JUNIOR VOCABULARY LIST – FIRST SEMESTER
Lesson One
1.
Abstemious (adj.) – marked by restraint especially in the consumption of food or alcohol
Synonyms: abstinent, self-denying, sober, temperate
Antonyms: gluttonous, rapacious, voracious
Sentence: Being abstemious diners, they avoid all-you-can-eat buffets.
2.
Abide (v.) – to put up with, tolerate
Synonyms: dwell, remain, tarry
Antonyms: abscond, decamp, desert, depart
Sentence: John refused to abide where it was clear that he wasn't wanted.
3.
Abort (v.) – to give up unfinished
Synonyms: abandon, repeal, rescind, revoke
Antonyms: continue, keep, engage, commence
Sentence: NASA had to abort the mission to Mars when they lost contact with the
satellite.
4.
Accentuate (v.) – to emphasize, to highlight
Synonyms: accent, feature, illuminate, punctuate
Antonyms: de-emphasize, understate, minimize, underemphasize
Sentence: Let's accentuate the saxophones during this piece by having the sax
players stand up.
5.
Accolade (n.) – a formal expression of praise
Synonyms: commendation, dithyramb, homage, panegyric, tribute
Antonyms: condemnation, indictment, reprimand, harangue
Sentence: For their exceptional bravery, the firefighters received accolades from
both local and national officials.
6.
Accost (v.) – to approach or confront aggressively
Synonyms: annoy, bother, challenge, confront
Antonyms: avoid, evade, scorn, shun
Sentence: She was so famous that people would accost her on the street and ask for
an autograph.
7.
Acrid (adj.) – having or showing deep-seated resentment; marked by the use of wit that is
intended to cause hurt feelings
Synonyms: acrimonious, embittered, rancorous, contemptuous, trenchant
Antonyms: tender, loving, forgiving
Sentence: There have been acrid relations between the two families ever since they
fought over that strip of land. Phillipa's acrid comments about the new
employee's clothes were met by laughter from everyone at the lunch table.
8.
Acute (adj.) – needing immediate attention; sharp, severe
Synonyms: critical, dire, exigent, imperative, necessitous
Antonyms: non-critical, minor, negligible
Sentence: The famine was caused by an acute shortage of grain.
9.
Adulate (v.) – to love or admire too much
Synonyms: adore, canonize, deify, venerate
Antonyms: abhor, abominate, deprecate, disparage
Sentence: She is a business executive who unwisely surrounds herself with
incompetent assistants who spend all their time adulating her.
10.
Aesthetic (n./adj.) – (adj.) of, relating to, or dealing with the aesthetics or the beautiful; (n.) a
branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste and with the
creation and appreciation of beauty
Synonyms: cultured, elegant, graceful, poetic, refined, stylish, tasteful
Antonyms: distasteful, inelegant, ugly
Sentence: He has a crisp aesthetic that favors a clean blueprint to let playfulness
stand out against simplicity.
11.
Aggregate (v.) – to gather, amass
Synonyms: accumulate, assemble
Antonyms: disperse, divide
Sentence: Over time, her petty thefts aggregated a significant shortfall in the
company's books.
12.
Agoraphobia (n.) – an abnormal fear of open or public places
Synonyms: none
Antonyms: none
Sentence: In fact, she does everything out of her home: she suffers from acute and
debilitating agoraphobia.
13.
Alacrity (n.) – speed, readiness, liveliness, promptness
Synonyms: avidity, briskness, fervor, zeal
Antonyms: apathy, aversion, reluctance
Sentence: Each of these three mind-training exercises has immeasurably aided my
recall, mental alacrity, and perception.
14.
Alimentary (adj.) – of or relating to nourishment or nutrition
Synonyms: nutritional, nutritious, peptic, salutary, sustaining
Antonyms: none
Sentence: Leading up to and during track and field season, Larry cut out all junk
foods and ate only alimentary meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
15.
Allay (v.) – to soothe, assuage
Synonyms: mitigate, pacify, alleviate,
Antonyms: aggravate, irritate, provoke, heighten
Sentence: While their responses have been overwhelmingly friendly and
encouraging, they have also done nothing to allay my anxieties.
Lesson Two
16.
Aloof (adj.) – reserved, distant
Synonyms: detached, incurious, indifferent, uninterested
Antonyms: concerned, friendly, sociable
Sentence: Contemporaries often found him aloof and standoffish, and his
mannerisms and diction inscrutable.
17.
Ambivalent (adj.) – equivocal, on the fence
Synonyms: ambiguous, indefinite, vague
Antonyms: certain, clear, determined, sure
Sentence: When his friends asked him if he wanted to go to the movies, Nigel
ambivalently replied, “Eh, sure, why not?”
18.
Amalgamation (n.) – a union, a merger
Synonyms: amalgam, blend, combination,
Antonyms: constituent, element, ingredient
Sentence: An amalgamation of peat moss and vermiculite is a good medium for
starting vegetable seedlings.
19.
Amble (v.) – to move aimlessly
Synonyms: coast, flitter, float, stroll, saunter, malinger
Antonyms: direct, guide, set
Sentence: The couple enjoys ambling along the many footpaths that meander
through the park.
20.
Amend (v.) – to change for the better, improve
Synonyms: ameliorate, perfect, rectify, remediate
Antonyms: worsen, damage, vitiate, deface
Sentence: These tests produce results which can be used as evidence to support,
amend, or discredit a theory.
21.
Amicable (adj.) – friendly, especially regarding an agreement
Synonyms: amiable, cordial, pacific, empathic
Antonyms: hostile, unfriendly
Sentence: All reasonable efforts will be made to reach an amicable settlement.
22.
Amorous (adj.) – relating to or showing love
Synonyms: amatory, ardent, doting, enamored, lovesick
Antonyms: cold, indifferent, cool, frigid
Sentence: Male birds engage in amorous behavior—nest-building, singing, showing
off their finery—in order to attract females.
23.
Anomaly (n.) – something that does not fit into the normal order
Synonyms: aberration, exception, oddity, rarity
Antonyms: norm, ordinary
Sentence: Her C grade is an anomaly, as she's never made anything except A's and
B's before.
24.
Antediluvian (adj.) – dating or surviving from the distant past
Synonyms: aged, antique, dateless, hoary, old, venerable
Antonyms: modern, new, recent
Sentence: Archeologists found evidence in the Middle East of an antediluvian people
previously unknown to history.
25.
Antidote (n.) – something that corrects or counteracts something undesirable
Synonyms: corrective, remedy, elixir, panacea, succor, palliative
Antonyms: disease, injury, pain
Sentence: Laura hoped that taking dance lessons would prove to be an antidote for
her loneliness.
26.
Appease (v.) – to lessen the anger or agitation of
Synonyms: assuage, conciliate, placate, propitiate
Antonyms: anger, enrage, incense, inflame
Sentence: In order to appease her mother, Kendra finally stopped watching TV and
washed the dishes.
27.
Ardent (adj.) – having or expressing great depth of feeling
Synonyms: blazing, burning, demonstrative, impassioned, torrid, vehement
Antonyms: detached, impassive, emotionless
Sentence: Carlos made ardent declarations of love to the woman he someday hoped
to marry.
28.
Assuage (v.) – to make more bearable or less severe
Synonyms: allay, alleviate, ease, mitigate, mollify, palliate
Antonyms: aggravate, exacerbate
Sentence: The moving painting is one of a mother cooing to her toddler and
assuaging his fear of the dark.
29.
Audacious (adj.) – displaying or marked by rude boldness
Synonyms: bold, brash, brazen, cheeky, impertinent, impudent, unabashed
Antonyms: meek, shy, timid
Sentence: Pete audaciously shouted at the elderly woman when she absent-mindedly
stepped in front of him at the bank.
30.
Avant-garde (n./adj.) – writers, artists, filmmakers, or musicians whose work is innovative,
experimental, or unconventional; artistically innovative, experimental, or
unconventional
Synonyms: ultramodern, cutting-edge, progressive, edgy, underground, fresh, new
Antonyms: traditional, conventional, bourgeois, orthodox, customary
Sentence: The works of avant-garde authors, artists, and musicians are not
necessarily meant for the general public; typically, these artists appeal to
other artists, critics, professors, and other scholarly elites.
Lesson Three
31.
Belligerent (adj.) – contentious, ready to fight
Synonyms: aggressive, bellicose, combative, disputatious, truculent
Antonyms: pacific, peaceable
Sentence: The coach became quite belligerent and spit at an umpire after being
thrown out of the game.
32.
Benevolent (adj.) – having or marked by sympathy and consideration for others
Synonyms: compassionate, tender, solicitous, affable, genial, munificent
Antonyms: barbaric, bestial, fiendish, truculent, wanton
Sentence: She exhibited a benevolent willingness to provide veterinary services to
low-income families at greatly reduced prices.
33.
Bereft (adj.) – without, devoid of
Synonyms: empty, stark, destitute, voice
Antonyms: filled, replete, rife
Sentence: Our roadside lodging for the night was a cheap motel completely bereft of
all amenities.
34.
Bolster (v.) – to hold up or serve as a foundation for
Synonyms: brace, buttress, prop up, under-gird, uphold, truss
Antonyms: undercut, undermine, weaken
Sentence: The architect decided to incorporate additional beams to bolster the
ceiling.
35.
Bombastic (adj.) – marked by the use of impressive-sounding but mostly meaningless words
and phrases
Synonyms: fustian, grandiloquent, oratorical, orotund, highfalutin, pompous
Antonyms: simple, stark, straightforward, unaffected
Sentence: Mr. Phillips gave a bombastic speech intended to impress the voters in his
congressional district.
36.
Bourgeois (adj.) – middle class
Synonyms: Philistine, common, conventional, materialistic
Antonyms: adventurous, imaginative, inspired, non-conforming
Sentence: Technically, anyone who belongs to the middle class is bourgeois, but,
given the words connotations, most people resent it if you call them that.
37.
Braggart (n.) – boaster
Synonyms: blowhard, grandstander, know-it-all
Antonyms: gentleman
Sentence: Modest by nature, she was no braggart, preferring to let her
accomplishments speak for themselves.
38.
Brevity (n.) – shortness, briefness
Synonyms: conciseness, concision, pithiness, terseness
Antonyms: longevity, permanence
Sentence: The brevity of the messages works well with texting culture and can be
implemented on any mobile device.
39.
Brusque (adj.) – short, abrupt, dismissive
Synonyms: curt, direct, forthright, impolite, coarse
Antonyms: civil, considerate, circuitous, mealy-mouthed, verbose
Sentence: Was Bruce too brusque when he brushed off Bob’s request with a curt
“Not now!”?
40.
Buffet (v.) – to hit or strike
Synonyms: bash, bludgeon, club, maul, thump, whale
Antonyms: aid, guard
Sentence: Fierce winds buffeted the small sailboat.
41.
Cacophony (n.) – noise, discordant sound
Synonyms: babel, discordance, racket, rattle
Antonyms: calm, quiet, quietude, tranquility
Sentence: I was overwhelmed by the cacophony in the pet store full of animals.
42.
Cajole (v.) – to urge, coax
Synonyms: blandish, palaver, wheedle, flatter, cozen
Antonyms: harass, pester, browbeat, compel, coerce
Sentence: He has the power to cajole and persuade leaders and guide them, gently,
towards a consensus.
43.
Calumny (n.) – an attempt to defame another’s reputation
Synonyms: aspersion, censure, denigration, libel, slander, vilification
Antonyms: encouragement, praise
Sentence: John could endure his financial failure, but he could not bear the calumny
that his foes heaped upon him.
44.
Candor (n.) – complete honesty, frankness
Synonyms: guilelessness, naiveté, openness, veracity
Antonyms: artifice, deception, guile, lying
Sentence: MTV aired an interview with the band members from Guns ‘N Roses in
which they all speak with candor about their squabbling.
45.
Cantankerous (adj.) – ill-humored, irritable
Synonyms: bilious, disagreeable, dyspeptic, splenetic, surly, crabby, querulous
Antonyms: agreeable, amiable, congenial, effervescent
Sentence: Mrs. Jones is a cantankerous old woman who insists that nothing should
ever be allowed to change.
Lesson Four
46.
Captious (adj.) – given to making or expressing unfavorable judgments about things
Synonyms: carping, faultfinding, hypercritical, judgmental, merciless
Antonyms: uncritical, forgiving, charitable
Sentence: James is a captious and cranky eater who’s never met a vegetable he didn’t
hate.
47.
Carp (v.) – to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
Synonyms: bellyache, fuss, gripe, grumble, nag, yammer
Antonyms: rejoice, accept, endure, commend
Sentence: My mother actually had the temerity to carp about the order of names on
the wedding invitations.
48.
Castigate (v.) – to criticize (someone) severely or angrily especially for personal failings
Synonyms: chastise, lecture, rant, ream, rebuke, reprimand, reproach
Antonyms: approve, endorse, sanction, extol, laud
Sentence: Mr. McCabe castigated him in the lobby for his constant dress code
violations.
49.
Censure (v.) – to express public or formal disapproval of
Synonyms: condemn, denounce, objurgate, reproach, reprove
Antonyms: commend, endorse, sanction
Sentence: The senator was censured for behavior inappropriate to a member of
Congress.
50.
Chary (adj.) – cautious, attentiveness to avoiding danger
Synonyms: alert, circumspect, heedful, wary
Antonyms: heedless, unmindful, impetuous, imprudent
Sentence: A prudent, thrifty New Englander, DeWitt was as chary of investing
money in junk bonds as he was of paying people unnecessary compliments.
51.
Circumlocution (n.) – the use of an unnecessarily large number of words to express an idea
Synonyms: equivocation, ambiguity
Antonyms: candor, frankness
Sentence: He was afraid to call a spade a spade and resorted to circumlocutions to
avoid direct reference to his subject.
52.
Circumspect (adj.) – cautious; tending to avoid danger or trouble
Synonyms: alert, chary, heedful
Antonyms: careless, heedless, negligent, reckless
Sentence: Investigating before acting, she tried always to be circumspect.
53.
Coalesce (v.) – to combine into one
Synonyms: conjoin, couple, conjugate
Antonyms: dissever, split, sunder, unlink
Sentence: When minor political parties coalesce, their merging may eventually create
a major coalition.
54.
Colloquial (adj.) – pertaining to conversational or common speech
Synonyms: conversational, informal, nonliterary, unbookish, vernacular, vulgar
Antonyms: bookish, formal, learned, literary
Sentence: The new coworker’s rudeness soon began—to use a colloquial
expression—to rub me the wrong way.
55.
Collusion (n.) – a conspiracy, a secret agreement
Synonyms: complicity, connivance, chicanery, skullduggery, duplicity
Antonyms: non-cooperation
Sentence: The swindlers were found guilty of collusion.
56.
Commodious (adj.) – more than adequate or average in capacity; spacious, roomy
Synonyms: ample, capacious, roomy, cavernous
Antonyms: confined, cramped, restricted
Sentence: After sleeping in small roadside cabins, they found their hotel suite
commodious.
57.
Complicity (n.) – a secret agreement or cooperation between two parties for an illegal or
dishonest purpose
Synonyms: connivance, conspiracy, duplicity, plot, scheme
Antonyms: ignorance, innocence, non-involvement
Sentence: You cannot keep your complicity in this affair secret very long; you would
be wise to admit your involvement immediately.
58.
Concede (v.) – to accept the truth or existence of, usually reluctantly
Synonyms: acknowledge, agree, allow, yield
Antonyms: deny, contradict, gainsay, rebut, repudiate
Sentence: Despite all the evidence Monica had assembled, Mark refused to concede
that she was right.
59.
Conciliatory (adj.) – tending to lessen or avoid conflict or hostility
Synonyms: appeasing, disarming, mollifying, pacifying, placating, propitiatory
Antonyms: abrasive, aggravating, antagonizing, bellicose, truculent
Sentence: She was still angry, despite his conciliatory words.
60.
Concoct (v.) – to create or think of by clever use of the imagination
Synonyms: contrive, devise, fabricate, trump up
Antonyms: clone, duplicate, imitate, mimic, replicate
Sentence: How did the inventive chef ever concoct such a strange dish?
Lesson Five
61.
Conduit (n.) – a pipe, passage, channel
Synonyms: duct, trough, tube, drainpipe
Antonyms: none
Sentence: Water was brought to the army in the desert by an improvised conduit
from the adjoining mountain.
62.
Conflagration (n.) – a destructive burning; a state of armed violent struggle
Synonyms: holocaust, inferno, blaze, engagement, combat, warfare
Antonyms: peace, tranquility, truce
Sentence: In the conflagration that followed the 1906 earthquake, much of San
Francisco was destroyed.
63.
Confound (v.) - to throw into a state of mental uncertainty
Synonyms: baffle, befuddle, muddle, perplex
Antonyms: assure, reassure, satisfy
Sentence: No mystery could confound Sherlock Holmes for long.
64.
Congenial (adj.) – giving pleasure or contentment to the mind or senses
Synonyms: agreeable, dulcet, felicitous, gratifying
Antonyms: disagreeable, unpleasant, unsavory
Sentence: Brown’s victory has been attributed to his congenial personality and a
vigorous campaign.
65.
Contemptuous (adj.) – feeling or showing open dislike for someone
Synonyms: abhorrent, disdainful, scornful
Antonyms: admiring, applauding, appreciative, approving
Sentence: We thought it was contemptible of him to be contemptuous of people for
being weak.
66.
Contusion (n.) – br bruise, injury
Synonyms: boo-boo, scrape, discoloration
Antonyms: none
Sentence: Black and blue after her fall, Sue was treated for contusions and abrasions.
67.
Convalesce (v.) – to become healthy and strong again after illness or weakness
Synonyms: heal, mend, recoup, recover, recuperate
Antonyms: decline, deteriorate, languish, relapse
Sentence: The long months that the soldier spent in the hospital convalescing seemed
to never end.
68.
Copious (adj.) – abundant, plentiful; pouring forth in great amounts
Synonyms: galore, gushing, lavish, abounding, munificent
Antonyms: meager, minimal, insufficient, scarce
Sentence: She had copious reasons for rejecting the proposal.
69.
Cordial (adj.) – having or showing kindly feeling and sincere interest
Synonyms: amicable, collegial, genial, affable, convivial
Antonyms: antagonistic, frosty, contentious, disputatious, pugnacious
Sentence: Our hosts greeted us at the airport with a cordial welcome and a hearty
hug.
70.
Cosmopolitan (adj.) - worldly, sophisticated
Synonyms: sophisticated, worldly, suave, urbane, cultured, refined
Antonyms: guileless, ingenuous, innocent, naïve,
Sentence: Her years in the capitol had transformed her into a cosmopolitan young
woman highly aware of international affairs.
71.
Cryptic (adj.) – being beyond one’s powers to know, understand, or explain
Synonyms: arcane, enigmatic, impenetrable, inscrutable, occult
Antonyms: understandable, straightforward, transparent, fathomable
Sentence: Though baffled by Holmes’ cryptic remarks, Watson wondered whether
Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.
72.
Daunting (adj.) – intimidating, demoralizing
Synonyms: disheartening, frustrating, unnerving
Antonyms: emboldening, encouraging, heartening
Sentence: Gazing up to the mountain’s peak, Jen knew she had a daunting hike in
store.
73.
Defame (v.) – to destroy the reputation of
Synonyms: asperse, blacken, calumniate, defame, libel, traduce
Antonyms: glorify, exalt, honor, acclaim, commend
Sentence: If rival candidates persist in defaming one another, the voters may
conclude that all politicians are crooks.
74.
Defunct (adj.) – no longer used or existing
Synonyms: bygone, dead, departed, expired, vanished
Antonyms: alive, existent, extant, living
Sentence: The lawyers sought to examine the books of the defunct corporation.
75.
Delectable (adj.) – giving pleasure or contentment to the mind or senses
Synonyms: agreeable, congenial, delightful, pleasing, luscious
Antonyms: abominable, tedious, vexing, lachrymose, disagreeable, unpalatable
Sentence: We thanked our host for a most delectable meal.
Lesson Six
76.
Deleterious (adj.) – causing or capable of causing harm
Synonyms: adverse, baleful, detrimental, noxious, pernicious
Antonyms: anodyne, benign, harmless, innocuous
Sentence: I am always astounded by people who begin smoking, as they clearly
know it’s deleterious to their health.
77.
Delude (v.) – to cause to believe what is untrue
Synonyms: beguile, cozen, hoodwink, misguide, mislead
Antonyms: debunk, expose, uncloak, disclose
Sentence: She may have deluded herself into believing that her friend Pete would
leave his current girlfriend for her.
78.
Deprecate (v.) – to express scornfully one’s low opinion
Synonyms: belittle, denigrate, dismiss, disparage
Antonyms: acclaim, exalt, extol, glorify
Sentence: A firm believer in old-fashioned courtesy, Ms. Post deprecated the modern
tendency to address new acquaintances by their first names.
79.
Derelict (adj.) – run-down, abandoned; lacking a sense of duty, negligent
Synonyms: careless, neglectful, remiss, irresponsible
Antonyms: attentive, careful, conscientious
Sentence: Whoever abandoned it in the middle of the harbor was derelict in living up
to his responsibilities as a boat owner.
80.
Deride (v.) – to make someone or something the object of unkind laughter
Synonyms: jeer, mock, skewer, belittle, decry, scoff
Antonyms: applaud, approve, commend, endores
Sentence: The critics derided his pretentious dialogue and refused to consider his
play seriously.
81.
Despondent (adj.) – feeling or showing no hope
Synonyms: despairing, desperate, forlorn, hopeless, wretched, melancholy
Antonyms: hopeful, optimistic, exuberant, jocund
Sentence: To the dismay of his parents, William became seriously despondent after
he broke up with Kristen.
82.
Devious (adj.) – clever at attaining one’s ends by indirect and often deceptive means
Synonyms: beguiling, crafty, guileful, wily
Antonyms: artless, ingenuous, guileless, innocent
Sentence: The Joker’s plan was so devious that it was only with great difficulty we
could follow its shifts and dodges.
83.
Diaphanous (adj.) – very thin and easy to see through
Synonyms: transparent, light, airy, filmy, gossamer
Antonyms: opaque, cloudy, murky, nebulous, lusterless
Sentence: Through the diaphanous curtains, the burglar could clearly see the large
jewelry box on the dressing table.
84.
Diminution (n.) – the amount by which something is lessened
Synonyms: abatement, decline, diminishment, drop-off, reduction
Antonyms: boost, enlargement, accretion
Sentence: Old Jack was as sharp at eighty as he had been at fifty; increasing in age
led to no diminution of his mental acuity.
85.
Din (n.) – loud, confused, and usually inharmonious sound
Synonyms: babble, brawl, clamor, discordance, racket, cacophony
Antonyms: quiet, stillness, silence
Sentence: The din of jackhammers outside the classroom window drowned out the
lecturer’s voice.
86.
Discrete (adj.) – not physically attached to another unit
Synonyms: separate, distinct, individual, detached, unattached
Antonyms: attached, connected, adjoining
Sentence: There are several discrete sections to this vast medical complex, including
a college of pharmacology and a research center.
87.
Disputatious (adj.) – feeling or displaying eagerness to fight
Synonyms: aggressive, argumentative, bellicose, combative, contentious, discordant
Antonyms: pacific, peaceful
Sentence: Convinced that he knew more than his lawyers, Alan was a disputatious
client, ready to argue about the best way to conduct the case.
88.
Dissonance (n.) – lack of harmony or agreement
Synonyms: conflict, discord, dissent, division, infighting, strife, schism
Antonyms: accord, concord, peace
Sentence: Composer Charles Ives often uses dissonance—clashing or unresolved
chords—for special effects in his musical works.
89.
Dogmatic (adj.) – given to or marked by the forceful expression of strongly held opinions
Synonyms: doctrinaire, opinionated, pontifical
Antonyms: latitudinarian, open-minded, receptive
Sentence: We tried to discourage Doug from being so dogmatic, but never could
convince him that his opinions might be wrong.
90.
Domicile (n.) – the place where one lives
Synonyms: residence, home, abode, dwelling, hearth, lodging, pad, place, quarters
Antonyms: none
Sentence: Although his legal domicile was in New York City, his work kept him
away from his residence for many years.
Lesson Seven
91.
Douse (v.) – to cause to cease burning
Synonyms: blanket, quench, snuff, smother, suffocate
Antonyms: fire, ignite, inflame
Sentence: During the water fight, the kids doused each other with hoses and water
balloons.
92.
Ebullient (adj.) – having or showing liveliness and enthusiasm
Synonyms: buoyant, chipper, effusive, elated, vivacious
Antonyms: apathetic, disinterested
Sentence: Amy’s ebullient nature could not be repressed; she was always bubbling
over with excitement.
93.
Effervescence (n.) – showing liveliness or exhilaration
Synonyms: cheerfulness, ebullience, exuberance, jolliness
Antonyms: blues, depression, heaviness
Sentence: Nothing depressed Sue for long; her natural effervescence soon reasserted
herself.
94.
Emaciated (adj.) – undernourished, thin
Synonyms: atrophied, cadaverous, famished, gaunt, meager, scrawny
Antonyms: fat, heavy, overweight, plump
Sentence: Many severe illnesses leave victims so emaciated that they must gain back
their lost weight before they can fully recover.
95.
Enervate (v.) – to weaken or tire
Synonyms: debilitate, enfeeble, fatigue, weary, sap
Antonyms: activate, animate, invigorate, energize
Sentence: She was slow to recover from her illness; even a short walk to the window
would enervate her.
96.
Entomology (n.) - the study of insects
Synonyms: none
Antonyms: none
Sentence: Kent found entomology the most annoying part of his biology course;
studying insects bugged him.
97.
Ephemeral (adj.) – lasting only for a short time
Synonyms: brief, evanescent, fleeting, fugacious, transient
Antonyms: endless, ceaseless, enduring, lasting, perpetual
Sentence: The mayfly is an ephemeral creature: its adult life lasts little more than a
day.
98.
Epicure (n.) – a connoisseur of food and drink
Synonyms: bon vivant, gastronome, gourmand, foodie
Antonyms: glutton, gorger, overeater, swiller
Sentence: Epicures frequent this restaurant because it features exotic wines and
dishes.
99.
Euphonious (adj.) – having a pleasantly flowing quality suggestive of music
Synonyms: lyrical, mellifluent, melodic, melodious, dulcet, sweet
Antonyms: discordant, grating, harsh, strident
Sentence: Euphonious even when spoken, the Italian language is particularly
pleasing to the ear when sung.
100.
Evanescent (adj.) – lasting only for a short time period
Synonyms: brief, ephemeral, fleeting, impermanent, transient
Antonyms: permanent, perpetual, eternal, endless, enduring
Sentence: Brandon’s satisfaction in his new job was evanescent, for he immediately
began to notice its many drawbacks.
101.
Excoriate (v.) – to scold with biting harshness; to criticize harshly and usually publicly
Synonyms: abuse, assail, blast, castigate, scathe, vituperate
Antonyms: acclaim, comment, hail, laud
Sentence: Seeing the holes in Bill’s new pants, his mother furiously excoriated him
for ruining his good clothes.
102.
Extol (v.) – to proclaim the glory of
Synonyms: bless, emblazon, celebrate, praise, resound
Antonyms: blame, censure, reprove, admonish, reprimand
Sentence: The president extolled the astronauts, calling them pioneers of the Space
Age.
103.
Fabricate (v.) – to invent, make-up, concoct
Synonyms: fashion, form, manufacture, contrive
Antonyms: dismantle, disassemble, demolish; imitate, replicate, clone
Sentence: Because of Jim’s tendency to fabricate, Georgina had trouble believing a
word he said.
104.
Facile (adj.) – easily accomplished; ready or fluent
Synonyms: effortless, fluid, painless, smooth
Antonyms: burdensome, onerous, stressful, intricate
Sentence: Words came easily to Jonathan: he was a facile speaker and prided himself
on being ready to make a speech at a moment’s notice.
105.
Feral (adj.) – living outdoors without taming or domestication by humans
Synonyms: savage, wild, untamed, unbroken
Antonyms: broken, domestic, gentle, tamed
Sentence: Abandoned by their owners, dogs may revert to their feral state, roaming
the woods in packs.
Lesson Eight
106.
Fervent (adj.) – having or expressing great depth of feeling
Synonyms: ardent, demonstrative, fervid, glowing, vehement
Antonyms: dispassionate, emotionless, impassive
Sentence: She felt that the fervent praise was excessive and somewhat undeserved.
107.
Flippant (adj.) – lacking proper seriousness
Synonyms: flip, wise, facetious, cute, cheeky, impertinent, disrespectful
Antonyms: earnest, sincere
Sentence: When Mark told Mona he loved her, she dismissed his earnest declaration
with a flippant “Oh, you say that to all the girls!”
108.
Foolhardy (adj.) – foolishly adventurous or bold
Synonyms: audacious, brash, daredevil, madcap, reckless, adventuresome, headlong
Antonyms: careful, circumspect, guarded, heedful
Sentence: Don’t be foolhardy; get the advice of experienced people before
undertaking this venture.
109.
Forsake (v.) – to cause to remain behind
Synonyms: abandon, desert, forsake, maroon, strand
Antonyms: reclaim, possess, retain, rescue
Sentence: No one expected Foster to forsake his duties at the firm and go surfing
every day instead.
110.
Fortitude (n.) – the strength of mind that enables a person to endure pain or hardship
Synonyms: backbone, pluck, courage, mettle, spirit, temerity
Antonyms: spinelessness, cowardice, cravenness, pusillanimity, timorous
Sentence: He was awarded the medal for his fortitude in the battle.
111.
Foster (v.) – to help the growth or development of
Synonyms: advance, cultivate, encourage, nourish, nurture
Antonyms: discourage, frustrate, hinder, inhibit, encumber, repress
Sentence: According to the legend, Romulus and Remus were fostered by a she-wolf
who raised the abandoned infants with her own cubs.
112.
Frivolous (adj.) – lacking in seriousness; self-indulgently care-free; relatively unimportant
Synonyms: fatuous, inane, puerile, goofy, flippant
Antonyms: grave, melancholy
Sentence: Though Fiona enjoyed Eric’s frivolous, lighthearted companionship, she
sometimes wondered whether he could ever be serious.
113.
Frugality (n.) – careful management of material resources
Synonyms: thrift, economy, husbandry, parsimony, providence, scrimping
Antonyms: wastefulness, extravagance, improvidence, prodigality
Sentence: In economically hard times, anyone who doesn’t learn to practice frugality
risks bankruptcy.
114.
Furtive (adj.) – given to acting in secret and to concealing one’s intentions
Synonyms: stealthy, sneaky, sly, shifty, artful, devious
Antonyms: aboveboard, forthright, candid, direct, plain, honest
Sentence: Noticing the furtive glance the customer gave the diamond bracelet on the
counter, the jeweler wondered whether he had a potential shoplifter on his
hands.
115.
Gape (v.) – to open the mouth and stare stupidly
Synonyms: gawk, gaze, stare, peer, rubberneck
Antonyms: glance, glimpse, peek, peep
Sentence: Slack-jawed in wonder, Huck gaped at the huge stalactites hanging down
from the ceiling of the limestone cavern.
116.
Gluttonous (adj.) – insatiable in appetite
Synonyms: edacious, greedy, ravenous, rapacious, swinish
Antonyms: content, full, glutted, sated, satiated
Sentence: Gluttonous customers had practically empties the all-you-can-eat buffet.
117.
Gourmand (n.) – a person with refined tastes in food and wine
Synonyms: epicure, epicurean, gastronome
Antonyms: glutton, guzzler, gorger, overeater
Sentence: Anthony is a finicky gourmand who vacations in Europe every year
simply for the fine food and wine.
118.
Grandiloquent (adj.) – using high-sounding language; full of fine words and fancy
expressions
Synonyms: pompous, bombastic, highfalutin, affected, bloated, pretentious
Antonyms: prosaic, plainspoken, direct, stark
Sentence: The politician could never speak simply; she was always grandiloquent.
119.
Gregarious (adj.) – likely to seek or enjoy the company of others
Synonyms: sociable, outgoing, extroverted, affable, congenial
Antonyms: antisocial, independent, solitary, reclusive
Sentence: Janine is a gregarious child who ran up to every person on the playground
and wanted to be his or her friend.
120.
Guile (n.) – skill in achieving one’s ends through indirect, subtle, or underhanded means
Synonyms: artfulness, artifice, caginess, craftiness, wiliness
Antonyms: candor, forthrightness, sincerity, ingenuousness
Sentence: Iago uses considerable guile to trick Othello into believing that
Desdemona has been unfaithful.
Lesson Nine
121.
Hamper (v.) – to create difficulty for the work or activity of
Synonyms: encumber, fetter, handcuff, handicap, hinder, stymie
Antonyms: aid, assist, facilitate
Sentence: The new mother didn’t realize how much the effort of caring for an infant
would hamper her ability to keep an immaculate house.
122.
Hapless (adj.) – having, prone to, or marked by bad luck
Synonyms: unlucky, ill-fated, star-crossed, snake-bit, unfortunate
Antonyms: fortunate, happy, auspicious, favored
Sentence: The hapless motorist had barely paid his bill and driven away from the
body shop when a truck sideswiped his car.
123.
Hardy (adj.) – sturdy, robust; able to withstand inclement weather
Synonyms: inured, rugged, stout, strong, sturdy, toughened, flinty, resilient
Antonyms: emasculated, enervated, delicate, weak, tender, infirm
Sentence: We asked the gardening expert to recommend particularly hardy plants
that could withstand our harsh New England winters.
124.
Harrowing (adj.) – hard to accept or bear, especially emotionally
Synonyms: agonizing, cruel, excruciating, heartrending, painful, insufferable
Antonyms: gratifying, pleasing, sweet, tolerable
Sentence: At first, the former prisoner did not wish to discuss his harrowing months
of captivity as a political hostage.
125.
Haughtiness (n.) – an exaggerated sense of one’s importance that shows itself in the making
of excessive or unjustified claims.
Synonyms: pompousness, pretentiousness, bumptiousness, hauteur, egoism
Antonyms: humility, modesty, bashfulness, demureness
Sentence: When she realized that Darcy believed himself too good to dance with his
inferiors, Elizabeth took great offense at his haughtiness.
126.
Heedful (adj.) – having or showing a close attentiveness to avoiding danger or trouble
Synonyms: alert, circumspect, chary, guarded
Antonyms: heedless, careless, imprudent
Sentence: Heedful of snakes, we watched our footing while walking through the tall
grass to the lake’s edge.
127.
Heinous (adj.) – atrocious; hatefully bad
Synonyms: abominable, execrable, shocking, abhorrent, infamous
Antonyms: glorious, lovely
Sentence: Dr. George’s clients are usually guilty of heinous murders, and almost
always come from brutally depressed and violent backgrounds.
128.
Histrionic (adj.) – excessively dramatic or emotional; demonstrative
Synonyms: effusive, gushing, unconstrained
Antonyms: cool, inexpressive, reserved, unemotional
Sentence: Norm had a penchant for dish throwing, door slamming, and other
histrionic displays of temper.
129.
Illusory (adj.) – deceptive, produced by an illusion
Synonyms: deceitful, fallacious, hallucinatory, visionary
Antonyms: certain, factual, real, sure
Sentence: City officials have encouraged an astonishing urbanization boom that has
made environmental gains seem modest, if not illusory.
130.
Immutable (adj.) – not susceptible to change
Synonyms: permanent, enduring, stable, steadfast, abiding
Antonyms: changeable, flexible, mutable
Sentence: All things change over time; nothing is immutable.
131.
Impassive (adj.) – without feeling
Synonyms: imperturbable, stoical, apathetic, callous, inscrutable, unemotional
Antonyms: emotional, passionate, susceptible
Sentence: Refusing to let the enemy see how deeply shaken he was by his capture,
the prisoner kept his face impassive.
132.
Impervious (adj.) – unable to be penetrated, unaffected
Synonyms: immune, impenetrable, impermeable, resistant, watertight
Antonyms: exposed, sensitive, vulnerable
Sentence: Having read so many negative reviews of his acting, the movie star had
learned to ignore them and was now impervious to criticism.
133.
Incessant (adj.) – without interruption; never-ending
Synonyms: persistent, ceaseless, interminable, monotonous
Antonyms: broken, ceasing, intermittent
Sentence: The incessant noise from an outside repair crew was a real distraction
during the test.
134.
Incisive (adj.) – cutting, sharp; deeply perceptive; intelligent
Synonyms: acute, clever, keen, perspicacious, piercing, insightful
Antonyms: incompetent, stupid, dull, obtuse, dense
Sentence: His incisive remarks made us see the fallacy of our plans.
135.
Inclement (adj.) – stormy, unkind, severe
Synonyms: blustery, gusty, raging, howling, turbulent, tempestuous
Antonyms: calm, still, mild
Sentence: In inclement weather, I like to curl up on the sofa with a good book and
listen to the storm blowing outside.
Lesson Ten
136.
Incredulous (adj.) – withholding belief; skeptical; inclined to doubt or question claims
Synonyms: disbelieving, distrustful, doubting, suspicious
Antonyms: gullible, trustful, uncritical
Sentence: Sometimes, people seem incredulous about my optimism; it’s genuine
though.
137.
Indict (n.) – to legally charge; to make a claim of wrongdoing against
Synonyms: charge, criminate, defame, incriminate
Antonyms: absolve, acquit, clear, exculpate, exonerate, vindicate
Sentence: The district attorney didn’t want to indict the suspect until she was sure
she had a strong enough case to convince a jury.
138.
Indigenous (adj.) – belonging to a particular place by birth or origin
Synonyms: aboriginal, domestic, endemic, native
Antonyms: non-native
Sentence: Cigarettes are made of tobacco, a plant indigenous to the New World.
139.
Indigent (adj.) – lacking money or material possessions
Synonyms: poor, destitute, beggarly, destitute, impecunious, penurious
Antonyms: prosperous, affluent, opulent, wealthy
Sentence: Because he was indigent, the court appointed a lawyer to defend him.
140.
Ineffable (adj.) – unutterable; cannot be expressed in speech
Synonyms: inexpressible, unspeakable, indefinable, inconceivable, inexplicable
Antonyms: definable, expressible, communicable
Sentence: Looking down at her newborn daughter, Ruth felt such ineffable joy that,
for the first time in her adult life, she had no words to convey what was in
her heart.
141.
Ingenious (adj.) - marked by special intelligence; clever, resourceful
Synonyms: imaginative, innovative, inventive
Antonyms: unimaginative, imitative
Sentence: The narrative, after ingenious plot twists, always delivers the reader to the
place at which she knew she would arrive.
142.
Iniquity (n.) – a wicked act; immoral conduct or practices harmful or offensive to society
Synonyms: sin, corruption, debaucher, libertinism, licentiousness, profligacy
Antonyms: morality, virtue, decency, righteousness, decorousness
Sentence: Regardless of whether King Richard III was responsible for the murder of
the two young princes in the Tower, it was an iniquitous deed.
143.
Insolence (n.) – disrespectful or argumentative talk given in response to a command or
request
Synonyms: impudence, disrespect, haughtiness, impertinence, impudence, audacity
Antonyms: civility, cordiality, deference
Sentence: Grandpa was amazed that the young parents would tolerate such insolence
from their teenaged children.
144.
Inundate (v.) – to flood; to overwhelm
Synonyms: engulf, overflow, swamp, deluge
Antonyms: drain, dry, parch
Sentence: This semester I am inundated with work: you should see the piles of
paperwork flooding my desk.
145.
Invective (n.) – a verbal attack; abuse
Synonyms: fulmination, obloquy, vitriol, vituperation, malediction, aspersion, tirade
Antonyms: acclaim, commendation, endearments, felicitations, flatter
Sentence: He had expected criticism, but not the invective that greeted his proposal.
146.
Invidious (adj.) – designed to create ill will or envy; having or showing resentment of
another’s possessions or advantages
Synonyms: covetous, jaundiced, jealous, resentful, begrudging, rapacious
Antonyms: benevolent, altruistic, charitable
Sentence: We disregarded her invidious remarks because we realized how jealous
she was.
147.
Itinerant (adj.) – traveling from place to place
Synonyms: wandering, ambulatory, nomadic, peregrine, peripatetic, vagrant
Antonyms: immobile, settled
Sentence: He was an itinerant peddler and traveled through Pennsylvania and
Virginia selling his wares.
148.
Jaunty (adj.) – lighthearted, animated; easy and carefree
Synonyms: active, bouncing, peppy, pert, sprightly, vivacious
Antonyms: lackadaisical, languid, languorous, listless, inanimate
Sentence: Their special effects were spectacular and elaborate, but there was also
something jaunty in the inventiveness that produced them.
149.
Jingoist (n.) – an extremely aggressive and militant patriot; warlike chauvinist
Synonyms: hawk, militarist, firebrand, fomenter, rabble-rouser, belligerent
Antonyms: dove, pacifist, peacemaker, peacekeeper
Sentence: Always bellowing “America first!,” the congressman was such a jingoist
you could almost hear the sabers rattling as he marched down the halls.
150.
Kindred (n.) – related; belonging to the same family
Synonyms: incision, rip, tear, slit
Antonyms: none
Sentence: Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn were kindred spirits, born mischief makers
who were always up to some new tomfoolery.