Vocabulary Workshop Level H (Units 10-12)

acumen

(n) keenness of insight; quickness or accuracy of judgment

syn. perspicacity, shrewdness, acuity

ant. ignorance, stupidity, obtuseness

adjudicate

(v) to act as judge in a matter; to settle through the use of a judge or legal tribunal

syn. arbitrate, referee, mediate

anachronism

(n) a chronological misplacing of events, objects, customs, or persons in regard to each other

syn. chronological error

apocryphal

(adj) of doubtful or questionable authenticity

syn. fictitious, mythical, spurious, bogus

ant. authentic, genuine, true

disparity

(n) a difference or inequality in age, rank, degree, amount, or quality; a dissimilarity, unlikeness

syn. discrepancy, incongruity

ant. similarity, likeness, congruity

dissimulate

(v) to hide or disguise one's true thoughts, feelings, or intentions

syn. dissemble, pretend, misrepresent

ant. reveal

empirical

(adj) derived from, dependent upon, or guided by practical experience, observation, or experiment, rather than by theory; so verifiable

syn. observed, experiential, pragmatic

ant. theoretical, hypothetical, conjectural

flamboyant

(adj) highly elaborate or ornate; vividly colored; strikingly brilliant or bold

syn. showy, ostentatious, florid

ant. staid, sedate, decorous, seemly, sober

fulsome

(adj) offensively insincere or excessive; disgusting, sickening

syn. inordinate, repulsive

ant. understated, muted, restrained, agreeable

immolate

(v) to kill as sacrifice, especially by fire; to destroy or renounce for hte sake of another

syn. slay, kill

ant. save, rescue, preserve

imperceptible

(adj) extremely slight; incapable of being perceived by the senses or the mind

syn. minimal, undetectable

ant. conspicuous, noticeable, flagrant

lackey

(n) uniformed male servant; a servile follower

syn. footman, toady, flunky, hanger-on

ant. lord, liege, employer, boss

liaison

(n) the contact or means of communication between groups; someone acting as such a contact; any close relationship; a thickening or binding agent used in cooking

syn. intermediary, channel

monolithic

(adj) characterized by massiveness, solidness, and total uniformity

syn. undifferentiated, massive, dense

ant. diversified, variform, multifarious

mot juste

(n) the most suitable or exact word or expression

syn. right word

ant. misnomer, misuage, malapropism

nihilism

(n) a total rejection of existing laws, institutions, and moral values; extreme radicalism

ant. conservatism

patrician

(n) a member of the ruling class; a person of high or noble rank or of prominent social standing

(adj) belonging to, befitting, or characteristic of such a person

syn. (n) aristocrat, peer, noble; (adj) highborn

ant. (n) peasant, commoner, plebeian

propitiate

(v) to make someone or something favorably inclined toward oneself; to conciliate, satisfy, or appease

syn. placate, mollify

ant. estrange, alienate, provoke, annoy

sic

(adv) thus so; intentionally written so

sublimate

(v) to redirect the energy of a biological or instinctual impulse into a higher or more acceptable channel

syn. rechannel, elevate

apostate

(n) one who forsakes his or her religion, party, or cause

syn. renegade, defector, turncoat

ant. true believer, loyalist

bravado

(n) a display of false or assumed courage

syn. swagger, bluster, braggadocio

ant. mettle, bravery, pluck

consensus

(n) a collective or general agreement of opinion, feeling, or thinking

syn. unanimity, concord, accord, harmony

ant. dissension, discord, disagreement

constrict

(v) to make smaller or narrower, draw together, squeeze; to stop or cause to falter

syn. contract, curb, restrain

ant. enlarge, dilate, expand

dichotomy

(n) a division into two contradictory or mutually exclusive parts' a branching or forking in an ancestral line

syn. schism, division, bifurcation

ant. uniformity, oneness

effusive

(adj) highly demonstrative; unrestrained

syn. gushy, lavish

ant. restrained, reserved, muted, subdued

euphoria

(n) a feeling of great happiness or well-being, often with no objective basis

syn. elation, bliss, ecstasy, rapture

ant. melancholy, depression, gloom

gothic

(adj) characterized by or emphasizing a gloomy setting and grotesque or violent events; such a literary or artistic style; a type of medieval architecture

syn. sinister, eerie

impasse

(n) a dead end; a position from which there is no escape; a problem to which there is no solution

syn. deadlock, standoff, stalemate

lugubrious

(adj) sad, mournful, or gloomy, especially to an exaggerated or ludicrous degree

syn. doleful, melancholy, dismal, dolorous

ant. merry, jovial, hilarious, funny

metamorphosis

(n) a complete transformation, as if by magic

syn. change, makeover

mystique

(n) an aura or attitude of mystery or veneration surrounding something or someone

syn. charisma

non sequitur

(n) an inference or conclusion that does not follow logically from the facts or premises

syn. illogical reference, unsound conclusion

parlous

(adj) full of danger or risk, perilous

syn. hazardous, risky, dangerous

ant. safe, secure, risk-free

puntilio

(n) a minute detail of conduct or procedure; an instant of time

syn. fine point, nicety

quagmire

(n) soft, soggy mud or slush; a difficult or entrapping situation

syn. fen, marsh, bog, morass

ant. bedrock, solid footing, terra firma

quixotic

(adj) extravagantly or romantically idealistic; visionary without regard to practical considerations

syn. fanciful, impractical, utopian

ant. realistic, down-to-earth, pragmatic

raconteur

(n) a person who tells stories and anecdotes with great skill

syn. a storyteller, anecdotist

sine qua non

(n) an essential or indispensable element or condition

syn. necessity, requisite, desideratum

vendetta

(n) a prolonged feud, often between two families, characterized by retaliatory acts of revenge; any act motivated by vengeance

syn. blood feud, rivalry

apposite

(adj) appropriate; suitable; apt

syn. relevant, pertinent, material, germane

ant. irrelevant, immaterial, inappropriate

augur

(n) a prophet or seer

(v) to predict, foreshadow

syn. (n) oracle; (v) bode

bilk

(v) to defraud, cheat, or swindle; to evade payment of; to frustrate, thwart

syn. dupe, cozen

charisma

(n) the special personal magnetism that makes an individual exceptionally appealing to other people; a divinely bestowed gift or power

syn. appeal, charm, mystique

debilitate

(v) to make weak or feeble

syn. enervate, sap, exhaust, enfeeble

ant. strengthen, fortify, invigorate

execrable

(adj) utterly detestable, hateful, or abhorrent; extremely inferior

syn. odious, abominable, reprehensible

ant. commendable, praiseworthy, meritorious

impinge

(v) to strike against or collide with violently; to encroach or obtrude upon; to make an impression upon

syn. horn in, affect

labyrinth

(n) a bewildering maze; any confusing or complicated situation

syn. tangle, mystery, enigma

narcissism

(n) excessively self-love; absorption in oneself

syn. egotism, conceit, vanity, amour propre

niggardly

(adj) stingy; meanly small or insufficient

syn. tightfisted, penny-pinching, mean

ant. generous, bountiful, magnanimous

pastiche

(n) a dramatic, musical, or literary work made up of bits and pieces from other sources; a hodgepodge

syn. medley, patchwork, melange, potpourri

precarious

(adj) very uncertain or unsure; dangerous or risky

syn. perilous, dubious, ticklish

ant. secure, safe, sturdy, firm

rapport

(n) a close and harmonious relationship

syn. bond, tire, affinity, understanding

utilitarian

(adj) stressing practicality over other considerations; relating to the belief that what is good or desirable is determined purely by its usefulness

syn. practical, functional, pragmatic

ant. nonfunctional, ornamental, decorative

vacuous

(adj) devoid of matter, substance, or meaning; lacking ideas or intelligence; purposeless

syn. inane, insipid, fatuous, void, empty

ant. incisive, trenchant, perceptive, intelligent

vagary

(n) an unpredictable, erratic, or seemingly purposeless action, occurrence, or notion

syn. caprice, whim, quirk

viable

(adj) capable of living or developing under normal circumstances

syn. practicable, workable, feasible

ant. impracticable, unworkable, unfeasible

xenophobia

(n) undue or unreasonable fear, hatred, or contempt of foreigners or strangers or of what is foreign or strange

syn. provinciality, parochialism, chauvinism

zany

(adj) clownish or funny in a crazy, bizarre, or ludicrous way

(n) one who plays the clown

syn. (adj) comical, daffy; (n) buffoon

ant. (adj) sedate, decorous, prim, sober, grave

zealot

(n) a fanatical partisan; an ardent follower

syn. fanatic, extremist