vocabularies part II

Abase	To humiliate, degrade
Abate	To reduce, lessen
Abdicate	To give up a position, usually one of leadership
Aberration	Something that differs from the norm
Abet	To aid, help, encourage
Abhor	To hate, detest
Abide	1. To put up with 2. To remain
Abjure	To reject, renounce
Abnegation	Denial of comfort to oneself
Abridge	To cut down, shorten
Absolution	Freedom from blame, guilt, sin
Accede	To agree
Accentuate	To stress, highlight
Accost	To confront verbally
Acerbic	Biting, bitter in tone or taste
Acumen	Keen insight
Adamant	Impervious, immovable, unyielding
Aesthetic	Artistic, related to the appreciation of beauty
Aloof	Reserved, distant
Altercation	A dispute, fight
Ammeliorate	To improve
Anarchist	One who wants to eliminate all government
Antiseptic	Clean, sterile
Antiseptic	Clean, sterile
Asylum	1. Place of refuge, protection, a sanctuary 2. An institution in which the insane are kept
Atone	To repent, make amends
Audacious	Excessively bold
Austere	Very bare, bleak
Bane	A burden
Bard	A poet, often a singer as well
Behemoth	Something of tremendous power or size
Bequeth	To pass on, give
Bereft	Devoid of, without
Beseech	To beg, plead, implore
Bias	Tendancy, inclination, prejudice
Boon	A gift or blessing
Brazen	Excessively bold, brash
Buffet	1. To strike with force 2. An arrangement of food
Burnish	To polish, shine
Buttress	1. To support, hold up 2. Something that differs from the norm
Cacophony	Tremendous noise, disharmonious sound
Carouse	To party, celebrate
Carp	To annoy, pester
Caucus	A meeting usually held by people working toward the same goal
Cerebral	Related to the intellect
Chaos	Absolute disorder
Chastise	To criticize severly
Chide	To voice disapproval
Chronicle	1. A written history 2. To write a history
Circumspect	Cautious
Clairvoyant	Able to perceive things that normal people cannot
Cleave	1. To divide into parts 2. To stick firmly together
Clemency	Mercy
Cloying	Sickeningly sweet
Coagulate	To thicken, clot
Colossus	A gigantic statue or thing
Congeal	To thicken into a solid
Convivial	Characterized by feasting, drinking, merriment
Corrosive	Having the tendency to erode or eat away
Cupidity	Greed, strong desire
Curtail	To lessen, reduce
Dearth	A lack, scarcity
Debacle	A disastrous failure, disruption
Defile	To make unclean, impure
Deletarious	Harmful
Denounce	To criticize publicy
Deride	To laugh at mockingly, scorn
Derivative	Taken directly from a source, unoriginal
Despot	One who has total power and rules brutally
Diffident	Shy, quiet, modest
Dirge	A mournful song, especially for a funeral
Disheartened	Feeling a loss of spirit or morale
Disparate	Sharply differing, containing sharply contrasting elements
Divine	Godly, exceedingly wonderful
Ebullient	Extremely lively, enthusiastic
Eclectic	Consisting of a diverse variety of elements
Edict	An order, decree
Elude	To evade, escape
Emaciated	Very thin, enfeeble looking
Embezzle	To steal money by falsifying records
Emend	To correct or revise a written text
Enervate	To weaken, exhaust
Engender	To bring about, create, generate
Enigmatic	Mystifying, cryptic
Eschew	To shun, avoid
Ethereal	Heavenly, exceptionally delicate or refined
Extol	To praise, revere
Facade	1. The wall of a building 2. A deceptive appearance or attitude
Fallacious	Incorrect, misleading
Fathom	To understand, comprehend
Fecund	Fruitful, Fertile
Feral	Wild, savage
Fickle	Shifting in character, inconstant
Flabbergasted	Astounded
Flout	To disregard or disobey openly
Forsake	To give up, renounce
Furtive	Secretive, sly
Gluttony	Overindulgance in food or drink
Gregarious	Drawn to the company of others, sociable
Guile	Deceitful, cunning, sly behavior
Hackneyed	Unoriginal, trite
Hapless	Unlucky
Haughty	Disdainfully proud
Hedonist	One who believes pleasure should be the primary pursuit of humans
Hiatus	A break or gap in duration or continuity
Hypothetical	Supposed or assumed true, but unproven
Iconoclast	One who attacks common beliefs or institutions
Idiosyncratic	Peculiar to one person, highly individualized
Idolatrous	Excessively worshipping one object or person
Illicit	Forbidden, not permitted
Immutable	Not changeable
Impecunious	Poor
Inane	Silly and meaningless
Incontrovertible	Indisputable
Indigenous	Originating in a region
Infamy	Notoriety, extreme ill reputre
Inimical	Hostile, enemy-like
Iniquity	Wickedness or sin
Insipid	Dull, boring
Inure	To cause someone or something to become accustomed to a situation
Jubilant	Extremely joyful, happy
Juxtaposition	The act of placing two things next to each other for implicit comparison
Knell	The solemn sound of a bell, often indicating death
Laceration	A cut, tear
Laconic	Terse in speech or writing
Languid	Sluggish from fatigue or weakness
Lethargic	In a state of sluggishness or apathy
Licentious	Displaying a lack of moral or legal restraints
Lithe	Graceful, flexible, supple
Litigant	Someone engaged in a lawsuit
Maudlin	Weakly sentimental
Medley	A mixture of different things
Metamorphosis	The change of form, shape, substance
Mitigate	To make less violent, alleviate
Mollify	To soften in temper
Mores	The moral attitudes and fixed customs of a group of people
Myriad	Consisting of a very great number
Nadir	The lowest point of something
Nascent	In the process of being born or coming into existence
Nefarious	Heinously villainous
Negligent	Habitually careless, neglectful
Neophyte	Someone who is young or inexperienced
Nuance	A slight variation in meaning, tone, expression
Obdurate	Unyielding to persuasion or moral influences
Obfuscate	To render incomprehensible
Obscure	Unclear, partially hidden
Obtuse	Lacking quickness of sensibilty or intellect
Opulent	Characterized by rich abundance verging on ostentation
Oration	A speech delivered in a formal or ceremonious manner
Pacific	Soothing
Palette	A range of colors or qualities
Panacea	A remedy for all ills or difficulties
Parsimony	Frugality, stinginess
Partisan	A follower, adherent
Patent	Readily seen or understood, clear
Pathos	An emotion of sympathy
Paucity	Small in quantity
Pellucid	Easily intellible, clear
Penchant	A tendency, partiality, preference
Pert	Flippant, bold
Petulance	Rudeness, irritability
Philanthropic	Charitable, giving
Pinnacle	The highest point
Polemic	An aggressive argument against a specific opinion
Portent	An omen
Prosaic	Plain, lacking liveliness
Pulchritude	Physical beauty
Quagmire	A difficult situation
Quaint	Charmingly old-fashioned
Rancor	Deep, bitter resentment
Rash	Hasty, incautious
Raze	To demolish, level
Rebuke	To scold, criticize
Recalcitrant	Defiant, unapologetic
Restive	Resistant, stubborn, impatient
Revel	To enjoy intensely
Rife	Abundant
Ruminate	To contemplate, reflect
Sagacity	Shrewdness, soundness of perspective
Salient	Significant, conspicuous
Salve	A soothing balm
Sanctimonious	Giving hypocritical appearance of piety
Sanguine	Optimistic, cheery
Satiate	To satisfy excessively
Scathing	Sharp, critical, hurtful
Sinuous	Lithe, serpentine
Sobriety	Sedate, calm
Stolid	Expressing little sensibilty, unemotional
Stupefy	To astonish, make insensible
Surrogate	One acting in the place of another
Tacit	Expressed without words
Toady	One who flatters in the hope of gaining favors
Tome	A large book
Torpid	Lethargic, dormant, lacking motion
Tractable	Easily controlled
Tranquil	Calm
Umbrage	Resentment, offense
Upbraid	To criticize or scold severely
Validate	To confirm, support, corroborate
Vex	To confuse or annoy
Vilify	To lower in importance, defame
Vociferous	Loud, boisterous
Wane	To decreas in size, dwindle
Wily	Crafty, sly
Wizened	Dry, shrunken, wrinkled
Wrath	Vengeful anger, punishment
Yoke	To join, link
Zealous	Fervent, filled with eagerness in pursuit of something
Zenith	The highest point, culminating point
Zephyr	A gentle breeze