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Printer Friendly College Bound Vocabulary List

obstreperous--noisy, loud

contumacious--insubordinate, rebellious

mettlesome--courageous, high-spirited. Don't confuse with "meddlesome," meaning inclined to interfere.

cadge--to beg, to get by begging

pith--heart of the matter, basic trait. Also force, strength, or vigor

supine--lying on the back. Also slow to act, passive.

remonstrate--to protest, object

inveigh--to attack verbally, denounce, deprecate

precepts--rules establishing standards of conduct

impute--to attribute to a cause or source, ascribe

feckless--lacking purpose or vitality; ineffective; careless

decorum--propriety, properness.

penchant--strong inclination, a liking.

appropriate (verb)--take for one's own use, acquire, set aside. Don't confuse with "appropriate (adjective)," which means fitting or suitable.

truculence--aggressiveness, ferocity

garrulity--talkativeness. Adjective is garrulous--talkative

arabesque--a complex, ornate design. Also a dance position.

beatify--to bless, make happy, or ascribe a virtue to. Regard as saintly. Don't confuse with "beautify," which means to make beautiful.

forbearance--patience, willingness to wait.

veritable--unquestionable, true.

pragmatic--practical, favoring utility.

arrant--in every way, being completely such.

consequential--pompous, self important. Also having consequence, important. Also following as a result, or being an effect of some cause.

malinger--to fake illness or injury, in order to shirk a duty.

paucity--scarcity, a lacking of

striated--striped, grooved, or banded. Having stripes.

seminal--like a seed; constituting a source, originative.

attenuate--make thin. weaken, enervate.

precarious--uncertain, risky, dangerous.

enervate--weaken, deprive of strength, attenuate.

partisan--one-sided, committed to a party, biased or prejudiced.

equivocate--lie, mislead, conceal the truth.

assiduous--diligent, hard-working, sedulous.

anachronism--something out of place for its time

lassitude--weariness, tiredness

phlegmatic--calm, sluggish temperament; unemotional

sycophant--flatterer, parasite; a suck-up

perfunctory--superficial, listless, not thorough

impair--worsen, diminish in value

transient--temporary, fleeting

qualify--to limit

nascent--coming into existence, emerging

Quixotic--extravagantly chivalrous, romantically idealistic, impractical

reprobate--person hardened in sin; one devoid of decency

libertine--immoral person

tractable--easily influenced, obedient, docile

craven--cowardly

picaresque--involving clever rogues or adventurers. Don't confuse with "picturesque," which means picture-like, charming, or quaint.

sedulous--diligent, assiduous, devoted to a task

aver--affirm, assert, prove, justify

intrepid--fearless, brave, undaunted

impassive--without feeling, not affected by pain

salient--conspicuous, highly relevant, prominent

morose--gloomy, sullen

raffish--low, vulgar, base, tawdry

loquacious--talkative, garrulous

piquant--agreeably pungent, stimulating

demur--to hesitate, raise objections

equipoise--equal distribution of weight; equilibrium

abysmal--extreme; low, like an abyss

tawdry--cheap, gaudy, showy, tacky

dross--waste product, sludge; something worthless, common, or trivial

ardor--warm interest, passion, enthusiasm, zeal

insouciant--unconcerned, carefree

volubility--fluency, verbosity, easy use of spoken language

dulcet--melodious, harmonious

mellifluous--sweetly flowing; usually used to describe use of words (sweetly flowing words, as when the speech is characterized by high volubility.

desiccate--to dry up, dehydrate

harrow--to distress, create stress or torment

pellucid--transparent, easy to understand

pariah--an outcast, a rejected and despised person

taciturn--untalkative, silent

pique--resentment at being slighted

turgid--excessively ornate; swollen or bloated

]pillory--to punish, hold up to public scorn

adamant--hard and inflexible; unyielding

multifarious--varied, motley, greatly diversified

torpor--lethargy, sluggishness, dormancy

imprecation--an invocation of evil; a curse

audacious--daring; bold

hirsute--hairy, shaggy

tenacity--firmness, persistency, adhesiveness, tending to hang on

apostate--one who abandons long-held religious or political convictions

lachrymose--causing tears, tearful

welter--turmoil; a bewildering jumble

discomfit--to defeat, put down

laconic--brief, to the point, terse

venal--corruptible, bribable, unprincipled

ossify--to turn to bone; to settle rigidly into an idea or practice, become closed-minded

disingenuous--sophisticated, artful, trying to deceive, cunning

insensible--unconscious, unresponsive, unaffected

turbid--muddy, having the sediment stirred up

erudite--learned, scholarly

saturnine--gloomy, dark, sullen, morose

abeyance--suspended action

diaphanous--transparent, gauzy

epitome--representative, a summary or abstract, a typical example

squalid--foul, filthy

quiescent--at rest, dormant, torpid

recreancy--cowardice, a cowardly giving up

misanthrope--one who hates mankind

misogynist--one who hates women/females

castigate--to chastise, correct by punishing

apprehension--misgiving, dread. Also a stopping or arrest. Also an understandingprosaic--dull, tedious, commonplace

gainsay--deny

pungency--sharpness; stinging quality

approbation--approval

refractory--stubborn, unmanageable, intractable

contentious--quarrelsome, competitive, quick to fight, pugnacious

antipathy--aversion, dislike

hapless--unlucky, unfortunate

prevaricate--stray from or avoid the truth; equivocate

countenance--(n) mien, face (v) approve of

dogmatic--positive, certain, arbitrary, without room for discussion

strut--a supporting bar

felicitous--apt; suitably expressed, well chosen, apropos

apropos--appropriate to the situation; apt

implacable--incapable of being placated, unpleasable

raffish--disreputable; tawdry

guileless--without deceit, honest

resigned--unresisting, submissive

vituperate--berate, rail against, attack verbally

render--deliver, provide, represent

diffidence--shyness

sophistry--fallacious reasoning, faulty logic

fulminate--berate, vituperate, to thunder out, to explode,

dynamo--a generator, something that produces electric current; an energetic person

assay--an analysis, examination, test. To put to a test

hallow--to make holy; consecrate

disabuse--to undeceive, correct a false impression

boisterous--loud, noisy, rough, lacking restraint

inveigle--wheedle, led astray

sodden--soaked, saturated

perfidious--violating good faith, treacherous, dishonest

conundrum--a riddle, dilemma, enigma

denouement--an outcome or solution; the unraveling of a plot

stolid--showing no emotion; impassive

dissemble--present false appearance; deceive

desuetude--cessation of use; disuse

indefatigability--not easily exhaustible; tirelessness

dilatory--causing delay, procrastinating

garner--to gather and save; to store up

quaff-drink large quantities

intractable--unruly, refractory, stubborn

delineate--to portray, depict, sketch out

ascetic--practicing self-denial, austere, stark

fervid--intense, zealous

daunt--intimidate, make fearful

burgeon--grow forth, send out buds

anomalous--unexpected, not normal, odd

nice--precise, sensitive to subtleness

prodigal--wasteful, reckless with money

lugubrious--mournful, excessively sad

baleful--harmful, ominous, causing evil

credulous--gullible, too willing to believe

incredulous--skeptical, unwilling to believe (NOT "incredible," as many think)

blithe--cheerful, casual, carefree

verisimilitude--appearing true or real

provident--frugal; looking to the future

edacious--voracious, devouring

expostulate--argue earnestly to dissuade, correct, or protest

auspice--protection or support, patronage

auspicious--favorable, successful, prosperous

punctilious--precise, paying attention to trivialities, especially in regard to etiquette

salutary--remedial, wholesome, causing improvement

imbroglio--difficult or embarrassing situation

wend--to go, proceed

nostrum--a quack remedy, an untested cure

personable--pleasing in appearance, attractive

salacious--obscene

exscind--to cut out, cut away

sublime--lofty, noble

quail--lose courage, turn frightened

urbane--elegant, refined in manners

tyro--novice, amateur

boorish--crude, offensive, rude

upbraid--reprove, reproach

effete--infertile, worn out, weak

obdurate--stubborn, inflexible, adamant

mince--pronounce or speak affectedly, euphemize, speak too carefully. Also to take tiny steps, tiptoe

inimitable--defying imitation, unmatchable

inveterate--deep rooted, ingrained, habitual

umbrage--offense, resentment

extirpate--to destroy, exterminate, cut out, exscind

forswear--renounce, disallow, repudiate

ignoble--dishonorable, common, undignified

ostensible--seeming, appearing as such, professed

illusory--deceptive; an illusion

overweening--presumptuously arrogant, overbearing, immoderate, being a jerk

wag--to be incessantly active, to waddle; also a mischievous person

lucubrate--write in scholarly fashion

impetuous--impulsive, forceful, with energy

bellicose--belligerent, pugnacious, warlike

cabal--a scheme or plot, a group of plotters

irresolute--unresolved, indecisive

complaisance--tending to comply, obliging, willingness to please

apprise--give notice to, inform

pusillanimous--cowardly, craven

polemical--controversial, argued

luculent--easily understood, lucid, clear

poignant--physically painful, distressing, pertinent, touching, stimulating, emotional

engender--cause, produce, give rise to

dissemble--to hide, conceal, disguise

equanimity--calmness of temperament

ingenuous--naive, young, artless, frank, honest, sincere. Don't confuse with "ingenious"--very clever

epicure--food lover, a connoisseur of food

salient--prominent, protruding, conspicuous, highly relevant

inchoate--not yet fully formed, rudimentary, elementary

pugnacious--contentious, quarrelsome, contumacious, given to fighting, belligerent

peremptory--urgent, imperative, unchallengeable, ending debate

exigency--emergency, an urgent situation

ameliorate--improve, make better

august--majestic, venerable. Don't confuse with the month, "August," which is always capitalized.

minatory--menacing, threatening

froward--intractable, not willing to yield or comply, stubborn (NOT "forward")

fetter--to shackle, put in chains

pundit--a learned scholar, an authority on a subject

venal--corruptible, open to bribery

belie--contradict, give a false impression

epitome--brief summary or abstract; representative example; a typical model

prosaic--everyday, mundane, commonplace, trite, pedestrian

hermetic--sealed by fusion

fervor--zeal, ardor, intense emotion

endemic--prevailing in a specific area

reticent--reserved, untalkative, silent, taciturn

rapacious--voracious, greedy, plundering

coeval--of the same period, coexisting

austere--forbiddingly stern, simple, unadorned, very plain

indolence--laziness

pristine--primitive, unspoiled, pure, as in earlier times, unadulterated

capricious--fickle, whimsical, given to change, unpredictable

edifying--enlightening

philistine--a smug ignorant person; one who lacks knowledge

maladroit--clumsy, bungling

detumescence--diminishing or lessening of swelling

stygian--gloomy, dark

calumniate--to slander, present false accusal

baneful--causing harm or ruin, pernicious, destructive

forestall--prevent by taking action in advance, preempt

occult--hidden, concealed, beyond comprehension

irascible--irritable, easily angered

facetious--humorous, funny, jocular

trenchant--forceful, effective, vigorous; extremely perceptive, incisive

stymie--to hinder, obstruct, or block

intransigence--unwillingness to compromise, stubbornness, intractability

mundane--worldly as opposed to spiritual; commonplace, everyday

mitigate--appease, lessen, propitiate

abstruse--difficult to comprehend; obscure

expatiate--to roam, wander freely

propitiate--appease, mitigate

slake-- to assuage, to satisfy, allay

contentious--argumentative, pugnacious, combative, quarrelsome

inscrutable--incapable of being discovered or understood

elegy--a lament, a melancholy composition

derivative--unoriginal, obtained from another source

supercilious--disdainful; characterized by haughty scorn

sundry--various, miscellaneous, separate

mercurial--quick, changeable in character, fleeting

desultory--aimless, haphazard, digressing at random

sanctimony--self-righteousness, hypocritical, with false piety

indomitable--not easily discouraged or subdued

foment--to stir up, arouse, incite

splenetic--bad-tempered, irritable

flout--reject, mock, to go against (as in going against tradition or conventions)

obfuscate--to darken, make obscure, muddle

noisome--unwholesomely bad-smelling, putrid; (NOT "noisy")

incursion--a raid, a sudden attack

paean-- a song of praise or triumph

turpitude--wickedness, shamefulness

detraction--slandering, verbal attack, aspersion

chastened--corrected, punished

brook--to tolerate, endure

ignominious--shameful, dishonorable, undignified, disgraceful

prolix--long and wordy

bane--cause of injury, poison, source of harm

abrogate--abolish or annul by authority; put down

conciliatory--reconciling, soothing, comforting, mollifying

insularity--narrow-mindedness, isolated

untoward--perverse, unruly, unseemly

perverted--twisted, corrupted, turned from normal course

odium--contempt, dislike, aversion

dissolution--disintegration, looseness in morals

sophomoric--self-assured though immature, affected, bombastic, overblown, lacking maturity

enormity--excessive wickedness; evilness. Don't confuse with "enormousness," which means great size. ENORMITY DOES NOT MEAN "BIGNESS" OR "GREAT SIZE"

obdurate--hardened and unrepentant; stubborn, inflexible

fatuous--complacently stupid

burnish--to polish, rub to a shine

tenuous--unsubstantial, flimsy, weak

repudiate--disown, disavow, reject as untrue

denigrate--blacken, belittle, sully, defame

maverick--rebel, nonconformist

effluvia--outflow in a stream of particles; a noxious odor or vapor

alacrity--cheerful promptness

salubrious--healthful

paradigm--a model, example, or pattern

apotheosis--deification, glorification to godliness

officious--meddlesome, pushy in one's services

cogent--convincing

spurious--false, counterfeit

panegyric--formal praise, eulogy

mollify--to soothe

peregrination--traveling about, wandering

acarpous--effete, no longer fertile, worn out

bedizen--to adorn, especially in a cheap, showy manner

alloy--to debase by mixing with something inferior

fecund--fertile

doggerel--trivial, poorly constructed verse

peripatetic--walking

mendicant--a beggar

propitiatory--conciliatory, appeasing, mitigating

pedantic--bookish, showing off learning

nadir--bottom, the lowest point

zenith--top, the highest point

broach--bring up, announce, begin to talk about

obtrusive--projecting, prominent, undesirably noticeable

ramify--to be divided or subdivided; to branch out

exculpate--to clear from a charge of guilt

ineluctable--certain, inevitable

gainsay--to deny, declare false, to oppose

episodic--loosely connected, not flowing logically

iconoclastic--attacking cherished beliefs

recidivism--relapse into antisocial or criminal behavior

profligate--wasteful, prodigal, licentious, extravagant

inherent--ingrained within one's nature; firmly established; a natural part of; definitionally so

torpid--sleeping, sluggish, lethargic, dormant

gregarious--sociable, outgoing

recondite--profound, abstruse, obscure

judicious--sound in judgment; wise

sinuous--winding, undulating, serpentine

undulate--to move in wavelike fashion, fluctuate

probity--uprightness, incorruptibility, principle

rubric--heading, title, or category

interdict--prohibit, forbid

harangue--a long, passionate speech

calumny--slander, aspersion

petrous--like a rock, hard, stony

petrify--to make hard, rocklike

conjoin--to join together

nexus--a connection, tie, or link

penury--extreme poverty

idyll--a carefree episode or experience; a short poem describing a picturesque episode

countenance-- to favor or approve of

fulsome--disgusting, offensive due to excessiveness

chauvinist--a blindly devoted patriot

veritably--unquestionably, certainly

itinerate--to travel from place to place, to peregrinate

eulogy--formal praise; panegyric

malleable--yielding; easily shaped; moldable; adapting

bilge--bulge, the protuberance of a cask

lubricious--lewd, wanton, greasy, slippery

sagacious--having sound judgment; perceptive, wise; like a sage

impecunious--poor, penniless

recondite--not easily understood, abstruse, inscrutable

querulous--complaining, peevish, discontented

virago--a loud, domineering woman; a scold or nag

rarefy--to make thin, to make less dense, to purify or refine

expurgate--to remove obscenity, purify, censor

propinquity--nearness in time or place, affinity of nature

extenuate--reduce the strength of, lessen seriousness, partially excuse

deprecate--protest against, express disapproval of

excoriate--to flay, strip off the skin; to denounce sharply

obviate--to make unnecessary, get rid of

opprobrious--shameful, expressing disgrace

succor--assistance, relief in time of distress

censure--expression of blame or disapproval; a rebuke

proscribe--ostracize, banish, outlaw

platitude--a trite or banal statement; unoriginality

impetuous--having sudden energy, impulsive, thrusting ahead, forceful

obloquy--abusively detractive language, sharp criticism, vituperation

plaintive--mournful, melancholy, sorrowful

timorous--fearful, timid, afraid

debacle--a breakup, overthrow, sudden disaster

effrontery--boldness, impudence, arrogance

specious--illogical, of questionable truth or merit

redoubtable--formidable, causing fear

regale--to delight or entertain; to feast

volatile--changeable, inconstant, fickle, unstable, explosive

inured--accustomed to, adapted

blandishment--flattery, enticement

pernicious--deadly, very destructive

accretion--growth, increase by successive addition, building up

deposition--accretion, depositing, building up layer by layer

quotidian--daily; commonplace, pedestrian

pedestrian--commonplace, trite, unremarkable

sanguine--cheerful, confident, optimistic

consternation--sudden confusion or amazement

exsert--thrust out, push forth

petulant--impatient, irritable

scurvy--mean, contemptible

surfeit--satiate, feed to fullness or to excess

prevaricate--to equivocate, to stray from the truth

temerity--boldness, brashness, intrepidness

stint--to be thrifty, to set limits

obtain--to be established, accepted, or customary

propitious--auspicious, presenting favorable circumstances

ebullient--overflowing with enthusiasm; showing excitement

abjure--recant solemnly, repudiate, renounce

encomium--warm or glowing praise; eulogy, panegyric

arduous--steep, difficult ascent; laborious

tautology--a repetition, a redundancy

suppliant--asking humbly, beseeching

imperiousness--arrogance, commanding presence, overbearingness

evince--to show clearly, to indicate

stanch--to stop the flow of a fluid

vitiate--to pervert, debase, make ineffective

contemn--to scorn or despise

stentorian--extremely loud and powerful

poseur--someone taking on airs to impress others; a phony

grievous--causing grief or pain; serious, dire, grave

precipitate--(v) to hurl down, to fall headlong (adj) speeding, acting recklessly

sententious--short and pithy, full of maxims/proverbs

palliate--to make something appear less serious, to alleviate, to gloss over, put a positive spin on

floridness--ruddiness; heavily decorated; ornateness

asperity--roughness, harshness, ill temper, irritability (Don't confuse with "aspersion," which means slander

mendacity--dishonesty

involute--intricate, complex

importune--ask incessantly, to beg, to nag

precipitous--rash, foolhardy; dropping sharply, dangerous