12 Vocabulary Unit 3 Acrid Adjective Harshly pungent

12 Vocabulary Unit 3

Acrid Adjective Harshly pungent Synonym: yucky The cheese we had at the party had an acrid taste; it was harsh and unpleasant.

Aesthetic Adjective beautiful Synonym: beautiful Max stopped while hiking to admire the aesthetic setting of the mountains.

Antipathy Noun Firm dislike; aversion Synonym: hostility (opposite of sympathy) Jane felt a great deal of antipathy towards reading until she actually picked up a book and read it. Now she loves reading.

Appropriate Verb To take without permission; to set aside for a particular use Synonym: to take and use My sister often appropriated my car for her own use even though I paid for it myself. John and Laney appropriated funds for a new house.

Autocratic Adjective Ruling with absolute authority; extremely bossy Synonym: dictatorial (like a dictator) The ruthless dictator’s autocratic reign ended when the rebels blew up his palace with explosives.

Choleric Adjective Hot-tempered; quick to anger Synonym: grumpy My dog Herman is known to be choleric, especially at the vet’s office. The opposite of his sweet brother, Watson.

Complement Verb To complete or fill up; to be the perfect counterpart Synonym: to go perfectly with Some people believe that nothing complements a chocolate chip cookie like a glass of milk. Note: This word is often confused with compliment, which means to praise.

Contiguous Adjective Side by side; adjoining Synonym: next to each other Ms. Nerlino’s room is contiguous to mine, and she has been known to come into my room to steal gum.

Conventional Adjective Common; customary; unexceptional Synonym: ordinary Herman and Watson are not conventional pets, since they both weigh over 150 pounds. Also, they are better than Trippy.

Criterion Noun A standard; basis for judgement Synonym: requirement Tony’s number one criterion for a girl was looks, which caused his to date several pretty girls who were very boring.

Dubious Adjective Doubtful; uncertain Synonym: doubtful After the third elaborate excuse for her missing assignment, the teacher became dubious of Kelly.

Enervate Verb To reduce the strength or energy of, especially to do so gradually Synonym: to weaken The flu enervated John; even after his fever broke, he still felt tired and run down.

Evanescent Adjective Fleeting; vanishing; happening for only the briefest period Synonym: fleeting Summer is evanescent; even though it is 8 weeks long, it is over in the blink of an eye.

Flagrant Adjective Shocking; outstandingly bad; obviously offensive Synonym: really bad Tanya’s flagrant disregard for safety got her expelled from school. Mark’s foul was so flagrant, he was removed from the game.

Insipid Adjective Dull; bland Synonym: boring Jack’s insipid talking bored up all; he never spoke about anything but himself.

Lethargy Noun Sluggishness; laziness; drowsiness; indifference Synonym: sluggishness After a busy week of sports, homework, and work, the student relished the lethargy of Saturday morning.

Mercurial Adjective Emotionally unpredictable; rapidly changing in mood Synonym: unpredictable Mercurial Helen was crying one minute and laughing the next.

Platitude Noun A dull or trite remark; a cliché Synonym: a cliché Instead of giving us any real insight into the situation, the lecturer threw platitudes at us for the entire period.

Propitious Adjective Marked by favorable signs or conditions Synonym: favorable The early negotiations had been so propitious that no one was surprised when a new contract was announced well before the strike deadline.

Stymie Verb To thwart; to get in the way of; to hinder Synonym: to prevent Clara hoped to run in the marathon in April but a sprained ankle stymied her plan.