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WordoftheDay1 Comp1
First fifty vocabulary words
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| apocryphal | of doubtful authenticity |
| defenestration | 1. a throwing of a person or thing out of a window 2. a usually swift dismissal or expulsion |
| toplofty | very superior in air or attitude |
| vaticination | 1. prediction 2. the act of prophesying |
| insouciance | lighthearted unconcern |
| ungainly | 1. a. lacking in smoothness or dexterity; clumsy b. hard to handle; unwieldy 2. having an awkward appearance |
| kerfuffle | disturbance; fuss |
| objurgation | a harsh rebuke (rebuke=reprimand) |
| expedite | 1. to execute promptly 2. to accelerate the process or progress of; speed up 3. issue; dispatch |
| imbibition | the act or action of imbibing; especially the taking up of fluid by a colloidal system resulting in swelling |
| homiletic | 1. of, relating to, or resembling a homily 2. of or relating to the art of preaching; preachy |
| whirligig | 1. a child's toy having a whirling motion 2. a. one that continuously whirls or changes b. a whirling or circling course (as of events) |
| colloquial | 1. of or relating to conversation; conversational 2. a. used in or characteristic of familiar and informal conversation; unacceptably informal b. using conversational style |
| torpor | 1. a. a state of mental and motor inactivity with partial or total insensibility b. a state of lowered physiological activity in varying degrees as in hibernating and estivating animals 2. apathy; dullness |
| indite | 1. make up, compose 2. to give literary or formal expression to 3. to put down in writing |
| quid pro quo | something given or received for something else; also a deal arranging a quid pro quo |
| precatory | expressing a wish |
| mettle | 1. a. vigor and strength of spirit or temperament b. staying quality; stamina 2. quality of temperament or disposition |
| coruscate | 1. to give off or reflect light in bright beams or flashes; sparkle 2. to be brilliant or showy in technique or style |
| finicky | 1. extremely or excessively particular, exacting or meticulous in taste or standards. 2. requiring much care, precision or attentive effort |
| synecdoche | a figure of speech by which a less encompassing term is put for a more encompassing term or vice versa |
| palliate | 1. to reduce the violence of (a disease); also, to ease (the symptoms) without curing the underlying disease 2. to cover by excuses and apologies 3. to moderate the intensity of |
| perspicacious | of acute mental vision or discernment; keen |
| pelf | money; riches |
| marginalia | 1. marginal notes or embellishments (as in a book) 2. nonessential items |
| tutoyer | to address familiarly |
| flatfoot | 1. a condition in which the arch of the instep is flattened so that the entire sole rests upon the ground 2. a. slang: a police officer, especially a partolman walking a regular beat. b. slang: sailor |
| contumacious | stubbornly disobedient; rebellious |
| megrim | 1. a. migraine b. vertigo, dizziness 2. a. fancy, whim b. low spirits |
| perpend | 1. to reflect on carefully; ponder 2. to be attentive; reflect |
| solace | 1. alleviation of grief or anxiety 2. a source of relief or consolation |
| haruspex | a diviner in ancient Rome basing his predictions on inspection of the entrails of sacrificial animals |
| stridulate | to make a shrill creaking noise by rubbing together special bodily structures -- used especially by male insects (as crickets or grasshoppers) |
| wardrobe | 1. a room or closet or receptacle or trunk for clothes. 2. a collection of wearing apparel or stage costumes. 3. department of royal or noble household entrusted with the care of wearing apparel, jewels, and personal articles |
| bioturbation | the restructuring of sedimentary deposits (as in a lake bottom or seabed) by moving organisms (as worms and burrowing clams) |
| doughty | marked by fearless resolution; valiant |
| hamartia | tragic flaw |
| condone | to regard or treat (something bad or blameworthy) as acceptable, forgivable or harmless |
| preprandial | of, relating to, or suitable for the time just before dinner |
| ruction | 1. a noisy fight 2. disturbance; uproar |
| bildungsroman | a novel about the moral and psychological growth of the main character |
| impugn | to assail by words or arguments; oppose or attack as false or lacking integrity |
| climacteric | 1. a major turning point or critical stage 2. a. menopause. b. a period in the life of a male corresponding to female menopause 3. the marked and sudden rise in the respiratory rate of fruit just prior to full ripening |
| baksheesh | payment (as a tip or bribe) to expedite service |
| adapt | to make or become fit (as for a specific new use or situation) often by modification |
| moiety | 1. a. one of two equal parts; half b. one of two approximately equal parts 2. one of the portions into which something is divided; component; part 3. one of two basic complementary tribal subdivisions |
| factitious | 1. produced by humans rather than by natural forces 2. not natural or genuine; artificial |
| gridiron | 1. a grate for broiling food 2. something consisting of or covered with a network 3. a football field |
| obsequious | marked by or exhibiting a fawning attentiveness |
| newspeak | propagandistic language marked by euphemism, circumlocution, and the inversion of customary meanings; double-talk |
| corrade | to wear or crumble away through abrasion |
Created by:
jnhnln
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