| Term | Definition |
|
abbreviate |
shorten, abridge |
|
abstinence |
act of refraining from |
|
amicable |
agreeable; peaceful; politely friendly; not quarrelsome; Ex. ~ settlement; [Middle English, from Late Latin amīcābilis, from Latin amīcus, friend.] |
|
anachronistic |
out-of-date; n. -sm: an error involving time in a story; something or someone misplaced in time; [French anachronisme, from New Latin anachronismus, from Late Greek anakhronismos, from anakhronizesthai, to be an anachronism : Greek ana-, ana- + Greek khronizein, to take time (from khronos, time).] |
|
antagonist |
opponent |
|
assiduous |
hard-working; diligent |
|
asylum |
sanctuary; place of refuge or shelter; protection (religious or political) |
|
camaraderie |
trust among friends; good-fellowship; CF. comrade |
|
circuitous |
indirect, roundabout; Being or taking a roundabout, lengthy course: took a circuitous route to avoid the accident site. |
|
clairvoyant |
able to see the future; having foresight; fortuneteller; N. -ce; 1 : the power or faculty of discerning objects not present to the senses; 2 : ability to perceive matters beyond the range of ordinary perception |
|
compassion |
sympathy, mercy; ~ sympathy for the suffering of others; ADJ. -nate |
|
compromise |
to settle differences |
|
condescending |
patronizing; Displaying a patronizingly superior attitude; |
|
congregation |
crowd of people; The act of assembling.; A body of assembled people or things; a gathering. ; A group of people gathered for religious worship.; The members of a specific religious group who regularly worship at a church or synagogue.; |
|
deleterious |
harmful; Having a harmful effect; injurious: the ~effects of smoking.; [From Greek dēlētērios, from dēlētēr, destroyer, from dēleisthai, to harm.] |
|
demagogue |
rabble-rousing leader; person who appeals to people's prejudice; false leader of people; CF. -guery; [Greek dēmagōgos, popular leader : dēmos, people + agōgos, leading (from agein, to lead).] |
|
digression |
straying from main point |
|
discredit |
dishonor, disgrace; 1. To damage in reputation; disgrace. 2. To cause to be doubted or distrusted. 3. To refuse to believe.; defame; disgrace; destroy confidence in; disbelieve; N. CF. -table: causing ~; shameful |
|
divergent |
variant, moving apart |
|
empathy |
sharing of feelings; Identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives. See synonyms at pity.; The attribution of one's own feelings to an object. |
|
emulate |
follow an example |
|
ephemeral |
momentary, fleeting; # Lasting for a markedly brief time: “There remain some truths too ~ to be captured in the cold pages of a court transcript” (Irving R. Kaufman).; short-lived; fleeting; [From Greek ephēmeros : ep-, epi-, epi- + hēmerā, day.] |
|
evanescent |
short-lived, as an image; fleeting; vanishing; soon disappearing; Vanishing or likely to vanish like vapor. V. -nesce |
|
exasperation |
irritation, frustration; gall; |
|
exemplary |
outstanding; Worthy of imitation; commendable: ~ behavior.; Serving as a model.;Serving as an illustration; typical.;Serving as a warning; admonitory. |
|
extenuating |
guilt diminishing; v. -ate, weaken; mitigate; lessen the seriousness of (bad behavior) |
|
florid |
flushed, ornate; ruddy; (of a complexion) reddish; flowery; very ornate; CF. rose; [from Latin flōridus, from flōs, flōr-, flower.] |
|
fortuitous |
lucky; Happening by accident or chance. See synonyms at accidental.n. -ty |
|
haughty |
arrogant, condescending; Scornfully and condescendingly proud. See synonyms at proud.; [From Middle English haut, from Old French haut, halt, alteration (influenced by Frankish hōh, high) of Latin altus, high.] |
|
hedonism |
1. Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses.; practice of living one's life purely for pleasure; 2 : a way of life based on or suggesting the principles of ~; N.Person: -nist |
|
impetuous |
rash, impulsive; violent; hasty; rash; impulsive; without careful thought; Ex. ~ decision |
|
impute |
to attribute to someone; To relate to a particular cause or source; attribute the fault or responsibility to: ~ the rocket failure to a faulty gasket; kindly ~ed my clumsiness to inexperience.; To assign as a characteristic; credit: the gracefulness so often ~ed to cats. See synonyms at attribute; [Middle English imputen, from Old French emputer, from Latin imputāre : in-, in; see in–2 + putāre, to settle an account.] |
|
inconsequential |
trivial; insignificant; unimportant |
|
integrity |
honesty, decency |
|
intrepid |
fearless, adventurous; Resolutely courageous; fearless. See synonyms at brave. |
|
nonchalant |
calm, casual; Seeming to be coolly unconcerned or indifferent. See synonyms at cool.; Ex. ~ attitude to his debts; n. -ance indifference; lack of concern; composure;[French, from Old French, present participle of nonchaloir, to be unconcerned : non-, non- + chaloir, to cause concern to (from Latin calēre, to be warm, heat up).] |
|
opulence |
extreme wealth; luxuriousness; abundance; ADJ. -ent: possessing great wealth; abundant |
|
ostentatious |
displaying wealth; showy; trying to attract attention; pretentious; N. -tion: showy display |
|
parched |
dried up; Needing or desiring drink: dry, thirsty. Archaic athirst. See dry/wet. |
|
perfidious |
disloyal; Of, relating to, or marked by perfidy; treacherous. See synonyms at faithless |
|
precocious |
talented beyond one's age; advanced in development;Manifesting or characterized by unusually early development or maturity, especially in mental aptitude. Botany. Blossoming before the appearance of leaves. N. precocity; [From Latin praecox, praecoc-, premature, from praecoquere, to boil before, ripen early : prae-, pre- + coquere, to cook, ripen.] |
|
pretentious |
pompous, self-important; Claiming or demanding a position of distinction or merit, especially when unjustified.; Making or marked by an extravagant outward show; ostentatious. See synonyms at showy. |
|
prosaic |
run-of-the-mill; 1. a. Consisting or characteristic of prose. b. Matter-of-fact; straightforward. 2. Lacking in imagination and spirit; dull. |
|
querulous |
irritable; given to complaining; complaining; fretful; whining; [Middle English querulose, litigious, quarrelsome, from Old French querelos, from Late Latin querulōsus, querulous, from Latin querulus, from querī, to complain.] |
|
rancorous |
hateful |
|
reconciliation |
agreement after a quarrel |
|
reverence |
profound respect; A feeling of profound awe and respect and often love; veneration. ; # ~ Used as a form of address for certain members of the Christian clergy: Your ~. |
|
sagacity |
wisdom |
|
spontaneity |
impulsive action; lack of premeditation; naturalness; freedom from constraint; ADJ. spontaneous: self-generated; unpremeditated; happening without being planned |
|
spurious |
phony, false; Lacking authenticity or validity in essence or origin; not genuine; false.; Of illegitimate birth.; Botany. Similar in appearance but unlike in structure or function. Used of plant parts.; [From Late Latin spurius, from Latin, illegitimate, probably of Etruscan origin.] |
|
substantiate |
to verify, confirm; support (a claim) with evidence; establish with evidence; verify |
|
superfluous |
Being beyond what is required or sufficient.; more than enough; [from Latin superfluus, from superfluere, to overflow : super-, super- + fluere, to flow.] |
|
surreptitious |
secret, stealthy; Obtained, done, or made by clandestine or stealthy means.; Acting with or marked by stealth. See synonyms at secret.; [Middle English, from Latin surreptīcius, from surreptus, past participle of surripere, to take away secretly : sub-, secretly; see sub– + rapere, to seize.] |
|
tenacious |
persistent, resolute; 1. Holding or tending to hold persistently to something, such as a point of view. 2. Holding together firmly; cohesive: a ~ material. 3. Clinging to another object or surface; adhesive: ~ lint. 4. Tending to retain; retentive: a ~ memory. |
|
transient |
temporary, fleeting; Passing with time; transitory: “the ~ beauty of youth” (Lydia M. Child).; Remaining in a place only a brief time: ~ laborers.; [Alteration of Latin trānsiēns, trānseunt-, present participle of trānsīre, to go over : trāns-, over; see trans– + īre, to go.] |
|
venerable |
respectable due to age |
|
vindicate |
to clear from blame; ~ clear from blame; free from blame or accusation (with supporting proof); exonerate; substantiate; justify or support; avenge; Ex. ~ one's client; Ex. ~ one's claim; CF. -tor [Latin vindicāre, vindicāt-, from vindex, vindic-, surety, avenger.] |