| Word |
Meaning |
| propriety | correct or appropriate behavior; obedience to rules |
| prudence | Wisdom, caution, showing good discretion |
| quandary | Dilemma; predicament |
| quarantine | Isolation of a person or persons to prevent the spread of disease |
| ratiocination | methodical, logical reasoning |
| rhetoric | Skill in using language effectively and persuasively |
| solace | Consolation; comfort during a time of grief |
| stigma | A mark or token of disgrace or shame |
| tirade | Long, agressive speech; usually given in an attacking manner |
| torpor | A state of mental or physical inactivity; lethargy |
| utopia | Imaginary land with perfect social and political systems |
| vagary | whim, an unpredictable action |
| veneer | 1. A thin surface layer; 2. deceptive superficial show, facade |
| veracity | Filled with truth and accuracy |
| visage | Face; appearance |
| viscosity | The sticky or thick consistency or a liquid |
| vociferous | Noisy; clamorous |
| vogue | Modern fashion |
| wag | A humorous or merry person |
| warmonger | A person who stirs up war |
| warrant | Authorization given by a superior |
| wastrel | One who is recklessly wasteful, especially with money |
| welter | Confused mass; a jumble |
| wont | A customary practice, habit |
| xenophobia | The fear of foreigners |
| yarn | A long, elaborate, entertaining tale; fiber for knitting |
| yore | A former period of time |
| zeal | Strong devotion toward advancing a goal or cause; passion |
| zealot | Fanatic; person who shows excessive enthusiasm |
| zeitgeist | The spirit of a specific time; the taste and outlook characteristic of a period or generation |
| zenith | point directly overhead in the sky; summit, peak |
| zephyr | Gentle breeze; west wind |
| boor | A person with rude, clumsy manners; a peasant |
| buffoon | A fool or a clown |
| bulwark | Something used as a defense |
| cache | A hiding place, or the object hidden in a secret place |
| cacophony | Harsh, jarring, discordant noise; dissonance |
| catalyst | Something that brings about a change in something else |
| catharsis | The release of emotional tension after an overwhelming experience |
| censure | An expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism |
| chauvinist | One with prejudiced belief in favor of a group to which he or she belongs |
| chicanery | deception by means of trickery or guile |
| clemency | A disposition to show mercy, especially toward an offender or enemy |
| clique | An exclusive group |
| connoisseur | a person with expert knowledge or discriminating tastes |
| craven | Coward; despicably fearful person |
| crescendo | a gradual increase in volume or indensity |
| criterion | Standard for judging |
| cupidity | Greed; excessive desire |
| deference | Respect, courtesy |
| depravity | Moral corruption or degradation |
| encomium | Warm praise; commendation |
| guffaw | Boisterous laughter |
| ingratitude | Ungratefulness |
| jingoism | Extreme nationalism characterized especially by a belligerent foreign policy |
| juncture | Critical point; meeting |
| neophyte | A beginner or novice |
| propriety | correct or appropriate behavior; obedience to rules |
| prudence | Wisdom, caution, showing good discretion |
| quandary | Dilemma; predicament |
| quarantine | Isolation of a person or persons to prevent the spread of disease |
| ratiocination | methodical, logical reasoning |
| rhetoric | Skill in using language effectively and persuasively |
| solace | Consolation; comfort during a time of grief |
| stigma | A mark or token of disgrace or shame |
| tirade | Long, agressive speech; usually given in an attacking manner |
| torpor | A state of mental or physical inactivity; lethargy |
| utopia | Imaginary land with perfect social and political systems |
| vagary | whim, an unpredictable action |
| veneer | 1. A thin surface layer; 2. deceptive superficial show, facade |
| veracity | Filled with truth and accuracy |
| visage | Face; appearance |
| viscosity | The sticky or thick consistency or a liquid |
| vociferous | Noisy; clamorous |
| vogue | Modern fashion |
| wag | A humorous or merry person |
| warmonger | A person who stirs up war |
| warrant | Authorization given by a superior |
| wastrel | One who is recklessly wasteful, especially with money |
| welter | Confused mass; a jumble |
| wont | A customary practice, habit |
| xenophobia | The fear of foreigners |
| yarn | A long, elaborate, entertaining tale; fiber for knitting |
| yore | A former period of time |
| zeal | Strong devotion toward advancing a goal or cause; passion |
| zealot | Fanatic; person who shows excessive enthusiasm |
| zeitgeist | The spirit of a specific time; the taste and outlook characteristic of a period or generation |
| zenith | point directly overhead in the sky; summit, peak |
| zephyr | Gentle breeze; west wind |
| aberrant | deviating from the norm |
| abysmal | extremely wretched; bottomless |
| adroit | skillfull, adept |
| aesthetic | Concerned with or appreciative of beauty |
| affected | false, artificial |
| altruistic | Unselfish concern for the welfare of others |
| ambiguous | Doubtful, uncertain, open to more than one interpretation |
| anachronistic | Out of the proper time |
| analogous | Similar or alike in some way; equivalent |
| anomalous | irregular; abnormal; unusual |
| apocryphal | Of questionable authenticity or authority |
| apposite | Relevant; suitable; apt |
| arable | Land suitable for plowing |
| arbitrary | Determined by chance or impulse, and not by necessity, reason, or principle |
| archaic | Characteristic of a much earlier, often more primitive period, especially one that develops into a classical stage of civilization |
| arduous | Difficult to do; laborious |
| arid | Very dry; boring and meaningless |
| articulate | Possessing the ability to speak clearly, expressively and eloquently |
| audacious | Recklessly daring, bold, brave; Not held back by what is conventional or proper |
| austere | Severe or stern in appearance; undecorated |
| authoritarian | Relating to, or expecting absolute obedience to an authority; dictatorial |
| authoritative | Having recognized excellence; official; highly reliable |
| banal | Unoriginal; commonplace; predictable; trite |
| baroque | Extravagantly ornate; flamboyant; complex in ornamentation |
| barren | Desolate; Not capable of producing offspring; Lacking liveliness |
| belligerent | Eager to fight; hostile, aggressive |
| benevolent | Characterized by doing good; concerned with the benefit of some charity |
| benign | Harmless; kind; gentle |
| blithe | Carefree; lack of concern; light hearted |
| bogus | Counterfeit or fake; not genuine, phony |
| boisterous | Loud, noisy, and lacking in restraint or discipline |
| bombastic | Grandiloquent, pompous speech or writing |
| bracing | Invigorating; refreshing |
| callous | Unfeeling; emotionally insensitive |
| callow | Being young or immature |
| candid | Free from predjudice, impartial and honest; open and sincere |
| candor | Truthfulness; great honesty |
| capricious | Impulsive; changing ones mind quickly and often |
| chronic | Lasting for a long period of time |
| circumspect | cautious and aware of circumstances and potential consequences |
| cogent | appealing to intellect or reason; convincing |
| coherent | Organized and making sense; logical |
| colloquial | conversational, used in informal speech |
| commodious | Spacious and convienent; roomy |
| compatible | In agreement with; harmonious |
| convoluted | intricate or complicated |
| copious | Abundant; plentiful; lavish. |
| credulous | too readily beliving or trusting; gullible |
| cursory | Performed quickly and without much attention to detail |
| dearth | A shortage |
| deft | Skillfil |
| docile | Manageable; obedient; teachable |
| eccentric | Odd; peculiar; strange |
| ersatz | An imitation or a fake, usually inferior; artificial |
| generic | Common; general; universal |
| malleable | Capable of being shaped |
| nascent | Coming into existence or development. |
| pedestrian | Mediocre; ordinary |
| peripheral | Of minor relevance or importance; (2) related to an outer boundary |
| petty | Unimportant; of lesser standing |
| pristine | Pure or uncorrupted, fresh and clean |
| prodigal | Given in abundance; lavish or wasteful |
| pungent | Sharp, stinging or strong; (often of taste or smell) |
| quiescent | being quient or inactive; motionless |
| recondite | Not easily understood; ambiguous |
| redundant | Superfluous; exceeding what is needed |
| reticent | Silent, reluctant, reserved, to keep to oneself |
| salient | Noticeable; prominent |
| serrated | Having a saw-toothed edge |
| soporific | Causing sleep or tiredness |
| specious | Seemingly true, but actually false; deceptively attractive |
| stolid | Unemotional; lacking sensitivity |
| sublime | Majestic, noble, grand, inspiring awe |
| sylvan | Wooded; Characteristic of a forest |
| tacit | Without using any words; implied by actions |
| taciturn | Habitually untalkative; silent |
| taut | Stretched tightly |
| tedious | Tiresome by reason of length, slowness, or dullness; boring |
| thrifty | Not wasteful; economical; penny-wise |
| transitory | Lasting a short time; temporary |
| ubiquitous | Present everywhere at the same time; Omnipresent |
| unprecedented | Unheard of; having no previous example |
| vainglorious | Boastful, pompous |
| veracious | Truthful, honest |
| verbose | Wordy |
| verdant | Green with vegetation; covered with green growth. |
| vicarious | Acting for another; sharing in the experience or feelings of another through the imagination |
| virulent | Extremely poisonous |
| viscous | Sticky; gluey |
| vital | Essential for continued existence; relating to life |
| vitriolic | Corrosive; caustic; bitterly scathing |
| vivacious | Lively, cheerful; high spirited |
| volatile | Tending to vary often; changeable; explosive |
| voluble | Ready flow of speech; fluent |
| whimsical | Full of odd ideas; Erratic or sudden behavior, unpredictable |
| wizened | Dried up, shriveled or withered |
| zaftig | Full and shapely figured, plump |
| abash | To make ashamed; to embarrass |
| abate | To reduce in amount or intensity; decrease |
| abbreviate | To reduce (a word or phrase) to a shorter form intended to represent the full form |
| abdicate | To step down from a position of power |
| abjure | To renounce or reject; to officially disclaim |
| abrade | To irritate by rubbing; to wear down in spirit |
| abridge | To cut short, to condense |
| abrogate | To nullify, to abolish |
| abscond | to make a secret departure, to elope |
| absolve | To forgive or free from blame |
| abstain | To refrain from something by ones own choice |
| accede | To comply with; consent to |
| acquiesce | To comply passively; to give in |
| adulterate | To make impure by adding extraneous, improper, or inferior ingredients |
| advocate | To be in favor of; support |
| aggrandize | To increase in power or reputation; to make larger or greater |
| alleviate | To make more bearable (usually pain) |
| allocate | to apportion for a specific purpose, to distribute |
| allude | To refer indirectly to something |
| amalgamate | To combine, mix or blend into a unified or integrated whole |
| ameliorate | To make or become better; improve |
| amplify | To make larger, exaggerate or increase |
| antagonize | to annoy or provoke to anger |
| arbitrate | To judge or settle a dispute |
| assail | To attack physically or verbally; assault |
| assimilate | To absorb into the mind or culture; cause to resemble |
| assuage | To make something harsh less severe; pacify, calm, relieve |
| attenuate | Reduce in force, amount or degree; weaken |
| augment | To increase or add to; to make larger |
| avenge | To inflict a punishment on behalf of another |
| aver | To claim to be true; to affirm |
| avow | To acknowledge openly and boldly; confess |
| begrudge | To envy anothers possessions |
| berate | To scold or criticize harshly |
| blanch | To become pale in color |
| boggle | To hesitate in fear or doubt; To become overwhelmed in astonishment |
| botch | Ruin through clumsiness; bungle |
| broach | To bring up a subject for debate |
| burgeon | To grow or flourish; sprout |
| burnish | To polish |
| cajole | To coax with insincere talk, teasing, or flattery; to trick into doing something |
| capitulate | To surrender under specific conditions, come to terms |
| castigate | To criticize or punish severely |
| chastise | To criticize severely; punish by beating |
| coalesce | To grow together to form one; fuse or unite |
| condone | To overlook, forgive or disregard without protest |
| consecrate | To sanctify; to make sacred; to immortalize |
| convey | To transport, transmit or communicate. |
| corroborate | To support or strengthen with evidence |
| delineate | To describe in words or gestures with great detail. |
| delude | To deceive; to have false illusions |
| disentangle | To free from confusion |
| engender | To produce, cause, or bring about |
| macerate | To soften by soaking or steeping in a liquid |
| malinger | To evade responsibility by pretending to be ill |
| meander | To go aimlessly |
| placate | To appease or pacify |
| prevaricate | To stray from or evade the truth; to lie |
| proliferate | To grow or increase in number very quickly |
| propitiate | To conciliate or appease |
| rarefy | to make thinner or less dense |
| relegate | To banish; to put to a lower position |
| repudiate | To reject the authority or validity of |
| satiate | to satisfy fully |
| stoke | To stir up and feed fuel to (very often to a fire) |
| succumb | To give in; to yeild |
| transpire | To take place; to come about |
| truncate | To shorten by cutting |
| vascillate | To sway physically (oscillate) or indecisively (hesitate) from one side to another. |
| vaunt | To speak boastfully; brag |
| venerate | To honor, worship or respect |
| vex | To annoy or bother |
| waffle | Speaking or writing vaguely with little result |
| waft | To cause to go gently and smoothly through the air or over water |
| waver | To fluctuate between choices; to show indecision. |
| wean | To gradually detach from a strong habit |
| wend | To proceed or go along |
| wince | An involuntary movement or startled gesture; flinch |
| woo | To attempt to win over or gain |
