Vocabulary Workshop Level G (All Units)

Beatific

(adj.) blissful; rendering or making blessed

Behemoth

(n.) a creature of enormous size, power, or appearance

Blandishment

(n.) anything designed to flatter or coax; sweet talk, apple-polishing

Cacophonous

(adj.) harsh-sounding, raucous, discordant, dissonant

Chicanery

(n.) trickery, deceptive practices or tactices, double-dealing

Consign

(v.) to give over to another's care, charge, or control; to entrust, deliver; to set apart for a special use

Coup

(n.) a highly successful stroke, masterstroke, tour de force, act, plan, or stratagem; a sudden takeover of power or leadership

Euphemism

(n.) a mild or inoffensive expression used in place of harsh or unpleasant one; a substitute

Fenrile

(adj.) feverish; pertaining to or marked by fever; frenetic

Gainsay

(v.) to deny, contridict, controvert; to dispute, oppose

Imminent

(adj.) about to happen, threatening

Innate

(adj.) natural, inborn, inherent; built-in

Loath

(adj.) unwilling, reluctant, disinclined

Manifest

(adj.) clear, evident to the eyes or mind; (v.) to show plainly, exhibit, evince; (n.) a list of cargo and/or passengers

Minutiae

(pl. n.) small or trivial details, trifling matters

Moratorium

(n.) a suspension of activitiy; an offical waiting period; an authorized period of delay

Nostrum

(n.) an alleged cure-all; a remedy or scheme of questionable effectiveness

Pariah

(n.) one who is rejected by a social group or organization

Visionary

(adj.) not practical, lacking in realism; having the nature of a fantasy or dream; (n.) one given to far fetched ideas; a dreamer or seer characterized by vision or foresight

Wizened

(adj.) dry, shrunken, and wrinkled (often as the result of aging)

acuity

sharpness (particularly of the mind or senses)

delineate

to portray, sketch, or describe in accurate and vivid detail; to represent pictorially

depraved

marked by evil and corruption, devoid of moral principles

enervate

to weaken or lessen the mental, moral, or physical vigor of; enfeeble, hamstring

esoteric

intended for or understood by only a select few, private, secret

fecund

fruitful in offspring or vegetation; intellectually productive

fiat

an arbitrary order or decree; a command or act of will or consciousness

figment

a fabrication of the mind; an arbitrary notion

garner

to acquire as the result of effort; to gather and store away, as for future use

hallow

to set apart as holy or sacred, sanctify, consecrate; to honor greatly, revere

idiosyncrasy

a peculiarity that servers to distinguish or identify

ignominy

shame and disgrace

mundane

earthly, worldly, relating to practical and material affairs; concerned with what is ordinary

nuance

a subtle or slight vvariation (as in color, meaning, quality), delicate gradation or shade of difference

overweening

conceited, presumptuous; excessive, immoderate

penchant

a strong attraction or inclination

reputed

according to reputation or general belief; having widespread acceptance and good reputation

sophistry

reasoning that seems plausible but is acctually unsound; a fallacy

sumptuous

costly, rich, magnificent

ubiquitous

present or existing everywhere

atrophy

the wasting away of a body organ or tissue; any progressive decline or failure; (v.) to waste away

bastion

a fortified place, stronghold

concord

a state of agreement, harmony, unanimity; a treaty, pact, covenant

consummate

complete or perfect in the highest degree; (v.) to bring to a state of completion or perfection

disarray

disorder, confusion; (v.) to throw into disorder

exigency

urgency, pressure; urgent demand, pressing need; an emergency

flotsam

floating debris; homeless, impoverished people

frenetic

frenzied, highly agitated

glean

to gather bit by bit; to gather small quantities of gran left in a field by the reapers

grouse

a type of game bird; a compliant; (v.) to complain, grumble

incarcerate

to imprison, confine, jail

incumbent

obligatory, required; (n.) one who holds a specific office at the time spoken of

jocular

humorous, jesting, jolly, joking

ludicrous

ridiculous, laughable, absurd

mordant

biting or caustic in though, manner, or style; sharply or bitterly harsh

nettle

a prickly or stinging plant; (v.) to arouse displeasure, impatience, or anger; to vex or irritate severely

pecuniary

consisting of or measured in money; of or related to money

pusillanimous

contemptible cowardly or mean-spirited

recumbent

in a reclining position, lying down, in the posture of one sleeping or resting

stratagem

a scheme to outwit or deceive an opponent or to gain an end

articulate

to pronounce distinctly; to express well in words; to connect by a joint or joints; (adj) expressed clearly and forcefully; able to employ language clearly and forcefully; jointed

cavort

to romp or prance around exuberantly; to make merry

credence

belief, mental acceptance

decry

to condemn, express strong disapproval; to officially depreciate

dissemble

to disguise or conceal, deliberately give a false impression

distraught

very much agitated or upset as a result of emotion or mental conflict

eulogy

a formal statement of commendation; high praise

evince

to display clearly, to make evident, to provoke

exhume

to remove from a grave; to bring to light

feckless

lacking in spirit and strength; ineffective, weak; irresponsible, unreliable

murky

dark and gloomy, obscure; lacking in clarity and precision

nefarious

wicked, depraved, devoid of moral standards

piquant

stimulating to the taste or mind; spicy, pungent; appealingly provocative

primordial

developed or created at the very beginning; going back to the most ancient times or earliest stage; fundamental, basic

propinquity

nearness in place or time; kinship

unwonted

not usual or expected; not in character

utopian

founded upon or involving a visionary view of an ideal world; impractical

verbiage

language that is too wordy or inflated in proportion to the sense or content, wordiness; a manner of expressoin

verdant

green in tint or color; immature in experience or judgment

viscous

having a gelatinous or gluey quality, lacking in easy movement or fluidity

accost

to approach and speak to first; to confront in a challenging or aggressive way

animadversion

a comment indicating strong criticism or disapproval

avid

desirous of something to the point of greed; intensely eager

brackish

having a salty taste and unpleasant to drink

celerity

swiftness, rapidity of motion or action

devious

straying or wandering form a straight or direct course; done or acting in a shifty or underhanded way

gambit

in chess, an opening move that involves risk or sacrifice fo a minor piece in order to gain a later advantage; any opening move of this type

halcyon

a legendary bird identified with the king fisher; (adj) of or relating ot the halcyon; clam, peaceful; happy, golden; prosperous, affluent

histrionic

pertainig to actors and their techniques; theatrical, artificial; melodramatic

incendiary

deliberatelky setting or causing fires; designed to start fires; tending to stir up strife or rebellion; (n) one who deliberately sets fires, arsonist; one who cause strife

maelstrom

a whirlpool of great size and violence; a situation resembling a whirlpool in violence and destruction

myopic

nearsighted; lacking a broad, realistic view of a situation; lacking foresight or discernment

overt

open, not hidden, expressed or revealed in a way that is easily recognized

pejorative

tending to make worse; expressing disapproval or disparagement, derogatory, deprecatory, belittling

propriety

the state of being proper, appropriateness; (pl) standards of what is proper or socially acceptable

sacrilege

improper or disrespectful treatment of something held sacred

summarily

without delay or formality; briefly, concisely

suppliant

asking humply and earnestly (n) one who makes a request humbly and earnestly, a petitioner, suitor

talisman

an object that serves as a charm or is believed to confer magical powers, an amulet, fetish

undulate

tomove in waves or with a wavelike motion; to have a wavelike appearance or form