Term | Definition | |
Abstruse | difficult to understand, recondite, concealed | Some of Einstein's concepts were so abstruse that many physicists couldn't understand them. |
Affable | friendly, courteous, amiable | Al was very affable; he said "Hi" to everyone. |
Audacity | excessive boldness, rashness, daring | Audrey had the audacity to tell the teacher he was wrong. |
Contrite | extremely apologetic, remorseful, repentant | Connie was very contrite about breaking her mother's favorite vase. |
Credulous | believing on slight evidence, gullible | Because his horoscope said to stay inside, the credulous boy skipped school. |
Depravity | moral corruption, a wicked or perverse act | When he starting smoking and drinking everyday, that's when people started talking about his depravity. |
Deprecate | to disapprove regretfully, to belittle, to express mild disapproval | Do not deprecate her actions, unless you fully understand her situation. |
Didactic | instructive, designed to teach | Because of the coach's didactic approach, his players learned many blocking techniques. |
Dormant | inactive, sleeping | Most bears remain dormant during the winter months and wake in the spring. |
Enigmatic | mysterious, inexplicable, puzzling | The disappearance of Amelia Earhart is an enigma to this day. |
Erudite | scholarly | The erudite physics professor had spent many years studying the theory of relativity. |
Exotic | foreign, unfamiliar | The circus features exotic animals from Africa and Asia. |
Fuse | to mix or to join (usually by melting) | Zinc and copper can be fused into hard, bright brass. |
Immutable | unchanging | Her love for her husband, even after 30 year, was immutable. |
Incorrigible | incapable of being reformed or improved | His constant fighting with other students caused his teachers to call him incorrigible. |
Loathe | to detest | That fact that I loathe your brother does not mean that we can't be friends. |
Mitigate | to cause to become less harsh or hostile; to make less severe | He apologized in order to mitigate her dislike for him. |
Nullify | to cause not to be in effect, to negate | I am seeking to nullify the contract because he has not complied with it. |
Pacifistic | opposed to war or use of force | The wan refused to fight because of his pacifistic beliefs. |
Pretentious | making an extravagant outward show, self-important | Isn't it a little pretentious to spend two million dollars on a wedding? |
Prologue | introductory remarks in a speech, play, or literary work, introductory action | The play had a prologue that set the scene for the opening act. |
Recant | to withdraw or repudiate a statement or belief, revoke | The prosecutor's case was greatly weakened when the witness recanted his testimony. |
Servile | overly submissive | Slaves had to act servile to avoid being whipped. |
Trepidation | fear, trembling, agitation | Since I didn't have time to study, I have a lot of trepidation about this final. |
Vilify | to malign, to defame, to utter abusive statements against | It is not right to vilify someone just because they don't agree with you. |