Joy Test 2
Terms
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- play the devil's advocate
- upholdthe wrong side of a cause for the sake of argument
- Parkinson's Law
- satirical maxim about the lack of productivity, stating that work expands to fill the time available for its completion
- intrepid
- not afraid; bold
- arrivederci
- goodbye (italian)
- hold water
- remain sound; stand up
- roll out the red carpet
- show impressive courtesy
- faux pas
- error; social blunder
- captious
- quick to find fault, especially over petty matters; carping
- kudos
- praise for an achievement
- eat crow
- be forced into a humiliating or extremely disagreeable situation
- poker face
- expressionless face
- mentor
- wise, trusted advisor or teacher
- play possum
- pretend to be dead r asleep
- quixotic
- impractically idealistic
- persimonious
- extremely frugal; stingy
- postmortem
- detailed evaluation of some event just completed
- fifth column
- subversive group of civilians working secretly within their own country to turn it over to an invading enemy
- pay the piper
- suffer the unfavorable consequences of one's actions
- white elephant
- possession entailing expense and trouble far greater than its usefulness to the owner
- whistle in the dark
- try to keep up one's courage
- chauvinist
- fanatical patriot
- philippic
- bitter denunciatory speech; tirade
- Catch-22
- contradiction in an order or regulation that makes people victims of its provisions, regardless of what they do
- non compos mentis
- not sound of mind
- fourth estate
- reporters; the press
- hoi polloi
- common people
- Dutch treat
- meal or entertainmetn for which each participant pays his or her own share
- Adonis
- very handsome man
- auf Wiedersehen
- goodbye (german)
- French leave
- unauthorized, hasty, or secret departure
- bell the cat
- do a daring, risky deed for the sake of others
- diffident
- lacking confidence; timid; shy
- odyssey
- long, wandering journey
- irrational
- not rational
- contrite
- sorrowful for a misdeed that one has committed
- impassive
- feeling or revealing no emotion
- biased
- prejudiced
- vindictive
- inclined to seek revenge
- Murphuy's Law
- satirical maxim stating that if anything can go wrong, it will
- malapropism
- humorous misuse of words by a person unaware of the error
- opinionated
- holding obstinately to one's own opinion
- non sequitur
- conclusion that does not logically follow from what has just been said
- obsequious
- much too attentive
- hoist with one's own petard
- blown up with one's own bomb
- between Scylla and Charybdis
- between two equally difficult alternatives, neither of which can be avoided without incurring the other
- Achilles' heel
- vulnerable or weak point
- Damoclean
- involving imminent disaster
- lame duck
- elected official who remains in office for a brief period after a successor has been elected
- skeptical
- disbelieving; doubting
- gargantuan
- enormous; gigantic
- busman's holiday
- holiday spent in an activity the same as, or similar to, one's occupation
- ad infinitum
- endlessly; forever
- Hobson's choice
- choice of taking what is offered or nothing at all
- hold a candle to
- compare favorably with
- stick on one's craw
- be intolerable and unacceptable to one
- crocodile tears
- false tears
- sanguie
- hopeful
- mesmerize
- hypnotize
- sayonara
- goodbye (japanese)
- chutzpah
- supreme self confidence
- Machiavellian
- crafty; deceitful
- in medias res
- in the middle of things
- alfresco
- in the open air
- sour grapes
- disparagement of something that one does not or cannot have
- salaam
- bow very low, placing the right palm on the forehead
- fish or cut bait
- stop procrastinating
- obstreperous
- excessively noisy
- carry coals to Newcastle
- take something to a place where it is plentiful and not needed
- open sesame
- any means or formula that works like magic to help one achive a desired end
- sadistic
- deriving pleasure by inflicting pain upon others
- honcho
- person in charge
- supercilious
- full of pride and scorn
- indolent
- inclined to avoid work; lazy
- come home to roost
- have disagreeable repercussions
- dog in teh manger
- person who prevents others from using somethign her or she cannot use and does not need
- last straw
- final test of patience
- red herring
- something used to distract attention from the real issue
- have an ax to grind
- have a selfish motive or ulteriour purpose to promote
- stick to one's last
- keep to one's own trade or field
- cry wolf
- give a false alarm
- juggernaut
- massive, irresistible force crushing everything in its path
- brouhaha
- uproar
- bowdlerize
- expurgate
- persona non grata
- person who is unwelcome
- boycott
- join with others to refuse to use, buy, or deal with
- atlas
- book of maps
- ad nauseam
- to a sickening degree
- gregarious
- sociable
- impetuous
- acting suddenly without forethought; rash
- de rigueur
- require by custom; proper
- altruistic
- concerned for the welfare of others
- shalom
- term of greeting or farewell (hebrew)
- cross the Rubicon
- take a decisive, irrevocable step
- Pandora's box
- source of extensive unforseen troubles
- Pyrric victory
- victory achieved at ruinous cost
- Midas touch
- talent for making money in any enterprise one engages in
- ersatz
- artificial
- stentorian
- very loud
- quisling
- traitor
- Armageddon
- vast; decisive battle
- Freudian slip
- slip of the tongue by which it is thought a person unintentionally reveals his or her true feelings
- John Hancock
- person's signature
- gullible
- easily deceived or tricked
- au revoir
- goodbye (french)