120 vocab words

abdicate

to surrender or repudiate; to formally give up a throne, high office, responsibility, or function

abet

to encourage or support; to urge on in the achievement of a purpose; to help especially in wrongdoing

abridge

to shorten in duration or extent; to shorten by omission of words without sacrificing the sense of the text

accolade

a ceremony marking the recognition of special merit; an award or salute

acrimonious

bitter or harsh in temper, manner, or speech

admonish

to warn or criticize mildly

affable

easy to approach and talk to; agreeable in manner

affinity

a natural attraction; kinship; similarity

affluent

prosperous, wealthy, rich

altercation

to argue vehemently; a heated quarrel

atrophy

to wither away

austere

stern, as in manner; without excess, unadorned, severely simple and plain

avarice

excessive greed; insatiable desire for wealth

belittle

to speak of or think of as unimportant; to 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

ambiance

mood, feeling, general atmosphere; an environment or its distinctive atmosphere

ambiguous

unclear; vague; capable of being interpreted in more than one way

amenable

willing to yield or submit; easily led

amiable

having a friendly, pleasant disposition; sociable

animosity

a feeling of strong dislike or hatred

antecedent

going before; preceding; an occurrence or event preceding another

antithesis

a contrast; the direct opposite

archaic

belonging to an earlier time; ancient; outdated

arduous

hard to accomplish or achieve, difficult; marked by great labor/effort, strenuous; hard to climb, steep, lofty; tiresome

articulate

to speak clearly or distinctly; capable of speech; clear

capricious

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

castigate

to criticize harshly, usually with the intention or correcting wrongdoing

catharis

an emotion or psychological cleansing that brings relief or renewal

caucus

closed meeting of political party to make decisions; to assemble in/hold a caucus; a 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; always present

circumvent

to gain an advantage by trickery; to 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

commodius

roomy; comfortable; spacious

complacent

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

comprise

to consist of; to include, to contain

condone

to forgive or over look (an offense) volunatarily

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 sense of, or analyze

coup

violent overthrow of a government by a small group; a victorious accomplishment

craven

a thorough coward

credible

worthy of belief

culpable

deserving blame or condemnation

curtail

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

cynical

denying the sincerity of ppl's motives and actions

debacle

sudden calamitous downfall; collapse or failure

deference

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

deluge

great flood or downpour

demagogue

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

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 completely

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 or epicure

person devoted to luxurious living and pleasure

epigram

short, witty, or satirical poem or saying it often w/a cleaver twist in thoughr

epitaph

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

epithet

an 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; to explain

extraneous

not essential; foreign; irrelevant

facetious

given to joking, especially at an inappropriate time

fallible

liable to make mistakes or be decieved

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 discussions or law

forsake

at abandon; to give up; renounce

fortuitous

something fortunate occurring by change

genesis

origin