Wednesday, September 18, 2013

VOCABULARY #5

obsequious: (adj.) obedient, dutiful; characterized by showing servile complaisance or deference.


beatitude: (noun) a state of perfect happiness or blessedness; a blessing.

bete noire: (noun) someone or something than one especially dislikes, dreads, or avoids.


bode: (verb) to be an omen of; to indicate by signs.


dank: (adj.) unpleasantly damp or wet.


ecumenical: (adj.) worldwide or universal in influence or application.


fervid: (adj.) burning with enthusiasm or zeal; extremely heated.


fetid: (adj.) having an unpleasant or offensive odor.


gargantuan: (adj.) of immense size, volume, or capacity; enormous, prodigious.

heyday: (noun) the period of greatest power, vigor, success, or influence; the prime years.


incubus: (noun) a demon or evil spirit supposed to haunt human beings in their bedrooms at night; anything that oppresses or weighs upon one, like a nightmare.


infrastructure: (noun) a basic foundation or framework; a system of public works; the resources and facilities required for an activity; permanent military installations.


inveigle: (verb) to entice, lure, or snare by flattery or artful inducements; to obtain or acquire by artifice.


kudos: (noun) the acclaim, prestige, or renown that comes as a result of some action or achievement.

lagniappe: (noun) an extra or unexpected gift or gratuity.


prolix: (adj.) long-winded and wordy; tending to speak or write in such a way.


protege: (noun) someone whose welfare, training, or career is under the patronage of an influential person; someone under the jurisdiction of a foreign country or government.


prototype: (noun) an original pattern or model; a primitive or ancestral form.

sycophant: (noun) someone who attempts to win favors or advance him or herself  by flattery or servile behavior; a slanderer, defamer.


tautology: (noun) needless repetition of an idea by using different but equivalent words; a redundancy.

truckle: (verb) to yield or submit tamely or submissively.


Credits to Rebecca Aldrich

No comments:

Post a Comment