English Vocab Todd

  1. omniscient
    • -all knowing
    • The narrator was omniscient, knowing all thoughts going through each of the character's heads.
  2. omnipresent
    • -everywhere
    • Many religions believe that God is omnipresent, existing in all things around them.
  3. pulchritude
    • -beauty
    • As I walked through the garden, the dazzling pulchritude of one flower enticed me to grab it.
  4. perspicacious
    • -keenly insightful
    • The article she read was very perspicacious, enlightening her upon the issue of animal cruelty.
  5. demystify
    • -clarify
    • Once the teacher demystified the directions for the project, I finally understood exactly where to begin.
  6. intemperate
    • -extreme personality/behavior
    • He was the most intemperate person I had ever met, always picking arguments and never sitting still.
  7. haughty
    • -scornfully arrogant, snobbish
    • The haughty group of girls pushed others out of the way in order to get to the mirror and reapply their makeup.
  8. castigate
    • -punish in order to correct
    • I was harshly castigated every time I bit my nails, and as a result I finally broke the habit.
  9. etiolate
    • -to make pale
    • I attempted to etiolate the plant by excluding it from sunlight, but its color only slightly faded.
  10. eviscerate
    • -to kill, rip the organs out of
    • After the mountain lion was killed, it was eviscerated and the islanders ate the raw heart.
  11. ineffable
    • -indescribable
    • The pain she felt after snapping her tendon was ineffable, and she was unable to explain the experience to anyone.
  12. vagary
    • -unexpected change
    • After moving to such an unfamiliar place, he experienced many vagaries that he was not prepared for.
  13. vague
    • -unclear
    • She vaguely remembered her fifth birthday, knowing that she had a giant party but becoming hazy on the details.
  14. egregious
    • -outstandingly bad
    • It was an egregious mistake to wear jeans to the formal event, as I wasn't let in.
  15. facetious
    • -sarcastic
    • He always made highly facetious remarks about the way she dressed, but everyone took them seriously.
  16. misogynistic
    • -hatred of females
    • They always acted misogynistic toward the girls, telling us that we were good for nothing.
  17. atavistic
    • -acting like a caveman
    • He was behaving atavistically, not using silverware and forgetting all of his manners.
  18. nascent
    • -new/beginning
    • The nascent business held a grand opening for the public to become familiar with the items they sold.
  19. beligerent
    • -of warlike character, aggressively hostile
    • The beligerent tribe captured three of our men for no reason and refused to let them free.
  20. magnanimous
    • -open-minded, noble
    • I thought of my grandfather as a magnanimous man, always listening to what others had to say and valuing their opinions.
  21. hebdominal
    • -weekly
    • My aunt dropped by hebdominally, always bringing over chocolates on Tuesday nights.
  22. ubiquitous
    • -present, appearing or found everywhere
    • The Italian influence was ubiquitous in the town, appearing in the architecture as well as the general lifestyle of the inhabitants.
  23. inculcate
    • -to teach by frequent repetition/instruction
    • The teacher inculcated the vocab words into our head, forcing us to write and define them repeatedly.
  24. punctilious
    • -precise, exact
    • He was obviously punctilious about keeping his house free of clutter, considering how spotless the place was.
  25. ethereal
    • -unearthly
    • The bride had an ethereal beauty about her as she walked down the aisle, appearing graceful and godlike.
  26. hallow
    • -to make holy
    • The woman prayed in front of the hallowed statue in the church garden.
  27. noxious
    • -toxic, harmful
    • The noxious fumes poured out of the burning house, and we had to cover our mouths to prevent breathing it in.
  28. norm
    • -average
    • Two cars per family is the norm in most suburban communities.
  29. frank
    • -straightforward
    • She decided to be frank with him, telling him outright that she considered his jokes insulting.
  30. parlance
    • -a formal conversation
    • The adults at the banquet were engaging in parlance with one another while the children sat quietly.
  31. impudent
    • -naughty
    • The impudent child stuck his tongue out at the policeman.
  32. moot
    • -undebateable
    • The council debate on what to do with the old abandoned building had dragged on for months, but was decided to be moot the night the building burned down.
  33. poise
    • -calm, cool, collected
    • The woman maintained her dignity and poise as she was accused of stealing an expensive coat.
  34. connotation
    • -tone, emotion of word/phrase
    • The word "home" can have many possible connotations depending on how it is used.
  35. machinations
    sly or underhand planning
  36. didatic
    teacherly, pain in the ass
  37. furor
    an outburst of enthusiasm, excitement, fury, madness
  38. contrarian
    someone who takes an opposing view
  39. vapid
    • lacking sharpness or flavor (vapid tea)
    • dull (vapid party)
  40. tome
    heavy, large book
Author
h
ID
101495
Card Set
English Vocab Todd
Description
vocab #1
Updated