| Word | Definition |
| antediluvian | – Adj – antiquated; ancient
s = antique; archaic; obsolete
a = modern; newfangled |
| attribute | – N – essential quality; characteristic
s= virtue; aspect; trait
flexibility and mobility are the key attributes of our army.
attribute – V – ascribe; explain; credit; assign |
| chagrin | N – embarrassment and vexation caused by humiliation and injured
pride
s= disappointment; shame
a= pride; triumph; glory exultation |
| importune | V – beg persistently
s= beseech; implore |
| integral | – Adj – complete; necessary for completenes fulfilled; lacking nothing; whole; entire
s= essential; inherent; indispensable; component; basic; requisite
a= peripheral, unessential, unimportant; lacking, imperfect; deficient |
| myopic | Adj – nearsighted; lacking foresight
s= shortsighted |
| odyssey | N – long, eventful journey; Homer's long poem
s = wanderings; travels; peregrination |
| panacea | cure-all; simplistic solution
s= remedy; universal cure |
| plagiarize | V – steal another's ideas and pass them off as one's own
s= steal; appropriate ideas by stealing |
| querulous | Adj – fretful; whining
s= complaining; peevish; fussy; petulant; long-faced
a= agreeable; good-tempered; complacent; genia |
| sagacious | – Adj – insightful; wise
s= keen; astute; calculating; sharp; cunning
a= ignorant; obtuse; foolish; inane |
| stagnant | Adj – motionless, stale; lifeless
s= dull, not flowing; slow, monotonous
a= lively, thriving, busy |
| surly | Adj – rude; cross
s= sullen; snarling; grouchy
a= amiable; affable; cordial; polite; pleasant |
| transitory | – Adj – impermanent; short-lived
s= fleeting; passing; brief; ephemeral; evanescent; temporary
a= long-lasting; durable; permanent |
| vagrant | – N – homeless wanderer [somewhat negative connotation]
s= vagabond; tramp; migrant; nomad; itinerant nomadic, wandering
a temporary home for vagrants
vagrant – Adj – wanderer; stray
s= roaming robbing
a= settled; stat |
| arable | adj. - fit for cultivation, as by plowing.
s = fertile; fecund
a = infertile; barren |
| aspire | V. - to have a great ambition or ultimate goal; desire strongly: aspired to
stardom; to strive toward an end: aspiring to great knowledge
s = strive; aim; pursue; quest |
| circumspect | adj. - heedful of circumstances and potential consequences; prudent
s = prudent; politic; practical; pragmatic; wise
a = foolish; imprudent; impractical; imprudent |
| cursory | adj. - performed with haste and scant attention to detail: a cursory
glance at the headlines.
s = superficial; shallow; insubstantial; surface
a = deep; profound; substantial; thorough |
| Indifferent | adj. - characterized by a lack of partiality; unbiased
s = apathetic; impassive; inexpressive; passive; callous; unemotional
a = sympathetic; empathic; enthusiastic; interested |
| inopportune | - adj. - inappropriate or ill-timed; not opportune.
s = inauspicious; inconvenient; unpropitious; inappropriate
a = timely; opportune; seasonal; appropriate |
| mendacious | – adj . - lying; untruthful; false; untrue: a mendacious statement
s = fraudulent; deceptive; dishonest; dissembling; disingenuous; insincere
a = honest; authentic; ingenuous |
| objective | s (for N.) = ambition; aspiration; mission
s (for adj.) = unbiased; impartial
a (for adj.) = indefinite; unreal |
| ornate | – adj. - elaborately, heavily, and often excessively ornamented; flashy,
showy, or florid in style or manner; flowery
s = decorated; adorned; ostentatious; elaborate
a = simple; unadorned |
| precarious | s = hazardous; dangerous; perilous; unsafe; risky; unstable
a = safe; secure |
| predilection | N. - a partiality or disposition in favor of something; a preference
s = penchant; proclivity; inclination; affinity; bias; propensity
a = aversion; repulsion; loathing; repugnance; antipathy; disinclination |
| raconteur | N. - one who tells stories and anecdotes with skill and wit
s = storyteller; anecdotist |
| satiate | V. - to satisfy (an appetite or a desire) fully
s = sate; gratify; quench |
| tarry | V. - to delay or be late in going, coming, or doing; to wait; to remain or
stay temporarily, as in a place; sojourn
s = remain; linger; procrastinate; dawdle; dally
a = continue; proceed; progress; hasten |
| volatile | adj. - tending to vary often or widely; inconstant; fickle:
lighthearted; flighty: ephemeral;
fleeting; tending to violence; explosive
s = impulsive; mercurial; transitory
a = stable; constant; immutable |
| abridge | V - condense or shorten; restrict; limit
s = reduce; compress; abbreviate; pare down; scale down;
curtail; restrict; take away
a = expand, enlarge, increase, augment |
| apprise | V - inform; notify
s= advise; enlighten; make aware of
a= hide; keep secret |
| burgeon | - V - grow forth; send out buds; flourish
s= prosper; thrive; succeed
a= languish; fail; go bankrupt |
| circuitous | - adj - roundabout; indirect; longwinded [in speech or writing]
s= winding; meandering; rambling; devious; digressive; circulatory
a=direct; undeviating; unswerving; straightforward; unveering |
| eclectic | - adj - [can also be noun = rare]
- composed of elements drawn from different sources
s= selective; varied
a= uniform; from the same source |
| malinger | - V - pretend illness ( usually to avoid responsibility)
s= fake; feign |
| mandate | V - order; charge
- N - protectorate; dependency; subject; territory
s = requisition; order; edict; directive; commission
a= request; appeal; petition; solicitation |
| oblivion | - N.- obscurity; forgetfulness
s=limbo; insignificance; nothingness; disregard
a=fame; celebrity; existence; immortality |
| oblivious | - adj.- inattentive; unmindful; wholly absorbed
s= unaware; heedless; unobservant; unconcerned
a=aware; conscious; heedful; troubled; annoyed |
| penury | N - severe poverty
- sometimes used to mean stinginess
s= bankruptcy; impoverishment; indigence
a= wealth; prosperity; abundance; affluence; elegance |
| pique | - N - irritation; resentment
s= annoyance; vexation; dissatisfaction
a= pleasure; satisfaction
V - arouse; spur; provoke; annoy
s= offend; vex; annoy; exasperate; perturb; rouse, excite
a- please compliment; satisfy; quench; dull |
| retribution | N - [negative connotation] vengeance; compensation; punishment for
offenses
s=requital; recompense; retaliation; restitution; justice
a= reward |
| stupefy | V - make numb; stun; amaze
s= daze; shock; confound; stagger; flabbergast; astound; nonplus; overwhelm |
| succinct | adj - brief; terse; compact
s= to the point; concise; pithy
a= discursive; rambling; verbose; circuitous; long-winded |
| underscore | V. - draw attention to; emphasize
s= accentuate; stress; heighten; intensify
a= trivialize; minimize |
| buttress | n. – something that serves to support
- v. tr. – to support
s (for n.) = brace; shore; support; reinforcement s (for v.) = bolster; brace; fortify; reinforce; strengthen; support a (for v.) = weaken |
| cliche | n. – a trite or overused expression or idea
s = banality; bromide; platitude; stereotype; truism |
| deplore | – v. tr. – to feel or express strong disapproval of; condemn; to express
sorrow or grief over; to regret; bemoan
s = bemoan; lament; criticize; grieve; disapprove
a = rejoice |
| deterrent | adj. – tending to discourage particular action or event: deterrent
weapons.
- n. – something that prevents an action or event s = preventative; inhibitive |
| dubious | adj. - fraught with uncertainty or doubt; undecided; arousing doubt;
doubtful; of questionable character
s = uncertain; doubtful; inconclusive; indefinite; questionable; suspicious
a = definite; certain; probable |
| expository | – adj. – serving to expound or set forth
s = explanatory; illustrative; declarative
a = uninstructive |
| milieu | – n. - an environment or a setting
s = environment; atmosphere; backdrop; background; setting; surroundings;
context |
| obscure | s (for adj.) = indistinct; hidden; nebulous; shadowy; uncertain; unimportant
a (for adj.) = distinct; clear
s (for v.) = weaken; obfuscate; shroud; conceal; obstruct; veil
a (for v.) = clear; reveal |
| opulence | n. - wealth; affluence; great abundance; profusion
s = prosperity; splendor; luxury; plushness
a = poverty; destitution; penury; austerity; destitution |
| procrastinate | v. intr. - to put off doing something
s = dawdle; delay; dally; tarry; hesitate
a = expedite; hasten |
| ramble | to follow a winding course of motion to speak or write at length
n. a leisurely, sometimes lengthy walk
s (for n.) = constitutional; perambulation; promenade
s (for v.) = promenade; roam; saunter; meander; peregrinate
a (for v.) = ru |
| serendipity | n. - the faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident
s = fortune |
| tome | - n. - one of the books in a work of several volumes; a book, especially a large
or scholarly one
s = book; opus; publication; volume |
| unassuming | – adj. – exhibiting no pretensions, boastfulness, or ostentation; modest
s = demure; modest; reserved; subdued; unpretentious
a = showy; gaudy; pretentious; ostentatious |
| zeal | - n. - enthusiastic devotion to a cause, an ideal, or a goal and tireless diligence
in its furtherance
s = fervor; enthusiasm; passion; devotion
a = indifference; apathy; detachment |
| amiable | – adj. – agreeable; lovable; warm; friendly
[used to describe people; amicable for actions – e.g. amicable agreement]
s = good-natured; affable; sociable; genial; gracious; winning; charming
a = hostile; unpleasant; repugnant; offensive |
| archaic | adj. – antiquated; out-of-date
[Think of archaeology: scientific study of ancient things.]
s= obsolete; bygone; passe; old-fashioned; ancient
a= modern; current; newfangled; up-to-date; novel |
| colloquial | adj. – pertaining to conversational or common speech;
informal language
s= ordinary; chatty; folksy; vernacular; everyday
a= formal; literary; sophisticated; cultural; refined |
| enigma | – n. – puzzle; mystery s= riddle; perplexity; secret |
| foil | – n. – contrast; antithesis
s= counterpart; match; complement
v. – defeat; frustrate
s= thwart; hinder; check; nip; prevent
a= advance; incite; abet; foment |
| jocose | adj. – given to joking; jovial; jolly
s= jocund; merry; witty; mirthful; amusing
a= grave; earnest; serious; somber; solemn |
| meticulous | adj. – excessively careful; painstaking; scrupulous
s = fastidious; exact; precise; finicky; fussy; particular; punctilious
a= careless; negligent; sloppy; inexact; imprecise |
| ominous | adj. – threatening; foreshadowing problems or evil
s= foreboding; portentous; inauspicious; menacing; unfavorable
unlucky
a= auspicious; encouraging; promising; favorable |
| parable | n. – simple, short story that teaches a lesson or a moral;
(often a religious lesson) |
| philanthropist | n. – lover of mankind; doer of good
s= benefactor; humanitarian; donor; contributor
a= misanthrope; miser |
| pithy | adj. – concise; meaningful; to the point
s= terse; cogent; succinct
a= prolix; verbose; rambling; long-winded |
| plaintive | adj. – sorrowful or melancholy
s= doleful; dolorous; disconsolate; tearful; lugubrious; lachrymose
a= merry; light-hearted; jocular; jocund |
| seethe | v. – be disturbed; roil; bubble
s= churn; rage; rant; rave |
| temper | v. – tone down or restrain; moderate
s= harden; strengthen or soften [strange but true]; calm; soothe
a= soften; weaken or intensify; aggravate; excite; increase |
| vulnerable | – adj. – open to attack; subject to injury or wounds
s= unprotected; exposed to harm; susceptible; sensitive
a= protected; guarded; unassailable; invincible |
