Important hard words

Putative

Generally assumed or believed to be true without actual proof. Example: The putative author of the anonymous letter has never been identified.

Notional

Existing only as an idea or theory rather than as something real. Example: The company's profits were notional until the first product actually shipped.

Veritable

Genuine or real, used to emphasize how completely something fits a description. Example: The old library was a veritable treasure trove of forgotten manuscripts.

Earnest

Sincere and seriously intentioned. Example: She made an earnest effort to apologize for the mistake.

Sanguine

Optimistic or hopeful, especially in a difficult situation. Example: Despite the losses, the coach remained sanguine about the team's chances.

Spurious

False or fake

not what it claims to be. Example: The article relied on spurious statistics that no researcher could verify.

Lauded

Praised highly. Example: The film was lauded by critics as the best of the decade.

Toil

Long, exhausting work

to work very hard. Example: The farmers toiled in the fields from sunrise to sunset.

Zealous

Filled with intense enthusiasm for a cause or belief. Example: He was a zealous defender of free speech on campus.

Reprieve

A temporary relief or delay from something painful or unpleasant. Example: The afternoon rain gave the city a brief reprieve from the heat.

Posited

Put forward as a fact or as the basis of an argument. Example: Darwin posited that species change gradually through natural selection.

Innocuous

Harmless and unlikely to cause offense. Example: His innocuous comment about the weather somehow started an argument.

Subsumed

Absorbed or included into something larger. Example: The small startup was subsumed into the parent corporation.

Dogmatic

Asserting opinions as unquestionably true and refusing to consider other views. Example: He was so dogmatic about his method that he ignored all the evidence against it.

Unpretentious

Modest and not trying to impress others. Example: Despite his fame, the author was unpretentious and easy to talk to.

Homogenous

Uniform

made up of parts that are all the same kind. Example: The neighborhood was strikingly homogenous, with nearly identical houses on every street.

Demarcated

Marked off with clear boundaries or limits. Example: The two territories are demarcated by a river.

Conflated

Mistakenly treated two different things as if they were the same. Example: Critics conflated the two policies, though they addressed entirely different problems.

Reconstituted

Restored or rebuilt to its original form. Example: The committee was reconstituted after the election with entirely new members.

Effaced

Erased or wiped out completely. Example: Centuries of wind had effaced the inscription on the stone.

Atrophy

To waste away or weaken from lack of use. Example: Muscles begin to atrophy after weeks in a cast.

Circumscribe

To restrict something or set limits on it. Example: The new law circumscribes the mayor's power to spend public funds.

Abate

To lessen or become less intense. Example: We waited inside until the storm began to abate.

Attenuated

Weakened or reduced in force or thickness. Example: The vaccine contains an attenuated form of the virus.

Contentious

Likely to cause disagreement

controversial. Example: Funding for the stadium was the most contentious issue at the meeting.

Relinquish

To give up or let go of something. Example: He refused to relinquish control of the family business.

Surfeit

An excessive amount of something. Example: There was a surfeit of applicants for the single open position.

Capricious

Changing suddenly and unpredictably. Example: The capricious manager changed the deadline three times in one week.

Precarious

Unstable, insecure, or dangerously uncertain. Example: The ladder was in a precarious position against the wall.

Scrutiny

Close, critical examination. Example: The budget did not hold up under careful scrutiny.

Tenable

Able to be defended or maintained as valid. Example: His theory is no longer tenable given the new data.

Consolable

Able to be comforted. Example: The child was easily consolable once her mother arrived.

Renounce

To formally give up or reject something. Example: She renounced her claim to the inheritance.

Denote

To indicate or be a sign of something. Example: On this map, a red dot denotes a hospital.

Efface

To erase or wipe out

also to make oneself inconspicuous. Example: Time had effaced the names carved into the bench.

Eschew

To deliberately avoid or abstain from. Example: The monks eschew all forms of luxury.

Innate

Inborn

present from birth rather than learned. Example: Some birds have an innate sense of direction.

Inundate

To flood or overwhelm. Example: The office was inundated with complaints after the announcement.

Buttress

To support or strengthen something. Example: She buttressed her argument with three independent studies.

Equanimity

Calmness and composure under stress. Example: He received the bad news with surprising equanimity.

Impertinent

Rude or disrespectful

also, not relevant to the matter. Example: The student's impertinent question embarrassed the whole class.

Mediated

Brought about or influenced through something acting in between. Example: The chemical reaction is mediated by an enzyme.

Dearth

A scarcity or serious lack of something. Example: There is a dearth of affordable housing in the city.

Conspicuous

Easily noticed

standing out. Example: His bright red coat made him conspicuous in the crowd.

Fidelity

Faithfulness

also accuracy in reproducing something. Example: The recording captured the concert with remarkable fidelity.

Impart

To give or pass on a quality, skill, or piece of knowledge. Example: The teacher hoped to impart a love of reading to her students.

Oust

To drive out or force from a position of power. Example: The board voted to oust the chief executive.

Disparage

To belittle or speak about with contempt. Example: He constantly disparaged his coworkers' ideas in meetings.

Austere

Severe and plain, without comfort or decoration. Example: The monastery's austere rooms held only a bed and a chair.

Dogma

A belief or set of beliefs held by a group as unquestionably true. Example: The party's economic dogma left no room for debate.