Getting Started in the 1950's Vocab 1
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Created by:
krishnak61 on March 9, 2011
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60 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 abut | to be adjacent; touch or join at the edge or border (usually followed by on, upon, or against) |
| elusive | hard to grasp, express, or define |
| plummet | to drop down or plunge |
| acrid | sharp or biting in taste or smell; exceedingly caustic |
| emaciated | abnormally thin from a gradual wasting away |
| posit | to place, put, or set; to assume as a fact or principle |
| affinity | a natural liking for or attraction to a person, thing, ideas, etc. |
| epistle | a letter; often refers to the apostolic letters of The New Testament |
| privy | an outhouse; participating in the knowledge of something private or secret |
| altruistic | unselfishly concerned for the welfare of others |
| epitome | a person or thing that possesses to a high degree the features of a whole class. |
| prolific | highly productive or fruitful |
| amalgam | a mixture or combination |
| espouse | to adopt or give support |
| prosaic | commonplace; dull; matter-of-fact |
| arcane | understood by few; mysterious; obscure |
| fetter | to restrict or confine; a chain or shackle placed on the feet |
| prudent | wise in practical affairs; careful in providing for the future |
| brood | to worry persistently (usually followed by over or on) |
| folderol | foolish nonsense |
| query | an instance of questioning |
| burgeoning | expanding or growing rapidly |
| hauteur | overbearing pride evidenced by a superior manner toward inferiors |
| realm | a kingdom; a field of study |
| candid | openly straightforward and direct without reserve or secretiveness |
| imperceptible | very slight; gradual; subtle |
| recalcitrant | resisting authority or control; hard to manage |
| chimerical | produced by a wildly fanciful imagination |
| impregnable | able to withstand or resist attack; unconquerable |
| recapitulate | summarize briefly |
| conducive | helpful in producing; favorable |
| incredulous | unbelieving; skeptical |
| renown | the state or quality of being widely honored and acclaimed; famous |
| conjecture | the interpretation of signs or omens; a groundless opinion. Or, interpreting signs or omens |
| irrevocable | irreversible; unalterable; cannot be recalled or annulled |
| sodden | soaked; saturated. Or, dulled by excessive drinking |
| coquetry | flirtation |
| lambaste | to beat or whip severely; to reprimand or berate harshly |
| soporific | causing or inducing sleep |
| corollary | a natural consequent or result |
| moniker | nickname or alias |
| strident | making or having a harsh sound; grating; creaking |
| cravat | a forerunner to the modern necktie and bow tie |
| nonplused | bewildered |
| subterfuge | a strategy, usually insincere, to evade a rule or escape a consequence |
| credo | a statement of beliefs or principles |
| nuance | a subtle difference in expression, meaning, or response; a slight variation |
| torrent | a violent, tumultuous, or overwhelming flow—literal (e.g., water) or figurative |
| cursory | hasty superficial |
| obtrusive | sticking out, noticeable; an inclination to impose oneself and one's opinions on others |
| tract | a region of land; a region of the body (digestive tract) |
| deleterious | harmful; injurious |
| paucity | a smallness of quantity; a scarcity |
| volition | the act of choosing or resolving; an act of will |
| dissuade | to urge against; to deter through persuasion |
| perambulation | the act of walking around a territory to determine its boundaries |
| voluble | liable to change; inconstant |
| earnest | sincere; serious in purpose and effort |
| peremptory | leaving no opportunity for denial or refusal; imperative |
| voyeur | a peeping Tom |
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