Vocabulary Workshop Level F Unit 15

adamant

(adj.) firm in purpose or opinion, unyielding, obdurate, implacable, inflexible; (n.) an extremely hard substance

ant: (adj.) yielding, flexible, pliable

brouhaha

(n.) a confused hodgepodge of sounds, hubbub; a commotion that goes far beyond what is justified

syn: hullabaloo, tumult, pandemonium

bulwark

(n.) a strong defensive or protection, a solid wall-like structure for defense; (v.) to provide such defense or protection

syn: (n.) bastion, rampart

ant: (n.) breach

choleric

(adj.) easily made angry, bad-tempered

syn: irascible, testy, splenetic, bilious

ant: affable, genial, even-tempered

cloy

(v.) to spoil or destroy an appetite by too much indulgence, especially in sweet or rich things; to glut, satiate, surfeit

ant: stimulate, whet

curtail

(v.) to cut short; to reduce

syn: limit, abbreviate, abridge, contract

ant: protract, extend

deference

(n.) courteous yielding to the wishes and ideas of another person; great respect marked by submission(as to a superior)

syn: respect, consideration

ant: contempt, disdain

definitive

(adj.) conclusive, final, representing the limit of what can be done

syn: exhaustive, authoritative

ant: tentative

demeanor

(n.) the way a person behaves, overall impression made by manner, mien

syn: conduct, behavior, carriage

enigmatic

(adj.) puzzling, perplexing, inexplicable, not easily understood

syn: baffling, mysterious, inexplicable

ant: intelligible, understandable, fathomable

impromptu

(adj., adv.) without preparation, offhand; (n.) an extemporaneous composition or remark; a minimal piece suggestive of improvisation

syn: spontaneous, improvised, unrehearsed

ant: rehearsed, planned, premeditated

mawkish

(adj.) excessively and objectionably sentimental; having a mildly sickening flavor

syn: sentimentalized, mushy, nauseating

ant: unsentimental, callous, insensitive

mollify

(v.) to soften; to calm; to reduce in intensity

syn: pacify, placate

ant: aggravate, exacerbate

onus

(n.) something that is heavy or burdensome (especially an unwelcome responsibility); a stigma; blame

syn: obligation, duty

presentiment

(n.) a vague sense of approaching misfortune

syn: foreboding, premonition, hunch

profligate

(adj.) given over to self-indulgence; recklessly extravagant; (n.) a person given to self-indulgent and wild spending

syn: (adj.) prodigal, improvident (n.) spendthrift

ant: (adj.) penny-pinching, frugal, economical

remit

(v.) to send or hand in (as money); to cancel (as a penalty or punishment), forgive, pardon; to lessen; to put off

syn: absolve, subside, abate, pardon

requisite

(adj.) needed, necessary, regarded as essential or indispensable

syn: required, obligatory, incumbent

ant: nonessential, superfluous, optional

sartorial

(adj.) of or pertaining to a tailor or his work; having to do with clothes or dress (especially men's)

thwart

(v.) to oppose successfully; to prevent, frustrate

syn: foil, baffle

ant: aid, assist, abet, further