Vocabulary for the College Bound Student, Chapter 2 (all)

ameliorate (v)

become better; make better; improve; enhance

amelioration (n)

improvement, betterment

conserve (v)

keep from waste,loss, or decay; save

conservation (n)

preservation from loss, injury, or waste

conservationist (n)

one who advocates the conversation of natural resorces

detriment (n)

injury, damage, or something that causes it; disadvantage

detrimental (adj)

harmful; damaging

exotic (adj)

1. introduced from another country; foreign
2. strikingly

folly (n)

lack of good sense; foolish action or undertaking

formerly (adv)

in an earlier period; previously

former (adj)

preceding; previous

harmony (n)

peaceable or friendly relations; accord; agreement; tranquillity;concord

harmonious (adj)

friendly; amicable

ignore (v)

refuse to take notice of; disregard

ignoramus (n)

ignorant, stupid person; dunce; dolt; dullard; nincompoop

impediment (n)

something that hinders or obstructs; hindrance; obstacle

impede (v)

interfere with or slow the progress of; hinder; obstruct

indolent (adj)

disposed to avoid exertion; lazy;idle;lethargic

indolence (n)

idleness; laziness

intact (adj)

untouched by anything that damages or diminishes; left complete or entire; uninjured

invalid (adj)

not binding in law; having no force or effect; void; nugatory

invalidate (v)

abolish; annual

invalid (n)

sickly or disabled person

noncarcinogenic (adj)

not producing, or tending to produce, cancer

parsimonious (adj)

unduly sparing in the spending in the spending of money; stingy; miserly; tightfisted

parsimony (n)

stinginess; parsimoniousness

raze (v)

destroy utterly by tearing down; demolish; level

reticent (adj)

inclined to be silent or secretive; uncommunicative; reserved

reticence (n)

restraint in communicating

retire (v)

1. withdraw from active duty or business
2. go to bed

retort (v)

answer; reply sharply or angrily

retort (n)

quick, witty, or sharply or angrily ; answer

subvert (v)

overturn or overthrow from the foundation; undermine

subversion (n)

sabotage; undermining

tractable (adj)

easily led, taught, or controlled; yielding; docile; amenable

tractability (n)

obedience

baffle (v)

bewilder; perplex; fill with confusion; puzzle; frustrate

baffling (adj)

frustrating; bewildering

cinema (n)

movies; motion-picture industry

cinematography (n)

art of making motion pictures

despise (v)

look down on with contempt or disgust;loathe; regard as inferior

despicable (adj)

worthy or contempt; contemptible

ebullient (adj)

overflowing with enthusiasm; exuberant; effervescent; high-spirited; vivacious

ebullience (n)

exuberance: overflowing with eager enjoyment or approval

exaggerate (v)

overstate; go beyond the limits of the actual truth; magnify

exaggeration (n)

overstatement, hyperbole

exhort (v)

arouse by words; advise strongly; urge

exhortation (n)

urgent recommendation or advice

expertise (n)

specialized skill or technical knowledge knowledge; know-how; expertness

finicky (adj)

excessively concerned with trifles or details; hard to please; fussy; particular;fastidious;persnickety

gall (v)

make sore; irritate mentally;annoy; vex

gall (n)

brazen boldness;nerve

inane (adj)

lacking significance or sense; pointless; silly; insipid; jejune; vapid

inanity (n)

foolishness; shallowness

indemnify (v)

compensate for loss, damage, or injury; reimburse; repay

occident (n)

west; countries of America and Europe

occidental (adj)

western

peruse (v)

read thoroughly and carefully

perusal (n)

reading; study

scuffle (v)

wrestle; grapple

scuffle (n)

a fight

spurn (v)

reject with disdain or contempt

stipend (n)

a salary or allowance

surveillance (n)

close watch over a person, group, or area

tepid (adj)

moderately warm; lukewarm; characterized by a lack of force or enthusiasm

tepidly (adv)

unenthusiastically; lukewarmly

wager (v)

to gamble; bet

wager (n)

a bet, gamble

wane (v)

to get smaller, dimmer, or weaker; to near an end

abhorrent (adj)

in conflict; utterly opposed; loathsome; repugnant; odious; abominable

abhor (v)

to hate, detest

admonish (v)

warn of a fault; reprove; rebuke

admonition (n)

gentle warning; friendly reproof

ambrosial (adj)

delicious, fragrant, divine

confine (v)

shut up; imprison; keep in narrow, cramped quarters

confinement (n)

imprisonment; restriction within limits or boundaries

decade (n)

period of ten years

detonate (v)

cause (something) to explode

detonation (n)

explosion

ephemeral (adj)

lasting one day only; fleeting; transitory; short-lived; transient

gullible (adj)

credulous

gull (v)

deceive; cheat

haggle (v)

wrangle (over a price, terms of an agreement, etc.)

immerse (v)

1.plunge or place into a liquid; dip; duck
2. engross;absorb

immersion (n)

state of being engrossed

insomnia (n)

inability to sleep; abnormal wakefulness; sleeplessness

insomniac (n)

person suffering from insomnia

lapse (n)

1. slip; error; accidental mistake; trivial fault
2. interval

lapse (v)

cease being in force; become invalid

probe (n)

investigation

prober (n)

investigator

render (v)

hand down officially; deliver (as a verdict); give

rendering (n)

presentation; interpretation

repast (n)

food for one occasion of eating; meal

replenish (v)

bring back to conditions to being full

score (n)

group or set of 20

snub (n)

act or instance of snubbing

snub (v)

treat with disdain

suture (n)

strand or fiber use to sew parts of the living body

unwittingly (adv)

unintentionally