Unit 3 Level D
Abridge
 (v) to make shorter
 Synonyms: shorten condense, abbreviate
 Antonyms: expand, enlarge, augment
 An abridged “History of the World” in the graphic
below condenses history into “some wars and stuff.”
Adherent
 (n) a follower, supporter, (adj) attached, sticking to
 Synonyms: (n) disciple
 Antonyms: (n) opponent, adversary, critic, detractor
 Before we could repaint the walls of our living room,
we had to remove an adherent layer of wallpaper that
was sticking to the wall.
Altercation
 (n) an angry argument
 Synonyms: quarrel, dispute, squabble
 Antonyms: agreement, accord
 The altercation between the two players suspended
play for several minutes until the quarrel ended.
Cherubic
 (adj) resembling an angel portrayed as a little child with a
beautiful, round, or chubby face, sweet and innocent
 Synonym: beatific
 Antonyms: impish, devilish, diabolic, fiendish
 How well those photographs of the twins by Anne Geddes
captures the cherubic expressions on their faces, they look
so sweet and innocent.
Condone
 (v) to pardon or overlook
 Synonyms: ignore, wink at, turn a blind eye to
 Antonyms: censure, condemn, disapprove, depreciate
 I cannot condone the behavior of some pet owners who
abandon their pets leaving them to starve. To overlook
such behavior is criminal.
Dissent
 (v) to disagree; (n)
disagreement
 Synonyms: (v) differ,
dispute
 Antonyms: (v) agree,
concur; (n) unanimity,
harmony
He showed his dissent by
pointing his thumb down in a
gesture of disagreement.
Eminent
 (adj) famous, outstanding, distinguished; projecting
 Synonyms: illustrious, renowned
 Antonyms: nameless, unsung, lowly, humble
 A group of eminent scientists worked during WWII
on the Manhattan Project which produced the first
nuclear weapons, of those scientist Albert Einstein is
probably the most famous.
Exorcise
 (v) to drive out by magic;
to dispose of something
troublesome, menacing,
or oppressive
 Synonyms: expel, dispel
 Harry Potter often battles
the Dementor’s and must
exorcise, driving out by
magic their evil spirits,
to protect himself and the
people he cares about.
Fabricate
 (v) to make,
manufacture; to make
up, invent
 Synonyms: put
together, devise,
contrive, concoct
 Antonyms: take apart,
undo, destroy,
demolish
 The welder needed to
fabricate the metal
frame by welding the
pieces of metal
together to make one
complete piece.
Gluttony
 (n) engaging in extreme
eating or drinking; greedy,
over indulgence
 Synonyms: overeating,
ravenousness,
rapaciousness
 Antonyms: abstemiousness
 In the Middle Ages,
gluttony was considered
one of the Seven Deadly
Sins, as overeating or
drinking was considered to
be a sin as described in the
teachings of the Bible.
Irate
 (adj) angry
 Synonyms: incensed,
infuriated, enraged,
livid
 Antonyms: calm,
composed, cool,
unruffled
 Long delays at airports
due to bad weather are
likely to make many
travelers irate, angry
and infuriated.
Marauder
 (n) a raider, plunder
 Synonyms: Looter,
pirate
 Edgar Allan Poe’s story,
“The Golden Bug”
concerns the treasure
buried by the
marauder, Captain
Kidd, who was a real
pirate.
Pauper
 (n) an extremely poor
person
 Synonyms: destitute
person
 Antonyms: billionaire
 During The Great
Depression, many
people were reduced to
leading the desperate
lives of paupers
because they were
extremely poor.
Pilfer
 (v) to steal in small
quantities
 Synonyms: rob, swipe,
purloin
An employee who pilfers
from the company he or
she works for, is stealing
and will ultimately be
caught.
Rift
 (n) a split, break, breach
 Synonyms: crack, fissure,
gap, cleft
 Antonym: reconciliation
 An earthquake can cause a
split in the earth and the
rift leaves the ground
uneven and dangerous.
Semblance
 (n) a likeness; an outward
appearance; an apparition
 Synonyms: appearance,
air, aura, veneer, façade
 Antonyms: dissimilarity,
contrast, total lack
 Some would say that the
caricature of Sean Connor
bears no semblance to
him, where others would
argue it looks
frighteningly like him.
Surmount
 (v) to overcome, rise above
 Synonyms: conquer, triumph
over
 Antonyms: to be vanquished,
to be defeated, succumb to
 Swimmer Michael Phelps
surmounted his childhood
disability of Attention Deficit
Disorder to win Olympic
Gold Medals he was able of
overcome his disability
through hard work and
determination.
Terminate
 (v) to bring to an end
 Synonyms: conclude,
finish, discontinue
 Antonyms: begin,
commence, initiate
 Before terminating a
program on your
computer make sure
you save information
because once you click
on OK the program will
end.
Trite
 (adj) commonplace,
overused, stale
 Synonyms: banal,
hackneyed, corny
 Antonyms: original,
innovative
 When you write an
essay or a story, be
especially careful to
avoid using trite
expressions that
might be considered
clichés.
Usurp
 (v) to seize and hold a position by force or without
right
 Synonyms: Seize illegally, supplant
 The general who lead the coup in Thailand usurped
power removing the duly elected government
officials.