Unit Five

Are you ready for it???

acuity

• Noun– Sharpness (particularly of

the mind or senses)

• Synonyms: keenness, acuteness

• Antonyms: dullness, obtuseness

delineate

• Verb– To portray, sketch, or

describe in accurate and vivid detail to represent pictorially

• Synonyms: depict, picture, render

depraved• Adjective

– Marked by evil and corruption, devoid of moral principles

• Synonyms: perverted, degenerate, vicious, corrupt

• Antonyms: moral, virtuous, upright, uncorrupted

enervate• Verb– To weaken or lessen the

mental, moral, or physical vigor of; enfeeble, hamstring

• Synonyms: impair, cripple, paralyze

• Antonyms: invigorate, strengthen, buttress

esoteric• Adjective

– Intended for or understood by only a select few, private, secret

• Synonyms: occult, cryptic, arcane, recondite

• Antonyms: accessible, comprehensible, intelligible

fecund

• Adjective– Fruitful in offspring or

vegetation; intellectually productive

• Synonyms: fertile, teeming, prolific

• Antonyms: infertile, barren, unproductive

fiat

• Noun– An arbitrary order

or decree; a command or act of will or consciousness

• Synonyms: edict, dictum, ukase

figment

• Noun– A fabrication of the mind;

an arbitrary notion

• Synonyms: creation, invention, fancy

garner• Verb

– To acquire as the result of effort; to gather and store away, as for future use

• Synonyms: collect, accumulate, accrue

• Antonyms: scatter, squander, waste, dissipate

hallow• Verb– To set apart as holy or

sacred, sanctify, consecrate; to honor greatly, revere

• Synonyms: venerate, bless

• Antonyms: desecrate, defile, profane

idiosyncrasy

• Noun– A peculiarity that

serves to distinguish or identify

• Synonyms: eccentricity, quirk, mannerism

ignominy

• Noun– A shame and disgrace

• Synonyms: dishonor, humiliation, disrepute, odium

• Antonyms: honor, glory, acclaim

mundane• Adjective

– Earthly, worldly, relating to practical and material affairs; concerned with what is ordinary

• Synonyms: prosaic, humdrum, routine, sublunary

• Antonyms: heavenly, unworldly, spiritual, transcendental

nuance

• Noun– A subtle or slight

variation (as in color, meaning, quality), delicate gradation or shade of difference

• Synonyms: shade, nicety, refinement

overweening• Adjective

– Conceited, presumptuous; excessive, immoderate

• Synonyms: arrogant, unbridled, inflated

• Antonyms: restrained, understated, modest, meek

penchant

• Noun– A strong attraction or

inclination

• Synonyms: proclivity, propensity, predilection

• Antonyms: disinclination, aversion

reputed• Adjective

– According to reputation or general belief; having widespread acceptance and good reputation; (part.) alleged

• Synonyms: putative, reputable, supposed

• Antonyms: proven, corroborated, authenticated

sophistry

• Noun– Reasoning that

seems plausible but is actually unsound; a fallacy

• Synonyms: specious reasoning

sumptuous• Adjective– Costly, rich, magnificent

• Synonyms: lavish, munificent, opulent, splendid

• Antonyms: skimpy, meager, stingy, niggardly, spartan

ubiquitous

• Adjective– Present or existing everywhere

• Synonyms: omnipresent, pervasive, universal

• Antonyms: restricted, limited, rare, scarce