VOCABULARY UNIT 8

ASSURANCE

• (n) a pledge; freedom from doubt, self-confidence
• Syn: promise, sureness, poise, self-possession
• Ant: uncertainty, doubt, insecurity
• We were worried about the test, but the teacher gave us an assurance that it was going to be easy.

ASYLUM

• (n) an institution for the care of children, elderly people; place of safety
• Syn: sanatorium, sanctuary
• The old man went to an institution because he wasn't suitable to be living by himself.

CONSOLE

• (v) to comfort; (n) the keyboard of an organ; a control panel for an electric or mechanical device
• Syn: (v) solace, alleviate
• Ant: (v) distress, aggravate, bother, vex, torment
• After the death of my grandmother, my friends consoled me during the hard time.

DILATE

• (v) to make or become larger or wider; to expand upon
• Syn: enlarge, expand, prolong
• Ant: compress, constict
• My eyes dilated when I walked into the dark room.

DROSS

• (n) refuse, waste products
• Syn: trash, detritus, dregs, scum
• The factory produced dross, which polluted the air around it.

DWINDLE

• (v) to lessen, diminish
• Syn: decrease, shrink, fade, peter out
• Ant: increase, enlarge, swell, proliferate
• The sales dwindled once people found out the product didn't work.

FLIPPANT

• (adj) lacking in seriousness; disrespectful, saucy
• Syn: frivilious, impudent, impertinent, insolent
• Ant: serious, respectful, deferential, obsequious
• The young boy was flippant and couldn't talk without being sarcastic.

IMMUNITY

• (n) resistance to disease; freedom from some charge or obligation
• Syn: exemption
• Ant: vulnerability, exposure
• The doctor was shocked that the girl had immunity to the common cold.

INSTITUTE

• (v) to establish, set up; (n) organization that promotes learning
• Syn: (v) found, bring about; (n) academy
• Ant: (v) terminate, discontinue, demolish, raze
• The children went to the institute to learn about math.

LIABILITY

• (n) a debt; something disadvantageous
• Syn: difficulty, impediment
• Ant: advantage, asset
• The player's shoes were untied, which made them a liability.

PREPOSTEROUS

• (adj) ridiculous, senseless
• Syn: nonsensical, absurd, incredicle
• Ant: sensible, reasonable, realistic, plausible
• It is preposterous to have school when it is -20 degrees outside.

PUGNACIOUS

• (adj) quarrelsome, fond of fighting
• Syn: combative, belligerent
• Ant: peace-loving, friendly, amicable, congenial
• Thhe man was calm, but pugnacious when someone wanted to fight him.

RABID

• (adj) furious, violently intense, unresonably extreme; mad; infected with rabies
• Syn: zealous, raving, infuriated, berserk
• Ant: moderate, blase, indifferent
• The dog became rabid around its food and wouldn't let anyonne get near it.

REALM

• (n) kingdom; a region or field of study
• Syn: domain, duchy, bailiwic, jurisdiction
• The king used a serious of roads to connect his realm.

REJUVENATE

• (v) to make young again; to make like new
• Syn: renew
• Ant: wear out, exhaust, enervate, debilitate
• The lotion was used to rejuvenate the skin.

REMUNERATE

• (v) to reward, par reimburse
• Syn: satisfy, profit, benefit
• The man was remunerated after he saved the boy from drowning.

SPARSE

• (adj) meager, scant; scattered
• Syn: thin, scanty, few and far between
• Ant: plentiful, abundant, profuse, teeming
• In the desert, there are is a sparse amount of water.

STERLING

• (adj) genuine, excellent; made of silver of standard fineness
• Syn: first-rate, outstanding, worthy, pure
• Ant: shoddy, second-rate, sham
• The knight showed a sterling personality and lived by the code of chivalry.

VENTURE

• (n) a risky or daring undertaking; (v) to expose to danger; to dare
• Syn: (n) gamble; (v) try, chance, undertake
• Ant: (v) withdraw, retire, shrink from, shy away
• The rock climber went on a venture when he climbed to the top of a mountain with no rope.

WARP

• (v) to twist out of shape; (n) an abnormality
• Syn: (v) bend, distort, misshape; (n) irregularity
• Ant: (v) straighten, unbend, rectify
• The house warped and almost fell over during the storm.