Level F Vocabulary Unit #6

anomalous (adj.) abnormal, irregular, departing from the usual Syn: abnormal atypical Aberrant exceptional Ant: Ordinary customary If you find an anomalous mole on yourself, you should probably go see a doctor.

aspersion (n.) a damaging or derogatory statement; the act of slandering or defaming Syn: Innuendo (unit #1) denigration Ant Testimonials Praise Endorsement Girls are known for making aspersions about each other.

bizarre (adj.) extremely strange, unusual, atypical Syn Outlandish fantastic Lady Gaga wears a lot of bizarre outfits.

brusque (adj.) abrupt, blunt, with no formalities Syn gruff Rough Curt tactless Ant: Gracious courteous The waiter was brusque and quiet rude when I asked for a refill.

cajole (v.) to coax, persuade through flattery or artifice; to deceive with soothing thoughts or false promises Syn Wheedle (unit #3) Sweet-talk Ant: Force coerce Sometimes teenagers cajole their parents into letting them stay out later than curfew.

castigate (v.) to punish severely; to criticize severely Syn: chastise censure rebuke My mother castigated me when I came home after curfew.

contrive (v.) to plan with ingenuity, invent; to bring about as the result of a scheme or plan Syn concoct Fabricate Think up He contrived a way to come up with the money to buy a new car.

demagogue (n.) a leader who exploits popular prejudices and false claims and promises in order to gain power; Syn (as def) Rabble-rouser firebrand Hitler was a demagogue who manipulated an entire nation and played on their prejudices to achieve power.

disabuse (v.) to free from deception or error, set right in ideas dis (no/not) + abuse or thinking Syn: Undeceive enlighten We have all been disabused of the thinking Lance Armstrong is such an athletic hero.

ennui (n.) weariness and dissatisfaction from lack of occupation or interest, boredom Syn Listlessness languor Ant enthusiasm excitement When I have to listen to Talk Radio in the car with my husband, he can see the ennui look on my face the whole time.

fetter (n.) a chain or shackle placed on the feet; anything that confines or restrains (v.) to chain or shackle; to render helpless or impotent Syn Bond bind Chain Ant Free liberate The rules at work fetter my ability to dye my hair blue.

heinous (adj.) very wicked, offensive, hateful Syn: Abominable (unit #3) Evil Ant Excellent wonderful The TV series, Criminal Minds, displays people doing the most heinous crimes you could imagine.

immutable (adj.) not subject to change, constant Syn unchangable invariable The school’s rule on cheating and plagiarism is immutable, and no excuses are acceptable.

insurgent (n.) one who rebels or rises against authority (adj.) rising in revolt, refusing to accept authority; surging or rushing in or on surging in Syn Revolutionary rebellious Ant Loyalist Faithful One of my favorite books, Fahrenheit 451, is about an insurgent who fights to free himself and others from oppression.

megalomania (n.) a delusion marked by a feeling of power, wealth, talent, etc., far in excess of reality mega maniac Syn Delusions of grandeur Ant: Humility modesty The movie star suffered from megalomania and believed she was perfect.

sinecure (n.) a position requiring little or no work; an easy job Syn cushy job “plum” I am jealous of my cousin’s sinecure, because she gets paid to sit at home all day watching and reviewing movies.

surreptitious (adj.) stealthy, secret, intended to escape observation; made or accomplished by fraud Syn Furtive Covert concealed Ant Open frank The boy was surreptitious when he took a money from the store.

transgress (v.) to go beyond a limit or boundary; to sin, violate a law Syn: Trespass overstep The cop caught her transgressing the speed limit when she was driving 167mph in a 50mph zone.

transmute (v.) to change from one nature, substance, or form to another Syn: transform translate The science teacher tried to transmute lead into gold to make himself rich.

vicarious (adj.) performed, suffered, or otherwise experienced by one person in place of another; surrogate, substitute Syn surrogate imagined I get a vicarious thrill watching other people ride roller coasters, because I’m too afraid to ride one. As I watched the slideshow, I had a vicarious sensation that I had actually gone on the trip.