Level HUnit 4

affinity – n. a natural attraction to a person, thing, or activity; a relationship, a connection

I have an affinity to all things chocolate!

bilious – adj. peevish or irritable; sickeningly unpleasant

Spending even an hour with my bilious cousin on Thanksgiving makes me grateful I don’t have to seem him again for another year!

cognate – (adj.) closely related in origin, essential nature, or function; (n.) such a person or thing

Synonyms are cognates that usually differ only slightly in connotation.

corollary – n. a natural consequence or result

Sibling fist fights are a corollary of sibling teasing!

cul-de-sac – (n.) a dead-end street; an impasse

We live on a cul-de-sac, so we don’t see much traffic.

derring-do – (n.) valor or heroism; daring deeds or exploits

Growing up, my father told us tales of derring-do to impress us with his strength.

divination – (n.) the art of predicting the future or discovering hidden knowledge

I visited a psychic while on vacation, though I highly doubt her divination abilities; I could see her “cheat sheet” up her sleeve as she read my tarot cards!

elixir – (n.) a potion once thought capable of curing all ills; a panacea

Mary Poppins believed in the notion that a “spoon full of sugar” is an elixir to help the medicine go down!

Apothecaries used to distribute the same elixir to everyone, regardless of symptoms.

folderol – (n.) foolish talk, ideas, or procedures; nonsense

Her lecture on physics was so above our heads that it sounded like little more than folderol.

gamut – (n.) an entire range or series

Our studies of American history ran the gamut from Christopher Columbus to President Obama.

hoi polloi – (n.) the common people , the masses

In A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens demonstrates the aristocracy’s disgust at having to associate with the hoi polloi when he includes the scene where the little boy gets trampled by the Monsigneur’s carriage.

ineffable – (adj.) not expressible in words; too great or too sacred to be uttered

A picture of the Red Rocks of Utah is truly worth the thousand words it would take to even begin to describe its ineffable beauty and majesty.

lucubration – (n.) laborious study or thought, especially at night; the result of such work

Dr. Frankenstein’s lucubrations resulted in a monster that even he could not control.

mnemonic – (adj.) relating to or designed to assist the memory; (n.) a

device to aid the memory

obloquy – (n.) public abuse indicating strong disapproval or censure; the disgrace resulting from such treatment

parameter – (n.) a factor that shapes the total outcome; a limit, boundary

Cost was an important parameter for me when choosing a college.

The close-talker overstepped acceptable social parameters when he stood nose-to-nose with me upon introduction.

pundit – (n.) one who gives authoritative opinions

Keith Olbermann – political pundit

Al Michaels – sports pundit

Pundits are hired to share their thoughts on a gamut of topics on TV today, such as politics and sports.

risible – (adj.) laughable

He wasn’t a very good clown; the children ran screaming rather than find his pranks risible.

symptomatic – (adj.) typical or characteristic; being or concerned with a symptom of a disease

I knew my daughter had chicken pox the moment symptomatic red spots appeared on her stomach.

volte-face – (n.) an about-face; a complete reversal