AP Lit Vocab S2

Panegyric

lofty speech or writing in praise of a person or thing

S: tribute, homage

Felicity

the state of being happy or fortunate

S: contentment, bliss

Duplicity

deceitfulness in speech or conduct

S: trickery, fraud

Reproof

criticism or censure

S: reproach

Archly

in a playful or mischievous manner

S: playfully, slyly

Solicitude

the state of being anxious or concerned

S: worry

Acquiesce

to agree or comply without protest

S: consent, assent

Coquetry

flirtation

Imprudence

lacking discretion or wisdom

S: foolishness, rashness

Inured

accustomed or used to

S: hardened

Affectation

An assumed manner intended to impress others; deliberate pretense or false display

S: pretention, posing, sham, facade

Disillusioned

Freed from a belief or connection (that was false)

S: disenchanted, disabused

Enmity

A feeling or condition of hostility or hatred

S: rancor, malice

A: respect

Indolent

Disliking work or effort

S: lazy, idle

A: Energetic

Invective

A violent or bitter accusation or reproach

S: scorn, abuse, vituperation

Obsequious

Obedient or attentive in an ingratiating or flattering way

S: sycophantic, submissive, servile

Penurious

Lacking generosity with (or having little) money

S: niggardly

A: generous

Prevaricate

To speak falsely or evasively with the intent to deceive

S: lie, mislead

Rectitude

Moral or religious correctness

S: probity, integrity, piousness

Repine

to be fretfully discontented

S: complain

Abstruse

hard to understand
S: incomprehensible, esoteric

Lugubrious

excessively mournful, dismal, or gloomy

S: melancholy

Punctilious

strict in the observance of formalities

S: precise, conscientious

Reticent

inclined to be silent or not to speak freely

S: reserved

A: loquacious

Truculent

aggressively hostile or fierce

S: belligerent

A: amiable, gentile

Uncouth

lacking in good manners or refinement

S: rude

Indisposed

slightly sick or unwell; or disinclined/unwilling

S: ill

Prosaic

commonplace or matter-of-fact

S: dull, boring, mundane

Venerable

commanding respect because of great age or dignity

S: revered

Zealot

an excessively enthusiastic adherent to a cause (especially a religious one)

S: fanatic

Adage

a traditional saying expressing a common experience or observation

S: proverb, aphorism, maxim

Bathos

a sudden change in tone from serious to silly

S: melodrama, anticlimax

Concatenation

a series of interconnected things or events

S: chain

Denouement

the final resolution of a plot

S: climax, outcome, resolution/conclusion

Feckless

ineffective or incompetent

S: lazy, feeble

Peremptory

leaving no opportunity for denial or refusal

S: autocratic

Prognosticate

forecast or predict

S: project, prophesy

Tenebrous

dark or gloomy

S: shadowy, shady

Vacillate

to waver in mind or opinion

S: sway, hesitate

Verisimilitude

the appearance or semblance of truth

S: plausibility

Ascetic

living an exceedingly simple life of self-denial

S: severe, austere, abstinent

Diaphanous

almost completely transparent or translucent

S: sheer, light

Edify

to instruct or benefit

S: uplift

Evanescence

the quality of vanishing quickly

S: impermanence

A: permanence

Opaque

not allowing light to pass through

S: murky

A: diaphanous

Peroration

the conclusion to a long speech characterized by lofty or pompous language

Propensity

a natural inclination or tendency

S: disposition

Rotund

round in shape

S: plump, corpulent

Sophistry

something that appears to be wisdom but isn’t

S: fallacy

Surfeit

an excessive amount

S: surplus, plethora

A: dearth

Ambivalent

having mixed feelings about something

S: contradictory, equivocal

Amorphous

lacking definite form or structure

S: nebulous, shapeless

Aubade

a poem or piece of music to commemorate the dawn

S: N/A

Circumspect

watchful and cautious

S: discreet, prudent

A: reckless

Convival

friendly, agreeable

S: sociable, jovial

Desultory

lacking consistency or visible order

S: random, haphazard

Efficacy

the capacity for producing a desire result or effect

S: effectiveness

Epigram

a witty expression or saying

S: aphorism, adage

Liturgy

form or arrangement of a public ritual

S: ceremony, rite

Repartee

conversation full of witty replies

S: banter, sparring

Aplomb

total confidence, poise, and assurance

S: composure

A: doubt

Choleric

extremely irritable or easily angered

S: irascible, testy

Dint

force or power

S: exertion, effort

Fecund

producing or capable of producing offspring or fruit in abundance

S: fertile, prolific, fruitful

Insinuate

to suggest or hint slyly

S: imply

Moribund

in a dying state; near death

S: stagnant, declining

Privation

the lack of the usual comforts of life

S: want, need

Propitiatiory

desired or intended to be sacrificial or appeasing

S: conciliatory

Recondite

dealing with profound, difficult, or abstruse subject matter

S: obscure, esoteric

Ribald

vulgar or indecent in speech

S: obscene, coarse, inappropriate

Acquisition

an addition or the gaining of possession

S: procurement, purchase

Culmination

the final highest or decisive point

S: peak, pinnacle, zenith

A: nadir

Deleterious

injurious or harmful

S: pernicious

Demur

to make objection or take exception

S: disagree, hesitate, balk, vacillate

Egregious

extraordinary in some bad way

S: terrible, flagrant, glaring

Hiatus

a break in the continuity of a work, series, or action

S: pause, lapse

Jaunty

easy and self-confident in manner

S: relaxed, insouciant

Preternatural

exceptional or out of the ordinary

S: abnormal

Promulgate

to make note by open declaration

S: publish, proclaim

Substantiate

to establish by proof or competent evidence

S: affirm, verify