abstain (v) - to refrain from something voluntarily, especially from satisfying one s appetite.

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Vincent Long
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1 English IV - Vocabulary, First Semester Vocabulary #1 abstain (v) - to refrain from something voluntarily, especially from satisfying one s appetite. beneficent (adj.) - doing good. candid (adj.) - frank; straightforward; sincere coerce (v.) - to compel; to force dubious (adj.) - doubtful, uncertain fallacy (n) - a false idea; mistaken belief; error indolence (n.) - love of ease or inactivity; laziness lucid (adj.) - clear; easily understood nostalgia (n.) - a longing for experiences, things or people in the past precarious (adj.) - insecure; unsafe; dangerous Vocabulary #2 adamant (n.) - a legendary stone of the ancients so hard it could not be penetrated. adj. - unyielding; hard amenable (adj.) - easy to persuade; open to suggestion; agreeable augment (v.) - to increase; to enlarge chronic (adj.) - constant; habitual; with reference to a disease, long lasting cursory (adj.) - rapidly or hurriedly done eccentric (adj.) - different from the usual; odd; peculiar irrelevant (adj.) - off the subject; not applicable lethargy (n.) - a state of inaction or indifference; dislike of activity panacea (n.) - a cure-all; a general remedy for all ailments plebeian (adj.) - common, unrefined 1

2 Vocabulary #3 affable (adj.) - sociable, friendly, agreeable avarice (n.) - greediness; extreme desire for wealth bigot (n.) - a person stubbornly and intolerantly devoted to one set of ideas, one party, church, etc. charlatan (n.) - a person who pretends to have knowledge or ability; a quack; an impostor coherent (adj.) - sticking together, logically organized and consistent diffident (adj.) - shy; lacking in self-confidence feasible (adj.) - capable of being done; practicable loquacious (adj.) - talkative; enjoys talking pertinent (adj.) - relating directly to the subject veracity (n.) - truthfulness Vocabulary #4 altruism (n.) - concern for others, their interests, welfare, etc. derogatory (adj.) - showing an unfavorable opinion of someone of something; belittling dogmatic (adj.) - speaking as though one s opinions were established fact; positive; overbearing emulate (v.) - to imitate another person in order to equal or surpass the person expedient (adj.) - useful for producing a desired result; advisable; advantageous gregarious (adj.) - living in a flock or herd; fond of associating with others; sociable indigent (adj.) - needy, poor lucrative (adj.) - financially profitable obsolete - (adj.) - no longer in use; out-of-date opulence (n.) - wealth, riches, abundance as shown in luxurious living 2

3 Vocabulary #5 impunity (n.) - freedom from punishment incorrigible (adj.) - not capable of being corrected; not correctable incredulous (adj.) - unwilling to believe; doubting; skeptical insatiable (adj.) - not capable of being satisfied; greedy inanimate (adj.) - not living; without life or consciousness; dull lugubrious (adj.) - sad, mournful ostentatious (adj.) - showy, indicating fondness for unnecessary outward display phlegmatic (adj.) - sluggish; calm; not easily aroused plausible (adj.) - seeming to be true or reasonable reactionary (adj.) - favoring return to a state of affairs, especially in politics; (of a person or a set of views) opposing political or social liberalization or reform. audacious (adj.) - daring, bold, adventurous Vocabulary #6 enigma (n.) - a riddle; a puzzling problem or statement facetious (adj.) - humorous, funny; trying to be humorous immaculate (adj.) - spotlessly clean, pure implacable (adj.) - impossible to pacify, calm or appease inexplicable (adj.) - unexplainable; can not explain irrevocable (adj.) - impossible to withdraw, cancel, revoke latent (adj.) - in existence but hidden or concealed pernicious (adj.) - causing harm; very injurious; wicked propriety (n.) - fitness, suitability, proper behavior 3

4 Vocabulary #7 ambiguous (adj.) - having two meanings; unclear assiduous (adj.) - hardworking, persistent, steadily working deprecate (v.) - to express disapproval of someone or something facile (adj.) - easily done; working in an easy manner homogeneous (adj.) - all of the same kind; composed of persons or things that are alike immutable (adj.) - not changing; never changing impervious (adj.) - impossible to penetrate or affect obsequious (adj.) - overly polite and obedient; slave like; fawning pecuniary (adj.) - relating too money; consisting of money; financial reiterate (v.) - to repeat Vocabulary #8 affluent (adj.) - rich, prosperous apathy (n.) - lack of emotion, feeling or excitement connive (v.) - to cooperate secretly with someone; to have a secret understanding with someone exonerate (v.) - to free someone from blame or from an accusation incongruous (adj.) - having inconsistent or inharmonious parts; lacking consistency or harmony inexorable (adj.) - unyielding; not changeable; not persuadable; relentless plaintiff (n.) - one who brings a lawsuit against another person. Antonym: defendant proximity (n.) - nearness to something sagacity (n.) - mental keenness; shrewdness sanguine (adj.) - hopeful, cheerful 4

5 Vocabulary #9 disparage (v.) - to lower the estimation of someone or something; to speak slightingly of someone or something mundane (adj.) - worldly, earthly nefarious (adj.) - very wicked peremptory (adj.) - very positive; not to be refused or denied; dogmatic posthumous (adj.) - happening after death surfeited (adj.) - overfed to the point of nausea; having had too much of something tacit (adj.) - silent, unspoken taciturn (adj.) - not speaking, not talkative tenacious (adj.) - holding fast or likely to hold fast; stubborn voracious (adj.) - greedy in eating; very eager; insatiable Vocabulary #10 antipathy (n.) - a dislike of something or someone connotation (n.) - the suggested or implied meaning of a word or expression beyond its actual meaning cryptic (adj.) - having a hidden meaning; obscure; mysterious dilemma (n.) - a situation in which one must choose between two unsatisfactory alternatives exorbitant (adj.) - excessive; beyond what is customary or reasonable impeccable (adj.) - faultless impotent (adj.) - powerless, not necessarily in a physical sense ingenuous (adj.) - frank, sincere, naive intangible (adj.) - not capable of being touched; describing an object which is not material perfunctory (adj.) - done mechanically, without thought or interest 5

6 Vocabulary #11 circumspect (adj.) - considering all angles of a situation before taking action; careful malevolent (adj.) - wishing evil; showing ill will. Antonym: benevolent malicious (adj.) - evil; arising from evil intentions; hurtful to others malign (v.) - to speak evil of someone or something officious (adj.) - offering to help or advice which has not been asked for; meddling in other s business ostracize (v.) - to banish from society or from social privileges plagiarize (v.) - to pass off as one s own the work (ideas, writings, etc.) of someone else pseudo (adj.) - false, counterfeit, pretended recalcitrant (adj.) - stubbornly resisting authority; disobedient vindictive (adj.) - having a strong desire for revenge; revengeful culpable (adj.) - deserving blame; blameworthy ostensible (adj.) - apparent, pretended Vocabulary #12 platitude (n.) - a commonplace, trite remark (ie. Better to be safe than sorry ) replete (adj.) - filled to capacity salient (adj.) - standing out; prominent scrupulous (adj.) - very careful to do the right thing; giving conscientious attention to detail spurious (adj.) - not genuine; false subjugate (v.) - to conquer; to subdue; to force into one s power transitory (adj.) - lasting only a short time; temporary venerable (adj.) - deserving respect or admiration 6

7 Vocabulary #13 intrepid (adj.) - fearless, brave, daring notorious (adj.) - widely known but with a bad reputation omniscient (adj.) - knowing everything; very wise poignant (adj.) - painful; painfully moving or touching reticent (adj.) - silent, reserved, not inclined to say much sardonic (adj.) - bitterly scornful, sneering, sarcastic sinecure (n.) - a position of office which requires little or no work yet pays well; an easy job succinct (adj.) - expressed briefly and clearly; concise truculent (adj.) - fierce, cruel; showing a fierce manner ubiquitous (adj.) - being everywhere at the same time; present everywhere Vocabulary #14 chaos (n.) - confusion, complete disorder clandestine (adj.) - done with secrecy, usually for an evil purpose extant (adj.) - still in existence gullible (adj.) - easily deceived or cheated inscrutable (adj.) - not understandable ludicrous (adj.) - laughable; amusingly absurd ominous - (adj.) - threatening; foreshadowing something bad sacrilegious (adj.) - injurious to or disrespectful of sacred things or persons vacillate (v.) - to waver; to change one s mind back and forth vulnerable (adj.) - capable of being injured; open to attack 7

Another helpful way to learn the words is to evaluate them as positive or negative. Think about degrees of feeling and put the words in categories.

Another helpful way to learn the words is to evaluate them as positive or negative. Think about degrees of feeling and put the words in categories. REFERENCE LIST OF TONE ADJECTIVES (p.30) One way to review words on this list is to fold the list so that the word is on one side and the definition is on the other. Then you can test yourself by looking