Words that start with I

Iconoclast

n. one who attacks popular beliefs or institutions

The popular columnist was an inveterate ________, avidly attacking public figures no matter what their party affiliations.

Ideology

n. a system of social or political ideas

The candidate never managed to communicate his ___.

Idiosyncrasy

n. a peculiarity; an eccentricity

Eating green beans drenched in ketchup for breakfast was one of Jordana’s _________.

Idyllic

adj. charming in a rustic way; naturally peaceful

They built their house on an _____ spot. There was a babbling brook in back and an unbroken view of wooded hills in front.

Ignominy

n. deep disgrace

After the big scandal, the formerly high flying investment banker fell into a life of shame and ______.

Illicit

adj. illegal; not permitted

Criminals engage in ____ activites.

Immigrate

v. to move permanently to a new country

Edwin ______ed to Canada, thinking the move would give his two year old daughter a better shot attending the University of Toronto preschool.

Imminent

adj. just about to happen

The pink glow in the east made it clear that the sunrise was _____.

Immutable

adj. unchangeable

Jerry’s mother had only one _____ rule: no dancing on the dinner table.

Impartial

adj. fair; not favoring one side or the other; unbiased

Beverly tried to be an _____ judge at the beauty contest, but in the end she couldn’t help selecting her own daughter to be the new Honeybeen Queen.

Impeccable

adj. flawless; entirely without sin

The children’s behavior was _____; they didn’t pour dye into the swimming pool.

Imperial

adj. like an emperor or an empire

The palace was decorated with ____ splendor.

Impervious

adj. not allowing anything to pass through; impenetrable

A raincoat, if it is any good, is _____ to water. It is made of an ____ material.

Impetous

adj. impulsive; extremely impatient

____ John always seemed to be running off to buy a new car, even if he had just bought one the month before.

Implement

v. to carry out

Leo developed a plan for shortening the grass in his yard, but he was unable to _____ it because he didn’t have a lawn mower.

Impotent

adj. powerless; helpless; unable to perform

Joe and Olga made a few _____ efforts to turn aside the steamroller, but it squished their vegetable garden anyway.

Impugn

v. to attack, especially to attack the truth or integrity of something

The critic _______ed the originality of Jacob’s novel, claiming that longe stretches of it had been lifted from the work of someone else.

Inane

adj. silly; senseless

Their plan to make an indoor swimming pool by flooding their basement was ____.

Inaugurate

v. to begin officially; to induct formally into office

The mayor ____ed the new no smoking policy and then celebrated by lighting up a big cigar.

Incandescent

adj. brilliant; giving off heat or light

Jan’s ideas were so ____ that simply beaing near her made you feel as though you understood the subject for the first time.

Incantation

n. a chant; the repetition of statements or phrases in a way reminiscent of a chant

Much to our delight, the wizard’s _____ eventually caused the small stone to turn into a sleek black BMW.

Incense

v. to make very angry

Jeremy was _____ed when I told him that even though he was stupid and loathsome, he wold always be my best friend.

Incessant

adj. unceasing

I will go deaf and lose my mind if your children don’t stop the ____ bickering.

Incipient

adj. beginning; emerging

Sitting in class, Henrietta detected an ______ tingle of boredom that told her she would soon be asleep.

Incisive

adj. cutting right to the heart of the matter

After hours of debate, Luisa offered a few ____ comments that made it immediately clear to everyone how dumb the original idea had been.

Incogruous

adj. not harmonious; not consistent; not appropriate; not fitting in

The ultramodern kitchen seemed ____ in the restored 18th century farmhouse.

Incorrigible

adj. incapable of being reformed

The convict was an _______ criminal; as soon as he got out of prison, he said, he was going to rob another doughnut store.

Increment

n. an increase; one in a series of increases

Bernard received a small _____ in his salary each year, even though he did less and less work with every day that passed.

Indifferent

adj. not caring one way or the other; apathetic; mediocre

Pedro was _____ about politics; he didn’t care who was elected to office so long as no one passed a law against Monday Night Football.

Indigenous

adj. native; originating in that area

Fast food restaurants are ______ to America, where they were invented.

Indigent

adj. poor

The ____ family had little to eat, nothing to spend, and virtually nothing to wear.

Indignant

adj. angry, especially as a result of something unjust or unworthy; insulted

Ted became ____ when the policewoman accused him of stealing the nuclear weapon.

Indolent

adj. lazy

The ______ teenagers slept late, mopped around, and never looked for summer jobs.

Indulgent

adj. lenient; yielding to desire

The nice mom was ____ of her children, letting them have all the candy, cookies, and ice cream that they wanted, even for breakfast.

Ineffable

adj. incapable of being expressed or described

The simple beautfy of nature is often so _____ that it brings tears to our eyes.

Inept

adj. clumsy; incompetent; gauche

Joshua is an ______ dancer; he is as likely to stomp on his partner’s foot as he is to step on it.

Inert

adj. inactive; sluggish; not reacting chemically

The baseball team seemed strangely _____; it was as though they had lost the will to play

Inexorable

adj. relentless; inevitable; unavoidable

The _____ waves pounded the shore, as they have always pounded it and as they always will pound it.

Infamous

adj. shamefully wicked; having an extremely bad reputation; disgraceful

Deep within the prison was the _______ torture chamber, where hooded guards tickled their prisoners with feathers until they confessed.

Infatuated

adj. foolish; foolishly passionate or attracted; made foolish; foolishly in love

I was so _______ with Polly that I drooled and gurgled whenever she was near.

Infer

v. to conclude; to deduce

Raizel said she loved the brownies, but I ____ed from the size of the piece left on her plate that she had actually despised them.

Infinitesimal

adj. very, very, very small; infinitely small

Ingenuous

adj. frank; without deception; simple; artless; charmingly naive

Young children are _____. They don’t know much about the ways of the world, and certainly not enough to deceive anyone.

Inherent

adj. part of the essential nature of something; intrinsic

There is an _____ strength in steel that carboard lacks.

Injuction

n. a command or order, especially a court order

Wendy’s neighbors got a court _____ prohibiting her from playing her radio.

Innate

adj. existing since birth; inborn; inherent

Joseph’s kindness was ____; it was part of his natural character

Innocuous

adj. harmless; banal

The speaker’s voice was loud but his words were _____; there was nothing to get excited about.

Inordinate

adj. excessive; unreasonable

The math teacher paid an _____ amount of attention to the grammar rathern than algebra.

Insatiable

adj. hard or impossible to satisfy; greedy; avaricious

Peter had an ______ appetite for chocolate macadamia ice cream; he could never get enough.

Insidious

adj. treacherous; sneaky

Winter was ______; it crept in under the doors and through cracks in the windows.

Insinuate

v. to hint; to creep in

When I told her that I hadn’t done any laundry in a month, Valerie ______ed that I was a slob.

Insipid

adj. dull; bland; banal

Barney’s jokes were so ______ that no one in the room managed to force out so much as a chuckle.

Insolent

adj. arrogant; insulting

The ill mannered four year old was ____ that his parents had a hard time finding a babysitter.

Instigate

v. to provoke; to stir up

The strike was ______ed by the ambitious union president, who wanted to get her name into the news.

Insular

adj. like an island; isolated

The _____ little community had very little contact with the world around it.

Insurgent

n. a rebel; someone who revolts against a government

The heavily armed _____s rushed into the presidential palace, but they paused to taste the fresh blueberry pie on the dinner table and were captured by the president’s bodyguards.

Integral

adj. essential

A solid offense was an ____ part of our football; so was a strong defense.

Integrate

v. to combine two or more things into a whole

Marisol’s school offerr