greenwalds bullshit F451 vocab

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Aesthetic

Relating to beauty, art, or the appreciation of good taste.

Anesthetize

To administer an anesthetic, causing someone to lose consciousness or the ability to feel pain.

Beatific

Feeling or expressing blissful happiness.

Breach

An act of breaking a law, agreement, or code of conduct; also, a gap in a wall or barrier.

Cacophony

A harsh, discordant mixture of sounds.

Cadence

The modulation or inflection of the voice; the rhythmic flow of sounds or words.

Cataract

A medical condition in which the lens of the eye becomes progressively opaque.

Censor

To examine material and suppress or remove parts considered unacceptable; a censor is someone who does this.

Char

To partially burn something or reduce it to charcoal.

Combustible

Able to catch fire and burn easily.

Complement

Something that completes or enhances something else.

Compliment

An expression of praise or admiration.

Condemn

To express strong disapproval of something or sentence someone to punishment.

Converge

To come together from different directions and eventually meet.

Convoluted

Extremely complex and difficult to follow or understand.

Discourse

A formal discussion or conversation; as a verb, to speak or write about a topic.

Distill

To extract the essential meaning or most important ideas; also, to purify a liquid through heating and cooling.

Drone

A continuous low humming sound; as a verb, to make that sound or speak monotonously.

Fathom

To understand a difficult problem or mysterious person after careful thought.

Feign

To pretend to have a feeling, condition, or injury.

Filigree

Delicate ornamental work made from fine wire, often silver, gold, or copper.

Gingerly

In a careful or cautious manner.

Gorge

A narrow valley with steep rocky walls; as a verb, to eat a large amount greedily.

Homely

Unattractive in appearance; alternatively, simple, cozy, and unpretentious.

Hone

To sharpen a blade or refine and improve a skill through practice.

Illuminate

To light something up or make something clearer and easier to understand.

Imperceptible

Impossible or extremely difficult to notice or detect.

Incessant

Continuing without pause or interruption, often in an annoying way.

Incriminate

To make someone appear guilty of a crime or wrongdoing.

Insidious

Developing gradually or subtly but causing serious harm.

Intuitive

Based on instinct or feeling rather than conscious reasoning.

Invigorate

To give someone or something strength, energy, or life.

Jowl

The lower part of a person's cheek, especially when fleshy or drooping.

Juggernaut

An enormous, powerful, and overwhelming force or institution.

Linguist

A person skilled in foreign languages or someone who studies language.

Lubricate

To apply oil or grease to reduce friction and help something move smoothly.

Mausoleum

A building that houses a tomb or multiple tombs.

Mediocre

Of only moderate quality; not particularly good.

Minstrel

A medieval singer or musician who performed poetry or songs with musical accompaniment.

Nectar

A sugary fluid produced by plants; also, a delicious drink.

Olfactory

Relating to the sense of smell.

Oracle

A priest or priestess who serves as a medium for advice or prophecies from the gods.

Penance

An act of self-punishment or sacrifice performed to show repentance for wrongdoing.

Perfunctory

Done with minimal effort, care, or thought.

Perpetual

Never-ending or continuously occurring; lasting or recurring without stopping.

Phosphorescent

Emitting light without producing appreciable heat; glowing in the dark.

Plummet

To fall or drop straight down at high speed.

Proboscis

A long, flexible snout, such as an elephant's trunk, or an elongated sucking mouthpart of certain insects.

Proclivity

A natural tendency or inclination to behave in a particular way.

Profusion

A large quantity or abundance of something.

Ravenous

Extremely hungry.

Refract

To change the direction of a ray of light as it enters a different medium at an angle.

Ricochet

To rebound or bounce off a surface.

Saccharine

Excessively sweet or sentimental; also, relating to or containing sugar.

Scripture

Sacred writings of Christianity or another religion.

Scythe

A tool with a long handle and curved blade used for cutting crops or grass.

Submission

The act of yielding to a superior force or another person's authority.

Skepticism

A questioning or doubtful attitude toward whether something is true.

Suffuse

To spread gradually throughout or over something.

Teeming

Full of or swarming with something.

Torrent

A fast-moving, rushing stream of liquid; also, an overwhelming outpouring of something.

Trajectory

The path followed by a moving or flying object under the influence of forces.

Treason

The crime of betraying one's country, especially by attempting to overthrow its government or harm its sovereign.

Thoroughfare

A road or path connecting places, especially a main road or highway.

Valise

A small traveling bag or suitcase.

Venomous

Capable of injecting poison through a bite or sting; also, full of malice or spite.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The journalist's explanation was so ______ that nobody could follow its complicated sequence of events. A. intuitive B. convoluted C. beatific D. perfunctory

B. Convoluted means extremely complex and difficult to follow.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The student practiced every day to ______ her public-speaking skills. A. hone B. feign C. char D. condemn

A. Hone means to refine and improve a skill through practice.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The ______ buzzing of the broken light distracted everyone. A. beatific B. incessant C. intuitive D. homely

B. Incessant means continuing without pause or interruption.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The ball struck the wall and began to ______ across the pavement. A. plummet B. suffuse C. ricochet D. converge

C. Ricochet means to rebound or bounce off a surface.

FILL IN THE BLANK: After skipping lunch, the athlete was ______. A. ravenous B. mediocre C. insidious D. imperceptible

A. Ravenous means extremely hungry.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The two roads ______ near the bridge. A. char B. converge C. feign D. distill

B. Converge means to come together from different directions.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The witness tried to ______ surprise even though she already knew the news. A. illuminate B. feign C. lubricate D. condemn

B. Feign means to pretend to have a feeling or condition.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The scientist tried to ______ the long report into its main ideas. A. distill B. gorge C. plummet D. incriminate

A. Distill means to extract the essential meaning or most important ideas.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The old machine began to ______ with a low, continuous hum. A. discourse B. drone C. refract D. suffuse

B. Drone means to make a continuous low humming sound.

FILL IN THE BLANK: The dry leaves were highly ______ and caught fire easily. A. combustible B. beatific C. intuitive D. olfactory

A. Combustible means able to catch fire and burn easily.

MULTIPLE CHOICE: A student completes an assignment quickly without checking it and makes careless mistakes. Which word best describes the work? A. Perfunctory B. Beatific C. Aesthetic D. Teeming

A. Perfunctory. The work was done with minimal effort or care.

MULTIPLE CHOICE: Which word describes someone who doubts a rumor until evidence supports it? A. Submission B. Skepticism C. Penance D. Profusion

B. Skepticism means a questioning or doubtful attitude.

MULTIPLE CHOICE: Which word describes a huge, powerful sports team or organization that overwhelms its competitors? A. Juggernaut B. Valise C. Minstrel D. Oracle

A. Juggernaut means an enormous, powerful, overwhelming force.

MULTIPLE CHOICE: Which word describes a gradual, hidden danger that causes harm over time? A. Insidious B. Beatific C. Intuitive D. Homely

A. Insidious describes something subtly harmful that develops gradually.

MULTIPLE CHOICE: Which word describes light bending as it passes from air into water? A. Ricochet B. Refract C. Plummet D. Suffuse

B. Refract means to change the direction of light as it enters a different medium.

EXPLAIN THE WORD: A cacophony of horns, alarms, and scraping metal filled the station. What does cacophony mean, and why does it fit?

Cacophony means a harsh, discordant mixture of sounds. The loud, unpleasant noises create a chaotic mixture.

EXPLAIN THE WORD: The child gingerly lifted the fragile glass ornament. Define gingerly and explain why it fits.

Gingerly means carefully or cautiously. The child handles the fragile ornament with care to avoid breaking it.

EXPLAIN THE WORD: A faint change in the room's temperature was imperceptible to everyone. Define imperceptible and explain why it fits.

Imperceptible means impossible or difficult to notice. The temperature change was too slight to detect.

EXPLAIN THE WORD: The suspect's inconsistent statements could incriminate him. Define incriminate and explain why it fits.

Incriminate means to make someone appear guilty of wrongdoing. Inconsistent statements could make the suspect seem guilty.

EXPLAIN THE WORD: The athlete felt invigorated after resting. Define invigorated and explain why it fits.

Invigorated means given strength, energy, or life. Rest helped restore the athlete's energy.

EXPLAIN THE WORD: A student distills a twenty-page report into one paragraph. What does distills mean here, and why is it appropriate?

Distills means extracts the essential meaning or main ideas. The student condenses the report to its most important points.

EXPLAIN THE WORD: The athlete has a proclivity for taking risks during competitions. Define proclivity and explain why it fits.

Proclivity means a natural tendency or inclination. The athlete tends to take risks.

EXPLAIN TWO WORDS: A cacophony of incessant alarms filled the hallway. Define both words and explain their connection.

Cacophony means a harsh mixture of sounds. Incessant means continuing without pause. The alarms create unpleasant noise that continues repeatedly.

EXPLAIN TWO WORDS: A breach in the fence revealed the dog's proclivity for escaping. Define both words and explain their connection.

Breach means a break or opening in a barrier. Proclivity means a tendency or inclination. The opening allows the dog to act on its tendency to escape.

EXPLAIN TWO WORDS: The professor's discourse helped distill a difficult theory into a clear summary. Define both words and explain their connection.

Discourse means formal discussion or conversation. Distill means extract the main ideas. The discussion helps the audience understand the theory's essential points.

EXPLAIN THE CONNECTION: How do complement and compliment differ?

Complement means something that completes or enhances something else. Compliment means an expression of praise or admiration. A scarf can complement an outfit, while saying the outfit looks nice is a compliment.

CHOOSE THE CORRECT WORD: The sauce and pasta ______ each other, and the chef gave the cook a ______ on the presentation.

Complement; compliment. The sauce and pasta enhance each other, while the chef's comment is praise.

CHOOSE THE CORRECT WORD: The student completed the task with little thought or care, making the work ______.

Perfunctory. It means done with minimal effort or reflection.

APPLY THE WORD: Name a real sports team or organization that could be called a juggernaut and explain why.

A valid answer names a powerful team or organization and explains how its size, influence, or repeated success makes it overwhelming. Juggernaut means a huge, powerful force.

APPLY THE WORD: Describe a situation in which someone might act gingerly.

Someone might gingerly carry a tray of full glasses. Gingerly means carefully or cautiously.

APPLY THE WORD: Describe a situation in which a person might feign confidence.

A student might feign confidence before a speech while feeling nervous. Feign means to pretend to have a feeling or condition.

LITERATURE: What is a mausoleum, and why might a character visiting one believe it is significant?

A mausoleum is a building that houses a tomb or multiple tombs. A character might visit it to mourn someone or find a burial place.

LITERATURE: A character secretly reads banned books in a society that controls information. Explain how censorship affects the character's access to ideas.

Censorship restricts or removes material considered unacceptable. It limits access to ideas and can make reading an act of resistance.

LITERATURE: A character begins questioning society's rules after reading unfamiliar ideas. Which vocabulary word describes this attitude, and why?

Skepticism. It means a questioning or doubtful attitude, and the character is no longer accepting the rules without question.