Unit 4 Level D

Abscond (v.) to run off and hide Synonyms: bolt, make off, skip town The thief absconded with the money from the bank hoping to skip town before the police could capture him.

Access (n) approach or admittance to places, persons, things; and increase, (v) to get at, obtain Synonyms: (n) entry, admittance, entrée Antonyms: (n) total exclusion In order to gain access to the movie theater one must present a ticket to be admitted.

Anarchy (n.) a lack of government and law, confusion Synonyms: chaos, disorder, turmoil, pandemonium Antonyms: law and order, peace and quiet In the final days of the Vietnam War, many civilians tried to evacuate the city of Saigon with United States troops causing a state of anarchy in the city as the government of South Vietnam dissolved and confusion took over.

Arduous (adj) hard to do, requiring much effort Synonyms: hard, difficult, laborious, fatiguing Antonyms: easy, simple, effortless Power lifting is an extremely arduous sport that requires much effort by competitors.

Auspicious (adj.) favorable; fortunate Synonyms: promising, encouraging, propitious Antonyms: ill-omened, sinister It was truly an auspicious occasion when American Pharaoh won the Triple Crown in 2015 his fortunate victory made him the first winner since 1978.

Daunt (v.) to overcome with fear, intimidate; to dishearten, discourage Synonyms: dismay, cow Antonyms: encourage, embolden, reassure Despite all its inherent dangers, space flight did not daunt the Mercury program astronauts they were neither fearful or intimidated by the thought of journeying into space.

Disentangle (v.) to free from tangles or complications Synonyms: unravel, unwind, unscramble, unsnarl Antonyms: tangle up, ensnarl, snag The diver worked for hours to disentangle a whale from the fishing net wrapped around its tail.

Fated (adj.) determined in advance by destiny or fortune Synonyms: destined, preordained, doomed Antonyms: fortuitous, chance, random Fortune tellers try to convince their customers that they can see the future and predict the destiny of their customers and what is fated for them.

Hoodwink (v.) to mislead by a trick, swindle Synonyms: put one over on, fool Antonyms: disabuse The wolf in the children’s story Little Red Riding Hood, tries to hoodwink Little Red Riding Hood by tricking her into believing that he is really her grandmother.

Inanimate (adj.) not having life; without energy or spirit Synonyms: lifeless, dead, inert, spiritless Antonyms: living, alive, energetic, lively, sprightly Breakfast foods are inanimate objects that lack energy or spirit.

Incinerate (v) to burn to ashes Synonyms: burn up, cremate, reduce to ashes Antonyms: extinguish The fire incinerated the building leaving only ashes.

Intrepid (adj) very brave, fearless, unshakable Synonyms: valiant, courageous, audacious, daring Antonyms: timid, cowardly, craven Wing walkers, intrepid performers, were popular attractions at state fairs during the 1930’s displaying their fearless acts of playing tennis atop a biplane flying hundreds of feet above the spectators.

Larceny (n.) theft Synonyms: stealing, robbery Stealing a car can result in a charge of grand larceny and imprisonment for the offender.

Pliant (adj) bending readily; easily influence Synonyms: supple, flexible, elastic, plastic Antonyms: rigid, stiff, inflexible, set in stone The gymnast’s pliant body was easily bent producing a human pretzel.

Pompous (adj.) overly self-important in speech and manner; excessively stately or ceremonious Synonyms: highfalutin, bombastic Antonyms: unpretentious, plain Some think that the British habit of wearing wigs and robes in court is rather pompous, excessively ceremonial and too highfalutin for American’s tastes.

Precipice (n) a very steep cliff; the brink or edge of disaster Synonyms: cliff, crag, bluff, promontory, ledge Antonyms: abyss, chasm, gorge Daring individuals often get a thrill balanced on the edge of a precipice exhibiting feats such as performing a handstand on the brink of disaster any minute if they slip and fall.

Prototype (n.) an original model on which later versions are patterned Synonyms: example, sample Antonyms: copy Designers in the automotive industry are always experimenting with prototypes hoping their design might become a pattern for a new generation of automobile.

Rectify (v) to make right, correct Synonyms: remedy, set right Antonyms: mess up, botch, bungle When you rectify a situation, hopefully you will get it right the second time.

Reprieve (n) a temporary relief or delay; (v) to grant a postponement Synonyms: (n) stay, respite; (v) postpone, delay Antonyms: (v) proceed

Revile (v.) to attack with words, call bad names Synonyms: malign, vilify Antonyms: praise, acclaim, revere, idolize During a political campaign, many politicians often revile their opponents calling them bad names and attacking them with harsh words in television and radio advertisements.