1-150 English Vocabulary - Heirendt

abdicate

to give up power

abet

to aid, help, encourage

abridge

to make shorter

accolade

award of merit

acrimonious

bitter or harsh in temper

admonish

to warn

affable

easy to approach and talk to; agreeable

affinity

a natural attraction; kinship; similarity

affluent

rich, wealthy

altercation

an angry argument

ambiance

mood, feeling; general atmosphere

ambiguous

unclear; vague

amenable

willing to yield or submit; easily led

amiable

having a friendly, pleasant disposition

animosity

a feeling of strong dislike or hatred

antecedent

going before; preceding; an occurrence or event preceding another

antithesis

a contrast; direct opposite

archaic

belonging to an earlier time; ancient; outdated

arduous

hard to do, requiring much effort

articulate

to speak clearly and in distinct syllables

atrophy

to wither away

austere

stern; severely simple/plain

avarice

excessive greed; insatiable desire for weath

belittle

to speak or think of as unimportant; put someone down

bellicose

inclined to quarrel; warlike

benevolent

kindly, charitable

blithe

gay and lighthearted in spirit or mood

cache

a hiding place/objects hidden in a hiding place

callous

unfeeling or insensitive; hardened and thickened

candid

free from bias, prejudice, or malice; frank

capricious

inclined through some whim, to change one's mind/purpose/actions suddenly

castigate

to criticize harshly, usually with the intention of correcting wrongdoing

catharsis

an emotional or psychological cleansing that brings relief or renewal

caucus

a closed meeting of a political party to make decisions; group of people united to promote an agreed-upon cause

chattel

an item of personal, movable property; slave

chronic

continuing for a long time; habitual

circumvent

to gain and advantage by trickery; evade by deception; to go around

clandestine

secret; stealthy

coercion

compelling a person by actual or threatened violence or pressure to do something against his will

collusion

working together secretly for an evil purpose

commodious

roomy; comfortable; spacious

complacent

self-satisfied; narrowly contended with one's own accomplishment

comprise

to consist of; include or contain

condone

to forgive or overlook an offense

congenial

possessing similar temperament and tastes; able to get along with others

conjecture

to guess, based on incomplete information

consecrate

to set apart as sacred; to devote or dedicate to some aim

consensus

general agreement

consternation

great fear or shock that makes one feel helpless or bewildered

construe

to interpret; to explain the meaning of

coup

violent overthrow of a government by a small group

craven

a thorough coward

credible

worthy of belief

culpable

deserving blame or condemnation

curtail

to truncate or abridge; lessen, usually by cutting away from

cynical

denying the sincerity of people's motives and actions

debacle

a sudden calamitous downfall; collapse or failure

deference

submitting to the wishes or judgement of another; regard or respect

deluge

a great flood or downpour

demagogue

a leader who obtains power by appealing to the emotions and prejudices of the people

denounce

to speak against

deplete

to empty; to use up

depraved

of low morals; corrupt

depreciate

to reduce in value or price

desiccate

to dry out thoroughly

disconcert

to confuse; to embarrass

disconsolate

depressed; so unhappy that nothing will comfort

disparity

inequality

dispel

to scatter and drive away

dissent

to disagree

docile

easily taught or controlled

Draconian

hard, severe, cruel

duress

hardship; restraint

edict

a public command issued by authority

egregious

conspicuously bad

embellish

to beautify by adding ornaments

entice

to lure, to attract, to tempt in a pleasing fashion

epicurean/epicure

person devoted to luxurious living and pleasure

epigram

a short witty poem often with a clever twist in thought

epitaph

a tombstone inscription; brief statement commemorating a deceased person or something past

epithet

adjective, noun, or phrase used to characterize a person or thing

erudite

learned; having wide knowledge gained from reading

expound

to set forth in detail or explain

extraneous

not essential; foreign; irrelevant

facetious

given to joking, especially at an inappropriate time

fallible

liable to make mistakes or be deceived

fathom

to understand thoroughly

feasible

workable

feign

to pretend

fetish

something that is believed to have magical powers

fickle

often changing for no reason; not consistent

flagrant

extremely conspicuous; outrageous

flaunt

display or wave boastfully

fluctuate

to waver from one course to another; to vary irregularly

forage

to search or hunt for food or provisions

forbear

to exercise self control; an ancestor

forensic

pertaining to public discussion or law

forsake

at abandon; to give up; renounce

fortuitous

something fortunate happening by chance

genesis

origin