Sadlier Level H unit 10 defintions/syn/ant

acumen

acumen

(noun): keenness of insight; quickness or accuracy of judgment

SYN: perspicacity, shrewdness, acuity ANT: ignorance, stupidity, obtuseness

adjudicate

(verb): to act as judge in a matter; to settle through the use of a judge or legal tribunal

SYN: arbitrate, referee, mediate

anachronism

(noun): a chronological misplacing of events, objects, customs, or persons in regard to each other

SYN: chronological error

apocryphal

(adjective): of doubtful or questionable authenticity

SYN: fictitious, mythical, spurious, bogus ANT: authentic, genuine, true

disparity

(noun): a difference or inequality in age, rank, degree, amount, or quality; a dissimilarity, unlikeness

SYN: discrepancy, incongruity ANT: similarity, likeness, congruity

dissimulate

(verb): to hide or disguise one's true thoughts, feelings, or intentions

SYN: pretend, misrepresent ANT: reveal

empirical

(adjective): derived from, dependent upon, or guided by practical experience, observation, or experiment, rather than by theory; so verifiable

SYN: observed, pragmatic ANT: theoretical, hypothetical, conjectural

flamboyant

(adjective): highly elaborate or ornate; vividly colored; strikingly brilliant or bold

SYN: ostentatious, florid ANT: staid, sedate, decorous, seemly, sober

fulsome

(adjective): offensively insincere or excessive; disgusting, sickening

SYN: inordinate, repulsive ANT: understated, muted, restrained, agreeable

immolate

(verb): to kill as a sacrifice, especially by fire; to destroy or renounce for the sake of another

SYN: kill ANT: save, preserve

imperceptible

(adjective): extremely slight; incapable of being perceived by the senses or the mind

SYN: minimal, undetectable ANT: conspicuous, noticeable, flagrant

lackey

(noun): a uniformed male servant; a servile follower

SYN: toady, flunky, hanger-on ANT: lord, liege, boss

liaison

(noun): the contact or means of communication between groups; someone acting as such a contact; any close relationship; a thickening or binding agent used in cooking

SYN: intermediary, channel

monolithic

(adjective): characterized by massiveness, solidness, and total uniformity

SYN: undifferentiated, massive, dense ANT: diversified, variform, multifarious

mot juste

(noun): the most suitable or exact word or expression

ANT: misnomer, misusage, malapropism

nihilism

(noun): a total rejection of existing laws; extreme radicalism

ANT: conservatism

patrician

(noun): a member of the ruling class; a person of high rank; (adjective): belonging to, befitting, or characteristic of such a person

SYN: (n.) aristocrat, peer; (adj.) highborn ANT: (n.) commoner, plebeian

propitiate

(verb): to make someone or something favorable inclined toward oneself; to conciliate, satisfy, or appease

SYN: mollify ANT: alienate, provoke, annoy

sic

(adverb): thus so; intentionally written so

sublimate

(verb): to redirect the energy of biological or instinctive impulse into a higher or more acceptable channel

SYN: elevate