AICE VOCAB
1) ALIMENTARY – adj. relating to food and nourishment
Fast foods provide little nourishment, but fresh fruits and vegetables are good for your ALIMENTARY
health.
2) ALTRUISTIC – adj. showing an unselfish concern for others
Donna is a supreme example of ALTRUISM. She leads youth groups, delivers meals to the homebound
and volunteers at the local hospital.
3) AMELIORATE – v. to make better; to lessen pain, difficulty, or tension
Marv takes time every day to AMELIORATE the stress of school and work; he takes walks, jogs, gets a massage, or listens to the Grateful Dead.
4) AMIABLE – adj. friendly, kind
Amy says only the kindest things about others; she is an AMIABLE individual.
5) APATHETIC – adj. indifferent; showing no care, interest, or concern; lacking emotion
The crowd was mostly APATHETIC. They didn’t cheer for their team because they didn’t care if they won.
6) BANEFUL – adj. causing ruin; harmful; pernicious
My campus visit was BANEFUL. When it was over, I resolved never to go near the place again.
7) BELLIGERENT – adj. taking part in war or fighting; ready to fight
After two decades of war, the BELLIGERENT countries made peace.
8) BENEVOLENT – adj. giving freely and easily to others; charitable
Ready to help anyone at any time, Tina is about the most BENEVOLENT person I know.
9) BERATE – v. to rebuke or scold in a harsh tone
Her parents often BERATED her, but when the scoldings took place in front of her friends, Lulu was
humiliated.
10) CASTIGATE – v. to scold or punish severely
After receiving a speeding ticket, my parents still CASTIGATED me by grounding me for a month.
11) COMPLIANT – adj. yielding, submissive
Ms. Hayes prefers COMPLIANT students, those who’ll do everything they are told.
12) CONFLAGRATION – n. a huge fire, an inferno
Flames from the CONFLAGRATION lit up the sky for miles around.
13) CONTEMPTUOUS – adj. lacking respect; scornful
Accustomed to filet mignon, Fido glared CONTEMPTUOUSLY at the bowl of dog chow.
14) CRYPTIC – adj. hidden; hard to understand; mysterious; obscure
We found a CRYPTIC message scrawled on the blackboard. No one could figure out its meaning.
15) DEBACLE – n. a failure or breakdown; a collapse that is often nonsensical
For me, physics class has been a DEBACLE. I understood none of it and failed every test. I finally
dropped the course.
16) DELETERIOUS – adj. harmful to one’s health or overall welfare
PCBs and other harmful pollutants have had a DELETERIOUS effect on fish in the Hudson River.
17) DIGRESS – v. to wander off from the subject or topic spoken about
We don’t have time to DIGRESS from the main issue right now.
18) EBULLIENT – adj. filled with a bubbly excitement, as if boiling over with excitement
The audience became just as enthusiastic about following the diet as the EBULLIENT speaker.
19) EMACIATED – adj. very, very thin due to lack of adequate food
Winter out on the range with very little food left the cattle EMACIATED.
20) EPICURIAN – adj. having to do with relishing the pleasure of eating and drinking
At the reception, the table was piled high with the most delicious EPICURIAN delights.
21) EXALT – v. to praise or glorify; to lift up in status, dignity, power
As the honored leader of the organization, she was EXALTED by the members.
22) FRUGAL – adj. careful with money; thrifty; not costly
As a FRUGAL carpenter, Emil finds a use for every scrap of wood. Nothing goes to waste in Emil’s shop.
23) GARRULOUS – adj. talkative; loquacious
GARRULOUS gatherings of students are unwelcome in a library that values silence.
24) GLUTTON – n. one who overindulges in food and drink
Eddie proved he was a GLUTTON by eating a whole pumpkin pie and a half-gallon of ice cream at one sitting.
25) GREGARIOUS – adj. sociable, outgoing
I hope that Trudy soon emerges from her shell and becomes more GREGARIOUS.
26) IMPUGN – v. to oppose or attack someone or something as false or refutable
The scandal IMPUGNED the judge’s reputation.
27) INDOLENT – adj. lazy; not wanting to do any work
“The Lazy Boy” is a perfect title for a story about an INDOLENT youth.
28) LABYRINTH – n. a maze from which it is very hard to extricate (free) oneself.
The castle’s basement is a LABYRINTH of tunnels, criss-crossing passageways, and dead ends.
29) LACKLUSTER – adj. lacking vitality, energy, or brightness; boring
Laura’s LACKLUSTER grades may prevent her from going to a top college.
30) LACONIC – adj. using few words in speech
Because Bryan’s LACONIC reply lacked specificity, it raised more questions than it answered.
31) LARGESS – n. generous giving
Sam is famous for his LARGESS. Knowing Sam is a big tipper, the staff at his favorite hotel is always
glad to see him.
32) LAUD – v. to praise; extol
He LAUDED my efforts to help, but I didn’t think the praise was sincere.
33) LISTLESS – adj. lacking interest in something, usually because of illness, fatigue, or general sadness
The heat wave left me LISTLESS. I just couldn’t get up enough energy to study physics.
34) NEFARIOUS – adj. very mean and wicked
Of all the rotten scoundrels in the story, Sebastian was the most NEFARIOUS.
35) OBDURATE – adj. resistant to persuasion or softening; stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing
The killer showed no remorse for his deed. For being OBDURATE, he was sentenced to life in prison.
36) OSTENTATIOUS – adj. having to do with showing off; pretentious
Don’t you agree that wearing a pearl bracelet, two ruby rings, and diamond-studded earrings is a bit
OSTENTATIOUS.
37) PHILANTHROPIC – adj. showing a desire to help others by giving gifts; charitable; humane
My mother works for a PHILANTHROPIC organization that disburses funds to needy hospitals.
38) PLACATE – v. to make calm; to soothe
What can be done to PLACATE impatient drivers caught in a traffic jam?
39) PROSAIC – adj. dull; commonplace
The novel Mr. and Mrs. Bridge is an indictment of an ordinary American couple who lead the dullest, most
PROSAIC life imaginable.
40) RAVENOUS – adj. very hungry
A day spent outdoors makes me RAVENOUS enough to eat a hippopotamus