To reduce in amount, degree, or severity

-As the hurricane's force abated, the winds dropped and the sea became calm.

-In an hour the storm would abate, and they could return to their homes.

-The local authority may abate the nuisance without futher order.

To leave secretly

-The patron absconded from the restaurant withought paying his bill by sneaking out the back door.

-In order to avoid prosecution, Marylin decided to abscond to Switzerland.

To choose not to do something

-She abstained from choosing a mouthwatering dessert from the tray.

-He must abstain from all flesh diet except fish.

-Lord John Russell, indeed, was to earnest in his desire for reform to abstain from one serious effort to accomplish it.

An extremely deep hole

-The submarine dove into the abyss to chart the previously unseen depths.

-Pops dog fell into an abyss we found to be full of oil.

to make impure

-The chef made his ketchup last longer by adulterating it with water.

-You can adulterate your acoholic drink to make it easier to swallow.

to speak in favor of

-The vegetarian advocated a diet containing no meat.

-When you visit a place, you find it harder to advocate its destruction.

-in 1789 he was an advocate at the parlement of Normandy.

concerning the appreciation of beauty

-Followers of the aesthetic movement regarded the pursuit of beauty as the only true purpose of art.

-Most of them were not made to become subject to aesthetic contemplation in western art.

-Maybe it was time the started paying more attention to the aesthetic value of things.

to increase in power, influence, and reputation

-The supervisor sought to aggrandize herself by claiming that the achievements of her staff were actually her own.

-His intent was to become sole lord and to aggrandize his tiny principality.

-Pablo Escobar aggrandized himself through the sale of cocaine.

to make more bearable

-Taking aspirin helps to alleviate a headache.

to combine; to mix together

-Giant industries amalgamated with Mega products to form Giant-Mega products incorporated.

-The prosecutors had to amalgamate many different wittness stories to reveal the truth.

doubtful or uncertain; able to be interpreted several ways

-The diretions she gave were so ambiguous that we disagreed on which way to turn.

-Her songs were intentionally ambiguous.

-There are a number of specific issues left somewhat ambiguous in the text.

To make better; to improve

-The doctor was able to ameliorate the patient's suffering using painkillers.

-Is there anything I can do to ameliorate your imprisonment?

-A centralized policy would compound, not ameliorate, the problem.

something out of place in time

-The aged hippie used anachronistic phrases like "groovy" and "far out" that had not been popular for years.

-If the Order had now become a superfluous anachronism, it had still to be disposed of, and this was no easy task.

-Marty and doc used the delorean to go back in time and fix an anachronism.

similar or alike in some way; equivalent to

-In the newtonian construct for explaining the existence of God, the universe is analogous to a mechanical timepiece, the creation of a divinely intelligent "clockmaker."

-She studied species of invertebrates analogous to jellyfish.

deviation from what is normal

-Albino animals may display too great an anomaly in their coloring to attract normally colored mates.

-In acient astronomy the anomaly was taken as the angular distance of the planet from the point of the farthest recession from the earth.

-After a 15 year career 2009 was a statistical anomaly, as he was injured most of the year.

To annoy or provoke to anger

-The child discovered that he could antagonize the cat by pulling its tail.

-The oldest brother would antagonize his siblings.

extreme dislike

-The antipathy between the French and the English regularly erupted into open warfare.

-He used his antipathy of math as a validation for skipping classes.

lack of interest or emotion

-The apathy of voters is so great that less than half the people who are eligible to vote actually bother to do so.

-There was apathy on the part of some members to participate in the meetings.

-He must have apathy for baseball if he fell asleep in the stands.

To judge a dispute between two opposing parties

-Since the couple could not come to agreement, a judge was forced to arbitrate their divorce proceedings.

-The argument escelated to a point someone had to arbitrate the two men's oppositions. 

ancient, old-fashioned

-Her archaic commodore computer could not run the latest software.

-Snake was a game played on the archaic cell phones of the late 90's.

intense and passionate feeling

-Bishop's ardor for the landscape was evident when he passionately described the beauty of the cenic hudons valley.

-Derek Jeter's ardor for baseball showed in every game he played.

-His valentine's gift proved his ardor for her.

able to speak clearly and expressively

-She is suh an articulate defender of labor that unions are among her strongest supporters.

-Only the most articulate candidates are accepted to run for office.

to make something unppleasant less severe

-Serena used aspirin to assuage her pounding headache.

-He tried to assuage the guilt of wrongdoing by doing right.

to reduce in force or degree; to weaken

-The Bill of Rights attenuated the traditional power of governments to change laws at will.

-Jake sleeps with his headphones in to attenuate the nightly noises coming from his neighbor's house.

fearless and daring

-Her audacious nature allowed her to fulfill her dream of skydiving.

-He made an audacious attempt at the foul ball, risking injury, diving into the stands.

severe or stern in appearance; undecorated

-The lack of decoration makes military barracks seem austere to the civilian eye.

-Brady had conducted many missions in austere conditions of other countries.

Predictable, clichéd, boring

-He used banal phrases like "Have a nice day," or "Another day, another dollar."

-He doesn't like English poetry, he finds it very banal.

-Rap lyrics have become very banal in nature.

to support; to prop up

-The presence of giant footprints bolstered the argument that sasquatch was in the area.

-The pitcher they signed should bolster their rotation this year.

pompous in speech and manner; high-sounding but unimportant language

-The ranting of the radio talk-show host was mostly bombastic; his boasting and outrageous claims had no basis in fact.

-This is a singular prose poem, in language sometimes rather bombastic but often beautiful.

harsh, jarring noise

-The junior high orchestra created an almost unbearable cacophony as they tried to tune their instruments.

-Her thoughts were interrupted by a cacophony of squawks and wings beating agains the chicken coop walls.

impartial and honest in speech

-The observations of a child can be charming since they are candid and unpretentious.

-Randy hesistated, as if unsure how candid he should be to his boss about his vacation.

changing one's mind quickly and often

-Queen Elizabeth I was quite capricious; her courtiers could never be sure which of their number would catch her fancy.

-There is nothing more capricious than a child's memory; what it will retain, and what it will lose.

to punish or criticize harshly

-Many Americans are amazed at how harshly the authorities in Singapore castigate perpetrators of what would be considere minor crimes in the U.S.

-His mother was a cruel woman who never missed an opportunity to castigate his father.

something that brings about a change in something else

-The imposition of harsh taxes was the catalyst that finally brought on the revolution.

-His caustic expressioin served as a catalyst to her boredom.

-The dog served as the catalyst to break the tension between them.

biting in wit; sarcasm in utterence; eat away or destroy tissue in a chemical reaction

-Dorothy Parker gained her reputation for caustic wit from her cutting, yet cleve, insults.

-If concentrated, however, it acts as a caustic, it never produces vesication.

great disorder or confusion

-In many religious traditions, God created an ordered universe from chaos.

-The scene was complete chaos, with goats dashing every which way in an attempt to avoid each spray of slushy snow.

someone prejudiced in favor of a group to which he or she belongs

-The attitude that men are inherently superior to women and therefore must be obeyed is common among male chauvinists.

-She shouldn't yet determine if the action were pure chauvinism or old-fashoined civility.

deception by means of craft or guile

-Dishonest used car sales people often use chicanery to sell ther beat-up old cars.

-You can smell the chicanery from a dishonest politician.

convincing and well reasoned

-Swayed by the cogent argument of the defense, the jury had no choice but to acquit the defendant.

-The politician was cogent during the debate.

to overlook, pardon, or disregard

-Some theorists believe that failing to prosecute minor crimes is the same as condoning an air of lawlessness.

-The coach does not condone entitled players on his team.

intricate and complicated

-Although many people bout "A Brief History of Time," few could follow its convoluted ideas and theories.

-The Biology 210 class is too convoluted for me to understand.

to provide supporting evidence

-Fingerprints corroborated the witness's testimony that he saw the defendant in the victim's apartment.

-The story was corroborated by evidence.

too trusting; gullibile

-Although some four-year-olds believe in the Easter Bunny, only the most credulous nine-year-olds also believe in him.

-The credulous ducks took the decoys to be real, and tried to land.

steadily increasing volume or force

-The crescendo of tension became unbearable as Evel Knievel prepared to jump his motorcycle over the school buses.

-The sound began as light pecks on the window, and quickly grew to a crescendo of crashing rocks.

appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety

-The countess complained that the vulgar peasants lacked the decorum appropriate for a visit to the palace.

-She accepted his report, not without obvious sadness but with business-like decorum and no sign of tears.

respect, courtesy

-The respectful youn law clerk treated the Supreme Court Justice with the utmost deference.

-A Southern folk are known for their deference.

to speak of or treat with contempt; to mock

-The awkward child was often derided by his "cooler" peers.

-Matt was known to deride his coworkers behind their back.

to dry out thoroughly

-After a few weeks of lying on the desert's baking sands, the cow's carcass became completely desiccated.

-He used a dehydrater to desiccate the deer meat into jerky.

jumping from one thing to another; disconnected

-Diane had a desultory academic record; she had changed majors 12 times in three years.

-His attendance sheet showed desultory appearances from students.

-Her speeches were desultory, making them hard to understand.

an abusive, condemnatory speech

-The trucker bellowed a diatribe at the driver who had cut him off.

-Her third novel, Leila, is in the same vein, a stronger more outspoken diatribe against society and the marriage laws.

lacking self-confidence

-Seve's diffident manner during the job interview stemmed from his nervous nature and lack of experience in the field.

-The batter became diffident, as his struggles to hit continued.

to make larger, to expand

-When you enter a darkened room, the pupils of your eyes dilate to let in more light.

-Drugs acting on the blood vessels either dilate or contract the vessels.

intended to delay

-The congressman used dilatory measures to delay the passage of the bill.

-The pilot had to use dilatory maneuvers until the storm passed, and he could land the aircraft.

someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic

-Jerry's friends were such dilettantes that they seemed to have new jobs and hobbies every week.

-He periodically attended art shows, considering himself a dilettante of paitings.

a funeral hymn or mournful speech

-Melville wrote the poem "A Dirge for James McPherson" for the funeral of a Unioni general who was killed in 1864.

-The chronicler gives a rather different account of the battle, and his allusion to the dirge uttered by Jeremiah over his death.

to set right; to free from error

-Galileo's observations disabused scholars of the notion that the sun revolved around the earth.

-He did not want to disabuse his son's belief in Santa Clause.

to percieve, to recognize

-It is easy to discern the difference between butter and butter-flavored topping.

-The batter was exceptional at discerning a curveball.

fundamentally different; entirely unlike

-Although the twins appear to be identical physically, their personalities are disparate.

-The disparate couple formed a bond that lead many to believe the marriage would not last.

to present a false appearance, to disguise one's real intentions or character.

-The villain could dissemble to the police no longer - he admitted the deed and tore up the floor to reveal the body of the old man.

-While it may be easier to dissemble your true feelings from others, it is always best to be honest with those you love.

a harsh and disagreeable combination, often of sounds

-Cognitive dissonance is the inner conflict produced when long-standing beliefs are contradicted by new evidence.

-If all tones were pure, dissonance at this part of the scale would not occur if the interval were more than a third.

a firmly help opinion, often a religious belief

-Linus's central dogma was that children who believed in the Great Pumpkin would be rewarded.

-Though the hippocratic medicine was so largely founded on observation, it would be an error to supposed dogma or theory had no place.

dictatorial in one's opinions

-The dictator was dogmatic- he, and only he, was right.

-The dogmatic teaching of the cult deterred many from it's religion.

to deceive, a person who is easily deceived

-Bugs Bunny was able to dupe Elmer Fudd by dressing up as a lady rabbit.

-He is often the dupe of many schemers and con men.

selecting from or made up from a variety of sources

-Budapest's architecture is an eclectic mix of Eastern and Western styles.

-His writing style is eclectic consisting of multiple modern and old-english writings.

effectiveness

-The efficacy of penicillin was unsurpassed when it was first introduced, eliminating almost all bacterial infections it encountered.

-He was very efficant at his job.

a sorrowful poem or speech

-Although thomas Gray's "elegy written in a country churchyard" is about death and loss, it urges readers to endure this life and to trust in spirituality.

-The elegy was a beautiful piece wirtten about his deceased daughter.

persuasive and moving, especially in speech

-The Gettysburg addres is moving not only because of its lofty sentiments but also because of its eloquent words.

-The preacher always gave eloquent speeches.

to reduce in strength

-The guerrillas hoped that a series of surprise attacks would enervate the regular army.

-The drugs seemed to enervate Jason's ability to focus at work.

to produce, cause, or bring about

-His fear and hatred of clowns was engendered when he witnessed the death of his father at the hands of a clown.

-Some people believe violent video games engender hostility in younger generations.

a puzzle; a mystery

-Speaking in riddles and dressed in old robes, the artist gained a reputation as something of an enigma.

-The researchers findings left an enigma amongst his peers.

to count, list, or itemize

-Moses returned from the mountain with tablets on which the commandments were enumerated.

-He has first to enumerate the names which the child may bear, so that the parents may make choice of one of them.

lasting a short time

-The lives of mayflies seem ephemeral to us, since the flies' average life span is a matter of hours.

-New words are constantly being coined, some will prove ephemeral, others are here to stay.

to use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead

-When faced with criticism of her policies, the politician equivocated and left all parties thinking she agreed with them.

-Reporters often equivocate questions to incriminate the innocent.

wandering and unpredictable

-The plot seemed predictable until it suddenly took a series of erratic turns that surprised the audience.

-His erratic moods had grown more volatile the past few days, she knew better than to draw his attention.

learned, scholarly, bookish

-The annual meeting of philosophy professors was a gathering of the most erudite, well published individuals in the field.

-The professor was highly regarded as one of the most erudite in his field.

known or understood by only a few

-Only a handful of experts are knowledgeable about the esoteric world of particle physics.

-Einstein studied multiple esoteric subjects formulating many theories we now regard as scientific law.

admirable

-Most people consider it estimable that Mother Teresa spent her lif helping the poor of India.

-In character he was as estimable as he was brilliant in intellect.

speech in praise of someone

-His best friend gave the eulogy, outlining his many achievements and talents.

-The character of this man, who died on the coast in 1808, is indicated by Thomas's eulogoy of him.

use of an inoffensive word or phrase in place of a more distasteful one

-The funeral director preferred to use the euphemism sleeping instead of the word dead.

-Being treated "like a girl" is a common euphemism for not being taken seriously.

to make worse

-It is unwise to take aspirin to try to relieve heartburn; instead of providing relief, the drug will only exacerbate the problem.

-Chase attempted to attenuate the argument, but only accomplished to exacerbate it.

to clear from blame; prove innocent

-The adversarial legal system is intended to convict those who are guilty and to exculpate those who are innocent.

-The cubs have not been able to exculpate Steve Bartman, who still stands as the greatest scapegoat in sport history.

urgent; requiring immediate action

-The patient was losing blood so rapidly that it was exigent to stop the source of the bleeding.

-An ambulance was exigent after the car flipped 10 times.

to clear of blame

-the fugitive was exonerated when another criminal confessed to comitting the crime.

-As your lawyer, I will do everything I can to exonerate your restaurant from the food poisoning accusations.

clearly stated or shown; forthright in expression

-The owners of the house left a list of explicit instructions detailing their house-sitter's duties, including a schedule for watering the house plants.

-I can see right now that I am going to have to be more explicit when I talk to you.

acting excessively enthusiastic; filled with extreme, unquestioned devotion

-The stormtroopers were fanatical in their devotion to the emperor, readily sacrificing their lives for him.

-It is the same spirit that makes people fanatical about certain sports teams, regardless of team or score.

to grovel

-The understudy fawned over the director in hopes of being cast in the part on a permanent basis.

-I want someone who can contribute intelligent conversation, not fawn at my feet.

intensely emotional; feverish

-The fans of Maria Callas were unusually fervid, doing anything to catch a glimpse of the great opera singer.

-Althought Stewart was fervid about basketball, he really could not play the game very well.

excessively decorated or embellished

-The palace had been decorated in a florid sytle; every surface had been carved and gilded.

-The typical objects from South Russia were jewelery, pottery, terra-cottas, and glass, mostly of florid greek style.

to arouse or incite

-The protesters tried to foment feeling against the war through their speeches and demonstrations.

-In 1432 she secretly married Francis of Borselen, and endeavoured to foment a rising in Holland against the Burgundian rule.

a tendency to be thrifty or cheap

-Scrooge McDuck's frugality was so great that he accumulated enough welth to fill a giant storehouse with money.

-Fran's revealed her frugality to the cashier, who accepted her coupons with remorse.

tending to talk a lot

-The garrulous parakeet distracted its owner with its continuous talking.

-Logan was so garrulous, I couldn't get a word in edgewise.

outgoing, sociable

-She was so gregarious that when she found herself alone, she felt quite sad.

-Gregarious people tend to hang out with friends every weekend, while reserved people keep to themselves.

deceit or trickory

-Since he was not fast enough to catch the roadrunner on foot, the coyote resorted to guile in an effort to trap is enemy.

easily decieved

-The con man pretended to be a bank officer so as to fool gullible bank customers into giving him their account information.

of a similar kind

-The class was fairly homogenous, since almost all of the students were senior journalism majors.

-The two joints of the thumb, for example, are homogenous throughout the whole series of the pentadactylate, or five-fingered animals, from the most primitive amphibian to man.

one who opposes established beliefs, customs, and institutions

-His lack of regard for traditional beliefs soon established him as an iconoclast.

-Because Jared was an iconoclast and dared to question the company's motives, he was fired.

not capable of being disturbed

-The counselor had so much experience dealing with distruaght children that she seemed imperturbable, even when faced with the wildest tantrums.

-With her imperturbable calm she never flinched when held at gunpoint.

impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected

-A good raincoat will be impervious to moisture.

-His nervous system is so strong, he seems impervious to disease.

quick to act without thinking

-It is not good for an investment broker to be impetuous, since much thought should be given to all the possible options.

-Barred by reefs, and full of rapids and impetuous currents, it cannot become a commercial avenue.

unable to be calmed down or made peaceful

-His rage at the betrayal was so great that he remained implacable for weeks.

-After his mother grounded him, he held an implacable grudge against her.

not fully formed; disorganized

-The ideas expressed in Nietzsche's mature work also appear in an inchoate form of his earliest writings.

-Because our company just recently opened its doors, we are inchoate and are not offering all of our services yet.

showing innocence or childlike simplicity

-She was so ingenuous that her friends feared her innocence and trustfulness would be exploited when she visited the big city.

-Everyone was surprised when the ingenuous librarian wore a prostitute costume to the Halloween party.

hostile, unfriendly

-Even though the children had grown up together, they were inimical to each other at school.

-The dog and cat are inimical to each other.

harmless

-Some snakes are poisonous, but most species are innocuous and pose no danger to humans.

-The friends exchanged innocuous jokes towards one another.

lacking interest or flavor

-The critic claimed that the painting was insipid, containing no interesting qualities at all.

-Dean mumbled an insipid apology.

uncompromising; refusing to be reconciled

-The professor was intransigent on the deadline, insisting that everyone turn the assignment in at the same time.

-Howie remained intransigent in restricting his gift to save the children.

to overwhelm; to cover with water

-The tidal wave inundated Atlantis, which was lost beneath the water.

-The police were inundated with calls from people who saw the unexplained lights on saturday night.

easily made angry

-Attila the Hun's irascible and violent nature made all who dealt with him fear for their lives.

-It is a very quick and highly irascible beast even known to turn on its pursuer.

using few words

-She was a laconic poet who built her reputation on using words as sparingly as possible.

-Cato labors to express himself in an awkward and laconic epistle, apologizing for its length.

to express sorrow; to grieve

-The children continued to lament the death of the goldfish weeks after its demise.

-the young man laments that he earns too little to pay his bills.

to give praise; to glorify

-Parades and fireworks were staged to laud the success of the rebels.

-The critic will laud the movie as one of the best of its time.

to give unsparingly (v); extremely generous or extravagant (adj)

-She lavished the puppy with so many treats that it soon became overweight and spoiled.

-The omni hotel is filled with lavish amenities.

acting in an indifferent or slow, sluggish manner

-The clerk was so lethargic that, even when the store was slow, he always had a long line in front of him.

-The player was benched for his lethargic effort at the ground ball.

talkative

-She was naturally loquacious, which was a problem in situations in which listening was more important than talking.

-After drinking four beers, my normally quiet wife becomes quite loquacious.

clear and easily understood

-The explanations were written in a simple and lucid manner so that students were immediately able to apply what they learned.

-He seems to have been an admirable teacher, with a great power of lucid exposition.

bright, brilliant, glowing

-The park was bathed in luminous sunshine, which warmed the bodies and the souls of the visitors.

-The name "firefly" is often applied to luminous beetles of the family Lampyridae, to which the well-known glow-worm belongs.

to evade responsibility by pretending to be ill

-A common way to avoid the draft was by malingering-pretending to be mentally or physically ill so as to avoid being taken by the army.

-Bill is such a baseball fan that he will malinger and call in sick to attend playoff games.

capable of being shaped

-Gold is hte most malleable of precious metals; it can easily be formed into almost any shape.

-Navy Seal training effectively molds malleable individuals into highly touted soldiers.

a figure of speech comparing two different things; a symbol

-The metaphor "a sea of troubles" suggest a lot of troubles by comparing their number to the vastness of the sea.

-He only speaks in metaphors, leaving many bewildered to his true meaning.

extremely careful about details

-To find all the clues at the crime scene, the investigators meticulously examined every inch of the area.

-The painter gave a meticulous attention to detail.

a person who dislikes others

-The character Scrooge in A Christmas Carol is such a misanthrope that even the sight of children singing makes him angry.

-My aunt is a misanthrope who won't even talk to the members of her own family.

to soften; to lessen

-A judge may mitigate a sentence if she decides that a person comiited a crime out of need.

-Morphine may be given hypodermically to mitigate the pain.

to calm or make less severe

-Their argument was so intense that it was difficult to believe any compromise would mollify them.

-There is nothing to show that this conversion was purely political; in any case it did little to mollify his enemies.

lack of variation

-The monotony of the sound of the dripping faucet almost drove the resear assitant crazy.

-Baseball players are monotonous is their preparation for games.

lacking sophistication or experience

-Having never traveled before, the elementary school students were more naive than their high school counterparts on the field trip.

-His mother was naive and did not believe the cigaraettes were his.

hardened in feeling; resistant to persuasion

-The president was completely obdurate on the issue, and no amount of persuasion would change his mind.

-Despite the defendants apology, the judge remained obdurate and gave him a 30-year sentence.

overly submissive and eager to please

-The obsequious new associate made sure to compliment her supervisor's tie and agree with him on every issue.

-Hannah is too nice, almost obsequious, and people take advantage of her.

stubborn, unyielding

-The obstinate child could not be made to eat any food that he disliked.

-He showed an obstinate refusal to admit things were bad.

to prevent; to make unnecessary

-The river was shallow enough to wade across at many points, which obviated the need for a bridge.

-To obviate this catastrophe the British reformers set to work most energetically.

to stop up; to prevent the passage of

-A shadow is thrown across the earth's surface during a solar eclipse, when the light from the sun is occluded by the moon.

-The beavers built a dam that occluded the water, and prevented it from reaching the town.

troublesome and oppressive; burdensome

-The assingment was so extensive and difficult to manage that it proved onerous to the team in charge of it.

-His duties were thus rendered exceedingly onerous, and his labor became excessive.

impossible to see through; preventing the passage of light

-The heavy buildup of dirt and grime on the windows almost made them opaque.

-The instructions were not written to be opaque or obscure your understanding.

public disgrace

-After the scheme to embezzle the elderly was made public, the treasurer resigned in utter opprobrium.

-The father disowned his son after he brought opprobrium to the family.

excessive showiness

-The ostentation of the Sun King's court is evident in the lavish decoration and luxuriousness of his palace at Versailles.

-Every touchdown dance has become ostentatious, and a rule change should be considered.

a contradiction or dilemma

-It is a paradox that those most in need of medical attention are often those least able to obtain it.

-Stepping on the butterfly created a paradox in the timeline of epic proportions.

someone who shows off learning

-The graduate instructor's tedious and excessie commentary on the subject soon gained her a reputation as a pedant.

-Although I am a decent proofreader, I do not believe I have the pedantic skills to be a good editor.

willing to betray one's trust

-The actresses's perfidious companion revealed all of her intimate secrets to the gossip columnist.

-When questioned about his ex-wife, Eric described her as a perfidious woman who could not be loyal to any man.

done in a routine way; indifferent

-The machinelike bnk teller processed the transaction and gave the waiting customer a perfunctory smile.

-He dropped a perfunctory kiss on her cheek and left.

to penetrate

-This miraculous new cleaning fluid is able to permeate strains and dissolve them in minutes.

-The light will permeate the curtain when the sun rises.

charity; a desire or effort to promote goodness

-New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art owers much of its collection to the philanthropy of private collectors who willed their estates to the museum.

-When the billionaire engages in philanthropy, he changes the lives of people with no hope.

to soothe or pacify

-The burglar tried to placate the snarling dog by saying "nice doggy" and ofering it a treat.

-The mother was woken by the babies crying, and attempted to placate him back to sleep.

able to be molded, altered, or bent

-The new material was very plastic and could be formed into products of vastly different shpes.

-the plastic mind of the bank clerk had been altered by the man's gun.

excess

-Assuming that more was better, the defendant offered the judge a plethora of excuses.

-A plethora of apples hung from the tree.

practical as opposed to idealistic

-While daydreaming gamblers think they can get rich by frequenting casinos, pragmatic gamblers realize that the odds are heavily stacked against them.

-While many parents employ a theory basis for governing children, I rely on a more pragmatic approach.

to throw violently or bring about abrutly; lacking deliberation

-Upon learning that the couple married after knowing each other only two months, friends and family members expected such a precipate marriage to end in divorce.

-A precipitate of ruthenium oxide gradullay separates during the chemical reaction.

to lie or deviate form the truth

-Rather than admit that he had overslept again, the employeed prevaricated and claimed that heavy traffic had prevented him from arriving at work on time.

-Chase was able to prevaricate his fiancé who was completely surprised by his proposal.

fresh and clean; uncorrupted

-Since concerted measures had been taken to prevent looting, the archeological site was still pristine when researchers arrived.

-The judge was pristine, and hence did not accept the bribe.

lavish, wasteful

-The prodigal son quicly wasted all of his inheritance on a lavish lifestyle devoted to pleasure.

-We should be concerned with our future because of our prodigal youth.

to increase in number quickly

-Although she only kept two guinea pigs initiall, they prolifereated to such an extent that she soon had dozens.

-The scientist were able to proliferate the anecdote to save millions of people.

to conciliate; to appease

-The management propitiated the irate union by agreeing to raise wages for its members.

-Only an idiot believes he can propitiate his way into heaven by giving the church all his money.

correct behavior; obedience to rules and customs

-The aristocracy maintained a high level of propriety, adhering to even the most minor social rules.

-Then the awkwardness of his silent position hiding in the darkness extended beyond the point of propriety of making his presence known.

wisdom, caution, or restraint

-The college student exhibited prudence by obtaining practical experience along with her studies, which greatly strengthened her resume.

-How can you make a prudent decision after drinking eight beers?

sharp and irritating to the senses

-The smoke from the burning tires was extremely pungent.

-When the pungent smell of rotten eggs filled the house, I held my nose.

motionless

-Many animals are quiescent over the winter months, minimizing activity in order to conserve energy.

-The theif stood quiescent in order to avoid being seen.

-The volcano as been quiescent since 1857.

to make thinner or sparser

-Since the atmosphere rarefies as altitudes increase, the air at the top of very tall mountains is too thin to breathe.

-Over hunting the area resulted to rarefy the deer population.

to reject the validity of

-The old woman's claim that she was Russian royalty was repudiated when DNA tests showed she was of no relation to them.

-We found evidence to repudiate the string theory.

silent, reserved

-physically small and reticent in her speech, Joan Didion often went unnoticed by those upon whom she was reporting.

-His reputation as a reticent person allowed him to maintain his composure in high pressure situations.

effective writing or speaking

-Lincoln's talkent for rhetoric was evident in his beautifully epressed Gettysburg Adress.

-Critics castigated the rhetoric of the book, thus it recieved an exceptionally bad rating.

to satisfy fully or lethargy

-His desire for power was so great that nothing less than complete control of the country could satiate it.

-Hopefully this feast I am preparing will satiate your hunger.

deceptively attractive; seemingly plausible but fallacious

-The studnet's specious excuse for being late sounded legitimate but was proved otherwise when her teacher called her home.

-The Braves recieved a specious offer from the Tigers, but deccided against it after the physicals.

a mark of shame or discredit

-In The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne was required to wear the letter A on her clothes as a public stigma for her adultery.

-Because Mary viewed her deafness as a stigma, she avoided going into public.

unemotional; lacking sensitivity

-The prisoner appeared stolid and unaffected by the judge's harsh sentence.

-His wife was stolid after his divorce proposal.

lofty or grand

-The music was so sublime and that it transformed the rude surroundings into a special place.

-Climbing Mount Everst is a sublime feat only accomplished by a handful of people.

done without using words

-Although not a word had been said, everyone in the room knew that a tacit agreement had been made about which course of action to take.

-A handshake between men is viewed as a tacit agreement. 

silent, not talkative

-The clerk's taciturn nature earned him the nickname "silent Bob."

-When Jack drinks he goes from being taciturn to being very outspoken.

long, harsh speech or verbal attack

-Observers were shocked at the manager's tirade over such a minor mistake.

-The father began a tirade after his son lied to him.

extreme mental and physical sluggishness

-After suurgery, the patient experienced torpor until the anesthesia wore off.

-He was revitalized from his state of torpor due to his father's death.

temporary, lasting a brief time

-The reporter lived a transitory life, staying in one place only long enough to cover the current story.

-Unfortunately, the homless people can only stay in the transitory shelter for a short period of time.

to sway physically; to be indecisive

-The customer held up the line as he vacillated between ordering chocolate chip or rocky road ice cream.

-It is not uncommon for people to vacillate when choosing lottery numbers.

to respect deeply

-In a traditional confucian society, the young venerate their elders, deferring to the elders' wisdom and experience.

-The bible says we should venerate our parents and our elders.

filled with truth and accuracy

-She had a reputation for veracity, so everyone truster her description of events.

-The police doubted the veracity of the suspects alibi.

wordy

-The professor's answer was so verbose that his student forgot what the origianl question had been.

-It is important to not be verbose when writing a paper, rather it's more benefical to be concise and terse.

to annoy

-The old man who loved his peace and quiet was vexed by his neighbor's loud music.

-You vex me, please leave.

easily aroused or changeable; lively or explosive

-His volatile personality made it difficult to predict his reaction to anything.

-Even though the two countries have agreed to a treaty, the situation is still volatile.

to fluctuate between choices

-If you waver too long before making a decision about which teting site ro regiser for, you may not get your first choice.

-When asked if he committed the crime, the defendant did not waver.

acting in a fanciful or capricious manner; unpredictable

-The ballet was whimsical, delighting the children with its imaginative characters and unpredictable sets.

-The author turned out to be just as whimsical as the magical characters in her children's books.

passion, excitement

-She brought her typical zeal to the project, sparking enthusiam in the other team members.

-The team's manager presented a zeal that was contagious to the players who responded by showing their enthusiam.