Vocabulary Unit 3

Abominate (v): to have an intense dislike or hatred for; to make unnatural due to hatred I abominate cheating and lying of all kinds. Abominable (adj): detestable, loathsome Abomination (n): something to be detested, hated, loathed, or feared

Acculturation (N): the modification of social patterns, traits, or structures of one group or society by contact with those of another All international students undergo a degree of acculturation, no matter how short their stay in the US. Acculturate (v): the act of becoming acculurated Acculturated (adj): one who has undergone acculturation

Adventitious (adj): resulting from chance rather than from an inherent cause or character; accidental, not essential; (medicine) acquired, not inherited The child's deafness appeared to be adventitious, because there was no family history of hearing- impairment. See the BYU Corpus of American English

Ascribe (v): to assign or refer to as a cause or source When we use ascribe, we ascribe the effect to the cause. His failure to pass ISkills may be ascribed to his poor study habits. I ascribe my confusion to my lack of sleep

Circuitous (adj): roundabout, not direct Students often make very circuitous explanations when asked why they have not finished their homework. We had to take a circuitous route to work because a huge accident was blocking the freeway.

Commiserate (v): to sympathize with, have pity or sorrow for, share a feeling of distress. Teachers often get together to commiserate about the challenges of teaching. Students often get together to commiserate about their teachers and their homework. Commiseration (n): the act of commiserating

Enjoin (v): to direct or order; to prescribe a course of action in an authoritative way; to prohibit I enjoined the students to stop staying up all night going to parties, but they just would not listen. Enjoin noun or pronoun TO do or not do something

Expedite (v): to make easy; cause to happen faster Because I needed to leave very quickly, I paid an extra fee to expedite the processing of my new passport. Expedient (adj, noun) Expedition is NOT an alternate form of expedite!

Expiate (v): to make amends, make up for; to avert She was so sorry for what she did that she tried to expiate her wrongdoing every chance she had. Expiate the thing that was done wrong Expiation (n)

Ferment (n): state of great excitement, agitation, or turbulence (v): to be in or work into such a state; to produce alcohol by chemical action If you grind up hops with other grains and add water, the mixture will ferment into beer. People caught up in the ferment of revolution do not always do what is wise, but what they think will expedite the change they want. Fermentation (n): the process of fermenting alcohol. Fermented (adj): something that has fermented

Inadvertent (adj): resulting from or marked by lack of attention; unintentional, accidental I know it's awful having a broken window when it's so hot and humid outside, but it really was inadvertent; the children did not mean to do it. I inadvertently left out an important grade, and the student was very distraught to think she was failing.

Nominal (adj): existing in name only, not real; too small to be considered or taken seriously For a nominal donation, you can feed a hungry child in a starving nation. When you look at the whole incident, her part in it was nominal and she should not be punished so harshly.

Noncommittal (adj): not decisive or definite; unwilling to take a clear position or to say yes or no When I asked her what time we should meet for the movie, she was very noncommittal and I wonder if she even wants to go.

Peculate (v): to steal something that has been given into one's trust; to take improperly for one's own use We say embezzle now. This word is not in common use.

Proclivity (n): natural or habitual inclination or tendency (esp. of human character or behavior) My daughter shows a natural proclivity for being out in nature; she loves animals and trees as much as she loves her family. His proclivity for stealing from his parents made everyone worry about the kind of person he would grow up to be.

Sangfroid (n): composure or coolness, especially in trying circumstances She manages her classes with what seems like limitless sangfroid. She never loses her temper with even the most trying students. When the cars crashed together, she found it impossible to keep her sangfroid and she screamed in pain and panic.

Seditious (adj) resistant to lawful authority; having the purpose of overthrowing an established government With the proliferation of the internet, it can be impossible for a dictatorial government to silence seditious citizens who are fermenting the population. Sedition (n): the act of being seditious; treason

Tenuous (adj): thin, slender; lacking clarity or sharpness; poorly supported referring to a connection or relationship that seems weak or not real She only has a tenuous ability to speak English when she has to think quickly. My grasp on mathematics is so tenuous that I failed my math class twice in undergrad.

Vitriolic (adj): bitter, sarcastic; highly caustic or biting (like an acid) Her vitriolic speech only served to stir the students up even more and they would not listen to her any more. Vitriol (n): speech that is cruel and hurtful.

Wheedle (v): to use coaxing or flattery to gain some desired end. The little boy wheedled his mother into letting him have another cookie. Wheedling (n): the act of wheedling Wheedling (adj): something that is coaxing or flattering