List 9 Vocab

Promulgate

to proclaim or put a law or policy into action or force;

—The president promulgated a controversial new initiative.

Quiescent

at rest, dormant, temporarily inactive;

—The volcanoes were quiescent for centuries before unexpectedly erupting.

Quixotic

idealistic without regard to practicality; impractical or unrealistic;

—His quixotic plan had little chance of succeeding in the real world.

Quotidian

everyday, mundane, commonplace;

—Making my morning coffee was part of my quotidian routine.

Rarefied

refined; relating to a select group;

—The rarefied intellectual discussion was beyond me.

Recalcitrant

obstinately defiant; stubbornly resistant to authority;

—The recalcitrant child flatly refused to obey her parents' rules.

Repudiate

to refuse to accept or support; reject as untrue or unjustified;

—He officially repudiated the rumor and cleared up the misconception.

Rhetoric

language intended to persuade or impress; Though high

Rue

to feel regret, remorse, or repentance over;

—He rued the mistake that cost him his job.

Sagacious

having keen discernment and good judgment; perceptive;

—My sagacious grandmother gave insightful advice on life.

Specious

deceptively plausible or attractive but actually wrong;

—He argued that the specious reasoning sounded good but lacked substance

Staid

sedate, sober, characterized by dignity and propriety;

—The staid professor conducted class with utmost seriousness.

Stymie

to block, thwart;

—Confusion will stymie their efforts to move forward on the project.

Sycophant

one who flatters for self

Tacit

implied or indicated but not directly expressed;

—Her tacit disapproval was obvious though she didn't criticize out loud.

Tangential

only superficially related to the matter at hand; digressing;

—His tangential anecdotes distracted from the core topic.

Terse

brief, concise, pithily expressive;

—His terse reply made me wonder if I had offended him.

Torpid

mentally or physically inert; apathetic; lethargic;

—The torpid man just sat staring into space all afternoon.

Trenchant

forceful, effective, sharply perceptive; incisive;

—His trenchant critique exposed the film's failings.

Undulate

to move in waves or with a smooth wavelike motion;

—The flag undulated in the gentle breeze.

Upbraid

to criticize or scold severely;

—He upbraided me for being thoughtless and lazy.

Urbane

sophisticated; refined; elegant;

—The urbane socialite knew how to navigate high society gatherings.

Vacillate

to waver between different courses of action; fluctuate;

—I vacillated about which college to attend right up until the deadline.

Vapid

offering nothing stimulating or challenging; dull;

—His vapid lecture put me right to sleep.

Venerate

to regard with reverential respect or admiration;

—Many venerate the saint for his good works helping the poor.

Viscous

thick or sticky, having high resistance to flow;

—Molasses has a viscous texture.

Waffle

to shift back and forth between opinions; equivocate;

—She kept waffling on where to eat, unable to make a choice.

Wan

pale, sickly, weak; lacking color or vitality;

—After weeks in bed sick, she was wan and drawn.

Wry

using clever, sly, understated humor;

—She made wry jokes that hinted at her true feelings.

Zenith

peak; highest point; climax;

—He reached the zenith of his acting career after the Oscar win.