Lesson 4: Thought and Judgement

By: Miguel Hernández, Ignacio Pérez, and Eugenio González

AbstruseAbstruse : adjectiveDefinition: Difficult to understand

Ex: The students had trouble keeping up with the Physics class’s abstruse formulas.

AcumenAcumen: nounDefinition: Quickness and keenness of insight

or judgmentEx: Michael Jordan’s basketball acumen made

him one of the best players in NBA history.

AscertainAscertain: verbDefinition: To discover or to determine with

certainty, especially through examination or experimentationEx: Through the suspect’s confession, the

court ascertained that he committed the crime.

CerebralCerebral: adjectiveDefinition: a. Of or relating to the brain

Ex: After the car accident, John suffered cerebral damage which left him disabled for the rest of his life.

Definition: b. Appealing to or requiring the use of intellect; intellectualEx: Completing Sudoku puzzles

requires much cerebral activity.

Faculty Faculty: noun Definition: a. A division of a university or a

group of teachers. Ex: The University of Puerto Rico’s faculty has

meetings every week to discuss the progress of each class.

Definition: b. Natural power or abilityEx: Since Alex didn’t wear her safety goggles

while using chemicals she lost her faculty of sight.

Obfuscate Obfuscate: verb Definition: a. To make difficult to

understand.Ex: The coffee that was spilled on the project

obfuscated its contents. Definition: b. To darken, to make dim or

difficult to see. Ex: The heavy pouring rain obfuscated the road

for the bus driver.

Ruminate Ruminate: verb Definition: a. To think deeply about, to turn

a matter over and over in one’s mind.Ex: The confused professor ruminated for days,

deciding what assignment he would give to his AP classes.

Definition: b. To chew cud, or partially digested food.Ex: Camels are known for ruminating the same

chunk of grass for a long period of time.

Stymie Stymie: verb Definition: To prevent from making progress,

to frustrate or thwart efforts. Ex: Bad weather conditions stymied the FIFA

World Cup games for two days.

SurmiseSurmise: verb Definition a. (verb) to guess; draw a

conclusion without sufficient evidence Ex: The teacher surmised that the students

didn’t study for the exam because they all failed.

Definition b. (noun) a guess, a conclusion drawn without sufficient evidenceEx: The Big Bang Theory is a surmise because

astronomers still do not have the sufficient evidence to prove how the universe was created.

TenetTenet: noun Definition: a principle or belief held by a

person or an organizationEx: Freedom of speech is a central and sacred

tenet of any democracy.