Unit 1 - Vocab

Acquisitive

able to get and retain ideas or information; concerned with acquiring wealth or property
Synonyms — greedy, grasping, avaricious, retentive
Antonyms — altruistic, unretentive

Arrogate

to claim or take without right
Synonyms — expropriate, usurp, commandeer
Antonyms — relinquish, renounce, abdicate, abandon

Banal

hackneyed, trite, commonplace
Synonyms — stale, insipid
Antonyms — fresh, novel, original, new

Belabor

to work on excessively; to thrash soundly
Synonym — overwork

Carping

tending to find fault, especially in a petty, nasty, or hairsplitting way; petty, nagging criticism
Synonym — nit-picking, caviling
Antonym — approving, uncritical

Coherent

holding or sticking together; making a logical whole; comprehensible, meaningful
Synonym — connected, unified
Antonym — muddled, chaotic

Congeal

to change from liquid to solid, thicken; to make inflexible or rigid
Synonym — harden, jell, coagulate, solidify
Antonym — melt, liquefy

Emulate

to imitate with the intent of equaling or surpassing the model
Synonym — copy, mimic, rival, match, measure up to

Encomium

a formal expression of praise, a lavish tribute
Synonym — panegyric, eulogy, commendation
Antonym — condemnation, castigation, criticism

Eschew

to avoid, shun, keep away from
Synonym — abstain from, steer clear of, forgo
Antonym — embrace, adopt

Germane

relevant, appropriate, apropos, fitting
Synonym — pertinent
Antonym — irrelevant, extraneous, inappropriate

Insatiable

so great or demanding as not to be satisfied
Synonym — unquenchable, ravenous, voracious

Intransigent

refusing to compromise, irreconcilable
Synonym — uncompromising, unyielding, obdurate
Antonym — lukewarm, halfhearted, yielding

Invidious

offensive, hateful, tending to cause bitterness and resentment
Synonym — malicious, spiteful, prejudicial, pejorative
Antonym — complimentary, flattering, ameliorative

Largesse

generosity in giving; lavish or bountiful contributions
Synonym — liberality, munificence, bounty
Antonym — stinginess, miserliness, niggardliness

Reconnaissance

a survey made for military purposes; any kind of preliminary inspection or examination
Synonym — scouting expedition

Substantiate

to establish by evidence, prove; to give concrete or substantial form to
Synonym — verify, confirm, validate, authenticate
Antonym — refute, disprove, invalidate

Taciturn

habitually silent or quiet, inclined to talk very little
Synonym — tight-lipped, uncommunicative, laconic
Antonym — garrulous, loquacious, prolix, verbose

Temporize

to stall or act evasively in order to gain time, avoid a confrontation, or postpone a decision; to compromise
Synonym — hedge, dillydally, procrastinate

Tenable

capable of being held or defended
Synonym — defensible, justifiable, maintainable
Antonym — indefensible, unjustifiable