English Final Vocabs (Mr. Hill)

abatement

decrease, reduction

abdicate

to give up a position, right, or power

acumen

sharpness of insight

adherent

believer; supporter; devotee

adjunct

1. attachment; appendage. 2. Subordinate or auxiliary capacity.

aesthetic

pertaining to beauty or art

aggrandize

make more powerful;amplify;increase.

allegory

symbolic representation

allusion

indirect reference

allusiveness

quality of making many indirect references

abstruse

difficult to understand

apt

appropriate; having a natural tendency

cajole

coax

compendious

succinct (especially of something written or spoken) briefly and clearly expressed.

concur

to agree

delineate

list, explain

digress

to stray from the main subject

elucidate

to clarify, explain

embroil

involve in an argument or conflict

empirical

based on observation or experiment and not on theory

acme; noun

highest point; summit; the highest level or degree attainable

allusion; noun

A casual reference in literature to a person, place, event, or another passage of literature

antithesis; noun

the direct opposite, a sharp contrast

balm; noun

something soothing to the mind, and comforting

breach; noun/verb

(n) a gap; a violation; to break; (v) to break open; to break a law

circumspect; adjective

careful, cautious

contiguous; adjective

touching at an edge or boundary

alliteration

the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

connotation

the associated or secondary meaning of a word or expression

denotation

the literal or primary meaning of a word

Inane; adjective

lacking sense or meaning; silly; foolish

introverted; adjective

withdrawn into oneself; self-absorbed; secretive

legacy; noun

An inheritance; something handed down from an ancestor or from the past

malaise; adjective

illness; feeling of physical or mental uneasiness or weakness

morose; adjective

gloomy; sad; depressed; sullen; sulky

opulent; adjective

rich and showy; luxurious

pretense; noun

a false show or claim; pretending something other than the truth

recluse; noun

one who lives alone; on who leads a solitary life; a hermit

hyperbole; noun

exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

oxymoron; noun

a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction

etiological myths

myths that explain origins and causes

hero myths

involves a hero who goes on an adventure, and in a decisive crisis wins in a victory, and then comes home changed or transformed

replenish; verb

to fill again; to restore or re-supply

sardonic; adjective

scornful; mocking

squalid; adjective

dirty, filthy due to neglect; rundown, uncared for

tactile; adjective

capable of being felt or touched; pertaining to the sense of touch

turbulent; adjective

violently disturbed; agitated; unruly

vilify; verb

to criticize harshly or to defame

affirmation; noun

a positive statement or declaration of a truth or belief

amorphous; adjective

shapeless; undefined; vague; indistinct; unformed

utopia; noun

an imagined place where everything is perfect

dystopia; noun

an imagined state or society where there is great suffering or injustice

fugitive; noun

a person who has escaped from a place or is in hiding, especially to avoid arrest or persecution

characterization

the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character

climax

that particular point in a narrative at which the conflict or tension hits the highest point

epic poem

A long narrative poem telling of a hero's deeds

alchemist; noun

a person who studies or practices alchemy

zenith; noun

the highest point reached by a celestial object (like the sun)

muse; verb

to consider something thoughtfully

lame; adj

having an injured or disabled leg or foot which causes one to limp

omen; noun

an event regarded as a portent of the future

whet; verb

to sharpen

infidel; noun

a person who does not believe in religion or who adheres to a religion other than one's own

ruefully; adverb

regretfully; sorrowfully

divination; noun

the process of seeking knowledge of the future by supernatural means

capricious; adjective

given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior

nocturnal; adjective

relating to, or occurring in the night

oasis; noun

a fertile spot in a desert where there is water

mirage; noun (haha 69th vocab)

an optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions, especially the desert

wary; adjective

being on one's guard against danger

brandish; verb

to wave a weapon as a threat

scimitar; noun

a sword with a curved blade that broadens toward the point

heed; verb

to pay attention to

elixir; noun

a magical or medicinal potion, as brewed by alchemists to prolong life indefinitely

impenetrable; adjective

impossible to pass through or enter

abrade; adjective

scrape or rub away