| Term | Definition |
|---|
| allure | to influence, sway, or entice with some tempting appeal |
| apathy | a lack of concern or feeling indifference |
| auspicious | favorable |
| caricature | a portrayal where feats are distorted, a parody |
| cordial | courteous and gracious; friendly; warm |
| cosmopolitan | dealing with the whole world |
| deplore | to regret deeply or strongly; to feel or to express deep grief for |
| discrepant | disagreeing, inconsistent |
| ecstasy | extreme happiness |
| empathy | understanding or identification with another's feelings or situation |
| equivocal | ambiguous (usually intended to mislead) |
| expeditious | done with speed and efficiency |
| galvanize | to stimulate or to excite as if by an electric shock |
| impecable | incapable of being appeased |
| inimitable | not able to be imitated |
| mutability | the degree to which something is subject and likely to change |
| odious | deserving hate or contempt |
| parochial | limited in range or scope, narrow, provincial |
| penchant | a strong inclination |
| ponderous | very heavy, unwieldy from weight |
| protract | to prolong |
| replete | filled to capacity, abundantly supplied |
| soporific | something that tends to cause sleep and to dull awareness or alertness |
| strident | loud and harsh sounding |
| treachery | violation of faith; betrayal of trust; treason |
| acquiesce | to give in, to comply |
| affinity | a likeness, a natural relationship, a kinship |
| blasphemous | irreverent, profane |
| buttress | a support or prop |
| circumspect | careful to consider consequence, cautious, prudent |
| corroboration | confirmation |
| deplete | to use up gradually, to lessen in amount or value |
| despotic | ruling oppressively and absolutely; tyrannical |
| emaciated | very thin(usually as a result of starvation), wasting away |
| empirical | based on observation or experiment and not on theory |
| extraneous | not essential or vital |
| fallow | inactive, plowed but not sowed |
| homogeneous | of the same kind |
| hyperbole | obvious exaggeration |
| incontrovertible | indisputable |
| irascible | irritable, easily angered, cranky, cross |
| laconic | using a minimum of words; concise to the point of seeming rude |
| magnanimity | having a lofty, generous, and courageous spirit |
| obsequious | overly attentive, like sycophant, servile |
| proliferation | an increase in number, multiplication |
| scrupulous | very principled, very careful and conscientious |
| sublime | exalted, noble, uplifting |
| surreptitious | secret, clandestine, stealthy |
| veracity | devotion to the truth |
| zeal | enthusiasm, fervor |
| abstemious | sparing (usually in eating or drinking); temperate |
| admonish | to caution, to advise, or to counsel against something |
| amitry | friendship |
| bastion | a fortification, a stronghold |
| callous | hardened; insensitive, indifferent, unsympathetic |
| clemency | leniency |
| debunk | to expose the falseness or hypocrisy of something |
| diffuse | to spread in all directions |
| dupe | to trick, to fool, to deceive, or to cheat; to bilk |
| exorcise | to expel an evil spirit, to get rid of something troublesome |
| finesse | delicate skill |
| humility | equality or state of being humble in spirit |
| imperious | extreme overbearing |
| larceny | the act of stealing another's property |
| mirth | gladness and merriment usually accompanied by laughter |
| mollify | to soothe or to appease, to assuage |
| neologism | a newly coined word or phrase; new use of a word (often disaroved of) |
| orthodox | conforming to established standards, conventional |
| plight | difficult or adverse situation |
| repertoire | a list of works of music or readings that are ready for performance |
| rupture | to break apart, to burst |
| solicious | worried, concerned |
| stolid | showing little emotion |
| tempestuous | turbulent, stormy |
| untenable | not able to be defended |
| adulterate | to make impure by adding lesser substances; to corrupt |
| animosity | harsh feelings, enmity, resentmnt, hatred |
| apocryphal | of doubtful origin or authenticity, not genuine |
| avarice | greed for wealth |
| coalesce | to merge, to use, to join, or to unite |
| collaborate | to work together |
| cryptic | mysterious, secret |
| desultory | jumping around, aimless, random |
| dissipation | wasteful spending, squandering |
| edifying | instructing and improving spiritually or morally |
| equivocate | to attempt to lie, to mislead, or to hide the truth |
| espousing | marrying, giving one's loyalty; adopting or embracing a cause |
| hedonist | one who seeks pleasure as the sole aim of life |
| indefatigable | tireless, incapable of being fatigued |
| interminable | having or seeming to have no end, wearisomely protracted |
| naive | unsophisticated; inexperienced |
| parody | humorous or ridiculous imitation |
| peripheral | on the edge, not important |
| portent | a sign or forewarning |
| prodigious | extraordinary in bulk, quantity, or degree, great in size, enormous |
| profane | showing contempt toward sacred things |
| respite | a rest, a delay, a period of relief |
| sordid | filthy, foul |
| surfeited | fed or supplied to excess |
| trifling | not significant, frivolous |
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