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ivipul on April 16, 2011

Subjects:

gre, barron, flashcards, wordlist, high frequency

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A complete list of Barron's High frequency GRE Wordlist, with meanings, sentences, Synonyms and Antonyms.
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Flashcards: GRE High Fequency Complete

Both Sides

ABATE
Verb The wind abated after the storm: decrease, diminish, reduce, lessen, subside, decline, fade, fade away, recede, dwindle, moderate, mitigate, weaken, wane, ebb, curtail, slack, slacken, go down, lower, fall off, fall away, taper off, lighten, soften,quiet, quell, slow, slow down, slake off, temper, cool, blunt; ease, relieve, alleviate, assuage, pacify, soothe, allay, mollify,palliate, dull; dampen, restrain, restrict. Antonyms increase, intensify, magnify, enhance, heighten, aggravate, amplify, grow; multiply, rise, come up, strengthen, sharpen, heat up; quicken, accelerate, hurry, speed, speed up; prolong, extend.

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Print new! Export Combine Terms Definitions ABATE Verb The wind abated after the storm: decrease, diminish, reduce, lessen, subside, decline, fade, fade away, recede, dwindle, moderate, mitigate, weaken, wane, ebb, curtail, slack, slacken, go down, lower, fall off, fall away, taper off, lighten, soften,quiet, quell, slow, slow down, slake off, temper, cool, blunt; ease, relieve, alleviate, assuage, pacify, soothe, allay, mollify,palliate, dull; dampen, restrain, restrict. Antonyms increase, intensify, magnify, enhance, heighten, aggravate, amplify, grow; multiply, rise, come up, strengthen, sharpen, heat

up; quicken, accelerate, hurry, speed, speed up; prolong, extend. Adjective 1 The planet's orbit was plainly aberrant: straying, stray, deviating, deviate, wandering, errant, erring, devious, erratic,rambling, diverging, divergent. 2 Aberrant behavior led to his confinement: abnormal, irregular, unusual, ABERRANT odd, eccentric, peculiar, exceptional, weird, queer,curious, singular, strange; unconforming, nonconforming, anomalous. Antonyms 1 direct.2 normal. Noun The building project will be held in abeyance until spring: postponement, suspension, intermission, remission, deferral, adjournment, discontinuance, inaction, dormancy, latency; pause, delay, abeyance cessation, quiescence, recess, hiatus, waiting period, in a holding pattern; in cold storage, on ice, on a back burner. Antonyms Continuance, continuation, continuity, ceaselessness. adjective His abstemious habits allowed him few pleasures: abstinent, ascetic, austere, temperate, continent, nonindulgent, teetotal, abstemious self-denying, sparing, self-disciplined, abstentious. Antonyms self-indulgent, abandoned, undisciplined, uncontrolled, hedonistic, profligate, licentious, unrestrained, immoderate. verb 1 The captain admonished the guards to be on the alert: warn, caution, put on guard, tip off; advise, counsel, enjoin. 2 The preacher admonished his congregation for failure to attend weekly admonish services: reprove, censure, reprimand, rebuke, reproach, remonstrate, chide, chasten, scold, upbraid, criticize, take to task, call to account, rap on the knuckles. Antonyms 2 praise, compliment, commend. verb adulterate The ancient Greeks often adulterated their wine with water: contaminate, thin, water, water down; depreciate, Informal cut. or aesthetic adjective The course in art history is designed to develop the student's esthetic judgment: appreciative of beauty, appealing to artistic esthetic taste, having artistic tastes, artistic; sensitive, discriminating, cultivated, refined, fastidious. Antonyms unesthetic, unappreciative; insensitive, undiscriminating. aggregate noun The final plan was an aggregate of all our ideas: composite, compound,

Alacrity

alleviate

amalgamate

ambiguous

ambivalent

ameliorate

union, combination, gathering, accumulation, collection, amassing, bringing together, summation, mixture, mix, blend, mass, conglomeration, conglomerate. noun 1 She answered his call for assist-ance with alacrity: willingness, enthusiasm, eagerness, fervor, zeal, avidity; alertness, promptness, dispatch, readiness. 2 Despite his 80 years, he moved with alacrity: liveliness, briskness, sprightliness; agility, nimbleness. Antonyms 1 unwillingness, indifference, unconcern, apathy, impassiveness, reluctance, disinclination; languor, lethargy, dullness. 2 slowness, sluggishness. verb This medication will alleviate the soreness: relieve, ease, allay, assuage; lessen, reduce, abate, diminish, check, temper, lighten, soften, mitigate, mollify; blunt, dull, moderate, slake, slacken, subdue, quit, quench. Antonyms make worse, aggravate, increase, intensify, heighten, enhance, magnify, multiply. verb Silver must be amalgamated with a harder material to make durable jewelry. The two shipping companies amalgamated into one: combine, blend, merge, fuse, mix, commingle; unite, unify, join together, consolidate, coalesce, incorporate, federate, integrate, synthesize. Antonyms separate, part, divide, disunite. adjective "Indian" is an ambiguous word because it can refer to an American Indian or a native of India: equivocal, vague, unclear, cryptic, enigmatic, puzzling, indefinite, uncertain, doubtful; misleading, having a double meaning. Antonyms explicit, definite, specific, direct, conclusive; clear, plain, frank, unmistakable, obvious, simple, lucid; unquestionable, honest. adjective I have ambivalent thoughts on where to spend my vacation: contradictory, conflicting, opposing, clashing, warring; confused, undecided, unfocused, mixed, wavering, fluctuating, vacillating, Informal wishy-washy. Antonyms definite, positive; unwavering. verb 1 The council met to consider ways of ameliorating the foreign situation:

improve, better, help, heal, fix up, patch up, correct, rectify; amend, reform, revise, improve upon, make an improvement upon; advance, promote. 2 Doctors say the patient's condition has ameliorated: improve, get better, grow better, perk up, pick up, progress, come along, mend, show improvement. Antonyms 1 ruin, botch, queer, screw up, wreck, destroy. 2 deteriorate, go downhill, decline, weaken, worsen. a?nach?ro?nism ( nak"r niz'*m), n. 1. an error in chronology in which a person, object, event, etc., is assigned a date or period other than the correct one. 2. a thing or person that belongs to another, esp. an earlier, time. [1640?50; < L anachronismus < Gk anachronism?s a wrong time reference Anachronism = anachron(?zein) to make a wrong time reference (see ANA-, CHRONO-, -IZE) + -ismos -ISM] a?nach'ro?nis"tic, a?nach"ro?nous, adj. a?nach'ro?nis"ti?cal?ly, a?nach"ro?nous?ly, an?a?chron?i?cal?ly (an'* kron"ik le), adv. adjective The heart is analogous to a pump: similar, like, comparable, akin, analogous equivalent, parallel, correlative, corresponding. Antonyms dissimilar, unlike; different, divergent Noun 1 Any form of government is better than anarchy: absence of government, disorder, lawlessness, chaos. 2 Anarchists dream of an ideal state of anarchy in which people will be Anarchy completely free: utopia, the millennium. Antonyms 1 order, discipline, authority; government, organization, control; regimentation, subjection. Adjective 1 An Eskimo in native dress would cut an anomalous figure in Rio: odd, strange, peculiar, incongruous, out of keeping, bizarre. 2 Cats with six toes are anomalous but not uncommon: irregular, abnormal, Anomalous atypical; monstrous. Antonyms 1 common, usual, standard, typical, familiar, unexceptional, ordinary, natural, normal, regular, conventional, customary. 2 normal, typical. Antipathy Noun I try to be broadminded but do feel antipathy toward people who are dirty and unkempt: dislike, aversion, distaste; disgust, repulsion, loathing, repugnance, abhorrence; antagonism, animosity, ill

Apathy

Appease

Apprise

Approbation

Appropriate

will, enmity, rancor, hostility, unfriendliness. Antonyms affinity, fellow feeling, regard, sympathy, attraction, partiality; love, affection, attachment. Noun Public apathy can lead to bad government: indifference, unconcern, lack of interest, inattention, unresponsiveness, passiveness, lethargy, lassitude; lack of feeling, numbness, emotionlessness, coolness, impassibility, impassivity. Antonyms Concern, interest, attention, responsiveness, action; emotion, feeling, excitement, passion, zeal, vehemence, enthusiasm, fervor. Verb 1 Nothing would appease the crying baby: calm, make peaceful, pacify, quiet, soothe, solace, mollify, lull, compose, placate. 2 That sandwich appeased my appetite: satisfy, ease, allay, abate, assuage, alleviate, temper, mitigate, relieve; slake, quench, quell, blunt, still, quiet, dull. 3 Chamberlain should never have tried to appease Hitler: conciliate, accommodate, propitiate. Antonyms 1,2,3 aggravate, provoke, inflame, arouse. 1 disturb, upset, bother, annoy, dissatisfy, perturb. 3 anger, enrage, infuriate; antagonize, Informal cross Verb Police should apprise an arrested person of his or her rights to remain silent and to be represented by a lawyer: inform, notify, advise, tell, make acquainted, make aware, make cognizant of, disclose, enlighten. Antonyms Keep secret, keep quiet about. Noun The architect received approbation for his new office building design: praise, congratulation, compliment, good word, applause, acclaim; approval, acceptance, support, endorsement, ratification, commendation, laudation, official sanction. Antonyms Censure, condemnation, criticism; disapproval, dissatisfaction, protest, rejection, veto. Adjective 1 A long dress is appropriate for a formal wedding: suitable, proper, wellsuited, congruous, fitting, befitting, correct, seemly, apt, apropos, well-chosen; characteristic, belonging, pertinent, relevant, germane, to the purpose, to the point, opportune. Verb

Arduous

Artless

Ascetic

2 The city will appropriate money for two new schools: allocate, set apart, allot, apportion, assign, earmark. 3 The county should appropriate land for a new highway: take possession of, take, confiscate, expropriate. Antonyms 1 inappropriate, improper, ill-suited, unsuitable, unsuited, unfitting, incongruous, unbefitting, unseemly, incorrect, wrong, inconsonant, incompatible, outr?; uncharacteristic, out of place, inopportune, irrelevant. 2 withhold. 3 give, bestow, donate; relinquish, cede, dispose of. Adjective Crossing the continent in a covered wagon was an arduous undertaking: difficult, hard, laborious, toilsome, wearisome, exhausting, fatiguing, tiring, burdensome, heavy, tough, troublesome, onerous, trying, full of hardships, formidable, severe, Herculean; vigorous, strenuous, energetic. Antonyms Light, facile, easy, simple, effortless, smooth. Adjective 1 Her love was as artless as a child's: frank, candid, open, honest, true, guileless, innocent, na?ve, simple, humble, straightforward; sincere, unpretentious, trusting, undesigning, openhearted, ingenuous, unsophisticated, unaffected, unselfconscious. 2 Nothing can compare to the artless beauty of a waterfall: natural, pure, unadorned, plain, simple, primitive, crude. 3 The painting was completely artless: inartistic, lacking art; without artistic talent, untalented. Antonyms 1 cunning, crafty, sly, wily, dishonest, deceitful, designing, artful, insincere, pretended, faked, phony, false, counterfeit; sophisticated, affected, self-conscious; suspicious, distrustful. 2 artificial, unnatural, synthetic. 3 artistic, aesthetic. Noun 1 Most of the early saints were extreme ascetics: self-denier, abstainer, self-mortifier; hermit, recluse, solitary, eremite, anchorite, celibate, cenobite; religious, monk, nun, flagellant; yogi, fakir, dervish. Adjective 2 Trappist monks lead an ascetic existence: austere, self-denying, abstemious, strict, stern, Spartan, rigorous, selfmortifying. Antonyms 1 hedonist, sensualist, voluptuary, sybarite, bon vivant. 2 self-indulgent, indulgent, pampered, luxurious, comfortable; abandoned, dissolute, voluptuous, sensuous, sensual,

Assiduous

Assuage

attenuate

Audacious

sybaritic. Adjective It takes assiduous work to learn Russian. I admire an assiduous student: diligent, industrious, hardworking, laborious, unremitting, determined, persistent, persevering, earnest, steadfast, constant, tenacious, dogged, untiring, tireless, unflagging, indefatigable, sed-ulous. Antonyms indolent, lazy, idle; haphazard, casual, cavalier, lax, hit-or-miss, undetermined, inconstant, happy-go-lucky. Verb Liniment will assuage the pain, but soaking in hot water does the injury more good: allay, ease, relieve, mitigate; lighten, lessen, soften; mollify, alleviate, soothe, calm, quiet, still, pacify, appease, temper, take the edge off, tone down. Antonyms Intensify, aggravate, irritate, exacerbate, heighten, sharpen, increase, augment; provoke, excite, arouse, kindle, inflame. Verb 1 The silversmith attenuated the ingot into one long thread: draw out, make thin, make fine, make slender, spin out. 2 Aspirin only attenuated the pain: weaken, reduce, diminish, lessen, decrease; dilute, water down, adulterate, impair, enervate, enfeeble. Antonyms 1 broadens, make thick, make coarse, make fat, enlarge, expand. 2 increase, amplify, intensify, augment, strengthen, develop. Adjective 1 Napoleon was an audacious leader: bold, daring, adventurous, venturesome, enterprising; brave, courageous, fearless, unafraid, valiant, intrepid, dauntless, stouthearted, lionhearted, stalwart, valorous, plucky, Slang gutsy. 2 We admired the audacious feats of the trapeze artists: bold, daring, reckless, rash, risky, daredevil, devil-may-care, deathdefying, breakneck; heedless, foolhardy, injudicious, imprudent, desperate, hotheaded, self-willed, wild. 3 Her audacious behavior shocked us all: impudent, impertinent, insolent, brazen, fresh, shameless, outrageous, defiant, unabashed, presumptuous, assuming, forward, saucy, cheeky, bossy, pert; disrespectful, rude, discourteous. Antonyms 1 unadventurous, unenterprising; cowardly, fainthearted, craven, frightened, timid, pusillanimous, Slang yellow, chickenhearted, lily-livered. 2 careful, guarded, discreet; prudent, circumspect, cautious, judicious. 3 tactful, gracious, unassuming, cordial, amiable, ingratiating, deferential,

austere

Autonomous

Aver

Banal

Belie

reverential, obsequious, Informal kowtowing; polite, courteous, mannerly, well-mannered, gentlemanly, ladylike, refined, polished, formal. Adjective 1 In the old days, schoolmasters were thought of as austere men: stern, strict, severe, forbidding, ascetic. 2 The Puritans led austere lives: rigorous, rigid, Spartan, ascetic, selfdenying, abstemious, strict, simple, spare, stark, strait-laced, chaste. Antonyms 1 permissive, lenient, indulgent, easy, flexible, lax; frivolous, gay, cheerful, joyful, merry, lighthearted, jovial, jolly, jaunty, nonchalant, lively, exuberant, vivacious, effervescent, high-spirited, playful, convivial; kindly, kind, sweet, genial. 2 luxurious, lush, comfortable, easy; sophisticated, cosmopolitan; loose, corrupt, dissolute, dissipated, debauched, degenerate, depraved, wanton, abandoned, self-gratifying, free-and-easy, immoral, wicked, evil, sinful, impure, lewd, licentious, lascivious. Adjective The school of adult education was an autonomous extension of the university: self-governing, self-determined; selfsufficient, self-reliant, independent, sovereign, free. Antonyms Governed, dependent, subject. Verb The witness averred that he had seen the suspect at the scene of the crime: assert, declare, affirm, state, avow, avouch, maintain, swear, insist, emphasize, contend, profess, represent, proclaim, pronounce, protest, asseverate; certify, verify, guarantee. Antonyms Deny, disavow, disclaim, repudiate; doubt, be uncertain, gainsay. Adjective There were no new ideas in his banal lecture: stale, trite, unoriginal, hackneyed, ordinary, commonplace, prosaic, pedestrian, unexciting, unimaginative, everyday, stock, humdrum, dull, uninteresting, conventional, stereotyped, insipid, threadbare, shopworn, tired, corny, clich?-ridden, vapid, platitudinous, bromidic, jejune. Antonyms Original, new, novel, unique, exciting, fresh, unusual, extraordinary, innovative, distinctive, stimulating, stimulative, gripping, provocative, challenging, imaginative, interesting. Verb 1 The facts belie your story: disprove, refute, contradict, controvert,

Beneficent

Bolster

Bombastic

Boorish

Burgeon

repudiate, show to be false, give the lie to, invalidate, gainsay, negate, betray, deny, defy. 2 The author's smile belied his anger with the critic: misrepresent, falsify; disguise, camouflage, mask, conceal, cloak. Antonyms 1 proves, verify, attest to, validate, support, confirm, corroborate. 2 represent, reveal, disclose, indicate. Adj. doing good or causing good to be done; charitable. 1.Beneficial Adjective Exercise is beneficial to good health: helpful, advantageous, propitious, useful, valuable, contributive, favorable, profitable, productive; healthful, healing, good for. Antonyms Useless, detrimental, detractive, disadvantageous; unfavorable, harmful, pernicious, unwholesome. Verb 1 More timbers are needed to bolster the roof of the mine: support, brace, prop up, hold up, buttress, reinforce, maintain, sustain, shore up, shoulder, cradle. 2 More facts are needed to bolster your argument: support, uphold, sustain, strengthen, reinforce, add to, help, aid, assist. Noun 3 Put the bolster on the couch: cushion, pillow. Antonyms 1 weighs down. 2 diminish, lessen, weaken, tear down. Adjective No one believed his bombastic claims: grandiloquent, pompous, windy, padded, inflated, magniloquent, tumid, turgid, verbose, wordy. Antonyms Temperate, unpretentious, modest, natural, simple, unaffected, deflated, quiet. Adjective She considers the peasants boorish: crude, rude, coarse, vulgar, unrefined, unpolished, uncouth, gauche, loutish, oafish, rustic, peasantlike. Antonyms Genteel, polite, polished, cultured, refined, cultivated, gentlemanly, courtly, gallant, lady-like; sophisticated, urbane, cosmopolitan. Verb Housing developments are burgeoning on all sides. Spring has begun to burgeon in every valley and glade: thrive, flourish, expand, enlarge, grow, develop, mushroom, escalate, wax, increase, spring

up, shoot up, proliferate, augment, spread; bloom, blossom, flower, blow, effloresce, open, fructify, bear fruit. Verb The silver bracelet was burnished to a bright finish: polish, wax, buff, Burnish shine, smooth, and rub up. Antonyms Abrade, scratch, mar. Noun 1 The north wall of the cathedral had a beautiful stone buttress: support, brace, prop, stanchion, abutment, arch, stay, and shoulder. Buttress Verb 2 Buttress that fence with some two-by-fours. You'd better buttress your argument with more facts: prop, prop up, brace, shore, shore up, reinforce, strengthen, bolster, support, boost, steel. Adjective The cacophonous sounds of the street came through the open window: Cacophonous dissonant, inharmonious, harsh, raucous, discordant, unmusical, unmelodious, strident, screechy, jarring, grating, disharmonious, nonmelodious; out of tune, off-key, offpitch. Adjective The capricious man bought and exchanged three shirts in a week: changeable, fickle, variable, impulsive, erratic, flighty, skittish, mercurial, fanciful, faddish; indecisive, undecided, irresolute, uncertain, wavering, vacillating, shilly-shallying; irresponsible, inconsistent, unsteady, unstable, fitful, uneven, eccentric, Capricious quirky. Antonyms Consistent, unchangeable, inflexible, unmovable, firm, fixed, unwavering, invariable, unswerving; resolute, determined, steadfast, certain, decided, decisive; serious, responsible, steady, stable, even. Verb The principal castigated the students for their unruly behavior: chastise, upbraid, rebuke, censure, reprimand, reproach, chasten, reprove, berate, scold, admonish, criticize, chide, call on the Castigate carpet, bawl out, chew out, dress down, haul over the coals, take to task; punish, discipline, correct, penalize. Antonyms Praise, laud, compliment, honor; reward, encourage. cat?a?lyst (kat"l ist), n. 1. a substance that causes or speeds a chemical reaction without itself being Catalyst affected. 2. a person or thing that precipitates an event or change. [1900?05; CATALY(SIS) + (-I)ST] Caustic Adjective

1 Acid is caustic: burning, corrosive, corroding, erosive; astringent, stinging, biting, gnawing, sharp. 2 His caustic remarks hurt our feelings: sarcastic, biting, stinging, cutting, scathing, sharp, harsh, acrid, acrimonious, tart, bitter. Antonyms 1 soothing, healing; bland, mild. 2 flattering, complimentary; sweet, kind, loving, pleasant, pleasing, gentle, gracious, agreeable, mild, bland. Noun There was some chicanery with our reservations, and we complained to the travel agent: deception, trickery, fraud, deceit, Chicanery cozenage, gulling, guile, hocus-pocus, double-dealing, duplicity, duping, subterfuge, hoodwinking, pettifoggery, humbuggery; knavery, roguery, rascality, villainy. Verb Certain drugs cause blood to coagulate: clot, congeal; solidify, set, gel, jell, Coagulate jellify, harden, curdle; thicken. Antonyms Liquefy, melt, dissolve, and soften. 1. A concluding passage of a musical composition. 2. A concluding section, esp. one serving as a summation of preceding Coda themes, as in a drama. 3. Anything that serves as a conclusion or summation. Adjective He gave us several cogent reasons why the plan would inevitably fail: compelling, valid, persuasive, forceful, powerful, Cogent potent, trenchant, convincing, well-founded, incontrovertible, sound, meritorious, weighty, effective, undeniable, wellgrounded. Antonyms Unconvincing, unsound, dubious, implausible, improbable. also commensurable Adjective Her salary is commensurate with her ability and experience: in accord, consistent, in agreement, suitable, fitting, appropriate, compatible, corresponding, proportionate, comparable, on a Commensurate proper scale, relative, equal, equivalent, even, balanced, meet, parallel, relative, square. Antonyms Inconsistent, unsuitable, inappropriate, unfitting, incompatible, disproportionate, dissimilar, incomparable, unequal, discordant. Noun It was fascinating to browse through the compendium of quotations: digest, Compendium abridgment, condensation, abstract, brief, epitome, overview, pr?cis, summary.

Complaisant

Compliance

Conciliatory

Condone

Confound

Connoisseur Contention

Adjective The host's complaisant manner made everyone feel welcome: obliging, solicitous, pleasing, agreeable, compliant, cordial, congenial, affable, warm, gracious, friendly, pleasant, amiable, goodnatured, good-humored, easygoing. Antonyms Unobliging, contrary, unsolicitous, uncooperative, indifferent; disagreeable, unpleasant, cold, unfriendly, ungracious. Noun Compliance with the traffic laws is necessary for safe driving. Yes-men are known for their compliance: conformity, conforming, obedience, yielding, giving in, submission, deference; assent, acquiescence, complaisance, pliancy, nonresistance, passivity, docility, meekness. Antonyms noncompliance, nonconformity, disobedience, resistance, rebelliousness, assertiveness, individuality, stubbornness; obstinacy. Adjective One conciliatory remark would make them friends again: peacemaking, reconciling, friendly, reassuring, placatory, pacifying, mollifying, accommodative, appeasing. Antonyms Antagonistic, hostile, unfriendly, unforgiving. Verb Parents must not condone their children's bad behavior: overlook, let pass, ignore, disregard, put up with, wink at; forgive, excuse, pardon, justify, absolve, forget. Antonyms Condemn, denounce, censure, disapprove; punish, castigate. Verb The patient's unusual symptoms confounded the doctor: perplex, confuse, baffle, bewilder, puzzle, mystify, mix up, disconcert, unsettle, nonplus, rattle, fluster, throw off the scent; amaze, astound, astonish, surprise, startle, dumfound, flabbergast, strike with wonder. Antonyms Enlighten, explain, solve, clear up, clarify. Noun The old gentleman was a connoisseur of fine wines: expert, judge, authority, mavin, person of good taste, cognoscente; epicure, gourmet. Noun 1 Border raiding led to even more contention: struggle, strife, conflict, combat, altercation, feud, wrangle, rivalry, contest; argument, debate, dispute, disagreement, controversy, dispute, dissension,

Contentious

Contrite

Conundrum

Converge

Convolution

Craven

Daunt

falling out, opposition, discord. 2 It was his contention that she was lazy: allegation, charge, assertion, claim, position, point. Antonyms 1 peace; accord, agreement. Contentious (kn ten"shs), adj. 1. tending to argument or strife; quarrelsome: a contentious crew. 2. causing, involving, or characterized by argument or controversy: contentious issues. 3. pertaining to causes between contending parties involved in litigation. con?ten"tious?ly, adv. con?ten"tious?ness, n. Adjective His contrite manner made us forgives him: conscience-stricken, sorrowful, regretful, repentant, rueful, penitent, remorseful, apologetic, chastened, humbled. Antonyms proud, pleased, uncontrite, unrepentant, unapologetic. Noun No one in the room could find the answer to the conundrum: puzzle, riddle, enigma, mystery, poser, puzzler, paradox, arcanum, brain-teaser, stumper, stopper, Chinese puzzle, rebus, problem. Verb The Mississippi and Missouri rivers converge at St. Louis. A lens converges light rays: come together, meet, approach; focus, concentrate, bring together. Antonyms Diverge, separate, part, scatter, disperse. Noun The children were fascinated by the convolutions of the snake: coiling, coil, twisting, twist, winding, undulation, contortion; sinuosity, sinuousness, tortuousness; maze, labyrinth. Antonyms Uncoiling, unwinding. Adjective Refusing to stand and fight was a craven thing to do: cowardly, dastardly, pusillanimous; timid, timorous, fearful, frightened, scared; Slang yellow, lily-livered, chicken-hearted; mean-spirited, base, low, lowdown. Antonyms Brave, courageous, heroic, fearless, valorous, valiant, dauntless; bold, daring, audacious. Verb Crossing the country in wagons did not daunt the early pioneers: intimidate, dismay, faze, discourage, dishearten, deject, depress, dash, unnerve, subdue, browbeat, cow, abash, menace, threaten;

Decorum

default

Deference

delineate

Denigrate

Deride

Derivative

Desiccate

frighten, scare, alarm, affright. Antonyms Embolden, encourage, cheer, animate, enliven. Noun Jennifer always acts with decorum: propriety, politeness; tact, gentility, respectability, dignity, taste; good form. Antonyms Impropriety, inappropriate behavior, bad manners. noun 1 If the team doesn't show up, they will lose by default: failure to appear or act. 2 His car was repossessed because of default of the monthly installment: nonpayment; failure to pay. Noun Out of deference to her age and position, the committee followed her suggestions: consideration, respect, reverence, honor, esteem, regard; obedience, capitulation. Antonyms Disrespect, contempt; defiance, disobedience. de?lin?e?ate (di lin"e at'), v.t., -at?ed, -at?ing. 1. to trace the outline of; represent pictorially. 2. to portray in words; describe with precision. de?lin"e?a?ble (- bl), adj. de?lin"e?a'tor, n. Verb He has a mentality that denigrates everything it doesn't understand: defame, malign, slander, tear down, abuse, stigmatize, tra-duce, disparage, run down, besmirch, downgrade, blacken, call names, calumniate, backbite, smear, vilify, revile, asperse, soil, sully; Slang give a black eye, drag through the mud, stab in the back, badmouth, dump on. Antonyms Praise, commend, acclaim, exalt, boost. Verb They derided the new music: ridicule, mock, scoff, scorn, sneer at. Adjective 1 The derivative essay received low marks: derived, unoriginal, borrowed, copied, evolved, imitative, inferred, not original, obtained, plagiarized, rehashed, secondhand. Noun 2 offshoot, outgrowth, byproduct, derivation, descendant, product, spinoff. Antonyms 1 original, archetypal, authentic, genuine, seminal. des?ic?cate (des"i kat'), v., -cat?ed, -cat?ing. v.t. 1. to dry thoroughly; dry up.

Desultory

deterrent

Diatribe

Dichotomy

diffidence

Diffuse

2. to preserve (food) by removing moisture; dehydrate. v.i. 3. to become thoroughly dried. [1565?75; < L desiccatus dried up, ptp. of desiccare = de- + siccare, der. of siccus dry] des'ic?ca"tion, n. des"ic?ca'tive, adj. des"ic?ca'tor, n. des?ul?to?ry (des"*l t?r'e, -tor'e), adj. 1. lacking in consistency, method, purpose, or visible order; disconnected: desultory conversation. 2. digressing from or unconnected with the main subject: a desultory remark. [1575?85; < L desultorius pertaining to a desultor (a circus rider who jumps from one horse to another), der. of desul-, var. s. of desilire to jump down] des"ul?to'ri?ly, adv. des"ul?to'ri?ness, n. Noun Punishment is not necessarily a deterrent to crime: restraint, curb, hindrance, check, discouragement. Noun In her diatribe she gave full vent to all her resentments against him: verbal or written castigation, bitter harangue, tirade, violent denunciation, stream of abuse, accusatory language, invective, vituperation, contumely. di?chot?o?my (di kot"* me), n., pl. -mies. 1. division into two parts or kinds; subdivision into halves or pairs. 2. division into two exclusive, opposed, or contradictory groups: a dichotomy between thought and action. 3. a mode of branching by constant forking, as in some stems. 4. the phase of the moon or of an inferior planet when half of its disk is visible. [1600?10; < Gk] Noun His diffidence keeps him from making friends: timidity, timidness, timorousness, shyness, meekness, insecurity, retiring disposition, reserve, constraint, introversion; bashfulness, extreme modesty, humbleness, want of self-confidence, unassertiveness, sheepishness, lack of self-assurance; hesitancy, reluctance. Antonyms Boldness, audaciousness, forwardness, assertiveness, aggressiveness; selfconfidence, confidence. Adjective 1 The room was bathed in soft, diffuse light: scattered, spread out, unconcentrated, dispersed, extended widely; vaguely

Digression

dirge

Disabuse

Discerning

discordant

discredit

defined. 2 His talk was so diffuse I missed his point: wordy, verbose, discursive, rambling, long-winded, lacking conciseness, disjointed, digressive, not concentrated, desultory, roundabout, wandering, meandering, maundering, circumlocutory. Antonyms 1 concentrated. 2 succinct, concise, terse, pithy, compact; methodical, organized. Noun His long digression made him forget his main point: divergence, departure, deviation, detour, straying, wandering; diversion, obiter dictum, side remark, divagation. Noun He composed a dirge to honor the war dead: funeral song, requiem, death song, death march, lament, burial hymn, threnody, mournful composition; mournful sound. Verb Someone ought to disabuse him of those star-struck notions: enlighten about, free from error, clear the mind of, disillusion, disenchant, rid of deception, relieve of, set straight, set right, open the eyes of, free of a mistaken belief. Adjective The mediator was discerning in his analysis of the problem: perceptive, acute, perspicacious, sharp, astute, penetrating, keen-sighted, sensitive, piercing, discriminating, shrewd, intelligent, wise, judicious, sage, sagacious, clear-sighted, sharpsighted; showing discernment, quick to discern, having keen insight. Antonyms Undiscerning, unperceptive, indiscriminate. dis?cord?ant (dis k?r"dnt), adj. 1. being at variance; disagreeing; incongruous. 2. disagreeable to the ear; dissonant; harsh. [1250?1300; ME discordaunt < AF < L] dis?cord"ant?ly, adv. verb 1 She discredited his good name with ugly gossip: defame, abuse, dishonor, impair the reputation of, disgrace, vilify, disparage, smirch, smear, debase, degrade, demean, vitiate, tarnish, taint, undermine, slur, sully, stigmatize, drag through the mud. 2 The insurance investigator discredited his false claim: prove false, deny, disallow, disprove, reject; destroy confidence in, shake one's faith in, undermine belief in; dispute, challenge, question. Antonyms 1 credit, praise, laud. 2 credit, prove, support, accept, verify.

discrepancy

Discrete

disingenuous

Disinterested

Disjointed

dismiss

noun There is a great discrepancy between his version of the accident and yours: difference, inconsistency, variance, disagreement, discordance, lack of correspondence, disparity, dissimilarity, divergence, incongruity, gap. Antonyms correspondence, accord. Adjective The Liberal Arts College has been reorganized into six discrete departments: separate, distinct, different, detached, disconnected, discontinuous, disjunctive, unattached, independent, unassociated; several, various. Antonyms Merged, combined, interdependent, united, linked, connected. Adjective Their disingenuous protests irritated us: dishonest, insincere, artful, cunning, designing, duplicitous, false, feigned, guileful, shifty, sly, wily, two-faced, tricky. Antonyms Ingenuous. Adjective We need a disinterested party to settle the argument: impartial, unbiased, neutral, free from bias, unprejudiced, impersonal, outside, uninvolved, dispassionate, free from self-interest. Antonyms Partial, biased, prejudiced, selfish, having an axe to grind. Adjective 1 The structure of the house seemed somehow disjointed: disconnected, detached, having the joints separated, unconnected, unattached, split, divided, apart, disarticulated, helter-skelter. 2 The movie was too disjointed to make sense: rambling, mixed-up, confused, spasmodic, disconnected, disorganized, jumbled, tangled, chaotic, disharmonious, discontinuous, heterogeneous, incoherent, irrational, illogical. Antonyms 1 jointed, connected, attached. 2 sensible, coherent, logical. verb 1 The workers were dismissed for lunch. Dismiss the meeting: allow to leave, permit to go, release, excuse, send forth, let go, disperse; dissolve, adjourn, disband; free, liberate. 2 She was dismissed for loafing on the job: fire, oust, discharge from office, put out of a job, sack, can, let go, terminate, remove from service, bounce, send packing, give one his walking papers, cashier, Slang pink-slip, give the heave-ho. 3 I trust her and dismiss any suggestion of dishonesty: put out of mind, reject, set aside, disregard, disclaim, discard, lay

Disparage

disparate

dissemble

disseminate

Dissolute

Dissonance

distend distill

aside, repudiate, eliminate. Antonyms 1 hold, detain, recall. 2 hire, employ, accept, admit. 3 welcome, accept. Verb Don't disparage his attempts to better himself: belittle, ridicule, discredit, run down, put down, mock, denigrate, demean, undervalue, underrate, depreciate, slight, detract from, derogate. Antonyms Applaud, praise, laud, extol, acclaim, commend, compliment, appreciate. adjective Their views are unusually disparate for brothers: dissimilar, different, unlike, contrasting, at odds, at variance, discrepant, discordant. Antonyms similar, like, homogeneous, parallel, accord-ant. verb He tried to dissemble his disappointment with a joke: hide, mask, disguise, camouflage, feign, conceal, dissimulate. Antonyms show, manifest, evidence, reveal. verb Plato's philosophy has been disseminated throughout the world: scatter, spread, diffuse, disperse, circulate, broadcast. Adjective He was a dissolute young man who thought only of his own pleasure: dissipated, corrupt, loose, debauched, immoral; unrestrained, abandoned. Antonyms moral, upright, temperate, sober, prudent, circumspect. Noun 1 The experimental music seemed nothing but dissonance to us: discord, cacophony, discordance, harshness, jangle, jarring, noise. 2 Dissonance in the merged companies broke out almost at once: disharmony, antagonism, breach, break, conflict, disagreement, discord, disparity, dissension, dissidence, disunion, division, divorce, hostility, incongruity, inconsistency, rift, rupture, schism, variance. verb The children's stomachs were distended by malnutrition: swell, bloat, swell out, expand, bulge, inflate, billow, puff out. verb 1 The liquid distills when heated: evaporate, condense, vaporize. 2 Whiskey is distilled from a fermented mash of grain. Impurities are

diverge

divest

document

dogmatic

dormant

dupe

ebullience

removed by distilling water: separate by evaporation, produce by vaporization and condensation, purify by distillation; extract, draw out, draw forth. verb 1 The path diverges right after the pond: separate, deviate, split off, swerve, deflect. 2 Her politics and mine diverge greatly: differ, conflict, disagree, be at odds. Antonyms 1 converges, agree, concur. verb 1 He divested himself of his clothing: strip or remove (clothing), disrobe; take off, get out of, peel off. 2 During the Depression, the family was divested of its home: deprive, dispossess; rid, strip, free. Antonyms 1 clothe, dress, cover. noun 1 There are many documents containing the king's signature: official paper, record, instrument, legal form. verb 2 The lawyer gathered evidence to document the charges: support, back up, give weight to, verify, certify, substantiate. adjective 1 She's so dogmatic you can't tell her anything: opinionated, arbitrary, biased, prejudiced; imperious, dictatorial, domineering; stubborn, obstinate. 2 The Nicene Creed is one of the most important dogmatic statements of the Christian faith: doctrinal, expressing dogma. Antonyms 1 diffident, vacillating, uncertain; docile, complaisant. adjective The geyser has been dormant for five years: inactive, quiescent, idle; sleeping, somnolent; hibernating. Antonyms active, operative, moving, awake. noun 1 He was the dupe of the racketeers and may go to prison: pawn, patsy, fall guy, cat's paw, Slang sucker. verb 2 The agency duped her into signing up for $200 worth of lessons: trick, fool, mislead, deceive; humbug, bamboozle, hoodwink. noun Her ebullience could not be denied: enthusiasm, exuberance, animation, buoyancy, effervescence, effusiveness, elation,

eclectic

efficacious

effrontery

Elegy

elicit

Embellish

empirical

excitement, exhilaration, vitality, vivaciousness, vivacity, liveliness, high spirits. Antonyms apathy, lifelessness. adjective The disc jockey played an eclectic selection of music: mixed, assorted, catholic, diverse, heterogeneous, multifarious, wideranging, varied, general. adjective None of the prescriptions were efficacious: effective, capable, successful, serviceable, effectual, efficient. Antonyms ineffective. noun What effrontery to barge in uninvited!: shamelessness, brazenness, brashness, impertinence, insolence, impudence, presumption, arrogance, audacity, temerity, cheek, nerve, gall, brass, Yiddish chutzpah. Antonyms modesty, reserve, shyness, timidity, bashfulness; respect, diffidence. Noun The poet laureate composed an elegy upon the death of the king: poem of lamentation, lament for the dead, melancholy poem, sad poem; requiem, funeral song, song of lamentation, melancholy piece of music. Antonyms Paean, jubilee, hallelujah, anthem. verb The mayor's remark elicited a flood of letters: bring forth, draw forth, draw out, call forth, evoke, extract, exact, extort, derive, wrest, fetch, cause, educe, bring to light. Antonyms repress, discourage. Verb He embellished his signature with a series of curlicues: enhance, elaborate, exaggerate, ornament, decorate, adorn, beautify, garnish, gild, color, embroider, dress up, fancy up, set off, Slang gussy up. Antonyms Simplify, strip bare. adjective The old sailor had never studied navigation, but he had a good empirical knowledge of it: practical, experiential, pragmatic; experimental, firsthand. Antonyms theoretical, secondhand.

emulate

endemic

enervate

engender

enhance

ephemeral

equanimity

verb Politicians would do well to emulate Abraham Lincoln: take as a model, follow the example of, pattern oneself after, follow, copy, imitate; try to equal, rival; mimic, ape. Noun 1. A disease that is constantly present to a greater or lesser degree in people of a certain class or in people living in a particular location Adjective 1. (of disease or anything resembling a disease) constantly present to greater or lesser extent in a particular locality. 2. (ecology) native to or confined to a certain region 3. Originating where it is found ---Synonyms autochthonal, autochthonic, autochthonous, indigenous. verb The long march in the sun enervated the soldiers: exhaust, weary, weaken, de-bilitate, devitalize, enfeeble, disable, sap one's energy, deplete, wash out, fatigue, tire, prostrate, Slang bush, fag, tucker. Antonyms energize, invigorate, strengthen, vitalize, stimulate, quicken. verb Respect can engender love: give rise to, cause, bring about, beget, breed, generate, produce, occasion, precipitate. Antonyms kill, end, crush. verb The splendid dress enhanced her beauty: intensify, heighten, magnify, make more attractive, make more appealing; elevate, lift, raise, boost; redouble, embellish, augment, add to, complement. Antonyms diminish, reduce, lessen, decrease, minimize, depreciate, detract from. adjective There is no point in lamenting the ephemeral joys of youth: brief, temporary, transient, short-lived, temporal, transitory, fleeting, impermanent, evanescent, momentary, passing, fugitive, unenduring, nondurable, inconstant, fly-by-night, flitting, fugacious. Antonyms permanent, lasting, enduring, everlasting, perpetual, abiding. noun We must keep our equanimity during times of crisis: calmness, composure, self-possession, steadiness, poise, aplomb, coolness, imperturbability, presence of mind, self-control, tranquillity,

equivocate

erudite

esoteric

eulogy

euphemism

Exacerbate

exculpate

sangfroid, Informal cool. Antonyms panic, hysteria, disquiet, perturbation, agitation, discomposure. verb Please stop equivocating and give me a straight answer: evade, avoid the issue, hedge, stall, dodge, beat around the bush, fudge, pussyfoot, be ambiguous, mince words, prevaricate, straddle the fence. adjective The professor was an erudite man. The TV newscaster was known for his erudite comments: learned, well-informed, welleducated, well-versed, literate, well-read, cultured, cultivated, scholarly, thoughtful, intelligent, well-reasoned, wise, sapient. Antonyms uninformed, uneducated, illiterate, unscholarly; shallow, unthinking; rash, ill-advised. adjective 1 Some fields of science seem hopelessly esoteric to the layman: incomprehensible, abstruse, recondite, arcane, cryptic, enigmatic, inscrutable, mysterious, obscure. 2 The tribe has an esoteric ritual that no outsider may witness: secret, undisclosed, private, confidential, inviolable, hidden, concealed, covert, veiled, cloaked; mystical, occult. Antonyms 1 obvious, clear, plain, simple. 2 public, open, exoteric. Noun Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is a great eulogy: oration of praise, praise of the dead, encomium, panegyric; high praise, tribute, homage, hosanna, acclamation, laudation, citation, paean, plaudit. Antonyms condemnation, criticism; vilification, defamation, aspersion, calumny, slander, libel. noun "Maiden lady" is a euphemism for "old maid": mild expression, restrained expression, inoffensive expression, delicate term, refined term; prudish phrase, overdelicacy, overrefinement, prudishness. Verb Offering your opinion will only exacerbate the situation: aggravate, exaggerate, intensify, inflame, heighten, worsen, magnify, sharpen, deepen, fan the flames, pour oil on the fire, add fuel to the flames, rub salt into the wound, add insult to injury. Antonyms relieve, soothe, comfort, alleviate, assuage, mollify. Verb

Exigency

extrapolate

facetious

facilitate

Fallacious Fatuous

Pronounce not guilty of criminal charges: acquit, assoil, clear, discharge, exonerate. Noun 1 A ship's captain must be able to cope with any exigency: emergency, contingency, crisis, circumstance, predicament, quandary, plight, strait, extremity, difficulty, hardship; Slang pickle, pinch, scrape, fix, jam. 2 We have to cope with the exigencies of daily living: requirements, necessities, demands, needs, constraints, urgencies. ex?trap?o?late (ik strap"* lat'), v., -lat?ed, -lat?ing. v.t. 1. to infer (an unknown) from something that is known; conjecture. 2. to estimate (the value of a statistical variable) outside the tabulated or observed range. 3. Math. to estimate (a function that is known over a range of values of its independent variable) to values outside the known range. v.i. 4. to perform extrapolation. [1825?35; EXTRA- + (INTER)POLATE] ex?trap'o?la"tion, n. ex?trap"o?la'tive, adj. ex?trap"o?la'tor, n. adjective He kept us laughing with his facetious remarks: humorous, funny, amusing, jocular, joking, jovial, jesting, witty, clever, jocose, droll, comic, comical, playful, wisecracking. Antonyms solemn, serious, sober, lugubrious, grave, sedate, staid, sad, dull. verb An addressing machine facilitates the handling of bulk mail: expedite, speed up, accelerate, ease, simplify, help in, make less difficult, make easier, assist the progress of, lessen the labor of, lighten, smooth; forward, help to advance, promote, further, advance, aid, foster. Antonyms hinder, hamper, complicate, encumber, slow down. Adjective The rumors were patently fallacious: incorrect, false, deceptive, erroneous, deluding, fictitious, illusory, fraudulent, invalid, mistaken, misleading, off, sophistic, spurious, unfounded, ungrounded, wrong, unsound, untrue. Adjective She's so fatuous she thinks all the fellows are flirting with her: foolish, inane, silly, vacant in mind, simple, stupid, brainless, witless, vapid, vacuous, asinine, imbecile, idiotic, puerile, obtuse, besotted,

Fawning

Felicitous

fervor

flag

Fledgling Flout

senseless, moronic, ridiculous. Antonyms sensible, prudent, judicious, wise, sage, sapient, clever, bright, intelligent, smart, witty Adjective In the movie he played a fawning courtier: sycophantic, obsequious, compliant, bootlicking, cowering, servile, cringing, deferential, crawling, flattering, ingratiating, scraping, kowtowing, subservient, submissive. Adjective 1 Champagne is for weddings and other felicitous occasions: happy, joyful, joyous, fortunate, propitious. 2 The young man searched hard for a felicitous last line to his poem: apt, appropriate, suitable, relevant, pertinent, germane, fitting, well-chosen, well-put, well-said, pleasing, happy, inspired; effective. Antonyms 1 infelicitous, solemn, inappropriate. 2 infelicitous, awkward, clumsy, unfortunate. Noun The pilgrims arrived at the shrine and offered their prayers with fervor: ardor, passion, intensity, earnestness, vehemence, verve, zeal, animation, gusto, fire, enthusiasm, heartiness, eagerness, zest, warmth; piety, devoutness, seriousness, purposefulness. Antonyms boredom, ennui, apathy, detachment, dispassion. noun 1 The country's flag was displayed in every window: banner, emblem, standard, ensign, streamer, pennant, colors; (in the U.S.) stars and stripes, Old Glory, stars and bars; (in Great Britain) Union Jack. verb 2 The highway patrol flagged us away from the accident: signal, warn, wave. 3 My energy flagged after climbing all those steps: decline, grow weak, wilt, give way, languish; grow spiritless, fall off in vigor, abate, slump, succumb, subside, sag, pall; fade, grow weary, tire, totter, dodder; faint, sink, ebb, wane, fail. Antonyms 3 freshen, recover, brace up. Noun As a pilot, he's still a fledgling: inexperienced person, novice, beginner, tyro, freshman, apprentice; Informal greenhorn, tenderfoot. Verb

foment

forestall

frugality

futile

gainsay

garrulous

She flouted convention by wearing black at her wedding: scorn, show contempt for, scoff at, spurn, laugh at, jeer at, gibe at, sneer at, defy, treat with disdain, mock, poke fun at; twit, taunt, chaff, rag, insult. Antonyms Revere; regard, respect, esteem. verb He did his best to foment a quarrel between the brothers: stir up, incite, foster, promote, instigate, provoke, urge, excite, stimulate, galvanize, foster; rouse, arouse, kindle, inflame, spur, goad, agitate; irritate, aggravate, exacerbate, quicken, fan the fire, fan into flame, blow the coals. Antonyms Quell, suppress, repress, quench; check, curb, restrain; allay, discourage, destroy, extinguish, extirpate. verb Labor and management have agreed on a temporary settlement, thereby fore-stalling a strike: prevent, thwart, ward off, avert, deter, avoid, head off, circumvent; counteract, block, preclude, obviate; anticipate, guard against; Informal steal a march on, beat to the punch. noun In middle age he was known for extreme frugality: carefulness, economizing, conservation, moderation, economy, prudence, scrimping, saving, thrift, stinginess, miserliness, avariciousness, parsimony adjective His efforts to save the business were futile: useless, fruitless, vain, profitless, idle, worthless, valueless, bootless, unprofitable; ineffective, ineffectual, unsuccessful, unavailing, abortive, nugatory; trifling, trivial, insignificant, empty, petty, frivolous, unimportant. Antonyms effective, fruitful, successful; profitable, useful, worthy; important, significant. gain?say (gan"sa', gan sa"), v.t., -said, -say?ing. 1. to deny; dispute; contradict. 2. to speak or act against; oppose. [1250?1300; ME gainsaien; see AGAIN, SAY] gain"say'er, n. adjective She's so garrulous you can't get a word in edgewise: talkative, effusive, loquacious; wordy, windy, verbose, long-winded; gabby, voluble, chattery, chatty, prattling, prating, babbling; gossipy. Antonyms reticent, taciturn, quiet, reserved, closemouthed; terse, concise.

noun 1 The drovers used goads to keep the herd moving: prod, cattle prod, prick, pointed stick. 2 Fear of failure can be a goad to hard work: incentive, stimulus, stimulant, motive, motivation, driving motive, pressure, spur; inducement, encouragement, instigation, whet, fillip. goad verb 3 His wife goaded him to ask for a raise: prod, urge, exhort, constrain, incite, spur, push, pressure, drive, stir up, arouse, Slang egg on; stimulate, impel, propel, move, press, set on. Antonyms 2 detriment, curb. 3 deter, keep back, hold back. gouge (gouj), n., v., gouged, goug?ing. n. 1. a chisel having a partly cylindrical blade with the bevel on either the concave or the convex side. 2. an act of gouging. 3. a hole made by gouging. 4. an act of extortion; swindle. 5. a. a layer of decomposed rocks or minerals found along the walls of a vein. b. fragments of rock that have accumulated between or along the walls of a gouge fault. v.t. 6. to scoop out or turn with or as if with a gouge. 7. to dig or force out with or as if with a gouge (often fol. by out ). 8. to make a gouge in: to gouge one's leg. 9. to extort from or overcharge. v.i. 10. to engage in extortion or swindling. [1300?50; < MF < LL gu(l)bia, perh. < Celtic; cf. OIr gulba sting, Welsh gylf beak, Cornish gilb borer] goug"er, n. Adjective The grandiloquent speech went on for over an hour: high-flown, highsounding, flowery, florid, grandiose, pompous, pretentious, bombastic, inflated, turgid, swollen, stilted; magniloquent, Grandiloquent lofty, rhetorical; Slang highfalutin. Antonyms Simple, direct, unaffected, plain-spoken, matter-of-fact, low-keyed; base, lowly. gregarious adjective A gregarious person loves parties: sociable, social, genial, outgoing, convivial, extroverted, companionable, affable, friendly; vivacious, lively, talkative.

Antonyms unsociable, solitary, reclusive, introverted, retiring, shy. adjective The child gave a guileless answer to the question: straightforward, candid, frank, open, natural, honest, sincere, truthful, aboveboard; artless, undesigning; ingenuous, naive, unsophisticated, guileless innocent, simple, unaffected, unselfconscious; harmless, innocuous, unoffending. Antonyms sly, cunning, deceitful, crafty, tricky, deceptive, artful; treacherous, fraudulent Adjective The youth was so gullible he bought the Brooklyn Bridge from a con man!: easily fooled, easily deceived, easily cheated, easily duped; overtrusting, unsuspicious, credulous, trusting, trustful; Gullible naive, innocent, unsophisticated, inexperienced, green, simple. Antonyms Cynical, suspicious, untrusting, hard to convince; sophisticated, worldly. ha?rangue (h* rang"), n., v., -rangued, -rangu?ing. n. 1. a scolding or a verbal attack; diatribe. 2. a long, passionate, and vehement speech, esp. one delivered before a public gathering. 3. any long, pompous speech or writing of a tediously hortatory or didactic nature; sermonizing discourse. v.t. harangue 4. to address in a harangue. v.i. 5. to deliver a harangue. [1530?40; < MF < It ar(r)inga speech, oration, n. der. of ar(r)ingare to speak in public, v. der. of aringo public square < Go *hriggs RING1] syn See SPEECH. adjective It was a homogeneous crowd of teenage girls, all wearing jeans and sweaters: of the same kind, all alike, of a piece; uniform, unmixed, unvarying, unadulterated; consistent, constant, pure; homogeneous akin, kindred, similar, identical. Antonyms heterogeneous, mixed, varied, varying, variegated, different, diverse, divers, various, divergent. hyperbole noun "She's as big as a house" is an example of hyperbole: overstatement, exaggeration, enlargement, magnification,

iconoclast

idolatry

immutable

impair

impassive

impede

extravagant statement, figurative statement, stretch of the imagination; figure of speech, metaphor. Antonyms Understatement. noun He's an iconoclast who will have nothing to do with organized religion: dissenter, rebel, nonconformist, upstart, radical, revolutionary. Antonyms conformist, assenter. noun 1 Idolatry was commonplace in many early pagan religions: worship of an object, image-worship, reverence of idols, idolization. 2 Only a millionaire could satisfy that woman's idolatry of jewels: inordinate love, worship, adoration, obsession, preoccupation, excessive fondness, passion, devotion, veneration, singleminded attention, infatuation, senseless attachment, madness, mania. Adjective Platinum is one of the most immutable of metals: unchanging, unchangeable, changeless, unvarying, unaltered, unalterable, incontrovertible, unmodifiable, intransmutable; permanent, lasting, enduring, stable; firm, fixed, solid, constant, inflexible. Antonyms Changeable, unstable, alterable, flexible, variable. verb The water shortage impaired the city's fire-fighting capacity: hinder, damage, mar, hurt, vitiate, harm, cripple, subvert, injure, lessen, weaken, enfeeble, decrease, undercut, detract from, reduce; enervate, debilitate, worsen. Antonyms improve, amend; repair; better, ameliorate, enhance, facilitate, increase. adjective The moderator maintained an impassive manner throughout the furious debate: emotionless, unemotional, unmoved, imperturbable, dispassionate, aloof, stoical, untouched, stony, calm, cool, sedate, reserved, unperturbed, unimpressible, inscrutable, impervious, stolid, apathetic, phlegmatic, unimpressionable, insensible, indifferent. Antonyms responsive, emotional, passionate, excited, perturbed. verb A lumber shortage impeded construction on the house: delay, slow down, block, interfere with, interrupt, check, retard, obstruct, hinder, thwart, frustrate, inhibit, arrest, sidetrack, stall, stymie,

deter, hamper, hold back, halter, disrupt. Antonyms assist, promote, advance, further, forward; help, aid. im?per?me?a?ble (im p?r"me bl), adj. 1. not permeable; impassable. 2. (of porous substances, rocks, etc.) not permitting the passage of a fluid. impermeable [1690?1700; < LL] im?per'me?a?bil"i?ty, im?per"me?a?ble?ness, n. im?per"me?a?bly, adv. adjective The usually imperturbable man showed signs of fear: unexcitable, calm, collected, cool, serene, undisturbed, unruffled, dispassionate, unflustered, levelheaded, sedate, composed; unsusceptible, imperturbable impervious, impassive, unanxious, unfazable; Slang unflappable. Antonyms perturbable, choleric, touchy. adjective 1 The firemen wore masks that were impervious to the acrid smoke: impenetrable, impermeable, inaccessible, allowing no passage to, unapproachable; sealed or closed against; invulnerable. 2 The beautiful actress seemed impervious to the usual ravages of age: immune to, protected against; untouched by, impervious unmarked by. 3 The stubborn man seemed impervious to reason: unmoved by, unaffected by, untouched by, invulnerable, closed. Antonyms 1 susceptible, vulnerable. 2 open, exposed, susceptible, sensitive, liable, prone. adjective It was impossible to negotiate with such an implacable enemy: irreconcilable, unappeasable, inexorable, unamenable, inflexible, intractable, unpacifiable, uncompromising, relentless, implacable unrelenting. Antonyms reconcilable, appeasable, yielding, lenient, relenting, forbearing, indulgent, tolerant, flexible. adjective 1 Victory was implicit in the early election returns: implied, hinted, suggested, tacitly expressed; inferred, deducible, understood. implicit 2 The crew had implicit faith in the captain's judgment: innate, inherent, unquestioning, absolute, complete, profound, certain, resolute, unshakable, unreserved, total, unshakable, steadfast, staunch. implode im?plode (im plod"), v., -plod?ed, -plod?ing.

v.i. 1. to burst inward (opposed to explode). v.t. 2. to pronounce (a consonant) with implosion. [1880?85; IM-1 + (EX)PLODE] adjective The newspaper apologized for the inadvertent omission: unintentional, unintended, not on purpose, accidental, fortuitous, inadvertent unmeant, unthinking, involuntary, unpremeditated. Antonyms deliberate, premeditated, intentional, studied, considered, conscious, aware adjective The architect began with a vague, inchoate design and then worked out the details: beginning, budding, incipient, commencing, embryonic, nascent; shapeless, formless, unformed, inchoate unshaped, amorphous; unorganized, uncohesive, disjointed, disconnected. Antonyms formed, shaped; finished, completed. adjective 1 Bathing suits look incongruous on a ski slope: inappropriate, odd, outlandish, out of keeping, out of place, unsuitable, not harmonious, Slang far-out. 2 The witness's incongruous testimony damaged his credibility: conflicting, incongruous contrary, at variance, incompatible, contradictory, inconsistent, irreconcilable, discrepant, disagreeing. Antonyms 1 congruous, fitting, suitable, appropriate, consonant, consistent, accordant, agreeing, harmonious, becoming. adjective The matter is too inconsequential to worry about: trivial, trifling, of no moment, valueless, slight, unimportant, of no inconsequential consequence, insignificant, negligible, nugatory, meaningless, piddling, petty, picayune. Antonyms consequential, important, momentous, significant, meaningful, crucial. verb The committee incorporated the investigator's findings in its report: incorporate include, embody, work in, consolidate, fuse, amalgamate, introduce into, assimilate. indeterminate adjective The acting superintendent will serve for an indeterminate time: unspecified, undetermined, unstipulated, uncertain, unfixed in extent or amount, unclear, obscure, not clear, unresolved, vague, undefined; ambiguous, problematic, perplexing, indefinite.

indigent

indolent

inert

ingenuous

inherent

innocuous

Antonyms specified, precise, definite, clear, certain, determined, fixed, defined. adjective Many indigent people receive government aid: needy, destitute, in want, lacking the necessities of life, poor, in need, pinched, poverty-stricken, impoverished, penniless, without resources, badly off, moneyless, without food and clothing; Informal unable to keep the wolf from the door, hard-up. Antonyms wealthy, moneyed, rich, affluent, comfortable, solvent, flush. adjective The indolent boy was fired: lazy, slothful, habitually idle, inactive, easygoing, shiftless, slack, sluggish, inert, lethargic, donothing, listless, lumpish, lackadaisical, dawdling, dilatory. Antonyms industrious; busy, diligent, conscientious, assiduous, sedulous; energetic, strenuous, vigorous, active. adjective The man was so inert he seemed dead: motionless, static, immobile, stationary, inactive, quiescent, still, passive, inanimate, impassive; listless, phlegmatic, sluggish, dull, numb, leaden, supine, slack, torpid, languid. Antonyms dynamic; animated; active, alert, kinetic, brisk, lively, energetic, vigorous. adjective She was so charming and ingenuous most people adored her at once: natural, artless, guileless, unaffected, genuine, simplehearted, openhearted, honest, open, unsophisticated, frank, direct, trusting, straightforward; Slang up front, straightshooting. Antonyms worldly-wise, jaded, disingenuous; wily, devious, tricky. adjective Freedom of religion is an inherent part of the Bill of Rights: essential, innate, inseparable, hereditary, native, intrinsic, inborn, deep-rooted, inveterate, natural, inbred, ingrained, constitutional, inalienable. Antonyms foreign, alien, extrinsic, adventitious; subsidiary, superficial, supplemental. adjective 1 The women exchanged innocuous gossip over lunch: harmless, not damaging, painless, not injurious, innocent, mild, inoffensive. 2 The play was innocuous and quickly forgotten: meaningless, vapid, insipid, dull, pointless, empty, barren; trite, banal, commonplace. Antonyms

insensibility

insinuate

insipid

insularity

intractable

intransigent

1 hurtful, deleterious, harmful, insidious, obnoxious, damaging, injurious, offensive, malicious. 2 powerful, trenchant, compelling, impressive. noun 1 The patient lapsed into insensibility: unconsciousness. 2 His insensibility to criticism was legendary: indifference, apathy, insusceptibility. Antonyms consciousness; concern, sensibility. verb 1 The article insinuated that the fighter was bribed: imply, suggest, hint slyly, allude remotely to, intimate, asperse, whisper, let fall. 2 The social climber insinuated herself into the group: ingratiate, push artfully, worm one's way, gently incorporate, introduce subtly, wheedle, inject, insert. Antonyms 1 deny. 2 withdraw, remove, retreat; alienate. adjective 1 An insipid play like that won't last two weeks: uninteresting, pointless, stupid, dull, characterless, banal, wearisome, bland, boring, trite, vapid, inane, barren, drab, prosaic, jejune, lifeless, zestless, arid, monotonous, lean, empty, commonplace; Slang blah, wishy-washy, namby-pamby. 2 The unsalted vegetables were insipid: flat, tasteless, savorless, stale, vapid, unappetizing. Antonyms 1 interesting, zestful, pungent, spirited, spunky, provocative, engaging, lively, stimulating, exciting, piquant, colorful. 2 pungent, piquant, spicy; fiery, peppery, gingery; savory, flavorful, tasty, palatable, appetizing; gusty. (state of being insulated) insulate verb Thick walls insulated the house: shield, protect, cocoon, cushion, line, wrap; isolate, keep apart, seclude, sequester, separate. adjective The intractable child refused to obey: stubborn, perverse, headstrong, ornery, hard to cope with, obstinate, willful, unmanageable, obdurate, incorrigible, mulish, unruly, fractious, froward, refractory, ungovernable, uncontrollable, contumacious, unmalleable, inflexible. Antonyms tractable, obedient, docile, submissive, subdued; compliant, acquiescent, amiable. adjective

inundate

inure

invective

irascible

irresolute

itinerary

laconic

The intransigent strikers refused to negotiate: uncompromising, stubborn, intractable, obdurate, iron-willed, steadfast, diehard, unyielding, unmovable, unbudgeable, inflexible. Antonyms compromising, yielding, flexible, open-minded, acquiescent, compliant verb 1 Floodwaters inundated the valley: engulf, overflow, fill with water, overspread, drench, submerge, flood, deluge, drown. 2 The visiting astronaut was inundated with invitations: swamp, glut, flood, saturate, overcome; load down, overburden, overwhelm. Antonyms 1 drain dry, reclaim, desiccate, parch, empty. verb Growing up in Alaska inured him to cold weather: accustom, habituate, familiarize, make used to, naturalize, custom; harden, strengthen, toughen, season, temper, desensitize, discipline, train, adapt, acclimatize, acclimate, get used to. noun Invective poured from the speaker's mouth: bitter language, harsh words, verbal abuse, venom, vilification, insult, contumely, diatribe, execration, sarcasm; vituperation, denunciation, revilement, censure, rant, railing, billingsgate. Antonyms praise, honor, commendation. adjective The irascible old man is constantly picking fights: easily angered, touchy, cantankerous, choleric, waspish, bad-tempered, ill-humored, hot-tempered, irritable, intractable, ornery, splenetic, cross, testy, cranky, grumpy, grouchy, peevish. Antonyms good-natured, amiable, gentle, mild, placid, serene, tranquil, easygoing. adjective His irresolute nature made him a poor executive: indecisive, wavering, hesitating, hesitant, faltering, unsettled, doubtful, undecided, uncertain, unsure, changeable, vacillating, fickle, weak, unsteady, unresolved. Antonyms resolute, determined, unwavering, decisive; decided, certain. noun 1 Leave an itinerary so we can reach you: travel plan, schedule, detailed plan for a trip, list of places to be visited, timetable, course, route, circuit. 2 Father kept a lively itinerary of the trip: log, record of a journey, travel record, journal, account, diary, day book. adjective

lassitude

latent

laud

lethargic

levee levity

Although his speeches were laconic, they were informative: short, concise, brief, succinct, terse, compact, condensed, pithy, concentrated, sparing of words, pointed, to the point, summary; curt, blunt. Antonyms voluble, wordy, loquacious, garrulous, verbose. noun His lassitude was caused by overwork: weariness, weakness, debility, sluggishness, fatigue, tiredness, exhaustion, fatigue, lack of energy, enervation, lethargy, listlessness, inertia, feebleness, indolence, faintness, torpor, torpidity, drowsiness, languor, languidness, supineness, prostration, dullness, droopiness; apathy, indifference, ennui, doldrums, boredom; malaise. Antonyms vigor, energy, strength, robustness, freshness; verve, spirit, vitality; Informal get-up-and-go, push, vim, pep. adjective Many of our deepest desires remain latent: dormant, sleeping, quiescent, inactive, passive, suspended, in abeyance, abeyant, potential, undeveloped, unrealized, unaroused, not manifest, hidden, concealed, covert, lurking, intangible, unapparent, unexposed, inconspic-uous, unexpressed. Antonyms activated, realized, developed; manifest, expressed, apparent, evident, obvious, conspicuous. verb They lauded the brave attempt: praise, extol, applaud, celebrate, esteem, honor. Antonyms censure, condemn, criticize. adjective The hot, humid climate made everyone lethargic: lazy, drowsy, sleepy, soporific, languid, indolent, idle, dull, somnolent, comatose, enervated, debilitated, dispirited, unspirited, torpid, lackluster, sluggish, slothful, indifferent, passive, inert, listless, apathetic. Antonyms energetic, vigorous, alert, active, responsive, bright, spirited; energized, animated, stimulated. noun-A barrier constructed to contain the flow or water or to keep out the sea-dam,dike,dyke. noun The situation is too grave for levity: frivolity, lightness, lightheartedness, whimsy, lack of earnestness or seriousness, triviality, hilarity, foolishness, silliness, joking, mirth, jocularity, trifling, flippancy, flightiness; pleasantry, fun.

Antonyms gravity, seriousness, sobriety, earnestness, solemnity, dignity. noun 1 The cabin was built of logs: length of tree trunk, timber, part of tree limb; block, stump. 2 The time of departure was entered in the ship's log: logbook; (loosely) log daybook, journal, calendar, diary, docket, schedule, account, record. verb 3 The college student spent his summers logging in the north woods: cut timber, fell trees, work as a lumberjack, lumber. adjective He's so loquacious I can't get a word in edgewise: talkative, talky, prolix, garrulous, wordy, verbose, voluble, windy, longwinded; loquacious prating, chatty, chattery, chattering, babbling, prattling; Informal gabby, blabby. Antonyms silent, reserved, taciturn, closemouthed, uncommunicative, reticent. adjective 1 A lucid sky portended a fine day: shining, bright, clear, transparent, crystalline, brilliant, resplendent, radiant, lustrous, luminous, scintillating, sparkling, dazzling; pellucid; illuminated. 2 The witness gave a lucid account of what happened: clear, easily understood, crystal clear, intelligible, understandable, articulate, comprehensible; precise, direct, straightforward, accurate, specific, well-organized, to the point, apposite, positive, certain. lucid 3 Although usually in a delirium, the patient has some lucid moments: clearheaded, clear thinking, normal, rational; responsive, perceptive. Antonyms 1 dark, darkling, gloomy, dusky, obscure, opaque, turgid, muddy, murky; overcast. 2 unintelligible, incomprehensible, vague, indistinct, unclear, ambiguous, equivocal, garbled, mystifying. 3 confused, muddled, irrational; unresponsive, unperceptive. adjective The watch has a luminous dial: reflecting light, luminescent, radiant, luminous irradiated, glowing, lustrous, illuminated, shining; shining in the dark; bright, brilliant. magnanimous adjective Only a truly magnanimous man could forgive such an insult: forgiving, free of vindictiveness, generous, largehearted, liberal; charitable, beneficent, philanthropic, altruistic, unselfish, princely. Antonyms unforgiving, vindictive, resentful, small, petty, selfish; parsimonious,

miserly. verb In the army he would malinger by pretending to be ill: slack, shirk, malinger procrastinate, loaf, dodge, evade, duck one's duty, lie down on the job; Slang goldbrick, goof off. adjective 1 Tin is a malleable metal: workable, easily shaped, easily wrought; ductile, tractable, plastic, pliant, flexible. 2 Since young children are malleable, one must be careful what one says in front of them: impressionable, easily influenced, malleable moldable, tractable, teachable, manageable, governable, docile; adaptable, flexible, pliable, compliant. Antonyms 1 rigid, stiff, hard, firm; unyielding, inflexible, unbending, inelastic. 2 refractory, intractable, recalcitrant, ungovernable. noun 1 The cowboys rounded up the mavericks for branding: unbranded calf, yearling; unbranded cow; motherless calf. maverick 2 The young senator was regarded as a political maverick: noncomformist, eccentric, independent, individualist, loner, independent thinker, one's own man; dissenter, dissident. adjective The mendacious retailer misled us: lying, untrue, false, untruthful, mendacious deceitful. Antonyms truthful, honest. noun 1 There are four stages in the metamorphosis of a mosquito: transformation, change of form, mutation, transmutation, structural evolution, transfiguration, series of changes, modification, metamorphosis conversion, transmogrification. 2 This once-confident man underwent a complete metamorphosis after his business failure: change in appearance or behavior, personality change, transformation, alteration, radical change, startling change, permutation. adjective Our meticulous housekeeper never forgets a thing: fastidious, scrupulous, exact, exacting, minutely careful, solicitous about meticulous details, painstaking, precise, nice, finical, finicky, fussy, particular; punctilious, perfectionist. Antonyms careless, inexact, imprecise, sloppy, negligent. misanthropic adjective His unhappy childhood fostered his misanthropic personality: antisocial, unfriendly, unsociable, distrustful, unneighborly, inhospitable, morose, unpersonable, cynical, surly, discourteous,

mitigate

mollify

morose

mundane

negate

neophyte

unaccommodating, unapproachable, unresponsive, cold, distant. Antonyms personable, amiable, amicable, loving, sociable, cordial; humanitarian; philanthropic, charitable. verb There's no way to mitigate the effect of that unfavorable report: lessen, relieve, moderate, moderate in severity, alleviate, abate in intensity, palliate, soften, assuage, allay, soothe, placate, weaken, mollify, ameliorate, ease, blunt, reduce, lighten, diminish, temper, extenuate. Antonyms increase, augment, heighten, enhance, strengthen. verb Flowers would not mollify her anger: appease, calm, moderate, placate, quell, still, lessen, mitigate, allay, reduce, palliate, conciliate, make less violent, decrease, soften, pacify, soothe, tone down, quiet, lighten, temper, abate, ease, assuage, curb, check, dull, lull, blunt. Antonyms exasperate, exacerbate, agitate, stir, increase. adjective I feel very morose after reading that sad story: depressed, low, crestfallen, sad, melancholy, downcast, moody, glum, dour, Informal blue, down in the dumps; saturnine, mopish, gloomy, despondent, mournful, solemn; sullen, sulky, cross, surly, testy, waspish, sour, churlish, grumpy, cranky, ill-tempered, irascible. Antonyms cheerful, blithe, happy, good-natured, pleasant, genial, amiable, friendly. adjective Artists often have trouble with the mundane affairs of life: ordinary, prosaic, commonplace, worldly, terrestrial, earthly, downtoearth, day-to-day, routine, humdrum, everyday, practical, pedestrian, petty. Antonyms heavenly, celestial, ethereal, empyrean, unearthly, unworldly, spiritual. verb This year's losses negate last year's profits: nullify, invalidate, void, reverse; quash, squash, quell, squelch; vanquish, defeat, overthrow, overwhelm, destroy, wipe out, blot out; deny, abrogate, revoke, gainsay, retract, disavow; rebut, refute, contradict; disallow, set aside; veto, repeal; disown, disclaim, repudiate. Antonyms affirm, confirm, attest to, ratify, endorse, corroborate, reinforce, support. noun The neophyte learned the ropes very fast: beginner, tyro, apprentice, trainee, novice, probationer, newcomer, recruit,

obdurate

obsequious

obviate

occlude

officious

learner; tenderfoot, rookie, greenhorn, student, pupil; convert, proselyte, entrant, disciple, no-vitiate. Antonyms veteran, old hand, expert. adjective 1 The child was obdurate in refusing to eat vegetables: stubborn, obstinate, intractable, unyielding, inflexible, adamant, immovable, willful, headstrong, pigheaded, mulish, bullheaded; unmanageable, uncontrollable, ungovernable. 2 The tyrant was obdurate in his treatment of prisoners: unmoved, uncaring, unfeeling, harsh, merciless, unmerciful, unpitying, pitiless, unsympathetic, uncompassionate, unsparing, untouched; hardened, callous, cruel, cold-blooded, hardhearted. Antonyms 1 obedient, agreeable, compliant, flexible, amenable; manageable, docile, tractable. 2 compassionate, sympathetic, caring, feeling, merciful, pitying, relenting, softhearted, kind, gentle, tender. adjective The boss prefers obsequious underlings: servile, fawning, toadying, sycophantic, subservient, menial, ingratiating, deferential, slavish, cringing, cowering, mealymouthed, truckling, Slang bootlicking, kowtowing, apple-polishing. Antonyms domineering, overbearing, swaggering, lordly, imperious, proud, haughty, arrogant, impudent, brash, bold, assertive, forceful, aggressive. verb The suspect's confession obviates the necessity for a trial: avert, avoid, make unnecessary, circumvent, remove, do away with, preclude, prevent; forestall, divert, parry, sidetrack, ward off, turn aside, stave off, fend off, Informal nip in the bud. Antonyms necessitate, require, make essential, oblige, impel, cause, make unavoidable. verb Waste materials seem to be occluding the drain: obstruct, block, clog, shut off, shut up, choke, choke off, plug, close, barricade, congest, stopper, stop up, constrict, strangulate. Antonyms clear, unclog, open, ream, unplug. adjective It's hard to be an office manager without being officious: obtrusive, intrusive, interfering, meddlesome, meddling, prying, poking one's nose in, offering gratuitous advice or services, Informal

onerous

opprobrious

oscillate

ostentatious

paragon

kibitzing; overbearing, domineering, self-important, self-assertive, high-handed, high and mighty; pompous, patronizing. Antonyms unobtrusive, in the background. adjective Holding down two jobs can be an onerous task: oppressive, burdensome, hard to endure, arduous, not easy to bear, distressing, painful, wearisome, taxing, exhausting, crushing, heavy, weighty, demanding, grievous. Antonyms easy, light, simple, effortless, trivial, trifling. adjective 1 The editorial made an opprobrious attack on modern morals: damning, denunciatory, condemnatory, hypercritical, censorious, faultfinding; abusive, scurrilous, acrimonious, malicious, malevolent, maligning, vilifying, vitriolic, fulminating, reviling. 2 The officer was reprimanded for his opprobrious conduct: disgraceful, dishonorable, shameful, disreputable, objectionable, unbecoming, deplorable, reprehensible, base, outrageous, shocking, scandalous, infamous, nefarious, despicable, corrupt, wicked. Antonyms 1 complimentary, flattering, approving, praising, laudatory, uncritical. 2 honorable, noble, meritorious, upright, ethical, principled, virtuous, moral; becoming, praiseworthy, worthy, laudable, noteworthy, estimable. verb 1 The clock's pendulum caught the sunlight as it oscillated: swing, alternate, librate; pulsate, vibrate, pulse, move back and forth, seesaw, come and go, ebb and flow. 2 He's been oscillating between liberal and conservative all his life: waver, vacillate, hesitate, fluctuate, vary, hem and haw, shilly-shally, change, equivocate. adjective Grandfather warned us not to be ostentatious with our money. The dress is too ostentatious to wear to a reception: flaunting wealth, fond of display, showing off, pompous, immodest, grandiose, affected, high-flown; conspicuous, pretentious, flamboyant, flashy, showy, gaudy, garish, loud, florid, overdone, exaggerated, obtrusive. Antonyms modest, reserved, conservative, somber, sedate; inconspicuous, simple, plain. noun Aunt Sue has always been a paragon of virtue: model, example, exemplar,

partisan

pathological

paucity

pedantic

penchant

prototype, archetype, paradigm, apotheosis, idea, symbol, pattern, standard, norm, criterion, yardstick. noun 1 The hometown partisans cheered the local team: supporter, follower, adherent, sympathizer, champion, advocate, ally, backer, upholder, enthusiast, fan, zealot, devotee, rooter, booster. 2 Even after the country was defeated, partisans fought the invaders in the hills: freedom fighter, guerrilla, irregular, insurgent; (U.S. Civil War) bushwacker, jayhawker. adjective 3 The senator vowed not to engage in partisan politics: favoring one political party, predisposed toward one group, favoring a cause, partial, biased, prejudiced, one-sided, slanted, unbalanced, subjective. Antonyms 1 detractor, defamer, censor, critic, backbiter, knocker; opponent, foe, adversary, rival, contender. 3 nonpartisan, bipartisan, unbiased, impartial, unprejudiced, disinterested, objective, broad-minded, open-minded. path?o?log?i?cal (path' loj"i kl) also path'o?log"ic, adj. 1. of or pertaining to pathology. 2. caused or affected by disease. 3. characterized by an unhealthy compulsion: a pathological liar. [1680?90] path'o?log"i?cal?ly, adv. noun There was a paucity of information on the reported invasion: scarcity, dearth, lack, shortage, scarceness, scantiness, deficiency, poverty, sparsity, meagerness, puniness, thinness, poorness, insufficiency. Antonyms surfeit, overflow, excess, surplus, superabundance. adjective When you ask him a question you get a pedantic answer: ostentatiously learned, pompous, academic, scholastic, didactic, doctrinaire, bookish, stilted, dogmatic, punctilious, hairsplitting, nitpicking, overly meticulous, fussy, finicky, overparticular. Antonyms succinct, pithy, straightforward; vague; general, comprehensive noun The fat youth had a penchant for rich desserts: fondness, partiality, liking, strong inclination, fancy, preference, predilection, proclivity, propensity, leaning, attraction, taste, relish, tendency, affinity, predisposition, disposition, proneness, prejudice, bias; flair, bent, readiness, turn, knack, gift. Antonyms hatred, dislike, loathing, aversion, abhorrence, disinclination, repulsion.

penury

perennial

perfidious

perfunctory

permeable pervasive phlegmatic

noun She lived in penury during her last years: poverty, impoverishment, want, indi-gence, need, privation, destitution, straitened circumstances, dire necessity; financial ruin, insolvency, bankruptcy. Antonyms wealth, prosperity, opulence, luxury, elegance, abundance, affluence. adjective He sat there with that perennial grin on his face: perpetual, everlasting, permanent, constant, incessant, unceasing, ceaseless, continual, continuous, unremitting, persistent; fixed, changeless, unchanging, immutable, durable, imperishable, indestructible, lasting, enduring, long-lasting, undying, timeless, unfailing, long-lived. Antonyms temporary, occasional, sporadic, intermittent, periodic, evanescent; perishable, transient, fleeting, ephemeral, temporal. adjective Benedict Arnold's perfidious act made him his country's first traitor: treacherous, traitorous, treasonous, deceitful, false, disloyal, unfaithful, faithless, treasonable, dishonorable, untrustworthy, unscrupulous; dishonest, corrupt, untruthful, undependable, lying, cheating; Informal sneaky, double-dealing, shifty, two-faced. adjective That was certainly a perfunctory "hello" he gave us: indifferent, casual, disinterested, offhand, careless, unconcerned, unthinking, cursory, inattentive, lax, hasty, superficial, routine, mechanical, halfhearted, lukewarm, apathetic, spiritless, listless, passionless; negligent. Antonyms careful, thorough, thoughtful, diligent, assiduous, attentive, warmhearted, effusive, spirited, ardent, keen, zealous. per"me?a?ble?ness, n. per"me?a?bly, adv. adjective Ill feeling was pervasive at the plant: pervading, prevalent, permeating, widespread, common, extensive, general, omnipresent, ubiquitous, universal, inescapable. adjective Admiral Togo was always phlegmatic in the face of danger: indifferent, apathetic, nonchalant, unemotional, unimpassioned, undemonstrative, unresponsive, imperturbable, unconcerned, unexcitable, cool, calm, serene, tranquil, impassive, stoical; spiritless, listless, languid, lethargic, sluggish, dull, passive, unfeeling, insensitive. Antonyms

piety

placate

Plasticity

platitude

plethora

plummet

porous

pragmatic

preamble

emotional, passionate, excited; active, demonstrative, alert, lively, animated, energetic, interested. noun The old woman expressed her piety by attending church daily: piousness, religiousness, devoutness, devotion, godliness; reverence, respect, loyalty, dutifulness, humility; religiosity. Antonyms impiety, sacrilege, ungodliness, blasphemy, irreverence; disrespect, disloyalty, infidelity. verb No one can placate him when he's angry: calm, soothe, pacify, quiet, lull, mollify, assuage, alleviate; appease, propitiate, win over, conciliate. . 1. the quality or state of being plastic. 2. the capability of being molded: the plasticity of clay. [1775?85] noun The speech was dull and full of platitudes: trite remark, stereotyped expression, clich?, banality, commonplace, truism, hackneyed saying, old saw, saw, threadbare phrase, Slang chestnut, bromide, old familiar tune, same old thing. noun The potluck supper had a plethora of desserts but no meat dishes: excess, surplus, superfluity, surplusage, surfeit, overabundance, superabundance, glut, overage, redundancy. Antonyms shortage, lack, scarcity, deficiency. verb The hawk plummeted toward the earth: plunge, fall, fall headlong, drop straight down, dive, tumble, descend abruptly, nosedive. Antonyms rise, ascend, shoot upward, soar. adjective Sponges are porous: absorbent, permeable, penetrable, pervious; honeycombed. sievelike, cellular, riddled, lacy; spongy. adjective The problem requires a pragmatic solution, not theories: down-to-earth, matter-of-fact, practical, utilitarian, hardheaded, sober, businesslike, hard-boiled, sensible, realistic, unidealistic, hardnosed, materialistic, unsentimental. Antonyms idealistic, theoretical; romantic, dreamy, sentimental. 1. an introductory statement; preface. 2. the introductory part of a statute, deed, constitution, or other document,

stating the intent of what follows. 3. a preliminary or introductory fact or circumstance. [1350?1400; ME < ML praeambulum, n. use of neut. of LL praeambulus walking before. See PRE-, AMBLE] pre"am'bled, adj. adjective 1 The situation was precarious politically: vulnerable, uncertain, problematical, ticklish, uncontrolled, critical, insecure, touchandgo, not to be depended upon, unreliable, undependable, doubtful, dubious, questionable. precarious 2 Free-lance work can be a precarious occupation: hazardous, risky, perilous, unsafe, chancy, unsteady, unstable, shaky; alarming, sinister. Antonyms 1 certain, sure, secure, dependable, reliable, unquestionable. 2 safe, steady, stable. verb 1 The war precipitated his induction into the army: hasten, bring on, quicken, expedite, speed up, accelerate, advance, spur. 2 The explosion precipitated tons of snow from the mountain: throw, hurl, thrust, cast, fling, propel, drive, launch, catapult, precipitate discharge, let fly. adjective 3 She had to make precipitate choices as the test was only 5 minutes: hurried, hasty, abrupt, rushed, proceeding rapidly, speedy; headlong, reckless, rash, incautious, foolhardy, imprudent, thoughtless, impetuous, impulsive. noun The polite letters were only precursors to blackmail: vanguard, advance precursor guard, forerunner; harbinger, messenger; usher, herald; predecessor, antecedent; sign, token, mark, omen, portent, warning; symptom. adjective 1 It was presumptuous of the young senator to challenge the leadership so soon: bold, audacious, daring, overconfident, overfamiliar, forward, nervy, shameless, brash, brazen, brassy, fresh, presumptuous cocky. 2 Her presumptuous airs made her disliked by many: haughty, proud, snobbish, assuming, overbearing, lofty, patronizing, pompous, lordly, imperious; disdainful, contemptuous, domineering, dictatorial, arrogant. prevaricate verb She may have prevaricated a bit about her illustrious forebears: lie, fib, stretch the truth, dissemble, perjure, deceive, palter, be untruthful, tell a story, tell a tall story, be evasive; falsify, misstate, fake, hoodwink, counterfeit, misrepresent, mislead,

pristine

probity

problematic

prodigal

profound

distort. adjective It was a pristine part of the woods that few hikers had ever seen: undefiled, unsullied, untouched, unspoiled, untarnished, virginal; uncontaminated, unpolluted, pure, unmarred. Antonyms sullied, defiled, contaminated, polluted, spoiled, tarnished. noun Above all, the Presidency needs a man of probity for the Cabinet post: integrity, uprightness, honesty, virtue, highmindedness, morality, character, principle, honor, trustworthiness, incorruptibility, straightness, decency, goodness, righteousness. Antonyms dishonesty, duplicity, unscrupulous, corruption. adjective The composition of Saturn's rings is problematic: uncertain, doubtful, questionable, dubious, unsettled, undetermined, enigmatic, unknown; perplexing, paradoxical, puzzling; difficult, troublesome, worrisome. Antonyms certain, settled, known, undisputed, unquestionable. adjective 1 He had nothing left of his inheritance because of his prodigal ways: wasteful, spendthrift, unthrifty, thriftless, overliberal, profligate, extravagant, exorbitant, lavish, excessive, gluttonous; improvident, dissipating, inordinate, intemperate, immoderate, reckless, impetuous, precipitate, wanton. 2 The prodigal amount of eggs laid by the fish insure the survival of the species: bountiful, profuse, abounding, abundant, plentiful, bounteous, ample; lush, luxuriant, lavish, exuberant, generous; numerous, countless, numberless, innumerable, multitudinous; teeming, swarming, myriad, replete, copious. noun 3 The prodigal went through money as if it were water: spendthrift, squanderer, spender, wastrel, profligate. Antonyms 1 thrifty, frugal, economical, cautious, miserly, stingy; provident, temperate, moderate. 2 scarce, scanty, deficient, scant, meager, sparse, few, limited. adjective 1 That was a very profound statement: deep, thoughtful, wise, sagacious, sage, penetrating, piercing, learned, erudite, intellectual, scholarly, educated; knowledgeable, comprehensive, recondite, omniscient, all-knowing; philosophical, reflective, thoughtful, well-considered, sober, serious, sober-minded; informed, well-informed, knowing, enlightened.

prohibitive

proliferate

propensity

propitiate

propriety

2 His death had a profound effect on her: deep, severe, abject, extreme; thorough, thoroughgoing, far-reaching, radical, utter, out-and-out, complete, consummate; penetrating, piercing, pronounced, decided, positive. 3 Please accept my profound apologies: deeply felt, heartfelt, keenly felt, sincere, heart-stirring, strongly felt, deep-seated, soul-stirring, moving; hearty, intense, keen, acute, abject. Antonyms 1 shallow, superficial, unwise, stupid, unlearned, uneducated, unknowledgeable, thoughtless, inconsiderate; uninformed, unenlightened; imprudent. 2 slight, superficial, shallow, surface, external. 3 insincere, shallow, hollow. also prohibitory adjective Prohibitive laws discouraged the drug trade. The project was abandoned because of prohibitive costs: inhibitive, restrictive, circumscriptive, enjoining, restraining, forbidding; suppressive, repressive; preventive, injunctive; hindering, obstructive, disallowing, disqualifying, inadmissible, unacceptable. verb Rabbits proliferated after they were introduced into Australia: multiply, increase, reproduce rapidly, breed quickly, overproduce, procreate, regenerate, propagate, pullulate, teem, swarm; hatch, breed, spawn. noun Children have a propensity for candy: inclination, leaning, proclivity, predilection, liking, partiality, weakness, preference, penchant; attraction, liking, affinity, sympathy, favor, pleasure, taste, fancy; turn, bent, tendency, predisposition, bias, prejudice, disposition. Antonyms disinclination, aversion, loathing, dislike, hatred, antipathy, displeasure. verb Offerings were made to propitiate the gods: appease, placate, pacify, calm, assuage, mollify, conciliate, accommodate, soothe, allay. Antonyms anger, madden, infuriate, roil, pique, provoke. noun Always conduct yourself with propriety: correctness; courtesy, decorum, good behavior, decorousness, dignity, good manners, etiquette, formality, gentlemanly or ladylike behavior, respectability; savoir faire, appropriateness, becomingness, applicability, fitness, suitableness, seemliness, aptness, rightness. Antonyms

proscribe

pungent

qualified

quibble

impropriety, incorrectness, discourtesy, misbehavior, misconduct, bad manners, faux pas, inappropriateness, unsuitability, unseemliness, inaptness, wrongness. verb During the Renaissance the church proscribed scientific works like those of Galileo: denounce, condemn, censure, disapprove, repudiate; curse, damn, anathematize; outlaw, prohibit, forbid, interdict, ban, excommunicate; banish, exile; boycott. Antonyms allow, permit, encourage, aid. adjective 1 The ribs were served with a hot, pungent sauce: sharp-tasting, highly flavored, savory, spicy, flavorful, piquant, flavorsome, palatable, tasty, highly seasoned, salty, peppery, hot; nippy, tangy, strong, stimulating, sharp; sharp-smelling, acrid, sour, acid, tart, astringent, vinegary, caustic, bitter, acetous, biting, stinging, smarting, penetrating. 2 His pungent ridicule made him quite a few enemies: sharp, piercing, pointed, acute, trenchant, keen, poignant; stinging, biting, mordent, caustic, invidious, cutting, incisive, penetrating, sarcastic, smart, wounding, tart, acrimonious, bitter; stimulating, stirring, provocative, tantalizing, racy, spicy, scintillating; sparkling, brilliant, clever, snappy, keen-witted, witty. Antonyms 1 bland, mild; unsavory, unpalatable, flavorless, tasteless; weak, unstimulating. 2 dull, mild, moderate, inane, vapid; pointless. adjective 1 Take that dog to a qualified veterinarian: experienced, trained, competent, practiced, versed, knowing; eligible, fit, fitted, equipped, suited, meet, equal; capable, adept, able, talented, skilled, skillful, accomplished, expert; certified, licensed, authorized; efficacious, proficient, efficient. 2 He gave a qualified answer when I asked for definite assurances: limited, indefinite, conditional, provisional, reserved, guarded; restricted, limited, hedging, equivocal, ambiguous. Antonyms 1 inexperienced, untrained, unpracticed. verb 1 The children quibbled over who got the bigger piece of cake: argue, bicker, squabble, hassle; raise trivial objections, carp, nag, cavil, nitpick, haggle, niggle; pick a fight, spar, fence; be evasive, dodge the issue, equivocate, waffle, fudge. noun 2 A quibble over exact wording delayed passage of the bill: trivial

quiescent rarefied

recalcitrant

recant

recluse recondite

refractory

refute

relegate

objection, cavil, petty distinction, nicety; evasion, equivocation, dodge, shift, shuffle, distraction, delaying tactic; subtlety, subterfuge; white lie, prevarication, pretense, artifice, duplicity. qui?es?cent (kwe es"*nt, kwi-), adj. being at rest; quiet; still; inactive or motionless: a quiescent mind. adjective The collectors had rarefied tastes: refined, esoteric, special, secret, recondite, inside, privileged. adjective The recalcitrant youth needed more understanding teachers: stubborn, obstinate, unwilling, unsubmissive, headstrong, refractory, mulish, pigheaded, bullheaded, willful, contrary, balky, unruly, disobedient, intractable. Antonyms obedient, compliant, amenable, submissive, yielding; controllable, manageable, governable. verb Under cross-examination she recanted her previous testimony: retract, take back, deny, abjure, withdraw, unsay, repudiate, disavow, renege, recall, revoke, renounce, rescind, disclaim, disown, forswear, repeal, eat one's words, apostatize, change one's mind. Antonyms reaffirm, confirm, repeat, validate. noun The recluse emerged from his hideaway: hermit, solitary, ascetic. adjective She submitted a recondite thesis for her Ph.D.: profound, deep, abstruse. Antonyms clear, obvious, patent. adjective The refractory horse stopped dead in its tracks: stubborn, unmanageable, obstinate, perverse, mulish, headstrong, pigheaded, contumacious, intractable, disobedient, recalcitrant, cantankerous, ungovernable, unruly. Antonyms obedient, tractable. verb The accused was given no opportunity to refute the accusations: disprove, confute, give the lie to, invalidate, counter, rebut, answer, challenge, contradict, deny. Antonyms prove, vindicate, support, confirm, corroborate, substantiate. verb 1 They relegated the task to her: entrust, hand over, turn over, charge,

reproach

reprobate

repudiate

rescind

commit, consign, delegate, pass on, refer, assign. 2 They relegated him to the second division: demote, banish, eject, displace, expel, ostracize. verb 1 He was severely reproached for his rude behavior: find fault with, chide, admonish, reprimand, rebuke, reprove; criticize, censure, condemn, stigmatize, malign, vilify, revile, blame; scold, upbraid, rail at, castigate, charge, tongue-lash, call to account, take to task; disparage, denounce, asperse; shame, disgrace. noun 2 Her behavior was above reproach. The workers feared their supervisor's reproaches: blame, rebuke, reproof; upbraiding, scolding, remonstrance, criticism, censure, hard words, tirade, diatribe. 3 The youth's bad behavior is a constant reproach to his parents: cause of blame, badge of infamy, stigma, taint, blemish, stain, blot, spot, tarnish, slur; indignity, insult, offense; shame, humiliation, degradation, embarrassment, scandal, disgrace, dishonor, discredit. Antonyms 1 praise, commend, applaud, compliment. 2 commendation, compliment, praise, applause, honor. 3 honor, credit. noun 1 The old reprobate never reformed: wicked person, degenerate, profligate, rou?, prodigal, rake, rakehell, immoralist, voluptuary, wanton, abandoned person; rascal, scamp, black sheep, rapscallion, rotter; miscreant, sinner, transgressor, evildoer, wrongdoer, outcast, castaway, pariah, derelict, untouchable. adjective 2 He was a reprobate person with no redeeming qualities: corrupt, incorrigible, depraved, profligate, degenerate, dissolute, abandoned, shameless; wicked, evil, evil-minded, low, base, bad, vile. Antonyms 1 angel, paragon, saint. 2 pure, virtuous, righteous, saintly, angelic. 1 The new government repudiated the treaty signed by the former rulers: reject, disavow, deny, disclaim, protest; rescind, reverse, revoke, repeal, retract, void, nullify, annul, declare null and void, abrogate, cancel, abolish, dissolve. 2 The man repudiated the religion he was born into and became an atheist: disown, disavow, reject, cast off, discard, wash one's hands of, abandon, desert, forsake, renounce. Antonyms 1 accept, approve; adopt, espouse. 2 acknowledge, accept, embrace, welcome. The judge rescinded the court's previous decision: revoke, reverse, retract,

resolution

reticent

reverence

sage

repeal, recall, take back, invalidate, countermand, overrule, counterorder, override, set aside, discard, get rid of, sweep aside; void, annul, abrogate, abolish, declare null and void, nullify, cancel, quash, dissolve. Antonyms uphold, support; validate. noun 1 The resolution passed by two votes: motion, formal proposition, proposal. 2 Have you made a New Year's resolution?: resolve, promise, intent, intention, purpose, plan, design, ambition; objective, object, aim, goal. 3 He lacked the resolution to get through medical school: resoluteness, firmness of purpose, fixed purpose, persistence, determination, tenacity, resolve, will power, perseverance, resilience, steadfastness, stability, steadiness, constancy; zeal, earnestness, energy, indefatigability, mettle, spirit, aggressiveness, followthrough. 4 He was faced with the resolution of a difficult matter: solution, resolving, clearing up, working-out. adjective T.E. Lawrence became an increasingly reticent man: taciturn, quiet, uncommu-nicative, silent, sparing of words, closemouthed, tight-lipped; reserved, retiring, shy, withdrawn, diffident, self-contained, restrained, subdued, closed. Antonyms voluble, talkative, communicative, unreserved, expansive, inclined to speak freely, candid, frank, open, plain. noun Aeneas' reverence toward his father was one of our Latin teacher's favorite themes: deep respect, esteem, regard, honor, homage, deference, veneration, admiration, adoration, devotion, worship; awe, fear; devoutness, piety, gesture indicative of deep respect, observance; genuflection, prostration, religiosity. Antonyms irreverence, disrespect, disregard, scorn, contempt, dishonor; hatred. noun 1 The king brought difficult problems to a sage: wise man, magus, pundit, mage, philosopher, savant, scholar, guru, mandarin, solon, Slang egghead. adjective 2 He was sage in his judgment: wise, sapient, shrewd, prudent; sensible, sound, sagacious, knowing, astute, intelligent. Antonyms 1 fool, idiot. 2 stupid, foolish, senseless.

salubrious

sanction

satiate

saturate

savor

adjective Regular exercise is salubrious: healthful, healthy, health-promoting, therapeutic, good for one, salutary, bracing, beneficial, wholesome, lifegiving, invigorating. Antonyms unhealthful, unhealthy, harmful, unwholesome, insalubrious, deleterious. noun 1 We received sanction to proceed with our plans: approval, commendation, endorsement, assent, consent, permission, authorization; leave, liberty, license, authority; ratification, confirmation, support. 2 The international community imposed sanctions on Rhodesia for its illegal political actions: penalty, pressure, punitive measure, coercion. verb 3 Our plan wasn't sanctioned by the board of directors: approve, endorse, authorize, legitimate, allow, permit, countenance, accept, agree to, favor, ratify, support. Antonyms 1 disapproval, forbiddance, refusal, ban, prohibition. 2 incentive, encouragement. 3 disapprove, reject, ban, prohibit. verb It was a banquet that more than satiated our need for food: satisfy, fill, gratify, suffice, content; slake, quench; glut, stuff, sate, surfeit, overfill, overdo, cloy, saturate; sicken, disgust, nauseate; jade, bore, weary. verb 1 Heavy rain saturated the playing field: soak thoroughly, drench, souse, douse; immerse, submerge. 2 Dust saturated the attic: fill, infiltrate, cover, permeate, infuse, suffuse, pervade, impregnate, imbue. Antonyms 1 drain, dry. noun 1 This cake has the savor of nutmeg: taste, flavor, tang, spice, piquancy, pungency; smell, aroma, odor, scent, fragrance; smack, relish, zest. 2 His words had the savor of vengeance: character, nature, particular quality, characteristic, property, particularity, distinctive feature, peculiarity, trait, aura, quality; substance, essence, gist, spirit, soul. verb 3 Her sauce savored of garlic. This plan savors of treason: taste, smell, smack, have a touch, show traces, have the earmarks, be suggestive.

secrete

shard

skeptic

solicitous

soporific

specious

4 He savored the cookies with cinnamon: spice, season, flavor. 5 We ate the stew slowly, savoring it: enjoy, relish, like; take pleasure in, delight in, luxuriate in, rejoice in, appreciate. 6 He had savored power during his first term in office: experience, taste, sample, try. verb The escaped convicts secreted themselves in a cave: hide, conceal, cache, Informal stash; cloak, curtain, screen, veil, disguise; keep secret, keep under wraps, cover, shroud. Antonyms reveal, show, display, exhibit. (sh?rd) also sherd, n. 1. a fragment, esp. of broken earthenware. 2. Zool. a. a scale. b. a shell, as of an egg or snail. c. the hardened forewing of a beetle; elytron. or sceptic noun He's too much of a skeptic to take anything simply on faith: doubter, doubting Thomas, questioner, scoffer; agnostic, unbeliever, atheist. adjective 1 He was very solicitous about her office problems: concerned, thoughtful, mindful, regardful, anxious, attentive. 2 The politicians do not seem overly solicitous to proceed in this investigation: eager, zealous, desirous, longing, ardent, intense, keen, avid, enthusiastic, intent. Antonyms 1 unconcerned, undisturbed. 2 uninterested, unambitious, unenthusiastic. adjective 1 His soporific voice almost put us to sleep: hypnotic, somniferous, sleepinducing, balmy, sluggish, heavy. 2 This warm weather makes me soporific: sleepy, sluggish, drowsy, somnolent, slumberous; lethargic, lazy. noun 3 Wine is a soporific for me: sedative, hypnotic; sleep-inducer. Antonyms 1,2 lively, animated. 3 stimulant. adjective He reached the wrong conclusion by specious reasoning: deceptive, misleading, fallacious, questionable, casuistic, dubious, false, invalid, faulty, sophistical, unsubstantiated, unsound, unfounded, incorrect, inaccurate, slippery, tricky,

spectrum

sporadic

stigma

stint

stipulate

stolid

untrue, spurious, illogical. Antonyms valid, conclusive, undeniable, inescapable. ?trum (spek"trm), n., pl. -tra (-tr), -trums. 1. a. an array of entities, as light waves or particles, ordered in accordance with the magnitudes of a common physical property, as wavelength or mass. b. the band or series of colors, together with invisible extensions, produced by dispersion of radiant energy, as by a prism. 2. a broad range of varied but related ideas, objects, etc., that form a continuous series or sequence: the spectrum of political beliefs. adjective We've had only sporadic snow flurries this month: irregular, spotty, scattered, sparse, spasmodic, fitful, widely spaced, now and then, occasional, infrequent, periodic, fragmentary, intermittent, discontinuous, few and far between, meager, few, thin, scarce, rare, isolated, uncommon; haphazard, random. Antonyms continuous, regular, steady, constant. There was no stigma attached to losing the election: disgrace, shame, odium, dishonor; blot, blemish, brand, flaw, mark of shame, smirch, smudge, besmirchment, taint, tarnish. Antonyms glory, honor, distinction, credit, approval. verb 1 I'll have to stint my charity gifts this year: restrict, set limits to, give in small amounts, limit, cut down on, reduce, be sparing with, restrain, constrain, circumscribe, check, curb. 2 One thing Mother never stints on is food: be sparing, hold back, scrimp, be frugal, save, deny oneself, economize, pinch pennies, withhold, be parsimonious. noun 3 She was assigned the most difficult stint. The band did a stint in Las Vegas: job, chore, task, duty, work period, term, assignment, part, turn, shift, quota; engagement. verb Our contract with the decorator stipulates the maximum amount he can charge us: specify, set forth, insist upon, state, designate, indicate, name, cite, make a point of, make provision; promise, pledge, guarantee, insure, grant, provide, allow, assure, agree, warrant. adjective He's too stolid to show excitement about anything: impassive, unemotional, apathetic, sluggish, lethargic, phlegmatic, dull, obtuse, lumpish, bovine, dense; insensitive.

strait

strut

subpoena

subside

substantiate

supersede supposition

Antonyms excitable, emotional, passionate, energetic, lively, active, animated, acute. (strat), n. 1. Often, straits. (used with a sing. v.) a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water. 2. Often, straits. a position of difficulty, distress, or need. 3. Archaic. a narrow passage or area. 4. ISTHMUS. adj. Archaic. 5. narrow. 6. confined in area. 7. strict, as in requirements or principles. verb He strutted into the restaurant as though he owned it: swagger, walk pompously, parade, sail, sashay, peacock, promenade. Antonyms cringe, cower, slink, sneak. n. 1. a writ to summon witnesses or evidence before a court. v.t. 2. to serve with a subpoena 1 As the land subsides, the sea advances: settle, sink; drop, cave in, sag, descend. 2 My nervousness subsided when the plane landed. The crowds subsided: diminish, lessen, abate, decrease, wane, moderate, level off, ebb, calm, recede, melt away, let up, ease, shrink, dwindle. Antonyms 1,2 rise; increase, swell. 2 grow, heighten, intensify. verb You haven't substantiated your argument at all: verify, corroborate, prove, demonstrate, show to be true, confirm, authenticate, sustain, support. Antonyms disprove, refute, discredit, undermine, tear to shreds, explode This new drug will supersede all others in the treatment of the disease: supplant, replace, take the place of, substitute for, displace, succeed; discard, set aside. That was only supposition. He acted on the supposition that the public would applaud his feat: presumption, assumption, conjecture, opinion, predication, surmise, guess, guesswork, suspicion, belief, theory, thesis, notion, view, speculation, hypothesis, proposition, postulate, idea, given. Antonyms

tacit

tangential

tenuous

tirade

torpidity

torturous

tractable

certainty, surety, fact, knowledge The neighbors had a tacit agreement not to park in front of each other's houses: unexpressed, understood, assumed, implied, inferred, implicit, wordless, undeclared, unspoken, unstated, taken for granted. tan?gen?tial adj. 1. pertaining to or of the nature of a tangent; being or moving in the direction of a tangent. 2. incidental; peripheral. 3. divergent or digressive: tangential remarks. Some legislators made a rather tenuous argument against the bill: weak, flimsy, shaky, unsubstantial, unsupported, slight, slim, thin, slender, frail, fragile, delicate, gossamer, shallow, paltry, unconvincing, halfhearted, uncertain, indefinite. Antonyms strong, solid, valid, substantial The principal delivered a tirade to the disobedient students. The political candidate let loose a tirade against his opponent: long angry speech, harangue, diatribe, jeremiad, lecture, reprimand, scolding, dressing-down, screed, fulmination; denunciation, condemnation, castigation, vilification, invective, vituperation, curse. Antonyms good word, short eulogy, panegyric, complimentary speech, praising speech, laudation, commendation, homage, paean. Her torpor may be due to illness: sluggishness, slow movement, inertia, lethargy, laziness, languidness, listlessness, lassitude, indolence, languor, apathy, passiveness, dullness; sleepiness, drowsiness, somnolence; inactivity, inertia. Antonyms energy, vigor, vim, pep, animation, liveliness, alertness; wide-awakeness He had a torturous toothache. The losing candidate spent a torturous night listening to the election returns: torturing, painful, agonizing, racking, cruel, anguishing, tormenting, distressing, distressful, excruciating, miserable, harrowing, anguished, tormented, distressed, annoying, irksome, unpleasant, galling, disagreeable. Antonyms painless, pleasant, pleasing, delightful, enjoyable, agreeable, welcome, comforting; gratifying; contented, cheerful, joyous, happy. A dude ranch needs tractable horses for its guests: amenable, easy to manage, manageable, easy to control, controllable, governable, obedient, trainable, teachable, docile, tame, submissive, compliant, yielding. Antonyms intractable, unmanageable, uncontrollable, ungovernable, disobedient,

transgression

truculent

vacillate

venerate

veracious

verbose

viable

wild, unruly, refractory, headstrong, willful, stubborn, obstinate. The sinner prayed that his transgressions would be forgiven. Eavesdropping is a transgression on another's privacy: offense, sin, misdeed, evil deed, trespass, lapse, iniquity, wrongdoing, wrong, immorality, error; infraction, infringement, breach, encroachment, contravention, overstepping; violation, infraction, crime, lawbreaking. Antonyms virtue, morality, probity, righteousness, grace, good deed, merit; observance, compliance, adherence. His truculent nature gets him into a lot of scrapes: belligerent, bellicose, aggressive, pugnacious, hostile, defiant, fierce, nasty, ill-tempered, bad-tempered, ill-humored, ill-natured, snarling; surly, cross, touchy, peev-ish, snappish, petulant, sour, ungracious, churl-ish, sulky, insolent, rude. Antonyms peaceful, gentle, kind, diffident, accommodating, friendly, gracious, amiable, affable. 1 He seemed certain about it yesterday, but today he's vacillating: waver, be irresolute, hesitate, be unsettled, be doubtful, be changeable, fluctuate, falter, not know one's own mind, shilly-shally, hem and haw, blow hot and cold. 2 The earthquake caused the entire house to vacillate: sway, move to and fro, rock, roll, toss, pitch, shift, waver, totter, teeter, reel, oscillate, wobble, flutter, vibrate. Antonyms 1 be determined, be resolute, be steadfast, be certain, be settled. As a child he venerated his grandparents: revere, esteem, respect, honor, admire, idolize, adore, cherish, extol, glorify, look up to, treat with deference, pay homage to, reverence, worship, hallow. Antonyms scorn, disdain, contemn, despise, detest, hate, execrate, dishonor; disregard, slight, spurn. The veracious reporter was a stickler for detail: honest, truthful, accurate, dependable, faithful, genuine, reliable, trustworthy, straightforward. adjective The senator is so verbose it takes him an hour to tell a simple joke: wordy, longwinded, voluble, circumlocutory, effusive, grandiloquent, prolix, talkative, garrulous, gabby, loquacious. Antonyms terse, concise, succinct, pithy; reticent, curt, brusque. adjective 1 The fetus is considered viable at six months. No crops are viable in this barren soil: capable of independent life, able to live, able to develop, able to thrive, capable of growing.

viscous

vituperation

volatile

warrant

wary

2 If the plan doesn't succeed do you have a viable alternative?: workable, practical, practicable, feasible, usable, applicable, adaptable. Antonyms 1,2 nonviable. 2 unviable, impractical, useless, unworkable, unusable. adjective Molasses is a liquid, but an extremely viscous one: thick, viscid, sticky, gluey, syrupy, tacky, slimy, gummy, glutinous, Informal gooey. noun Her simple mistake hardly merited so much vituperation: abuse, faultfinding, invective, scolding, denunciation, censure, blame, tongue-lashing, revilement, obloquy, scurrility, castigation, tirade, calumniation. Antonyms praise, acclaim, adulation, flattery. adjective 1 Volatile liquids must be kept in very tightly closed containers: evaporating quickly, evaporable, vaporizing, vaporous; gaseous. 2 The situation in the Middle East is volatile: explosive, eruptive; unstable, unsettled. 3 Richard is too volatile to stick with one job very long: changeable, erratic, unstable, variable, unsteady, irresolute, fitful, spasmodic, unpredictable, undependable, inconstant, capricious, mercurial, temperamental, moody, fickle, flighty, giddy, frivolous; brash, reckless, wild, rash. Antonyms 1,2,3 stable. 2 calm, peaceful. 3 constant, consistent, steady, even-tempered, dependable, resolute, determined, coolheaded, self-controlled, serious, sober. 1 The police have a search warrant. There is a warrant out for the suspect's arrest: authorization, permission, permit; license. verb 2 Such actions warrant a severe reprimand: justify, provide grounds for, give sufficient reason for; permit, authorize, license. 3 The manufacturer warrants that all parts are new: guarantee, certify, vouch for, pledge, swear, attest, affirm, promise, vow, avow, assure, assert, declare, asseverate, aver. It does no harm to be wary of new acquaintances: cautious, careful, guarded, suspicious, chary, heedful, mindful, watchful, vigilant, on one's guard, alert, wakeful, wide-awake; discreet, circumspect, close-mouthed, prudent.

welter

whimsical

Antonyms unwary, unsuspecting, unguarded, rash, reckless, foolhardy, careless, heedless, incautious; negligent, remiss. verb 1 The huge waves weltered throughout the night. The dog weltered happily in the muddy puddle: roll, toss, heave, writhe; wallow, grovel, tumble about. noun 2 Sort this welter of dirty clothes for the laundry: jumble, mass, heap, mess, pile, hodgepodge. 3 It's hard to hear above the welter of street noises: confusion, tumult, commotion, turmoil, hubbub, racket, bustle; turbulence, storm, tempest. adjective 1 Jerry is much too whimsical to be a businessman: fanciful, capricious, notional, eccentric, quixotic; fickle, fitful, inconsistent, erratic, changeable, chimerical. 2 Her essay on the care and feeding of husbands is pleasantly whimsical: droll, amusing, waggish, fanciful, quaint. Antonyms 1 staid, serious, sedate, sober, practical, down-to-earth, pragmatic, matterof-fact; steady, con

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