| Terms |
Definitions |
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finale
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n. conclusion
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fiasco
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n. total failure
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animadversion
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N. critical remark.
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credo
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N. a creed
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espionage
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n. spying, intelligence, reconnaissance
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filigree
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n. delicate, lacelike metalwork
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anomalous*
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ADJ. abnormal; irregular; atypical
ant: conforming, standard, usual
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circlet
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n. small ring; band
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cerebration
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N. thought; thinking; ponder
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cadaver
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N. corpse; dead body
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assiduous*
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ADJ. diligent; hard-working; laborious
ant: lazy, neglectful, negligent
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drivel
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n. nonsense, rubbish, foolishness
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composure
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n. mental calmness, poise, dignity
ant: impatience, agitation, uneasiness
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etymology
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n. study of word parts
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explicate
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v. explain, interpret, clarify
ant: cloud, complicate, confuse
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adamant
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adj. hard; inflexible; unyielding
ant: pliant, submissive, flexible
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amity
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N. friendship; harmony
ant: discord, hatred, hostility
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eerie
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adj. weird, uncanny, strange
ant: normal, familiar, ordinary
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adversary
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n. opponent; enemy; antagonist
ant: ally, friend, supporter
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allure
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v. entice; attract; captivate
ant: deter, dissuade, repel
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beholden
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ADJ. obligated; indebted; owing
ant: ungrateful
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baroque
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ADJ. highly ornate; decorative; extravagant
ant: plain, unadorned, undecorated
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carafe
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N. glass water bottle; decanter
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deface
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v. mar, disfigure, blemish
ant: repair, renovate, mend
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brackish
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ADJ. somewhat saline, salty; briny
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cull
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V. pick out, pluck; reject
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converse
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n. opposite, reverse
ant: same, similarity
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contrite*
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adj. penitent, sorry, remorseful
ant: indifferent, mean, unrepentant
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asteroid
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N. small planet; star-shaped (adj)
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bantering
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ADJ. good-natured ridiculing; taunt, mock
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devotee
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n. enthusiastic follower, fan, supporter
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doleful
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adj. mournful; causing sadness
ant: cheerful, elated, joyful
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comeuppance
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n. rebuke; deserts, deserved fate, retribution
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epoch
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n. period of time, era, age
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exude
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v. discharge, give forth, radiate, seep
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felicitous
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adj. apt; suitably expressed; well chosen
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abridge
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v. condense or shorten; diminish
ant: expand, extend, increase
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apathy*
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N. lack of caring; indifference.
ant: care, concert, interest
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effeminate
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adj. having womanly traits, unmanly, sissy
ant: manly, macho, butch
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altercation
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n. noisy quarrel; heated dispute; fight
ant: agreement, concord, union
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circumscribe
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v. encircle; limit narrowly; confine or restrict; define
ant: unlimited, free
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billowing
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ADJ. swelling out in waves; surging
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cavil
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V. make frivolous objections; quibble; carp
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defiance
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n. refusal to yield, resistance, opposition
ant: regard, respect, compliance
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decry
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v. express strong disapproval of; disparage, condemn
ant: applaud, praise, exalt
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browbeat
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V. bully; intimidate; be bossy towards
ant: tempt, entice, coax
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context
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n. writings preceding and following the passage quoted that helps to determine its meaning, a setting
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convoluted*
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adj. coiled around; difficult to comprehend, involved, intricate, complicated
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assert
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V. state strongly or positively; insist on or demand recognition of (rights, claims, etc)
ant: deny, reject; disclaim
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avow
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V. declare openly; state; profess
ant: censure, deny, renounce
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dilemma
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n. problem, choice between two unsatisfactory alternatives, predicament
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disperse
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v. scatter, spread out, vanish
ant: collect, gather, pool
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esteem
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v. respect, value, admire (also n.); consider, think of, believe in
ant: disrespect, disregard, contempt; deride, disbelieve
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factitious
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adj. not natural, not genuine, bogus, artificial, sham
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fawning
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adj. trying to please by behaving obsequiously, flattering, or cringing
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accolade
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n. award or merit; mark of acknowledgment
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anticlimax
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N. letdown in thought or emotion; ineffective conclusion
ant: climax
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ambulatory
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adj. able to walk; not bedridden
ant: steady, stiff, unchanging
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cite
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v. quote or refer to; commend; summon
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bask
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V. luxuriate; take pleasure in warmth; lie in sunlight
ant: cover, hide
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caption
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N. title; chapter heading; text under illustration; subtitle
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demographic
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adj. related to population balance or population statistics
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criteria
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N. PL. standards used in judging. (SING: criterion)
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corrode
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v. destroy by chemical action, eat away, rust
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array
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V. marshal; draw up in order; organize
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bandy
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V. discuss lightly or glibly; exchange (words) heatedly; banter
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disenfranchise
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v. deprive of a civil right (disfranchise)
ant: enfranchise, grant
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distant
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adj. reserved or aloof; cold in manner
ant: warm, friendly, intimate
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enfranchise
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v. admit to the rights of citizenship (especially the right to vote), give voting rights
ant: disenfranchise
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flail
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v. thresh grain by hand; strike or slap; toss about
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anecdote
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N. short account of an amusing or interesting event.
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amenable
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adj. readily managed or willing to be led; answerable or accountable legally
ant: intractable, uncooperative, unwilling
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cleft
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n. crack or split (also adj. split, separated)
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defunct
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adj. dead, no longer in use or existence, extinct
ant: alive, operative, working
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aspire
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V. seek to attain; long for; aim; strive toward
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dint
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n. means; effort, due to
"by dint of" interchangeable with "by means of"
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alloy (v.)
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v. mix; make less pure; lessen or moderate
ant: clean, clear, purify
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asymmetric
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ADJ. not identical on both sides of a dividing central line; irregular
ant: symmetric, balanced
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