Words you should know
List of words worth knowing
opine - submit as your opinion
Lurid - garish, unpleasantly bright
pabulum - bland or insipid intellectual political matter.
juste milieu - The happy medium esp. political philosophy; judicious moderation
Valorize - Give or ascribe value or validity to.
Compunction - feeling of guilt before or after doing somethign bad
Gumption - spirited initiative/ resourcefullness.
Lilt - a characteristic rising and falling of the voice when speaking; a pleasant gentle accent
Balustrade - a railing supported by balusters, especially one forming an ornamental parapet to a balcony, bridge, or terrace.
Dyspeptic - having indigestion or a consequent air of irritable bad temper.
Sardonic - grimly mocking or cynical
Missive - a letter, especially a long or official one
Sodalite - a blue mineral consisting chiefly of an aluminosilicate and chloride of sodium, occurring chiefly in alkaline igneous rocks.
tincture - a medicine made by dissolving a drug in alcohol
Insouciance - casual lack of concern
consolation - The comfort received by a person after a loss or disappointment.
dialectic - the art of investigating or discussing the truth of opinions.
irrupt - Enter somewhere forcibly or suddenly.
Emollient - having the quality of softening or soothing the skin
Attenuate - reduce the force, effect, or value of
Cunctation - the action of delaying or putting off doing something.
Deontic - relating to duty and obligation as ethical concepts.
Jowl - the lower part of a person's or animal's cheek, especially when it is fleshy or drooping
Hermetic - (of a seal or closure) complete and airtight
Apothem - a line from the centre of a regular polygon at right angles to any of its sides.
Edifice - a large, imposing building.
Ameliorate - make (something bad or unsatisfactory) better
Pugilist - a boxer, especially a professional one.
Penchant - a strong or habitual liking for something or tendency to do something
Cispontine - on the north side of the Thames bridges in London (originally the better-known side).
Gutter press
Torpid - mentally or physically inactive; lethargic
Curmudgeon - grumpy person
Anomie - lack of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group
Repine - feel or express discontent; fret
Propitious - giving or indicating a good chance of success; favourable
Auspicious - favourable
Sect - a group of people with somewhat different religious beliefs (typically regarded as heretical) from those of a larger group to which they belong.
Immolate
Roil
Caustic - able to burn or corrode organic tissue by chemical action
Excoriate
Sophism - a clever but false argument, especially one used deliberately to deceive.
Trenchant- incisive
Epicene - having characteristics of both sexes or no characteristics of either sex; of indeterminate sex
Aesthetes - person who appreciates fine things
Riposte - a quick, clever reply to an insult or criticism.
Thanatos - death
Fatuous - inane
Strife - conflict
Pejorative - negatively
Contempt -
Redolent - evocative
Roseate - rose coloured
Despot - a ruler or other person who holds absolute power, typically one who exercises it in a cruel or oppressive way.
Yore - of long ago or former times (used in nostalgic or mock-nostalgic recollection)
Cogitate - think deeply about something
Postulate - suggest or assume the existence, fact, or truth of (something) as a basis for reasoning, discussion, or belief
Latent - (of a quality or state) existing but not yet developed or manifest; hidden or concealed
Prometheus- innovative clever original
Serf - worker of the land for a land owner
Thraldom - the state of being in someone's power
Plus ca change
Pith essence
Rosa Luxemburg
Rectitude - morally right behaviour
Privation - deprivation
Inheres
Apotheosis - culmination/ climax. / Perfect example of..
Dissipation - overindulgence in sensual pleasures; dissipated living
Gradgrind
Zealot
Statism - a political system in which the state has substantial centralized control over social and economic affairs
Assent - the expression of approval or agreement
Acquiescence - the reluctant acceptance of something without protest
Suborning
Unfettered - not confined or restricted
Obloquy - strong public condemnation
Arrogate - take or claim (something) without justification
Atrophy - (of body tissue or an organ) waste away, especially as a result of the degeneration of cells, or become vestigial during evolution
Vindictive - having or showing a strong or unreasoning desire for revenge
Stolid - calm, dependable, and showing little emotion or animation
Casuistry - the use of clever but unsound reasoning, especially in relation to moral questions; sophistry
Sycophant - a person who acts obsequiously towards someone important in order to gain advantage.
Obsequious
Solipsism - the view or theory that the self is all that can be known to exist.
Servile - having or showing an excessive willingness to serve or please others
Turgid - swollen and distended or congested
Bombastic - high-sounding but with little meaning; inflated
Edification -
Credulous - gullible
Meretricious - apparently attractive but having no real value.
Approbation - approval or praise
Epistolary - (of a literary work) in the form of letters
Iconoclast - a person who attacks or criticizes cherished beliefs or institutions.*** - persons who attacks or criticises cherished beliefs.
Euphony - the quality of being pleasing to the ear*** - pleasing to the ear
Vindication - the action of clearing someone of blame or suspicion*** - clearing someone of blame.
Phlegmatic - (of a person) having an unemotional and stolidly calm disposition*** - having unemotional disposition
Dissent - hold opinion at variance with those commonly held
Inured - accustom to something esp unpleasant
Non sequitur - it does not follow
Extirpation - complete excision / destruction
Syncretism - the amalgamation or attempted amalgamation of different religions, cultures, or schools of thought
Apotropaic - supposedly have the power to avert evil/ bad luck
Castigate - reprimand (someone) severely.
Soi disant - self-styled, so-called
Stalwart - loyal,reliable/ hardworking (a stalwart supporter of something)
Incipient - impending/developing
Hucksterism - aggressive wheeler dealer
Derisive - showing mockery/ contempt / disrespect
Veridical - truthful
Acrimony - bitterness or ill feeling
Soporific - tending to induce drowsy or sleep
Seditious - insighting or causing people to rebel against the state/monarch(provocative)
Diffident - modest or shy because of lack of self confidence
Ersatz - made or used as an inferior substitute.
Cordial - warm/ friendly
Abnegation - renouncing or rejecting
Precocious - (of a child) advanced or developed skillset above expectations.
Quotidian - daily
Putative - reputed
Sui generis - unique
Gutteral - produced in throat/ harsh sounding
Aping - imitate esp in absurd or unthinking way.
Perennial - lasting for indefinitely long time.
Occult - mystical/ supernatural/ paranormal
Impunity - immunity (from law)
Pavlovian - give a a rat food and it will ring a bell
Panoply - extensive of impressive collection
Florid - red flushed (face)
Perochial - narrow minded ( relating to church parish)
Nascent - (especially of a process or organization) just coming into existence and beginning to display signs of future potential.
Prescient - having or showing knowledge of events before they take place.
Deign - do something that one considers to be beneath one's dignity.
Repudiate - refuse to accept; reject.
Plight - dangerous / difficult / unfortunate situation.
Denizen - (formal/ humorous) inhabitant
Indignation - anger/ annoyance at (perceived) unfair treatment
Astringent - severe/ sharp manner/style
Recrudescence - a new outbreak after a period of abatement or inactivity
Schism - a split or division between strongly opposed sections or parties
Protectorate - a state that is controlled and protected by another
Abate - subside
Ignominy - public shame or disgrace.
Terse - sparing in the use of words; abrupt.
Suzerainty - a dominant state controlling the foreign relations of a vassal state but allowing it sovereign authority in its internal affairs
Imbricate - arrange so they overlap (like rooftiles)
Demagogue - political leader who seeks support by appealing to popular desires / prejudices rather than using rational argument.
Pelf - money, esp. dishonest acquisition
Surreptitious - kept secret esp. for reasons of disapproval
Admonish - reprimand firmly; rebuke, scold etc.
Cupidity - greed for money /possessions
Clemency - mercy/ lenience
Inveigle - persuade someone by deceptoin / flattery
Solemnise - duly perform
Affectation - behaviour, speech/ writing that is pretentious / designed to impress
Largesse - generosity in bestowing money/ gifts upon other
Promulgate - promote or spread idea
Hubris - excessive pride/ self-confidence
Sedulous - showing dedication / diligence
Eschew - desperately avoid
Provenance - place of origin/ earliest history of something
Trifling - unimportant/ trivial
Subterfuge - trickery
Vagary - unexpected change in someone's/thing behaviour
Charlatan - person falsely claiming to have a special knowledge or skill.
Proliferation - large number/ rapid increase in something
Fulcrum - central or essential role in an activity
Subjugate - bring under domination or control, especially by conquest or make someone or something subordinate to
Lacuna - an unfilled gap
Resipiscence - change of mind/ heart. come to ones senses. Return to to correct view point
Burgeoning - grow / flourish
Expedient - convenient but immoral
Ascetic - characterized by severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of indulgence
Myopic - short sighted
Impetuous - acting or done quickly and without thought or care.
Parvenu - person of humble origin who has gained wealth, influence, or celebrity.
Ephemeral - fleeting
Proletariat - collective working class Marxist.
Odious - disgusting
Impecunious - having little money
Disabuse - persuade (someone) that an idea or belief is mistaken.
Palatial - like a palace
Aegis - protection backing or support of a person or organisation
Espouse - adopt or support ( a cause/belief / way of life)
Hathos - compulsion for revulsion
Perniscious - having harmful effect esp. in gradual/ subtle way.
Apocryphal - fictitious appearing to be true / doubtful authenticity
Impasse - deadlock
Vicissitude - a change of circumstances or fortune, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant.
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