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GRE vocabulary t 2

Terms

undefined, object
copy deck
thermal
pertaining to heat
therapeutic
curative. Now better known for its racetrack, Sartoga Springs first gained attention for the therapeutic qualities of its famous 'healing waters'.
theoretical
not practical or applied; hypotehtical. Bob was better at applied engineering and computer programming than he was at theoretical hysics and math. While I can stil think of some theoretical objections to your plan, you've convinced me of its basic soundness.
Theocracy
government run by religious leaders. eg. Iraq. Though some Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower favored the establishment of a theocracy in New England, many of their fellow voyager preferred a nonreligious form of government.
thematic
relating to a unifying motif or idea. Those who think of Moby Dick as a simple adventure story about whaling miss its underlying thematci import.
tether
tie with a rope. Before we went to sleep, we tethered the horses to prevent their wandering off during the night.
testy
irritable; short-tempered. My advice is to avoid discussing this problem with her today as she is rather testy and may shout at you.
testator
maker of a will. The attorney called in his secretary and his partner to witness the signature of the testator.
tesselated
inlaid; mosaic. I recall seeing a table with a tesselated top of bits of stone and glass in a very interesting pattern.
tertiary
third. He is so thorough that he analyzes tertiary causes where other writers are content with primary and secondary reasons.
terse
concise; abrupt; pithy. There is a fine line between speech that is terse and to the point and speech that is too abrupt.
terrestrial
on or relating to the earth. we have been able to explore the terrestrail regions much more thoroughly than the aquatic or celestial regions.
terminus
last stop of railroad. After we reached the railroad terminus, we continued our journey into the wilderness on saddle horses.
terminology
terms used in a science or art. The special terminology developed by some authorities in the field has done more to confuse laypersons than to enlighten them.
tepid
lukewar,. To avoid scalding the baby, make sure the bath water is tepid, not hot.
tenure
holding of an office; time during which such an office is held. A special recall election put an end to Gray Davis's tenure in office as governor of California.
tenuous
thin, rare; slim. The allegiance of our allies is held by such tenuous ties that we have little hope they will remain loyal.
tentative
hesitatnt; not fully worked out or developed; experiental; not deiniteor positive. Unsure of his welcome at the Christmas party, Scrooge took a tentative step into his nephew's drawing room.
tensile
capable of being stretched. Mountain climbers must know the tensile strength of their ropes.
tenet
doctrine; dogma. The agnostic did not accept th tenets of their faith.
tender
offer expand. Although no formal charges had been made against him, in the wake of the recent scandal the mayor felt he should tender his resignation.
tendentious
having an aim; biased; designed to further a cause. The editorials in this periodical; are tendentious rather than truth-seeking.
tenacious
holding fast. I had to struffle to break his tenacious hold on my arm.
tenacity
firmness; persistence. Jean Valijean could not believe the tenacity of Inspector Javert. Here all Valjean had done was to steal a loaf of bread, and the inspector had pursued him doggedly for 20 years!
temporize
act evasively to gain time; avoid committing oneself. Ordered by King John to drive Robin Hood out of Sherwood Forest, the sheriff temporized, hoping to put off any confrontation with the outlaw band.
tempo
speed of music. I find the band's tempo too slow for such a lively dance.
tempestuous
stormy; impassioned; violent. Racketthrowing tennis star John McEnroe was famed for his displays of tempestuous temperament.
temperate
restrained; self-controlled; moderate in respect to temperature. Try to be temperate in your eating this holiday season; if you control your appetite, you won't gain too much weight. Goldilocks found Ssan Francisco's temperate climate neither too hot nor too cold but just right.
temperament
characteristic frame of mind; disposition; emotional exceess. Although the twins look alike, they differ markedly in temperament: tod is calm, but Rod is excitable.
temper
moderate; tone down or restrain; toughen(steel). Not even her supervisor's grumpiness could temper Nacy's enthusiasm for her new job.
temerity
boldness; rashness. Do you have the termerity to argue with me?
teetotalism
practice of abstaining totally from alcoholic drinks. Though the doctor warned Bert to cut down his booze intake, she didn't insist that he practice teetotalism.
tedium
boredom; weariness. We hope this new Game Boy will help you to overcome the tedium of your stay in the hospital.
taxonomist
specialist in classifying (animals, etc) Dental patterns often enable the taxonomist to distinguish members of tone rodents species from those of another.
tawdry
cheap and gaudy. He won a ew tawdry trinkets at Coney Island.
tautological
needlessly repetitious. In the sentence "It was visible to the eye,' the phrase, 'to the eye' is tautological.
taut
tight; ready. The captain maintained that he ran a taut ship.
tatty
worn and shabby bedraggled. Cinderella's step sneered at her in her frayed apron and tatty old gown.
taper
candle. she lit the taper on te windowsill.
tantrum
fit of petulance; caprice. The chid learned that he could have almost anything if he went into tantrums.
tantamount
equivalent in effect or value. Because so few Southern blacks could afford to pay the poll tax, the imposition of this tax on prospective voters was tantamount to disenfrancisement for black voters.
tantalize
tease; tortue with disappointment. Tom lvoed to tantalize his younger brother with candy; he knew the boy was forbidden to have it.
tanner
person who turns animal hides into leather Using a solution of tanbark, the tanner treated the cowhide, transforming it into supple leather.
tangible
able to be touched; rea; palable. Although Tom did not own a house, he had several tangible assets - a car, a television, a PC-that he oculd sell if he needed cash.
tangential
peripheral; only slightly connected; digressing. Despite Clarks's attempts to distract her with tangential rearks, Lois kept on coming back to her main question: why couldn't he come out to dinner with Superman and her?
taint
contaminate; cause to lose purity; modifty with a trace of something bad. One speck of dirt on your utensils may contain enough germs to taint an entire batch of preserves.
tacile
pertaining to the organs or sense of touch. His callused hands had lost their tactile sensitivity.
taciturn
habitually silent; talking little. The stereotypical cowboy is a taciturn soul, answering lengthy questions with a 'yep' or 'nope'.
tacit
understood; not put into words. We have a tacit agreement based on only a handshake.
synthetic
artificial; resulting from synthesis. During the twentieth century, many synthetic products have replaced their natual counterparts.
synthesis
combining parts into a whole. now that we have succeeded in isolating this drug, our next problem is to plan its synthesis in the laboratory.
synoptic
providing a general oveerview; summary. The professor turned to the latest issue of Dissertation Abstracts for a synoptic account of what was new in the field.
synchronous
similarly timed; simultaneous with. We have many examples of scientists in different parts of the world who have madesynchronous discoveries.
symmetry
arrangement of parts so that balance is obtained; congruity. By definition, something lopsided lacks symmetry, symmetrical.
symbiosis
interdependent relationship (between group, species) often mutually beneficial. Both the crocodile bird and the crocodile derives nourishment; the crocodile, meanwhile, derives proper dental hygiene.
sylvan
pertaining to the woods; rustic. His paintings of nymphs in sylvan backgrounds were criticized as oversentimental.
syllogism
logical formula consisting of a major premise, a minor premise and a conclusion; deceptive or specious argument. There must be a fallacy in this syllogism; I cannot accept its conclusion.
sycophant
servile flatterer; bootlicker; yes man. Fed up wih the toadies and brownnosers who made up his entourage, the star cried, ' Get out, all of you! I'm sick of sycophants! (Lying sycophants) (suck up!)
swindler
cheat. She was gullible and trusting, an easy for the first swindler who came along. (ME)
swill
drink greedily. Singing 'yo, ho, ho, and a bottle of rum'. Long John Silver and his fellow pirates swilled their grog.
swerve
deviate; turn aside sharply. The car swerved wildly as the driver struggled to regain control of the wheel.
swathe
wrap around; bandage. When I visited him in the hospital, I found him swathed in bandages.
swarthy
dark, dusky. Despite the stereotype, not all Italians are swarthy; many are fair and blond.
suture
stitches sewn to hold the cut edges of a wound or incision; material used in sewing. We will remove the sutures as soon as the wound heals
sustenance
means of support, food, mourishment. In the tropics, the natives find sustenance easy to obtain because of all the fruit trees.
sustain
experience; support; nourish. He sustained such a severe injury that the doctors feared he would be unable to work to sustain his growing family.
susceptible
impressionable; easily influenced; having little resistance, as to a disease; receptive to. Said the patent medicine man to his very susceptible customer; "Buy this new miracle drug, and you will no longer be susceptible to the common cold," susceptibility.
surveillance
watching; guarding. The FBI kept the house under constant surveillance in the hope of capturing all the criminals at one time.
surrogate
substitute. For a fatherless child, a male teacher may become a father surrogate
surreptitious
secret; furtive; sneaky; hidden. Hoping to discover where his mon had hidden the Christmas present, Timmy took a surreptitious peek into the master bedroom closet.
surpass
exceed. Her SAT scores surpassed our expectations.
surmount
overcome. I know you can surmount any difficulties that may stand in the way of your getting an education.
surmise
guess. I surmise that he will be late for this meeting.
surly
rude, cross. Because of his surly attitude many people avoided his company
surfeit
satiate; stuff; indulge to excess in anything. Every Thanksgiving we are surfeited with an over abundance of holiday treats.
suppress
stifle; overwhelm; subdue; inhibit. Too polite to laugh in anyone's face, Roy did his best to suppress his amusement at Ed's inane remark
supposition
assumed; counterfeit; hypothetical. I find no similarity between your suppositious illustration and the problem we are facing.
supplilcate
petition humbly; pray to grant a favor. We supplicate your Majesty to grant him amnesty.
suppliant
entreating; beseeching. Unable to resist the dog's suppliant whimpering, he gave it some food.
supple
flexible; pliant. Years of yoga exercises made Grace's body supple.
supplant
replace; substitute, rebounce, usurp. Did the other oman actually supplant Princess Diana in Prince Charles's affections, or did Charles never love Diana at all? Bolingbroke later to be known as King Henry IB, fought to supplant his cousin, RIchard III, as King of England.
supine
lying on back. The defeated pugilist lay supine on the canvas.
supersede
cause to be set aside; replace; make obsolete. BUlk mailing postal regulation 326D supersedes bulk mailing postal regulation
supernumerary
person or thing in excess of what is necessary; extra. His first appearance on the stage was as a supermumerary in a Shakespearean tragedy.
superimpose
place over something else. Your attempt to superimpose another agency in this filed will merely increase the bureacuratic nature of our goverment.
superfluous
excessive; overabundant, unnecessary. Please try not to include so many superfluous details in your report; just give me the bare facts
superficial
trivial; shallow. Since your erport gave only a superficial analysis of the problem, I cannot give you more than a passing grade.
supererogatory
superfluous; more than needed or demanded. We have more than enough witnesses to corroborate your statement; to present any more would be supererogatory.
supercillious
arrogant; condescending; patronizing. The supercillious headwaiter sneered at custoners who he thought did not fit the image of a restautant catering to an ultrafashionable crowd
superannuated
retired or disqualified because of age. Don't call me superannuated; I can still perform a good day's work!
sundry
various; several. My suspicions
sunder
separate; part. Northern and southern Ireland are politically and religiously sundered
sumptuous
lavish, rich. I cannot recall when I have had such a sumptuous Thanksgiving feast.
summation
act of finding the total; summary. In his summation, the lawyer emphasized the testimony given by the two witnesses.
sultry
sweltering. He could not adjust himself to the sultry climate of the tropics.
sully
tarnish, soil. He felt that it was beneath his dignity to sully his hands in such nemial labor.
suffuse
spread over. A blush suffsued her cheeks when we teased her about her love affair.
suffragist
advocate of voting rights (for women). In recognition of her efforts to win the vote for women. Congress authorized coining a silver dollar honoring the suffragist Susan B.
succumb
yield; give in; die. I succumb to temptation whenever it comes my way.
succulent
juicy; full of richness. To some people, Florida citrus fruits are more succulent than those from California.
succor
aid; assist; comfort. If you believe that con man has come here to succor you in your hour of need, you're even a bigger sucher than I thought.
succinct
brief; terse; compact. Don't bore your audience with excess verbiage; be succinct
subversive
tending to overthrow; destructive. At first glance, the motion that Styrofoam cups may actually be more ecologically sound than paper cups strikes most environmentalists as subversive
subtlety
peceptiveness; ingenuity; delicacy. Never obvious, she expressed herself with such subtlety that her remarks went right over the heads of most of her audience.
subterfuge
pretense; evasion. As soon as we realized that you had won our support by a subterfuge, we withdrew our endorsemen of your candidacy.
subsume
include, encompass. Does the general theory of relativity contradict Newtonian physics. or is Newton's law of gravity subsumed into Einstein's larger scheme?
substantive
essential, pertaining to the substance. Although the delegates were aware of the importance of the broblem, they could not agree on the substantive issues.
substantiate
establish by evidence; verify; support. These endorsements from satisfied customers substantiate our claim that Barron's How to Prepare for the GrRe's the best GrRe prep book on the market
substantial
ample, solid, essential or fundamental. The generous scholarship represented a substantial sum of money. If you don't eat a more substantial dinner, you'll be hungry forever.
subsistence
existence; means of support; livelihood. In those days of inflated prices, my salary provided a mere subsistence.
subsidiary
subordinate; secondary. This information may be used as subsidiary evidence but is not sufficient by itself to prove your argument.
subside
settle down; descend; grow quiet. The doctor assured us thta the fever would eventually subside.
subservient
behaving like a slave; servile; obsequious. She was proud and dignified; she refused to be subservient to anyone.
subsequent
following; later. In subsequent lessons, we shall take up more difficult problems.
subpoena
writ summoning a witness to appear. The prosecutor's office was ready to serve a subpoena on the reluctant witness.
suborn
persuade to act unlawfully (especially to commit perjury). In the Godfather, the mobsters used bribery and threats to suborn the witnesses against Don Michale Corleone.
subordinate
occupying a lower rank; inferior; submissive. BIshop Proudie's wife expected the subordinate clergy to behave with great deference to the wife of their superior.
submissive
yield, timid. When he refused to permit Elizabeth to marry her poet, Mr. Barret expected her to be properly submissive, instead, she eloped with the guy.
subliminal
below the threshold. We may not be aware of the subliminal influences that affect our thinking.
sublime
exalted; noble and uplifting; utter. Lucy was in awe of Desi's sublime musicianship, qhile he was in awe of her sublime naivete.
sublimate
refine, purify. We must strive to sublimate these desires and emotions into wiorthwhile activities.
subjugate
conquer; bring under control. It is not our aim to subjugate our foe; we are interested only in establishing peaceful relations.
subjective
occuring or taking place within the mind; unreal. (eg. social theory). Michel foucault, there's no universal truth.
subdued
less intense; quieter. Bob the subdued lighting at the restaurant because he thought it was romantic. I just thought the place was dimly lit.
subaltern
subordinate. The captain treated his subalterns as though they were children rtaher than commissioned officers.
suavity
urbanity; polish. He is particularly good in roles that require suavity and sophistication
stymie
present an obstable; stump. The detective was stymied by the contradictory evidence in the robbery investigation.
stygian
gloomy; hellish; deathly. Shielding the flickering candle from any threatening draft, Tom and Becky descended into the stygian darkness of the underground cavern. Stygian derives from Styx, the chief river in the ubsterranean land of the dead.
stupor
state of apathy; daze; lack of awareness. In his stupor, the addict was unaware of the events taking place around him.
stupefy
make numb, stun, amaze. Disapproving of drugs in genera;, Laura refused to take sleeping pills or any other medicine that might stupefy her.
stultify
cause to appear or become stupid or inconsistent; frustrate or hinder. His long hours in the blacking factory left young Dickets numb and incurious, as if her menial labor had stultified his mind.
studied
unspontaneous; delibeate; thougthful. Given Jill's previous slights, Jack felt that the omission of his name from the guest list was a studied insult.
strut
pompous walk. his strut as he marched about the parade ground revealed him for what he was: a pompous buffoon.
stringent
binding, rigid. I think these regulations are too stringent.
strident
loud and harsh; insistent. we could barely hear the speaker over the strident cries of the hecklers.
stricture
critical comments; severe and adverse criticism. His strictures on the author's style are prejudiced and unwarraned.
striated
marked with parallel bands; grooved. The glacier left many striated rocks.
strew
spread randomly; springle; scatter. Preceding the bride to the altar, the flower girl will strew rose petals along the aisle.
stratum
layer of earth's surface; layer of society. Unless we aleviate conditions in the lowest stratum of our society, we may expect grumbling and revolt.
stratified
divided into classes; arranged into strata. As the economic gap between the rich and the poor increasd, Roman society grew increasingly stratified.
stratagem
clever, trick; deceptive scheme. What a gem of a strategem! Watson, I have the perfect plan to trick Moriarty into revealing himself.
stolid
dull; impassive. The earthquake shattered Stuart's usual stolid demeanor; trembling, he crouched on the no longer stable ground.
stoke
stir up a fire; feed plentifully. As a Scout, Marisa learned how to light a fire, how to stoke it if it started to die down, and how to extinguish it completely.
stoic
impassive; unmoved by joy or grief. I wasn't particularly stoic when I had my flu shot; I swuealed like a stuck pig.
stodgy
stuffy; boringly conservative. For a young person, Winston seems remarkably stodgy; you'd expect someone his age to have a little more life.
stockade
wooden enclosure or pen; fixed line of posts used as defensive barrier. The indians are coming! Quick! Round up the horses and drive them into the stockade
stock
typical, standard; kept regularly in supply. Victorian melodramas portrayed stock characters-the rich but wiced villain, the sweet young ingenue, the poor but honest young man-in exaggerated situations. Although the stationery store kept only stock sizes of paper on hand, the staff would special--order any items not regularly in stock.
stipulate
make express condtions, specify. Before agreeing to reduce American military forces in Europe, the president stipulated that NATO teams be allowed to inspect Russian bases.
stipple
paint or draw with dos. Seurat carefully stippled dabs of pure color on the canvas, juxtaposing dots of blue and yellow that the viewer's eye would interpret as greend.
stipend
pay for services. There is a nominal stipend for this position.
stint
supply; allotted amount; assigned portion of work. She performed her daily stint cheerfully and willingly.
stilted
bombastic; stiffly pompous. His stilted rhetoric did not impress the college audience; they were immune to bombastic utterances.
stigma
token of disgrace; brand. I do not attach any stigma to the fcat that you were accused of this crime; the factthat you were acquitted clears you completely.
stifle
suppress; extinguish; inhibit. Halfway through the boring lecture, Laura gave up trying to stifle her yawns.
stickler
perfectionist; person who insists things be exactly right. The internal Revenue Service agent was a stickler for accurary; no approximations or rough estimates would satisfy him.
stereotype
fixed and unvaring representation; standardized mental picture, often reflecting prejudice.
stem from
arise from. Milton's probnlems in school stemmed from his poor study habits.
stem
check the flow. The paramedic used a tourniquet to stem the bleeding from the slashed artery.
stellar
pertaining to the stars. He was the stellar attraction of the entire performance.
steep
soak; saturate. Be sure to steep the fabric in th dye bath for the full time prescribed.
stealth
slyness, sneakiness; secretiveness. Fearing detection by the sentries on duty, the scout inched his way toward the enmy camp with great stealth.
steadfast
loyal; unswerving. John was steadfast in his affections, faithfully waiting his gf to return.
statutory
created by statute or legilative action. The judicial courts review and try statutory crimes.
statue
law enacted by the legislature. The statue of limitations sets limits on how long you have to take legal action in specific cases.
static
unchanging; lacking development. Why do you watch chess on TV? I like watching a game with action, not something static where nothign seems to be going on.
stanza
division of a poem. Do you know the last stanza of "The Star spangled banner?"
stanch
check flow of blood. It is imperative that we stanch the gushing wound before we attend to the other injuries.
stamina
strength; staying power. I doubt that she has the stamina to run the full distance of the marathon race.
stalwart
strong, brawny; steadfast. His consistent support of the party has proved that he is a stalwart and loyal member.
stalemate
deadlock. Negotiations between the union and the employers have reached a stalemate; neither side is willing to budge from previously stated positions.
staid
sober; sedate. Her conduct during the funeral ceremony was staid and solemn
stagnant
motionless; stale; dull. Mosquitoes commonly breed in ponds of stagnan water. Mike's career was stagnant; it wasn't going anywhere, and neither was he!
staccato
played in an abrupt manner; marked by abrpt, sharp sound. His staccato speech reminded on of the sound of a a machine gun.
squat
stocky; short and thick. Tolkien's jobbits are somewhat squat, studrdy little creatures, fond of good ale, good music and good food.
squalor
filth, degradation; dirty, neglected state. Rusted, broken-down cars in the yard, trash piled on the porch, tar paper peeling from the roof- the shack was the picture of squalor.
squabble
minor quarrel; bickering. Children invariably get involved in petty squabbles' wise [arents know when to interview and when to let the children work things out on their own.
spurious
false, counterfeit, forged; illogical. The hero of JOnathn Gash's mystery novels is an antique dealer who gives the reader advice on how to tell spurious antiques from the real thing.
spry
vigorous, active, nimbele. She was eightly years old, yet still spry, and alert.
spruce
neat and trim. Every button buttoned, tie firmly in place, young Alex Keaton looked spruce and tid for his job interview at the bank
sportive
playful. Such a sportive attitude is suprising in a person as serious as you usually are.
sporadic
occurring irregularly. Although you can still hear sporadic outbursts of laughter and singing outside, the big Halloween parade has passed; the party's over till next year.
spoonerism
accidental transposition of sounds in successive words. When the radio announcer introduced the President as Hoobert Herver, he was guilty of a spoonerism.
spontaneity
lack of premediation; naturalness; freedom from constraint. The cast overrehearsed the play so much that the eventual performance lacked any spontaneity
splice
fasten together, unite. Before you splice two strips of tape together, be sure to line them up evenly.
sphinx-like
enigmatic; mysterious. The Mona Lisa's sphinx-like expression has puzzled art lovers for centuries.
spendthrift
someone who wastes money. Easy access to credit encourages people to turn into spendthrifts who shop till they drop.
spectrum
colored band produced when a beam of light passes through a prism. The visible portion of te spectrum includes red at one end and violet at the other.
spectral
ghostly. We were frightened by the spectral glow that filled the room.
specious
seemingly reasonable but incorrect; misleading (often intentionally). To claim that, because houses and birds both have wings, both can fly is extremely specious reasoning.
spawn
lay eggs. Fish ladders had to be built in the dams to assist the salmon returning to spawn in their native streams.
spatula
broad-bladed instrucment used for spreading or mixing. The manufacturers of this frying pan recommend the use of a rubber spatula to avoid scratching the specially treated surface
spatial
relating to space. Certain exercises test your sense of spatial relations by asking you to identify two views of an object seen from different points in space.
spate
sudden flood. I am worried about the possibility of a spate if the rains do not diminish soon.
spat
squabble; minor dispute. What had started out as a mere spat escalated into a full-blown argument.
spasmodic
fitful; periodic. The spasmodic coughing in the auditorium annoyed the performers.
spartan
lacking luxury and comfort; stenly disciplined. Looking over the bare, unheated room with its hard cot, he wondered what he was doing in such spatan quarters. only his spartan sense of duty kept him at his post.
sparse
not thick; thinly scattered; scanty. No matter how carefully Albert combed his hair to make it appear as full as possible, it still looked sparse.
spangle
small metallic piece sewn to clothing for ornamentation. The thousands of spangles on her dress sparkled in the glare of the stage lights.
sordid
filthy; base; vile. The social wrker was angered by he sordid housing provided forthe homeless.
soporific
sleep-causing; marked by sleepiness. Professor Pringle's lectures were so soporific thateven he fell asleep in class.
sophomoric
immature; half-baked, like a sophomore. Even if you're only a freshman, it's no compliment to be told your humor is sophomoric. The humor in Dumb and Dumber is sophomoric at best.
sophistry
seemingly plausible but fallacious reasining. Instead of advancing valid arguments, he tried to overwhelm his audience with a flood of sophistries.
sophisticated
worldy wise and urbane; complex. When Sophy makes wisecracks, she thinks she sounds sophisticated, but instead she sounds sophomoric. The IBM laptop wiht the butterfly keyboard and the buit in FAX modern is a pretty sophisticad machine.
sophist
teacher of philosophy; quibbler; employer of fallacious reasoning. You are using all the devices of a sophist in trying to prove your case; your argument is specious
sonorous
resonant. HIs sonorous voice resounded through the hall.
somnolent
half asleep. The heavy meal and the overheated room made us all slmnolent and indifferent to the speaker.
somnambullist
sleepwalker. The most famous somnambulist in literature is Lady Macbeht; her monologue in the sleepwalking scene is one of the highlights of Shakespeare's play.
somnabullist
sleepwalker. The most famoous somnambulist in literature is Lady Macbeth; her monologue in the sleepwalking scene is one of the higlights of Shakespeare's play.
somber
gloomy; depressing. From teh doctor's grim expression, I could tell he had somber news.
somatic
pertaining to the boy; physical. Why do you ignore the spitirual aspects and emphasize only the corporeal and the somatic ones?
solvent
substance that dissolves another. Dip a cube of sugar into a cup of water; note how the water acts as a solvent, cauing the cube to break down.
soluble
able to be dissolved; abled to be worked out.Sugar is soluble in water; put a sugar cube in water and it will quickly disoolve. Because the test-maker had left out some necessary data, the problem was not soluble.
solstice
point at which the sun is farthest from the equator. The winter solstice usually occurs on December 21st.
soliloquy
talking to oneself. The soliloquy is a device used by the dramatist to reveal a character's innermost thoughts and emotions
solicitous
worried, concerned. The employer was very solicitous about the health of her employees as replacements were difficult to get.
solicit
request earnestly; seek. knowing she needed to have a solid majority for the budget to pass, the mayor telephoned all the members of the city council to solicit their votes.
solemnity
seriousness; gravity. The minister was concerned that nothing should disturb the solemnity of the marriage service.
solecism
construction that is flagrantly incorrect grammatically. I must give this paper a failing mark because it contrains many solecisms
solder
repair or make whole by using a metal alloy. The plumber fixed the leak in the pipes by soldering a couple of joints from which water had been ozzing.
solace
comfort in trouble. I hope you will fin solace in the though that all of us share your loss.
sojourn
temporary stay. After his sojourn in Florida, he began to long for the colder climate of his native New England home.
sodden
soaked; dull, as if from drink. He set his sodden overcoat near the radiator to dry
sobriety
moderation (especially regarding indulgence in alcohol) seriousness. Neither falling down drunks nor stand up comics are noted for sobriety
snivel
run at the nose; snuffle; whine. Don't you come sniverling to me complaining about your big brother.
snicker
half-stifled laugh. The boy could not suppress a snicker when the teacher sat on the tack
smolder
burn without flame; be liable to brak out at any moment. The rags smoldered for hours before they burst into flame.
smirk
conceited smile. Wipe that smirk off your face.
smelt
melt or blend ores, changing their chemical composition. The furnaceman smelts tin with copper to create a special alloy used in making bells.
smattering
slight knowledge. I don't know whether it is better to be ignorant of a subject or to have a mere smattering of information about it.
slur
insult to one's character or reputation;slander. Polls revealed that the front-runner's standing had been damaged by the slurs and innuendoes circulated by his opponent's staff.
sluice
artificial channel for directing or controlling the flow of water. In times of drought, this sluice enables farmers to obtain water for irrigation.
sluggish
slow; lazy; lethargic. After two nights without sleep, she felt sluggish and incapable of exertion
sluggard
lazy person. "You are a sluggar, a drone, a parasite," the angry father shouted at his lazy son.
slovenly
untidy; careless in work habits. Unsahaven, sitting around in his bathrobe all afternoon, Gus didn't care about the slovenly appearance he presented.
slough
cast off. Each spring, the snake sloughs off its skin
slothful
lazy. The british word 'layabout' is a splendid descriptive term for someone slothful: What did the lazy bum do? He lay about the house all day.
sloth
slow-moving tree-dwelling mammal. Note how well the somewhat greenish coat of the sloth enables it to blend in with its arboreal surrounds.
slither
slip or slide. During the recent ice storm, many people slithered down hthis hill as they walked to the station.
slipshod
untidy or slovenly; shabby. As a master craftsman, the carpenter prided himself on never doing slipshod work
slight
insult to one's dignity; snub. Hypersensitive and ready to take offense at any discoutesy, Bertha was always on the lookout for real or imaginary slights.
slew
large quantity or number. Although Ellen had checked off a number of items on her 'to do' list, she still had a whole sleq of errands left.
sleight
dexterity. The magicia amased the audience with his sleight of hand.
sleeper
something originally of little value or importance wthat in tiem becomes very valuable. Unnoticed by the critics at its publication, the eventual Pulitzer Prize winner was a classic sleeper.
sleazy
flimsy; unsubstantial. This is a sleazy fabric, it will not wear well.
slapdash
haphazard; careless; sloppy. From the number of typos and misspellings I've found in it, it's clear that Mario proofread the report in a remarkably slapdash fashion.
slander
defamation; utterance of false and malicious statements. Considering the negative comments politicians make about each other, it's a wonder that more of them aren't sued for slander.

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