Sadlier Vocab Level G Unit 13

Abstruse

(adj.) extremely difficult to understand

SYN: arcane, recondite, occult

ANT: simple, straightforward

Affront

(n.) an open or intentional insult; a slight; (v.) to insult to one's face in defiance, confront

SYN: (n.) offense; (v.) offend

ANT: (n., v.) compliment, praise

Canard

(n.) a false rumor, fabricated story

SYN: hoax

Captious

(adj. ) excessively ready to find fault; given to petty criticism; intended to trap, confuse, or show up

SYN: faultfinding, carping

ANT: uncritical

Cognizant

(adj.) aware, knowledgeable, informed; having jurisdiction

SYN: acquainted

ANT: unaware, unconscious, oblivious

Contrite

(adj.) regretful for some misdeed or sin; plagued by a sense of guilt; thoroughly penitent

SYN: remorseful, rueful

ANT: unapologetic, impenitent

Cynosure

(n.) the center of attraction, attention, or interest; something that serves to guide or direct

SYN: focus

Decorous

(adj.) well behaved, dignified, socially proper

SYN: seemly, becoming, tasteful

ANT: unbecoming, improper, tasteless

Deign

(v.) to think it appropriate or suitable to one's dignity to do something; to condescend

SYN: deem

Desiccated

(adj., part.) thoroughly dried out; divested of spirit or vitality; arid and uninteresting

SYN: dehydrated, shriveled

ANT: sodden, waterlogged, drenched

Efficacy

(n.) the power to produce a desired result

SYN: effectiveness, potency, reliability

ANT: impotence

Engender

(v.) to bring into existence, give rise to, produce; to come into existence, assume form

SYN: generate, cause, form

ANT: stop, deter

Ethereal

(adj.) light, airy, delicate; highly refined; suggesting what is heavenly (rather than earthbound)

SYN: heavenly, celestial, gossamer

ANT: infernal, hellish, thick, heavy

Facade

(n.) the front or face of a building; a surface appearance (as opposed to what may lie behind)

SYN: exterior, surface, mask

ANT: interior

Ghoulish

(adj.) revolting in an unnatural or morbid way; suggestive of someone who robs graves or otherwise preys on the dead

SYN: barbarous, monstrous

Incongruous

(adj.) not in keeping, unsuitable, incompatible

SYN: discordant

ANT: compatible, harmonious, consistent

Machination

(n.) a crafty, scheming, or underhanded action designed to accomplish some (usually evil) end

SYN: plot, maneuver

Mesmerize

(v.) to hypnotize, entrance; to fascinate, enthrall, bewitch

Opprobrium

(n.) disgrace arising from shameful conduct; contempt, reproach

SYN: infamy, dishonor, odium

ANT: acclaim, honor, glory, renown

Putative

(adj.) generally regarded as such; reputed; hypothesized, inferred

SYN: supposed, presumed

ANT: corroborated, confirmed