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vocabulary study week 2
Chapter 2 vocabulary
50
Other
Undergraduate 3
01/18/2012

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Term
abridge
Definition
Transitive Verb:
To reduce the length of (a written text); condense.
2. To cut short; curtail.
Term
ambivalent
Definition
adjective:
uncertain or unable to decide about what course to follow;
Term
appellation
Definition
Noun:
A name, title, or designation.
Term
arbitrary
Definition
Adjective:
Determined by chance, whim, or impulse, and not by necessity, reason, or principle
Term
blasphemy
Definition
Noun:
A contemptuous or profane act, utterance, or writing concerning God or a sacred entity.
b. The act of claiming for oneself the attributes and rights of God.
2. An irreverent or impious act, attitude, or utterance in regard to something considered inviolable or sacrosanct.
Term
categorical
Definition
adjective:
Being without exception or qualification; absolute
Term
chicanery
Definition
Noun:
Deception by trickery or sophistry.
Term
circumlocution
Definition
Noun:
1. The use of unnecessarily wordy and indirect language.
2. Evasion in speech or writing.
3. A roundabout expression.
Term
circumnavigate
Definition
transitive verb:
To proceed completely around
Term
contemplate
Definition
Verb; Transient verb:
To look at attentively and thoughtfully.
To consider carefully and at length; meditate on or ponder.
Term
contempt
Definition
Noun:
1. The feeling or attitude of regarding someone or something as inferior, base, or worthless; scorn.
2. The state of being despised or dishonored; disgrace.
3. Open disrespect or willful disobedience of the authority of a court of law or legislative body.
Term
conventionally
Definition
adjective:
Based on or in accordance with general agreement, use, or practice; customary
2. Conforming to established practice or accepted standards; traditional:
Term
criterion
Definition
Noun:
A standard, rule, or test on which a judgment or decision can be based.
Term
cynic
Definition
Noun:
1. A person who believes all people are motivated by selfishness.
2. A person whose outlook is scornfully and often habitually negative.
Term
decimate
Definition
transient verb:
To destroy or kill a large part of (a group).
To inflict great destruction or damage on.
Term
egalitarian
Definition
adjective:
Affirming, promoting, or characterized by belief in equal political, economic, social, and civil rights for all people.
Term
elude
Definition
transient verb:
To evade or escape from, as by daring, cleverness, or skill.
Term
equivocal
Definition
adjective:
Open to two or more interpretations and often intended to mislead; ambiguous. See Synonyms at ambiguous.
2. Of uncertain significance.
3. Of a doubtful or uncertain nature.
Term
example
Definition
noun:
One that is representative of a group as a whole.
Term
expurgate
Definition
transient verb:
To remove erroneous, vulgar, obscene, or otherwise objectionable material from (a book, for example) before publication.
Term
facilitate
Definition
transient verb:
To make easy or easier:
Term
feckless
Definition
adjective:
1. Lacking purpose or vitality; feeble or ineffective.
2. Careless and irresponsible.
Term
fiduciary
Definition
adjective:
Of or relating to a holding of something in trust for another: a fiduciary heir; a fiduciary contract.
b. Of or being a trustee or trusteeship.
Term
hegemony
Definition
Noun:
The predominant influence, as of a state, region, or group, over another or others.
Term
incognito
Definition
adverb & adjective:
With one's identity disguised or concealed.
Term
ironic
Definition
adjective:
Poignantly contrary to what was expected or intended.
Term
judiciously
Definition
adjective:
Having or exhibiting sound judgment; prudent.
Term
kowtow
Definition
intransitive verb:
1. To kneel and touch the forehead to the ground in expression of deep respect, worship, or submission, as formerly done in China.
2. To show servile deference.
Term
laissez faire
Definition
Noun:
Noninterference in the affairs of others.
Term
lassitude
Definition
Noun:
A state or feeling of weariness, diminished energy, or listlessness.
Term
levity
Definition
Noun:
1. Lightness of manner or speech, especially when inappropriate; frivolity.
2. Inconstancy; changeableness.
3. The state or quality of being light; buoyancy.
Term
marshal
Definition
Noun:
A military officer of the highest rank in some countries.
Term
orthography
Definition
Noun:
1. The art or study of correct spelling according to established usage.
2. The aspect of language study concerned with letters and their sequences in words.
3. A method of representing a language or the sounds of language by written symbols; spelling.
Term
plasma
Definition
Noun:
The clear, yellowish fluid portion of blood.
Term
plausibly
Definition
adjective:
Seemingly or apparently valid, likely, or acceptable; credible.
Giving a deceptive impression of truth or reliability.
Term
precipitous
Definition
adjective:
Resembling a precipice; extremely steep.
Extremely rapid, hasty, or abrupt
Term
prescriptive
Definition
adjective:
1. Sanctioned or authorized by long-standing custom or usage.
2. Making or giving injunctions, directions, laws, or rules.
Term
reticent
Definition
adjective:
1. Inclined to keep one's thoughts, feelings, and personal affairs to oneself. See Synonyms at silent.
2. Restrained or reserved in style.
3. Reluctant; unwilling.
Term
servile
Definition
adjective:
Abjectly submissive; slavish.
Of or suitable to a slave or servant.
Of or relating to servitude or forced labor.
Term
skeptical
Definition
adjective:
Marked by or given to doubt; questioning
Term
syllable
Definition
Noun:
A unit of spoken language consisting of a single uninterrupted sound formed by a vowel, diphthong, or syllabic consonant alone, or by any of these sounds preceded, followed, or surrounded by one or more consonants.
Term
symmetrically
Definition
adjective:
Of or exhibiting symmetry
Term
tectonic
Definition
adjective:
Geology Relating to, causing, or resulting from structural deformation of the earth's crust.
Term
thermodynamics
Definition
Noun:
Physics that deals with the relationships and conversions between heat and other forms of energy.
Term
transgress
Definition
verb:
To go beyond or over (a limit or boundary); exceed or overstep
Term
tundra
Definition
Noun:
A treeless area between the icecap and the tree line of Arctic regions, having a permanently frozen subsoil and supporting low-growing vegetation such as lichens, mosses, and stunted shrubs.
Term
usurp
Definition
transitive verb:
To seize and hold (the power or rights of another, for example) by force or without legal authority.
To take over or occupy without right.
Term
variant
Definition
adjective:
1. Having or exhibiting variation; differing.
2. Tending or liable to vary; variable.
3. Deviating from a standard, usually by only a slight difference.
Term
vehement
Definition
adjective:
Characterized by forcefulness of expression or intensity of emotion or conviction; fervid:
Marked by or full of vigor or energy; strong.
Term
vicarious
Definition
adjective:
Felt or undergone as if one were taking part in the experience or feelings of another
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