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Flashcards in Book3 Deck (200)
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1
Q

barrister

A

counselor-at-law or lawyer in the higher court of law; CF. bar

2
Q

solicitor

A

lawyer in the lower court of law

3
Q

barterer

A

trader; V. barter: trade; exchange good for other goods rather than money

4
Q

bask

A

luxuriate; take pleasure in warmth

5
Q

luxuriate

A

take pleasure in great comfort

6
Q

bastion

A

stronghold; something seen as a source of protection; Ex. the last bastion of male chauvinism

7
Q

bate

A

let down; lessen the force of; moderate; restrain; Ex. with bated breath; CF. abate

8
Q

bauble

A

trinket; cheap jewel; trifle

9
Q

bawdy

A

indecent; obscene; about sex in a rude funny way; CF. bawd

10
Q

beatific

A

giving or showing bliss; blissful

11
Q

bliss

A

complete happiness; ADJ. blissful

12
Q

beatitude

A

blessedness; state of great happiness

13
Q

mystic

A

of hidden meaning and spiritual power; Ex. mystic ceremonies; N. CF. mysticism

14
Q

bedizen

A

dress with vulgar finery

15
Q

finery

A

beautiful clothes for a special occasion

16
Q

bedraggle

A

wet thoroughly; ADJ. bedraggled: draggled

17
Q

beeline

A

direct quick route

18
Q

befuddle

A

confuse thoroughly

19
Q

fuddle

A

make stupid or confused as with alcholic drink; N. in a fuddle: confused

20
Q

beget

A

father; become the father of; produce; give rise to

21
Q

begrudge

A

envy; give or allow unwillingly; grudge; Ex. We shouldn’t begrudge him his success.

22
Q

grudge

A

deep feeling of dislike; Ex. grudge fight; V.

23
Q

beguile

A

deceive; mislead or delude; cheat; pass time pleasantly; charm or attract; Ex. beguiling smile

24
Q

behemoth

A

huge creature; something of monstrous size or power

25
Q

beholden

A

obligated; indebted; owing thanks; obliged or indebted from gratitude

26
Q

behoove(behove)

A

be suited to; be incumbent upon; be right and necessary; Ex. It behooves one to do.

27
Q

belabor

A

harp on; dwell on tediously; explain or go over excessively or to a ridiculous degree; assail verbally; beat severely; attack physically

28
Q

belated

A

delayed

29
Q

beleaguer

A

besiege or attack (with an army); harass; beset

30
Q

belie

A

contradict; give a false impression; disguise; Ex. The poor sales belied our high hopes; Ex. Her smile belies her true feeling of displeasure.

31
Q

belittle

A

disparage; depreciate

32
Q

bellicose

A

warlike

33
Q

belligerent

A

quarrelsome

34
Q

bemoan

A

lament; moan for; express sorrow or disapproval of

35
Q

bemused

A

confused; lost in thought; preoccupied

36
Q

benediction

A

blessing

37
Q

benefactor

A

gift giver; patron; person who does good or who gives money for a good purpose

38
Q

beneficent

A

kindly; doing good

39
Q

beneficial

A

helpful; useful; advantageous

40
Q

beneficiary

A

person entitled to benefits or proceeds of an insurance policy or will

41
Q

benefit

A

advantage; anything that brings helpl, advantage, or profit; money provided by the government to the people; fund-raising public entertainment; Ex. unemployment benefit; V: receive benefits; be beneficial to; give benefits

42
Q

benevolent

A

generous; charitable; having a wish to do good

43
Q

benign

A

kindly; favorable; not malignant (disease); Ex. benign tumor

44
Q

benison

A

blessing

45
Q

bent

A

determined; Ex. bent on advancing in the business; N: natural talent or inclination

46
Q

bequeath

A

leave to someone by means of a will; hand down in his will; N. bequest

47
Q

berate

A

scold strongly

48
Q

bereavement

A

state of being deprived of something valuable or beloved; state of being bereaved or bereft

49
Q

bereaved

A

deprived of (someone beloved through death)

50
Q

bereft

A

deprived of (something valuable); lacking

51
Q

berserk

A

mad with violent anger; frenzied; madly excited

52
Q

beseech

A

beg; plead with

53
Q

beset

A

harass or trouble from all directions; hem in

54
Q

hem

A

surround tightly so that movement is impossible; Ex. hem in; N.

55
Q

besiege

A

surround with armed forces; harass (with requests); annoy continually

56
Q

besmirch

A

soil; defile; make dirty

57
Q

bestial

A

beastlike; brutal; inhuman; very cruel

58
Q

bestow

A

confer

59
Q

betoken

A

signify; indicate; be a sign of

60
Q

token

A

outward sign; Ex. a token of our gratitude

61
Q

betray

A

be unfaithful; reveal (unconsciously or unwillingly); Ex. Her trembling hands betray her anxiety.

62
Q

betroth

A

become engaged to marry

63
Q

bevy

A

large group; Ex. a bevy of starlets

64
Q

bicameral

A

two-chambered as a legislative body

65
Q

bicker

A

quarrel

66
Q

biennial

A

every two years

67
Q

bifurcated

A

divided into two branches; forked

68
Q

bigotry

A

stubborn intolerance

69
Q

bigot

A

one who is intolerant (in matters of religion or politics)

70
Q

intolerant

A

not willing to accept ways of thinking different from one’s own; CF. tolerant; CF. tolerate

71
Q

bilious

A

suffering from indigestion; sick from having too much bile; irritable; easily irritated

72
Q

bilk

A

swindle; cheat

73
Q

billowing

A

swelling out in waves; surging

74
Q

billow

A

large wave of water; a great swell or surge (of smoke); V: surge, swell, roll in billows

75
Q

swell

A

long wave of water that moves continuously without breaking; V.

76
Q

surge

A

powerful movement of or like a wave; V.

77
Q

bivouac

A

temporary encampment; camp without tents; V.

78
Q

bizarre

A

fantastic; violently contrasting; noticeably odd; strikingly unconventional

79
Q

blanch

A

bleach; whiten; make white or pale

80
Q

bland

A

soothing or mild (food); agreeable; causing no trouble or offence

81
Q

blandishment

A

flattery

82
Q

blare

A

loud or harsh roar or screech; dazzling blaze of light

83
Q

screech

A

unpleasant high sharp sound; shriek; V.

84
Q

dazzle

A

make blind with a sudden intense light; amaze; fill with wonder

85
Q

blasé

A

bored with pleasure or dissipation; uninterested or bored

86
Q

blasphemy

A

irreverence; sacrilege; cursing; bad language about God or holy things; V. blasphem; ADJ. blasphemous; CF. sacrilege

87
Q

blatant

A

extremely (offensively) obvious; loudly offensive; Ex. blatant lie; N. blatancy

88
Q

bleak

A

cold or cheerless; frigid; unlikely to be favorable; depressing

89
Q

blighted

A

suffering from a disease; destroyed

90
Q

blight

A

plant disease; V: infect with blight; ruin; destroy

91
Q

blithe(blithesome)

A

gay; joyous

92
Q

bloated

A

(unpleasantly) swollen or puffed as with water or air

93
Q

blowhard

A

talkative boaster; braggart

94
Q

bludgeon

A

club; heavy-headed weapon; V.

95
Q

bluff

A

pretense (of strength); deception; high cliff; ADJ: rough but good-natured

96
Q

blunder

A

error; stupid mistake

97
Q

blurt

A

utter impulsively from nervousness or excitement

98
Q

bluster

A

blow in heavy gusts; threaten emptily; bully; speak in a noisy or bullying manner; CF. breeze, gust, gale

99
Q

bully

A

one who is habitually cruel to weaker people; V.

100
Q

bode

A

foreshadow; portend

101
Q

bogus

A

counterfeit; not authentic; intentionally false; Ex. bogus interview

102
Q

bohemian

A

unconventional (in an artistic way)

103
Q

boisterous

A

violent; rough; noisy

104
Q

bolster

A

support; reinforce

105
Q

bolt

A

door bar; fastening pin or screw; length of fabric; large roll of cloth; V: dash or dart off; fasten (a door); gobble down

106
Q

dart

A

move or throw suddenly and quickly

107
Q

gobble

A

eat very quickly

108
Q

bombardment

A

attack (as with missiles or bombs); V. bombard

109
Q

bombastic

A

pompous; using inflated language

110
Q

bombast

A

grandiloquent, pompous speech

111
Q

boon

A

blessing; benefit; something very helpful

112
Q

boorish

A

rude; insensitive

113
Q

boor

A

rude, insensitive person

114
Q

bouillon

A

clear beef (or meat) soup

115
Q

bountiful

A

generous; graciously generous; showing bounty

116
Q

gracious

A

kind in a generous way (to someone less important)

117
Q

bourgeois

A

middle class; selfishly materialistic; too interested in material possessions

118
Q

bovine

A

cowlike; placid and dull; slow-thinking; calm

119
Q

bowdlerize

A

expurgate; CF. Thomas Bowdler

120
Q

brackish

A

somewhat saline

121
Q

braggadocio

A

boasting

122
Q

brag

A

boast

123
Q

braggart

A

boaster; bragger

124
Q

brandish

A

wave around (a weapon); flourish

125
Q

bravado

A

swagger; assumed air of defiance; false show of bravery

126
Q

swagger

A

walk or behave with an over-confident manner

127
Q

brawn

A

human muscle; muscular strength; sturdiness

128
Q

brawny

A

muscular; having well-developed muscles

129
Q

sturdy

A

strong and firm (in the body)

130
Q

brazen

A

insolent; without shame; bold; Ex. brazen lie; V: face with bold self-assurance or with unshamed confidence

131
Q

brawl

A

noisy quarrel

132
Q

breach

A

breaking of contract or duty; fissure or gap; opening; V.

133
Q

breadth

A

width; extent

134
Q

brevity

A

conciseness; shortness of duration

135
Q

brindled

A

tawny or grayish with streaks or spots (of animals)

136
Q

tawny

A

brownish yellow

137
Q

bristling

A

rising like bristles; showing irritation

138
Q

bristle

A

short stiff hair; V: (hair or fur) stand up stiffly

139
Q

brittle

A

hard but easily broken; difficult; unstable; Ex. brittle situation

140
Q

broach

A

introduce as a subject; moot; open up

141
Q

brocade

A

rich, figured(patterned) fabric

142
Q

brochure

A

pamphlet

143
Q

brooch

A

ornamental clasp; pin

144
Q

clasp

A

hold firmly within arms

145
Q

brook

A

tolerate; endure; Ex. brook no interference; N: small stream

146
Q

browbeat

A

bully; intimidate

147
Q

browse

A

graze; feed on growing grass; skim or glance at casually

148
Q

graze

A

(of an animal) feed on growing grass; cause (an animal) to feed on grass; scrape (esp. the skin) or touch lightly in passing; brush; Ex. We can’t graze the cattle till summer; N: surface wound

149
Q

skim

A

read or glance through quickly; touch lightly in passing; brush; remove from the surface of a liquid

150
Q

brunt

A

main impact or shock (of an attack or blow); Ex. brunt of the argument

151
Q

brusque

A

blunt; abrupt; curt; not wanting to waste time being nice

152
Q

buccaneer

A

pirate

153
Q

bucolic

A

rustic; pastoral

154
Q

buffet

A

strike forcefully; slap; batter; knock out; N: table with food set out for people to server themselves; meal at which people help themselves to food that’s been set

155
Q

slap

A

hit quickly with the flat part of the hand; N. CF. smack

156
Q

buffoonery

A

clowning

157
Q

buffoon

A

stupid person; clown

158
Q

clown

A

act stupidly; play the fool; N.

159
Q

bugaboo

A

bugbear; object of baseless terror

160
Q

bullion

A

gold and silver in the form of bars

161
Q

bulwark

A

strong wall built for defense; earthwork or other strong defense; person who defends

162
Q

bungle

A

mismanage; blunder; botch; blow; spoil by clumsy behavior

163
Q

botch

A

mismanage; blow

164
Q

buoyant

A

able to float; cheerful and optimistic; N. buoyancy; Ex. buoyancy of wood/water/American market

165
Q

bureaucracy

A

overregulated administrative system marked by red tape; ADJ. bureaucratic

166
Q

burgeon

A

grow rapidly; grow forth; send out buds; Ex. burgeoning computer industry; CF. bludgeon

167
Q

burlesque

A

give an imitation that ridicules; imitate mockingly

168
Q

burnish

A

make shiny by rubbing; polish

169
Q

buttress

A

support; prop up; N. stationary structure to support wall; Ex. flying buttress

170
Q

prop

A

support placed under or against something; V.

171
Q

buxom

A

full-bosomed; plump; jolly

172
Q

plump

A

pleasantly fat; nicely rounded

173
Q

cabal

A

small group of persons secretly united to promote their own interests

174
Q

cache

A

hiding place; V.

175
Q

cacophonous

A

discordant; inharmonious; N. cacophony: unpleasant mixture of loud sounds

176
Q

cadaver

A

corpse; dead human body

177
Q

cadaverous

A

like a corpse; pale

178
Q

cadence

A

rhythmic rise and fall (of words or sounds); beat; regular beat of sound; rhythm

179
Q

cajole

A

persuade by praise or false promise; coax; wheedle

180
Q

coax

A

persuade by flattery

181
Q

calamity

A

disaster; misery

182
Q

calculated

A

deliberately planned; likely

183
Q

caldron(cauldron)

A

large kettle

184
Q

caliber

A

ability; quality; diameter of the inside of a round cylinder; Ex. work of very high caliber

185
Q

calligraphy

A

beautiful writing; excellent penmanship

186
Q

callous

A

hardened; unfeeling; without sympathy for the sufferings of others; unkind

187
Q

callus

A

area of thick hard skin

188
Q

callow

A

youthful; immature; inexperienced

189
Q

calorific

A

heat-producing; N. calorie

190
Q

calumny

A

malicious misrepresentation; slander

191
Q

camaraderie

A

good-fellowship; CF. comrade

192
Q

cameo

A

shell or jewel carved in relief; star’s special appearance in a minor role in a film

193
Q

canard

A

unfounded false rumor; exaggerated false report

194
Q

candor

A

frankness; open honesty; ADJ. candid

195
Q

canine

A

related to dogs; doglike

196
Q

canker

A

any ulcerous sore; ulcer; any evil; CF. cancer

197
Q

ulcer

A

sore place appearing on the skin inside or outside the body; Ex. stomach ulcer; ADJ. ulcerous; V. ulcerate

198
Q

canny

A

shrewd in money matters; thrifty

199
Q

cant

A

insincere speech or expression of piety; jargon of thieves; special words used by a particular group of people

200
Q

cantankerous

A

ill-humored; irritable