RACONTEUR: A
skilled storyteller - held spellbound by a superb raconteur.
RADICAL
(noun): One who advocates extreme basic changes - The reform movement was led
by a radical. (adj.): Thorough, extreme - radical measures adopted to meet the
emergency. Antonym (noun and adj.): conservative.
RAMIFICATION:
A branching; sub-division - studied the subject in all its ramifications.
RAZE: To tear
down completely- razed the old building. Synonyms: level. Antonym: rear.
RECAPITULATE:
To restate in a brief, concise form; to sum up - recapitulated the main
ideas.
RECIPROCAL:
Mutual; done in return for something received - held each other in reciprocal
esteem.
RECUMBENT:
Lying down; leaning back or down - resting in a recumbent position.
REDOLENT: (1)
Fragrant - a room redolent of roses. Synonym: aromatic. (2) Reminiscent of -
redolent of olden times.
REDOUBTABLE:
Commanding fear or respect - cringing before a redoubtable enemy. Synonym:
formidable.
REFUTE: To
prove incorrect or false-refuted his opponent's argument. Synonyms: rebut,
confute. Antonyms: substantiate, confirm, corroborate.
REITERATE:
Repeat (several times) - reiterated his story once more.
REMUNERATIVE:
Profitable - a remunerative job. Synonyms: lucrative, gainful.
RENEGADE: One
who forsakes political or party principles or his religious faith - a renegade
from his former allegiance. Synonyms: turncoat, apostate, recreant,
traitor.
REPRISAL:
Injury inflicted in turn for one received - took action in reprisal against his
neighbor. Synonym: retaliation.
RESENTMENT:
Feeling of displeasure or indignation resulting from mistreatment or abuse -
showed resentment at what he considered an unwarranted insult. Synonyms:
umbrage, dudgeon, animosity.
RESILIENT:
Elastic; light-hearted; possessing power of recovery - a resilient Spirit,
refusing to admit defeat. Synonyms: flexible, pliable, supple, limber.
RESPITE: (1)
Temporary deferment or cessation of work or pain - a brief respite from labor.
Synonym: surcease. (2) A temporary delay in the execution of -a sentence -
granted the doom man a temporary respite. Synonym: reprieve.
RETRIBUTION:
The reward or punishment exacted for an injury, wickedness, or other action -
suffered just retribution for his folly. Synonyms: requital, nemesis.
RETRIEVE: (1)
To make good -retrieved a mistake. (2) To recover retrieved the suitcase left
at the station. (3) To restore - retrieved his lost fortunes.
REVERBERATE:
To echo - a shot reverberating through the valley. Synonym: resound.
RUDIMENTARY:
In an early stage of development - possessing only a rudimentary, knowledge of
physics. Synonym: incipient.
RUE (adj.:
RUEFUL): To be sorry for-He will rue the day he left home. Synonyms: regret,
repent.
SACROSANCT:
Very holy - a shrine. regarded as sacrosanct. Synonyms: consecrated, inviolable, hallowed.
SAGACIOUS
(noun: SAGACITY): Wise; shrewd - proved to be sagacious in his judgment.
Synonyms: perspicacious, astute, sapient, discerning, sage.
SALLOW: Sick
- a sallow complexion. Synonym: pallid. Antonyms: rubicund, ruddy, florid.
SALLY:
(verb): To rush forth suddenly - sallied out to meet the enemy. (noun): A Witty
remark - amused the audience with his sallies against his opponent.
Synonyms: quip, banter.
SANCTIMONIOUS:
Pretending to be religious - showed his hypocrisy in a sanctimonious display of
piety.
SANGUINARY:
Bloody - a sanguinary battle. Synonym: gory.
SANGUINE: Of
a hopeful disposition; blood-red in color - a perennial optimist, sanguine in
temperament. Synonyms: buoyant, ardent.
SARTORIAL:
Pertaining to a tailor or clothes - a picture of sartorial perfection.
SATELLITE:
(1) An attentive or flattering follower - a prince surrounded by many
satellites. Synonyms: lackey, toady,
disciple, adherent; adj., fawning, obsequious, partisan. (2) A country
influenced or controlled by another - Freedom is conspicuously absent ,in the
Soviet satellites. (3) A body (natural or artificial) which revolves around a
larger body, generally a planet - The moon is the only natural satellite of the
earth, but in recent years it has been joined by many artificial
satellites.
SCINTILLA: A
trace; a particle - not a scintilla of convincing evidence. Synonyms: iota;
vestige.
SCOURGE
(verb): To punish severely; to afflict; to whip - a disease that scourged the
country. Synonyms: excoriate, flay. (noun). A whip or other means of
punishment; a cause of affliction - The Black Plague was a dreadful scourge of
the Middle Ages. Synonym: tribulation.
SCRUTINIZE:
To examine carefully -scrutinized the contents of the letter.
SHIBBOLETH: A
party slogan - a shibboleth designed to attract votes.
SIMPER
(verb): To smile in a silly or affected way simpered as he greeted each guest.
(noun): An affected or silly smile - stood nervously, a simper on his face.
Synonym: (verb and noun) smirk.
SINECURE:
Employment entailing little or no responsibility or labor - His job was a
sinecure.
SINISTER:
Threatening or showing evil; dishonest - the sinister look of a gangster.
SLEAZY:
Flimsy and cheap - sleazy cloth which is used only in cheap garments. Synonym:
unsubstantial.
SLOVENLY:
Untidy-severely criticized the student's slovenly appearance. Synonyms:
slipshod, slatternly, frowzy.
SOPORIFIC:
Tending to induce sleep - a poorly written novel, soporific in effect.
SORDID: Mean
and base; filthy - Sordid motives breed selfish actions. Synonyms: degraded,
vile, ignoble.
SOVEREIGN:
Supreme m power and authority; independent of the control of any other
government - possessing sovereign powers; a sovereign state. Synonyms:
autonomous, imperial, majestic, paramount.
SPORADIC:
Occurring singly, at irregular intervals; scattered - sporadic cases of
illness.
SPURN: To
refuse or reject with contempt - an offer that was spurned instantly. Synonyms:
repel, snub.
STOIC:
Indifferent, calm in bearing pain or pleasure; practising remarkable
self-control over emotions - maintained a stoic attitude despite all his
trials. Synonyms: stolid, impassive.
STRINGENT:
Strict; compelling, constraining stringent regulations; stringent requirements.
Synonyms: exacting, rigid. Antonym: lax.
STUPENDOUS:
Amazing by, virtue of its immense size, force, or any quality in exceptional
degree - The circus is a stupendous spectacle. Synonyms: astounding, prodigious, monstrous, marvelous,
colossal, awful.
SUCCULENT:
juicy - a succulent steak. Antonyms: desiccated, vapid.
SULTRY:
Close, hot, and moist - sultry tropical weather.
SUPINE: (1)
Lying flat on the back - resting in a supine position. Antonym: erect. (2)
Inert, inactive, averse to taking action - a supine, ineffective administrator.
Synonyms: listless, torpid.
TANGIBLE:
Real; actual - tangible gains which may be seen, and counted. Synonyms:
material, veritable, perceptible, substantial.
TANTAMOUNT:
Equivalent - an act that is tantamount to treason.
TAUNT (verb).
To reproach with contempt - taunted him with the charge of failure to act
promptly. Synonyms: mock, twit, gibe, sneer, deride. (noun): An insulting,
jeering, or bitter remark - hurled taunts at his foes.
TEEMING: In
abundance, fertile, highly productive - the teeming tropics, rank with
vegetation. Synonyms: swarming, fruitful, fecund, abounding.
TEMERITY:
Unwise or reckless boldness - leaped into battle with thoughtless temerity.
Synonyms: audacity, presumptuousness, effrontery, rashness; (adj.) temerarious,
foolhardy, venturesome. Antonyms: prudence, circumspection, wariness.
TEMPORAL:
Worldly, as opposed to spiritual; existing for a time only - a man preoccupied
with temporal matters. Synonyms: mundane, secular, civil.
TEMPORIZE: To
delay or refuse to commit oneself in order to gain time - temporized while his
friends hurried to his aid. Synonym: equivocate.
TENET: A
principle of belief held as true - a tenet of religion which be maintained
loyally. Synonyms: creed, doctrine, dogma.
TENUOUS:
Slender; not substantial; of slight importance - clung desperately to his
tenuous hope.
TRANQUIL:
Calm; peaceful - a tranquil summer night. Synonyms: placid, serene. Antonyms:
perturbed, ruffled, turbulent.
TRANSGRESS:
To break a law or command; to violate a moral principle; to overstep a moral
bound or limit - transgressed the bounds of decency; transgressed the law.
TREMULOUS:
Trembling - tremulous with fright. Synonym: quivering.
TRIVIAL: Of
little - importance - a trivial offense. Synonym: paltry. Antonyms: gross,
momentous.
TRUCULENT
(noun: TRUCULENCE): Cruel, fierce; harsh; threatening or intimidating savagely
- a dispute marked by a truculent attitude on both sides.
TURGID: (1)
Swollen, inflated - turgid rivers overflowing their banks. Synonyms: bloated,
distended. (2) Using big or high-sounding words - a turgid prose style.
Synonyms: pompous, bombastic, prolix.
UBIQUITOUS:
Existing everywhere - The common cold is a ubiquitous complaint. Synonyms:
omnipresent, universal.
UNTENABLE:
Incapable of being defended or held - withdrew the argument as untenable.
UTILITARIAN
(adj.): Materially or practically useful - beautiful, but not utilitarian.
VANQUISH: To
subdue or conquer -an army vanquished with heavy losses.
VAUNT: To
boast - proudly vaunted his strength. Synonyms: brag (noun: braggadocio,
braggart), proclaim.
VENEER: A
superficial appearance or show designed to impress one with superiority -
pierced beneath his thin veneer of elegance. Synonym: gloss.
VENERABLE:
Deserving respect or reverence because of age - a venerable leader.
VERNAL:
Pertaining to spring-an array of vernal flowers. Antonym: hibernal
(wintry).
VERSATILE:
Able to do many things skillfully - versatile in all the arts.
VICARIOUS:
Taking the place of another; felt, received, or done in place of another - took
vicarious pleasure in his brother's victory.
VICISSITUDE:
A change from one condition to another, often unexpected - suffered many
vicissitudes of fortune.
VIRAGO: A
scolding or ill-tempered woman - My neighbor's wife is a virago. Synonyms:
shrew, termagant, vixen.
VITUPERATE
(noun: VITUPERATION; adj.: VITUPERATIVE): To scold or blame loudly, find fault
with in abusive language - an angry man, vituperating the world. Synonyms:
berate, revile.
WAIVE: To
give up (privileges, etc.); to do without - waived his rights to the property.
Synonyms: relinquish, forgo, forsake.
WHIM (adj.:
WHIMSICAL): A sudden notion or passing fancy -frequently acted on the whim of
the moment. Synonyms: caprice, vagary, crotchet.
WRITHE: To
twist about (usually with pain) - writhed in agony on the floor. Synonyms: contort,
squirm.
ZEALOUS
(noun: ZEALOT: fanatic): Full of enthusiasm or eagerness -a zealous student,
first in his class. Antonym: perfunctory.
ZENITH: The
highest point - the zenith of his career. Synonyms: acme, apex, culmination,
summit. Antonym: nadir.
