K. Fast Vocabulary Quarter 1
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- accost (v.)
- to approach and speak to in aggressive, hostile or sexually suggestive manner
- animadversion (n.)
- 1. strong criticism 2. a critical or censorious remark
- avid (adj.)
- 1. having an ardent desire or unbounded craving; greedy. 2. marked by keen interest and enthusiasm.
- brackish (adj.)
- 1. having a somewhat salty taste, especially from containing a mix or water and seawater. 2. distasteful; unpalateable.
- celerity (n.)
- swiftness of action or motion; speed.
- devious (adj.)
- 1. not straight forward; shifty. 2. departing form the correct or accepted way; erring. 3. deviating form the straight/direct course. 4. away from a main road; distant
- gambit (n)
- a maneuver, stratagem, or ploy, especially one used at an initial stage 2. a remark intended to open conversation 3. opening in chess in which a minor piece or pieces are offered in exchange for a good position.
- halcyon (adj.)
- 1. calm and peaceful; tranquil. 2. prosperous, golden.
- histrionic (adj.)
- of or relating to actors or acting. 2. excessively emotional or dramatic; affected.
- incendiary (adj.)
- 1. causing or capable of causing fire 2. of or containing chemicals that produce intensely hot fire when exploded. 3. of or involving arson
- maelstrom (n.)
- 1. a violent or turbulent situation 2. a whirlpool of extraordinary size or violence.
- myopic (adj.)
- 1. unable to see short distances clearly. 2. lacking foresight or scope.
- overt (adj.)
- 1. open and observeable; not hidden, concealed, or secret.
- pejorative (adj.)
- 1. tending to make or become worse. 2. desparaging, belittling
- propriety (n.)
- 1. the quality of being proper, appropriateness. 2. conformity to prevailing customs and usages.
- sacrilege (n)
- improper or disrespectful treatment of something held sacred
- summarily (adv)
- without delay or formality; briefly, concisely
- suppliant (adj)
- (adv) asking humbly and earnestly (n)one who makes a request humbly and earnestly
- talisman (n)
- an object that serves as a charm or is believed to confer magical powers; an amulet
- undulate (v)
- to moke in waves or with a wavelike motion; to have a wavelike appearance or form
- eulogy (n)
- formal statement of praise (usually said at a funeral over a dead body)
- evince (v)
- to make clear
- exhume (v)
- 1. to remove from a grave 2. also figurative; to bring to light
- feckless (adj)
- careless, irresponsible, unreliable, immature.
- articulate (v/adj)
- 1. (v) to enunciate; to fit together as a whole. 2. (adj) able to express oneself clearly through words
- cavort (v)
- to bounce or prance about in a sprightly manner; caper
- credence (n)
-
1. Acceptance as true or valid; belief.
2. trustworthiness - decry (v)
- to condemn openly
- dissemble (v)
- 1. To disguise or conceal behind a false appearance 2. To make a false show of; feign
- distraught (adj)
-
1. Deeply agitated, as from emotional conflict.
2. Mad; insane. - acquisitive
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adj. able to get and retain ideas or information; concerned with acquiring wealth or property
SYN: greedy, grasping, avaricious, retentive - arrogate
-
v. to claim or take without right
SYN: expropriate, usurp, commandeer - banal
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adj. hackneyed, trite, commonplace
SYN: stale, insipid - belabor
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v. to work on excessively, to thrash soundly
SYN: overwork - carping
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adj. tending to find fault, especially in a petty, nasty or hairpslitting way
n. petty, nagging criticism
SYN: nit-picking, caviling - coherent
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adj. holding or sticking together; making a logical whole; comprehensible, meaningful
SYN: connected, unified, consistent, cohesive - congeal
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v. to change from liquid to solid, thicken; to make infelxible or rigid
SYN: harden, jell, coagulate, solidify - emulate
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v. to imitate with the extent of equaling or surpassing the model
SYN: copy, mimic, rival, match, measure up to - encomium
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n. a formal expression of praise, a lavish tribute
SYN: panegyric, eulogy, commendation - eschew
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v. to avoid, shun, keep away from
SYN: abstain from, steer clear of, forgo - germane
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adj. relevant, appropriate, apropos, fitting
SYN: pertinent - insatiable
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adj. so great or demanding as not to be satisfied
SYN: unquenchable, ravenous, voracious - intransigent
-
(adj) unwilling or refusing to change one's views or to agree aboutsomething.
(n.) an intransigent person - invidious
-
adj. offensive, hateful, tending to cause bitterness and resentment
SYN: malicious, spiteful, prejudicial, pejorative - largess
-
(n) a generous gift
2. act of giving the gift - reconnaissance
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n. a survey made for military puposes; any kind of preliminary inspection or examination
SYN: scouting expedition - substantiate
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v. to establish by evidence prove; to give concrete or substantial form to
SYN: verify, confirm, validate, authenticate - taciturn
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adj. habitually silent or quiet, inclined to talk very little
SYN: tight lipped, uncommunicative, laconic - temporize
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v. to stall or act evasively in order to gain time, avoid a confrontation or postpone a decision; to compromise
SYN: hedge, dillydally, procrastinate - tebale
- (adj) defendable
- murky
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(adj) 1. dark, dim, or gloomy
2. Lacking clarity or distinctness; cloudy or obscure - nefarious
- (adj.) Infamous by way of being extremely wicked.
- piquant
- (adj.) 1. Pleasantly pungent or tart in taste; spicy. 2. Appealingly provocative: a piquant wit. 3. Charming, interesting, or attractive: a piquant face.
- primordial
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(adj.) 1. Being or happening first in sequence of time; original. 2. Primary or fundamental: play a primordial role.
(n.) A basic principle. - propinquity
- (n.) 1. Proximity; nearness. 2. Kinship. 3. Similarity in nature.
- unwonted
- (adj.) 1. Not habitual or ordinary; unusual. 2. Not accustomed; unused.
- utopian
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(adj.) 1. often relating to, describing or having the characteristics of a Utopia: a Utopian island; Utopian novels. 2. Excellent or ideal but impracticable. 3. Proposing impracticably ideal schemes.
(n.) A zealous but impractical reformer of human society. - verbiage
-
(n.) 1. An excess of words for the purpose; wordiness.
2. The manner in which something is expressed in words: software verbiage. - verdant
- (adj) 1. Green with vegetation; covered with green growth. 2. Green. 3. Lacking experience or sophistication; naive.
- viscous
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(adj) 1. Having relatively high resistance to flow. 2. Viscid; sticky.
[like viscosity] - atrophy
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(n) 1. A wasting or decrease in size of a body organ, tissue, or part owing to disease, injury, or lack of use: muscular atrophy of a person affected with paralysis. 2. A wasting away, deterioration, or diminution: intellectual atrophy.
(v) To undergo atrophy. - bastion
- 1. A projecting part of a fortification. 2. A well-fortified position. 3. One that is considered similar to a defensive stronghold
- concord
- (n) 1. Harmony or agreement of interests or feelings; accord. 2. A treaty establishing peaceful relations. 3. Agreement between words in person, number, gender, or case. 4. A harmonious combination of simultaneously sounded tones.
- consummate
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(v) 1. To bring to completion or fruition; conclude. 2. To complete (a marriage) with the first act of sexual intercourse after the ceremony. 3. To realize or achieve; fulfill
(adj) 1. Complete or perfect in every respect: consummate happiness. 2. Supremely accomplished or skilled. 3. Complete; utter. - disarray
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(n) 1. A state of disorder; confusion. 2. Disorderly dress.
(v) 1. To throw into confusion; upset. 2. To undress. - exigency
- (n) urgency, pressure; urgent demand, pressing need; an emergency
- flotsam
- (n) 1. floating debris 2. homeless people
- frenetic
- (adj) highly frenzied or agitated
- glean
- (v) to gather bit by bit; to gather small quantities of grain left in fields by the reapers
- grouse
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(n) 1. a type of game bird. 2. a complaint
(v) 1. to complain, grumble - incarcerate
- (v) to imprison; confine; jail
- incumbent
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(adj) obligatory, required
(n)one who holds a specific office at the time spoken of - jocular
- (adj) humorous; jesting; jolly; joking
- ludicrous
- (adj) ridiculous; laughable; absurd
- mordant
- (adj) biting or caustic in thought, manner or style; sharply or bitterly harsh
- nettle
- (n) a prickly or stinging plant (v) to arouse displeasure, impatience, or anger; to vex.
- pecuniary
- (adj) consisting of or measured in money; of or related to money
- pulsillanimous
- (adj) contemptibly cowardly or mean-spirited
- recumbent
- (adj) in a reclining position; lying down; in the posture of one sleeping or resting
- stratagem
- (n) a scheme to outwit or deceive an opponent to gain an end
- intermittent
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(adj) stopping and beginning again; sporadic
SYN: fitful, spasmodic, random - neophyte
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(n) a new convert, nocive, beginner
SYN: tenderfoot, tyro, rookie - motif
- (n) a princiapl idea, feature, theme or element; a repeated or dominant figure in design
- moot
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(adj) open to discussion and debate, unresolved
(v) to bring up for discussion
(n) a hypothetical law case argued by students
SYN: debateable, questionable (v) broach - perspicacity
-
(n) keenness in observing and understanding
SYN: acuity, acumen, discernment - plenary
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(adj) complete in all aspects or essentaial: absolute, attended by all qualified members
SYN: unlimited, unrestricted - surveillance
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(n) a watch kept over a person, careful, close and disciplined observaiton
SYN: observation, scrutiny, monitoring - sylvan
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(adj) pertaining to or characteristic of forests; living or located in a forest; wooded, woody
SYN: forested, arcadian - testy
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(adj) easily irritated; characterized by impatience and exasperation
SYN: irritable, peevish, waspish, petulant - travesty
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(n) a grotesque or grossly inferior imitation; a disguise, especially the clothing of the opposite sex
(v) to ridicule by imitating in a broad or burlesque fashion
SYN: burlesque, farce, parody, caricature - allay
-
(v) to calm or pacify, set to rest; to lessen or relieve
SYN: reduce, alleviate, moderate - bestial
-
(adj) beaslike; beasly; brutal; subhan in telligence and sensibilty
SYN: animal, depraved, loathsome - convivial
-
(adj.) festive, sociable, having fun together, genial
SYN: fun0loving, jovial, merry - coterie
-
(n) a circle of acquaintances, a close-knit, often exclusive, group of people with a common interest
SYN: clique, set - counterpart
- (n) a person or thing closely resembling or corresponding to another; a complement
- demur
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(v) to object or take exception to
(n) an objection
SYN: (v) to protest, object to - effrontery
-
(n) shameless boldness, impundence
SYN: gall, chutzpah, nerve, cheek, impertinence - embellish
- (v) to decorate, adorn, touch up; to improve by adding details
- ephemeral
- (adj) lasting only a short time, short-lived
- felicitous
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(adj) appropriate, apt, well-chosen; marked by well-being or good fortune; happy.
SYN: fleeting, transient, evanescent, transitory - furtive
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(adj) done slyly or stealthily, sneaky, secret, shifty; stolen
SYN: clandestine, covert, surreptitious - garish
- (adj) glaring; tastelessly showy or overdecorated in a vulgar or offensive way
- illusory
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(adj)misleading, deceptive; lacking in or not based on reality
SYN: specious, spurious, fanciful, imaginary - indigent
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(adj) needy, impoverished
SYN: penniless, poverty-stricken, destitute - inordinate
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(adj) far too great, exceeding reasonable limits; excessive
SYN: exorbitant, extravagant - jettison
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(v) to cast overboard, get rid of as unnecessary or burdensome
SYN: cast off, discard, dump, junk, abandon - misanthrope
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(n) a person who hates or despises people
SYN: people-hater - pertinacious
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(adj) very persistent; holding firmly to a course of action or a set of beliefs; hard to get rid of, refusing to be put off or denied
SYN: stubbord, dogged, determined - picayune
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(adj) or little value or importance, palty, measly; concerned with trifling matters, small-minded
SYN: inconsequential, piddling, trifling - raiment
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(n) clothing, garmets
SYN: apparel, attire - instransigent
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adj. refusing to compromise, irreconcilable
SYN: uncompromising, unyielding, obdurate - largesse
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n. generosity in giving, lavish or bountiful contributions
SYN: liberality, munificence, bounty - tenable
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adj. capable of being held or defended
SYN: defensible, justifiable, maintainable