 | Term | Definition |
| |
abjure |
(1) to renounce under oath; (2) to give up or abstain from |
| |
ablution |
a washing or cleansing of the body, especially as part of a religious rite |
| |
abnegation |
renunciation of your own interests in the favor of interests of others |
| |
abstruse |
not easily understood; incomprehensible to one of ordinary understanding or knowledge (synonym recondite) |
| |
accretion |
growth or increase in size by gradual external addition, fusion, or inclusion |
| |
allay |
to reduce the intensity of; relieve |
| |
ambit |
a sphere of operation or influence; range; scope |
| |
apocryphal |
of questionable authorship or authenticity |
| |
apotheosis |
(1) a model of excellence or perfection of a kind; (2) the elevantion or exaltation of a person to the rank of god |
| |
apposite |
suitable; well-adapted; pertinent; relevant |
| |
ardor |
fiery intensity of feeling |
| |
arrogate |
to claim or seize without right or justification; to appropriate |
| |
aspersion |
a damaging or derogatory remark |
| |
assay |
an analysis or examination, especially of an ore or drug, to determine its components |
| |
assiduous |
constant in application or attention; persistent; diligent |
| |
assignation |
(1) the act of assigning, or something assigned; (2) an appointment or meeting between lovers |
| |
atavistic |
reverting to or suggesting the characteristics of a remote ancestor or primitive type |
| |
auspicious |
attended by favorable circumstances (synonym propitious) |
| |
autodidact |
a self-taught person |
| |
aver |
to affirm positively; declare |
| |
avuncular |
regarded as characteristic of an uncle, especially in benevolence or tolerance |
| |
balustrade |
a rail and the row of posts that support it |
| |
bantam |
(1) diminutive; miniature; (2) aggressive and spirited |
| |
besot |
to muddle or stupefy, as with alcohol or infatuation |
| |
bilious |
of, relating to, or containing bile; ill-humored |
| |
bombastic |
grandiloquent, pompous speech or writing |
| |
braggadocio |
(1) a braggart; (2) empty boasting; (3) a swaggering, cocky manner |
| |
cadge |
to beg or get by begging |
| |
capitulate |
to surrender under specified conditions; to give up all resistance or acquiesce (significantly different from recapitulate) |
| |
caprice |
(1) an impulsive change of mind, or an inclination towards such; (2) a sudden unpredictable action, change, or series of actions or changes |
| |
casuistry |
(1) specious reasoning intended to rationalize or mislead; (2) the determination of right and wrong in questions of moral conduct by analyzing cases that illustrate general ethical rules |
| |
chicanery |
the use of trickery to deceive |
| |
chignon |
a roll or knot of hair worn at the back of the head or especially at the nape of the neck |
| |
choleric |
easily angered; indicating or expressing anger |
| |
clemency |
an act of mercy |
| |
concatenation |
a series or order of things depending on each other, as if linked together; a chain or succession |
| |
conciliation |
the act of overcoming the distrust or hostility of; becoming agreeable or reconciled |
| |
concupiscence |
sexual desire; lust |
| |
connubial |
of or pertaining to marriage |
| |
consign |
to give over to the care of another |
| |
corpus delicti |
the material evidence in a crime showing that a crime has, in fact, been committed (e.g., a corpse in a homicide) |
| |
coterie |
a small, often select group of persons who associate with one another frequently |
| |
crepuscular |
of or like twilight; dim |
| |
desiccated |
dried out |
| |
desideratum |
something considered necessary or highly desirable |
| |
desultory |
moving or jumping from one thing to another; occurring haphazardly |
| |
dialetheism |
the belief that there are true contradictions, in opposition to the law of non-contradiction |
| |
didactic |
intended to teach or moralize excessively |
| |
dilettante |
(1) a dabbler or amateur; (2) an admirer or lover of the fine arts |
| |
dispositive |
providing a final resolution (as of an issue) |
| |
dross |
(1) waste matter; refuse; (2) worthless, commonplace, or trivial matter |
| |
effete |
(1) no longer capable of producing young; infertile; barren; (2) marked by self-indulgence, triviality, or decadence |
| |
effluvium |
a usually invisible emanation or exhalation, as of vapor or gas |
| |
enervate |
to weaken or destroy the strength or vitality of |
| |
ennui |
listlessness and dissatisfaction resulting from lack of interest; the feeling of being bored by something tedious |
| |
ephemeral |
lasting for a markedly brief time |
| |
equivocal |
open to two or more interpretations and often intended to mislead; of a doubtful or uncertain nature |
| |
escarpment |
a vertical fortification; a steep cliff-face |
| |
exegesis |
critical explanation or interpretation of a text or a portion of a text |
| |
expeditious |
characterized by speed and efficiency |
| |
expiate |
to make amends or reparations for; atone |
| |
fastidious |
(1) possessing or displaying careful, meticulous attention to detail; (2) difficult to please |
| |
fatuous |
vacuously, smugly, and unconsciously foolish |
| |
feasance |
the doing or performing of an act, as of a condition or duty |
| |
feckless |
(1) feeble or ineffective; (2) careless and irresponsible |
| |
fecundity |
the quality or power of producing abundantly; fruitfulness or fertility |
| |
florid |
very ornate; flowery |
| |
fractious |
inclined to make trouble; cranky |
| |
fulsome |
offensive from excess of praise |
| |
garrulous |
given to excessive and often trivial or rambling talk (see also loquacious; antonym laconic) |
| |
gauche |
lacking social polish; tactless; awkward |
| |
glabrous |
without hairs or projections; smooth (antonym: hirsute) |
| |
halcyon |
calm and tranquil; prosperous and golden |
| |
hector |
(n) a bully; (v) to intimidate or dominate in a blustering way |
| |
hirsute |
covered with hair (antonym: glabrous) |
| |
imbroglio |
a complicated and embarrassing state of things |
| |
implacable |
incapable of being pacified |
| |
imprecation |
the act of calling down a curse that invokes evil (and usually serves as an insult) |
| |
inchoate |
(1) in an initial or stage; incipient; (2) imperfectly formed or developed |
| |
incipient |
beginning to exist or appear |
| |
inculcate |
to teach and impress by frequent repetitions or admonitions |
| |
indemnification |
compensation for loss |
| |
ineffable |
incapable of being expressed; indescribable or unutterable |
| |
inimitable |
defying imitation; matchless |
| |
insipid |
lacking qualities that excite, stimulate, or interest; dull |
| |
insouciance |
blithe lack of concern; nonchalance |
| |
interstice |
(1) a space between things or parts, especially a space between things closely set; (2) an interval of time |
| |
invective |
denunciatory or abusive expression or discourse |
| |
inveterate |
firmly established by long persistance; of long standing |
| |
invidious |
tending to provoke envy or ill will |
| |
itinerant |
traveling from place to place |
| |
ken |
(1) perception; understanding; knowledge; (2) view; sight |
| |
kitsch |
sentimentality or vulgar, often pretentious bad taste, especially in the arts |
| |
laconic |
marked by the use of few words; terse or concise (antonym garrulous or loquacious) |
| |
lacuna |
an empty space or a missing part |
| |
lambent |
softly bright or radiant |
| |
languor |
lack of energy or vitality |
| |
largess |
generous giving (as of gifts or money), often accompanied by condescension |
| |
legerdemain |
sleight of hand; deceitful cleverness |
| |
lemma |
a subsidiary proposition that is assumed to be true in order to prove another proposition |
| |
licentious |
amoral; lewd and lacivious |
| |
loquacious |
very talkative (see also garrulous; antonym laconic) |
| |
lugubrious |
mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially to an exaggerated or ludicrous degree |
| |
majuscule |
a large letter, as in a capital |
| |
maladroit |
an inept person |
| |
malaise |
a vague feeling of bodily discomfort, as at the beginning of an illness |
| |
maquillage |
cosmetic or theatrical makeup |
| |
mawkish |
excessively or objectionably sentimental; sickening or insipid in taste |
| |
mealymouthed |
indirect in speech; evasive |
| |
mendicancy |
the practice of begging; depending on alms for a living |
| |
miasma |
a harmful or corrupting atmosphere or influence |
| |
milieu |
environment or setting |
| |
mordant |
biting; caustic; sarcastic |
| |
moribund |
approaching death; about to die |
| |
muslin |
sturdy cotton fabric of plain weave, used especially for sheets |
| |
nacreous |
resembling mother-of-pearl; lustrous |
| |
nascent |
coming into existence; emerging |
| |
nescience |
lack of knowledge or awareness |
| |
obdurate |
(1) stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing; (2) showing unfeeling resistance to tender feelings |
| |
obsequious |
(1) characterized by or showing servile complaisance or deference; (2) attempting to win favor from influential people by flattery |
| |
obstreperous |
(1) noisily and stubbornly defiant and unruly; (2) noisy, clamorous, or boisterous |
| |
officious |
volunteering one's services when they are neither asked for nor needed; meddlesome |
| |
onanism |
(1) masturbation; (2) coitus interruptus |
| |
opprobrium |
disgrace; infamy; reporach mingled with contempt |
| |
otiose |
ineffective; lazy; idle |
| |
pabulum |
(1) a substance that gives nourishment; (2) insipid intellectual nourishment |
| |
pallor |
extreme or unnatural paleness |
| |
panoply |
a splendid or impressive array |
| |
paramour |
an illicit lover (esp. of a man) |
| |
parlance |
a particular manner of speaking |
| |
paroxysm |
(1) a sudden outburst of emotion or action; (2) a spasm or fit; a convulsion |
| |
pastiche |
a dramatic, literary, or musical piece openly imitating the works of other artists, often with satirical intent |
| |
patina |
a superficial layer or exterior |
| |
perfidious |
treacherous |
| |
perfunctory |
(1) performed merely as a routine duty; hasty and superficial; (2) lacking interest, care, or enthusiasm; indifferent or apathetic |
| |
peripatetic |
walking or traveling about; itinerant |
| |
petulant |
moved to or showing sudden, impatient irritation, especially over some trifling annoyance; unreasonably ill-tempered or irritable |
| |
philander |
to engage in many love affairs, especially with a frivolous or casual attitude (used of a man) |
| |
philistine |
a person who is lacking in or hostile or smugly indifferent to cultural values, intellectual pursuits, aesthetic refinement, etc. or is contentedly commonplace in ideas and tastes |
| |
piebald |
(1) having spots and patches of black and white, or other colors; mottled; (2) mixed; composed of incongruous parts |
| |
pique |
(v) to provoke or arouse; (n) a state of vexation caused by a perceived slight or indignity; a feeling of wounded pride |
| |
pith |
the essential or central part |
| |
placate |
to allay the anger of, especially by making concessions |
| |
plinth |
the lowest part of the base of an architectural column; a usually square block serving as a base |
| |
pratfall |
(1) a fall in which one lands on the buttocks, often regarded as comical or humiliating; (2) a humiliating blunder or defeat |
| |
precipitous |
done with very great haste and without due deliberation |
| |
prestidigitation |
sleight of hand (synonym legerdemain) |
| |
probity |
complete and confirmed integrity |
| |
profundity |
(1) great depth; (2) depth of intellect, feeling, or meaning |
| |
prolegomenon |
a preliminary discussion; an introductory essay, as prefatory matter in a book |
| |
propitiation |
the act of placating and overcoming distrust and animosity (synonym conciliation); the act of atoning for sin or wrongdoing (especially appeasing a deity) |
| |
propitious |
presenting favorable circumstances (synonym auspicious) |
| |
prosaic |
lacking in imagination and spirit; dull |
| |
provenance |
origin; source |
| |
prurient |
inordinately interested in matters of sex |
| |
puissant |
powerful; mighty; potent |
| |
pusillanimous |
cowardly; fainthearted |
| |
putative |
generally regarded as such; supposed |
| |
putrefaction |
decomposition of organic matter, especially protein, by microorganisms, resulting in production of foul-smelling matter |
| |
qua |
in the capacity or character of; as |
| |
querulous |
apt to find fault; habitually complaining |
| |
quixotic |
idealistic without regard to practicality |
| |
quotidian |
everyday; commonplace |
| |
rarefy |
to make thin, less compact, or less dense |
| |
ratiocination |
act of drawing conclusions from premises |
| |
recapitulate |
to repeat in concise form; to make a summary (signficantly different from capitulate) |
| |
recondite |
not easily understood; incomprehensible to one of ordinary understanding or knowledge (synonym abstruse) |
| |
recriminate |
to counter one accusation with another |
| |
redolent |
(1) having or emitting fragrance; aromatic; (2) suggestive or reminiscent |
| |
risible |
(1) exciting or provoking laughter; laughable; amusing; (2) capable of laughing; disposed to laugh |
| |
rococo |
having excessive asymmetrical ornamentation |
| |
salacious |
lustful or bawdy |
| |
sallow |
of a sickly yellowish hue or complexion |
| |
salvo |
(1) a mental provision or reservation; (2) an expedient for protecting one's reputation or soothing one's conscience; (3) a simultaneous discharge of firearms, or something resembling such |
| |
sartorial |
of or relating to clothes, or style or manner of dress |
| |
scabrous |
(1) having or covered with scales or small projections and rough to the touch; (2) dealing with scandalous or salacious material |
| |
scion |
a descendent; an heir |
| |
screed |
a long monotonous speech or piece of writing |
| |
scrofulous |
morally degenerate; corrupt |
| |
sepia |
(1) a dark brown ink or pigment; (2) a photograph in brown tint |
| |
settee |
a small or medium-sized sofa |
| |
simulacrum |
(1) an image or representation; (2) an unreal or vague semblance |
| |
solicitous |
anxious or concerned |
| |
soporific |
sleep-causing |
| |
sotto voce |
under the breath; in an undertone |
| |
spate |
a sudden flood, rush, or outpouring |
| |
specious |
having the ring of truth or plausibility but actually fallacious |
| |
stanch |
to stop or check the flow of |
| |
stentorian |
extremely loud |
| |
stochastic |
involving or containing a random variable or variables |
| |
stolid |
having or revealing little emotion or sensibility |
| |
sui generis |
being the only example of its kind; unique |
| |
supercilious |
disdainfully arrogant; haughty |
| |
supine |
(1) lying on the back (opposite prostrate); (2) marked by or showing lethargy, passivity, or blameworthy indifference |
| |
surfeit |
(n) an excessive amount; (v) to feed or supply to excess, satiety, or disgust |
| |
surreptitious |
marked by quiet, caution, and secrecy; taking pains to avoid being observed |
| |
susurrus |
the indistinct sound of people whispering |
| |
swan song |
a final or farewell appearance, action, or pronouncement |
| |
sycophant |
a servile self-seeker who attempts to win favor by flattering influential people |
| |
syncretic |
characterized or brought about by the combination of different forms of belief or practice |
| |
tendentious |
having an aim; designed to further a cause |
| |
thrombosis |
the formation, presence, or development of a thrombus, a fibrinous clot formed in a blood vessel or a chamber of the heart |
| |
tonsure |
the part of a monk's head that has been shaved |
| |
transom |
a small hinged window above a door or another window, or the horizontal crosspiece between the two |
| |
turpitude |
depravity, baseness |
| |
vagary |
an extravagant, erratic, or unpredictable notion, action, or occurrence |
| |
venal |
capable of being bought; corruptible |
| |
ventral |
situated on or close to the abdomen |
| |
verisimilitude |
the quality of seeming to be true, or something that has that quality |
| |
vicissitude |
one of the sudden or unexpected changes or shifts often encountered in one's life, activities, or surroundings (often used in the plural) |
| |
wainscot |
the lower part of an interior wall when finished in a material, usually wood, different from that of the upper part |
| |
wan |
unnaturally pale, as from physical or emotional distress; suggestive or indicative of weariness, illness, or unhappiness |
| |
yen |
a strong desire or inclination |
