Vocabulary Words

Lesson 8Descriptives

Banal

• Adjective• Lacking originality; stale

• The speaker bored the well-informed class with a banal presentation.

Debonair

• Adjective• Elegant; gracious; suave

• The debonair host greeted each guest with a smile.

Disproportionate

• Adjective• Not properly balanced in size, shape, or

amount

• The power of the nobility was disproportionate to their number.

Ephemeral

• Adjective• Short-lived; occurring only briefly.

• Even though sunsets are ephemeral, they are a source of beauty.

Frothy

• Adjective• Foamy

• Do not let the soup boil or it will become frothy.

Hackneyed

• Adjective• Routine; overused

• “Last but not least” is a good example of a hackneyed phrase.

Lustrous

• Adjective• Radiant; bright

• The blue scarf was made of lustrous silk.

Menial

• Adjective• Pertaining to work that is appropriate to a

servant; servile

• Stacking boxes on the shelf all day long was a menial task.

Moderate

• Adjective• Not excessive; reasonable

• There was a moderate turnout for our annual town fair.

Nebulous

• Adjective• Vague; lacking definite form

• My family’s plans for summer vacation are still nebulous

Nocturnal

• Adjective• Pertaining to or occurring at night

• We know little about many nocturnal animals because it is difficult to observe them in the dark..

Perfunctory• Adjective• Indifferent; done with little interest or care

• The waiter gave us a perfunctory greeting as we entered the restaurant.

Pious

• Adjective• Religious; devout

• The pious young girl entered the convent.

Potent

• Adjective• Powerful; convincing

• The documentary was a potent reminder of the horrors of war.

Preposterous

• Adjective• Absurd; ridiculous

• The mayor’s plan that the city council unanimously voted against it.

Provincial

• Adjective• Rural; having to do with areas away from

metropolises

• We enjoy visiting the provincial town in the outlaying areas.

Quixotic

• Adjective• Absurdly romantic and unrealistic

• The character’s quixotic view of love was the basis of this comedy.

Raucous

• Adjective• Harsh; rough-sounding

• From a distance we could hear only the raucous laughter of the crowd.

Secondary• Adjective• After the first; not the primary

• The state’s concerns were secondary to the federal government’s.

Superfluous

• Adjective• Unnecessary; extra

• Please omit all superfluous and redundant words from your compositions.