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English Vocab VII

Terms

undefined, object
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riparian
adj.
Of, on, or relating to the banks of a natural course of water.
littoral
adj.
of, relating to, or being property abutting an ocean, sea, lake, or pond
seine
sAne
n.
A large fishing net made to hang vertically in the water by weights at the lower edge and floats at the top.
accost
v.
1. To approach and speak to boldly or aggressively, as with a demand or request.

2. To solicit for sex.
bale
n.
1. Evil:
“Tidings of bale she brought” (William Cullen Bryant).

2. Mental suffering; anguish:
“Relieve my spirit from the bale that bows it down” (Benjamin Disraeli).

3. A large package of raw or finished material tightly bound with twine or wire and often wrapped:
a bale of hay.
doyenne
(doy-yen) or (dwa-yen) n.
A woman who is the eldest or senior member of a group.
ply
v.
1. To use or engage in diligently; wield: practice
ply a knitting needle.
plied the carpenter's trade.
See Synonyms at handle.

2. To traverse or sail over regularly:
Trading ships plied the routes between coastal ports.

3. To continue offering something to; ensure that (another) is abundantly served:
plied their guests with excellent food.

4. To assail (assault, attack) vigorously.
lurid
adj.
1. Causing shock or horror; gruesome(); ghastly; grisly
lurid methods of torture

2. Sensational, melodramatic
a lurid account of the crime

3. Glowing or shining with the glare of fire through a haze:
lurid flames.

4. Sallow () or pallid () in color.
unhealthy, lurid complexion
vaudeville
n.
1. Stage entertainment offering a variety of short acts such as slapstick turns, song-and-dance routines, pantomimes, and juggling performances; a variety show.

2. A popular, often satirical song.
minstrel
n.
1. A medieval entertainer who traveled from place to place, especially to sing and recite poetry.

2. A lyric poet; A musician.

3. a. One of a troupe of entertainers made up in blackface and presenting a comic variety show.

3.b. A performance of such a show.
mistral
n.
A dry cold northerly wind that blows in squalls toward the Mediterranean coast of southern France.
fancy
n.
1. Imagination and the product of an imagination

The mental faculty through which whims, visions, and fantasies are summoned up; imagination, especially of a whimsical or fantastic nature.

An image or a fantastic invention created by the mind.

2. A capricious liking, inclination, or notion.

3. Critical sensibility; taste.

4. Amorous or romantic attachment; love.

5 a. The enthusiasts or fans of a sport or pursuit considered as a group.

5.b. The sport or pursuit, such as boxing, engaging the interest of such a group.
maverick
adj
independent in behavior or thought;
"she led a somewhat maverick private life"
"maverick politicians"
[syn: irregular, unorthodox]

n
1: someone who exhibits great independence in thought and action [syn: rebel]

2: an unbranded range animal (especially a stray calf); belongs to the first person who puts a brand on it
abscessed
adj : infected and filled with pus; "an abscessed tooth"
tog/s
n.
1. A coat or cloak

2. "togs" Clothes
gardening togs
dour
mirrors stern
adj.
1. Stern (hard, harsh, severe); forbidding:
a dour, self-sacrificing life.

2. Gloomy; sullen (persistently and silently ill-humored; morose)
the proverbially dour New England Puritan.

3. Unyielding; inexorable; obstinate; :
a dour determination
genial
adj.
1. Having a pleasant or friendly disposition or manner; gracious.

2. Conducive to life, growth, or comfort; mild
“the genial sunshine... saturating his miserable body with its warmth” (Jack London).
beguile
v.
1. to trick, flatter, deceive, mislead; delude.

2. to charm or divert: a multitude of attractions to beguile the tourist.

3. To pass (time) pleasantly.
beguiling the long afternoon with a good book
transgressive
adj.
1. Exceeding a limit or boundary, especially of social acceptability.

2. Works of art that represent such violations of socially acceptable speech, dress, or behavior. ()

3. Of or relating to geological transgression
chasuble
n.
A long sleeveless vestment worn over the alb by a priest during services.
cowl
n.
1. The hood or hooded robe worn especially by a monk.

2. A draped neckline on a woman's garment.

3. A hood-shaped covering used to increase the draft of a chimney.

4. The top portion of the front part of an automobile body, supporting the windshield and dashboard.

5. The cowling on an aircraft.
(cowlling: A removable metal covering for an engine, especially an aircraft engine.)
apse
n.
Architecture. A usually semicircular or polygonal, often vaulted recess, especially the termination of the sanctuary end of a church.
bier
n.
1. A stand on which a corpse or a coffin containing a corpse is placed before burial.

2. A coffin along with its stand: followed the bier to the cemetery.
bum
adj.
1. Inferior; worthless:
Yugo's were bum cars.

2. Disabled; malfunctioning:
a bum computer

3. Unfavorable or unfair:
bum court decision

4. Unpleasant; lousy:
had a bum time at the party.
histrionic
adj.
1. Of or relating to actors or acting.

2. Excessively dramatic or emotional; affected.
ascot
n.
A broad neck scarf knotted so that its ends lie flat, one upon the other.
fey
adj.
1. Supernatural; unreal; enchanted; strange; other-worldly
elves, fairies, and other fey creatures
“She's got that fey look as though she's had breakfast with a leprechaun” (Dorothy Burnham).

2. being in unnaturally high spirits, as were formerly thought to precede death.
ineffectual
adj.
1. Insufficient to produce a desired effect:
an ineffectual effort to block the legislation.

2. Useless; worthless; weak
an ineffectual treatment
an ineffectual ruler
tutelage
n .
1. The capacity or activity of a guardian; guardianship.

2. The capacity or activity of a tutor; instruction or teaching.

3. The state of being under the direction of a guardian or tutor
elocution
n.
1. The art of public speaking in which gesture, vocal production, and delivery are emphasized.

2. A style or manner of speaking, especially in public
antic
–noun; Usually, antics.
A ludicrous adventure or wild prank; a caper; escapade
lexicon
n.
1. A dictionary.

2. A stock of terms used in a particular profession, subject, or style; a vocabulary:
the lexicon of surrealist art.
repair
n.
1. An act of going or sojourning():
our annual repair to the mountains.

2. A place to which one goes frequently or habitually; a haunt
imbibe
v.
1. To drink.

2. To absorb or take in as if by drinking, especially to be received by the mind

“The whole body... imbibes delight through every pore” (Henry David Thoreau).

“Gladstone had... imbibed a strong prejudice against Americans” (Philip Magnus).
patois
n. (ptwäz, p-twä)

Nonstandard speech, esp

a. Cant; The special jargon of a group; dialect.

b. Regional dialect, esp. one without a literary tradition.
winsome
adj.
Charming, often in a childlike or naive way.
aplomb
n.
self-assured confidence; poise; imperturbable self-possession, or assurance.


—Synonyms 1. composure, equanimity, imperturbability.

—Antonyms 1. confusion, discomposure; doubt, uncertainty.

2. the perpendicular, or vertical, position.
pouf
poof

n.
1. A woman's hairstyle popular in the 18th century, characterized by high rolled puffs.

2. A part of a garment, such as a dress, that is gathered into a puff.

3. A rounded ottoman.
ballasted
v.
1. To stabilize or fill with or as if with ballast, e.g., fill a railroad bed.
pert
adj.
1. Trim and stylish in appearance; jaunty:
a pert hat.

2. High-spirited; vivacious.

3. Impudently (offensively, shamelessly, insolently) bold;
saucy (impertinent or disrespectful)
dewy
adj.
1. Moist with or as if with dew:
dewy grass in early morning.
a dewy morning.

2. Suggestive of the freshness or purity of dew, as in innocence or naiveté:
never gave up the dewy outlook of youth.
burgle
v.
To burglarize.
opulent
adj.
1.Possessing or exhibiting great wealth; affluent.

2. Characterized by rich abundance; profuse.
besot
v.
To muddle or stupefy, as with alcoholic liquor or infatuation.
preen
v.
1. To dress up; primp.

2. To swell with pride;

gloat:
To feel or express great, often malicious, pleasure or self-satisfaction

exult.
To rejoice greatly; be jubilant or triumphant.
v
v
hoary
adj.
1. Gray or white with or as if with age.

2. So old as to inspire veneration; ancient.
caper
n.
1. A playful leap or hop.

2. A frivolous antic or escapade (a reckless adventure or wild prank)

3. Slang. An illegal plot or enterprise, especially one involving theft.
primp
v.
To dress or groom (oneself) with meticulous or excessive attention to detail.; preen()
vivacious
adj.
Full of animation and spirit; lively:
a charming and vivacious host.
obstinate
adj.
1. Stubbornly adhering to an attitude, opinion, or course of action; obdurate (stubbornly impenitent).

2. Difficult to manage, control, or subdue; refractory (stubbornly resistant to control; unruly).

3. Difficult to alleviate or cure: an obstinate headache.
obdurate
adj.
1. a. Hardened in wrongdoing or wickedness; stubbornly impenitent:
“obdurate conscience of the old sinner” (Sir Walter Scott).

1.b. Hardened against feeling; hardhearted:
an obdurate miser.

2. Not giving in to persuasion; intractable.
See Synonyms at inflexible
sallow
adj.
Of a sickly yellowish hue or complexion.
gloat
v.
To feel or express great, often malicious, pleasure or self-satisfaction:
Don't gloat over your rival's misfortune.
exult
v.
To rejoice greatly; be jubilant or triumphant.
luxuriant
adj.
1. Producing or yielding in abundance or growth; profuse.

2. Excessively florid() or elaborate.

3. Marked by or displaying luxury; luxurious.
stupefy
v.
1. To dull the senses or faculties of; daze.

2. To amaze; astonish.
squall
n.
1. A brief sudden violent windstorm, often accompanied by rain or snow.

2. Informal. A brief commotion.
fantastic
adj.
1. Odd and remarkable; conceived or appearing as if conceived by an unrestrained imagination; bizarre; grotesque:
fantastic rock formations; fantastic designs.

2. Capricious or fanciful, as persons or their ideas or actions:
We never know what that fantastic creature will say next.

3. Foolish and impractical; imaginary or groundless in not being based on reality; or irrational:
fantastic fears.

4. incredibly great or extreme; exorbitant (highly excessive)
to spend fantastic sums of money.

5. Marvelous; extraordinarily good:
a fantastic musical.
intractable
adj.
1. Difficult to manage or govern; stubborn. See Synonyms at unruly.

2. Difficult to mold or manipulate: intractable materials.

3. Difficult to alleviate, remedy, or cure: intractable pain.
stern
adj.
1. Hard, harsh, or severe in manner or character:
a stern disciplinarian.

2. Grim, gloomy, or forbidding in appearance or outlook.

3. Unyielding; firm; inexorable (); uncompromising; relentless:
stern necessity.
cant
noun
1. insincerity, esp. conventional expressions of enthusiasm for high ideals, goodness, or piety.

2. the phraseology peculiar to a particular class, party, profession, etc., esp. the language of the underworld
the cant of the fashion industry.

3. whining or singsong speech, esp. of beggars.
escapade
–noun
1. a reckless adventure or wild prank.

2. an escape from confinement or restraint.
ghastly
adv.
1. Inspiring shock, revulsion, or horror by or as if by suggesting death; terrifying:
a ghastly murder.

2. Suggestive of or resembling ghosts.

3. Extremely unpleasant or bad:
“in the most abominable passage of his ghastly little book” (Conor Cruise O'Brien).

4. Very serious or great:
a ghastly error.
refractory
adj.
1 1. Obstinately resistant to authority or control; unruly; hard or impossible to manage; stubbornly disobedient: a refractory child.

2. Difficult to melt or work; resistant to heat: a refractory material such as silica.

3. Resistant to treatment: a refractory case of acne.
saucy
1. impertinent; insolent (improperly forward or bold)
a saucy remark; a saucy child.

2. pert; boldly smart:
a saucy little hat for Easter.
piquant
adj
1: having an agreeably pungent taste
[syn: savory, savoury, spicy, zesty]

2: engagingly stimulating, provocative, or attractive
"a piquant wit"; "piquant language" [syn: salty]
"piquant frankness";
"a piquant face with large appealing eyes"
[syn: engaging]
gruesome
adj.
1. Causing horror and repugnance; frightful and shocking:
ghastly.
a gruesome murder.

2. full of or causing problems; distressing:
a gruesome day at the office.
profuse
adj.
1. Spending or giving freely and abundantly, often to excess; extravagant ()

2. abundant; plentiful; copious; in great amount.
profuse praise.
profuse apologies.
propitious
–adjective

1. presenting favorable conditions; favorable:
propitious weather.

2. indicative of favor; auspicious:
propitious omens.

3. favorably inclined disposed to bestow favors or forgive:
propitious gods
inexorable
adj.
1. unyielding; unalterable:
inexorable truth;
inexorable justice.

2. unmoved by prayers or entreaties:
an inexorable creditor.

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