Dystopian lit vocab midterm

wadwad

Anomaly

irregular, abnormal, unusual

Aspersion

damaging insults

Bizarre

strange, unusual, odd, weird

Brusque

abrupt, blunt, rude

Cajole

to persuade with flattery, sweet talk

Castigate

to punish or criticize harshly

Contrive

to plan with cleverness

Demagogue

a leader who manipulates people by using false claims to gain power

Disabuse

to enlighten or change someone's thinking

Ennui

boredom, weariness, lack of interest

Heinous

extremely evil or bad

Immutable

constant, unchangeable

Insurgent

one who rebels or rises against authority

Megalomania

delusions, feeling of power, wealth, talent

Sinecure

an easy job that requires little or no effort

Surreptitious

sneaky and secretive to escape being caught

Transgress

to sin, violate a limit or law

Transmute

to transform

Vicarious

experiencing through another

Fetter

a chain or restrain, to make helpless or powerless

Fractious

disobedient, unruly, quarrelsome

Extricate

disentangle, to free from difficulties, to remove with effort

Straitlaced

morally strict; puritanical

Precept

principle of action or behavior

Unwieldy

not easily carried or managed because of size or complexity; cumbersome

Scourge

the cause of suffering, a source of great harm and suffering, plague

Amnesty

pardon or forgiveness for a crime or wrongdoing

Flout

to disregard, ignore or scorn disrespectfully, mock

Axiomatic

self-evident, expressing a universally accepted principle or rule

Soporific

causing sleep

Transient

temporary, lasting for a short time

Caveat

a warning or caution

Sepulchral

gloomy and tomblike, funeral-like

Vapid

dull, uninteresting, tiresome; lacking in sharpness, flavor, liveliness, or force

Salutary

beneficial and helpful to one's health

Blazon

to display noticeably; proclaim, broadcast

Equitable

fair, equal, just

Autonomy

self-government, independent

Filch

to steal little things sneakily; to pilfer

Scathing

bitterly critical, withering; causing great harm

Erudite

book-smart, scholarly, well read, learned

Aura

that which surrounds; a distinctive air or personal quality

Remonstrate

to argue or plead with someone against something, to protest against, to object to, to expostulate

Aggrandize

to increase in power, influence, and reputation; to build up or intensify

Querulous

whiny and complaining, petulant, cranky, irritable

Affable

friendly, sociable and pleasant

Repudiate

to reject, disown, deny the truth of or validity of

Inscrutable

incapable of being understood, difficult to fathom or understand; impossible to see through

Amorphous

shapeless, without definite form; without organization

Insular

sheltered, narrow minded, provincial

Infer

to figure out by reasoning

Resilient

able to bounce back or recover quickly; able to return to an original shape or form

Sedulous

persistent, hard-working, determined, tireless

Contraband

illegal stuff; prohibited goods

Sleazy

dishonest, corrupt, low class, inferior, sketchy

Reverberate

to echo or resound

Gossamer

light, delicate, gauze-like; light cloth

Propensity

tendency, proclivity, inclination

Scurrilous

vulgar, nasty, abusive

Irrevocable

incapable of being changed, irreversible, unalterable

Abominate

despise, loathe

Acculturate

to adapt to a culture or group

Adventitious

extrinsic, unnatural, random, accidentally

Ascribe

to credit as to the cause or the source

Circuitous

indirect, roundabout

Commiserate

sympathize with, pity, sorrow

Enjoin

to direct or order

Expedite

to speed up

Expiate

to make up for something bad you did

Ferment

a state of great excitement, agitation, unrest, stir up, or turbulence

inadvertent

unintentional; accidental

Nominal

existing in name only; too small to be considered or taken seriously

Proclivity

a natural or habitual inclination or tendency

Peculate

(v.) to steal something that has been given into one's trust; to embezzle

Sangfroid

composure in danger or difficultly, aplomb

Seditious

rebellious, having the purpose to overthrow the government

Tenuous

flimsy, shaky, thin, lacking a good basis

Vitriolic

bitter, sarcastic, malicious

Wheedle

sweet talk, flattery to get what you want

Noncommittal

not decisive or definite, not committed

Ameliorate

to improve, make an unpleasant situation better

Aplomb

confidence, composure

Bombastic

overblown in language, full of high sounding words that lack ideas

Callow

immature and inexperienced

Drivel

to utter nonsense or childish chatter, let saliva flow

Epitome

the perfect example of

Exhort

to urge strongly

Ex Offcio

holding a certain office or position

Infringe

to violate, trespass, go beyond recognized bounds

ingratiate

to make someone favor you if accept you by praising/pleasing them

Interloper

someone who intrudes, moves in when not they're wanted

intrinsic

doing something because you genuinely enjoy it or find it meaningful. Essential for the nature of something, coming from within, inherent

Extrinsic

You do something to gain something. Not inherent of essential, coming from the outside

Inveigh

strongly criticize someone or something in words

Lassitude

weariness of body or mind, lack of energy, fatigue

Millennium

a period of one thousand years, a period of great joy

Occult

mysterious, supernatural

Permeate

to spread through, penetrate, soak through

Precipitate

to fall as moisture; to cause or bring quickly without thought

Stringent

strict, severe