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Listed on April 2, 2012 by www.vocabulary.com
Find lists of SAT words organized by every letter of the alphabet here:
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K & L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, and W, X, Y & Z.


1. abase
Def: cause to feel shame; hurt the pride of
Ex: She is not abased or dejected, but exalted,
rather.

2. aberration
Def: a state or condition markedly different from
the norm
Ex: While Tampa Bay has taken a huge
nosedive a year after going 10-6, maybe that 2010
success was an aberration.

3. abhor
Def: find repugnant
EX: There are sane readers who abhor
gratuitous violence but love Reachers menacing
wisecracks.

4. abject
Def: most unfortunate or miserable
Ex: Mr. Jobling stood wringing his hands
helplessly, his flaccid features expressive of abject
despair.

5. abrasive
Def: sharply disagreeable; rigorous
Ex: He has always been focused, driven,
demanding and, as a result, very difficult and
abrasive, Mr. Norman said.

6. abstain
Def: choose not to consume
Ex: Griffin felt that he had better abstain from
questioning, and let his host run on.

7. abstract
Def: existing only in the mind; separated from
embodiment
Ex: Presenting an abstract concept, waving our
arms trying to describe it, we will lose our
audience right away.

8. abundant

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Def: present in great quantity
Ex: Fringing and barrier reefs are abundant
throughout the archipelago, surrounding nearly
every island.

9. accentuate
Def: to stress, single out as important
Ex: It was a carefully studied costume; and he
accentuated its eccentricity by adopting theatrical
attitudes and an air of satisfied negligence.

10. acclimate
Def: get used to a certain climate
Ex: The Jets will leave Friday for Denver, the
better to acclimate to the altitude and change in
time zone.

11. accomplice
Def: a person who joins with another in carrying
out some plan (especially an unethical or illegal
plan)
Def: Tiller, the thief, and a supposed accomplice,
are under arrest.

12. accord
Def: concurrence of opinion
Ex: Friday's accord removes one of two main
sticking points that have been holding up a
strategic partnership agreement between the two
countries.

13. acerbic
Def: harsh or corrosive in tone
Ex: They were complaining, sometimes yelling,
and maybe a bit acerbic.

14. acme
Def: the highest level or degree attainable; the
highest stage of development
Ex: Paris wholly has got to the acme of its
frenzy; whirled, all ways, by panic madness.

15. acquiesce
Def: to agree or express agreement
Ex: I favored building a fire and staying there
till morning, but Frank preferred pushing on to
camp, so I acquiesced.

16. acquit
Def: pronounce not guilty of criminal charges
Ex: He said that in the absence of other
evidence, the accused is acquitted and
discharged.

17. acrimonious
Def: marked by strong resentment or cynicism
Ex: At times, the two groups squabble like
schoolchildren, and the exchange gets
acrimonious.

18. acute
Def: extremely sharp or intense
Ex: Labor shortages are already so acute in
many Chinese industrial zones that factories
struggle to find enough people to operate their

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assembly lines.

19. adamant
Def: impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests,
reason
Ex: But high profile or no, Mr. Kors is adamant
about keeping his personal life under wraps
even as his wedding day approaches.

20. adept
Def: having or showing knowledge and skill and
aptitude
Ex: He proved an adept playmaker, however,
making several nice passes and finishing with 7
assists.

21. adhere
Def: stick to firmly
Ex: Adhering to strict safety standards has kept
me alive in some very dangerous situations.

22. admonish
Def: take to task
Ex: "Children, children, stop quarrelling, right
here in public!" admonished Mrs. Dering, in a
low, shocked tone.

23. adorn
Def: make more attractive by adding ornament,
colour, etc.
Ex: Old master reproductions adorn chianti-
colored walls; tapestries hang in the restrooms.

24. adroit
Def: quick or skillful or adept in action or
thought
Ex: Neither is he adroit in the exercise of his
duty; instead performs it bunglingly; his thoughts
preoccupied, and eyes wandering about.

25. adulation
Def: servile flattery; exaggerated and hypocritical
praise
Ex: Taylor, a demagogue of the Democratic
party, was hypocritically appealing to his "horny
handed neighbors" in language of feigned
adulation.

26. adversity
Def: a state of misfortune or affliction
Ex: Forty years in the wilderness, meeting
adversities together, fighting enemies, marching as
one host, made them a nation.

27. advocacy
Def: active support of an idea or cause etc.;
especially the act of pleading or arguing for
something
Ex: That sentiment faded after the 1930s, he
said, as consumer advocacy focused more on
protecting shoppers.

28. aesthetic
Def: concerning or characterized by an
appreciation of beauty or good taste
Ex: In old-fashioned, aesthetic terms, his
glossy, color pictures of modern housing projects

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in Turkish cities under moody, gray skies are
beautiful.

29. affable
Def: diffusing warmth and friendliness
Ex: She is restless, irritable, out of sorts,
censorious, complaining at home; animated,
gracious, affable, complaisant abroad.

30. affinity
Def: a close connection marked by community of
interests or similarity in nature or character
Ex: Malaysia has a close affinity with many
Middle Eastern nations through their shared
religion.

31. affliction
Def: a cause of great suffering and distress
Ex: Firm and exceptional natures are thus
moulded out of miseries, misfortunes and
afflictions.

32. affluent
Def: having an abundant supply of money or
possessions of value
Ex: Affluent families can afford guns, which are
more efficient for bagging some elusive animals
than a poorer households typical snare trap.

33. aggrandize
Def: add details to
Ex: Louis XIV. was growing increasingly
ambitious of enlarging his domains and
aggrandizing his power.

34. agile
Def: moving quickly and lightly
Ex: Are not many beasts physically stronger,
more nimble and agile than man?

35. agrarian
Def: relating to rural matters
Ex: Were not an agrarian society any longer,
where more hands help farm the land.

36. alacrity
Def: liveliness and eagerness
Ex: The men obeyed with alacrity, as all were
glad to go, lying in camp so long.

37. alienate
Def: arouse hostility or indifference in where
there had formerly been love, affection, or
friendliness
Ex: Keeping schools closed and blocking certain
public services is not a strategy we support and
could alienate public opinion and play into the
governors hand.

38. allege
Def: report or maintain
Ex: David is alleged to have written several
Psalms, but of this there is little evidence beyond
pious assertion.


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39. allegiance
Def: the act of binding yourself (intellectually or
emotionally) to a course of action
Ex: Notwithstanding this good fortune, Pontiac
daily saw his followers dropping off from their
allegiance; for even the boldest had lost heart.

40. allegory
Def: an expressive style that uses fictional
characters and events to describe some subject by
suggestive resemblances; an extended metaphor
Ex: Achingly beautiful, quiet and graceful, his
award-winning novel Waiting is a love story
superimposed on a political allegory.

41. alleviate
Def: provide physical relief, as from pain
Ex: Lewis said he got a Synvisc shot an
injection commonly used to alleviate arthritic
symptoms in his left knee on Monday.

42. allude
Def: make a more or less disguised reference to
Ex: In his State of the Union address Tuesday
night, Mr. Obama turned up the heat, alluding to
the plan without fleshing out details.

43. aloof
Def: remote in manner
Ex: Too much focus on official duties can make
an incumbent look isolated and aloof.

44. altruistic
Def: showing unselfish concern for the welfare of
others
Ex: The gesture was not necessarily altruistic;
he was hoping for a donation in return.

45. ambiguous
Def: having more than one possible meaning
Ex: "The election law in New York is written in
an ill-defined, ambiguous way," Goldfeder said,
adding that he did not believe any laws were
broken.

46. ambivalent
Def: uncertain or unable to decide about what
course to follow
Ex: "If managers are ambivalent, or wavering,
then investor uncertainty increases and the stocks
become more volatile."

47. ameliorate
Def: to make better
Ex: Possessed of broadly humanitarian
sympathies, he became interested in ameliorating
the conditions of imprisoned debtors.

48. amiable
Def: diffusing warmth and friendliness
Ex: He was also remarkable for his amiable and
cheerful manners.

49. amicable
Def: characterized by friendship and good will

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Ex: Thus, by kindness, the natives of this region
were won to friendship, and amicable relations
were established.

50. amnesty
Def: a warrant granting release from punishment
for an offense
Ex: After three years in prison, he was released
last October in an amnesty that freed about 200
political detainees.

51. amorphous
Def: having no definite form or distinct shape
Ex: The problem is that where genes are tidy
bits of DNA, the environment is huge, amorphous
and hard to quantify.

52. ample
Def: more than enough in size or scope or
capacity
Ex: Both are highly respected and well known,
with ample experience in development and
economic policy making.

53. anachronism
Def: something located at a time when it could
not have existed or occurred
Ex: Today, the British monarchy seems like
even more of an anachronism, notes my friend
Merida, a London bureau friend now living in New
York.

54. analogous
Def: similar or equivalent in some respects
though otherwise dissimilar
Ex: The two conditions, although apparently
analogous, are, in reality, very different.

55. anecdote
Def: short account of an incident (especially a
biographical one)
Ex: With his fourth book, Business at 16, Mr.
Bagchi hopes to get teenagers interested in
business, partly by using fictional anecdotes,
including boy-meets-girl stories.

56. animosity
Def: a feeling of ill will arousing active hostility
Ex: In this brutal contest, two opposing teams
face off against each other with competing
agendas, borrowed tuxedos and tight smiles
concealing deep animosities.

57. annihilate
Def: kill in large numbers
Ex: Men deployed may fall back and escape; a
mass of columns under direct artillery fire must
surrender or be annihilated.

58. anomaly
Def: deviation from the normal or common order
or form or rule
Ex: In this view, crises can be understood only
as anomalies, the consequences of unusual outside
shocks.

59. anonymous

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Def: having no known name or identity or known
source
Ex: Throughout the process, the targeted
consumers are tagged with an alphanumeric code,
removing their names and making the data
anonymous.

60. antagonism
Def: an actively expressed feeling of dislike and
hostility
Ex: It bred a sense of resentment and secret
antagonism which he took less pains to hide, from
that night.

61. antecedent
Def: someone from whom you are descended
(but usually more remote than a grandparent)
Ex: Paul Bunyan is known by his mighty works;
his antecedents and personal history are lost in
doubt.

62. anthropomorphic
Def: suggesting human characteristics for
animals or inanimate things
Ex: The same anthropomorphic fallacy that
accords human attributes to giant corporations like
BP distorts clear thinking about how to limit their
political influence.

63. anticipate
Def: be excited or anxious about
Ex: I will continue to sit here as usual, waiting,
grinning, tapping and anticipating my future.

64. antipathy
Def: a feeling of intense dislike
Ex: At any rate, they had, as a matter of fact,
produced widespread discontent and bitter
antipathies between classes.

65. antithetical
Def: sharply contrasted in character or purpose
Ex: Memorisation has a bad reputation in
education today, dismissed as antithetical to
creativity.

66. apathy
Def: an absence of emotion or enthusiasm
Ex: When not thus engaged, his days were
passed in listless apathy.

67. aptitude
Def: inherent ability
Ex: If there is such a thing as inherited aptitude
for art it certainly showed itself in the family of
Bach.

68. arbitrary
Def: based on or subject to individual discretion
or preference or sometimes impulse or caprice
Ex: The pieces dont build or develop, sections
are carelessly joined, endings seem arbitrary.

69. arcane
Def: requiring secret or mysterious knowledge

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Ex: Not just the knowledge of world geography
but the very conceptualisation of space in this late
medieval map looks to us remote and arcane.

70. archaic
Def: so extremely old as seeming to belong to an
earlier period
Ex: There are other advantages as well to
reading the classics electronicallyyou can tap
archaic words on the screen for an instant
definition.

71. archetype
Def: something that serves as a model or a basis
for making copies
Ex: In many ways, Mr. Romney and Mr.
Huntsman embody the Mormon archetype: clean-
cut, Republican American family men.

72. ardent
Def: characterized by intense emotion
Ex: Age, study, experience, retirement,
reflection, had in no wise dimmed the fire of his
ardent nationalism.

73. arduous
Def: characterized by effort to the point of
exhaustion; especially physical effort
Ex: He seemed about thirty-five years of age,
though the trace of arduous mental and physical
exertion gave him a rather worn and older
appearance.

74. aristocratic
Def: belonging to or characteristic of the nobility
or aristocracy
Ex: Several aristocratic families were stripped
of their status after World War II, limiting the
number of royal matches.

75. artifice
Def: a deceptive maneuver (especially to avoid
capture)
Ex: But small men use lying artifices and
disguises to protect themselves.

76. ascetic
Def: pertaining to or characteristic of an ascetic
or the practice of rigorous self-discipline
Ex: Another frequent cause of visions is long-
continued fasting combined with more or less
ascetic devotion.

77. aspire
Def: have an ambitious plan or a lofty goal
Ex: Indias leaders, eager for a bigger footprint
in global affairs, now aspire to a permanent seat on
an expanded United Nations Security Council.

78. assimilation
Def: the social process of absorbing one cultural
group into harmony with another
Ex: On the contrary, they themselves become
Americanised, thanks to that faculty of
assimilation which they possess in a high degree.

79. assuage

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Def: provide physical relief, as from pain
Ex: Moreover, I became at rest within myself,
and the gaping, aching void which has filled my
vitals these many days, became assuaged.

80. atone
Def: make amends for
Ex: But let us pause for a moment to remember
what redeeming actually is: atoning or making
up for some mistake or wrongdoing.

81. attest
Def: provide evidence for; stand as proof of;
show by one's behavior, attitude, or external
attributes
Ex: Anticipating compensation, thousands
flooded treatment centers seeking medical
certificates attesting to their cholera.

82. attire
Def: clothing of a distinctive style or for a
particular occasion
Ex: She was elegantly and fashionably attired,
wearing rich earrings, gold chain and locket, three
valuable rings in addition to her wedding-ring, and
so forth.

83. attribute
Def: an abstraction belonging to or characteristic
of an entity
Ex: This means that fundamentally important
attributes such as common sense and curiosity are
starting to take primacy.

84. attribution
Def: assigning to a cause or source
Ex: But borrowing from sample essays found
online or other online sources without attribution,
even unintentionally, might result in your
application being rejected.

85. audacious
Def: disposed to venture or take risks
Ex: It was such an audacious, daring thing that
the very thought made her dizzy.

86. audible
Def: heard or perceptible by the ear
Ex: Tavannes answered--but his words were
barely audible above the deafening uproar.

87. augment
Def: enlarge or increase
Ex: Computer engineers, in high demand but
short supply, can command six-figure salaries right
out of college, augmented by signing bonuses and
equity or stock options.

88. augur
Def: predict from an omen
Ex: But ultimately the numbers augured an
inescapably grim fate: Lieberman's approval rating
in Connecticut bottomed out at just 31 percent last
fall.

89. augury

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Def: an event that is experienced as indicating
important things to come
Ex: It was altogether a pretty picture, that
seemed to be a happy augury of the good times in
store.

90. auspicious
Def: auguring favorable circumstances and good
luck
Ex: The coast at the point at which he reached it
seemed specially designed by nature for his
favorable and auspicious reception.

91. austere
Def: severely simple
Ex: Adams was poor, simple, ostentatiously
austere; the blended influence of Calvinistic
theology and republican principles had indurated
his whole character.

92. authentic
Def: conforming to fact and therefore worthy of
belief
Ex: This census is not considered authentic, as
many transparent errors were found in various parts
of it.

93. authoritarian
Def: characteristic of an absolute ruler or
absolute rule; having absolute sovereignty
Ex: But, he said, all the ingredients of a
repressive regime, an authoritarian regime, are
there.

94. authoritative
Def: of recognized authority or excellence
Ex: His plays are being revived, and an
authoritative and exhaustive edition of his
writings is being issued by a leading publishing
house.

95. avarice
Def: reprehensible acquisitiveness; insatiable
desire for wealth (personified as one of the deadly
sins)
Ex: Greed about getting or keeping money
pertains to avarice, not necessarily to simony.

96. avenge
Def: take revenge for a perceived wrong
Ex: But Amon-Ra of Thebes avenged the
dishonour that had been done him, and stirred up
his adorers to successful revolt.

97. aversion
Def: a feeling of intense dislike
Ex: Our peculiar aversion, nay, our dread, of
various alimentary substances are well known.

98. avid
Def: marked by active interest and enthusiasm
Ex: An avid runner, Moyer eventually began
arriving six hours early on game days to exercise
on an underwater treadmill.

99. avuncular

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Def: resembling a uncle in kindness or
indulgence
Ex: He is a consummate retail politician, given
to small talk and an avuncular style.

100. awe
Def: an overwhelming feeling of wonder or
admiration
Ex: The aurora deeply impressed him, inspiring
feelings of awe and reverence.



1. baffle

Def: be a mystery or bewildering to

Ex: It baffles her physician as well, and has got
doctors increasingly worried.

2. baleful

Def: deadly or sinister

Ex: His glance fell on Van Bleit, pallid, red-
eyed, obviously suffering, observing him with the
baleful look of some savage captive beast.

3. balk

Def: refuse to comply

Ex: Congressional Republicans, particularly in
the House of Representatives, have balked at
raising the debt ceiling unless it is accompanied by
significant spending cuts.

4. ballad

Def: a narrative song with a recurrent refrain

Ex: And in the encore there was a new ballad,
Silent Treatment, which Ms. Bryan sang gently,
backed only by Mr. Dafydd on acoustic guitar.

5. ban

Def: prohibit especially by legal means or social
pressure

Ex: Thats why gambling and wagers are
heavily regulated or banned outright in nearly
every country.

6. banal

Def: repeated too often; overfamiliar through
overuse

Ex: Not bare or messy that might be
interesting just banal.

7. bane

Def: something causing misery or death

Ex: Knee pain is the bane of many runners,
sometimes causing them to give up altogether.

8. banish
Def: expel, as if by official decree

He, however, was destined never to return but was
proscribed and banished.

9. banter

Def: be silly or tease one another

Ex: Instead, they bantered, enthused, tripped
over each other's words and generally offered their

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audience the warmest welcome imaginable.

10. barbaric

Def: without civilizing influences

Ex: The law was immediately hailed as a victory
by animal welfare groups over what they consider
to be a barbaric and outdated practice.

11. barrage

Def: the heavy fire of artillery to saturate an area
rather than hit a specific target

Ex: They destroyed army communications, local
cellphone towers and laid down a barrage of
mortar fire.

12. barren

Def: providing no shelter or sustenance

Ex: New homes are sprouting from farmland
once irrigated by the nearby Tigris River but
rendered barren by war and neglect.

13. bastion

Def: projecting part of a rampart or other
fortification

Ex: Dinner over, melons disposed of, fort,
stores, and quarters examined, arrangements were
made for sleeping in the various sheds and bastions
of the fort.

14. bathetic

Def: effusively or insincerely emotional

Ex: Taken together, her tribulations have the
makings of bathetic melodrama.

bearing

Def: characteristic way of bearing one's body

Ex: He thought her face, her whole bearing,
singularly composed in view of his announcement.

15. beckon

Def: summon with a wave, nod, or some other
gesture

Esx: Ten minutes more and the orderly opened
the door, and, obedient to my beckoning finger,
stepped out as the lady was ushered in.

16. bedlam

Def: a state of extreme confusion and disorder

Ex: With more than 190 people killed and
hundreds wounded just three days before the
countrys general election, Spain was thrown into
political bedlam.

17. befuddle

Def: be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be
unable to think clearly

Ex: But regulators are profiling data to help find
patterns in trading activity that previously would
have left regulators befuddled and scratching their
heads.

18. beguile

Def: attract; cause to be enamored

Ex: This is such an entertaining, beguiling,
charming and exciting picture.

19. behemoth

Def: someone or something that is abnormally
large and powerful

Ex: Behemoths like JPMorgan Chase, Wells
Fargo, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney and UBS
have snapped up numerous small firms to create
industry giants.


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20. beholden

Def: under a moral obligation to someone

Ex: Now, this obligation has offended me very
much, because I am proud, and do not like to be
beholden to people.

21. behoove

Def: be appropriate or necessary

Ex: The Hamburg magistrates had offered one
hundred thalers for my arrest; consequently it
behooved me to be very cautious.

22. belie

Def: be in contradiction with

Ex?: Tang's congenial and accommodating
administrative style, however, sometimes belies a
harder edge.

23. belittle

Def: lessen the authority, dignity, or reputation of

Ex: A splendid or an affecting story may be
degraded or belittled by being told in an unworthy
style.

24. bellicose

Def: having or showing a ready disposition to
fight

Ex: So far from unduly fostering a bellicose
spirit tending to war, these would be tactful
preventives of wasteful foreign and civil broils.

25. belligerent

Def: characteristic of an enemy or one eager to
fight

Ex: He was carrying his war tools and stood
facing me for an instant in quite a belligerent
attitude.

26. bemoan

Def: regret strongly

Ex: Facing life-threatening surgery, Adam calls
his therapist and bemoans all the things hes never
done.

27. bemused

Def: perplexed by many conflicting situations or
statements; filled with bewilderment

Ex: Alternately bemused, puzzled, and
intrigued, he read it over again and again.

28. benefactor

Def: a person who helps people or institutions
(especially with financial help)

Ex: Even world-class universities such as
Oxford and Cambridge live off "old money" from
property assets and a few key benefactors.

29. benevolent

Def: showing or motivated by sympathy and
understanding and generosity

Ex: Invariably gentle, attentive, serious,
benevolent, easily satisfied, he remained serene and
peaceful.

30. benign

Def: not dangerous to health; not recurrent or
progressive (especially of a tumor)

Ex: But its images cannot distinguish malignant
tumors from benign growths filled with harmless
breast tissue.

31. bequeath

Def: leave or give by will after one's death

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Ex: The widow lived for a few years, and, at her
death, he bequeathed upon the daughter of his
adoption all that his mother possessed.

32. berate

Def: censure severely or angrily

Ex: At almost every move through the drill he
berated them caustically, though in such faultless
military language of reproof as to keep him from
censure.

33. bereavement
Def: state of sorrow over the death or departure
of a loved one
Ex: The team also helps the patients' families,
instructing them in caring techniques and providing
bereavement counseling after death.

34. beseech

Def: ask for or request earnestly

Ex: Mr. Binney pleaded and besought, but all to
no avail, and left his Tutor's presence at last, a
disgraced and despairing man.

35. besiege

Def: surround so as to force to give up

Ex: The troops in the Potomac army were all
lying in front of Petersburg, under fire day and
night, preparing to besiege the place.

36. besmirch

Def: smear so as to make dirty or stained

Ex: Because the dealer, widely respected in the
Zurich art world, did not want his reputation
besmirched, he agreed to settle the claim out of
court.

37. bestow

Def: present

Ex: There was stillness in the roomutter
stillness as at last Percivale laid his sleeping wife
down, and, bending over her, bestowed a parting
kiss.

38. betrothed

Def: the person to whom you are engaged

Ex: Perhaps he thinks an engaged young lady
should be demure and dutiful, having no eyes or
ears for any one except her betrothed.

39. bewildered

Def: perplexed by many conflicting situations or
statements; filled with bewilderment
Ex:Only the most commonplace things were
said, and yet she puzzled him, bewildered him.

40. bias

Def: influence in an unfair way

Ex: Analytical thinking happens in the left
hemisphere of the brain and is essential to making
more objective, less biased decisions.

41. bicker

Def: argue over petty things

Ex: At times it felt like the candidates had
already talked themselves out on the big themes and
could only bicker over table scraps.

42. bifurcated

Def: divided into or made up of two parts

Ex: Like Lost, its story, at least at first, is
bifurcated, taking place half in the magical world,
half in ours.

43. bilateral


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Def: affecting or undertaken by two parties

Ex: Economic issues took up about half of the
bilateral talks between the two leaders, said a U.S.
official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

44. billowing

Def: characterized by great swelling waves or
surges

Ex: It was here that the Army cooked up
chemical weapons, launched poison-packed mortar
shells and sent gas clouds billowing over the fields.

45. binge

Def: an occasion for excessive eating or drinking

Ex: The government surveys showed binge
drinking having more than five drinks in one day
increased among all ethnic groups and genders,
but particularly among men.

46. blanch

Def: turn pale, as if in fear

Ex: Officers and men stood aghast, with
blanched faces, scarce knowing how to act.

47. bland

Def: lacking stimulating characteristics;
uninteresting

Ex: Many critics were less than enamored with
the kind of easy listening Mr. Williams
embodied, deriding his approach as bland and
unchallenging.

48. blandishment

Def: flattery intended to persuade

Ex: He had expected coaxings, blandishments,
the pleadings and wiles with which Virginia the
elder had made him so intimately acquainted.

49. blare
Def: make a strident sound

Ex: First there were trumpets; then brasses
blared and drums rumbled.
50. blase
uninterested because of frequent exposure or
indulgence

Ex: Dull-eyed, blase, frayed by the social whirl,
worn out, pulseless, all of them.

51. blasphemy
Def: blasphemous language (expressing
disrespect for God or for something sacred)

Ex: Instead of becoming silent, he poured forth a
fresh storm of blasphemy; and continued cursing
all the time I remained within hearing.

52. blatant

Def: conspicuously and offensively loud; given
to vehement outcry

Ex: Then there was great shouting among the
Sophomores, with much blatant, exultant cheering.

53. bleak

Def: offering little or no hope

Ex: Although the situation looks bleak, theres
still room for hope, he said.

54. blemish

Def: a mark or flaw that spoils the appearance of
something (especially on a person's body)

Ex: Fine red lines often can be seen just under
the skin, and some people also experience
pimplelike blemishes.

55. blithe


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Def: carefree and happy and lighthearted

Ex: Deep down inside her being something
sang; outside, the carolling of the lark continued,
blithe and joyous in the breaking dawn.

56. blunder

Def: an embarrassing mistake

Ex: The candidate's first name was misspelled
"John" on media badges, a blunder later repeated
in some campaign mailings.

57. blunt

Def: characterized by directness in manner or
speech; without subtlety or evasion

Ex: Even my lady, so blunt and outspoken by
nature, had shrunk from trying to question the
Dutch girl about her lover.

58. blurt

Def: utter impulsively

Ex: But after that momentary pause he blurted
out, "Is everything all right, Benny?"

59. bluster

Def: act in an arrogant, overly self-assured, or
conceited manner

Ex: Ling was no longer an incarnate monster, a
blustering, boisterous bully.

60. boast

Def: wear or display in an ostentatious or proud
manner

Ex: A pompous, boasting sort of man, I did not
like him at all.

61. bode

Def: indicate by signs

Ex: "Her early recovery is very promising," and
bodes well for further improvement, he said.

62. bogus

Def: fraudulent; having a misleading appearance

Ex: Also, Tello allegedly put the wrong address
on the letter and included fake bar codes and bogus
fax and telephone numbers, they said.

63. bohemian

Def: a nonconformist writer or artist who lives an
unconventional life

Ex: Bohemians were typically urban, liberal in
outlook, but with few visible political passions and,
above all, creative.

64. boisterous

Def: noisy and lacking in restraint or discipline

Ex: Boys drinking champagne at adjacent tables
were calling across to each other with boisterous
merriment.

65. bolster

Def: support and strengthen

Ex: Manufacturing bolstered the nations
economic recovery in March, according to data
released Monday, with companies reporting strong
gains in production and employment.

66. bombardment

Def: an attack by dropping bombs

Ex: He made up air raids and heavy
bombardments and fairly tore up the village in
which he was living.

67. bombastic

19


Def: ostentatiously lofty in style

Ex: Once, only, your workmanship was not
marred by schemes for titillating effects, for
sensational contrasts, for grandiose and bombastic
expression.

68. boon

Def: a desirable state

Ex: The drilling has been an economic boon
creating jobs and reducing dependence on foreign
energy.

69. boorish

Def: ill-mannered and coarse and contemptible in
behavior or appearance

Ex: He becomes boorish, subject to fits of
passion, violent and unaccountable.

70. bountiful

Def: producing in abundance

Ex: The wheat harvest that year was so
bountiful that grain overflowed storage facilities.

71. bourgeois
Def: (according to Marxist thought) being of the
property-owning class and exploitive of the
working class

Ex: This future son-in-law is very young, and
remarkably good looking; he belongs to the upper
bourgeois, even bordering on the nobility.

72. bout

Def: a period of illness

Ex: While out of work, struggling financially,
and single-handedly responsible for three children,
Pauline had several bouts of depression during
which she felt completely isolated.

73. bovine

Def: any of various members of the genus Bos

Ex: We can see handsome bovines at any fat
cattle show.

74. bowdlerize

Def: edit by omitting or modifying parts
considered indelicate

Ex: Being an iconic classic, however, hasnt
protected Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from
being banned, bowdlerized and bleeped.

75. boycott

Def: refuse to sponsor; refuse to do business with

Ex: In what became known as the Chilean
Winter, students at university campuses and high
schools across the country organized strikes,
boycotted classes and occupied buildings.

76. brackish

Def: slightly salty (especially from containing a
mixture of seawater and fresh water)

Ex: The waters of West Africa, salt, brackish,
and fresh abound with fish, and many kinds are, if
properly cooked, excellent eating.

77. braggadocio

Def: vain and empty boasting

Ex: Biggie talks about money and drugs, but
Juicy contains no braggadocio, no empty boasts.

78. braggart

Def: a very boastful and talkative person


20

Ex: In his cups he was a witty, though arrogant,
braggart.

79. brandish

Def: exhibit aggressively

Ex: Yelling, shouting, and brandishing their
weapons, the insurgents poured down.

80. brash

Def: offensively bold

Ex: Mr. Lancman, 43, is known for his brash,
relentless and ambitious style.

81. bravado

Def: a swaggering show of courage

Ex: All their courage and bravado was gone,
and now, like the miserable cowards that they were,
they had sought safety in flight.

82. brawl

Def: a noisy fight in a crowd

Ex: The slightest quarrel, the most
commonplace street brawl are pretexts for rival
factions to come out in battle array.

83. brawn

Def: possessing muscular strength

Ex: He believes Hollywood has often have had
an over-reliance on physical brawn as the deciding
factor for portraying a strong man.

84. brazen

Def: unrestrained by convention or propriety

Ex: House has saved two lives, but Foreman is
furious at his brazen disregard for the rules.

85. breach

Def: make an opening or gap in

Ex: Just look at how hackers breached the
accounts of Googles mail service in the past year,
other RIM executives have noted.

86. breadth

Def: the extent of something from side to side

Ex: On the left side were also two store-houses,
each thirty-six paces long by twelve in breadth,
covered with shingles.

87. brevity

Def: the attribute of being brief or fleeting

Ex: Brevity is key; journalists do not have a lot
of time.

88. brink

Def: the limit beyond which something happens
or changes

Ex: Patterson often asked Groce to ease up in
Taylor's demanding timed conditioning drills,
noticing he was on the brink of hyperventilating
from pushing his limits.

89. brisk

Def: quick and energetic

Ex: The rooms were scrupulously clean, the
table service brisk and punctual.

90. broach

Def: bring up a topic for discussion

Ex: Funeral directors must also navigate a topic
that, even under normal circumstances, can prove
uncomfortable to broach: money.


21

91. brood

Def: hang over, as of something threatening,
dark, or menacing

Ex: In fact, a daunting quietness brooded over
the spot.

92. browbeat

Def: discourage or frighten with threats or a
domineering manner; intimidate

Ex: For ten minutes he bullied and browbeat
the luckless sergeant, whose men had not been
responsible for opening fire.

93. brunt

Def: main force of a blow etc

Ex: While Texas, an epicenter now for wildfires
and crop losses, is taking the brunt of the drought,
surrounding states are also suffering.

94. bucolic

Def: (used with regard to idealized country life)
idyllically rustic

Ex: He is glad when he sees men busy fishing,
planting, and hunting, and engaged in all manner of
bucolic occupations.

95. buffoon

Def: a rude or vulgar fool

Ex:They were sluggards, buffoons, dimwits, liars,
brutes, andwithout exceptiondrunks.

96. buoyant

Def: characterized by liveliness and
lightheartedness
Ex: By nature he was sunny and buoyant,
taking life as he found it.

97. burden
Def: an onerous or difficult concern

Ex: Reconstruction spending is adding to the
nation's huge debt burden.

98. bureaucracy

Def: any organization in which action is
obstructed by insistence on unnecessary procedures
and red tape

Ex: Professors and graduate students have
benefited from improved working conditions,
quicker turnaround for photocopying and scanning,
and decreased bureaucracy and red tape.

99. burgeon

Def: grow and flourish

Ex: Elsewhere, rising prices highlight a more
basic problem: making sure farm productivity keeps
pace with burgeoning populations.

100.butcher

Def: a person who sells meat in a shop

Ex: He is a butcher in Battambang province.








22


1. cacophonous
Def: having an unpleasant sound

Ex: Shoppers mingle, traders peddle their wares
and children play in the street, all to a cacophonous
backdrop of roaring motorbikes and honking cars.

2. cadaverous
Def: of or relating to a cadaver or corpse

Ex: These dreary, cadaverous corpses are
supported in the positions which they are made to
assume by means of steel wires hidden beneath
their scanty robes.

3. calamity
Def: an event resulting in great loss and
misfortune

Ex: In that memorable calamity seventeen lives
were lost and forty persons seriously injured.

4. callow

Def: young and inexperienced

Ex: Marston, he began, drifted into the Paris
ateliers from your country, callow, morbid,
painfully young and totally inexperienced.

5. candid

Def: openly straightforward and direct without
reserve or secretiveness

Ex: Mr. Obama, in an unusually candid public
discussion of the Central Intelligence Agencys
covert program, said the drone strikes had not
inflicted huge civilian casualties.

6. capitulate
Def: surrender under agreed conditions

Ex: "Alas, no," said Bergfeld, mournfully, "the
day after the battle our brave soldiers were
surrounded by overwhelming forces and obliged to
capitulate."

7. capricious
Def: determined by chance or impulse or whim
rather than by necessity or reason

Ex: She remained remote and wild, suddenly
breaking off our talks and displaying, where I was
concerned, the most capricious and inexplicable
moods.

8. caricature

Def: represent in or produce a caricature of

Ex: Mrs. Strong subsequently caricatured our
progress by representing me very tall with an
extremely tight waistband, and Stevenson looking
upward from his diminutive steed.

9. cartographer
Def: a person who makes maps

Ex: This monk was an excellent cartographer,
or map-maker, and Christopher wished to talk with
him about the western lands.

10. castigate
Def: censure severely

Ex: In particular, Kucinich castigated Obama
for pursuing military intervention in Libya without
congressional authorization: President Obama
moved forward without Congress approving.

11. catharsis

Def: (psychoanalysis) purging of emotional
tensions

Ex: Not enough people use evenings out as an
opportunity for catharsis.

12. caustic

23

of a substance, especially a strong acid; capable of
destroying or eating away by chemical action
EXAMPLE SENTENCE:
Though the mud only came up to ankle height, its
caustic ingredients continue to eat away the
foundations.

13. cease

Def: put an end to a state or an activity

Ex: The firing ceased; the smoke slowly cleared
away, revealing the two fleets commingled,
shattered, and torn, and strewed with dead.

14. cede

Def: relinquish possession or control over

Ex: He ceded some of his powers to elected
officials, while keeping the final say on issues of
defense, national security and religion.

15. chagrin
Def: strong feelings of embarrassment

Ex: He watched his chance, and, at length,
escaped, much to his enemies chagrin.

16. charisma

Def: a personal attractiveness or interestingness
that enables you to influence others

Ex: Egypt's al-Zawahri likely to succeed bin
Laden For years, Osama bin Laden's charisma kept
al-Qaida's ranks filled with zealous recruits.

17. charlatan

Def: a flamboyant deceiver; one who attracts
customers with tricks or jokes

Ex: Like most charlatans who find it necessary
to deceive the world, the physician tried to cover up
his shortcomings by noisy bluster.

18. chastise

Def: censure severely

Ex: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
recently chastised China in a speech she gave in
which she decried Internet censorship.

19. chimerical

Def: produced by a wildly fanciful imagination

Ex: Indeed during his wild and chimerical
attempts for finding out a golden country, it is not
improbable that this brave adventurer visited many
different places.

20. chronic

Def: being long-lasting and recurrent or
characterized by long suffering

Ex: Howard is expected to remain out until at
least June, while Utley, battling chronic knee
injuries, may not return until May.

21. circuitous
deviating from a straight course

Ex: It has taken five hours to get here from
Cairo via a circuitous route to avoid the Egyptian
police checkpoints.

22. circumlocution

Def: an indirect way of expressing something

Ex: He got his message out bunglingly, with
embarrassed circumlocution and repetition; but
this was what it came to in the end.

23. circumspect

Def: heedful of potential consequences

Ex: As Kaufman writes: On the strategy front,
some of these groups are becoming more
circumspect in campaigning against global

24

warming, mindful of mixed public sentiment.

24. clandestine

Def: conducted with or marked by hidden aims or
methods

Ex: "All of this is done in a very clandestine
way," said Paddick, who said he had never
personally seen money being exchanged.

25. clemency

Def: leniency and compassion shown toward
offenders by a person or agency charged with
administering justice

Ex: Then on Tuesday, his last day in office, he
granted clemency or suspended sentences to more
than 200 other convicts.

26. clique

Def: an exclusive circle of people with a common
purpose

Ex: This little clique, this group admired her and
instinctively adopted the tone which she set.

27. coercion

Def: using force to cause something to occur

Ex: Authorities are still trying to determine
whether Savannah was forced to run by physical
coercion or by verbal commands.

28. cogent

Def: powerfully persuasive

Ex: The supposition is so very probable, that
nothing short of very cogent reasons could induce
us to abandon it.

29. cognizant

Def: (sometimes followed by `of') having or
showing knowledge or understanding or realization
or perception

Ex: You have to be cognizant of the evidence
out there and learn from what has been published.

30. colloquial

Def: characteristic of informal spoken language
or conversation

Ex: Perhaps not elegant classical Latin, but
good, everyday, useful, colloquial stuff.

31. collusion

Def: secret agreement

Ex: Then, unless there were collusion on the
part of the sentries, he must have slipped through
some window, said Davies to himself.

32. colossal

Def: so great in size or force or extent as to elicit
awe

Ex: In the galleries are colossal figures of
dragons, gods, goddesses, and heroes, groups being
often carved out of one gigantic monolith.

33. commence

Def: set in motion, cause to start

Ex: Reaching this just at evening, he encamped
there all night, and the next morning commenced
crossing.

34. commiserate

Def: to feel or express sympathy or compassion

Ex: We had spent countless hours together
drinking wine and commiserating about child-
rearing, long Wisconsin winters and interrupted

25

sleep.

35. commodious

Def: large and roomy (`convenient' is archaic in
this sense)

Ex: When done their building was quite
commodious, being twenty-two feet by fourteen.

36. compelling

Def: driving or forcing

Ex: The South African site has some compelling
advantages: construction costs are lower, and it sits
at a higher altitude.

37. compensation

Def: something (such as money) given or
received as payment or reparation (as for a service
or loss or injury)

Ex: The Home Office is understood to have paid
more than 1m in compensation to 40 children
wrongly held in adult detention centres while
seeking asylum.

38. complacent

Def: contented to a fault with oneself or one's
actions

Ex: He added: "Like being a pioneer in
anything, I suppose, you get complacent...We're
waking up to the fact that we are lagging behind."

39. compliant

Def: disposed or willing to comply

Ex: Romar said the freshmen are "such a
compliant group" and "willing learner" more than
any other incoming class he's had at Washington.

40. composure

Def: steadiness of mind under stress

Ex: His heart was beating furiously under his
waistcoat, but, taken aback as he was, he
maintained outward composure.

41. compulsory

Def: required by rule

Ex: While military service is compulsory on all
Mohammedans over eighteen years of age, there are
some exemptions, and substitution is allowed.

42. concede

Def: admit (to a wrongdoing)

Ex: He spent months defending his televised
Decision, before finally conceding that it might
not have been the greatest idea.

43. conceited

Def: characteristic of false pride; having an
exaggerated sense of self-importance

Ex: What wonder, then, that he thought of them
as conceited, vain, full of pride, without merit?

44. concentric

Def: having a common center

Ex: The inner bark consists of numerous
concentric layers of fibers, which interlace in all
directions, and thus present a great resemblance to
lace.

45. conciliatory

Def: making or willing to make concessions

Ex: Mr. Cox was conciliatory at other moments,
but politely stood firm on the basics of the
bureaus economic model.

46 . concise

26


Def: expressing much in few words

Ex: For some purposes, concise, exactly worded
definitions are needed; for other purposes, more
extended descriptions are required.

47. conclave

Def: a confidential or secret meeting

Ex: The door is closed now, and were in
secret conclave.

48. concord

Def: a harmonious state of things in general and
of their properties (as of colors and sounds);
congruity of parts with one another and with the
whole

Ex: "I take it, then, that we are working in
unison,at least, in concord?"

49. concurrent

Def: occurring or operating at the same time

Ex: St. Croix river being the boundary line
between two states, the Wisconsin authorities
claimed concurrent jurisdiction.

50. condone

Def: excuse, overlook, or make allowances for;
be lenient with

Ex: Many frown on the mixing of the sexes,
refusing to shake hands with women let alone
condoning any sort of political activity by them.

51. confine

Def: place limits on (extent or access)
Ex: Work in synthetic biology is still confined
to laboratories, but researchers see potential for
advances in energy production, medicine and other
fields.

52. conflagration

Def: a very intense and uncontrolled fire

Ex: We view Europe as covering at present a
smothered fire, which may shortly burst forth and
produce general conflagration.

53. conflate

Def: mix together different elements

Ex: Cain said his rivals were wrongly attempting
to conflate his plan with existing state sales taxes,
saying it was like comparing apples and oranges.

54. confluence

Def: a place where things merge or flow together
(especially rivers)

Ex: Memphis is situated at the confluence of the
Mississippi and Ohio rivers.

55. conformity

Def: correspondence in form or appearance

Ex: Heretics were frightened into conformity or
punished; some were driven out of the country, a
few were burned to death.

56. confound

Def: mistake one thing for another

Ex: He is apt to denominate, however, his whole
gain, profit, and thus confounds rent with profit, at
least in common language.

57. conglomerate

Def: a group of diverse companies under
common ownership and run as a single organization


27

Ex: During his time in office, the
conglomerates have added more subsidiaries and
expanded into sectors usually occupied by smaller
companies, like food and retail.

58. conjecture

Def: a hypothesis that has been formed by
speculating or conjecturing (usually with little hard
evidence)

Ex: He guessed how Elbel was occupied, and his
conjecture was confirmed by Samba, who at once
resumed his scouting work.

59. connotation

Def: an idea that is implied or suggested

Ex: Expand is a word with potentially
positive connotations, but also virtually an infinite
number of negative connotations, including
violence and aggression.

60. consensus

Def: agreement in the judgment or opinion
reached by a group as a whole

Ex: Mr. Farmer had originally hoped to form a
consensus, but later announced that he was
prepared to cast the tie-breaking vote.

61. conserve

Def: use cautiously and frugally

Ex: But by not making body parts they dont
need, parasites conserve energy, which they can
invest in other efforts like reproduction.

62. consolation

Def: the act of consoling; giving relief in
affliction

Ex: Words of consolation are but empty sounds,
for to time alone it belongs to wear out the tears of
affliction.

63. consolidate

Def: bring together into a single whole or system

Ex: The Chinese government is now trying to
consolidate dozens of small rare earth mining
companies into three state-owned giants.

64. conspicuous

Def: obvious to the eye or mind

Ex: Their clothes are never conspicuous; they
detract rather than attract attention.

65. consternation

Def: fear resulting from the awareness of danger

Ex: He lifted himself up on his right elbow; to
his horror and consternation, there were two or
three spots of blood upon the white sheet.

66. consummate

Def: having or revealing supreme mastery or skill

Ex: Recipes are all thoroughly tested in
consummate Cook's Illustrated style, which means
you won't be wasting time with any duds.

67. contaminate

Def: make impure

Ex: Some wells and springs are still
contaminated with uranium and other toxic heavy
metals, a legacy of 40 years of mining.

68. contemplate

Def: consider as a possibility

Ex: He had never liked him in the old days, but
he was far too good-natured to contemplate any

28

serious bloodshed.

69. contemporaneous

Def: occurring in the same period of time

Ex: In all cases, these materials have been
introduced into the cave at some period subsequent
to, or contemporaneous with, the formation of the
cave.

70. contrite

Def: feeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins
or offenses

Ex: At his death he was very contrite for the
sins that he had committed against God before and
after his baptism.

71. contrived

Def: showing effects of planning or manipulation

Ex: Here, team spirit feels neither corny nor
contrived.

72. controversial

Def: marked by or capable of arousing
controversy

Ex: Both are taking staunchly conservative
positions on controversial science issues: they are
against regulating carbon emissions and oppose
embryonic stem-cell research.

73. conundrum

Def: a difficult problem

Ex: This could solve a conundrum for
beekeepers - how to tackle the mites without
damaging the bees they live so intimately with.

74. converse

Def: carry on a conversation

Ex: They conversed in French, but the snake
made no movement.

75. convivial

Def: occupied with or fond of the pleasures of
good company
Ex: Large family groups and neighborhood
regulars fill the dining room and the long, convivial
bar.

76. copious

Def: large in number or quantity (especially of
discourse)

Ex: During hot dry summers especially, copious
waterings should be given.

77. cordial

Def: politely warm and friendly

Ex: My personal relations with Mr. Taft had of
course always been most cordial and agreeable.

78. correlation

Def: a statistical relation between two or more
variables such that systematic changes in the value
of one variable are accompanied by systematic
changes in the other

Ex: The analysis did not prove that sleeping pills
cause death, critics noted, only that there may be a
correlation between the two.

79. corroborate

Def: support with evidence or authority or make
more certain or confirm

Ex: Such resemblances can prove little or
nothing unless they are corroborated by evidence
based on historical grounds.

80. countenance

29


Def: the appearance conveyed by a person's face

Ex: On looking on the countenance of Mr.
Barry at this moment, Mrs. Palmer was surprised to
see it deadly pale.

81. coup

Def: a sudden and decisive change of government
illegally or by force

Ex: Ex-president Mohamed Nasheed says he has
been forced out in a coup.

82. covert

Def: secret or hidden; not openly practiced or
engaged in or shown or avowed

Ex: Covert channels are used to transfer
sensitive information outside of the enterprise
without being detected by gateway security
solutions.

83. coveted

Def: greatly desired

Ex: Among other things of Chinese provenance
earnestly coveted by us, perhaps the most desired
were books.

84. cower

Def: show submission or fear

Ex: And there, in one corner, frightened, with
guilt writ plain all over her, cowered Lady.

85. craven

Def: lacking even the rudiments of courage;
abjectly fearful

Ex: Was it for them to follow the craven
footsteps of a cowardly generation?

86. credence

Def: the mental attitude that something is
believable and should be accepted as true

Ex: I am surprised that plaintiffs hyperbolic
allegations and inflated damage claims are given
any credence, said the banks top lawyer, Gary
Lynch.

87. credible

Def: appearing to merit belief or acceptance
Ex: So far, no credible studies have linked
exposure to radio waves to cancer.

88. crestfallen

Def: brought low in spirit

Ex: Week after week, he roamed the streets of
New York, looking for work, and every night
returned to Hoboken, crestfallen and disappointed.

89. criterion

Def: the ideal in terms of which something can be
judged

Ex: Each has promised to limit child-directed
advertising of its least-healthy products, focusing
instead on healthier options meeting nutritional
criteria that each company established
independently.

90. cryptic

Def: having a secret or hidden meaning

Ex: Lost represented his most intricate,
steadfastly cryptic mystery box, a drawn-out tease
during which questions multiplied twice as fast as
answers.

91. culminate

Def: end, especially to reach a final or climactic
stage

30


Ex: Following Nevada, there are five
nomination contests in February, including
caucuses in Maine that started this weekend and
will culminate later next week.

92. culpable

Def: deserving blame or censure as being wrong
or evil or injurious

Ex: May even the culpable be pardoned; they
are punished sufficiently by remorse.

93. cultivate

Def: prepare for crops

Ex: A farmer living in rural Ethiopia, for
example, will often cultivate all of the food his
family needs, selling only if there is a surplus.

94. cultivated

Def: marked by refinement in taste and manners

Ex: Dorothy admired Mrs. Faulkner's lovely
gracious disposition, and her clever cultivated
mind.

95. cumbersome

Def: difficult to handle or use especially because
of size or weight

Ex: Shabby infrastructure, cumbersome
bureaucracy, a meandering tax regime and a nascent
local supplier base are holding back industrial
growth and more foreign investment.

96. cumulative

Def: increasing by successive addition

Ex: The unemployment rate has declined for
four straight months, falling a cumulative 0.6
percentage point.

97. cursory

Def: hasty and without attention to detail; not
thorough

Ex: He also said department examinations were
often cursory, even though widely accepted
protocols recommend detailed testing.

98. curtail

Def: terminate or abbreviate before its intended
or proper end or its full extent

Ex: Deep-rooted corruption was curtailing
justice in Pakistan, he added.

99. cyclical

Def: recurring in cycles

Ex: These things are cyclical, there are some
years that are happier than others, he said.

100. cynical

Def: believing the worst of human nature and
motives; having a sneering disbelief in e.g.
selflessness of others

Ex: He tried not to become jaded or cynical, he
said, and retained hope that people who had made
mistakes could turn their lives around.







31

1. dally

Def: waste time

Ex: Too long already had the young General
dallied, wasting time.

2. dapper

Def: marked by up-to-dateness in dress and
manners

Ex: Favoring elegant, tailored suits, he was once
named one of the best dressed men in America by
People magazine for his "diplomatically dapper"
style.

3. dauntless

Def: invulnerable to fear or intimidation

Ex: He had dauntless courage, unwearied
energy, engaging manners, boundless ambition,
unsurpassed powers of debate, and strong personal
magnetism.

4. dawdle

Def: take one's time; proceed slowly

Ex: Being alone, she ate slowly, and deliberately
dawdled over the meal, to kill time.

5. dearth

Def: an insufficient quantity or number

Ex: In those arid deserts, they suffered from
thirst as well as from dearth of provisions.

6. debacle

Def: a sudden and violent collapse

Ex: Meanwhile, for now, Mr. Obama has no
major scandals or foreign policy debacles.

7. debilitate
Def: make weak

Ex: Necropsy reports told of horses that had
been running with debilitating ailments: stomach
ulcers, degenerative joint diseases, pneumonia,
metal screws from previous broken bones.

8. debunk

Def: expose while ridiculing; especially of
pretentious or false claims and ideas

Ex: Many examples show that what physicians
once accepted as truth has been totally debunked.

9. deduce

Def: conclude by reasoning; in logic

Ex: These cases, extreme as they are, do not
justify, in my judgment, the conclusion deduced
from them.

10. defame
Def: charge falsely or with malicious intent;
attack the good name and reputation of someone

Ex: Doesn't King know he is going to be
smeared and defamed for these hearings no matter
what?

11. defiance

Def: a defiant act

Ex: At least 10 people were escorted by security
out of the building after a systematic protest in
defiance of the board's actions.

12. defunct

Def: no longer in force or use; inactive

32


Ex: Gold's has found that its express gyms fit
well in spaces vacated by defunct or shrinking
retailers.

13. dejected

Def: affected or marked by low spirits

Ex: Around the table, the group of menpallid,
gloomy, dejected, disheartened.

14. deleterious

Def: harmful to living things

Ex: A number of the species are edible, while
others have been recorded as deleterious,
poisonous, etc.

15. delicacy

Def: something considered choice to eat

Ex: The lady soon prepared supper, consisting
of broiled chicken, and other delicacies.

16. deluge

Def: the rising of a body of water and its
overflowing onto normally dry land

Ex: Dykes and bridges were washed away in
places and roads submerged by the muddy deluge.

17. demeanor

Def: (behavioral attributes) the way a person
behaves toward other people

Ex: Hollande projects a unifying, jovial persona
and leadership method that clashes with Sarkozys
dominating, impetuous, controversial, and at times
grating demeanor.

18. demographic

Def: a statistic characterizing human populations
(or segments of human populations broken down by
age or sex or income etc.)

Ex: In my country, about 70 percent of the
citizens are 30 years old or younger, and there are
similar demographics in many other developing
countries.

19. denounce

Def: to accuse or condemn or openly or formally
or brand as disgraceful

Ex: Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of
the courthouse, chanting slogans denouncing the
perpetrators and demanding justice for victims.

20. depict

Def: show in, or as in, a picture

Ex: The life-size bronze statue depicts Shannon
Stone and his young son wearing baseball caps.

21. deplete

Def: use up (resources or materials)

Ex: Eighty-four percent of the world's fish
stocks are fully exploited, overexploited or
depleted, according to the U.N.

22. derivation

Def: the source or origin from which something
derives (i.e. comes or issues)

Ex: The derivation of the words courteous and
courtesy from court is obvious.

23. descendant
a person considered as descended from some
ancestor or race

Ex: The families that founded the two groups
are closely related to each other through marriages

33

between their descendants.

24. descry

Def: catch sight of

Ex: Looking off seaward, I could descry no
sails.

25. desolate

Def: providing no shelter or sustenance

Ex: The surroundings were barren rocks,
gloomy deep valleys, and desolate gullies, the only
redeeming feature being a glimpse of the ocean on
one hand.

26. destitute

Def: poor enough to need help from others

Ex: They wandered over muir and fell, in
poverty and sorrow, being destitute, afflicted,
tormented.

27. deter

Def: turn away from by persuasion

Ex: Let no sportsman or amateur naturalist be
deterred from visiting Patagonia by the
discouraging words of Darwin.

28. detrimental

Def: (sometimes followed by `to') causing harm
or injury

Ex: The damage it's done is just so detrimental
to the country.

29. devout

Def: deeply religious

Ex: Devout peasants always kneel as the blessed
infant passes.
30. dexterity

Def: adroitness in using the hands
Ex: "It's not as good as an actual hand,
obviously, but it gives you more dexterity because
the fingers move independently."

31. diabolical

Def: showing the cunning or ingenuity or
wickedness typical of a devil

Ex: He is ever hankering after forbidden arts,
and many have fallen the innocent victims to his
diabolical intrigues.

32. diaphanous

Def: so thin as to transmit light

Ex: Watercolour, being transparent but visible,
is made for the insubstantial: for painting water,
reflection, vapour, sky, the hazy, diaphanous and
remote.

33. diatribe

Def: thunderous verbal attack

Ex: The grotesquely violent diatribes that the
characters sometimes hurl at each other parody the
vicious language Lear heaps on his ungrateful
daughters, for instance.

34. dichotomy

Def: being twofold; a classification into two
opposed parts or subclasses

Ex: The stark dichotomy between their own
lives and the projections on the televisions in their
living rooms becomes more pronounced.

35. didactic

Def: instructive (especially excessively)


34

Ex: Min is nothing if not didactic, lecturing to
the point of hectoring the reader.

36. diffident
Def: lacking self-confidence
Ex: He had exceedingly good parts, but was
somewhat diffident and bashful.

37. dilettante

Def: an amateur who engages in an activity
without serious intentions and who pretends to have
knowledge

Ex: For the rest, in practice I am an idler, a
dilettante, and a good deal else that is pleasant and
utterly useless.

38. dire

Def: fraught with extreme danger; nearly
hopeless

Ex: In Florida, the demand for foster homes was
so dire that children were sleeping in child welfare
offices as recently as a few years ago.

39. disconcerting

Def: causing an emotional disturbance

Ex: There was no drooping of fringed lids, no
disconcerting silences; she chatted with ease and
piquancy.

40. discord

Def: lack of agreement or harmony

Ex: For all the alleged discord in this country,
theres an amazing amount of real agreement on
what a better America would look like.

41. discreet

Def: marked by prudence or modesty and wise
self-restraint

Ex: Sarkozy has attempted to tone down his
image, becoming more discreet about his private
life.

42. discrepancy

Def: a difference between conflicting facts or
claims or opinions
Ex: The historical discrepancies are sufficiently
glaring to make the story more than questionable.

43. disenfranchise
Def: deprive of voting rights

Ex: European Union observers said the vote was
marred by avoidable and logistical failures, which
led to an unacceptable number of Ugandan citizens
being disenfranchised.

44. disfigure

Def: mar or spoil the appearance of

Ex: A darker scowl changed and disfigured his
brow, as he lost hope of gaining me.

45. disgruntled

Def: in a state of sulky dissatisfaction

Ex: PA Parenteau breakaway goal less than two
minutes later stretched New York's lead and caused
a cascade of boos from disgruntled Maple Leafs
fans.

46. disheveled

Def: in disarray; extremely disorderly

Ex: The fierce winds blew some walls off some
rooms, leaving disheveled beds and misplaced
furniture but miraculously no injuries.

47. disingenuous
Def: not straightforward or candid; giving a false
appearance of frankness


35

Ex: It feels both flattering and insulting,
comforting and unsettling, honest and
disingenuous.

48. disinter
Def: dig up for reburial or for medical
investigation; of dead bodies

Ex: In the Northern Islands the entire remains
are disinterred, carefully cleaned, wrapped up once
more, and reburied; here, the skull and jawbone
only are retained.

49. disjointed

Def: lacking orderly continuity

Ex: His thoughts lost their continuity and
became scrappy, disjointed, hazy.

50. dismal

Def: causing dejection

Ex: Brownsville is a neighborhood so
distinguished by negatives that even on a cloudless
day, a dismal, enervating tension can take hold.

51. dismantle

Def: take apart into its constituent pieces

Ex: The Tunny machines, like the Colossus
computers they worked alongside, were dismantled
and recycled for spare parts after World War II.

52. dismay

Def: the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles

Ex: She looked at him with dismay, as though
lamenting, making him responsible for her
misfortune.

53. disparage

Def: express a negative opinion of

Ex: In pitching for more contracts, AMR
publicly tries to avoid disparaging fire
departments, even as it criticizes the public business
model.

54. disparity
Def: inequality or difference in some respect

Ex: Nationwide, womens groups point out the
glaring gender disparity in public life, noting that
there are only 6 female governors and 17 female
senators.

55. dispassionate
Def: unaffected by strong emotion or prejudice

Ex: His words recall to us a windy afternoon on
Fifth Avenue, in the days when our Uncle Sam was
dispassionate and neutral.

56. dispatch

Def: the act of sending off something

Ex: Messengers were immediately dispatched
in every direction, sending the glad tidings on.

57. dispel

Def: force to go away; used both with concrete
and metaphoric meanings

Ex: The idea that sufferers from heart disease
should avoid physical exertion has been dispelled
by a noted physiologist who has successfully
employed regulated exercise.

58. dispense

Def: grant a dispensation; grant an exemption

Ex: Lumber being scarce in that vicinity, floors,
doors, as well as sash and glass, were dispensed
with.

59. disperse

Def: cause to separate

36


Ex: They were dispersed by riot police officers
but returned a few hours later before being chased
away again.

60. displace

Def: cause to move, usually with force or
pressure

Ex: "There is a desperate need for food, for
shelter and assistance," Johnson said after visiting
the affected area and meeting displaced people.

61. disposable

Def: designed to be disposed of after use

Ex: Sadly, it's also normal to see these
disposable cups spewing out of bins and knocking
about on pavements.

62. disposition

Def: your usual mood

Ex: At this time, he moved in the best society,
where his courtly manners and genial disposition
made him a general favorite.

63. disseminate

Def: cause to become widely known

Ex: Few will be surprised if more details are
disseminated before the big reveal at Detroits
Cobo Hall.

64. dissertation

Def: a treatise advancing a new point of view
resulting from research; usually a requirement for
an advanced academic degree

Ex: He attended Duke University, won a Rhodes
scholarship to Oxford and earned a Ph.D., writing a
dissertation on humanitarian movements and relief
work.

65. dissident

Def: a person who dissents from some
established policy

Ex: Just as political dissidents fought the Soviet
regime, so, too, did others oppose the educational
system.

66. dissimilar

Def: not similar

Ex: How do two cities so dissimilar in location,
size, and environment end up on the same end of
the cost-of-living scale?

67. dissimulate

Def: hide (feelings) from other people

Ex: He was simply more cautious than is usual
in men, and so exceedingly honest that it was
impossible for him to dissimulate.

68. dissipate

Def: to cause to separate and go in different
directions

Ex: The leaked gas mainly methane was
dissipating in the atmosphere very quickly, Total
said.

69. dissipated

Def: preoccupied with the pursuit of pleasure and
especially games of chance

Ex: The Prince of Wales also still pursued the
most dissipated rounds of pleasure, making his
very name hateful to every virtuous ear.

70. dissipation

Def: dissolute indulgence in sensual pleasure

37


Ex: But some men mean by college spirit
something finer than lawlessness, dissipation, and
rowdyism.

71. dissolute

Def: unrestrained by convention or morality

Ex: Extravagance, debauchery, and dissolute
habits were sure to work out in time the attendant
ills of wretchedness, destitution, and penury.

72. dissolution

Def: the termination or disintegration of a
relationship (between persons or nations)

Ex: A loosening and final dissolution of old
unions, which no longer satisfy all conditions,
cannot be recommended until new constellations
are within reach.

73. dissolve
Def: cause to fade away

Ex: And then the glittering mass begins to
dissolve and fade away.

74. dissonance

Def: the auditory experience of sound that lacks
musical quality; sound that is a disagreeable
auditory experience

Ex: On that album Wilco opened up its music,
letting noise, dissonance and other disruptions
transmogrify what had been solid, straightforward
roots-rock.

75. dissonant

Def: lacking in harmony

Ex: He thinks it's a practical joke, because the
music is fragmentary, halting, dissonant and weird.

76. dissuade

Def: turn away from by persuasion

Ex: Several old miners tried, with the best of
intentions, to dissuade Gabe from going to those
diggings, saying he would only meet with failure.

77. distant

Def: located far away spatially

Ex: I counted eight peaks, and then, on coming
nearer, others, that at first had blended with those
higher and more distant ones, detached themselves.

78. distend

Def: swell from or as if from internal pressure

Ex: Some kids said LaNiyah's distended
abdomen looked like she was carrying a baby.

79. distill

Def: remove impurities from, increase the
concentration of, and separate through the process
of distillation

Ex: He has made his mark by simplifying and
distilling his ideas, using as few elements as the
conventions of showing art will allow.

80. distillation

Def: the process of purifying a liquid by boiling
it and condensing its vapors

Ex: This process of heating an organic
compound in a closed vessel without access of air
and collecting the products, is called destructive
distillation.

81. distort

Def: twist and press out of shape


38

Ex: It was dark and distorted, swollen a great
deal, and one of his eyes was closed.

82. distract

Def: draw someone's attention away from
something

Ex: During the evening he had kept his sorrow
at bay as well as he could, distracting his thoughts
with passing objects.

83. distraught

Def: deeply agitated especially from emotion

Ex: He is plainly distraught, utterly unbalanced
by the sad experience he has had.

84. distress

Def: cause mental pain to

Ex: Prissy alone was genuinely distressed, and
so affected was she that two big tears of woe
trickled down her cheeks.

85. diverse

Def: many and different

Ex: This remains a diverse country, and there
are distinct regional differences even within a
political party.

86. divest

Def: reduce or dispose of; cease to hold (an
investment)

Ex: The practice was known as "tobashi," and
was used to mean "hiding bad loans" or "selling or
divesting in unwanted stocks."

87. docile

Def: willing to be taught or led or supervised or
directed

Ex: The Puma is, however, easily tamed and
becomes very docile under kindly treatment.

88. dogmatic

Def: relating to or involving dogma

Ex: Expect neither theological controversy nor
dogmatic discussion of any kind from me.

89. doleful

Def: filled with or evoking sadness

Ex: He never held forth dark threats, nor
adopted, like many preachers about him, the doleful
tones of grief when he talked about religion.

90. domestic

Def: produced in a particular country

Ex: At the same time, domestic oil production is
actually increasing after decades of decline,
meaning we have to import less than before.

91. dominant

Def: exercising influence or control

Ex: He looked strangely determined and
forceful; almost, as she thought of it, dominant.

92. dormant

Def: inactive but capable of becoming active

Ex: In addition, this past winter was warmer
than usual, so normally dormant ticks are active.

93. dreary

Def: causing dejection

Ex: Looking out of my window the landscape is
cold and dreary.


39

94. drudgery

Def: hard monotonous routine work

Ex: My worthy employer, however, evidently
intends holding on forever, and the sordid,
monotonous drudgery has been getting
insupportable lately.

95. dubious

Def: fraught with uncertainty or doubt

Ex: Through online forums, blogs and Twitter, a
cottage industry has grown up around instant
criticism of dodgy scientific claims and dubious
findings.

96. duplicity

Def: acting in bad faith; deception by pretending
to entertain one set of intentions while acting under
the influence of another

Ex: Whatever they touched was blighted;
whatever they said or preached breathed treachery;
wherever they went, vice, crime, and duplicity
marked their track.

97. durable

Def: capable of withstanding wear and tear and
decay

Ex: The department said orders for durable
goods, manufactured products expected to last three
years or more, fell 0.5 percent, a smaller decline
than initially estimated.

98. dwell

Def: inhabit or live in; be an inhabitant of

Ex: They did not dwell in fixed abodes, but
wandered hither and thither as inclination and duty
led.

99. dwindle

Def: become smaller or lose substance

Ex: As decades pass, maximum heart rate slows,
aerobic capacity wanes, muscle mass tends to
dwindle.

100. dystopian

Def: of or pertaining to or resembling a dystopia

Ex: And yet his dystopian vision that
humanity's lot, our inescapable fate, will be
grinding, desperate poverty, lives on.

















40

1. ebullient
Def: joyously unrestrained
Ex: The piece opened with ebullient bursts of
energy and color that scampered over harmonica
drones played by one or more members.

2. eclectic
Def: selecting what seems best of various styles
or ideas
Ex: A former student of fine art, Mr Scruff's
eclectic selections are accompanied by animations
of the trademark "potato people" who humorously
narrate his musical journey.

3. edible
Def: suitable for use as food
Ex: Nevertheless, hunger increased so much that
many ventured out into woods along the river
seeking edible roots, and with some success.

4. edify
Def: make understand
Ex: Then Miss Fairbairn held one of her little
discourses, with which now and then she
endeavoured to edify her pupils.

5. efface
Def: remove by or as if by rubbing or erasing
Ex: Her rich beauty was wiped out as an acid-
soaked sponge might efface a portrait.

6. effervescent
Def: marked by high spirits or excitement
Ex: When he ran for president, Barack Obama's
effervescent campaign was about hope, optimism,
national unity, and, above all, the future.

7. effulgent
Def: radiating or as if radiating light
Ex: Ere another year be passed, we hope to see
its effulgent rays light up all the dark corners of
our land.

8. egalitarian
Def: favoring social equality
Ex: We are living in an egalitarian society
where everyone is equal, he said.

9. egotistical
Def: characteristic of those having an inflated
idea of their own importance
Ex: I have lived an entirely egotistical life, for
myself alone.

10. egregious
Def: conspicuously and outrageously bad or
reprehensible
Ex: His comments were so egregious,
naturally advertisers will have doubts about being
associated with Limbaughs brand of hate, Mr.
Boehlert said in an e-mail message.


41

11. elated
Def: full of high-spirited delight
Ex: Young Barry returned from his parting walk
with his brother in high spirits, elated with hope,
and better both in mind and body.

12. eloquent
Def: expressing yourself readily, clearly,
effectively
Ex: But, so far as the best selection of words, the
clearest style, the most coherent and convincing
argument can constitute eloquence, Mill's speeches
are eloquent.

13. elucidate
Def: make clear and (more) comprehensible
Ex: Improving the understanding of why tissues
in bar-headed geese are so adept at taking up
oxygen might elucidate human respiration as well.

14. elude
Def: escape, either physically or mentally
Ex: Gregory Standifer was arrested at the scene
after allegedly attempting to elude police by
jumping out of a window, police said.

15. elusive
Def: skillful at eluding capture
Ex: They are an elusive lot and Don Ramon
would soon wear out his troops hunting them in the
bush.

16. emancipate
Def: free from slavery or servitude
Ex: The Civil War came to an end, leaving the
slave not only emancipated but endowed with the
full dignity of citizenship.

17. embellish
Def: make more attractive by adding ornament,
colour, etc.
Ex: At Saks, reedy shapes and flared minis, and
more vanguard looks like Marc Jacobss sports-
inspired skirts embellished with a racing stripe, are
projected best sellers.

18. embody
Def: represent in bodily form
Ex: He was a can-do optimist who, despite many
years in the environs of Hollywood, identified with
and embodied American values.

19. embryonic
Def: of an organism prior to birth or hatching
Ex: Human embryonic stem cells typically
come from fertilized eggs.

20. eminent
Def: standing above others in quality or position
Ex: The daring aviator was heartily
congratulated again by the President and other
eminent men who thronged about him.

21. emphatic
Def: forceful and definite in expression or action

42

Ex: Miss Penny repeated my question in her
loud, emphatic voice.

22. empirical
Def: derived from experiment and observation
rather than theory
Ex: "So far, no one has reported empirical
evidence from real city-traffic data that the
transition Kerner predicted actually occurs," Davis
pointed out.

23. emulate
Def: strive to equal or match, especially by
imitating
Ex: People in the technology field described Mr.
Jobs as someone they could only look up to and
try to emulate.

24. enamor
Def: attract; cause to be enamored
Ex: Not long ago I fell in love, But unreturned is
my affection The girl that I'm enamored of Pays
little heed in my direction.

25. encumber
Def: hold back
Ex: Two others were making slower progress for
the reason that each was encumbered by
supporting a disabled man.

26. endearing
Def: lovable especially in a childlike or naive
way
Ex: They have goofy and lovable personalities
that are incredibly endearing, she said.

27. endeavor
Def: attempt by employing effort
Ex: A few men endeavored to win popularity
by pursuing a few others, and thus far they have
been conspicuous failures.

28. endemic
Def: of or relating to a disease (or anything
resembling a disease) constantly present to greater
or lesser extent in a particular locality
Ex: An endemic disease, due to local causes and
spreading by intercommunication.

29. enigma
Def: something that baffles understanding and
cannot be explained
Ex: Tails are often an enigma; many creatures
have them, but scientists know little about their
function, particularly for extinct species.

30. enmity
Def: a state of deep-seated ill-will
Ex: He looked at the young man with enmity,
while his face every day grew harder, more angry,
and stern, like iron.

31. ennui
Def: the feeling of being bored by something
tedious

43

Ex: You are in the Land of Pleasure, and in
yonder castle lives a horrid Giant called Ennui,
who bores everybody he catches to death.

32. enthrall
Def: hold spellbound
Ex: But despite the bottomless spate of new
"Housewives" series that Bravo keeps trotting out,
the "Real Housewives" franchise still fascinates
and enthralls me.

33. entice
Def: provoke someone to do something through
(often false or exaggerated) promises or persuasion
Ex: My new acquisition, "Boy," insisted on
being petted, and his winning and enticing ways
are irresistible.

34. entomology
Def: the branch of zoology that studies insects
Ex: From the department of entomology you
expect to learn something about the troublesome
insects, which are so universal an annoyance.

35. entreat
Def: ask for or request earnestly
Ex: "Let me go now, please," she entreated, her
eyes unable to meet his any longer.

36. entrepreneur
Def: someone who organizes a business venture
and assumes the risk for it
Ex: Mr. Boehner said it would be good news
for entrepreneurs and aspiring small
businesspeople struggling to overcome government
barriers to job creation.

37. enumerate
Def: determine the number or amount of
Ex: The houses in this street are not
enumerated beyond forty-five, all told.

38. enunciate
Def: express or state clearly
Ex: On the second floor, kindergarten children
stand together in a circle, clapping while learning
how to enunciate different words.

39. ephemeral
Def: anything short-lived, as an insect that lives
only for a day in its winged form
Ex: Such larger political structures as the tyrants
of Syracuse built up by the subjugation of other
cities were purely ephemeral, barely outliving
their founders.

40. epiphany
Def: a divine manifestation
Ex: But at least he's acting as the father of his
child, and that, rather than any epiphany or
miraculous transformation, is the point.

41. epitome
Def: a standard or typical example

44

Ex: Ms. Netrebko, in particular, riveted all eyes
and ears, the epitome of star-crossed glamour in
her black bob and sick-rose-red cocktail dress.

42. epoch
Def: a period marked by distinctive character or
reckoned from a fixed point or event
Ex: The best authorities put the climax of the
last glacial epoch between twenty-five and thirty
thousand years ago.

43. equestrian
Def: of or relating to or featuring horseback
riding
Ex: While some racehorses peak in their
younger years and move on to breeding,
equestrian horses tend to be older and require
complex training.

44. equitable
Def: fair to all parties as dictated by reason and
conscience
Ex: I suggested, as a more equitable adjustment,
an equal division of profits; and to that Mr. Gye at
last agreed.

45. equivocate
Def: be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in
order to mislead or withhold information
Ex: Beaten in the open field, the church began to
equivocate, to evade, and to give new meanings to
inspired words.

46. eradicate
Def: kill in large numbers
Ex: Some people are misusing poisonous
chemicals in a desperate bid to eradicate the pests,
federal officials said Thursday.

47. erode
Def: become ground down or deteriorate
Ex: Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi lost his
absolute majority in the Italian parliament in a vote
today on last years budget, further eroding his
authority.

48. erratic
Def: liable to sudden unpredictable change
Ex: North Koreas past behavior has been
notoriously erratic, making predictions about its
intentions difficult.

49. erudite
Def: having or showing profound knowledge
Ex: In countless deft, darting, erudite essays, it
has enabled him to explain the unexpected
continuities and awkward breaks of literary history.

50. eschew
Def: avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay
clear of
Ex: Vegans eschew all animal products,
including dairy and eggs, so their iodine sources
may be few.

51. esoteric

45

Def: confined to and understandable by only an
enlightened inner circle
Ex: But researchers can get lost in their genius,
drilling into ever more esoteric questions.

52. etymology
Def: a history of a word
Ex: Its suggested etymology or word origin is
Latin serpens meaning a snake and French sortir
meaning come out of, to leave.

53. euphemism
Def: an inoffensive or indirect expression that is
substituted for one that is considered offensive or
too harsh
Ex: It is an oddly polite terma euphemism
that conceals varying degrees of fear, loathing, and
admiration.

54. euphoria
Def: a feeling of great (usually exaggerated)
elation
Ex: Popular euphoria and joy at their leaders'
departure has given way to frustration, grievance
and fear.

55. evanescent
Def: tending to vanish like vapor
Ex: Time seems stopped but it is moving on, and
every glimmer of light is evanescent, flitting.

56. evasive
Def: deliberately vague or ambiguous
Ex: I anticipated finding them deceitful and
evasive: furtive people, wandering in devious ways
and disappearing into mysterious houses, at dead of
night.

57. evince
Def: give expression to
Ex: Together, the performers evince an easy,
humorous energy, like affectionate but
mischievous siblings.

58. evoke
Def: call forth (emotions, feelings, and
responses)
Ex: Tropical fish tanks in restaurants, hospitals
and homes evoke feelings of tranquility and
beauty.

59. evolve
Def: undergo development or evolution
Ex: In its 166+ year history, Scientific American
has changed and evolved in different directions
many times.

60. exacerbate
Def: make worse
Ex: Politicians have argued that further austerity
will only exacerbate the country's economic death
spiral by deepening its worse than expected
recession.

61. exalt
Def: fill with sublime emotion

46

Ex: But this woman's beauty was glorified by
eyes that spoke of exalted thoughts, passionate
longings, lofty emotions.

62. excavate
Def: recover through digging
Ex: With many of Caligula's monuments
destroyed after he was killed by his Praetorian
guard at 28, archaeologists are eager to excavate
for his remains.

63. excoriate
Def: express strong disapproval of
Ex: The landlord had another excoriating
remark, which he might have flung at the young
man and finished him up, but he magnanimously
forbore.

64. exculpate
Def: pronounce not guilty of criminal charges
Ex: Stepan did not try to exculpate himself, and
bore patiently his sentence which was three days in
the punishment-cell, and after that solitary
confinement.

65. execrate
Def: curse or declare to be evil or anathema or
threaten with divine punishment
Ex: Even the crimes of monsters, whom we
execrate, are to be traced to madness and
intoxication, more than to natural fierceness and
wickedness.

66. exemplify
Def: clarify by giving an example of
Ex: He brought up reality television
specifically, the garish sort of reality exemplified
by Bravos Real Housewives steamroller.

67. exhort
Def: force or impel in an indicated direction
Ex: A proclamation was put up on shore,
exhorting the people to keep quiet, attend to their
avocations, and bring in presents as obedient
subjects.

68. existential
Def: relating to or dealing with existence
(especially with human existence)
Ex: Jindal, by contrast, has treated the spill as an
existential threat, saying repeatedly that what's at
stake "is a way of life for us."

69. exodus
Def: a journey by a large group to escape from a
hostile environment
Ex: It said the flight of Christians to other parts
of Iraq and abroad has become "a slow but steady
exodus".

70. exonerate
Def: pronounce not guilty of criminal charges
Ex: He was, if not exonerated, never proven
guilty, Elizabeth Hecht said in an interview on
Thursday.

71. exorbitant

47

Def: greatly exceeding bounds of reason or
moderation
Ex: Rents are exorbitant; but ordinary living
and bad liquors are cheap.

72. expatiate
Def: add details, as to an account or idea; clarify
the meaning of and discourse in a learned way,
usually in writing
Ex: He then expatiated on his own miseries,
which he detailed at full length.

73. expatriate
Def: a person who is voluntarily absent from
home or country
eX: She and Jack Hemingway, also known as
Bumby, were toddlers at the time, living with their
expatriate American parents in Paris.

74. expectation
Def: anticipating with confidence of fulfillment
Ex: Every plan had proved abortive, every
expectation been disappointed.

75. expectorate
Def: discharge (phlegm or sputum) from the
lungs and out of the mouth
Ex: No, they don't care to go, expectorating the
tobacco juice from their mouths into the fire at the
same time.

76. expedient
Def: a means to an end; not necessarily a
principled or ethical one
Ex: In his youth he had apparently settled the
problem once for all; but the solution then found
was scarcely more than a temporary expedient.

77. expedite
Def: process fast and efficiently
Ex: First-class customers generally have access
to priority check-in and boarding, expedited
baggage service and faster security lines at some
airports.

78. expenditure
Def: money paid out; an amount spent
Ex: Unless income also rises which isnt
happening for many people now higher fuel
costs will eventually displace other expenditures.

79. expiate
Def: make amends for
Ex: Yes, I was so far guilty, and I make the
confession in hopes that some portion of my errors
may be expiated by repentance.

80. explicit
Def: precisely and clearly expressed or readily
observable; leaving nothing to implication
Ex: Just as medical researchers once uncovered
the link between cigarettes and lung cancer,
researchers are now making the explicit connection
between air pollution and asthma.

81. exploitation

48

Def: an act that exploits or victimizes someone
(treats them unfairly)
Ex: But this profit rested on intensive
exploitation and domination: whole families
worked in the mills, including children.

82. expository
Def: serving to expound or set forth
Ex: "Several characters are required to make
long expository speeches in which the play's
themes are clumsily disclosed."

83. expulsion
Def: the act of forcing out someone or something
Ex: She is very near expulsion, not
suspension, said the principal, gravely.

84. expunge
Def: remove by erasing or crossing out or as if by
drawing a line
Ex: If he stays out of a trouble for a year the
incident will be expunged from his record.

85. exquisite
Def: delicately beautiful
Ex: Constance lifted up her exquisite voice
untiringly, weaving her magic spell about her eager
listeners.

86. extant
Def: still in existence; not extinct or destroyed or
lost
Ex: She then wrote her last will, which is still
extant, and consists of four pages, closely written,
in a neat, firm hand.

87. extemporaneous
Def: with little or no preparation or forethought
Ex: His friends sometimes held an
extemporaneous concert in his room, without
preparation, programme, or audience.

88. extend
Def: stretch out over a distance, space, time, or
scope; run or extend between two points or beyond
a certain point
Ex: One map showed a runway system
extending across 140 square meters and including
12 underground burrows.

89. extension
Def: a mutually agreed delay in the date set for
the completion of a job or payment of a debt
Ex: Chalk Rivers license expired last year, but
it was given a single five-year extension; the
Dutch reactors lifetime is less certain but also
limited.

90. extirpate
Def: destroy completely, as if down to the roots
Ex: The last wolf was killed in Great Britain two
hundred years ago, and the bear was extirpated
from that island still earlier.

91. extol
Def: praise, glorify, or honor

49

Ex: How I praised the duck at that first dinner,
and extolled Madame's skill in cookery!

92. extort
Def: obtain by coercion or intimidation
Ex: An instrument of torture for the leg,
formerly used to extort confessions, particularly in
Scotland.

93. extraneous
Def: not pertinent to the matter under
consideration
Ex: As a general rule, he explained, rulings
other than the one being honored had been
removed as extraneous.

94. extrapolate
Def: draw from specific cases for more general
cases
Ex: Earlier studies, extrapolating from
recessions in the 1970s and 1980s, found larger
effects.

95. extricate
Def: release from entanglement of difficulty
Ex: There was a prickly pear on top, the thorns
of which caught him so that at first he could not
extricate himself.

96. extrinsic
Def: not forming an essential part of a thing or
arising or originating from the outside
Ex: There are no external or extrinsic
influencesresulting from weariness or
interruption.

97. extrovert
Def: (psychology) a person concerned more with
practical realities than with inner thoughts and
feelings
Ex: The extrovert is the typical active; always
leaning out of the window and setting up contacts
with the outside world.

98. exuberant
Def: joyously unrestrained
Ex: All these prose works were marked by an
exuberant, vivid, poetic, impassioned style.

99. exude
Def: make apparent by one's mood or behavior
Ex: Rizzo said many prospects exude outward
confidence but lack it inwardly.

100. exult
Def: feel extreme happiness or elation
Ex: Like a soldier going into battle, exulted and
fired by a high and lofty purpose, his heart sang
within him.




50

1. fabricate
Def: put together out of artificial or natural
components or parts
Ex: Generally they are fabricated in that hardest
of all metalssteel.

2. facet
Def: a distinct feature or element in a problem
Ex: For the last two years, my work has focused
on all facets of the energy sector, including
investment, development and policy issues.

3. facetious
Def: cleverly amusing in tone
Ex: I am looked upon as highly facetious at
night, for I crack jokes with everybody near me
until we fall asleep.

4. facile
Def: performing adroitly and without effort
Ex: His facile talent adapted itself to every style
in turn.

5. facsimile
Def: an exact copy or reproduction
Ex: These ultra-counterfeits are light years
beyond the weak facsimiles produced by most
forgers, who use desktop printers.

6. faction
Def: a dissenting clique
Ex: According to reports, an Islamist, al-Qaeda-
linked faction known as Ansar Dine spearheaded
the citys takeover, likely muscling out more
secular Tuareg and rebel comrades.

7. fallacy
Def: a misconception resulting from incorrect
reasoning
Ex: It's called the straw man fallacy: refuting
arguments nobody's made.

8. fallible
Def: wanting in moral strength, courage, or will;
having the attributes of man as opposed to e.g.
divine beings
Ex: We regard them as extraordinary but fallible
and imperfect men, whom it would be very unsafe
to follow in every view and line of conduct.

9. fallow
Def: left unplowed and unseeded during a
growing season
Ex: But before that the fields, which had lain
fallow through the winter, must be ploughed and
harrowed.

10. falter
Def: the act of pausing uncertainly
Ex: Tom tried to speak, but he faltered and
moved from one foot to the other, in an

51

embarrassed and hesitating way.

11. familial
Def: relating to or having the characteristics of a
family
Ex: They are also highly familial, with very
high rates among first-degree relatives of affected
people.

12. famine
Def: a severe shortage of food (as through crop
failure) resulting in violent hunger and starvation
and death
Ex: To address famine in developing countries,
genetic engineers can make inexpensive food
crops, such as rice or corn, that contain extra
nutrients.

13. farcical
Def: broadly or extravagantly humorous;
resembling farce
Ex: Mr. Sheldon's The Havoc seems also
farcical in its type; nevertheless it is a serious
satiric thrust at certain extreme conceptions of
marital relations.

14. fastidious
Def: giving careful attention to detail; hard to
please; excessively concerned with cleanliness
Ex: Clodagh bent her head, noting with the
fastidious intolerance of youth that his clothes
were baggy and his hands unclean.

15. fatal
Def: bringing death
Ex: It was a very fatal complication, death
resulting in all but two instances.

16. fatuous
Def: devoid of intelligence
Ex: Seth Meyerss opening monologue:
Background required to understand jokes: Like
other celebrities, professional athletes are
occasionally fatuous and commit embarrassing
acts in their personal lives.

17. fauna
Def: all the animal life in a particular region or
period
Ex: Bore holes and wells drilled in Australia,
however, have revealed an amazing water beetle
fauna of about 100 species.
The Guardian (Apr 3, 2011)
18. fawning
Def: attempting to win favor by flattery
Ex: Waiters at fashionable hotels, who hung on
the chairs of rich guests with more than usual
fawning, were boasting of fortunes made in a day.

19. fealty
Def: the loyalty that citizens owe to their country
(or subjects to their sovereign)
Ex: In Germany and France the vassal owned
supreme fealty to his lord, against all foes, even the
King himself.

20. feasible

52

Def: capable of being done with means at hand
and circumstances as they are
Ex: There are many evening classes at
universities in major metropolitan areas, which
make it more feasible when you're working full-
time.

21. feckless
Def: generally incompetent and ineffectual
Ex: Her research helped change the stereotype
of bankrupt people as feckless deadbeats: many,
she showed, are middle-class workers upended by
divorce or illness.

22. feign
Def: make a pretence of
Ex: Robots, says Christian, have become quite
good at feigning conversation, giving an
appearance of interchange, when in fact there is
none.

23. felicity
Def: state of well-being characterized by
emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy
Ex: In those warm climates men imagined there
could be no greater felicity than shades and
murmuring brooks.

24. feral
Def: wild and menacing
Ex: Rural Arkansans are seeing Razorback red
as feral hogs are destroying yards, wreaking havoc
on gardens and leaving behind their waste.

25. fervent
Def: characterized by intense emotion
Ex: Inside was an uproar of adulation: repeated
standing ovations, eagerly shouted requests, Cuban
flags and banners unfurled, fervent singalongs,
roses hurled onstage.

26. fiasco
Def: a sudden and violent collapse
Ex: Still, its hard to imagine a more
embarrassing public relations fiasco than being
connected with child sex trafficking even
indirectly.

27. fickle
Def: liable to sudden unpredictable change
Ex: Once Hollywoods most reliable audience,
teenagers have become increasingly fickle and
distracted by other leisure activities, like video
games.

28. fidelity
Def: the quality of being faithful
Ex: Her fidelity to Scriptural language may be
seen in the following simple verses: Have ye heard
the invitation, Sinners ruined by the fall?

29. figurative
Def: (used of the meanings of words or text) not
literal; using figures of speech
Ex: The cat-in-heat joke, the judge said, quoting
from a previous court decision, was "colorful,
figurative rhetoric that reasonable minds would

53

not take to be factual."

30. filial
Def: designating the generation or the sequence
of generations following the parental generation
Ex: Filial cannibalism, where a mother eats her
own offspring, is much rarer, particularly among
great apes, in which it has only once been reported
before.

31. filibuster
Def: (law) a tactic for delaying or obstructing
legislation by making long speeches
Ex: The government has accused Labour of
deliberately trying to sabotage the bill by stretching
out debate - known as filibustering.

32. finesse
Def: subtly skillful handling of a situation
Ex: Drivers say that turning on ice requires
finesse turn too much, and you will spin out;
dont turn enough, and the turn will not happen.

33. finicky
Def: exacting especially about details
Ex: After overeating for a day or two, Dr.
Levitsky said, people become very finicky;
starving yourself will decrease food selectivity.

34. finite
Def: bounded or limited in magnitude or spatial
or temporal extent
Ex: Scientists have long taught that all female
mammals are born with a finite supply of egg cells,
called ooctyes, that runs out in middle age.

35. firebrand
Def: someone who deliberately foments trouble
Ex: The firebrand rarely pulled punches, and
some obituarists are following his lead.

36. firmament
Def: the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere
on which celestial bodies appear to be projected
Ex: The firmament above us was without a
cloud, and of a darkness almost equal to that which
surrounded the moon at 2 a.m.

37. fissure
Def: a long narrow depression in a surface
Ex: The fissures produced in the crust are
sometimes clean, sharply defined divisional planes,
like cracks across a pane of glass.

38. flabbergasted
Def: as if struck dumb with astonishment and
surprise
Ex: I should translate from experience:
"Flabbergasted; astounded and bewildered at the
same time, with a slight dash of premature second
childhood thrown in."

39. flagrant
Def: conspicuously and outrageously bad or
reprehensible

54

Ex: A flagrant misuse of fund or privilege.
40. flail
Def: move like a flail; thresh about
Ex: Coach Tom Coughlin was raging as only he
can, arms flailing in all directions, after a blocked
field-goal attempt in the fourth quarter.

41. flaunt
Def: display proudly; act ostentatiously or
pretentiously
Ex: Between the corridors of Saddar, Karachis
old city, sunlit storefronts still flaunt glorious silks
and chiffons, offering distractions from striking
poverty on the street.

42. flippant
Def: showing inappropriate levity
Ex: I may be flippantseveral people have
called me flippantbut I draw the line at making
jokes about murder.

43. flora
Def: all the plant life in a particular region or
period
Ex: The flora is so vivid every few meters
you come across a different plant, he explained
later.

44. florid
Def: elaborately or excessively ornamented
Ex: The North Korean Central News Agency, in
its typically florid language, derided the exercise
as warmongering and threatened a merciless
counterblow.

45. flounder
Def: walk with great difficulty
Ex: He set out for it, limping, while the sharp
gravel rolled under his bleeding feet as he
floundered up the climbing trail.

46. flourish
Def: grow vigorously
Ex: Roses are a flourishing industry in India,
particularly around Valentines Day.

47. fluke
Def: a stroke of luck
Ex: Cautious that it might be a fluke, Midas
tried the program in St. Louis and got similarly
encouraging results.

48. fluster
Def: cause to be nervous or upset
Ex: Ms. Ryan also includes time for role-playing
situations that might fluster the student, like being
pulled over by a police officer.

49. flux
Def: in constant change
Ex: Though plans are still in flux, he will likely
travel by sailboat, kayak, foot and mountain bike.

50. fodder

55

Def: coarse food (especially for livestock)
composed of entire plants or the leaves and stalks
of a cereal crop
Ex: "The products will be mainly fruits and
vegetables, and we're looking at cereals as well,
fodder, livestock and fisheries."

51. foible
Def: a behavioral attribute that is distinctive and
peculiar to an individual
Ex: In truth, the leading foible of Hodgkinson
through life, was vanitythe great taproot of all
his irregularities and errors.

52. foil
Def: hinder or prevent (the efforts, plans, or
desires) of
Ex: On March 1st, a Turkish newspaper reported
that the country's intelligence service had foiled an
attempt by Syrian agents to kidnap the colonel.

53. foliage
Def: the main organ of photosynthesis and
transpiration in higher plants
Ex: Witch hazel will burst into small yellow
flowers in January, and striking plants like
Japanese maple will have brilliant red foliage
throughout summer and fall.

54. foment
Def: try to stir up public opinion
Ex: Iran is often accused of instigating,
fomenting, or stirring up violence and anti-
Americanism in other countries.

55. forage
Def: collect or look around for (food)
Ex: Banded birds also arrived later at the
breeding grounds and took longer trips to forage
for food.

56. foray
Def: an initial attempt (especially outside your
usual areas of competence)
Ex: Another big question is whether Apple will
reveal its rumored foray into making TV sets.

57. foreboding
Def: a feeling of evil to come
Ex: There were forebodings of evil in
attempting this winter journey now stretched out to
fifteen hundred miles, under conditions which
increased its perils.

58. forecast
Def: a prediction about how something (as the
weather) will develop
Ex: We broke another record today as forecasts
show the March warm spell continuing into next
week.

59. forensic
Def: used or applied in the investigation and
establishment of facts or evidence in a court of law
Ex: Defence lawyers said the large number of
forensic tests which had been carried out had
failed to find any substantial evidence linked to the
accused.


56

60. foresee
Def: realize beforehand
Ex: Shortly thereafter the political atmosphere
was considerably disturbed by the Crete affair, just
as Chevket Pasha had foreseen.

61. foreshadow
Def: indicate by signs
Ex: Rising wealth disparities could foreshadow
a year of tensions, as failed harvests and inflation
cause famines, riots, hoarding and trade wars
worldwide.

62. foresight
Def: seeing ahead; knowing in advance;
foreseeing
Ex: Mr. Bourassa said that General Lea, gifted
with an astonishing foresight, predicted all that
was happening in Europe and in the world.

63. forestall
Def: keep from happening or arising; make
impossible
Ex: Many hundreds, perhaps thousands, of the
guards at some points posted every 15 feet
had apparently been deployed to forestall
disruptions.

64. forfeit
Def: lose (s.th.) or lose the right to (s.th.) by
some error, offense, or crime
Ex: By giving up its status as a U.S. bank
holding company, Deutsche Bank is forfeiting its
access to the Federal Reserves emergency lending
window.

65. forge
Def: create by hammering
Ex: Forging and Welding.The process of
pressing or hammering wrought iron when at a red
or white heat into any desired shape is called
forging.

66. forlorn
Def: marked by or showing hopelessness
Ex: Hans, the resort in such emergencies, was
given a light sledge, the two surviving dogs, and to
him was committed the forlorn hope.

67. formidable
Def: extremely impressive in strength or
excellence
Ex: That has not prevented China from
producing modern weapons systems, buying arms
elsewhere and building up a formidable military
with both.

68. forsake
Def: leave someone who needs or counts on you;
leave in the lurch
Ex: He was not going to forsake her, but would
serve her to the day of his death.

69. forte
Def: an asset of special worth or utility
Ex: Playmaking has never been Anthonys
forte, but the ball moved a bit better and, at times,

57

the offense hummed in the first half.

70. forthcoming
Def: available when required or as promised
Ex: Two colleges arent forthcoming with solid
offers, leaving you at an unreasonable disadvantage
in making your important decision on deadline.

71. fortified
Def: having something added to increase the
strength
Ex: Some of the houses at Wells were fortified;
one in particular was defended by fifteen men
under a militia captain named Convers.

72. fortitude
Def: strength of mind that enables one to endure
adversity with courage
Ex: Have you ever proved your fortitude by
suffering protracted pain, enduring continued
hunger, or sustaining great fatigue?

73. fortress
Def: a fortified defensive structure
Ex: Before the invention of gunpowder Castle
Reifenstein had been an impregnable fortress,
although it owed little of its impregnability to art.

74. fortuitous
Def: occurring by happy chance
Ex: Did the prosperities and confident hopes
with which the twentieth century opened, mark
nothing more than a culmination of fortuitous
good luck?

75. fortunate
Def: having unexpected good fortune
Ex: Chet was not so fortunate, as his gun failed
to go off.

76. fortune
Def: a large amount of wealth or prosperity
Ex: He has an independent fortune, though not
called rich in this country.

77. forum
Def: a public facility to meet for open discussion
Ex: Britain and Hong Kong set up a forum
earlier this year to discuss working more closely in
yuan trade clearing and settlement.

78. foster
Def: help develop, help grow
Ex: Paris and Pyongyang do not have formal
diplomatic relations, but France opened an office in
North Korea last year to foster cultural exchanges.

79. foul
Def: highly offensive; arousing aversion or
disgust
Ex: There was panic buying of bottled water in
some areas in Jiangsu after residents noticed a foul
smell coming from the tap water.

80. founder

58

Def: a person who founds or establishes some
institution
Ex: Microsoft founder Bill Gates is expected to
testify.

81. founding
Def: the act of starting something for the first
time; introducing something new
Ex: Eight years later, Garay succeeded in
founding Buenos Aires after Zarate, the third
adelantado, had failed as badly as any of his
predecessors.

82. foyer
Def: a large entrance or reception room or area
Ex: Suddenly James, their stooping, white-
haired Irish servant pushed through the doorway
from the paneled entry foyer.

83. fracas
Def: noisy quarrel
Ex: After an estimated half-dozen individual
altercations on the court, some Chinese onlookers
joined the fracas, the Washington Post reported
late on Thursday.

84. fractious
Def: easily irritated or annoyed
Ex: The last-minute haggling between 19
countries involved in the test over whether and
how to make the test's design available, highlights
fractious European Union decision-making.

85. fracture
Def: breaking of hard tissue such as bone
Ex: He was convicted of recklessly causing
grievous bodily harm to Cowley, who sustained
fractures to his jaw, eye socket, cheekbone and
nose.
86. fragile
Def: easily broken or damaged or destroyed
Ex: Larvae lack mouths, eyes and guts and are
so fragile that colliding with an air bubble could
kill them.

87. fragrant
Def: pleasant-smelling
Ex: Michael found himself wrapped in a cloud
of filmy linen fragrant with feminine perfumes.

88. frail
Def: physically weak
Ex: He had been frail for years, using a walker
to get around.

89. fraud
Def: intentional deception resulting in injury to
another person
Ex: Despite claims of sporadic vote rigging in
Sundays presidential election, it is becoming
increasingly clear that Mr. Putin had enough
support to win without fraud.

90. fraught
Def: marked by distress

59

Ex: His girlfriends parents are divorced, and
her family situation is fraught.

91. frenetic
Def: excessively agitated; distraught with fear or
other violent emotion
Ex: But the Rams mimic the frenetic nature of
their mentor; they run, press, take charges and go at
least nine players deep.

92. frenzy
Def: state of violent mental agitation
Ex: Inside the store, glassy-eyed staff were
whipped up into a frenzy of excitement, jumping
up and down, clapping and shouting.

93. fresco
Def: a mural done with watercolors on wet
plaster
Ex: "She's an unmitigated nuisance," declared an
artist, proceeding to Natal in order to paint some
frescoes for one of the important buildings.

94. frolic
Def: play boisterously
Ex: More nimble now than when he was young,
he frolics about, cuts capers, and leaps from the
bottom of a large pitcher.

95. frontier
Def: an international boundary or the area (often
fortified) immediately inside the boundary
Ex: Thus threatened with invasion on her
German and Italian frontiers, France was disabled
by anarchy within.

96. frugal
Def: avoiding waste
Ex: Such banking represents the kind of frugal
innovation that India has become known for in
recent years finding inexpensive solutions to its
development challenges.

97. fulminate
Def: criticize severely
Ex: Mr. Cameron has fulminated publicly about
cutting public sector pay and decreed that members
of Parliament themselves take a 5 percent pay cut.

98. fulsome
Def: unpleasantly and excessively suave or
ingratiating in manner or speech
Ex: Fulsome, foolsum, adj. cloying or causing
surfeit: nauseous: offensive: gross: disgustingly
fawning.adj.

99. furtive
Def: secret and sly or sordid
Ex: I anticipated finding them deceitful and
evasive: furtive people, wandering in devious
ways and disappearing into mysterious houses, at
dead of night.

100. futile
Def: producing no result or effect

60

Ex: He took up elocution lessons for a while, but
eventually concluded that his efforts to become an
Englishman were futile.


1. gaffe
Def: a socially awkward or tactless act
Ex: Later, Mr. Perry made a minor gaffe by
misstating the voting age, which is 18.

2. gallant
Def: unflinching in battle or action
Ex: Now straining up steep ascents, and now
swimming deep rivers, the fearless and gallant
band pressed forward.

3. galvanize
Def: to stimulate to action
Ex: Its going to galvanize people and inspire
more to attend todays events, he said by
telephone.

4. gamut
Def: a complete extent or range: "a face that
expressed a gamut of emotions"
Ex: The program spans the entire cultural
gamut, encompassing fine art, sculpture, dance,
music, cinema, literature and theater.

5. garb
Def: provide with clothes or put clothes on
Ex: Some are garbed in burgundy monks
robes, others in jeans and trucker hats.

6. garish
Def: tastelessly showy
Ex: The garish colors, fabrics, trim and gaudy
interior looks like it was done by a 12 year old.

7. garment
Def: an article of clothing
Ex: He and two of his sisters work at a nearby
tailoring shop, cutting off loose threads from nearly
finished garments.

8. garnish
Def: something (such as parsley) added to a dish
for flavor or decoration

61

Lemon, hard-boiled egg and capers may also be
used as garnish for chicken salad.

9. garrulous
Def: full of trivial conversation
Ex: He was not in the best of spirits, for the
drink was dying out of him; but his garrulous,
inconsequent talk amused me mightily.

10. gastronomy
Def: the art and practice of choosing and
preparing and eating good food
Ex: Cooking is there esteemed a service of
especial merit, hence France ranks all nations in
gastronomy.

11. gaudy
Def: tastelessly showy
Ex: In fact, he seemed incapable of using any
colors but gaudy or resplendent ones, and is
nothing if not exaggerated, and using heaps of
words.

12. gaunt
Def: very thin especially from disease or hunger
or cold
Ex: Gaunt, starved, and ragged, the men
marched northwards, leaving the Touat country
upon their left hand.

13. gender
Def: the properties that distinguish organisms on
the basis of their reproductive roles
Ex: Once strict gender roles softened and sexual
mores loosened, the notion of a proposing woman
began to seem less patently ridiculous.

14. genealogy
Def: the study or investigation of ancestry and
family history
Ex: The genealogies and family histories are
excellent, and many particulars are given of the
lives and works of authors not easily found
elsewhere.

15. generalization
Def: the process of formulating general concepts
by abstracting common properties of instances
Ex: With this purpose in view he has kept
closely to concrete statement and above all has
tried to avoid vagueness and loose generalization.

16. generation
Def: all the people living at the same time or of
approximately the same age
Ex: There they are, staring from photographic
portraits on the entrance wall, looking much like
ancestral grandfather and the familys new
generation.

17. generic
Def: applicable to an entire class or group
Ex: But rather than asking a generic question
like "Are you happy here?" inquire about things
that matter to your loved one.

18. genetic

62

Def: of or relating to or produced by or being a
gene
Ex: DNA testing confirmed that the patient
carried the genetic abnormality behind the disease.

19. genial
Def: diffusing warmth and friendliness
Ex: Perhaps there is nothing that prolongs life
more than genial, hearty laughter.

20. genre
Def: an expressive style of music
Ex: Over the years, the series has featured just
about every genre of American arts and music,
including pop, country, jazz, blues, theater and
dance.

21. genteel
Def: marked by refinement in taste and manners
Ex: "Mrs. D.," said he, turning on me like a
tiger, "are you going to teach me polite breeding
and genteel manners?"

22. gentility
Def: elegance by virtue of fineness of manner
and expression
Ex: Obviously, that level of gentility and
decorum is difficult to maintain at regular tour
events.

23. gentry
Def: the most powerful members of a society
Ex: In my young days the people with means
were the landed gentry and the nobility.

24. genuflect
Def: bend the knees and bow in church or before
a religious superior or image
Ex: When you enter, bless yourself with holy
water and go quietly to your seat, genuflect on
your right knee and enter the pew.

25. genuine
Def: not fake or counterfeit
Ex: While partial relief may be obtained through
other channels, real, genuine, and lasting redress
can only be obtained by organized action at the
polls.

26. germane
Def: relevant and appropriate
Ex: But such questions are not germane to my
central theme, and so I pass them over lightly.

27. germinal
Def: containing seeds of later development
Ex: The most valuable means of securing this
all-important growth is play, which Froebel said
contained the germinal leaves of all later life.

28. germinate
Def: cause to grow or sprout
Def: Nothing might come of it just then, but
Elmer hoped the seed would find lodging, and

63

perhaps later on germinate.

29. gerrymander
Def: divide unfairly and to one's advantage; of
voting districts
Ex: In practice, though, officials in both parties
often try to gerrymander districts to help
themselves and their parties win more elections.

30. gestate
Def: be pregnant with
Ex: In her womb they were gestated and
formed.

31. gesticulation
Def: a deliberate and vigorous gesture or motion
Ex: Then the clapping and gesticulations broke
forth with increased violence.

32. gesture
Def: motion of hands or body to emphasize or
help to express a thought or feeling
Ex: At that, one of the younger men lifted a
hand--a quick, nervous gesture, denoting at once
surprise and consternation.

33. ghastly
Def: shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
Ex: From here events build up to highly
shocking climaxes, including a ghastly murder.

34. gibberish
Def: unintelligible talking
Ex: But the answer was a gurgling gibberish
that made no sense at all!

35. gibe
Def: an aggressive remark directed at a person
like a missile and intended to have a telling effect
Ex: When nothing but charred end-logs and
glowing coals remained, Kents men tramped off
through the deep snows shouting gibes and taunts
at their enemies.

36. giddy
Def: lacking seriousness; given to frivolity
Ex: Another party of giddy, laughing girls,
chatter away in a different strain.

37. gingerly
Def: in a gingerly manner
Ex: Newman got hurt during practice
Wednesday, walking gingerly off the field after
getting tangled with a receiver during pass
coverage drills.

38. gird
Def: prepare oneself for a military confrontation
Ex: In this semantic skirmish, the White House,
bolstered by the momentum of victory and allies
old and new, is girded for combat.

39. girder
Def: a beam made usually of steel; a main
support in a structure

64

Ex: The 130-year-old stone cathedral stands
broken and deconsecrated, with stained-glass
windows shattered and the west wall propped up
by girders.

40. girth
Def: the distance around a person's body
Ex: Others posted messages saying they were
looking for "a fat guy called Ai" a reference to the
artist's impressive girth.

41. gist
Def: the choicest or most essential or most vital
part of some idea or experience
Ex: To sum up the gist of Anglo-American
relations in half a dozen pages, as Mr. Ayres does
here, is surely a remarkable achievement.

42. glacial
Def: relating to or derived from a glacier
Ex: But no mammoth remains have been found
around the White Sea; it was still covered with
glacial ice when mammoths died out in Europe.

43. glean
Def: gather, as of natural products
Ex: A group of men and boys stood round
awestruck, anxious to glean every bit of
information that could be given.

44. glib
Def: marked by lack of intellectual depth
Ex: The other sort of engineer understands that
glib comparisons between computers and humans
don't do justice to the complexities of either.

45. glimmer
Def: shine brightly, like a star or a light
Ex: The leaves were black overhead, but the
white birch trunks round me glimmered like pale
ghosts.

46. gloat
Def: dwell on with satisfaction
Ex: Vixetta was in high spirits; she and her
familiars hatched mischief together, and gloated
over their evil doings in fiendish glee.

47. globalization
Def: growth to a global or worldwide scale
Ex: Stock markets around the world have grown
more correlated, thanks to the effects of
globalization.

48. glower
Def: look angry or sullen, wrinkle one's forehead,
as if to signal disapproval
Ex: Nils was glowering, and Erik saw the
scolding in his eyes.

49. glum
Def: moody and melancholic
Ex: The music stayed somber and steadfast,
determinedly maintaining its glum tone.


65

50. glut
Def: the quality of being so overabundant that
prices fall
Ex: While mining companies may be making
more money than ever, the shipping companies are
contending with a glut rather than shortages.

51. glutinous
Def: having the sticky properties of an adhesive
Ex: The young were very little larger, and had a
glutinous surface, which caused them to adhere
together on being taken from the water.

52. glutton
Def: a person who is devoted to eating and
drinking to excess
Ex: He was a glutton, and stuffed himself so at
meals that he did little but choke and wheeze
through the latter half of them.

53. gluttony
Def: habitual eating to excess
Ex: Moderation in eating was advised at all
times, and any serious excess set down as
gluttony, one of the seven deadly sins.

54. gnarled
Def: used of old persons or old trees; covered
with knobs or knots
Ex: She was about forty years old, with stooping
shoulders, and hands gnarled and twisted by hard
work.

55. goad
Def: stab or urge on as if with a pointed stick
Ex: With oaths and savage lashings they were
goaded on through deep, new-fallen snow.

56. gorge
Def: overeat or eat immodestly; make a pig of
oneself
Ex: True, he lay moaning and groaning all night,
but next morning would be quite ready to gorge an
equal meal.

57. gorgeous
Def: dazzlingly beautiful
Ex: The leaves had assumed their gorgeous
autumnal tints, and the masses of timber,
variegated in colour, presented an inexpressibly
beautiful appearance.

58. gory
Def: covered with blood
Ex: And then they showed Denvers pistol; the
one he had borrowed from Bunker, all gory with
hair and blood.

59. gossamer
Def: characterized by unusual lightness and
delicacy
Ex: After an atmospheric episode, the piece
broke into a spiraling dance, sometimes crazed,
sometimes delicate with gossamer textures.

60. gouge

66

Def: make a groove in
Ex: The door was massive, hand-hewn timber
that was liberally scratched and gouged, and Joe
frowned as he looked at it.

61. gourmand
Def: a person who is devoted to eating and
drinking to excess
Ex: With ravenous appetites they partook of a
feast which any gourmand might covet.

62. gourmet
Def: a person devoted to refined sensuous
enjoyment (especially good food and drink)
Ex: Prince Koltsoff had enjoyed his luncheon, as
only an exacting gourmet whose every canon of
taste has been satisfied, can.

63. govern
Def: exercise authority over; as of nations
Ex: Saying they do not want to govern, the
generals are due to hand power to an elected
president by mid-year.

64. governance
Def: the act of governing; exercising authority
Ex: He explained that an interim government
would immediately take over to provide day-to-day
governance and keep order, the Associated Press
news agency reports.

65. grading
Def: evaluation of performance by assigning a
grade or score
Ex: Each commissioners smock came adorned
with a bright blue A rating, a nod to the citys
new grading system for restaurant cleanliness.

66. graduated
Def: marked with or divided into degrees
Ex: Latterly he took to using paper scales
graduated to millimeters.

67. graduation
Def: the successful completion of a program of
study
Ex: People who have earned advanced degrees
are hooded as part of the graduation ceremony.

68. graft
Def: (surgery) tissue or organ transplanted from
a donor to a recipient; in some cases the patient can
be both donor and recipient
Ex: UPS already has a good business ensuring
that organs and skin grafts get to hospitals in good
time.

69. granary
Def: a storehouse for threshed grain or animal
feed
Ex: Here is where he does his husking, and the
"clear corn" produced is stored away in some
underground granary till It is needed.

70. grandeur

67

Def: the quality of being magnificent or splendid
or grand
Ex: Honest Jack was perfectly astounded at
seeing so much beauty and grandeur where he
expected to find nothing except solitude and savage
desert.

71. grandiloquent
Def: puffed up with vanity
Ex: There was something theatrical and
grandiloquent about him, and he seemed to pose
like an actor who attracts admiration.

72. grandiose
Def: impressive because of unnecessary largeness
or grandeur; used to show disapproval
Ex: Even in a state known for grandiose real
estate deals, the proposed development has set new
standards for ambition or, depending on ones
view, recklessness.

73. graphic
Def: written or drawn or engraved
Ex: Unlike in the West, where graphic novels
are accepted, the Iranian comic book is struggling
to make headway.

74. grapple
Def: come to terms with
Ex: Spanish borrowing costs have fared better
than Italys as both nations grapple with the debt
crisis.

75. gratify
Def: make happy or satisfied
Ex: This matter was engineered through so
handsomely by Mr. Applegate, that Dr. White
expressed himself highly gratified and pleased.

76. gratitude
Def: a feeling of thankfulness and appreciation
Ex: He has saved my life, and I owe him much
gratitude.

77. gratuitous
Def: unnecessary and unwarranted
Ex: The reader is treated to pedantic little
footnotes, and given a good deal of information
which is either gratuitous or uninteresting.

78. gratuity
Def: a relatively small amount of money given
for services rendered (as by a waiter)
Ex: Room service is supplied by the nearby Park
Avenue Bistro, with a $3.50 surcharge for each
plate, plus a 25 percent gratuity.

79. graze
Def: let feed in a field or pasture or meadow
Ex: As soon as haymaking was over, the
meadows became common grazing land for
horses, cows, and oxen.

80. gregarious
Def: instinctively or temperamentally seeking
and enjoying the company of others

68

Ex: The Bison is gregarious, associating in
herds many hundreds strong.

81. grievance
Def: a complaint about a (real or imaginary)
wrong that causes resentment and is grounds for
action
Ex: In the open letter, Students & Scholars
Against Corporate Misbehaviour, listed grievances
cited by employees at Apple suppliers, including
"poverty wages" and excessive and forced
overtime.

82. grievous
Def: shockingly brutal or cruel
Ex: He was convicted of recklessly causing
grievous bodily harm to Cowley, who sustained
fractures to his jaw, eye socket, cheekbone and
nose.

83. grim
Def: harshly uninviting or formidable in manner
or appearance
Ex: As he lay awake through the small hours,
the sinister truth grew clear that grim forces were
closing upon him again.

84. grimace
Def: contort the face to indicate a certain mental
or emotional state
Ex: As people squinted, frowned, glared,
grinned, grimaced, snarled and other ways looked
at the screens, their pictures were snapped, silently.

85. gripe
Def: complain
Ex: The night drivers come in griping about
drunken passengers, bad tippers and unfair
summonses.

86. grisly
Def: shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
Ex: Television video showed a heavily damaged
building and a grisly scene inside, with clothing
and prayer mats scattered across a blood-splattered
floor.

87. groan
Def: indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure
Ex: The wounded man's eyes were open, and he
was moving his head uneasily and slowly,
groaning deeply every now and then.

88. groggy
Def: stunned or confused and slow to react (as
from blows or drunkenness or exhaustion)
Ex: Narcotics dulled the pain but left him
groggy and nauseous.

89. groom
Def: give a neat appearance to
Ex: The deep green, meticulously groomed,
Wimbledon-like front lawn is undeniably
attractive.

90. grovel
Def: show submission or fear

69

Ex: The two young men who drove them had
fallen flat and were grovelling and wailing for
mercy.

91. grudging
Def: petty or reluctant in giving or spending
Ex: Toyota's slow responsedoubt, grudging
acceptance, and then surrenderprompted Toyota
owners to pick their heads up.

92. grueling
Def: characterized by effort to the point of
exhaustion; especially physical effort
Ex: Afterward, a dejected Seraphin admitted to
being physically and mentally fatigued from the
Wizards grueling schedule and his increased
playing load.

93. gruff
Def: brusque and surly and forbidding
Ex: Mr. Napiers formidable jaw, gruff
demeanor and growling bass voice lent themselves
to rugged parts.

94. guild
Def: a formal association of people with similar
interests
Ex: More than 50 permanently disabled jockeys
receive assistance from the Jockeys Guild, he
said.

95. guile
Def: the use of tricks to deceive someone
(usually to extract money from them)
Ex: He was subtle, ambitious, designing,
craftydishonorably resorting to guile, where he
dared not venture on overt acts of hostility.

96. guileless
Def: free of deceit
Ex: There was nothing alarming in this
apparently simple and guileless missive.

97. guise
Def: an artful or simulated semblance
Ex: But more broadly, 30 years of near total rule
by one man under the guise of democracy has
stunted the country's political development.

98. gullible
Def: naive and easily deceived or tricked
Ex: The people were gullible; they might be
made to believe that the senators of Rome were
their best friends.

99. gumption
Def: fortitude and determination
Ex: But he said the fact that he kept running for
higher office showed admirable gumption.
New York Times (Sep 9, 2011)
100. gustatory
Def: of or relating to gustation
Ex: By gastronomical tests, we mean dishes of
so delicious a flavor that their very appearance
excites the gustatory organs of every healthy man.


70



1. habitat
Def: the type of environment in which an
organism or group normally lives or occurs
Ex: Peromyscus maniculatus is ubiquitous,
occurring in habitats ranging from mesic boreal
forests to arid southwestern deserts.

2. habitual
Def: commonly used or practiced; usual
Ex: Training of mind, as of hand, consists in
making certain actions so habitual that they are
accomplished quite automatically.

3. habitue
Def: a regular patron
Ex: The old bathers, the habitues, whose season
was almost over, glanced, gazed toward the door
whenever it opened, to see what new faces might
appear.

4. hackneyed
Def: repeated too often; overfamiliar through
overuse
Ex: She instinctively avoids every thing that is
hackneyed, vulgar, and common place, and
uniformly succeeds in pleasing by the judicious
novelties she introduces.

5. haggard
Def: showing the wearing effects of overwork or
care or suffering
There are too many people with haggard eyes
standing before me Saying, "To live you must
suffer even as we."

6. haggle
Def: an instance of intense argument (as in
bargaining)
Ex: They haggled for a while, and finally agreed
on sixteen.

7. halcyon
Def: idyllically calm and peaceful; suggesting
happy tranquillity
Ex: Smooth seas, lovely weather and favoring
winds speeded the voyagers: those halcyon days
flew swiftly by.
8. hale
Def: exhibiting or restored to vigorous good
health
Ex: "He is a hale man, he does not look his
years."

9. hallowed
Def: worthy of religious veneration
Ex: Our life together is sacred, hallowed, a
thing apart, "'Above the smoke and stir of this dim
spot Which men call earth.'"


71

10. halt
Def: cause to stop
Ex: Shares of Apple were temporarily halted
before they resumed trading a few minutes later.

11. haphazardly
Def: without care; in a slapdash manner
Ex: Tripoli drivers have always been known for
their speeding and changing lanes haphazardly,
but hazardous driving has reached new heights, he
said.

12. hapless
Def: deserving or inciting pity
Ex: Then seeing how rueful, how dismayed the
hapless giant looked, she took compassion and
held out a frank little brown hand.

13. harangue
Def: deliver a harangue to; address forcefully
Ex: On that occasion, he harangued the West
for more than 90 minutes, attacking its moral
bankruptcy in an often nonsensical rant.

14. harbinger
Def: something that precedes and indicates the
approach of something or someone
Ex: Even as villagers stared out at an ocean of
detritus littered by the tsunami, cherry blossoms,
the harbinger of spring, bloomed.

15. harmony
Def: compatibility in opinion and action
Ex: These fibres are so laid and connected, that
a whole set of muscles can be moved
simultaneously, being made to work in perfect
harmony.

16. harried
Def: troubled persistently especially with petty
annoyances
Ex: Hours passed before Ann could sleep, and
then her slumber was broken, her rest harried by
weird dreams, her half-waking periods crammed
with disturbing fantasies.

17. harrowing
Def: extremely painful
Ex: Rhythmic activities, such as dancing, riding
and climbing may be mentioned, also harrowing
experiences, such as being run over.

18. hasten
Def: move fast
Ex: Turnpike workers who peeled up the sticky
puddles, then covered them with sand to hasten
drying, had traffic moving normally again by
Wednesday morning.
19. haughty
Def: having or showing arrogant superiority to
and disdain of those one views as unworthy
Ex: He might easily be reserved, but is it not
surprising to find him described as haughty,
prouder than Lucifer, inhumanly arrogant?

20. hauteur

72

Def: overbearing pride evidenced by a superior
manner toward inferiors
Ex: In them are written hauteur, pride, and
arrogant fierceness beyond anything on this earth;
there is also contempt that has no expression in
speech.

21. haven
Def: a shelter serving as a place of safety or
sanctuary
Ex: At most shows, security guards usually
swoop in at this point, cutting off audience access
to designers and their backstage havens.

22. havoc
Def: violent and needless disturbance
Ex: On Friday, 62-mph winds caused havoc,
knocking over TV towers and fences, and forced
race organizers to cancel a giant slalom.

23. headstrong
Def: habitually disposed to disobedience and
opposition
Ex: She has a great deal of difficulty, for they
are both so headstrong and unruly that they will
hardly obey at all.

24. hearsay
Def: gossip (usually a mixture of truth and
untruth) passed around by word of mouth
Ex: I tell you not of things learned by hearsay; I
myself have beheld all these horrors in the Holy
Land of Palestine.

25. hearty
Def: showing warm and heartfelt friendliness
Ex: Not one hesitating voice, but instead, three
hearty cheers, that made the vessel ring.

26. heathen
Def: a person who does not acknowledge your
god
Ex: "Are you Christians," said the holy man, "or
heathens?"

27. heave
Def: throw with great effort
Ex: Instead, he panicked and heaved an
incomplete pass at teammate Rich Seubert.

28. heckler
Def: someone who tries to embarrass you with
gibes and questions and objections
Ex: For the next few days, when NTV reporters
went out to cover public events, hecklers gathered
around them chanting shame.

29. heed
Def: pay close attention to; give heed to
Ex: For some distance he put on great speed, but
later heeded Perth's suggestion to go more slowly
and so attract less notice.

30. heedless
Def: characterized by careless unconcern

73

Ex: Rembrandt was heedless in his habits,
spending what he earned, living on credit, signing
onto bad deals.

31. hegemony
Def: the dominance or leadership of one social
group or nation over others
Ex: Chinese officials say the purpose of their
military modernization is purely defensive and they
have no aspirations toward regional hegemony.

32. heinous
Def: extremely wicked, deeply criminal
Ex: Supporters of the death penalty, meanwhile,
described heinous cases and said there were still
some circumstances so intolerable as to require
execution.

33. heir
Def: a person who inherits some title or office
Ex: Hus heir apparent, Vice President Xi
Jinping, is scheduled to take over next year and is
far less shy about making headlines and meeting
Westerners.

34. helm
Def: a position of leadership
Ex: He held various positions, including head of
the technology development planning unit and
personnel chief, before taking the helm at the
camera business in April.

35. hemisphere
Def: half of a sphere
Ex: The New World or Western Hemisphere
consists of two continents.

36. hemorrhage
Def: the flow of blood from a ruptured blood
vessel
Ex: On the other hand, babies delivered by C-
section were less likely to have one type of
bleeding around the brain -- known as subdural
hemorrhage.

37. herald
Def: foreshadow or presage
Ex: The fleet of traders was preceded some way
in advance by light, swift sailing ships which
heralded its coming.

38. herbivorous
Def: feeding only on plants
Ex: Sheep and cattle are herbivorous: they feed
on herbs, on vegetables.

39. herculean
Def: extremely difficult; requiring the strength of
a Hercules
Ex: He made herculean efforts to get on terms
with his examination subjects, and worked harder
than he had ever done in his life before.

40. hereditary
Def: inherited or inheritable by established rules
(usually legal rules) of descent

74

Ex: From the way in which his eldest son
Osman is being brought up, it is evident that
Abdullah seeks to establish an hereditary
succession.

41. heresy
Def: any opinions or doctrines at variance with
the official or orthodox position
Ex: It wished still to dominate over the faith of
its disciples and to persecute as heresy every
deviation from its convictions.

42. heritage
Def: that which is inherited; a title or property or
estate that passes by law to the heir on the death of
the owner
eX: SAT-SUN Celebrating Japan's cultural
heritage with performing arts, martial arts
demonstrations, tea ceremony demonstrations,
exhibits, food vendors, workshops, Koi Show, 10
a.m.-6 p.m.

43. hermetic
Def: completely sealed; completely airtight
eX: The hermetic isolation which during the
world war divided Europe into two separate worlds
made this doubly urgent.

44. hermitage
Def: the abode of a hermit
eX: In his sorrow and remorse the knight
withdrew into a hermitage, where he spent six
years in constant penance and prayer.

45. heterodox
Def: characterized by departure from accepted
beliefs or standards
eX: You will think these ideas horribly
heterodox, but if we all thought alike there would
be nothing to write about and nothing to learn.

46. heterogeneous
Def: consisting of elements that are not of the
same kind or nature
eX: Mine layers were here with mine sweepers
and hospital shipsa heterogeneous collection of
well-nigh every kind of ship that floats.

47. heuristic
Def: a commonsense rule (or set of rules)
intended to increase the probability of solving
some problem
eX: He was swayed by the "familiarity"
heuristic, which basically says that humans trust
what is familiar.

48. hew
Def: strike with an axe; cut down, strike
Ex: But the swords are active and clearly seen
"smiting", "hewing", "chopping."

49. hiatus
Def: an interruption in the intensity or amount of
something
Ex:Real estate prices are skyrocketing because of
all the international organizations coming back to
Mogadishu after a 20-year hiatus.

50. hibernate

75

Def: be in an inactive or dormant state
Ex: In winter they hibernate like our squirrels,
passing several months underground in a kind of
slow and nearly motionless existence.

51. hierarchy
Def: a series of ordered groupings of people or
things within a system
Ex: After enough trials, the conventionally
raised pigeons inferred a hierarchy of the most
fruitful colors: red > blue > green > yellow >
violet.

52. hieroglyphic
Def: written in or belonging to a writing system
using pictorial symbols
Ex: Hieroglyphic writing is really picture
writing, and is the oldest means man has employed
to enable him to communicate with his fellows.

53. hilarious
Def: marked by or causing boisterous merriment
or convulsive laughter
Ex: Soames saw, too, at least one hilarious
group of college-age boys who might have been
organized by a college humor magazine.

54. hinder
Def: be a hindrance or obstacle to
Ex: Polish drilling also has been hindered by a
scarcity of rigs, water and specialized equipment
needed for shale wells, Bern said.

55. hindmost
Def: located farthest to the rear
Ex: He was the hindmost when the race began,
but with widespread nostrils, long extended neck,
and glaring eyeballs, he seemed to fly over the
course.

56. hindrance
Def: any obstruction that impedes or is
burdensome
Ex: While Japanese giant Sony said China's
move represented a hindrance to free trade, for
other companies the Chinese action provided a
boost.
57. hinge
Def: a joint that holds two parts together so that
one can swing relative to the other
Ex: He opened the door, trying to will away
telltale creaks in hinges and joints, avoid any
possible attention.

58. hinterland
Def: a remote and undeveloped area
Ex: There in those half explored and altogether
unsettled hinterlands, lurk desires that sting like
adders and hatreds cruel as hell....

59. hireling
Def: a person who works only for money
Ex: Hireling troops, soldiers serving for pay:
they were not Ultonians and did not belong to the
Red Branch.

60. hirsute

76

Def: having or covered with hair
Ex: Peter got out after a prolonged struggle;
place very hirsute; big beards on everybody; ten
parts of hair to one part Dutchman.

61. histrionic
Def: characteristic of acting or a stage
performance; often affected
Ex: Present-day Graham dancers are often taken
to task for overacting, or histrionics or otherwise
obscuring the integrity of their material.

62. hoard
Def: save up as for future use
Ex: The offspring of starving mothers,
anticipating hard times during their own future
lives, adjust their metabolisms to hoard calories.

63. hoary
Def: showing characteristics of age, especially
having grey or white hair
Ex: He was an aged monarch of the mountains,
reddish brown in color originally, but now a hoary
dirty gray.

64. hoax
Def: something intended to deceive; deliberate
trickery intended to gain an advantage
Ex: On Monday, a bomb threat received in
London was first taken by the police as credible,
but later described as a probable hoax.

65. hoist
Def: raise or haul up with or as if witmechanical
help
Ex: Then the signal was given to resume
hoisting the big fish aboard, and once more the
crane started winding up the cable.

66. holocaust
Def: an act of mass destruction and loss of life
(especially in war or by fire)
Ex: Twenty-four thousand bodies were burned
in one holocaust, and it is solemnly stated that in
the spring thaws twelve thousand more were
brought to light.

67. homage
Def: respectful deference
Ex: With cathedral ceilings, sparkling mosaic
tile floors and elaborately carved moldings and
paneling, the restaurant pays homage to the Gilded
Age.

68. homespun
Def: characteristic of country life
His rural, homespun demeanor ordinarily might
elicit snickers from Indias urban elite.
New York Times (Aug 19, 2011)
69. homily
Def: a sermon on a moral or religious topic
Ex: Benedict said in a homily last week that
Christians must repent for sins and recognize
mistakes in comments widely interpreted as
concerning the scandal.

70. homogeneous

77

Def: all of the same or similar kind or nature
Ex: But I thought, My goodness, what a
homogeneous population, akin to identical white
mice, which thereby controls for all sorts of
differences.

71. homologous
Def: corresponding or similar in position or
structure or function or characteristics; especially
derived from an organism of the same species
Ex: So, too, organs which were homologous in
the ordinary sense, as the heart of birds and
mammals, might have arisen separately in
evolution.

72. hone
Def: make perfect or complete
Ex: Kopec says his clients are wine curious and
fast learners, honing their palates by sharing
bottles in private rooms at restaurants.

73. honor
Def: bestow honor or rewards upon
Ex: The host country's gold medalists will be
honored with commemorate postage stamps
available at 500 outlets the very next day, Royal
Mail announced.

74. honorable
Def: deserving of esteem and respect
Ex: "The office of bailiff formerly was high and
honorable in England, and officers under that title
on the continent are still invested with important
functions."Webster.

75. horde
Def: a vast multitude
Ex: New York's Times Square was awash in
hopeful sentiments as it prepared to welcome
hordes of New Year's Eve revelers.

76. horizon
Def: the line at which the sky and Earth appear to
meet
Ex: We can see to the horizon about 35 miles
distant, tapering off into low blue hills, and closer
in, three shivering silver lakes.

77. horrendous
Def: causing fear or dread or terror
Ex: Some wounded civilians evacuated from
Misrata by boat described horrendous scenes of
shelling and hand-to-hand fighting, he says.

78. hortatory
Def: giving strong encouragement
Ex: For hortatory or inspirational purposes we
do not need to make this analysis; it has, indeed, its
practical dangers.

79. horticultural
Def: of or relating to the cultivation of plants
Ex: Japanese flower arrangements, candles and
giant orchids make the stage look more like an
oriental horticultural exhibition than a concert
venue.

80. hospitable

78

disposed to treat guests and strangers with
cordiality and generosity
Ex: In Morgantown, many of the fans we came
across were gracious, welcoming, hospitable and
constantly inquiring about whether we had
received any harsh treatment.

81. hostile
Def: troops belonging to the enemy's military
forces
Ex: On Elliott Bay, the cabins of the farther
away settlers had gone up in smoke, fired by the
hostile Indians.

82. hovel
Def: small crude shelter used as a dwelling
Ex: It is a paltry hovel of two low stories, half
timbered, with meagre windows, and must have
been a squalid abode even in its prime.

83. hover
Def: hang in the air; fly or be suspended above
Ex: Here he stood still, looking up the dim
expanse, with the dusky shadows, like great
winged, formless ghosts, hovering over him.

84. hubris
Def: overbearing pride or presumption
Ex: Fab's arrogance, and that of his Goldman
colleagues who also testified, bested previous
displays of hubris by the automotive, oil and
tobacco industries.

85. humane
Def: showing evidence of moral and intellectual
advancement
Ex: Men and women were in those less humane
days burned for displeasing God, while now they
are only fined and incarcerated.

86. humanitarian
Def: marked by humanistic values and devotion
to human welfare
Ex: They discussed efforts to provide
humanitarian assistance, especially urgently
needed medical supplies in battered cities like
Homs.

87. humiliation
Def: state of disgrace or loss of self-respect
Ex: The humiliation of losing his first match 5-
0 was compounded by hearing his opponent's
friends marvelling at the easy draw he had been
given.

88. humility
Def: a disposition to be humble; a lack of false
pride
Ex: During the meal Jesus taught His disciples a
touching lesson in humility; laying aside His upper
robe, He washed and wiped their feet.

89. humongous
Def: (used informally) very large
Ex: These are humongous, gigantic, scare-
your-pants-off kinds of waterfalls, he said.

90. hurtle

79

Def: move with or as if with a rushing sound
Ex: Yet the cannonade continued, each shell that
came hurtling through the air exploding with
deadly effect and spreading destruction on all
hands.

91. husbandry
Def: the practice of cultivating the land or raising
stock
Ex: The U.S. can take a lesson from Denmark,
which has efficiently raised livestock without
hurting farmers, by using better animal husbandry
practices.

92. hybrid
Def: a composite of mixed origin
Ex: Current training, Hertling said, concentrated
on "hybrid" threats where criminals may work
with conventional forces, or with "terrorists,"
sharing weapons or drugs.

93. hydrophobia
Def: an acute viral disease of the nervous system
of warm-blooded animals (usually transmitted by
the bite of a rabid animal); rabies is fatal if the
virus reaches the brain
Ex: One of his most stirring narratives related to
the manner in which he escaped hydrophobia,
after being bitten by a rabid wolf.

94. hyperbole
Def: extravagant exaggeration
Ex: Quaint exaggeration of statement, the use of
hyperbole, is often employed, and very happily, to
compel attention.

95. hyperbolic
Def: enlarged beyond truth or reasonableness
Ex: I am surprised that plaintiffs hyperbolic
allegations and inflated damage claims are given
any credence, said the banks top lawyer, Gary
Lynch.

96. hypnagogic
Def: sleep inducing
Ex: This intermediate and persistent stage of
hypnagogic images serves in every way to explain
the physical genesis of involuntary hallucinations.

97. hypochondriac
Def: a patient with imaginary symptoms and
ailments
Ex: The man proved to be a regular
hypochondriac, taking medicine constantly, at one
time with five doctors prescribing for him.

98. hypocritical
Def: professing feelings or virtues one does not
have
Ex:While all political leaders call for compromise,
their actions and finger pointing increasingly
appear hypocritical and self-serving.

99. hypothetical
Def: a hypothetical possibility, circumstance,
statement, proposal, situation, etc.

80

Ex: They see rampant piracy as a reality and the
threat to fair use as some kind of academic
hypothetical rarely encountered in reality.

100. hysteria
Def: state of violent mental agitation
Ex: Washington teenager Mike Mitchell, then
18, was on hand at Union Station when the Beatles
arrived and documented the shrieking hysteria of
their fans.






1. iconoclast
Def: someone who attacks cherished ideas or
traditional institutions
Ex: Jobs is a classic iconoclast, one who
aggressively seeks out, attacks, and overthrows
conventional ideas.

2. idealistic
Def: of high moral or intellectual value; elevated
in nature or style
Ex: Instructors, of all levels, are fundamentally
idealistic people, motivated by a passion for
helping the worlds young billions achieve their
human potential.

3. ideological
Def: concerned with or suggestive of ideas
Ex: What was once an ideological abstraction
austerity will have very real effects on
everyday life for average Americans.

4. idiom
Def: an expression whose meanings cannot be
inferred from the meanings of the words that make
it up
Ex: Hand down, man down, he said,
repeating a favorite Jackson broadcasting idiom at
a news conference Monday to introduce the
Warriors rookies for next season.

5. idiosyncrasy
Def: a behavioral attribute that is distinctive and
peculiar to an individual
Ex: My roles in independent films have been
fuller, chockablock with all sorts of human
idiosyncrasies, kinks and foibles of humanity.

6. idle
Def: silly or trivial

81

Ex: "Sure, sir, they can know nothing about it;
it's just idle talk, and no more."

7. idyllic
Def: suggestive of an idyll; charmingly simple
and serene
Ex: The scene of this charming, idyllic love
story is laid in Central Indiana.

8. ignominious
Def: (used of conduct or character) deserving or
bringing disgrace or shame
Ex: The sentence passed upon them is that they
die a shameful and ignominious death.

9. illustrious
Def: widely known and esteemed
Ex: The Trumbull family was the most
illustrious in the state, embracing three governors
and other distinguished men.

10. imbibe
Def: take in liquids
Ex: For that little beast, having a severe cold,
was given whisky-and-milk one day, and,
imbibing too freely, became absolutely drunk.

11. imbroglio
Def: an intricate and confusing interpersonal or
political situation
Ex: And indeed his world is one huge imbroglio
of Potentialities and Diplomatic Intricacies,
agitating to behold.

12. imminent
Def: close in time; about to occur
Ex: He perceived the danger which he had so
long warded off now instant and imminent.

13. impaired
Def: diminished in strength, quality, or utility
Ex: Thinking could be slowed, attention
dulled, judgement impaired, memory muddled.

14. impartial
Def: free from undue bias or preconceived
opinions
Ex: We are looking for people who can serve
as fair, objective and impartial jurors.

15. impasse
Def: a situation in which no progress can be
made or no advancement is possible
Ex: Unfortunately success also depends on an
end to the impasse between America and China,
whose trade relations seem stuck.

16. impecunious
Def: not having enough money to pay for
necessities
Ex: It had been quite in keeping with his ideas
that the Thornes should taste the bitters of poverty,
and know what being impecunious really meant.


82

17. impediment
Def: something immaterial that interferes with or
delays action or progress
Ex: He identified several chronic impediments
to long-term progress in Brazil, too, including high
tax rates, deficient transportation and other
infrastructure and a poor education system.

18. impending
Def: close in time; about to occur
Ex: Davis immediately began preparing food
and snacks for his wifes impending arrival.

19. imperative
Def: requiring attention or action
Ex: Though always important, safety becomes
imperative when children are involved.

20. imperceptible
Def: impossible or difficult to perceive by the
mind or senses
Ex: Only a faint, almost imperceptible tinge
remained of the ink stains on her face.

21. imperious
Def: having or showing arrogant superiority to
and disdain of those one views as unworthy
Ex: He was known as an imperious boss with
little patience for weakness, one who launched
blistering tirades that left subordinates fuming, or in
tears.

22. impetuous
Def: marked by violent force
Ex: There are times when all these Yorkshire
rivers become impetuous torrents, roaring along in
resistless might and majesty.

23. implicit
Def: being without doubt or reserve
Ex: He was accustomed to implicit obedience
and was not used to seeing men smile when he
uttered a threat.

24. implode
Def: burst inward
Ex: As the graph shows, growth actually slowed
and then the whole system imploded into a
catastrophic crisis.

25. implore
Def: call upon in supplication; entreat
Ex: The poor woman continued to implore
mercy; and coming nearer to the Lord, "She fell
down and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me!"

26. imply
Def: express or state indirectly
Ex: Smoothing planes are, as the name implies,
used to simply smoothen the work surface after it
has been trued.

27. impregnable
Def: immune to attack; incapable of being
tampered with

83

Ex: At the same time, the United States would
be safeguarded against internal dangers and made
impregnable against attack or invasion by any
foreign power.

28. impromptu
Def: without advance preparation
Ex: Bauer proposed to Shourd while both were
in prison, fashioning an impromptu ring out of
threads from his shirt.

29. impudence
Def: the trait of being rude and impertinent;
inclined to take liberties
Ex: Ichikawa conceded that his "arrogance and
impudence" may have brought on the attack,
adding: "I won't feel like having a drink for a
while."

30. impunity
Def: exemption from punishment or loss
Ex: According to Amnesty, some groups of
former rebels are committing human rights
violations with impunity, unchecked by the
interim government.

31. inalienable
Def: not subject to forfeiture
Ex: Men's natural rights are all inherent and
inalienable; and therefore cannot be parted with,
or delegated, by one person to another.

32. inane
Def: devoid of intelligence
Ex: And then, again, his asking me his stupid,
inane questions, as if I cared what man, and how
many.

33. inanimate
Def: belonging to the class of nouns denoting
nonliving things
Ex: The moment when the first living beings
arose from inanimate matter almost four billion
years ago is still shrouded in mystery.

34. inaugurate
Def: commence officially
Ex: Continental has ordered 25 Dreamliners and
plans to inaugurate them in November 2011 on
new, nonstop flights to Auckland, New Zealand,
and Lagos, Nigeria.

35. incarnation
Def: time passed in a particular bodily form
Ex: When America Online came out, that was a
very early incarnation of social networking with
the instant messaging.

36. incendiary
Def: a criminal who illegally sets fire to property
Ex: While there the depot was set on fire and
burned down, supposed to be the work of an
incendiary.

37. inception
Def: an event that is a beginning; a first part or
stage of subsequent events

84

Ex: They were confident this week, eager to
show how much improvement the league has made
since its inception in 1996.

38. inchoate
Def: only partly in existence; imperfectly formed
Ex: But when the law is unsettled, inchoate,
undeveloped, lets say, its natural that judges
political, social and economic views will shape
how they see things.

39. incipient
Def: only partly in existence; imperfectly formed
Ex: As yet, it is in an incipient stage of
development and has by no means revealed its full
power for evil.

40. incite
Def: provoke or stir up
Ex: He was arrested on charges including
inciting a riot and disorderly conduct.

41. inclement
Def: (of weather or climate) severe
Ex: Check with your business's insurance policy
to make sure it covers any accidents on company
property caused by inclement weather conditions.

42. incognito
Def: without revealing one's identity
Ex: Hitherto their security has depended on
keeping up their incognito by disguises, and the
secrecy of their camping place.

43. incompetent
Def: not qualified or suited for a purpose
Ex: The common people, especially in the
villages, know nothing at all of Christian doctrine;
and many pastors are quite unfit and incompetent
to teach.

44. inconspicuous
Def: not prominent or readily noticeable
Ex: Unless Socapa Castle, therefore, is so small
and inconspicuous as to have escaped my notice, it
must have fallen into ruins or been destroyed.

45. incorrigible
Def: impervious to correction by punishment
Ex: There are some, however, who maintain that
the criminal is incorrigible and that reformatory
agencies have invariably failed.

46. incredulous
Def: not disposed or willing to believe;
unbelieving
Ex: She looked puzzled, half incredulous and
perplexed, inclined to smile, blushing somewhat,
and all uncertain.

47. increment
Def: the amount by which something increases
Ex: The plan also called for quoting prices in
decimals, doing away with the one-eighth
increments that had long defined Wall Street

85

math.

48. incumbent
Def: the official who holds an office
Ex: The Democratic incumbent faces no serious
primary challenge and his re-election campaign
already is well under way.

49. indelible
Def: cannot be removed or erased
Ex: The paints were not indelible, consequently
they could be easily removed and another
application made as circumstances required.

50. indemnity
Def: protection against future loss
Ex: They should pay an indemnity to the state
of Guatemala, not just apologize.

51. indenture
Def: bind by or as if by indentures, as of an
apprentice or servant
Ex: Beneath both these classes were the
indentured servants, a few of whom were men of
ability forced to pay their passage by service.

52. indifferent
Def: marked by a lack of interest
Ex: He leant back in his chair, outwardly
indifferent and calm, but throbbing in every nerve
and pulse with wild excitement.

53. indigenous
Def: originating where it is found
Ex: These deer are not indigenous, but were
introduced by the Romans, probably from Asia
Minor; and are, as at home, more or less private
property.

54. indigent
Def: poor enough to need help from others
Tarkowski declared himself indigent, and said he
could not pay the fines, according to news reports.

55. indignant
Def: angered at something unjust or wrong
Ex: In Spain throngs of young people, known as
the indignant ones, occupied public plazas
nationwide, protesting unemployment and
exclusionary politics.

56. indomitable
Def: impossible to subdue
Ex: "The very heart of the city was burned out,
but nothing could extinguish its indomitable
spirit."

57. ineffable
Def: defying expression or description
Ex: He had asked questionsnever in the form
of words but only ineffable yearnings of his soul
and at last it had responded.

58. inevitable

86

Def: incapable of being avoided or prevented
Ex: Yes, she repeated more faintly, as though
this was all natural, inevitable, expected.

59. inexorable
Def: not to be placated or appeased or moved by
entreaty
Ex: He urged, entreated, commanded in vain,
Mrs. Fortescue was inexorable.

60. infamous
Def: known widely and usually unfavorably
Ex: This one line in President George W. Bush's
2003 State of the Union address overshadowed all
the others, becoming infamously known as the "16
words."

61. infinitesimal
Def: infinitely or immeasurably small
Ex: Within an infinitesimal period of time, a
period too brief to be calculable, both hemispheres
are again acting in unison.

62. infirmity
Def: the state of being weak in health or body
(especially from old age)
Ex: Such are death, old age, physical infirmity,
loss of worldly honor, final impenitence.

63. inflammatory
Def: arousing to action or rebellion
Ex: After being fired, Ms. Bartz gave an
inflammatory interview to Fortune magazine in
which she used an expletive and called Yahoos
board doofuses.

64. infringe
Def: go against, as of rules and laws
Ex: He said the order was unlawful and
infringed on officers' rights.

65. ingratiate
Def: gain favor with somebody by deliberate
efforts
Ex: Yeah, well Ive seen eyes narrow and ears
go back at first meetings even when Im trying
to be humble, ingratiating and likable.

66. inherent
Def: existing as an essential constituent or
characteristic
Ex: Action and reaction are, according to him,
essential inherent properties of brain matter as
such, but consciousness is merely a dependent.

67. iniquity
Def: absence of moral or spiritual values
Ex: "I have loved justice and hated iniquity," he
said in dying, "therefore I die in exile."

68. innate
Def: not established by conditioning or learning
Ex: In other words, one of our most essential
abilities as humans--reading--is the product of a

87

combination of innate and learned traits.

69. innocuous
Def: lacking intent or capacity to injure
Ex: Yet in confinement, he was docile,
compliant and innocuous, they said.

70. innovative
Def: being or producing something like nothing
done or experienced or created before
Ex: On display are examples of artists using
traditional subjects portraits, landscapes, still
lifes in ways that were new, innovative, and
sometimes shocking, at the time.

71. innuendo
Def: an indirect (and usually malicious)
implication
Ex: As a genuine Irishman he never used an
immodest word, or by gesture, phrase, or innuendo
suggested an impure thought.

72. insatiable
Def: impossible to satisfy
Ex: The site branched into movies, foreign
cartoons, news programs anything to feed
viewers insatiable appetite.

73. inscrutable
Def: of an obscure nature
Ex: Hearing these words, Nabu-Nahid's face
assumed an expression that was unexpectedly
complexa little inscrutable, indeed.

74. insidious
Def: working or spreading in a hidden and
usually injurious way
Ex: Its onset is usually insidious, gradually
worsening over years and thus easily ignored.

75. insolent
Def: marked by casual disrespect
Ex: Insolent laughter and mocking shouts were
the answer he received.

76. insolvent
Def: unable to meet or discharge financial
obligations
Ex: In common parlance, bankruptcy is often
used more casually, to mean something like broke
or insolvent.

77. insouciant
Def: marked by blithe unconcern
Ex: I rattled on, insouciant and careless to all
appearances, but in reality my heart like lead.

78. insubordination
Def: defiance of authority
Ex: "What Keble hated instinctively," says
Newman, "was heresy, insubordination,
resistance to things established, claims of
independence, disloyalty, innovation, a critical and
censorious spirit."


88

79. insular
Def: suggestive of the isolated life of an island
Ex: Describing the tour as an insular,
introverted, isolated world, Wright said she found
no relief during her too-brief trips home.

80. insuperable
Def: incapable of being surmounted or excelled
Ex: His life is an insuperable force, vivid,
inviolable and free, which my heart out of sheer
love of him failed to recognize.

81. insurgent
Def: a person who takes part in an armed
rebellion against the constituted authority
(especially in the hope of improving conditions)
Ex: Clashes broke out between the insurgents
and government troops in June, with both sides
blaming the other for provoking the violence.

82. insurrection
Def: organized opposition to authority; a conflict
in which one faction tries to wrest control from
another
Ex: More than a decade of civil war left
thousands dead after separatists on Bougainville
Island began an armed insurrection in 1989.

83. intact
Def: undamaged in any way
Ex: Questions were raised about the quality of
construction in the area, with some buildings
having remained completely intact while those
next door were destroyed.

84. intangible
Def: incapable of being perceived by the senses
especially the sense of touch
Ex: I thought they were all cloudsbeautiful,
airy intangible shapes.

85. inter
Def: place in a grave or tomb
Ex: He was interred with due military honors in
a cemetery near his home in Jersey City.

86. interdict
Def: a court order prohibiting a party from doing
a certain activity
Ex: Out-of-door life is interdicted, so to speak;
gaiety is out of the question; everything
predisposes to industry and thought.

87. interim
Def: serving during an intermediate interval of
time
Ex: Chief Financial Officer Anthony Vuolo will
serve as interim CEO while the company looks for
a permanent replacement.

88. interject
Def: to insert between other elements
Ex: Indeed, the book is like an endless string of
pearls, with here and there a ruby, a diamond, or a
bit of honest glass interjected.


89

89. interloper
Def: someone who intrudes on the privacy or
property of another without permission
Ex: We look upon them somewhat as
interlopers, parasites, occupying a place to which
they have no legitimate right.

90. interminable
Def: tiresomely long; seemingly without end
Ex: This duration is eternity: an interminable
duration existing all together.

91. intimation
Def: an indirect suggestion
Saul flinched before the concealed intimation in
the words.

92. intransigent
Def: impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests,
reason
Ex: Cuba's response to recent US efforts to
improve relations had revealed "an intransigent,
entrenched regime" in Havana, said the US
secretary of state.

93. intrepid
Def: invulnerable to fear or intimidation
Ex: He must be intrepid, persisting through
danger to death, laboring for religious truth, neither
precipitating peril by audacity nor shrinking from it
through timidity.

94. intrinsic
Def: belonging to a thing by its very nature
Ex: Roughly speaking, some Christian thinkers
believe animals have intrinsic rights to be treated
well, like people.

95. introspective
Def: given to examining own sensory and
perceptual experiences
Ex: Some of these artists do show an
introspective side, reaching inward to confess their
dreams, and what innocent dreams they are.

96. inundated
Def: covered with water
Ex: The baffled water stopped, as if reflecting;
then it turned back, and rose till it poured over its
banks and inundated the fields.

97. inverse
Def: opposite in nature or effect or relation to
another quantity
Ex: Others showed an inverse relationship, with
their activity declining as the value increased.

98. irrelevant
Def: having no bearing on or connection with the
subject at issue
Ex: His views are irrelevant hes a tudor
historian talking about contemporary urban unrest.

99. irreverent
Def: showing lack of due respect or veneration

90

Ex: His humour was cheeky, irreverent,
subversive and most definitely not politically
correct.

100. itinerant
Def: traveling from place to place to work
Ex: The interest extending widely beyond his
parish, he spent part of his time in itinerant
preaching, going several hundred miles and in
every direction.






1. jaded
Def: dulled by surfeit
2. jargon
Def: specialized technical terminology
characteristic of a particular subject
3. jaunt
Def: a journey taken for pleasure
4. jaunty
Def: having a cheerful, lively, and self-confident
air
5. jeer
Def: laugh at with contempt and derision
6. jejune
Def: lacking interest or significance or impact
7. jeopardize
Def: pose a threat to; present a danger to
8. jest
Def: activity characterized by good humor
9. jettison
Def: throw away, of something encumbering
10. jibe
Def: an aggressive remark directed at a person
like a missile and intended to have a telling effect
11. jingoist
Def: an extreme bellicose nationalist
12. jocular
Def: characterized by jokes and good humor
13. jollity
Def: feeling jolly and jovial and full of good
humor
14. jostle
Def: make one's way by jostling, pushing, or
shoving

91

15. jovial
Def: full of or showing high-spirited merriment
16. jubilant
Def: full of high-spirited delight
17. judicious
Def: marked by the exercise of good judgment or
common sense in practical matters
18. juggernaut
Def: a massive inexorable force that seems to
crush everything in its way
19. juncture
Def: a crisis situation or point in time when a
critical decision must be made
20. junket
Def: a trip taken by an official at public expense
21. junta
Def: a group of military officers who rule a
country after seizing power
22. jurisdiction
Def: in law; the territory within which power can
be exercised
23. jurisprudence
Def: the collection of rules imposed by authority
24. justify
Def: defend, explain, clear away, or make
excuses for by reasoning
25. juxtapose
Def: place side by side
26. keen
Def: having or demonstrating ability to recognize
or draw fine distinctions
27. ken
Def: range of what one can know or understand
28. kindle
Def: cause to start burning
29. kinetic
Def: characterized by motion
30. kinship
Def: (anthropology) relatedness or connection by
blood or marriage or adoption
31. knave
Def: a deceitful and unreliable scoundrel
32. knead
Def: make uniform
33. knell
Def: the sound of a bell rung slowly to announce
a death or a funeral or the end of something
34. knit
Def: make (textiles) by knitting
35. knoll
Def: a small natural hill
36. knotty

92

Def: highly complex or intricate and occasionally
devious
37. labile
Def: (chemistry, physics, biology) readily
undergoing change or breakdown
38. lachrymose
Def: showing sorrow
39. lackadaisical
Def: idle or indolent especially in a dreamy way
40. lackluster
Def: lacking brilliance or vitality
41. laconic
Def: brief and to the point; effectively cut short
42. lament
Def: express grief verbally
43. lampoon
Def: a composition that imitates or misrepresents
somebody's style, usually in a humorous way
44. lancet
Def: an acutely pointed Gothic arch, like a lance
45. languid
Def: lacking spirit or liveliness
46. languish
Def: lose vigor, health, or flesh, as through grief
47. languor
Def: a feeling of lack of interest or energy
48. lassitude
Def: weakness characterized by a lack of vitality
or energy
49. latent
Def: potentially existing but not presently evident
or realized
50. latter
Def: referring to the second of two things or
persons mentioned (or the last one or ones of
several)
51. laudable
Def: worthy of high praise
52. lavish
Def: characterized by extravagance and profusion
53. leery
Def: openly distrustful and unwilling to confide
54. legacy
Def: (law) a gift of personal property by will
55. legerdemain
Def: an illusory feat; considered magical by naive
observers
56. legislate
Def: make laws, bills, etc. or bring into effect by
legislation
57. legitimacy
Def: undisputed credibility

93

58. legitimate
Def: authorized, sanctioned by, or in accordance
with law
59. leisure
Def: time available for ease and relaxation
60. leniency
Def: mercifulness as a consequence of being
lenient or tolerant
61. lethal
Def: of an instrument of certain death
62. lethargic
Def: deficient in alertness or activity
63. lethargy
Def: weakness characterized by a lack of vitality
or energy
64. levee
Def: an embankment that is built in order to
prevent a river from overflowing
65. level
Def: a relative position or degree of value in a
graded group
66. leverage
Def: strategic advantage; power to act effectively
67. leviathan
Def: the largest or most massive thing of its kind
68. levity
Def: a manner lacking seriousness
69. lexicon
Def: a reference book containing an alphabetical
list of words with information about them
70. liability
Def: the quality of being something that holds
you back
71. liaison
Def: a channel for communication between
groups
72. libation
Def: (facetious) a serving of an alcoholic
beverage
73. libel
Def: a false and malicious publication printed for
the purpose of defaming a living person
74. lilliputian
Def: very small
75. limber
Def: (used of persons' bodies) capable of moving
or bending freely
76. limpid
Def: clear and bright
77. lineage
Def: the kinship relation between an individual
and the individual's progenitors
78. linger

94

Def: remain present although waning or
gradually dying
79. linguistic
Def: consisting of or related to language
80. lionize
Def: assign great social importance to
81. liquidate
Def: convert into cash
82. lissome
Def: moving and bending with ease
83. listless
Def: lacking zest or vivacity
84. literal
Def: limited to the explicit meaning of a word or
text
85. lithe
Def: moving and bending with ease
86. litigation
Def: a legal proceeding in a court; a judicial
contest to determine and enforce legal rights
87. livid
Def: furiously angry
88. loll
Def: be lazy or idle
89. longevity
Def: the property of being long-lived
90. loquacious
Def: full of trivial conversation
91. lucid
Def: (of language) transparently clear; easily
understandable
92. lucrative
Def: producing a sizeable profit
93. ludicrous
Def: incongruous;inviting ridicule
94. lugubrious
Def: excessively mournful
95. lull
Def: make calm or still
96. luminary
Def: a celebrity who is an inspiration to others
97. lunar
Def: of or relating to or associated with the moon
98. lurid
Def: horrible in fierceness or savagery
99. lurk
Def: lie in wait, lie in ambush, behave in a
sneaky and secretive manner
100. lustrous
Def: reflecting light

95



jaded
If you've done something so much that it doesn't
excite you anymore but just leaves you tired,
consider yourself jaded. If someone says you look a
little jaded, it just means that you look tired.
The history of jaded is not clear, but perhaps it is
related to the noun jade, an old term for a worn-out
horse. Even if not, picturing a tired old horse may
be a nice way to remember that jaded means dulled
or tired from too much of something. The word can
also mean cynical because of bad experiences with
something, like a jaded journalist who doesn't see
the person behind the politician.
DEFINITIONS OF: jaded
1
adj exhausted
"my father's words had left me jaded and
depressed"- William Styron
Synonyms:
wearied
tired
depleted of strength or energy
adj dulled by surfeit
the amoral, jaded, bored upper classes
Synonyms
satiate, satiated
supplied (especially fed) to satisfaction
Learn Add to List... Thesaurus
WORD FAMILY
jaded
jade
jaded
the "jade" family
USAGE EXAMPLES
But many young Indonesians say they are
increasingly jaded.
BBC Oct 17, 2013
Googles letter, for instance, drew a few
guffaws from jaded fund managers on Wall
Street.
Time Oct 9, 2013
Many comments on articles about his last
paper, published in the journal Nature,
were skeptical and jaded, he continued.
New York Times Sep 10, 2013
While weepy films can succeed in some
markets, Ms. Galano said, the
international audience tends to be a little
more jaded and cynical.







96


1. macabre
Def: shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
Ex: Thus was uncovered one of historys most
macabre bouts of serial killing.

2. machination
Def: a crafty and involved plot to achieve your
(usually sinister) ends
Ex: With life experiences like those behind her,
the extreme plot machinations of Hollywood
melodrama must have possessed an everyday
familiarity for Stanwyck.

3. maculate
Def: spot, stain, or pollute
Ex: It fell upon their faces, touching their
whiteness with a ruddy tinge, accentuating the
stains with which so many of them were freaked
and maculated.

4. maelstrom
Def: a powerful circular current of water (usually
the result of conflicting tides)
Ex: The entire bowl was now a maelstrom of
swirling bodies, legs and arms.

5. magnanimous
Def: noble and generous in spirit
Ex: She will love to dwell on that large,
generous, magnanimous, open, forgiving heart.

6. magniloquent
Def: lofty in style
Ex: The day was spent in magniloquent
addresses, which affected the style of ancient types,
urgent exhortations to war, poetical orations,
rounds of applause, rapturous demonstrations.

7. magnitude
Def: the property of relative size or extent
(whether large or small)
Ex: But an aftershock of almost the same
magnitude, less deep that the first quake, hit soon
after he finished speaking.

8. maim
Def: injure or wound seriously and leave
permanent disfiguration or mutilation
Ex: Think of the maimed, the mutilated, the
mangled!

9. majestic
Def: having or displaying great dignity or
nobility
Ex: By-and-by the three temples loomed into
view, standing in all their beauty on the barren
waste, majestic, uninjured, extraordinary.

10. malady
Def: any unwholesome or desperate condition

97

Ex: As with most of the infectious maladies,
scarlet fever extended to the Western World
through European shipping.

11. malaise
Def: physical discomfort (as mild sickness or
depression)
Ex: Sammy was placed on antibiotics in case a
bacterial infection was causing his fever and
malaise.

12. malapropism
Def: the unintentional misuse of a word by
confusion with one that sounds similar
Ex: New words are eagerly seized; hence the
malapropisms and solecisms so frequently made
fun of, without appreciation of their cause.

13. malevolent
Def: wishing or appearing to wish evil to others;
arising from intense ill will or hatred
Ex: They are malevolent and murderous and
may be summoned by black magic.

14. malice
Def: feeling a need to see others suffer
Ex: But it would have been easy enough to
simply say that no malice was intended and she
regretted if anyone was offended by the phrase.

15. malignant
Def: dangerous to health; characterized by
progressive and uncontrolled growth (especially of
a tumor)
Ex: The latest growth is most likely
malignant, Chvez conceded aggressively so,
medical experts are suggesting leaving him
preparing to face the worst.

16. malingerer
Def: someone shirking their duty by feigning
illness or incapacity
Ex: On the other hand, the malingerer may
actually produce injuries on his person either to
excite commiseration or to escape from work.

17. malleable
Def: easily influenced
Ex: Laws are malleable, and courts can be
purchased or influenced to a locals advantage.

18. manifestation
Def: a manifest indication of the existence or
presence or nature of some person or thing
Ex: Nay, the process was going on within,
though its visible manifestations may have ceased.

19. manifold
Def: many and varied; having many features or
forms
Ex: Then, too, there are innumerable separate
agencies, working in ways manifold and diverse.

20. manipulate
Def: influence or control shrewdly or deviously
Ex: It says Google manipulated Safari users
into believing they could permanently opt out of

98

targeted advertising, when in reality they couldnt.

21. manumit
Def: free from slavery or servitude
Ex: The slave, now free, would lay down his life
for the man who has manumitted him.

22. mar
Def: make imperfect
Ex: This energetic and clear-textured approach
allowed for plenty of striking details of percussion
and phrasing, marred only by a few brass
blemishes.

23. marital
Def: of or relating to the state of marriage
Ex: In many jurisdictions, if your separately
owned property increases in value during the
marriage, that increase is also considered marital
property.

24. maritime
Def: relating to or involving ships or shipping or
navigation or seamen
Ex: In any case, the report argues, international
maritime law in theory obligates ships to come to
the assistance of those in trouble at sea.

25. martyr
Def: one who suffers for the sake of principle
Ex: Despite the pounding summer sun,
Protesters turned out to demand justice for those
killed during the revolution, who are seen as
martyrs for democracy.

26. materialistic
Def: marked by materialism
Ex: Moreover, in contrast to the dominant
thinking of our age, which is materialistic, King's
philosophy is spiritual and religious.

27. materialize
Def: come into being; become reality
Ex: As ties warmed, the two countries discussed
joint ventures, though most havent materialized.

28. maternal
Def: characteristic of a mother
Ex: Maternal mortality rates are also high, with
85 women dying in childbirth for every 100,000
live births, Tidey said.

29. matriarchy
Def: a form of social organization in which a
female is the family head and title is traced through
the female line
Ex: owned the country and women governed it;
suddenly the matriarchy existed.

30. matrix
Def: an enclosure within which something
originates or develops (from the Latin for womb)
Ex: Today, Web music services are spread
across the entire range of the price / convenience /
permanence matrix.


99

31. maturation
Def: (biology) the process of an individual
organism growing organically; a purely biological
unfolding of events involved in an organism
changing gradually from a simple to a more
complex level
Ex: Again, that is a very fast maturation rate,
making it efficient for breeding in the lab.

32. maudlin
Def: effusively or insincerely emotional
Ex: He detested the florid sentimentality of
some other universities, the maudlin old grads
singing of bright college years!

33. maul
Def: injure badly by beating
Ex: Or if Sleepless in Seattle ended with Meg
Ryan being graphically mauled to death by an
escaped tiger.

34. maven
Def: someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any
field
Ex: The Deadhead community boasts any
number of recording engineers, lighting experts,
rock video mavens, electronic technicians of all
descriptions.

35. maverick
Def: independent in behavior or thought
Ex: He's still the same maverick, independent
spirit he has always been.

36. mawkish
Def: effusively or insincerely emotional
Ex: Herself full of mawkish sentimentality, her
verses could not fail to be foolish, their whole
impulse being the ambition that springs from self-
admiration.

37. maxim
Def: a saying that is widely accepted on its own
merits
Ex: As we are hastily reading books and papers
we continually come across maxims, epigrams,
and short, pithy sayings that attract us.

38. mayhem
Def: violent and needless disturbance
Ex: Although some graffiti had already been
removed, evidence of the previous night's mayhem
was visible in broken display cases.

39. meager
Def: deficient in amount or quality or extent
Ex: Prime Minister John Key said he was
spreading his Marmite more thinly to stretch his
meager and dwindling supply.

40. meander
Def: to move or cause to move in a sinuous,
spiral, or circular course
Ex: That route turns out to be a long and
meandering one, ending up at an ambiguous, or at
least ambivalent, conclusion.


100

41. mediate
Def: act between parties with a view to
reconciling differences
Ex: The United States has waded into the
conflict in recent months saying it was willing to
mediate disputes between smaller countries and
China.

42. melancholy
Def: characterized by or causing or expressing
sadness
Ex: I heard a melancholy murmuring,
something like suppressed sighing and sobbing,
with words between that I could not make out.

43. melee
Def: a noisy riotous fight
Ex: The Washington Post said the melee broke
out in the fourth quarter as members of both teams
tackled and threw punches at one another.

44. mellifluous
Def: pleasing to the ear
Ex: There was much of this in our great man,
whose voice became of the sweetest and most
mellifluous key, as he bent before the peer.

45. melodramatic
Def: characteristic of acting or a stage
performance; often affected
Ex: Its melodramatic characters striking
theatrical postures are uninspiring, to put it mildly.

46. memorabilia
Def: a record of things worth remembering
Ex: Construction workers on Thursday buried a
stainless steel time capsule with memorabilia
relating to President Franklin D. Roosevelt at Four
Freedoms Park on Roosevelt Island.

47. menace
Def: express a threat either by an utterance or a
gesture
Ex: And raising her stick in her shaking hand,
she made a gesture so menacing that, fearing she
would strike him, my lord stepped back.

48. menagerie
Def: a collection of live animals for study or
display
Ex: If my cell were big enough, I should walk
round and round as I have seen the caged animals
do in menageries.

49. mendacious
Def: intentionally untrue
Ex: He is tempted to make ambiguous
statements; pledges, with secret passages of escape;
contracts, with fraudulent constructions; lying
excuses, and more mendacious promises.

50. mendicant
Def: a pauper who lives by begging
Ex: In others are the broken-down mendicants
who live on soup-kitchens and begging.


101

51. menial
Def: used of unskilled work (especially domestic
work)
Ex: He can always get work at unskilled manual
labour, or personal or domestic servicein other
words, at menial employment.

52. mercantile
Def: relating to or characteristic of trade or
traders
Ex: But external trade is regulated by
governments on the principles of the mercantile
system.

53. mercenary
Def: a person hired to fight for another country
than their own
Ex: "The Expendables" revolves around a group
of mercenaries hired to overthrow a South
American dictator.

54. mercurial
Def: liable to sudden unpredictable change
Ex: Wind energy is notoriously mercurial, with
patterns shifting drastically over the course of
years, days, even minutes.

55. meretricious
Def: tastelessly showy
Ex: Education and extensive reading have
preserved them from faults of gaudiness and
meretricious ornament.
Various
56. mesmerize
Def: attract strongly, as if with a magnet
Ex: The range of Ms. Traors performance as
Barbary her rich and mesmerizing voice, regal
bearing and fluid movement has enchanted
critics.

57. metamorphosis
Def: a striking change in appearance or character
or circumstances
Ex: In the film Nina goes through a
metamorphosis onstage, from sweet swan to a
thrashing, rabid, seething one, complete with
feathers.

58. metaphor
Def: a figure of speech in which an expression is
used to refer to something that it does not literally
denote in order to suggest a similarity
Ex: We kept coming back to a metaphor of a
big-game hunter looking for ideas instead of
animals.

59. metaphysical
Def: highly abstract and overly theoretical
Ex: At the same time it is, when formulated, an
abstract and metaphysical statement, which one
cannot grasp at once, but to which one must grow.

60. methodical
Def: characterized by method and orderliness
Ex: Like most men who get through much work,
Spencer was very methodical and orderly.


102

61. meticulous
Def: marked by precise accordance with details
Ex: Kuhn kept meticulous records,
documenting all paintings, exhibits and sales.

62. mettle
Def: the courage to carry on
Ex: That was a task which tried their mettle, but
once met and overcome, it fortified their courage to
meet other ordeals.

63. microcosm
Def: a miniature model of something
Ex: In some ways what is playing out in this
Ulster County town is a more colorful microcosm
of affordable housing controversies elsewhere.

64. mien
Def: dignified manner or conduct
Ex: Then Essex, majestic in mien and regal-
looking in demeanour, and seeming to carry on his
dress the cost of whole manors.

65. migration
Def: the periodic passage of groups of animals
(especially birds or fishes) from one region to
another for feeding or breeding
Ex: Wheatears complete this 14,500 kilometer
journey in nearly 90 days, too, a marathon
migration very rare for such little birds.

66. milieu
Def: the environmental condition
Ex: Adams is particularly good at capturing the
rivalries, power struggles and pecking order in the
newsroom, a milieu she knows intimately.

67. militant
Def: a militant reformer
Ex: Militants holed up in a tall building were
firing rockets in different directions, according to
an Associated Press reporter at the scene.

68. minion
Def: a servile or fawning dependant
Ex: They were common clay, mere ephemeral
puppets, without hope of command, minions to
take orders, necessary evils in an age of mechanism
and high-speed commerce.

69. minuscule
Def: very small
Ex: The isotopes detected in Western states have
been found in minuscule amounts, officials say,
much too small to threaten health.

70. mirth
Def: great merriment
Def: At times he was as silent and mysterious as
the sphinx, at other times brimming over with
mirth and merriment.

71. misanthrope
Def: someone who dislikes people in general

103

Ex: The misanthropes pretend that they despise
humanity for its weakness.

72. misconstrue
Def: interpret in the wrong way
Ex: Unconsciously and boy-like, he did things
which were often misconstrued as downright
badness, whereas the boy had not the slightest
intention of doing anything wrong.

73. miscreant
Def: a person without moral scruples
Ex: Among such characters there will be
miscreants capable of any crime, and therefore
there is always danger.

74. misnomer
Def: an incorrect or unsuitable name
Ex: "Boiled" custard is rather a misnomer as on
no account must the boiling point be reached in
cooking, for if the custard bubbles it curdles.

75. mitigate
Def: lessen or to try to lessen the seriousness or
extent of
Ex: Affliction is allayed, grief subsides, sorrow
is soothed, distress is mitigated.

76. mnemonic
Def: of or relating to or involved the practice of
aiding the memory
Ex: He was able to beef up his memory by
learning mnemonic techniques.

77. modest
Def: limited in size or scope
Ex: For womens coaches, however, third-party
funds are modest, if they exist at all.

78. modicum
Def: a small or moderate or token amount
Ex: He volunteered a modicum of advice,
limited in quantity, but valuable.

79. mollify
Def: cause to be more favorably inclined; gain
the good will of
Ex: Some cups of very good coffee had
somewhat mollified him, and he came out smiling
and talking in tolerably restored humor.

80. momentous
Def: of very great significance
Ex:By this momentous act Lewis XVI., without
being conscious of its significance, went over to
the democracy.

81. monetary
Def: relating to or involving money
Ex: The world's major central banks are opening
up the monetary spigots once again, pumping new
money into their economies to bolster growth.


104

82. moniker
Def: a familiar name for a person (often a
shortened version of a person's given name)
Ex: He has been going by his childhood
moniker for so long, it is the only name most
people know.

83. monolithic
Def: characterized by massiveness and rigidity
and total uniformity
Ex: The two layers are placed within 10 minutes
of each other, the purpose being to secure a
monolithic or one-piece slab.

84. monotheism
Def: belief in a single God
Ex: From that it passes on to monotheism, the
belief in one God, who is the sole author and
creator of the universe.

85. monotonous
Def: sounded or spoken in a tone unvarying in
pitch
Ex: The old man stopped suddenly, having told
all his story in a dull, monotonous voice, with little
feeling and no dramatic display.

86. moot
Def: of no legal significance (as having been
previously decided)
Ex: Emanuel also declined to say whether he
will consider a write-in campaign -- a moot point if
the high court deems him ineligible.

87. moratorium
Def: suspension of an ongoing activity
Ex: Drilling activity was suspended on June 12
under a moratorium the U.S. placed on
exploration in waters deeper than 500 feet.

88. morbid
Def: suggesting the horror of death and decay
Ex: I have been attending a lot of funerals
recently and this has brought back to the fore my
morbid fascination with funerals.

89. mores
Def: (sociology) the conventions that embody
the fundamental values of a group
Ex: Societal attitudes toward servants are often
shaped by ingrained mores about caste and class.

90. morose
Def: showing a brooding ill humor
Ex: But always discontented, and generally
querulous, morose, or violently angry.

91. mortify
Def: cause to feel shame; hurt the pride of
Ex: She could have wished that there should
never be moonlight more, so shamed and
mortified and humiliated did she feel.

92. motif
Def: a design or figure that consists of recurring
shapes or colors, as in architecture or decoration

105

Ex: Mr. Dines other recurring motifs hearts,
tools and Venuses are scattered throughout the
other galleries and the museum grounds.

93. motley
Def: consisting of a haphazard assortment of
different kinds
Ex: All sorts and conditions of men were
represented in the huge and motley throng.

94. mull
Def: reflect deeply on a subject
Ex: Thinkers like Aristotle have mulled over
such questions for centuries, says philosopher
Mark Vernon in the Magazine's series on modern
ethical dilemmas.

95. multitudinous
Def: too numerous to be counted
Ex: Here, along the lines of multitudinous
houses, up one street and down another, he
wondered which of them might be occupied by her.

96. mundane
Def: found in the ordinary course of events
Ex: But researchers say one thing has not
changed and spans the divides - the temporary
escape from the mundane routine of everyday life.

97. munificent
Def: very generous
Ex: My munificent, generous angel will come
now and then, and from her cornucopia shower her
gifts upon me.

98. mutiny
Def: open rebellion against constituted authority
(especially by seamen or soldiers against their
officers)
Ex: Slaves make insurrection; soldiers or sailors
break out in mutiny; subject provinces rise in
revolt.

99. myriad
Def: a large indefinite number
Ex: In this case, hundreds of drugs are involved,
each with myriad approved uses in various
animals.

100. mythical
Def: based on or told of in traditional stories;
lacking factual basis or historical validity
Ex: Dating back to classical antiquity, Corinth
was reputedly the home of Pegasus, the winged
mythical horse.







106



1. nadir
Def: an extreme state of adversity; the lowest
point of anything
Ex: No one in that vast audience raised a word
of protest, and my spirits fell to their nadir.

2. naive
Def: marked by or showing unaffected simplicity
and lack of guile or worldly experience
Ex: Some have argued that the ministers in
question should not have been so naive and foolish
as to unburden themselves to complete strangers.

3. naivete
Def: lack of sophistication or worldliness
Ex: But there was a sort of freshness and
naivete and youthfulness about her which made
him use that adjective.

4. narcissist
Def: someone in love with themselves
Ex: Narcissists blame others for failures, take
undeserved credit for success, are hypersensitive to
negative feedback, and show an exaggerated sense
of entitlement.

5. narrative
Def: consisting of or characterized by the telling
of a story
Ex: Mr. Barton is master of the mystery story,
and in this absorbing narrative the author has
surpassed his best previous successes.

6. nascent
Def: being born or beginning
Ex: The initiative also invests in nascent solar
companies, acting as an incubator for small
businesses and entrepreneurs looking to bring
disruptive new technologies to market.

7. nationalism
Def: the doctrine that nations should act
independently (rather than collectively) to attain
their goals
Ex: Populist nationalism also tends to favor
protectionist policies that shield American workers
and businesses, particularly small businesses, from
foreign competition.

8. native
Def: characteristic of or existing by virtue of
geographic origin
Ex: The first European colonists in America
found there two valuable native productsmaize
and tobacco.

9. natty
Def: marked by up-to-dateness in dress and
manners
Ex: These styles are the latest thing, Brought
from Paris for the Spring, Neat and natty, trim and
cool April Fool! cried Amos.


107

10. naught
Def: a quantity of no importance
Ex: Names to him were nothing, and titles
naughtassumption always standing back
abashed at his cold, intellectual glare.

11. nauseate
Def: upset and make nauseated
Ex: After dialysis, patients can feel weak and
nauseated, sometimes experiencing significant
head, chest and stomach pain and the tears often
flow.

12. nauseous
Def: causing or able to cause nausea
Ex: I still grew nauseous after eating and
experienced other stomach-related disorders such
as food "Sticking" above my stomach and
gastrointestinal disturbances.

13. nautical
Def: relating to or involving ships or shipping or
navigation or seamen
Ex: For this expedition Henry Hudsonalready
known as an experienced and intrepid seaman, and
well-skilled in nautical sciencewas chosen
commander.

14. navigable
Def: able to be sailed on or through safely
Ex: This, indeed, is an exaggerated vaunt; but
the Flemish stuffs were probably sold wherever the
sea or a navigable river permitted them to be
carried.

15. navigate
Def: act as the navigator in a car, plane, or vessel
and plan, direct, plot the path and position of the
conveyance
Ex: Washed out roads grounded trucks in the
muck, and precarious mountain passes were in
some cases too risky to navigate.

16. nebulous
Def: lacking definite form or limits
Ex: The time for nebulous, unspecified and
non-detailed commitments is gone, Fiat SpA
Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne said
yesterday in London.

17. necessitate
Def: require as useful, just, or proper
Ex: Beans famed hunting boots are seeing a
surge in popularity, necessitating the hiring of
more than 100 additional employees to make them.

18. necessity
Def: anything indispensable
Ex: The rainy season was fairly under way and
suitable shelter was an absolute necessity.

19. necromancy
Def: the belief in magical spells that harness
occult forces or evil spirits to produce unnatural
effects in the world

108

Ex: In necromancy, spirits are summoned by
means of spells and incantations.

20. nectar
Def: a sweet liquid secretion that is attractive to
pollinators
Ex: Nor was it understood that the beautiful
blossom of the flower, with its sweet nectar, was
an exceedingly important factor in attracting the
bees.

21. nefarious
Def: extremely wicked
Ex: To accomplish his nefarious designs the
Evil Spirit assumed forms calculated to attain his
object.

22. negate
Def: make ineffective by counterbalancing the
effect of
Ex: Chances are, youd also wind up paying
more for housing in your new digs, potentially
negating any money saved with a shorter
commute.

23. negative
Def: having the quality of something harmful or
unpleasant
Ex: It is also used as means of coping with
anxiety or other negative feelings and to relieve
stress or pressure.

24. neglect
Def: fail to attend to
Ex: She found the men were getting sleepy, and
neglected the fire, and so she kept awake, and sat
up to throw on the wood.

25. neglected
Def: disregarded
Ex: "Human health is largely neglected, if not
entirely ignored, in debates about climate change,"
said Margaret Chan, director-general of the World
Health Organization.

26. negligence
Def: failure to act with the prudence that a
reasonable person would exercise under the same
circumstances
Ex: at being the case, he said the spy agency had
demonstrated "negligence, ineptitude and failure"
in failing to detect the world's most wanted man.

27. negligent
Def: characterized by neglect and undue lack of
concern
Ex: With his usual scant sympathy, Arthur,
hardly glancing aside at him, gave a lofty negligent
little nod by way of recognition, and was passing
on.

28. negligible
Def: so small as to be meaningless; insignificant
Ex: The changes that have taken place in human
nature during the historic period are so slight as to
be practically negligible.

29. negotiable

109

Def: able to be negotiated or arranged by
compromise
Ex: Often both are negotiable, or at least up for
discussion.

30. negotiate
Def: discuss the terms of an arrangement
Ex: Children learn the art of problem solving,
negotiating and making compromises.

31. negotiation
Def: a discussion intended to produce an
agreement
Ex: Government negotiations with bankers and
insurers broke up without agreement Friday,
although officials said more talks are likely next
week.

32. nemesis
Def: something causing misery or death
Ex: The strange nemesis that had pursued them
step by step had been permitted to wreck their lives
completely.

33. neologism
Def: a newly invented word or phrase
Ex: Perhaps the solution is to be found in
"neologisms", where words are taken from
somewhere totally different and given an entirely
new meaning.

34. neophyte
Def: any new participant in some activity
Ex: The four first students went out, each
escorting a less-accustomed neophyte and all
fastened firmly together with space-ropes.

35. nepotism
Def: favoritism shown to relatives or close
friends by those in power (as by giving them jobs)
Ex: Mr Yeddyurappa denies claims by political
opponents he committed nepotism by selling
government land to his two sons and relatives at
throwaway prices.

36. nestle
Def: move or arrange oneself in a comfortable
and cozy position
Ex: Father, said Olive, thrusting her hand
through the rectors arm and nestling up to his side
with the most bewitchingly affectionate gesture.

37. nether
Def: lower
Ex: The latest expeditions have looked at seep
communities as deep as 1.7 miles far down the
continental slope toward the gulfs nether regions.

38. nettle
Def: any of numerous plants having stinging
hairs that cause skin irritation on contact
(especially of the genus Urtica or family
Urticaceae)
Ex: Unlike stinging nettle, which is harder to
find in the city, purple dead nettle grows
abundantly across the five boroughs.

39. network

110

Def: an interconnected system of things or people
Ex: Success depends on personal relations
with power, said Mr. Evtushenkov, insisting that a
tight personal network is as vital in New York as
in Moscow.

40. neurotic
Def: affected with emotional disorder
Ex: Why are some left to insanity,
psychosomatic disorders or neurotic behavior?

41. neutral
Def: possessing no distinctive quality or
characteristics
Ex: Pure gelatin is an amorphous, brittle, nearly
transparent substance, faintly yellow, tasteless and
inodorous, neutral in reaction and unaltered by
exposure to dry air.

42. neutrality
Def: nonparticipation in a dispute or war
Ex: After renewed occupation in World War II,
Luxembourg abandoned its neutrality and became
a front-rank enthusiast for international co-
operation.

43. neutralization
Def: (euphemism) the removal of a threat by
killing or destroying it (especially in a covert
operation or military operation)
Ex: Three have been eliminated through
incineration or neutralization.

44. neutralize
Def: oppose and mitigate the effects of by
contrary actions
Ex: Sweating aids in neutralizing the injurious
effects of exposure to high temperatures.

45. newcomer
Def: a recent arrival
Ex: Humans are newcomers to the planet
compared to the 165 million years dinosaurs
dominated before becoming extinct 65 million
years ago.

46. nexus
Def: the means of connection between things
linked in series
Ex: For many users, the Web site is an
irreplaceable nexus of friends, relatives and
colleagues online, making it difficult to abandon.

47. nib
Def: the writing point of a pen
Ex: My father began writing with an abominably
scratchy nib.

48. nicety
Def: conformity with some esthetic standard of
correctness or propriety
Ex: All the little niceties of platform
procedurebowings, exits, dealing with encores
are out of the question.

49. niche

111

Def: a position particularly well suited to the
person who occupies it
Ex: Carroll is skilled at finding specific roles
and carving out niches for players.

50. niggle
Def: worry unnecessarily or excessively
Ex: But investors are still jittery, thanks to their
niggling anxieties about the bad debts held in
Europe's financial institutions.

51. nihilism
Def: the delusion that things (or everything,
including the self) do not exist; a sense that
everything is unreal
Ex: In her despair she succumbed to a sort of
nihilism that made her ask: What is the reason of
anything?...

52. nihilist
Def: someone who rejects all theories of morality
or religious belief
Ex: He allied himself with quite another class,
making no secret of the fact that he was an out-
and-out Socialist, Anti-clerical, Syndicalist,
Anarchist, Nihilist.

53. nimble
Def: moving quickly and lightly
Ex: Are not many beasts physically stronger,
more nimble and agile than man?

54. nirvana
Def: any place of complete bliss and delight and
peace
Ex: The wisest among them could not teach him
true peace, that profound inward rest, which was
already called Nirvana.

55. noble
Def: having or showing or indicative of high or
elevated character
Ex: Honesty, frankness, generosity, and virtue
are noble traits.

56. nocturnal
Def: belonging to or active during the night
Ex: Bats are a top nocturnal predator, eating
night-flying insects that feed on agricultural crops.

57. noetic
Def: of or associated with or requiring the use of
the mind
Ex: It is a sort of mental equivalent for them,
their epistemological function, their value in noetic
terms.

58. noisome
Def: causing or able to cause nausea
Ex: Here the noisome smell of decaying
vegetation nauseated us, for the air in those forest
depths is deadly.

59. nomad

112

Def: a member of a people who have no
permanent home but move about according to the
seasons
Ex: These Indians lived the old nomad life,
wandering from place to place, setting up their
tents like gypsies, wherever they could remain
unmolested.

60. nomadic
Def: migratory
Ex: They are a nomadic people living by
collecting and hunting; the wilder ones will often
not remain longer than three days in one place.

61. nomenclature
Def: a system of words used to name things in a
particular discipline
Ex: Technical names of fishes are those that
seem to qualify under the International Rules of
Zoological Nomenclature.

62. nominal
Def: insignificantly small; a matter of form only
(`tokenish' is informal)
Ex: The ordinary course of dealings was so
completely disorganized in many places that the
rates were purely nominal, representing little or no
actual transactions.

63. nonchalant
Def: marked by blithe unconcern
Ex: "Its really weird," she said with that
nonchalant shrug of her shoulders and go with the
flow attitude.

64. noncommittal
Def: refusing to bind oneself to a particular
course of action or view or the like
Ex: The worst of it was, that he had been so
cautious and noncommittal in his declarations,
that she could not upbraid him for his perfidy.

65. nonconformist
Def: someone who refuses to conform to
established standards of conduct
Exz: They are nonconformists, mavericks even,
in an age when clubs are burdened by regulation,
challenging authority and provocatively crossing
the boundaries of accepted behaviour.

66. nonconformity
Def: failure to conform to accepted standards of
behavior
Ex: What society really cares for is harmony;
what it dislikes is dissent and nonconformity.

67. nondescript
Def: lacking distinct or individual characteristics;
dull and uninteresting
Ex: The centre's own director, Robert Goodman,
has described it as "nondescript and
characterless".

68. nonentity
Def: a person of no influence
Ex: The rest were nonentities, the set who drift
through their six years, making no mark, hurting no
one, doing little good.


113

69. nonetheless
Def: despite anything to the contrary (usually
following a concession)
Ex: But these researchers, working in relative
obscurity, nonetheless have documented rich and
surprisingly diverse communities of organisms in
the deep sea.

70. nonpareil
Def: colored beads of sugar used as a topping on
e.g. candies and cookies
Ex: While the last icing is wet, ornament it with
coloured sugar-sand or nonpareils.

71. nonplus
Def: be a mystery or bewildering to
Ex: This incredible patience, so little in harmony
with Martial's usual demeanour, puzzled and
nonplussed his aggressors, who looked at each
other with amazement.

72. nonplussed
Def: filled with bewilderment
Ex: I shook my head and rushed from his
presence, completely nonplussed, bewildered,
frantic.

73. nonsensical
Def: having no intelligible meaning
Ex: Talking nonsensically is the utterance of
words which contradict each other, or which have
no meaning, and the like.

74. normative
Def: relating to or dealing with norms
Ex: Ethics again is concerned with a norm of
life, and in this sense it is frequently styled a
normative science.

75. nostalgia
Def: longing for something past
Ex: The sense of exile was almost gone, the
nostalgia for his own land no longer keen.

76. nostalgic
Def: unhappy about being away and longing for
familiar things or persons
Ex: Britain, to take one example, habitually
wallows in a nostalgic and misleading version of
its own past.

77. nostrum
Def: patent medicine whose efficacy is
questionable
Ex: These efforts are such conspicuous failures
that even the patent medicine man has not found
his "anti-fat nostrums" the happy means to
fortune.

78. notable
Def: worthy of notice
Ex: The Web is all about serendipitypeople
passing along things that are interesting or notable.

79. notice

114

Def: discover or determine the existence,
presence, or fact of
Ex: The new words came about after the Roger
noticed people weren't really singing along to the
traditional national anthem.

80. notion
Def: a vague idea in which some confidence is
placed
Ex: The notion that Wall Street needs regulatory
reliefrather than greater structural reformis
simply wrong.

81. notoriety
Def: the state of being known for some
unfavorable act or quality
Ex: But fear and frustration are on the rise in
this small farming community, which has gained
unwanted notoriety as Japans radiation village.

82. notorious
Def: known widely and usually unfavorably
Ex: The notorious Owen, as is well known,
attempted the establishment of an Infidel
community at New Harmony, in Indiana, and
totally failed.

83. nourish
Def: give nourishment to
Ex: He who swallows abundantly does not
digest it, and instead of being nourished and
strengthened, he withers insensibly away.

84. novel
Def: an extended fictional work in prose; usually
in the form of a story
Ex: On Tuesday, Joyce Carol Oates returns to
New Fiction shelves when her latest
novel, Mudwoman, comes out in hardcover.

85. novelty
Def: originality by virtue of being new and
surprising
Ex: Yet they strove to gain novelty by inventing
fresh situations, giving unexpected turns to
dialogue, and varying their action on successive
nights.

86. novice
Def: someone new to a field or activity
Ex: She speculated: A novice starting a running
program will probably jog only two or three times
a week, for 15 or 20 minutes.

87. noxious
Def: injurious to physical or mental health
Ex: Investigators initially suspected customers
fell ill to noxious fumes from cleaning chemicals.

88. nuance
Def: a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or
attitude
Ex: Beyond those broad contours, Mr. Muti
dealt in nuance, focusing on voicings and details
that are often lost in Berliozs narrative sweep.

89. nubile

115

Def: of girls or women who are eligible to marry
Ex: Louise, who, although barely nubile,
impatiently longed to become a mother, gave birth
to her first Saintsbury, George
90. nuclear
Def: of or relating to or constituting the nucleus
of an atom
Ex: He dove into mainstream topics, working on
nuclear and particle physics at Harwell, Britain's
civilian atomic energy research center.

91. nugatory
Def: of no real value
Ex: If the clause in question does not secure
those political rights, it is entirely nugatory, and
might as well have been omitted.

92. nuisance
Def: (law) a broad legal concept including
anything that disturbs the reasonable use of your
property or endangers life and health or is
offensive
Ex: But opponents see the birds as a potentially
noisy, smelly, predator-attracting nuisance at best,
and a health threat at worst.

93. null
Def: lacking any legal or binding force
Ex: Agreements that Turkey decides to sign
with the occupied territories in Cyprus are without
any meaning, null and void by definition, he said.

94. nullify
Def: declare invalid
Ex: It was announced yesterday that Osayomi
has been stripped of her gold medal, and all her
results in the Games have been nullified.

95. numismatist
Def: a collector and student of money (and coins
in particular)
Ex: The coins, however, are assigned by at least
one numismatist to a later date.

96. nuptial
Def: of or relating to a wedding
Ex: Bates was to escort her on the nuptial
journey, and all arrangements for the wedding of
the distinguished pair had been completed.

97. nuptials
Def: the social event at which the ceremony of
marriage is performed
Ex: Atalanta could now no longer refuse to
marry, and her nuptials were soon celebrated.

98. nursery
Def: a child's room for a baby
Ex: In Germany, the biggest economy in
Europe, most schools still finish at lunchtime, and
full-time nurseries for children under 3 are scarce.

99. nurture
Def: help develop, help grow

116

Ex: But unlike most boys they nurtured and
cultivated the passion and it stayed with them to
manhood.

100. nutrient
Def: any substance that can be metabolized by an
animal to give energy and build tissue
Ex: Meat provides nutrients runners need like
iron to help maintain energy levels.





1. oasis
Def: a shelter serving as a place of safety or
sanctuary
Ex: In August, editor-at-large Leigh Buchanan
and I traveled to the foundation's headquarters, an
oasis of greenery and glass in sweltering Kansas
City, Missouri.

2. obdurate
Def: showing unfeeling resistance to tender
feelings
Ex: Mr. Oldstone, in particular, exhausted all his
powers of persuasion to yet delay his departure, but
he found him obdurate.

3. obedient
Def: dutifully complying with the commands or
instructions of those in authority
Ex: With all due respect, I have the honor to
be, Sir, Your most obedient and humble
servant.

4. obeisance
Def: bending the head or body or knee as a sign
of reverence or submission or shame or greeting
Ex: All heads were inclined in an obeisance of
deep homage.

5. obfuscate
Def: make obscure or unclear
Ex: Yet as we tried to understand, there always
seemed to be an obfuscating layer: something or
someone was working against comprehension.

6. objective
Def: the goal intended to be attained (and which
is believed to be attainable)

117

Ex: "Our main objective is to maintain a
balance between market share and profitability,"
Chief Executive Officer Marco Antonio Bologna
said in the earnings statement.

7. obligation
Def: the state of being obligated to do or pay
something
Ex: I considered myself as a married man and
under obligation to alter my way of living, and I
stopped playing.

8. oblique
Def: indirect in departing from the accepted or
proper way; misleading
Ex: An old man, of monstrous obesity, seated on
a wooden chair, devoured his pittance with animal
voracity, casting on either side oblique angry
glances.

9. oblivious
Def: (followed by `to' or `of') lacking conscious
awareness of
Ex: They were lying down and apparently
oblivious to my approachperhaps asleep.

10. obloquy
Def: state of disgrace resulting from public abuse
Ex: Thus public men are content to leave their
reputation to posterity; great reactions take place in
opinion; nay, sometimes men outlive opposition
and obloquy.

11. obscure
Def: not clearly understood or expressed
Ex: Nor has any obscure, mysterious, or illusive
point in history been cleared up by the spirits.

12. obsequious
Def: attentive in an ingratiating or servile manner
Ex: The man had been eager in his attentions,
deferential, almost obsequious.

13. obsolete
Def: no longer in use
Ex: Over the past dozen or so years, hospitals
across the country have gone digital, leading to
better patient outcomes and making hangar-size
file-storage facilities obsolete.

14. obstinate
Def: tenaciously unwilling or marked by
tenacious unwillingness to yield
Ex: No opposition was so great, no difficulty so
stubborn and obstinate, which he did not conquer
by his beloved Son, the author of our salvation.

15. obstreperous
Def: noisily and stubbornly defiant
Ex: If particularly wild, obstinate, or
obstreperous, he still keeps breaking away, and
refusing to come into camp.

16. obstruct
Def: block passage through

118

Ex: Through Icy Sound we found some
difficulty in penetrating, as the channel was much
obstructed by ice.

17. obtain
Def: come into possession of
Ex: Nine years later, Napoleon managed, by
skilful intrigues, to obtain quiet possession of
Malta.

18. obtrusive
Def: undesirably noticeable
Ex: Weve done research, and the ads are
considered annoying, irritating and obtrusive, Mr.
Norris said after watching Barnes & Nobles
presentation.

19. obtuse
Def: slow to learn or understand; lacking
intellectual acuity
Ex: The affair had been mentioned so plainly
that it was impossible for the most dense and
obtuse person not to have understood the allusion.

20. obviate
Def: prevent the occurrence of; prevent from
happening
Ex: Fevers are at present alarmingly prevalent,
arising from causes which judicious attention and
sanitary means would easily obviate.

21. occlude
Def: block passage through
Ex: In many cases we can dissolve the clot that
is occluding the artery or blood vessel in the brain
and restore normal flow.

22. occult
Def: supernatural practices and techniques
Ex: He studied magic, and his thirst for
knowledge of the occult sciences grew.

23. occupy
Def: live (in a certain place)
Ex: Another reason sales have fallen is that
previously occupied homes have become a better
deal than new homes.

24. odious
Def: unequivocally detestable
Ex: Hideous and odious, revolting beyond all
expression, the underground war finished by
becoming impossible.

25. odium
Def: hate coupled with disgust
Ex: Week after week, the seceders were held up
to public odium, derision and scorn.

26. odoriferous
Def: having a natural fragrance
Ex: Some odoriferous substances are fragrant
for many years, exhaling continually, yet are not
quickly consumed.


119

27. odyssey
Def: a long wandering and eventful journey
Ex: He hit six rodeos in seven days, an odyssey
that took him to stops in Texas, Arkansas, New
Mexico and California.

28. offend
Def: cause to feel resentment or indignation
Ex: The research said milder expressions should
be used to "avoid offending the public and stoking
social tensions".

29. officious
Def: intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner
Ex: Be kind, of course; thats only your duty,
but I call it officious and presumptuous to interfere
in other peoples lives.

30. offset
Def: compensate for or counterbalance
Ex: The chain has been raising prices on some
drinks to help offset higher costs for commodities
like coffee and milk.

31. ogle
Def: look at with amorous intentions
Ex: This simple food keeps you in beautiful
health, Father, said Mistletoe, ogling the swarthy
face of the Abbot with an affection that he duly
noted.

32. olfactory
Def: of or relating to olfaction
Ex: The human brains olfactory bulb is
activated differently depending on where a smell
hits the nostril, indicating that odor receptor
organization is not uniform.

33. oligarchy
Def: a political system governed by a few people
Ex: The track management of this particular
university was an oligarchy; was governed by a
few absolute individuals.

34. omen
Def: a sign of something about to happen
Ex: Pale-faced, wide-eyed, statuesque, their
presence, interpreted by a vivid imagination, might
have been regarded as an omen of impending
misfortune.

35. ominous
Def: threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic
developments
Ex: He knew there was something ominous in
her silence, like gathering thunder.

36. omit
Def: leave undone or leave out
Ex: Titles are abbreviated, mottoes dropped,
foot notes cut out, and many earlier poems
reduced, or omitted entirely.

37. omnipotent
Def: having unlimited power

120

Ex: We can still call Him Omnipotent in the
sense that He possesses all the power there is.

38. omnipresent
Def: being present everywhere at once
Ex: He is here, there, and everywhere; he is
omnipresentthis curse of Finland.

39. omniscient
Def: infinitely wise
Ex: The Omniscient Being alone can have
perfect knowledge of all beings and things as they
are.

40. omnivorous
Def: feeding on both plants and animals
Ex: Rats and mice are practically omnivorous,
feeding upon all kinds of animal and vegetable
matter.

41. onerous
Def: not easily borne; wearing
Ex: The charge was an onerous one, requiring
constant and severe labor, as well as the exercise of
patience, prudence, and good judgment.

42. onomatopoeia
Def: using words that imitate the sound they
denote
Ex: This correspondence of sound and sense is
called onomatopoeia.

43. onslaught
Def: the rapid and continuous delivery of
linguistic communication (spoken or written)
Ex: Most companies are facing an onslaught of
information about customers from social networks,
the Internet, and mobile devices.

44. onus
Def: an onerous or difficult concern
Ex: With Xavi out injured, the onus was on
Alonso to supply his forward line and he excelled
at the task.

45. opalescent
Def: having a play of lustrous rainbow colors
Ex: It is a picture beautiful as the opalescent
colors of a soap bubble.

46. opaque
Def: not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant
energy; impenetrable to sight
Ex: Comets differ from the bodies which we
have just been describing in that they appear filmy
and transparent, whereas the others are solid and
opaque.

47. operative
Def: a person secretly employed in espionage for
a government
Ex: I am a Secret Service operative seeking
information about Cheney.

48. opiate

121

Def: a narcotic drug that contains opium or an
opium derivative
Ex: Signs of opiate drug use include pinpoint
pupils, too much sleep, too little motivation,
unexplained absences and worsening grades,
counselors say.

49. opponent
Def: someone who offers opposition
Ex: Sarkozy has been criticized by opponents
and even some allies for his sometimes brutal
manner of pushing through decisions.

50. opportune
Def: suitable or at a time that is suitable or
advantageous especially for a particular purpose
Ex: Most viewed the budget surplus as
opportune: a chance to pay down the national
debt, cut taxes, shore up entitlements or pursue
new spending programs.

51. opportunist
Def: a person who places expediency above
principle
Ex: A Rangoon resident told the BBC that some
of these groups were seen as opportunists playing
along with the junta for personal gain.

52. opposition
Def: a body of people united in opposing
something
Ex: Medical Missions in Persia have already
worked wonders, breaking down opposition,
winning friends even amongst the most fanatical.

53. oppressive
Def: marked by unjust severity or arbitrary
behavior
Ex: The consequences flowing from this unjust
and oppressive system of taxation are appalling.

54. opprobrium
Def: state of disgrace resulting from public abuse
Ex: They know how easily the taunting of Mr
Brown over bullying allegations and ill-scripted
condolence letters engendered public sympathy
rather than opprobrium.

55. optimist
Def: a person disposed to take a favorable view
of things
Ex: Ms. McCarthy remains hopeful about the
future of public education: Im forever an
optimist.

56. optional
Def: possible but not necessary; left to personal
choice
Ex: All other laws, it is optional with each man
to obey, or not, as he may choose.

57. opulent
Def: rich and superior in quality
Ex: The count was rich in land, but his income
could not be compared with that of the opulent
Garnet.

58. opus

122

Def: a musical work that has been created
Ex: Barnes will perform his opus,
"Acknowledgment of a Celebration," which he
debuted at last fall's Earshot Jazz Festival.

59. oracle
Def: an authoritative person who divines the
future
Ex: Dionysus further possessed the prophetic
gift, and his oracle at Delphi was as important as
that of Apollo.

60. oracular
Def: of or relating to an oracle
Def: Nor does his philosophic attitude exclude
the possibility of a certain faith in oracular
foresight and divination.

61. orator
Def: a person who delivers a speech or oration
Ex: As an orator Senator Evarts stood in the
foremost rank, and some of his best speeches were
published.

62. ordinance
Def: an authoritative rule
Ex: Police say officers began patrolling parks
near the stadium Monday night to make sure no
park ordinances are violated, especially those
related to alcohol.

63. ordinary
Def: lacking special distinction, rank, or status;
commonly encountered
Ex: While the government and the developers
are doing well, many ordinary people are hurt by
the high cost of living.

64. ordination
Def: the status of being ordained to a sacred
office
Ex: Some forty English students are educated
for the priesthood and return on their ordination
for work in their native land.

65. organic
Def: of or relating to foodstuff grown or raised
without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides or
hormones
Ex: And because she has an organic farm, she
does not use spray pesticides, experimenting with
spraying soapy water.

66. orientation
Def: a course introducing a new situation or
environment
Ex: To reduce the number of dropouts, it is
offering students a three-week orientation
during which they can quit without charge.

67. orifice
Def: an aperture or hole that opens into a bodily
cavity
Ex: The mouth, a round, lipless orifice,
contracted or dilated at will; from it came whistling
words.


123

68. origin
Def: the source of something's existence or from
which it derives or is derived
Ex: British, but especially English, place names
are, in a vast majority of cases, either of Saxon,
Norse, or Celtic origin.

69. originate
Def: come into existence; take on form or shape
Ex: Some plants, such as the sweet potato,
originated in the Andes Mountains but apparently
spread across the Pacific Ocean before the arrival
of Columbus.

70. ornate
Def: marked by elaborate rhetoric and elaborated
with decorative details
Ex: Unlike his literary icon, Herman Melville,
he doesnt adorn his writing with ornate flourishes
or complicated scaffolding.

71. ornithologist
Def: a zoologist who studies birds
Ex: Besides the structural resemblances, which
are, of course, the only ones considered by
ornithologists in classifying birds, the indigo
buntings have several sparrow-like traits.

72. orotund
Def: (of sounds) full and rich
Ex: The answer came back in a deep, orotund,
sing-song voice.

73. orthodox
Def: adhering to what is commonly accepted
Ex: His opinions, clashing as they did with
orthodox creeds, were given in a tentative,
questioning fashion, so that where ecclesiastical
censure fell, retreat was easier.

74. orthogonal
Def: having a set of mutually perpendicular axes;
meeting at right angles
Ex: His love of the orthogonal, which like
1980s dance moves once verged on the robotic, is
relaxing into less pure angles.

75. oscillate
Def: move or swing from side to side regularly
Ex: When the polariton flow was excited with
two laser beams, the quantum fluid began to
oscillate backwards and forwards in ways
predicted by quantum mechanics.

76. osseous
Def: composed of or containing bone
Ex: But the osseous outgrowth, the bones, you
know, complicate things.

77. ossify
Def: make rigid and set into a conventional
pattern
Ex: Looking at it out of the corner of my eye, I
could think about being a teenager, before roles
were ossified and boundaries set.


124

78. ostensible
Def: appearing as such but not necessarily so
Ex: This already-exhaustive book is studded
with diary entries, academic papers and other
ostensible evidence that its fictitious stories of
destruction are true.

79. ostentatious
Def: (of a display) tawdry or vulgar
Ex: He was frugal and dressed in plain, ordinary
clothes rather than extravagant or ostentatious
ones.

80. ostracize
Def: expel from a community or group
Ex: Although she may have been more sinned
against than sinning, she is cast out and ostracized
by society.

81. otiose
Def: serving no useful purpose; having no excuse
for being
Ex: There is no superfluous ornament in his
orations, nothing tawdry, nothing otiose.

82. oust
Def: remove from a position or office
Ex: Maldives' torture- addicted previous
president was ousted and a more democratic
government was established.

83. outcome
Def: something that results
Ex: "Very frustrating process, but a great
outcome in the end," Moore told The Idaho
Statesman.

84. outlandish
Def: conspicuously or grossly unconventional or
unusual
Ex: His outsized personality and outlandish
comments - maybe not so absurd given what
Ryan's New York Jets have achieved - draw notice
no matter the situation.

85. outrage
Def: strike with disgust or revulsion
Ex: Every single time reporters, analysts, and
citizens are astonished, outraged, shocked anew
that the politician didnt just go ahead and admit
what he did.

86. outrageous
Def: grossly offensive to decency or morality;
causing horror
Ex: The suffering and bloodshed is
outrageous and it is unacceptable, Mr. Obama
said at the White House, after meeting with Mrs.
Clinton.

87. outskirts
Def: outlying areas (as of a city or town)
Ex: Security forces were checking cars inside
the city and in its outskirts.

88. outspoken

125

Def: given to expressing yourself freely or
insistently
Ex: Even my lady, so blunt and outspoken by
nature, had shrunk from trying to question the
Dutch girl about her lover.

89. outwit
Def: beat through cleverness and wit
Ex: To top it all off, he regularly outwits his
elders, showing natural positional sense and
finishing moves with the poise and intelligence of
an expert.

90. ovation
Def: enthusiastic recognition (especially one
accompanied by loud applause)
Ex: Buster Poster, receiving rousing ovations
from fans every time his name was announced,
cleared another milestone with an RBI single in the
first.

91. overbearing
Def: having or showing arrogant superiority to
and disdain of those one views as unworthy
Ex: He who had been so unprincipled and
arrogant, so insolent and overbearing, his
cleverness no longer needed, was tossed aside by
his employers.

92. overcome
Def: win a victory over
Ex: Abbott said he learned a lot by winning, by
overcoming the odds.

93. oversight
Def: management by overseeing the performance
or operation of a person or group
Ex: The former Pennsylvania senator defended
the practice by saying that Congress has an
important oversight role in shaping the federal
budget.

94. overt
Def: open and observable; not secret or hidden
Ex: In this music, the Caribbean element often
isnt overt but is coded in the relationship between
rhythm and melody.

95. overthrow
Def: cause the downfall of; of rulers
Ex: Just two weeks ago, Malis 1991 revolution
was reversed when mutinous soldiers overthrew a
democratically elected government.

96. overweening
Def: presumptuously arrogant
Ex: There were crack riders and ropers who, just
because they felt such overweening pride in their
own prowess, were not really very valuable men.

97. overwhelming
Def: very intense
Ex: I think I was not so much afraid as
oppressed by an almost overwhelming sense of
loneliness.

98. overwrought

126

Def: deeply agitated especially from emotion
Ex: Belshazzar, pale-faced and utterly
overwrought, physically exhausted, mentally
apprehensive, followed his father, walking alone.

99. overzealous
Def: marked by excessive enthusiasm for and
intense devotion to a cause or idea
Ex: He sat scared in Greece on his teams bus as
it was attacked by overzealous fans.

100. oxymoron
Def: conjoining contradictory terms (as in
`deafening silence')
Ex: As oxymorons go, the silent disco is right
up there, along with vegan bacon, jumbo shrimps
and the living dead.











1. pacifist
Def: someone opposed to violence as a means of
settling disputes
2. palliative
Def: moderating pain or sorrow by making it
easier to bear
3. palpable
Def: can be felt by palpation
4. panacea
Def: hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases;
once sought by the alchemists
5. pandemic
Def: an epidemic that is geographically
widespread; occurring throughout a region or even
throughout the world
6. pandemonium
Def: a state of extreme confusion and disorder
7. paradigm
Def: a standard or typical example
8. paradox
Def: (logic) a statement that contradicts itself
9. paragon
Def: model of excellence or perfection of a kind;
one having no equal
10. parody

127

Def: a composition that imitates or misrepresents
somebody's style, usually in a humorous way
11. parsimonious
Def: excessively unwilling to spend
12. partisan
Def: devoted to a cause or party
13. pastoral
Def: (used with regard to idealized country life)
idyllically rustic
14. patriarchal
Def: characteristic of a form of social
organization in which the male is the family head
and title is traced through the male line
15. patrician
Def: befitting a person of noble origin
16. patriotism
Def: love of country and willingness to sacrifice
for it
17. patronizing
Def: (used of behavior or attitude) characteristic
of those who treat others with condescension
18. paucity
Def: an insufficient quantity or number
19. pecuniary
Def: relating to or involving money
20. pedagogy
Def: the principles and methods of instruction
21. pedantic
Def: marked by a narrow focus on or display of
learning especially its trivial aspects
22. penitent
Def: feeling or expressing remorse for misdeeds
23. penurious
Def: excessively unwilling to spend
24. perfidious
Def: tending to betray; especially having a
treacherous character as attributed to the
Carthaginians by the Romans
25. perilous
Def: fraught with danger
26. perish
Def: pass from physical life and lose all bodily
attributes and functions necessary to sustain life
27. pernicious
Def: exceedingly harmful
28. perpetuate
Def: cause to continue or prevail
29. personification
Def: a person who represents an abstract quality
30. pertinent
Def: having precise or logical relevance to the
matter at hand
31. peruse

128

Def: examine or consider with attention and in
detail
32. pervasive
Def: spreading or spread throughout
33. philanthropist
Def: someone who makes charitable donations
intended to increase human well-being
34. pillage
Def: steal goods; take as spoils
35. pinnacle
Def: the highest level or degree attainable; the
highest stage of development
36. pithy
Def: concise and full of meaning
37. placate
Def: cause to be more favorably inclined; gain
the good will of
38. placid
Def: (of a body of water) free from disturbance
by heavy waves
39. plausible
Def: apparently reasonable and valid, and truthful
40. plebeian
Def: one of the common people
41. plethora
Def: extreme excess
42. pliable
Def: capable of being bent or flexed or twisted
without breaking
43. plight
Def: a situation from which extrication is difficult
especially an unpleasant or trying one
44. plummet
Def: drop sharply
45. plunder
Def: destroy and strip of its possession
46. plutocracy
Def: a political system governed by the wealthy
people
47. poignant
Def: keenly distressing to the mind or feelings
48. polarize
Def: become polarized in a conflict or contrasting
situation
49. pompous
Def: puffed up with vanity
50. portentous
Def: of momentous or ominous significance
51. posterity
Def: all future generations
52. potent

129

Def: having a strong physiological or chemical
effect
53. potentate
Def: a ruler who is unconstrained by law
54. pragmatic
Def: of or concerning the theory of pragmatism
55. preamble
Def: a preliminary introduction to a statute or
constitution (usually explaining its purpose)
56. precarious
Def: fraught with danger
57. precedent
Def: an example that is used to justify similar
occurrences at a later time
58. precocious
Def: characterized by or characteristic of
exceptionally early development or maturity
(especially in mental aptitude)
59. precursor
Def: something that precedes and indicates the
approach of something or someone
60. predator
Def: any animal that lives by preying on other
animals
61. predecessor
Def: one who precedes you in time (as in holding
a position or office)
62. predominance
Def: the state of being predominant over others
63. premonition
Def: a feeling of evil to come
64. preponderance
Def: exceeding in heaviness; having greater
weight
65. preposterous
Def: incongruous;inviting ridicule
66. prerequisite
Def: something that is required in advance
67. prerogative
Def: a right reserved exclusively by a particular
person or group (especially a hereditary or official
right)
68. prescience
Def: the power to foresee the future
69. prevalent
Def: most frequent or common
70. prevaricate
Def: be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in
order to mislead or withhold information
71. primitive
Def: belonging to an early stage of technical
development; characterized by simplicity and
(often) crudeness
72. pristine
Def: completely free from dirt or contamination

130

73. privation
Def: act of depriving someone of food or money
or rights
74. prodigal
Def: recklessly wasteful
75. prodigious
Def: so great in size or force or extent as to elicit
awe
76. prodigy
Def: an unusually gifted or intelligent (young)
person; someone whose talents excite wonder and
admiration
77. prognosticate
Def: make a prediction about; tell in advance
78. prolific
Def: intellectually productive
79. prolix
Def: tediously prolonged or tending to speak or
write at great length
80. prominent
Def: having a quality that thrusts itself into
attention
81. propel
Def: cause to move forward with force
82. propensity
Def: a natural inclination
83. prophecy
Def: knowledge of the future (usually said to be
obtained from a divine source)
84. propitious
Def: presenting favorable circumstances; likely to
result in or show signs of success
85. proportional
Def: properly related in size or degree or other
measurable characteristics; usually followed by `to'
86. proprietor
Def: (law) someone who owns (is legal
possessor of) a business
87. propriety
Def: correct or appropriate behavior
88. prosaic
Def: not challenging; dull and lacking excitement
89. prosperity
Def: the condition of prospering; having good
fortune
90. prostrate
Def: lying face downward
91. protege
Def: a person who receives support and
protection from an influential patron who furthers
the protege's career
92. prototype
a standard or typical example
93. proverbial

131

Def: of or relating to or resembling or expressed
in a proverb
94. provocative
Def: serving or tending to provoke, excite, or
stimulate; stimulating discussion or exciting
controversy
95. prowess
Def: a superior skill that you can learn by study
and practice and observation
96. puerile
Def: displaying or suggesting a lack of maturity
97. pugilist
Def: someone who fights with his fists for sport
98. pugnacious
Def: ready and able to resort to force or violence
99. puissant
Def: powerful
100. pusillanimous
Def: lacking in courage and manly strength and
resolution; contemptibly fearful



1. quack
Def: the harsh sound of a duck
Ex: A family of ducks were slowly paddling
about in front of me, making little furrows in the
quiet water and giving an occasional placid quack.

2. quadrilateral
Def: a four-sided polygon
Ex: It is quadrilateral in shape, consisting of
four unequal sides flanked by towers and built
round a courtyard.

3. quadruped
Def: an animal especially a mammal having four
limbs specialized for walking
Ex: In a moment they were on all fours, hopping
about like so many quadrupeds.

4. quaff
Def: to swallow hurriedly or greedily or in one
draught

132

Ex: Gareth gave it to him, and quaffed deeply
of the refreshing draught, for he was burning with
thirst.

5. quagmire
Def: a soft wet area of low-lying land that sinks
underfoot
Ex: The heavy rain had reduced this low-lying
ground to a veritable quagmire, making progress
very difficult even for one as unburdened as he
was.

6. quaint
Def: attractively old-fashioned (but not
necessarily authentic)
Ex: She lives in a quaint old-fashioned house
with casement windows and deep window seats,
old oak staircase and panelled rooms.

7. qualified
Def: meeting the proper standards and
requirements and training for an office or position
or task
Ex: All schools need administrators who are
highly qualified, dedicated to the profession and
not hired due to political connections.

8. qualify
Def: prove capable or fit; meet requirements
Ex: The housing bust wiped away $7 trillion in
household equity, leaving many homeowners with
too much debt to qualify for new loans.

9. qualitative
Def: involving distinctions based on qualities
Ex: Qualitative research can help entrepreneurs
to understand their customers' or clients' feelings,
values, and perceptions of a particular product or
service.

10. qualm
Def: uneasiness about the fitness of an action
Ex: Kenneth had no qualms about asking a
neighboring table at the country club to stop
cussing with his daughters in earshot.

11. quandary
Def: a situation from which extrication is difficult
especially an unpleasant or trying one
Ex: Colleges and universities are in a
quandary: Spending cuts, combined with a freeze
on tuition, mean fewer teachers and the closing of
certain programs.

12. quantitative
Def: expressible as a quantity or relating to or
susceptible of measurement
Ex: Agencies have not traditionally hired for
skills like number crunching, data visualization,
quantitative analysis, Mr. Neumann said.

13. quantity
Def: how much there is or how many there are of
something that you can quantify
Ex: Producing big quantities in America has
become harder, as the authorities have cracked
down on bulk purchases of the ingredients.


133

14. quantum
Def: (physics) the smallest discrete quantity of
some physical property that a system can possess
(according to quantum theory)
Def: Physicists have used all manner of
quantum objects to store qubitselectrons, atomic
nuclei, photons and so on.

15. quarantine
Def: isolation to prevent the spread of infectious
disease
Ex: The exact time when it is safe for a person
to come out of quarantine and resume ordinary
life varies in different diseases.

16. quarrel
Def: an angry dispute
Ex: The slightest quarrel, the most
commonplace street brawl are pretexts for rival
factions to come out in battle array.

17. quarry
Def: a surface excavation for extracting stone or
slate
Ex: But what about quarries from which are
taken building stone, salt, kaolin or clay?

18. quash
Def: put down by force or intimidation
Ex: More than 500 people are thought to have
been killed since mid-March as the security forces
try to quash dissent.

19. quay
Def: wharf usually built parallel to the shoreline
Ex: The harbour accommodation is extensive
and excellent, large new docks and quays having
been recently built, and other works being under
construction or contemplated.

20. queasy
Def: feeling nausea; feeling about to vomit
Ex: The ground still shook under his feet, and
his insides were producing the queasy symptoms
of motion sickness.

21. quell
Def: suppress or crush completely
Ex: Burned cars and tires littered a street as
police used tear gas to quell demonstrators who
threw rocks and small explosives, local TV footage
showed.

22. quench
Def: put out, as of fires, flames, or lights
Ex: No fire was visible anywhere; every bit had
been quenched by the flood which came in after
Lutchi propped up the sky.

23. querulous
Def: habitually complaining
Ex: In the first place, she is not rich; I could tell
that by the querulous complaints of her
middle-class mother.

24. query

134

Def: pose a question
Ex: "How can such things be?" queried Reuben,
stroking his beard in perplexity.

25. quest
Def: the act of searching for something
Ex: In the never-ending quest to cut costs and
increase money paid out of pocket by customers,
airline perks have been disappearing for years.

26. queue
Def: form a queue, form a line, stand in line
Ex: Voters queued up in orderly lines in Taipei
and other cities islandwide after polls opened at 8
a.m.

27. quibble
Def: argue over petty things
Ex: Philosophy, Sports People often dismiss
philosophical disputes as mere quibbles about
words.

28. quiescent
Def: being quiet or still or inactive
Ex: Under normal conditions, only a fraction of
these blood-forming stem cells are active; the rest
are deeply quiescent asleep.

29. quietude
Def: a state of peace and quiet
Ex: She took the vacant seat with a sort of
frozen quietude, and her limbs seemed to settle
themselves rigidly into positions where they
remained immovable.

30. quintessence
Def: the most typical example or representative
of a type
Ex: This composition, in many ways the most
wonderful single piece we have from Chopin, is the
quintessence of his genius.

31. quip
Def: witty remark
Ex: When Turkle said she had been at funerals
where people checked their iPhones, Colbert
quipped: "We all say goodbye in our own way."

32. quirk
Def: a strange attitude or habit
Ex: There are a few annoying quirks: For
example, the PlayBook took a long time when
scrolling through long documents or Web pages.

33. quirky
Def: informal terms; strikingly unconventional
Ex: Quirky experiences abound: A vintage
clothing store in a double-decker bus!

34. quisling
Def: someone who collaborates with an enemy
occupying force
Ex: Naturally enough, the attitude taken up by
the Christians earned them fresh attacks from the

135

Quisling followers.

35. quiver
Def: shake with fast, tremulous movements
Ex: His last words had scarcely rung out when
my horse began to quiver under me and sway
backward and forward.

36. quixotic
Def: not sensible about practical matters;
idealistic and unrealistic
Ex: Granted, Latin American integration is an
elusive if not quixotic goal: the region stretches
farther than Africa, and its nations' interests are just
as balkanized.

37. quizzical
Def: playfully vexing (especially by ridicule)
Ex: Not too long ago, wearing Chicago
Blackhawks gear would earn you quizzical looks
or jokes about being the last of the team's fans.

38. quorum
Def: a gathering of the minimal number of
members of an organization to conduct business
Ex: Without a quorum of four, the commission
was unable to do even basic things such as
approving public funding for presidential
candidates.

39. quotation
Def: a passage or expression that is quoted or
cited
Ex: Better fifty years of Europe Than a cycle
of Cathay, murmured Dick, yielding once more to
his chronic habit of quotation.

40. quotidian
Def: found in the ordinary course of events
Ex: More seriously, plenty of quotidian
consumer staples, such as children's clothes, come
from China.










136



1. raconteur
Def: a person skilled in telling anecdotes
Ex: He was an excellent raconteur, and his
stories had a stamp of their own which would have
made them always and everywhere acceptable.

2. radical
Def: a person who has radical ideas or opinions
Ex: In New York his society was composed of
free elements altogether, come-outers, reformers,
radicals of every description.

3. rambunctious
Def: noisy and lacking in restraint or discipline
Ex: Once, long ago, award ceremonies were
rather unruly and rambunctious affairs.

4. ramification
Def: a development that complicates a situation
Ex: Certainly when one gave the hideous
experiment full thought, its possible angles of
development, its many potential ramifications,
were astounding in the extreme.

5. rampant
Def: unrestrained and violent
Ex: Poverty is rampant much of the
population lives on just a few dollars each day,
according to recent estimates and
unemployment remains high.

6. rancor
Def: a feeling of deep and bitter anger and ill-will
Ex: They strove with heart and soul to establish
the teachings by which divergent people might be
brought together and no strife, rancor or hatred
prevail.

7. rapport
Def: a relationship of mutual understanding or
trust and agreement between people
Ex: Ms. Tindall, 48, did not work for Mr.
Stevens, but several people said they had a strong
mutual respect and a warm rapport.

8. rarefied
Def: of high moral or intellectual value; elevated
in nature or style
Ex: It is hard to imagine many casual park
visitors being captivated by the conceptual systems
that gave rise to such rarefied abstractions.

9. rationalization
Def: (psychiatry) a defense mechanism by which
your true motivation is concealed by explaining
your actions and feelings in a way that is not
threatening
Ex: The people, she said in an e-mail message,
are tired of the same old rationalizations and
excuses.


137

10. ravage
Def: cause extensive destruction or ruin utterly
Ex: ravaged farms, automotive and electronics
plants and is thought to have taken 800 lives.

11. ravenous
Def: extremely hungry
Ex: You know that makes them ravenous, and
they'd eat him out of house and home in time.

12. realm
Def: a domain in which something is dominant
Ex: Such questions are generally considered not
to belong to the realm of positive physical science,
but will before long be annexed to its domain.

13. reap
Def: get or derive
Ex: Every new plaza the city opens, like the
recent one on Gansevoort Street, instantly fills up;
local shop owners reap the benefits.

14. rebellious
Def: resisting control or authority
Ex: Their founders also tend to be rebellious
types who enjoy challenging authority.

15. rebuke
Def: an act or expression of criticism and censure
Ex: But analysts at banks and brokerages noted
that Putin, known for his sharp rebukes of tycoons,
avoided direct criticism of the company's owners.

16. rebuttal
Def: the speech act of refuting by offering a
contrary contention or argument
Ex: If one candidate specifically criticizes
another in an answer, the victimized candidate is
generally given rebuttal time.

17. recalcitrant
Def: stubbornly resistant to authority or control
Ex: The officials of the state banks especially
proved recalcitrant and refused to surrender
Government moneys.

18. recant
Def: formally reject or disavow a formerly held
belief, usually under pressure
Ex: But he quickly recanted and later denied
having made the statement at all.

19. recapitulate
Def: summarize briefly
Ex: He then recapitulated, with rapid but
accurate detail, the principal circumstances of my
story, bestowing some brief comment on each as he
went.

20. recidivism
Def: habitual relapse into crime

138

Ex: So successful is Buffalo's Veterans Court
that it boasts a zero recidivism rate -- none of the
participants have been rearrested and returned.

21. recipient
Def: a person who receives something
Ex: The society left open the possibility of
transplanting hearts into patients over age 70, as
long as recipients were otherwise in very good
health.

22. reciprocate
Def: act, feel, or give mutually or in return
Ex: He took some pains, moreover, to
reciprocate the civilities he had received, by
entertaining his hosts in return.

23. recluse
Def: one who lives in solitude
Ex: He must not continue to withdraw himself
from their society, they urged, and live the life of a
recluse and hermit.

24. recoil
Def: draw back, as with fear or pain
Ex: The Reverend Mr. Prattleton literally
recoiled at the words, and staggered back a few
steps in his dismay.

25. recommence
Def: begin again
Ex: He was released under the first declaration
of indulgence; but as he instantly recommenced
his preaching, he was arrested again.

26. recompense
Def: payment or reward (as for service rendered)
Ex: In 1830, the United States government made
a large grant of lands to his heirs as a further
recompense for his military services.

27. reconcile
Def: bring into consonance or accord
Ex: They split up two weeks later, then
reconciled, then split up again.

28. recondite
Def: difficult to penetrate; incomprehensible to
one of ordinary understanding or knowledge
Ex: On both sides of Lamb, however, there lie
literatures more difficult, more recondite.

29. reconnaissance
Def: the act of reconnoitring (especially to gain
information about an enemy or potential enemy)
Ex: This 38 metre-long remotely operated
airship is designed to carry communications and
monitoring equipment for intelligence, surveillance
and reconnaissance missions.

30. recrimination
Def: mutual accusations
Ex: But despite calls for national unity to face
this challenge, Mexico's politicians keep slinging
mud and trading mutual recriminations over who

139

is to blame.

31. rectitude
Def: righteousness as a consequence of being
honorable and honest
Ex: You must be morally upright and of
steadfast rectitude.

32. redoubtable
Def: inspiring fear
Ex: Then implacable and dangerous pursuits,
redoubtable struggles, were the order of their days
and nights.

33. redress
Def: act of correcting an error or a fault or an evil
Ex: Some efforts at redress were made; but the
remedy proved ineffectual, and the discontent of
the Indians increased with every year.

34. refined
Def: (used of persons and their behavior)
cultivated and genteel
Ex: You have seen him becoming more refined
and careful day by day, more carefully dressed,
less clumsy in the ways and methods of social life.

35. refulgent
Def: radiating or as if radiating light
Ex: Through the same clear mirror La Fayette
saw the sun of freedom reflecting its refulgent rays
over Columbia's prolific land.

36. refurbish
Def: make brighter and prettier
Ex: She said Kimpton had refurbished many
guest rooms to include bigger desks with improved
lighting and an ergonomic rolling chair, rather than
an armchair.

37. refutation
Def: the act of determining that something is
false
Ex: Whatever falsehoods the counsel for the
Crown may advance, and the witnesses swear to,
shall meet neither denial nor refutation from me.

38. regime
Def: the organization that is the governing
authority of a political unit
Ex: Today in the world there is no place for
authoritarian administrations, one-party rule, closed
regimes, he said.

39. regress
Def: get worse or fall back to a previous
condition
Ex: Instead of getting better, the team has
regressed.

40. reiterate
Def: to say, state, or perform again
Ex: He reiterated the previous rules but added
an extra rule related to screen size, measured in
inches.


140

41. rejuvenate
Def: return to life; get or give new life or energy
Ex: Refresh, renew, rejuvenate yourself by play
and pleasant recreation.

42. relapse
Def: a failure to maintain a higher state
Ex: With no cure in hand, the goal for most
patients with multiple myeloma is to keep treating
relapses as long as treatments are available.

43. relegate
Def: assign to a lower position; reduce in rank
Ex: Far from basking in a starring role, New
York is relegated once again to the bleachers.

44. relent
Def: give in, as to influence or pressure
Ex: Mr. Ponomaryov said he initially resisted
the inclusion of nationalist leaders, but relented
when members agreed to sign a pact denouncing
xenophobia and racism.

45. relentless
Def: never-ceasing
Ex: Its just been relentless, just nonstop, city
spokesman Allen Marquette said Monday.

46. relevance
Def: the relation of something to the matter at
hand
Ex: Our hypothesis is that kids will be more
interested in science and technology when they see
its relevance to their own lives.

47. relevant
Def: having a bearing on or connection with the
subject at issue
Ex: Clinton earns two Pinocchios: He relied on
selective data that would support his case while
ignoring other relevant numbers.

48. relinquish
Def: turn away from; give up
Ex: Emerson's son and biographer some time
ago relinquished his medical practice in Concord,
and has since devoted himself to art.

49. relish
Def: spicy or savory condiment
Ex: But relish gets no such respect in the food
world, Mr. Levine said: I think sweet relish has
become the forgotten condiment.

50. remediate
Def: set straight or right
Ex: "We have made clear that losses associated
with improperly executed foreclosures will not be
eligible for loss-share arrangements until problems
are appropriately remediated," she said.

51. reminiscent
Def: serving to bring to mind

141

Ex: Major deals were completed in Turkey last
year and new funds are emerging on a scale
reminiscent of the boom times of 2007.

52. remorse
Def: a feeling of deep regret (usually for some
misdeed)
Ex: Defendant has never expressed doubt or
regret or remorse, she said.

53. remote
Def: inaccessible and sparsely populated;
Ex: In remote and isolated Manipur, blockades
ensure that what little commercial life there is gets
choked off.

54. remunerate
Def: make payment to; compensate
Ex: The annuals, it turned out, did not pay
annually, but remunerated their contributors at
uncertain periods, varying from two years to ten.

55. renegade
Def: someone who rebels and becomes an outlaw
Ex: This community seemed to be composed of
renegades and outlaws from several other
communities.

56. renege
Def: fail to fulfill a promise or obligation
Ex: But companies often reneged on contracts,
German says, and the promised jobs never
materialized.

57. renounce
Def: turn away from; give up
Ex: Because my father having renounced his
faith, and my mother being uncertain of hers, they
had no particular creed to hold us to.

58. renowned
Def: widely known and esteemed
Ex: This Mr. Jones was a preacher of
extraordinary power, renowned and respected
throughout Wales.

59. renunciation
Def: the act of renouncing; sacrificing or giving
up or surrendering (a possession or right or title or
privilege etc.)
Ex: In all the stories, however, the virtue of self-
sacrifice and of renunciation is strongly painted.

60. repent
Def: feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite
about
Ex: There he repented of his errors, was
contrite, and reformed himself.

61. repercussion
Def: a remote or indirect consequence of some
action
Ex: Theres no doubt that there can be
grave repercussions to living thoughtlessly and
recklessly online, from endangering college

142

admissions to potential job opportunities.

62. repertoire
Def: the entire range of skills or aptitudes or
devices used in a particular field or occupation
Ex: In Connecticut, Nelson expanded his
repertoire, working on his technique and stamina.

63. replenish
Def: fill something that had previously been
emptied
Ex: They arrived at the Cape late in May, and
stopped there for thirty-eight days, refitting,
replenishing provisions, and refreshing the worn-
out crew.

64. reprehensible
Def: bringing or deserving severe rebuke or
censure
Ex: Normally, punitive damages are awarded
only when the conduct in question is malicious,
unusually reckless, or otherwise reprehensible.

65. repress
Def: block the action of
Ex: Rutherford was manly in his feelings, but he
could not repress his starting tears.

66. reprove
Def: take to task
Ex: If he continue to offend his neighbor, the
next time he shall be openly reproved and
admonished before the Congregation when met
together.

67. repudiate
Def: reject as untrue, unfounded, or unjust
Ex: Repudiating the king's claim to
unconditional obedience, they declared the
Regulating Act unconstitutional, and called on all
officers under it to resign their places.

68. repugnant
Def: offensive to the mind
Ex: Such accusations, when made by minors, are
generally full of disgusting details, which would be
repugnant to any adult.

69. reputable
Def: having a good reputation
Ex: Youngsters, who might be expected to
embrace new ways of doing things, must therefore
publish in existing, reputable journals if they want
recognition and promotion.

70. resolute
Def: firm in purpose or belief; characterized by
firmness and determination
Ex: Her performance is purposeful and resolute,
but she knows when to let Victoria's softness show,
too.

71. resonate
Def: be received or understood
Ex: He says that message is increasingly
resonating throughout Iowa, particularly in the

143

rural northwest, where his campaign began to catch
fire.

72. restitution
Def: a sum of money paid in compensation for
loss or injury
Ex: Authorities have said in court filings they
are looking into using the book proceeds to help
repay a $23 million restitution order to his
victims.

73. restive
Def: impatient especially under restriction or
delay
Ex: The king kept her away from all active
warfare, and she grew restive and impatient with
her life of inaction.

74. resurgence
Def: bringing again into activity and prominence
Ex: The controversy, however, was by no means
ended, and around 1704 it flared again in a
resurgence of attacks upon the stage.

75. resuscitate
Def: cause to regain consciousness
Ex: The baby, he said, needed to be
resuscitated twice because his heart had stopped
beating.

76. retaliate
Def: make a counterattack and return like for
like, especially evil for evil
Ex: He said, generally speaking, those who sue
him are "retaliating" for lawsuits he filed against
them.

77. reticent
Def: cool and formal in manner
Ex: He was reserved and very reticent, cold in
manner and not sympathetic.

78. retort
Def: answer back
Ex: "Ay, the men see to that!" retorted the good
lady, getting the last word and going away
delighted.

79. retract
Def: formally reject or disavow a formerly held
belief, usually under pressure
Ex: But no clear motive was ever established,
and Mr. Kovalyov later retracted his confession,
saying it was extracted under torture.

80. retrench
Def: make a reduction, as in one's workforce
Ex: Is it, like Channel 4, retrenching into TV
programming, cutting back any online project not
related to core TV programming?

81. retribution
Def: the act of taking revenge (harming someone
in retaliation for something harmful that they have
done) especially in the next life

144

Ex: Whatever may be the retribution for
individuals beyond the grave, justice on nations
must be done in this world; and here it will be
done.

82. revelation
Def: an enlightening or astonishing disclosure
Ex: Then, as revelations of gamblers dealings
with local players became public, L.I.U. lost four
consecutive games, all on the road.

83. revelry
Def: unrestrained merrymaking
Ex: But all this revelry dancing, drinks,
exuberant youth can be hard to manage.

84. reverberate
Def: ring or echo with sound
Ex: Thunder reverberating through the
mountains awakened hoarse echoes on every side.

85. revere
Def: love unquestioningly and uncritically or to
excess; venerate as an idol
Ex: Have not his countrymen loved, admired,
revered, rewarded, nay, almost adored him?

86. revile
Def: spread negative information about
Ex: Acosta will continue working in
Venezuelas foreign service despite, he added,
saying she remained an honorable professional
despite being verbally attacked, reviled,
demonized.

87. revoke
Def: cancel officially
Ex: On average, the agency revokes or denies
renewal of 110 licenses annually, records show.

88. revolutionize
Def: change radically
Ex: He revolutionized the way of seeing
nature and as a result completely changed how
other artists approached landscape painting.

89. revulsion
Def: intense aversion
Ex: A sick disgust clutched at Rose as she
watchedan utter revulsion from the whole
loathly business.

90. rhetorical
Def: of or relating to rhetoric
Ex: Of course no two men could possibly be
more unlike in the manner of speaking, but the
rhetorical vernacular of both has a considerable
resemblance.

91. rigorous
Def: demanding strict attention to rules and
procedures
Ex: Consumer advocates pushed for more
rigorous regulation, saying that the institutions
responsible for wrecking the economy need strict

145

supervision.

92. riveting
Def: capable of arousing and holding the
attention
Ex: Its formally fascinating the 14 dancers
sometimes subdivide into five, six or seven
sections, with different movements and its
dramatically riveting.

93. robust
Def: sturdy and strong in form, constitution, or
construction
Ex: Despite the good news, many economists
caution that continued deep declines in the
unemployment rate will require more robust
economic growth.

94. rousing
Def: capable of arousing enthusiasm or
excitement
Ex: Still, he played with beautiful colorings and
articulate touch, especially in the rousing, high-
spirited finale.

95. rudimentary
Def: being in the earliest stages of development
Ex: The simpler processes must, from their
earliest rudimentary beginnings, have been leading
up to the later and more complex.

96. ruminate
Def: reflect deeply on a subject
Ex: He seemed to ruminate on this thought as if
it gave him special cause for reflection.

97. rural
Def: living in or characteristic of farming or
country life
Ex: Graceful farms with white picket fences and
horses grazing dot the rural landscape, as do
hunting shacks.

98. ruse
Def: a deceptive maneuver (especially to avoid
capture)
Ex: I made believe I was flying away, and the
Frenchman was deceived by my ruse and came
after me, over our positions.

99. rustic
Def: characteristic of rural life
Ex: Beautiful high-resolution photographs of
farm animals on a rustic background, which
produce their respective noises when prodded.

100. ruthless
Def: without mercy or pity
Ex: He was not naturally cruel; but he was
ruthless if it served his purpose, and could take
pitiless vengeance for an insult or a wrong.



146


1. sacrilegious
Def: grossly irreverent toward what is held to be
sacred
Ex: Some say the artwork blurs the line between
church and state; others consider it sacrilegious to
have Mexico's patron saint pictured surfing.

2. sacrosanct
Def: must be kept sacred
Ex: After decades of being considered
politically sacrosanct, why are homeowner
mortgage write-offs suddenly on the chopping
block?

3. sagacious
Def: acutely insightful and wise
Ex: The sagacious painter had a truer insight
into this matter than most of our modern
educationists.

4. salubrious
Def: promoting health; healthful
Ex: The air is extremely salubrious, and the
place has long been remarkable for its freedom
from epidemics.

5. sardonic
Def: disdainfully or ironically humorous;
scornful and mocking
Ex: With unemployment in some parishes above
25 percent, sardonic bumper stickers entered state
lore: Last one out, turn off the lights.

6. satiate
Def: fill to satisfaction
Ex: That means it's more effective at keeping
your blood sugar levels stable, leaving you feeling
satiated and less likely to start eating again hours
later.

7. satirical
Def: exposing human folly to ridicule
Ex: Inevitably there were instant faux feeds on
Twitter with satirical commentary about Bin
Ladens death, including Ghost Osama and Osama
in Hell.

8. saturate
Def: infuse or fill completely
Ex: The head was shockingly disfigured,
battered by some heavy instrument, and the clothes
were saturated with blood.

9. scarce
Def: deficient in quantity or number compared
with the demand
Ex: Many Americans reside in food deserts
communities where retailers offering fresh food are
scarce but fast-food restaurants and convenience
stores selling prepared foods can abound.


147

10. scathing
Def: marked by harshly abusive criticism
Ex: "You sickening little cowardyou sneak,"
said Osmond, with scathing contempt.

11. schism
Def: division of a group into opposing factions
Ex: After building a market worth at least $6
billion, fair trade is undergoing a schism, with Fair
Trade USA splitting off.

12. scion
Def: a descendent or heir
Ex: Mr. Papandreou, a political scion whose
father and grandfather were also prime ministers,
took office late last year.

13. scornful
Def: expressing extreme contempt
Ex: Mr. Gates also was scornful of the top deal
makers: Russian democracy has disappeared, and
the government is an oligarchy run by the security
services.

14. scrupulous
Def: characterized by extreme care and great
effort
Ex: His films have a look, an ambience, a
setting, thats very real because of his scrupulous
attention to detail, Mr. Jewison added.

15. scrutinize
Def: examine carefully for accuracy with the
intent of verification
Ex: Days before Thanksgiving, AT&T's
heavyweight lobbying team was busy setting up
meetings with antitrust authorities scrutinizing the
companys $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile.

16. seamless
Def: perfectly consistent and coherent
Ex: String quartets, made up of four similar
instruments that blend seamlessly and resonate
together, are the thoroughbreds of chamber music.

17. secede
Def: withdraw from an organization or
communion
Ex: On the 3rd of November a revolution broke
out at Panama, and the state seceded from
Colombia and declared itself to be an independent
republic.

18. secession
Def: formal separation from an alliance or
federation
Ex: But southern Sudanese living in northern
Sudan were more ambivalent 42 percent opted
for unity and 58 percent for secession.

19. sedentary
Def: requiring sitting or little activity
Ex: There is a growing body of research
showing that very active women are less likely to
develop breast cancer than their sedentary peers.


148

20. seditious
Def: in opposition to a civil authority or
government
Ex: If stones were thrown at the police and
seditious cries were raised, it was no more than
might be reasonably expected.

21. sedulous
Def: marked by care and persistent effort
Ex: For something like eleven summers I've
written things that aimed to teach Our careless
mealy-mouthd mummers To be more sedulous of
speech.

22. segregation
Def: the act of segregating or sequestering
Ex: In Malaysia, there is no gender segregation;
women hold top positions in banks and other
companies, and female university students now
outnumber men.

23. semantics
Def: the study of language meaning
Ex: Web semantics developers in recent years
have trained computers to classify news topics
based on intuitive keywords and recognizable
names.

24. seminal
Def: containing seeds of later development
Ex: Branches, even trunks might bend and
break, but the seminal roots sent up new shoots
next season, which in another year, bore fruit
scantily.

25. sentient
Def: endowed with feeling and unstructured
consciousness
Ex: Emotions and intelligence are connected
with nerve structures in all sentient beings that we
have experience and knowledge of.

26. sentiment
Def: a personal belief or judgment that is not
founded on proof or certainty
Ex: Every American will read these works with
national pride, and have his better feelings and
sentiments enkindled and strengthened.Western
literary Messenger.

27. sequential
Def: in regular succession without gaps
Ex: Nissan has taken on a more aggressive
marketing approach in recent months in Brazil,
where car sales have hit sequential records for four
years.

28. sequester
Def: set apart from others
Ex: Emerson says, "The virtue of art lies in
detachment, in sequestering one object from the
embarrassing variety."

29. serendipity
Def: good luck in making unexpected and
fortunate discoveries

149

Ex: Serendipity is a recurring theme in
Chandler's biography, with one happy accident after
another pushing him in a certain direction.

30. serenity
Def: the absence of mental stress or anxiety
Ex: The serenity he doubtless enjoys as a Zen
monk will probably help.

31. sibylline
Def: resembling or characteristic of a prophet or
prophecy
Ex: Their Sibylline books have prophesied the
fall of Rome, though they use the name 'Babylon.'

32. simian
Def: relating to or resembling an ape
Ex: At least 10 large black-faced langur
monkeys are being used at the Delhi Games venues
to stop smaller simian monkeys from causing
trouble.

33. simile
Def: a figure of speech that expresses a
resemblance between things of different kinds
(usually formed with `like' or `as')
Ex: Then he rushed away without saluting me,
and looking as black as the ace of spadesthat
simile suits my present mood!

34. simultaneous
Def: occurring or operating at the same time
Ex: Supertaskers can juggle simultaneous tasks
without experiencing a drop in attention or focus,
which flies against the conventional wisdom about
how the human brain functions.

35. slack
Def: not tense or taut
Ex: He moved on down toward the cottonwoods
and reaching them stood in their shadows, arms at
his sides, shoulders slacked as if weakened,
irresolute.

36. sobriety
Def: the state of being sober and not intoxicated
by alcohol
Ex: His lawyer Heather Boxeth has said O'Neal
relapsed by drinking alcohol after five years of
sobriety and was in rehab.

37. solace
Def: comfort in disappointment or misery
Ex: "Hurt/comfort" stories revolve as you
might imagine around one character's getting
injured physically or emotionally and another
character's providing solace.

38. solitude
Def: a state of social isolation
Ex: Then, feeling that this sorrow required
solitude, one after another slipped away, slowly,
gently, and on tiptoe, leaving Helen alone with her
husband's body.

39. solvent

150

Def: a liquid substance capable of dissolving
other substances
Ex: The alchemist gave up his search for an
universal solvent upon being asked in what kind of
vessel he expected to keep it when found.

40. somatic
Def: affecting or characteristic of the body as
opposed to the mind or spirit
Ex: Nature and the spiritual, without this
embodied intelligence, this somatic being, called
man or angel or ape, are as ermine on a wax figure.

41. sophist
Def: someone whose reasoning is subtle and
often specious
Ex: This word comes from the Greek
"sophistes," meaning a sophist, that is to say, one
who makes a pretence of being wise.

42. specious
Def: plausible but false
Ex: You might be tempted to think of the
biggest airline as the one with the most aircraft, but
capacity differences make this reasoning specious.

43. spectator
Def: a close observer; someone who looks at
something (such as an exhibition of some kind)
Ex: More than 200 spectators watched aircraft
take to the skies on Tuesday at Mona Airfield.

44. spectrum
Def: a broad range of related objects or values or
qualities or ideas or activities
Ex: Bisher covered a spectrum of sports
including football, baseball, horse racing, auto
racing and boxing that reflected the tastes of his
Southern readership.

45. speculation
Def: a message expressing an opinion based on
incomplete evidence
Ex: He said the four conspiracy charges leveled
at his client were supported by nothing but
speculation, innuendo and conjecture.

46. spontaneous
Def: said or done without having been planned or
written in advance
Ex: In his solo concerts since the 1970s, Mr.
Jarrett has committed himself to spontaneous
improvisation, to ideas that surface in the moment.

47. sporadic
Def: recurring in scattered and irregular or
unpredictable instances
Ex: Police have clamped down on
demonstrations, and lingering unrest has been
sporadic and scattered.

48. spurious
Def: plausible but false
Ex: Sedan.No genuine stamps ever existed; all
were spurious.

49. spurn

151

Def: reject with contempt
Ex: Saying that agents and publishers had
spurned him 162 times, Mr. Wimmer laid claim to
being the most-rejected published novelist in
history.

50. squabble
Def: a quarrel about petty points
Ex: There was trouble going on here and there,
petty wars and political squabbles.

51. squalid
Def: foul and run-down and repulsive
Ex: There was nothing but povertysqualid,
disgusting povertyvisible everywhere, and Lucy
grew sick and faint at the, to her, unusual sight.

52. squander
Def: spend extravagantly
Ex: He laid up the money that he earned, instead
of squandering it, as young men in his situation
often do, in transient indulgences.

53. stagnant
Def: not growing or changing; without force or
vitality
Ex: In that dull household, where so few events
ever disturbed the stagnant quiet, this sudden
journey produced an indescribable sensation.

54. stagnate
Def: stand still
Ex: Services, accounting for about three quarters
of the economy, stagnated with zero growth.

55. stalemate
Def: a situation in which no progress can be
made or no advancement is possible
Ex: But, in the end, nothing really gets resolved,
nobody wins and the stalemate continues.

56. stamina
Def: enduring strength and energy
Ex: But these were searching days for everyone,
when physical endurance and mental stamina were
stretched to their furthest limit.

57. statutory
Def: prescribed or authorized by or punishable
under a statute
Ex: We have eliminated the opposition down
our wayperfectly legal and statutory.

58. steadfast
Def: marked by firm determination or resolution;
not shakable
Ex: Steadfast in his convictions and
imperturbable under pressure, Mr. Miller was the
ultimate iconoclast.

59. stoic
Def: seeming unaffected by pleasure or pain;
impassive
Ex: Then the typically stoic Green Bay Packers
coach briefly lost his composure, pausing for

152

several seconds as he choked up with emotion.

60. stratification
Def: the act or process or arranging persons into
classes or social strata
Ex: People were much the same, she thought, in
every class; there was no stratification of either
rightness or righteousness.

61. striate
Def: mark with striae or striations
Ex: These white streaks give the bird the
striated appearance from which it obtains its name.

62. stultify
Def: deprive of strength or efficiency; make
useless or worthless
Ex: Indian humanities and social sciences
institutes have been neglected over the years
stultified by curricular inflexibility, underfinanced
and understaffed.

63. stupefy
Def: make senseless or dizzy by or as if by a
blow
Ex: For several seconds he remained standing
quite motionless and breathless, staring in stupefied
amazement at the dark outline of the enemy.

64. subdue
Def: put down by force or intimidation
Ex: Police officers surrounded the prison
grounds while F.B.I. agents and guards tried to
subdue the inmates, Sheriff Mayfield said.

65. subjugate
Def: make subservient; force to submit or subdue
Ex: The ancient Romans ruled the world by
subjugating the remotest nations, pillaging and
breaking them down.

66. subliminal
Def: below the threshold of conscious perception
Ex: If she was unhappy, her unhappiness lay too
deep in subliminal abysses to struggle to the
surface of her consciousness.

67. subordinate
Def: lower in rank or importance
Ex: From the earliest times she was regarded as
man's inferior and relegated to a subordinate
position in society.

68. subservient
Def: compliant and obedient to authority
Ex: Ms. Greig, he said, is a meek, subservient
woman whom Mr. Bulger ordered around.

69. subside
Def: sink to a lower level or form a depression
Ex: Once more the waves had subsided, and an
almost flat calm prevailed.

70. subsidiary

153

Def: functioning in a supporting capacityEx:
A symbol has a chief meaning, and then
various subsidiary meanings related to that chief
meaning.

71. subsistence
Def: a means of surviving
Ex: But how avoid him while she had no other
means of subsistence than working in an open
shop?

72. subversive
Def: in opposition to a civil authority or
government
Ex: The ideas of the French democracy were in
the beginning revolutionary, disorderly, and
subversive of national consistency and good faith.

73. successor
Def: a person who inherits some title or office
Ex: Mr. Stewart has promised to stay on until a
successor is hired.

74. succinct
Def: briefly giving the gist of something
Ex: The intros to each posting are short,
succinct, and witty.

75. sully
Def: make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air;
also used metaphorically
Ex: Burning coal sullies the atmosphere and
leaves toxic ash mountains.

76. summon
Def: call in an official matter, such as to attend
court
Ex: Bryce Harper batting seventh in major
league debut had no clue why his Class AAA
manager summoned him into his office Friday
afternoon.

77. sumptuous
Def: rich and superior in quality
Ex: The city is rich in antiquities, in historic
buildings associated with illustrious names, in
works of art and in sumptuous palaces.

78. sundry
Def: consisting of a haphazard assortment of
different kinds
Ex: In the preparation of this book, old journals,
original records and documents, and sundry other
trustworthy sources have been diligently consulted
and freely utilized.

79. superannuated
Def: too old to be useful
Ex: Law and government must keep pace with
the progress of humanity, else the nation itself
becomes effete, superannuated, deteriorated.

80. supercilious
Def: having or showing arrogant superiority to
and disdain of those one views as unworthy

154

Ex: James is outrageously supercilious,
arrogant, conceited and rude.

81. supererogatory
Def: more than is needed, desired, or required
Ex: Those arguments are not necessary, they are
all supererogatory, like idle words.

82. superficial
Def: of, affecting, or being on or near the surface
Ex: In uncivilised times, generally speaking,
men were rather quick to observe outward and
superficial distinctions, while very slow to discover
internal and essential variations.

83. superfluous
Def: more than is needed, desired, or required
Ex: He looked at them as if further talk were
redundant, superfluous, unnecessary, a waste of
time, and an insult.

84. superimpose
Def: place on top of
Ex: This time, the camera focused only on his
face and in editing, his head would be digitally
superimposed on Pence's body.

85. superlative
Def: the superlative form of an adjective or
adverb
Ex: Qatars economy offers indicators in
superlatives: the worlds highest growth rate and
highest per capita income.

86. supernatural
Def: not existing in nature or subject to
explanation according to natural laws; not physical
or material
Ex: After vampires and shape shifters, now
fairies are added to the fun supernatural mix.

87. supersede
Def: take the place or move into the position of
Ex: Comic books, the conventions original
focus, have been superseded by movies, video
games and action figures.

88. supple
Def: (used of e.g. personality traits) readily
adaptable
Ex: However, humanity is so flexible and
supple that, in one way or another, it always
overcomes these attempts at prevention.

89. supplementary
Def: functioning in a supporting capacity
Ex: But, after all, these supplementary aids,
though valuable, are deficient in guiding power.

90. suppliant
Def: one praying humbly for something
Ex: I realized the hopelessness of my cause, and
found myself facing Mr. Blight again, an humble
suppliant for his pardon.


155

91. suppression
Def: forceful prevention; putting down by power
or authority
Ex: Bitterly, in blood and heartbreak and long
suppression, they had been weighed down under
superior force: but now the time of reprisals had
come.

92. surfeit
Def: indulge (one's appetite) to satiety
Ex: The law at last is satisfied, satiated,
surfeited.

93. surreal
Def: characterized by fantastic imagery and
incongruous juxtapositions
Ex: In this surreal world, music records smell
like different colors, foods tastes like specific
noises, and sound comes in all varieties of textures
and shapes.

94. surreptitious
Def: marked by quiet and caution and secrecy;
taking pains to avoid being observed
Ex: Truly, there had been some secret,
surreptitious flittings in this old mansion.

95. sustenance
Def: a source of materials to nourish the body
Ex: Furs have renewed my clothing, and I have
never wanted for sustenancechiefly nuts, fruits
and vegetables.

96. sybaritic
Def: displaying luxury and furnishing
gratification to the senses
Ex: Ever since, the city has been ravishing
visitors with its teeming souks, ornate palaces and
sybaritic night life.

97. sycophant
Def: a person who tries to please someone in
order to gain a personal advantage
Ex: Sycophants climb over the wallbut their
flattery and fawning grow tiresome.

98. symmetry
Def: balance among the parts of something
Ex: They all illustrate quaint melodic intervals
and an instinct for balance and symmetry.

99. synchronous
Def: occurring or existing at the same time or
having the same period or phase
Ex: Mrs. Smiley spoke almost at the same
moment but never precisely synchronous with
Wilbur's whisper.

100. synonymous
Def: (of words) meaning the same or nearly the
same
Ex: The two phrases seem synonymous, and
might often be used indifferently; but here there is
evidently a well marked diversity of meaning.


156


1. tacit
Def: implied by or inferred from actions or
statements
Ex: The sentiment here is not tacit, but
communicable and overt.

2. taciturn
Def: habitually reserved and uncommunicative
Ex: He is of a reserved, taciturn habit,
somewhat surly: not talkative even in his cups.

3. tactful
Def: having or showing a sense of what is fitting
and considerate in dealing with others
Ex: Lady Ruth went back to her guests, and with
the effortless ease of long training, she became
once more the gracious and tactful hostess.

4. tactile
Def: of or relating to or proceeding from the
sense of touch
Ex: Researchers are promoting magnetic
interfaces for touch screens, which will make
operating the touch screen more tactile and reduce
excessive tapping.

5. taint
Def: contaminate with a disease or
microorganism
Ex: The industry, though, hasnt disclosed what
chemicals are used, raising concerns about tainted
drinking water supplies and a call for peer-reviewed
studies on the effects.

6. talisman
Def: a trinket or piece of jewelry usually hung
about the neck and thought to be a magical
protection against evil or disease
Ex: Tiny prayer wheels are now a popular car
ornament, a talisman to ward off accidents.

7. tangential
Def: of superficial relevance if any
Ex: It is terrific fun, but its relation to the theme
remains tangential at best.

8. tangible
Def: perceptible by the senses especially the
sense of touch
Ex: It has the capacity to change tangible, hard
realities through no more than airy nothings, mere
gauzy thoughts.

9. tantalizing
Def: arousing desire or expectation for something
unattainable or mockingly out of reach
Ex: For long, monotonous months she had been
struggling against just such cravings, impossible of
realization, and therefore all the more tantalizing.


157

10. tantamount
Def: being essentially equal to something
Ex: "But keeping rabbits cooped up alone in
hutches of the type sold by these big retail chains is
just tantamount to cruelty."

11. taper
Def: diminish gradually
Ex: The snow tapered off after the field was
cleared for warmups, but it picked back up toward
halftime and kept falling with the mercury.

12. tariff
Def: a government tax on imports or exports
Ex: South Korea is dropping a long list of
tariffs under the agreement, including stiff taxes on
U.S. agricultural goods.

13. taunt
Def: harass with persistent criticism or carping
Ex: Verbal harassment refers to teasing,
taunting, or insulting someone.

14. taut
Def: pulled or drawn tight
Ex: The stay wires were tightened by turn
buckles till they were taut as fiddle strings,
assuring stability of the wings.

15. tautological
Def: repetition of same sense in different words
Ex: The expression sounds trite and
tautological; but it needs emphasis.

16. tawdry
Def: tastelessly showy
Ex: A cheap ornament spoils a handsome
costume, better none at all; too many ornaments,
even if good, look tawdry.

17. tedious
Def: so lacking in interest as to cause mental
weariness
Ex: The journey was long and tedious, day after
day passing with but few incidents to change the
monotony of our progress.

18. temerity
Def: fearless daring
Ex: He was confident that he had the backing of
the men, and in that confidence grew bold with
reckless temerity.

19. temperament
Def: your usual mood
Ex: His bringing up was left to an uncle who
had neither understanding nor sympathy for his
dreamy and wayward temperament.

20. temporal
Def: of this earth or world
Ex: There was not room in Italy for two
universal rulers, both holding of God, even though

158

one ruled spiritual things and the other temporal.

21. temporize
Def: draw out a discussion or process in order to
gain time
Ex: I dare say you have often observed this
disposition to temporize, or to procrastinate, in
people who are labouring under any very poignant
sorrow.

22. tenable
Def: based on sound reasoning or evidence
Ex: "Then you allow his position to be more
tenable and reasonable than yours?"

23. tenacity
Def: persistent determination
Ex: Constancy, persistence, dogged tenacity is
certainly the striking feature of Jacobs character.

24. tenet
Def: a religious doctrine that is proclaimed as
true without proof
Ex: Mr. Malik, who does not drink, decided that
trading so-called pub securities would violate tenets
of his faith.

25. tentative
Def: unsettled in mind or opinion
Ex: Here and there, passages of solid,
compelling music making were marred by
tentative, uncertain moments.

26. tenuous
Def: lacking substance or significance
Ex: Watching Belasco's short play in London in
1900, Puccini reportedly was deeply moved
despite his tenuous grasp of the English language.

27. tenure
Def: the term during which some position is held
Ex: Mr. Marshall's career as Chief Justice
extended through a period of more than thirty-four
years, which is the longest judicial tenure recorded
in history.

28. terminal
Def: station where transport vehicles load or
unload passengers or goods
Ex: Workers prepare flower orders in the
American Airlines cargo terminal at Kennedy
International Airport.

29. termination
Def: the act of ending something
Ex: This sight made us forget our fatigues, and
we hurried on, with fond anticipations of finding a
speedy termination to all our sufferings.

30. terminology
Def: a system of words used to name things in a
particular discipline
Ex: This building was known, in monastic
terminology, as the Lavabo.

31. terrain

159

Def: a piece of ground having specific
characteristics or military potential
Ex: Most inhabitants were farmers struggling to
coax crops out of the steep and rocky terrain.

32. terrestrial
Def: operating or living or growing on land
Ex: On land, habitat loss takes away much-
needed space for large, terrestrial animals.

33. territory
Def: a region marked off for administrative or
other purposes
Ex: The war was just a few months old, and the
entire Michigan territory had fallen into British
hands.

34. terse
Def: brief and to the point; effectively cut short
Ex: While she stared at him, he uttered the short,
terse command: Hands up!

35. tertiary
Def: coming next after the second and just before
the fourth in position
Ex: The plan divides roadways into three major
categories: arterial, secondary and tertiary.

36. tessellated
Def: decorated with small pieces of colored glass
or stone fitted together in a mosaic
Ex: Passing from one pavilion to another over
tessellated pavements, we enter apartments rich in
mosaics and all manner of precious stones.

37. theocracy
Def: a political unit governed by a deity (or by
officials thought to be divinely guided)
Ex: For in theocracies, to the social evil of the
offence is added the impiety committed against the
Deity and his representative on earth.

38. theology
Def: the rational and systematic study of religion
and its influences and of the nature of religious
truth
Ex: He had read widely in theology Saint
Augustine and Nietzsche and Reinhold Niebuhr
but he had no formal religious training.

39. thermal
Def: relating to or associated with heat
Ex: The great masses of concrete act as a
thermal sink, absorbing heat during the molten
days and then radiating warmth at night.

40. thespian
Def: of or relating to drama
Ex: True to her thespian inheritance, she played
Olivia in Twelfth Night on a student tour of the
Highlands and Islands.

41. threshold

160

Def: the entrance (the space in a wall) through
which you enter or leave a room or building; the
space that a door can close
Ex: The words are hardly out of her mouth when
the door opens and somebody appears upon the
threshold.

42. thrifty
Def: mindful of the future in spending money
Ex: He was managing clerk in some mercantile
house, and, being a thrifty soul, invested all his
spare cash instead of spending it.

43. thrive
Def: grow vigorously
Ex: A naturally outgoing person, Irenstein
learned quickly and his dating life began to thrive.

44. throes
Def: violent pangs of suffering
Ex: He suffered rheumatism in its most acute
form, so the coastguard explained between his
throes.

45. throng
Def: a large gathering of people
Ex: Visitors flocked to Fredericksburg and long
before the beginning thousands had gathered,
sidewalks, steps and porches were crowded with
merry throngs in carnival mood.

46. throttle
Def: a valve that regulates the supply of fuel to
the engine
Ex: Cora slowed down her engine by means of a
throttle control that extended up near the wheel.

47. thrust
Def: push forcefully
Ex: I cried angrily, thrusting back those who
pressed on me most closely.

48. thwart
Def: hinder or prevent (the efforts, plans, or
desires) of
Ex: Efforts to learn more were thwarted in
January 2007, when the camera channel used by
Hubble to acquire the image stopped working.

49. tirade
Def: a speech of violent denunciation
Ex: It is an angry, sometimes abusive, but
overall articulate and heartfelt tirade about growing
up in Gaza.

50. toady
Def: a person who tries to please someone in
order to gain a personal advantage
Ex: It bored him, and he was no toady to waste
his time fawning upon possible patrons.

51. toil
Def: work hard

161

Ex: Taking his stone axe he toiled all day until
the tree was felled.

52. token
Def: a metal or plastic disk that can be redeemed
or used in designated slot machines
Ex: It works on a similar principle as casino
chips, or, more directly, arcade tokens.

53. tome
Def: a (usually) large and scholarly book
Ex: This seems like a particularly troubling
trend for academia, where digital books are slowly
overtaking the heavy tomes I used to lug around.

54. topography
Def: the configuration of a surface and the
relations among its man-made and natural features
Ex: They land in a lush green jungle whose
topography seems to resemble no known place on
Earth.

55. torpid
Def: slow and apathetic
Ex: His energies are suspended, his senses
become numbed and torpidin short, he feels as
one who goes to sleep in a snow-storm.

56. torpor
Def: inactivity resulting from lethargy and lack of
vigor or energy
Ex: Notwithstanding my nervous apprehension,
a sleep more like the torpor of lethargy than natural
slumber, fell on me at once.

57. torque
Def: a twisting force
Ex: Those photons produce very small amounts
of torque that can slow the rotation or speed it up.

58. torrential
Def: relating to or resulting from the action of a
torrent
Ex: Torrential rains killed at least six people in
Genoa on Friday, in the worst flooding the port city
has seen in years, officials said.

59. torrid
Def: extremely hot
Ex: Days dragged on; days of torrid, relentless
heat.

60. torso
Def: the body excluding the head and neck and
limbs
Ex: Her dresses were fitted not only at the waist,
but along the torso by a long and pointed bodice
stiffened with wood, steel, or whalebone.

61. totalitarian
Def: of or relating to the principles of
totalitarianism according to which the state
regulates every realm of life
Ex: Suppression of art and ideas is something
that happens in totalitarian regimes, not this

162

country, he added.

62. tout
Def: advertize in strongly positive terms
Ex: Shock jock Howard Stern, however, didn't
hold back at a news conference in New York
touting his own new TV gig.

63. tract
Def: an extended area of land
Ex: One tract of the mallee scrub, shared
between Victoria and South Australia, covers an
area of nearly 9000 square miles.

64. tractable
Def: easily managed (controlled or taught or
molded)
Ex: By a three months' School course stubborn
horses may be made tractable, dangerous horses
rendered comparatively safe, uncomfortable brutes
easy and reliable.

65. traduce
Def: speak unfavorably about
Ex: One may "abuse," "assail," or vilify another
to his face; he asperses, calumniates, slanders, or
traduces him behind his back.

66. trajectory
Def: the path followed by an object moving
through space
Ex: Losing altitude, they hurtled on a sloping
trajectory toward Washington.

67. tranquility
Def: a state of peace and quiet
Ex: Lifelong fisherman Jay Cassell, deputy
editor of Field & Stream magazine, treasures
lakeside vacations for the peace and tranquility
only one can offer.

68. transcendental
Def: existing outside of or not in accordance with
nature
Ex: That she should have wanted to captivate
Mr. Traffick,she with her high ideas of some
transcendental, more than human, hero!

69. transcribe
Def: write out from speech, notes, etc.
Ex: Hastily procuring pen and ink, he bade Sir
Walter sing it over again while he transcribed the
words to paper.

70. transfixed
Def: having your attention fixated as though by a
spell
Ex: To say that I was transfixed, speechless,
fascinated to intoxication by the spell of this
marvellous development is no exaggeration.

71. transgression
Def: the act of transgressing; the violation of a
law or a duty or moral principle

163

Ex: Vietnamese state media prior to the trial
reported prosecutors as saying that Mr. Dinh's
transgressions represent a "particularly serious
violation of national security."

72. transient
Def: lasting a very short time
Ex: Smokers, on the other hand, had wildly
transient populations, with species moving in and
outwhich opened up real estate for the bad bugs.

73. transitory
Def: lasting a very short time
Ex: Positive reviews are blissful but strangely
transitory, forgotten within hours.

74. translucent
Def: allowing light to pass through diffusely
Ex: It is usually translucent, becoming nearly
transparent on immersion in water.

75. transparent
Def: transmitting light; able to be seen through
with clarity Def: In looking at any object
through a perfectly transparent medium, such as
plate glass, we do not perceive any alteration in the
real colours.

76. transpire
Def: come about, happen, or occur
Ex: So lets inaugurate things around here by
continuing a hallowed Technologizer tradition:
making collective predictions about what will
transpire at an upcoming Apple event.

77. travail
Def: use of physical or mental energy; hard work
Ex: Through an anguish of travail Canada has
worked out an excellent system of self-
government.

78. traverse
Def: travel across
Ex: It had taken them four days to traverse just
25 miles.

79. travesty
Def: a composition that imitates or misrepresents
somebody's style, usually in a humorous way
Ex: As any comic writer will tell you, one
person's humorous homage can easily be another's
disrespectful travesty.

80. treachery
Def: an act of deliberate betrayal
Ex: By this fatal step Ashburnham incurred the
unmerited charge of treachery and disloyalty.

81. tread
Def: a step in walking or running
Ex: He went out; they could hear his slow,
careful tread on each of the slippery stairs.

82. treason

164

Def: an act of deliberate betrayal
Ex: He was accused of disloyalty and treason,
with the greatest heat, everywhere.

83. treatise
Def: a formal exposition
Ex: I purchased the requisite study guides
intimidating, densely worded treatises on
gastroenterology, cardiology, geriatrics, hematology
and all the specialty areas of internal medicine.

84. trek
Def: journey on foot, especially in the mountains
Ex: In the mountains, Mr. Sherpa can spend
months trekking over glaciers and negotiating ice
falls and treacherous crevasses at nosebleed heights.

85. tremulous
Def: (of the voice) quivering as from weakness
or fear
Ex: Only his tremulous voice and shaking hand
betrayed suffering.

86. trenchant
Def: having keenness and forcefulness and
penetration in thought, expression, or intellect
Ex: The trenchant blade of his intellect is still
keen.

87. trepidation
Def: a feeling of alarm or dread
Ex: No sign of trepidation or alarm, save the
sudden stiffening of her form, was betrayed.

88. tribulation
Def: an annoying or frustrating or catastrophic
event
Ex: The students have described their personal
trials, tribulations and emotional turmoil in my
writing class.

89. tribunal
Def: an assembly (including one or more judges)
to conduct judicial business
Ex: "The judicial power of the United States
shall be vested in one Supreme Court and certain
inferior tribunals."

90. trifling
Def: not worth considering
Ex: Everything, in fact, was well thought over,
and as was subsequently proved, the mistakes that
did occur were few and trifling.

91. trilogy
Def: a set of three literary or dramatic works
related in subject or theme
Ex: Mr. Tucker never finished the third book of
what was supposed to be his Stalin trilogy.

92. triumvirate
Def: a group of three men responsible for public
administration or civil authority

165

Ex: Well, all three teams in the Epstein
management triumvirate are struggling.

93. troglodyte
Def: someone who lives in a cave
Ex: The original cave man, the troglodyte, may
have got his that way.

94. truculent
Def: defiantly aggressive
Ex: Now he turned to behold a huge cock ostrich
bearing down upon him with hostility and
aggressiveness writ large all over its truculent
personality.

95. truism
Def: an obvious truth
Ex: They cannot hurt us more than we can be
hurtan obvious truism but one which is often
overlooked.

96. truncate
Def: make shorter as if by cutting off
Ex: Health care provider came into vogue as
the catchall phrase and was quickly truncated to
just provider.

97. tumult
Def: a state of commotion and noise and
confusion
Ex: A scene of confusion and tumult arose in
the office, lasting several moments.

98. turpitude
Def: a corrupt or depraved or degenerate act or
practice
Ex: The cities were berated as hubs of moral
turpitude, decadence and greed.

99. tutelage
Def: teaching pupils individually (usually by a
tutor hired privately)
Ex: The Falcons have even hired mixed martial
arts instructors for off-season tutelage in wrestling,
boxing and kickboxing.

100. tyranny
Def: dominance through threat of punishment
and violence
Ex: Alexander Lebedev sees his newspapers as
vital forces against tyranny, oppression and
corruption.




166

1. ubiquitous
Def: being present everywhere at once
2. ulterior
Def: lying beyond what is openly revealed or
avowed (especially being kept in the background or
deliberately concealed)
3. ultimatum
Def: a final peremptory demand
4. umbrage
Def: a feeling of anger caused by being offended
5. unabashed
Def: not embarrassed
6. unalterable
Def: not capable of being changed or altered
7. unambiguous
Def: having or exhibiting a single clearly defined
meaning
8. unanimous
Def: in complete agreement
9. unappreciated
Def: having value that is not acknowledged
10. unapproachable
Def: discouraging intimacies; reserved
11. unassailable
Def: impossible to assail
12. unassuming
Def: not arrogant or presuming
13. unattainable
Def: impossible to achieve
14. unbiased
Def: without bias
15. unbridled
Def: not restrained or controlled
16. uncanny
Def: surpassing the ordinary or normal
17. uncharted
Def: (of unknown regions) not yet surveyed or
investigated
18. uncommunicative
Def: not inclined to talk or give information or
express opinions
19. unconditional
Def: not conditional
20. unconscionable
Def: greatly exceeding bounds of reason or
moderation
21. unconscious
Def: not conscious; lacking awareness and the
capacity for sensory perception as if asleep or dead

167

22. unconventional
Def: not conventional or conformist
23. uncouth
Def: lacking refinement or cultivation or taste
24. unction
Def: anointing as part of a religious ceremony or
healing ritual
25. unctuous
Def: unpleasantly and excessively suave or
ingratiating in manner or speech
26. undaunted
Def: resolutely courageous
27. undermine
Def: destroy property or hinder normal
operations
28. underscore
Def: give extra weight to (a communication)
29. undulate
Def: move in a wavy pattern or with a rising and
falling motion
30. unencumbered
Def: not burdened with cares or responsibilities
31. unequivocal
Def: admitting of no doubt or misunderstanding;
having only one meaning or interpretation and
leading to only one conclusion
32. unexceptionable
Def: completely acceptable; not open to
exception or reproach
33. unfaltering
Def: marked by firm determination or resolution;
not shakable
34. unfathomable
Def: resembling an abyss in depth; so deep as to
be unmeasurable
35. unfettered
Def: not bound by shackles and chains
36. unfledged
Def: young and inexperienced
37. unfounded
Def: without a basis in reason or fact
38. ungainly
Def: lacking grace in movement or posture
39. unguent
Def: semisolid preparation (usually containing a
medicine) applied externally as a remedy or for
soothing an irritation
40. unilateral
Def: involving only one part or side
41. unimpeachable
Def: beyond doubt or reproach
42. uninhibited
Def: not inhibited or restrained

168

43. unison
Def: occurring together or simultaneously
44. unity
Def: an undivided or unbroken completeness or
totality with nothing wanting
45. universal
Def: applicable to or common to all members of a
group or set
46. unjust
Def: not fair; marked by injustice or partiality or
deception
47. unjustified
Def: lacking justification or authorization
48. unkempt
Def: not properly maintained or cared for
49. unlicensed
Def: lacking official approval
50. unmitigated
Def: not diminished or moderated in intensity or
severity; sometimes used as an intensifier
51. unobtainable
Def: not capable of being obtained
52. unobtrusive
Def: not obtrusive or undesirably noticeable
53. unorthodox
Def: breaking with convention or tradition
54. unpack
Def: remove from its packing
55. unparalleled
Def: radically distinctive and without equal
56. unprecedented
Def: having no precedent; novel
57. unprepossessing
Def: creating an unfavorable or neutral first
impression
58. unpretentious
Def: lacking pretension or affectation
59. unprincipled
Def: lacking principles or moral scruples
60. unravel
Def: become undone
61. unregulated
Def: not regulated; not subject to rule or
discipline
62. unrelenting
Def: never-ceasing
63. unremitting
Def: uninterrupted in time and indefinitely long
continuing
64. unrequited
Def: not returned in kind

169

65. unresponsive
Def: not responding to some influence or
stimulus
66. unrestrained
Def: marked by uncontrolled excitement or
emotion
67. unruly
Def: noisy and lacking in restraint or discipline
68. unsavory
Def: morally offensive
69. unscathed
Def: not injured
70. unscheduled
Def: not scheduled or not on a regular schedule
71. unseemly
Def: not in keeping with accepted standards of
what is right or proper in polite society
72. unsightly
Def: unpleasant to look at
73. unspecified
Def: not stated explicitly or in detail
74. unstable
Def: highly or violently reactive
75. unsullied
Def: (of reputation) free from blemishes
76. untenable
Def: (of theories etc) incapable of being
defended or justified
77. untoward
Def: not in keeping with accepted standards of
what is right or proper in polite society
78. unveil
Def: make visible
79. unwarranted
Def: without a basis in reason or fact
80. unwavering
Def: marked by firm determination or resolution;
not shakable
81. unwieldy
Def: lacking grace in movement or posture
82. unwitting
Def: not aware or knowing
83. unwonted
Def: out of the ordinary
84. unyielding
Def: resistant to physical force or pressure
85. upbraid
Def: express criticism towards
86. upbringing
Def: helping someone grow up to be an accepted
member of the community

170

87. upheaval
Def: disturbance usually in protest
88. uphold
Def: stand up for; stick up for; of causes,
principles, or ideals
89. uproarious
Def: uncontrollably noisy
90. upshot
Def: a phenomenon that follows and is caused by
some previous phenomenon
91. urban
Def: located in or characteristic of a city or city
life
92. urbane
Def: showing a high degree of refinement and the
assurance that comes from wide social experience
93. urchin
Def: poor and often mischievous city child
94. usurp
Def: seize and take control without authority and
possibly with force; take as one's right or
possession
95. usury
Def: the act of lending money at an exorbitant
rate of interest
96. utilitarian
Def: having utility often to the exclusion of
values
97. utility
Def: the quality of being of practical use
98. utopian
Def: characterized by or aspiring to impracticable
perfection
99. utter
Def: express in speech
100. uxorious
Def: foolishly fond of or submissive to your wife


ubiquitous
It's everywhere! It's everywhere! When something seems like it's present in all places at the same time, reach
for the adjective ubiquitous.
"Cities like Singapore aim to cloak themselves in ubiquitous, free Wi-Fi in the next few years," The Wall Street
Journal reported recently meaning that those savvy Singaporeans will find a wireless connection everywhere
they go. The word, comes from the Latin ubique, meaning you guessed it "everywhere." The usual
pronunciation is "yoo-BIK-wih-tihs," but Joseph Heller must have had the older variant "ooh-BIK-wih-tihs" in
mind when he wrote in Catch-22 that a character "padded through the shadows fruitlessly like an ubiquitous
spook."

171

DEFINITIONS OF: ubiquitous
1
adj being present everywhere at once
Synonyms:
omnipresent
present
being or existing in a specified place
Learn Add to List... Thesaurus
WORD FAMILY
ubiquitous
ubiquity
ubiquitous
the "ubiquity" family
USAGE EXAMPLES




1. vacate
Def: leave (a job, post, or position) voluntarily
Ex: Their number diminished sharply after
Villaraigosa announced last week that he wanted
protesters to vacate the grounds by Monday or be
forcibly removed.

2. vacillate
Def: be undecided about something; waver
between conflicting positions or courses of action
Ex: But the old Napoleon was no more;
vacillating almost as if in partial catalepsy,
murmuring empty phrases in quick, indistinct
utterance, he refused to decide.

3. vacuous
Def: devoid of intelligence
Ex: Why had his brain and senses lain fallow all
these months, a vacuous vegetation, an empty
consciousness?

4. vagary
Def: an unexpected and inexplicable change in
something (in a situation or a person's behavior,
etc.)
Ex: Nick Campbell, from energy consultancy
Inenco, argues that relying more on LNG opens up
the UK to the vagaries and volatility of global
gas demand.

5. vagrant

172

Def: a wanderer who has no established residence
or visible means of support
Ex: Many of them refused to own houses or any
dwelling place, and wandered about as vagrants
and beggars.

6. vague
Def: lacking clarity or distinctness
Ex: The terms are all widely used, but their
connotation is vague and uncertain.

7. vain
Def: unproductive of success
Ex:I entreated, scolded, cursed, but all in vain; she
let me go on, and answered not a word.

8. vainglorious
Def: feeling self-importance
Ex: Though vainglorious and arrogant, he
conducted the defence of Acre with sound judgment
as well as with energy and courage.

9. valedictory
Def: of or relating to an occasion or expression of
farewell
Ex: He was graduated in 1828, on which
occasion he delivered the valedictory oration.

10. valiant
Def: having or showing valor
Ex: The first time, she continued a courageous
and valiant fight.

11. valid
Def: well grounded in logic or truth or having
legal force
Ex: But the authorities said that license was not
valid in New York.

12. validate
Def: prove valid; show or confirm the validity of
something
Ex: "If our findings are validated, coffee could
represent one modifiable factor that may lower the
risk of developing the most harmful form of
prostate cancer."

13. valor
Def: the qualities of a hero or heroine;
exceptional or heroic courage when facing danger
(especially in battle)
Ex: Many had seen and spoken to the young
hero, and all related his prodigies of valor.

14. vanguard
Def: any creative group active in the innovation
and application of new concepts and techniques in a
given field (especially in the arts)
Ex: Panicked curators, artistic directors and art
critics are warning of London's potential fall from
the vanguard of the global arts scene.

15. vanity

173

Def: the trait of being unduly vain and conceited;
false pride
Ex: Slowly I turned to look at Silver Heels, all
my vanity, conceit, and condescension vanished.

16. vanquish
Def: come out better in a competition, race, or
conflict
Ex: The unconquerable Argonne had been
conquered; a ruthless enemy was vanquished.

17. vantage
Def: place or situation affording some advantage
(especially a comprehensive view or commanding
perspective)
Ex: But when he pulled out a telephoto lens, he
was able to negotiate a better and closer
vantage point.

18. vapid
Def: lacking significance or liveliness or spirit or
zest
Ex: No, ladies and gentlemen, do not let us be
discouraged or deceived by any fine, vapid, empty
words.

19. variable
Def: a quantity that can assume any of a set of
values
Ex: He created a math model of a human being
and then plugged in all the variables height,
weight, food intake, exercise.

20. variegated
Def: having a variety of colors
Ex: In domesticated animals, from causes
apparently not as yet traced, the colour is
variegated and various.

21. varying
Def: marked by diversity or difference
Ex: National central banks do make disclosures,
but in varying formats and with differing
frequencies and delays.

22. vassal
Def: a person holding a fief; a person who owes
allegiance and service to a feudal lord
Ex: Second, the vassals, who rendered service to
those from whom they held their lands.

23. vast
Def: unusually great in size or amount or degree
or especially extent or scope
Ex: Vast amounts of natural gas in shale rock
formations have been unlocked by improved
drilling techniques, making the fuel cheap and
plentiful across the U.S.

24. vault
Def: a strongroom or compartment (often made
of steel) for safekeeping of valuables
Ex: Banks also offer investors the opportunity to
buy shares of gold bars kept in their vaults.

25. vaunt
Def: show off

174

Ex: He is not so foolish as to be puffed up, nor
does he vaunt himself nor boast.

26. veer
Def: turn sharply; change direction abruptly
Ex: The day before Christmas the west wind
suddenly veered round northward.

27. vegetate
Def: engage in passive relaxation
Ex: Others vegetated around the hotel, a rare
luxury, to rest tired muscles and frayed nerves.

28. vehement
Def: marked by extreme intensity of emotions or
convictions; inclined to react violently; fervid
Ex: He rushed into his arms with an expression
of the most vehement joy; the other was delighted,
but not astonished, at meeting him so suddenly.

29. velocity
Def: distance travelled per unit time
Ex: His velocity was fine, hitting 97 mph on the
radar gun in the fifth inning.

30. venal
Def: capable of being corrupted
Ex: It was still more creditable to him, that in
such venal and corrupt days he maintained his
integrity perfectly unsullied.

31. vendetta
Def: a feud in which members of the opposing
parties murder each other
Ex: They are usually engaged in some vendetta
between rival factions, or families, and blood is
frequently shed.

32. vendor
Def: someone who promotes or exchanges goods
or services for money
Ex: A street vendor sells Senegalese
newspapers commemorating the presidential
elections.

33. veneer
Def: coating consisting of a thin layer of superior
wood glued to a base of inferior wood
Ex: The inlay used was often oval in shape,
sometimes only a line and sometimes panels of
different woods or matched veneer.

34. venerable
Def: profoundly honored
Ex: Surely an Evangelical incident attested by so
many, such respectable, and such venerable
witnesses as these, is clearly above suspicion.

35. venerate
Def: regard with feelings of respect and
reverence; consider hallowed or exalted or be in
awe of
Ex: As guests of our highly respected and even
venerated host, we were visited by nearly all the
magistrates of the city.


175

36. venturesome
Def: disposed to venture or take risks
Ex: Brave, reckless, idealistic chapscareless
of peril, unafraid of deathwho deliberately sought
danger and the venturesome life as found during
the war, over there.

37. venue
Def: the scene of any event or action (especially
the place of a meeting)
Ex: By tradition Riyadh has no public
entertainment - no cinemas, theatres or music - so
the only leisure venues are shopping malls and
parks.

38. veracity
Def: unwillingness to tell lies
Ex: Professionally speaking, lawyers have been
called legal liars, but compared to stock
manipulators they are walking examples of truth
and veracity.

39. verbal
Def: of or relating to or formed from words in
general
Ex: Recognizable quotes are like verbal
shorthand, getting across in one or two sentences
what normally takes much longer to explain.

40. verbatim
Def: using exactly the same words
Ex: Hence you will need complete sentences
taken down verbatim in the exact words of the
speaker.

41. verbiage
Def: overabundance of words
Ex: An American lawyer sets forth in plain
direct language what in England would be
concealed beneath a mass of puzzling and almost
unintelligible verbiage.

42. verbose
Def: using or containing too many words
Ex: There are also other writings reported to be
his, verbose and of great length.

43. verdant
Def: characterized by abundance of verdure
Ex: Combine fresh greenery, fruit, and flowers
for a verdant centerpiece that will last throughout
the season.

44. verify
Def: confirm the truth of
Ex: The activists' account cannot be
independently verified, but twice in the past week
UN observers on the ground have corroborated
similar claims.

45. verisimilitude
Def: the appearance of truth; the quality of
seeming to be true
Ex: It has every appearance of verisimilitude:
you truly believe this woman exists and has been

176

filmed at all these various stages of her life.

46. veritable
Def: not counterfeit or copied
Ex: In Mr. Bottomley the Georgian era has
found an authentic voicea veritable interpreter.

47. verity
Def: an enduring or necessary ethical or religious
or aesthetic truth
Ex: Be investigators of reality that you may
attain the verity of truth and life.

48. vernacular
Def: being or characteristic of or appropriate to
everyday language
Ex: But being vernacular and popular in origin,
these terms cannot obtain the uniformity and
currency of literary names employed and
recognised by official authority.

49. vernal
Def: suggestive of youth; vigorous and fresh
Ex: They constitute one among many
manifestations of spring and autumn physiological
disturbance corresponding with fair precision to the
vernal and autumnal equinoxes.

50. versatile
Def: competent in many areas and able to turn
with ease from one thing to another
Ex: The scheme relies on players being versatile
and handling myriad assignments out of myriad
personnel packages.

51. vertex
Def: the point of intersection of lines or the point
opposite the base of a figure
Ex: This regular solid of four-dimensional space
consists of sixteen cells, each a regular tetrahedron,
thirty-two triangular faces, twenty-four edges and
eight vertices.

52. vertigo
Def: a reeling sensation; a feeling that you are
about to fall
Ex: A haze of orange light enveloped him, there
came a great vertigo and dizziness and pain, he felt
himself falling through bottomless spaces....

53. verve
Def: an energetic style
Ex: M'Loughlin gave us speed, dash, and verve
in our tennis.

54. vestige
Def: an indication that something has been
present
Ex: All inflammation vanished immediately and
every vestige of pain disappeared....

55. veteran
Def: a person who has served in the armed forces
Ex: The study included 182 Vietnam War
veterans who had highly localized brain damage

177

caused by penetrating head wounds.

56. veto
Def: a vote that blocks a decision
Ex: Even President Wilson could not block it,
for a two-thirds vote to overcome his veto was
mustered in Congress.

57. vex
Def: disturb the peace of mind of; afflict with
mental agitation or distress
Ex: Memory kept vexing me sorely; and I, who
seldom cried, swallowed tears behind my veil and
went along in silence.

58. vexation
Def: anger produced by some annoying irritation
Ex: The knocking and scratching indicated rage
and fury, combined with irritation and vexation on
account of having got into a scrape.

59. viable
Def: capable of being done with means at hand
and circumstances as they are
Ex: "That's a mistake that some developed
countries have made that is neither financially
viable nor providing the best care," he said.

60. vibrant
Def: vigorous and animated
Ex: Her vibrantly colored works illustrate the
evolution of funk, an African-American cultural
and work aesthetic, often sustained through music
dating back to Emancipation.

61. vicarious
Def: experienced at secondhand
Ex: Again, people who rated higher on empathy
showed greater vicarious embarrassment.

62. vice
Def: moral weakness
Ex: I do not spend on vices like smoking,
drinking or gambling, and have been completely
devoted to my family, he said in the statement.

63. vicinity
Def: a surrounding or nearby region
Ex: But she hunted around in the vicinity of the
cabin, and found some blackberry bushes that were
fairly well laden.

64. vicissitude
Def: a variation in circumstances or fortune at
different times in your life or in the development of
something
Ex: Charles Macy.An orphan at thirteen years
of age, Mr. Macy's early life was full of changes,
adventures and vicissitudes.

65. victor
Def: the contestant who wins the contest
Ex: All the contestants shall then be collected,
and every victor crowned.


178

66. vie
Def: compete for something; engage in a contest;
measure oneself against others
Ex: Monday and stretched nearly three city
blocks by the next morning, as residents vied for
one of 100 coveted spots on the complexs waiting
list.

67. vigilant
Def: carefully observant or attentive; on the
lookout for possible danger
Ex: State Department has warned Americans to
carefully consider the risks of travel to Fiji and to
be vigilant while there.

68. vignette
Def: a small illustrative sketch (as sometimes
placed at the beginning of chapters in books)
Ex: The museum sets out a selection of Civil
War era clothing in vignettes depicting women at
work on their Sanitary Commission projects.

69. vigorous
Def: characterized by forceful and energetic
action or activity
Ex: The overall arc and momentum sometimes
felt distorted, but Ms. Lims intellectual analysis
and emotional engagement resulted in fresh,
vigorous interpretations.

70. vile
Def: morally reprehensible
Ex: He met a pious little girl, whose feelings he
tried to wound by using vile and sinful language.

71. vilify
Def: spread negative information about
Ex: In this particular article every action of
Marys life is construed unfavorably, and her
character shamefully vilified.

72. villain
Def: the principal bad character in a film or work
of fiction
Ex: The hero passes through thrilling adventures
in his endeavours to rescue his betrothed from the
hands of an unscrupulous villain.

73. vindicate
Def: clear of accusation, blame, suspicion, or
doubt with supporting proof
Ex: They were later vindicated when wiretaps
played in court proved they were framed by police
and corrupt businessmen.

74. vindictive
Def: showing malicious ill will and a desire to
hurt; motivated by spite
Ex: There arent any vindictive contestants
stabbing nicer ones in the back.

75. vintage
Def: the oldness of wines

179

Ex: Progress is counted by the annual vintage,
and the best wines mature over decades, not years.

76. virtual
Def: being actually such in almost every respect
Ex: The public opinion polls, which registered a
virtual dead heat in recent months, are beginning to
inch in his favor.

77. virtue
Def: any admirable quality or attribute
Ex: In my defense, there are virtues to being the
new guy Im seeing the world through fresh
eyes.

78. virtuoso
Def: someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any
field
Ex: As a virtuoso I think Liszt stood above
Rubinstein, for his playing must have possessed
amazing, dazzling qualities.

79. virulent
Def: extremely poisonous or injurious; producing
venom
Ex: It is an unusually virulent cancer of white
blood cells that are overproduced in bone marrow
and invade other parts of the body.

80. visage
Def: the human face (`kisser' and `smiler' and
`mug' are informal terms for `face' and `phiz' is
British)
Ex: Some patients want surgeons to dig deeper,
cutting away at bones underneath their faces to
create a more perfect visage.

81. viscera
Def: internal organs collectively (especially those
in the abdominal cavity)
Ex: The viscera are the soft internal organs
especially in the abdominal and thoracic cavities.

82. visceral
Def: obtained through intuition rather than from
reasoning or observation
Ex: It was an overwhelming feeling a
brutally visceral response heartfelt and
unmediated by my training or my feminist pro-
choice politics, she wrote.

83. viscid
Def: having the sticky properties of an adhesive
Ex: This species has a cap two to four inches
broad, viscid or sticky when moist.

84. vital
Def: performing an essential function in the
living body
Ex: Shanahan passed out, his vital signs quit, his
heart stopped beating for a half minute, and a priest
gave him last rites.

85. vitality
Def: the property of being able to survive and
grow

180

Ex: Notwithstanding these evidences of vitality,
Catharism was rapidly dying out.

86. vitiate
Def: corrupt morally or by intemperance or
sensuality
Ex: He thought that trial down there, before
partisan juries and biased judges, would be a farce
which vitiated the whole spirit of justice.

87. vitreous
Def: relating to or resembling or derived from or
containing glass
Ex: On the one hand, some are completely
vitreous, like obsidian, which is a natural glass.

88. vitriolic
Def: harsh or corrosive in tone
Ex: At Rushs urging, hundreds of people
flooded her with hateful, vitriolic emails.

89. vituperative
Def: marked by harshly abusive criticism
Ex: Much as she obviously condemned me,
there was no noisy recrimination, no violent
vituperative outburst on her part.

90. vivacious
Def: vigorous and animated
Ex: He adds: For the rest, he seemed
intelligent, vehement, vivacious and full of life.

91. vivid
Def: evoking lifelike images within the mind
Ex: Indeed, the footage was vivid, with grass
blades, facial lines and soaring mountains appearing
luminous and pronounced.

92. vocation
Def: the particular occupation for which you are
trained
Ex: Indeed even some who have more than
served time in that capacity will admit that it is a
dangerous employment, profession, or vocation.

93. vociferous
Def: conspicuously and offensively loud; given
to vehement outcry
Ex: The complaints grew so loud and vociferous
that even President Obama was forced to address
the backlash from Lisbon on Saturday.

94. void
Def: an empty area or space
Ex: His departure leaves a void in Detroit, a
piece of bedrock gone, sort of like waking up to
find the Detroit River gone.

95. volatile
Def: a volatile substance; a substance that
changes readily from solid or liquid to a vapor
Ex: The company also said it expects continuing
challenging conditions including political and
economic instability and volatile raw-material
prices.


181

96. voluble
Def: marked by a ready flow of speech
Ex: He seemed genuinely surprised, and though
normally voluble, he was too overcome to speak.

97. voluminous
Def: large in number or quantity (especially of
discourse)
Ex: So varied and voluminous are the writings
of Mr. Stockton, they may be grouped as Juveniles,
Novels, Novelettes and Collected Short Stories.

98. voracious
Def: devouring or craving food in great quantities
Ex: In an interview, Ms. Scott said Mr. Rich was
a voracious reader, driven throughout his life by a
hunger for stories.

99. vortex
Def: a powerful circular current of water (usually
the result of conflicting tides)
Ex: Where they came together was a whirlpool,
a tremendous vortex that hushed all surrounding
Nature.

100. vulnerable
Def: capable of being wounded or hurt
Ex: In high-intensity exercise like football, a
player's kidneys are continuously working hard,
making them more vulnerable to damage from
strong drugs.



182

1. wade
Def: walk (through relatively shallow water)
Ex: At times it was even needful to take out the
loads and, wading knee-deep in the ice-cold waters,
drag the boats across the many shoals.

2. waffle
Def: pancake batter baked in a waffle iron
Ex: Emmy Lou getting down from the breakfast
table, her still unfinished waffle abandoned for all
time now, was dumbfounded.

3. waft
Def: be driven or carried along, as by the air
Ex: We were again wafted through the air, and
were once more moving over the tops of countless
houses on the way.

4. waggish
Def: witty or joking
Ex: Dinner, however, came, and the little
waggish doctor could not, for the life of him, avoid
his jokes.

5. waif
Def: a homeless child especially one forsaken or
orphaned
Ex: Had they not been poor children, little
waifs, they would not have been locked in the cabin
to perish like rats.

6. wail
Def: a cry of sorrow and grief
Ex: Is our house going to be covered in mud
forever? she wailed, tears streaming down her
cheeks.

7. waive
Def: do without or cease to hold or adhere to
Ex: Before Australian authorities would release
Watson to the United States, Alabama had to agree
to waive the death penalty as a possible
punishment, prosecutors said.

8. waiver
Def: a formal written statement of relinquishment
Ex: The new federal health care law prohibits
lowering Medicaid eligibility, and only a few states
have received waivers to do so on a limited basis.

9. wallow
Def: devote oneself entirely to something;
indulge in to an immoderate degree, usually with
pleasure
Ex: It was a crushing blow, but instead of
wallowing in depression and giving up on being
active, Irish started biking more.

10. wan
Def: lacking vitality as from weariness or illness
or unhappiness

183

Ex: Tom was leaning back, pale and exhausted,
his breath was short, his face gray, wan and wasted.

11. wanderlust
Def: very strong or irresistible impulse to travel
Ex: Perhaps a trip like this would have satisfied
his wanderlust.

12. wane
Def: a gradual decline (in size or strength or
power or number)
Ex: Indias biggest producer, reported an 89
percent decline in second-quarter group profit
because of waning demand and higher raw material
costs at its European operations.

13. wangle
Def: an instance of accomplishing something by
scheming or trickery
Ex: You went sick When orders looked
unwholesome: then, with trick And lie, you
wangled home.

14. wanton
Def: spend wastefully
Ex: A hundred eighty days continuous feast He
has oppressed the people of his rule With drunken
revels and with wanton waste.

15. warble
Def: sing or play with trills, alternating with the
half note above or below
Ex: Any singer who could warble away at runs
and trills was a great artist.

16. wardrobe
Def: collection of clothing belonging to one
person
Ex: Betty wore amazingly costly clothes, paying
for a single dress far more than for her year's
wardrobe in Rhode Island.

17. warrant
Def: show to be reasonable or provide adequate
ground for
Ex: An inmate needs additional evidence of a
separate constitutional violation to warrant a
federal courts involvement, the high court ruled.

18. warranty
Def: a written assurance that some product or
service will be provided or will meet certain
specifications
Ex: Such sales to investors typically came with
promises, known as representations and
warranties, to buy back defective loans.

19. warren
Def: a series of connected underground tunnels
occupied by rabbits
Ex: Their entrances were cunningly contrived to
look like rabbit holes, so that strangers might think
they led to nothing more than some sandy warren.

20. wary
Def: openly distrustful and unwilling to confide

184

Ex: Many chronic homeless people, however,
after years on the street, become wary of shelters
and sleeping near others.

21. watershed
Def: the entire geographical area drained by a
river and its tributaries; an area characterized by all
runoff being conveyed to the same outlet
Ex: The Coles Hill watershed eventually drains
into the drinking water supply for coastal cities.

22. waver
Def: be unsure or weak
Ex: Those among the tribes who had thus far
stood neutral, wavering between the French and
English, now hesitated no longer.

23. wax
Def: go up or advance
Ex: Carols had existed for centuries, though
their popularity waxed and waned as different
governments and religious movements periodically
declared them sinful.

24. waylay
Def: wait in hiding to attack
Ex: Some of them even waited until I ventured
from the house, and waylaid me on the road.

25. wayward
Def: resistant to guidance or discipline
Ex: Substance addiction and wayward
behaviour are not unheard of in someone with such
a stormy family background.

26. wean
Def: gradually deprive (infants and young
mammals) of mother's milk
Ex: If the mother becomes pregnant it will be
necessary to wean, because pregnancy invariably
affects the quality of the milk.

27. weary
Def: physically and mentally fatigued
Ex: The tired, wearied, exhausted cattle refused
to struggle through the snow-mountains any longer.

28. welfare
Def: governmental provision of economic
assistance to persons in need
Ex: High welfare costs in an impoverished
country also ensure that the government does not
have enough funds to spend on primary education
and infrastructure.

29. welter
Def: a confused multitude of things
Ex: Of the nonseafood starters, artichoke hearts
were slightly lost in a welter of cherry peppers,
cubed eggplant, pine nuts and bits of chvre.

30. wend
Def: direct one's course or way
Ex: I thought a night of peace and quietness
preferable, although perhaps very unsportsmanlike,

185

and so we wended our way homeward.

31. wharf
Def: a platform built out from the shore into the
water and supported by piles; provides access to
ships and boats
Ex: They would wonder why she was not on the
wharf when the boat got in, to meet them.

32. wheedle
Def: influence or urge by gentle urging,
caressing, or flattering
Ex: Horace knew exactly the right way to
wheedle his mother, and very soon persuaded her to
allow them to start on their expedition.

33. whelp
Def: young of any of various canines such as a
dog or wolf
Ex: The wolf must have had several litters of
whelps during the six or seven years that the boy
was with her.

34. whet
Def: make keen or more acute
Ex: How good that dinner did smell to the
hungry boys with appetites whetted by exercise in
the keen air!

35. whiff
Def: perceive by inhaling through the nose
Ex: Perhaps he had even got a whiff of the
sweet on the spring air, and his nose had told him
what was going on.

36. whim
Def: a sudden desire
Ex: Too many frivolous youngsters were falling
in love and eloping on a whim, only to have their
marriages end in divorce.

37. whimsical
Def: determined by chance or impulse or whim
rather than by necessity or reason
Ex: Norway has bragged about her prerogatives
without any feeling of responsibility, like an
unreasoning whimsical child.

38. whit
Def: a tiny or scarcely detectable amount
Ex: Now, we are exactly what and where we
used to be: not a whit wiser nor better, poorer nor
prouder.

39. whittle
Def: cut small bits or pare shavings from
Ex:"Too bad your horse fell," he remarked stupidly,
gathering up the handful of shavings he had
whittled from a piece of pine board.

40. wholly
Def: to a complete degree or to the full or entire
extent (`whole' is often used informally for
`wholly')
Ex: Dalmatia has been possessed wholly or in
part by Romans, Goths, Slavs, Hungarians, Turks,

186

Venetians.

41. whorl
Def: a round shape formed by a series of
concentric circles (as formed by leaves or flower
petals)
Ex: Univalves are conical and spiraling, with a
series of whorls coming down like widening steps
from the tiny nucleus on top.

42. widespread
Def: distributed over a considerable extent
Ex: As more women share their experiences, it
is clear how widespread domestic violence is,
cutting across community, caste and economic
lines.

43. wield
Def: handle effectively
Ex: much better at wielding a hammer to crack
open a nut.

44. willful
Def: done by design
Ex: It was a plain case of willful, deliberate and
premeditated murder.

45. wily
Def: marked by skill in deception
Ex: "Thank you, my kind friend;" and the wily
villain continued his deceiving tale, with an
eloquence we will not trouble ourselves to repeat.

46. wince
Def: the facial expression of sudden pain
Ex: His fingers buried themselves in Merediths
shoulder, till the pale face winced with pain.

47. windfall
Def: a sudden happening that brings good fortune
(as a sudden opportunity to make money)
Ex: House prices doubled in the golden decade
but that unearned windfall for the lucky generation
went untaxed.

48. winnow
Def: the act of separating grain from chaff
Ex: Mr. Thompson winnowed out the chaff
from the heap, and has given us the golden grain in
this volume.

49. winsome
Def: charming in a childlike or naive way
Ex: She was an awkward-looking girl about
fourteen, all arms and elbows, but with a rather
winsome face lighted by big, serious eyes.

50. wispy
Def: thin and weak
Ex: He was a little dark man, with a very big
forehead, thin, wispy hair, and sad, large eyes.

51. wistful
Def: showing pensive sadness

187

Ex: She watched the firelight dancing on Al's
sombre face, softening its hardness, making it
almost wistful when he gazed thoughtfully into the
coals.

52. wistfully
Def: in a wistful manner
Ex: While deeply absorbed in sad reflection,
Dorothy stole to his side and, looking up, wistfully,
in his face, said: Dear papa, isnt mama here,
either?

53. wit
Def: a message whose ingenuity or verbal skill or
incongruity has the power to evoke laughter
Ex: So saying, the duke, as if charmed with his
own wit, burst into a loud and long peal of laughter.

54. withdraw
Def: remove (a commodity) from (a supply
source)
Ex: As most shops and businesses stayed closed
in Cairo, people rushed to withdraw money from
bank cash machines.

55. withdrawal
Def: the act of ceasing to participate in an activity
Ex: Starting in the early 20th century, another
key factor in diagnosing addiction was the
occurrence of physical withdrawal symptoms upon
quitting the substance in question.

56. withdrawn
Def: tending to reserve or introspection
Ex: But they were worried that their son, whose
sister was eight years younger, was too solitary and
withdrawn.

57. wither
Def: wither, as with a loss of moisture
Ex: While summer withered some crops, a
hillside dip or rock outcropping might shelter just
enough moisture for other plants to survive.

58. withered
Def: lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age
or illness
Ex: My old, withered, dry eyes are full of tears
yet.

59. withhold
Def: retain and refrain from disbursing; of
payments
Ex: David A. Paterson, arguing that his decision
to unilaterally withhold hundreds of millions of
dollars in scheduled payments to school districts
violated New Yorks Constitution.

60. withstand
Def: resist or confront with resistance
Ex: Winter is coming and the scramble is on to
amass enough warm sleeping bags and clothing so
that the occupiers could withstand below freezing
temperatures.

61. witless
Def: (of especially persons) lacking sense or
understanding or judgment

188

Ex: Wah! they were like a flock of sheep,
witless, huddling together, springing this way and
that without any sense.

62. witticism
Def: a message whose ingenuity or verbal skill or
incongruity has the power to evoke laughter
Ex: We laughed amazingly at your
epigrammatic witticisms; your reputation is already
established here.

63. witty
Def: combining clever conception and facetious
expression
Ex: "I accept the augury," cried Frederick,
laughing heartily at the witty misapplication of the
phrase, and resumed his seat once more.

64. wizardry
Def: exceptional creative ability
Ex: When it came to word wizardry, he had
Billy Sunday, master of slang and argot of one
language, skinned by miles.

65. wizened
Def: lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age
or illness
Ex: Old Harry grinned, crinkling up his wizened
face in a mass of fine wrinkles.

66. woe
Def: misery resulting from affliction
Ex: Big businesses that have gone bankrupt:
Facing scandal, shrinking profits or other woes,
these big-name firms have filed for Chapter 11
bankruptcy in recent months.

67. wondrous
Def: extraordinarily good or great ; used
especially as intensifiers
Ex: Looking at his work now, though, it strikes
me that what he actually did, more often than not,
was make the commonplace wondrous and
beautiful.

68. wont
Def: an established custom
Ex: In the queens time he was wont to go out of
town every Saturday at ten oclock, or on holiday
eves.

69. worldly
Def: characteristic of or devoted to the temporal
world as opposed to the spiritual world
Ex: Not far away were all their worldly
possessions, a rusty stove, two cots, bedding and a
box of cooking pans.

70. wraith
Def: a mental representation of some haunting
experience
Ex: R. R. is dead, thank God, and her unhappy
wraith will haunt your path no more.

71. wrangle

189

Def: an instance of intense argument (as in
bargaining)
Ex: Their women are quarrelsome, and wrangle
over payment when selling their wares.

72. wrath
Def: intense anger (usually on an epic scale)
Ex: Wrath differs from anger in so far as it
may be called anger boiling over.

73. wreak
Def: cause to happen or to occur as a
consequence
Ex: Giant solar storms can wreak havoc on
satellites and power grids.

74. wrench
Def: a hand tool that is used to hold or twist a nut
or bolt
Ex: The housewife watched him as he gave the
nut a final twist with his wrench and stood up.

75. wrest
Def: obtain by seizing forcibly or violently, also
metaphorically
Ex: The crazed strikers fought without weapons,
except such as they could wrest from the soldiers.

76. wretched
Def: deserving or inciting pity
Ex: She says, No. Do have pityI am so
wretched; it is only a little favour I ask of you.

77. wring
Def: twist, squeeze, or compress in order to
extract liquid
Ex: When it had been finished, everyone was, in
spite of slickers and gas suits, so drenched that
water could be wrung out of every garment.

78. writ
Def: (law) a legal document issued by a court or
judicial officer
Ex: The court publicly decided against the writs
but secretly issued them.

79. writhe
Def: to move in a twisting or contorted motion,
(especially when struggling)
Ex: His writhing, squirming twists would have
made a circus contortionist gasp.

80. wrought
Def: shaped to fit by or as if by altering the
contours of a pliable mass (as by work or effort)
Ex: Forging and Welding.The process of
pressing or hammering wrought iron when at a red
or white heat into any desired shape is called
forging.

81. wry
Def: humorously sarcastic or mocking

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Ex: Matthew and Jonathan were trying to outwit
each other, while Andrew, the oldest, looked on
with a wry smile meant to trump all sarcasm.

82. xenophobia
Def: a fear of foreigners or strangers
Ex: Some fear a return of the xenophobia that
led to violent attacks on foreigners two years ago.

83. yahoo
Def: a person who is not very intelligent or
interested in culture
Ex: What I wanted to bring to your
distinguished notice is thisthat you must not
behave like a yahoo in my mathematical set.

84. yearn
Def: desire strongly or persistently
Ex: Now and then there is an extreme
individualist who yearns to go through life
absolutely unmolested, single file.

85. yearning
Def: prolonged unfulfilled desire or need
Ex: Each generation of foxes grew more
approachable, many showing doglike yearning for
human contact.

86. yelp
Def: a sharp high-pitched cry (especially by a
dog)
Ex: While faintly heard from somewhere outside
there was the yelping, barking, howling whine of a
dog.

87. yen
Def: the basic unit of money in Japan; equal to
100 sen
Ex: In the last decade, most major coinages have
been faked, including British pounds, Russian
rubles, Indian rupees, Japanese yen, and Canadian
dollars.

88. yeoman
Def: in former times was free and cultivated his
own land
Ex: On one extreme was the well-to-do yeoman
farmer farming his own land.

89. yield
Def: give or supply
Ex: Cotton and coffee are both indigenous, the
former yielding two crops per year.

90. yoke
Def: become joined or linked together
Ex: The reason was that it had been found
unwise and unwholesome to mix up or yoke
together believers and unbelievers.*

91. yokel
Def: a person who is not very intelligent or
interested in culture
Ex: Now, poor people, yokels, clods, cannot
love what is incomprehensible to them.


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92. yonder
Def: distant but within sight (`yon' is dialectal)
Ex: Yonder, said he, pointing to some
distance down the river.

93. yore
Def: time long past
Ex: Yore, long ago; generally used in the
expression "of yore," formerly, once upon a time.

94. zany
Def: ludicrous, foolish
Ex: Style: Pleasantly earnest overall; on
occasion displayed his goofy and zany side.

95. zeal
Def: a feeling of strong eagerness (usually in
favor of a person or cause)
Ex: While many states, particularly in the West,
have nonrestrictive gun laws, Arizonas zeal for
weapons has often made headlines.

96. zealot
Def: a fervent and even militant proponent of
something
Ex: Finally having conquered his irritable bowel
syndrome, he worked out like a zealot all winter,
adding about 17 pounds of solid muscle.

97. zealous
Def: marked by active interest and enthusiasm
Ex: "You are so willing and zealous; but for that
very reason I must guard against your enthusiasm
carrying you too far."

98. zenith
Def: the point above the observer that is directly
opposite the nadir on the imaginary sphere against
which celestial bodies appear to be projected
Ex: Zenith, the point in the celestial sphere
directly overhead.

99. zephyr
Def: a slight wind (usually refreshing)
Ex: Nor I. On the contrary, all the allusions to
the winds are of the gentler kind,"balmy
Zephyrs," "whispering breezes" and so forth.

100. zest
Def: vigorous and enthusiastic enjoyment
Ex: So I pursued my studies with zest and
unabated enthusiasm.