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Vocab Lessons 1-14
Great Source's Vocabulary for Achievement: 3rd Course/9th Grade Lessons 1-14
| Word | Part of Speech | Primary Definition | Secondary Definition | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| archaic | adjective | no longer used or applicable; ancient | Greek arkhaios ("ancient") | |
| argot | noun | the informal, specialized vocabulary or expressions of a particular group | (blank) | (blank) |
| connotation | noun | ideas or meanings suggested by a word, associations that go beyond a word's literal meaning | (blank) | Latin com- ("together") |
| denotation | noun | the most direct or specific meaning of a word | (blank) | Latin de- ("completely") |
| idiom | noun | an expression with a special meaning that cannot be understood | (blank) | Greek idios ("personal; private") |
| jargon | noun | a specialized vocabulary of a profession or trade | nonsensical or meaningless communication | (blank) |
| pidgin | noun | a simplified form of speech developed from two or more languages | ||
| semantics | noun | the study of meaning and word interpretation | the exact meaning of a word | Greek sema ("sign") |
| standard | adjective/noun | conforming to the established language used by educated speakers | something established as a measure of quality | Latin sta- ("stand") |
| vernacular | noun/noun/adjective | everyday language, rather than literary language | the native language or dialect of a country, place, or group 3rd def: commonly spoken by a region or group | Latin verna ("native slave") |
| atlas | noun | a book or bound collection of maps | (blank) | Atlas, a mythological Greek giant |
| epicure | noun | a person with refined taste, especially in food and drink | (blank) | Epicurus, a Greek philosopher |
| galvanize | verb | to stimulate or urge into action; spur | (blank) | Luigi Galvani, an Italian scientist |
| jovial | adjective | jolly; filled with good cheer | (blank) | Latin Iovis, "Jupiter" (king of the Roman gods) |
| nemesis | noun | a source of harm or ruin; an opponent that cannot be defeated | one who inflicts retribution or vengeance | Nemesis, the Greek goddess of revenge |
| Pyrrhic victory | noun | a victory that is offset by staggering losses or that comes at a huge price | (blank) | Pyrrhus, a king in ancient Greece |
| quixotic | adjective | dedicated to unreachable goals; idealistic but not practical | (blank) | Don Quixote, a 1604 Spanish novel |
| saturnine | adjective | gloomy and sullen | (blank) | Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture |
| Sisyphean | adjective | requiring endless effort; without result or success | (blank) | Sisyphus, a mythological Greek king |
| solecism | noun | a nonstandard or improper use of language | a mistake in manners or behavior | Soloi, an Athenian colony where an improper form of dialect was spoken |
| behold | verb | to gaze at or look upon | (blank) | (blank) |
| discernment | noun | excellent judgment and insight; skill in perceiving | (blank) | Latin dis- "apart" + cernere, "to separate carefully" |
| envision | verb | to picture in the mind; to imagine | (blank) | Latin in-, "in" + vision |
| foresee | verb | to see or know ahead of time | (blank) | Old English fore, "in front" + see |
| gape | verb | to stare in amazement, often with the mouth wide open | (blank) | (blank) |
| impressionistic | adjecive | describing a highly personal, indivdual response to experience | reflecting a style of painting of the late nineteenth century that focuses on a personal or momentary view of something | Latin im-, "in" + press |
| myopia | noun | lack of planning for the future; shortsightedness | nearsightedness; a condition in which distant objects appear blurred | Greek muein, "to close the eyes" + ops, "eye" |
| perceptive | adjective | marked by understanding or awareness; sharp; sensitive | (blank) | Latin percipere, "to grasp with the mind" |
| premonition | noun | a feeling that something will happen in the future; an advance warning | (blank) | Latin pre, "before" + monere, "to warn" |
| subliminal | adjective | below the threshold of conscious thought; not detectable, but able to bring about a response | (blank) | Latin sub-, "under" |
| cessation | noun | a bringing or coming to an end; a halt | (blank) | Latin cessare, "to stop" |
| commence | verb | to begin | (blank) | Latin initiare, "to begin" |
| deter | verb | to prevent or discourage from acting, by means of fear or doubt | (blank) | Latin de-, "away" + terrere, "to frighten" |
| hamper | verb/noun | to prevent from moving freely or making progress; to limit | a large basket, usually with a cover | (blank) |
| obstruction | noun | something that blocks or gets in the way; an obstacle | (blank) | Latin on-, "against" + struere, "to pile up" |
| preclude | verb | to make impossible or unlikely; to prevent | (blank) | Latin pre-, "before" + claudere, "to close" |
| procrastinate | verb | to delay; to put off doing something | (blank) | Latin pro-,"forward" + crastinus, "tomorrow" |
| scuttle | verb | to run or move with short, hurried movements; to scurry | (blank) | (blank) |
| subside | verb | to sink to a lower or more normal level | to become less active or intense | Latin sub-, "under" + sidere, "to settle" |
| thwart | verb | to prevent from taking place; frustrate; block | (blank) | Old Norse thvert, "transverse" |
| apologist | noun | a person who speaks in defense of a person, an idea, or a position | (blank) | Greek apologia," |
| dissuade | verb | to discourage from doing something through persuasion | (blank) | Latin dis-, "not" + suadere, "to advise" |
| dupe | verb/noun | to take advantage of people by tricking or fooling them | someone tricked and taken advantage of | Old French huppe, "a foolish-looking bird" |
| fallacy | noun | a false belief | faulty and illogical reasoning | Latin fallere, "to deceive" |
| imply | verb | to hint; to suggest indirectly | (blank) | Latin in-. "in" + plic, "fold" |
| indisputable | adjective | beyond doubt or question; certain | (blank) | Latin in-, "not + disputare, "to dispute" |
| infer | verb | to draw a conclusion from evidence | (blank) | Latin in-, "not" + |
| red herring | noun | something that draws attention away from the main issue | (blank) | (blank) |
| refute | verb | to prove to be false or invalid; to deny the accuracy or truth of | (blank) | Latin re-, "against" + future, "to put forth" |
| substantiate | verb | to support with evidence | (blank) | Latin sub-, "under" + stare, "to stand" |
| accolade | noun | great praise | an award | French accolade, "an embrace" |
| adulation | noun | adoration; excessive praise or flattery | (blank) | Latin adulare, "to flatter" |
| anathema | noun | something or someone that is greatly hated and avoided | (blank) | Greek ana-, "against" |
| commend | verb | to give approval or praise | (blank) | Latin commendare, "to recommend" |
| critique | noun/verb | a detailed review; an evaluation | to review, discuss, or evaluate | Greek kritike, "art of criticism" |
| eulogy | noun | a tribute; spoken or written praise, often given in honor of a person who has died | (blank) | Greek eu-, "good" + log- "speech" |
| homage | noun | publicly expressed honor or respect | (blank) | Latin homo, "man" |
| laudable | adjective | worthy of praise and honor | (blank) | Latin laudere, "to praise" |
| quibble | verb/noun | to criticize, argue, or raise objections over something unimportant | an unimportant complaint | (blank) |
| reproach | verb | to criticize or express disapproval | (blank) | Latin re-, "back" + prope, "near" |
| bland | adjective | calming or soothing; not spicy or irritating; lacking flavor | dull; plain to the point of being boring | Latin blandus, "soothing" |
| culinary | adjective | related to cooking or kitchens | (blank) | Latin culina, "kitchen" |
| cutlery | noun | utensils used for eating, such as knives, forks, and spoons | cutting instruments and tools | Old French coutel, "knife" |
| devour | verb | to consume or eat up greedily or enthusiastically | (blank) | Latin devovare, "to swallow up" |
| morsel | noun | a very small piece; a small treat | (blank) | Latin mordere, "to bite" |
| pungent | adjective | having a sharp, strong taste or smell | strong, sharp, and penetrating | Latin pungere, "to sting" |
| quaff | verb | to drink heartily and deeply | (blank) | (blank) |
| ravenous | adjective | extremely hungry | (blank) | Old French raviner, "to take by force" |
| savory | adjective | pleasing to the taste or smell, appetizing | flavorful; spicy or salty, but not sweet; DEF 3: morally good or satisfactory, respectable | Latin saporare, "flavor" |
| simmer | verb | to cook gently in a liquid just at or below the boiling point | to be filled with pent-up emotion | (blank) |
| blight | verb/noun | to have a negative effect on; to ruin | something that ruins or greatly harms; a terrible condition, environment, or process | Old English bleight, "worthless" |
| cataclysm | noun | an intense and violent disaster or change | (blank) | Greek kataklysmos, "flood" |
| decomposition | noun | the process of rotting, breaking down, or disintegration | (blank) | Latin de-, "opposite of" + com-, "together" + ponere, "to put" |
| eradication | noun | the act of tearing out by the roots, or of eliminating as if tearing out by the roots | (blank) | Latin ex- "out" + radix, "root" |
| havoc | noun | widespread destruction and devastation | chaos and disorder | Old French havot, "plundering" |
| mar | verb | to inflict damage or spoil the quality of | (blank) | Old English merran, "to impede" |
| obliterate | verb | to wipe out completely; to do away with, leaving no trace | (blank) | Latin oblitterare, "to erase" |
| pugnacious | adjective | combative; eager for a fight | (blank) | Latin pugnare, "to fight" |
| pulverize | verb | to pound, crush, or grind into powder or dust | (blank) | Latin pulvis, "dust" |
| stagnant | adjective | stale and foul because of lack of movement | lacking progress or vitality | Latin stagnum, "swamp" |
| broach | verb | to bring up a subject for discussion | (blank) | Old French broche, "to pierce" |
| convene | verb | to assemble formally; to come together officially | (blank) | Latin com-, "together" |
| debut | verb/noun/noun | (1: to make) a first public experience | 3: a formal presentation of a young woman into society | French debuter, "to lead off in a game" |
| embark | verb | to board a plane or ship | to start a major effort; to set out on a venture | Latin em-, "in" + barca, "boat" |
| generate | verb | to create; to bring into being | (blank) | Greek gen-, "birth" |
| incipient | adjective | beginning to exist or appear | (blank) | Latin in-, "in" + apere, "to take up" |
| initiative | noun | a beginningor introduction step; an opening move | the ability or wish to start something; enterprise; determination | Latin initium, "beginning" |
| innovation | noun | something newly introduced or created | (blank) | Latin in-, "in"+ novare, "to make new" |
| novice | noun | a beginner | (blank) | Latin novus,"new" |
| overture | noun | a piece of music intended to introduce a longer work | an act or offer showing readiness to form a relationship or to negotiate | Latin aperire, "to open" |
| devious | adjective | meant to trick; not straightforward; shifty | departing from the correct or accepted way; 3: departing from the straight or direct course; roundabout | Latin de-, "away from" + via, "road" |
| duplicity | noun | deliberate deception in behavior or speech | (blank) | Latin du-, "two" + plex, "fold" |
| fictitious | adjective | false or fake; adopted or assumed in order to deceive | imaginary; unreal; relating to fiction | Latin fictus, "formed" |
| guile | noun | sly intelligence; craftiness with the intention to deceive | (blank) | (blank) |
| gullible | adjective | easily deceived or fooled | (blank) | (blank) |
| hypocritical | adjective | giving a false appearance; saying one thing, but doing another | (blank) | Greek hypokrinesthai, "to pretend" |
| masquerade | verb/noun | to disguise oneself; to put on a false or deceptive appearance | a disguise or false appearance; a scheme or charade | Old Italian machere, "mask" |
| overt | adjective | open and observable; not hidden or secret | (blank) | Latin aperire, "to open" |
| reputable | adjective | having a good reputation; well thought of; honorable or trustworthy | (blank) | Latin reputare, "to think over" |
| veracity | noun | truthfulness or accuracy; conformity to fact or truth | (blank) | Latin ver-, "true" |
| acme | noun | the highest point of achievement | (blank) | (blank) |
| adept | adjective | very skillful | (blank) | Latin adipisci, "to attain" |
| aptitude | noun | natural ability; talent | quickness in understanding; intelligence | Latin apere, "to fasten" |
| astute | adjective | having shrewd judgment; observant, clever, and cunning | (blank) | Latin astus, "craftiness; cunning" |
| finesse | verb/noun/noun | to achieve a goal or handle a situation with subtle skill | refinement, delicacy, and skill; 3: subtle, skillful handling of a potentially difficult situation | French finesse, "fineness; subtlety" |
| painstaking | adjective | marked by or requiring great care; demanding extended or extreme effort, or diligence | (blank) | (blank) |
| precocious | adjective | showing unusually early development or maturity | (blank) | Latin pre-,"before" + coquere, "to cook" or "to ripen" |
| prodigy | noun | a person, often young, with exceptional talents or powers | (blank) | Latin prodigium, "sign; omen" |
| resourceful | adjective | effective and imaginative in solving problems; practical | (blank) | (blank) |
| virtuouso | noun | a very skilled musician or other type of artist; an expert or master artist | (blank) | Latin virtus, "excellence" |
| idiosyncrasy | noun | an unusual habit of one particular person | (blank) | Greek idios, "personal" + synkrasis, "temperament" |
| innocuous | adjective | harmless; not likely to offend anyone | (blank) | Latin in-, "not" + nocere, "to harm" |
| obtrusive | adjective | unpleasantly noticeable; bold | thrusting out | Latin ob-, "against" + trudere, "to thrust" |
| orthodox | adjective | doing and believing what is commonly accepted or customary | following established faiths and beliefs | Greek orthos, "correct" + doxa, "opinion" |
| prevalent | adjective | widely or commonly existing or practiced | (blank) | Latin praevalere, "to be stronger" |
| prosaic | adjective | dull; ordinary; lacking in imagination and spirit | (blank) | Latin prosa, "prose" |
| quaint | adjective | charmingly odd, especially in an old-fashioned way | (blank) | Latin cognitus, "known" |
| rarity | noun | something that is very infrequent or scarce | (blank) | Latin rarus, "scarce" |
| singular | adjective | beingthe only one of a kind; unique | being beyond what is ordinary or usual; remarkable | Latin singularis, "single" |
| trite | adjective | overused and therefore lacking in interest | (blank) | (blank) |
| appraisal | noun | evaluation or estimation of worth | (blank) | Latin ad-, "to" + pretium, "price" |
| base | adjective | low or inferior in position or quality | (blank) | Medieval Latin bassus, "low" |
| candid | adjective | frank; honest; expressing one's honest opinion | not posed or rehearsed | Latin candidus, "bright white" |
| criterion | noun | a standard of judgment | (blank) | Greek krites, "a judge" |
| dexterity | noun | skill and grace in physical movement | cleverness | Latin dexter, "on the right" |
| legitimate | adjective | lawful; proper and acceptable | genuine | Latin lex, "law" |
| mediocre | adjective | moderate to inferior in quality; ordinary | (blank) | Latin medius, "middle" |
| meritorious | adjective | worthy; deserving of praise | (blank) | Latin meritorious, "earning money" |
| truism | noun | a statement of self-evident truth; a saying that, while true, has been overused | (blank) | Old English treowe, "firm; trustworthy" |
| validate | verb | to establish or confirm the truth or legality of something | (blank) | Latin valere, "to be strong" |
| circumlocution | noun | the use of unnecessarily wordy and indirect language | (blank) | Latin circum-, "around" + loq-, "speech" |
| cogent | adjective | logical and convincing; appealing to reason | (blank) | Latin cogere, "to force" |
| discourse | noun/verb | formal speech or writing | to speak or write formally, and at length | Latin discurrere, "to run about" |
| falter | verb | to hesitate or stammer in speech | to move or function in an unsteady way | Middle English falteren, "to stagger" |
| literate | adjective | able to read and write; knowledgeable; educated | knowledgeabl; well expressed | Latin littera, "letter" |
| prattle | verb/noun | to talk foolishkly; to chatter | foolish, annoying talk | (blank) |
| raconteur | noun | a person who tells stories and relates incidents, with skill and wit | (blank) | French raconter, "to relate" |
| sophistry | noun | clever arguments that are misleading or incorrect | (blank) | Greek sophos, "wise" |
| utterance | noun | something that is said | (blank) | (blank) |
| verbose | adjective | using or containing too many words; excessively wordy | (blank) | Latin verbum, "word" |
Created by:
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