Learn: Key Vocabulary for Critical Reading and Analysis in English

coherent

Logical, clear, and easy to understand because the ideas fit together.

causal

Related to a cause; showing that one thing produces or contributes to another.

impending

About to happen very soon.

hindsight

Understanding something more clearly after it has already happened.

implicit

Suggested or understood without being directly stated.

fundamental

Basic and essential; forming the foundation of something.

pretense

A false appearance or claim used to make something seem true.

arbitrary

Based on personal choice or judgment rather than a clear rule, reason, or system.

vigor

Physical or mental strength, energy, and enthusiasm.

compel

To force or strongly persuade someone to do something.

gratify

To please or satisfy someone, especially by fulfilling a desire or request.

assumption

Something accepted as true without definite proof.

tenement

A large, often crowded apartment building, especially one divided into small, inexpensive apartments.

rural

Related to the countryside rather than a city or large town.

recession

A period when economic activity declines, often involving reduced production, income, and employment.

profusely

In a large or abundant amount; generously or excessively.

boisterous

Noisy, energetic, and lively, often in a rough or uncontrolled way.

paraphernalia

Equipment, objects, or items associated with a particular activity, purpose, or person.

precede

To come before something else in time, order, or position.

perfunctory

Done quickly or routinely with little care, effort, or genuine interest.

interminably

For an extremely long time, seeming to have no end.

defiantly

In a way that openly resists or refuses to obey someone or something.

discrepancy

A difference or inconsistency between things that are expected to match.

shrewish

Bad-tempered, argumentative, or harsh in speech or behavior.

forestall

To prevent or delay something by acting before it happens.

elusive

Difficult to find, catch, understand, achieve, or remember.

tumultuously

In a loud, disorderly, or highly excited way.

vacant

Empty or unoccupied; having no one or nothing in it.

trivial

Not important, serious, or significant.

assertion

A confident statement or claim that something is true.

implore

To beg or plead with someone urgently.

importunity

Persistent, demanding requests or pleas that are difficult to refuse or ignore.

unwittingly

Without realizing it; unintentionally or unknowingly.