| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Abase | to humble; disgrace |
| Abate | to reduce in amount, degree, or severity |
| Abdicate | to give up a position, right, or power |
| Aberrant | deviating from what is normal or expected |
| Abeyance | temporary suppression or suspension |
| Abjure | to reject; abandon formally |
| Abscond | to leave secretly |
| Abstemious | moderate in appetite |
| Accretion | a growth in size; increase in amount |
| Acidulous | sour in taste or manner |
| Acme | highest point; summit; the highest level or degree attainable |
| Aerie | a nest built high in the air; an elevated, often secluded, dwelling |
| Affected | phony; artificial |
| Aggrandize | to increase in power, influence, and reputation |
| Alacrity | speed or quickness |
| Ameliorate | to make better; to improve |
| Anachronism | something out of place in time |
| Analgesia | a lessening of pain without loss of consciousness |
| Anodyne | something that calms or soothes pain |
| Antipathy | extreme dislike |
| Approbation | approval and praise |
| Ardor | intense and passionate feeling |
| Arrogate | to claim without justification; to claim for oneself without right |
| Attenuate | to reduce in force or degree; weaken |
| Augury | prophecy; prediction of events |
| August | dignified; grandiose |
| Austere | severe or stern in appearance; undecorated |
| Banal | predictable; cliched; boring |
| Bevy | group |
| Bilk | to cheat; defraud |
| Blight | to afflict; destroy |
| Blithe | joyful; cheerful; or without appropriate thought |
| Bombastic | pompous in speech and manner |
| Bonhomie | good-natured geniality; atmosphere of good cheer |
| Boor | crude person, one lacking manners or taste |
| Burgeon | to grow and flourish |
| Cabal | a secret group seeking to overturn something |
| Cacophony | harsh, jarring noise |
| Canard | a lie |
| Capricious | changing one's mind quickly and often |
| Catholic | universal broad and comprehensive |
| Caustic | biting in wit |
| Chicanery | deception by means of craft or guile |
| Circumspect | cautious; aware of potential consequences |
| Cloying | sickly sweet; excessive |
| Cogent | convincing and well-reasoned |
| Contrite | deeply sorrowful and repentant for a wrong |
| Contumacious | rebellious |
| Corroborate | to support with evidence |
| Cosset | to pamper; treat with great care |
| Coterie | an intimate group of persons with a similar purpose |
| Craven | lacking courage |
| Credulous | too trusting; gullible |
| Cupidity | greed; strong desire |
| Curmudgeon | cranky person, usually old |
| Declivity | downward slope |
| Decorous | proper; tasteful; socially correct |
| Deference | respect; courtesy |
| Deleterious | subtly or unexpectedly harmful |
| Demagogue | a leader or rabble-rouser, usually appealing to emotion or prejudice |
| Demur | to express doubts or objections |
| Desiccate | to dry out thoroughly |
| Desultory | jumping from one thing to another; disconnected |
| Diaphanous | allowing light to show through; delicate |
| Diatribe | an abusive, condemnatory speech |
| Dictum | authoritative statement |
| Diffident | lacking self-confidence |
| Dilatory | intended to delay |
| Dilettante | someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic |
| Dirge | a funeral hymn or mournful speech |
| Disabuse | to set right; free from error |
| Discern | to perceive or recognize |
| Disparate | fundamentally different; entirely unlike |
| Dissemble | to present a false appearance; to disguise one's real intentions or character |
| Dissonance | a harsh and disagreeable combination, especially of sounds |
| Distaff | the female branch of a family |
| Distend | to swell, inflate, or bloat |
| Dither | to act confusedly or without clear purpose |
| Diurnal | existing during the day |
| Doctrinaire | rigidly devoted to theories without regard for practicality; dogmatic |
| Dogmatic | dictatorial in one's opinions |
| Droll | amusing in a wry, subtle way |
| Dyspeptic | suffering from indigestion; gloomy and irritable |
| Ebullient | exhilarated; full of enthusiasm and high spirits |
| Edify | to instruct morally and spiritually |
| Efficacy | effectiveness |
| Effigy | stuffed doll; likeness of a person |
| Effrontery | impudent boldness; audacity |
| Elegy | a sorrowful poem or speech |
| Encomium | warm praise |
| Endemic | belonging to a particular area; inherent |
| Enervate | to reduce in strength |
| Engender | to produce, cause, or bring about |
| Enigma | a puzzle; a mystery |
| Ephemeral | lasting a short time |
| Epicure | person with refined taste in food and wine |
| Equivocate | to use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead |
| Ersatz | fake |
| Erudite | learned; scholarly; bookish |
| Esoteric | known or understood only by a few |
| Estimable | admirable |
| Ethos | beliefs or character of a group |
| Euphony | pleasant, harmonious sound |
| Exculpate | to clear from blame; prove innocent |
| Exigent | urgent; requiring immediate action |
| Exponent | one who champions or advocates |
| Exprugate | to censor |
| Fallow | dormant; unused |
| Fatuous | stupid; foolishly self-satisfied |
| Fawn | to grovel |
| Fecund | fertile; fruitful; productive |
| Fervid | intensely emotional; feverish |
| Fetid | foul-smelling; putrid |
| Flag | to decline in vigor; strength; or interest |
| Florid | excessively decorated or embellished |
| Ford | to cross a body of water by wading |
| Fractious | unruly; rebellious |
| Frenetic | frantic; frenzied |
| Furtive | secret; stealthy |
| Gambol | to dance or skip around playfully |
| Garner | to gather and store |
| Garrulous | tending to talk a lot |
| Glib | fluent in an insincere manner; offhand; casual |
| Glower | to glare or stare angrily and intensely |
| Guile | deceit; trickery |
| Hapless | unfortunate; having bad luck |
| Hegemony | the domination of one state or group over its allies |
| Hermetic | tightly sealed |
| Hoary | very old; whitish or gray from age |
| Husband | to manage economically; to use sparingly |
| Hyperbole | purposeful exaggeration for effect |
| Iconoclast | one who opposes established beliefs, customs, and institutions |
| Ignoble | having low moral standards; not noble in character; mean |
| Imbue | to infuse, dye, wet, or moisten |
| Impecunious | poor; having no money |
| Impetuous | quick to act without thinking |
| Impious | not devout in religion |
| Implacable | unable to be calmed down or made peaceful |
| Imprecation | a curse |
| Impugn | to call into question; to attack verbally |
| Incarnadine | blood-red in color |
| Inchoate | no fully formed; disorganized |
| Inculcate | to teach; impress in the mind |
| Indolent | habitually lazy or idle |
| Inexorable | inflexible; unyielding |
| Ingenuous | showing innocence or childlike simplicity |
| Ingratiate | to gain favor with another by deliberate effort; to seek to please somebody so as to gain an advantage |
| Inimical | hostile; unfriendly |
| Innocuous | harmless |
| Inquest | an investigation; an inquiry |
| Insipid | lacking interest or flavor |
| Inter | to bury |
| Interregnum | period between reigns |
| Intractable | not easily managed or manipulated |
| Intransigent | uncompromising; refusing to be reconciled |
| Intrepid | fearless; resolutely courageous |
| Inure | to harden; accustom; become used to |
| Invective | abusive language |
| Invidious | envious, obnoxious, or offensive, likely to promote ill-will |
| Irascible | easily made angry |
| Itinerant | wandering from place to place; unsettled |
| Jingoism | belligerent support of one's country |
| Jocular | playful; humorous |
| Kindle | to set fire to or ignite; excite or inspire |
| Knell | sound of a funeral bell; omen of death or failure |
| Lachrymose | tearful |
| Laconic | using few words |
| Lampoon | to ridicule with satire |
| Languid | lacking energy; indifferent |
| Lapidary | relating to precious stones or the art of cutting them |
| Larceny | theft of property |
| Largess | generous giving (as of money) to others who may seem inferior |
| Lassitude | a state of diminished energy |
| Legerdemain | trickery |
| Libertine | a free thinker, usually used disparagingly; one without moral restraint |
| Licentious | immoral; unrestrained by society |
| Limpid | clear; transparent |
| Lionize | to treat as a celebrity |
| Lissome | easily flexed; limber; agile |
| Listless | lacking energy and enthusiasm |
| Livid | discolored from a bruise; pale; reddened with anger |
| Loquacious | talkative |
| Lugubrious | sorrowful; mournful; dismal |
| Lumber | to move slowly and awkwardly |
| Machination | plot or scheme |
| Maelstrom | whirlpool; turmoil; agitated state of mind |
| Magnate | powerful or influential person |
| Malediction | a curse; a wish of evil upon another |
| Malinger | to evade responsibility by pretending to be ill |
| Mannered | artificial or stilted in character |
| Mar | to damage or deface; spoil |
| Martinet | strict disciplinarian; one who rigidly follows rules |
| Maudlin | overly sentimental |
| Mendacious | dishonest |
| Mendicant | beggar |
| Mercurial | quick, shrewd, and unpredictable |
| Meretricious | gaudy; falsely attractive |
| Militate | to operate against; work against |
| Mirth | frivolity; gaiety; laughter |
| Misanthrope | a person who dislikes others |
| Missive | a written note or letter |
| Mitigate | to soften; to lessen |
| Mollify | to calm or make less severe |
| Molt | to shed hair, skin, or an outer layer periodically |
| Mores | fixed customs or manners; moral attitudes |
| Multifarious | diverse |
| Nadir | lowest point |
| Neologism | new word or expression |
| Neophyte | novice; beginner |
| Nettle | to irritate |
| Noisome | stinking; putrid |
| Numismatics | coin collecting |
| Obdurate | hardening in feeling; resistant to persuasion |
| Oblique | indirect or evasive; misleading or devious |
| Obsequious | overly submissive and eager to please |
| Obviate | to prevent; to make unnecessary |
| Occlude | to stop up; prevent the passage of |
| Officious | too helpful; meddlesome |
| Onerous | troublesome and oppressive; burdensome |
| Opine | to express an opinion |
| Opprobrium | public disgrace |
| Orotund | pompous |
| Ostensible | apparent |
| Ostentation | excessive showiness |
| Overwrought | agitated; overdone |
| Palliate | to make less serious; ease |
| Pallid | lacking color or liveliness |
| Panache | flamboyance or dash in style and action; verve |
| Panegyric | elaborate praise; formal hymn of praise |
| Panoply | impressive array |
| Paragon | model of excellence or perfection |
| Pare | to trim off excess; reduce |
| Pastiche | piece of literature or music imitating other works |
| Peccadillo | minor sin or offense |
| Pedant | someone who shows off learning |
| Pejorative | having bad connotations; disparaging |
| Penury | an oppressive lack of resources (as money); severe poverty |
| Peregrinate | to wander fro place to place; to travel; especially on foot |
| Perfidious | willing to betray one's trust |
| Perfunctory | done in a routine way; indifferent |
| Peripatetic | wandering from place to place, especially on foot |
| Perspicacious | shrewd, astute, or keen-witted |
| Phalanx | a compact or close-knit body of people, animals, or things |
| Philistine | a person who is guided by materialism and is disdainful of intellectual or artistic values |
| Phlegmatic | calm and unemotional in temperament |
| Pithy | profound or substantial yet concise, succinct and to the point |
| Placate | to soothe or pacify |
| Plastic | able to be molded, altered, or bent |
| Plebeian | crude or coarse; characteristic of commoners |
| Plethora | excess |
| Plucky | courageous; spunky |
| Polemic | controversy; argument; verbal attack |
| Politic | shrewd and practical in managing or dealing with things; diplomatic |
| Posit | to assume as real or conceded; propose as an explanation |
| Potentate | a monarch or ruler with great power |
| Prattle | meaningless, foolish talk |
| Precipitate | to throw violently or bring about abruptly; lacking deliberation |
| Precis | short summary of facts |
| Prescient | having foresight |
| Prevaricate | to lie or deviate from the truth |
| Probity | complete honesty and integrity |
| Proclivity | a natural inclination or predisposition |
| Profligate | corrupt; degenerate |
| Propitiate | to conciliate; to appease |
| Puerile | childish, immature, or silly |
| Pulchritude | beauty |
| Pusillanimous | cowardly; without courage |
| Querulous | inclined to complain; irritable |
| Quiescent | motionless |
| Quixotic | overly idealistic; impractical |
| Quotidian | occurring daily; commonplace |
| Raconteur | witty, skillful storyteller |
| Rejoinder | response |
| Repast | meal or mealtime |
| Replete | abundantly supplied, complete |
| Restive | impatient, uneasy, or restless |
| Reticent | silent; reserved |
| Ribald | humorous in a vulgar way |
| Rococo | very highly ornamented; relating to an 18th century artistic style of elaborate ornamentation |
| Rustic | rural |
| Sagacious | shrewd; wise |
| Salient | prominent; of notable significance |
| Salubrious | healthful |
| Sanguine | ruddy; cheerfully optimistic |
| Satiate | to satisfy fully or overindulge |
| Sedition | behavior that promotes rebellion or civil disorder against the state |
| Sinecure | a well-paying job or office that requires little or no work |
| Slake | to calm down or moderate |
| Sobriquet | nickname |
| Solecism | grammatical mistake; blunder in speech |
| Soporific | causing sleep or lethargy |
| Spartan | highly self-disciplined; frugal; austere |
| Specious | deceptively attractive; seemingly plausible but fallacious |
| Sportive | frolicsome; playful |
| Stasis | a state of static balance or equilibrium; stagnation |
| Stentorian | extremely loud |
| Stolid | unemotional; lacking sensitivity |
| Stratagem | trick designed to deceive an enemy |
| Supplant | to replace (another) by force; to take the place of |
| Surfeit | excessive amount |
| Surly | rude and bad-tempered |
| Sybarite | a person devoted to pleasure and luxury |
| Sycophant | a self-serving flatterer; yes-man |
| Symbiosis | cooperation; mutual helpfulness |
| Tacit | done without using words |
| Taciturn | silent; not talkative |
| Talon | claw of an animal, especially a bird of prey |
| Tangential | digressing; diverting |
| Tawdry | gaudy, cheap, or showy |
| Tome | book, usually large and academic |
| Torpor | extreme mental and physical sluggishness |
| Trenchant | acute, sharp, or incisive; forceful; effective |
| Turgid | swollen as from a fluid; bloated |
| Tyro | beginner; novice |
| Umbrage | offense; resentment |
| Unequivocal | absolute; certain |
| Usury | the practice of lending money at exorbitant rates |
| Variegated | varied; marked with different colors |
| Venerable | respected because of age |
| Venerate | to respect deeply |
| Veracity | filled with truth and accuracy |
| Verdant | green with vegetation; inexperienced |
| Vestige | a trace; remnant |
| Vex | to annoy; irritate; puzzle; confuse |
| Vicissitude | a change or variation; ups and downs |
| Vituperate | to abuse verbally; berate |
| Voluble | talkative; speaking easily; glib |
| Wan | sickly pale |
| Wily | clever; deceptive |
| Winsome | charming; happily engaging |
| Wizened | shriveled; withered; wrinkled |
| Xenophobia | a fear or hatred of foreigners or strangers |
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