object] perform or utter repeatedly:
(as adjective iterated) the bird’s call is a monotonously iterated single note.
▪ [no object] make repeated use of a mathematical or computational procedure, applying it each time to the result of the previous application; perform iteration.
▸ noun Mathematics a quantity arrived at by iteration.
–ORIGIN mid 16th century : from Latin iterat- ‘repeated’, from the verb iterare, from iterum ‘again’.
Muse (2)
muse (2) /mjuːz /
▸ verb [no object] be absorbed in thought:
he was musing on the problems he faced.
▪ say to oneself in a thoughtful manner:
‘I think I’ve seen him somewhere before,’ mused Rachel.
▪ (muse on) gaze thoughtfully at:
he sat on the edge of the bank, legs dangling, eyes musing on the water.
▸ noun an instance or period of reflection.
–ORIGIN Middle English : from Old French muser ‘meditate, waste time’, perhaps from medieval Latin musum ‘muzzle’.
Muse (1)
muse(1) /mjuːz /
▸ noun
1 (Muse) (in Greek and Roman mythology) each of nine goddesses, the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, who preside over the arts and sciences.
The Muses are generally listed as Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Euterpe (flute playing and lyric poetry), Terpsichore (choral dancing and song), Erato (lyre playing and lyric poetry), Melpomene (tragedy), Thalia (comedy and light verse), Polyhymnia (hymns, and later mime), and Urania (astronomy).
2 a person or personified force who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist:
Yeats’ muse, Maud Gonne
the landscape was Gorky’s primary muse.
–ORIGIN late Middle English : from Old French, or from Latin musa, from Greek mousa.
Seminal
seminal /ˈsɛmɪn(ə)l /
▸ adjective
1 strongly influencing later developments:
his seminal work on chaos theory.
2 relating to or denoting semen:
the spermatozoa are washed to separate them from the seminal plasma.
▪ Botany relating to or derived from the seed of a plant:
the seminal root system.
–DERIVATIVES
seminally adverb
–ORIGIN late Middle English (in seminal (SENSE 2)): from Old French seminal or Latin seminalis, from semen ‘seed’. seminal (SENSE 1) dates from the mid 17th century.
Acquiesce
acquiesce /ˌakwɪˈɛs /
▸ verb [no object] accept something reluctantly but without protest:
Sara acquiesced in his decision.
–ORIGIN early 17th century : from Latin acquiescere, from ad- ‘to, at’ + quiescere ‘to rest’.
Sic (1)
sic(1) /sɪk /
▸ adverb used in brackets after a copied or quoted word that appears odd or erroneous to show that the word is quoted exactly as it stands in the original, as in a story must hold a child’s interest and ‘enrich his (sic) life’.
–ORIGIN Latin, literally ‘so, thus’.
Technocratic
technocratic /tɛknəˈkratɪk /
▸ adjective relating to or characterized by the government or control of society or industry by an elite of technical experts:
a technocratic approach to government
the rise of technocratic elites.
–DERIVATIVES
technocratically /tɛknəˈkratɪk(ə)li / adverb
Subversive
subversive /səbˈvəːsɪv /
▸ adjective seeking or intended to subvert an established system or institution:
subversive literature.
▸ noun a subversive person:
the government claimed we were subversives or terrorists.
–DERIVATIVES
subversively /səbˈvəːsɪvli / adverb
subversiveness noun
–ORIGIN mid 17th century : from medieval Latin subversivus, from the verb subvertere (see subvert).
Ubiquitous
ubiquitous /juːˈbɪkwɪtəs /
▸ adjective present, appearing, or found everywhere:
his ubiquitous influence was felt by all the family
cowboy hats are ubiquitous among the male singers.
–DERIVATIVES
ubiquitously adverb
ubiquitousness /juːˈbɪkwɪtəsnəs / noun
–ORIGIN mid 19th century : from modern Latin ubiquitas (from Latin ubique ‘everywhere’, from ubi ‘where’) + -ous.
Sanctimonious
sanctimonious /ˌsaŋ(k)tɪˈməʊnɪəs /
▸ adjective derogatory making a show of being morally superior to other people:
what happened to all the sanctimonious talk about putting his family first?
–DERIVATIVES
sanctimoniously /ˌsaŋ(k)tɪˈməʊnɪəsli / adverb
sanctimoniousness /ˌsaŋ(k)tɪˈməʊnɪəsnəs / noun
–ORIGIN early 17th century (in the sense ‘holy in character’): from Latin sanctimonia ‘sanctity’ (from sanctus ‘holy’) + -ous.
Perpetuity
perpetuity /pəːpɪˈtjʃuːɪti , pəːpɪˈtjuːɪti /
▸ noun
(plural perpetuities)
1 [mass noun] the state or quality of lasting forever:
he did not believe in the perpetuity of military rule.
2 a bond or other security with no fixed maturity date.
3 Law a restriction making an interest in land inalienable perpetually or for a period beyond certain limits fixed by law.
–PHRASES
in perpetuity (also for perpetuity)
forever:
all the Bonapartes were banished from France in perpetuity.
–ORIGIN late Middle English : from Old French perpetuite, from Latin perpetuitas, from perpetuus ‘continuing throughout’ (see perpetual).
Superfluous
superfluous /suːˈpəːflʊəs /
▸ adjective unnecessary, especially through being more than enough:
the purchaser should avoid asking for superfluous information.
–DERIVATIVES
superfluously /suːˈpəːflʊəsli / adverb
superfluousness /suːˈpəːflʊəsnəs / noun
–ORIGIN late Middle English : from Latin superfluus, from super- ‘over’ + fluere ‘to flow’.
Vacuity
vacuity /vəˈkjuːɪti /
▸ noun [mass noun]
1 lack of thought or intelligence; empty-headedness:
he denounced what he considered the frivolity or vacuity of much contemporary painting.
2 empty space; emptiness.
Vacuous
vacuous /ˈvakjʊəs / ▸ adjective 1 having or showing a lack of thought or intelligence; mindless: a vacuous smile vacuous slogans. 2 archaic empty. –DERIVATIVES vacuously /ˈvakjʊəsli / adverb vacuousness /ˈvakjʊəsnəs / noun –ORIGIN mid 17th century (in the sense ‘empty of matter’): from Latin vacuus ‘empty’ + -ous.
Vitriol
vitriol /ˈvɪtrɪəl /
▸ noun [mass noun]
1 bitter criticism or malice:
her mother’s sudden gush of fury and vitriol.
2 archaic or literary sulphuric acid:
it was as if his words were spraying vitriol on her face.
▪ in names of metallic sulphates, e.g. blue vitriol (copper sulphate) and green vitriol (ferrous sulphate).
–ORIGIN late Middle English (denoting the sulphate of various metals): from Old French, or from medieval Latin vitriolum, from Latin vitrum ‘glass’.
Vista
vista /ˈvɪstə /
▸ noun a pleasing view:
sweeping lawns and landscaped vistas.
▪ a long, narrow view as between rows of trees or buildings, especially one closed by a building or other structure.
▪ a mental view of a succession of remembered or anticipated events:
vistas of freedom seemed to open ahead of him.
–DERIVATIVES
vistaed adjective
–ORIGIN mid 17th century : from Italian, literally ‘view’, from visto ‘seen’, past participle of vedere ‘see’, from Latin videre.
Gregarious
gregarious /ɡrɪˈɡɛːrɪəs /
▸ adjective (of a person) fond of company; sociable:
he was a popular and gregarious man.
▪ (of animals) living in flocks or loosely organized communities:
gregarious species forage in flocks from colonies or roosts.
▪ (of plants) growing in open clusters or in pure associations:
in the wild, trees are usually gregarious plants.
–DERIVATIVES
gregariously /ɡrɪˈɡɛːrɪəsli / adverb
gregariousness /ɡrɪˈɡɛːrɪəsnəs / noun
–ORIGIN mid 17th century : from Latin gregarius (from grex, greg- ‘a flock’) + -ous.
Frivolous
frivolous /ˈfrɪv(ə)ləs /
▸ adjective not having any serious purpose or value:
frivolous ribbons and lacy frills
rules to stop frivolous lawsuits.
▪ (of a person) carefree and superficial:
the frivolous, fun-loving flappers of the twenties.
–DERIVATIVES
frivolously /ˈfrɪv(ə)ləsli / adverb
frivolousness /ˈfrɪv(ə)ləsnəs / noun
–ORIGIN late Middle English : from Latin frivolus ‘silly, trifling’ + -ous.
Gratuitous
gratuitous /ɡrəˈtjuːɪtəs /
▸ adjective
1 done without good reason; uncalled for:
gratuitous violence.
2 given or done free of charge:
solicitors provide a form of gratuitous legal advice.
–DERIVATIVES
gratuitousness /ɡrəˈtjuːɪtəsnəs / noun
–ORIGIN mid 17th century : from Latin gratuitus ‘given freely, spontaneous’ + -ous.
Delineate
delineate /dɪˈlɪnɪeɪt /
▸ verb [with object]
1 describe or portray (something) precisely:
the law should delineate and prohibit behaviour which is socially abhorrent.
2 indicate the exact position of (a border or boundary):
his finger found a precisely outlined section delineated in red marker.
–DERIVATIVES
delineator /dɪˈlɪnɪeɪtə / noun
–ORIGIN mid 16th century (in the sense ‘trace the outline of something’): from Latin delineat- ‘outlined’, from the verb delineare, from de- ‘out, completely’ + lineare (from linea ‘line’).
Banality
banality /bəˈnalɪti /
▸ noun
(plural banalities)
[mass noun] the fact or condition of being banal; unoriginality:
there is an essential banality to the story he tells
[count noun] the banalities of contemporary celebrity culture.
Apogee
apogee /ˈapədʒiː /
▸ noun
1 the highest point in the development of something; a climax or culmination:
a film which was the apogee of German expressionist cinema.
2 Astronomy the point in the orbit of the moon or a satellite at which it is furthest from the earth. The opposite of perigee.
–DERIVATIVES
apogean /apəˈdʒiːən/ adjective
–ORIGIN late 16th century : from French apogée or modern Latin apogaeum, from Greek apogaion (diastēma), ‘(distance) away from earth’, from apo ‘from’ + gaia, gē ‘earth’.
Peripatetic
peripatetic /ˌpɛrɪpəˈtɛtɪk /
▸ adjective
1 travelling from place to place, in particular working or based in various places for relatively short periods:
the peripatetic nature of military life.
▪ (of a teacher) working in more than one school or college:
a peripatetic music teacher.
2 (Peripatetic) Aristotelian.
[with reference to Aristotle’s practice of walking to and fro while teaching.]
▸ noun
1 a person who travels from place to place, especially a teacher who works in more than one school or college:
peripatetics have been cut under local management of schools.
2 (Peripatetic) an Aristotelian philosopher.
–DERIVATIVES
peripatetically adverb
peripateticism /ˌpɛrɪpəˈtɛtɪsɪz(ə)m / noun
–ORIGIN late Middle English (denoting an Aristotelian philosopher): from Old French peripatetique, via Latin from Greek peripatētikos ‘walking up and down’, from the verb peripatein.
