n. act of presuming, or believing upon probable evidence; act of assuming; belief upon incomplete proof
E.g. And the poor old stick used to cry out 'Oh you villains childs!' -- and then we sermonized her on the presumption of attempting to teach such clever blades as we were, when she was herself so ignorant.
n. act of pretending or pretension; a false claim or pretext..
E.g. And so, under pretence of softening the previous outrage, of stroking and soothing me into placidity, you stick a sly penknife under my ear!
n. advancing of a claim; assertion; a false or unsupportable quality
E.g. I strongly believe that pretension is the root of all human suffering.
a. being beyond normal course of nature; differing from natural
E.g. Malcolm's mother's total ability to tell when he was lying struck him as almost preternatural.
a. widespread; widely or commonly occurring, existing, accepted
E.g. A radical committed to social change, Reed had no patience with the conservative views prevalent in the America of his day.
v. lie; stray from or evade truth; behave in evasive way such as to delay action
E.g. Some people believe that to prevaricate in a good cause is justifiable and regard such a statement as a "white lie.".
a. ancient; primitive; belonging to the first or earliest age; original or ancient
E.g. The archaeologist claimed that the skeleton was primeval origin, though in fact it was the remains of a modern day monkey.
v. become formal or affected in dress or manners; give neat appearance to
E.g. The groom stood by idly while his nervous bride-to-be began to primp before the mirror.
n. hardship; state of extreme poverty
E.g. In his youth, he knew hunger and privation.
v. violate; put to improper, unworthy, or degrading use; abuse
E.g. The members of the mysterious Far Eastern cult sought to kill the British explorer because they saw him profane the sanctity of their holy goblet by using it as an ashtray. .
v. hold forth so that a person may take; offer for acceptance
E.g. The committee will proffer the deal that would satisfy all those in the meeting.
n. one who makes an unreasonable profit not justified by their corresponding assumption of risk
E.g. How about the freedom to not have to worry that some greedy profiteer is going to plunder all of my retirement options?
a. inclined to waste resources or behave extravagantly; wildly immoral
E.g. Although surrounded by wild and profligate companions, she nevertheless managed to retain some sense of decency.
a. in great quantity or abundance; bountiful; exceedingly liberal
E.g. Help mom handle the profuse bleeding from her sweet little toddler's head.
n. overabundance; lavish or unrestrained expense
E.g. Freddy was so overwhelmed by the profusion of choices on the menu that he knocked over his wine glass and soaked his host.
n. direct ancestor; originator of a line of descent; originator or founder
E.g. The Roth family, whose progenitor emigrated from Germany early in the nineteenth century, settled in Peru, Illinois.
a. tending to discourage; prohibiting; forbidding
E.g. The intent, however, was to make the taxes and terms prohibitive to all non-medical use.
n. member of working class; blue collar person
E.g. "Workers of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains" is addressed to each proletarian.
v. grow rapidly; propagate; reproduce
E.g. Over the next few weeks, the plants' maiden blossoms will proliferate and form clusters, most noticeably at the branch tips.
n. introduction, usually to a poem or play
E.g. In the prologue to Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare introduces the audience to the feud between the Montagues and the Capulets.
v. proclaim doctrine or law; make known by official publication
E.g. During an interview with ABC News, Barack Obama said Republican attempted to promulgate, falsely, his Muslim connections.
v. cause something to multiply or breed; cause to extend to broader area or larger number
E.g. Since bacteria propagate more quickly in unsanitary environments, it is important to keep hospital rooms clean.
v. drive forward; cause to move forward or onward; push
E.g. They hope to show that solar sails could replace traditional rockets and propel spacecraft to the stars.
n. property of being close together; kinship; nearness; similarity in nature
E.g. Their relationship could not be explained as being based on mere propinquity; they were more than relatives, they were true friends.
v. make peace with; appease and render favorable
E.g. The natives offered sacrifices to propitiate the gods.
a. presenting favorable circumstances; fortunate; advantageous
E.g. Chloe consulted her horoscope to see whether Tuesday would be a propitious day to dump her boyfriend.
n. one who argues in support of something; advocate; backer
E.g. In the Senate, every proponent of the universal health care measure lobbied to gain additional support for the controversial legislation.
v. command against; banish; outlaw
E.g. Antony, Octavius, and Lepidus united to proscribe all those who had conspired against Julius Caesar.
v. induce someone to convert to one's own religious faith
E.g. In these interfaith meetings, there must be no attempt to proselytize; we must respect all points of view.
v. put or throw flat with face down; cause to lie flat
E.g. He used to prostrate himself before the idol.
n. principal character in a work of fiction; main character in a drama; leader of a cause; champion
E.g. The most likely protagonist was some other federal politician or government official.
a. versatile; able to take on many shapes; readily taking on varied shapes
E.g. A remarkably protean actor, Alec Guinness could take on any role.
v. prolong; draw out or lengthen in time
E.g. Seeking to delay the union members' vote, the management team tried to protract the negotiations endlessly.
v. extend out or project in space; stick out
E.g. His fingers protrude from the holes in his gloves.
n. something that bulges out; swelling or tumor on the body
E.g. A ganglion cyst is a fluid-filled tumor that develops near a joint membrane or tendon sheath, and that bulges beneath the skin, forming a protuberance.
a. displaying foresight; providing carefully for future; preparing for emergencies
E.g. In his usual provident manner, he had insured himself against this type of loss.
a. having or causing lustful thoughts and desires; having eager desire for something
E.g. Aroused by his prurient impulses, the dirty old man leered at the sweet young thing and offered to give her a sample of his "prowess.".
v. broadcast; announce; make public
E.g. What we will talk is how to publicize your Web site over the Internet.
a. childish; belonging to childhood; immature
E.g. His puerile pranks sometimes offended his more mature friends.
n. combativeness; inclination or readiness to fight; quarrelsomeness
E.g. "Put up your dukes!" he cried, making a fist to show his pugnacity.