English III Vocabulary Lessons 3 & 4

pedestrian

Adj: ordinary or dull

bona fide

Adj: in good faith

adventitious

Adj: accidental; nonessential

fecund

Adj: fertile; productive

deviate

V: to turn aside from a course; to stray

obfuscate

V: to confuse; to bewilder

impale

V: to pierce with a sharp stake through the body

extenuate

V: to lessen seriousness by providing partial excuses

parochial

Adj: local; narrow; limited

glower

V: to stare angrily

edify

V: to improve someone morally

ambiguous

Adj: open to more than one interpretation

cataclysm

N: a violent change

optimum

Adj: best; most favorable; ideal

importune

V: to ask persistently; to beg

celibate

Adj: abstaining from intercourse; unmarried

fortuitous

Adj: happening by chance or accident

recapitulate

V: to summarize; to repeat briefly

perfunctory

Adj: done without care; in a routine fashion

baroque

Adj: overly decorated

hedonism

N: pursuit of pleasure, especially of the senses

obloquy

N: strong disapproval; a bad reputation resulting from public criticism

debacle

N: a complete failure; a total collapse

quasi-

Adj: resembling; seeming; half

besmirch

V: to make dirty; to stain

imperative

Adj: extremely necessary; vitally important

sacrosanct

Adj: extremely holy

sadistic

Adj: deriving pleasure from inflicting pain on others

demeanor

N: behavior; manner of conducting oneself

facetious

Adj: comical; jocular; flippant