week 2

Week 2

1.    mercenary – adjective  – solely interested in monetary gain, even at the expense of morals – he bought and sold companies with a mercenary indifference to the employees and their families.

2.    mercenary - noun - a soldier interested only in the money offered, not the politics or ideals involved – Mercenaries do not fight with the same fervor as soldiers who are in the battle for love of country.

3.    onus – noun – obligation or burden of proof – The onus was on the teacher to prove the two students had cheated on the exam.

4.    partisan – adjective – devoted to a particular cause to the point of being biased against anything else – His partisan devotion to the democratic party made it difficult for him to negotiate between sides in the senate.

5.    partisan – noun – an avid and devout follower of a group or political party – The partisans following the general were willing to risk their lives to bring him to power.

6.    rarified – adjective -  thin, less dense – The rarified air at high altitudes can cause pilots to lose consciousness.

7.    savory – adjective – morally pure, uncorrupted – The judge’s less-than-savory past caused him to lose the election.

8.    torrid – adjective – passionate or fiery – Their torrid love affair evolved into a marriage that lasted over 55 years.

9.    verbose – adjective – using more words than necessary – The professor was known to be so verbose that his students often had a hard time following what he said.

10.    adage – noun – a short saying or phrase that states an accepted truth – many adages currently in use were originally penned by Benjamin Franklin.