Comprehensive Vocabulary and Macbeth Review

Vocabulary list covering general literary terms and specific Shakespearean terms from the play Macbeth.

Supplicant

A person who makes a humble or earnest plea to someone in power or authority.

Libation

A drink poured out as an offering to a deity.

Apportion

To divide and allocate to various recipients.

Apt

Appropriate or suitable in given circumstances or for a specific purpose.

Congenial

Pleasant due to having qualities or interests similar to one's own.

Impregnable

Unable to be captured, broken into, or defeated.

Engulf

To sweep over something so as to surround or cover it completely.

Circumvent

To find a way around an obstacle or difficulty.

Deference

Humble submission and respect toward another person.

Adamant

Refusing to be persuaded or to change one's mind.

Aegis

The protection, backing, or support of a particular person or organization.

Cordial

Warm and friendly in manner.

Bough

A main branch of a tree.

Sordid

Involving ignoble actions and motives; arousing moral distaste.

Jocund

Cheerful and lighthearted in disposition.

Gossamer

Used to refer to something very light, thin, and delicate.

Visage

A person's face, usually regarding its form or features.

Brazen

Bold and without shame.

Refuse

Matter that is thrown away or rejected as being worthless; waste.

Forlorn

Pitifully sad and abandoned or lonely.

Inure

To accustom someone to something, especially something unpleasant.

Capacious

Having a lot of space inside; roomy.

Fastidious

Very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail.

Capitulate

To cease to resist an opponent or an unwelcome demand; to surrender.

Poignant

Evoking a keen sense of sadness or regret.

Inexorable

Impossible to stop or prevent.

Ameliorate

To make something bad or unsatisfactory better.

Countenance

A person's face or facial expression.

Vehemence

The display of strong feeling; passion or intensity.

Indelible

Making marks that cannot be removed; permanent.

Penury

Extreme poverty or destitution.

Reverberate

A loud noise repeated several times as an echo.

Mercurial

Subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind.

Lamentation

The passionate expression of grief or sorrow; weeping.

Beseech

To ask someone urgently and fervently to do something.

Abhor

To regard with disgust and hatred.

Repugnance

Intense disgust or distaste.

Erroneously

In a mistaken way; incorrectly.

Obdurate

Stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion or course of action.

Pernicious

Having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way.

Aureole

A circle of light or brightness surrounding something, especially the head of a holy person.

Specious

Superficially plausible, but actually wrong.

Sanguine

Optimistic or positive, especially in an apparently bad or difficult situation.

Fitfully

Not regularly or continuously; occurring in bursts.

Adherent

Someone who supports a particular party, person, or set of ideas.

Urbane

Suave, courteous, and refined in manner.

Archaic

Very old or old-fashioned; belonging to an earlier period.

Inordinate

Unusually or disproportionately large; excessive.

Gesticulate

To use gestures, especially dramatic ones, to emphasize one's words.

Tableaux

A group of models or motionless figures representing a scene from a story or history.

Mutable

Liable or subject to change or alteration.

Myriad

A countless or extremely great number of things.

Zealot

A person who is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their ideals.

Vapid

Offering nothing that is stimulating or challenging; dull.

Invariably

In every case or on every occasion; always.

Pugnacious

Eager or quick to argue, quarrel, or fight.

Thwart

To prevent someone from accomplishing something.

Drivel

Silly nonsense or babble.

Compendium

A collection of concise but detailed information about a particular subject.

Harangue

A lengthy and aggressive speech.

Dissemble

To conceal one's true motives, feelings, or beliefs.

Supercede

To take the place of a person or thing previously in authority or use.

Repudiate

To refuse to accept or be associated with; to reject.

Apoplectic

Overcome with extreme anger or indignation.

Burly

Large and strong; heavily built.

Hapless

Unfortunate or unlucky.

Homely

Unattractive in appearance or simple/unpretentious.

Proclivity

A tendency to choose or do something regularly; an inclination.

Supercilious

Behaving or looking as though one thinks one is superior to others.

Sycophant

A person who acts obsequiously toward someone important to gain advantage.

Vacuous

Having or showing a lack of thought or intelligence; mindless.

Edify

To instruct or improve someone morally or intellectually.

Galvanize

To shock or excite someone into taking action.

Paucity

The presence of something only in small or insufficient quantities.

Eschew

To deliberately avoid using or to abstain from.

Anachronistic

Belonging to a period other than that being portrayed; out of chronological order.

Colloquially

Used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal or literary.

Visceral

Relating to deep inward feelings rather than to the intellect.

Occult

Supernatural, mystical, or magical beliefs and practices.

Macbeth

The title character of Shakespeare's tragedy who becomes King of Scotland through murder.

Haste

Excessive speed or urgency of movement; hurry.

Trifle

A thing of little value or importance.

Compunction

A feeling of guilt or moral scruple that prevents doing something bad.

Harbinger

A person or thing that announces the approach of another; an omen.

Beguile

To charm or enchant someone, sometimes in a deceptive way.

Courier

A messenger who transports goods or documents.

Undaunted

Not intimidated or discouraged by difficulty, danger, or disappointment.

Repose

A state of rest, sleep, or tranquility.

Palpable

Able to be touched or felt (used also to describe intense atmosphere).

Deign

To do something that one considers beneath one's dignity.

Clamor

A loud and confused noise, especially that of people shouting.

Blanch

To grow pale from shock, fear, or a similar emotion.

Equivocate

To use ambiguous language to conceal the truth or avoid committing oneself.

Posterity

All future generations of people.

Indissoluble

Unable to be destroyed; lasting or firm.

Perturb

To make someone anxious or unsettled.

Virulent

Extremely severe or harmful in its effects.

Tulmultuous

Making a loud, confused noise; uproarious or disorderly.

Burgeoning

Beginning to grow or increase rapidly; flourishing.

Incarnadine

A bright crimson or pinkish-red color; to dye blood-red.