Flashcards: Ms. Fay English Vocab
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Created by:
johntiki on February 28, 2009
Subjects:
Description:
Vocab for the 2008-2009 year
Groups:
HESI admission test, Vocabulary
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Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 capacious | spacious; roomy |
| contentious | quarrelsome; not getting along |
| curt | rude or abrupt |
| inane | lacking in sense or substance; foolish; silly |
| inebriating | intoxicating |
| latent | present, but not yet developed or active |
| mordant | caustic, cutting or sarcastic |
| reverie | a state of daydreaming |
| spectral | ghostly |
| tacit | not spoken; expressed without words or speech |
| aphorism | short statement of truth; adage |
| bantam | small, but aggressive |
| idiosyncratic | peculiar; unique; eccentric |
| infinitesimal | immeasurably small |
| insinuate | to hint or imply |
| mull | to go over extensively in the mind; ponder |
| opulent | luxurious; wealthy |
| rhetorical | concerned primarily with show or effect |
| sinecure | a paid position requiring little work |
| zestful | with spirit and energy |
| abashed | ashamed or uneasy; disconcerted |
| bane | a deadly poison; cause of ruin |
| cacophony | harsh or discordant sounds |
| culminate | come to an end; to reach the highest point or climax |
| imperceptible | impossible to detect with ordinary senses |
| incongruous | not matching; not harmonious; incompatible |
| inveigle | to coax; to convince |
| preeminent | outstanding; having much dignity or importance |
| primeval | belonging to the earliest ages; ancient |
| sustenance | means of support for living; something that gives strength |
| animosity | bitter hostility |
| consternation | dismay or amazement leading to confusion or fear |
| convalescence | gradual recovery of health and strength after illness |
| deign | to condescend reluctantly; to stoop |
| innate | inborn; inherent |
| insidious | treacherous; deceitful; working in a harmful, subtle manner |
| mire | area of wet, soft ground; muck; mud |
| qualm | doubt |
| salient | standing out prominently from the rest; readily noticeable |
| sedate | to calm down |
| Abject | utterly miserable; hopeless |
| Debauch | to lead away from morality |
| Fracas | noisy disturbance, quarrel or fight; brawl |
| Languor | weakness; fatigue; lack of spirit or interest |
| Orbs | something round in shape, like planets and eyeballs |
| Prodigious | huge or extraordinary in size; enormous |
| Resplendent | full of splendor; gleaming; brilliant |
| Smite | to strike hard; to destroy; to affect strongly |
| Sullen | morose; sulky |
| Vanquish | to defeat or conquer |
| Ague | chills and fever; fit of shivering |
| Bedraggle | to make wet, soiled or disheveled |
| Dauntless | fearless; bold |
| Elation | feeling of joy; jubilation |
| Gall | to irritate; vex |
| Ilk | kind, sort, class |
| Lucid | easily understood; clear; sane |
| Melee | confused hand-to-hand fight involving many people |
| Paroxysm | sudden outburst or fit (as in laughter or rage) |
| Sardonic | sarcastically mocking, often in a nasty way |
| Altercation | noisy or heated dispute; fight |
| Din | loud continuous noise |
| Incorrigible | bad beyond all correction or reform; cannot be corrected |
| Perturb | to make uneasy or anxious; to disturb |
| Placid | calm or peaceful; undisturbed |
| Reconnoiter | to inspect an area in order to secure information |
| Retribution | act of paying back for past wrongdoing |
| Sinuous | full of bends and curves |
| Tumult | commotion; uproar |
| Vindicate | to prove innocent of charges or wrongdoing |
| Annihilate | to wipe out; to destroy completely |
| Blithe | cheerful; carefree |
| Condescension | the act of coming down to the level of inferiors |
| Denunciation | declaration that an agreement has been ended |
| Dilapidated | broken down, falling apart; ruined |
| Perambulate | to walk through or around a place |
| Ponderous | massive; heavy |
| Ragamuffin | ragged, unkempt person, especially a dirty child |
| Respite | interval of rest, as from work |
| Sublime | exalted in manner or expression; grand; noble |
| Ardor | intensity of emotion; enthusiasm; passion |
| Emaciate | to become abnormally thin; lose much weight |
| Interminable | prolonged and seemingly endless |
| Lurid | terrible; gruesome; revolting |
| Malediction | a curse against someone; slander |
| Perfunctory | done merely for the sake of routine; mechanical |
| Querulous | inclined to complain |
| Reprove | to blame or find fault with; scold |
| Stolid | showing little or no emotion |
| Vociferous | characterized by loud outcry; clamorous |
| Audacious | bold; daring; intrepid; insolent |
| Exasperate | to irritate greatly; provoke to anger; infuriate |
| Facetious | humorous and flippant: playfully joking |
| Harangue | long, noisy speech |
| Impetus | motive; incentive; momentum of a moving body |
| Lugubrious | excessively sorrowful; gloomy |
| Obdurate | stubborn; unyielding; obstinate |
| Poignant | evoking emotions, esp. sadness; touching |
| Proximity | nearness |
| Anguish | feeling agonizing physical or mental pain |
| Complacent | self-satisfied |
| Dejected | sad; depressed; disheartened |
| Morose | gloomy; glum |
| Ominous | foreshadowing evil |
| Plaintive | mournful; sorrowful |
| Profound | complete; coming from the depth of one's being |
| Reprehensible | worthy of blame |
| Skeptical | showing doubt or disbelief; questioning |
| Subdue | to quiet or bring under control |
| Belligerent | hostile; aggressive |
| Confidant | a person entrusted with secrets |
| Covet | to desire enviously |
| Denigrate | to belittle, diminish the opinion of |
| Exculpate | to free from guilt or blame; exonerate |
| Insatiable | not capable of being satisfied |
| Plethora | an abundance, excess |
| Pugnacious | disposed to fight; quarrelsome |
| Retort | reply sharply |
| Submissive | easily yielding to authority |
| Abomination | things that elicit great dislike or abhorrence |
| Calumny | false statements knowingly made to injure someone |
| Anarchy | political disorder and confusion |
| Conjure | to summon by oath or spell |
| Faction | small group, usually contentious, within a larger group |
| Hypocrites | people who say they believe one thing, but behave differently |
| Inert | Unable to move or act |
| Partisan | militant supporter of a party, cause, faction or idea |
| Prodigious | Marvelous; extraordinary |
| Quail | to lose courage; fail; give way |
| Antagonist | opponent |
| Ascertain | find out; detect |
| Bemuse | to confuse |
| Diabolism | witchcraft; sorcery |
| Ecstatic | In a state of delight or extreme joy |
| Evade | escape or avoid by cleverness or deceit |
| Licentious | Having no regard for rules or standards |
| Indignant | Filled with an anger aroused by something unjust |
| Pallor | extreme paleness |
| Propitiate | appease; satisfy |
| Avid | Enthusiastic |
| Base | Having low moral standards; inferior |
| Blasphemy | an irreverent act or statement |
| Calamity | disaster |
| Inept | Awkward |
| Lechery | promiscuity |
| Menacing | Threatening |
| Perplex | to puzzle or confuse |
| Providence | work of divine direction |
| Tainted | Having a moral defect; infected |
| Anonymity | secrecy |
| Audible | Able to be heard |
| Contemptuous | Scornful; disdainful |
| Contentious | Quarrelsome |
| Daft | Crazy; foolish; stupid |
| Effrontery | audacity; insulting boldness |
| Manifest | Something apparent to the sight or understanding |
| Pretense | the act of pretending |
| Recalcitrant | unruly, very tough to control |
| Transfixed | Rendered motionless with terror, amazement or awe |
| Adamant | Insistent; unyielding; firm in opinion |
| Allegiance | loyalty |
| Beguile | delude; cheat; divert |
| Contemplation | thoughtful observation or meditation |
| Crucible | severe test or trial |
| Indictment | statement of criminal charges |
| Penitence | performing of penance |
| Remorseless | Having no pity or compassion |
| Reprieve | postponement of punishment |
| Statute | law, decree or edict |
| Abate | to lessen; reduce in amount or degree |
| Demeanor | manner; way in which a person conducts themselves |
| Ignominy | dishonor; infamy; disgraceful conduct |
| Imbued | saturated, permeated |
| Impropriety | something improper, incorrect; not appropriate |
| Inauspicious | Unfortunate; ill-omened. |
| Inevitable | Unavoidable |
| Infamy | evil fame or reputation |
| Irk | to annoy |
| Venerable | Worthy of reverence or respect |
| Entreaty | plea, petition, request |
| Enumerate | list |
| Expostulation | earnest protest |
| Importunate | stubbornly persistent in a request or demand |
| Incredulity | disbelief |
| Inexplicable | Not possible to explain |
| Ingenuity | inventive skill or imagination; cleverness |
| Inscrutable | Not able to be understood; mysterious |
| Paramour | lover of a married person |
| Sagacious | Wise |
| Abase | to lower in rank; humble; humiliated |
| Avail | make use of; benefit |
| Benign | Of a kind disposition; gentle or mild |
| Impute | to attribute |
| Inimical | Harmful; adverse |
| Iniquity | sin; wickedness |
| Insurmountable | Not capable of being climbed or overcome |
| Pall | covering that darkens or obscures |
| Unamiable | Not good natured; not agreeable |
| Wary | Cautious |
| Acrid | Harsh; caustic; bitter |
| Epoch | milestone; particular point in time |
| Err | to make a mistake |
| Impalpable | Not able to be touched |
| Implore | to entreat; plead; beg |
| Incongruity | not matching |
| Inure | to become used to something undesirable |
| Mollify | to calm; pacify |
| Obviate | anticipate and dispose of effectively |
| Usurp | to take over power unlawfully |
| Impel | compel; urge to action by moral pressure |
| Imply | to express indirectly; hint; suggest |
| Intrusive | rude or inappropriate; uninvited |
| Malevolence | disposition to do evil unto others |
| Mien | one's manner; appearance |
| Pathos | quality in something that arouses feelings of pity, sorrow, sympathy |
| Pious | Devout; religious |
| Potentate | monarch; one who holds power over others |
| Quaff | to drink heartily |
| Requite | repay |
| Addenda | something added, especially a supplement to a book |
| Amorphous | without definite shape or type |
| Commensurate | corresponding in size or degree |
| Corroborate | to strengthen or support with evidence |
| Expostulate | to dissuade or correct |
| Libertine | one who acts without moral restraints |
| Meretricious | attracting attention in a vulgar manner |
| Pneumatic | relating to air or other gases |
| Provincial | limited in perspective |
| Redolent | suggestive |
| Convivial | merry; festive |
| Denizen | an inhabitant |
| Erroneous | mistaken |
| Innuendo | an insinuation |
| Labyrinth | an intricate structure of interconnecting passages |
| Nebulous | cloudy, misty or hazy; unclear |
| Omnibus | a long motor vehicle for passengers |
| Scrutiny | close observation |
| Somnambulate | to walk in a sleep-like condition |
| Traverse | to travel or pass across or over |
| Acumen | keen insight |
| Affront | an insult |
| Ascertain | to perceive, learn |
| Contiguous | connecting without a break |
| Epigram | a short, witty poem expressing a single thought |
| Extemporize | to perform without prior preparation |
| Hauteur | haughtiness in attitude |
| Peremptory | taking the place of |
| Subterfuge | a deceptive strategy or device |
| Supercilious | feeling or showing haughty disdain or contempt |
| Corpulent | extremely fat |
| Fervent | ardent; passionate |
| Fortnight | two weeks |
| Languid | sluggish from fatigue or weakness |
| Mutable | able to change |
| Poignant | deeply affecting, moving |
| Punctilious | eager to follow rules or conventions |
| Reproach | to scold, disapprove |
| Truculent | ready to fight; cruel |
| Wistful | full of yearning; musingly sad |
| altruistic | truly generous; concerned with others, not self |
| bedlam | a place of noisy confusion |
| evanescent | likely to vanish |
| fallacy | a false notion |
| fleeting | passing quickly |
| phantasm | ghost; illusion of the brain |
| transient | existing only briefly |
| truism | self-evident truth; reality |
| ubiquitous | always present; all over |
| veracity | adherence to the truth |
| Assimilationism | belief that minority cultures should dissolve into a dominant culture |
| Exasperated | irritated; provoked; irked |
| Furtive | stealthy; sly; secretive |
| Futile | useless |
| Haphazard | without care; characterized by chance |
| Heathenism | "religion" of those who don't believe in God or are uncivilized |
| Insinuate | to imply or suggest |
| Tentative | uncertain |
| Vehement | marked by intense force or emotion |
| Vindicate | to clear of accusation, blame or doubt |
| Cliché | trite or overused expression or idea |
| Coquettish | in a manner befitting a woman who flirts with men |
| Defile | o make unclean, impure |
| Deleterious | harmful |
| Denounce | to criticize publicly |
| Eccentric | deviating from the established norm |
| Forlorn | pitiful; desperate; hopeless |
| Mutilated | maimed; damaged |
| Oscillate | to sway from one side to another |
| Rebuff | refuse |
| Amiable | friendly; good natured |
| Exuberant | overjoyed |
| Innocuous | harmless; inoffensive |
| Instigate | to urge, goad |
| Ludicrous | laughably ridiculous |
| Ominous | threatening; menacing |
| Placate | to ease the anger of, soothe |
| Repentant | sorry, penitent |
| Solipsistic | believing that oneself is all that exists |
| Wrought | shaped; made |
| agitation | disturbance; annoyance |
| avid | enthusiastic; with great interest |
| enthrall | to hold spellbound; captivate |
| idealist | one who sees the best in things; a dreamer; unrealistic |
| incarnate | personified; given a human form |
| incipient | beginning to exist |
| laconic | using few words; terse; concise |
| liable | likely; at risk of experiencing something unpleasant |
| mercurial | quick and changeable in temperament |
| sentiment | tender, romantic or nostalgic feeling |
| candid | honest and straightforward |
| carte blanche | with full permission; unrestricted authority |
| discord | lack of agreement; tension, strife |
| dispel | to rid one's mind of |
| gist | main idea |
| philander | engage in many casual love affairs |
| raucous | rough-sounding; harsh; boisterous |
| remiss | not attending to duty; negligent; careless |
| solitary | existing alone |
| trepidation | a state of alarm or dread; fear |
| befuddle | to confuse |
| contemptuous | dishonorable; disgraceful |
| falter | to stumble; to move unsteadily |
| overstrung | pushed to one's emotional limits; too tense |
| pinnacle | the highest point |
| propagate | to multiply; to spread out |
| sensuous | appealing to the senses |
| stagnate | to become or remain inactive; not develop, not flow |
| strive | to struggle; to work |
| vicarious | experiencing through another |
| Sodden | Heavy, as if soaked with water; saturated |
| Desecrate | to treat disrespectfully; to violate the sanctity of |
| Expound | to defend with an argument; to explain with detail |
| Conjecture | an idea formed by guessing |
| Malice | the desire to see another experience pain or distress |
| Prostrate | lying flat; completely overcome; lacking vitality; weak |
| Ostentatious | showy; intended to attract notice from others |
| Phosphorescent | emitting light |
| Sacrilege | irreverence toward a hallowed person, place or thing |
| Oblique | not straightforward; indirect; slanted |
| Supplicate | to ask for humbly and earnestly; to pray to God |
| Wanton | malicious; inhumane; lustful, sensual |
| Fetid | having an offensive smell; p.u. |
| Temerity | boldness; having contempt for danger; 'nerve' |
| Mendacious | dishonest; diverging from the truth |
| Fractious | unruly; tending to be troublesome |
| Coquetry | a flirtatious act or attitude |
| Disgorge | to discharge the contents of; to vomit |
| Fiend | bad or evil person; demon; an addict |
| Subtle | difficult to understand or perceive |
| Abstemious | holding back from eating or drinking too much |
| Adulate | to praise or flatter too greatly |
| Allay | to lessen fear; to calm; to relieve pain |
| Ameliorate | to make better; to lessen pain, difficulty or tension |
| Austere | grave, sober, solemn |
| Avarice | greed |
| Banal | dull or stale because of overuse; trite; hackneyed |
| Berate | to scold in a harsh tone |
| Concise | using few words in speaking and writing |
| Conflagration | a huge fire; inferno |
| Circumlocution | speaking in circles; roundabout speech |
| Clandestine | secret, hidden, concealed |
| Colloquial | pertaining to common everyday speech; conversational |
| Copious | abundant; plentiful |
| Cryptic | hidden; mysterious; obscure |
| Deprecate | to show mild disapproval |
| Diffuse | spread out, not concise; wordy |
| Digress | to wander off topic |
| Ebullient | filled with bubble excitement |
| Eclectic | taken from many different sources |
| Enigma | a riddle or mystery |
| Ephemeral | lasting a short time; fleeting |
| Eloquence | artful ease with speaking; speech that can impact peoples feelings |
| Erudite | scholarly; wise due to much reading and studying |
| Extol | to praise highly; laud |
| Fastidious | very attentive to detail; meticulous |
| Garrulous | talkative; loquacious |
| Grandiloquent | using big, fancy words when speaking to impress others |
| Gregarious | sociable; outgoing |
| Hedonist | a person who lives for pleasure |
| Impudent | rude; disrespectful |
| Indolent | lazy; not wanting to do any work |
| Insipid | lacking flavor or taste; unexciting |
| Insolent | rude; boldly disrespectful in speech or behavior |
| Laud | to praise; extol |
| Lithe | nimble and flexible |
| Loquacious | very talkative; garrulous; liking to talk |
| Magnanimous | generous in overlooking insult or injury by others; rising above pettiness |
| Mellifluous | sweet and smooth sounding |
| Misanthrope | someone who dislikes all people |
| Mundane | commonplace; ordinary |
| Nefarious | very mean and wicked |
| Obsequious | obedient; dutiful |
| Odious | loathsome; evil; revolting in a disgusting way |
| Pariah | a social outcast |
| Parsimonious | overly thrifty or miserly |
| Penurious | stingy; relating to great poverty, destitution |
| Pernicious | very destructive or harmful |
| Perspicacious | using wide judgment; sharp-minded |
| Pithy | brief and full of meaning and substance |
| Philanthropic | showing a desire to help others by giving gifts; charitable; humane |
| Polemical | inclined to argue or debate |
| Prattle | to speak on and on in a senseless and silly manner |
| Prevaricate | to use ambiguous language for the purpose of deception |
| Prosaic | dull, commonplace |
| Quandary | a dilemma; a confusing situation |
| Quell | to quiet down; to subdue; to pacify |
| Quiescent | quiet; still; inactive |
| Raconteur | a skillful storyteller |
| Rancorous | deeply hateful or spiteful; malicious |
| Replete | filled-up; overflowing |
| Reticent | not talking much; reserved |
| Soporific | sleepy |
| Spurious | false; lacking logic |
| Squander | to spend money (or time) in a wasteful manner |
| Succinct | clearly and briefly stated; concise |
| Surfeit | an oversupply |
| Surreptitious | done or made in a secret, stealthy way |
| Sycophant | someone who seeks good favor by flattery |
| Taciturn | silent; sparing of words; close-mouthed |
| Torpid | lacking energy; feeling sluggish |
| Terse | using only the words needed to make the point; very concise |
| Transient | one who or that which is of only temporary existence |
| Vacillate | to sway from one side to the other |
| Vapid | lacking freshness and zest; flat; stale |
| Venerate | to feel or show deep respect for; to honor |
| Verbose | using too many words; wordy; long-winded |
| Verdant | green with vegetation |
| Zealous | filled with enthusiasm |
| Zephyr | a gentle breeze |