Section 2: Lesson 1 and 2 Vocabulary

Lothario (noun)

Lothario (noun)

unscrupulous rake; seducer; lover of many (like Joey from Friends)

milquetoast (noun)

a meek or timid person; “afraid of their own shadow”

lethargy (noun)

apathy; torpor; lack of interest; lazy

chauvinism (noun)

overzealous patriotism; undue partiality to any group or place; a strong belief in one’s own group. (usually has the word male before it)

Janus-faced (adj.)

two-faced; hypocritical

braggadocio (noun)

empty boasting; pretentious bragging

bacchanalia (noun)

wild celebration (usually with drunken orgies); excessive indulgence in an activity that is orgiastic

jabberwocky (noun)

gibberish,nonsense language

Shangri-la (noun)

an ideal place; similar to a remote paradise (usually not known to the public)

pyrrhic victory (noun)

a victory at a tremendous cost

spoonerism (noun)

transportation of usual initial sounds of two or more words

ex: crooks and nannies instead of nooks and crannies

sadistic (adj.)

deliberately cruel; taking pleasure in inducing pain in others

malaprop[ism] (noun)

unintentional humorous misuse of a word or phrase

Panglossian (noun, adj)

naive; blindly optimistic; hopeful

Babbitt (noun)

stereotype of the complacent American middle-class; the ideal for the narrow minded self-satisfaction

crossing the Rubicon

passing a limit that permits no return

pandemonium (noun)

uproar; chaos; confusion

philistine (noun)

a materialistic person; indifferent to art, music, or dance

Machiavellian (adj.)

politically devious; amoral; Adolf Hitler in politics and governance; wanted to retain power by almost any means

martinet (noun)

taskmaster; drill sergeant