unit 21-22

biological

relating to life and living things, organic, concerning life

brunt

the shock of an attack, burden, force

commend

to mention with approbation

comprehensive

complete, inclusive, thorough, extensive

confound

to confuse, amaze, astonish

consume

to use fuel, energy, or time, especially in large amounts, absorb, deplete, devour

correlation

mutual relationship, interaction, connection

crystallize

to form crystals, to make something solid, to finally produce a result, become settled, become definite

decorate

to furnish or adorn with something ornamental, adorn, brighten

delude

to deceive, to mislead, hoodwink, misguide

depreciate

to devaluate, decrease, depress

dichotomy

division into two groups, disunion

disavowal

denial, objection, ban, defiance

disinterested

not influenced by personal feelings or opinions, neutral, unbiased

dramatize

to present in a dramatic manner, amplify, exaggerate

egotistical

self-centered, self-interested, pompous, selfish

encompass

to surround, compass, encircle

entomology

the biological study of insects

espouse

to support, to advocate, defend, embrace

exculpate

to free from blame, absolve, acquit

exposure

disclosure, experiencing something or being affected by it because of being in a particular situation or place, uncovering, vulnerability

extinct

when one species of a particular animal dies out completely, abolished, obsolete

fastidious

very picky, not easy to please, choosy, discriminating

fitful

intermittent, periodic, sporadic, intermittent

forensic

suitable for a court or suitable to debate

fugitive

fleeting, roaming, transient, wandering

germane

relevant, fitting, applicable, apropos

grotesque

bizarre, ugly, absurd, ludicrous, eerie

heed

to give someone or something your attention, hear, listen

husband

to use economically, conserve, preserve

immobility

the state of something or someone that is unable to move, stability, cohesion

imposing

impressive in size, bearing, or dignity, commanding, imperial, magnificent

inclined

having a preference for something or someone, prone, willing

induction

the process of deriving, inauguration

injurious

hurtful, detrimental, damaging, destructive

insuperable

impassable, unbeatable, insurmountable, overwhelming

interaction

activity taking place between two people or things, communication, interplay

inundate

to overflow, overwhelm, deluge

legitimate

accordant with law or with established legal forms, appropriate, certain, consistent

ludicrous

amusing or laughable through obvious absurdity, bizarre, comical, crazy

manifesto

a detailed statement of purpose or aim, platform, proclamation

masterpiece

work done with extraordinary skill, classic, treasure

menace

one regarded as an imminent danger, hazard, peril, plague

misconstrue

to misinterpret, misunderstand, distort, exaggerate

mortal

a human being, temporal

nepotism

the unfair practice of people with influence giving jobs or other favors to relatives, inequity, discrimination

nonentity

a person or thing of little consequence, cipher, unimportant

officious

describing someone who likes to interfere in another person's affairs, interfering

ostentatious

to describe someone who likes to show off, pretentious, showy

overlap

when something covers part of something else, overlay, overhang

parallelism

using matching sentence structure or phrases in order to balance ideas, likeness, comparability

peer

one that is of equal standing with another, associate

peruse

to read in detail, inspect, analyze, browse

plateau

a relatively stable level or condition, elevation, highland

precedent

something which has happened which establishes a pattern or rule for other actions to happen in the same way, criterion, antecedent

pregnant

containing an unborn offspring within the body, expecting

pristine

natural and pure, immaculate, intact

propitiate

to please someone, appease, assuage

quizzical

expressing slight uncertainty or amusement, incredulous, sardonic, perplexed, puzzled

range

the distance or extent of something, sometimes refers to the number of different types of something, scope, dimension

rationalize

to explain or to justify (behavior or attitude) actions, justify, defend

recuperate

to improve health, to recover, convalesce, recover

reluctant

feeling or showing hesitation or unwillingness, afraid, averse, cautious

resent

to feel annoyance or ill will at, dislike

resurge

to rise again, renewal

ritual

the prescribed order of a religious ceremony, custom, formality

saddle

to burden someone with a task, burden, encumber

savory

tasty, pleasing, appetizing, aromatic, delectable

serendipity

a happy event which happened by chance, coincidence, good fortune

shroud

to veil under another appearance, cloak

smile

agreeable appearance

social

being friendly and interacting well with people, companionable, gregarious

splice

to unite (as two ropes) by interweaving the strands, graft

statistic

a numeral datum, figure

statistical

to do with numbers and mathematical data, analytical, mathematical

stratagem

deceptive scheme, gimmick, ploy, ruse

successive

following in order, consecutive, ensuing

tempt

trying to get someone to do something wrong, attract, captivate, charm

tenable

being able to be held or maintained, defensible, justifiable, plausible

terrace

an open platform or flat roof, balcony, deck

theory

an idea providing an explanation for something, which may or may not be true, idea, argument

abject

wretched, very bad, miserable, deplorable

thunderous

loud and unrestrained in a way that sounds like thunder, deafening, roaring, loud

absolutism

a theory that absolute power should be vested in one or more rulers

absolve

to pardon, exempt, acquit

thwart

to stop something, stymie, hinder

torrent

a tumultuous outpouring, deluge, downpour, flood

acrid

sharp, bitter, resentful, acrimonious

torso

the upper part of the body, to which the head, arms, and legs are attached, figure, thorax

alliteration

the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of several words in poetry, litany, recurrence

amputate

to remove part of body, sever, cut away

universal

characterizing or affecting all, present everywhere, broad, extensive

antiquated

outdated, outmoded, ancient, archaic

uplift

to improve the mental, social, or intellectual condition, excite, exhilarate

wildlife

creatures that grow in natural conditions, flora and fauna

arboreal

inhabiting trees, arborescent

witless

stupid or showing no intelligence, kooky, moronic

arcane

mysterious, secret, esoteric, impenetrable

assessment

evaluation, judgment, estimate, evaluation, judgement

belligerent

quarrelsome, wishing to fight, aggressive, antagonistic, hostile