VOCABULARY UNIT 11

ALLUDE

• Verb
• To refer to casually or indirectly
• Synonyms: suggest, insinuate, intimate
• Ex: The man alluded to his family and coaches towards the end of his acceptance speech.

CLAIRVOYANT

• Adjective; Noun
• (adj.) supernaturally perceptive; (n.) one who possesses extrasensory powers, seer.
• Synonyms: (adj.) insightful, discerning, uncanny; (n.) visionary
• Antonyms: (adj.) blind, unseeing, myopic, dense.
• Ex: The ballroom was filled with many clairvoyants, using and explaining their gifts and talents.

CONCLUSIVE

• Adjective
• Serving to settle an issue, final
• Synonyms: decisive, convincing, definitive
• Antonyms: unsettled, provisional, indefinite
• Ex: The conclusive judge advised the defense to take the plea deal given by the prosecutors.

DISREPUTABLE

• Adjective
• Not respectable, not esteemed
• Synonyms: disgraceful, discreditable, shady
• Antonyms: honest, aboveboard, respectable, creditable.
• Ex: The disreputable attitude of the coach after a blown call caused him to lose the parent's respect.

ENDEMIC

• Adjective
• Native or confined to a particular region or people; characteristic of or prevalent in a field.
• Synonyms: indigenous, restricted to
• Antonyms: alien, foreign, extraneous
• Ex: The endemic, red plant was the last of its kind in the world.

EXEMPLARY

• Adjective
• Worthy of imitation, commendable; serving as a model.
• Synonyms: praiseworthy, meritorious, sterling, illustrative
• Antonyms: infamous, notorious, scandalous, disreputable
• Ex: The exemplary soldier was a model for hard work and dedication.

FATHOM

• Verb; Noun
• (v.) to understand, get to the bottom of; to determine the depth of; (n.) a measure of depth in water
• Synonyms: (v.) grasp, figure out, plumb
• Ex: The fathom of the ocean is so deep that scientists cannot find the exact depth.

GUILE

• Noun
• Treacherous cunning, deceit
• Synonyms: trickery, chicanery
• Antonyms: candor, artlessness, naïveté, plain dealing
• Ex: The guile was a play that the team had been working on for a while.

INTEGRITY

• Noun
• Honesty, high moral standards; an unimpaired condition, completeness, soundness
• Synonyms: rectitude, probity
• Antonyms: dishonesty, corruption, turpitude
• Ex: The integrity of the President was something that was never questioned by any of the people.

ITINERARY

• Noun
• A route of travel, a record of travel; a guidebook
• Synonyms: schedule, program
• Ex: The strict itinerary had to be kept by everyone and must go exactly according to plan for it to work correctly.

MISCONSTRUE

• Verb
• To interpret differently, mistake the meaning of
• Synonyms: misjudge, misinterpret
• Ex: The students misconstrue of the topic caused him to fail on the paper.

OBNOXIOUS

• Adjective
• Highly offensive, arousing strong dislike
• Synonyms: disagreeable, repugnant, hateful, odious
• Antonyms: agreeable, pleasing, engaging, personable
• Ex: The obnoxious gestures and words towards the bench of the opposing player caused him to be ejected from the game.

PLACATE

• Verb
• To appease, soothe, pacify
• Synonyms: satisfy, mollify, allay, conciliate
• Antonyms: vex, irk, provoke, exasperate, annoy
• Ex: The jazz music placated the men sitting at the bar.

PLACID

• Adjective
• Calm, peaceful
• Synonyms: undisturbed, tranquil, quiet, serene
• Antonyms: stormy, agitated, turbulent, tempestuous
• Ex: The baby's placid demeanor put a smile on everyone's face.

POTENT

• Adjective
• Powerful; highly effective
• Synonyms: mighty, formidable, forceful
• Antonyms: weak, inept, feckless, powerless, ineffective
• Ex: The coaches potent words before the game got the team amped up to play.

PRETEXT

• Noun
• A false reason, deceptive excuse
• Synonyms: pretense, cover story, rationale, evasion
• Ex: Saying that he had a family event is just a pretext for him actually going to baseball practice.

PROTRUDE

• Verb
• To stick out, thrust forth
• Synonyms: project, bulge
• Ex: He protruded out the rest of his shift after blocking a shot where he had no protection.

REPARATION

• Noun
• A payment made for a wrong or an injury
• Synonyms: compensation, damages, redress
• Ex: The necessary repartition for the broken window was covered by insurance.

STARK

• Adjective, adverb
• (adj.) harsh, unrelieved, desolate; (adv.) utterly
• Synonyms: (adj.) sheer, downright, grim, break; (adv.) absolutely
• Antonyms: (adj.) bright, cheerful, embellished, ornate
• Ex: His stark boss surprisingly allowed him to get time off to go to his son's baseball game.

SUPERFICIAL

• Adjective
• On or near the surface; concerned with or understanding only what is on the surface, shallow.
• Synonyms: skin-deep, insubstantial, cursory, slapdash
• Antonyms: deep, profound, thorough, exhaustive
• Ex: Some superficial people miss out on friends when they base them only on their looks.