aberration n. a disorder in one's mental state; a state or condition markedly different from the norm |
abstract a. theoretical; not concrete; not applied or practical; difficult to understand |
accolade n. award of merit; expression of approval; praise |
accommodate v. do a favor or service for; provide for; supply with; make suitable |
aesthetic a. elegant or tasteful; of or concerning appreciation of beauty or good taste |
affinity n. natural attraction, liking, or feeling of kinship; relationship by marriage |
altercation n. noisy quarrel; contention in words; dispute carried on with heat or anger; controversy |
ameliorate v. make or become better; improve; grow better |
amicable a. exhibiting friendliness or goodwill; not quarrelsome |
anarchy n. absence of governing body; state of disorder; political disorder and confusion |
anomaly n. irregularity; person or something that is unusual; departure from normal or common order |
appall v. depress or discourage with fear; grow faint or become weak |
archaic a. no longer current or applicable; antiquated |
arduous a. demanding great effort or labor; difficult |
articulate a. expressing oneself easily in clear and effective language |
astute a. wise or keen; shrewd; with sharp intelligence |
authoritarian a. expecting absolute obedience; completely dominating another's will |
aversion n. firm dislike; turning away; avoidance of a thing, situation, or behavior because of dislike |
biased a. favoring one person or side over another; prejudiced |
brevity n. quality or state of being brief in duration; concise expression |
cajole v. influence or urge by gentle urging or flattering |
callous a. emotionally hardened; unfeeling; toughened |
capitulate v. surrender; end all resistance; give up; go along with or comply |
catalyst n. agent which brings about chemical change while it remains unaffected and unchanged |
catharsis n. purging or cleansing of any passage of body |
caustic a. capable of burning, corroding, dissolving, or eating away by chemical action |
censure v. expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism; blame |
chastise v. punish, as by beating; criticize severely; rebuke |
clamor n. noise; loud outcry; expression of discontent or protest |
coalesce v. combine; fuse; grow together; come together so as to form one whole; unite |
cognizant a. having or showing knowledge or understanding or realization or perception |
commiserate v. feel or express pity or sympathy for |
composure n. mental calmness; calm or tranquil state of mind |
conciliatory a. making or willing to yield, or to make concessions |
contract v. constrict; make smaller; compress or concentrate |
copious a. plentiful; containing plenty; affording ample supply |
cordial a. gracious; showing warm and friendliness |
dearth n. scarcity; shortage of food; famine from failure or loss of crops |
debilitate v. make weak; enfeeble; impair the strength of |
decadence n. process, condition, or period of deterioration or decline; falling off or away; decay |
deference n. willingness to carry out the wishes of others; great respect |
delineate v. portray; depict; draw or trace outline of; sketch out |
deprecate v. express disapproval of; protest against; belittle |
despot n. tyrant; harsh, authoritarian ruler; eastern Orthodox bishop |
devious a. departing from correct or accepted way; misleading; not straightforward |
didactic a. instructive (especially excessively) |
disparage v. belittle; speak of in a slighting or disrespectful way; reduce in esteem or rank |
dissonance n. discord; disagreeable sounds; harsh, disagreeable combination of sounds |
duplicity n. double-dealing; deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech; acting in bad faith. |
edifice n. building, especially one of imposing appearance or size; a structure that has a roof and walls |
effervescent a. used of wines and waters; charged naturally or artificially with carbon dioxide |
egregious a. notorious; conspicuously bad or shocking |
elusive a. difficult to describe; difficult to detect or grasp by mind |
equivocal a. open to two or more interpretations and often intended to mislead |
erroneous a. containing or derived from error; mistaken |
exemplary a. serving as model; outstanding; typical |
expedient a. suitable; appropriate to a purpose; serving to promote your interest |
extraneous a. not essential; coming from outside |
formidable a. arousing fear; threatening; difficult to undertake or defeat |
frivolous a. lacking in seriousness; not serious; relatively unimportant |
grueling a. by effort to the point of exhaustion, especially physical effort |
haphazard a. not thorough, constant or consistent; by chance |
heretic n. one who holds to a heresy; one who believes some doctrine contrary to the established faith or prevailing religion |
hindrance n. something that holds back or causes problems with something else; obstacle |
hypocrisy n. practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold; falseness; expression of agreement that is not supported by real conviction |
iconoclast n. a destroyer of images used in religious worship |
incessant a. uninterrupted; unceasing; continuing without interruption |
incidental a. happening, as occasional event, without regularity; coming without design |
incite v. arouse to action; motivate; induce to exist |
incorrigible a. not correctable; difficult or impossible to control or manage |
indict v. charge; accuse formally of a crime |
indoctrinate v. teach with biased or one-sided ideology; teach doctrines to; teach uncritically |
insurgent a. rising in revolt against established authority; rebelling against leadership of political party |
intangible a. not able to be perceived by senses, as touch; vague |
judicious a. exhibiting good judgment or sound thinking; prudent |
lavish a. liberal; wasteful; excessive spending |
listless a. lacking in spirit or energy to exert effort |
meager a. deficient in quantity, fullness, or extent; inadequate; feeble |
meander v. follow a winding and turning course; move aimlessly and idly without fixed direction |
negligent a. careless; inattentive |
obliterate v. destroy completely; do away with completely so as to leave no trace |
ponderous a. slow and laborious because of weight; labored and dull |
preclude v. make impossible, as by action taken in advance; prevent; eliminate |
prerequisite n. something that is required in advance; necessity; required as a prior condition |
proximity n. state of being proximate; nearness in place, time, or relation |
rectify v. set right; correct by calculation or adjustment |
rescind v. cancel; make void; repeal or annul |
resolution n. determination; resolving to do something; formal statement of a decision |
rigorous a. full of rigors; harsh; rigidly accurate; precise |
scrutinize v. examine closely and critically |
substantiate v. establish by evidence; make firm or solid; support |
surmise v. guess; infer something without sufficiently conclusive evidence |
tirade n. extended scolding; long angry or violent speech |
turbulence n. state of violent agitation; eddying motion; unstable flow of a liquid or gas; state of violent disturbance and disorder |
unimpeachable a. free of guilt; not subject to blame; completely acceptable |
unobtrusive a. inconspicuous; not obtrusive or undesirably noticeable |
usurp v. seize and hold power or rights of another by force or without legal authority |
vacillate v. sway unsteadily from one side to the other; oscillate |
whimsical a. determined by chance or impulse or whim rather than by necessity or reason; capricious |