| Term | Definition |
|---|
| approbation | the expression of approval |
| assuage | to make easier |
| coalition | a union or merger for specific purpose |
| decadence | decline, decay, or deterioration |
| elicit | to bring forth |
| expostulate | to attempt to dissuade someone from some course or decision |
| hackneyed | used so often as to lack freshness |
| hiatus | a gap |
| innuendo | a hint |
| intercede | to plead on behalf of someone else |
| jaded | wearied, worn-out |
| lurid | causing shock, horror, or revulsion |
| meritorious | worthy of recognition |
| petulant | easily irritated |
| prerogative | a special right or privilege |
| provincial | narrow in mind or outlook |
| simulate | to make a pretense of |
| transcend | to rise above or beyond |
| umbrage | shade cast by trees |
| unctuous | excessively smooth or smug |
| ameliorate | to improve |
| aplomb | great self-confidence |
| bombastic | full of high sounding words intended to conceal a lack of ideas |
| callow | immature |
| drivel | aimless talk or thinking |
| epitome | a summary |
| exhort | to urge strongly |
| ex officio | by virtue of holding a certain office |
| infringe | to violate, trespass |
| ingratiate | to make oneself agreeable |
| interloper | one who moves in where he or she is not wanted |
| intrinsic | belonging to someone or something by its very nature |
| inveigh | to make a violent attack in words |
| lassitude | weariness of body or mind |
| millennium | a period of one thousand years; a period of great joy |
| occult | mysterious, magical, supernatural |
| permeate | to spread through, penetrate |
| precipitate | to fall as moisture; to bring about suddenly |
| stringent | strict, severe |
| surmise | to think or believe without certain supporting evidence |
| abominate | to have an intense dislike for |
| acculturation | the modification of the social patterns of one group by contact with those of another |
| adventitious | resulting from chance, accidental |
| ascribe | to assign or refer to |
| circuitous | roundabout |
| commiserate | to sympathize with, have pity for |
| enjoin | to direct or order |
| expedite | to make easy |
| expiate | to make amends |
| ferment | a state of great excitement |
| inadvertent | resulting from lack of attention |
| nominal | existing in name only, not real |
| noncommittal | not decisive or definite |
| peculate | to steal something that has been given into one's trust |
| proclivity | a natural or habitual inclination or tendency |
| sangfroid | composure of coolness |
| seditious | resistant to lawful authority |
| tenuous | thin, slender |
| vitriolic | bitter, sarcastic |
| wheedle | to use coaxing or flattery |
| affable | courteous and pleasant |
| aggrandize | to increase greatness |
| amorphous | shapeless, without definite form |
| aura | that which surrounds |
| contraband | illegal traffic |
| erudite | scholarly, learned |
| gossamer | thin, light, delicate |
| infer | to find out by reasoning |
| inscrutable | incapable of being understood |
| insular | relating to or situated on an island; narrow-minded |
| irrevocable | incapable of being taken back |
| propensity | a natural inclination towards |
| querulous | peevish, |
| remonstrate | to argue or plead with someone against something |
| repudiate | disown |
| resilient | able to return to original state |
| reverberate | to re-echo |
| scurrilous | coarsely abusive, vulgar |
| sedulous | persistent |
| sleazy | thin or flimsy |
| amnesty | a general pardon |
| autonomy | self-government |
| axiomatic | self-evident |
| blazon | to adorn; to publish |
| caveat | a warning or caution |
| equitable | fair, just |
| extricate | to remove with effort |
| filch | to steal sneakily and in petty amount |
| flout | to mock |
| fractious | tending to be troublesome |
| precept | a rule of conduct |
| salutary | beneficial |
| scathing | bitterly severe |
| scourge | to whip, punish severely |
| sepulchral | funereal; extremely gloomy or dismal |
| soporific | tending to cause sleep |
| straitlaced | extremely strict |
| transient | lasting only a short time |
| unwieldy | not easily carried |
| vapid | dull, |
| anomalous | abnormal |
| aspersion | a damaging or derogatory statement |
| bizarre | extremely strange |
| brusque | abrupt, blunt |
| cajole | to coax |
| castigate | to punish severely |
| contrive | to plan with ingenuity |
| demagogue | a leader who exploits popular prejudices |
| disabuse | to free from deception or error |
| ennui | weariness and dissatisfaction from lack of occupation |
| fetter | a chain or shackle; to chain or shackle |
| heinous | very wicked |
| immutable | not subject to change |
| insurgent | one who rebels against authority |
| megalomania | a delusion marked by a feeling of power |
| sinecure | a position requiring little or no work |
| surreptitious | stealthy, secret |
| transgress | to go beyond a limit |
| transmute | to change from one nature to another |
| vicarious | performed, suffered, or otherwise experienced by someone else |
Combine with other sets
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace