English 1600 Unit 1 -3 Vocabulary

adjunct

(n.) something added to something else as helpful or useful but not essential; an assistant or helper; a valuable quality or characteristic (adj.) added or connected in a subordinate capacity; attached to a faculty or staff in an auxiliary capacity

S: (n.) associate, addition, accessory

bellwether

(n.) the male sheep that leads the flock to the slaughterhouse; a leader, as in a desperate or violent undertaking; an indicator of trends

S: ringleader, initiator, barometer

A: follower, imitator, emulator

caterwaul

(v.) to howl or screech like a cat; to quarrel (n.) a harsh or noisy cry; a racket

S: (v.) whine; (n.) wail, screech

effete

(adj.) lacking in wholesome vigor or energy; worn-out or exhausted; sterile or unable to produce; out-of-date

S: decadent, enfeebled, outmoded

A: thriving, burgeoning, vigorous, dynamic

chimerical

(adj.) absurd; wily fantastic; impossible

S: fanciful, visionary, quixotic, pie-in-the-sky

A: realistic, down-to-earth, practiable

fait accompli

(n.) an accomplished and presumable irreversible deed, fact, or action

S: accomplished fact

hidebound

(adj.) narrow-minded and rigid, especially in opinions or prejudices; stubbornly and unthinking conservative

S: intolerant, inflexible

A: open-minded, tolerant, liberal, progressive

hierarchy

(n.) any system of things or people arranged or graded one about another in order of rank, wealth, class, etc.

S: chain of command, pecking order

laissez-faire

(adj.) a philosophy or practice characterized by a usually deliberate abstention from direction or interference, especially with individual freedom of choice and action

S: non interventional, nonrestrictive, hands-off

liturgy

(n.) a religious service or rite; the form of a ritual or other act of public worship

S: observance

morass

(n.) a patch of low, soft, wet ground; a swamp; a confusing situation in which one is entrapped, as in quicksand

S: bog, quagmire

A: sold ground, bedrock, terra firma

noisome

(adj.) offensive or disgusting; foul-smelling; harmful or injurious

S: fetid, noxious, vile, loathsome

A: wholesome, pleasant,s weet-smelling

oblivious

(adj.) forgetful; unaware

S: insensible

A: aware, mindful, cognizant, alert

poltroon

(n.) a base coward

S: craven, dastard, “chicken”

A: hero, stalwart, gallant

proselyte

(n.) a convert; a disciple

S: novice, neophyte

A: master, teacher, guide, guru

quasi

(adj.) resembling but not actually being; seemingly but not actually or completely

S: kind of, semi-, as if

A: totally, completely, actually, in fact

raillery

(n.) good-humored ridicule; teasing

S: banter, presiflage

ribald

(adj.) irreverently mocking; coarse, vulgar, or indecent in language

S: bawdy, risque

A: seemly, proper, decorous

supine

(adj.) lying flat on one’s back; listless or lethal or passive

S: prone, prostrate; inert

A: upright, erect, perpendicular, vertical

vignette

(n.) a short description or sketch; a picture of illustration with edges that gradually shade off; a decorative design on the title page of a book or at the beginning or end of a chapter

S: thumbnail sketch, anecdote

A: epic, full-length treatment

sanguine

\
adj.) having a ruddy complexion; of a naturally cheerful, confident, or optimistic outlook

S: flushes, rosy

A: bloodless, ashen, pessimistic, gloomy

aegis

(n.) protection; patronage; sponsorship

S: auspices

apprise

(v.) to inform of; to make aware of by giving oral or written notice

S: acquaint, notify

A: keep secret, withhold information

bibulous

(adj.) fond of or inclined to drink; absorbent

S; inebrious, alcoholic

A: teetotaling, abstemious, temperate

claque

n.) a group of people hired to applaud a performer or performance; enthusiastic or fawning admirers; an open hat

S: fan club, flatterers, hangers-on

deracinate

(v.) to pull up by the roots; to root out, uproot, or dislocate; to eliminate all traces of

S: extirpate, eradicate, expunge

A: implant, nurture, foster, instill

exegesis

(n.) an explanation or critical interpretation (especially of a text)

S: analysis, explication

A: mystification

indigenous

(adj.) originating in the country or region where found, native; inborn; inherent

S; endemic, domestic, homegrown

A: foreign, alien, exoteric, imported

lachrymose

(adj.) given to tears or weeping; causing to shed tears; mournful, lugubrious

S: tearful, doleful, dolorous

A: dry-eyed, cheerful, merry, hilarious

lexicon

(n.) a dictionary of a language; the special vocabulary of a person, group, or subject; a compendium

S: wordbook, glossary

melee

(n.) a confused struggle; a violent free-for-all; a tumultuous mingling

S: fracas, brawl, scuffle, donnybrook

A: friendly chat, peace and quiet

microcosm

(n.) a miniature world or universe; a group or system viewed as the model of a larger group or system

S: epitome, world in little

A: universe, macrocosm, cosmos, totality

minuscule

(adj.) very small, tiny (n.) a lowercase letter

S: (adj.) infinitesimal, insignificant

A: (adj.) huge, massive, monumental

obfuscate

(v.) to darken or obscure; to confuse or bewilder

S: muddy the waters

A: clarify, elucidate, explicate

paternalism

(n.) the policy or practice of treating or governing people in the manner of a father dealing with his children

S: benevolence, solicitude, fatherliness

polarize

(v.) to cause to concentrate around two conflicting or contrasting positions; to cause light to vibrate in a pattern

S: split, divide, alienate, estrange

A: unite, unify, reconcile

purview

n.) the range, extent, or scope of something; in law, the scope of limit of what is provided in a statute

S: jurisdiction, orbit

solecism

(n.) a substandard or ungrammatical usage, a breach of etiquette; any impropriety or mistake

S: misusage, blinder, faux pas

A: correct usage

vassal

(n.) a person under the protection of a feudal lord to whom he or she owes allegiances; a subordinate or dependent; a servant (adj.) subservient

S: (n.) menial, minion; (adj.) servile

A: (n.) overlord

verisimilitude

(n.) the quality of appearing to be true, real, likely, or probable

S: realism, lifelikeness, authenticity

eleemosynary

(adj.) charitable, dependent upon or supported by charity; derive from or provided by charity

S: philanthropic, beneficent

A: selfish, self-seeking, uncharitable

therapeutic

\
adj.) having the power to heal or cure; beneficial

S: curative, salutary, salubrious

A: harmful, injurious, deleterious

ancillary

adj.) subordinate or supplementary

S: auxiliary, subsidiary, accessory

A: central, key, primary, main

bowdlerize

(v.) to remove material considered offense (from a book, play, film, etc.)

S: censor, purge, expurgate

condescend

(v.) to come down or stoop voluntarily to a lower level; to deal with people in a patronizing manner

S; deign

cozen

(v.) to trick; to cheat or swindle

S: dupe, deceive, beguile, inveigle

enclave

(n.) an enclosed district, region, or area inhabited by a particular group of people or having a special character

S: island, subgroup

forte

(n.) a person’s strong point; what a person does best

S: gift, aptitude, speciality

A: weakness, shortcoming, foible

gratis

(adj.) free (adv.) without charge

S: (adj.) on the house; (adv.) freely

A: (adv.) for a price

icon

(n.) a representation or image of a sacred personage, often considered sacred itself; an image or picture; a symbol; a graphic symbol on a computer monitor display; an object of blind devotion

S: emblem , idol

interstice

(n.) a small, narrow space between things or parts of thing

S: gap, slot, crevice, interval, lacuna

macrocosm

(n.) the universe considered as whole; the entire complex structure of something

S: cosmos, entirety

A: model, miniature, microcosm

mountebank

(n.) a trickster or swindler; a charlatan

S: imposter, quack

A: sucker, dupe, “mark”, “pigeon”

paean

(n.) a song of praise, joy, or triumph

S: hymn, ode, anthem

A: dirge, elegy, lament, threnody

persiflage

(n.) light hearted joking, talk or writing

S: banter, jesting, repartee, badinage

plethora

(n.) overfullness; superabundance; superfluity

S: surplus, surfeit, glut, excess

A: shortage, paucity, dearth, scarcity

pragmatic

(adj.) concerned with practical considerations or values; dealing with actions and results rather than with abstract theory; stiff in one’s opinions

S: down-to-earth, businesslike

A: idealistic, impractical, visionary

quizzical

(adj.) puzzled; mocking; odd; equivocal

S: peculiar, perplexed, mystified, dersivie

A: unequivocal, crystal-clear, unambiguous

rapacity

(n.) inordinate greed; the disposition to obtain one’s desires by force, extortion, or plunder

S: avarice, cupidity, voraciousness

A: liberlity, generosity, altruism

schism

(n.) a formal split within a religious organization; anydivison or separation of a group or organization into hostile faction

S: rift, breach

A: united front, reconciliation

\
virtuoso

\
(n.) a brilliant performer; a person with masterly skill or technique (adj.) masterly or brilliant

S: (n.) expert, master, prodigy, maestro

A: (n.) amateur, beginner, novice; (adj.) mediocre