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Vocab
Reading Vocab
155
English
Graduate
01/18/2009

Additional English Flashcards

 


 

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Term
opprobrium (n)
Definition
the disgrace or reproach incurred by conduct considered outrageously shameful. see Frankenstein
Term
adroit (adj)
Definition
cleverly skillful, resourceful or ingenious.
Term
abstruse (adj)
Definition
hard to understand, recondite
Term
diminution (n)
Definition
the act, fact or process of diminishing, lessening, reduction
Term
exscind (v)
Definition
to cut off or out
Term
loth (a)
Definition
unwilling or relectant. also loath. "I am loath to go on such short notice."
Term
prodigious (a)
Definition
extraordinary in size or degree, marvelous, monstrous/abnormal
Term
conclave (n)
Definition
a gathering or secret meeting, the body of cardinals. A conclave of political leaders.
Term
miff (n)
miff (v)
Definition
petty quarrel, ill humor.
to offend
Term
quaff (v)
Definition
to drink copiously and heartily.
Term
squall (n)
Definition
a sudden disturbance or commotion
Term
serried (a)
Definition
pressed together or compacted
Term
sedate (a)
Definition
calm, quiet or composed.
Term
ancillary (a)
Definition
auxiliary, assisting or subordinate
Term
gaudy (n)
Definition
a festival or celebration
Term
mien (n)
Definition
demeanor, conduct.
Term
obsequy (n)
Definition
a funeral rite. "And to the ladies he restored again the bones belonging to their husbands slain, to do, as custom was, their obsequies."
Term
aggrandize (v)
Definition
to make greater
Term
extant (a)
Definition
in existence; used especially to refer to the last surviving examples of something passing out of existence, such as an antique book or a nearly extinct species
Term
descry (v)
Definition
to make open or plain by saying
Term
burgess (n)
Definition
a freeman or citizen of an English borough. "Each seemed a worthy burgess, fit to grace a guild-hall with a seat upon the dais" Chaucer
Term
arrears (pl.n)
Definition
the state of being behind or late, esp. in the fulfillment of a duty, payment, promise, obligation, or the like. "The accounts, right from his master's earliest years, no one had ever caught him arrears."
Term
doff (v)
Definition
to remove, take off or get rid of. "Doff your silly ideas and come to your senses."
Term
vie (v)
Definition
to strive in competition or rivalry with one another. "Swimmers from many nations were vying for the title"
Term
coppice (n)
Definition
a thicket of small trees or bushes. also copse.
Term
cithern (n)
cittern (n)
Definition
an old musical instrument related to the guitar, having a flat, pear-shaped soundbox and wire strings.
Term
effigy (n)
Definition
a representation or image. (in effigy) in public view "a leader hanged in effigy by the mob"
Term
travail (n)
Definition
painfully difficult or burdensome work. pain, anguish or suffering from mental or phsyical hardship.10
Term
aquiline (a)
Definition
hooked, like an eagle's beak/of an eagle. of the nose.
Term
vainglory (n)
Definition
excessive elation or pride over one's own achievements.
Term
hauberk (n)
Definition
armor
Term
panoply (n)
Definition
a complete and magnificent array. a complete suit or armor.
Term
yeoman (n)
Definition
a farmer who cultivates his own land.
Term
caterwaul (v)
Definition
to utter long wailing cries, howl or screech.
Term
sable (n)
Definition
very, very black. a weasle-like animal.
Term
hamadryad (n)
Definition
a dryad who is in the spirit of a particular tree.
Term
churl (n)
Definition
a rude or surly person. a peasant or rustic.
Term
cuckold (n,v)
Definition
the husband of an unfaithful wife.
to make a cuckold of someone
Term
codger (n)
Definition
an eccentric man, esp one who is old.
Term
kip (n)
Definition
hide of a young or small beast
Term
quim (n)
Definition
vulgar term for woman's genitals
Term
roulade (n)
Definition
a musical embellishment consisting of a rapid succession of tones sung to a single syllable.
2. a slice of meat rolled around a filling of minced meat and cooked
Term
paramour (n)
Definition
an illicit lover, esp of a married person. any lover.
Term
jape (v)
jape (n)
Definition
to jest or mock. a joke or quip
Term
asperity (n)
Definition
harshness or sharpness of tone, temper or manner.
Term
victuals (n)
Definition
food supplies, provisions
Term
unalloyed (v)
Definition
pure, complete, unqualified. not in mixture with other metals. mi"unalloyed relief"
Term
abjure (v)
Definition
to renounce or repudiate. "After his resignation as prime minister, he abjured all titles, preferring to remain just plain 'Mr."
Term
harridan
Definition
a scolding, vicious woman. a hag.
Term
solicitude (n)
Definition
concern or anxiety
Term
succor (v)
succor (n)
Definition
to help or relieve
aid or assistance
Term
foison (n)
Definition
abundance
Term
orison (n)
Definition
a prayer
Term
bawdry (n)
Definition
illicit intercourse, the practice of procuring women for the gratification of lust.
Term
calumniate (v)
Definition
to slander, to make false and malicious statements about.
Term
dotard (n)
Definition
a weak-minded or foolish old person.
Term
dalliance (n)
Definition
flirtation, dawdling, a trifling away of time.
Term
dilection (n)
Definition
love, choice.
Term
gloze (v)
Definition
to smooth over, gloss over, flatter, extenuate
Term
hoary (a)
Definition
grey or white with age, venerable
Term
prate (v)
Definition
to talk excessively and pointlessly, babble
Term
stertor (n)
Definition
a heavy snoring sound.
Term
lascivious (a)
Definition
wanton, lewd, inclined to lustfulness
Term
sycophant (n)
Definition
a self-seeking servile flatterer, fawning parasite
Term
cocker (v)
Definition
to pamper, spoil or coddle
Term
derision (n)
Definition
ridicule, mockery
Term
fastidious (a)
Definition
excessively particular, critical or demanding, hard to please. a fastidious eater.
Term
tonsure (n)
Definition
the act of cutting the hair or shaving the head.
Term
lucre (n)
Definition
monetary reward or gain, money
Term
foppish (a)
Definition
exceptionally refined and fastidious in taste or manner.
Term
pithy (a)
Definition
brief, forceful and meaningful in expression. a pithy observation
Term
fop (n)
Definition
a man who is excessively vain and concerned about his appearance, dress and manners.
Term
redolent (a)
Definition
having a pleasant odor; reminiscent. "verse redolent of Shakespeare"
Term
poltroon (n)
poltroon (a)
Definition
a wretched coward, cravern.
Term
mendicant (n)
mendicant (a)
Definition
beggar
Term
potentate (n)
Definition
a person who possessess great power, as a sovereign, monarch or ruler.
Term
predicate (v)
Definition
to proclaim, declare, affirm, assert; to imply "his retraction predicates a change of attitude." to derive "he predicated his behavior on his faith in humanity.
Term
shrive (v)
Definition
to impose penance (sinner), to grant absolution (penitant), to hear the confession
Term
cavil (v)
Definition
to raise irritating and trivial objections, to find fault with unnecessarily. "He finds something to cavil at in everything I say."
Term
deputation (n)
Definition
the act of appointing a person to represent/act for another.
Term
raiment (n)
Definition
clothing, apparel, attire
Term
propinquity (n)
Definition
proximity; kinship; similarity; nearness in time. "Here I disclaim all my paternal care, propinquity and property of blood" (King Lear)
Term
specious (a)
Definition
pleasing to the eye but deceptive, superficially pleasing/plausible, apparently good/right but lacking real merit. specious arguments
Term
suzerain (n)
Definition
a feudal overlord, a sovereign/state exercising power over a dependent state.
Term
inviolate (a)
Definition
undisturbed, untouched, unbroken; free from violation or desecration
Term
bandy (v)
Definition
to pass from one to another, back or forth, exchange, trade. to bandy blows, to bandy words.
Term
benison (n)
Definition
blessing
Term
shibboleth (n)
Definition
a slogan/catchword; a peculiarity of pronunciation/behavior/mode of dress etc. that distinguishes a particular class or set of persons.
Term
peonage(n)
Definition
the practice of holding persons in servitude or partial slavery as to work off a debt or to serve a penal sentence.
Term
rapine (n)
Definition
the violent seizure and carrying off of another's property, plunder. "Behind the mists of ruin and rapine waved the calico dresses of the women..." W.E.B. DuBois
Term
calico (a)
calico (n)
Definition
spotted or mottled.
a plain woven cloth with a figurative pattern on one side.
Term
puissant (a)
Definition
powerful, mighty, potent. "His grief grew puissant and the strings of life began to crack" (King Lear)
Term
peon (n)
Definition
"in well-nigh the whole rural South the black farmers are peons, bound by law and custom to an economic slavery" (DuBois)
Term
prevaricate (v)
Definition
to speak falsely or misleadingly, to lie. prevarication
Term
dissipate (v)
Definition
to scatter or disperse; to indulge in extravagant, intemperate, or dissolute pleasure
Term
milieu (n)
Definition
surroundings, esp. of a social or cultural nature. a snobbish milieu
Term
tranche de vie
Definition
"slice of life"
Term
biddable (a)
Definition
willing to do what is asked, obedient, tractable, docile; acquired by bidding. "Conchubar is coming-to-day to put an oath upon him that will stop his rambing and make him as biddable as a house-dog" (William Yeats)
Term
fomorian (n)
Definition
one of a race of pirates or sea demons who raided and pillaged Ireland but were finally defeated; sometimes associated with hostile forces of nature.
Term
dramaturgy (n)
Definition
the craft or the techniques of dramatic composition. "He then wrote a trunkful of plays, studied dramaturgy with George Pierce Baker at Harvard and saw his first play produced in 1916" (re: Eugene O'Neill)
Term
cubit (n)
Definition
a unit of length measuring from the elbow to the extremity of the middle finger. "for the spectator almost feels that Ibsen is trying to add a cubit to the stature of his heoine by standing her on the ruin of her son." (re: Henrik Ibsen Ghosts)
Term
lexicon
Definition
"I have used the words fuck and cunt freely in this piece, because Lawrence wanted to rescue them from the lexicon of dirty words"
Term
unexpurgated
Definition
"In 1960 there was a court case about this novel, a noisy affair, a landmark in the story of English literature, since there was an attempt to have the unexpurgated version banned"
Term
polemic
Definition
"What has to strike us now was the angry polemics of the piece"
Term
collier
Definition
Term
bucolic (a)
Definition
"He had never been the modern ladylike young gentleman: rather bucolic, even, with his ruddy face and broad shoulders"
Term
intransigent (a)
Definition
"In this case, as in all cases, the adults knew better. And Monika remained intransigent and firm" (Danielle Steele, Echoes)
Term
rakish (a)
Definition
"He was wearing white slacks and a dark blue blazer, a navy tie and a very good-looking straw hat that made him look somewhat rakish"
Term
valise (n)
Definition
"his cousin put her valises in the trunk of the car"
Term
raprochement (n)
Definition
"Although Beata's family had shown no sign that they would welcome them, it was always possible that if they lived nearby, they might relent eventually. And perhaps in time, some raprochement could be encouraged." (DS)
Term
postulant (n)
Definition
"She wanted to become Sister Teresa of Carmel. Until then, in her lowly state as postulant, she would be Sister Amadea" (DS)
Term
litany (n)
Definition
"She joined he other sisters for the litany of the Blessed Virgin"
Term
discalced (a)
Definition
"The order was discalced, which meant that they did not wear proper shoes, as part of the discomforts which they embraced" (DS)
Term
suzerain (n)
Definition
"While Eros, all earth's suzerain, we worship ot--" (Euripedes, Hippolytus)
Term
inviolate (a)
Definition
"As though, base wretch, hast come to me to trafic/ With the inviolate bed of my own father." (Hippolytus)
Term
kine (n)
Definition
"Hellas heaps high her slaughtered kine" (Euripedes)
Term
consternation (n)
Definition
"And we in consternation, / Wondering from whence it came, looed towards the breakers" (Eu)
Term
festinate (a)
Definition
speedy. "Advise the Duke where you are going, to a most festinate preparation"
Term
corky (a)
Definition
withered; "Bind fast his corky arms"
Term
esperance (n)
Definition
"To be worst,/ The lowest and most dejected thing of fortune,/ Stands stil in esperance" (Shakespeare, King Lear)
Term
PRODIGIOUS (A)
Definition
"to Heaven towered a wave prodigious, So high it masked from sight the Rocks of Sciron" (Eu)
Term
SPECIOUS (A)
Definition
"Such words of shame! I have subdued my soul/ to bear my love; but with your specious tempting I shall be sunk in the very sin of hate." (Eu)
Term
pelican (a)
Definition
Term
choleric (a)
Definition
extremely irritable or easily angered. "in the same way the poet, in imitating people whose character is choleric or phlegmatic , and so forth, must keep them as they are and at the same time make them more attractive" (Aristotle)
Term
PHLEGMATIC (a)
Definition
not easily excited or display emotion, sluggish; calm, composed. "In phlegmatic natures, calamity is unaffecting, in shallow natures it is rehtorical." (Emerson)
Term
mithridatism (n)
Definition
the production of immunity against poison by taking the poison in gradually increased doses. see Princess Bride's Wesley and Ninja Scrolls. "There are people who have an appetite for grie, plaesure is not strong enough and they crave pain, mithridatic stomachs which must be fed on poisoned bread, natures so doomed that no prosperity can soothe their ragged and dishevelled desolation." (Emerson)
Term
tincture (n)
Definition
a slight infusion, as of some element or quality; a trace or smack (a tincture of irony); a tincture of education had softened his rude manners. "The few critics who have had some tincture of philosophy have remarked this singular phenomenon." (David Hume, Of Tragedy)
Term
INDOLENCE (A)
Definition
"L'Abbe Dubos, in his Reflections on Poetry and Painting [1719], asserts, that nothing is in general so disagreeabble to the mind as the languid, listless state of indolence into which it falls upon the removal of all passion and occupation." (David Hume, Of Tragedy)
Term
INSIPID (A)
Definition
"it is still better than that insipid lanquor which arises from perect tranquillity and repose."
Term
dolce peccante (n)
Definition
sweet sinning. "Jealousy and absence in love compose the dolce peccante of the Italians, which they suppose so essential to al pleasure." (David Hume, Of Tragedy)
Term
FULCRUM (N)
Definition
A natural outsider, I had found my proper fulcrum, and was ready to shift the world"
Term
prosody (n)
Definition
the science of studying poetic meters and versification. "Making up for the absence of that fixed-quantity metrical schema calls for every known trick at the English prosodist's disposal"
Term
argot (n)
Definition
the special vocabulary and idiom of a particular profession or social group. "Equally modernist, and another thing Rudd, quite rightly, complained about was the slangy urban argot with which I'd laced a fiar amount of Juvenal's rhetoric."
Term
interpolation (n)
Definition
estimation for a value between two known data points or outside of data. "Willis is an enthusiastic interpolationist: hist text is dotted with shorter or longer italicized passages that he regards as spurious."
Term
lacuna (n)
Definition
a gap
Term
XENOPHOBIC (A)
Definition
"Marcus Aurelius would scarcely have relished Juvenal's xenophobic attitude to all things Greek"
Term
vituperation (n)
Definition
verbal abuse or castigation, violent denunciation or condemnation. "It is from here on that on begins to detect a subtle change of tone, from savage vituperation to a more tempered and reflective irony."
Term
periphrastic (a)
Definition
circumlocutory, roundabout. "and his periphrastic mythological allusions become less mocking, more turgidly Alexandrian"
Term
turgid (a)
Definition
swollen, distended, turmid; inflated, overblown or pompous. "and his periphrastic mythological allusions become less mocking, more turgidly Alexandrian"
Term
pasquinade (n)
Definition
a satire or lampoon, esp. in a publice place. "in middle age Juvenal uttered a short pasquinade of a few verses satirizing Paris the pantomimus."
Term
guttersnipe (n)
Definition
a person belonging to or characteristic of the lowest social group in a city, a street urchin. "Penniless, his position and career in ruins, seared by exile and the Terror, Juvenal came back, turned forty, to a Rome of jumped-up guttersnipes and decadent aristocrats."
Term
SHIBBOLETH (N)
Definition
"Any crypto-Republicanism one can detect in his work is no more than a reflection of the fasionable Stoic shibboleths current throughout his lifetime"
Term
bromide (n)
Definition
a platitude or trite saying. "a bagful of moral bromides and stock rhetorical tropes or literary allusions to suit every occasion"
Term
trope (n)
Definition
any literary device that consists in the use of words other than their literal sense, such as metaphor, synechdoche and irony.
Term
anachronism (n)
Definition
something or someone that is not in its correct historical or chronological time. ex. the sword is an anachronism in modern warfare. "The first modern novel is Don Quixote de La Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes, yet its modernity is founded on the apparant anachronism of its very subject matter, since this is the story of a slightly addled provincial gentleman who reads medieval romances of chivalry..."
Term
apocryphal (a)
Definition
of doubtful authorship or authenticity. "Don Quixote has come all the way from La Mancha to Barcelona in order to denounce the apocryphal version o his adventures published by one Avellaneda to cash in on the popularity of Cervantes' book."
Term
ponderous (a)
Definition
heavy, massive. "the majority of these are topical and are the subject of long notes in the more ponderous editions of the book."
Term
pedant (n)
Definition
a person who makes an excessive or inappropriate display of learning; one who overemphasizes rules or minor details, adhering rigidly to book knowledge without regard to common sense. "who, I have heard it rumoured, were famous poets: and even if they were not, and some pedants and graduates turned up to snap and growl at you behind your back in the name of truth, you need not bother about them a bit; for even if they convict you of falsehood, they cannot cut off the hand you wrote it with."
Term
appurtenance (n)
appurtenances (n.pl)
Definition
accessory, something subordinate to another more important thing; instruments, apparatus. "as soon as he saw the inn he convinced himself that it was a fortress with its four towers and pinnacles of shining silver, complete with a drawbridge, a deep moat and all those appurtenances with which such castles are painted."
Term
skein (n)
Definition
flock of geese/ducks in flight; a length of yarn/wool wound on a reel, suggestive of the twistings of a skein. ex. a skein of hair, an incoherent skein of words. "For the skein can be judged by the thread, and we shall rest assured and satisfied with this, and your worship will be pleased and content" (Cervantes)
Term
redound (v)
Definition
"you must desire for me some of those violent and dangerous diseases from the cure of which so much honor redounds to the physician"
Term
lenity (n)
Definition
"To give you pleasure, my sweet Renee, I promise to show all the lenity in my power"
Term
abase (v)
Definition
"for what great and mysterious purpose has it pleased hHeaven to abase the man once so elevated, and raise up the individual so beaten down and depressed?" (Abbe Faria, Dumas)
Term
inscrutable (a)
Definition
"How inscrutable are the ways of Providence!"
Term
VICISSITUDE (N)
Definition
"these are the changes and vicissitudes that give liberty to a nation. Mark what I say!"
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