 | Term | Definition |
| |
anodyne |
anything that sooths or comforts |
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aphorism |
a short, witty saying or concise principle |
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apostate |
person who has left the fold or deserted the faith. |
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arrogate |
to make an unreasonable claim |
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atavistic |
reverting to a primitive type |
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avuncular |
"like an uncle"; benevolent |
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bereft |
to be deprived of something valuable}"He was bereft of reason." |
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calumny |
a slander or false accusation |
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canard |
a fabricated story (French="duck"; morte canard=dead duck) |
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cant |
insincerity |
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comitatus |
loyalty to one's band or group |
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concatenation |
things linked together or joined in a chain |
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cosseted |
pampered |
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cynosure |
{(from the Greek: "dog's tail")}center of attention; point to which all eyes are drawn.(Really? From "dog's tail"? Yes. The "dog's tail" appears in a constellation, } locating the North star, which rivets the attention of sailors at sea. Thus: } center of attention.)} } (see also: sinecure) |
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dilettante |
1. having superficial/amateurish interest in a branch of knowledge;}2. a connoisseur or lover of the fine arts |
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discursive |
covering a wide field of subjects |
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docent |
a teacher, but not regular faculty; a museum tour guide |
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egregious |
conspiculously bad; flagrant; shocking |
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epigone |
a second rate imitator or follower |
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fatuous |
foolish; stupid; silly |
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felicity |
bliss; a pleasing aptness in speech and deportment; grace |
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gratuitous |
given freely |
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haik |
a large piece of cloth worn as an outer garment by Arabs. |
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heuristic |
an idea or speculation acting as a guide to an investigation |
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hubris |
arrogance from excessive pride or passion (hubristic) |
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incisive |
displaying sharp mental perception; direct and effective |
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inimical |
unfriendly; hostile |
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insuperable |
not able to be overcome |
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inveigh |
attack verbally |
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jeremiad |
a series of doleful, dismal complaints |
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lagniappe |
{(noun) (a Creole word)}something given away as a gift for buying something else;} (such as an ashtray given for buying a full tank of gas) |
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leitmotif |
a dominant or recurring theme or pattern |
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luddite |
a person who tries to halt progress by smashing machines |
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manque |
unfulfilled; frustrated (literally: maimed)}"He was an artist manque." |
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mendacious |
{(adj.)}untruthful. {(the noun is mendacity) |
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meretricious |
deceitful; tawdry(Note that the two words above are pejorative, but if the}meaning is not known, they "sound" meritorious.) |
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misanthrope |
a person who dislikes the human race |
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nugatory |
trifling; worthless; ineffective |
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opprobrium |
disgrace arising from shameful conduct;}a reproach mingled with contempt}"That word - a term of opprobrium - cut him like a knife." |
| |
paradigm |
"side by side"; a pattern or example. A "paradigm shift" is}usually used to signify a major change in thinking or acting,}in the sense of employing new examples. |
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parvenue |
an upstart; someone trying to rise above their proper place |
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pejorative |
tending to be worse; downgrading; disparaging |
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penury |
extreme poverty |
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peremptory |
a command which may not be refused |
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perdition |
future misery, such as in going to Hell |
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perfidy |
treachery; falsehood (perfidious is the adjective) |
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perfunctory |
done routinely, with little interest or care |
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peripatetic |
walking about; itinerant (Often used to describe Aristotle) |
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poignant |
An adjective with multiple flavors:}1: appealing to emotion 2: physically painful 3: sharp, pungent}4: piercing, incisive 5: astute, pertinent 6: neat, skillful |
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poltroon |
a thouroughly cowardly person |
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polymath |
a person of great or (more usually) varied learning.}(poly=much {math=learning) |
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presentiment |
a foreboding of misfortune |
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propitiate |
pacify |
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puerile |
(Fr.: "puer" - child)}juvenile, immature, childish |
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punctilio |
(noun)}a fine point of etiquette; precise observance of formalities}or ceremony; precise to the letter |
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rapacity |
act of seizing that which is coveted; greed |
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recondite |
hard to understand; profound; obscure; concealed |
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regnant |
reigning; predominant; widespread |
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samizdat |
an underground newspaper |
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sanguine |
cheerful, confident |
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sanguinary |
bloody(note the huge difference in meaning between the above two}similarly sounding words) |
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saturnine |
morose; gloomy |
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seriatim |
occuring one after another; in serial fashion |
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sinecure |
a job (usually politically appointed) requiring little or no}work.}(See also: cynosure) |
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sobriquet |
a nickname or an assumed name ("Minnesota Fats") |
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solecism |
an ungrammatical combination of words |
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specious |
appearing to be right; deceptively good looking |
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spurious |
alse |
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turpitude |
depravity |
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unctous |
oily and persuasive |
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venal |
a sacrifice of honor for profit |
| |
voracity |
greed(very close to veracity in spelling and pronunciation, but mean quite different things.) |
| |
verisimilitude |
the quality of appearing to be true or real |
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