Sadlier Unit 11 Level H

apostate

(noun): one who forsakes his or her religion, party, or cause

SYN: renegade, defector

ANT: true believer

bravado

(noun): a display of false or assumed courage

SYN: swagger, bluster, braggadocio

ANT: mettle, bravery, pluck

consensus

(noun): a collective or general agreement of opinion, feeling, or thinking

SYN: unanimity, concord, accord, harmony

ANT: dissension, discord, disagreement

constrict

(verb): to make smaller or narrower, draw together, squeeze; to stop or cause to falter

SYN: contract, curb, restrain

ANT: enlarge, dilate, expand

dichotomy

(noun): a division into two contradictory or mutually exclusive parts; a branching or forking in an ancestral line

SYN: schism, bifurcation

ANT: uniformity, oneness

effusive

(adjective): highly demonstrative; unrestrained

SYN: gushy, lavish

ANT: restrained, reserved, muted, subdued

euphoria

(noun): a feeling of great happiness or well-being, often with no objective basis

SYN: elation, bliss, ecstasy, rapture

ANT: melancholy, depression, gloom

gothic

(adjective): characterized by or emphasizing a gloomy setting and grotesque or violent events; such a literary or artistic style; a type of medieval architecture

SYN: sinister

impasse

(noun): a dead end; a position from which there is no escape; a problem to which there is no solution

SYN: standoff, stalemate

lugubrious

(adjective): sad, mournful, or gloomy, especially to an exaggerated of ludicrous degree

SYN: doleful, melancholy, dismal

ANT: jovial, hilarious, funny

metamorphosis

(noun): a complete transformation, as if by magic

SYN: change, makeover

mystique

(noun): an aura or attitude of mystery or veneration surrounding something or someone

SYN: charisma

non sequitur

(noun): an inference or conclusion that does not follow logically from the facts or premises

SYN: illogical reference, unsound conclusions

parlous

(adjective): full of danger or risk, perilous

SYN: hazardous, risky, dangerous

ANT: safe, secure, risk-free

punctilio

(noun): a minute detail of conduct or procedure; an instant of time

SYN: nicety

quagmire

(noun): soft, soggy mud or slush; a difficult or entrapping situation

SYN: fen, marsh, morass

ANT: bedrock, solid footing, terra firma

quixotic

(adjective): extravagantly or romantically idealistic; visionary without regard to practical considerations

SYN: fanciful, impractical, utopian

ANT: realistic, down-to-earth, pragmatic

raconteur

(noun): a person who tells stories and anecdotes with great skill

SYN: anecdotist

sine qua non

(noun): an essential or indispensable element or condition

SYN: necessity, desideratum

vendetta

(noun): a prolonged feud, often between two families, characterized by retaliatory acts of revenge; any act motivated by vengeance

SYN: blood feud, rivalry