Fahrenheit 451 - Vocabulary List #1

Abyss

Abyss

n. a deep or seemingly bottomless chasm

Ballistics

n. the science of projectiles and firearms

Cacophony

n. a harsh discordant mixture of sounds

Cartographer

n. a person who draws or produces maps

Centrifuge

n. a machine with a rapidly rotating container that applies centrifugal force to its contents, typically to separate fluids of different densities (e.g. cream from milk) or liquids from solids

Conjure

v. call upon (a spirit or ghost) to appear, by means of a magic ritual

Cower

v. crouch down in fear

Distilled

adj. (of a liquid) having been purified by undergoing heating and condensation

adj. (of spirits or an essence) produced by distilling

Feigning

v. pretend to be affected by (a feeling, state, or injury)

Luminescent

adj. emitting light not caused by heat

Mausoleum

n. a building, especially a large and stately one, housing a tomb or tombs

Nomadic

adj. living the life of a nomad; wandering

Noncombustible

adj. not flammable

Olfactory

adj. relating to the sense of smell

Pagan

n. (especially in historical contexts) a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main or recognized religions

Pratfall

v. a fall on to one's buttocks

Rationalize

v. attempt to explain or justify (one's own or another's behavior or attitude) with logical, plausible reasons, even if these are not true or appropriate

Ravenous

adj. extremely hungry

Stratum

n. a layer or a series of layers of rock in the ground.

n. a level or class to which people are assigned according to their social status, education, or income.

Tactile

adj. relating to the sense of touch

Tallow

n. a hard fatty substance made from rendered animal fat, used in making candles and soap

Tamped

v. pack (a blast hole) full of clay or sand to concentrate the force of the explosion

Titillation

n. the arousal of interest or excitement, especially through sexually suggestive images or words

Trajectory

n. the path followed by a projectile flying or an object moving under the action of given forces

Banned

adj. officially or legally prohibited

Totalitarian

n. relating to a system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state

Censorship

n. suppression of any form of media or speech

Propaganda

n. biased information used to promote a perspective (usually political)

Conformity

n. compliance to standards and rules

Dystopian

adj. an imaginary state/society of suffering and injustice

Utopian

adj. an ideal imaginary state/society of perfection

Satire

n. the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices

Fascism

n. a system of government where a dictator figure controls the lives of the people, and the people are not allowed to disagree

Fahrenheit 451

the precise temperature at which paper burns

Oxymoron

n. a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction (e.g. faith unfaithful kept him falsely true )

Paradox

n. a self-contradictory statement that may prove to be true

Antithesis

n. a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else

Allegory

n. a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one

Totalitarianism

n. a system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state