abhor
v. fill with horror and loathing; horrify; hate |
abrasive
a. rubbing away; tending to grind down |
alternative
a. one of two or more things, ideas or courses of action that may be used; option; choice |
ambiguous
a. unclear or doubtful in meaning |
amiss
a. out of proper order; not in perfect shape; faulty |
anarchy
n. absence of governing body; state of disorder; political disorder and confusion |
anonymous
a. having no name; having unknown or unacknowledged name |
anthology
n. book of literary selections by various authors |
apathy
n. lack of caring; indifference |
apprehend
v. take into custody; arrest a criminal; grasp mentally; perceive |
assimilate
v. incorporate and absorb into mind; make similar; cause to resemble |
assumption
n. something taken for accepted as true without proof; taking over or taking possession of |
audacious
a. fearlessly, often recklessly daring; bold |
authority
n. jurisdiction; power to enforce laws |
avid
a. greedy; eager for; marked by keen interest and enthusiasm |
ban
n. official prohibition; decree that prohibits something |
belligerent
a. inclined or eager to fight; aggressive |
bisect
v. cut in half or cut in two |
bizarre
a. fantastic; very strange and unusuall in style or appearance |
boycott
v. refrain from buying or using |
capable
a. having the ability required for a specific task |
cause
n. a person or thing that gives rise to an action |
characterize
v. distinguish; be characteristic of; be a distinctive trait or mark of |
chronological
a. arranged in order of time of occurrence |
commence
v. have a beginning or origin; originate; start; begin |
compels
v. force somebody to do something |
concise
a. brief and compact; expressing much in few words |
conclude
v. enclose; reach as an end of reasoning; make final determination ; judge or decide; bring to an end |
confiscate
v. officially take private property away from someone, usually by legal authority |
conjecture
v. guess, based on the appearance of a situation and not on proof |
conscientious
a. wishing to do what is right, especially to do one's work or duty well and thoroughly; diligent; responsible; reliable |
consecutive
a. following one after another without interruption; sequential |
consistent
a. being in agreement with itself; always behaving or happening in a similar |
construct
v. form by assembling or combining parts; build; create |
contrast
n. act of distinguishing by comparing differences |
corroborate
v. establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts; support with evidence |
depict
v. represent in a picture or sculpture; portray in words; describe |
derive
v. obtain or receive from a source; trace the origin or development of |
despicable
a. fit or deserving to be despised; contemptible; mean; vile; worthless |
despondent
a. unhappy and with no hope or enthusiasm |
elapse
v. slip or glide away; pass away silently |
embark
v. commence; go on board a boat or airplane; begin a journey |
encompass
v. surround; form a circle or ring around; enclose; envelop |
endeavor
v. attempt by employing effort; try to do something |
evidence
n. something which makes evident or manifest; any mode of proof |
evoke
v. bring out; arouse; call forth |
feasible
a. capable of being accomplished or brought about |
focus
n. most important thing; a fixed reference point; center of interest or activity |
formula
n. plan; directions for making something; a group of symbols that make a mathematical statement |
generation
n. all offspring at same stage from common ancestor; interval of time between the birth of parents and their offspring |
gruesome
a. causing horror; frightful and shocking |
imminent
a. near at hand; close in time; about to occur |
impel
v. drive or force onward; drive forward; urge to action through moral pressure |
imperative
n. having power command or control; critically importance; some duty that is essential and urgent |
inspire
v. encourage; inspirit; fire the imagination of |
integrate
v. make whole; combine; make into one unit |
interrogate
v. question closely; examine by questioning formally or officially |
merge
v. combine; unite |
modify
v. alter; make partial or minor changes to |
mutiny
n. open rebellion against constituted authority (especially by seamen or soldiers against their officers) |
narrate
v. to give an account or tell the story of |
novice
n. beginner; person new to a field or activity |
obsolete
a. no longer useful; outmoded; antiquated |
opposition
n. condition of being in conflict; act of opposing something |
perish
v. be destroyed; pass away; become nothing |
perspective
n. appearance of things; view, outlook, or vista |
persuasive
a. capable of convincing; having the power to induce action or belief |
plagiarize
v. steal another's ideas and pass them off as one's own |
precise
a. exact; clearly expressed; accurate or correct |
prediction
n. something foretold or predicted; prophecy |
prevalent
a. widespread; widely or commonly occurring, existing, accepted |
procedure
n. act or manner of moving forward; steps taken in an action |
profound
a. deep; not superficial; far-reaching |
proprietor
n. one who has legal title to something; owner |
prudent
a. cautious; careful in regard to one's own interests |
pseudonym
n. pen name; fictitious name used when someone performs a particular social role |
quote
v. name the price of; state a price for securities, goods, or services |
rebel
v. revolt; resist or defy an authority; break with established customs |
rebuff
v. offer sudden or harsh resistance; turn down or shut out; repel or drive back |
rebuke
v. scold harshly; criticize severely |
recur
v. reappear; happen or occur again |
resilient
a. elastic; having power of springing back or recover readily |
response
n. the manner in which an electrical or mechanical device responds to an input signal or a range of input signals |
reverberate
v. to throw or bend back, from a surface; ring or echo with sound; spring back; spring away from an impact |
significant
a. fairly large; important in effect or meaning |
similar
a. like or alike; of the same kind |
simulate
v. make a pretence of; reproduce someone's behavior or looks |
simultaneous
a. existing, happening, or done at the same time |
source
n. point of origin, such as spring, of stream or river; one that causes, creates, or initiates |
specific
a. stated explicitly or in detail; definite |
spontaneous
a. arising without external cause; growing without cultivation or human labor |
surmise
v. guess; infer something without sufficiently conclusive evidence |
theory
n. doctrine or scheme of things; general or abstract principles of any science |
tirade
n. extended scolding; long angry or violent speech |
universal
a. relating to the entire world or all within the world; affecting all; present everywhere |
validate
v. confirm; ratify; declare or make legally valid |
variable
n. factor; something that is likely to vary; changeable; inconstant |