Words that Define

1. Verbomania! Lesson 4.8 “This presentation has been prepared under fairuse exemption of the U. S. Copyright Law and is restricted from further use.”

2. 38 WORD #1 advent (noun) The advent of e-mail has revolutionized both business and personal communication.

3. advent Parts: • The arrival of a notable person, thing, or event • The first season of the church year, leading up to Christmas and including the four preceding Sundays (capitalized) ad (to, toward) vent (come) S: arrival, invention, entrance, emergence A: departure, elimination Context Phrase:

5. 38 WORD #2 assiduous (adjective) An assiduous gymnast, she persevered until she scored a 10 on the balance beam.

6. assiduous (assiduously,adverb;assiduousness, noun; assiduity, noun) • Showing great care and perseverance • Constant in application or attention Parts: as (to, toward) sid (sit) ous (full of)—literally, “staying put, refusing to get up” S: persistent, conscientious, diligent, determined, hardworking A: lazy, careless, indifferent, indolent Context Phrase:

8. 38 WORD #3 captious (adjective) Unlike her sister who is always kind and optimistic, she is captious and rude.

9. captious (captiously, adverb; captiousness, noun) • Tending to find fault or raise petty objections • Intended to entrap or confuse ( a captious question) Parts: cap (seize, grasp) ous (full of) S: irritable, disparaging, querulous, carping, hypercritical, petulant, faultfinding A: complimentary, benign Context Phrase:

11. 38 WORD #4 condescend (verb) Princess Diana, unlike most royals, did not condescend when she talked with ordinary citizens.

12. condescend (condescension, noun; condescendence, noun; condescending, adjective) • To show feelings of superiority • To do something in a haughty way, as though it is below one’s dignity Parts: con (together, with) de (down, from) scend (climb) S: deign, patronize, stoop A: Not applicable Context Phrase:

14. 38 WORD #5 crescendo (noun) We hoped the crescendo of our cheers would disconcert our opponents.

15. crescendo Parts: • A gradual increase in loudness in a piece of music • A piece of music marked to be performed by increasing loudness gradually • The loudest point reached in a gradually increasing sound • A progressive increase in force or intensity • The most intense point reached in this (to rise to a crescendo) • With a gradual increase in loudness (adverb, adjective) • To increase in loudness (verb) cresc (to grow) S: Not applicable A: decrescendo Context Phrase:

17. 38 WORD #6 derelict (adjective) Though the brakes malfunctioned, the derelict mechanic let the derelict car pass inspection.

18. derelict (dereliction, noun) • Shamefully negligent in not having done what one should have • A piece of property, especially a ship, abandoned and in poor condition (noun) • A person without a home, job, or property (noun) Parts: de (down) re (back, behind) linquere (leave) S:delinquent, irresponsible, negligent (adjective); vagrant, malingerer, vagabond (noun) A: responsible, reliable, competent Context Phrase:

20. 38 WORD #7 emanate (verb) As they danced, he enjoyed the fragrant perfume that emanated from her.

21. emanate (emanative, adjective; emanator, noun; emanation, noun) Parts: • To come or send forth, as from a source • To give out or emit something abstract or perceptible (to emanate strength) e (out) manare (flow) ate (make, cause) S: emit, issue, flow, exude, originate, disperse, radiate, disseminate A: withdraw, return Context Phrase:

23. 38 WORD #8 exigency (noun) Recognizing the exigency of the situation, the governor toured the areas devastated by the flood.

24. exigency (exigent, adjective; exigence, noun • Something that requires immediate attention or remedy • An urgent need or demand Parts: ex (out) ag (drive, force, act) S: urgency, emergency, crisis, predicament, difficulty A: frivolity, insignificance, irrelevance Context Phrase:

26. 38 WORD #9 hyperbole (noun) Sports writers frequently use hyperboles and alliteration to attract readers’ attention.

27. hyperbole (hyperbolical, adjective; hyperbolically, adverb; hyperbolism, noun) An exaggeration or extravagant statement used as a figure of speech, not meant to be taken literally (This book weighs a ton.) Parts: hyper (above, over) ballein (throw) S: exaggeration, overstatement A: litotes (ironical statement in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary (You will not be sorry, meaning you will be glad.) Context Phrase:

29. 38 WORD #10 indigent (adjective) The United States delivered tons of food to the indigent people in the war-ravaged areas.

30. indigent (indigence, noun) • Lacking the means or subsistence • A needy or destitute person (noun) Parts: in (in) egere (want, lack) ent (full of) S:poor, needy, impoverished, destitute, penniless, impecunious (adjective); pauper (noun) A: affluent, rich, opulent, wealthy Context Phrase:

32. 38 WORD #11 interlocutor (noun) The Secretary of Defense will serve as our interlocutor at the UN discussion on disarmament.

33. interlocutor (interlocution, noun) Someone who takes part in a dialogue or conversation Parts: inter (between, among) locut (talk) or (one who) S: participant A: Not applicable Context Phrase:

35. 38 WORD #12 malaise (noun) Living in malaise, people tend not to be very creative or productive.

36. malaise A general feeling of discomfort, illness, or uneasiness whose exact cause is difficult to identify Parts: mal (bad) aise (ease) S: discontent, vexation, uneasiness, dissatisfaction, displeasure A: peace, satisfaction, comfort, contentment Context Phrase:

38. 38 WORD #13 ne plus ultra (noun) The ne plus ultra in Latin dancing, he won several world championships.

39. ne plus ultra • The perfect of most extreme example of its kind • The ultimate • The extreme or utmost point, especially of excellence or achievement Parts: ne (nothing) plus (more) ultra (beyond)—literally “no more beyond,” the supposed inscription on the Pillars of Hercules prohibiting passage of ships S: culmination, acme, paragon A: Not applicable Context Phrase:

41. 38 WORD #14 penultimate (adjective) This character does not appear on stage until the penultimate act of the play.

42. penultimate • Next to last in a series of things • Second last • The next to the last (noun) Parts: pen (almost) ultimus (last) S: Not applicable A: Not applicable Context Phrase:

43. this guy is the penultimate person in line

44. 38 WORD #15 ponderous (adjective) The professor’s ponderous speech and monotone lulled most of the audience to sleep.

45. ponderous (ponderosity, noun; ponderously, adverb; ponderousness, noun) • Dull, laborious, or excessively solemn • Having great weight • Slow, clumsy, graceless, or unwieldy from weight • Lacking fluency Parts: pond (weight) ous (full of) S: massive, verbose, wordy, pompous, cumbersome, tiresome, burdensome A: light, imponderable, buoyant, airy Context Phrase:

47. 38 WORD #16 progeny (noun) Greek mythology is replete with stories of Zeus and his progeny.

48. progeny (progenitor, noun) • A descendant or the descendants of • The result of creative effort Parts: pro (forth, forward) gen (birth, kind, family) y (result of) S: children, offspring, posterity, descendant, product A: ancestor Context Phrase:

50. 38 WORD #17 recrimination (noun) When she filed the law suit, she certainly did not expect any recriminations.