AP Literature Vocabulary

Acquisitive

Able to get and retain ideas or information; concerned with acquiring wealth or property

-Synonyms: Greedy, avaricious, retentive

-Antonyms: Altruistic

Arrogate

To claim or take without right

-Synonyms: Expropriate, commandeer

-Antonyms: Renounce, abdicate, abandon

Banal

Hackneyed, trite, commonplace

-Synonyms: Stale, insipid

-Antonyms: Fresh, original, new

Belabor

To work on excessively; to thrash soundly

-Synonyms: Overwork

Carping

Tending to find fault, especially in a petty, nasty, or hairsplitting way; petty nagging criticism

-Synonyms: nit-picking, caviling

-Antonyms: Approving, uncritical

Coherent

Holding or sticking together; making a logical whole; comprehensible, meaningful

-Synonyms: Connected, unified, consistent, cohesive

-Antonyms: Muddled, chaotic, disjointed

Congeal

To change from liquid to solid, thicken; to make inflexible or rigid

-Synonyms: Harden, jelly, solidify

-Antonyms: Liquefy

Emulate

To imitate with the intent of equaling or surpassing the model

-Synonyms: Copy, mimic, rival, match, measure up to

Ecomium

A formal expression of praise, a lavish tribute

-Synonyms: Panegyric, eulogy

-Antonyms: Condemnation, castigation, criticism

Eschew

To avoid, shun, keep away from

-Synonyms: Abstain from, steer clear of, forgo

-Antonyms: Embrace, adopt

Germane

Relevant, appropriate, apropos, fitting

-Synonyms: Pertinent

-Antonyms: Irrelevant, extraneous, inappropriate

Insatiable

So great or demanding as not to be satisfied

-Synonyms: Unquenchable, ravenous

Intransigent

Refusing to compromise, irreconcilable

-Synonyms: Uncompromising, unyielding, obdurate

-Antonyms: Lukewarm, halfhearted, yielding

Invidious

Offensive, hateful; tending to cause bitterness and resentment

-Synonyms: malicious, spiteful, prejudicial, pejorative

-Antonyms: Flattering, ameliorate

Largesse

Generosity in giving; lavish or bountiful contributions

-Synonyms: Liberality, bounty

-Antonyms: Stinginess, miserliness, niggardliness

Reconnaissance

A survey made for military purpose; any kind of preliminary inspection or examination

Synonyms: Exploration

Substantiate

To establish by evidence, prove; to give concrete or substantial form to

-Synonyms: Confirm, validate, authenticate

-Antonyms: Refute, disprove, invalidate

Taciturn

Habitually silent or quite, inclined to talk very little

Synonyms: Tight lipped, uncommunicative, laconic

Antonyms: Garrulous, loquacious, prolix, verbose

Temporize

To stall or act evasively in order to gain time, avoided confrontation, or postpone a decision; to compromise

Synonyms: Dilldally, procrastinate

Tenable

Capable of being held or defended

-Synonyms: defensible, justifiable, maintainable

-Antonyms: Indefensible, unjustifiable