AP LIT Short Story Vocab

bier [beer / bir]

N. a stand on which a corpse or a coffin containing a corpse is placed prior to burial

cabal [kuh-bal]

N. a conspirational group of plotters or intriguers. A secret scheme or plot

Intr. V. to form a cabal

coquettish [koh-ket-ish]

Adj. (of a woman) characteristically flirtatious, especially in a teasing, lighthearted manner

cuckold [kuhk-uhld]

N. a man whose wife has committed adultery

Tr. V. to make a cuckold of

deprecatory [dep-ri-kuh-tawr-ee]

Adj. disapproving; expressing belittlement

deputation [dep-yuh-tey-shuhn]

N. the act or state of being appointed or authorized as an agent or representative; a person or group appointed to represent another or others; delegation

diffident [dif-i-duhnt]

Adj. hesitant to assert oneself from a lack of self-confidence; timid

dispensation [dis-puhn-sey-shuhn]

N. an exemption or release from an obligation or rule, granted by or as if by an authority. An exemption from a church law, a vow, or other similar obligation granted in a particular case by an ecclesiastical authority

dyspepsia [dis-pep-shuh, -see-uh]

N. indigestion

hangdog [hang-dawg, -dog]

Adj. shamefaced or guilty. Downcast, intimidated

N. a sneaky or despicable person

jalousie [jal-uh-see]

N. a blind or shutter having adjustable horizontal slats for regulating the passage of air and light

livery [liv-uh-ree]

N. the costume or insignia worn by the retainers of a feudal lord. A distinctive uniform worn by the male servants of a household, as by footmen. The boarding and care of horses for a fee

macabre [muh-kah-bruh, -kahb]

Adj. suggesting the horror of death and decay; gruesome. Comprising or including a representation of death

parquet [pahr-kay]

N. the part of the main floor of a theater between the orchestra pit and the parquet circle. A wooden floor, often using contrasting colors, worked into a pattern

Tr. V. to furnish a room with a floor of parquetry

perpetuity [pur-pi-too-i-tee]

N. the quality, state, or condition of being perpetual. Time without end; eternity

petticoat [pet-ee-koht]

N. a skirt, especially a woman’s slip or underskirt. Slang. A woman or a girl

Adj. of or by women (i.e., a petticoat government)

severance [sev-er-uhns]

N. the act or process of dividing or separating into parts. Separation; partition

svelte [svelt]

Adj. slender or graceful in figure or outline; slim

vermillion [ver-mil-yuhn]

N. a bright red mercuric sulfide used as a pigment. A vivid red to reddish orange

Adj. of a vivid red to reddish orange

Tr. V. to color or dye vermillion

vestige [ves-tij]

N. a visible trace, evidence, or sign of something that has once existed but exists or appears no more