Vocabulary List 2

Avaricious

-having or showing an extreme greed for wealth or material gain

-connotation is quite bad

-an avaricious person places their own power and wealth above all else (including personal relationships and the well-being of others)

-an avaricious TONE indicates that a person is referencing monetary wealth or some sort of powerful position which might grant them such wealth

-The Malfoy Family, Ebenezer Scrooge, Chuck Bass

Churlish

-rude in a mean-spirited and surly way

-connotation is more severe than simply being rude

-churlish describes someone who is insensitive to others’ feelings and doesn’t want to be agreeable

-very difficult to work with

-a churlish TONE would make the reader feel uncomfortable, indignant, or shocked, depending on the context

-Draco Malfoy, Lucy van Pelt, Alex Karev, Curley

-deliberately rude

Flippant

-carelessly disrespectful or lacking in seriousness, especially toward something that deserves respect

-not particularly extreme, but negative connotation

-flippant TONE is “meh, whatever” kind of attitude

-don’t be flippant about safety drills, medical exams, or education

Gracious

-courteous, kind, and pleasant

-quite positive connotation

-use this word to describe a hostess and someone who gives of themselves

-likely also affable

-a gracious TONE will likely make you feel warm and pleasant

-Atticus Finch, Molly Weasley, Melanie Wilkes

Indolent

-wanting to avoid activity or exertion; lazy

-negative connotation

-sloth would be indolent

-indolent people don’t make any effort to get things done

-indolence causes an employee to be fired

-Baloo the Bear, human beings of the future in Wall-E

Misanthropic

-disliking humankind and avoiding human society; suggests a deep-rooted distrust and dislike of human beings and their society

-highly negative connotation

-misanthropes are rare

-avoids human interaction on a daily basis

-don’t throw this term around flippantly

-a peevish person is not misanthropic

-really hate other people and isolation from society

-Lisbeth Salander, Ebenezer Scrooge, April Ludgate, Wednesday Addams

Philanthropic

-practice of giving money and time to help make life better for others

-highly positive connotation

-to be truly philanthropic, devote copious amounts of time and energy to the benefit of others

-occasionally doing something good is not philanthropic

-helping others is a priority

-also called humanitarian

Precocious

-for a child: showing adult abilities at early age

-only for children

-more mature than peers based on speech and attitude

-negative: obnoxious child who thinks they’re all thatl

-positive: intellectual and woww

-Hermione Granger, Matilda, Dr. Maggie Pierce

Puerile

-silly or childish in a way that shows a lack of seriousness or good judgement

-negative connotation

-insulting thing to call someone

-takes very few things seriously

-doesn’t understand or chooses not to give important stuff attention

Unassuming

\-modest, humble, and lacking arrogance

\-doesn’t draw attention to themselves

\-reserved and not flashy or loud

\-this person could have a lot of power, they just don’t brag about it

\-Pam Beasley, Jerry Gergich, Simon, Ann Veal, George O’Malley