Semester 2 Vocab + Literary Terms

Blanch

To take the color out

Auspicious

Favorable; promising

Courtesan

A prostitute with a wealthy, upper class clientele

Benign

Kind and gentle

Mollify

To calm or soothe

Raffish

Marked by a flashy vulgarity or crudeness

Attenuate

Reduce the force, effect, or value of

Dubious

Doubtful; of unlikely authenticity

Implicit

Implied; though not plainly expressed

Apprehensive

Anxious or fearful that something bad or unpleasant will occur

Indubitably

Unquestionable, without doubt

Spurious

Not genuine

Astute

Shrewd; clever

Clandestine

Secretive

Smolder

Burn slowly with smoke but no flame

Methodical

Done according to a systemic or established form of procedure

Improvident

Not having or showing foresight; spendthrift

Gaudy

Extravagantly bright or showy

Spasmodic

Done in brief irregular bursts

Auxiliary

Providing additional or supplemental support

Disingenuous

Not straightforward; crafty

Ruse

A crafty trick

Promulgate

Promote or to make widely known

Surreptitiously

Done by secretive means

Endow

Provide with an asset

Lurid

Presented using very vivid details, especially giving explicit details of crime or sexual exploits

Feign

Pretend to be impacted by something

Ambivalent

Simultaneously having opposing feelings; uncertain

Dissonant

Lacking harmony

Baying

To bark or howl loudly

Capricious

Impulsive and unpredictable

Stolid

Calm, dependable, showing little emotion or animation

Coquettish

Flirtatious; behaving in a way to show playful sexual attraction

Affectation

Behavior, speech, or writing that is artificial and designed to impress

Whimsical

Playfully quaint or fanciful

Antithetical

Directly opposed or contrasted; mutually incompatible

Ignominy

Public shame or disgrace

Enmity

Mutual hatred

Xenophobic

A fear or dislike of anything foreign

Zeal

Great enthusiasm for an object or cause

Inconsequential

Unimportant

Blithely

A cheerful indifference that others might seem as calloused

Tenuous

Having little substance or strength

Epitomize

To embody the essential characteristics of a trait

Assiduous

Hard-working

Harbinger

A precursor or forerunner

Galvanize

To energize and stir to action

Dogged

Stubbornly preserving

Intrepid

Courageous

Pinioned

Tie or hold the arms or legs of someone

Maverick

One who is independent and resists adherence to a group

Obdurate

Stubborn; inflexible

Gallantry

An act of marked courtesy; courteous attention to a lady

Altruistic

Characterized by unselfish concerns for the welfare of others

Reticent

Reluctant to publicly discuss one’s thoughts/feelings/personal affairs

Analogous

Characterized by a parallel similarity that permits the drawing of an analogy

Proliferate

To grow or increase rapidly

Mercurial

Unpredictable and given to constantly shifting

Diffidently

Hesitant in speaking or acting due to low self-confidence

Earnest

Resulting from or showing intense or sincere conviction

Vitality

Energy; power to survive

Assimilation

To absorb; to make similar

Consensus

General agreement

Derived

Copied or adapted from a source

Incumbent

Imposed as a duty; obligatory

Placate

To make someone less angry or hostile

Malleable

Easily shaped or formed; easily influenced

Subdue

To restrain; to hold back

Myopic

Shortsighted; lacking foresight

Epitomize

To embody the essential characteristics of a trait

Innate

Possessed from birth

Inveterate

Long established; deep-rooted

Conundrum

A confusing and difficult problem or question

Foster

To promote the development of something

Hijab

A head covering worn by some Muslim women in public

Eulogize

To praise with eloquent words

Criterion

A standard of judging something

Indignant

Characterized by outrage caused by something perceived as unjust or wrong

Reprobate

A person who is depraved, unprincipled, and wicked

Heretic

A person who opposes accepted and established beliefs

Stoic

Indifferent to pleasure or pain; impassive

Condemn

To express strong disapproval of; denounce

Disparage

To speak of in a slighting way or negatively

Pejorative

Words or phrases that belittle or speak negatively about someone

Vilify

To make a vicious statement about

Brusque

Rudely abrupt

Caustic

Bitingly sarcastic or witty

Fractious

Quarrelsome; unruly

Incorrigible

Unable to be reformed

Ingrate

An ungrateful person

Insolent

Insulting in manner or speech

Brittle

Easily broken

Deleterious

Having a harmful effect; injurious

Ire

An expression of strong anger

Shelve

To put aside and postpone

Heinous

Hatefully evil

Smart

Elegant and stylish in manner or dress

Dispel

To drive away or scatter

Transient

Temporary; short-lived

Transitory

Not permanent