WordMasters 2021-2022
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Official List #3 here - Test is on April 25th
Official List #2 here
We will be making flashcards for us to study from. Your flash cards should look like the models below and contain these pieces:
part of speech
definitions (usually at least 2)
forms or variations on the word e.g. abhor, abhorrent,
an example sentence (this means a sentence written by an adult—you can use dictionary.com to find the word used in a sentence)
Bonus: include synonyms and antonyms.
Leave a space to write down other WM words it might be related to.
See sample flashcard below as well as a list of good definitions and sentences below that!
front of flash card
Back of flash card: synonyms, definition, sentence, context, word web of other WordMaster words that are related to this work
Vocabulary List #3 Spring 2022
Definitions for 1-7 are below.
1. havoc- noun: wide and general destruction : devastation A tornado wreaked havoc on the town two years ago. : great confusion and disorder. verb - to lay waste.
2. chasten - verb: to correct by punishment or suffering : discipline. to cause to be more humble or restrained : subdue
3. fitful- adj.: having an erratic or intermittent character : irregular.
4. chasm - noun: a deep cleft in the surface of a planet (such as the earth) : gorge. a marked division, separation, or difference
5. absolve- verb: formal : to set (someone) free from an obligation or the consequences of guilt. formal : to pardon or forgive (a sin) : to remit (a sin) by absolution
6. flagrant - adj: conspicuously offensive (often used to describe errors) errors especially : so obviously inconsistent with what is right or proper as to appear to be a flouting of law or morality
7. malice- noun: desire to cause pain, injury, or distress. intent to commit an unlawful act or cause harm without legal justification or excuse to another
8. eradicate - verb: to do away with as completely as if by pulling up by the roots
9. deferential - adverb: showing or expressing respect and high regard due a superior or an elder : showing or expressing deference
10. reticence- noun: the quality of being reticent, which means inclined to be silent or uncommunicative in speech : reserved. Or restrained in expression, presentation, or appearance syn : reluctant
11. efface- verb: a) to eliminate or make indistinct by or as if by wearing away a surface coins with dates effaced by wear also : to cause to vanish daylight effaced the stars b) 2 : to make (oneself) modestly or shyly inconspicuous
12. covert- a) adj: not openly shown, engaged in, or avowed : veiled b) : covered over : sheltered as in “covert places in the woods”
13. cataract - noun: a) a clouding of the lens of the eye or of its surrounding transparent membrane that obstructs the passage of light b) waterfall especially : a large one over a precipice, c : steep rapids in a river the cataracts of the Nile, d): downpour, flood “cataracts of rain” “cataracts of information”
14. abscond- verb: to depart secretly and hide oneself
15. itinerant -adj: traveling from place to place especially : covering a circuit “itinerant preacher” “itinerant lawyer”
16. coherence - noun: being coherent, here’s what coherent means a) logically or aesthetically ordered or integrated : consistent “coherent style” “a coherent argument” b : having clarity or intelligibility : understandable a “coherent person” “a coherent passage” c) having the quality of holding together or cohering especially : cohesive, coordinated “a coherent plan for action”
17. impeach - verb: a) to charge with a crime or misdemeanor specifically : to charge (a public official) before a competent tribunal with misconduct in office b) : to cast doubt on especially : to challenge the credibility or validity of impeach the testimony of a witness
18. gregarious -adj: : tending to associate with others of one's kind : social “gregarious animals” b : marked by or indicating a liking for companionship : sociable is friendly, outgoing, and gregarious, c : of or relating to a social group
19. amity friendship especially : friendly relations between nations (note: malice is an antonym)
20. remit verb: (used with object), re·mit·ted, re·mit·ting. a) to transmit or send (money, a check, etc.) to a person or place, usually in payment. b) to refrain from inflicting or enforcing, as a punishment, sentence, etc. c) to give relief from (suffering) d) to postpone or delay or defer
21. impassive - adj: giving no sign of feeling or emotion : expressionless b) lacking emotion : apathetic
22. pandemonium- noun: a wild uproar (as because of anger or excitement in a crowd of people) or chaotic situation
23. thwart - verb: to oppose successfully; prevent from accomplishing a purpose. b)to frustrate or baffle (a plan, purpose, etc.).
24. imperative- adj: absolutely necessary or required; unavoidable. noun: a command
25. blatant adj: a) obvious and without any attempt at hiding it— completely obvious, conspicuous, or obtrusive especially in a crass or offensive manner “blatant disregard for the rules” brazen , b) noisy especially in a vulgar or offensive manner : clamorous
Good Sample Sentence for List #3 - Spring
List #3 of sentence ready to print out for 1-7 are below.
1. havoc The blackout caused havoc in the city. A tornado wreaked havoc on the town two years ago. Beowulf hears of the havoc wrought by the dragon.
2. chasten He was chastened by his team's defeat. f he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men — 2 Samuel 7: 14 (King James Version) Chastened, Eragon dipped his head and murmured, "Yes, Master."Christopher Paolini -- Brisingr Sacred moments, when heart talked to heart in the silence of the night, turning affliction to a blessing, which chastened grief and strengthned love. Louisa May Alcott -- Little Women
3. fitful The next morning, after a few hours of fitful, fretful sleep, the women went through the events again. — New York Times, 7 Dec. 2021 The coup, which was condemned by the international community, has threatened to derail Sudan's fitful transition to democracy.
4. chasm She built a bridge over the chasm. Economic data shows that the chasm between the rich and the poor has increase in the last decade in the United States.
You can't leap a twenty-foot chasm with two 10-foot jumps. (chasm = a large, deep, and steep-sided opening on the earth's surface)
The issue is creating a chasm between liberals and conservatives. (chasm = very large difference of opinion) A bottomless chasm of insecurity and self-doubt that gnaws at them. (Wes Moore -- The Other Wes Moore) chasm = pit
5. absolve The jury absolved the defendants of their crimes. Her youth does not absolve her of responsibility for her actions. He asked the priest to absolve his sins.
I confessed, that I might obtain absolution; but now that falsehood lies heavier at my heart than all my other sins. Mary Shelley, Frankenstein
6. flagrant China’s treatment of the minority group is a flagrant violations of human rights. It was a flagrant foul. (flagrant = obviously and outrageously bad in the sense of violating what is normally considered proper)
It was a dreadful picture of ingratitude and inhumanity; and Anne felt, at some moments, that no flagrant open crime could have been worse. Austen, Jane -- Persuasion
7. malice The attack was motivated by pure malice.
And hobbits as miserable slaves would please him far more than hobbits happy and free. There is such a thing as malice and revenge. Fellowship of the Ring (malice = wanting to see others suffer)
He was very pleased with his discovery and he concealed it; and he used it to find out secrets, and he put his knowledge to crooked and malicious uses. J.R.R. Tolkien, Fellowship of the Ring
8. eradicate The program’s goal was to eradicate child hunger.
But Thomas rolled over and refused to say another word, worried he'd mess up this new sense of being encouraged, eradicate the reassuring calm that filled his heart. The Maze Runner
9. deferential He listened with deferential attention to his grandfather.
But to sacrifice a hair of the head of your vision, a shade of its colour, in deference to some Headmaster with a silver pot in his hand or to some professor with a measuring-rod up his sleeve, is the most abject treachery …. A Room of One’s Own - Virginia Woolf
"Charming, charming," murmured the Director and, giving her two or three little pats, received in exchange a rather deferential smile for himself. (deferential = politely respectful) A Brave New World
10. reticence He was reticent initially, but eventually she opened up.n (reticent = reluctant to speak)
The candidate is reticent to discuss her personal beliefs in a public setting. (reticent = reluctant)
A reticent fellow, he made no reply.E.M. Forster -- Howards End (reticent = reluctant to speak freely)
11. efface It is a shameful act I have never been able to efface or forget. (efface = remove completely)
He always effaces himself when he is with him. (effaces = makes oneself inconspicuous or unimportant)
Looking like she was deep in her reading, she did her best to efface herself, but listened to every word they said. (efface = make herself inconspicuous)
12. covert a covert alliance, a covert military operation, covert racism
A troubled mind drave me to walk abroad; Where,—underneath the grove of sycamore That westward rooteth from the city's side,— So early walking did I see your son: Towards him I made; but he was ware of me, And stole into the covert of the wood Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet
13. cataract Have you ever bathed in a mountain river that is running in shallow cataracts over red and blue and yellow stones with the sun on it?C.S. Lewis -- The Magician's Nephew (cataracts = waterfalls or rapids)
And then she forgot everything else, because Aslan himself was coming, leaping down from cliff to cliff like a living cataract of power and beauty.C.S. Lewis -- The Last Battle
My grandmother is getting cataract surgery. (cataract = clouding of the natural lens of the eye)
He felt her there, he saw her without opening his eyes, her hair burnt by chemicals to a brittle straw, her eyes with a kind of cataract unseen but suspect far behind the pupils, the reddened pouting lips, the body as thin as a praying mantis from dieting, and her flesh like white bacon.Ray Bradbury -- Fahrenheit 451 (cataract = clouding of the natural lens of the eye)
14. abscond He absconded with the stolen money.
Your father has absconded — deserted you — and you mustn't expect to see him again as long as you live.'Charles Dickens -- Hard Times
ABSCONDING BANK CLERK DISAPPEARS WITH FIFTY THOUSAND POUNDS' WORTH OF NEGOTIABLE SECURITIES, I read.Agatha Christie -- Early Cases Of Hercule Poirot
15. itinerant I was working then as an itinerant carpenter, framing condominiums in Boulder for $3. Into the Wild
From his half-itinerant life, also, he was a kind of travelling gazette, carrying the whole budget of local gossip from house to house, so that his appearance was always greeted with satisfaction. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
16. coherence She presented a compelling and coherent plan. (coherent = sensible and clear)
She was speaking incoherently. (incoherently = in a manner that was not sensible or clear. The prefix "in-" in incoherently means not and reverses the meaning of coherently. This is the same pattern you see in words like invisible, incomplete, and insecure.)
Her argument lacks coherence. (coherent = sensible and clear) She is more coherent now than she was just after the accident an hour ago.
It was time to put all of the pieces together, make coherence where before there had been none.Toni Morrison -- The Bluest Eye (coherence = fitting the parts together in a logical manner)
17. impeach After Andrew Johnson, the first president to be impeached, finished his chaotic and disgraceful administration, Grant was the inevitable successor. — Richard Brookhiser (to charge a public official with a crime)
The Husby's credit rating was impeached because IRS managers were unable to stop the … computer from generating false information. — David Burnham (to challenge the credibility of someone’s word)
And here I stand, both to impeach and purge
Myself condemned and myself excus'd. - Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet
While five of Utah’s congressmen voted to acquit Trump, Romney voted to impeach the president — again. — Bethany Rodgers, The Salt Lake Tribune, 6 Jan. 2022
18. gregarious She's gregarious by nature and loves parties. (gregarious = inclined to seek and enjoy the company of others)
He was intensely private but could be convivial and gregarious in the extreme.Jon Krakauer -- Into the Wild
19. amity The two countries have a productive and amicable relationship. It was an amicable divorce. Although we disagree, I think we can reach an amicable compromise.
Their conversation had begun amicably enough, a simple discussion of who would take care of the cat while they were both out of town: she in Indianapolis for a concert, he in Lexington to help his mother.Kim Edwards -- The Memory Keeper's Daughter
There may as well be amity and life
'Tween snow and fire as treason and my love. Shakespeare, Merchant of Venice Act 3 Scene 2 — (amity = friendly relations)
(editor's note: No Fear Shakespeare paraphrases this as "Treason has nothing at all to do with my love. They're as opposite as hot and cold.")
Note: Amity comes from the Latin word for "friend," amicus, and is used especially for relationships between political leaders and nations in which goodwill is shown despite differences that might exist between the two parties. Amicus is also the root of the adjectives amiable and amicable.
20. remit - A patient who has mild flare-ups in the skin and joints twice a year may one day awaken with kidney failure or paralysis that, one month later, mysteriously remits. — Elizabeth Rosenthal, New York Times Book Review, 19 Nov. 1989
He sent most of his California paycheck home to El Salvador. His remittance enabled his family to afford the basic necessities of life.
21. impassive He remained impassive, showing neither interest in nor concern. (impassive = having or revealing little emotion — especially under circumstances others would find exciting)
Atticus was standing under the street light looking as though nothing had happened: his vest was buttoned, his collar and tie were neatly in place, his watch-chain glistened, he was his impassive self again.Harper Lee -- To Kill a Mockingbird
Fang glanced over at me, his face smooth and impassive, though I could almost feel the anticipation rolling off his feathers.James Patterson -- The Angel Experiment
22. pandemonium Pandemonium erupted in the courtroom when the verdict was announced.
The game is stopped on account of pandemonium: players and spectators are screaming and staggering around the court …— Darcy Frey
It is obvious that pandemonium would exist at most uncontrolled airports if every pilot did not conscientiously follow the traffic pattern. — Joseph W. Benkert
Instantly, pandemonium ensued as everyone ran this way and that, shouting at one another.Lemony Snicket -- The Bad Beginning (pandemonium = a state of noisy confusion and disorder)
But his protests drowned in the pandemonium.Jerry Spinelli -- Maniac Magee
23. thwart I was thwarted .... thwarted, once again, by Harry Potter.J.K. Rowling -- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The totalitarian world produces backwardness because it does such violence to the spirit, thwarting the human impulse to create, to enjoy, to worship.Ronald Reagan -- Tear Down This Wall Speech
If we do none of these, then we should not pretend horror or surprise when thwarted life expresses itself in fear and hate and crime.Richard Wright -- Native Son
—Lady, come from that nest Of death, contagion, and unnatural sleep: A greater power than we can contradict Hath thwarted our intents:—come, come away! William Shakespeare -- Romeo and Juliet
24. imperative In pondering how this disaster could have occurred, it is imperative to remember that lucid thought is all but impossible at 29,000 feet. Jon Krakauer -- Into Thin Air
It was imperative I should see you this evening. Henrik Ibsen -- Hedda Gabler
Then came a man's voice, angry and imperative: "Open up or we'll break the door in!" F. Scott Fitzgerald -- This Side of Paradise
25. blatant It was a blatant lie, and he knew it, but didn’t care.
He undoubtedly felt it poor payment that the village should so blatantly disregard his candidate for one of its more important offices, especially since he regarded himself as the intellectual superior of most of the people around him. The Crucible (blatantly = obviously)
Vocabulary List #2 Winter 2021
1. obelisk - n. an upright 4-sided usually monolithic pillar that gradually tapers as it rises and terminates in a pyramid. Origins: Borrowed from Latin obeliscus "four-sided pillar,"
2. ensnare - v. to take in or as if in a snare. Entangle, entrap, catch.
3. vulnerable - adj. a) capable of being physically or emotionally wounded (as in a vulnerable young man) b) : open to attack or damage : assailable Origins: Vulnerable is ultimately derived from the Latin noun vulnus ("wound")
4. avowal - n. an open declaration or acknowledgment. Synonyms: affirmation, assertion, claim, declaration, insistence,
5. mire - n. a) wet spongy earth (as of a bog or marsh) or heavy often deep mud or slush b) troublesome or intractable situation
6. ignoble - adj a) characterized by baseness, lowness, or meanness, b) of low birth or common origin : synonyms plebeian baseborn, common, humble, inferior, low,
7. comeuppance - n. a deserved rebuke or penalty : synonyms deserts, castigation, chastisement, correction
8. incite -v. a) to cause (someone) to act in an angry, harmful, or violent way b) to cause (an angry, harmful, or violent action or feeling) Synonyms abet, brew, ferment, foment, instigate, provoke, stir (up),
9. venerable - adj. a) calling forth respect through age, character, and attainments b) deserving to be venerated Synonyms hallowed, revered, reverend, sacred
10. raiment - n. chiefly literary : clothing, garments …sometimes used figuratively
11. allay - v. a) to subdue or reduce in intensity or severity : alleviate b) to make quiet : calm synonyms: relieve, lighten, assuage, mitigate,
12. dire - adj. a) very bad : causing great fear or worry b) warning of disaster : showing a very bad future c) requiring immediate action : very urgent. The word dire is often found in conjunction with straits; in dire straits is used of a situation that is very bad or difficult.
13. retribution - n. punishment for doing something wrong. Recompense, reward. The dispensing or receiving of reward or punishment especially in the hereafter. synonyms payback, reprisal, retaliation, vengeance
14. cower - v. to shrink away or crouch especially for shelter from something that menaces, domineers, or dismays. Synonyms cringe, grovel, quail
15. enigmatic - adj. of, relating to, or resembling an enigma : mysterious. a) something hard to understand or explain b) an inscrutable or mysterious person. ex: one of the great enigmas of our time Synonyms: puzzle, closed-book.
16. vestige - n. a) a trace, mark, or visible sign left by something (such as an ancient city or a condition or practice) vanished or lost b) the smallest quantity or trace Synonyms: echo, ghost, relic, shadow,
17. expunge - v. a) to strike out, obliterate, or mark for deletion b) to efface completely : destroy c) to eliminate from one's consciousness expunge a memory. Synonyms abolish, annihilate, black out, blot out, cancel, clean (up), efface, eradicate, erase,
18. circuitous - adj. a) having a circular or winding course a circuitous route a circuitous journey by snowmobile. b) not being forthright or direct in language or action a circuitous explanation
19. residue - n. something that remains after a part is taken, separated, or designated or after the completion of a process : remnant, remainder: Synonyms ashes, debris, detritus, flotsam, remains, rubble, ruins, wreck, wreckage
20. eschew - v. to avoid habitually especially on moral or practical grounds : shun
21. voluble - adj. a) characterized by ready or rapid speech : glib, fluent loquacious, garrulous b) easily rolling or turning.
22. altruism - n. a) unselfish concern for the welfare of others, feelings and behavior that show a desire to help other people and a lack of selfishness. b) behavior by an animal that is not beneficial to or may be harmful to itself but that benefits others of its species
23. repudiate - v. a) to refuse to accept especially to reject as unauthorized or as having no binding force (repudiate a contract repudiate a will) b) to reject as untrue or unjust (repudiate a charge) c) to refuse to have anything to do with : disown (repudiate a cause)
24. inscrutable - adj. not readily investigated, interpreted, or understood : mysterious (an inscrutable smile inscrutable motives)
25. galvanize - v. a) to cause (people) to become so excited or concerned about an issue, idea, etc., that they want to do something about it (an issue that galvanized the public (to take action)) b) echnical : to cover (steel or iron) with a layer of zinc to prevent it from rusting (a factory where steel is galvanized)
Good Sample Sentences - List #2
List #2 of sentences ready to print out as MS Word doc.
Underlined words include links to the word used in famous books.
There, a stone obelisk was installed in 1919 to honor the 7,000 soldiers from the area who died in the war.
The animals got ensnared in the net.
The police successfully ensnared the burglar.
The troops were in a vulnerable position.
The fort was undefended and vulnerable.
The computers are vulnerable to cyberattacks. (vulnerable to = easily hurt by)
The law is intended to help the most vulnerable refugees.
The setup is vulnerable to corruption. (vulnerable to = easily influenced or tempted by)
He looked very small and vulnerable sitting there alone in the big old-fashioned kitchen, a blond little boy in faded blue Dr. Dentons, his feet swinging a good six inches above the floor.
I didn't believe his avowal of innocence.
The tattered work, made in the wake of the Great War and the ongoing deadly ruin of influenza, is a monumental avowal of artistic freedom in rebuilding. — Los Angeles Times, 16 June 2021
In such a case, a plain and open avowal of his difficulties would have been more to his honour I think. Jane Austen- Sense & Sensibility
The mire is relieved only by small stretches of open dry forest — Saturday Review
The troops trudged onward through the mire.
She was mired in debt and couldn’t figure a way out.
He was mired to his neck, inextricably, in complication. Thomas Wolfe -- Look Homeward, Angel
Here is the head of that ignoble traitor. -William Shakespeare, Richard III
...she thought it was ignoble in her husband not to apologize to her. Eliot, George -- Middlemarch
There is something cowardly and ignoble in his attitude. (ignoble = completely lacking nobility in character, quality or purpose)
An ignoble end for a bodyguard of his calibre. Eoin Colfer -- Artemis Fowl
In what was a comparatively ignoble end to an otherwise vibrant October at the domestic box office, Dune dropped 62% and still topped the charts with $15.53 million.
One of these days, he'll get his comeuppance for treating people so arrogantly.
As with many action movies, this one ends with a wild chase and an over-the-top fight sequence in which the bad guys finally get their comeuppance
The victim had done nothing to incite [=provoke] the attackers.
They were arrested and charged with inciting [=provoking] a riot.
The news incited widespread fear and paranoia.
Under the venerable pines we sat.
The good doctor nodded her venerable head in agreement.
He was as noble and as fair in face as an elf-lord, as strong as a warrior, as wise as a wizard, as venerable as a king of dwarves, and as kind as summer. J.R.R. Tolkien -- The Hobbit
My son, by all means desist from kicking the venerable and enlightened Vizier. C.S. Lewis -- The Horse and His Boy
He was dressed in the raiment of Victorian gentlemen.— Jerry Hopkins.
The scientists believe that grave robbers quickly stripped the dead [Egyptian] queen of her raiment, dismembering her mummy as though it was some sort of pharaonic piñata.
A rainforest is resplendent in a raiment of green—the ground thick with ferns and shrubs, and moss dripping from tree limbs.
In the afternoons on the lake we can expect a breeze to allay the heat.
She tried to allay their fears.
He was in a panic of superstitious fear, and I am afraid the panic may spread. To allay it, I shall today search the entire ship carefully from stem to stern.Bram Stoker -- Dracula (allay = reduce)
"Gentlemen," I said .. "I delight to have allayed your suspicions." Edgar Allan Poe -- The Black Cat (allayed = reduced the intensity of or calmed)
be moderate; allay thy ecstasy; In measure rain thy joy; scant this excess; I feel too much thy blessing; make it less, For fear I surfeit! William Shakespeare -- The Merchant of Venice
The new advertising campaign is an attempt to allay the public's concerns about the safety of the company's products.
To allay concerns about possibly profiting off foreign governments, Trump promised to send payments to the U.S. Treasury on earnings from his business annually. — Time, 8 Oct. 2021
Even the smallest mistake could have dire [=terrible, dreadful] consequences. a dire emergency
Some analysts are issuing dire economic forecasts. (a dire prediction/warning)
The medical system is in dire [=desperate] need of reform. (dire necessity)
The alleged threat posed by Yellowstone's 3,600 buffalo came from the fact that they carry brucella, a bacterium that cycles harmlessly enough in Bison bison but has considerably more dire effects on cattle. — Christopher Ketcham, Harper's, June 2008
The killer acted without fear of retribution.
Refugee groups grew increasingly alarmed by what was happening on the ground [in Afghanistan’ and feared Taliban retribution against thousands of translators, interpreters and others who had helped the American war effort. — New York Times, 21 Aug. 2021
They all cowered silently in their places, seeming to know in advance that some terrible thing was about to happen.— George Orwell
I cower and hide my eyes. Katherine Applegate -- The One and Only Ivan (cower = show fear by positioning the body as though afraid of being hit)
Suddenly Lennie let go his hold. He crouched cowering against the wall. John Steinbeck -- Of Mice and Men
The Dursleys were cowering against the wall.
J.K. Rowling -- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
To his friends, he was always something of an enigma.
Poirot smiled rather enigmatically. Agatha Christie -- Early Cases Of Hercule Poirot
As Churchill said about Russia, it is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.
The convertible was the sole vestige of Berry’s mother that stayed in the family.
The House of Lords is a vestige of the British system of aristocracy. (vestige = remaining trace)
She had not yet lost the last vestige of hope. (vestige = trace)
A penguin's wings are a vestige of their flying ancestor's wings. (vestige = remaining trace)
Origins: Vestige is derived via Middle French from the Latin noun vestigium, meaning "footstep, footprint, or track." Like trace and track, vestige can refer to a perceptible sign made by something that has now passed. Of the three words, vestige is the most likely to apply to a tangible reminder, such as a fragment or remnant of what is past and gone.
I cleaned up my Facebook account, but forgot to expunge some of the things friends had written on my wall.
If she doesn't get into any more trouble, it'll be expunged from her record.Nicholas Sparks -- The Last Song (expunged = removed completely)
You must expunge yourself of this .... this torpor. Margaret Peterson Haddix -- Uprising
We took a circuitous route back to our hotel so we could see more of the city. (circuitous = indirect (not the straightest or quickest))
I've just decided to try and loop back around, although it will require miles of travel away from the inferno and then a very circuitous route back, when...Suzanne Collins -- The Hunger Games
The wheelings, the charges, the advances, and the circuitous retreats, were like the flights of circling swallows. Cooper, James Fenimore -- The Prairie
The grill was covered in a greasy residue from the hamburgers.
Honeydew (aphid excrement) dripping from the trees leaves an unpleasant residue on vehicles and sidewalks under the trees.
Perhaps this was the residue of growing up in Muscatine with a cosmopolitan mother.
They eschewed any unnecessary sign of wealth. John Ringo
A fair number of academics eschew the simple title "professor" and call themselves economists, astronomers, historians, philosophers.
City education staff and healthcare workers have been required to be vaccinated for several weeks but other employees had been able to eschew vaccines in favor of frequent coronavirus testing. — Brynn Gingras, CNN, 27 Oct. 2021
Henceforth, if one aspired to be considered a member of the Himalayan elite, eschewing bottled oxygen was mandatory. Jon Krakauer -- Into Thin Air
It was never wise for a ruler to eschew the trappings of power, for power itself flows in no small measure from such trappings. George R.R. Martin -- A Dance With Dragons
What cannot be eschew'd must be embrac'd. William Shakespeare -- The Merry Wives of Windsor
A soldier addressed her in Spanish too swiftly uttered, too voluble for her to translate.Zane Grey -- The Light of Western Stars
Still, while we were advancing, I spoke with extreme volubility, for my imagination was too full not to explode in words.Jules Verne -- A Journey to the Center of the Earth
But Wolf Larsen seemed voluble, prone to speech as I had never seen him before. Jack London -- Sea Wolf
Yet when he was given openings to respond during the first general election debate of the New York City mayoral contest, Mr. Adams — the typically voluble Democratic nominee for mayor — often flashed a placid smile instead.
In one final act of altruism, she donated almost all of her money to the hospital.
We are neurologically constructed so that we gain huge personal dividends from altruism. Nicholas D. Kristof -- Half the Sky
Origins: Altruism derives from the French word autrui, meaning "other people." Autrui in turn developed from the Old French term autre, which means "other" and which itself comes from Latin alter, also meaning "other."
It is a stunning repudiation of previous policy. repudiation = rejection
I repudiate it with disdain—with indignation.Dickens, Charles -- The Posthumous Papers Of The Pickwick Club
And precisely because what they "see" is so vague, it is hard to repudiate fortune-tellers' claims. Jostein Gaarder -- Sophie's World (repudiate = strongly reject)
The computer gave some inscrutable error message I can't remember. (inscrutable = impossible to understand).
"Ready," Archie said, keeping his face expressionless, inscrutable as usual, even though he felt a bead of perspiration trace a cold path from his armpit to his rib. Robert Cormier -- The Chocolate War
God alone knows whether I shall be happy, but my fate is in His holy, His inscrutable hand, and I have so decided.Dostoyevsky, Fyodor -- Poor Folk
O jest unseen, inscrutable, invisible,
As a nose on a man's face, or a weathercock on a steeple.Shakespeare, William -- Two Gentlemen of VeronaThe group is hoping to galvanize public opinion against the proposed law.
The website has galvanized support for the project.
Other sources for definitions and sentences include:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/ However because it is a free site rather than a paid subscription site, there are ads.
wordhippo.com has sentences; select sentences from the blue tabs at the top of the page.)
Fall List
These words will also be on the winter WordMasters Analogy test, so review them as well.
Vocabulary List #1 Fall 2021
artifact - n. usually a simple object (such as a tool or ornament) showing human workmanship or modification
commend - v. a) to praise (someone or something) in a serious and often public way b) to mention (someone or something) as deserving attention or approval : recommend
torpid - adj. a) sluggish in functioning or acting b) lacking in energy or vigor : apathetic, dull
fresco - n. the art of painting on freshly spread moist plaster with water-based pigments
whitewash - v. a) to whiten with whitewash b) to gloss over or cover up
lackluster - adj. lacking in sheen, brilliance, or vitality : dull, mediocre
aperture - n. a) an opening or open space : hole b) the opening in a photographic lens or telescope that admits the light
enshroud - v. to cover or enclose with or as if with a shroud. A shroud is a burial covering.
indelible - adj. lasting
palette - n. a) a thin oval or rectangular board or tablet that a painter holds and mixes pigments or paints on b) range of colors, tones, flavors
divulge - v. to make known (something, such as a confidence or secret)
adroit - adj. having or showing skill, cleverness, or resourcefulness in handling situations
pandemic - n. a) an outbreak of a disease that occurs over a wide geographic area (such as multiple countries or continents) and typically affects a significant proportion of the population : a pandemic outbreak of a disease b) adj. characterized by very widespread growth or extent
rile - v. to make agitated and angry UPSET
gauzy - adj. a) made of or resembling gauze as in gauzy wings b)marked by vagueness, elusiveness, or fuzziness
bulwark n. something that offers protection
assuage - v. to lessen the intensity of (something that pains or distresses) : ease unable to assuage their grief
c) to put an end to by satisfying : appease, quench assuaging his thirst
diffident -adj. diffidence = hesitancy and unassertiveness due to a lack of self-confidence, reserved, unassertive
jurisdiction - n. the authority to apply the law or govern or exercise authority control b) the limits or territory within which authority may be exercised
abhor - v. to regard with extreme repugnance : to feel hatred or loathing for : loathe abhorrent = disgusting (hated or detested)
indomitable -adj. incapable of being subdued : unconquerable indomitable courage
recurrence - n. recur = happen again
disparage - v. to describe (someone or something) as unimportant, weak, bad. b) disparaging = critical or belittling
resolute - adj. marked by firm determination : resolved as in a resolute character, bold, steady as in a resolute gaze
equivocate - v. to avoid committing oneself in what one says. Synonyms: fudge, hedge, pussyfoot, tergiversate, waffle, weasel
Good Sample Sentences
Underlined words include links to the word used in famous books
The artifact was far too valuable to sell.
artifact context: usually historical as in “caves containing prehistoric artifacts”
All of the other coaches clapped for me, patted me on the back, and commended me on my skills.
He commended her honesty.
I commend your pains;
And everyone shall share i' the gains. (Macbeth)I commend my children to you. OR I commend this book to anyone interested in learning more about American history.
commend context: used when praising or entrusting something precious unto another
A torpid sloth that refused to budge off its tree branch.
My tongue and throat remained torpid for a time following the surgery.
Mentally, spiritually, and physically, I was feeling pretty torpid along toward four-thirty in the afternoon, and I only half stood up when M. Yoshoto came over to my desk for an instant.
I could remember staring torpidly through these windows a hundred times out at the elms of the Center Common.
The curved walls had once been painted with frescoes, which were now faded to eggshell white with only flecks of color. OR I love Michelangelo's ceiling fresco in the Sistine Chapel.
He painted the old house white and whitewashed the sheds. - East of Eden
Because they were afraid of bad press, the company leaders tried to whitewash the CEO’s embezzlement from the public.
whitewash context: painting a fence white or covering up scandal, criminal behavior
The actor gave a lackluster performance.
Burnham was a lackluster student: “the records of the Old Central show his average scholarship to be frequently as low as 55 percent,” a reporter discovered….
Through the aperture in the wall I could see the top of a tree touched with gold and the warm blue of a tranquil evening sky.
aperture context: photography/lenses, or holes in walls/caves that let in light
The criminal organization uses a strictly enforced vow of silence to enshroud its villainous doings.
Then came the smoke — not just from the forest but also from some 14,000 houses and their contents that burned, generating a thick plume that enshrouded portions of Northern California for weeks… - Washington Post
She determined to shroud her feelings in deepest oblivion.
enshroud context- usually a negative connotation, actions, objects and people can be enshrouded in darkness/clouds/mystery.
The words he had spoken made an indelible impression upon me. -Incidents in the life of a slave girl
Images of the nine Black teens became among the most indelible of the civil rights movement, including one of Eckford calmly walking into school as a teen girl behind her shouts.
Indelible context: as in indelible marks, performances or memories
What palette is rich enough in colors to reproduce so magnificent a spectacle? - Jules Verne
The designer's palette consisted mostly of earth tones. OR
Palette context: used to describe range of colors, sounds usually. Or an actual painters palette
…just as Phoebe was going to divulge the purely awful thing that had happened to Mr. Cadaver, her father came home from work and we all sat down to dinner
Divulge context: secrets, confidential information
No one wanted to risk sending in another MH-47 helicopter, since the Taliban seemed to have become very adroit at knocking them down.
Adroit context: describing skills, often physical maneuvers. Positive connotation.
Influenza pandemics seem to strike every few decades and to kill by the million—at least 1m in 1968; perhaps 100m in the "Spanish" flu of 1918-19. — The Economist
We have been talking about the pandemic of racism for centuries.— Roger Griffith
Nobel-prize winning economist Robert Shiller warns a pandemic of fear could tip the economy into an undeserved depression.— Stephanie Landsman
Few things rile him up more than watching his favorite team lose.
Islamophobia became a political tool, with some public figures, like former President Donald Trump and media commentators using the fear against Muslims and Arab Americans to rile up their bases.— Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 11 Sep. 2021
Nearly 100,000 homes and businesses were without power Wednesday morning, which will continue to rile customers, consumer groups and officials who are criticizing the state's utilities for poor service reliability.— Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 8 Sep. 2021
The very mist on the Essex marshes was like a gauzy and radiant fabric, hung from the wooded rises inland, and draping the low shores.
Tonight, having dried and brushed her hair and bound it in a gauzy bandanna, she set out the clothes she intended to wear to church the next morning
His gauzy memory of the events….
It is the bulwark against starvation. - The Pearl
The sailors looked over the bulwarks
Our camp was enclosed with a solid wall of the dead—a bulwark, a breastwork, of corpses, you may say. - A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
bulwark context: often “a bulwark against ________________” synonymous with a defense against something
He vainly strove … to assuage an implacable foe …— Edward Gibbon
The police chief made a statement that assuaged many people's worst fears.
D'Klass thought that the greed of the Mud People in his kingdom could be assuaged by distributing lavish gifts. -Artemis Fowl (assuaged = soothed)
She buys carbon offsets to assuage guilt. (assuage = soothe)
My old fears, my diffidence, my shyness, my hopeless sense of inferiority, must be conquered now and thrust aside.Daphne du Maurier -- Rebecca (diffidence = hesitancy and unassertiveness due to a lack of self-confidence)
Speak out, my boy—don't be diffident. - Mark Twain
He began a little diffidently, avoiding her gaze, but he gathered courage as he went along. -Arundhati Roy
The state court has jurisdiction on this matter — not the federal court. (jurisdiction = the authority to apply the law)
It's said to be a deterrent—but in fact, murder rates are higher in death penalty jurisdictions than in those without it. -Jodi Picoult
He abhorred violence of any kind; he could not even squash a spider.
I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence. -Frederick Douglass
Most are engaged in business the greater part of their lives, because the soul abhors a vacuum and they have not discovered any continuous employment for man's nobler faculties. -Henry David Thoreau
He says that when a species becomes extinct, some other species moves in to fill up the ecological niche, because Nature abhors a vacuum. Margaret Atwood
usage: he abhors _______________________ something the person hates passionately or finds repugnant/disgusting, usually in a serious setting, not just a food one doesn’t like
According to the conventions of the genre Augustus Waters kept his sense of humor till the end, did not for a moment waiver in his courage, and his spirit soared like an indomitable eagle until the world itself could not contain his joyous soul. John Green -- The Fault in Our Stars
context: usually referring a person’s character or courage “The prefix in- means "not" in numerous English words (think of indecent, indecisive, inconvenient, and infallible). When in- teamed up with the Latin domitare ("to tame"), the result was a word meaning "unable to be tamed." Indomitable was first used in English in the 1600s as a synonym of wild, but over time the wildness associated with indomitable developed into a specific kind of strength. By the 1800s, indomitable was being used for people whose courage and persistence helped them to succeed in difficult situations.” Source: Merriam-Webster.com
The infection is less likely to recur if you finish all the recommended antibiotics.
I would dream this dream and wake up in a cold sweat or screaming. ... Soda began sleeping with me, and it stopped recurring so often, but it happened often enough for Darry to take me to a doctor. -S.E. Hinton
It is a genetic test that predicts the likelihood of breast-cancer recurrence.
Rather than respond to her criticisms, he disparaged her efforts as those of an amateur.
When two cultures clash, the loser is obliterated, and the winner writes the history books—books which glorify their own cause and disparage the conquered foe. - Dan Brown
The discussions became so intense that Facebook’s internal communications department issued a directive last week for workers not to disparage Ms. Haugen, according to a memo viewed by The Times. — New York Times, 10 Oct. 2021
As is the Chinese cook's custom, my mother always made disparaging remarks about her own cooking. -Amy Tan
context: disparge ________________ person or idea or a person’s work/efforts
She stood resolute as some complained that she was asking too much of the team.
She has a resolute and unshakeable faith in his character. (resolute = firm or unwavering)
She was white to the lips, but she looked resolute. -J.K. Rowling
Never," I said, and hung up with a resolute click. -Sylvia Plath
I will not equivocate - I will not excuse. - Frederick Douglass
O, come in, equivocator. - William Shakespeare -- Macbeth (in this sense an equivocator is a liar— one who uses ambiguousness to avoid telling the truth)
I will be as harsh as truth, and uncompromising as justice... I am in earnest, I will not equivocate, I will not excuse, I will not retreat a single inch, and I will be heard. -William Lloyd Garrison
He thought how ten minutes ago-yes, only ten minutes — there had still been equivocation in his heart as he wondered whether the news from the front would be of victory or defeat. - George Orwell
His final statements, however, were concise and without equivocation.Robert Ludlum -- The Bourne Supremacy (“Note The suffix "-tion", converts a verb into a noun that denotes the action or result of the verb. Typically, there is a slight change in the ending of the root verb, as in action, education, and observation.” Source verbalworkout.com)
As of Week 10(October 25th) students should have completed info for all 25 words. They may shorten example sentences. By Done means that for each word you should write down
part of speech
definitions (usually at least 2)
variations on the word e.g. abhor, abhorrent,
an example sentence (this means a sentence written by an adult—you can use dictionary.com to find the word used in a sentence)
Bonus: include synonyms and antonyms
An excellent online source for sentences is wordhippo.com (select sentences from the blue tabs at the top of the page.) Another excellent resource, especially for definitions and sentences, is https://www.merriam-webster.com/ This is much better than dictionary.com. However because it is a free site rather than a paid subscription site, there are ads. I’ve provided what I think are good sentences and definitions above.