Vocabulary Words and Their Usage

bide

to remain in a condition or state; to wait

consent

to approve; to agree; to yield

volition

a conscious choice or decision

nascent

coming into being; being born

amplify

to make larger

lurid

causing shock or horror; tastelessly vivid; glowing like fire through a haze

own

to admit, esp. taking personal responsibility for one's own actions or thoughts

collude

to plot secretly for a deceitful or illegal purpose

tally

to count; to add

disarray

confusion, disorder

tepid

moderately warm; lacking force or enthusiasm

conjecture

an inference or conclusion based on incomplete evidence

pious

exhibiting reverence and religious observation

abet

to encourage, assist, or support, usually in wrongdoing

interloper

one who interferes with the affairs of others; a meddler

subsequent

happening afterward; following in order

surmise

to infer something by intuition or with slender evidence; n. such an inference

jot

to write briefly and hastily; a very small amount

discern

to perceive and understand so as to make distinctions

blight

a plant disease; something that impairs growth, progress, or prosperity

voluble

talkative

divine

related to a god; supremely good or beautiful

premonition

a sense of a future event; a warning in advance

proverbial

well-known because widely repeated

grave

serious; dignified; formal

indefatigable

tireless, unceasing

deploy

to station or assemble troops or forces in position

codify

to organize something (such as laws or rules) into a system

relent

to become less severe; to give in

cumbersome

clumsy or difficult to manage

affected

behaving in an artificial way to impress people

skittish

nervous; easily frightened

colloquial

appropriate to spoken, as opposed to written, language; informal

scenario

an outline for a planned series of events, either real or imagined; a summary of a work of fiction

drastic

extreme, severe

inept

without skill; absurd or foolish

multifarious

having many different parts or forms; numerous and varied

efficacy

the power to produce the desired effect

dissonant

harsh and disagreeable in sound

brusque

abrupt and curt of manner

ambiance

environment

voluminous

having great size or fullness

vanquish

to defeat, esp. totally

pilfer

to steal a small amount

disdain

a feeling of contempt

reconcile

to make friendly again; to settle a dis-pute; to make seemingly incompatible things fit together or coexist

banish

to drive away; to force to leave a place by official decree

vacillate

to swing back and forth

morose

sour tempered and inclined to be silent

dichotomy

a division into two contrasting or non-overlapping parts