Sadlier-Oxford Vocab Level H - Unit 1

adjunct

(noun)

something added to something else as helpful or useful but not essential; an assistant or helper; a valuable quality or characteristic

(adjective)

added or connected in a subordinate capacity; attached to a faculty or staff in an auxiliary capacity

bellwether

(noun)

the male sheep that leads the flock to the slaughterhouse; a leader, as in a desperate or violent undertaking; an indicator of trends

caterwaul

(verb)

to howl or screech like a cat; to quarrel

(noun)

a harsh or noisy cry; a racket

chimerical

(adjective)

absurd; wildly fantastic; impossible

effete

(adjective)

lacking in wholesome vigor or energy; worn-out or exhausted; sterile or unable to produce; out-of-date

fait accompli

(noun)

an accomplished and presumably irreversible deed, fact, or action

hidebound

(adjective)

narrow-minded and rigid, especially in opinions or prejudices; stubbornly and unthinkingly conservative

hierarchy

(noun)

any system of things or people arranged or graded one above another in order of rank, wealth, class, etc.

liturgy

(noun)

a religious service or rite; the form of a ritual or other act of public worship

mirage

(noun)

something illusory, without substance or without a basis in reality; an illusion

morass

(noun)

a patch of low, soft, wet ground; a swamp; a confusing situation in which one is entrapped, as in quicksand

noisome

(adjective)

offensive or disgusting; foul-smelling; harmful or injurious

oblivious

(adjective)

forgetful; unaware

poltroon

(noun)

a base coward

proselyte

(noun)

a convert; a disciple

quasi

(adjective)

resembling but not actually being; seemingly but not actually or completely

raillery

(noun)

good-humored ridicule; teasing

ribald

(adjective)

irreverently mocking; coarse, vulgar, or indecent in language

supine

(adjective)

lyng flat on one's back; listless or lethargic; apathetic or passive

vignette

(noun)

a short description or sketch; a picture or illustration with edges that gradually shade off; a decorative design on the title page of a book or at the beginning or end of a chapter