Vocabulary and Spelling 4.1 - 4.5

aviary

n. - a place where birds are kept

breach

n. - failure to do; violation

Breviary

n. - CAPITALIZED; name of a book of hymns, prayers

de rigueur

adj. - FRENCH; necessary to blend in to social norms

ensemble

n. - group of people or things that make up a complete unit

hamper

v. - to slow the movement, progress, or action of (someone or something)

hornet

n. - a flying insect that has a powerful sting

machismo

n. - way of behaving that agrees with traditional ideal of men being very strong and aggressive

piquant

adj. - having a pleasant, spicy taste; interesting and exciting

précis

n. - a brief summary of main points and ideas

rehash

v. - to talk about or discuss (something) again

remedy

n. - medicine or treatment that relieves pain or cures a usually minor illness

serendipity

n. - luck that takes the form of finding valuable or pleasant things that are not looked for

sober

adj. - not drunk

somber

adj. - very sad

stealthy

adj. - slow, deliberate, and secret in action or character

tinker

v. - to try to repair or improve something (such as a machine) by making small changes or adjustments to it

trough

n. - a long, narrow open container for animals to eat or drink out of

trout

n. - a common fish that lives in rivers and lakes and is often used as food

wry

adj. - cleverly and often ironically or grimly humorous

abstruse

adj. - difficult to understand

arduous

adj. - difficult, tiring, needing much effort

complex

adj. - difficult to understand as it has many parts

convoluted

adj. - unreasonably long and hard to follow

gruelling

adj. - extremely tiring and difficult

insufferable

adj. - difficult to bear as it is annoying or uncomfortable

obstructive

adj. - causing deliberate difficulties

stiff

adj. - difficult to beat

tough

adj. - difficult to deal with or do

traumatic

adj. - shocking and upsetting

wayward

adj. - changeable, selfish and/or hard to control

accede

v. - accept, but often associated with an initial unwillingness to accept something or give permission

acquiesce

v. - permit something to happen, but often associated with a degree of secrecy or conspiracy

assent

v. - agree to something, often associated with plans, proposals, or ideas

authorize

v. - give official permission

condone

v. - approve or allow something which most people consider to be wrong

countenance

v. - consider giving assent or permission often used in negative contexts

endorse

v. - give official approval to something

outlaw

v. - to make something illegal

bar

v. - officially exclude; forbid someone access to something

affinity

n. - fondness; liking; similarity

akin

adj. - related by blood; having similar qualities or character

analogy

n. - a comparison between two things, typically for the purpose of explanation or clarification

correspond

v. - have a close similarity; match or agree almost exactly

equate

v. - consider (one thing) to be the same as or equivalent to another

tantamount

adj. - equivalent in seriousness to; virtually the same as

interchangeable

adj. - (of two things) able to be interchanged

indistinguishable

adj. - not able to be identified as different or distinct

aggregate

n. - a whole formed by combining several separate elements

blip

n. - an unexpected, minor, and typically temporary deviation from a general trend

continuum

n. - something that keeps on going, changing slowly over time

correlation

n. - a mutual relationship or connection between two or more things

deviate

v. - depart from an established course

discrepancy

n. - an illogical or surprising lack of compatibility or similarity between two or more facts

erratic

adj. - not even or regular in pattern or movement; unpredictable

flawed

adj. - characterized by a fundamental weakness or imperfection

fluctuate

v. - rise and fall irregularly in number or amount

exultant

adj. - triumphantly happy

jubilant

adj. - feeling or expressing great happiness and triumph

scrawny

adj. - (of a person or animal) unattractively thin and bony

calm before the storm

adj. - things may be peaceful now, but it won't last

jump on the bandwagon

v. - adopt a popular trend or activity

the tip of the iceberg

n. - there's a lot more going on than what's obvious

throw in the towel

v. - give up or surrender

beat around the bush

v. - spend a long time getting to the main point of what you're actually trying to say

to hold out an olive branch

v. - extending a hand of friendship and offering peace

clear as mud

adj. - something is actually not clear at all

sail close to the wind

v. - to act just within the limits

up in the air

adj. - a situation is uncertain or unsure

sunder

adj. - being overwhelmed with a large amount of work

chasing rainbows

v. - pursuing a very difficult goal

weather a storm

v. - enduring something that is difficult

under the weather

adj. - not your usual self, feeling a little sick

in a nutshell

adj. - to describe (something) briefly and concisely

full of beans

adj. - energetic

not one's cup of tea

n. - an activity you have no interest in

a couch potato

n. - someone who spends a lot of time on the couch

to go Dutch

v. - when everyone pays for their own meal

look like a million bucks

adj. - look absolutely fabulous

cutting corners

v. - trying to save money

draw the line at (something)

v. - refuse to behave in a certain way because you think it is wrong

a kick in the teeth

n. - an insult or unfair act

a stumbling block

n. - an obstacle

open ended

adj. - having no planned ending, can be developed in many ways

state-of-the-art

adj. - most modern, most technically advanced

a kick in the teeth

n. - an insult or unfair act

know what's what

n. - an expert

the brains behind

n. - the most intelligent person in the company

mine of information

n. - a rich source of information

grey matter

n. - intelligence, brains

nobody's fool

adj. - is very clever

gift of the gab

adj. - talks well and persuasively

can't make head or tail

n. - can't understand

in the same boat

adj. - sharing a similar situation or predicament with others

cut to the chase

n. - been talking too long and needs to get to the point

face the music

v.. - to deal with the reality of a situation and accept all the consequences

eyeball it

v. - To estimate an amount of something based on how it looks

spill the beans

v. - to accidentally or prematurely give out information that's supposed to be kept secret.

nip something in the bud

v. - to stop a bad situation from becoming worse by taking action at an early stage of its development

barking up the wrong tree

v. - efforts have been put into something that won't produce the desired outcome