1. Unit 12

2. ABSOLVE (v.) to clear from blame, responsibility, or guilt Syn: acquit, exonerate, vindicate, excuse, pardon Ant: condemn, convict, incriminate, inculpate

3. The detective SOLVED the case and ABSOLVED the defendant from any guilt!

4. CARICATURE (n.) a representation (especially a drawing) in which the subject’s characteristic features are deliberately exaggerated (v.) to present someone or something in a deliberately distorted way Syn: cartoon, burlesque, Parody, lampoon

5. He was so frequently the subject of CARICATURE that he seemed almost a fictional CHARACTER.

6. CLANGOR (n.) a loud ringing sound (v.) to make a loud ringing sound Syn: din, clamor, uproar Ant: silence, stillness, peace and quiet

7. The CLANGOR of the bells summoned everyone to the town square. CLANG! CLANG!

8. CONTIGUOUS (adj.) side by side, touching; near; adjacent in time Syn: adjoining, abutting, next door to Ant: detached, apart, distant, remote

9. Zoning laws attempt to add some CONTINUTIY to businesses and other buildings that are CONTIGUOUS to each other.

10. CUPIDITY (n.) an eager desire for something; greed Syn: avarice, rapacity, craving, lust Ant: generosity, contentment, satiation, gratification

11. CUPID’s only STUPIDITY may be found in his CUPIDITY for love.

12. DELETERIOUS (adj.) harmful, injurious Syn: detrimental, destructive, pernicious, damaging Ant: helpful, beneficial, harmless, innocuous

13. When I accidentally DELETED my entire paper, it was DELETERIOUS to my grade.

14. ENHANCE (v.) to raise to a higher degree; to increase the value or desirability of Syn: improve, magnify, heighten, elevate Ant: diminish, reduce, lessen, degrade I think I’ll do my homework to ENHANCE my grade in English

15. The quality of an image is often ENHANCED by police in the movies.

16. ENTHRALL (v.) to captivate, charm, hold spellbound; to enslave; to imprison Syn: fascinate, enchant, attract, bewitch Ant: bore to tears, repel, put someone off

17. The crowd was so deeply ENTERTAINED you could say they were ENTHRALLED

18. EXTENUATE (v.) to lessen the seriousness or magnitude of an offense by making partial excuses Syn: moderate, mitigate, diminish, downplay Ant: intensify, aggravate, worsen, exacerbate Would it be okay to steal bread in an EXTENUATING circumstance?

19. Those TEN YOU ATE can only be explained by the EXTENUATING circumstances of your extreme hunger.

20. IMPLICIT (adj.) implied or understood though unexpressed; without doubts or reservations, unquestioning; potentially contained in Syn: inferred, tacit, unspoken, unconditional Ant: explicit, expressed, stated, revealed

21. Something IMPLIED -- Even if it is not said – is IMPLICIT.

22. INCISIVE (adj.) sharp, keen, penetrating (with a suggestion of decisiveness and effectiveness) Syn: acute, cutting, perceptive, trenchant

23. Her remarks had great INSIGHT. Her words were INCISIVE

24. OSTENTATIOUS (adj.) marked by conspicuous or pretentious display, showy Syn: flashy, overdone, affected, flamboyant Ant: modest, plain, simple, demure, retiring

25. Old OSSENBERGER was so full of himself, but was his building as OSTENATIOUS as this one?

26. PARAGON (n.) a model of excellence or perfection Syn: exemplar, ideal, paradigm, model, good example

27. M.C. Escher is a PARAGON of PARADOX

28. PARAPHRASE (v.) to restate in other words (n.) a statement that presents a given idea in new language Syn: reword, rephrase, a rendition, version Ant: repeat verbatim, duplicate, quote

29. I’ll use a PAIR OF PHRASES to PARAPHRASE what he said.

30. POLITIC (adj.) prudent, shrewdly conceived and developed; artful, expedient Syn: tactful, diplomatic, judicious, circumspect Ant: unwise, injudicious, imprudent, rash

31. A POLITICIAN must be POLITIC with his or her words!

32. PROSAIC (adj.) dull, lacking in distinction and originality; matter-of-fact, straightforward; characteristic of prose, not poetic Syn: commonplace, humdrum, literal, pedestrian Ant: remarkable, distinctive, poetic, inspired POETRY vs. PROSE

33. Writing that is filled with PROSE instead of poetry can be called PROSAIC

34. REDUNDANT (adj.) extra, excess, more than is needed; wordy, repetitive; profuse, lush Syn: unnecessary, superfluous, verbose, prolix Ant: succinct, terse, laconic, scarce, inadequate I, myself, prefer steak over hot dogs.

35. It was REDONE so many times it was REDUNDANT

36. SANCTIMONIOUS (adj.) making a show of virtue or righteousness; hypocritically moralistic or pious, self-righteous, canting, holier-than-thou Ant: heartfelt, sincere, humble

37. He was so SANCTIMONIUS in his speech it was as if he wanted us to think he was a SAINT

38. SCINTILLATING (adj./part.) sparkling, twinkling, exceptionally brilliant (applied to mental or personal qualities) Syn: stimulating, lively, glittering, flashing Ant: dull, boring, insipid, flat, tame vapid

39. Can a SCENT be so stimulating that it can be called SCINTILLATING?

40. WINSOME (adj.) charming, attractive, pleasing (often suggesting childlike charm and innocence) Syn: winning, engaging, delightful, prepossessing Ant: unattractive, unappealing, repulsive

41. He was charming and WINSOME. Even when he lost, he’d simply say, “You WIN SOME, You lose some.”