Exam study guide

admonish

admonish

to caution or advise against something; to scold mildly; to remind of a duty

breach

an opening, gap, rupture, rift; a violation of infraction; to create an opening

brigand

a bandit, robber, outlaw, highwayman

circumspect

careful, cautious

commandeer

to seize for military or official use

cumbersome

clumsy, hard to handle; slow-moving

deadlock

a standstill resulting from the opposition of two equal forces or factions; to bring such a stand still

debris

scattered fragments, wreckage

diffuse

to spread or scatter freely or widely; wordy, long-winded, or unfocused; scattered or widely spread

dilemma

a difficult or perplexing situation or problem

efface

to wipe out; to keep oneself from being noticed

muddle

to make a mess of; to get by; a hopeless mess

opinionated

stubborn and often unreasonable in holding to one's own ideas, having a closed mind

perennial

lasting for a long time, persistent; a plant that lives for many years

predispose

to incline to beforehand

relinquish

to let go, give up

salvage

to save from fire or shipwreck; property thus saved

spasmodic

sudden and violent but brief; fitful; intermittent

spurious

not genuine, not true, not valid

unbridled

uncontrolled, lacking in restraint

adjourn

to stop proceedings temporarily; move to another place

alien

a citizen of another country; foreign, strange

comely

having a pleasing appearance

compensate

to make up for; to repay for services

dissolute

loose in one's morals or behavior

erratic

not regular or consistent; different from what is ordinarily expected; undependable

expulsion

the process of driving or forcing out

feint

a deliberately deceptive movement; a pretense; to make a deceptive movement; to make a pretense of

fodder

food for horses or cattle; raw material for a designated purpose

fortify

to strengthen, build up

illegible

difficult or impossible to read

jeer

to make fun of rudely or unkindly; a rude remark of derision

lucrative

bringing in money; profitable

mediocre

average, ordinary, undistinguished

proliferate

to reproduce, increase, or spread rapidly

subjugate

to conquer by force, bring under complete control

sully

to soil, stain, tarnish, defile, besmirch

tantalize

to tease, torment by teasing

terse

brief and to the point

unflinching

firm, showing no signs of fear, not drawing back

abridge

to make shorter

adherent

a follower, supporter; attached, sticking to

altercation

an angry argument

cherubic

resembling an angel portrayed as a little child with a beautiful, round, or chubby face; sweet and innocent

condone

to pardon or overlook

dissent

to disagree; disagreement

eminent

famous, outstanding, distinguished; projecting

exorcise

to drive out by magic; to dispose of something troublesome, menacing, or oppressive

fabricate

to make, manufacture; to make up, invent

irate

angry

marauder

a raider, plunderer

obesity

excessive fatness

pauper

an extremely poor person

pilfer

to steal in small quantities

rift

a split, break, breach

semblance

a likeness; an outward appearance; an apparition

surmount

to overcome, rise above

terminate

to bring to an end

trite

commonplace; overused, stale

usurp

to seize and hold a position by force or without right

abscond

to run off and hide

access

approach or admittance to places, persons, things; an increase; to get at, obtain

anarchy

a lack of government and law; confusion

arduous

hard to do, requiring much effort

auspicious

favorable; fortunate

biased

favoring one side unduly; prejudiced

daunt

to overcome with fear, intimidate; to dishearten, discourage

disentangle

to free from tangles or complications

fated

determined in advance by destiny or fortune

hoodwink

to mislead by a trick, deceive

inanimate

not having life; without energy or spirit

incinerate

to burn to ashes

intrepid

very brave, fearless, unshakable

larceny

theft

pliant

bending readily; easily influenced

pompous

overly self-important in speech and manner; excessively stately or ceremonious

precipice

a very steep cliff; the brink or edge of disaster

rectify

to make right, correct

reprieve

a temporary relief or delay; to grant a postponement

revile

to attack with words, call bad names

accomplice

a person who takes part in a crime

annihilate

to destroy completely

arbitrary

unreasonable; based on one's wishes or whims without regard for reason or fairness

brazen

shameless, impudent; made of brass

catalyst

a substance that causes or hastens a chemical reaction; any agent that causes change

exodus

a large-scale departure or flight

facilitate

to make easier; to assist

incorrigible

not able to be corrected; beyond control

latent

hidden, present but not realized

militant

given to fighting; active and aggressive in support of a cause; an activist

morose

having a gloomy or sullen manner; not friendly or sociable

opaque

not letting light through; not clear or lucid; dense, stupid

paramount

chief in importance, above all others

prattle

to talk in an aimless foolish or simply way to babble; baby talk; babble

rebut

to offer arguments or evidence that contradicts an assertion; to refute

reprimand

to scold; find fault with; a rebuke

servitude

slavery, forced labor

slapdash

careless and hasty

stagnant

not running or flowing; foul from standing still; inactive, sluggish, dull

succumb

to give way to superior force, yield