Notes

Name:

Unit 1 Vocabulary
Words Relating to Using Few Words or Being Quiet

1. brevity (brief) - (n.) briefness or conciseness in speech or writing

Limited space in the newsletter makes brevity essential.

2. concise - (adj.) using few words in speaking or writing

A concise explanation is preferable to a long-winded one.

3. laconic - (adj.) using few words in speech

It was just too hot to give more than a laconic response to the question.

4. pithy - (adj) brief and full of meaning and substance; concise

Jonathan’s sonnet ended with a pithy rhyming couplet.

5. compendious(full of) - (adj.) containing all the essentials in a brief form; concise but comprehensive

One cannot give a compendious answer on such a large subject.

6. quiescent - (adj.) quiet; still; inactive

On long summer weekends, the city loses its bustle and is strangely quiescent.

7. reticent - (adj.) not talking much; reserved

Tom and Molly are a mismatched pair; he’s shy and reticent, but she never stops talking.

8. succinct - (adj.) clearly and briefly stated; concise

The title succinctly conveys the point of my paper.

9. taciturn - (adj.) silent; sparing of words; close-mouthed

Next to me on the bus sat a taciturn girl who said nothing during the four-hour ride.

10. terse - (adj.) using only the words that are needed to make the point; very concise, sometimes to the point of rudeness

The principal’s terse reply was very clear: “No dogs at school.”


3 ways to look at words:

Meaning
Denotation - dictionary definition
Connotation - cultural context
*2. Part of Speech
Noun
Verbs
Adjectives*
Adverbs
3. Building Blocks of Language
Root
Prefix
Suffix




pithy compendious concise terse laconic taciturn quiescent brief
<________________________________I______________________________>



Name:

Unit 2
Vocabulary
Words Relating to Speaking

1. bombastic - (adj.) using language in a pompous, show way; speaking to impress others

Lamar’s speech was so bombastic; was he speaking to communicate or simply show off?

2. circumlocution - (n.) speaking in circles; round-about speech
Loqu - to talk cir - round
The principal said, “Your circumlocution is wasting time. Just tell me exactly what you saw out in the parking lot.”.

3. colloquial - (adj.) pertaining to common everyday speech; conversational
Col - common people
Sometimes a colloquial word becomes standard in English usage.

4. diffuse - (adj.) spread out; not concise; wordy
Please do not use the verb form (science)
The class discussion was so diffuse that few solid points were made.

5. digress - (v.) to wander off from the subject or topic spoken about

Mr. Helms habitually digresses from the point of the lesson.

6. eloquence - (n.) artful ease with speaking; speech that can influence people’s feelings eloquent

Among American presidents, Lincoln wins the prize for eloquence.

7. garrulous - (adj.) talkative; loquacious

Garrulous gatherings of students are unwelcome in a library that values silence.

8. grandiloquent - (adj.) using big and fancy words when speaking for the purpose of impressing others grandiloquence

Mr. Green tries to impress students with his grandiloquence (n.) instead of telling them what they need to know.

9. loquacious - (adj.) very talkative; liking to talk; garrulous

The loquacious audience grew quiet when the movie started.

10. prattle - (v.) to speak on and on in a senseless and silly manner; to talk foolishly

The prattle of freshmen resounded through the cafeteria.

11. ramble - (v.) to talk on and on pointlessly, without clear direction

A wandering, unfocused mind is one trait of a rambler (n.).

12. rant - (v.) to talk very loudly, even wildly; rave

Because the speaker ranted on and on, the audience stopped listening after a while.

13. rhetorical - (adj.) relating to speech that is used to persuade or have some effect; insincere in expression

Metaphors, allusions, and pithy quotations are examples of rhetorical devices.

14. verbose - (adj.) using too many words; wordy; long-winded; diffuse

When time is short, verbose explanations are inappropriate.

15. voluble - (adj.) talking a great deal with ease; glib

Victor is such a voluble speaker that it takes him a half hour to answer a simple question.



Bombastic, diffuse, grandiloquent, rhetorical

Loquacious, circumlocution, eloquence, verbose

Ramble, voluble, rant, prattle

Name:

Unit 3
Vocabulary
Words Relating to Feeling Superior

1. arrogant - (adj.) overbearing; proud; haughty

Rohan’s arrogance annoyed his classmates, who thought he was vain and conceited.

2. braggart - (n.) one who boasts a great deal; one likely to self-aggrandize

Although Tanya is very proud of her talents, she isn’t a braggart.

3. complacent - (adj.) self-satisfied; smug (negative connotation)

Carole could get an A in math, but she’s too complacent to work for it.

4. contemptuous - (adj.) lacking respect; scornful

Accustomed to filet mignon, Fido glared contemptuously at the bowl of dog chow in front of him.

5. disdainful - (adj.) full of bitter scorn and pride; aloof

The audience showed its disdain by heckling the singer who couldn’t carry a tune.

6. egotistical - (adj.) excessively self-absorbed; very conceited

Nathan is so egotistical; he thinks every girl on campus wants to meet him.

7. elitist - (adj.) snobbish, condescending; highbrow in the manner in which one speaks or carries on self. Elite

Kian boasted endlessly about his academic qualifications, demonstrating his elitist mindset.

8. haughty - (adj.) having great pride in oneself and dislike for others

The neighbors are too haughty for a Ford; they drive only Mercedes and BMWs.

9. insolent - (adj.) boldly disrespectful in speech or behavior; rude

When Evan told the principal to “bug off,” his insolence earned him a suspension from school.
Person
10. narcissistic - (adj.) having to do with extreme self-adoration and a feeling of superiority to everyone.
Thing (feeling)
Feeling good about yourself is healthy, but when self-esteem turns into narcissism, you’ve got a problem.

11. ostentatious - (adj.) having to do with showing off; pretentious

My parents prefer staying at a quiet inn by the sea to a glitzy, ostentatious Miami Beach hotel.

12. presumptuous - (adj.) too forward or bold; overstepping proper bounds

Presumptuous people would be better off with a bit of self-control and tact.

13. pretentious - (adj.) claiming or pretending increased importance; ostentatious; affectedly grand

Isn’t pretension often a mask for self-doubt?

14. supercilious - (adj.) looking down on others; proud and scornful

While strutting to the class with her nose in the air, supercilious Sue notices no one.

15. swagger - (vb. or n.) to walk around in a proud, showy manner; to boast in a loud manner

Butch’s swagger (n) reveals an ego as big as a house.

Name: Adeline Schmidt

Unit 4 Vocabulary
Words Relating to Unoriginal, Dull, or Played Out

1. banal - (adj.) dull or stale because of overuse; trite; hackneyed

To wake up and realize your adventure was all a dream is a banal ending for a short story.

2. cliche - (n.) an idea or expression that has become stale due to overuse

Lazy writers rely on cliches because it’s hard work to express ideas with fresh, new phrases.

3. derivative - (adj.) unoriginal; taken from something already existing

Instead of presenting her unique artistic vision, Julio’s derivative digital drawing clearly mimicked the paintings of the old masters.

4. hackneyed - (adj.) made commonplace by overuse; trite
hack (n.) one who copies or imitates the work of others

Miss Cole, our poetry teacher, said, “Because poets aim to create new insights, they shun hackneyed language.”.

5. insipid - (adj.) lacking flavor or taste; unexciting

The conversation at dinner was so insipid that Monica fell asleep at the table.

6. lackluster - (adj.) lacking vitality, energy, or brightness; boring

Lackluster teachers who cannot engage their students’ interest give this school a bad name.

7. mundane - (adj.) commonplace; ordinary.

Video games can offer an escape from the mundane character of daily life.

8. pedestrian - (adj.) commonplace, ordinary, unoriginal, mundane

Her pedestrian screenplay did not grab an iota of attention from the sitcom’s co-producers.

9. platitude - (n.) quality of being dull; an obvious remark uttered as if it were original cliche

A platitude is as enriching intellectually as last month’s bread is satisfying nutritionally.

10. prosaic - (adj.) dull; commonplace

A prosaic Sunday morning means sleeping late and lingering over a big pancake breakfast while browsing the Sunday newspaper.

11. trite - (adj.) unoriginal and stale due to overuse

Because my essay was filled with cliches, Mr. Gill red-penciled “trite” all over it.

12. vapid - (adj.) lacking freshness and zest; flat; stale

Tired of vapid advertising gimmicks, the company resorted to skywriting to promote its newest line of swimwear.


Banal, hackneyed, lackluster, trite
adj. adj. adj. adj.
Because: It means boring, but not from overuse like the other words.

Cliche, trite, hack, platitude
n./adj. adj. n. n.
Because: All the other words can be nouns; trite is an adjective.


Name:
Unit 5
Words Relating to Lessening Pain, Tension, and/or Conflict
1. allay – (v) to lessen fear; to calm; to relieve pain
An SAT prep course can allay the anxiety of some students, but can heighten tension for others.
2. alleviate – (v) to lessen pain or discomfort
A long soak in a hot tub can alleviate the tensions of the day.
3. ameliorate – (v) to make better; to lessen pain, difficulty, or tension
Marv takes time every day to ameliorate the stress of school and work; he takes walks, jogs, gets a massage, or listens to music.
4. appease – (v) to make tranquil or quiet, especially by giving into another’s demands; to pacify
Albert comes to French class late most days. Yesterday he tried to appease his teacher by bringing her a burrito and a soda.
5. assuage – (v) to will a person over through special considerations or persuasive methods; reconcile
To help Hildy assuage her anger, Tom sat her down and let her vent for a while.
6. conciliate – (v) to win a person over through special considerations or persuasive methods; reconcile
To ease the tensions between the two countries, the prime minister made a conciliatory (adj.) speech on TV.
7. mediate – (v) to act as a go-between in settling conflicts or disputes between people or opposing sides
Unless we get a mediator (n) who can bring the sides together, the strike won’t end until next Christmas.
8. mitigate – (v) to make or become less severe; to lessen pain or damage - often a legal term
I plead guilty to the parking infraction, but admitted it was due to mitigating (adj.) circumstances. I was parked in the ambulance lane because I was dropping off a patient in cardiac arrest.
9. mollify – (v) to pacify, soothe, or appease; to make less severe or violent
Not even the offer of a free ticket could mollify Greg’s anger after the airline lost his suitcase.
10 . pacify – (v) to calm; to make peaceful; to restore to a tranquil state
Mother pacified my baby sister by giving her a pacifier (n).
11 . placate – (v) to make calm; to soothe
The restaurant tried to placate us with free appetizers after a one-hour wait for a table.
12. quell – (v) to pacify; to subdue; to quiet down
Shouting “Quiet!” failed to quell the noise in the auditorium.




<___________________________l________________________>
To calm to lessen pain
appease Allay alleviate
mollify Ameliorate
pacify mitigate
placate
Quell

appease, ameliorate, mollify, pacify
Because: Ameliorate because the others mean to lessen pain, not to calm
alleviate, ameliorate, conciliate, assuage
Because: Assuage, because it does not have the -ate suffix

mitigate, allay, conciliatory, pacify
Because: Conciliatory because all of the others are verbs

placate , mediator, appease, allay
Because: Mediator is the only noun and the others are verbs

Appease, pacify, quell, mitigate
Because:Mitigate because the others mean to calm

Allay, Alleviate, ameliorate, pacify
Because: Pacify, because the others mean to calm.

Allay, alleviate, ameliorate, mitigate
Because: Allay because it does not have the -ate ending

Name: Adeline Schmidt
Unit 6
Words Relating to Friendly and Agreeable
1. affable – (adj.) easy to talk to; easy to approach, friendly; kind; amiable
It’s fun to talk with Lisa because she’s so affable and upbeat.
2. amiable – (adj.) friendly, kind (ami - friend)
Miss Crabtree frowns and growls a lot. She’s a little short on amiability (n).
3. amity - (n.) a friendly relationship
The amity between the two countries broke down after the conditions of the treaty were not met.
4. amicable – (adj.) showing goodwill; peaceable (an amicable person can C the world as a better place)
The amicable negotiations ended when the parties began to insult each other.
5. congenial – (adj.) compatible; having kindred needs or tastes; sympathetic
Mr. and Mrs. Evans are a congenial couple. They share a passion for antiques and surfboarding.
6. convivial – (adj.) sociable, outgoing in a festive way, especially when pertaining to eating and drinking; fond of good company
A convivial crowd will be coming to the party; therefore, it should be fun.
7. cordial – (adj.) warm and friendly; amiable
The cordial remarks of my guests convinced me that the party was a success.
8. gregarious – (adj.) sociable, outgoing
As a child Jimmy was quiet, but as a teenager he’s gregarious
9. jocular – (adj.) liking to be with people, joke around with them and have fun
There’s nothing like a few jocular students to enliven a dull class.
10. levity – (n) lightheartedness; gaiety; carefree disposition, particularly when not appropriate
A little levity is needed to lighten up this depressing class.

<_________________________________l______________________________>
Friendly Amicable Sociable
Affable Convivial
Amiable Gregarious
Cordial Jocular


Convivial, cordial, levity, jocular

Because: the other words are all adjectives, levity isn’t

Amiable, convivial, affable, cordial

Because: the others all mean friendly, convivial means sociable

Amiable, levity, amity, amicable

Because: The others all share the ‘ami’ root word

Name: ________________________
Unit 7
Words Relating to Quarreling, Fighting, and Bitter Feelings
1. animosity – (n) hatred; ill will
So much animosity grew between Mark and Mike that they never were buddies again.
2. antagonism – (n) hatred or hostility
Stan’s mocking and teasing incited antagonism among his teammates.
3. bellicose – (adj) of a quarrelsome nature; eager to fight; warlike; belligerent
The speech was full of bellicose threats, suggesting war was at hand.
4. belligerent – (adj) taking part in war or fighting; ready to fight
After two decades of war, the belligerent countries made peace.
5. cantankerous – (adj) bad-tempered; quarrelsome
Grandma and Grandpa are a cantankerous old couple, always fighting and scolding.
6. captious – (adj) made for the sake of quarreling; quibbling
My English teacher, Ms. Carr, quibbles over every word. She criticizes her students’ writing with captious comments.
7. contentious – (adj) quarrelsome; belligerent
I get along well with my sister, but my brother and I are usually contentious.
8. disputatious – (adj) likely to dispute or argue
Hoping to provoke lively class discussions, Mr. Phillips raises controversial issues and assumes a disputatious personality.
9. polemical – (adj) inclined to argue or debate; controversial
The current political season is filled with polemical rhetoric rather than issue-related discussion.
10. predator – (n) one who takes advantage of another, exploits or feeds on another; a strong adversary or rival
He’s a con man, a known predator who cons unsuspecting people into trusting him with their life savings only to run off with all of their money.
11. pugnacious – (adj) eager to fight; belligerent
Beware of pugnacious salesmen who’ll bully you into buying things you don’t need.
12. truculent - (adj) feeling or displaying eagerness to fight
I became truculent when Stasi said that she did not like the beloved character of Gilbert Blythe.

<_____________________________l________________________>
Fight quarrel/argue
Bellicose contentious cantankerous
Belligerent captious
pugnacious Disputatious
truculent polemical*

Bellicose, belligerent, pugnacious, predator

Because: predator is a noun and the rest are adjectives

Belligerent, disputatious, pugnacious, truculent

Because: disputatious means to quarrel and the others mean to fight

Disputatious, contentious, captious, truculent

Because: The other words have the -ous suffix

Name: Adeline Schmidt
Unit 8 Vocabulary
Words Relating to Generosity in Spending Money or Time, or Showing Concern for Others
1. altruistic – (adj.) showing an unselfish concern for others
Barbara’s motives were not altogether altruistic. She had much to gain from serving as the head of the school’s blood drive.
2. benevolent – (adj.) giving freely and easily to others; charitable; kind
Ready to help anyone at any time, Tina is about the most benevolent person I know.
3. bountiful - (adj.) liberal in bestowing gifts, favors, or bounties; munificent; generous
Santa Claus is a bountiful character who delights children throughout the world during the holiday season.
4. Largess (Jess) – (n) generous giving
The largess of their alumni has enabled many colleges to offer scholarships to deserving students.
5. lavish – (adj.) generous in giving to others or in spending money
Despite a modest income, The McTaveys make lavish donations to their church.
6. magnanimous – (adj.) generous in overlooking insult or injury be others; rising above pettiness
Mr. Appel magnanimously (adv) offered full college scholarships to any children in the sixth grade who stayed in school and graduated from high school.
7. munificent – (adj.) very generous
It’s easy to be munificent when you already have more of everything than you’ll ever want or need.
8. philanthropic – (adj.) showing a desire to help others by giving gifts; charitable; humane
My mother works for a philanthropic organization that disburses funds to needy hospitals.
9. prodigal – (adj.) wasteful; lavish
Marcia’s prodigal spending at the mall used up the money she’d been saving for college. Next time, maybe she’ll spend more thoughtfully.
10. squander – (v) to spend money (or time) in wasteful , uncaring fashion
Jimmy squandered a perfectly good day, aimlessly watching TV from dawn to dusk.


<___________________________________l____________________________>
Money concern
Altruistic
Benevolent
Bountiful
Lavish magnanimous
munificent
Philanthropic
Prodigal




Altruistic, lavish, magnanimous, munificent

Because: lavish deals with money and the other words deal with concern
Lavish can have a negative connotation, while the others are positive

Altruism, largess, philanthropist, squander

Because: squander is a verb, the others are nouns


Denotation vs. Connotation
(Dictionary Definition) vs. (Cultural Context)

Name: Adeline Schmidt
Unit 9 Vocabulary
Words Relating to Cheapness or Care with Spending Money
1. austere – (adj.) having great economy; showing self-control when it comes to foregoing luxuries and frills; stern in manner or appearance
The poet had lived an austere life, foregoing all luxuries and creature comforts.
2. avaricious – (adj.) greedy
She was young and beautiful; he was old and rich. Rumors said that her avaricious tendency drove her to marry him.
3. frugal – (adj.) careful with money; thrifty; not prodigal or wasteful
Surprisingly, they were frugal at breakfast, but they spared no expense at dinner.
4. Mercenary (n) – (adj.) greedy for self-gain; thinking only of money-making
The mercenary owner of the leather store was too money-hungry to ever hold a sale.
5. miserly – (adj.) careful with how money is spent; thrifty
Too miserly to spend a dollar, she’d rather walk than take the crosstown bus.
6. parsimonious – (adj.) overly thrifty or miserly
Gramps is parsimonious with his words. Sometimes he doesn’t speak for days.
7. Penurious (penury) – (adj.) stingy; relating to great poverty, destitution
His penurious childhood taught my father the value of every penny.
8. thrifty – (adj.) showing care with how money and resources are spent or used; miserly
Being thrifty is one thing, but being downright cheap is another.

<____________________________l________________________>
Greedy careful with $
avaricious austere
Mercenary frugal
Miserly (based on connotation)
Parsimonious
Penurious
Thrifty

Avaricious, parsimonious, thrifty, penurious

Because: all the other words share the -ous suffix

Frugal, austere, thrifty, miserly

Because: while they all share the same denotation, miserly has a negative connotation

Austere, avaricious, frugal, thrifty

Because: it is the only one that means greedy; the others mean careful with money



Frugal, penury, parsimonious, austere

Because: It is the only noun; the others are adjectives

Name:
Unit 10
Words Relating to Problems, Puzzlements, and Disasters
1. adversity – (n.) great trouble or difficulty
The book tells how he overcame the adversity of an impoverished childhood.
2. conflagration – (n.) a huge fire, and inferno
Flames from the conflagration lit up the sky for miles around.
3. confounding – (adj.) puzzling; baffling
Who ate the strawberries continues to be a confounding mystery.
4. cryptic – (adj.) hidden; hard to understand; mysterious; obscure
The twins used a cryptic, incomprehensible language to talk with each other.
5. debacle – (n.) a failure or breakdown; a collapse that is often nonsensical
The play was a debacle. Actors forgot their lines, the set fell down, and the lights blew out halfway through the first act.
6. enigma – (n.) a riddle or mystery; a puzzling or baffling matter or person
James acts mysteriously to prevent others from understanding him too well. He prefers to remain an enigma.
7. labyrinth – (n.) a maze from which it is very hard to extricate or free oneself
The plumbing system in my house is a labyrinth of copper pipes that turn and bend every which way.
8. precarious – (adj.) dangerous or risky; uncertain
It’s precarious to apply to only one college because you may not be admitted, and then what?
9. quagmire – (n.) a difficult or troubling situation; a swampy ground, bog, mire
A quagmire of troubles kept Julia awake at night.
10.quandary – (n.) a dilemma; a confusing or puzzling situation
Walter faces the enviable quandary of deciding which of three top colleges he should attend.
11. turbulence – (n.) great unrest; turmoil or disorder
Migrating whales caused turbulence in the water.
12. turmoil – (n.) a turbulent scenario or situation; tumult
There was turmoil in the room because the teacher had lost control of the class.

Quagmire, precarious, labyrinth, adversity

Because: Precarious is the only adjective

Conflagration, quagmire, quandary, turmoil

Because: It means fire; the others mean a troubling or bad situation