| Term | Definition |
|---|
| accentuate | To stress, single out as important |
| capricious | Changeable, determined by change, impulse, or whim; unpredictable |
| consternation | alarm; sudden confusion or amazement |
| impinge | To infringe upon, encroach, advance beyond the usual limit |
| didactic | Instructive, the branch of education dealing with teaching |
| malleable | Ductile, easily influenced, able to be bent or shaped |
| exacerbate | To increase the severity of, to worsen |
| insular | relating to or characteristic of an island, narrowly restricted in outlook or scope |
| portend | to give an omen, indicate, signify |
| spurious | inauthentic, plausible but false |
| mollify | Pacify, make less rigid or softer |
| supercilious | disdainful, expressive of contempt |
| sagacious | insightful, wise, showing or posessing farsightedness, good judgement |
| tranquility | untroubled state; a state of peace and quiet |
| juxtapose | to place side to side, compare or contrast |
| berate | to scold at length, to censure severely or angrily |
| assiduous | marked by care and persistent effort, constant, diligent |
| delineate | define, specify, describe in vivid detail |
| obsolete | old, no longer in use, rudimentary or absent, indistinct |
| rancorous | showing resentment, deep-seated ill will |
| diffuse | move, spread outward, circulate, soft, random |
| quiescent | at rest, not growing, inactive, tranquil, not changing |
| munificent | lavish, very generous, bountiful |
| grandiose | used to show disapproval; pompous; more complicated or elaborate than necessary |
| punitive | Inflicting or aiming to inflict punishment |
| truncate | to shorten by cutting off a part; having a flattened or chopped off end |
| vestige | trace; an indication that something has been present |
| intrepid | audacious, invulnerable to fear or intimidation; resolutely fearless, bold |
| cohesive | uniting together; well integrated; solid, unified |
| nuance | a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude; A fine shade of meaning |
| abridge | To reduce the scope by means of the omission or words without sacrificing their meaning; condense |
| perfunctory | casual; hasty and without attention to detail; performed merely as a routine duty; apathetic |
| confidant | someone to whom private matters are confided |
| replete | satiate, fill to satisfaction with food or drink; abundantly supplied or provided |
| precocious | characterized by exceptionally early development or maturity, appearing early |
| myriad | a large indefinite number, countless; classical Greek name for the number 10,000 |
| cursory | casual, hasty and without attention to detail; not thorough |
| platitude | trite, meaningless, or flat; dull statement uttered as if it were fresh or profound |
| paucity | smallness of quantity; scarcity; scantiness |
| lucid | transparently clear; easily understandable; shining or bright; mentally sound or rational |
| recalcitrant | resisting authority or control; not obedient or compliant, not responsive to treatment |
| austere | severely simple; of a stern or strict demeanor; hard; dry; rigorously self-disciplined and severely moral |
| unobtrusive | inconspicuous, unassertive |
| facilitate | to make easier or less difficult; to assist the progress of |
| superfluous | serving no useful purpose; having no excuse for being; excess: more than is needed, desired, or required; over the top |
| ephemeral | Short-lived; transitory; lasting for a very short time |
| deleterious | Harmful in subtle or unexpected ways; harmful to living things |
| convivial | friendly; agreeable; fond of feasting, drinking, and merry company; jovial; fond of the pleasures of good company |
| efface | remove completely from recognition or memory |
| plagiarize | take without referencing from someone else's writing or speech |
| querulous | habitually complaining |
| voracious | excessively greedy and grasping |
| reticent | reluctant to draw attention to yourself |
| deference | a disposition or tendency to yield to the will of others |
| euphemism | an inoffensive expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive |
| guile | cunning; craftiness |
| savory | appetizing; agreeable. |
| jargon | specialized technical terminology characteristic of a particular subject |
| prodigious | so great in size or force or extent as to elicit awe |
| surmise | a message expressing an opinion based on incomplete evidence |
| laconic | brief and to the point |
| officious | intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner |
| decadence | the state of being degenerate in mental or moral qualities |
| elucidate | make clear and (more) comprehensible |
| meticulous | extremely careful and precise |
| propensity | an inclination to do something |
| copious | large in number or quantity (especially of discourse) |
| fortuitous | accidental, by chance |
| egregious | conspicuously bad or offensive |
| soporific | sleep-causing |
| bellicose | warlike |
| upbraid | express criticism towards |
| augment | enlarge or increase |
| gratuitous | without cause |
| placate | pacify; bring peace to; conciliate; appease |
| irrefutable | impossible to deny or disprove |
| embellish | make more beautiful |
| diatribe | bitter and violent attack in words |
| esoteric | hard to understand, known only to a chosen few |
| labyrinth | difficult maze |
| parsimonious | excessively unwilling to spend |
| chimerical | produced by a wildly fanciful imagination |
| fervor | feelings of great warmth and intensity |
| tenet | something that is proclaimed as true without proof |
| engender | cause; produce; give rise to |
| ebullient | showing excitement, overflowing with enthusiasm |
| hyperbole | obvious and intentional exaggeration. |
| pompous | overly self-important in speech and manner |
| incipient | beginning; in an early stage |
| distraught | deeply disturbed; very troubled |
| eclectic | selecting what seems best of various styles or ideas |
| stoic | impassive, unmoved by joy or grief |
| cacophony | loud confusing disagreeable sounds |
| sycophant | a person who tries to please someone in order to gain a personal advantage |
| stringent | demanding strict attention to rules and procedures |
| tangential | not especially relevant |
| condone | excuse, overlook, or make allowances for |
| disparity | inequality or difference in some respect |
| emulate | imitate the function of (another system), as by modifying the hardware or the software |
| autonomy | personal independence |
| respite | a pause for relaxation |
| succinct | concise |
| tirade | a long angry or violent speech; a diatribe |
| dogmatic | opinionated |
| venerate | to honor, to revere |
| chronic | having a habit of long standing |
| vapid | lacking significance or liveliness or spirit or zest; empty |
| epithet | descriptive word or phrase (sometimes defamatory) |
| duplicity | deceitfulness in speech or conduct; speaking or acting in two different ways concerning the same matter with intent to deceive; double-dealing. |
| conciliatory | tending to overcome the distrust or hostility of, placate or win over |
| enervate | to deprive of force or strength; destroy the vigor of; weaken. |
| meandering | following a winding and turning course; moving aimlessly and idly without fixed direction |
| recluse | person who leads a secluded or solitary life; hermit |
| stagnate | to be or become inactive; dull or motionless |
| taciturn | disinclined to talk |
| altruistic | unselfishly concerned for or devoted to the welfare of others |
| capitulate | to agree or surrender according to arranged or proposed terms; to accept defeat; acquiesce |
| embroil | to bring into discord or conflict; involve in contention or strife; to throw into confusion; to complicate |
| quandary | a state of perplexity or uncertainty, esp. as to what to do; dilemma. |
| apocryphal | of doubtful authorship or authenticity; false; spurious |
| aberration | a state or condition markedly different from the norm |
| ameliorate | to make better |
| criterion | one criteria |
| lassitude | weariness, tiredness |
| mitigate | make less severe or harsh |
| homogeneous | of the same kind |
| imminent | impending; near at hand |
| verbose | wordy |
| zenith | top, the highest point |
| laudable | praiseworthy |
| expunge | erase; remove |
| perceptive | having the ability to perceive or understand |
| fastidious | giving and careful attention to detail |
| perfidy | treachery |
| agglomeration | a jumbled collection or mass |
| preclude | to prevent |
| alleviate | to relieve; reduce |
| clandestine | done secretly |
| enigma | something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained |
| latent | dormant |
| assuage | to soothe, to pacify, to ease the pain of |
| opulent | rich and superior in quality, wealthy |
| obscure | make less visible or unclear |
| affinity | a natural attraction or feeling of kinship |
| pique | a sudden outburst of anger |
| pariah | outcast |
| coalesce | fuse or cause to grow together |
| sporadic | occurring irregularly; intermittent |
| malicious | having the nature of or resulting from malice |
| incorrigible | uncorrectable |
| untenable | (of theories etc) incapable of being defended or justified |
| equanimity | calmness of temperament; composure |
| surreptitious | marked by quiet and caution and secrecy |
| raconteur | a person who excels at telling stories |
| cryptic | of an obscure nature |
| audacious | invulnerable to fear or intimidation |
| urbane | showing a high degree of refinement and social experience |
| vitriolic | harsh or corrosive in tone |
| relegate | assign to a lower position |
| prudent | careful and sensible |
| lethargic | slow-moving; sleepy or tired. |
| implausible | unlikely; difficult to believe |
| judicious | characterized by good judgment or sound thinking |
| morose | gloomy, sullen |
| corroborate | give evidence for |
| cajole | to persuade by flattery or promises; coax |
| perspicacious | acutely insightful and wise |
| inception | start; beginning |
| alienate | to turn away |
| disperse | cause to separate |
| equivocate | be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information |
| fallacy | incorrect idea; wrong assumption; an error |
| obliterate | do away with completely, without leaving a trace |
| rebuff | reject outright and bluntly |
| temerity | boldness, brashness, intrepidness |
| susceptible | easily under a specified power or influence. |
| insurgent | someone in opposition to an authority |
| garrulous | full of trivial conversation |
| incongruous | seeming strange or ludicrous through being out of place or unexpected |
| aesthetic | concerning or characterized by an appreciation of beauty or good taste |
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