VOCABULARY 1984:

sordid

sordid

• adjective

• wretched, dirty, or distasteful

• Because the older man lived alone and couldn’t do much tidying, his house was ___________.

feeble

• adjective

• lacking strength; frail

• Long after he’d recovered from the illness, his body remained ______.

disdainfully

• adverb

• to do with resentment or dislike because it is perceived as beneath them

• Priscilla __________ refuses the sandwich because she dislikes peanut butter.

furtive

• adjective

• secretive; so as to avoid being noticed

• Jane gave a _________ glance around the kitchen before peeking at her birthday cake.

purge

• noun

• sudden, often violent removal of people or things from a place or job

• In the beginning, a political ________ meant being expelled from the ruling party; later purges often ended in imprisonment and execution.

indoctrinate

• verb

• to teach one to accept certain ideas and beliefs without considering other ideas and beliefs

• A teacher’s job is not to _____________ her students, but to open their minds to many different ways of seeing and thinking about the world.

succumb

• verb

• to die, especially because of disease or injury

• During the deadly influenza epidemic of 1918, millions of people worldwide _____________ to the flu.

graviate

• verb

• to be attracted to something

• While a pasta buffet may have numerous variations and options, I __________ toward spaghetti with marinara sauce.

endorse

• verb

• to publicly support or approve

• For the first time in history, our town newspaper ________ a woman for president.

dissent

• noun

• disagreement with an official belief or decision

• While most people liked the new law, several protesters announced their ___________.

ideological

• adjective

• related to or concerned with ideas

• Jillian decided to leave the group for _________ reasons.

mutability

• noun

• the quality of being likely or subject to change

• The _____________ of weather patterns during hurricane season is astounding and makes it difficult to predict storms.

disconcerting

• adjective

• causing one to feel disturbed, unsettled, or bothered

• The ___________ sounds coming from the mountains worried the hikers and caused them to turn back for the day

superfluous

• adjective

• more than is needed or wanted; extra and unnecessary

• We needed only three days to finish the job, so the two other days that we had scheduled were ______________.

pretentious

• adjective

• assuming an importance or ability that is exaggerated or undeserved

• The restaurant’s __________ atmosphere is probably an attempt to conceal the fact that it serves below-average food.

forgery

• noun

• the act of falsifying a document to deceive others

• The banker committed an act of _________ when she signed someone else’s name on the check and used it for personal funds.

arbitrary

• adjective

• based on impulse, or randomly chosen

• I ignored my brother’s _________ request to wash the dishes before I did my calculus homework.

fundamental

• adjective

• basic, foundational; serving as an essential component

• To learn new math skills, you have to have a ___________ understanding of older skills.

profound

• adjective

• very great or intense

• Mr. Burke’s __________ words of encouragement inspired Nya to apply to college.

reverence

• noun

• a feeling of deepest respect or honor for something or someone

• The original copy of the Declaration of Independence is treated with ________ by visitors to the National Archives in Washington, D.C.