Sadlier Vocabulary Level G units 1-3 cumulative

cavort

romp, prance, gambol

credence

belief, mental acceptance, credit, trust, confidence

decry

condemn, dissaproval, depreciate, denounce, censure, devalue

dissemble

(v.) to disguise or conceal, deliberately give a false impression SYN: dissimulate, mask, feign

distraught

agitated, upset, distracted

eulogy

commendation, high praise, encomium, tribute

evince

display clearly, make evident, provoke, exhibit, manifest, occasion

exhume

bring to light, disinter, unearth, uncover

feckless

ineffective, weak, irresponsible, unreliable, feeble, incompetent, ineffectual

murky

dark, gloomy, obscure, dim, cloudy

nefarious

(adj.) wicked, depraved, devoid of moral standards SYN: iniquitous, reprehensible ANT: virtuous, honorable, praiseworthy, meritorious

piquant

(adj.) stimulating to the taste or mind; spicy, pungent; appealingly provocative SYN: zestful, tangy ANT: bland, insipid, tasteless, mild

primordial

(adj.) developed or created at the very beginning; going back to the most ancient times or earliest stage; fundamental, basic SYN: original, primal

propinquity

(n.) nearness in place or time; kinship SYN: similarity ANT: remoteness, distance

substantive

(adj.) real, having a solid basis; considerable in number or amount; meaningful and on topic SYN: firm, substantial, meaty ANT: imaginary, unreal, meaningless

unwonted

(adj.) not usual or expected; not in character SYN: unusual, uncommon, unexpected, atypical ANT: usual, customary, typical

utopian

(adj.) founded upon or involving a visionary view of an ideal world; impractical SYN: idealistic ANT: realistic, pragmatic

verbiage

(n.) language that is too wordy or inflated in proportion to the sense or content, wordiness; a manner of expression SYN: prolixity, diction, jargon

verdant

(adj.) green in tint or color; immature in experience or judgment SYN: artless, naive ANT: scorched, sere, barren

viscous

(adj.) having a gelatinous or gluey quality, lacking in easy movement or fluidity SYN: sticky, thick ANT: watery, aqueous

accost

(v.) to approach and speak to first; to confront in a challenging or aggressive way (syn: buttonhole, approach) (ant: avoid, shun)

animadversion

(n.) a comment indicating strong criticism or disapproval (syn: rebuke, reproof) (ant: praise, compliment)

avid

(adj.) desirous of something to the point of greed; intensely eager (syn: keen, enthusiastic, grasping) (ant: reluctant, indifferent, unenthusiastic)

brackish

(adj.) having a salty taste and unpleasant to drink (syn: saline) (ant: clear, sweet)

celerity

(n.) swiftness, rapidity of motion or action (syn: promptness, speed) (ant: slowness, sluggishness, dilatoriness)

devious

(adj.) straying or wandering from a straight or direct course; done or acting in a shifty or underhanded way (syn: roundabout, indirect, tricky, sly, artful) (ant: direct, straightforward, open aboveboard)

gambit

(n.) in chess, an opening move that involves risk or sacrifice of a minor piece in order to gain a later advantage; any opening move of this type (syn: ploy, ruse, maneuver)

halcyon

(n.) a legendary bird identified with the kingfisher; (adj.) of or relating to the halcyon; calm, peaceful; happy, golden; prosperous, affluent (syn: tranquil, placid, palmy) (ant: turbulent, tumultuous)

histrionic

(adj.) pertaining to actors and their techniques; theatrical, artificial; melodramatic (syn: affected, stagy) (ant: muted, untheatrical, subdued)

incendiary

(adj.) deliberately setting or causing fires; designed to start fires; tending to stir up strife or rebellion; (n.) one who deliberately sets fire, arsonist; one who causes strife (syn: inflammatory, provocative; firebrand) (ant: soothing, quieting, peacemaker)

maelstrom

(n.) a whirlpool of great size and violence; a situation resembling a whirlpool in violence and destruction (syn: chaos, turbulence, tumult)

myopic

(adj.) nearsighted; lacking a broad, realistic view of a situation; lacking foresight or discernment (syn: shortsighted) (ant: farsighted)

overt

(adj.) open, not hidden, expressed or revealed in a way that is easily recognized (syn: clear, obvious, manifest, patent) (ant: clandestine, covert, concealed)

pejorative

(adj.) tending to make worse; expressing disapproval or disparagement, derogatory, deprecatory, belittling (ant: complimentary, ameliorative)

propriety

(n.) a state of being proper, appropriateness; standards of what is proper (syn: fitness, correctness) (ant: unseemliness, inappropriateness)

sacrilege

(n.) improper or disrespectful treatment of something held sacred (syn: desecration, profanation, defilement)

summarily

(adv.) without delay or formality; briefly, concisely (syn: promptly, peremptorily)

suppliant

(adj.) asking humbly and earnestly; (n.) one who makes a request humbly and earnestly

talisman

(n.) an object that serves as a charm or is believed to confer magical powers, an amulet, fetish

undulate

(v.) to move in waves or with a wavelike motion; to have a wavelike appearance or form (syn: fluctuate, rise and fall)

acquisitive

(adj.) able to get and retain ideas or information; concerned with acquiring wealth or property

arrogate (v.) to claim or take without right

banal

(adj.) hackneyed, trite, commonplace

belabor

(v.) to work on excessively; to thrash soundly

carping

(adj.) (n.) tending to find fault, especially in petty, nasty, or hairsplitting

coherent

(adj.) holding or sticking together; making a logical whole; comprehensible, meaningful

congeal

(v.) to change from liquid to solid, thicken; to make inflexible or rigid

emulate

(v.) to imitate with the intent of equaling or surpassing the model

encomium

(n.) a formal expression of praise, a lavish tribute

eschew

(v.) to avoid, shun, keep away from

germane

(adj.) relevant, appropriate, apropos, fitting

insatiable

(adj.) so great or demanding as not to be satisfied

intransigent

(adj.) refusing to compromise, irreconcilable

invidious

(adj.) offensive, hateful; tending to cause bitterness and resentment

largesse

(n.) generosity in giving; lavish or bountiful contribution

reconnaissance

(n.) a survey made for military purposes; any kind of preliminary inspection or examination

substantiate

(v.) to establish by evidence, prove; to give concrete or substantial form to

taciturn

(adj.) habitually silent or quiet, inclined to talk very little

temporize

(v.) to stall or act evasively in order to gain time, avoid a confrontation, or postpone a decision; to compromise

tenable

(adj.) capable of being held or defended