Quarter 2 Vocab

abate

something that becomes fewer or less intense; make less active; reducing in intensity

abjure

(verb) to formally reject a formerly held belief; to dissociate yourself from a belief you once held (like a christian becoming atheist)

aegis

(noun) armor that protect your chest; guidance or endorsement

aesthetic

(adjective) appreciation of good taste/beauty

allay

(verb) to ease or make something better; to eliminate fears or concerns; to lesson intensity of; could also mean to satisfy your thirst needs

amorphous

(adjective) shapeless; having no clearly defined form; having no definite form or distinct shape

antipathy

strong feelings against; hatred and loathing; intense dislike

antipodes

the other side of the world; two places that are on opposite sides of Earth

apostasy

rejecting what has been a strong belief and adopting a new one; the state of having rejected your religious beliefs or your political party or a cause (often in favor of opposing beliefs or causes); basically a formal renunciation of a religious faith

apposite

being of striking appropriateness and pertinence; fitting or relevant

archive

an official depository containing historical records and documents; to file away

ascertain

(as certain=to determine if somethings true) to learn or discover with certainty; to be careful or certain to do something

ascetic

self denial as a spiritual discipline: giving up something because of your faith (like fasting); can also can be used to describe a monk that does this

ascribe

to attribute something to someone

concomitant

things that are naturally together but something is in charge (like hamburger goes with french fries); an event or situation that happens simultaneously in connection with the other thing

condescend

(verb) to behave in a patronizing matter; to treat others with arrogance

conversant

(adjective) (usually followed by "with") well informed or knowing something thoroughly

cosmic

(adjective) pertaining to cosmos or the universe

cosmopolitan

(adjective) of worldwide scope or applicability; growing or occurring in many parts of the world; (noun) a sophisticated person who has traveled in many different countries

coterie

(noun) an exclusive circle of people with a common purpose

coterie

clique or group (brought together by a common interests)

covet

eagerly desire something; to wish, long, or crave for something (especially in the property of someone else)

credible

something that is believable or capable of being believed

credulous

someone who is able to believe something; someone who is gullible or believes things easily

cryptic

(adjective) having secret or hidden meaning; mysterious

culpable

blamed or guilty of doing something; deserving blame because your responsible for a crime

culprit

a person who does something wrong, like committing a crime; the person who done did it

cupidity

(cupid is the god of lust=a desire for wealth or power) a burning desire to have more wealth than you need; extreme greed for material wealth

cynic

one who believes that humans are motivated by self-interesting; someone who is not immediately trusting of someone

dearth

total lack of something; an insufficient number of something

debilitate

to make weak

decorum

(noun) proper or polite behavior

decrepit

(adjective) worn and broken down by hard use; lacking bodily or muscular strength; lacking vitality

defamatory

a word used to describe statements that are untrue, slanderous, or libelous; mean comments to ruin someone reputation

defection

(noun) the act of shifting your support to a new cause; withdrawing support or help despite allegiance or responsibility; abandonment; the state of having rejected your previous belief for a new one

deleterious

(adj) does harm or makes things worse; harmful to living things

demure

(adj) polite and a little shy; modest or shy; modesty

denizen

a person who lives somewhere; an inhabitant of a residence

derive

(verb) to obtain; to come from; reason by deduction

derogatory

insulting or disrespectful; nasty thing to say to someone (mean thing)

desiccate

to dry out or to to absorb moisture (desiccating a grape gets a raisin);lacking vitality or spirit

desist

to stop completely; halt

detriment

a damage or loss; to your harm

devoid

completely lacking (the sentence was devoid of meaning)

diatribe

a rant or verbal bitter attack

disparage

(verb) to express a negative opinion of; belittle a person or idea

dogma

a set of beliefs that are held to; religious context (usually); the doctrine of belief in a religion or a political system.

drastic

extreme and forceful

embellish

to decorate and add little intricate details to make it look better or more attractive

eschew

to habitually stay away from something

eugenics

selective breeding; engineering a better human population by breeding for certain genes

euphony

producing good sound; any pleasing and harmonious sound

evanescent

tending to vanish; temporary; to poof (like a vapor)

evocative

something that serves to bring something to mind (that smell is evocative of childhood memories)

evoke

call to mind or bring forth (anything from emotions, feelings, and responses)

excise

to remove by cutting; or a tax that is added to the store price so it doesn't show up additionally on the receipt (like with alcohol and cigarettes)

frivolous

(adjective) not serious in content; silly or unneccessary

gratuitous

(adjective) unnecessary and unwarranted; without cause; costing nothing and being mildly annoying

humdrum

(adjective) tediously repetitive or lacking variety; (noun) the quality of wearisome constancy, routine, and lack of variety; dull or boring

hyperbole

(noun) extreme exaggeration

ignominious

(used of conduct or character) deserving or bringing disgrace or shame (Hester in the scarlet letter); shameful

immutable

(adjective) not subject or susceptible to change or variation in form or quality or nature

impunity

to act without fear of punishment; someone who acts above the law; exemption from punishment or loss

inane

doesnt make sense; completely irrelevant; with literally no meaning/purpose

inanimate

lifeless; no spirit or will

incarcerate

to put someone in jail; to imprison

incompatible

(adjective) unable to work together; not easy to combine harmoniously; drugs that counteract or neutralize each other's effect

increment

(noun) the amount by which something increases; becoming larger or more numerous

inculcate

to teach through frequent instruction; teach and impress by frequent repetitions

induction

something that begins a process or a series of events; an entry into an organization or position or office; reasoning from detailed facts to general principles

ingenuous

young, or naive; childlike innocence, trust, and openness

iniquity

a really unfair or really immoral act/behavior; wicked-ness; sinfulness

insular

(insulated) having a narrow view of the world; relating to or characteristic of or situated on an island

laity

the regular people in the religious setting; members of a religious community that are not priests

lampoon

to make fun of or ridicule with satire (the onion)

loquacious

(adjective) someone who talks A LOT; a chatty person

microcosm

(noun) a miniature representation/model of something

mien

the attitude you project; a person's appearance, manner, or demeanor

modicum

a little amount (add a modicum of salt for some extra enhancing flavor)

mundane

ordinary; hum drum details; opposite of extraordinary

nefarious

extremely wicked

opulence

(adj) drenched in wealth

ostentatious

intended to attract notice and impress others; flashy/showy; overdone excessive show of something

palliate

to lesson the violence of; to ease the symptoms without curing; reduce one's pain; try to make something less bad

panegyric

(adj) expressing praise of someone (like a eulogy at a funeral)

predilection

a preference for or bias toward something; a strong liking; built in preference for something

prescience

(pre=before) foreknowledge; the power to foresee the future

presumptuous

assuming too much; arrogant; you assume things are ok that are not

protagonist

the principal character in a work of fiction; a person who backs a politician or a team etc.

protégé

a person who receives support from a mentor

prototype

an original model on which later versions are created based off of

proxy

someone who does something in your place (you authorize them to do it for you)

puissance

(noun) the power to influence what others do or believe

punctilious

you're a rule follower at all times; you pay attention to all details

purport

what he says he is (he presents himself as a cop); when you want to convince people about something that might not be true; the main point or meaning

pusillanimous

slang word (ahem ahemmm); lacking courage

querulous

constantly complaining; whiny

quiescent

marked by inactivity or tranquility; still or quiet

raillery

back and forth banter; a good nature conversation

raucous

out of control; uproarious; loud or noisy