Recluse, noun
Someone who withdraws from society, loner/hermit
Pedestrian, adj
performed in an unimaginative manner, dull/monotonous/uninspired/medicore
Denounce, verb
proclaim as evil, condemn/criticize/accuse
Inconsequential, adj
having no significance, unimportant/insignificant/minor/trivial
Profusion, noun
abundant quantity; lavish expenditure, abundance/excess/plenty - Windflowers flourish in great profusion.
Constraint, noun
embarrassed awkwardness/repression of feelings, limitation/restriction/embarrassment - They felt some constraint.
Prosaic, adj
dull and unaimaginative, pedestrian/commonplace/ordinary
Relegate, verb
(The manager swiftly relegated him to a position...)
consign to an inferior position, assign/banish
Astute, adj
characterized by shrewdness and clear-signtedness, perceptive/sharp/wise/clever
Ponderous, adj
(The elephant is ponderous)
very heavy; awkward because of its heaviness; tedious, lacking fluency, weighty/massive/unwieldy
Austere, adj
strict/severe/stern/stark
Flippant, adj
(...his earnest flippant "Oh, that you...")
lacking proper seriousness, frivolous/impertinent/disrespectful
Elusive, adj
(The fish was too elusive)
Hard to grasp/capture, evasive/baffling
Decorum, noun
appropriatness in behavior, correctness/politeness
Cordial, adj
(A cordial welcome)
warmly friendly, sincerely felt, gracious/affable/heartfelt
Endorse, verb
(Which of the candidates would the mayor endorse.)
give support to, approve/back/sponsor
Elated, adj
(Skier was elated by her victory.)
in high spirits, overjoyed/thrilled/jubilant
Expedite, verb
(... Amazon to have them expedite the shipping...)
Speed up the progress of (a process), accomplish with promptness
Devious, adj
(J's plan was so devious, others had problems following it.)
not straightforward; departing from accepted conduct, roundabout/cunning
Frivolous, adj
(Bill's frivolous companionship)
lacking in seriousness, inconsequential/thoughtless/lighthearted
Incisive, adj
highly direct and decisive, keen/cutting/acute/sharp, "prenikav�
Candor, noun
"...she was hoping for compliments, not for candor.
open honesty, frankness/truthfulness
Conflagration, noun
"In the conflagration that followed, the earthquake,...
great fire, inferno/blaze
Linger, verb
"...the smell lingered...
continue to exist, although losing strength, persist/remain
Prolific, adj
highly productive
Contract, verb
1. "Cold metal contracts."
2. "In Malaysia, he contracted malaria.
1. reduce in size; 2. become affected by (a disease)
1. compress/shrink; 2. incur/be affected with
Ominous, adj
"Those clouds are ominous; they suggest a severe storm is on its way.
having an alarming character - not a person, that threatens evil (is on its way in one form or another), threatening/menacing/unpromising
Ascendancy, noun
"Religious cults maintain ascendancy over their followers.
position of dominance; controlling influence, domination/power/superiority
Futile, adj
"It is futile for me to study.
incapable of serving any useful purpose, useless
Presumptuous, adj
"Matilda though it was presumptuous of the young man to have addressed her without first having been introduced.
taking liberties; excessively forward - TR�FAL�, arrogant/overconfident/insolent
Deplore, verb
"Although the advice columnist deplored the high rate of divorce nowadays, she realized hat not every marriage could be saved.
regret strongly; express grief over, lissaprove/lament/?utova?
Coercion, noun
use force to compel someone to obey
Augment, verb
make larger/more numerous, supplement/enlarge/increase/add to
Acclaim, verb
announce with great approval, applaud/praise
Diffidence, noun
lack of confidence, shyness/reserve/unassertiveness
Insularity, noun
"British insularity is proverbial, ...
narrow provincial PoV, narrow-mindedness, provinciality
Patronize, verb
"Penniless artists hope to find some wealthy art lover who will patronize them. If a waiter patronized me, talking down to me, I'd refuse to patronize his restaurant.
1. provide support for; 2. act superior toward; 3. be a customer of
1. assist/foster; 2. condescend/snub; 3. frequent/shop at
Levity, noun
"Giggling - such levity is improper in church.
lack of proper seriousness, frivolity/flippancy
Disposition, noun
1. final arrangement; 2. temperamental makeup/mood
1. settlement/distribution; 2. character/personality/temperament
Voluble, adj
"Excessively voluble speakers suffer from logorrhea: they run off the the mouth a lot!
tending to talk easily or rapidly, fluent/glib/talkative
Proliferation, noun
rapid increase in numbers, spread/multiplication/propagation/increase
Precocious, adj
advanced in development - people, gifted/smart/mature/advanced
Hamper, verb
"...hamper her ability...
interfere with, hinder/obstruct/impedes
Cogent, adj
"cogent arguments
strongly appealing to reason; well argued, convincing/persuasive/logical/sound
Paucity, noun
"paucity of customers
smallness of quantity or number, scarcity/lack/dearth/scantiness
Tantamount, adj
"Because so few Southern blacks could afford to pay to poll tax, imposing such a tax on voters was tantamount to denying black voters the right to vote.
corresponding in some respects; alike in quantity effect or values, equivalent/synonymous
Viable, adj
practical/workable, feasible/practicable
Precarious, adj
"precarious investment
dependent on unknown conditions or circumstances -> dangerous, insecure/unsafe/risky
Lofty, adj
"lofty ambitions
very elevated in character; rising to an impressive height, noble/exalted/superior/towering
Virulent adj
"Laid up with a virulent case of measles, Vera blamed her doctors... She became quite virulent on the subject of the quality of modern medical care.
1. extremely severe; highly noxious, 2. spitefully hostile
1. poisonous/toxic/destructive; 2. bitter