VOCABLESSON 2:

DIRECTIONS: COMPLETE THE VOCAB CHART.

ADROITDef: (adj) skillful, expert in the use of the hands or mind

Syn: clever, deft, dexterous, slickAnt: clumsy, inept, all thumbs

Ex: Although he she could sing beautifully, he was much less adroit with her violin.

AMICABLEDef: (adj) peacable; friendly

Syn: congenial, neighborly, cordialAnt: hostile, antagonistic

Ex: Despite the divorce, the coupleremained amicable for the sake oftheir kids.

AVERSEDef: (adj.) having a deep-seated distaste; opposed, unwilling

Syn: disinclinedAnt: favorably disposed, eager, keen

Ex: Although he was averse to exercise, his dad insisted he try out for the track team.

BELLIGERENTDef 1: (adj) given to fighting, warlike, combative, aggressiveDef 2: (noun) one at war, one engaged in war

Syn: assertive, truculent, pugnaciousAnt: peaceful, conciliatory, placid

Ex 1: The customer became belligerent when she was told that the store did not sell the bargain laptop from their advertisement.

Ex 2: While the belligerent countries have not used ground forces yet, they have already bombed one another’s major territories.

BENEVOLENT

Def: (adj) kindly, charitable

Syn: benign, well-meaningAnt: malicious, spiteful, malevolent

Ex: Although most of his friends wantedto be zombies or vampires for Halloween, he decided to be a benevolent ghost.

CURSORY

Def: (adj) hasty, not thorough

Syn: quick, superficial, perfunctoryAnt: thorough, painstaking, careful

Ex: Instead of actually reading thehistory chapter, he only took a fewcursory glances at his notes, decidinghe would wing it on the test.

DUPLICITYDef: (n) treachery, deceitfulness

Syn: fraud, double-dealing, chicanery

Ex: As it turned out, her mother was correct—Mary was engaging in duplicity, making her a poor choice of friend.

EXTOLDef: (v) to praise extravagantly

Syn: glorify, applaud, acclaim, hailAnt: criticize, belittle, disparage

Ex: Because she hoped to improve her students’ writing ability, the teacher extolled the virtues of the complex sentence.

FEASIBLEDef: (adj) possible, able to be done

Syn: workable, practicable, viableAnt: unworkable, impractical

Ex: Although he doubted that it was feasible, he came up with an intricate plan to win back his ex-girlfriend.

GRIMACEDef 1: (n) a wry face, facial distortionDef 2: (v) to make a wry face (Note: wry=crooked, devious)

Syn: pained expression, facial contortionAnt: smile grin; beam

Ex: When the uncomfortable woman was told to smile for the picture, she awkwardly plastered a grimace on het face instead.

HOLOCAUSTDef: (n) a large-scale destruction, especially by fire; a vast slaughter; a burnt offering (GENOSIDE)

Syn: conflagration, devastation, annihilationAnt: deluge, inundation

Ex 1: The dictators were responsible for humanitarian abuses that led to holocausts of hundreds due to starvation. Ex 2: The Holocaust in Europe during the 1940s was a systematic extermination of more than six million people on the basis of their religion, race or ethnicity.Ex 3: Half the city was destroyed in a holocaust begun by a single kitchen fire.

IMPERVIOUSDef: (adj) not affected or hurt by; admitting no passage or entrance

Syn: impenetrable, resistant, proof againstAnt: porous, permeable, vulnerable

Ex (literal): When cleaning with bleach, one ought to wear gloves impervious to the chemical. Ex (figurative): Because he was so thin-skinned, people often suggested that he become more impervious to what people think of him.

IMPETUSDef: (n) a moving force, impulse, stimulus

Syn: impulse, incentive, spurAnt: curb, hindrance, impediment, constraint

Ex: After stepping on the scale and reaching a new heavier milestone, dad now had impetus to begin another diet.

JEOPARDYDef: (n) danger

Syn: risk, hazard, perilAnt: safety, security

Ex: Every time I cross that rickety bridge, I feel like I am putting my life in jeopardy.

METICULOUSDef: (adj) extremely careful; particular about the details

Syn: fastidious, painstaking, fussyAnt: careless, negligent, sloppy

Ex: Although his book bag and locker were sloppy, he kept his precious video game collection in meticulous alphabetical order.

NOSTALGIADef: (n) longing for the past; homesickness

Ex: We felt a sense of nostalgia when weviewed the home movies from childhood.

QUINTESSENCEDef: (n) the purest essence or form of something; the most typical example

Syn: paragon, exemplar

Ex: Selfless desire to help others without reward is the quintessence of charity.

RETROGRESSDef: (v) to move backward, to return to an earlier condition

Syn: revert, degenerate, declineAnt: advance, evolve, progress

Ex: Although the teens just used the playground as a shortcut to get home, they retrogressed into childhood play and took a few swings on the monkey bars.

SCRUTINIZE

Def: (v) to examine closely

Syn: inspect, pore overAnt: skim, scan, glance over

Ex: Before you sign any documents, make sure to scrutinize the fine print carefully!

TEPIDDef: (adj) lukewarm, unenthusiastic, marked by an absence of interest

Syn: insipid, halfhearted, wishy-washyAnt: heated, excited, enthusiastic

Ex (literal): I had been so busy that morning that I had to rewarm my tepid coffee at ten o’clock.

Ex (figurative): Although their fist date was tepid, after spending more time together they realized that they had quite a bit of romantic chemistry.