BARRON SET#13
Terms
undefined, object
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- obtuse
- blunt; not sharp; stupid; slow in understanding
- obviate
- make unnecessary; get rid of; Ex. obviate the need
- Occident
- the West
- occlude
- shut; close; obstruct; Ex. A blood clot occluded an artery.
- occult
- mysterious; secret; supernatural; beyond human comprehension; CF. mysterious to human ?; OP. bare
- oculist
- physician who specializes in treatment of the eyes
- odds
- chances; probability; disagreement; Ex. The odds are that it will rain. Ex. at odds with
- odious
- arousing strong dislike; hateful(causing hatred); vile
- odium
- detestation; quality of being odious; hatefulness; disrepute (resulting from hateful conduct)
- odoriferous
- giving off an odor
- odorous
- having an odor
- odyssey
- long, eventful, adventurous journey
- offensive
- attacking; insulting; distasteful; V. offend: violate; hurt the feelings of; N. offense: offending; violating of a moral or social code; crime; attack; Ex. first offense
- offhand
- casual; done without prior thought or preparation
- officious
- meddlesome; excessively pushy in offering one's services; overly eager in offering unwanted services or advices; Ex. officious bellboy
- ogle
- look at amorously; make eyes at; Ex. old men ogling young girls
- olfactory
- concerning the sense of smell
- oligarchy
- government by a privileged few
- ominous
- threatening; of an evil omen
- omnipotent
- all-powerful; having unlimited power
- omnipresent
- universally present; ubiquitous
- omniscient
- all-knowing
- omnivorous
- eating both plant and animal food; devouring everything
- onerous
- burdensome
- onomatopoeia
- words formed in imitation of natural sounds
- onslaught
- vicious assault; fierce attack; Ex. unexpected onslaught of the enemy
- onus
- burden; responsibility
- ooze
- (of a thick liquid) pass or flow slowly; N: mud or thick liquid as at the bottom of a river
- opalescent
- iridescent; lustrous; like an opal; N. opalescence
- opaque
- dark; not transparent; N. opacity
- opiate
- medicine to induce sleep or deaden pain; something that relieves emotions or causes inaction; sleep-producing drug containing opium
- opportune
- timely; well-chosen
- opportunist
- individual who sacrifices principles for expediency by taking advantage of circumstances; N. opportunism
- opprobrium
- infamy; disgrace arising from shameful conduct; vilification(slander); scorn; contempt; Ex. opprobrium hurled against him; ADJ. opprobrious: expressing contempt; shameful or infamous
- optician
- maker and seller of eyeglasses
- optimist
- person who looks on the bright side; N. optimism
- optimum
- most favorable; optimal; N: most favorable condition
- optional
- not compulsory; left to one's choice; N. option: act of choosing; choice; freedom or power to choose; something available as a choice; Ex. have no option; Ex. two options
- optometrist
- one who fits glasses to remedy visual defects
- opulence
- extreme wealth; luxuriousness; abundance; ADJ. opulent: possessing great wealth; abundant
- opus
- work (esp. musical composition); Ex. magnum opus: masterpiece; CF. opera
- oracular
- of an oracle; prophetic; uttered as if with divine authority; mysterious or ambiguous; hard to understand; N. oracle: wiser person; prophecy made by an oracle
- orator
- public speaker
- oratorio
- dramatic poem set to music; long musical work with singing but without acting; CF. cantata
- ordain
- decree or command; grant holy orders; predestine; install as a minister, priest, or rabbi; N. ordainment; CF. ordination
- ordeal
- severe trial or affliction; difficult experience; trial(test of patience or endurance); affliction
- ordinance
- decree; authoritative order
- ordination
- ceremony conferring holy orders; ceremony of ordaining a priest
- orgy
- wild drunken revelry; unrestrained indulgence in an activity; Ex. orgy of shopping
- orient
- get one's bearings; adjust; make familiar with a situation; orientate
- orientation
- act of finding oneself in society; orienting
- orifice
- mouthlike opening; small opening (esp. to a cavern or passage of the body); CF. mouth
- ornate
- excessively or elaborately decorated
- ornithologist
- scientific student of birds; N. ornithology: scientific study of birds
- orous
- full of pores; like a sieve
- orthodox
- traditional; (of someone) conservative in belief; adhering to an established doctrine
- orthography
- correct spelling; CF. ortho-: straight; correct; Ex. orthodontics
- oscillate
- vibrate pendulumlike; waver
- osseous
- made of bone; bony
- ossify
- change or harden into bone; become hard and unchanging in one's ideas
- ostensible
- apparent; appearing as such; professed(pretended); pretended; Ex. ostensible purpose of the expedition
- ostentatious
- showy; trying to attract attention; pretentious; N. ostentation: showy display
- ostracize
- banish from a group; exclude from public favor; ban; Ex. His friends ostracized him. N. ostracism
- oust
- expel; drive out; force out; N. ouster: ousting
- outcast
- one that has been excluded from a society; ADJ.
- outfit
- clothing or equipment for a special purpose; Ex. cowboy outfit
- outgoing
- sociable; eager to mix socially with others
- outlandish
- bizzare; peculiar; unconventional
- outlaw
- fugitive from the law (excluded from legal protection); V: declare (someone) to be an outlaw; deprive of the protection of the law; declare illegal; Ex. Drinking has been outlawed.
- outlook
- point of view; view from a particular place; expectation for the future; prospect; Ex. outlook on life; Ex. pleasing outlook; Ex. weather outlook
- outmoded
- no longer in fashion or use; no longer stylish; old-fashioned
- outrage
- act of extreme violence or viciousness; resentful anger; V: commit an outrage on; produce anger in; ADJ. outrageous: offensive
- outskirts
- fringes; outer borders (as of a city); Ex. outskirts of Boston
- outspoken
- candid; blunt
- outstrip
- outrun; surpass; outdo
- outwit
- outsmart; defeat by behaving more cleverly
- overbearing
- bossy; domineering and arrogant; decisively important; Ex. overbearing manner/importance; V. overbear: dominate
- overblown
- inflated; exaggerated
- oversee
- watch over and direct; supervise; N. oversight: unintentional failure to notice or do something; supervision
- overt
- open to view; public; not secret; CF. covert
- overthrow
- topple; N.
- overture
- musical introduction to a long musical piece; first offer or proposal (to begin talks in the hope of reaching an agreement); Ex. overtures for peace
- overturn
- turn over; capsize; topple
- overweening
- arrogant; presumptuous
- overwhelm
- (of water) cover completely; defeat completely by much greater force; Ex. overwhelmed by grief
- overwrought
- nervous or excited; extremely agitated; hysterical; wrought-up; CF. wrought: made or done
- ovoid
- egg-shaped; CF. ovum; CF. ovulate
- pachyderm
- thick-skinned animal
- pacifist
- one opposed to force; antimilitarist; ADJ. N. pacifism: opposition to war as a means of resolving disputes
- pacify
- soothe; make calm or quiet; subdue; bring peace to
- padre
- chaplain (in the armed forces)
- paean
- song of praise or joy; Ex. paeans celebrating the victory
- painstaking
- taking pains; showing hard work; taking great care; very careful and through
- palatable
- agreeable; pleasing to the taste
- palate
- roof of the mouth; sense of the taste
- palatial
- of or suitable for a palace; magnificent
- paleontology
- study of prehistoric life or fossils; CF. paleo-: ancient or prehistoric; Ex. paleography: study of ancient written documents
- palette
- board on which painter mixes pigments(coloring matters)
- palimpsest
- parchment or piece of writing material used for second time after original writing has been erased
- pall
- become boring; grow tiresome
- pallet
- small poor bed; Ex. straw pallet
- palliate
- ease pain (without curing); make less severe or offensive (a crime or illness)
- pallid
- pale; wan; Ex. pallid complexion
- palm
- conceal in the palm of the hand; palm off: pass off; Ex. palm off some bad oranges onto the lady/the painting as a real Renoir
- palpable
- tangible; (of something bad) easily perceptible; obvious; Ex. palpable blunder
- palpitate
- throb; beat rapidly; flutter; tremble; Ex. Her heart began to palpitate.
- paltry
- insignificant; petty; trifling; contemptible; Ex. paltry sum; CF. trash
- pan
- criticize harshly
- panacea
- cure-all; remedy for all diseases
- panache
- flair; manner of doing things without any difficulty (causing admiration); flamboyance; bunch of feathers (on a helmet); Ex. with great panache; CF. ? ??? ?? ??? ??
- pandemic
- widespread; affecting the majority of people; N: pandemic disease; CF. all people
- pandemonium
- wild tumult(commotion); wild noisy disorder; CF. Paradise Lost
- pander
- cater to (the low desires of others)
- panegyric
- formal praise; encomium; Ex. I don't deserve such panegyrics.
- pang
- sudden sharp feeling of pain
- panoramic
- denoting an unobstructed and comprehensive view; N. panorama: unbroken view of a wide area
- pantomime
- acting without dialogue; V.
- papyrus
- ancient paper made from stem of papyrus plant
- parable
- short simple story teaching a moral
- paradigm
- model; example that serves as a model; pattern; list of all the inflectional forms of a word
- paradox
- something apparently contradictory in nature (that may nonetheless be true); statement that looks false but is actually correct
- paragon
- model of perfection; Ex. paragon of virtue
- parallelism
- state of being parallel; similarity; analogy
- parameter
- limit; independent variable; Ex. parameters of the problem; Ex. within the parameters of the budget
- paramount
- foremost in importance; supreme; CF. para-: beyond; above; Ex. paranormal
- paramour
- illicit lover
- paranoia
- psychosis marked by delusions of grandeur or persecution; N: ADJ: paranoid, paranoiac
- paraphernalia
- equipment; odds and ends used in a particular activity; personal belongings; Ex. photographic paraphernalia; CF. married woman's property exclusive of her dowry
- paraphrase
- restate a passage in one's own words while retaining thought of author; N: restatement of a text in other words
- parasite
- animal or plant living on another; toady; sycophant; CF. para-: beside
- parched
- extremely dry; very thirsty; V. parch: make or become extremely dry (by exposure to heat)
- parchment
- writing material made from the skin of a sheep or goat
- pare
- cut away the outer covering or skin of (with a knife); trim; Ex. pare apples/expenses
- pariah
- social outcast; Ex. Mariah the pariah
- parish
- area in the care of a single priest and served by one main church
- parity
- equality; close resemblance; CF. disparate
- parlance
- language; manner of speaking; idiom; Ex. in legal/common parlance
- parley
- conference (between opponents); CF. speak
- parochial
- narrow in scope or outlook; provincial; related to parishes
- parody
- humorous imitation; spoof; takeoff; travesty; V.
- paroxysm
- fit or attack of pain, laughter, rage; sudden outburst
- parquet
- floor made of wood strips inlaid in a mosaic like matter; CF. strip: long narrow piece
- parry
- ward off a blow; deflect; Ex. He parried the unwelcome question very skillfully; N. CF. ???? ??? ??
- parsimony
- stinginess; excessive frugality; ADJ. parsimonious
- partial
- incomplete; favoring one side over another; having a liking for something
- partiality
- state of being partial; inclination; favorable bias; special fondness; preference
- partisan
- one-sided; prejudiced; committed to a party (with dislike of any others); N: strong supporter of a party; guerrilla
- partition
- divide into parts
- parvenu
- upstart; newly rich person
- pass'e
- old-fashioned; past the prime
- pass_off
- present falsely; represent falsely to be
- passive
- not active; acted upon; receiving an action without acting in return; accepting without resistance
- paste
- smooth viscous mixture as of flour(powder made by crushing grain) and water (used as an adhesive); V: cause to adhere by applying paste
- pastiche
- imitation of another's style in musical composition or in writing; work of art openly imitating the works of other artists
- pastoral
- rural; of rural life; idyllic; of a pastor
- pastry
- paste of flour and water (eaten when baked)
- patent
- obvious; easily seen; open for the public to read; of or protected by a patent; Ex. patent to everyone; N.
- pathetic
- causing sadness, compassion, pity; touching
- pathological
- pertaining to disease; N. pathology: study of disease
- pathos
- tender sorrow; pity; quality in art or literature that produces these feelings; Ex. pathos that runs through the novel
- patina
- green crust on old bronze works or copper; tone slowly taken by varnished painting
- patois
- local or provincial dialect
- patriarch
- father and ruler of a family or tribe
- patrician
- noble; aristocratic; N: person of high rank; aristocrat; CF. member of the governing classes in ancient Rome; CF. plebian
- patrimony
- property inherited from a father
- patronize
- support; act superior toward; treat in a condescending manner; be a customer of; N. patron: one that supports; regular customer; N. patronage; CF. boycott
- paucity
- scarcity; dearth
- pauper
- very poor person
- peccadillo
- slight offense or fault; CF. sin
- pecuniary
- pertaining to money
- pedagogue
- teacher; CF. child leader
- pedagogy
- teaching; art of education
- pedant
- scholar who overemphasizes book learning, trivial details of learning, or technicalities
- pedantic
- bookish; showing off learning; marked by an excessive ostentatious concern for book learning; N. pedantry
- peddle
- travel about selling (wares); CF. foot
- pedestal
- support or base as for a pillar or statue
- pedestrian
- ordinary; dull; unimaginative(lacking in imagination); going on foot; Ex. pedestrian prose; N.
- pediatrician
- physician specializing in children's diseases; N. pediatrics
- pedigree
- ancestry; lineage
- peer
- one who has equal standing with another; nobleman; V: look intently; N. peerage; CF. peeress
- peerless
- having no equal; incomparable
- peevish
- bad-tempered; irritable; V. peeve: make angry
- pejorative
- (of a word or phrase) suggesting that someone is of little value; negative in connotation; having a belittling effect; Ex. Many women now considers ``housewife'' a pejorative expression, because it patronized them.
- pell-mell
- in confusion; disorderly; Ex. dash pell-mell
- pellucid
- transparent; limpid(crystal clear); clear in meaning; easy to understand
- pen
- fenced enclosure for animals; confining space; Ex. sheep pen; V: confine in a pen; enclose
- penance
- self-imposed punishment for sin; Ex. do penance for one's sins; CF. penitent
- penchant
- strong inclination; strong liking (esp. for something that is disapproved of by other people); Ex. penchant for fast cars
- pendant(pendent)
- hanging down from something; pending; N: ornament (hanging from a necklace etc.)
- pending
- not yet decided or settled; impending; Ex. pending decision; PREP. while awaiting; until; Ex. delay the decision pending his return
- pendulous
- hanging; suspended
- penetrate
- enter into; pierce; permeate; see through; grasp the inner significance of; understand
- penitent
- repentant; N.
- penology
- study of prison management and criminal rehabilitation
- pensive
- dreamily or deeply thoughtful; sadly thoughtful; thoughtful with a hint of sadness; contemplative; CF. think over
- penumbra
- partial shadow (in an eclipse); CF. almost shadow
- penury
- extreme poverty; stinginess; ADJ. penurious: very poor; stingy
- peon
- landless agricultural worker; bond servant; menial worker; N. peonage
- perceptive
- insightful; showing a good ability at perceiving and understanding; aware; wise; of perception
- percussion
- striking one object against another sharply; Ex. percussion instrument; N: striking together of two bodies; sound caused by percussion
- perdition
- damnation; complete ruin; hell
- peregrination
- journey; V. peregrinate
- peremptory
- demanding and leaving no choice; imperative; Ex. peremptory decree/knock
- perennial
- something long-lasting; perennial plant; ADJ: lasting through the year or many years; lasting for a long time; enduring
- perfidious
- treacherous; disloyal; N. perfidy: treachery
- perforate
- pierce; put a hole through
- perfunctory
- done routinely and with little care; superficial; not thorough; lacking interest, care, or enthusiasm; Ex. perfunctory kiss
- perigee
- point of moon's orbit when it is nearest the earth; CF. apogee
- perimeter
- outer boundary; length of the outer boundary; circumference
- peripatetic
- walking about from place to place (to work); moving; Ex. peripatetic school of philosophy
- peripheral
- of a periphery; marginal; outer; of minor importance; not central; Ex. peripheral nerve/interest
- periphery
- outside edge especially of a round surface; perimeter; Ex. periphery of the town
- perjury
- false testimony while under oath; V. perjure oneself: testify falsely under oath
- permeable
- that can be permeated; penetrable; porous; allowing liquids or gas to pass through; V. permeate: spread or flow throughout; charge
- permissive
- allowing much freedom; lenient; Ex. permissive society
- pernicious
- very harmful; deadly; very destructive; Ex. pernicious effect/anemia
- peroration
- conclusion of an oration; perorating; V. perorate: conclude a speech; speak at great length
- perpetrate
- commit an offense; do (something wrong)
- perpetual
- everlasting
- perpetuate
- make perpetual; make something last for a long time; preserve from extinction; N. perpetuity
- perquisite(perk)
- any gain above stipulated salary; Ex. perquisites such as free meals and a car
- persevere
- continue steadily in spite of difficulties
- persist
- continue in existence; last; continue in a course of action in spite of opposition; Ex. persist in/with something; ADJ. persistent
- personable
- attractive (in personality or appearance)
- personify
- represent (an inanimate object) as a person; be the embodiment or perfect example of; Ex. She is evil/patience personified; N. personification
- perspicacious
- (of someone) having insight; penetrating; astute
- perspicuity
- clearness of expression; freedom from ambiguity
- perspicuous
- (of something) plainly expressed; easy to understand; Ex. perspicuous comments
- pert
- (esp. of a girl or young woman) impertinent; forward; trim; jaunty; Ex. pert young miss/hat
- pertinacious
- holding tenaciously to an action; stubborn; persistent
- pertinent
- suitable; to the point; relevant
- perturb
- disturb greatly
- peruse
- read through with care; N. perusal
- pervasive
- spread throughout; V. pervade: (of smells, ideas, feelings) spread throughout; charge; permeate
- perverse
- purposely continuing to do something wrong; stubbornly wrongheaded; perverted; directed away from what is right; wicked and unacceptable; Ex. perverse satisfaction; Ex. Hannibal Lecter in a perverse mood; N. perversity
- perversion
- corruption; turning from right to wrong
- pervert
- corrupt; turn from right to wrong; misuse; Ex. perverted sexual desire/scientific knowledge; N: person whose sexual behavior is not natural
- pessimism
- belief that life is basically bad or evil; gloominess; tendency to take the gloomiest possible view of a situation; ADJ. pessimistic
- pestilential(pestilent)
- causing plague; tending to cause death; baneful; N. pestilence: fatal epidemic disease (esp. bubonic plague)
- pestle
- tool for mashing or grinding substances in a hard bowl or mortar
- petrify
- turn to stone; cause to become stonelike; stun or paralyze
- petty
- trivial; unimportant; very small; small-minded; petty-minded
- petulant
- touchy; peevish; ill-tempered
- phalanx
- formation of infantry carrying overlapping shields and long spears; group of men packed together (for attack or defense)
- pharisaical
- pertaining to the Pharisees, who paid scrupulous attention to tradition; self-righteous; hypocritical
- pharisee
- Pharisee: member of an ancient Jewish group that emphasized strict observance of the Mosaic law (considering themselves very holy); hypocritical self-righteous person
- phenomena
- observable facts; subjects of scientific investigation; SG. phenomenon: observable fact; very unusual person, thing, or event; marvel; wonder; CF. phenomenons; ADJ. phenomenal: very unusual; extraordinary; of a phenomenon; Ex. phenomenal strength
- philanderer
- faithless lover; flirt
- philanthropist
- lover of mankind; doer of good; N. philanthropy