adversary
n. an enemy, opponent
SYN: antagonist, rival, foe
ANT: friend, ally, supporter, confederate
alienate
v. to turn away; to make indifferent or hostile; to transfer, convey
SYN: separate, drive apart, estrange
ANT: befriend, attract, captivate, reconcile
artifice
n. a skillful or ingenious device; a clever trick; a clever skill; trickery
SYN: ruse, stratagem, contrivance
coerce
v. to compel, force
SYN: pressure, bully, intimidate, constrain
ANT: persuade, cajole
craven
adj. cowardly
n. a coward
SYN: adj. fearful, fainthearted, pusillanimous
ANT: adj. brave, courageous, valiant
culinary
adj. of or related to cooking or the kitchen
delete
v. to erase, wipe out, cut out
SYN: remove, cancel, expunge
ANT: insert, add, retain, include
demise
n. a death, especially of a person in a lofty position
SYN: decrease, passing away
ANT: birth, beginning, commmencement
exhilarate
v. to enliven, cheer, give spirit or liveliness to
SYN: stimulate, excite, gladden
ANT: discourage, dispirit, dishearten, inhibit
fallow
adj. plowed but not seeded; inactive; reddish-yellow
n. land left unseeded
v. to plow but not seed
SYN: adj. unproductive, inert, dormant
ANT: adj. productive, fertile, prolific
harass
v. to disturb, worry; to trouble by repeated attacks
SYN: annoy, pester, bedevil, beleaguer
inclement
adj. stormy, harsh; severe in attitude or action
SYN: blustery, tempestuous, implacable
ANT: mild, gentle, balmy, tranquil
muse
v. to think about in a dreamy way, ponder
SYN: meditate, contemplate, daydream
negligible
adj. so unimportant that it can be disregarded
SYN: trivial, inconsequential, insignificant
ANT: significant, crucial, momentous
perpetuate
v. to make permanent or long lasting
SYN: continue, preserve, prolong indefinitely
ANT: discontinue, abolish, abandon
precendent
n. an example that may serve as a basis for imitation or later action
SYN: guide, tradition, model
punitive
adj. inflicting or aiming at punishment
SYN: penalizing, retaliatory
redress
v. to set right, remedy
n. relief from wrong or injury
SYN: v. rectify, correct, mitigate
sojourn
n. a temporary stay
v. to stay for a time
SYN: n. visit, stopover, brief stay
urbane
adj. refined in manner or style, suave
SYN: elegant
ANT: crude, uncouth, boorish
adroit
adj. skillful, expert in the use of the hands or mind
SYN: clever, deft, dexterous, slick
ANT: clumsy, inept, all thumbs
amicable
adj. peaceable, friendly
SYN: congenial, neighborly, cordial
ANT: hostile, antagonistic
averse
adj. having a deep-seated distaste; opposed, unwilling
SYN: disinclined, loath
ANT: favorably disposed, eager, keen
belligerent
adj. given to fighting, warlike; combative, agressive
n. one at war, one engaged in war
SYN: adj. assertive, trucelent, pugnacious
ANT: adj. peaceful, conciliatory, placid
benevolent
adj. kindly, charitable
SYN: benign, well-meaning
ANT: malicious, spiteful, malevolent
cursory
adj. hasty, not thorough
SYN: quick, superficial, perfunctory
ANT: thorough, painstaking, careful
duplicity
n. treachery, deceitfulness
SYN: fraud, double-dealing, chicanery
extol
v. to praise extravagantly
SYN: glorify, applaud, acclaim, hail
ANT: criticize, belittle, disparage
feasible
adj. possible, able to be done
SYN: workable, practicable, viable
ANT: unworkable, impractical
grimace
n. a wry face, facial distortion
v. to make a wry face
SYN: n. pained expression, facial contortion
ANT: n. smile, grin; v. beam
holocaust
n. a large-scale destruction, especially by fire; a vast slaughter; a burnt offering
SYN: conflagration, devastation, annihilation
ANT: deluge, inundation
impervious
adj. not affected or hurt by; admitting of no passage or entrance
SYN: impenetrable, resistant, proof against
ANT: porous, permeable, vulnerable
impetus
n. a moving force, impulse, stimulus
SYN: impulse, incentive, spur
ANT: curb, hindrance, impediment, constraint
jeopardy
n. danger
SYN: risk, hazard, peril
ANT: safety, security
meticulous
adj. extremely careful; particular about details
SYN: fastidious, painstaking, fussy
ANT: careless, negligent, sloppy
nostalgia
n. a longing for something past; homesickness
quintessence
n. the purest essence or form of something; the most typical example
SYN: paragon, exemplar
retrogress
v. to move backward; to return to an earlier condition
SYN: revert, degenerate, decline
ANT: advance, evolve, progress
scrutinize
v. to examine closely
SYN: inspect, pore over
ANT: skim, scan, glance at
tepid
adj. lukewarm; unenthusiastic, marked by an absence of interest
SYN: insipid, halfhearted, wishy-washy
ANT: heated, excited, enthusiastic
adulterate
v. to corrupt, make worse by the addition of something of lesser value
SYN: contaminate, pollute, sully
ANT: purify, purge, expurgate
ambidextrous
adj. able to use both hands equally well; very skillful; deceitful, hypocritical
SYN: versatile, facile
ANT: clumsy, all thumbs, maladroit
augment
v. to make larger, increase
SYN: enlarge, supplement, amplify
ANT: decrease, diminish
bereft
adj., part. deprived of; made unhappy through a loss
SYN: bereaved
ANT: replete, well provided
deploy
v. to position or arrange; to utitlize; to form up
SYN: station, organize
dour
adj. stern, unyielding, gloomy, ill-humored
SYN: harsh, bleak, forbidding, saturnine
ANT: cheery, inviting, genial
fortitude
n. courage in facing difficulties
SYN: resolve, steadfastness, mettle
ANT: fearfulness, timidity, faintheartedness
gape
v. to stare with open mouth; to open the mouth wide; to open wide
SYN: gawk, ogle
gibe
v. to utter taunting words
n. an expression of scorn
SYN: v. ridicule, mock, deride, jeer
ANT: n. compliment, praise
guise
n. an external appearance, vocer, mask
SYN: costume, semblance, pretense
insidious
adj. intended to deceive or entrap; sly, treacherous
SYN: cunning, underhanded, perfidious
ANT: frank, ingenuous, aboveboard
intimation
n. a hint, indirect suggestion
SYN: clue, indication, inkling
opulent
adj. wealthy, luxurious; ample; grandiose
SYN: rich, lavish, plentiful, abdundant
ANT: poverty-stricken, wretched, destitute
pliable
adj. easily bent, flexible; easily influenced
SYN: supple, adaptable, resilient
ANT: rigid, inflexible, recalcitrant
reiterate
v. to say again, repeat
SYN: restate, rehash, recapitulate
stolid
adj. not easily moved mentally or emotionally; dull, unresponsive
SYN: impassive, phlegmatic
ANT: emotional, oversensitive, high-strung
tentative
adj. experimental in nature; uncertain, hesitant
SYN: provisional, inconclusive
ANT: definite, conclusive, confirmed
unkempt
adj. not combed; untidy; not properly maintained; unpolished, rude
SYN: sloppy, disheveled, disordered, rough
ANT: well-groomed, tidy, neat, natty
verbatim
adj., adv. word for word; exactly as written or spoken
SYN: adj. exact, adv. precisely
ANT: adj. paraphrased
warily
adv. cautiously, with great care
SYN: carefully, prudently, gingerly
ANT: recklessly, heedlessly, incautious