Benjamino

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Abhor Verb

Abhor Verb

To regard with horror or loathing; hate deeply

SYNONYMS: detest, despise, abominate

ANTONYMS: admire, cherish, respect, relish

A pacifist is someone who abhors violence in all its forms.

Amend Verb

To change in a formal way; to change for the better.

SYNONYMS: modify, improve, correct

If you are not doing well in a particular subject, you may want to amend your way of studying it.

Buffet Verb/Noun

Verb - To slap or cuff; to strike repeatedly; to drive or force with blows; to force one’s way with difficulty

Noun - a slap, blow

SYNONYMS: sock, thump, pummel, toss about (V)

Blinding snowstorms buffet the barren landmass of Antarctica for months on end.

Few figures in history or literature are as severely tested by fortune’s buffets as Job in the Old Testament. (Noun)

Chaos Noun

Great confusion, disorder

SYNONYMS: anarchy, turmoil

ANTONYMS: order, regularity, tranquility

A great many people lost their fortunes and even their lives in the chaos brought on by the French Revolution.

Commodious Adjective

Roomy, spacious

SYNONYMS: comfortable, ample, capacious

ANTONYMS: cramped, claustrophobic, insufficient

No one would expect a tiny studio apartment to have particularly commodious closets.

Corrosive Adjective

Eating away gradually, acid-like; bitterly sarcastic.

SYNONYMS: caustic, acidulous, spiteful

ANTONYMS: bland, mild, benign, amiable

Sulfuric acid is one of the most corrosive substances known to chemistry.

Discern Verb

To see clearly, recognize

SYNONYMS: perceive, detect, distinguish

ANTONYMS: overlook

It is a jury’s job to discern the truth by carefully evaluating all the evidence presented at trial.

Extant Adjective

Still existing; not exterminated, destroyed, or lost

SYNONYMS: surviving, in existence

ANTONYMS: extinct, vanished

The paintings of animals and human hands in Spain’s Altamira caves are among the oldest extant specimens of Stone Age art.

Implicate Verb

To involve in; to connect with or be related to

SYNONYMS: incriminate, entangle

ANTONYMS: absolve, exculpate

The suspects never stood trial because there was no solid evidence to implicate them in the daring series of robberies.

Inter Verb

To bury, commit to the earth; to consign to oblivion

ANTONYMS: unearth, exhume

Jewels and other objects once interred with Egypt’s pharaohs can not be seen in numerous museums all over the world.

Martinet Noun

A strict disciplinarian; a stickler for the rules

SYNONYMS: taskmaster, slave driver

When it came to drilling troops, the Revolutionary War general Baron Friedrich von Steuben was something of a martinet.

Obviate Verb

To anticipate and prevent; to remove, dispose of

SYNONYMS: preclude, forestall, ward off

Vaccinations can do much to obviate the dangers of childhood illnesses.

Renegade Noun/Adj.

Noun - one who leaves a group; a deserter, outlaw

Adjective - traitorous; unconventional, unorthodox

SYNONYMS: turncoat, heretic

ANTONYMS: loyalist, patriot

Many a writer has been labeled a renegade for refusing to conform to society’s conventions.

Renegade senators from the President’s own party joined the opposition to defeat the bill.

Reprehensible Adjective

Deserving blame or punishment

SYNONYMS: objectionable, blameworthy, culpable, odious

ANTONYMS: commendable, blameless, meritorious

Stalin eliminated many potential rivals by accusing them of all sorts of reprehenisble acts that they did not commit.

Somber Adjective

Dark, gloomy; depressed or melancholy in spirit

SYNONYMS: mournful, dismal

ANTONYMS: bright, sunny, light-hearted, jaunty

The atmosphere in the locker room of the losing team could best be described as somber.

Squalid Adjective

Filthy, wretched, debased

SYNONYMS: dingy, sordid, foul, vile, abject

ANTONYMS: neat, spruce, exalted, lofty

Many laws prohibit the types of squalid working conditions found in sweatshops.

Turbulent Adjective

Disorderly, riotous, violent; stormy

SYNONYMS: tumultuous, unruly, agitated

ANTONYMS: calm, placid, tranquil, still

Letters and diary entries may reveal a person’s lifelong struggle to gain some control over turbulent emotions.

Vociferous Adjective

Loud and noisy; compelling attention

SYNONYMS: clamorous, uproarious, blustering

ANTONYMS: quiet, soft-spoken, muted, subdued

Relief agencies regularly make vociferous appeals for aid for victims of war, terrorism, and natural disasters.

Voluminous Adjective

Of great size; numerous; writing or speaking at great length

SYNONYMS: bulky, massive, plentiful

ANTONYMS: scant, meager, little

The task of summarizing the voluminous reports issued by government agencies may fall to members of a legislator’s staff.

Waive Verb

To do without, give up voluntarily; to put off temporarily, defer

SYNONYMS: decline, relinquish, forgo

ANTONYMS: claim, accept

The senator agreed to waive opposition to the proposed bill if some of its more controversial provisions were substantially modified.