American Literature
Mrs. Menzella
Vocabulary List #2
1.
Poignant—adj.—touching on the emotions; painfully affecting the feelings; deeply moving or touching...
It was a shocking, yet also a poignant, moment when her son brought her a single rose and gave her a hug.
a. synonyms: moving, emotional touching
b. antonyms: unemotional, unfeeling
2.
Juxtapose—verb—to place two things side by side for contrast.
Your essay on John Mayer asked you to juxtapose two works by him—one played on electric guitar, the
other on acoustic —and look for similarities and differences between the two works.
*Juxtaposition – noun form
3.
Pragmatic—adjective— relating to practical matters often to the exclusion of intellectual or artistic
matters; practical as opposed to idealistic
He went to his English teacher for a conference before the essay was due; this was a very pragmatic move
that could help his grade.
a. Synonyms: practical, realistic, down-to-earth, matter-of-fact
b. Antonyms: idealistic, impractical, unrealistic
4.
Epiphany—noun—a moment of great insight or revelation; a sudden perception of the essential nature or
meaning of something; an illuminating discovery, realization, or disclosure
Harry Potter has an epiphany about Snape’s true nature when he overhears him speaking to Voldemort; it
is only then that he realizes, Snape was on his side all along.
5.
Idyllic—adj.— pleasing or picturesque in natural simplicity; like a simple, rustic life or pastoral scene
which suggests a mood of peace and contentment.
Yesterday was an idyllic fall day; I walked for 2 hours at a National Park across the Hudson River.
a. Synonyms – peaceful, calm, restful, pleasant
b. Antonyms – imperfect, lousy
6.
c.
Euphemism—noun—the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one thought to be
offensive, harsh, or blunt. (Eu is Latin for beautiful, thus Euphoria)
“To pass away” is a euphemism for “to die.”
“Putting the dog down” is a euphemism for killing a dog. “We put my pet to sleep” is another euphemism.
“Waste management expert” is a euphemism for a garbage man.
7.
Angst—noun—a feeling of anxiety, apprehension, or insecurity.
It’s clear that Stephen in Memorial Day acts out his sense of angst by not talking to anyone at home.
a. synonyms: anguish, torment, sorrow
b. antonyms: calm, peace
8.
Cynic—noun—a person who always sees the worst in everything. Somebody sneering and sarcastic.
Somebody who believes that human actions are insincere and motivated by self-interest. A cynic always
sees the glass as “half-empty” rather than “half-full.”
What a Debbie Downer –she has to wreck every plan with her cynical comments.
a. synonyms: pessimist, skeptic, doubter
b. antonyms: optimist, believer
*cynical adj. form; cynicism- noun form
9.
Speculate—verb—to make an educated guess about something. To form an opinion on the basis of
incomplete facts or information
Can you speculate about how the novel will end? Will the villain get his appropriate punishment?
a. Synonyms: assume, imagine, presume, guess, suppose
b. Antonyms: know, prove
*speculation, n. form
10. Incongruent—adj.—when two things don’t go together. Incompatible with what is appropriate.
The story Memorial Day presents a character, Lonnie, who seems incongruent with his setting – he is too
young to be a father, too old to be a brother, and too nerdy to be Stephen’s friend.
a. Synonyms: dissimilar, incompatible, inconsistent
b. Antonyms: consistent, compatible
11. Nostalgia—noun—a longing for the past; looking back and remembering with longing all the good things
about a previous time.
Charlie, the narrator of “Reunion,” recaptures the last time he saw his father; but he is hardly telling the
story with any sense of nostalgia.
a. Synonyms: homesickness, reminiscence, longing
b. Antonyms: forgetting, disregard
*Nostalgic – noun form
12. Elusive—adjective—hard to grasp or achieve or hold; difficult to understand, define, or identify
The dream of spending quality time with his father proves to be elusive for Charlie, since his dad is much
more concerned about getting a drink than actually connecting during that quick hour at Grand Central
Station!
a. Synonyms: indefinable, subtle, mysterious
b. Antonyms: obvious, clear
13. Amorphous—adj.—without shape.
Some dreams are very amorphous and formless; others are very detailed and vivid.
a. synonyms: formless, shapeless, vague, fluid
b. antonyms: defined, sharp
14. Gumption – noun - the courage to act, to take the action needed; common sense or presence of mind
It took a lot of gumption to speak up for yourself like that, even that guy was really scary.
a.
Synonyms: discretion, common sense, prudence
b.
Antonym: indiscretion
15. Prodigy – noun – a person with exceptional talents or powers; a person, especially a child, of unusual or
marvelous talents.
The musical prodigy practiced piano 10 hours a day; she was fortunate to have a great teacher who was
willing to devote time to her instruction.
a. Synonyms: marvel, miracle, phenomenon, wonder, sensation