Vocabulary+Lists

VOCABULARY LIST 1

obscure – unclear; clouded; partially hidden; hard to understand discriminate – to differentiate; to make a clear distinction; to see the difference temperate – moderate; restrained inevitable – unavoidable; bound to happen futile – hopeless; without effect servile – submissive and subservient; like a servant anarchy – absence of government or control; lawlessness; disorder

Vocabulary List 2

discord – disagreement (the opposite of concord) repudiate – to reject; deny lucid – clear; easy to understand dispassionate – without passion; objective; neutral advocate – to speak in favor of; to support profound – deep; insightful (the opposite of superficial) dissent – disagreement

Vocabulary List 3

profuse – flowing; extravagant belligerent – combative; quarrelsome; waging war censure – to condemn severely for doing something bad neutral – unbiased; not taking sides; objective repress – to hold down articulate – speaking clearly and well atrophy – to waste away from lack of use

Vocabulary List 4

dubious – doubtful; uncertain concise – brief and to the point; succinct blasphemy – irreverence; an insult to something held sacred; profanity coalesce – to come together as one; to unite extraneous – irrelevant; extra; unnecessary; unimportant incongruous – not harmonious; not consistent; not appropriate sage – wise; possessing wisdom derived from experience or learning

Vocabulary List 5

predecessor – someone or something that came before another remorse – sadness; regret scrupulous – strict; careful; hesitant for ethical reasons idiom – a peculiar expression virtuoso – masterful musician; a masterful practitioner in some other field animosity – resentment; hostility; ill will bastion – stronghold; fortress; fortified place

Vocabulary List 6

vehement – urgent; passionate assuage – to soothe; to pacify; to ease the pain of; to relieve prudent – careful; having foresight authoritarian – like a dictator contrite – deeply apologetic; remorseful recalcitrant – stubbornly defiant of authority or control tenacious – tough; hard to defeat

Vocabulary List 7

animated – alive; moving nostalgia – a sentimental longing for the past; homesickness venerate – to revere; to treat as something holy, especially because of great age vilify – to say vile things about; to defame indifferent – not caring one way or the other; mediocre; lacking a preference; neutral revere – to worship; to honor (think of a reverend) denounce – to speak out against; to condemn

Vocabulary List 8

disdain – arrogant scorn; contempt diverse – varied pious – reverent or devout; outwardly ( and sometimes falsely ) reverent or devout virulent – extremely poisonous; malignant; full of hate contempt – reproachful disdain deter – to prevent; to stop; to keep from doing something banal – unoriginal; ordinary

Vocabulary List 9

deride – to ridicule; to laugh at contemptuously rigorous – strict; harsh; severe conspicuous – standing out; obvious volition – will; conscious choice disparage – to belittle; to say uncomplimentary things about; usually in a somewhat indirect way languish – to become weak, listless, or depressed exemplary – outstanding; setting a great example

Vocabulary List 10

relegate – to banish; to send away uniform – consistent; unchanging; the same for everyone condescend – to stoop to someone else’s level, usually in an offensive way; to patronize indolence – laziness congenial – agreeably suitable; pleasant ameliorate – to make better or more tolerable credulous – believing; gullible

Vocabulary List 11

tedious – boring caustic – like acid; corrosive belittle – to make to seem little refute – to disprove slander – to defame; to speak maliciously of someone stringent – strict; restrictive fickle – capricious; whimsical; unpredictable

Vocabulary List 12

desecrate – to profane a holy place (the opposite of consecrate) benign – gentle; not harmful; kind; mild compliant – yielding; submissive innumerable – too many to number or count; many exemplify – to serve as an example of diffident – timid; lacking in self-esteem or self-confidence gullible – overly trusting; willing to believe anything

Vocabulary List 13

propriety – properness; good manners enthrall – to thrill heed – to listen to discernment – insight; ability to see things clearly enigma – mystery eccentric – not conventional; a little kooky; irregular acute – sharp; shrewd

Vocabulary List 14

diligent – hardworking squander – to waste incessant – unceasing; never-ending provocative – exciting; attracting attention austere – unadorned; stern; forbidding; without much money expedite – to make faster or easier

Vocabulary List 15

pragmatic – practical; down-to-earth; based on experience rather than on theory ascetic – hermit-like; practicing self-denial voluntary – willing; unforced fastidious – meticulous; demanding astute – perceptive; intelligent engender – to create; to produce incoherent – jumbled; chaotic; impossible to understand

VOCAB LIST 16 solicit – to ask for; to seek preclude – to prevent; to make impossible; to shut out taciturn – untalkative by nature immutable – unchangeable; permanent levity – lightness; frivolity; lack of seriousness amiable – friendly jeopardy – danger

VOCAB LIST 17 respite – a rest; a period of relief stoic – indifferent (at least outwardly) to pleasure or pain, ETC. amity – friendship lethargy – sluggishness; laziness; drowsiness; indifference willful – deliberate; obstinate; insistent on having one’s own way verbose – wordy; overly talkative retract – to take back; to withdraw; to pull back

VOCAB LIST 18 ambiguous – unclear in meaning; confusing paucity – scarcity rescind – to repeal; to take back formally zealous – fervent; enthusiastically devoted to something meander – to wander slowly; like a winding river nullify – to make unimportant skeptical – doubting (opposite of gullible)

VOCAB LIST 19 dearth – a lack of; scarcity stanza – a section of a poem; a verse impartial – unbiased; neutral objective – without bias (as opposed to subjective) relevant – important; pertinent candid – honest; frank provincial – limited in outlook to one’s own small corner of the world; narrow

VOCAB LIST 20 superficial – on the surface only; shallow; not thorough augment – to add to; to increase; to make bigger laudable – worthy of praise extol – to praise heresy – an opinion violently opposed to established beliefs vacillate – to be indecisive; to waver back and forth alleviate – to lessen; to relieve, usually temporarily or incompletely; to make bearable

VOCAB List 21: negligence – carelessness ironic – satiric; unexpected dogmatic – arrogantly assertive of unproven ideas; disparate – different; incompatible expedient – providing an immediate advantage; serving one’s immediate self interests mitigate – to lessen the severity of something acclaim – praise; applause; admiration

VOCAB list 22: reproach – to scold orthodox – conventional; ‘ by the book’ ambivalent – undecided; blowing hot and cold esoteric – hard to understand; exhaustive – thorough; complete appease – to sooth; to pacify by giving in to frivolous – not serious; not solemn; with levity

VOCAB list 23: instigate – to provoke; to stir up apocryphal – of doubtful origin; false auspicious – favorable; promising; hackneyed –overused; trite (a cliché) torpor – sluggishness; inactivity; apathy innocuous – harmless; banal subtle – not obvious; crafty

VOCAB list 24: hypothetical – uncertain; unproven marred – damaged; bruised rejuvenate – to make young and strong again authentic – real bias – prejudice; tendency; tilt irascible – irritable saccharine – sweet; excessively or disgustingly sweet

VOCAB list 25: innovate – to be creative; to introduce something new abstract – theoretical; lacking substance (the opposite of concrete) benevolent – kind; good-hearted; generous reticent – restrained; uncommunicative scrutinize – to examine closely aesthetic – having to do with artistic beauty; artistic (do not confuse with ascetic) prodigal – extravagant; wasteful

Vocabulary TEST words for JANUARY 23rd CONNOTATIONS, MATCHING LIKE DEFINITIONS, SENTENCES

1. obscure – unclear; clouded; partially hidden; hard to understand 2. temperate – moderate; restrained 3. anarchy – absence of government or control; lawlessness; disorder 4. dispassionate – without passion; objective; neutral 5. profound – deep; insightful (the opposite of superficial) 6. dissent – disagreement 7. profuse – flowing; extravagant 8. repress – to hold down 9. articulate – speaking clearly and well 10. dubious – doubtful; uncertain 11. concise – brief and to the point; succinct 12. sage – wise; possessing wisdom derived from experience or learning 13. remorse – sadness; regret 14. scrupulous – strict; careful; hesitant for ethical reasons 15. idiom – a peculiar expression 16. vehement – urgent; passionate 17. contrite – deeply apologetic; remorseful 18. animated – alive; moving 19. venerate – to revere; to treat as something holy, especially because of great age 20. vilify – to say vile things about; to defame 21. indifferent – not caring one way or the other; mediocre; lacking a preference; neutral 22. disdain – arrogant scorn; contempt 23. contempt – reproachful disdain 24. deter – to prevent; to stop; to keep from doing something 25. deride – to ridicule; to laugh at contemptuously 26. rigorous – strict; harsh; severe 27. disparage – to belittle; to say uncomplimentary things about 28. exemplary – outstanding; setting a great example 29. relegate – to banish; to send away 30. indolence – laziness 31. congenial – agreeably suitable; pleasant 32. tedious – boring 33. belittle – to make to seem little 34. refute – to disprove 35. slander – to defame; to speak maliciously of someone 36. desecrate – to profane a holy place (the opposite of consecrate) 37. benign – gentle; not harmful; kind; mild 38. exemplify – to serve as an example of 39. gullible – overly trusting; willing to believe anything 40. propriety – properness; good manners 41. enthrall – to thrill 42. heed – to listen to 43. enigma – mystery 44. diligent – hardworking 45. squander – to waste 46. austere – unadorned; stern; forbidding; without much money 47. pragmatic – practical; down-to-earth; based on experience rather than on theory 48. ascetic – hermit-like; practicing self-denial 49. fastidious – meticulous; demanding 50. astute – perceptive; intelligent