- abandon – v. give up completely

- abate – v. lessen

- abject – adj. completely without pride or dignity

- aberration – n. deviation from the norm

- abjure – v. renounce a belief, cause, or claim

- abnegation – n. renounce or reject something

- abrogate – v. do away with (a law, right, or responsibility)

- abscond – v. flee

- abstruse – adj. dense or obscure

- abysmal – adj. terrible

- accede – v. agree to a demand

- acumen – n. ability to make good judgments

- adamant – adj. stubborn

- adapt – v. modify

- admonish – v. reprimand someone

- advantageous – adj. beneficial circumstances

- affluent – adj. wealthy

- alacrity – n. brisk eagerness

- ambivalence – n. state of uncertainty

- anomaly – n. outside of what is normal or expected

- antipathy – n. strong dislike

- antiseptic – adj. clean or pure

- apt – adj. accurate or appropriate

- assertion – n. statement

- assiduous – adj. showing great care

- bane – n. source of distress or harm

- beguile – v. charm or enchant

- beneficial – adj. helpful

- berate – v. scold or criticize

- bereft – adj. deprived or lacking

- blandishment – n. a flattering statement used to persuade someone

- bias – n. prejudice

- bolster – v. support

- bombastic – adj. inflated

- bovine – adj. cow-like

- braggart – n. someone who boasts

- brevity – n. concise

- cacophony – n. a discordant mixture of sounds

- cajole – v. persuade someone via flattery

- callous – adj. cruel disregard for others

- calumny – n. slander

- camaraderie – n. friendship

- candid – adj. truthful

- candor – n. quality of being honest

- carouse – v. drink and party in a lively way

- carp – v. complain about trivial matters

- catastrophic – adj. involving large-scale damage, usually sudden

- cavort – v. dance around excitedly

- censorious – adj. critical of others

- circumlocution – n. using many words, particularly in an evasive way

- circumscribe – v. restrict within limits

- clamor – n. a loud and confused noise

- clout – n. influence or power

- cognizant – adj. having knowledge of

- commensurate – adj. equal to

- comparable – adj. similar to another thing

- complement – v. add to or make complete

- compunction – n. a feeling of guilt

- concomitant – adj. naturally accompanying

- conducive – adj. helps produce positive or desired results

- conduit – n. a vessel or channel for transporting something

- conflagration – n. a large fire

- connive – v. trick; conspire

- consign – v. assign or deliver something into someone else’s custody

- constituent – adj. being part of a whole

- constructive – adj. helpful, useful

- construe – v. interpret

- contend – v. reckon with; struggle against

- contusion – n. a bruise

- contrite – adj. feeling of remorse or guilt

- contentious – adj. likely to cause an argument

- contravene – adj. violate the order of; conflict

- convivial – adj. friendly and cheerful environment

- corpulence – n. obesity; fatness

- covet – v. want greatly

- cupidity – n. greed for money

- dearth – n. a lack of something

- debacle – n. a fiasco or failure

- debauch – v. ruin or debase, particularly in a moral sense

- defunct – adj. no longer working

- demagogue – n. a political leader who appeals to the prejudices of the common people

- demur – v. show reluctance; raise objections

- denigrate – v. disparage

- despot – n. a tyrant

- diaphanous – adj. light and translucent

- dirge – n. song of lament for the dead

- discomfit – v. make someone uncomfortable

- disparate – adj. different from one another

- disrepute – n. state of disgrace

- duplicity – n. deceitfulness

- duress – n. intimidation or coercion to force someone to perform an act

- eclectic – adj. wide-ranging

- edict – n. an official order

- ebullient – adj. cheerful and lively

- efficacious – adj. has the power to achieve a particular result

- effluvia – n. unpleasant odor

- egregious – adj. outstandingly bad

- elegy – n. a poem of reflection, typically a lament for the dead

- elicit – v. evoke or draw out

- eloquent – adj. well-spoken

- elude – v. escape one’s grasp

- emollient – adj. soothing

- empirical – adj. based on (as evidence)

- emulate – v. imitate

- enervate – v. weaken; drain of energy

- engender – v. bring about

- ephemeral – adj. short-lived

- equanimity – n. mental calmness

- equivocal – adj. ambiguous

- evanescent – adj. fading quickly from sight

- evince – v. reveal the presence of

- exacerbate – v. make worse

- exhort – v. strongly encourage someone to do something

- execrable – adj. extremely bad or unpleasant

- exigent – adj. pressing, demanding

- expedient – adj. (of an action) convenient though possibly improper

- expiate – v. atone for guilt or sin

- expunge – v. get rid of

- extraneous – adj. irrelevant

- extol – v. praise

- facilitate – v. make easier, guide forward

- fallacious – adj. false; based on mistaken belief

- fatuous – adj. silly and pointless

- flagrant – adj. obviously offensive

- forbearance – n. restraint; self-control

- fortuitous – adj. happening by chance

- fractious – adj. irritable and difficult to control

- garrulous – adj. talkative

- grandiloquent – adj. pompous or extravagant in language, style, or manner

- grapple – v. wrestle, physically or mentally

- gratuitous – adj. uncalled for; unnecessary

- hapless – adj. unfortunate

- hegemony – n. leadership or dominance, particularly of one country over another

- heterogenous – adj. not uniform; varied

- iconoclast – n. a person who veers from the norm; a person who attacks cherished beliefs

- impecunious – adj. having little money; penniless

- impede – v. prevent or hold back

- impetuous – adj. acting without care

- impinge – v. encroach on

- impute – v. attribute to

- inane – adj. ridiculous

- inchoate – adj. just beginning; not fully formed

- incontrovertible – adj. unable to be denied

- inexorable – adj. impossible to prevent

- inimical – adj. tending to obstruct or harm; unfriendly

- injunction – n. an authoritative order

- innocuous – adj. benign, not harmful

- inoculate – v. immunize someone against

- insidious – adj. harmful

- instigate – v. bring about; incite

- insurgent – n. rebel or revolutionary

- interlocutor – n. someone engaged in conversation

- inure – v. to be accustomed to something, particularly something unpleasant

- intransigent – adj. stubborn; unwilling to change one’s views

- inveterate – adj. long-established and unlikely to change (of a habit)

- irreverence – n. lack of respect for

- largesse – n. generosity in bestowing money or gifts

- licentious – adj. promiscuous

- litigant – n. a person involved in a lawsuit

- maelstrom – n. a powerful storm; turmoil

- maudlin – adj. overly sentimental; self-pitying

- maverick – n. independent-minded person; a nonconformist

- mawkish – adj. sentimental in a sweet or sickly way

- maxim – n. a short, pithy statement of truth

- mendacious – adj. lying

- meretricious – adj. appearing attractive but having little value

- modicum – n. a small quantity of something

- momentous – adj. important or significant, typically in a positive way

- morass – n. a mess; a complicated situation

- munificent – adj. generous

- nadir – n. lowest point

- negligent – adj. failing to do something; neglectful

- neophyte – n. a person who is new to a subject, skill, or belief

- noisome – adj. disagreeable; having an offensive smell

- noxious – adj. poisonous; harmful

- obdurate – adj. stubborn

- obfuscate – v. render unclear; bewilder someone

- obstreperous – adj. noisy and difficult to control; disorderly

- officious – adj. self-assertive, overbearing

- onerous – adj. involving many obligations or effort

- ostensible – adj. seemingly so

- ostracism – n. exclusion from a group

- palliate – v. make less severe

- panacea – n. a remedy for all diseases

- paradigm – n. a typical example or pattern of something; a model

- pariah – n. an outcast

- paucity – n. a lack of; scarcity

- pejorative – adj. expressing contempt or disapproval

- penchant – n. habitual liking for something; a tendency toward

- penurious – adj. poverty-stricken

- pert – adj. attractive; impudent or saucy

- pernicious – adj. having a harmful effect

- pertinacious – adj. holding firmly to a course; determined

- phlegmatic – adj. self-controlled; calm and stoic

- philanthropic – adj. generous, particularly in a monetary sense

- pithy – adj. concise and expressive

- plaudit – n. expression of praise

- plenitude – n. an abundance; full or complete

- plethora – n. an abundance of

- polar – adj. directly opposite

- postulate – v. to assume as true

- potentate – n. monarch or ruler

- pragmatic – adj. realistic, sensible

- preclude – v. prevent from taking place

- predilection – n. preference or liking for something

- probity – n. honesty; integrity

- proclivity – n. tendency toward

- profligate – adj. recklessly extravagant

- profound – adj. showing deep knowledge or insight

- promulgate – v. promote widely

- proscribe – v. forbid by law

- protean – adj. able to change easily

- prurient – adj. overly sexual

- puerile – adj. childishly silly

- pugnacious – adj. quick to fight

- punctilious – adj. paying attention to detail

- quaint – adj. old-fashioned

- quixotic – adj. idealistic

- quandary – n. state of perplexity; a dilemma

- recalcitrant – adj. uncooperative attitude

- relegate – v. cast to a lower rank or role

- remiss – adj. negligent

- reprieve – n. a cancellation or postponement of a punishment

- reprobate – n. unprincipled person

- rescind – v. take back

- ribald – adj. improper; lewd

- rife – adj. filled with; widespread

- sanctimonious – adj. being morally superior to others

- sanguine – adj. optimistic

- scurrilous – adj. spreading disparaging claims about someone; slanderous

- serendipity – n. chance or good luck

- solicitous – adj. attentive to

- spurious – adj. statement that appears truthful but is false

- staid – adj. sedate, respectable

- stolid – adj. calm and dependable

- substantial – adj. large in size, amount, or importance

- supercilious – adj. behaving in a haughty manner

- supposition – n. assumption without proof

- surfeit – n. excessive amount

- surmise – v. guess without proof

- surreptitious – adj. keep secret

- tangential – adj. peripheral to the central matter

- tenable – adj. reasonable, maintainable

- terse – adj. brief

- torpid – adj. lethargic; inactive

- travesty – n. a false representation of something

- trenchant – adj. vigorous in expression; sharp

- trounce – v. defeat heavily

- truculent – adj. eager to argue or fight

- turpitude – n. depravity, wickedness

- ubiquitous – adj. present everywhere

- umbrage – n. offense (i.e., to take umbrage at)

- unconventional – adj. to act outside of the norm

- undulate – v. move in a wave-like pattern

- unmitigated – adj. not lessened; absolute

- unveil – v. reveal

- upbraid – v. scold or find fault with someone

- upshot – n. the outcome or result of an action

- usury – n. unethical money lending

- validate – v. support the truth or value of

- veracity – n. truth or accuracy

- vestige – n. trace or remnant of something gone

- viability – n. ability to work successfully

- vicissitude – n. a change of circumstances

- vilify – v. speak about in a disparaging manner

- virtuoso – n. highly skilled person, particularly in the arts

- vital – adj. necessary

- vitriolic – adj. filled with hatred

- vituperate – v. blame or insult someone strongly

- vociferous – adj. outspoken

- wanton – adj. deliberate and unprovoked; sexually unrestrained

- winsome – adj. attractive or charming

- yield – v. surrender, give way to pressure

- yoke – v. tie two things together

- zenith – n. the peak