Tone Words - AC English 9 - Semester 2

Audacious

1) Very confident and daring attitude or behavior, perhaps recklessly so;

2) Original and bold (ideas, art, clothing, etc.)

3) Contemptuous of law, religion or decorum ((contempt is deep hate or disapproval). Noun form = audacity

Bitter

Exhibiting strong animosity/dislike because of pain or grief

Caustic

Intense use of sarcasm or stinging/biting comments (words that would/cause emotional pain)

Contemplative

reflective on a lot of things (meditating/thinking)

Detached

not caring

Forthright

Open and honest without any hesitation

Foreboding

with fearful apprehension (something bad is about to happen)

Hostile

unfriendly, and antagonistic

Indignant

marked by anger, aroused by injustice

Ironic

Doing the opposite of what you think or feel in order to be funny or deceptive

Jovial

good humored cheerfulness , convivial (friendly), jolly

Objective

Being able to put personal judgements aside, unbiased

Ominous

suggestive of bad things to come, evil, supernatural

Sardonic

Scornfully, disdainfully, or ironically humorous - Mocking someone with disdain

Satiric

Ridiculing someone or something to show weakness and in order to make a point or teach

Sanguineous

optimistic and cheerful

Taunting

Being contemptuously or bitterly challenging or insulting to another person; insulting words designed to provoke a reaction of some kind (like a fight, argument, or tears)

Unnerving

Causing one to become nervous, afraid, upset or unable to thing clearly

Whimsical

odd, strange, fantastic or fun

Apathetic

Indifferent due to a lack of energy or concern

Disdainful

Scornful, contemptuous feeling or belief that something or something is worthless or despicable; showing arrogant superiority to someone you feel is unworthy on some level

Facetious

Cleverly amusing in tone, humorous, comedic; 2) treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor, flippant, sarcastic

Funereal

Having the mournful, somber character of a funeral; sepulchral; gloomy & joyous occasion that is reminiscent of a burial

Hyperbolic

With exaggeration, marked in its heavy overstatement; inflated beyond the truth or reasonableness

Insipid

Lacking interest, impact or significance: inspires NO excitement, attention, curiosity, or interest

• or.. Lacking taste/flavor on a metaphorical level (bland, vapid = syn)

Lamentable

Unfortunate, marked by regret, bad/sad/sorry/pity because something is undesirable or has negative qualities; deplorable (syn)

Lugubrious

extreme mournfulness, full of sorrow or sadness that comes with a heavy loss; can be exaggerated or insincere show of sorrow or grief

Melancholic

Sorrowful; showing sorrow or unhappiness

Melodramatic

Emotional or dramatic in a way that is very extreme or exaggerated; characteristic of acting on the stage

Nostalgic

Pleasure or sadness that is caused by remembering something from the past and wishing you could experience it again

Ostentatious

showing off your wealth and that you are rich

Pedantic

Showing off knowledge or that you are smart in a tiresome and boring way

Pretentious

Pretending to be better than you actually are

Remorseful

to be regretful, contrite, penitent

Reverent

treating someone or something with respect

Sentimental

1) Weakly emotional: relies more on emotion than reason (like having sentimental attachment);

2) Expressive of tender emotions, such as nostalgia, love, pity;

3) Can be overly and insincerely emotional

Wry

Slightly sarcastic in a humorous way; clever with a bit of irony; mocking, often revealing disapproval or disgust or irony

Austere

1) Grave, serious, sober (sober = serious or solemn)

2) practicing great self-denial (like a monk)
3) Severely simple, not elaborate (a person’s home or dress)

Bantering

Playful or witty; cleverly amusing in tone

Benevolent

Suggestive of goodwill, kindness, generosity

Callous

Unfeeling, insensitive to the feelings of others

Compassionate

Sympathetic and showing concern for others

Condescending

Possessing a feeling of superiority; looking down on someone

Cynical

Questioning the basic sincerity and goodness of people; synonym: jaded

Derisive

ridiculing; mocking often with contempt or disdain; abusing vocally

Elegiac

Mournful, lamenting, sorrowful; expressing sorrow often for something past or lost

Frivolous

Superficial, without serious purpose or value, silly, giddy

Haughty

Proud and vain to the point of arrogance

Hollow

Meaningless, without significance, empty

Lyrical

Expressing deep emotion (perhaps a poet’s inner feelings); emotional; song-like & melodic

Morose

Gloomy, sullen, surly, despondent

Obsequious

Polite and obedient in order to gain something

Petulant

Ill-humored; showing sudden, impatient irritation especially over something trivial

Poignant

1) Painfully affecting the feelings; emotionally cutting, piercing, touching;
2) Designed to make an impression

Quizzical

1) Puzzled, perplexed, questioning; Archaic meaning 2)odd, eccentric, comical

Remorseful

Regretful, penitent; contrite

Sinister

1) Threatens to be harmful, evil, or just plain trouble 2) wicked or dishonorable

Vexed

1) feeling or showing irritation, annoyance, or distress

2) difficult and often frustrating to deal with or understand; a vexed look or demeanor, a vexed question, a vexed system, a vexed relationship

Woeful

Wretched (in quality); unhappy, anguished

Didactic

Instructive, sometimes excessively so. Speaker attempts to educate or instruct the reader. Teachers, coaches, mentors are didactic by default, but the term is mostly used in a negative way when someone or something, like a movie, is overly instructive.

Earnest

1) Devout or heartfelt, open, and genuine. 2) Purposeful & undistracted by anything not related to the goal 3) Serious, firm belief in the validity of your opinion

Effusive

Expressing feelings of gratitude, approval, or pleasure in an unrestrained or heartfelt manner

Erudite

Learned, polished, scholarly; having or showing profound knowledge

Learned

Highly educated; showing profound knowledge. Scholarly, erudite

Moralistic

Characterized by strong feelings of what is right and what is wrong; can be narrow sense of morality (comes off as judgmental)

Oppressive

Overwhelming or depressive to the spirit or senses; unreasonably burdensome or severe

Patronizing

With an air of condescension, condescending

Ribald

Humorously vulgar and offensive

Romantic

1) Fanciful, impractical, unrealistic, dominated by idealism 2) loving, amorous

Self-Righteous

Narrow-mindedly moralistic; Having or showing a strong belief that your beliefs and actions or opinions are right or other peoples are wrong