Vocabulary Level G - Units 10-12

askance

(adv.) with suspicion, distrust, or disapproval

attenuate

(v.) to make thin or slender; to weaken or lessen in force, intensity or value

benign

(adj.) gentle, kind; forgiving, understanding; having a favorable or beneficial effect; not malignant

cavil

(v.) to find fault in a petty way, carp; (n.) a trivial objection or criticism

charlatan

(n.) one who feigns knowledge or ability; a pretender, impostor, or quack

decimate

(v.) to kill or destroy a large part of

foible

(n.) a weak point, failing, minor flaw

forgo

(v.) to do without, abstain from give up

fraught

(adj.) full of or loaded with; accompanied by

inure

(v.) to toughen, harden; to render used to something by long subjection or exposure

luminous

(adj.) emitting or reflecting light, glowing; illuminating

obsequious

(adj.) marked by slavish attentiveness; excessively submissive, often for purely self-interested reasons

obtuse

(adj.) blunt, not coming to a point; slow or dull in understanding; measuring between 90 degrees and 180 degrees; not causing a sharp impression

oscillate

(v.) to swing back and forth with a steady rhythm; to fluctuate or wavier

penitent

(adj.) regretful for one's sins or mistakes; (n.) one who is sorry for wrongdoing

peremptory

(adj.) having the nature of a command that leaves no opportunity for debate, denial, or refusal; offensively self-assured, dictatorial; determined, resolute

rebuff

(v.) to snub; to repel, drive away; (n.) a curt rejection, a check

reconnoiter

(v.) to engage in reconnaissance; to make a preliminary inspection

shambles

(n.) a slaughterhouse; a place of mass bloodshed; a state of complete disorder and confusion, mess

sporadic

(adj.) occurring at irregular intervals, having no set plan or order

abrogate

(v.) to repeal, cancel, declare null and void; revoke

SYN: annul, revoke

ANT: renew, ratify

ambient

(adj.) completely surrounding, encompassing

asperity

(n.) roughness, severity; bitterness or tartness; harshness

SYN: rigor, harshness

ANT: mildness, blandness, softness, lenience

burnish

(v.) to make smooth or glossy by rubbing, polish

(n.) gloss, brightness, luster; shine; buff

SYN: (v.) shine, buff

ANT: (v.) dull, abrade

cabal

(n.) a small group working in secret; gang

SYN: ring, gang, plot, conspiracy

delectable

(adj.) delightful, highly enjoyable; deliciously flavored, savory

(n.) an appealing or appetizing food or dish; scrumptious

SYN: (adj.) scrumptious

ANT: (adj.) repugnant, repulsive, distateful

deprecate

(v.) to express mild disapproval; to belittle; deplore; frown upon

SYN: deplore, frown upon

ANT: smile on, approve

detritus

(n.) loose bits and pieces of material resulting from disintegration or wearing away; fragments that result from any destruction; wreckage; ruins

SYN: wreckage, ruins, rubble

ebullient

(adj.) overflowing with enthusiasm and excitement; boiling, bubbling; exhilarated

SYN: exhilarated, elated

ANT: gloomy, morose, sullen, apathetic, blase

eclectic

(adj.) drawn from different sources; (n.) one whose beliefs are drawn from various sources; selective

SYN: (adj.) selective, synthetic, pick-and-choose

ANT: (adj.) uniform, monolithic

flaccid

(adj.) limp, not firm; lacking vigor or effectiveness; soft

SYN: soft, flabby

ANT: hard, solid

impecunious

(adj.) having little or no money; impoverished

SYN: impoverished, indigent

ANT: affluent, wealthy, prosperous, rich

inexorable

(adj.) inflexible, beyond influence; relentless, unyielding

SYN: ineluctable, obdurate

ANT: avoidable, yielding, pliant

moribund

(adj.) dying, on the way out

SYN: obsolescent

ANT: thriving

necromancer

(n.) one who claims to reveal or influence the future through magic, especially communication with the dead; in general, a magician or wizard

SYN: sorcerer, conjurer

onerous

(adj.) burdensome; involving hardship or difficulty; weighty

SYN: weighty

ANT: light, easy, undemanding, untaxing

rife

(adj.) common, prevalent, widespread, happening often; full, abounding; plentiful, abundant, replete

ANT: devoid of, lacking

rudiments

(n. pl.) the parts of any subject or discipline that are learned first; the earliest stages of anything; basics

SYN: basics, fundamentals

sequester

(v.) to set apart, separate for a special purpose; to take possession of and hold in custody; segregate

SYN: segregate, isolate, closet

winnow

(v.) to get rid of something unwanted, delete; to sift through to obtain what is desirable; to remove the chaff from the wheat by blowing air on it; to blow on, fan; sift

SYN: sift, strain, filter, sort

Aesthetic

(adj.) pertaining to beauty; sensitive or responsive to beauty

S: artistic

Defunct

(adj.) no longer in existence or functioning, dead

S: extinct, nonexistent

A: alive, extant

Discomfit

(v.) to frustrate, thwart, or defeat; to confuse, perplex, or embarrass

S: nonplus, disconcert, foil

Espouse

(v.) to take up and support; to become attached to, adopt; to marry

S: embrace, wed

A: repudiate, disavow, renounce

Fetish

(n.) an object believed to have magical powers; an object of unreasoning devotion or reverence

S: charm, talisman, obsession

Gregarious

(adj.) living together in a herd or group; sociable, seeking the company of others

S: outgoing, extroverted

A: aloof, introverted, reclusive

Hapless

(adj.) marked by a persistent absence of good luck

S: unlucky, ill-starred, unfortunate

A: lucky, charmed, fortunate

Impeccable

(adj.) faultless, beyond criticism or blame

S: flawless, spotless, immaculate

A: grimy, soiled, spotted, sullied

Importune

(v.) to trouble with demands; to beg for insistently

S: implore, entreat, dun, tax

Interpolate

(v.) to insert between other parts or things; to present as an addition or correction

S: inject, interpose, introduce

Irreparable

(adj.) incapable of being repaired or rectified

S: irremediable

A: remediable, fixable, reversible

Laconic

(adj.) concise, using few words

S: terse, succinct, pithy, compact

A: garrulous, prolix, loquacious, verbose

Languish

(v.) to become weak, feeble, or dull; to droop; to be depressed or dispirited; to suffer neglect

S: flag, wilt, fade, pine

Mendacious

(adj.) given to lying or deception; untrue

S: untruthful, false

A: truthful, veracious

Nadir

(n.) the lowest point

S: rock bottom

A: apex, pinnacle, zenith

Omnipresent

(adj.) present in all places at all times

S: ubiquitous, ever-present

Perfunctory

(adj.) done in a superficial or halfhearted manner; without interest or enthusiasm

S: slapdash, cursory, shallow

A: through, assiduous, diligent, meticulous

Plaintive

(adj.) expressive of sorrow or woe, melancholy

S: sad, doleful, lugubrious

A: cheerful, blithe, joyous, merry

Requite

(v.) to make suitable repayment, as for a kindness, service, or favor; to make retaliation, as for an injury or wrong; to reciprocate

S: reimburse, recompense, avenge

Tantamount

(adj.) equivalent, having the same meaning, value, or effect

S: indistinguishable form