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v.) to surrender
The old king abdicated the throne to the young prince.
Synonyms: give up, renounce, withdraw
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(adj.) examine carefully all circumstances and possible consequences
The judge was very circumspect in his ruling.
Synonyms: careful, concerned
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(adj.) lacking in self-confidence
The diffident teenager had problems making new friends because of his shyness.
Synonyms: modest, shy, bashful
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(adj.) overflowing with excitement or liveliness
Pacco was always an ebullient dog at dinner time.
Synonyms: enthusiastic
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(adj). having no harmful qualities or ill effects; harmless
The placebo was innocuous to the patient as opposed to the trial medication.
Synonyms: naïve, pure, innocent
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(adj.) offensive to the point of arousing disgust; foul smell
Noisome fumes escaped Mount Trashmore affecting the surrounding neighborhood.
Synonyms: reeking, stinking
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(adj.) characterized by a pretentious show to impress others
Once again the neighbor put out the most ostentatious Christmas decorations to prove he could out-do the rest of us.
Synonyms: showy, pretentious
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(noun) an often intense natural inclination
The young woman had a propensity for garage sales and thrift stores which resulted in an unmanageable hoard.
Synonyms: leaning, penchant, predilection
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(noun) someone who attempts to win favors or advance him or herself by flattery or servile behavior.
The teacher grew tired of the little sycophant who always wanted to be teachers pet.
Synonyms: Slanderer, defamer, suck up
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(adj.) habitually silent or quiet, inclined to talk very little
Although Jimmy remained taciturn in every class his work was always excellent.
Synonyms: laconic, terse
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(adj.) moderate, especially in eating and drinking
Due to her new diet the abstemious young girl ate very little at dinner.
Synonyms: moderate, temperate
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(adj.) humane, kind, favorable
Thankfully the benign tumor was not going to cause any more problems.
Synonyms: benevolent, harmless
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(n.) power to produce a desired effect
The teacher wasn’t sure of the efficacy of the lesson she was about to teach but was willing to try anyway.
Synonyms: efficiency, successfulness
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(adj.) stealth, attempting to avoid detection
The furtive burglar tried to break into the jewelry store without setting off the alarm.
Synonyms: secret, sneaky, clandestine
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(adj.) smooth talking, fluent, talkative
It was said that the glib man could talk an Eskimo into buying ice.
Synonyms: loquacious, plausible
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(adj.) impoverished, needy, poor
I felt sorry for the indigent man so I gave him my winter coat.
Synonyms: lacking, destitute
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(adj.) laughable or ridiculous because it’s absurd
It was absolutely ludicrous to think that there would be no work the first day back from vacation.
SYN: comical, hilarious
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(n.) a violent or turbulent situation
Amy was a maelstrom of emotions after she found out that she had cancer.
SYN: whirlpool, vortex, storm
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(adj.) greedy in eating; very eager
The rescued dog was voracious when given food; there was no telling when he had his last meal.
SYN: avid, ravenous
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(adj.) hard to understand
It was such an abstruse concept that no matter how many times the teacher tried to explain the students still didn’t get it.
SYN: obscure, complex
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(adj.) vanishing, scarcely perceptible
The evanescent twinkle in the night sky was beautiful and surreal.
SYN: fleeting
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(v.) to make worse
Sally’s cold was exacerbated by the rainy weather
SYN: irritate, aggravate
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(adj.) naturally existing
His intrinsic artistic ability had been passed down from his mother.
SYN: inherent, inborn
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(v.) to cast overboard; get rid of unnecessary items
She made the decision to jettison the boy out of her life when she suspected him of cheating.
SYN: discard, dump
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(adj.) lacking moral discipline or ignoring laws, especially in sexual conduct
The licentious young woman would regret that her wild lifestyle was documented on facebook.
SYN: wild, uninhibited
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(v.) to soothe temper; pacify
My mom was so irate that it was difficult to mollify her when she thought I had disobeyed her.
SYN: appease, conciliate
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(n.) deviation from the norm
Okonkwo knew the rain and drought he faced his first year farming was an anomaly and if he
continued to work hard he would see success.
SYN: abnormality, irregularity
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(adj.) pompous or overblown language
Unoka gave a bombastic speech to one of his creditors in an effort to detract from the fact that he
was in the wrong.
SYN: inflated (language)
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(n.) a person who believes all people are motivated by selfishness
Being a cynic at heart, Okonkwo was sure that his son would grow up lazy like his grandfather.
SYN: pessimist, scorner
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(adj.) to sap the strength/energy of
The death of Ikemefuna seemed to debilitate Okonkwo and sent him into a depression.
SYN: WEAKEN, ENFEEBLE
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(adj.) make lean, gradual wasting away of the body.
Ikemefuna’s emaciated body was a result of him refusing to eat.
SYN: thin, wasted away
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(n.) – one who seeks to destroy traditional or religious beliefs
The iconoclast disguised himself as a missionary who’s goal was to eliminate the tribal traditions and replace them with Christianity.
SYN: heretic
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(adj.) very large number; indefinite number
The tribe had a myriad of traditions that were passed down through the generations.
SYN: innumerable, numerous, multitude
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(adj). habitually silent or uncommunicative
The reticent Nwoye stood silently as Okonkwo beat his second wife, afraid that his father would turn on him if he spoke up.
SYN: laconic, taciturn.
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(adj.) – characterized by coarse or vulgar joking or mocking
Okonkwo did not have a sense of humor and took offense to the ribald tale.
SYN: lewd, lascivious
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(adj.) favorable circumstances, successful
The auspicious weather was perfect for yam crop planting.
SYN: favorable, fortunate
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(n.) a fraudulent person
The missionaries considered the witch doctor a charlatan and discouraged the natives from using
him.
SYN: quack, fraud
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(n.) use of force, against will
Ikemefuna was brought to the tribe under duress and against his will.
SYN: force coercion
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(adj) selective from a variety of sources
She had an eclectic taste when it came to the music she listened to.
SYN: selective variety
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(n.) a minor weakness or fault
The student’s only foible was that he couldn’t remember to cross his “T”s.
SYN: flaw, defect
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(adj.) originating from and living in an environment
Non-native predators are threatening the indigenous species of the Everglades.
SYN: native
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(n.) feeling weary, listlessness
I couldn’t overcome the lassitude I was feeling and stayed in bed all day.
SYN: lethargic, dullness
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(v.) freed from chain or shackle; liberated
I was unfettered once I broke off the engagement.
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(v.) sway or waiver between options
For months I vacillated between FSU and UF, ultimately making the decision to become a Seminole!
SYN: hesitate, falter, flip-flop
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ARTICULATE (2 forms)
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(v.) to pronounce clearly, to express yourself well in words
I couldn’t articulate the point so I ended up losing the debate tournament.
SYN: voice, communicate
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(adj.) expressed clearly
The articulate young man was bound for a career as a public speaker.
SYN: eloquent, fluent
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(adj.) insensitive and unrefined
The student’s crass remark was so offensive that the teacher gave him a detention.
SYN: gross
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(n.) – appropriate behavior or conduct
In JROTC certain decorum must be adhered to.
SYN: propriety, etiquette
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(adj.) showy, ostentatious
Her grandiose attitude was very fake because she was just trying to impress the party guests.
SYN: imposing, impressive
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(adj.) enthusiasm and excessive interest
He became too zealous when the Heat game started, he was their #1 fan!
SYN: vigorous, fervent
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(n) an outgoing person
It was easy for the extrovert to speak with the crowd.
SYN: assertive, gregarious
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(n) a fake or deceptive front
Her façade made her seem confident but deep down she was a very insecure person.
SYN: front, pretense
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(adj) hard to grasp or understand
The elusive bird evaded capture for weeks.
SYN: baffling, evasive
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(adj.) lacking spirit or interest
His lackadaisical attitude made him seem lazy and uninvolved in life.
SYN: listless, insolent
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