English Final Exam Study Flashcard (English 9)

Acrid

a sharp, bitter smell or taste

Alderman

an elected official of a municipal government, next to mayor

August

 respected, impressive, often old

Circumvent

to avoid by deception

Cuckold

unwittingly cheated on

Deprecation

expressing a negative view

Diffident

modest or shy because of a lack of self-confidence

Haughty

disdainfully proud

Encroach

to intrude on territory or rights

Impervious

unable to be affected

Inextricable

impossible to separate

Macabre

morbid and disturbing because it involves death

Pauper

a poor person

Temerity

excessive boldness or audacity

Virulent

extremely severe and hostile

Unsullied

spotlessly clean and fresh

Assuage

to make an unpleasant feeling less intense

Imprudent

uncaring of consequences to a rude or stupid degree

Foray

a sudden short attack or battle; a scrimmage

Edification

to improve or support, especially in moral or intellectual education

Erratic

liable to sudden unpredictable change

Tacit

understood or implied without being stated

Arbitrate

act between parties with a view to reconciling differences

Ramshackle

in poor or broken-down condition

Condescend

do something that one considers to be below one's dignity

Indigenous

originating from the same place; native to the area

Malignant

dangerously infectious and invasive

Asinine

extremely foolish or silly; behaving like a jackass

Obstreperous

difficult to control and disorderly

Gallantly

in a brave or heroic manner

Vehemently

doing something (usually opposing or denying) with passion

Invective

harsh or abusive language

Garish

tastelessly showy, not elegant

Tactful

knowing when to say or do the right thing at the right time

Passé

embarrassingly out of style and old

addled

unable to think clearly

augment

to make something greater by adding to it; to increase

apothecary

an old term for a pharmacist or druggist

assail

to attack, criticize, or try to fight

bawdy

describing a dirty joke

boisterous

rowdy, loud, and high-spirited

grave

overly serious

chastity

staying a virgin and refraining from sex

churlish

surly, grumpy, and rude

disparaging

expressing the opinion that something is worthless

dispatch

send off or deal with something efficiently

feign

to fake or pretend

forswear

agree to give up or do without

inauspicious

unpromising; not looking good

knave

a fool or rascal

lament

a passionate expression of grief or sorrow

mar

impair the appearance of; disfigure

paramour

a lover

pernicious

slowly having a harmful effect

sepulchre

a tomb

Tragic hero

The main character, usually a good person, who fails or dies as a result of his tragic flaw and cruel twist of fate.

Tragic flaw

(Greek: harmartia) the one part of a hero’s personality that leads to their doom.

Soliloquy

A speech given by a character alone onstage to reveal their thoughts and feelings.

Aside

A character’s remark to the audience that is not heard by the other characters onstage.

Foil

A character whose personality strongly contrasts with another’s. Often, the foil has the opposite personality as the main character’s.

Protagonist

the main character or hero of the story.

Antagonist

The character who opposes the protagonist (usually a villian)

Pun

a joke where one word or phrase has multiple meanings.

Allusion

a reference to something, usually literature, mythology, or Bible.

Dramatic Irony

when the audience / reader knows something that the character doesn’t (Increases the suspense / anxiety, makes the audience invested)

Gerunds

When a verb acts like a noun:
Gerunds end with -ing and function like the subject or object (like a thing)
EXAMPLES: Dancing is my favorite form of exercise (Subject in the sentence)
I hate running, jogging, throwing, and catching. (Objects in the sentence)

Participles

When a verb acts like an adjective
Participles describe something that is happening simultaneously, also end with -ing
EXAMPLES: He smiled, pouring himself another glass of chocolate milk.
The chocolate milk spilled, overflowing from the glass and splattering on the floor

Infinitives

To + verb
Infinitives are the easiest. They’re just the basic form of verb + to
EXAMPLES:
I’m going to beat you into next week if you spill chocolate milk on my white carpet
She wanted to take a nap before her big performance

Find all the Verbals in this sentence
She wanted to call him out on his cheating, but she decided to bide her time, waiting until the perfect moment to humiliate him.

INFINITIVES: to call, to bide, to humiliate
PARTICIPLES: waiting
GERUNDS: cheating