word definition

Abasement humiliation; degradation

Abhor hate

Abrasive rough; coarse; harsh

Abridge shorten

Abrogate cancel; deny; repeal

Absolution forgiveness; pardon; release

Abstain desist; go without; withdraw

Abstemious holding back from eating or drinking too much

Abstemious self denying; refraining from indulging

Abstruse difficult to understand; obscure

Accessible available; ready for use

Acclaim to express strong approval or praise; hail

Accolade tribute; honor; praise

Acoustics the quality of sound, pertaining to how it is heard based on the quality and structure of the room

Acquiesce to agree to; give in to

Acrid sharp; pungent (used of smells and tastes)

Acrid bitter, harsh

Acrophobia fear of heights

Acuity sharpness (mental or visual)

Acute keen-minded; sharp

Adamant unwilling to bend; unyielding

Adamant forceful; inflexible

Adept Very skilled, able, or proficient.

Adroit skilful

Adulate to praise or flatter too greatly; fawn over

Adulation strong admiration; worship

Adversary an opponent

Adversity great trouble or difficulty

Adversity hardship

Advocate One who acts in support or defense of a person or cause.

Advocate support

Aesthetic Pertaining to what is considered beautiful or tasteful.

Aesthetic concerning art or beauty

Aesthetic having to do with artistic beauty

Affable easy to talk to; easy to approach, friendly; kind; amiable

yellow bold

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those that

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SAT

Affable friendly; social; easygoing

Aggregate a sum total or mixture

Alacrity eagerness; enthusiasm; quickness

Alchemy medieval chemistry; attempt to change base metal into gold

Alibi an excuse that shows someone was not at a crime scene

Alimentary relating to food and nourishment

Allay to lessen fear; to calm; to relieve pain

Allay to lessen

Alleviate to lessen pain or tension

Alleviate make less severe

Allusion an indirect reference, often to literature

Aloof distant; detached; cold

Aloof uninterested; showing no concern; emotionally removed or distant

Altruism putting others first; being self-sacrificing

Altruistic showing an unselfish concern for others

Amass accumulate

Ambiguity uncertainty; vagueness

Ambiguous unclear in meaning; can be interpreted in different ways

Ambiguous hard to understand; unclear; open to more than one interpretation

Ambivalence lack of clarity; wavering; being undecided

Ambivalent having conflicting feelings or opinions about something; unsure

Ambulatory able to walk around (used of hospital patients)

Ameliorate to make better; to lessen pain, difficulty, or tension

Ameliorate make better

Amelioration improvement

Amiable friendly

Amiable friendly, kind

Amicable showing goodwill; peaceable

Amity friendship

Amorphous lacking in shape

Ample abundant; plentiful; enough or more than enough

Anachronism Something out of its correct chronological or historical order.

Analgesic medicine to combat pain

Analogous comparable

Anarchy chaos; lack of government

Anecdote A short account of an interesting or humorous, often biographical, incident.

Anecdote a brief amusing story

Animosity hatred; ill will

Animosity hatred; antagonism

Annex a building which is an addition to an existing building

Annex take possession of; seize; capture

Anomaly something which does not fit in a pattern; irregularity

Antagonism hatred or hostility

Antagonism hostility; strong opposition

Antagonistic opposed; hostile; aggressive

Antediluvian very, very old; antiquated

Antediluvian outdated; prehistoric; very old-fashioned

Anthology a book which is a collection of poems or stories

Anthropocentrism putting man at the center of one's philosophy

Antidote something that relieves or prevents; a remedy that counteracts the effects of poison

Antiquated outdated; old fashioned

Antiquated very old and no longer in use; obsolete

Antiquity ancient times

Apathetic indifferent; uninterested; lethargic

Apathetic indifferent; showing no care, interest, or concern; lacking emotion

Apathy lack of interest or emotion

Apocryphal of doubtful origin

Appease pacify; soothe; calm down; make peace with

Appease to make tranquil or quiet, especially by giving into demands; to pacify

Apprehensive Uneasy, anxious, or fearful about the future; quick to understand or learn.

Apprehensive worried; fearful

Arable can be cultivated

Arbitrary random; for no definite reason

Arcane obscure; known only to a few people

Archaic ancient; outdated; old fashioned

Archaic old; from a much earlier time; antiquated

Archetype classic example of

Archives collections of old records; place of storage of old documents

Ardent full of passion and emotion

Arid dry, lacking water

Arrogance An offensive display of self-importance or superiority; overbearing pride.

Arrogant overbearing; proud; haughty

Articulate clear; lucid; eloquent

Artifice deception; trickery

Artisan craftsman

Artisan a person who is skillful with his or her hands

Ascetic without luxuries; severely simple

Ascetic a person who refrains from indulging in earthly pleasures

Ascetic a person who refrains from indulging in earthly pleasures

Aspire to work toward or to have a goal

Assiduous thorough; diligent

Assuage to alleviate; to lessen pain or conflict; pacify

Assuage to calm

Astute perceptive; sharp-witted

Astute sharp-minded; very clear

Asylum place of refuge or safety

Atheist person who does not believe in God

Atheistic without a belief in any god

Atrophy waste away from lack of use

Attenuate weaken

Audacious very bold

Augment increase; make bigger

Auspicious favorable; promising to turn out well

Austere having great economy; showing self-control when it comes to foregoing luxuries, frills; stern in manner

Austere severely plain

Autonomous independent

Avarice greed

Aversion a dislike of

Aviary an enclosed space for birds

Avid showing enthusiasm; ardent

Balk hinder and prevent; hesitate over

Banal dull or stale because of overuse; trite; hackneyed

Banal common; dull

Banality ordinariness; dullness

Baneful causing ruin; harmful; pernicious

Bellicose of a quarrelsome nature; eager to fight; warlike; belligerent

Belligerent taking part in war or fighting ready to fight

Benevolent giving freely and easily to others; charitable

Berate to rebuke or scold in a harsh tone

Bigot narrow-minded, prejudiced person

Bilk cheat; defraud

Billowing swelling; fluttering; waving

Blasphemy speech which offends religious sentiments

Blatant obvious

Blighted damaged; destroyed; ruined

Blithe free-spirited; carefree

Blunderbuss 1. ancient weapon (type of gun); 2. a clumsy person

Bolster support; prop up

Bolster to support; to strengthen

Bombast arrogant, pompous language

Boorish Crude, coarse, and clumsy in behavior; churlish, oafish, insensitive.

Boorish ill-mannered

Bourgeois middle class

Braggart on who boasts a great deal

Braggart someone who boasts

Brawny muscular

Brevity The quality of being brief in time or duration; concise expression.

Brevity briefness or conciseness in speech or writing

Brevity being brief

Bristle to show irritation

Broach start to discuss; approach

Brusque blunt; abrupt

Bulwark fortification; barricade; wall

Bureaucracy officialdom

Burgeon grow; flourish; put forth new shoots

Burnish polish

Buttress strengthen; support

Byline the line that tells you who wrote an article

Cacophony discordant loud noises

Cacophony lack of harmony; loud and unpleasant noise; a racket

Cajole coax

Caldron huge cooking pot

Callow immature

Candid frank; honest

Candor frankness; openness

Candor honesty, sincerity

Cantankerous bad-tempered; quarrelsome

Cantankerous bad-tempered; quarrelsome

Capacious spacious

Capitulate surrender; give in to

Captious made for the sake of quarreling; quibbling

Carping constant criticism

Cartographer person who makes maps

Castigate to scold or punish severely

Castigate scold strongly

Catharsis purging of pent-up emotions

Cathartic Delivering catharsis; emotionally purging.

Caucus type of private political meeting

Caustic burning

Cavalcade procession of vehicles

Celerity speed

Censorious disapproving; critical

Censure To express disapproval in a strong or vehement fashion; to criticize or blame.

Censure to criticize strongly

Censure blame

Cerebral intellectual

Certitude certainty

Charlatan trickster who claims knowledge he doesn't have

Charlatan a fraud; a quack or imposter

Chary wary of; cautious about; reluctant to give

Chary cautious; wary

Chastise to punish or scold harshly

Chastises punishes

Chicanery trickery

Chimerical changeable; unstable

Choleric easily angered

Chronicler person who records historical information

Circuitous indirect

Circumlocution speaking in circles; roundabout speech

Circumlocution using too many words; long-windedness

Circumscribe limit

Circumspect cautious; considering all sides

Circumspect careful and cautious before acting

Circumvent avoid

Cite To quote as an authority or example; to mention in support or confirmation.

Clairvoyant psychic; mystic

Clamor shout; scream

Clamor unpleasant sound; noise

Clandestine secret; covert; stealthy

Clandestine hidden, secret, concealed

Clemency mercy

Cliché overused expression; something unoriginal

Cliché an idea or expression that has become stale due to overuse

Clientele customers

Coalesce come together; merge

Coalesce to have different opinions join together; fuse; converge

Coalesce to come together

Coddle pamper; fuss over; indulge

Coercion force

Cogent lucid; well argued

Cogitate think over something; ponder

Collage picture made from fragments of other pictures

Collate arrange in order

Colloquial pertaining to common everyday speech; conversational

Colloquial local and informal (used of language)

Collusion plotting and planning

Commandeer take possession of

Commendable Worthy of great praise or approval.

Complacent self-satisfied; smug

Complacent self-satisfied; smug

Complementary serving to complete another

Compliant easy to control; submissive

Compliant yielding, submissive

Concatenate link together

Concatenation linking into chains

Conciliate to bring together; end a dispute

Conciliate to win a person over through special considerations or persuasive methods

Conciliatory Attempting to regain goodwill through pleasantness; accommodating.

Concise using few words in speaking and writing

Concise stated in few words

Condescend talk down to

Conflagration a huge fire, an inferno

Confounding puzzling; baffling

Congenial compatible; having kindred needs or tastes; sympathetic

Conscientious relating to doing what one knows is right; scrupulous

Consensus Majority of opinion among a group; general agreement or accord.

Consummate Complete or perfect in every respect; supremely skilled.

Contemporary modern, new; relating to the same time period

Contemptuous lacking respect; scornful

Contentious quarrelsome; belligerent

Convalesce to recover from an illness

Convivial sociable, outgoing in a festive way, especially when pertaining to eating and drinking; fond of good company

Copious abundant; much; plentiful

Cordial warm and friendly; amiable

Counterfeit fake; false

Covert hidden; undercover

Covert secret, hidden

Cower recoil in fear or servility; shrink away from

Credible believable

Creditable praiseworthy

Credulous gullible; ready to believe anything

Crepuscular active at dawn and dusk

Cringe recoil; flinch; shy away

Cryptic puzzling; enigmatic

Cryptic hidden; hard to understand; mysterious; obscure

Culinary having to do with cooking, preparing meals

Cursory Performed hastily and without attention to detail; superficial.

Curtail cut short

Cynical believing that people act only out of selfish motives

Cynical believing that all others are motivated by self-interest

Debacle a failure or breakdown; a collapse that is often nonsensical

Debility weakness; incapacity

Debunk to prove wrong or false

Debunking exposing false claims or myths

Decathlon an athletic competition with ten events

Decorum dignified, correct behavior [decorous (a)]

Decoy lure; trap; trick

Deference respect

Defiant Boldly resisting authority or an opposing force; challenging.

Defoliate cause leaves to fall off

Defunct no longer in existence

Degradation deprivation; poverty; debasement

Delectable delicious

Deleterious harmful

Deleterious harmful to one’s health or overall welfare; pernicious

Deliberate to think over deeply

Delineation demarcation; explanation; definition; outlining

Delusion a false opinion or belief

Demur hesitate; refuse

Denounce condemn; speak out against

Depict To represent or characterize in words, pictures, or sculpture.

Deplete use up; lessen

Deplore regret

Depravity moral corruption

Deprecate to show mild disapproval

Deprecate criticize; denounce; to show mild disapproval

Deride To laugh at in scorn or treat with contempt; to ridicule.

Deride ridicule; make fun of; mock

Derivative unoriginal; taken from something already existing

Derogatory uncomplimentary

Desecrate to damage or pollute a holy place

Desecration spoiling something holy

Desist stop; discontinue; cease

Despondent having no hope; miserable

Destitution hardship; poverty; misery

Detached aloof; indifferent

Deter put off; prevent

Deteriorate worsen; decline

Detrimental harmful

Detrimental harmful

Devious dishonest or deceptive

Devoured greedily eaten/consumed

Dexterous skilful with hands

Dichotomy a division into two parts

Didactic intended to teach; instructive

Diffident lacking confidence

Diffuse spread out, not concise; wordy

Digress wander off the subject

Digress to wander off from the subject or topic spoken about

Dike dam; embankment

Dilatory slow; falling behind with one's work

Dilemma puzzling situation

Dilettante person who dabbles in a subject without serious study

Diligent hard-working

Din ongoing loud sound; noise

Diorama model of a scene

Dirge mournful song

Disapprobation disapproval

Discern to distinguish one thing from another

Discerning able to judge people and situations clearly

Discord disagreement

Discordancy cacophony; harshness; jarring

Discordant lacking harmony or agreement

Discrepancy something which does not match up; inconsistency

Discrepancy a difference

Discriminate to make a clear distinction; see the difference

Discursiveness long windedness; indirectness

Disdain contempt; strong dislike

Disdainful full of bitter scorn and pride; aloof

Disinterested unbiased

Disparage To speak of with disrespect; to belittle or depreciate.

Disparage criticize; belittle

Disparity Lack of equality or similarity; difference.

Disparity an inequality

Dispassionate neutral; objective

Disputatious likely to dispute or argue

Disseminating circulating; broadcasting; spreading (information)

Diurnal active in daytime

Diva a highly skilled singer, usually an opera singer

Divert 1. entertain; 2. distract; 3. cause a detour

Docile gentle and easily lead

Dogged stubborn; determined

Dogmatic having stubbornly held opinions

Dolt stupid person

Dotard foolish old man

Drawl speak slowly with words running together

Drivel nonsense

Droll dryly amusing

Drone 1. monotonous noise (n); 2. to speak with no emotion (v); 3.male bee

Dubious doubtful

Dupe to fool someone

Dynamic lively; vibrant; energetic

Ebullient very lively; cheerful; jovial; happy

Ebullient filled with a bubbly excitement, as if boiling over with excitement

Eccentric unusual; quirky; odd

Eclectic Selecting, employing, or comprising individual elements from a wide variety of sources.

Eclectic taken from many different sources

Effervescent lively; full of uplifted spirit; vivacious

Egotistical excessively self-absorbed; very conceited

Elaborate Planned or executed with great care and attention; painstaking.

Eloquence artful ease with speaking; speech that can impact people’s feelings

Eloquent Characterized by clear, powerful, and persuasive speech.

Elucidate To make lucid or clear; to explain.

Emaciated very, very thin due to lack of adequate food

Embody To represent in bodily, material, or tangible form

Enfranchise give voting rights

Engender cause

Enhance improve; make better or clearer

Enigma puzzle; mystery

Enigma a riddle or mystery; a puzzling or baffling matter or person

Ensconce establish firmly in a position

Enshroud cover

Enunciation clear pronunciation; accent; articulation

Envenom to cause bitterness and bad feeling

Ephemeral lasting a short time; fleeting

Ephemeral short-lived

Epicure someone who appreciates good food and drink

Epicurean having to do with relishing the pleasure of eating and drinking (n. epicure)

Epistle a letter (form of communication)

Epistolary concerned with letters; through correspondence

Epitomized typified; characterized; personified

Equitable Characterized by fairness and impartiality; just or reasonable.

Equivocate speak ambiguously; avoid telling the truth

Err make a mistake

Erratic Having no fixed or regular course; wandering; lacking consistency.

Erratic wandering; irregular

Erudite wise due to much reading and studying; scholarly

Esoteric obscure and difficult to understand

Espouse promote; take up; support

Esteem to value highly; to have great regard for

Ethical Being in accordance with the rules or standards for right conduct or practice.

Etymology the study of word origins

Eulogize to praise, as in a eulogy; to say good things about

Eulogy praise

Euphemism a polite phrase to cover something unpleasant

Euphony pleasant sounds

Euphony pleasing sound

Evacuate vacate; empty; abandon

Evanescent vanishing quickly; fleeting

Exacerbate make worse

Exacting requiring a great deal of care or effort; painstaking

Exalt to praise or glorify; to lift up in status, dignity, power

Exasperated frustrated; annoyed

Exceptionable very bad (something which we should object to)

Excerpt a portion of a text or musical piece that is taken, or extracted, from the whole

Exculpate free someone from blame; pardon; acquit

Execrable very, very bad

Exegesis scholarly explanation or interpretation

Exemplary Worthy of imitation; estimable; praiseworthy.

Exemplary outstandingly good; setting a fine example

Exemplify to serve as a good example

Exhaustive complete and thorough

Exonerates acquits; absolves; removes blame

Exorcism getting free/rid of; eliminating (especially demons)

Expatriate refugee; emigrant; someone living away from his own country

Expedient convenient; practical

Expedite make faster

Exposition clear explanation

Extol praise

Extol to praise highly; laud

Extradite deport from one country back to the home country

Extraneous irrelevant

Extraneous not necessary; not an essential part; not relevant

Extrapolate extend; predict on the basis of known data

Extrinsic irrelevant; on the outside

Exuberant overflowing with vitality and good spirits

Fallacious false; untrue

Falter hesitate; waver

Fanatical obsessive; fixated

Fanatical full of great enthusiasm or devotion

Fanaticism passion; excessive devotion

Fastidious overly particular; finicky

Fastidious very attentive to detail; fussy; meticulous

Fatuous silly; foolish

Fawning gaining the favor of another by acting overly kind or by flattery

Feasible possible and practicable

Fecund fertile

Felicitous Well-suited for the occasion, appropriate; marked by good fortune.

Felicitous apt

Fervent filled with passion or intensity

Fervor passion; enthusiasm

Fickle unpredictable; whimsical; easily swayed

Finesse skill

Fitful not continuous; stopping and starting

Flagrant clearly wrong

Flamboyant showy; ornate

Flaunt show off; display in a showy manner

Fleeting short-lived

Flippant making jokes about serious matters

Florid Reddish or rosy; excessively ornate or flowery

Flout defy; reject

Flustered worked-up; not calm

Fly-By-Night unreliable; disreputable

Forensic concerned with argument or debate (esp. for legal evidence)

Fortitude bravery

Fortuitous happening by chance

Foster To promote the growth or development of; cultivate; nurture.

Fractious irritable; difficult to control

Fraudulent fake; false

Frivolous not serious

Frivolous not having substance or s sense of importance or seriousness; silly; trivial; trifling

Frugal economical; not wasting anything

Frugal careful with money; thrifty; not costly

Furrow groove

Furtive hidden and secret, sneaky

Furtive sneaky

Futile useless; hopeless

Galleon ancient type of sailing ship

Gambol frolic; leap; bound

Garble distort; confuse; muddle

Garish gaudy

Garner gather; collect

Garrulous talkative

Garrulous talkative; loquacious

Gaunt emaciated; bony and angular

Gingerly very carefully

Glacial very, very cold or very, very slow moving ( in both cases, like a glacier)

Glutton one who overindulges in food and drink

Grandiloquent using big and fancy words when speaking for the purpose of impressing others

Gratify to please or indulge

Gregarious sociable, outgoing

Hackneyed made commonplace by overuse; trite

Hamper hinder; obstruct

Hamper to hinder; to prevent something from happening

Hangar storage area (like garage) for a plane

Harangue noisy, attacking speech

Harbingers indicators; bringers of warnings

Hardy healthy and strong; robust

Hasten hurry; accelerate; rush

Haughtiness arrogance; pride

Haughty having a great pride in oneself and dislike for others

Headstrong stubborn; willful

Hedonism self indulgence; pleasure-seeking

Hedonist a pleasure seeker

Hedonist a person who lives for pleasure

Heed listen to

Heedful paying careful attention to

Heresy against orthodox opinion

Hiatus interruption; pause

Hidebound rigid in opinions

Hidebound strongly-opinionated; narrow-mindedly stubborn

Hieroglyphics 1. picture writing; 2. writing which is difficult to read or enigmatic

Hinder obstruct

Histrionic theatrical; exaggerated

Hoary old

Holistic Emphasizing the importance of the whole and the interdependence of parts.

Homogeneous of the same kind; alike; uniform

Hone sharpen; increase; whet

Hyperbole grossly exaggerated speech

Hypochondriac a person obsessed with health; having imaginary illnesses

Hypocritical insincere

Iconoclast person who opposes orthodoxy

Idiosyncrasy A habit, mannerism, or characteristic that is peculiar to an individual.

Idiosyncrasy a personal peculiarity; something unique to an individual

Ignominious shameful

Ignominy shame [ignominious (a) = shameful]

Illuminate to light up or make clear

Illusion something unreal that gives the appearance of being real

Illusory deceptive; false; misleading

Immoderate excessive; extreme

Immutable unchanging; permanent

Impartial unbiased; neutral

Impassioned filled with passionate emotion

Impassive lacking emotion or drive

Impecunious having no money

Impious wicked; profane

Impoverished destitute; poor

Impromptu unrehearsed; spontaneous

Imprudent careless; rash

Impudent rude; disrespectful

Impugn to oppose or attack someone or something as false or refutable

Inadvertent not intentional

Incantation chant; invocation; prayer

Incarceration putting in prison

Inception the start, the beginning of something

Inception the beginning; the earliest stage

Incessant without stopping

Incidental less important; minor

Incipient just beginning

Incisive sharp; keen

Inclination tendency; a leaning toward

Incoherent not clear

Incongruous not fitting in; out of place

Inconsequential unimportant; insignificant; negligible

Inconsequential irrelevant; of no significance; unimportant

Inconspicuous not easily seen; subtle; not noticeable

Inconspicuous hardly noticeable

Indelible cannot be wiped out

Indifferent 1. neutral; 2. not outstanding

Indifferent apathetic; showing little or no concern or care

Indigenous native to a particular area

Indigenous native

Indigent poor; impoverished

Indignant angry

Indolence laziness

Indolent lazy; not wanting to do any work

Inductee novice; beginner

Indulgent pampering; satisfying desires

Inebriation drunkenness; intoxication

Ineffable Defying expression or description; inexpressible.

Ineffable cannot be expressed in words

Inept incompetent; unskilled; useless

Inertia inactivity; lethargy

Inevitable cannot be avoided

Inexorable relentless

Inexpedient not advisable

Infallible perfect; flawless; cannot make mistakes

Infamous famous for something bad

Infer deduce; conclude

Ingenious very clever or inventive

Ingénue naïve, unsophisticated person

Ingrate ungrateful person

Inimical hostile

Iniquitous showing a lack of fairness; wicked; vicious

Innate inherited; inborn

Innocuous harmless; inoffensive

Innovate create; introduce something new

Innovation something new

Inscrutable mysterious; impenetrable

Insentient unfeeling

Insipid dull; bland; boring

Insipid lacking flavor or taste; unexciting

Insolent boldly disrespectful in speech or behavior; rude

Instigate to start; provoke

Instigator troublemaker; person who entices others to do something

Insuperable unable to be overcome

Insurgent a rebel

Integrity holding firmly to values, such as honesty; completeness

Intemperate Given to or characterized by excessive indulgence; not moderate

Interminable never-ending

Intermittent sporadic; irregular

Intimate to suggest; to hint at

Intimidate to frighten; to hint at

Intractable stubborn; hard to manage

Intransigence stubbornness

Intransigent stubborn; unyielding

Intrepid brave

Intrepid fearless

Inveterate habitual

Invidious arousing envy

Irrelevant not relating to the matter at hand

Irreverent Showing lack of due respect; impertinent; satirical.

Itinerant wandering about; tending to move around, travel

Jocular liking to be with people, joke around with them and have fun

Judicious showing wisdom in judging people and situations

Kindle to start a fire

Knotty complex; difficult to solve

Labyrinth a maze

Labyrinth a maze from which it is very hard to extricate (free) oneself

Labyrinthine complicated; highly convoluted

Laceration a cut

Lachrymose tearful; sad

Lackluster dull; monotonous; bland

Lackluster lacking vitality, energy, or brightness; boring

Laconic using few words; brief; to the point

Laconic  using few words in speech

Lament To feel or express grief or regret; to mourn for.

Lamentation expression of regret or sorrow

Lampoon ridicule; spoof

Lance spear; spike; javelin

Languid tired; slow

Languish decay; fade away; get weaker

Languor weak or lifeless feeling

Larceny theft; robbery; stealing

Largess generous giving

Largess generosity

Lassitude a tired feeling, usually resulting from depression or too much work

Laud praise

Laud to praise; extol

Laudatory Containing or expressing praise

Lavish generous in giving to others or in spending money

Lavish on a grand scale; wasteful

Lavish abundant; in excess

Lax careless; not strict

Legend 1. key to map; 2. myth or story

Legion in large numbers

Lethargic tired; without energy

Lethargic having little or no energy

Levity lightheartedness; gaiety; carefree disposition, particularly when not appropriate

Levity flippancy; joking about serious matters

Libertarian someone who opposes tyranny

Linger to hang around; to stay

Liniment soothing lotion

Listless lacking interest in something, usually because of illness, fatigue, or general sadness; spiritless

Lithe flexible; supple

Lithe nimble and flexible

Livid very angry

Lobbyist person who tries to persuade someone to support a particular cause

Lofty snooty; arrogant; haughty

Lofty very high; towering; grand or noble

Longevity long life

Loquacious very talkative; liking to talk; garrulous

Loquacious talkative

Lucid Clear; rational; sane; easily understood

Lucid clear

Ludicrous ridiculous; silly

Lukewarm 1. unenthusiastic; 2. neither hot nor cold

Lummox clumsy person

Luscious juicy; moist; succulent

Lynch assassinate; kill; illegal hanging

Machinations plots and plans

Maelstrom whirlpool; storm in the ocean

Magnanimous Generous in forgiving; unselfish; free of resentment

Magnanimous generous in overlooking insult or injury by others; rising above pettiness

Magnanimous generous; big-hearted

Magnate powerful businessman

Maladroit clumsy; unskillful

Malady illness

Malediction a curse

Malefactor a wrong-doer

Malicious intending to hurt of harm another; spiteful

Malinger deliberately avoid work; shirk

Malingerer person who deliberately tries to avoid work

Malleable flexible; can be shaped

Mallet 1. wooden hammer; 2. stick used for polo

Manipulatable influencable; controllable

Marred damaged; spoiled

Marshal to gather together

Marsupial pouched mammal (like a kangaroo)

Martinet person who believes in strict discipline

Masochist person who intentionally inflicts pain on himself

Matriarchy society governed by women

Maverick a loner

Meager in short supply

Meander wander from side to side

Mediate to act as a go-between in settling conflicts or disputes between people or opposing sides

Mellifluous sweet and smooth sounding

Mellow soft; melodious; ripe

Menagerie collection of animals

Mendacious given to lying

Mercenary concerned only with money

Mercenary greedy for self-gain; thinking only of money-making

Mercurial volatile; changeable

Merge come together

Metaphorically symbolically; figuratively

Meticulous very careful; painstaking

Meticulous very careful; fussy; finicky

Mettle courage; bravery; valor

Milieu environment

Mire swamp; muddy ground

Misanthrope hater of the rest of mankind

Misanthrope someone who dislikes all people

Miserly careful with how money is spent; thrifty

Misnomer wrong name

Misogynist hater of women

Misrepresentation deliberately deceiving

Mitigate lessen; make less severe

Mitigate to make or become less severe; to lesson pain or damage

Mock To ridicule; to imitate or mimic; to defy

Mock to make fun of; to imitate

Modicum small amount

Mollify to pacify, soothe, or appease; to make less severe or violent

Momentous very important

Monotonous dull; unvarying

Moratorium temporary prohibition or halt to activity

Moribund on the point of death

Mundane Common or ordinary; pertaining to the world, secular

Mundane commonplace; ordinary

Munificent very generous

Myriad countless; a very large number

Naïve Unaffected; unsophisticated; inexperienced; having an unaffected style.

Narcissist having to do with extreme self-adoration; person who feels superior to everyone

Nefarious Wicked; infamous; villainous

Nefarious very mean and wicked

Negligible able of likely to be neglected or bypassed due to smallness or lack of importance

Nomadic wandering

Nonchalant casual and indifferent; not showing any great concern or worry about anything

Nostalgia A longing for a former place or time; something that displays nostalgia

Novel New; different

Novel new

Noxious harmful; poisonous; lethal

Nuance something subtle; a fine shade of meaning

Nullify to counter; make unimportant

Nurture to care for, to nourish

Nuzzle cuddle; snuggle

Obdurate stubborn

Obdurate resistant to persuasion or softening; stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing

Obfuscate deliberately make something difficult to understand

Objective unbiased; not subjective

Oblique indirect; slanting

Obliterate destroy; demolish; eradicate

Oblivious totally unaware

Obscure difficult to understand; partially hidden

Obscure hard to understand; abstract

Obscured hidden; covered; buried

Obsequious servile; submissive

Obsequious obeying or performing a service for someone in an overly attentive manner

Obsession a dominating concern

Obsolete no longer valid

Obsolete old; outdated, as in no longer in use

Obstinate Stubborn; inflexible; not easily overcome

Obstinate stubborn; inflexible

Obstreperous noisy and boisterous

Obtuse mentally dull

Obtuse stupid; not clear or precise

Obviate avoid; make unnecessary

Odious hateful

Odious loathsome; evil; revolting in a disgusting way

Officious domineering; intrusive; meddlesome

Ogle stare at; observe in an obvious manner

Olfactory concerned with the sense of smell

Ominous threatening

Ominous pertaining to an evil omen; foreboding

Ominous related to feeling that something bad or evil is bound to happen; foreboding

Omnipotent all-powerful

Omniscient all-knowing

Onerous burdensome; hard to undertake

Onus burden

Opaque does not let light through

Opportunist a person who seeks self-gain, even at the expense of others, without regard to values or moral principles

Opulent wealthy; rich; magnificent

Ordain 1. destine; 2. confer holy orders on a priest

Ornate highly decorated

Orthodox conventional

Ossify 1. turn to bone; 2. become fixed and rigid

Ostentatious showy

Ostentatious having to do with showing off; pretentious

Oust push out of a position

Overt obvious; not hidden

Overwrought worked up; in an emotional state

Pacify to calm; to make peaceful; to restore to a tranquil state

Palatable pleasing to the taste buds

Palatable good to eat; agreeable

Palisade fence made of posts

Palliative a remedy that improves but doesn't cure

Pallid pale

Palpable easily felt; easily perceived

Panacea remedy for all ills

Panegyrize to praise a person or event in a formal speech or in writing; to praise highly

Paradigm 1. example; 2. model; 3. way of looking at things

Paradox apparently contradictory statement

Paragon a perfect example

Paramount of supreme importance

Parasite 1. scrounger; 2. animal which takes digested food from another

Parched dried up

Pariah an outcast from society

Pariah a social outcast

Parity equality

Parochial narrow-minded; concerned only with local matters

Parody a mockery; imitation for ridicule; spoof

Parry ward off; avoid

Parsimonious economical; frugal; thrifty

Parsimonious overly thrifty or miserly

Parsimony stinginess; frugality; cost-cutting

Partisan Devoted to or biased in support of a party, group, or cause

Partisan biased; one-sided; committed to one group

Pathos evoking sadness or pity

Patron one who give support (usually financial)

Patronize condescend to; behave in an arrogant manner towards

Paucity shortage

Peccadillo minor weakness; trivial offence

Pedant person who insists on strict adherence to rules or narrow learning

Pedestrian common; mundane; banal

Peerless without equal

Pejorative derogatory

Pellucid transparently clear

Pensive in a thoughtful mood; thinking deeply

Penurious stingy; relating to great poverty, destitution

Penury poverty

Perceptive observant

Percipient perceptive; insightful

Perdition damnation

Peremptory in a commanding manner

Perfidy treachery

Perfunctory superficial; cursory

Peripatetic nomadic; moving from place to place

Peripatetic moving or walking about; itinerant

Peripheral on the edge; not important

Peripheral only marginally connected to what is truly important; minor or incidental; relating to the field of vision

Perjury telling lies under oath

Pernicious destructive; harmful

Pernicious very destructive or harmful, usually in an inconspicuous and relentless way

Perspicacious using wise judgment; sharp-minded

Pessimistic Gloomy; having a negative outlook; expecting the worst

Petty minor or trivial; small in quantity

Philanthropic showing a desire to help others by giving gifts; charitable; humane

Phlegmatic hard to get excited or emotional; calm

Pitfall an unseen danger, risk, or drawback

Pithy brief and full of meaning and substance; concise

Placate to make calm; to soothe

Placid calm; peaceful

Plagiarism taking credit for someone else's writing or ideas

Plaintiff petitioner (in court of law)

Platitude quality of being dull; an obvious remark uttered as if it were original

Plaudit statement giving strong praise

Plausible can be believed; reasonable

Plethora an excess

Plethora excess; abundance

Pliable flexible; not stubborn

Plumage feathers of a bird

Plummet fall suddenly and steeply

Podium raised platform

Poignant deeply moving; strongly affecting the emotions

Poised calm; collected; self-possessed

Polemical inclined to argue or debate; controversial

Polemical causing debate or argument

Ponderable important enough to require a lot of thought

Ponderous weighty; slow and heavy

Ponderous very heavy or bulky; dull or lifeless

Pontificate speak pompously or dogmatically

Portend foretell

Portent a warning sign; omen

Poseur someone who puts on an act

Posterity future generations

Posthumous after death

Postulate hypothesize; propose

Potable suitable for drinking

Potent powerful; compelling; strong

Pragmatic Practical; dealing with actual facts or occurrences

Pragmatic practical

Pragmatist practical person; one who is concerned with usefulness

Prattle to speak on and on in a senseless and silly manner; to talk foolishly

Preamble introductory material

Precarious unstable; risky

Precarious dangerous or risky; uncertain

Precedent a previous occurrence used as a guide

Precept guiding principle

Precinct district of a city

Precipice steep slope

Precipitous done in a hurry

Preclude prevent or make impossible

Precocious developing early

Predator one who takes advantage of another, exploits or feeds on another; a strong adversary or rival

Predecessor one who came before

Predicament dilemma; difficult situation

Preeminent famous; outstanding

Prerogative right or privilege

Prescient having fore-knowledge

Presentiment a feeling that something might happen

Presumptuous assuming too much; arrogant

Presumptuous too forward or bold; overstepping proper bounds

Pretentious pompous; self-important

Pretentious claiming or pretending increased importance; ostentatious; affectedly grand

Prevaricate speak misleadingly and evasively

Pristine unspoiled

Proclivity tendency towards

Procrastinate delay; put off

Prodigal wasteful; extravagant

Prodigal wasteful; lavish

Prodigious very large

Profane unholy

Profanity swearing; cursing

Profound having deep meaning

Profundity depth

Profuse abundant; more than enough

Proletarian member of the working class

Prolific producing a lot

Proponents promoters; supporters

Prosaic Commonplace; dull; lacking in imagination

Prosaic dull; commonplace

Prosaic dull; boring; ordinary

Proscribe forbid

Prosody study of versification

Prostration 1. lying face down; 2. be overcome with extreme weakness

Protagonist main character in film, book, play etc.

Protean changeable

Protégé person under protection of, or guided by another

Protocol procedure; code of behavior

Provincial unsophisticated; narrow-minded

Proximity nearness

Prudent cautious; wise

Prudent careful, cautious, and wise

Puerile childish

Pugnacious eager to fight; belligerent

Punctilious paying attention to small details

Purloin steal

Pusillanimous cowardly

Pyromania compulsion to start fires

Quaff drink down quickly

Quagmire marsh; bog

Quaint picturesque

Quandary dilemma; puzzle

Quandary a dilemma; a confusing or puzzling situation

Quarantine isolation to prevent the spread of disease

Quarry 1. something that is hunted; 2. mine for stone

Quell To suppress; to put an end to; to pacify

Quell to pacify; to subdue; to quiet down

Querulous always complaining

Querulous whining; complaining

Quiescent quiet; still; inactive

Quirk oddity

Raconteur a skillful storyteller

Ramble wander aimlessly

Rancorous deeply hateful or spiteful; malicious

Rant to talk very loudly, even wildly

Raucous coarse-sounding; loud and unruly

Ravenous very hungry

Raze to tear down; to destroy

Rebuff to snub; to bluntly refuse

Rebuke to reprimand or scold sharply

Recalcitrant stubborn; disobedient; defiant

Recount to tell a story

Refute To prove to be false; to prove a person to be in error; to deny

Relic a custom or object that has been around for a very, very long time

Remote emotionally distant and disinterested; aloof; uninvolved; distant, far away

Remuneration payment for work done

Renown fame

Replete full

Replete filled-up; overflowing

Reprehensible shameful; very bad

Reprieve a respite; postponement of a sentence

Reprove to speak to in a disapproving manner; to scold

Repudiate shun; eschew

Rescind retract; repeal

Resignation acceptance of fate

Resolution determination

Resolve firmness, determination

Resonant echoing

Respite a break; intermission

Respite period of inactivity; a lull

Resplendent shining; glowing

Restorative a tonic

Retention preservation; withholding

Reticent not talking much; reserved

Reticent restrained; holding something back; uncommunicative

Retraction withdrawal; cancellation of a statement

Revere worship

Revere to regard highly with love an respect

Rhetorical Used for style or effect only; having to do with rhetoric; bombastic

Rhetorical relating to speech that is used to persuade or have some effect; insincere in expression

Riddled full of (usually full of holes)

Rife common

Rigor thoroughness

Rigor harshness, severity

Robust strong; healthy; tough

Rotund round

Ruminate think over something; ponder

Ruse trick; stratagem

Saccharin falsely sweet

Sacrosanct very holy; inviolable

Sagacious wise

Sagacious wise

Sage a wise person

Salacious lecherous; erotic

Sallow yellowish

Salubrious health-giving

Salutary something which teaches you a lesson; beneficial

Sanctimonious hypocritically holy

Sanction give approval to

Sanguinary bloodthirsty; bloody

Sanguine Optimistic, hopeful or confident; reddish.

Sanguine optimistic; cheerful

Sardonic mocking

Saturate to wet or soak completely; to totally fill up

Savant person with knowledge

Savory tasty or good smelling

Savvy smart; informed

Scale to climb

Scapegoat person on whom blame is placed for faults of others

Scrupulous careful; diligent; painstaking

Scrupulous showing great care and honesty, based on personal belief of what is right and proper

Scrutinize examine carefully

Scrutinize to read or look at very closely and carefully

Scuttle sink

Sedentary having to do with sitting around a lot

Seminary an institution in which priests are trained

Sensuous appealing to the senses

Sentinel guard; sentry

Sequester isolate

Serendipity fortunate coincidence; unsought discovery

Serene calm; peaceful

Serrated jagged; saw-like

Servile overly submissive; groveling

Servile slave-like; very humble and submissive

Shrewd insightful; clever

Skeptic a person who doubts

Skeptical doubting; not gullible

Skirmish minor battle

Slavish slave-like; overly humble; involving very hard work

Sluggard slow-moving; lethargic person

Sluggish slow and lazy

Sly underhanded, furtive

Smelt refine an ore

Smorgasbord a Swedish buffet of cold dishes

Solace comfort for grief

Solicit to ask for; seek

Solicitous Anxious or concerned; careful; eager

Somber Dark; dimly lit; gloomy or depressing

Somnambulist sleepwalker

Soothsayer fortuneteller

Sophomoric juvenile; immature

Soporific inducing sleep

Soporific sleep-inducing; sleepy

Sparse spare; bare; meager

Specious false; untrue

Speckled spotted; freckled; dotted

Speculate To think or reflect; to conjecture

Sporadic not continuous; intermittent

Spurious false; untrue

Spurious false; counterfeit; lacking logic

Squander to spend money (or time) in a wasteful, uncaring fashion

Stagnant still; not moving

Stagnant lacking movement or energy

Staid dull; sober; serious

Stanza section of a poem

Staunch loyal; faithful; dependable

Stealthy secretive, sly

Stereotype fixed image

Stevedore dockworker

Stifle suppress

Stoic known for fortitude; indifferent to pleasure or pain

Stoical lacking emotion or not showing any emotion

Stoke add fuel to; strengthen

Stolid impassive; dull; indifferent

Stratagem plot; plan; trick

Strident loud and harsh

Strident shrill; high-pitched

Submissive voluntarily obeying another; humble

Subordinate inferior; lower in rank or status

Subservient obedient; obsequious

Succinct clearly and briefly stated; concise

Supercilious looking down on others; proud and scornful

Superficial lacking in depth or importance; on the surface

Superfluous More than sufficient; extra; unnecessary or needless

Superfluous overabundant; more than is needed; unnecessary

Surfeit an oversupply

Surpass to be better than; to excel

Surreptitious done or made in a secret, stealthy way

Swagger to walk around in a proud, showy manner; to boast in a loud manner

Sycophant a self-server who tries to gain the favor of others through the use of flattery or by being overattentive

Taciturn silent; sparing of words; close-mouthed

Talisman lucky charm

Tangent going off the main subject

Tangible can be touched

Tardy slow; late; overdue; delayed

Tawdry of little value; gaudy

Tedium boredom

Temper to moderate; soften

Tenacious Persistent or stubborn; holding fast; holding together; sticky or adhesive

Tenacious stubborn; resolute; holding firm to a purpose

Tentative not certain

Tentative hesitant; not definite

Tenuous flimsy; not solid

Terse using only the words that are needed to make the point; very concise

Terse concise; to the point

Therapeutic medicinal; curative

Thrifty showing care with how money and resources are spent or used; miserly

Thrive to grow strong; to flourish

Thwart prevent; frustrate

Timorous cowardly; fearful

Tirade stream of verbal abuse

Titter giggle quietly

Toady a flatterer; a sycophant

Tome large book

Torpid inactive; lazy; stagnant

Torpid lacking energy; relating to inactivity; feeling sluggish

Torpor dormancy; sluggishness; inactivity

Totter walk unsteadily

Tractable obedient; dutiful; polite

Tranquil peaceful

Tranquility peacefulness; calmness

Transcribe copy

Transgress go astray; disobey; commit a sin

Transient short-lived; ephemeral

Transient lasting for only a short time; temporary

Transitory fleeting

Traverse to move across

Trepidation fear

Trifling lacking significance; unimportant

Trinket something of little value; knick-knack

Trite unoriginal and stale due to overuse

Trite unoriginal; dull

Trivial unimportant

Trivial unimportant; trifling; ordinary

Truant shirker; someone absent without permission

Truncate cut short

Tumult uproar; noise

Turbulence great unrest; turmoil or disorder

Turmoil a very puzzling scenario or situation; tumult

Turpitude depravity

Tyro novice; beginner

Ubiquitous found everywhere; omnipresent

Unalloyed undiluted; total

Unctuous oily; using excessive flattery

Undermined damaged; attacked

Underscore emphasize

Unequivocal clear; obvious

Unfetter set free

Unfrock to remove a priest from his position

Uniformity sameness

Unobtrusive inconspicuous; not easily noticed

Unprecedented never having happened before

Unprecedented novel; unparalleled

Unscathed unharmed; intact; without a scratch

Unwavering firm and determined

Unwitting not deliberate; unconscious

Unyielding stubborn; inflexible

Upbraid scold; tell off; reprimand

Upbraid to chide; to scold bitterly

Uproarious hilarious; hysterical; very funny

Upshot outcome

Urbane sophisticated; suave

Usurp take someone's position (usually by force)

Utilitarian useful

Utopian a believer in an ideal world

Vacillate waver; hesitate

Vacuous empty; silly; meaningless

Vagrant person wandering without a home

Vapid dull; uninspiring

Vapid lacking freshness and zest; flat; stale

Vaporize to turn to vapor, foam, or mist

Variegated multicolored; speckled

Vehemence violence; fervor; forcefulness

Vehement forceful

Venal corrupt; can be bribed

Veneer surface coating

Venerate To regard or treat with reverence

Venerate revere; worship

Venerate to feel of show deep respect for, especially due to age or tradition; to honor

Venial minor; unimportant

Veracity truthfulness

Verbose using too many words; wordy; long-winded

Verbose talkative; long-winded; rambling

Verbosity using too many words

Vertigo dizziness

Vestigial not developed

Vibrant lively; full of vitality

Vigilant carefully alert and watchful

Vignette small sketch

Vilification blackening someone's name

Vilify to slander or defame someone’s name

Vindicate To clear of accusation or suspicion; to defend, maintain, or avenge

Vindicate prove right; remove blame

Virtuoso an accomplished musician

Virtuoso a highly skilled performer, usually a musical performer

Virulent dangerous; harmful

Virulent extremely poisonous; deadly; full of spiteful hatred

Vital essential; alive; important

Vitriolic corrosive; strongly attacking

Vivacity liveliness; animation

Vivify enliven

Vociferous noisy; loud in speech

Vociferous loud and noisy regarding one’s own voice, especially shouting; demandingly clamorous

Volatile explosive or changing very quickly

Voluble talking a great deal with ease; glib

Voracious greedy; gluttonous; ravenous; insatiable

Wary cautious, careful

Whimsical fanciful

Willful stubborn

Zealous Filled with or motivated by zeal; enthusiastic

Zealous filled with enthusiasm; fervent