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Libin Gre
libins gre
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| VERNACULAR | (NOUN)(used in) everyday speech“The French I learnt in school is very different from the local vernacular of the village I’mnow living in.” |
| RECEDE | (VERB)move back, retreat“As the boat picked up speed, the coastline receded into the distance until finally itbecame invisible |
| REMITTANCE | (NOUN)payment sent to a party in another place"He worked as a builder in Chicago and received remittances from his bank in Chicago |
| DISPARAGE | (VERB)express a negative opinion of"The actor's work for charity has recently been disparaged in the press as an attempt toget publicity |
| OSTENSIBLE | (ADJECTIVE)of motives or facts that are apparent but not necessarily real or true"Their ostensible goal was to clean up government corruption, but their real aim was tounseat the government |
| SOPHISTRY | (NOUN)elaborate, eloquent but logically invalid arguments intended to deceive"Her argument that she wasn't being selfish was pure sophistry |
| PROSCRIBE | (VERB)command against"The Broadcasting Act allows ministers to proscribe any channel that offends againstgood taste and decency |
| ERSATZ | (ADJECTIVE)artificial and inferior"I'm allowed to eat ersatz chocolate made from carob beans, but it's a poor substitutefor the real thing |
| ENCAPSULATE | (VERB)contain the essential truths in"It was very difficult to encapsulate the story of the revolution in a single one-hourdocumentary |
| GUISE | (NOUN)deceptive outward appearance"The men who arrived in the guise of drug dealers were actually undercover policeofficers |
| PRAGMATIC | (ADJECTIVE)practical"In business, the pragmatic approach to problems is often more successful than anidealistic one |
| APHORISM | (NOUN)expression of a general truth in a short witty saying"Oscar Wilde was famous for such aphorisms as 'Experience is the name everyone givesto their mistakes' |
| SEMBLANCE | (NOUN)appearance of things that is deceptive"The city has now returned to some semblance of normality after last night'scelebrations |
| SPURIOUS | (ADJECTIVE)not genuine"Some of the arguments in favour of shutting the factory are questionable and othersdownright spurious |
| NEFARIOUS | (ADJECTIVE)wicked"The director of the company seems to have been involved in some nefariouspractices/activities |
| IMPETUS | "The recent publicity surrounding homelessness has given (a) fresh impetus to the cause." |
| VITRIOL | (NOUN)sharp, spiteful speech; a highly corrosive acid"He is a writer who has often been criticized by the press but never before with suchvitriol |
| VIABLE | (ADJECTIVE)able to be continue living or being used"In order to make the company viable, it will unfortunately be necessary to reducestaffing levels |
| POSTERITY | (NOUN)future generations of people"Every attempt is being made to ensure that these works of art are preserved forposterity |
| TRANSLITERATE | (NOUN)rewrite a text using the same language but a different writing system"On the road signs, the Greek place names have been transliterated into the Latinalphabet |
| DISPARATE | (ADJECTIVE)vastly different"The two cultures were so utterly disparate that she found it hard to adapt from one tothe other |
| MISNOMER | (NOUN)name that misrepresents its meaning"It was the scruffiest place I've ever stayed in, so 'Hotel Royal' was a bit of a misnomer |
| SUBTEXT | (NOUN)implicit meaning in a piece of writing"The political subtext of her novel is a criticism of government interference in individuallives |
| AUGURY | (NOUN)event seen as a sign of thing to come"The company's sales figures for the first six months are a good augury for the rest ofthe year |
| VINDICATE | (VERB)shown to be correct or innocent"The decision to include Morris in the team was completely vindicated when he scoredthree goals |
| INVECTIVE | (NOUN)abusive language used to express blame"A stream of invective from some sectors of the press continues to assail thegovernment |
| UNFLAPPABLE | (ADJECTIVE)not easily shocked"She's totally unflappable - you have to be when working in such a highly-pressuredenvironment |
| VIRULENT | (ADJECTIVE)very poisonous or infectious"A particularly virulent strain of flu has recently claimed a number of lives in the US |
| APLOMB | (NOUN)composure under strain"Rosalind conducted the meeting with characteristic aplomb/with her usual aplomb |
| UNPRECEDENTED | (ADJECTIVE)of events where nothing similar has happened in the past"This century has witnessed environmental destruction on an unprecedented scale |
| INTERSPERSE | (VERB)break up the flow of something"The documentary intersperses graphical animations with film clips of the actual event." |
| AUSPICIOUS | (ADJECTIVE)seen to show good luck"They won their first match of the season 5-1 which was an auspicious start/beginning." |
| REVERSION | (NOUN)return to a previous state"The new procedures are being seen as a reversion to old, inefficient ways of working." |
| UNTENABLE | (ADJECTIVE)unable to be believed"If three people in four no longer support the government, isn't this an untenablesituation?" |
| PROBATE | (NOUN)put an offender on probation by suspending his sentence"Before probate can be granted, all business assets have to be identified and valued." |
| INFLUX | (NOUN)flowing in"Turkey is expecting an influx of several thousand refugees over the next few days." |
| INTESTATE | (ADJECTIVE)without having made a will"Many people die intestate because they thought they were too young to make a will." |
| UBIQUITOUS | (ADJECTIVE) (seeming to be) present everywhere "Leather is very much in fashion this season, as of course is the ubiquitous denim." |
| PARADIGM | (NOUN)standard example"Some of these educators are hoping to produce a change in the current culturalparadigm." |
| TOURNIQUET | (NOUN)bandage that stops flow of blood by applying pressure"If it continues to bleed, you may have to apply a tourniquet to the limb." |
| BUCOLIC | (ADJECTIVE)of the countryside"The painting shows a typically bucolic scene with peasants harvesting crops in a field." |
| DETRIMENT | (NOUN)damage to"Are you sure that I can follow this diet without detriment to my health?" |
| ACERBIC | (ADJECTIVE)bitter or sour"The letters show the acerbic wit for which Parker was both admired and feared." |
| CHURLISH | (ADJECTIVE)rude or irritable"They invited me to dinner and I thought it would be churlish to refuse." |
| CHICANERY | (NOUN)fraud"The investigation revealed political chicanery and corruption at the highest levels." |
| EXACERBATE | (VERB)make a situation worse or more severe"This attack will exacerbate the already tense relations between the two communities." |
| UNFOUNDED | (ADJECTIVE)not based on fact"I'm pleased to see that our fears about the weather proved totally unfounded." |
| VERITABLE | (ADJECTIVE) true (often used to intensify a noun) "My garden had become a veritable jungle by the time I came back from holiday." |
| SYCOPHANT | (NOUN)someone who is excessively eager to please in order to get something"There was sycophantic laughter from the audience at every one of his terrible jokes." |
| STRATAGEM | (NOUN)individual maneuver in a game"Her stratagem for dealing with her husband's infidelities was to ignore them." |
| VERDANT | (ADJECTIVE)covered with green plants"Much of the region's verdant countryside has been destroyed in the hurricane." |
| CAPITULATE | (VERB)surrender under agreed conditions"Their forces capitulated five hours after the Allied bombardment of the city began." |
| UMLAUT | (NOUN)two dots occurring above a vowel to indicate it is pronounced differently"The German language uses many umlauts." |
| VETO | (NOUN)(the power to) reject a proposed action "The Ministry of Defence has the power of veto over all British arms exports." |
| TYPIFY | (VERB)have the essential qualities of"Her dishonesty typifies the untrustworthiness of the police." |
| PERTAIN | (VERB)be relevant to"We are only interested in the parts of the proposals that pertain to local issues." |
| PLACATE | (VERB)cause to be less angry or fearful"Outraged minority groups will not be placated by promises of future improvements." |
| ECHELON | (NOUN)troops arranged in a line"These salary increases will affect only the highest echelons of local government." |
| DENIGRATE | (VERB)cast aspersion on"You shouldn't denigrate people just because they have different beliefs from you." |
| EXCULPATE | (VERB)pronounce someone not guilty"The pilot of the aircraft will surely be exculpated when all the facts are known." |
| TRANSFIGURATION | (NOUN)dramatic change in appearance"She grew angry, and the transfiguration of her face was scary." |
| EXONERATE | (VERB)absolve from blame"The report exonerated the crew from all responsibility for the collision." |
| VEHEMENTLY | (ADVERB)in an emotionally intense manner"Despite vehement opposition from his family, he quit school and became an actor." |
| VERBATIM | (ADVERB)using the exact same words"She had an amazing memory and could recall verbatim quite complex conversations." |
| MERITOCRACY | (NOUN)society where power is given to intelligent and capable people"The prime minister claims he wants to create a classless meritocracy in Britain." |
| DISSEMINATE | (VERB)Cause to become widely known"One of the organization's aims is to disseminate information about the disease." |
| ARCANE | (ADJECTIVE)very old"He was the only person who understood all the arcane details of the agreement." |
| DISINGENUOUS | (ADJECTIVE)insincere"It was disingenuous of her to claim she had no financial interest in the case." |
| SUBSEQUENT | (ADJECTIVE)coming after"The book discusses his illness and subsequent resignation from the government." |
| CLEMENCY | (NOUN)good weather; mercy toward offenders by the authorities"The jury passed a verdict of guilty, with an appeal to the judge for clemency." |
| EFFIGY | (NOUN) representation of someone (usually in a sculpture) "Crowds marched through the streets carrying burning effigies of the president." |
| CANDOR | (NOUN)honesty and impartiality"She answered with surprising candor." |
| PAUCITY | (NOUN)insufficient quantity"There is a paucity of information on the ingredients of many cosmetics." |
| SACROSANCT | (ADJECTIVE)sacred"I'm willing to help on any weekday, but I'm afraid my weekends are sacrosanct." |
| WEAN | (VERB)gradually allow babies and young animals not be dependant on the mothers milk bygradually giving them less"The studies were carried out on calves that had been weaned at 5 weeks of age." |
| DISINFORMATION | (NOUN)information designed to mislead"They claimed there was an official disinformation campaign by the government." |
| CHAGRIN | (NOUN)embarrassment or shame"My children have never shown an interest in music, much to my chagrin." |
| RETROGRADE | (ADJECTIVE)moving in the sky from east to west; moving in opposite direction the Earth"He said it would be a retrograde step to remove single parent benefit." |
| DOCILE | (ADJECTIVE) (especially of animals) easily controlled "The once docile population has finally risen up against the ruthless regime." |
| PEJORATIVE | (ADJECTIVE)expressing disapproval"Make sure students realise that 'fat' is an unflattering or pejorative word." |
| RATIONALE | (NOUN)explanation of the reasons for a particular act"I don't understand the rationale behind the council's housing policy." |
| REPUDIATE | (VERB)refuse to acknowledge something has occurred or is valid"He repudiated the allegation/charge/claim that he had tried to deceive them." |
| DELINEATE | (VERB)represent by a diagram: give a precise description of"The main characters are clearly delineated in the first chapter of the book." |
| EMPIRICAL | (ADJECTIVE)derived from observation"This theory needs to be backed up with solid empirical data/evidence." |
| QUINTESSENTIAL | (ADJECTIVE)representing an ideal example of"Roasted garlic with sheep's milk cheese is the quintessential Corsican meal." |
| POLYGLOT | (ADJECTIVE) speaking several tongues. "She was reading a polyglot bible, with the text in English, Latin and Greek." |
| DISCONSOLATE | (ADJECTIVE)inconsolably sad"The team were disconsolate after losing what should have been an easy game." |
| FRISSON | (NOUN)small fright or excitement"As the music stopped, a frisson of excitement ran through the crowd." |
| INURED | (ADJECTIVE)made strong against a particular hardship by exposure to it"After spending some time on the island they became inured to the hardships." |
| VESTIGIAL | (ADJECTIVE)not fully developed in mature animals"The dog's tail is sometimes considered a vestigial trait." |
| DEPRECIATION | (NOUN)lessening in value"We must deduct money to reflect the depreciation of our assets." |
| SALIENT | (ADJECTIVE)of traits that stand out"She began to summarize the salient features/points of the proposal." |
| EXTOL | (VERB)praise highly"His book extolling the benefits of vegetarianism sold thousands of copies." |
| PRETEXT | (NOUN)false reason given to justify an action"The border dispute was used as a pretext for military intervention." |
| ENTREATY | (NOUN)urgent request"She refused to become involved with him despite his passionate entreaties." |
| INSURGENCY | (NOUN)armed rebellion"All approaches to the capital are now under the control of the insurgency." |
| METTLE | (NOUN)courage"The German athletes showed/proved their mettle in the final round." |
| CHASTEN | (VERB)discipline"He was chastened by the defeat and determined to worker harder in future." |
| DUPLICITY | (NOUN)deceptiveness, especially in regard to one's feelings"They were accused of duplicity in their dealings with both sides." |
| CONFLATE | (VERB)colors or sounds"She succeeded in conflating the three plays to produce a fresh new work." |
| GUILE | (NOUN)craftiness, ability to deceive"The President will need to use all her political guile to stay in power." |
| UNDULY | (ADVERB)in an inappropriate manner or quantity"Such a high increase will unduly burden the local tax payer." |
| OSTRACIZE | (VERB)from the community"His colleagues ostracized him after he criticized the company in public." |
| EXTENUATE | (VERB)make less important"He was unable to say anything that might have extenuated his behaviour." |
| SHAMBOLIC | (ADJECTIVE)chaotic, very disorderly"After the party, the house was shambolic" |
| EDIFICE | (NOUN)a permanent building"The town hall is the only edifice surviving from the fifteenth century." |
| SYNERGY | (NOUN)working together of things giving a greater effect than the sum of their individual effects"Team work at its best results in a synergy that can be very productive." |
| OBFUSCATE | (VERB)make unclear"She was criticized for using arguments that obfuscated the main issue." |
| IMPUNITY | (NOUN)protection from punishment or financial loss"Criminal gangs are terrorizing the city with apparent impunity." |
| EDICT | (NOUN) authoritative decision (esp. by a judge) "Most shops are ignoring the government's edict against Sunday trading." |
| MUNIFICENT | (ADJECTIVE)extremely generous"A former student has donated a munificent sum of money to the college." |
| BIFURCATE | (VERB)fork out in two"A sample of water was taken from the point where the river bifurcates." |
| ENDEMIC | (ADJECTIVE) (of disease etc) particularly occurring in a certain region "Malaria is endemic in many of the hotter regions of the world." |
| UNTOWARD | (ADJECTIVE)not proper or acceptable"Unless anything untoward happens we should arrive just before midday." |
| USURP | (VERB)take control without authority"The powers of local councils are being usurped by central government." |
| AMELIORATE | (VERB)make better"Foreign aid is badly needed to ameliorate the effects of the drought." |
| ECHELON | (NOUN)troops arranged in a line"These salary increases will affect only the highest echelons of local government." |
| LACHRYMOSE | (ADJECTIVE)showing sorrow or tears"He is better known for his lachrymose ballads than hard rock numbers." |
| INSIDIOUS | (ADJECTIVE)attractive but harmful"High-blood pressure is an insidious condition which has few symptoms." |
| RESUSCITATE | (VERB)bring someone who is near death to a recovery"Her heart had stopped, but the doctors successfully resuscitated her." |
| EDIFY | (VERB)build someone up by teaching"I tend to watch the television for pleasure rather than because it edifies me." |
| TRANSITIVE | (ADJECTIVE)of a verb that denotes an action that is performed on someone or something"In this dictionary, transitive verbs, such as 'put', are marked [T]." |
| TUMULTUOUS | (ADJECTIVE)disorderly, chaotic"You couldn't hear her speak over the tumultuous fans." |
| BESTIAL | (ADJECTIVE)of or like a beast"The soldiers were accused of bestial acts against unarmed civilians." |
| CLIQUE | (NOUN)exclusive group of people"Our golf club is run by a very unfriendly clique |
| SUBSTANTIATE | #(VERB)make real or solid; #(of theories etc strengthened with solid evidence)"We have evidence to substantiate the allegations against him." |
| SUPPLICATION | (NOUN)prayer asking God for something"Inside the temple, worshippers were kneeling in supplication." |
| MALIGN | (ADJECTIVE)speak unfavorably of"Foreign domination had a malign influence on local politics." |
| GAUCHE | (ADJECTIVE)lacking social class"She had grown from a gauche teenager to a self-assured young woman." |
| WIZENED | (ADJECTIVE) (of people) made thin as by ageing "He was a wizened old man with yellow skin and deep wrinkles." |
| DEROGATORY | (ADJECTIVE)expressing low opinion"He made some derogatory comment/remark about her appearance." |
| LOGISTICS | (NOUN)art completing a task through correct management of human and physical resources"We need to look at the logistics of the whole aid operation." |
| FASTIDIOUSNESS | (ADJECTIVE)hard to please"His fastidiousness really shows when he travels under suboptimal conditions." |
| AUTONOMY | (NOUN)self governing"Demonstrators demanded immediate autonomy for their region." |
| COMPUNCTION | (NOUN)remorseful feeling"I wouldn't have any compunction about telling him to leave." |
| CONVALESCENCE | (NOUN) gradual healing (through rest) after sickness or injury "After your operation, your convalescence may last up to 50 days." |
| MORATORIUM | (NOUN)postponement of an activity"A five-year worldwide moratorium on nuclear weapons testing" |
| PROPONENT | (NOUN)person who advocates an idea"He is one of the leading proponents of capital punishment." |
| CHASTE | (ADJECTIVE)morally pure"In the past, a woman needed to be chaste to make a good marriage." |
| EGREGIOUS | (ADJECTIVE)blatantly bad"It was an egregious error for a statesman to show such ignorance." |
| LUNACY | (NOUN)madness; a foolish act"It would be lunacy to try to climb the mountain in this weather." |
| DERIVATIVE | (ADJECTIVE)based on something else"The play was derivative of Shakespeare's story." |
| ORDINANCE | (NOUN) authoritative law (especially one enacted by a city) "City Ordinance 126 forbids car parking in this area of New York." |
| EPITOMIZE | (VERB)represent the essential qualities of"Even now in her sixties, she epitomizes French elegance." |
| VILIFY | (VERB)cause someone to be the target of hate by denigrating their character"He was vilified by the press as a monster of perversity." |
| APPROBATION | (NOUN)official approval"The council has finally indicated its approbation of the plans. |
| UNSCATHED | (ADJECTIVE) not injured "Her husband died in the accident but she, amazingly, escaped unscathed." |
Created by:
libinmeledam
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