AP Lit Vocab

want

to lack something crucial

augment

to increase

glean

to pick out little by little

panache

great style, flair and flamboyance

cachet

prestige, high status, being admired

vex

to irk

nettlesome

irksome

peeve

to annoy or bother

rankle

to bother or annoy

sojourn

to stay away from home in a particular place for some time

compunction

a sense of guilt or remorse

to rue

to feel regret or remorse about something in the past

oriental

of or relating to asia

occidental

western

mitigate

to reduce the harsh effects of something

exonerate

to clear from blame or guilt

culpable/culpability

guilty/guilt

tangible

so intense as to seem physically touchable

poignant

deeply emotionally moving

nuance

a subtle variation of meaning

clarion

clear in sound or meaning as a trumpet call

stentorian

at times rather pompously yet grandly and powerfully loud

yearn

to wish longingly for

yon

over there, at a distance but within sight

of yore

expression for times long past

lore

traditional knowledge, legends, stories

vitriol

viscious outburst, caustic

vitriolic

viciously caustic, scathing

burgeon

to expand and spread rapidly

proliferate

to expand

angst

ongoing anxiety and worry

lament

to express sadness, or complain sadly

woe

despair

doleful

sad, sorrowful

dolorous

sad, sorrowful

plangent

sorrowful in sound

plaintive

sorrowful in sound

dirge

solemn, dignified, slow funeral march

antecedent

that which comes before

liminal

situated at a threshold, between

pugnacious

belligerent, hostile, aggressive

truculent

belligerent, hostile

bellicose

aggressively militant, waging or preparing to wage war

clandestine

secret, hidden, undercover

covert

secret

overt

in the open, apparent

xenophobic

hating that which is foreign or different, primarily culturally

panopoly

full suit of armor or ceremonial attire, an impressive display

panacea

a cure all, a universal fix

anathema

a curse or something cursed and loathsome

elixir

curative or life prolonging beverage

plethora

a great number or a vast amount

cede

to yield

decimate

to destroy a large portion of something

hegemony

political and ideological power of one nation over another

nullify

To cancel or void

protectorate

a weaker nation under the control of another nation

blithe

happily care-free, merry

paradigm

model or structure of truth accepted without question

heterodox

unorthodox

Hauberk

armor, a tunic of chain mail

corselet

armor covering the trunk

sanguinary

bloody, bloodthirsty

sanguine

cheerful

enigma

mystery/puzzle

eviscerate

to disembowel

visceral

instinctive, gut reaction

cerebral

intellectual

ethereal

heavenly

redolent (of)

frangrant/suggestive of

meretricious

cheaply flashy

daunted

intimidated

intrepid

undaunted/fearless

trifle/trifling

thing of little significance/not mattering much

condescend

to lower oneself mockingly

germane

relevant

manifestation

a revealing

to manifest

to reveal

impetuous

rash, impulsive

impetuosity

rashness

elegiac

somber in tone, like an elegy

rhetoric

the use of words to create a specific effect

rhetorical

crafted with words to give a certain effect

paradox

seeming contradictory but expresses a higher truth

languid

lacking energy, moving slowly

languor

a lack of energy

pecuniary

having to do with money

impecunious

lacking money

charnel

having to do with dead bodies

charnel house

a place where dead bodies were kept

to countenance

to condone

hierarchy

ranking system

lascivious

having loose, indulgent sexual feelings

libidinous

lascivious

licentious

lascivious

ostentatious

displaying in a showy manner

pretentious

assuming an air of superiority

sordid

vile, dirty, low, vulgar

sublime

noble, lofty, exquisite

august

noble, majestic