1.
abate: to reduce or become smaller
2.
aberration: a deviation from what is considered right or normal
3.
abstruse: difficult to understand, obscure
4.
acumen: insightfulness, quickness of thought
5.
adroit: quick and skilled
6.
alacrity: enthusiasm and speed
7.
amalgamation: mixture
8.
ambivalence: mixed feelings
9.
ameliorate: to make better, to improve
10.
arcane: understood by few, mysterious, secret
11.
ascetic: involving severe self-denial
12.
aspersions: slander or criticism
13.
astute: clever, shrewd
14.
autonomy: personal or political independence
15.
aversion: strong dislike
16.
banal: boring, predictable, common
17.
bereft: lacking completely
18.
bombastic: pompous, pretentious
19.
cacophany: a harsh, unpleasant mixture of sounds
20.
capricious: changeable, unpredictable, or impulsive
21.
censure: to express severe disapproval
22.
concord: agreement or treaty
23.
conflagration: a large, destructive fire
24.
consign: to give to someone else (to be cared for or sold)
25.
contravene: to violate or contradict
26.
convivial: lively and cheerful
27.
dearth: lack or shortage
28.
decorous: polite, proper
29.
defer: to put off until a later time
30.
defunct: no longer in existence or non-functional
31.
deleterious: harmful
32.
derelict: abandoned ruin
33.
diaphanous: delicate and transparent
34.
dilatory: intentionally slow
35.
disavow: to deny responsibility for
36.
disparage: insult or ridicule
37.
disparate: fundamentally different
38.
disseminate: to circulate, to spread widely
39.
duplicitous: deceitful, two-faced
40.
ebullient: cheerful and energetic, bubbly
41.
elucidate: to clarify, to shed light on
42.
empirical: based on experiment and observation
43.
equanimity: calmness, especially in a bad situation
44.
erudite: scholarly, learned
45.
esoteric: obscure, understood by only a few people
46.
exorbitant: excessive or unreasonably high, especially in terms of money
47.
expeditious: quick and efficient
48.
extol: praise enthusiastically
49.
furtive: secretive or sneaky
50.
hackneyed: overused, cliché
51.
iconoclast: a person who attacks cherished traditions
52.
idiosyncratic: peculiar, unique to an individual
53.
ignominious: publicly shameful or humiliating
54.
impetuous: impulsive, thoughtless
55.
innocuous: harmless
56.
insipid: tasteless, boring, bland
57.
irreverence: impish lack of respect
58.
laconic: using very few words
59.
mendacious: untruthful, lying
60.
mercurial: changing mood suddenly and unpredictably
61.
mitigate: to make less severe or serious
62.
modicum: a small quantity
63.
nebulous: hazy, vague
64.
obsequious: excessively eager to please or flatter
65.
officious: aggressively asserting authority in an annoying, interfering way
66.
onerous: extremely difficult and work-intensive
67.
paucity: scarcity, shortage
68.
pejorative: contemptuous, disapproving
69.
penchant: liking, preference
70.
penitent: remorseful, showing regret for wrongdoing
71.
penurious: 1. extremely poor 2. stingy, miserly
72.
phlegmatic: unemotional
73.
placid: calm, peaceful
74.
plaudits: praise or applause
75.
potent: powerful
76.
predilection: a bias or liking for something
77.
prescient: having knowledge of events before they happen
78.
propensity: tendency or liking
79.
prosaic: commonplace, lacking imagination or beauty
80.
puerile: childish
81.
pugnacious: naturally aggressive
82.
punctilious: paying close attention to detail or correct behavior
83.
quixotic: hopeful but unrealistic or impractical
84.
remiss: negligent
85.
respite: a short rest from something unpleasant
86.
salient: noticeable, important
87.
solicitous: 1. full of concern 2. eager or anxious
88.
supercilious: arrogant
89.
surfeit: an excessive amount
90.
sycophant: someone who flatters insincerely
91.
taciturn: moody and untalkative
92.
tangential: going away from the main point
93.
trenchant: forceful and cutting, sharp
94.
truculent: 1. quick to anger, aggressive 2. cruel or fierce
95.
untenable: unable to be maintained or defended
96.
vacillate: to waver between opinions
97.
variegated: multicolored
98.
venerable: given great respect
99.
vindicate: 1. to clear of blame or suspicion 2. to prove right