Advanced English Vocabulary

Cards · 65

Aberration

A departure from what is normal, usual, or expected. Example: The sudden snowfall in July was considered an aberration.

Acumen

The ability to make good judgments and quick decisions. Example: Her business acumen helped the startup secure lucrative funding.

Anachronistic

Belonging to a period other than that in which it exists. Example: Seeing a smartphone in a Victorian-era play felt jarringly anachronistic.

Assiduous

Showing great care and perseverance. Example: Through assiduous research, the scientist uncovered the virus's origin.

Capricious

Given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior. Example: The dictator's capricious decrees terrified his ministers.

Castigate

To reprimand someone severely. Example: The manager castigated the team for ignoring safety protocols.

Circumlocution

The use of many words where fewer would do, often to be vague. Example: The politician relied on circumlocution to avoid direct answers.

Clandestine

Kept secret or done secretively, especially because illicit. Example: The spies held a clandestine meeting in an abandoned warehouse.

Cogent

Clear, logical, and convincing. Example: She presented a cogent argument that won over the entire committee.

Concomitant

Naturally accompanying or associated. Example: High inflation and its concomitant rise in interest rates troubled investors.

Curtail

To reduce in extent or quantity; impose a restriction on. Example: Budget deficits forced the school to curtail after-school programs.

Dearth

A scarcity or lack of something. Example: The severe drought caused a catastrophic dearth of fresh drinking water.

Deleterious

Causing harm or damage. Example: Chronic sleep deprivation has deleterious effects on mental health.

Demagogue

A political leader who seeks support by appealing to popular desires and prejudices. Example: The demagogue stirred up public fury against minorities.

Diatribe

A forceful and bitter verbal attack against someone or something. Example: The senator launched into a fiery diatribe against corruption.

Discombobulate

To confuse or disconcert; upset. Example: The sudden change in exam formats completely discombobulated the students.

Ebullient

Cheerful and full of energy. Example: The crowd gave an ebullient cheer when their home team took the lead.

Effrontery

Insolent or impertinent behavior. Example: He had the effrontery to demand a promotion after showing up late every day.

Enervate

To cause someone to feel drained of energy or vitality. Example: The intense desert heat enervated the stranded travelers.

Ephemeral

Lasting for a very short time. Example: The beauty of cherry blossoms is magnificent yet fleetingly ephemeral.

Equivocate

To use ambiguous language so as to conceal the truth. Example: The witness equivocated under pressure from the defense attorney.

Esoteric

Intended for or likely to be understood by only a small group. Example: Quantum electrodynamics remains an esoteric subject for many.

Exacerbate

To make a problem, bad situation, or negative feeling worse. Example: His rude remarks only served to exacerbate the ongoing dispute.

Fastidious

Very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail. Example: The editor was fastidious about grammar and typographical errors.

Garrulous

Excessively talkative, especially on trivial matters. Example: The garrulous passenger beside me talked non-stop for five hours.

Grandiloquent

Pompous or extravagant in language, style, or manner. Example: His grandiloquent speech failed to impress the practical audience.

Harangue

A lengthy and aggressive speech. Example: The coach delivered a loud harangue after the team’s sluggish first half.

Iconoclast

A person who attacks cherished beliefs or institutions. Example: As an iconoclast, the artist rejected traditional compositional rules.

Idiosyncrasy

A distinctive or peculiar feature or characteristic of an individual. Example: Wearing mismatched socks was merely one of his quirky idiosyncrasies.

Impecunious

Having little or no money. Example: In his youth, the impecunious writer survived on bread and library books.

Inchoate

Just begun and so not fully formed or developed. Example: She drafted an inchoate outline before beginning her full novel.

Inimical

Tending to obstruct or harm; unfriendly. Example: Strict censorship policies are inimical to freedom of expression.

Intransigent

Unwilling or refusing to change one's views or to agree. Example: The union remained intransigent despite multiple compromise offers.

Juxtapose

To place close together for contrasting effect. Example: The gallery juxtaposed modern abstract art with classical portraits.

Laconic

Using very few words. Example: His laconic reply of 'No' abruptly ended the negotiations.

Loquacious

Tending to talk a great deal; talkative. Example: The loquacious host kept the dinner party entertained all evening.

Mendacious

Not telling the truth; lying. Example: Propaganda campaigns rely on mendacious reports to mislead the populace.

Mercurial

Subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind. Example: His mercurial temperament made working under him deeply stressful.

Munificent

Larger or more generous than is usual or necessary. Example: A munificent donation allowed the hospital to open a pediatric wing.

Nefarious

Wicked, villainous, or criminal. Example: The hacker group used nefarious methods to siphon funds from bank accounts.

Obdurate

Stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion or course of action. Example: Despite overwhelming evidence, the suspect remained obdurate.

Obfuscate

To render obscure, unclear, or unintelligible. Example: The politician tried to obfuscate the issue by citing irrelevant statistics.

Panacea

A solution or remedy for all difficulties or diseases. Example: Digital technology is not a panacea for the nation's educational woes.

Paucity

The presence of something only in small or insufficient quantities. Example: The prosecution struggled due to a paucity of reliable physical evidence.

Pernicious

Having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way. Example: The pernicious spread of misinformation undermined public trust.

Perspicacious

Having a ready insight into and understanding of things. Example: The perspicacious investor spotted flaws in the balance sheet immediately.

Plethora

A large or excessive amount of something. Example: The online store offers a plethora of options for organic skincare.

Polemic

A strong verbal or written attack on someone or something. Example: His essay was a blistering polemic against industrial pollution.

Prevaricate

To speak or act in an evasive way. Example: Tell the absolute truth immediately and do not prevaricate.

Proclivity

A tendency to choose or do something regularly; an inclination. Example: He showed a natural proclivity toward mathematics from a young age.

Pugnacious

Eager or quick to argue, quarrel, or fight. Example: The pugnacious debater challenged every claim made by his opponent.

Quixotic

Exceedingly idealistic; unrealistic and impractical. Example: Attempting to solve global traffic congestion overnight is a quixotic quest.

Recalcitrant

Having an obstinately uncooperative attitude toward authority. Example: The teacher struggled to handle the recalcitrant student in class.

Salient

Most noticeable or important. Example: The summary highlighted the salient points of the lengthy corporate report.

Spurious

Not being what it purports to be; false or fake. Example: The author debunked the spurious historical claims circulating online.

Supercilious

Behaving or looking as though one thinks one is superior to others. Example: Her supercilious glare made new employees feel instantly unwelcome.

Sycophant

A person who acts obsequiously toward someone important to gain advantage. Example: Surrounding himself with sycophants blinded the CEO to criticism.

Taciturn

Reserved or uncommunicative in speech; saying little. Example: The taciturn old sailor rarely spoke unless spoken to directly.

Trepidation

A feeling of fear or agitation about something that may happen. Example: She approached the podium with understandable trepidation.

Ubiquitous

Present, appearing, or found everywhere. Example: Smartphones have become ubiquitous in nearly every corner of modern society.

Vacillate

To alternate or waver between different opinions or actions. Example: Investors vacillated between optimism and panic during the volatility.

Venerate

To regard with great respect; revere. Example: Many indigenous cultures deeply venerate ancestral wisdom and traditions.

Vicarious

Experienced in the imagination through the feelings or actions of another. Example: She took vicarious pleasure in watching her daughter travel the world.

Vilify

To speak or write about in an abusively disparaging manner. Example: Tabloids vilified the celebrity after the scandalous arrest.

Zealot

A person who is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their ideals. Example: The political zealot refused to engage with opposing viewpoints.