VOCAB - DIFFICULT
Abrogate – to abolish by authority
Abscond – to leave secretly
Abstemious – moderate in appetite
Accretion – growth, increase
Acerbic – sharp, bitter
Acquiesce – to accept reluctantly
Adumbrate – to foreshadow
Aegis – protection, sponsorship
Allegory – symbolic narrative
Alleviate – to relieve
Amalgamate – to combine
Ambrosial – pleasing to taste or smell
Anodyne – something that soothes
Antedate – to come before
Apotheosis – elevation to divine status
Apposite – highly appropriate
Arrogate – to claim without justification
Ascetic – practicing self-denial
Assiduous – diligent, persistent
Astringent – harsh, severe
Atavistic – reverting to ancestral type
Avuncular – like an uncle, kind
Bifurcate – to divide into two
Bilious – bad-tempered
Bloviate – to speak pompously
Bombinate – to buzz or hum
Brusque – blunt, abrupt
Bucolic – rural, pastoral
Burgeon – to grow rapidly
Byzantine – excessively complicated
Beatific – blissful
Bellicose – warlike
Blandishment – flattery used to persuade
Bland – mild, dull
Bourgeois – middle-class, materialistic
Breviloquent – concise in speech
Bumptious – self-assertive, arrogant
Banalize – to make common or trite
Cabal – secret political clique
Cadre – core group of trained people
Calumniate – to slander
Canard – false rumor
Cavil – to make trivial objections
Chiaroscuro – contrast of light and shade
Chicanery – trickery
Clairvoyant – able to see the future
Clemency – mercy
Cognizant – aware
Commensurate – proportionate
Concatenation – a series of connected things
Concomitant – accompanying
Contumacious – stubbornly disobedient
Corporeal – bodily
Coterie – small, exclusive group
Craven – cowardly
Crepuscular – relating to twilight
Cupidity – greed
Curmudgeon – bad-tempered person
Defenestrate – to throw out a window
Demur – to object politely
Denouement – conclusion of a story
Deprecate – to disapprove, belittle
Desiccate – to dry up
Diaphanous – sheer, delicate
Diffident – shy, lacking confidence
Dilettante – amateur, superficial interest
Dirge – funeral song
Disparate – fundamentally different
Dissemble – to disguise, conceal
Dissident – one who disagrees
Dyspeptic – irritable, gloomy
Diurnal – active during the day
Draconian – extremely harsh
Droll – amusingly odd
Duplicity – deceitfulness, double-dealing
Ebullience – enthusiastic expression
Ecumenical – universal, worldwide
Effulgent – radiant, shining
Eidetic – relating to vivid memory
Elision – omission of words
Embroil – to involve in conflict
Encomium – formal praise
Enervate – to weaken
Ennui – boredom, world-weariness
Epistolary – relating to letters
Eschew – to avoid
Exculpate – to clear from blame
Execrable – extremely bad
Exegesis – critical explanation
Expiate – to atone for
Extemporaneous – improvised, spontaneous
Extradite – to surrender a criminal
Exuberant – full of energy
Exiguous – scanty, meager
Exonerate – to absolve
Facetious – joking, not serious
Fallacious – misleading, false
Fatuous – foolish, silly
Fecund – fertile, productive
Felicitous – well-chosen, apt
Fervid – intensely passionate
Flagitious – shockingly wicked
Flippant – disrespectful
Foment – to stir up trouble
Fortuitous – happening by chance
Fractious – irritable, unruly
Frangible – fragile, breakable
Frivolous – lacking seriousness
Furtive – secretive
Fulsome – excessively flattering, offensive
Fulminate – to attack loudly
Felicity – great happiness
Fomentation – act of stirring trouble
Garrulous – talkative
Germane – relevant
Grandiloquent – pompous in speech
Gratuitous – unnecessary, uncalled for
Gregarious – sociable
Guile – deceit, cunning
Gustatory – relating to taste
Guttural – throaty, harsh
Galvanize – to stimulate action
Gauche – awkward, lacking social grace
Harangue – long, critical speech
Hegemony – dominance, leadership
Histrionic – overly dramatic
Hubris – excessive pride
Hyperbole – exaggeration
Hypnagogic – relating to drowsiness before sleep
Hypocorism – pet name, diminutive
Hapless – unlucky
Harbinger – forerunner, herald
Heterodox – unorthodox, not standard
Iconoclast – one who attacks traditions
Idiosyncrasy – unique characteristic
Ignominious – shameful
Impecunious – poor, penniless
Impetuous – acting without thought
Inchoate – not fully formed
Indefatigable – tireless
Ineffable – beyond description
Inimical – hostile
Insidious – sly, treacherous
Insipid – dull
Intrepid – fearless
Intransigent – uncompromising
Inveterate – long-established, habitual
Invidious – likely to provoke resentment
Jaded – weary, worn out
Jaunty – lively, confident
Jettison – to discard
Judicious – wise, careful
Kaleidoscopic – constantly changing
Knavery – trickery, deceit
Kudos – praise
Lachrymose – tearful, mournful
Laconic – using few words
Lambaste – to attack verbally
Latent – hidden, undeveloped
Lugubrious – mournful, gloomy
Luminous – glowing, shining
Lugubrious – sorrowful
Lethargic – sluggish
Licentious – morally unrestrained
Listless – lacking energy
Machiavellian – cunning, deceitful
Magnanimous – generous, noble
Maladroit – clumsy
Mendacious – lying, untruthful
Mercurial – changeable
Mellifluous – sweet-sounding
Mitigate – to lessen
Munificent – generous
Myopic – short-sighted
Misanthrope – hater of mankind
Moribund – dying, stagnant
Munificent – generous
Nefarious – wicked, evil
Nemesis – opponent, retribution
Noisome – offensive, harmful
Nonplussed – confused, puzzled
Noxious – harmful, poisonous
Neologism – newly coined word
Nascent – emerging, beginning
Nugatory – worthless
Numinous – spiritual, divine
Necromancy – magic, sorcery
Obdurate – stubborn
Obfuscate – confuse, make unclear
Obsequious – overly submissive
Onerous – burdensome
Opprobrium – disgrace, shame
Ostensible – apparent, supposed
Ostentatious – showy
Oxymoron – contradictory terms
Obviate – to prevent
Opprobrious – abusive, scornful
Palliative – soothing, relieving
Panacea – cure-all
Paragon – model of excellence
Parsimonious – stingy
Paucity – scarcity
Pedantic – overly concerned with rules
Penurious – extremely poor
Perfidy – treachery
Perfunctory – superficial, careless
Peripatetic – traveling from place to place
Perspicacious – perceptive
Petulant – irritable
Phlegmatic – calm, unemotional
Pithy – concise, meaningful
Placate – to calm, soothe
Platitude – dull remark
Plummet – to fall sharply
Poignant – deeply moving
Pragmatic – practical
Precarious – unsafe, unstable
Precocious – advanced for age
Predilection – preference
Proclivity – natural tendency
Prosaic – ordinary, dull
Protean – versatile, adaptable
Prudent – wise, careful
Pugnacious – eager to fight
Quagmire – difficult situation
Querulous – complaining
Quixotic – impractical, idealistic
Quotidian – daily, ordinary
Rapacious – greedy
Recalcitrant – stubbornly disobedient
Recondite – obscure, little known
Redolent – fragrant, reminiscent
Refractory – stubborn, unmanageable
Refulgent – shining, radiant
Remonstrate – to protest
Reprobate – morally unprincipled
Rescind – revoke
Rhapsodic – extravagantly emotional
Ruminate – to ponder, reflect
Sagacious – wise
Salubrious – healthful
Sartorial – relating to clothing
Sanguine – optimistic, confident
Sardonic – mocking
Satiate – to satisfy fully
Scintillating – sparkling, witty
Sedulous – diligent, persistent
Sententious – moralizing, self-righteous
Sinecure – easy job with pay
Sobriquet – nickname
Solipsistic – self-centered
Spurious – false, counterfeit
Stentorian – extremely loud
Stolid – unemotional
Strident – loud, harsh
Stymie – to block, thwart
Tantamount – equivalent
Tenuous – weak, flimsy
Timorous – fearful, timid
Tirade – long angry speech
Torpid – sluggish
Tractable – manageable, obedient
Transitory – temporary
Trenchant – incisive, sharp
Truculent – aggressive, combative
Turgid – swollen, pompous
Ubiquitous – present everywhere
Umbrage – offense, resentment
Unctuous – oily, insincerely flattering
Untenable – indefensible
Urbane – sophisticated, polished
Usurp – to seize power
Uxorious – excessively devoted to wife
Vacillate – to waver
Variegated – multicolored, diverse
Vehement – forceful, intense
Venerate – to respect deeply
Verisimilitude – appearance of truth
Vicissitude – change, fluctuation
Virulent – extremely harmful, poisonous
Vituperate – to criticize harshly
Vociferous – loud, noisy
Wheedle – to coax, persuade
Winsome – charming
Wistful – yearning, longing
Wrangle – dispute, argue
Zealous – passionate, enthusiastic
Zenith – highest point
Zephyr – gentle breeze