AP Lit & Comp Vocab List 5

acrimonious

caustic

ameliorate

to make better, to relieve, to improve

amenable

open to or willing to follow advice or suggestion, tractable, malleable

amorphous

shapeless, having no definite form

buoyant

capable of floating; cheerful

cajole

to persuade with deliberate flattery, to coax, to wheedle

calamity

a serious event causing distress or misfortune

debase

to reduce in dignity or quality

efface

to erase, to wear away

elucidate

to make clear, to explain

ephermal

lasting a short period of time, fleeting

ferocity

savagery

flourish

to thrive, to grow well

haughty

arrogant, excessively proud and vain

impervious

incapable of being entered or penetrated, not capable of being damaged

inane

lacking significance, meaning, or point; silly, insipid

indolence

laziness

infallible

incapable of error

inscrutable

difficult to understand; mysterious

languid

slow, sluggish, listless, weak

malice

desire to harm others

oblique

slanting, indirect, evasive, devious, misleading

opulence

wealth, affluence, abundance

penitent

showing or feeling regret for wrongdoing, repentant

perfunctory

acting routinely with little interest or care