Polished Flashcards.

Scathing

Severely critical, abusive, or condemning. Example: a scathing review, or a painful scathing experience that lingers in memory.

Caustic

(adj.) The ability to burn or corrode organic tissue by chemical action; also sharp, biting, or scathing in speech. Example: a caustic remark that damages someone’s reputation.

Preponderance

A greater weight, influence, or power; an outweighing of something, such as people’s preference for pizza or the election of George Washington.

Loquacious

Excessively talkative or expressive; fond of talking.

Covariation

A relationship where two or more variables change together. Example: temperature and how long ice cream lasts; self-esteem covaries with social support across the lifespan.

Glib

Fluent and polished but shallow or insincere; slick and dismissive. Style without substance. Example: a glib response that sounds good but lacks thought.

Dilettantism

Shallow or superficial interest in a subject without mastery. From Italian dilettante (“one who delights”); knowing a little about many things but lacking depth.

Pettifogger

A person who quibbles over trivial details; especially a lawyer who uses petty, underhanded, or tricky methods.

Demagoguery

Political manipulation appealing to emotions, fear, or prejudice for personal or political gain. From demagogue, meaning a leader who exploits people.

Vitriolic

Bitterly harsh, scathing, or caustic in tone. Example: a vitriolic editor’s review tearing a novel apart line by line.

Constituency

The group of people represented by an elected official; a leader’s supporters or voters.

Altruism

Selfless concern for the well-being of others; genuine kindness without self-interest.

Callous 

Emotionally Hardened, no sympathy. Example: “Jerry’s death is callously announced across the colony”

Indurate

"Transgressions that indurates the heart."

Indurate means ‘to harden’ in Latin.

Describes a person or character that is emotionally unfeeling or callous.

Copulates, Coitus…

To Join - in Latin. Mating - in English.

Transgress

“transgress against the rules”
over boundary

Decorous

Marked by good taste (or propriety, which means good proper manners) 🫠

Decorous ending - proper ending.

Propriety

Conformity to what is socially acceptable in conduct or speech, not offending norms between the sexes. 

• The teacher reminded the students of the proprieties of classroom behavior.

• Even in casual settings, he maintained a sense of propriety.

• Some argued that the movie lacked propriety, given its explicit content.

Prim

Excessively decorous (stiffly mannerly)

Demure

Demure means having a modest resemblance, embodiment.

Vicarious

“I am a vicarious eater, often preferring a description of a meal to eating it.”

My vicarious growth through music.

Experiencing something indirectly

• Scrolling through social media, people often chase vicarious lifestyles—luxury, travel, or adventure that they can’t live themselves.

• Grandparents enjoy vicarious pleasure seeing their grandchildren grow up.

• Parents sometimes push their kids into sports or careers so they can vicariously fulfill their own unachieved dreams.

'Thin Veneer’ 

This vicarious enjoyment is given a thin veneer of respectability through a decorous ending that restores the status quo

Fragile, small amount, a cover. 

“The town had a thin veneer of prosperity, but most people were struggling.”

Mien (meen)

Demeanor

• Refers to outward behavior, conduct, or manner—how a person acts or behaves in general.

• Usually more neutral and common in everyday speech.

• Example: Her calm demeanor made everyone feel at ease.

Mien

• Refers to appearance, bearing, or expression, often emphasizing what it reveals about character or mood.

• More literary or formal.

• Carries a sense of impression or aura rather than just behavior.

• Example: The general’s stern mien commanded respect.
  
  Mien = Aura
  
  You have a very dignified mien—it commands respect.
  
  Noble Mien, Serene (nice) mien, Exuberating mien (cheerful)

Staid

He was a staid banker, never joking at the office.

The restaurant had a staid atmosphere, with dark wood furniture and classical music.

Dull and Proper.

Demure

Sober and serious mien.

elegant. shy. reserved. cute. Provocative, modest behavior. Modest likeable behavior.

Coyness, Coy

Being flirtatiously cute.


Shy, coy smile. Implies a reluctance to reveal something.

“I instead gave a coy smile too her, in an attempt to regain my pulse.”

Provocative

For Attention; Exciting. 

A provocative jacket with the words “FREEDOM” across a bloody microphone. 

Unorthodox

Unconventional; individualistic.

Abounds

“Brave New World abounds with references to”

“This piece abounds with references to Rach’s opuses” 

Forlorn

Sad or lonely, especially from being deserted or abandoned

“Darling, I miss you on every forlorn walk, along the school halls.”

Endorphine

Pain-killer hormone and chemical

Self Refutation

“If I hold all opinions, I’m never wrong” - Nam 2025

• Its also a false dilemma, because opinions itself can be wrong. 

Self-Refutation Fallacy. 

Fervent

Passionate Approval of something

Benign

Harmless

Matt Walsh said, “Even the most benign fevers gets dosed with Tylenol.”

Stern

Stiff; Disapproving in character, firm.

Topology

The study of it’s shape, structure, form, of what stays the same even if you displace, stretch, et al. Its just like the anatomy of the shape.

• smoothness of something

• study of the connections,

  • “On the subway map, stations are drawn topologically — it doesn’t show exact distances, just the order of stops.” (network topology)

• Two loops of string:

  • If you can untangle one into the other without cutting, they’re the same topologically.

Ignoring exact measurements or distances, focusing on the structure or connectivity.

Sheaf

Big Bundle of Wheat/barley.

Profusion

Of considerable amount caused by considerable growth

“The profusion of industry led to a tech revolution of the 20th century”

Indolence

Inclination of laziness. Willful laziness. 


“The profusion of government intervention led to increased unemployment and an indolent populace.”

Lethargy

Feeling of laziness.

Medical/clinical use: Lethargy often describes abnormal fatigue or reduced alertness, sometimes linked to illness, depression, or medication. (“The patient presented with fever and lethargy.”)

lack of motivation, stronger than just being “tired.”

Passive, not willful laziness. 

Languor

A dreamy, relaxed stillness or lack of energy. Poetic, like pleasantly relaxed.

(“She basked in the languor of a summer evening.”)

or, in a negative connotation, weakness caused by loss, injury, climate.

(“The patient lay in languor after the fever.”)

Enervate

something strips away vitality, leaving a person powerless.

“The profusion of government intervention enervated the people, producing unemployment, lethargy, and indolence.”

Etymology

History of the linguistic form, i.e. a word, phrase.

Lexical Cognates

A word’s connect with another word in or in a different language.

Pertinent, pertaining

Relevant to subject at hand

Heuristic 

Decision made out of continence based on prior experience. 

Representative heuristic - based on stereotype. 

“that bold looking, dark skinned large man must be a mugger.” 

Prototypical

Model, Typical,

definition by the prototypical: Categories defined by the prototypical: “Furniture are prototypically defined by chair and sofas.”.

Oasis

Fertile or water in wasteland or desert

Unseemly

Unconventional taste or manner, unattractive.

Charlie Kirk said “The conservatives viewed me as unseemly for not going to college”

Interim

“The company appointed an interim manager while they searched for a permanent one.”

Temporary during transition; Placeholder

Disseminate (a bad idea, rebellion)

Sow the seed of,

distribute information, ideas, or beliefs widely.

Neutral: spreading information, knowledge, ideas.

• “The teacher disseminated the new study materials to all students.”
  
  Negative context (bad idea, rebellion, rumors, etc.):

• “He disseminated the plan for a rebellion among the townspeople.”
  → Here, it means to spread a dangerous or undesirable idea widely, emphasizing the potential harm or threat

Forbearance

Restrain the punishment/enforcement.

Good-natured tolerance of delay or incompetence.

Iterate

Repeat. Repetition of something.

“Every iteration of the experiment resulted negative.”

Conscientiousness

Awareness, of purpose

Condescend

Attack with the feeling of superiority

Digression

Shift in main subject

Aversion

Strong inclination to avoid something

Repugnant

Something extremely ugly

Insular

narrow-minded, isolated, or uninterested in new ideas and cultures (an insular attitude toward outsiders).

Ignorant in other perspectives yet stubborn

Contrive

“Contrived a solution to a math problem”

Skillful planning, making solution, or negatively, a scheme, antic, or deception.

Cleansing the Temple 

To remove corruption from an upright place.

Bounced off Their Carapace

• Literally → an object (like a rock or bullet) hit their hard shell and ricocheted away.

• Figuratively → it can describe someone being unaffected by criticism, insults, or outside pressure, as if they had a tough “shell” protecting them.
  
  From Brave New World.

Solipsistic

Solipsistic comes from solipsism, the philosophical idea that only your own mind is sure to exist.

• Literal meaning: believing that nothing exists outside your own mind.

• Everyday use: describing someone who is so self-absorbed or wrapped up in their own perspective that they ignore or dismiss the reality, needs, or experiences of others.

From Rabbi in Community Unit from AP Lit. 

Promethean |thing|

Promethean comes from the Greek myth of Prometheus, the Titan who stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity. Is double-edged, dangerous and impactful. Reckless invention or use of something.

Synapse

An electrical signal travels down a neuron.

Finding Connections Between Unrelated Things

The poem is full of wild synapses between images and emotions.

A poet might jump from “the moon” to “a silver coin” to “a forgotten debt” — each leap is like a synapse firing.

• An artist might describe their process as “synapses lighting up,” meaning unexpected links coming alive in their mind.
  
  

A mnemonic (memory exercise) triggers an efficient, momentary firing of synapses.

Metamorphosis

Major change in form

Her metamorphosis from a shy student to a confident speaker was inspiring.

Proponent

Advocator.

“Proponent of pro-life moment”

Ostentatious

Showy, seeking approval.

I bought an ostentatious necklace for my pookie.

Pretentious

Undeserved fame and attention. 

Clamor

Intense Outcry

"My concerns for her diet raised in a clamor. “Stop eating doughnuts!”

“People’s clamor’s for order and God were heard, and the war was won'“

“In her mind, a clamor of doubts and fears kept her awake all night.”


Figuratively, clamor works for any situation where there’s a loud or intense outcry, whether literally or metaphorically.

Prospect

expectations for the future

Reconciliation

Restoration of a relationship

“Making peace after a conflict or coming to an agreement.”

Ardent

Passionate assertion of an opinion.
Passionate.

Warm, burning.

“an ardent lover”

“the ardent student devoured history books.”

Ordained

Predestined, by the divine.

Insidious 

Intended to entrap or deceive; subtle and harmful.

Disease and ideas. Subtle, but gradually very harmful.

"An insidious scheme often undermines trust in relationships."

Scandalous

Behavior that is morally wrong, damaged public reputation.

• The politician resigned after a scandalous affair was revealed.

• It was scandalous that the company paid its workers so little.

• The celebrity’s scandalous outfit made headlines.

Agnosticism

Truth is unobtainable.
Nether deny or accept God.

Gnostic Dualism

We are really souls in bodies, souls are true selves.