Word: adamant Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: ad-uh-muhnt Origins: Related Forms: adamantly (adverb) Sentence: The teacher was adamant in his decision that the test would be on Monday, despite his students’ week-long complaints about all of their plans for homecoming weekend. Predicted Definition: Definition: 1 -- Completely unmoving in attitude or opinion in spite of disagreement from others; 2 – Too hard to cut, break, or pierce Latin “adamant” – hard metal, diamond (Greek “a-” (not, without) + “daman” (to tame or conquer))

Word: perceptive Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: per-sep-tiv Origins: Related Forms: Perceptively (adverb); perceptiveness (noun); im/perceptible (adjective) Sentence: The perceptive sniper noticed the tiny movement of the leaves in a tree two miles away, but he could tell by how far the branch was bent that it wasn’t his target in the tree. Predicted Definition: Definition: 1 – having or showing strong insight, understanding, or intuition 2 – having the power or faculty of perceiving. 3 – of, pertaining to, or showing perception. Latin: “percept,” meaning something seen

Word: prerogative Part of speech: noun Pronunciation: puh-rog-uh-tiv Origins: Related Forms: none Sentence: While the president doesn’t have the ability to formally declare war against another country, it is his or her prerogative to order bombing attacks without congressional approval Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: “Pre” (before; in advance of) + “roga(re)” (to ask) 1 – an exclusive right, privilege, etc., allowed to someone because of their rank, office, or title 2 – a right, privilege, etc., limited to a specific person or to persons of a particular category

Word: annotation Part of speech: noun Pronunciation: an-uh-tey-shuhn Origins: Related Forms: annotate (verb); notation (noun); notate (verb) Sentence: Thanks to the annotations Umkulthoum wrote in the margins of her copy of The Prince, she remembered all of the explanations her professor had given the class about what the text meant. Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: “notare” (to note, to mark) a note or comment added to explain part of a text or literary work

Word: heinous Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: hey-nuhs (The “h” sound is important!) Origins: Related Forms: heinously (adverb); heinousness (noun) Sentence: Jacobi’s crime was so heinous, even the serial killers in the federal penitentiary hated him for his raping and cannibalizing of three kindergarten classes. Predicted Definition: Definition: Germanic; from “haïr,” meaning “to hate” hateful; evil; awful; atrocious; odious; abominable; totally reprehensible;

Word: intrinsic Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: in-trin-sik, -zik Origins: Related Forms: intrinsically (adverb) Sentence: Not only did the gold ring with 7 half-carat diamonds have intrinsic value because of the gems and precious metal, it also was meaningful to Umkulthoum because it had belonged to her great- grandmother. Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: “int(e)” (“inside or within”) + “sequi” (“to follow”) 1 – belonging to something by its very nature; inherent 2 – naturally part of something

Word: Transgress Part of speech: Verb Pronunciation: trans-gres, tranz- Origins: Related Forms: transgression (noun); transgressive (adjective); transgressively (adverb); transgressor (noun) Sentence: Now that you know you are not allowed to wear hats, if you choose to transgress the rule, your consequence will be to have your hat taken away. Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: trans (“across”) + gress (“to go”) 1. to violate a law, command, moral code, etc.; offend; sin. 2. to pass over or go beyond (a limit, boundary, etc.): to transgress bounds of prudence. 3. to go beyond the limits imposed by (a law, command, etc.); violate; infringe: to transgress the will of God.

Word: Mitigate Part of speech: Verb Pronunciation: mit-i-geyt Origins: Related Forms: mitigation (noun); mitigator (noun); mitigable (adjective) Sentence: She couldn’t eliminate the sound of the girl’s screams, but Umkulthoum was able to mitigate them by putting in her ear buds and turning up the music. Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: “Mit” (mild, soft, gentle) + “agere” (to do, to make, to cause to do) 1. to lessen in force or intensity, as wrath, grief, harshness, or pain; moderate. 2. to make less severe: to mitigate a punishment. 3. to make (a person, one's state of mind, disposition, etc.) milder or more gentle; mollify; appease. 4. to become milder; lessen in severity.

Word: Provocative Part of speech: Adjective Pronunciation: pruh-vok-uh-tiv Origins: Related Forms: provocatively (adverb); provocativeness (noun); provocation (noun); provoke (verb) Predicted Definition: Sentence: Hoping to get her rival suspended for starting a fight, Umkulthoum used provocative language to say that Cindy-Lou’s mother was a harlot. Definition: Latin: “pro” (in favor of) + “vocare” (to call out) Tending or serving to provoke; inciting, stimulating, irritating, or vexing.

Word: Irrevocable Part of speech: Adjective Pronunciation: ih-rev-uh-kuh-buh l Origins: Related Forms: irrevocably (adverb); irrevocability (noun); irrevocableness (noun); to revoke (verb) Sentence: No matter how much he may have wanted to take it back, John Proctor’s affair with Abigail Williams was irrevocable. Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: ir (not) + re (again) + vocare (to call) + able (capable of) not to be revoked or recalled; unable to be repealed or annulled; unalterable: an irrevocable decree.

Word: stringent Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: strin-juh nt Origins: Related Forms: stringently (adverb) Sentence: When she moved back home after having lived in an apartment of her own during her freshman year of college, Umkulthoum found the restrictions of a 9 pm curfew and having to call her parents every time she drove somewhere to be too stringent, so she moved out again immediately. Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: from “stringere” (to draw tight) rigorously binding or exacting; strict; severe

Word: conducive Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: kuh n-doo-siv Origins: Related Forms: conduct (verb) (not necessarily “conduct” (noun)) Sentence: Neither my older brother’s stereo thumping at full blast nor my parents arguing loudly in the next room were conducive to my efforts to study for the SAT. Predicted Definition: Definition: Latin: con (together; with) + ducere (to lead) tending to produce; conducing; contributive; helpful; favorable (usually followed by “to”)

Word: slovenly Part of speech: adjective or adverb Pronunciation: sluhv-uh n-lee Origins: --Dutch: “slof” (careless) Related Forms: slovenliness (noun) Sentence: When the manager of the company saw the young woman’s torn jeans, chewed fingernails, and hair that looked like a rat’s nest, he told her she was too slovenly to work for his company and that she should come back when she knew how to keep clean. Predicted Definition: Definition: untidy or unclean in appearance or habits. (adjective) in an untidy, careless, or slipshod manner. (adverb)

Word: disconsolate Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: dis-kon-suh-lit Origins: --Latin: “dis” (not) + “con” (with) + “solari” (to soothe or comfort) Related Forms: disconsolately (adverb); console (verb) Sentence: No matter what her friends and family did to cheer her up, Umkulthoum was disconsolate as she saw the “E” on the paper, which also meant she would fail the class and be unable to graduate with her friends. Predicted Definition: Definition: without consolation or solace; hopelessly unhappy; inconsolable; cheerless; gloomy; heartbroken; dejected; sad, melancholy, sorrowful, miserable

Word: infraction Part of speech: noun Pronunciation: in-frak-shuh n Origins: -- “in” (to, toward) + “frag”/”frang” (to break/bend/weaken) + “-ion” (suffix making an adj or a verb into a noun) Related Forms: Sentence: When Umkulthoum was charged with a traffic infraction, she fought the ticket, claiming it wasn’t illegal to drive with her feet. Predicted Definition: Definition: --a breach; a violation; an infringement; an offence

Word: tortuous Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: tawr-choo-uh s Origins: --Latin: “Tortu” (a twisting) Related Forms: tortuously (adverb) Sentence: When Umkulthoum tried to find where the drug cartels had hidden their money in over a dozen different banks using 100 fake companies, she found that the trail of the money was too tortuous to follow. Predicted Definition: Definition: 1 full of twists, turns, or bends; twisting, winding, or crooked: a tortuous path. 2 not direct or straightforward, as in procedure or speech; intricate; circuitous: tortuous negotiations lasting for months.

Word: archetype Part of speech: noun Pronunciation: ahr-ki-tahyp Origins: --Greek: “archi” (first, original, prior) + “tupos” (image) Related Forms: archetypal, archetypical (adjectives); archetypally, archetypically (adverbs) Sentence: The tale of Cinderella is the first known “rags-to-riches” story, which makes it the archetype on which all other “rags-to-riches” stories have been based. Snow White’s evil step-mother was the archetype of the villainess, and every Disney villainess after her has simply been an imitation. Predicted Definition: Definition: --the original pattern or model from which all things of the same kind are copied or on which they are based; a model or first form; prototype

Word: disseminate Part of speech: Verb Pronunciation: dih-sem-uh-neyt Origins: --Latin: “dis” (away; apart; asunder) + “seminare” (to sow (to plant)) Related Forms: dissemination (noun) Sentence: The Center for Disease Control tried to disseminate information about the Zombie Apocalypse by every means they could, including Twitter, Instagram, text message, news broadcast, and radio announcements, so that they could get the word out to everyone. Predicted Definition: Definition: --to scatter or spread widely, as though sowing seed; promulgate extensively; broadcast; disperse: to disseminate information about preventive medicine.

Word: elicit Part of speech: verb Pronunciation: ih-lis-it Origins: --Latin: “lici” (to lure or draw out) Related Forms: elicitation (noun) Sentence: Umkulthoum was tired of being ignored, so to elicit a response from her parents, she set her sister’s bed on fire, tied the dog to the cat, and called in to the police saying she had been kidnapped. Predicted Definition: Definition: --to draw out, bring out, or bring forth; evoke

Word: grisly Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: griz-lee Origins: --Old High German: “grisenlih” Related Forms: grisliness Sentence: Umkulthoum loved the Saw movies because of their grisly scenes of torture, blood, and dismembered corpses. Predicted Definition: Definition: --causing a shudder or feeling of horror or dread; horrible; gruesome; ghastly: a grisly murder.

Word: contingent Part of speech: adjective; noun Pronunciation: kuh n-tin-juh nt Origins: --Latin: “con” (with) + “tangere” (to touch) Related Forms: contingency (noun) Sentence: --1. Trevor knew his survival was contingent upon his being able to hold his breath long enough to convince Umkulthoum he had drowned The Dearborn teachers union sent a small contingent of members to Lansing to argue on behalf of the all the union members who couldn’t make the meetings. Predicted Definition: Definition: --1. adj. dependent for existence, occurrence, character, etc., on something not yet certain; conditional (often followed by on or upon ): Our plans are contingent on the weather n. any one of the representative groups composing an assemblage: the New York contingent at a national convention.

Word: reverberate Part of speech: verb Pronunciation: ri-vur-buh-reyt Origins: --Latin: “re” (again; back) + “verberare” (to beat or strike (from “verber” (to lash))) Related Forms: reverberation (noun) Sentence: Umkulthoum didn’t know what she enjoyed more, hearing her victim scream, or hearing those screams reverberate off the walls over and over and over. Predicted Definition: Definition: --to reecho or resound: Her singing reverberated through the house.

Word: salient Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: sey-lee-uh nt Origins: --Latin: “Salire” (to jump or to spring) Related Forms: saliently (adverb) Sentence: Among the more salient parts of Umkulthoum’s speech to her victim describing exactly how Umkulthoum intended to torture her were that she intended to sever all of the girl’s appendages and that the girl would be alive and conscious the entire time. Predicted Definition: Definition: --prominent, conspicuous, sticking out, projecting, jumping, leaping: The most salient feature of the car was its $7000 price tag.

Word: impassive Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: im-pas-iv Origins: --Latin: “im” (not) + “passive” (submissive, based on “to submit”) --NOTE: THE PARTS MEAN THE OPPOSITE OF THE WORD! Related Forms: impassively (adverb); impassiveness (noun) Sentence: Cindy Lou would have been less terrified as she was being stalked if Umkulthoum’s face had been angry or joyous or scared, but instead, Umkulthoum looked impassive, and that was the scariest look of all. Predicted Definition: Definition: --without emotion; apathetic; unmoved; calm; serene; emotionless; indifferent; tranquil; composed

Word: callow Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: kal-oh Origins: --German: Kaal (bald – think of a young bird whose feathers have not grown in) Related Forms: callowness Sentence: The callow students continually made farting noises, dropped their pencils, and faked sneezing while the teacher tried to teach. Predicted Definition: Definition: --immature or inexperienced: a callow youth.

Word: berate Part of speech: verb Pronunciation: bih-reyt Origins: --Middle English: “be-” (thoroughly) and Old French: “reter” (to accuse or blame) Related Forms: Sentence: If mom finds out that you haven’t done 17 homework assignments in a row, she will berate you for hours, and who wants to listen to that? Predicted Definition: Definition: --to scold; rebuke: Her mom berated her in Walmart.

Word: hypothetical Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: hahy-puh-thet-i-kuh l Origins: --Greek: “hypo” (under) + “thesis” (a setting down; something set down) Related Forms: hypothetically (adverb); hypothesis (noun) Sentence: One reason Umkulthoum was such a successful criminal was that she was always prepared for every hypothetical situation she may encounter, just in case that hypothetical situation ever became real. Predicted Definition: Definition: assumed or thought to exist; conditional; existing only as an idea or concept; supposed

Word: succinct Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: suh k-singkt Origins: Latin: succinctus (“to gather”) Related Forms: succinctly (adverb); succinctness (noun) Sentence: Rather than dragging out the news, Umkulthoum was succinct: “I’m leaving you.” Predicted Definition: Definition: --expressed in few words; concise; terse.

Word: extricate Part of speech: verb Pronunciation: ek-stri-keyt Origins: --Latin: “ex” (“out of”) and “tricae” (“perplexities, hinderances”) Related Forms: Sentence: As Umkulthoum looked at the snarled mess of knotted up fishing lines, she sighed thinking of the hours it was going to take to extricate her line from all of the other lines. Predicted Definition: Definition: --to free or release from entanglement; disengage

Word: absolve Part of speech: verb Pronunciation: ab-zolv Origins: --Latin: “ab” (away from) + “solvere” (to loosen) Related Forms: Absolution (noun) Sentence: Umkulthoum first went to talk to the priest at confession so that God would absolve her, and then she went to a lawyer and hoped that the jury would absolve her as well. Predicted Definition: Definition: --to release from blame, sin, punishment, obligation, or responsibility; to pronounce not guilty; acquit; pardon

Word: inadvertent Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: in-uh d-vur-tnt Origins: --Latin: “in” (not) + “ad” (to/towards) + “vert” (to turn to) Related Forms: inadvertently (adverb) Sentence: Although she would have liked to have taken credit for killing him, Trevor’s death when Umkulthoum backed over him with her truck as he lay under it to cut her brake lines was truly inadvertent. Predicted Definition: Definition: --unintentional; characterized by lack of attention; inattentive; thoughtless, careless, negligent.

Word: astute Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: uh-stoot Origins: --Latin: “Astutus” (clever, sly, cunning) Related Forms: astutely (adverb); astuteness (noun) Sentence: The astute detective knew Umkulthoum was the best suspect based on smelling her perfume on the body and then again when he interviewed Umkulthoum. Predicted Definition: Definition: --having insight or acumen; perceptive; shrewd; clever; cunning; smart; quick (mentally)

Word: vicarious Part of speech: adjective Pronunciation: vahy-kair-ee-uh s Origins: --Latin: “Vicarius” (interchange; alternation) Related Forms: vicariously (adverb) Sentence: Although she didn’t kill anyone herself, Umkulthoum’s sister felt a vicarious thrill watching her sister disembowel victim after victim. Predicted Definition: Definition: --performed, exercised, received, or suffered in place of another; felt or enjoyed through imagined participation in the experience of others

Word: accentuate Part of speech: verb Pronunciation: ak-sen-choo-eyt Origins: --Latin: “Accentus” (Speaking tone) Related Forms: Sentence: Most of Mr. Palise’s sentences tend to accentuate Umkulthoum’s darker side, without mentioning her charitable qualities at all. Predicted Definition: Definition: --to emphasize or give prominence to; to stress

Word: transmute Part of speech: verb Pronunciation: tranz-myoot Origins: --Latin: “trans” (across) + “mutare” (change) Related Forms: transmutable (adjective); transmutation (noun); transmutability (noun) Sentence: Some species of frogs have been known to transmute their gender from female to male when there aren’t enough males around in the breeding population. Predicted Definition: Definition: --to change from one nature, substance, form, or condition into another; transform.

Word: transient Part of speech: adjective; noun Pronunciation: tran-zee-uh nt Origins: --Latin: “trans” (to go across) + “-ent/ant” (existing in a condition) Related Forms: transiently (adverb) Sentence: Umkulthoum preferred to kidnap transients, since they didn’t stay in town long enough to make friends who would miss them. As she tortured them, she would always reassure them, saying that the pain they were experiencing was transient and it would all be over soon. Predicted Definition: Definition: 1 – adjective: not lasting, not enduring, or not permanent; transitory; lasting only a short time; existing briefly; temporary; staying only a short time 2 – noun: a person or thing that is transient, especially a temporary guest, boarder, laborer, or the like.