AP Lit Vocab
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Created by:
nagykaldie on September 2, 2012
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99 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 ignominious | (adj.) (used of conduct or character) deserving or bringing disgrace or shame |
| vehement | (adj.) marked by extreme intensity of emotions or convictions |
| sardonic | (adj.) disdainfully or ironically humorous or sarcastic |
| lugubrious | (adj.) excessively mournful |
| taciturn | (adj.) habitually silent or quiet, inclined to talk very little |
| arrogate | (v.) seize and take control without authority and possibly with force |
| soporific | (adj.) tending to cause sleep, relating to sleepiness or lethargy; (n.) something that induces sleep |
| ameliorate | (v.) to improve, make better, correct a flaw or shortcoming |
| expiate | (v.) to make amends, make up for; to avert |
| penurious | (adj.) penny-pinching, excessively thrifty, ungenerous |
| perfidious | (adj.) treacherous, unfaithful, or disloyal |
| fervid | (adj.) ardent, burning, impassioned |
| turbid | (adj.) (state of a liquid) cloudy, muddy; in a state of turmoil |
| indignant | (adj.) filled with resentment or anger over something unjust, unworthy, or mean |
| officious | (adj.) meddling; excessively forward in offering services or assuming authority |
| equivocal | (adj.) ambiguous; intentionally confusing; capable of being interpreted in more than one way |
| assiduous | (adj.) persistent, attentive, diligent |
| inscrutable | (adj.) incapable of being understood; impossible to see through physically |
| insuperable | (adj.) incapable of being overcome or defeated |
| vapid | (adj.) dull, uninteresting, tiresome; lacking in sharpness, flavor, liveliness, or force |
| insipid | (adj.) lacking interest or significance; lacking taste |
| provincial | (adj.) lacking sophistication, narrow-minded |
| impetuous | (adj.) rash, impulsive, acting without thinking |
| empirical | (adj.) based on observation or experiment and not on theory |
| precocious | (adj.) exceptionally early in development or talent |
| capricious | (adj.) unpredictable; fickle |
| diffident | (adj.) shy, lacking self-confidence; modest, reserved |
| meritorious | (adj.) worthy, deserving recognition and praise |
| propitious | (adj.) favorable, advantageous |
| indefatigable | (adj.) tireless, incapable of being fatigued |
| ostensible | (adj.) apparent, appearing as such, pretended |
| salubrious | (adj.) promoting health or well-being |
| credulous | (adj.) easily deceived, gullible |
| pedantic | (adj.) overly concerned with minute details |
| incendiary | (adj.) deliberately setting or causing fires; designed to start fires; tending to stir up strife or rebellion; (n.) one who deliberately sets fires, arsonist; one who causes strife |
| genial | (adj.) cordial, pleasantly cheerful or warm |
| disconsolate | (adj.) deeply unhappy or dejected; without hope, beyond consolation |
| peremptory | (adj.) leaving no opportunity for denial or refusal |
| ascetic | (adj.) absent of luxury; (n.) one who leads a life of self-denial and contemplation |
| palliate | (v.) to ease pain, guilt or intensity; make less serious |
| prurient | (adj.) having lustful desires or interests; tending to arouse sexual desires |
| debauchery | (n.) corruption; self-indulgence |
| solecism | (n.) nonstandard or ungrammatical usage; a breach of good manners or etiquette; any error, impropriety, or inconsistency |
| indomitable | (adj.) unconquerable, refusing to yield |
| intractable | (adj.) not easily managed or directed; stubborn; obstinate |
| supercilious | (adj.) proud and contemptuous; showing scorn because of a feeling of superiority |
| despotic | (adj.) ruling oppressively and absolutely; tyrannical |
| impalpable | (adj.) incapable of being perceived by the sense of touch; intangible; difficult for the mind to grasp readily or easily |
| culpable | (adj.) deserving blame, worthy of condemnation |
| redolent | (adj.) having a pleasant odor, fragrant; suggestive, reminiscent |
| furtive | (adj.) sneaky, secret, shifty |
| reprobate | (n.) a depraved, vicious, or unprincipled person, scoundrel; (adj.) wicked, corrupt, or unprincipled; (v.) to disapprove of, condemn |
| behemoth | (n.) a creature of enormous size, power, or appearance |
| peccadillo | (n.) a minor sin or offense; a trifling fault or shortcoming |
| propitiate | (v.) to conciliate, appease, or make peace with |
| susurration | (n) a whispering sound or murmur |
| surly | (adj.) angry and bad-tempered, rude |
| approbation | (n.) the expression of approval or favorable opinion, praise; official approval |
| collusion | (n.) secret agreement or cooperation |
| ingratiating | (adj.) charming, agreeable, pleasing |
| heretical | (adj.) violating accepted dogma or convention |
| lethargic | (adj.) lazy, sluggish, lacking energy |
| sedentary | (adj.) largely inactive, accustomed to sitting |
| jocular | (adj.) humorous, jesting, jolly, joking |
| lurid | (adj.) causing shock, horror, or revulsion; sensational |
| incorrigible | (adj.) incapable of being reformed or improved |
| sordid | (adj.) filthy, foul, or run-down |
| brevity | (n.) briefness or shortness |
| harrowed | (adj.) disturbed, distressed |
| disconcerted | (adj.) confused, upset, embarrassed |
| consternation | (n.) dismay, confusion |
| prodigious | (adj.) immense; extraordinary in bulk, size, or degree |
| disdainful | (adj.) scornful, contemptuous |
| imperious | (adj.) overbearing, arrogant; seeking to dominate; pressing, compelling |
| inviolable | (adj.) sacred, secure from violation |
| consummate | (adj.) complete or perfect in the highest degree; (v.) to bring to a state of completion or perfection |
| laudable | (adj.) deserving praise, praiseworthy, commendable |
| idyllic | (adj.) carefree, simple, peaceful |
| prudent | (adj.) wise, careful, cautious, sensible |
| glib | (adj.) ready and fluent in speech; thoughtless, insincere |
| presumptuous | (adj.) rude, improperly bold, overconfident |
| quixotic | (adj.) idealistic, impractical |
| equanimity | (n.) calmness, composure, refusal to panic |
| indecorous | (adj.) improper, lacking good taste, inappropriate in behavior |
| misanthrope | (n.) a person who hates or despises people |
| propagate | (v.) produce, multiply, spread |
| sententious | (adj.) self-righteous, characterized by moralizing; given to use of maxims or adages; saying much in few words, pithy |
| plaintive | (adj.) expressing sorrow, mournful, melancholy |
| pragmatic | (adj.) practical; down to earth; based on experience rather than theory |
| aesthetic | (adj.) having to do with the appreciation of beauty |
| jovial | (adj.) jolly, good-humored, in high spirits; merry |
| flippant | (adj.) lacking in seriousness; disrespectful, saucy |
| portentous | (adj.) foreboding or foreshadowing evil, ominous |
| calumnious | (adj.) falsely and maliciously accusing; defamatory, slanderous |
| pernicious | (adj.) extremely harmful; deadly, fatal |
| rogue | (n.) a criminal, dishonest person, scoundrel |
| pestilent | (adj.) destructive to life, deadly, poisonous |
| abate | (v.) to reduce or lessen in intensity |
| remiss | (adj.) neglectful in performance of one's duty, careless |
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