Vocabulary

1. Vocabulary Maya ACT Preparation Classes

2. Assuage Lessen the intensity of something Ease Alleviate He couldn't assuage his guilt over the fight

3. Astounding Amazing Astonishing Surprising He ate an astounding amount of food

4. Delve To dig To examine in detail He tried to delve inside his memory for clues about what had happened

5. Dissipate Clear out Disband Scatter and gradually vanish Break up and drive off (as a crowd) The morning sun dissipated the fog

6. Indefinable Incapable of being precisely described or analyzed Incommunicable Indescribable He has an indefinable quality that draws people to him

7. Innate Native Inborn Belonging to the essential nature of something She has an innate sense of rhythm

8. Incidentally Not intentionally By chance Not incidentally, the market slump was followed by widespread layoffs

9. Niche A place, employment, status, or activity for which a person or thing is best fitted A specialized market A hidden part in a wall especially for a statue She finally found her niche as a teacher

10. Pique Arouse especially by provocation Irritate Annoy Brightly colored objects pique a baby's interest

11. Remnant A usually small part, member, or trace remaining A small surviving group An unsold or unused end of piece goods Remnants go on sale next week

12. Apposite Appropriate Suitable Apt I did my best to give an apposite answer to each of the interviewer’s questions

13. Augur The old man who lived alone in the forest was believed by the villagers to be an augur The news did not augur well for the health of the economy in the short term A prophet or seer To predict or foreshadow

14. Bilk There will always be people who are only too ready to bilk credulous individuals Defraud Cheat Swindle

15. Charisma Special personal magnetism Divinely bestowed gift of power Appeal Charm Mystique According to leading pundits, the dynamic young politician has the charisma of a born leader

16. Debilitate To make weak or feeble Sap Exhaust The illness debilitated the patient so severely that she was no longer able to perform even the simplest every day classes

17. Execrable Abominable Reprehensible Hateful The crude and execrable behavior of a few individuals spoiled the evening for the rest of us

18. Impinge To encroach or obtrude upon To make an impression upon Political forces sometimes impinge on our everyday lives

19. Labyrinth A bewildering maze Any confusing or complicated situation I quickly lost my way as I wandered through the old city’s labyrinth of winding streets

20. Narcissism Excessive self love Absorption in one self Because of her narcissism, she was completely unwilling to listen to other people’s opinions

21. Niggardly Stingy Meanly small or insufficient The old miser was as niggardly with his advice as he was with his money

22. Precarious Very uncertain or unsure Dangerous Risky A long period of unemployment left my friend in a financially precarious position

23. Rapport A close and harmonious relationship The players in a chamber music ensemble need to develop an excellent rapport

24. Utilitarian Practical Functional Pragmatic The layout and organization of the busy restaurant’s small kitchen were strictly utilitarian

25. Vacuous Devoid of matter Lacking ideas or intelligence Purposeless Void Empty From the vacuous expression on your face, no one would guess that you have such a sharp mind

26. Vagary An unpredictable, erratic, or seemingly purposeless action, occurrence, or notion Caprice Whim Quirk Who can explain the vagaries of the world of high fashion?

27. Xenophobia Chauvinism Undue or unreasonable fear, hatred, or contempt of foreigners or strangers It is sad when people who themselves were once newcomers to a land are blind to xenophobia

28. Zany Comical Buffoon One who plays the clown Clownish or funny in a crazy, bizarre, or ludicrous way Who doesn’t love the zany antics of the Marx brothers?

29. Zealot Fanatic Extremist An ardent follower When it comes to our school’s hockey team, my brother can best be described as a zealot

30. Accolade Praise or approval A ceremonial embrace or greeting The playwright enjoyed the accolades of both the theater critics and the public

31. Irreverent Showing a lack of respect for people or things that are generally taken seriously Disrespectful Flippant Impious Irreverence to parents and teachers is not a good sign

32. Palliate To make less serious by glossing over To relieve without actually curing Mitigate Alleviate Extenuate A few new laws may palliate the ills that plague our society but will not eradicate them

33. Protocol Customs and regulations dealing with official behavior and etiquette A type of international agreement A memorandum Official account or record A breach of protocol at a summit meeting of world leaders can have serious consequences

34. Resplendent Shining or gleaming brilliantly Splendid Magnificent The knights clad in resplendent armor, rode forth to engage the foe

35. Stigmatize To brand or mark as in some way discreditable Disgraceful Ignominious People sometimes stigmatize innocent children because of their parents’ misdeeds

36. Sub Rosa In secret Confidentially Privately Secretive An unnamed White House source passed crucial information to reporters sub rosa

37. Vainglory Excessive pride in and boastfulness about one’s own accomplishments or qualities Vanity Conceit Swagger Pretentiousness With insufferable vainglory the young tennis star taunted his opponent after each winning point

38. Vestige A trace or visible evidence of something that once existed but now is lost or vanished The spectacular ruins of the ancient temple are the last vestiges of a once-mighty civilization

39. Viable Workable Conceivable Practicable Feasible The mayor announced a viable plan to reduce traffic in the downtown business district

40. Volition The power to choose, will, or decide The act of choosing, willing, or deciding Ignoring all my relatives’ warnings, I chose the perilous course of my own volition

41. Aficionado (n.) An enthusiastic and usually expert follower or fan Devotee Enthusiast I have been an aficionado of football since my youth

42. Browbeat (v.) To intimidate by a stern or overbearing manner To bully Cow Coerce The dissatisfied customer had to browbeat the store manager into refunding his money

43. Commensurate (adj.) Equal in size, duration, or importance Proportionate Measurable by the same standards Comparable Corresponding All employees got raises commensurate with their efforts

44. Diaphanous (adj.) Very sheer and light Almost completely transparent Translucent Gossamer We were asked to use a diaphanous material like gauze to make the costumes

45. Emolument (n.) Profit derived from an office or position or from employment A fee or salary Pay Wages Compensation Choosing an equitable emolument for the mayor was the latest of the city council’s acts

46. Foray (n.) A quick raid, especially for plunder A venture into some field of endeavor (v.) to make such a raid The cavalry’s foray behind enemy lines was a great success

47. Genre (n.) a type, class, or variety, especially a distinctive category of literary composition A style of painting in which everyday scenes are realistically depicted Species School The science fiction genre has produced several classics

48. Homily (n.) a sermon stressing moral principles A tedious moralizing lecture or discourse The topic of this week’s homily is respect for diversity

49. Immure (v.) to enclose or confine within walls To imprison To seclude or isolate Incarcerate The terrorist was immure for life in a narrow cell

50. Insouciant (adj.) Blithely indifferent or unconcerned Carefree Happy-go-lucky Nonchalant Blasé Devil-may-care After months of worrying about the fate of his new project, the man was determined to lead a more insouciant life thereafter