| Term | Definition |
|---|
| adorn | to lend beauty to; decorate |
| aeon | an indefinitely long period of time; an age |
| affectation | behavior that is assumed rather than natural; artificiality |
| aloof | distant physically or emotionally; reserved and remote |
| amalgam | acombination of diverse elements; a mixture |
| ambivalent | having opposing attitude or feelings about something |
| anguish | agonizing physical or mental pain; torment |
| antecedent | one that precedes another |
| apathy | indifference |
| aplomb | self-confident assurance; poise |
| appall | to fill with consternation or dismay |
| apropos | to the point |
| archaic | of, relating to, or characteristic of words and language that were once common but are now used chiefly to suggest an earlier style or period |
| arduous | testing severely the powers of endurance; strenuous |
| assertive | inclined to bold or confident assertion; aggressively self-assured |
| auspicious | favorable |
| automaton | something that behaves like a robot |
| avant-garde | a group active in the invention and application of new techniques in a given field, especially in the arts |
| avarice | greed |
| banality | something that is trite, obvious, or predictable; a commonplace |
| bane | fatal injury or ruin |
| beleaguered | to harass; beset |
| belie | to picture falsely; misrepresent |
| belligerent | inclined or eager to fight; hostile or aggressive |
| bipartisan | supported by two political parties |
| blight | any of numerous plant diseases resulting in sudden conspicuous wilting and dying of affected parts, especially young growing tissues |
| bog | a wetland |
| bolster | to support |
| boon | a benefit bestowed |
| bowdlerize | to remove offensive portions from a book |
| burgeon | to grow and flourish |
| celerity | swiftness of action or motion; speed |
| chronological | arranged in order of time of occurrence |
| circumscribe | to limit narrowly; restrict |
| circumvent | to avoid or get around by artful maneuvering |
| clamor | a loud outcry; a hubbub |
| colloquial | informal speech or writing |
| complaisant | exhibiting a desire or willingness to please; cheerfully obliging |
| condemn | to express strong disapproval of |
| conjecture | a guess based on incomplete evidence |
| cordial | friendly |
| cosmopolitan | having contituent elements from many different parts of the world |
| covet | to desire |
| cynical | scornful of the motives, culture, or integrity of others |
| daunting | discouraging |
| dearth | a scarce supply; a lack |
| deficient | lacking an essential quality or element |
| deft | skillful |
| deleterious | having a harmful effect; injurious |
| demur | to voice opposition; object |
| denounce | to condemn openly as being evil or reprehensible |
| deter | to prevent or discourage from acting, as by means of fear or doubt |
| devour | to eat or ingest |
| diffident | lacking or marked by a lack of self-confidence; shy and timid |
| dilettante | a dabbler in an art or a field of knowledge |
| diminution | a lessening or reduction |
| diminutive | extremely small in size; tiny |
| dirge | a funeral song |
| dissolute | lacking moral restraint; indulging in sensual pleasures or vices |
| divisive | creating dissension or discord |
| dogmatic | characterized by an authoritative, arrogant assertion of unproved or unprovable principles |
| don | to put on (clothing) |
| dour | unyielding; stubborn |
| droll | amusingly odd or whimsically comical |
| dynamic | marked by energy |
| economical | affordable |
| effusive | profuse; overflowing; unrestrained or excessive in emotional expression; gushy |
| elaborate | to express at greater length or in greater detail |
| elan | enthusiastic vigor or liveliness |
| elitist | the belief that certain persons or members of certain classes or groups deserve favored treatment by virtue of their perceived superiority, as in intellect, social status, or financial resources |
| elusive | hard to track |
| emote | to express emotion, especially in an excessive or theatrical manner |
| empathy | identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives. |
| empirical | relying on or derived from observation or experiment |
| enrapture | to fill with delight |
| enumerate | to count off or name one by one; list |
| envelop | to enclose or encase completely with or as if with a covering |
| ephemeral | lasting for a markedly brief time |
| epitomize | to be a typical example of |
| euphoric | a feeling of great happiness |
| evocation | creation anew of through the power of the memory or imagination |
| exhort | to urge by strong, often stirring argument, admonition, advice, or appeal |
| exonerate | to clear from blame |
| extinction | state of being removed from existence |
| fabrication | a lie |
| fanfare | a spectacular public display |
| fart | a usually audible discharge of intestinal gas that may cause others to leave the room |
| fastidious | displaying careful, meticulous attention to detail |
| fawn | to seek favor or attention by flattery and obsequious behavior |
| fecund | capable of producing offspring or vegetation, fruitful |
| fickle | characterized by erratic changeableness or instability, especially with regard to affections or attachments; capricious |
| fleeting | passing quickly |
| fortitude | strength of mind that allows one to endure pain or adveristy with courage |
| foster | to promote the growth and development of; cultivate |
| galvanize | to arouse to awareness or action; spur |
| guileless | not deceitful or crafty |
| halcyon | peaceful |
| hamper | to prevent the free movement, action, or progress of |
| harbinger | one that indicates or foreshadows what is to come; a forerunner |
| histrionic | excessively dramatic or emotional; dramatic |
| hyperbole | a figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for emphasis or effect |
| idiosyncratic | describing an eccentric characteristic peculiar to an individual or a group |
| illustrious | well-known and very distinguished; eminent |
| impasse | a situation that is so difficult that no progress can be made; a deadlock or stalemate |
| impeccable | having no flaws; perfect |
| imperceptible | hard to detect |
| imperious | arrogantly domineering or overbearing |
| implausible | difficult to believe |
| impugn | to attack as false or questionable |
| inane | stupid |
| indomitability | incapable of being overcome, subdued, or vanquished; unconquerable |
| inflame | to arouse to passionate feeling or action |
| ingratiation | to bring into the favor or good graces of another, especially by deliberate effort |
| iniquity | gross immorailty or injustice; wickedness; sin |
| innocuous | harmless; not likely to offend or provoke to strong emotion; insipid |
| insurmountable | difficult to overcome |
| intractable | difficult to manage or govern; stubborn |
| inundate | to flood |
| invoke | to call on |
| jocular | characterized by jokes and good humor |
| lambaste | to denounce |
| lassitude | a state or feeling of weariness, diminished energy, or listlessness; lethargy |
| lethargic | sluggish, preferring inactivity, lacking energy |
| libelous | describing something written that is false |
| licentious | lacking moral discipline or ignoring legal restraint, especially in sexual conduct |
| lionize | to look on or treat (a person) as a celebrity |
| longevity | living to an old age |
| lugubrious | mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially to an exaggerated or ludicrous degree |
| lurid | causing shock or horror; gruesome |
| malaise | a general sense of depression or unease |
| malleable | easily changed and controlled by other forces |
| marginalize | to relegate to a lower position |
| mediate | to resolve or settle (differences) by working with all the conflicting parties |
| meticulous | extremely careful and precise; excessively concerned with details |
| minimize | to represent as having the least degree of importance, value, or size |
| mitigate | to lessen |
| mollify | to calm in temper or feeling; soothe |
| momentous | of utmost importance; of outstanding significance or consequence |
| monotony | tedious sameness or repetitiveness |
| monumental | impressively large |
| moratorium | a suspension of an ongoing or planned activity |
| mosaic | a picture or decorative design made by setting small colored pieces of glass into a surface |
| muddle | to confuse |
| myriad | consituting a very large, indefinite number; innumerable |
| naivete | the state or quality of being artless, credulous, or uncritical; gullible |
| notorious | known widely and usually unfavorably; infamous |
| noxious | harmful to the mind or morals; corrupting |
| nuance | a subtle or slight degree of difference |
| obdurate | stubborn |
| oblique | devious, misleading, or dishonest |
| obsequious | full of or exhibiting servile compliance; fawning; kissing up |
| opacity | obscurity; impenetrability |
| oracular | resembling or characteristic of an oracle; solemnly prophetic |
| orthodox | adhering to what is traditional |
| palpitation | beating or pulsation |
| pandemic | widespread |
| partisan | biased in support of a party, group, or cause |
| pathos | a quality, as of an experience or a work of art, that arouses feelings of pity, sympathy, tenderness, or sorrow |
| paucity | smallness of number; fewness |
| pedantic | concern for book learning and formal rules |
| pensive | deeply, often wistfully or dreamily thoughtful |
| perfunctory | acting with indifference; showing little interest or care |
| pernicious | destructive |
| pertinent | having logical, precise relevance to the matter at hand |
| petulant | irritable |
| placate | to allay the anger of, especially by making concessions; appease |
| planetarium | a theater that projects images of celestial bodies and other astronomical phenomena onto the inner surface of a hemisperical dome |
| plethora | a superabundance; an excess |
| polemic | a controversial argument, especially one refuting or attacking a specific opinion or doctrine |
| populist | a supporter of the rights and power of the people |
| prattle | to talk or chatter foolishly, idly, or meaninglessly; babbly or prate |
| predation | the capturing of prey as a means of maintaining life |
| predilection | a partiality or disposition in favor of something; a preference |
| prescience | knowledge of actions or events before they occur; foresight |
| presumptuous | going beyond what is right or proper; excessively forward |
| pristine | remaining in a pure state; uncorrupted by civilization |
| proclivity | a natural propensity or inclination; predisposition |
| procure | to bring about; effect |
| profligacy | reckless wastefulness |
| propitiate | to conciliate (an offended power); appease |
| provocative | tending to provoke a reaction |
| prudent | wise in handling practical matters; exercising good judgment or common sense |
| psychosomatic | describing a disorder having physical symptoms but originating from psychological causes |
| quibble | to find fault or criticize for petty reasons; cavil |
| quiescent | being quiet, still, or at rest; inactive |
| ravenous | extremely hungry; voracious |
| recalcitrant | marked by stubborn resistance to and defiance of authority or guidance |
| redress | to set right; remedy or rectify |
| relief | in geology, the variations in elevation of an area of the earth's surface |
| renaissance | a rebirth or revival |
| reprehensible | blameworthy |
| repudiate | to reject emphatically as unfounded, untrue, or unjust |
| resolute | firm or determined; unwavering |
| reticence | a tendency to be quiet |
| retiring | shy and reserved; modest |
| retort | to reply, especially to answer in a quick, caustic, or witty manner |
| rigidity | stiffness |
| ruffian | a bully |
| sanctuary | a place of refuge or asylum |
| satirical | relating too a literary work in which human vice or folly is attacked through irony, derision, or wit |
| sinecure | a position or an office that requires little or no work but provides a salary |
| slighting | disparaging; belittling |
| sparing | given to or marked by prudence and restraint in the use or material resources |
| spate | a sudden flood, rush, or outpouring |
| spontaneity | self-generated; creative |
| spur | to incite or stimulate |
| stimulation | creating sensation |
| strident | loud, harsh, grating, or shrill; discordant |
| substantiate | to support with proof or evidence; verify |
| subtle | not immediately obvious; abstruse |
| supine | lying on the back or having the face upward |
| surly | arrogant; domineering; not gracious |
| synergy | the interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects |
| synthetic | not natural |
| taciturn | untalkative; silent |
| tactile | perceptible to the sense of touch; tangible |
| tedium | boredom |
| temper | to moderate |
| temperate | behavior exercising moderation and self-restraint especially with respect to eating or drinking |
| timidity | the act of being fearful and hesitant |
| topography | graphic representation of the surface features of a place or region on a map, indicating their relative positions and elevations |
| tractable | easily handled or controlled |
| trepidation | fear |
| triumvirate | an association or a group of three |
| trove | a collection of valuable items |
| truculence | bitter hositility; cruel behavior |
| tutelage | the state of being under the direction of a guardian or tutor |
| uncannily | so keen and perceptive as to seem preternatural |
| uncompromising | unwilling to grant concessions or negotiate; inflexible |
| ungainly | lacking grace |
| unsavory | distasteful or disagreeable |
| unscrupulous | oblivious to or contemptuous of what is right or honorable |
| vacuous | lacking intelligence; stupid |
| venture | to express at the risk of criticism, or censure |
| venturesome | daring |
| verbosity | wordy |
| vernal | pertaining to the spring season |
| vertiginous | affected by vertigo; dizzy |
| verve | energy and enthusiasm in the expression of ideas, especially in artistic performance or composition |
| vignettes | brief descriptive sketches |
| virulent | extremely infectious, malignant, or poisonous |
| vivid | evoking lifelike images within the mind; heard, seen, or felt as if real |
| whimsical | erratic in behavior or degree of unpredictablilty |
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