Word list 1-28

aptitude

Talent, quickness in learning, Capacity for learning; natural ability

Ascetic

self-discipline, abstention from indulgence, typically for religious reasons

Asperity

roughness or harshness; severity of manner or tone

Audacity

boldness, lack of respect

auspicious

favoring success, conducive to success; favorable

austerity

sternness, strictness of discipline

avarice

greed; desire for wealth

awry

distorted; crooked; bent; Ex. Our plans have gone awry.

blighted

suffering from a disease; destroyed

brevity

conciseness, use of few words, briefness; short duration

bulwark

(n.) a strong defense or protection, a solid wall-like structure for defense; (v.) to provide such defense or protection

complacent

self-satisfied, eager to please

complicity

involvement, participation (in wrong doing?)

conciliate

to gain something, especially somebody's friendship, or respect by behaving pleasantly

copious

abundant, plentiful

Corporeal

physical body

Credulity

Belief on slight evidence

Cryptic

Puzzling, mysterious

Disparage

Belittle, dishonor

Domicile

Home, dwelling

Duress

Use of force or threats to make someone do something

Exhort

Advise, urge

Exonerate

Free, acquit, exculpate

Exorbitant

excessive, extravagant

Expediency

Advisable, useful, practical

expunge

cancel, erase, remove

expurgate

edit or clean, remove words considered offensive from a book before publication

extraneous

external, not relevant, not essential, not important

furtive

secretive, stealthy, done in a way as to escape notice

gourmand

food lover

gourmet

a person with expert knowledge and enjoyment of good food and drink, connoisseur

grandiloquent

using high sounding language

guffaw

to laugh loudly

innuendo

a hint of something improper, sly remark, insinuation

insidious

slowly and subtly harmful or destructive, corrupting

lucent

luminous, shining, translucent, clear

lucid

bright, brilliant, easily understood

lucrative

profitable, well paid, rewarding

lurid

wild, sensational, shocking