abate:
subside; decrease; become less in amount or intensity | aberration:
deviation, not normal |
abhor:
fill with horror and loathing; horrify; hate | abstruse:
obscure; profound; difficult to understand. |
accost:
approach and speak to boldly or aggressively, as with demand or request | acrimony:
bitter animosity |
acumen:
mental keenness; quickness of perception | adamant:
extremely hard; inflexible; stubbornly unyielding |
adept:
expert at; very skilled; having or showing knowledge and skill and aptitude | adroit:
skillful and adept under pressing conditions |
affected:
speaking or behaving in artificial way; emotionally stirred or moved; infected or attacked | alacrity:
cheerful promptness or willingness; eagerness; speed or quickness |
aloocate:
assign, portion | altruistic:
unselfishly generous; concerned for others |
amenable:
responsive to advice or suggestion; responsible to higher authority; willing to comply with; agreeable | amiable:
good-natured and likable; lovable; warmly friendly |
amicable:
exhibiting friendliness or goodwill; not quarrelsome | antediluvian:
antiquated; extremely old and ancient; belonging to very ancient times |
anthropology:
social science that studies origins and social relationships of human beings | antipathy:
strong feeling of aversion; dislike |
apathetic:
feeling or showing a lack of interest or concern; indifferent | apt:
likely; exactly suitable; appropriate; quick to learn or understand |
arcane:
secret; mysterious; known only to the initiated | ascendancy:
superiority or decisive advantage; domination |
ascetic:
leading a life of self-discipline and self-denial; austere | aspire:
seek to attain; long for; strive toward an end |
assail:
assault; attack with or as if with violent blows | assiduous:
constant in application or attention; diligent; unceasing or persistent |
assuage:
ease or lessen pain; satisfy or appease | atrophy:
wasting away; decrease in size; reduction in the functionality of an organ caused by disease |
attenuate:
make slender, fine, or small; weaken; lessen density of | august:
impressive; majestic; inspiring awe or admiration |
aura:
air, feeling | auspicious:
attended by favorable circumstances; marked by success; prosperous |
autocrat:
dictator; ruler having unlimited power | automaton:
mechanism that imitates actions of humans |
avarice:
greediness for wealth; insatiable desire of gain | banal:
obvious and dull; commonplace; lacking originality |
barrage:
artificial obstruction; heavy curtain of artillery fire; rapid, concentrated discharge of missiles | belie:
contradict; give a false impression |
belligerent:
inclined or eager to fight; aggressive | benevolent:
generous in providing aid to others; charitable |
bequeath:
leave to someone by a will; hand down | berate:
rebuke or scold angrily and at length |
bitartisanship:
supported by two opposing parties | blighted:
suffering from a disease; destroyed, ruined, or spoiled |
bog:
marsh, swamp | bolster:
support or prop up with or as if with a long narrow pillow or cushion |
bombastic:
pompous; using inflated language; high-sounding but with little meaning | boorish:
rude and clumsy in behavior; ungentlemanly; awkward in manners |
buoyant:
able to float; cheerful and optimistic | burgeon:
grow forth; send out buds; grow or develop rapidly |
buttress:
support physically; prop up; support something or someone by supplying evidence | byzantine:
convoluted, complex |
cacophonous:
discordant; inharmonious; sounding harshly; ill-sounding | cajole:
influence or urge by gentle urging or flattering |
callous:
emotionally hardened; unfeeling; toughened | cantankerous:
ill humored; irritable; marked by ill-tempered contradiction or opposition; ugly; malicious |
capricious:
fickle; impulsive and unpredictable; apt to change opinions suddenly | castigate:
criticize severely; punish; revise or make corrections to publication |
caustic:
capable of burning, corroding, dissolving, or eating away by chemical action | censorious:
critical; addicted to censure; severe in making remarks on others, or on their writings or manners; implying or expressing censure |
censure:
expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism; blame | cerebral:
relating to the brain or cerebrum; intellectual rather than emotional |
chagrin:
anxiety caused by humiliation or injured pride; disappointment | charlatan:
quack; one who pretends to knowledge, skill, or importance |
chastise:
punish, as by beating; criticize severely; rebuke | chide:
scold mildly so as to correct or improve; express disapproval |
churlish:
difficult to work with; rude; unyielding; unmanageable | circuitous:
being or taking a roundabout, lengthy course; going round in a circuit; not direct |
circumscribe:
limit narrowly; confine; draw a line around; encircle | circumvent:
surround an enemy; enclose or entrap; beat by cleverness and wit |
clandestine:
secret; conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods | coalesce:
combine; fuse; grow together; come together so as to form one whole; unite |
compendious:
succinct | complacency:
feeling of contented self-satisfaction, especially when unaware of upcoming trouble |
compliant:
yielding to request or desire; ready to accommodate; disposed or willing to comply | conciliate:
compromising, apologizing |
concur:
agree | conflagration:
large destructive fire; burning; large-scale military conflict |
confluence:
act of two things flowing together; junction or meeting place where two things meet | congenial:
compatible |
conscientious:
diligent; responsible; reliable | consternation:
intense state of fear or dismay; astonishment combined with terror |
contempt:
state of being despised or dishonored; disgrace; disobedience to, or open disrespect of | contemptible:
worthy of contempt; deserving of scorn or disdain; mean |
contentious:
quarrelsome; disagreeable; marked by heated arguments or controversy | convivial:
festive; occupied with or fond of the pleasures of good company |
copious:
plentiful; containing plenty; affording ample supply | corroborate:
establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts; support with evidence |
cosmopolitan:
sophisticated; of worldwide scope | credulity:
readiness of belief; disposition to believe on slight evidence |
culpable:
blameworthy | cursory:
casual; brief or broad; not cautious, nor detailed |
dauntless:
bold; incapable of being discouraged; fearless | dearth:
scarcity; shortage of food; famine from failure or loss of crops |
debacle:
sudden downfall; complete disaster | debilitate:
make weak; enfeeble; impair the strength of |
debunk:
expose as false, exaggerated, worthless; ridicule | decimate:
destroy or kill a large part of; select by lot and kill one in every ten of |
decorum:
propriety in manners and conduct; good taste in manners; conventions or requirements of polite behavior | deference:
willingness to carry out the wishes of others; great respect |
degredation:
humiliation | deleterious:
having harmful effect; injurious; having quality of destroying life; noxious; poisonous |
delineate:
portray; depict; draw or trace outline of; sketch out | demonstrative:
openly emotional |
demure:
modest and reserved in manner or behavior | demystify:
clarify; free from mystery or obscurity |
denigrate:
blacken; defame; attack reputation of; degrade | depose:
force to leave; remove from office |
depravity:
extreme corruption or degradation; wickedness | deprecate:
express disapproval of; protest against; belittle |
depreciation:
devaluation; decrease in price or value | deride:
ridicule; make fun of; laugh at with contempt |
derivative:
unoriginal; derived from another source | derogatory:
expressing low opinion; disparaging; belittling |
desecration:
violate the sacredness of | despondent:
in low spirits from loss of hope or courage |
despot:
tyrant; harsh, authoritarian ruler; eastern Orthodox bishop | destitute:
extremely poor; utterly lacking; devoid |
deterrent:
something that discourages; tending to deter | devoid:
completely lacking; barren or empty |
didactic:
excessively morally instructive | diffident:
shy |
diffuse:
spread out widely; scatter freely; pour out and cause to spread freely | digress(ion):
stray from the subject at hand |
dilatory:
tending to waste time | diminutive:
below the average size; very small; little |
dire:
urgent, dreadful | discern:
detect; perceive |
discomfited:
disappointed, defeated | discount:
give reduction in price on |
disheartening:
discouraging | disillusionment:
disenchantment, disappointment |
disingenuous:
giving a false appearance of frankness; not straightforward or candid; insincere or calculating | disparage:
belittle; speak of in a slighting or disrespectful way; reduce in esteem or rank |
dispassionate:
calm; impartial; unaffected by strong emotion or prejudice | dispel:
scatter; drive away; cause to vanish |
disputatious:
argumentative; fond of arguing; inclined to dispute | disquiet:
make uneasy or anxious; trouble |
disseminate:
distribute; spread; scatter like seeds | distaste:
dislike, aversion |
divergent:
differing; tending to move apart in different directions | divisive:
creating conflict |
divulge:
reveal; make known to public | doctrine:
principles presented for belief, as by religious; principle of law; act of teaching; instruction |
dormant:
sleeping; not active but capable of becoming active | dupe:
easily deceived person; duplicate of photographic image |
duplicitous:
deliberately deceptive | ebullient:
showing excitement; overflowing with enthusiasm |
eclectic:
composed of elements from a variety of sources | efface:
rub or wipe out; make indistinct as if by rubbing |
effervesce:
bubble, fizz | egalitarian:
belief in equality |
elated:
overjoyed; extremely happy and excited | elicit:
draw out; bring forth or to light; generate or provoke as response or answer |
elucidate:
make clear or plain, especially by explanation; clarify | elude:
avoid cleverly; escape perception of |
elusive:
difficult to describe; difficult to detect or grasp by mind | embitter:
make worse |
embroiled:
throw into confusion; deeply involved especially in something complicated | empathetic:
compassionate |
empirical:
derived from experiment and observation rather than theory | encompass:
surround; form a circle or ring around; enclose; envelop |
encroaching:
intrusive | encumbrance:
burden |
enigma:
puzzle; difficult problem | enumerate:
list each one; mention one by one |
ephemeral:
short-lived; enduring a very short time | epiphany:
sudden realization |
epitome:
representative or perfect example of a class or type; brief summary, as of a book or article | equanimity:
calmness of temperament; steadiness of mind under stress. |
equitable:
marked by or having equity; just and impartial | equivocal:
open to two or more interpretations and often intended to mislead |
erudite:
learned; scholarly, with emphasis on knowledge gained from books | esoteric:
hard to understand; known only in a particular group |
estrange:
alienate | eulogy:
expression of praise, often on the occasion of someone's death |
evoke:
bring out; arouse; call forth | exacting:
making severe demands; rigorous; requiring great care, effort, or attention |
excavate:
unearth; dig out; make a hole in; hollow out | exemplar:
representative example |
exhibitionist:
deliberately behaving a certain way to attract attention | exhort:
urge on or encourage, especially by shouts; make urgent appeal |
exorbitant:
greatly exceeding bounds of reason or moderation; exceeding proper limits | expedient:
suitable; appropriate to a purpose; serving to promote your interest |
expose:
set forth; set out to public view | extol:
praise highly; glorify; celebrate |
extricate:
free, as from difficulties or perplexities; cause to be emitted or evolved | facile:
done or achieved with little effort or difficulty; ready or fluent |
faction:
a party of persons having a common end in view | fallacious:
false; tending to mislead; deceptive |
fallacy:
deceptive or false appearance; false notion; deception | fanaticism:
excessive zeal; extreme devotion to a belief or cause |
fastidious:
difficult to please; having complicated requirements; excessively particular demanding about details | fathom:
measure the depth; come to understand |
felicitious:
well-suited, happy | finesse:
refinement and delicacy of performance; skillful, subtle handling |
flagrant:
obvious and offensive, blatant, scandalous; flaming into notice | flippant:
lacking proper seriousness; speaking freely; talkative; communicative |
florid:
reddish; elaborately or excessively ornamented | flummox:
confuse |
folly:
foolishness; lack of good sense, understanding, or foresight | foolhardy:
rash; marked by unthinking boldness |
forlorn:
sad and lonely; wretched; abandoned or left behind | fortitude:
bravery; force; power to attack or to resist attack |
fortuitous:
accidental; by chance; coming or occurring without any cause | fraudulent:
cheating; deceitful; planning or using fraud; given to practice of fraud |
frugal:
sparing; economical; costing little; inexpensive | furor:
great excitement; public disorder or uproar |
furtive:
marked by quiet and caution and secrecy | futile:
useless; having no useful result; vain |
gait:
manner of walking or stepping; bearing or carriage while moving; walk; rate of moving | gallant:
courtly; lively and spirited; having or displaying great dignity or nobility |
gargantuan:
huge; of a tremendous size, volume, degree | garish:
over-bright in color; tastelessly showy |
genial:
friendly; cordial; having a pleasant or friendly disposition or manner | germinate:
cause to sprout or grow; come into existence |
glutton:
person who eats too much food and drink | grandiose:
impressive from inherent grandeur; large and impressive, in size, scope or extent |
hackneyed:
repeated too often; over familiar through overuse | hamper:
put at disadvantage; prevent progress or free movement of |
hardy:
in robust and good health; able to survive under unfavorable conditions | hasten:
accelerate; quicken |
heresy:
opinion contrary to popular belief; opinion contrary to accepted religion | histrionic:
characteristic of acting or stage performance |
hubris:
excessive pride or self-confidence | |
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