Term
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Definition
disposed to using a few words
ex.) She's so laconic that I hardly know anything from her past. |
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Term
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Definition
spoken or written in a clear and precise manner
syn: terse, concise |
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Term
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Definition
rudely abrupt
Syn: curt, abrupt
ex.)she could be brusque and impatient |
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Term
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Definition
| to shorten a written text |
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Term
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Definition
to agree
Syn: accord, harmonize, cohere |
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Term
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Definition
a state of harmony
syn: unanimity, consensus
ex.)The two countries came to a concord regarding trade |
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Term
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Definition
existing at birth
Syn: innate
ex.)a congenital malformation of the heart |
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Term
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Definition
a division into political or religious fractions
Syn: rift, divergence, fraction
ex.)The first schism in the history of Catholicism was the Orthodox church breaking from the Roman Catholic church |
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Term
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Definition
having or indicating keen insight
Syn: acute, astute, canny, shrewd, perspicacious (perse-per-kay-shuhs)
ex.)she was an incisive critic |
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Term
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Definition
showing sound judgement; prudent
Syn: sensible, cicumspect, sagacious (sah-gay-shuhs)
ex.)the efficient and judicious use of pesticides |
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Term
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Definition
to hear and judge a case
ex.) Sometimes when my 2 children fight, I feel like I'm adjudicating a capital crime rather than settling a quarrel |
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Term
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Definition
concerned with practical outcomes
ex.)The four-year-old who wants a unicorn for her birthday isn't being very pragmatic |
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Term
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Definition
to lie under oath
Syn: prevaricate (preh-vare-ah-cate)
ex.)The accomplice perjured himself to avoid being included in the murder charge |
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Term
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Definition
| the science or philosophy of law |
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Term
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Definition
| the sphere of authority or control; the right, power, or authority to administer justice by hearing and determining controversies |
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Term
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Definition
| to determine based upon law; consider or declare to be true or the case
Syn: adjudicate
ex.)she was adjudged guilty |
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Term
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Definition
keenness of judgement
Syn: discernment; perspicacity, shrewd
ex.)He is 22 years old, but his baseball intellect and acumen are surprisingly refined |
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Term
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Definition
beyond comprehension or examination
Syn: enigmatic, recondite, abstruse |
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Term
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Definition
a formal accusation
Syn: contention, assertion, charge
ex.)Sally lost all credibility, because of her false allegation of murder. |
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Term
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Definition
well-spoken
Syn: articulate, fluent |
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Term
| loquacious (low-qway-shuhs) |
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Definition
very talkative
Syn: garrulous (gare-oh-les), voluble |
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Term
| circumlocution (circum-low-cue-tion) |
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Definition
| evasive speech; talking around the subject |
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Term
| colloquial (kuh~low-qwee-il) |
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Definition
| conversational; using in everday language |
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Term
| grandiloquent (gran-dil-oh-quent) |
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Definition
speaking in a pompous manner
Syn: pontifical, portentous (pore-ten-tous) |
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Term
| elocution (elle-oh-que-tion) |
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Definition
expressive delivery of public speech
ex.) James is adept (proefficient) at elocution; his expressions and mannerisims add a new level of meaning to his words |
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Term
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Definition
talkative
Syn: loquacious, voluble |
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Term
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Definition
wordy
Syn: prolix, discursive, digressive |
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Term
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Definition
word for word
ex.) I followed the recipe verbatim |
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Term
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Definition
unable to be expressed in words
ex.) Try as he might to express his love in a poem, his feelings seemed ineffable |
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Term
| tangential (tan-gen-shol) |
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Definition
only superficially relevant; off-topic
Syn: irrelevent, incidental, immaterial
ex.)"I know it's tangential to our current discussion on road improvement, but I think we should also consider improving pedestrian overpasses."
As you can see, the current discussion is road improvement, but a topic that is "merely touching or slightly connected" is the topic of pedestrian overpasses. |
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Term
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Definition
to promote/advertise or praise energetically
Syn: acclaim, herald, laud
ex.)1. The politician is likely to tout tax cuts in order to get reelected
2. I think it's important to tout your accomplishments at work; just don't brag too much |
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Term
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Definition
a short and often humorous story
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Term
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Definition
straying from the topic
Syn: digressive, desultory (des-oh-tory) |
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Term
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Definition
one who supports or helps another
Syn: philanthropist (fi-lan-thruh-pist), patron |
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Term
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Definition
harmless
Syn: innocuous
ex.) She was relieved to find out that her tumor was benign |
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Term
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Definition
kind; considerate
Syn: gracious, altruistic (al-tru-is-tik), magnanimous (mag-nan-ah-mous) |
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Term
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Definition
an expression of good wishes
Syn: blessing, sanction |
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Term
| euphemism (yu-fuh-miz-um) |
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Definition
the substituion of an inoffensive term for an offensive one
ex.) The substitution 'to pass away' is a euphemism 'to die' |
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Term
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Definition
to put oneself in good favor with another
Syn: flatter, wheedle, cajole |
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Term
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Definition
one who receives benefits
Syn: heir, recipient, legatee (leg-ah-tee) |
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Term
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Definition
a small payment of gratitude; tip
*don't confuse with gratuitous (grah-tu-eh-tous) - unnecessary |
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Term
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Definition
free of charge
ex.)a monthly program was issued gratis |
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Term
| euphonious (yu-phone~ee-us) |
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Definition
sweet sounding
Syn: mellifluous (muh-lif-loo-us), dulcet (dul-set), lyrical |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
to transfrom
Syn: metamorphose, alter, transmogrify (trans-mah-greh-fie)
ex.)The drizzle had been transmuted into thin layers of mists |
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Term
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Definition
lacking shape; changeable in form
Syn: shapeless, vagure, nondescript, nebulous |
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Term
| mercurial (mer-cure-ee-al) |
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Definition
erratic; subject to wild changes in character
Syn: fickle, capricious, vacillating (vace-ah-lating) |
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Term
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Definition
capable of assuming different forms; displaying a great variety or diversity
Syn: polymorphous, labile (label)
ex.)Being an expert in technology is difficult, due to the protean nature of the subject...or...At this stage, just a month and a half before the presidential election, the US political field is protean, and public sentiment can change drastically from day to day |
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Term
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Definition
to vary irregulaly
Syn: vacillate, waver |
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Term
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Definition
to change one's mind repeatedly
ex.)Unable to decide on which restaurant to enter, she vacillated for hours before opting for Italian |
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Term
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Definition
to revise; rennovate
ex.)an attempt to revamp the museum's image |
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Term
| ameliorate (ah-meal~ee-oh rate) |
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Definition
to improve; remove the faults of; make (something bad or unsatisfactory) better
Syn: rectify, redress, amend, mitigate
ex.)the reform did much to ameliorate living standards |
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Term
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Definition
overused; trite
Syn: prosaic, banal
ex.)Politicians use of "change for tomorrow" is a hackneyed expression |
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Term
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Definition
ordinary; typical
Syn: routine, workaday, banal |
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Term
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Definition
lacking substance
Syn: inane, asinine (as~en-ine), fatuous |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
uninteresting; dull; without flavor
Syn: bland, nondescript, vapid
ex.)mugs of insipid coffee |
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Term
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Definition
ordinary; trivial; so lacking in originality as to be obvious and boring
Syn: hackneyed, trite
ex.)songs with banal, repeated words |
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Term
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Definition
commonplace; ordinary
Syn: prosaic, banal, vapid |
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Term
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Definition
inactive; sleeping
Syn: inert; fallow |
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Term
| equanimity (equa-nim-ity) |
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Definition
the quality of being even-tempered
Syn: composure, imperturbability, aplomb (ah-plom)
ex.)Joe could not maintain his equanimity under all the attention |
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Term
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Definition
cheerfully optimistic
Syn: blithe (blythe), buoyant (boy-unt) |
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Term
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Definition
| sluggish; (of a person) having an unemotional and stolidly calm disposition
Syn: languorous (lang-ger-ous), lethargic, somnolent (som-no-lent), torpid |
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Term
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Definition
easily angered
Syn: irascible (ere-ras-er-able), fractious (frac-shuhs), bilious (bil~ee-us), splenetic (splen-eh-tic) |
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Term
| recalcitrant (reh-calci-truhnt) |
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Definition
stubbornly resistant to authority
Syn: refractory; intractable
ex.)Although the rider tried everything she knew, the horse remained recalcitrant and refused to jump the fence |
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Term
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Definition
sluggish; dully apathetic
Syn: languorous (lane-gur~us), plegmatic, torpid |
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Term
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Definition
| 1. irritable, easily angered
2. bad-tempered; spiteful
Syn: bilious, choleric |
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Term
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Definition
disposed to complaining in a petulant manner
ex.)My sister's querulous personality can irritate me very much; nevertheless, I still love her, even when she's complaining |
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Term
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Definition
marked by or expressive of sorrow or pain
Syn: lugubrious (lah-goo-bree-us), doleful |
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Term
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Definition
hostility; ill-will
Syn: malevolence(mah-lev-ah-lence), antagonism, invidiousness(in-vid-ee~us-ness) |
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Term
| pusillanimous (puse-all-lan-uh-muhs) |
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Definition
cowardly
Syn: timorous (tim-or-us), craven, dastardly
ex.)Mark's pusillanimous actions declared him to be a traitor to his friends. |
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Term
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Definition
feeling of weakness or listlessness
Syn: lethargy, languor, torpor, stupor
ex.)she was overcome by lassitude and retired to bed |
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Term
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Definition
| concerned with beauty or the appreciation of beauty |
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Term
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Definition
encourage or support, usually a wrongdoing
ex.)My brother abetted me to steal the cookies out of the cookie jar |
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Term
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Definition
a feeling of vexation, marked by disappointment or humiliation; distress or embarassment
ex.)Jeff, much to his chagrin, wasn't invited |
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Term
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Definition
| modest; not trying to impress others with importance |
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Term
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Definition
a solution/remedy to all problems/diseases
ex.)the panacea for all corporate ills |
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Term
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Definition
| a fallacy on the basis of irrelevant facts [of a person] |
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Term
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Definition
1. a projecting support of stone or brick built against a wall
2. a source of defense or support
ex.)there was a demand for a new stable order as a buttress against social collapse
3. increase the strength of or justification for; reinforce; support
ex.)authority was buttressed by religious belief |
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Term
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Definition
| holding fast; characterized by keeping a firm hold - persistent |
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Term
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Definition
| not conforming to rules, traditions, or modes of conduct |
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Term
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Definition
experienced in the imagination through the feelings or actions of another person
ex.)I could glean vicarious pleasure from the struggles of my imaginary film friends |
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Term
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Definition
1. give or grant (something) to (someone) in a gracious or condescending manner
ex.)it is a blessing vouchsafed him by heaven
2.reveal or disclose (information)
ex.)you'd never vouchsafed that interesting tidbit before |
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Term
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Definition
showing a disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others; unselfish
ex.)it was an entirely altruistic act |
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Term
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Definition
| having or showing a tendency to be easily angered |
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Term
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Definition
1. irritable and quarrelsome
ex.)they fight and squabble like fractious children
2. (of a group or organization) difficult to control; unruly
ex.)the fractious coalition of Social Democrats |
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Term
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Definition
1. affected by or associated with nausea or vomiting
ex.)I had eaten something that didn't agree with me and I was a little bilious
2. bad-tempered; spiteful
ex.)outbursts of bilious misogyny(my-sah-gen-ee: prejudice against women) |
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Term
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Definition
extremely stupid or foolish
ex.)she ignored his asinine remark |
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Term
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Definition
silly and pointless
ex.)a fatuous comment |
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Term
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Definition
(of a person or their manner) childishly sulky or bad-tempered
ex.)he was moody and petulant |
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Term
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Definition
(of a subject or knowledge) little known; abstruse; obscure
ex.)the book is full of recondite information |
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Term
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Definition
having or showing keen mental discernment and good judgment; shrewd
ex.)they were sagacious enough to avoid any outright confrontation |
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Term
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Definition
not revealing one's thoughts or feelings readily
ex.)she was extremely reticent about her personal affairs |
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Term
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Definition
mentally or physically inactive; lethargic
ex.)we sat around in a torpid state |
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Term
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Definition
(of speech or writing) using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy and drawn out
ex.)he found the narrative too prolix and discursive |
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Term
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Definition
lacking a plan, purpose, or enthusiasm; halfhearted and unfocused
ex.)the desultory conversation faded rather quickly |
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Term
| lugubrious (lu-goo-bree-ous) |
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Definition
looking or sounding sad and dismal, esp. in a way that seems exaggerated or ridiculous
ex.)The widow was very lugubrious at her rich dead husband's funeral |
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Term
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Definition
(especially of sound) sweet and soothing (often used ironically)
ex.)Patty was wild about rock and roll, but Kathy preferred the dulcet tones of the minuet |
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Term
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Definition
the quality of having a ready insight into things; shrewdness
ex.)He had enough perspicacity to be quiet when he saw anger flash momentarily across the teacher's face |
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Term
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Definition
speak or act in an evasive way
ex.)The Prime Minister's press conference featured more prevarication than candor(can-der: open and honest; frankness) |
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Term
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Definition
offering nothing that is stimulating or challenging
ex.)tuneful but vapid musical comedies |
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Term
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Definition
1. liable to change; easily altered
2. of or characterized by emotions that are easily aroused or freely expressed, and that tend to alter quickly and spontaneously; emotionally unstable
ex.)She was labile at times throughout the session when discussing her past history with the psychologist |
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Term
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Definition
self-confidence or assurance, especially when in a demanding situation
ex.)she passed the test with aplomb |
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Term
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Definition
put (something) right; correct
ex.)mistakes made now cannot be rectified later |
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