English Vocab Unit 6

Abstemious (adj)

Given to or marked by restraint in the satisfaction of one’s appetites (ascetic, temperate, abstinent)

Adumbrate (v)

To give a slight indication of beforehand (herald, foreshadow, imply)

Bellicose (adj)

Feeling or displaying an eagerness to fight (militant, belligerent, hostile)

Brackish (adj)

Disagreeable or disgusting to the sense of taste (unpalatable, bland, distasteful)

Didactic (adj)

Marked by or given to preaching moral values (sermonic, moralizing, homiletic)

Doddering (adj)

Showing or involving a loss of physical or cognitive abilities in old age (decrepit, elderly, senile)

Dovetail (v)

To be in agreement on every point (coincide, conform, correspond)

Espousal (n)

Support for or adoption of a cause or belief (advocacy, support)

Fetid (adj)

Having an unpleasant smell (stinking, foul, malodorous)

Gallivant (adj)

To move about aimlessly from place to place (wander, roam, stroll)

Garrulous (adj)

Fond of talking or conversation (talkative, vocal, outspoken)

Genuflect (v)

To briefly lower one’s body by bending one knee to the ground, typically as a sign of respect (kneel)

Inchoate (adj)

Beginning to come into existence (nascent, initial, incipient)

Insipid (adj)

Lacking in taste or flavor (bland, thin, tasteless)

Limpid (adj)

Easily seen through (transparent, clear, pellucid)

Manifold (adj)

Being of many and various kinds (multifarious, various, myriad)

Palliate (v)

To make (something) seem less bad by offering excuses (justify, explain, extenuate)

Puerile (adj)

Having or showing the annoying qualities (as silliness) associated with children (childish, immature, juvenile)

Putrefaction (n)

The process by which dead organic matter separates into simpler substances (decay, decomposition)

Salubrious (adj)

Beneficial to the health of body or mind (healthy medicinal, good)

Stultify (v)

To cause to lose enthusiasm and initiative, especially as a result of tedious/restrictive routine (impede, hamper, foil)

Tawdry (adj)

Marked by low quality and unbecoming appearance (miserable, gaudy, ostentacious)

Torpid (adj)

Slow to move or act (sluggish, dull, lethargic)

Tryst (n)

An agreement to be present at a specified time or place (appointment, rendezvous, date)

Urbane (adj)

Having or showing very polished or worldly manners (sophisticated, civilized, suave)