Short but Challenging Words
bane- cause of death, ruin or distress. Obviously, you would avoid baneful herbs, like baneberry, and even shun baneful superstitions that could be equally harmful.
deign- to think it beneath one’s dignity, condescend; give. Related to the same Latin root, dignitas, as deign are dignity, dignify, dignitary, and indignant, all of which comment one one’s worthiness.
eke-to supplement; to manage to make a living with difficulty; to use fugally. Eke can be traced to the Latin augere and the Greek auxanein, which in turn give us words like augment and auxiliary.
knell-to rink in a slow, solemn way; toll; to call or announce by a mournful ringing; an omen of death or failure. The opening line of Gray’s famous elegy, “The curfew tolls the knell of parting day,” sets the mournful, reflective mood of the poem.
mete-to allot, distribute or apportion. Tennyson’s famous line amply illustrates the sense of measuring out: “I mete and dole unequal laws unto a savage race.”
moot- discussion or argument of a hypothetical law case; debatable; so hypothetical as to be meaningless. Law students sharpen their skills in a moot court where hypothetical cases are tried.
mulct-to punish by a fine or by depriving of something; to extract by fraud or deceit. It is from the Latin mulcta (“a fine.”).
plumb-perfectly vertical; directly; to test or sound with a plumb line (measure); to discover the facts of; to fathom; solve or understand. A lead weight (Latin plumbum, “lead”) was used at the end of the plumb line. The chemical symbol for lead is Pb.
quail-to draw back in fear; lose heart or courage; cower. A quail is also a partridge-like bird mentioned in the Bible as the sourced of the mead sent to the Israelites in the desert. The definition of the verb to quail is related to the Latin word coagulare (“coagulate”), describing what seems to happen physically when the blood “runs cold.”
roil-to make a liquid cloudy or muddy; to stir up or agitate; to make angry, rile. Some authoritites believe the word comes from the Old French word for “rust” or “mud,” or the Latin ruber (“red”). Others frankly admit the origin is unknown. But we can offer some interesting synonym: annoy, fret, ruffle, exasperate, provoke.
ruck-a heap or stack; a large quantity or crowd; mass of ordinary people or things; common run. Some words, like queen, which one referred to anyone’s wife, have moved up the social ladder; but ruck succeeded only in moving from things to humans. It still refers to people who are generally inferior.
shunt-to move or to turn to one side; to shift or switch from one track to another. The world may be related to shun, which also has the sense of turning away.
svelte-slender and graceful; suave; polished. The derivation from the Latin evellare (“to pull out”), implies that the svelte figure has, been “drawn out” like a heated glass tube.
thrall-a slave or bondman; a person under the moral or psychological domination of something or someone; slavery. Performers who enthrall their audiences captivate their attention.
tryst-an appointment, as by lovers; to meet. In Scotland the word refers to a market, but the Old French triste (“hunting rendezvous”) suggests that the Gallic hunters were not always after wild game.
Exercises
I. Which Word Comes to Mind?
In each of the following, read the statement, then circle the word that comes to mind.
The impoverished family barely survived the winner
(mulct, moot, eke)
To each according to his due
(thrall, mete, roil)
A house of terror for its inhabitants
(quail, ruck, deign)
Romeo and Juliet meet at the Friar’s cell
(knell, tryst, shunt)
Drink was his undoing
(svelte, plumb, bane)
A detour off the main road
(plumb, thrall, shunt)
Most models diet strenuously to keep their slender figure
(svelte, ruck, mulct)
The town rings a bell at curfew time
(knell, deign, mete)
Children annoying their nanny
(roil, shunt, tryst)
She world like a slave in her aunt’s household
(moot, thrall, plumb)
II. True or False?
In the space provided, indicate whether each statement is true or false.
____ 1. One would normally be proud to be counted among the ruck of humanity.
____2. The best time to appeal to someone for a favor is after he has been roiled up.
____3. The knelling of bells has a somber, saddening effect.
____4. Every girl is anxious to have a svelte figure.
____5. A person found guilty of a serious crime in moot court must serve at least the minimum service
____6. Drugs and alcohol proved to be the bane of Peter’s life.
____7. Mrs. Miller was son angry that she would not deign to read my poem..
____8. The greedy stockbroker mulcted his firm into bankruptcy.
____ 9. It was difficult for the poor farmers to eke out a living.
____ 10. Judge Medowar has meted out justice in his courtroom for twenty years.
Synonyms and Antonyms
Indicate whether the following pairs of words are the same, opposite, or unrelated in meaning by writing S, O, or U in the space provided.
____ 1. thrall—master
____2. moot—questionable
____3. tryst—confidence
____4. mete—assign
____5. roil—soothe
Saturday, August 4, 2007
July 31st, 2007[ Reading Comprehension 5]
The principle of selection solved the riddle as to how what
was purposive could conceivably be brought about without the
intervention of a directing power, the riddle which animate
nature presents to our intelligence at every turn, and in
5 face of which the mind of a Kant could find no way out, for
he regarded a solution of it as not to be hoped for. For,
even if we were to assume an evolutionary force that is
continually transforming the most primitive and the simplest
forms of life into ever higher forms, and the homogeneity of
10 primitive times into the infinite variety of the present, we
should still be unable to infer from this alone how each of
the numberless forms adapted to particular conditions of life
should have appeared precisely at the right moment in the
history of the earth to which their adaptations were
15 appropriate, and precisely at the proper place in which all
the conditions of life to which they were adapted occurred:
the humming-birds at the same time as the flowers; the
trichina at the same time as the pig; the bark-coloured moth
at the same time as the oak, and the wasp-like moth at the
20 same time as the wasp which protects it. Without processes
of selection we should be obliged to assume a
“pre-established harmony” after the famous Leibnitzian model,
by means of which the clock of the evolution of organisms
is so regulated as to strike in exact synchronism with that
25 of the history of the earth!
All forms of life are strictly adapted to the conditions
of their life, and can persist under these conditions alone.
There must therefore be an intrinsic connection between the
conditions and the structural adaptations of the organism,
30 and, since the conditions of life cannot be determined by
the animal itself, the adaptations must be called forth by
the conditions. The selection theory teaches us how this
is conceivable, since it enables us to understand that there
is a continual production of what is non-purposive as well
35 as of what is purposive, but the purposive alone survives,
while the non-purposive perishes in the very act of arising.
This is the old wisdom taught long ago by Empedocles.
QUESTIONS
1. It can be inferred that the author believes that the “Leibnitzian model” (line 22) is
A. ingenious and worthy of serious consideration
B. untenable by all rational people
C. an acceptable solution to Kant’s dilemma
D. unworthy of further consideration
E. an alternative that might still be valid
2. The author’s primary purpose in this extract is to
A. suggest that a particular theory explains otherwise puzzling phenomena
B. describe the details of the selection theory for a lay audience
C. justify a particularly controversial model of the origins of life
D. persuade the reader that Empedocles was right
E. prove that selection is the only possible way of looking at evolutionary biology
3. The examples in lines 17 - 19 are intended to
A. reinforce the author’s point that is difficult to explain adaptation
B. show that adaptations must take place only at specific times and in specific places
C. give specific illustration of organisms that are particularly well-adapted to their conditions
D. show organisms that have evolved synchronously in a predestined manner
E. demonstrate that intelligent design is needed for purposive evolution
was purposive could conceivably be brought about without the
intervention of a directing power, the riddle which animate
nature presents to our intelligence at every turn, and in
5 face of which the mind of a Kant could find no way out, for
he regarded a solution of it as not to be hoped for. For,
even if we were to assume an evolutionary force that is
continually transforming the most primitive and the simplest
forms of life into ever higher forms, and the homogeneity of
10 primitive times into the infinite variety of the present, we
should still be unable to infer from this alone how each of
the numberless forms adapted to particular conditions of life
should have appeared precisely at the right moment in the
history of the earth to which their adaptations were
15 appropriate, and precisely at the proper place in which all
the conditions of life to which they were adapted occurred:
the humming-birds at the same time as the flowers; the
trichina at the same time as the pig; the bark-coloured moth
at the same time as the oak, and the wasp-like moth at the
20 same time as the wasp which protects it. Without processes
of selection we should be obliged to assume a
“pre-established harmony” after the famous Leibnitzian model,
by means of which the clock of the evolution of organisms
is so regulated as to strike in exact synchronism with that
25 of the history of the earth!
All forms of life are strictly adapted to the conditions
of their life, and can persist under these conditions alone.
There must therefore be an intrinsic connection between the
conditions and the structural adaptations of the organism,
30 and, since the conditions of life cannot be determined by
the animal itself, the adaptations must be called forth by
the conditions. The selection theory teaches us how this
is conceivable, since it enables us to understand that there
is a continual production of what is non-purposive as well
35 as of what is purposive, but the purposive alone survives,
while the non-purposive perishes in the very act of arising.
This is the old wisdom taught long ago by Empedocles.
QUESTIONS
1. It can be inferred that the author believes that the “Leibnitzian model” (line 22) is
A. ingenious and worthy of serious consideration
B. untenable by all rational people
C. an acceptable solution to Kant’s dilemma
D. unworthy of further consideration
E. an alternative that might still be valid
2. The author’s primary purpose in this extract is to
A. suggest that a particular theory explains otherwise puzzling phenomena
B. describe the details of the selection theory for a lay audience
C. justify a particularly controversial model of the origins of life
D. persuade the reader that Empedocles was right
E. prove that selection is the only possible way of looking at evolutionary biology
3. The examples in lines 17 - 19 are intended to
A. reinforce the author’s point that is difficult to explain adaptation
B. show that adaptations must take place only at specific times and in specific places
C. give specific illustration of organisms that are particularly well-adapted to their conditions
D. show organisms that have evolved synchronously in a predestined manner
E. demonstrate that intelligent design is needed for purposive evolution
August 1st, 2007[ Quant18]
1 A motorcycle stunts man belonging to a fair, rides over the vertical walls of a circular well at an average speed of 54 kph for 5 minutes. If the radius of the well is 5 meters then the distance traveled is:
1. 2.5 kms
2. 3.5 kms
3. 4.5 kms
4. 5.5 kms
5. None of the above
2 If 1 cm on a map corresponds to an actual distance of 40 kms. And the distance on the map between Bombay and Calcutta is 37.5 cms., the actual distance between them is :
1. 375 kms
2. 3750 kms
3. 1500 kms
4. 1375 kms
5. None of the above
3 A box contains 90 nuts each of 100 gms and 100 bolts each of 150 gms. If the entire box weighs 35.5 kg., then the weight of the empty box is :
1. 10 kg
2. 10.5 kg
3. 11 kg
4. 11.5 kg
5. None of the above
4 If the radius of a circle is increased by 20% then the area is increased by :
1. 44%
2. 120%
3. 144%
4. 40%
5. None of the above
5 If x, y, and z are consecutive negative integers, and if x > y > z, which of the following must be a positive odd integer?
1. xyz
2. (x - y) (y - z)
3. x - yz
4. x(y + z)
5. x + y + z
1. 2.5 kms
2. 3.5 kms
3. 4.5 kms
4. 5.5 kms
5. None of the above
2 If 1 cm on a map corresponds to an actual distance of 40 kms. And the distance on the map between Bombay and Calcutta is 37.5 cms., the actual distance between them is :
1. 375 kms
2. 3750 kms
3. 1500 kms
4. 1375 kms
5. None of the above
3 A box contains 90 nuts each of 100 gms and 100 bolts each of 150 gms. If the entire box weighs 35.5 kg., then the weight of the empty box is :
1. 10 kg
2. 10.5 kg
3. 11 kg
4. 11.5 kg
5. None of the above
4 If the radius of a circle is increased by 20% then the area is increased by :
1. 44%
2. 120%
3. 144%
4. 40%
5. None of the above
5 If x, y, and z are consecutive negative integers, and if x > y > z, which of the following must be a positive odd integer?
1. xyz
2. (x - y) (y - z)
3. x - yz
4. x(y + z)
5. x + y + z
August 3rd, 2007 [August Words2]
1 ostracise
2 tortuous
3 knoll
4. preposterous
5.renege
6 ephemeral
7. lethargic
8.dubious
9. FASTIDIOUS
10. HILLOCK
11. DISCREET
12. EULOGY
13. TRANQUILITY
14. MOLLIFY
15. TRICKERY
16. OESTROSIZE
17. OISPISE
18. SPENT
19. MUSICIAN
20. EXUBERANT
21. DEFTENT
22. TRITE
23. FLAGRANT
24. SUNDER
2 tortuous
3 knoll
4. preposterous
5.renege
6 ephemeral
7. lethargic
8.dubious
9. FASTIDIOUS
10. HILLOCK
11. DISCREET
12. EULOGY
13. TRANQUILITY
14. MOLLIFY
15. TRICKERY
16. OESTROSIZE
17. OISPISE
18. SPENT
19. MUSICIAN
20. EXUBERANT
21. DEFTENT
22. TRITE
23. FLAGRANT
24. SUNDER
July 28th, 2007 [JULY WORDS]
1. Overture - An introductory section or part, as of a poem; a prelude; to present as an introduction or proposal; introduction, approach
2. Sanctimonious - Feigning piety or righteousness; of or practicing hypocrisy; self-righteous, hypocritical about one’s own holiness
3. Inanity - Something empty of meaning or sense; total lack of ideas, meaning, or substance
4. Vulgarian - A vulgar person, especially one who makes a conspicuous display of wealth; an unrefined, rude person; a vulgar person (especially someone who makes a vulgar display of wealth)
5. Miscreant - An evildoer; a villain; an infidel; a heretic; evil, immoral; a villain
6. Wretched - So objectionable as to elicit despisal or deserve condemnation; terrible, very bad; of very inferior quality; miserable
7. Epic - An extended narrative poem in elevated or dignified language, celebrating the feats of a legendary or traditional hero; a literary or dramatic composition that resembles an extended narrative poem celebrating heroic feats
8. Mendacious - Lying; untruthful; false; untrue; dishonest; given to or marked by deliberate concealment or misrepresentation of the truth
9. Narrative - A narrated account; a story; the art, technique, or process of narrating; a recounting of past events
10. Appease - To bring peace, quiet, or calm to; soothe; satisfy, pacify
11. Defiant - Marked by defiance; disobedient, disregardful
12. Raucous - Rough-sounding and harsh; boisterous and disorderly; rowdy; noisy; harsh and unpleasant
13. Meager - Deficient in quantity, fullness, or extent; scanty. Deficient in richness, fertility, or vigor; feeble
14. Flirtatious - Full of playful allure; provocative, teasing; given to flirting
15. Bumptious - Crudely or loudly assertive; pushy; self-assertive offensively self-assertive
16. Assertive - Inclined to bold or confident assertion; aggressively self-assured
17. Trite - Lacking power to evoke interest through overuse or repetition; hackneyed
16. Panegyric - A formal eulogistic composition intended as a public compliment. Elaborate praise or laudation; an encomium
17. Impecunious - Lacking money; penniless
18. Armageddon - The scene of a final battle between the forces of good and evil, prophesied to occur at the end of the world; a decisive or catastrophic conflict
19. Intrigue - A secret or underhand scheme; a plot; arouse curiosity
20. Gullible - Easily deceived or duped; easily imposed on or tricked; naive, trusting
21. Daguerreotype - An early photographic process with the image made on a light-sensitive silver-coated metallic plate
22. Musket - A smoothbore shoulder gun used from the late 16th through the 18th century
22. Hieroglyphic - Of or relating to representation by drawings or pictures
23. Papyrus - The writing paper of the ancient Egyptians, and later of the Romans
24. Pastiche - A mixture of materials, forms, motifs, and/or styles; often incongruous; dramatic, literary, or musical piece openly imitating the previous works of other artists, often with satirical intent; an artistic effort that imitates or caricatures the work of another artist
25. Bust - A sculpture representing a person’s head, shoulders, and upper chest
26. Sacrilege - Desecration, profanation, misuse, or theft of something sacred; irreverence
27. Conscientious - Guided by or in accordance with the dictates of conscience; principled; thorough and assiduous; moral, upright; thorough, careful
28. Daft - Mad; crazy; foolish; stupid; scots; frolicsome
29. Reagent - A substance used in a chemical reaction to detect, measure, examine, or produce other substances
30. Temerity - Foolhardy disregard of danger; recklessness; nerve, audacity; rash or presumptuous daring
31. Menial - Work pertaining to servants; work that is demeaning or insulting to the person performing it; lowly, low-status
32. Miscreant - A wicked or evil person; a scoundrel; something said to be the cause of particular trouble or an evil; a mean, worthless character in a story or play
33. Stultify - To render useless or ineffectual; cripple; to cause to appear stupid, inconsistent, or ridiculous; to allege or prove insane and so not legally responsible
34. Lambast - Censure severely or angrily; beat with a cane
35. Pique - A state of vexation caused by a perceived slight or indignity; a feeling of wounded pride
36. Vociferous - Making, given to, or marked by noisy and vehement outcry; loud, insistent
37. Pariah - An outcast; a member of a low caste or class
38. Raft - A flat structure, typically made of planks, logs, or barrels, that floats on water and is used for transport or as a platform for swimmers; a flat buoyant structure of timber or other materials fastened together, used as a boat or floating platform
39. Buoyant - Having the ability to float; light in weight; lighthearted; gay
40. Unrealizable - Impossible to achieve
41. Renegade - common vagabond; a worthless or wicked fellow; one who deserts from a military or naval post; a deserter; one faithless to principle or party; an apostate from Christianity or from any form of religious faith
42. Ferocious - Extremely savage; fierce; marked by unrelenting intensity; extreme
43. Prolixity - Words or the use of words in excess of those needed for clarity or precision; boring verboseness
44. Mortify - To deprive of esteem, self-worth, or effectiveness; to cause (a person) to be self-consciously distressed; embarrass
45. Pusillanimous - Lacking courage; cowardly; lacking courage and resolution; marked by contemptible timidity; without spirit or bravery
46. Percipient - Having the power of perceiving, especially perceiving keenly and readily; astute; characterized by ease and quickness in perceiving
47. Anachronistic - Something that is out of place and time; erroneous in date
48. Fervor - Great warmth and intensity of emotion; intense heat; excitement, enthusiasm
49. Disinfectant - An agent, such as heat, radiation, or a chemical, that destroys, neutralizes, or inhibits the growth of disease-carrying microorganisms 180. Terseness - Brief and to the point; effectively concise; brief, short
50. Hoarse - Rough or grating in sound; having or characterized by a husky, grating voice; raspy in voice
51. Effusive - Unrestrained or excessive in emotional expression; gushy; profuse; overflowing
52. Obliterate - To destroy all traces of; to wipe out, rub off, or erase; to remove completely (a body organ or part), as by surgery, disease, or radiation
53. Index - An alphabetized list of names, places, and subjects treated in a printed work, giving the page or pages on which each item is mentioned; something that serves to guide, point out, or otherwise facilitate reference
54. Laconic - Using or marked by the use of few words; terse or concise; short, to the point
55. Nimble - Quick, light, or agile in movement or action; deft; dexterous, smart
56. Clumsyness - Lacking dexterity and grace in physical movement; not agile; awkward; clumsily lacking in the ability to do or perform
57. Partisan - A fervent, sometimes militant supporter or proponent of a party, cause, faction, person, or idea; one who supports and adheres to another; exhibiting bias; interested, factional
58. Recuperation - A return to normal health; gradual healing (through rest) after sickness or injury; recovery
59. Doldrums - A period of stagnation or slump; period of depression or unhappy listlessness; region of the ocean near the equator, characterized by calms, light winds, or squalls; feeling or spell of dismally low spirits; depression
60. Cow - To frighten with threats or a show of force; browbeat, intimidate;
any of various chiefly domesticated mammals of the genus Bos, including cows, steers, bulls, and oxen, often raised for meat and dairy products
61. Lop - To decrease, as in length or amount, by or as if by severing or excising; to hang limply, loosely, and carelessly; cut off from a whole
62. Fluvial - Of, relating to, or inhabiting a river or stream. Produced by the action of a river or stream
63. Jejune - Not interesting; dull; lacking maturity; childish; lacking in nutrition
64. Indespensible - Not to be dispensed with; essential; obligatory; unavoidable; necessary
65. Hubris - Overbearing pride or presumption; arrogance
66. Vigilance - Alert watchfulness; carefulness
67. Enfeeble - To deprive of strength; make feeble; make very weak
68. Ethereal - Characterized by lightness and insubstantiality; intangible; highly refined; delicate; of the celestial spheres; heavenly; spiritual; so light and insubstantial as to resemble air or a thin film
69. Laggard - One that lags; a straggler; hanging back or falling behind; dilatory; falling behind
70. Tarpaulin - Material, such as waterproofed canvas, used to cover and protect things from moisture; a waterproof cloth, esp. one used in large sheets for covering anything exposed to the weather
71. Mottled - Spotted or blotched with different shades or colors; speckled
72. Vault - A room or compartment, often built of steel, for the safekeeping of valuables; a burial place or receptacle for human remains; to move off the ground by a muscular effort of the legs and feet; act of jumping
73. Allay - To reduce the intensity of; relieve; to calm or pacify; set to rest
74. Stature - The natural height of a human or animal in an upright position; achieved level; status; importance
75. Infinitude - The state or quality of being infinite; an immeasurably large quantity, number, or extent; an infinite quantity
76. Hellion - A mischievous, troublesome, or unruly person
77. Lunge - A sudden thrust or pass, as with a sword; a sudden forward movement or plunge; pounce; dive for
78. Garish - Marked by strident color or excessive ornamentation; gaudy. loud and flashy
79. Piquant - Pleasantly pungent or tart in taste; spicy. appealingly provocative: a piquant wit. charming, interesting, or attractive
2. Sanctimonious - Feigning piety or righteousness; of or practicing hypocrisy; self-righteous, hypocritical about one’s own holiness
3. Inanity - Something empty of meaning or sense; total lack of ideas, meaning, or substance
4. Vulgarian - A vulgar person, especially one who makes a conspicuous display of wealth; an unrefined, rude person; a vulgar person (especially someone who makes a vulgar display of wealth)
5. Miscreant - An evildoer; a villain; an infidel; a heretic; evil, immoral; a villain
6. Wretched - So objectionable as to elicit despisal or deserve condemnation; terrible, very bad; of very inferior quality; miserable
7. Epic - An extended narrative poem in elevated or dignified language, celebrating the feats of a legendary or traditional hero; a literary or dramatic composition that resembles an extended narrative poem celebrating heroic feats
8. Mendacious - Lying; untruthful; false; untrue; dishonest; given to or marked by deliberate concealment or misrepresentation of the truth
9. Narrative - A narrated account; a story; the art, technique, or process of narrating; a recounting of past events
10. Appease - To bring peace, quiet, or calm to; soothe; satisfy, pacify
11. Defiant - Marked by defiance; disobedient, disregardful
12. Raucous - Rough-sounding and harsh; boisterous and disorderly; rowdy; noisy; harsh and unpleasant
13. Meager - Deficient in quantity, fullness, or extent; scanty. Deficient in richness, fertility, or vigor; feeble
14. Flirtatious - Full of playful allure; provocative, teasing; given to flirting
15. Bumptious - Crudely or loudly assertive; pushy; self-assertive offensively self-assertive
16. Assertive - Inclined to bold or confident assertion; aggressively self-assured
17. Trite - Lacking power to evoke interest through overuse or repetition; hackneyed
16. Panegyric - A formal eulogistic composition intended as a public compliment. Elaborate praise or laudation; an encomium
17. Impecunious - Lacking money; penniless
18. Armageddon - The scene of a final battle between the forces of good and evil, prophesied to occur at the end of the world; a decisive or catastrophic conflict
19. Intrigue - A secret or underhand scheme; a plot; arouse curiosity
20. Gullible - Easily deceived or duped; easily imposed on or tricked; naive, trusting
21. Daguerreotype - An early photographic process with the image made on a light-sensitive silver-coated metallic plate
22. Musket - A smoothbore shoulder gun used from the late 16th through the 18th century
22. Hieroglyphic - Of or relating to representation by drawings or pictures
23. Papyrus - The writing paper of the ancient Egyptians, and later of the Romans
24. Pastiche - A mixture of materials, forms, motifs, and/or styles; often incongruous; dramatic, literary, or musical piece openly imitating the previous works of other artists, often with satirical intent; an artistic effort that imitates or caricatures the work of another artist
25. Bust - A sculpture representing a person’s head, shoulders, and upper chest
26. Sacrilege - Desecration, profanation, misuse, or theft of something sacred; irreverence
27. Conscientious - Guided by or in accordance with the dictates of conscience; principled; thorough and assiduous; moral, upright; thorough, careful
28. Daft - Mad; crazy; foolish; stupid; scots; frolicsome
29. Reagent - A substance used in a chemical reaction to detect, measure, examine, or produce other substances
30. Temerity - Foolhardy disregard of danger; recklessness; nerve, audacity; rash or presumptuous daring
31. Menial - Work pertaining to servants; work that is demeaning or insulting to the person performing it; lowly, low-status
32. Miscreant - A wicked or evil person; a scoundrel; something said to be the cause of particular trouble or an evil; a mean, worthless character in a story or play
33. Stultify - To render useless or ineffectual; cripple; to cause to appear stupid, inconsistent, or ridiculous; to allege or prove insane and so not legally responsible
34. Lambast - Censure severely or angrily; beat with a cane
35. Pique - A state of vexation caused by a perceived slight or indignity; a feeling of wounded pride
36. Vociferous - Making, given to, or marked by noisy and vehement outcry; loud, insistent
37. Pariah - An outcast; a member of a low caste or class
38. Raft - A flat structure, typically made of planks, logs, or barrels, that floats on water and is used for transport or as a platform for swimmers; a flat buoyant structure of timber or other materials fastened together, used as a boat or floating platform
39. Buoyant - Having the ability to float; light in weight; lighthearted; gay
40. Unrealizable - Impossible to achieve
41. Renegade - common vagabond; a worthless or wicked fellow; one who deserts from a military or naval post; a deserter; one faithless to principle or party; an apostate from Christianity or from any form of religious faith
42. Ferocious - Extremely savage; fierce; marked by unrelenting intensity; extreme
43. Prolixity - Words or the use of words in excess of those needed for clarity or precision; boring verboseness
44. Mortify - To deprive of esteem, self-worth, or effectiveness; to cause (a person) to be self-consciously distressed; embarrass
45. Pusillanimous - Lacking courage; cowardly; lacking courage and resolution; marked by contemptible timidity; without spirit or bravery
46. Percipient - Having the power of perceiving, especially perceiving keenly and readily; astute; characterized by ease and quickness in perceiving
47. Anachronistic - Something that is out of place and time; erroneous in date
48. Fervor - Great warmth and intensity of emotion; intense heat; excitement, enthusiasm
49. Disinfectant - An agent, such as heat, radiation, or a chemical, that destroys, neutralizes, or inhibits the growth of disease-carrying microorganisms 180. Terseness - Brief and to the point; effectively concise; brief, short
50. Hoarse - Rough or grating in sound; having or characterized by a husky, grating voice; raspy in voice
51. Effusive - Unrestrained or excessive in emotional expression; gushy; profuse; overflowing
52. Obliterate - To destroy all traces of; to wipe out, rub off, or erase; to remove completely (a body organ or part), as by surgery, disease, or radiation
53. Index - An alphabetized list of names, places, and subjects treated in a printed work, giving the page or pages on which each item is mentioned; something that serves to guide, point out, or otherwise facilitate reference
54. Laconic - Using or marked by the use of few words; terse or concise; short, to the point
55. Nimble - Quick, light, or agile in movement or action; deft; dexterous, smart
56. Clumsyness - Lacking dexterity and grace in physical movement; not agile; awkward; clumsily lacking in the ability to do or perform
57. Partisan - A fervent, sometimes militant supporter or proponent of a party, cause, faction, person, or idea; one who supports and adheres to another; exhibiting bias; interested, factional
58. Recuperation - A return to normal health; gradual healing (through rest) after sickness or injury; recovery
59. Doldrums - A period of stagnation or slump; period of depression or unhappy listlessness; region of the ocean near the equator, characterized by calms, light winds, or squalls; feeling or spell of dismally low spirits; depression
60. Cow - To frighten with threats or a show of force; browbeat, intimidate;
any of various chiefly domesticated mammals of the genus Bos, including cows, steers, bulls, and oxen, often raised for meat and dairy products
61. Lop - To decrease, as in length or amount, by or as if by severing or excising; to hang limply, loosely, and carelessly; cut off from a whole
62. Fluvial - Of, relating to, or inhabiting a river or stream. Produced by the action of a river or stream
63. Jejune - Not interesting; dull; lacking maturity; childish; lacking in nutrition
64. Indespensible - Not to be dispensed with; essential; obligatory; unavoidable; necessary
65. Hubris - Overbearing pride or presumption; arrogance
66. Vigilance - Alert watchfulness; carefulness
67. Enfeeble - To deprive of strength; make feeble; make very weak
68. Ethereal - Characterized by lightness and insubstantiality; intangible; highly refined; delicate; of the celestial spheres; heavenly; spiritual; so light and insubstantial as to resemble air or a thin film
69. Laggard - One that lags; a straggler; hanging back or falling behind; dilatory; falling behind
70. Tarpaulin - Material, such as waterproofed canvas, used to cover and protect things from moisture; a waterproof cloth, esp. one used in large sheets for covering anything exposed to the weather
71. Mottled - Spotted or blotched with different shades or colors; speckled
72. Vault - A room or compartment, often built of steel, for the safekeeping of valuables; a burial place or receptacle for human remains; to move off the ground by a muscular effort of the legs and feet; act of jumping
73. Allay - To reduce the intensity of; relieve; to calm or pacify; set to rest
74. Stature - The natural height of a human or animal in an upright position; achieved level; status; importance
75. Infinitude - The state or quality of being infinite; an immeasurably large quantity, number, or extent; an infinite quantity
76. Hellion - A mischievous, troublesome, or unruly person
77. Lunge - A sudden thrust or pass, as with a sword; a sudden forward movement or plunge; pounce; dive for
78. Garish - Marked by strident color or excessive ornamentation; gaudy. loud and flashy
79. Piquant - Pleasantly pungent or tart in taste; spicy. appealingly provocative: a piquant wit. charming, interesting, or attractive
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