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idiosyncrasy
peculiarity
Her habit of using “like” in every sentence was just one of her idiosyncrasies.
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impecunious
indigent
they were so impecunious that they couldn't afford to give one another even token Christmas gifts
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impolitic
unwise
It would be impolitic to buy a house now.
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impunity
exemption from harm
she mistakenly believed that she could insult people with impunity
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incipient
beginning
I have an incipient dislike and distrust of that guy, and I only met him this morning.
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incorrigible
unreformable
He is always the class clown and his teachers say he isincorrigible.
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indolent
lazy
an indolent boy who had to be forced to help out with the chores
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insipid
flat, dull, tasteless
an apple pie with a mushy, insipid filling that strongly resembled soggy cardboard
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insular
narrow-minded
an insular community that is not receptive of new ideas, especially from outsiders
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internecine
mutually self-destructive
a political party that has suffered because of bitter internecine rivalries
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intractable
unmanageable
a patient experiencing intractable pain
an intractable child who deliberately does the opposite of whatever he is told
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inure
accustom, habituate, harden
Does violence on television inure children to violence in real life?
the hardship of army training inured her to the rigors of desert warfare
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laconic
brief, terse
the sportscaster's color commentary tends to be laconicbut very much to the point
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lassitude
lethargy
our lassitude was such that we couldn't even be bothered to get more soda from the fridge
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levity
frivolity
the teachers disapprove of any displays of levity during school assemblies
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lurid
ghastly
a lurid tale of violence and betrayal
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magnanimous
generous, kindhearted
a magnanimous donation to the town's animal shelter
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misanthrope
hater of mankind
a former misanthrope who now professes a newly discovered love of mankind
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neologism
newly coined expression
the madman would make up his own neologisms from pieces of other words, making him unintelligible
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obfuscate
bewilder, muddle
Politicians keep obfuscating the issues.
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obviate
make unnecessary
The new medical treatment obviates the need for surgery.
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odious
despicable
an odious and unforgivable insult
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officious
forward, obtrusive
an officious little man who was always telling everyone else how to do their jobs
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onerous
burdensome
had the onerous and stressful job of notifying the families of soldiers killed in action
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opprobrium
disgrace
They're going ahead with the plan despite public opprobrium.
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padantic
bookish
His pedantic reasoning may have been correct, but it ruined his argument by boring his listeners to death.
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penchant
inclination
a penchant for sitting by the window and staring moodily off into space
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pernicious
destructive
the pernicious effects of jealousy
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perspicacious
keen
his overly perspicacious recollection of the events led the police to think he lied
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phlegmatic
sluggish
a strangely phlegmatic response to what should have been happy news
Some people are phlegmatic, some highly strung.
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platitude
banal, trite or stale remark
His speech was filled with familiar platitudes about the value of hard work and dedication.
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platonic
non-sexual
They had a platonic friendship, not a romantic one.
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preponderance
predominance
not since Rome in its glory days had a nation enjoyed such overwhelming military preponderance
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