1.

descent

If you’re on your way down, you’re making a descent, whether that’s as a passenger in an airplane that's
landing, or if you’re tumbling down a staircase you just slipped on.

Descent comes from the verb descend — to go down. In the original Latin meaning, descent was used
spatially, in reference to physical action, like going downstairs into a creepy basement. Metaphorically,
though, we also use it to describe origins, especially in ancestry, when we consider ourselves
descendants of our forebears.

decent/descent/dissent

Decent is all buttoned up. Descent has all the fun because it gets to climb down a mountain. Dissent is
what you do when the glee club wants to get matching red outfits but you like purple.

Decent, pronounced "DEE-sent," means "socially acceptable." It's also an old fashioned way to say
"polite." These days if you ask someone if she's decent, you probably don't care if she went to finishing
school, you're just wondering if she's dressed so you can come in. Decent can also mean good but not
excellent. Have it both ways:

He's a decent old chap, but isn't at home much. (Bertram Mitford)

"We're going to work hard out there, and earn a decent living." (New York Times)

Descent, pronounced "dih-SENT," means the act of moving downward, either physically or socially, like
an evil cartoon character's descent into the underworld, or a villain's descent into madness, or even
your descent into the subway station or down a mountain:

There are a few nasty, short climbs, but several long descents too. (Guardian)

Descent can also refer to a person's cultural background. Makes sense if you think about going down the
family tree:

The women, U.S. citizens of Somali descent, are charged with conspiracy to provide material support to
a foreign terrorist organization. (Washington Post)

Finally, dissent, also pronounced "dih-SENT" is to pipe up against popular opinion.

It can refer to an opinion that differs from an official or popularly held one.To dissent is to voice such an
opinion. There are shades of meaning, but it always means to go against the grain:

Mr. Putin, who has rarely faced public dissent in his 11 years in power, appeared momentarily taken
aback, but quickly recovered and finished his statement. (New York Times)

Mrs. Twining curled her mouth in bitter dissent. (Edgar Fawcett)

To recap: decent is fine and you're dressed, descent is to go down down down, and dissent is when
you're opinion doesn't mesh with others.

2. vicissitude

When you talk of the vicissitudes of life, you're referring to the difficult times that we all go through:
sickness, job loss, and other unwelcome episodes. No one can escape the vicissitudes of life.

While vicissitude comes from the Latin vicis, which means "change" and technically can mean a change
of any kind, you'll find that vicissitude is almost always used to talk about an unfortunate event or
circumstance. Losing a pet, crashing the car, being called in for jury duty: these are examples of
vicissitudes — chapters in one's life that one would rather avoid but must get through. Some lives have
more vicissitudes than others, to be sure, but no life is without events that test and challenge us

His own investigations had begun on a day in the preceding spring when, having been engaged in tracing
the vicissitudes of the d'Urberville family, he had observed Durbeyfield's name on his waggon, and had
thereupon been led to make inquiries about his father and grandfather till he had no doubt on the
subject.

3. prostrate

The verb prostrate means "to make helpless or defenseless." Illness, injury, food poisoning, grief — any
of these things can prostrate people, or lying down in a helpless position.

The word prostrate traces back to the Latin word prostratus, meaning “thrown down.” If you are
prostrate, you feel thrown down and laid flat. It can describe lying on the ground in a helpless position,
or it can be used to describe someone who has been overcome or made unable to function, such as
someone who is prostrated by grief or illness.

prostate/prostrate

Oh, for the want of a letter! Prostate is a gland found in male mammals, but prostrate, with an r, means
to lie face down. Get them mixed up and you'll thoroughly confuse your doctor.

A prostate (no r)is a gland in front of the bladder of male mammals. You often hear about men having
enlarged prostates or prostate cancer:

A longer index finger gives men a lower risk of prostate cancer. (Reuters)

Prostatecancer begins in the walnut-sized prostate gland, an integral part of the male reproductive
system. (Science Magazine)

Until very recently, the American Cancer Society also urged men to get tested in order to avoid being
killed by prostate cancer. (Time)
Add that second "r" in there, and prostrate means to lie or bow down. You might prostrate yourself
before royalty, or lie prostrate on the floor if you have the flu or if your best friend just died. Prostrate is
to be flattened:

I found myself prostrate, then crawling until my glasses broke. (New York Times)

When Lord Macartney came to China he refused to prostrate himself before the Emperor in the ritual
kowtow out of respect to his own monarch. (The Telegraph)

See the poor wretch, prostrate at the royal feet, imploring a little indulgence, and promising what is
utterly beyond his power. (Joseph Cross)

Men might have prostate cancer, which has nothing to do with what they ate, but remember
the r in prostrate stands for relax or lie down.

4. titter

A titter is an awkward laugh at something that you shouldn’t be laughing at, like during dinner when
Uncle Marvin makes a joke about your mother’s new hairstyle. If you try to hide your laugh, it’s probably
a titter.

A laugh that you can’t keep in but also can’t let out, that’s a titter. It usually happens in situations where
you shouldn’t be laughing, like listening to your English teacher talk about a date he went on the night
before, or when someone tells you a joke in a library. A titter is kinder than a snicker, less noticeable
than a giggle, quieter than a chuckle, and way less fun than a chortle. Life’s a joke, laugh it up!

5. equanimity

If you take the news of your parakeet's death with equanimity, it means you take it calmly without
breaking down. Equanimity refers to emotional calmness and balance in times of stress.

If equanimity reminds you of equal, that's because the words have a lot in common. The
noun equanimity was borrowed from Latin aequanimitās, from aequanimus "even-tempered, fair,"
formed from aequus "even, level, equal" plus animus "mind." The archaic phrase to bear with equal
mind means "to bear with a calm mind," and is a translation from the Latin. The phrase a level mind also
refers to calmness. A near synonym is composure.

6. fascinated

When you're fascinated, you're hypnotized, mesmerized, spellbound, and transfixed — totally absorbed
by something.

There are two ways to be fascinated: You can be fascinated by something happening right now, like an
interesting new video game you're playing. Other fascinations are more long term, like a scientist who
devotes his life to studying birds because he's fascinated by them. Things that make you fascinated have
to be so interesting and so intriguing that it feels like they have a magic grip on your attention span.
A small minority, mainly strangers, would look long at her in casually passing by, and grow
momentarily fascinated by her freshness, and wonder if they would ever see her again: but to almost
everybody she was a fine and picturesque country girl, and no more.

7. negotiate

To negotiate is to try to work out an agreement between parties that each want something out of the
deal. You might negotiate with your mom — offering to do more chores for a raise in your allowance.
Good luck.

Negotiation is all about give and take. Governments are always negotiating with unions, trying to define
the terms of new contracts. The government might offer the teachers union a raise, if they agree to work
200 days a year instead of 180. The verb negotiate can also mean to successfully pass through or travel
along. You may have to negotiate a hazardous road, or a tricky path through sticker bushes.

8. spectacle

A spectacle is something you can't believe you are seeing. Get on top of your desk at work in your
underpants while playing the kazoo and you're making a spectacle of yourself.

The word spectacle comes from the Latin spectaculum meaning "public show," an apt translation
because a spectacle, like a public show, is something worth watching. A ballet is a spectacle, or an
elaborate production worth watching. Often the word is used to describe something that has a
particularly exciting visual element to it — like an acrobatic display or a magic trick. It's something you
have to see to really appreciate.

9. lineament

A lineament is a fancy, literary word that means "a part of a person's face," like his eyes, ears, or nose.

In his poem "Manfred", Lord Byron wrote, "She was like me in lineaments — her eyes / Her hair, her
features, all..." He was basically saying that a particular woman's face looked a lot like his own face,
when he examined each part of it — each lineament — separately. The word comes from the Latin
word linea, meaning "line." Lineaments can also refer to someone's distinctive features, not just their
looks.

10. modest

A person is modest if he or she is very successful but does not call attention to this.

Modest generally means "big enough but not huge" — like a modest house or a modest income. An
ambitious person will not be satisfied with modest progress. Around the turn of the 17th
century, modest referred to proper or decent dress and behavior especially in women. Although this is
considered dated today, modest is still used for people who are shy about showing their body. If you are
modest, you might wear your t-shirt when you swim.
11. zest

Zest is a kind of zeal or enthusiasm. If you've got a zest for something, you put your whole heart and soul
into it. Dancers who have great zest leap, kick, and soar their way around the stage with a kind of joyful
energy.

Oddly enough, zest can also be the outer peel of a lemon or orange, which chefs scrape into their dishes
when they want to add some tartness and tanginess to a recipe. People who live with that same kind of
spice are said to have a "zest for life." In other words, they live their lives with a lot of flavor and gusto. A
student who has a zest for learning dives into her books with an enjoyment and relish most people
reserve for their wedding day.

She remained with her comrades till dusk, and participated with a certainzest in the dancing; though,
being heart-whole as yet, she enjoyed treading a measure purely for its own sake; little divining when
she saw "the soft torments, the bitter sweets, the pleasing pains, and the agreeable distresses" of those
girls who had been wooed and won, what she herself was capable of in that kind.

12. rebuke

If you receive a rebuke, it means that you have been reprimanded, or scolded. You're sure to get
a rebuke if you forget to do your math homework four days in a row.

The word rebuke can be a verb, meaning to sternly reprimand or scold, but it can also be a noun,
because a rebuke is the result of being scolded. The root comes from the Old French rebuchier and
means "to hack down," or "beat back." A rebuke, then, is meant to be critical and to chide — in today's
terms, a rebuke is verbal smack-down!

The struggles and wrangles of the lads for her hand in a jig were an amusement to her—no more; and
when they became fierce she rebuked them.

13. reproachful

Someone who's reproachful is deeply disapproving. A reproachful look on your mom's face is a sign that
you've disappointed her and might be in trouble.

When you criticize your friend's decision to borrow her parents' car without asking, you probably sound
reproachful. You might not even need to speak — a reproachful glance is sometimes enough to
communicate your disapproval. When you reproach someone, you express disappointment in them, and
to be reproachful is to be "full of reproach." The root word is the Old French reproche, "blame, shame,
or disgrace."

Even to her mother's gaze the girl's young features looked sadly out of place amid the alcoholic vapours
which floated here as no unsuitable medium for wrinkled middle-age; and hardly was a reproachful flash
from Tess's dark eyes needed to make her father and mother rise from their seats, hastily finish their ale,
and descend the stairs behind her, Mrs. Rolliver's caution following their footsteps.
14. excursion

An excursion is taken more for pleasure than for practical reasons. Your business trip, when you spent
most of the week waiting in airports and adjusting to different time zones, does not count as
an excursion.

The Latin root for excursion is excurrere, meaning "to run out." So if you run out for a bit to get some
fresh air, you've gone on an excursion. If you leave specifically to buy milk from the corner store and end
up swimming in a stream, you've probably taken an excursion into the woods.

15. prominent

If you're looking for an adjective that means "sticking out above the rest; famous," consider prominent.
A prominent person might be the big cheese, the head honcho, the top dog — not just any Joe Schmo.

A prominence is anything that juts out, like a bone or a mountain ridge. Prominent, then, means "sticking
out" either in a literal sense ("a prominent nose") or a figurative one ("a prominent figure in the
industry"). The metaphorical sense of "famous" is the most common one today, though references to
the "prominent posterior" of Jennifer Lopez might fit both definitions.

16. deferential

When a young person shows respect and obedience to an older person, they’re being deferential to the
elder’s wisdom and experience.

To be obedient, courteous, or dutiful are all ways of being deferential. Bowing low to the Queen is
a deferential act when visiting Buckingham Palace. On sports teams, rookies are usually deferential to
the veterans and star players, while all players should be deferential to the coach. All employees are
expected to be at least a little deferential to their bosses. Being deferential shows respect, but also
means "I know my place, and it's lower than yours."

The oppressive sense of the harm she had done led Tess to be moredeferential than she might otherwise
have been to the maternal wish; but she could not understand why her mother should find such
satisfaction in contemplating an enterprise of, to her, such doubtful profit.

17. beneficent

Beneficent is the type of act that helps others. If you're a beneficent person, you probably spend a lot of
your time volunteering at soup kitchens or homeless shelters, helping people who are less fortunate than
you are.

Beneficent shares the same root and sentiment with its fellow adjective, benevolent, which also means
something that is good. The two words are so closely related that they also share the same Latin origin.
Another related word, benefactor, is someone who gives support to an organization or institution or
someone who takes care of another person. Kind, generous, and giving are all synonyms of beneficent.
18. burden

Getting hired as the assistant to a pastry chef seemed like a dream come true. But one week and 100
cupcakes later, it’s become a hard-to-bear burden accompanied by a permanent stomachache.

Burden is one of those words that doubles as a noun and a verb. Defined as something you carry or
withstand with much difficulty when used as a noun, and as the act of weighing down, overloading, or
oppressing when used as a verb, it’s a word with a negative charge. Now that you know what it means,
you’re equipped to make sure you don’t take on unnecessary burdens (getting pressured into always
carrying your neighbor’s groceries upstairs), or become one yourself!

19. trepidation

When plain old "fear" isn't enough to get across a deep feeling of dread about something on the
horizon, use the more formal word trepidation.

"It was with a certain trepidation that I attended an advance screening of Rob Zombie's Halloween in
Hollywood last night," wrote a film reviewer. Some dictionaries note that trepidation carries
connotations of apprehension about an upcoming threat. In most cases, though, you can get by with the
simpler word fear — why use three syllables when you could make do with one? The word comes from
the Latin verb trepidare, "to tremble."

20. covet

If you covet something, you eagerly desire something that someone else has. If it's 95 degrees out and
humid, you may find yourself coveting your neighbor's air conditioner.

If the word covet sounds familiar, you're thinking of the Tenth Commandment: "Thou shalt not covet thy
neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor
his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor's." Basically this means you should be happy with
your electronic gadgets and not be jealous when a friend gets something better.

21. liberal

A liberal is someone on the left wing of politics — the opposite of a conservative. Also, a liberal attitude
toward anything means more tolerance for change.

There are many meanings for liberal, but they mostly have to do with freedom and openness to change.
A teacher with a liberal policy toward attendance is going to be forgiving of missed days. A bank with a
liberal attitude toward your money would probably be bad: some things are awful if they're loose and
free. But no one will give you a hard time if you use a liberal amount of catsup on your fries.

22. esteem
Esteem is all about respect and admiration. If you have high self-esteem, it means you like yourself.
When you say, "My esteemed colleagues," you are saying you have nothing but the highest respect for
them.

Esteem derives from the same Latin word that gives us estimate, and back in the
day, esteem, like estimate meant "to assess, or judge the value of something." That sense lingers today.
When you say you hold someone in high esteem, it means you give them a high value. Unless you're a
politician, in which case, when you say, "I hold my opponent in high esteem," you are most likely to
follow that statement with a big "But...."

23. onerous

If one teacher gives you three hours of homework a night, that's rough. But if all of your teachers do it,
that makes the task of completing your homework an onerous one, to say the least. If something
is onerous, it is very difficult to deal with or do.

A near synonym is burdensome. In legal usage, onerous describes a contract or lease that has more
obligations than advantages. Onerous derives from Middle English, from Old French onereus, from
Latin onerōsus, from onus "burden." In English, an onus is a task or duty that is onerous, or very difficult.

24. coiffure

Coiffure is a fancy French word for hairdo. If you spend a lot of time working on your coiffure, you spend
a lot of time in front of the mirror fixing your hair.

The word coiffure originally meant hairstylist, now it means the style. The word implies an elaborate
style, not just a regular haircut. A beehive hairdo, for instance, would be rightly called a coiffure. A
military-style buzz cut is just a trim. The word can be shortened to coif, but be careful as this word has
other meanings as well.

25. Then she put upon her the white frock that Tess had worn at the club-walking, the airy fulness of
which, supplementing her enlarged coiffure, imparted to her developing figure an amplitude which
belied her age, and might cause her to be estimated as a woman when she was not much more than a
child.

26. inexorable

When a person is inexorable, they're stubborn. When a thing or process is inexorable, it can't be stopped.

This is a word for people and things that will not change direction. An inexorable person is hard-headed
and cannot be convinced to change their mind, no matter what. You can also say that a process, like the
progress of a deadly illness, is inexorable because it can't be stopped. A speeding train with no brakes is
inexorable; it's not stopping till it crashes. When you see the word inexorable, think "No one's stopping
that."

27. rehabilitation
Rehabilitation is the act of restoring something to its original state, like the rehabilitation of the forest
that had once been cleared for use as an amusement park.

The noun rehabilitation comes from the Latin prefix re-, meaning “again” and habitare, meaning “make
fit.” When something falls in to disrepair and needs to be restored to a better condition, it needs
rehabilitation. People seek rehabilitation after an accident or surgery to restore their strength, or to
learn to live without drugs or other addictive substances or behaviors.

28. accomplishment

An accomplishment is something notable that you've done. Graduating from college with honors is
an accomplishment.

First used in the 15th century, the noun accomplishment derives from the Old French word acomplir,
meaning "to fulfill, fill up, complete." An accomplishment is something you've completed successfully.
The word often refers to a goal that you've achieved. If you're a runner, you'd consider completing a
marathon to be a great accomplishment. Gaining a new skill can also be an accomplishment. Speaking
French fluently might be an accomplishment that makes you really proud.

29. vexation

Vexation is both something that causes annoyance and the state of mind that results from being
annoyed. The test-taker next to you tapping her pencil is a vexation. You breaking her pencil in half
makes her feel vexation.

Vexation can also refer to something that causes anxiety and worry more than annoyance. When the
parents of the kid you're babysitting are two hours late to return and aren’t answering their phones,
that could be a vexation. You are less annoyed than worried. (Though, to be honest, you're still a little
annoyed).

But he persisted in his demand, and at last, to get rid of him, she did put up her lips as directed for
producing a clear note; laughing distressfully, however, and then blushing with vexation that she had
laughed.

30. temptation

Temptation is something you want to have or to do, even though you know you shouldn't. That bag of
peanut butter cups on top of your fridge might be an example of a temptation.

The thing that you want despite knowing it's not good for you — like the cool sneakers you really can't
afford — is a temptation. The feeling is also a temptation — so wanting those shoes is temptation. The
Latin word temptare, or to taste, is where temptation comes from, which makes a lot of sense when you
think of that bag of peanut butter cups calling to you from the kitchen.

31. pliable
Pliable means bendable but not breakable. Wax is pliable, good leather is pliable. If you describe a
person as pliable, it usually means that he's easily influenced, like a nightclub owner who takes orders
from a crime boss.

When Madame barks "Plier!" (rhymes with "okay") in ballet class, all the students obediently bend their
knees into a graceful semi-crouch. Plier is French for bend and it's the root of the word pliable. The
word pliable itself is quite pliable, an apt description for everything from building materials to a person's
character.

32. respectable

Something or someone respectable is honest, good, and proper. Respectable behavior includes things
like contributing to charity, volunteering at an animal shelter, and helping your friends study vocabulary.

Anything or anyone respectable deserves respect for being honorable or moral. If you return a wallet
that you find on the street, that’s respectable behavior. People would probably view you as a
respectable person. However, if you removed all the money from the wallet before returning it, that’s
not respectable. Respectable can also be used to describe to an adequate or large amount of something.
If you return the wallet untouched, you might get a respectable sum as a reward.

33. adventitious

Adventitious is a word you use to talk about things that "just kind of happen," not because you are
trying to do them, but because they just come along.

Christopher Columbus's stumbling upon the Caribbean while searching for a new route to India
was adventitious. When you make an adventitious rhyme while speaking, you might hear, "You're a
poet, you didn't know it, your long feet show it."

34. stagger

If you see someone stagger out of a bar, or walk unsteadily, like he's about to fall, chances are he's had a
few too many drinks.

The word stagger isn't just used to describe the physical action of stumbling. When you're really
shocked about a piece of news, it can stagger or shock you. When you want to spread something out
overtime, like paying a large bill, you can stagger the payments over time. But, remember that if you fall
behind, the debt you fall into might stagger you.

Tess soon perceived as she walked in the flock, sometimes with this one, sometimes with that, that the
fresh night air was producing staggerings and serpentine courses among the men who had partaken too
freely; some of the more careless women also were wandering in their gait

35. vituperation
Vituperation is a noun that refers to critical, abusive language. It's always a messy scene when a political
debate slips into vituperation.

Vituperation is from the Latin root words vitium, meaning "a fault or defect," and parare, meaning
provide, which combined to make vituperare meaning "disparage." Vituperation can also be used to
refer to feelings of bitter resentment and deep-seated antipathy toward another — like your
vituperation toward the meter maid who just placed that ticket on your windshield.

36. animus

Saying you have animus toward a person is a fancy way of saying that you hate their guts. You could also
say that an animus exists between two people. That's when they hate each others' guts.

If you're familiar with the word animosity, meaning bad feelings, you're only a hop, skip, or jump away
from understanding animus. But then it gets tricky. The word can also mean a motivating force––you
could refer to the fear of infection as the animus behind a movement to sterilize public buildings.

37. proffer

If you present something for acceptance or rejection, you proffer it. Say your mom is under so much
stress she forgets her own birthday. You may want to proffer her some advice, like, "Quit that job."

What's the difference between proffer and offer? If you say you "proffered" something to a friend, it
suggests a spirit of generosity and it signals that your friend was welcome to accept or reject it as he saw
fit. In other words, proffer is usually a little more polite than offer. To remember this, think of the
following equation: p[oliteness] + offer = proffer.

38. precarious

Grab for the adjective precarious when something is unstable, dangerous or difficult and likely to get
worse. Are you totally broke and the people you owe money to keep calling? You're in
a precarious financial situation!

The Latin root of precarious means "obtained by asking or praying." This fits well as precarious always
signals that help is needed desperately. If your life is precarious or you are in a precarious situation,
things could become difficult, maybe even dangerous, for you. If your footing or hold on something is
precarious, it is unstable or not firmly placed, so that you are likely to slip or lose your grip.

She had perceived that the horse was not the spirited one he sometimes rose, and felt no alarm on that
score, though her seat was precarious enough despite her tight hold of him.

39. unconscionable

Something that is almost unimaginably unacceptable is unconscionable. Think of it as being something

that no reasonable person would even think of doing or saying — something unbelievable, outrageous,
and often horrible.
The word unconscionable is related to the word conscience. Add the un-, and you can see that it refers to
something done without applying good moral judgment. The word first appeared in the mid-16th
century — presumably everyone up until that time had high scruples and never did or said anything
beyond the boundaries of conscience. Sadly, the antonym, conscionable, is rarely used, and, in fact, has
been obsolete since the 18th century, though unconscionable remains in frequent use.

40. coarse

Coarse can mean rough to the touch or vulgar. It's good to have coarse sand paper, but not good to
have coarse manners.

Do you lick your dinner plate, wipe your nose on your sleeve, and generally behave like an oaf? No, of
course not. You're the kind of person who reads online dictionaries. But if you did do any of things,
you'd be coarse — that is, unrefined, boorish, and downright vulgar. Coarse can apply to a wide variety
of things other than behavior. If something is of poor quality, cheap and inferior, it's considered coarse.

Why it was that upon this beautiful feminine tissue, sensitive as gossamer, and practically blank as snow
as yet, there should have been traced such acoarse pattern as it was doomed to receive; why so often
the coarse appropriates the finer thus, the wrong man the woman, the wrong woman the man, many
thousand years of analytical philosophy have failed to explain to our sense of order.

41. fatalistic

Use the adjective fatalistic to describe someone who believes outcomes are determined in advance and
can't be changed. If you think there’s no way you can pass your math exam and studying won’t change
anything, then you’re fatalistic.

When you pronounce fatalistic, you can hear the word fate. That’s a clue that fatalistic is in some way
related to fate — as in destiny. A fatalistic person believes in destiny: whatever is meant to happen will
happen. Fatalistic often relates to bad things. If someone has a fatalistic attitude toward a situation,
chances are that means the person is expecting things to turn out badly and sees no point in trying to
change that outcome.

42. communion

A communion is an intimate connection. Many people enjoy hiking in the woods in order to have a sort
of communion with nature.

When you connect in a meaningful way with something, or intimately share your feelings with someone,
you experience a communion. The word implies a deep connection, particularly a spiritual one.
A Communion, with a capital C and also called Holy Communion, is a Christian religious service involving
consecrated bread and wine. The Latin root of communion is communionem, meaning "fellowship,
mutual participation, or sharing."

43. parish
A parish is a local church community that has one main church and one pastor. Parish members do more
than just attend church. They organize community activities, social events, and — very important —
coffee and donuts on Sunday mornings.

A parish is technically a piece of land. It’s a section of a diocese that has the right number of churchgoers
to have its own church. But when you refer to a parish, you’re usually talking about more than the space
itself. You're describing the people who attend the church, as well as the church property. So if someone
says, "Our parish is thriving," it means there's a full congregation and enough funds to maintain the
church in good condition.

44. solemnity

Put on a straight face when you think of the word solemnity; it is used for occasions that are all about
seriousness and dignity.

The word solemnity has been around since the fourteenth century helping people describe the mood of
occasions ranging from funerals of beloved public figures to ceremonies welcoming United Nations
dignitaries. This is the noun form of the adjective solemn, and you’ll often see it used with “of,” as in
“the solemnity of the occasion called for hushed voices.”

45. native

The word native has to do with where you're from. You're native to the country where you were born,
and places have native plants and animals too.

Things that are native are indigenous — they were born there. This is where the term Native Americans
comes from — they were on this land before Europeans came over. Native plants were originally in a
place — they weren't transplanted. The same is true of native animals. Sometimes people born in a
place are called natives, as in "You are a native of Cleveland." When you see the word native, think
"born there."

46. triumphant

If you're triumphant, you're proud of a huge success, like your triumphant victory at your ping-pong
tournament.

Winning an honor or a competition means that you're triumphant. The joy you feel about your win is
called described as triumphant. You might flash a triumphant smile at the audience during the curtain
call after your excellent performance in the school play. Triumphant comes from the Latin
word triumphus, which means triumph, but also describes a procession for a victorious general or
admiral.

47. modesty
Modesty is that shy feeling you get when someone brags about how great you are, or when you need to
take off your shirt to go swimming and showing skin makes you squirm. If you blush, you’ve got
some modesty.

Modesty comes from the Latin modestus, which literally translates as “keeping due measure.” Knowing
the correct measure of yourself is modesty, and when someone praises you too much, your modesty
might kick in and make you want to tell them to be quiet. Modesty also means you keep things decent
and not too outrageous, like wearing clothes that hide your skin, or painting your walls beige instead of
covering them with glow-in-the-dark diamond wallpaper.

48. mortal

You are a mortal because you are mortal. This means that you are an individual destined to die because
you are susceptible to death.

The word mortal has one of the most ancient genealogies of any word in English or any other language.
It is related to English words like "murder" and "mortuary," and to the French, Italian, Spanish, and
Russian words for "death." Something that can kill you can also be described as mortal. If you're in
mortal danger, you're in a deadly situation. Action heroes often think they are dealing their enemy a
mortal blow, but sometimes the enemy manages to come back to life. People are called mortals because
at some point, they die.

49. secular

Secular things are not religious. Anything not affiliated with a church or faith can be called secular.

Non-religious people can be called atheists or agnostics, but to describe things, activities, or attitudes
that have nothing to do with religion, you can use the word secular. Public schools are secular, but
Catholic schools are not. Grocery stores are secular; a synagogue is not. If there's no religion involved,
then you're in "the secular world" — as people sometimes call everything that exists outside of religion.

50. jagged

Something is jagged when it has an uneven edge or quality to it. Teeth can be jagged, saw blades can
be jagged, and the edges of leaves can be jagged.

Jagged comes from 16th century English/Scottish and originally referred to a cloth, cut in a way so that
the edge is not straight, but that is “toothed.” Imagine a tipsy seamstress trying to cut cloth in a straight
line, but her sheers stray this way then that. She’s leaving a jagged edge on the cloth. Or perhaps you
have a crush on the seamstress, but she is seen kissing another. Here, she’s leaving a jagged wound on
your heart.

51. swell

To swell is to expand or grow larger. If your brother's face started to swell after he ate lobster for the
first time, you'd probably guess that he's allergic to shellfish.
You can use the word swell to describe what happens to an injured body part, like a black eye that swells
up, or in a figurative way, to describe a feeling of fullness, like when your heart swells with pride at your
sister's big music performance. In the 1930s, swell became a popular slang term
meaning great or excellent. But it also can describe a wealthy, elegant person, like a group of swells at a
fancy restaurant.

52. limp

If you walk unevenly, you have a limp. Maybe you pulled your hamstring at the annual Thanksgiving Day
Football Showdown, or maybe one leg is three inches shorter than the other. Whatever the reason, if
your gait is off kilter, you limp.

You can have a limp (the noun), or you can limp (the verb), and both mean that for some reason your
legs don’t work quite in synch. Limp can also be an adjective that means "not strong or firm," like your
friends' limp response to your invitation to come help paint your house or when your hair looks limp,
meaning it's just hanging, with no volume or style.

53. intone

To intone is to to chant in a flat voice. When you recite a poem you had to memorize in English class,
you're likely to intone the lines without much expression.

You might intone bad news over the phone, bluntly and unemotionally, and librarians often intone a low
command to keep the noise down in the library. People reciting prayers usually intone them as well. In
the fourteenth century, the word was entunen, "sing, chant or recite," from a Latin root, intonare, "sing
according to tone."

54. compliment

A compliment is an expression of respect or admiration, like, "You're such a good writer," or "You know
so many words!" Keep them coming.

Compliments are always welcome, because they usually make people feel good. It’s saying something
nice about someone or something. If you get mysterious flowers, look at the card – perhaps it will say
“compliments of your upstairs neighbors,” as an apology for playing their music too loud all night. Or if
you say, “my compliments to the chef!” you really liked your meal.

55. colonial

The colonial period of United States history occurred before 1776, when America was still 13 colonies
under British rule.

You can use the word colonial to describe an inhabitant of a colony ruled by another country, but you
wouldn’t call a painter living in an artists' colony a colonial. On the other hand, ants, which live in ant
colonies, are colonial insects. British colonial is a style of furniture the British favored for their houses
and tents in India or on safari in Africa — when India and parts of Africa were British colonies.
56. figurine

A figurine is a small carved or molded statue, especially one in the shape of a person. If you have an
extensive collection of figurines, you need to keep them high up and safe so your kids don't break them.

The word figurine is from the Italian word figurina, which itself is based on the Latin word figura, which
means shape, body, or figure. You can buy all sorts of figurines. If you like movies, you can collect
figurines that depict famous movie characters. You can also get figurines of comic book heroes. It's even
common to have the figurine of a saint.

57. defiance

Stand up when the powers that be order you to sit down, and you've given a fine example of defiance. It
happens when someone or a group of someones openly flouts or challenges authority.

We owe this lovely descriptive term to the French — specifically to the Old French word defier, which
means to defy. (Don't mix it up with deify; that means to make someone or something into a god.) If
you've ever studied Latin, you'll spot the fi from fidare "to trust" that inspired the Marines' "semper fi"
motto and the popular moniker for pooches––"Fido." Combining fi with de- negates it. So an act of
defiance is essentially an act of not trusting.

58. indulgent

Someone who is self-indulgent gives themselves a lot of treats. Parents who are indulgent cave to every
desire their child expresses. Indulgent means lenient, or overly generous.

Indulgent is a word that, here in Puritanical North America, is hard to know how to take. Is it okay to
“indulge yourself” as so many spa advertisements suggest? Or is indulgent always associated with
excess? You can indulge fantasies of figuring out the answer, or you can give in to an indulgent shrug
and move on to another word.

59. mysterious

Something that is mysterious has a secret-like quality that makes it hard to understand or define, like
your mysterious answers that made your friends curious about what you were really up to.

A dark shadow skims across the surface of lake...a strange disease makes a city's inhabitants violently
ill...a large, hairy creature is spotted wandering in the woods. These situations are all mysterious
because we don't know their causes. You can see the word mystery in mysterious. A mystery is a hidden
or secret thing, so something that is mysterious takes effort to understand, unless it is beyond our
comprehension.

60. meticulously

If you clean your house meticulously, you take plenty of time and scour every single nook and cranny,
maybe even behind the oven and under the doormat.
Meticulous means extremely careful and thorough, so if you do something meticulously, you are
painstaking about doing it perfectly. Someone who would never leave her house with an un-ironed t-
shirt or a thread hanging loose is someone who dresses meticulously. If your town historian documents
every event, from births to remodeled living rooms, then she does her job meticulously, maybe a little
too meticulously.

61. martial

An adjective referring to the military, the word martial adds a warlike tone to any noun it describes.

The word martial derives from Mars, the Roman god of war. It refers to almost much anything military,
including "martial law," in which the government orders the military to administer the law. The word
definitely makes one think of fighting, as in the physical discipline known as the martial arts. But there is
a lighter side to the word, too. Martial music, usually associated with the military, is usually bright and
inspiring.

62. coup

A coup is a pretty major achievement, whether it involves taking over a government by force, or landing
a major business contract.

When the word coup is used on the nightly news, it's usually describing a military government takeover.
In the business section of the daily newspaper,coup might refer to a big corporation landing an
important contract or deal. However you use the word coup, don't say the "p" at the end. It's not
pronounced like chicken coop. It sounds more like a dove's coo.

63. corrupt

If someone or something is corrupt, they’re broken morally or in some other way. Corrupt people
perform immoral or illegal acts for personal gain, without apology. Corrupt politicians take bribes and
deny it.

When you corrupt someone, you convince them to do something wrong or even illegal. If you talk your
little brother into stealing cookies from the cookie jar, you're corrupting him. Something corrupt is
rotten, spoiled, or out of commission, like a file that makes your computer crash. A corrupt person — a
criminal, a crook, or a cookie thief — brings society down with immoral and dishonest
behavior. Corrupt goes back to the Latin roots cor-, "altogether," and rumpere, "break."

64. deliver

Whether you deliver a package, a baby, or a promise, you're bringing or carrying out something that was
expected.

The Post Office and UPS deliver packages, but a doctor helps deliver a baby: in that case, the doctor is
helping the baby get born safely. If you promise to get an A and then you do, you delivered on your
promise. Religious people ask God to deliver them from sin. Politicians often have to deliver — meaning
give — speeches. In just about every case, deliver refers to something positive that's being moved,
fulfilled, rescued, or carried out.

65. demonstrator

If you participate in a political protest, you are a demonstrator. Demonstrate means to show, and by
dint of your presence, you are showing that you agree with the protest message.

Demonstrator can also mean someone who demonstrates how something works. Electrolux vacuums
were sold by door-to-door salespeople who were also demonstrators––they put horrible messes down
on the rug to demonstrate their vacuum's power.

66. benediction

A benediction is a blessing — either a formal one that you might hear in a church service or an informal
one that you might utter when you take any leap of faith.

The noun benediction comes from the Latin roots bene, meaning "well" and diction meaning "to speak"
— literally to speak well of. Although it is most often used in the religious sense of prayer and blessing
— especially a ceremonial prayer at the end of a church service — it can mean any expression of good
wishes. "Good luck on the test!" the mother cried in benediction as her son set off for school.

67. thwart

A villain's worst nightmare is the superhero who always seems to thwart his efforts, preventing him
from carrying out his plans to take over the world.

Thwart is a word you'll hear in a lot of action movies, and usually it's the hero who is trying to thwart the
evil plan of some super-villain. Yet even mere mortals can be thwarted in their efforts; the word simply
means to prevent someone from carrying out his or her plans. An aggressive driver can thwart your
attempt to snag a parking space at a crowded mall by pulling into the space before you. An aggressive
shopper at that same mall can thwart your efforts to buy the last Dancing Snoopy doll by grabbing it off
the shelf first.

68. execution

The planning stage of building a tree house is the fun part — the hard part is the execution of your
plan. Execution is taking an idea and actually making it happen.

The execution of a plan is when you put it into effect, like the execution on the field of a football team's
game plan. It can also mean the style in which a project is carried out, like a ballet's creative
execution. Execution can also refer to the death of a person, either a prisoner who's been sentenced to
death by a court of law, or a deliberate, targeted murder, especially when it's done for political reasons.

69. vulnerable
Use the adjective vulnerable to describe something or someone open to being physically or emotionally
wounded, like a newborn chick or an overly sensitive teenager.

Vulnerable is from Latin and is based on vulnus "wound." From its literal meaning, it has come to be
more often used for someone who is easily hurt or likely to succumb to temptation. It's best used for a
person whose feelings are so delicate that they can't withstand any criticism or pressure: "Don't speak
harshly to her, she's very vulnerable today."

70. fragment

A fragment is a small piece that’s come off a larger whole, and to fragment is to break. If your teacher
writes "frag" on your paper, you've got an incomplete sentence.

Fragment, meaning "a tiny, brittle shard," first appeared as a noun and later as a verb. That afternoon
you hacked away at the fireplace in your parents’ living room in search of secret treasure as a child?
Those dusty chunks of brick you scattered all over their shag carpet were fragments of a once-intact
wall, and a happier time before you were grounded. Not only did you cause physical damage that day,
but you also fragmented their trust in you.

71. stale

If something is stale, it's no longer fresh. Ever bite into a piece of bread that's been left out a little too
long? Chances are it's stale, or dry and hard to eat. Try making some croutons out of it.

The word stale comes from the Old French estaler meaning "to halt," which is what happens to your jaw
when you try and bite down on a piece of stale bread — it just can't chew through it. But stale isn't a
word that's used only when talking about food. When an idea is stale, it's old or boring. And when a
horse stales, it's not old and crusty, it's urinating. Step aside.

72. baron

A baron is a nobleman — a member of the aristocracy. Barons are also important, powerful
businessmen with huge influence over their industries. In Britain, a baron is called “Lord,” but in the
States, we call them “rich.”

Barons are members of the aristocracy — wealthy people born into power and influence. How high a
baron ranks depends on the country, but the title always carries respect. Similarly, a business leader
who is rich, powerful, and influential is a baron. The term is used in phrases such as oil baron and baron
of industry. You can also call that kind of baron a big businessman, magnate, mogul, top executive, or
tycoon.

73. desolate

If you feel alone, left out, and devastated, you feel desolate. A deserted, empty, depressing place can
be desolate too.
If you know the word deserted, you have a clue to the meaning of desolate, a grim word that can
describes feelings and places. When a person feels desolate, he feels deserted, lonely, hopeless, and
sad. When a location is desolate, there's almost nothing there. Think of a rundown cabin in the middle
of nowhere, with no running water and no stores or other people anywhere. That's a desolate setting.
Being in a desolate place usually makes people feel desolate.

74. turbulence

Use the noun turbulence to describe instability or disturbance. If you’re on an airplane during a
storm, turbulence is that horrible thing that is causing the plane (and your stomach) to bounce around.

The word turbulence can be used to refer to atmospheric instability, such as sudden, unpredictable air
movements resulting from a storm, but the word has a broader meaning as well and you will often hear
it used to describe any situation characterized by unrest and disorder. If your stocks are fluctuating
wildly in price, that could be a result of turbulence in the stock market. If last year was filled with
unpredictable change, you could describe it as a year of great turbulence.

75. acknowledge

To show that you know something is to acknowledge it. Waving "hello" to acknowledge a friend and
nodding your head "yes" to acknowledge that you agree with what's being said are both acts showing
knowledge or acceptance of someone or something.

Dictionaries acknowledge that the word acknowledge has roots in the 15th and 16th centuries and is a
combination of roots meaning "accord," "recognize," and "understand." Whereas "knowledge" is what
you know, acknowledging is showing that you know. You might acknowledge that the world is round
and that the moon is not made of cheese. You also can acknowledge, or give recognition, to the people
who discovered these truths.

76. urge

If you have an urge to eat candy, you really want to eat those sweets. Your mother might urge you to
wait until after dinner. As a noun, urge means a desire. As a verb, it means to strongly encourage.

Urge is related to the word, urgent, or 'pressing.' An urge is a pressing want, one that is almost a
compulsion, like when you're so frustrated, you have the urge to scream. If you urge someone to do
something, you feel strongly about it. You might urge a friend to wear an orange shirt not because you
happen to like orange, but because they're walking in the woods during hunting season.

77. demolish

Demolish means “completely destroy,” as a wrecking ball might demolish a building, or as hanging out
with one’s parents might, supposedly, demolish a teenager’s reputation.

In casual speech, demolish can also mean “devour,” as a group of hungry teenagers might demolish a
pizza. The noun form of demolish is demolition, which often implies destruction by means of
explosives. Demolish combines the prefix de-, which can mean “undo,” with the Latin verb moliri,
meaning “to build" — which makes sense if you are thinking of 'undoing a building' with explosives!

78. missionary

A missionary is a person whose mission is to go somewhere to help others. In many cases, the goal of
a missionary is to teach about a religion so that the people convert to that faith.

Missionary can be a noun — the person who goes on a mission — or an adjective — the type of work
done on such a trip. If your great-grandmother was a missionary for the Methodist church in Japan in
the 1920’s, her purpose there was to convince people to abandon their religion for Methodism.
Presumably she did this missionary work because she thought it would save their souls.

79. faithful

Faithful describes someone who is reliable and consistent. If you're a faithful volunteer at the animal
shelter, you show up every Saturday and work hard to help the animals.

A faithful friend is loyal and steadfast — it's no wonder that many people consider their dogs to be their
most faithful companions. Though faithful usually describes a person, you can also use it to talk about a
particularly reliable object, like your faithful hiking boots. There's another sense of faithful that means
"remaining true to," like faithful believers who pray and attend religious services regularly.

80. confession

A confession is an admission of guilt, fault, or a mistake.

You’ve probably seen TV shows or movies where a detective says to a suspect "Confess!" The detective
is trying to get a confession, which is a statement that admits some type of guilt. "I killed the mayor!" is
a confession. "I forgot your birthday" is a confession. In some religions, confession is a sacrament where
people admit their sins and seek forgiveness. When people have something painful to admit, they often
start by saying, "I have a confession to make."

81. steady

The adjective steady describes something that is firmly fixed in position. If you have to climb up on your
roof, you definitely want to have a steady ladder. Otherwise, you risk ending up in the bushes instead of
on the roof.

The adjective steady can also describe something that isn't going to fluctuate wildly. If you have a steady
income from a salary, you bring in approximately the same amount of money each month. If you are
paid on commission, on the other hand, you may make Midas look poor in some months and beggars
look rich in others. As a verb, to steady means "to make something steady" (big surprise): You can
steady a wobbly table by sticking a matchbook under its shortest leg, or you could steady a nervous dog
with a reassuring pat.
82. convey

When you convey something, you carry or deliver it. Little Red Riding Hood conveyed a basket of muffins
to her grandmother. Your sad smile might convey more about your feelings than words ever could.

You can also convey a message or information, which means that you communicate it to someone
directly or indirectly through your words or actions. In law, the word convey means to transfer or pass
property to someone. This verb is from Middle English conveyen, from Old French conveier, ultimately
from the Latin prefix com- "together" plus via "way."

83. jest

A jest is a joke. Are you a playful prankster? A jocular jokester? A witty wisecracker? Then you are
definitely well versed in the art of the jest.

To jest means to tease and joke in a playful way — like that "court jester"! Back in medieval times, the
court jester was hired to tell funny gestes, or tales. But nowadays he's always cracking jokes and teasing
the ladies about their wacky hairdos. All in jest of course. Otherwise the king would have his head.

84. dulcet

Use the adjective dulcet to describe a sound that is soothing and soft, like the dulcet harmonies in a 70s
pop song or the dulcet tones of a harp.

The word dulcet worked its way into English by way of the French word doucet, which is related to the
word doux, meaning “sweet.” Originally applied to anything sweet or pleasing, such as something that
tastes sweet or a sweet glance from a stranger, nowadays the word is most often used to describe
sounds that are gentle and melodious — sweet sounds.

85. submissive

When animals live in packs, one animal is usually the dominant leader, while the others fall into
more submissive roles. To be submissive is to obey or yield to someone else.

When you are submissive, you submit to someone else's will, which literally, you put your own desires
lower than theirs. You can see this in the Latin root of submit, submittere, which is formed by sub-
"under" + mittere "send, put."

And if he chance to speak, be ready straight,

And with a low submissive reverence
Say 'What is it your honour will command?'

86. mourn

To mourn is to grieve for someone who has died, especially a loved one. One of the hardest experiences
of childhood is when you mourn the loss of a beloved pet.
You can also mourn for things that you've lost, not only pets and people who have died. If your local
library branch is forced to close, you might mourn its loss, missing being able to walk there from your
house. The Old English root word of mourn is murnan, which means not only to mourn, but also to be
anxious. Related words include "mourner" and "mournful."

87. lunatic

A lunatic is someone who is either clinically insane or just acting really crazy. Someone driving too fast
and zigging in and out of traffic is driving like a lunatic.

The root of this word is luna, which means moon. That's because lunatic originally meant someone who
went crazy with every phase of the moon, kind of like a werewolf. Most people these days don't believe
in moon-caused insanity, but we still talk about lunatics, sometimes meaning clinically insane people.
More often this is a slang term, used mainly in exaggerations, for anyone who seems wild and out of
control.

88. diligence

If you practice diligence, you are a hard and careful worker. Do you have the diligence to read all the
collected works of Henry James? Of course not. Nobody has, but a couple of his early novels won't hurt.

Here's a tip: never buy anything big, like a house or a car or a boat, without first exercising what lawyers
call "due diligence" — that is, a real degree of care and attention and effort, not to mention a close
reading of the small print. Diligence may help you realize the Brooklyn Bridge is not actually yours to
buy, or that your potential neighbor has 112 cats living next door.

89. cunning

In fairy tales, always watch out for the cunning fox or the cunning witch. Cunning means clever, in the
sense of trickery. A cunning plan might involve setting traps for the innocent and pure at heart to fall
into.

This adjective goes back to the 14th century English verb cunnen, which meant "to know," and is
actually related to our English verb know. In earlier times, the noun was used to mean a high level of skill
in using the hands. You can be cunning, but you can also use your cunning to figure out a very clever and
tricky plan.

90. antic

An antic is a prank to the extreme. It’s outrageous, but it’s usually meant to be funny. When the senior
class steals the principal’s car and manages to get it inside the gym, the antic may be condemned by the
school, but everyone else probably thinks it’s hilarious.

The noun antic is most commonly used in the plural form, as in “the coach was growing tired of his star
player’s silly antics after scoring.” Sometimes antics can lean toward the not-so-funny side as well.
Really ridiculous behavior, that is more foolish than funny, can also be called antics. Antic can also be
used an as adjective, as in "her antic stand-up routine had everyone rolling in the aisles." It more
infrequently can be used as a verb meaning basically "to act like a clown."

91. obeisance

An obeisance is an act, usually physical, showing dutiful obedience. A supplicant might

perform obeisance, touching his face to the ground, before humbly asking for help.

Obeisance is often used in historical or religious contexts and often refers to bowing or kneeling.
Figuratively, it means an act of respect though sometimes with the negative connotation of slavishly
doing as expected. Your boyfriend might bring you and your mother flowers in obeisance to the idea
that the parents should be courted as much as the child. Consumers who want this software must show
obeisance to the Internet — it can't be bought in a store or anywhere else.

92. courtesy

A courtesy is a polite remark or respectful act. Complain about a bad meal, and you might get kicked
out. But the common courtesy is usually an apology from the manager and, if you're lucky, a free dinner.

Courtesy is all about using your good manners, which is why it shares roots with the word courteous.
Holding the door open for someone, writing a thank-you note for a gift, and letting the pregnant lady
have the last seat on the bus are all courtesies that would make your parents proud. And if something is
kindly presented to you free of charge, the gift-giver may say it's "courtesy of" someone special.

93. usurp

If you take over your neighbor's backyard and claim his in-ground swimming pool as your own, you
might seize control of, or usurp his yard, but he'll probably call the cops on you.

Leaders who usurp power don't ask for permission to take control of their country. They seize power,
often with the help of a large army of followers. A usurper doesn't have to be human. A brand-new radio
station can usurp the most popular station in town by playing a better mix of music.

94. homage

Homage means great respect and honor, or something done to honor a person or thing. We pay
homage to our ancestors and say prayers in homage to their memory.

In Middle English, homage specifically referred to respect for and loyalty to a feudal lord. The word was
borrowed from Old French, probably from omne, homme "man," from Latin homō. The noun suffix –
age is used to mean "an action, process, result, or state."

95. abate

Something that abates becomes fewer or less intense. Your enthusiasm for skiing might abate after
falling off a ski lift and getting a mouthful of snow.
Abate comes from the Old French verb abattre, "to beat down," and means to reduce or become less
intense or numerous. As an intransitive verb, it is often used with something physically, emotionally, or
figuratively violent, as in "the flood of fan mail began to abate." Using it transitively, if you take
measures to abate pollution or noise, you reduce them. Pronounce abate with the stress on the second
syllable (uh-BATE).

96. humor

Humor is a word for the quality of being funny — or for appreciating comedy, as in "sense of humor."

Many movies and TV shows — comedies — are full of humor, but there might be humor in any show or
even any situation. Since different people find different things funny, there are many different senses of
humor and types of humor. Some like wordplay, while others might enjoy slapstick. If you're in good
humor, you're in a good mood. The humors are also the liquid parts of the body (you might remember
that because many people find bodily fluids humorous).

97. abject

If it reeks of humiliation or looks like the lowest of lows, then you can safely describe it as abject.

The pronunciation of abject is up for debate: you can decide whether to stress the first or the second
syllable. But what's more important is understanding how extreme this adjective is. Abject means
absolutely miserable, the most unfortunate, with utter humiliation. You might have heard the
phrase abject poverty, which is the absolute worst, most hopeless level of poverty you've ever seen.

98. malady

A malady is an illness, like a malady that keeps you home, sick in bed for days, or something that causes
you to have trouble or to suffer, like jet lag — a malady that affects travelers.

Malady, pronounced "MAL-uh-dee," comes from the Latin words male, meaning "bad or ill"
and habitus for "have, hold." When you have a malady, it is like something bad is holding you, such as an
illness — the common cold: a malady of winter. Some bad habits cause maladies, such as never having
any money — the malady of people who spend freely, not thinking of the future.

99. malady

A malady is an illness, like a malady that keeps you home, sick in bed for days, or something that causes
you to have trouble or to suffer, like jet lag — a malady that affects travelers.

Malady, pronounced "MAL-uh-dee," comes from the Latin words male, meaning "bad or ill"
and habitus for "have, hold." When you have a malady, it is like something bad is holding you, such as an
illness — the common cold: a malady of winter. Some bad habits cause maladies, such as never having
any money — the malady of people who spend freely, not thinking of the future.

100. frenzy
In a frenzy, people go into a state of hysteria. Stay away from hungry sharks or kids at a 16th birthday
party when the pizza arrives if you don't want to get caught up in a feeding frenzy.

Frenzy is derived from the Latin word phreneticus meaning "delirious." If you're in a frenzy, you're
certainly delirious. You can be in a frenzy because something made you mad, happy, or even just hungry
— whatever makes you so crazy you're not thinking clearly. Frenzy is often used when talking about a
group of people (or animals) who get worked up at the same time about the same thing, like sharks near
tasty fish or teenagers near pizza.

Your honour's players, hearing your amendment,

Are come to play a pleasant comedy;
For so your doctors hold it very meet,
Seeing too much sadness hath congeal'd your blood,
And melancholy is the nurse of frenzy.

101. mirth

Mirth is a formal or literary term meaning fun and enjoyment as shown by laughter. If you and your
friends stayed up all night at a sleepover laughing, you might refer to that as a night of mirth.

In 1905, Edith Wharton published a novel "The House of Mirth," whose title derives from Ecclesiastes:
"The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth." But
studies show that when human beings laugh, smile or otherwise engage in mirthful activity, our brains
release hormones that help us live longer. Mirth may be foolish, but it's good for you.

Therefore they thought it good you hear a play

And frame your mind to mirth and merriment,
Which bars a thousand harms and lengthens life.

As this example sentence shows, the induction is an "act that sets in motion some course of events." It
also sets the merry tone for the rest of the play. But aside from a brief scene in Act 1 where a servant
notices that Sly, the tinker/lord, is nodding off, the frame story is not mentioned. This suggests that it is
not important. But attitudes of marriage are revealed here, and comparisons can be made between the
characters' goals, roles, and deceits.

102. consider

Consider is a verb that simply means to think about, look at, or judge. Consider, for a moment, the perks
of house sitting for your pool-owning neighbors before you immediately refuse their request.

Coming to us from the Latin word considerare, meaning “to look at closely" or "observe,” consider is a
very common word that describes something you likely do multiple times a day: You probably consider
what to wear in the morning, weigh your options for lunch, take into account the weather when
deciding to grab your umbrella. Your life is full of consideration and you didn't even know it!
103. minute

Craftsmen can paint whole villages or detailed portraits of people on a grain of rice using minute, or tiny,
paintbrushes. Often the works of art are so minute that you can only see them with a magnifying glass.

Minutus is the Latin word for "small," and it gave rise to both the adjective minute (my-NOOT), or
incredibly small, and the noun minute (MIN-it), or 60 seconds of time. Though they are pronounced
differently, both words refer to small measurements. An object can be minute, like a flea compared with
its dog, and less concrete things can be minute, like your minute chance of winning the lottery. A minute
freckle on the side of your nose is a minute detail of your whole face.

104. accord

If you clean your room of your own accord, your parents will be pleased—it means you did it without
having to be asked. They might even accord you an extra privilege. Warring nations make peace accords.

A Honda Accord is a nice, agreeable car, and the word accord is all about agreement, or unity. If a whole
class begs with one accord to postpone a quiz for a day to allow more review, the teacher is more likely
to listen than if it was just one student asking.

105. evident

If something is evident, it's visible. If you blush furiously and start shaking every time your crush comes
near, your infatuation will be evident to everyone.

Evident means conspicuously visible, often the mark of an action or a feeling. If a room is in total
disarray, with everything pulled out of the drawers, it's evident that someone has been searching for
something. If you leave the room in the middle of a tense meeting, your frustration will be
evident. Evident can also simply mean visible. If you look closely at a key hole of your car door, small
scratches will be evident in the paint.

106. practice

Practice can be a noun or a verb, but either way it's about how things are done on a regular basis. You
can practice shotput every day because your town has a practice of supporting track-and-field events.

One can practice the tuba for hours on end, repeating the same song over and over, serving to both get
better at the tuba and to convince the neighbors they should move to Florida. You could learn the
common practice of offering a guest a beverage when they arrive at your party, if you care to be polite.
One can also practice a profession or a religion, as in “I practice Buddhism and I have a booming
international law practice.”

107. intend

If you intend to do something, you mean to do it or have it in mind as a goal. Do you plan on getting
your holiday cards in the mail before February this year? Then you intend on getting them out early.
The world is full of good intentions, meaning there are lots of people who intend to be nice, eat better,
floss more, or pick up their dirty socks. But things don't always go as planned. Your actions could
produce results that you didn't expect, specify, or ever intend — that might explain the well-known
proverb, "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."

108. concern

Concern is both a noun and a verb. As a noun it's something that you find particularly important. If you
love pizza, getting the crust just so is a major concern during your pizza party.

Concern can also be something or someone that makes you upset or anxious, like your concern over the
quality of the pizza crust. It can be a feeling of sympathy, like when your mom expresses concern over
your obsession with pizza crust. As a verb, concern means to be relevant to something. Your main goal
today may concern studying for your math test. Concern can also describe worry. When you stay out
past curfew, your mom will be concerned.

109. commit

To commit is to fully dedicate yourself to something. To commit yourself to being the coolest kid on the
beach means spending hours at the mall trying on trunks and flip-flops.

Commit can also mean "perform an act" — often the kind that can get you in trouble. Just ask anyone
who's committed theft, or arson, or vandalism. If you are committing another person, that means you
are sending that person to an institution. Someone may be committed to prison, or to a psychiatric
hospital for treatment.

110. issue

One copy of "Celebrities are Cool" magazine is an issue. It is issued, or put out, by the publisher. You and
your mother may argue over the issue, or topic, of whether or not you should read it.

The original meaning of the word issue was to put something out. If a celebrity issues a statement or the
post office issues new stamps, they put them out for the public. Likewise, an issue is a current topic,
sometimes controversial, that is being discussed. Politicians often say they want to talk about the issues
(and not their personal lives!). You might hear someone say, "He's got issues" about a person who has
some problems, usually emotional ones, but this is a very new use for the word.

111. approach

To approach is to get near something. An airplane is cleared for a final approach just as the
wheels approach the landing strip.

Approach comes from the Latin word appropriare which means "go nearer to." You can physically
approach something, like a waiter going to a table. Or, you can approach a subject, usually one you're a
little nervous about — like a new employee might approach her boss about getting a raise. Time can also
approach, like winter, midnight, or even old age.
112. establish

To establish something means to begin it or bring it about. If you want everyone in your family to bring
you chocolate every evening, you can establish a “Chocolates for Me” policy requiring it.

Establish is related to stable through its Latin roots and has many meanings, but all have the feel of
building on a stable foundation. Besides the meaning of setting a policy, establish can also mean to
prove one's value. You should establish yourself in a community before you try to bring change to it.
Similarly, if you like to debate controversial issues, you'd best begin with facts that have been
established and are not open to question. If you have a lot of money and want to build up your
community, you can establish, or found, a school or library there.

113. utter

The adjective utter is often used as an intensifier to mean "total" — often with negative connotations
(like "utter failure"). As a verb, the word has a totally unrelated meaning: to speak or to articulate a
sound.

If you utter something, you give it voice. You could utter a cry or utter complete sentences; either way,
you are expressing yourself. However, if you declare someone an utter moron, you are saying he is a
complete and total moron; not that he is a moron expressing himself. Don't confuse the spelling
of utter with udder — the latter is the part of the cow that you milk.

114. conduct

Conduct is about how you behave––"conduct unbecoming"––and also about carrying something
through––"the survey was conducted in May and June."

Conduct's two senses are connected. Your conduct or your own behavior is the way you conduct or lead
yourself. Think of your brain as a little man in tails and white tie, holding up a baton to conduct the
various parts of you the way he would a symphony orchestra.

115. engage

Engage means to bind, catch, or involve. If your sink is stopped up, engage, or hire, a plumber to fix it.
Otherwise the smell of rotten food in the garbage disposal will engage your attention (in a bad way).

Engage comes from a French word for pledge. If you agree to marry your sweetheart, you
are engaged to marry. If you engage the kid next door to water your plants, she will expect to be paid
for it. Engagement is also used to talk about war or conflict. An army engages its enemy in battle, just as
you might engage in debate with a traffic cop over whether the light was yellow or red.

116. obtain

Obtain means to get something that is not so easy to come by such as knowledge, rights, or a large
amount of money. You wouldn't say you obtained a pair of pants, unless they were one of a kind.
At times in its history, obtain has meant to be victorious or to succeed. Today, it mostly means to
acquire, but keeping its prior meanings in mind helps you to use it in the right way. College degrees are
something that you obtain as is permission from your parents to go to a party. When you obtain
something, you have worked hard to get it, so you are pretty happy to have it.

117. harry

When one army sends raiding parties into another's territory, they're harrying them. They're not making
an all-out attack, they're just trying to bother and distract the other army.

Although harry is not a word you hear commonly now, it does frequently occur as harried — which is an
adjective used to describe what it feels like to be asked for things from all sides. You might feel harried
during final exams, or two days before Christmas, if you haven't yet started your shopping.

118. notwithstanding

Notwithstanding means "in spite of something." Your boasts about having memorized the entire
textbook and bribing the teacher with apples notwithstanding, you still managed to fail the final exam
with flying colors.

You don't have to look too closely at the word to be able to break it into three parts: not- + withstand (to
successfully oppose or resist) + the participial ending -ing. In the most literal
sense, notwithstanding actually means to successfully oppose or resist. Top-of-the-line wet-traction tires
notwithstanding, the car still got stuck in the mud. Notwithstanding works just as well in a more
figurative context. His reputation for charm and tact notwithstanding, he offended everyone in the
room.

119. multitude

A multitude is a very large number or a huge crowd. If you see a multitude of zombies approaching,
you're in trouble.

Sometimes the word multitude refers to the common people, or the masses — that is, everyone in a
society apart from the political elite. There are a lot of words and phrases for this, like hoi polloi, which is
Greek for "the many," and "the great unwashed." Those last two terms are usually used in a
disapproving way, but multitudes is generally a positive term. If you were to say that a leader inspired
the multitudes to rise up against their oppressor, we'd assume that you sympathized with the
multitudes.

120. tread

When you tread on the earth, you walk on it. The next time your pal thinks you have it too easy, you
might ask him, “Why don’t you tread in my shoes for a day?”

Tread usually implies stepping with force, but it can also simply mean placing your feet, one after the
other, on the ground. You might try to tread lightly on the moss in the backyard so you don't damage
it. Tread is also a noun that means the mark that a tire leaves on the ground, or the actual grooves on
the tire. You might be relieved that the tread marks at the crime scene didn't match your brother's truck
after all.

121. facile

If someone does something easily, or shows ease, it is described as facile in a good way, but if someone
takes the easy way out and shows a lack of thought or care, it is facile in a bad way.

While it is a lovely sounding French word, facile is both a compliment and an insult depending on how
it's used. Something that shows ready skill is facile, such as being facile with text messaging. But if
something is too simple and superficial, or shows little care, it can also be called facile, or lame. "Being
too cowardly to tell the truth and admit he didn't do it, he used the facile and sarcastic excuse that the
dog ate his homework."

122. sob

If you're so upset you're crying loudly, taking in big gasps of air and heaving your chest, you are sobbing.

Picture a child on the playground who has fallen and can't find his or her mother. The child's face is red
and streaked with tears, and he or she is gasping from crying so hard. This poor little boy or girl is
sobbing uncontrollably. Sometimes, while trying not to cry, you might let out a single sob. A "sob story"
is a story meant to make you feel bad for someone, so bad you might sob for them.

123. ordain

To ordain is to make someone a minister, priest, monk, or other member of the clergy. In the Catholic
church, for example, a bishop ordains new priests.

When you say that people have been ordained, you usually mean that they've been invested with
special religion-related powers. In many Buddhist traditions, senior monks ordain new monks and,
increasingly, female monks (or nuns) as well. Occasionally, this chiefly religious verb is used to mean
"officially declare" or "decree" in a secular matter, as when a court ordains desegregation.

124.clarion

If you hear the clarion call of the stage, it means you want to be an actor. Clarion means loud and clear,
and a clarion call is a call to something that is hard to ignore.

A clarion is a medieval horn with a clear sound. Hard to ignore, but also pure and clear in tone. There's
nothing shrill about a "clarion call." Martin Luther King Jr.'s clarion call for all races in the US to live
together in peace and harmony has lived on after his death.

125. bugle

A bugle is a very simple brass instrument. Bugles are commonly used in the military to mark parts of the
day, including first thing in the morning.
Bugles are notable for their lack of valves — instead of controlling pitch with the fingers, a bugler does it
entirely with her lips on the mouthpiece. The traditional bugle call is the series of notes used in military
camps to signal daybreak and dusk, and sometimes other daily routines. Bugle was originally an Old
French word meaning "musical horn," but also "wild ox" or "buffalo." The "horn" meaning came from
the curled shape of an animal's horn.

126 facsimile

A facsimile is a copy or reproduction of something. Many parents hope their children will be facsimiles
of themselves; many children have other plans in mind.

Facsimile comes from two Latin roots: facere, meaning "to make," and simile, meaning "like." Fax
machines are so called because they copy and transmit facsimiles of documents, or faxes for short, over
phone lines. Grammatically speaking, photocopiers also make facsimiles, but oddly enough those are
referred to as copies — not faxes.

127 . expatriate

An expatriate is someone who lives in another country by choice. If you leave your split-level ranch in
Ohio and move to a writers' commune in Paris for good, you've become an expatriate.

Expatriate can also be a verb, so that American in Paris has expatriated. There was a scene of
expatriates, or expats, living in Paris in the roaring '20s that included writers like F. Scott Fitzgerald and
Gertrude Stein. The word used to mean to get kicked out of your native country — it's from the French
word expatrier which means "banish." The prefix ex means "out of" and the Latin patria "one's native
country," but the word took a turn and now refers to people who left without getting shoved out.

128. evince

The verb evince means to show or express clearly; to make plain. Evidence can evince the innocence of
the accused, and tears can evince the grief of the mourning.

Evince is a rather formal word that reveals the presence of something hidden — usually a feeling. So, if
you are happy, your smile might evince your happiness. And if you are angry, the skull and crossbones
on your tee shirt might evince your anger. Evincing is about expressing. If you are keeping your feelings
inside, there's not a lot of evincing going on.

129. grimace

The grimace on her face when he asked her to the prom told him her answer was "no" before she said a
word. A grimace is a facial expression that usually suggests disgust or pain, but sometimes comic
exaggeration.
Picture someone wrinkling his nose, squeezing his eyes shut, and twisting his mouth and you'll have a
pretty solid mental image of a grimace. It can be a verb, as in "the class grimaced at the teacher's
suggestion of a pop quiz." Or it words as a noun. "The class gave a grimace when the teacher suggested
a pop quiz." Its forerunner was the 17th century Spanish grimazo, meaning caricature, and grima,
meaning fright.

130 . allude

When you allude to something, you don't identify it or mention it specifically. If you allude to the fact
that a cop is sitting right behind you, your friends might stop talking about their plans to rob a bank.

Choose Your Words

Allude is from Latin allūdere "to play with, joke" from the prefix ad- "toward" plus lūdere "to play." The
corresponding noun is allusion, which is often used of an indirect reference in literature: Helen, a fitting
name for a woman of great beauty, is an allusion to Helen of Troy.

131. impute

The verb impute can be used to blame someone for doing something bad, give credit for good work, or
just tell it like it is, like when you impute your lateness to my not telling you where to meet me.

When you impute something, you name the cause of something that has happened. For example, you
might impute your ability to sing well to the thousands of dollars your parents spent in voice lessons. In
other words, you name the source. You can also impute a person, like imputing to a teacher your love of
learning — he or she helped you become more interested in school and your classes.

132. refute

The verb refute is to prove that something is wrong. When the kids you're babysitting swear they
brushed their teeth, you can refute their claim by presenting the dry toothbrushes.

Evidence and arguments are used to refute something. So are facts. For example, if children who eat
chocolate before going to bed go straight to sleep, that refutes the idea that sugar keeps them up.
Refute comes from the Latin refutare for "to check, suppress." A near synonym is confute, but save
refute as an everyday word for proving something is false.

140 . mirth

Mirth is a formal or literary term meaning fun and enjoyment as shown by laughter. If you and your
friends stayed up all night at a sleepover laughing, you might refer to that as a night of mirth.
In 1905, Edith Wharton published a novel "The House of Mirth," whose title derives from Ecclesiastes:
"The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth." But
studies show that when human beings laugh, smile or otherwise engage in mirthful activity, our brains
release hormones that help us live longer. Mirth may be foolish, but it's good for you.

141. succor

Succor is relief or help. If you've just woken up in the midst of a lion's den, wearing nothing but raw
meat pajamas — sounds like you could use some succor!

In archaic times, succor meant a reinforcement of troops during a hard battle. These days though, those
reinforcements are a bit more figurative. Succor is a helping hand in a time of need, relief when the
going gets tough. Succor can also be used as a verb, as in, "After Bob fell overboard, he was saved —
succored by a life preserver."

142 . myopic

Myopic is an adjective meaning shortsighted in every sense. Whether you need glasses or a new
attitude, if you can't see the forest for the trees, you're myopic.

Myopic began as a description of the condition that made people squint and was easily cured with a pair
of pink cat-eye glasses, but it came to include people or plans with a lack of foresight. Although it's good
to live in the moment, it's not a compliment to be called myopic — a myopic party host might have
festive decorations but no food for hungry guests, and myopic students have no interest in anything
beyond what's on the test. In terms of pronunciation: it's a tomato/tomahto word: pronounce it "my-
OP-ick" or "my-OH-pick," although that short o sound is preferred.

143. glee

If you learned that you'd won a trip for four to Disney World, it would be hard to hide your glee. Glee
means extreme happiness or delight.

Anything that makes you full of joy, so happy you could laugh out loud, fills you with glee. If your
favorite football team wins the Super Bowl, your glee will make you cheer, and a kid let loose with a ten
dollar bill in a candy shop might dance around with glee. In the 1700s and 1800s, a glee was a song
written for men's a cappella singing groups, which were sometimes called glee clubs.

144. gaiety

A festive, happy event, like a big summer backyard party, will be full of gaiety — or merriment and
playfulness.

The noun gaiety is the feeling of happiness and delight that might be present at a child's birthday party
or a festive square dance. Gaiety can describe a person's generally joyful personality, or the sound of
laughter in your house. It comes from the French word gaieté, "joy, merriment, lightheartedness," which
evolved from gai, "charming, joyful, happy." The word can be correctly spelled gaiety or gayety,
although the first spelling is much more common.

145. merriment

Merriment can refer to fun activities or a feeling of happiness. Either way, a good time is being had.

You know how merry means happy? Merriment refers to events and feelings that are happy. A party is a
perfect example of merriment. If you hear a bunch of people laughing and joking, you might say, "Why
all the merriment?" Merriment can also be an emotion: if you're very excited or happy, you're
experiencing merriment.

146. buoyant

Something that is buoyant floats in water. Since floating is happier than sinking, buoyant also refers to
things are fun and upbeat.

Someone with a buoyant personality is fun to be around, laughs a lot, smiles, and cheers other people
up. Buoyant people are lively and lighthearted — the opposite of sad, depressed, and bummed out.
Buoyant people are also called bubbly and cheerful, and it should help to remember that buoyant
objects float — just like a buoyant person can seem like they're floating too (as in the expression
"floating on air").

147. contentment

Contentment is the state of being happy and satisfied. On Thanksgiving when you think about all you are
grateful for, hopefully you feel a sense of contentment. If not, have another piece of pie and then you’ll
feel contentment.

Contentment isn’t an excited kind of happy, it’s more like a peaceful ease of mind. It’s being satisfied
with what you have, whatever that is. You might feel a sense of contentment knowing you have a cup of
hot chocolate and a good movie to look forward to tonight. Or you might experience contentment
thinking about the vast estate you just purchased in the Hamptons. Whatever is going on in your life,
you’re pleased about it.

148. ecstatic

The adjective ecstatic turns the noun "ecstasy" into a descriptive word. When Celine hit that high note,
the audience was ecstatic.

Originally, ecstatic had religious connotations having to do with the sheer joy of knowing God or
someone truly holy. That meaning remains today, but ecstatic now includes almost anything that's really
pleasurable or wonderful. I was ecstatic at the news that I'd been nominated for an award. The entire
world reacted with an ecstatic sense of glee when the Berlin Wall finally came down. The hangover the
next day, though, wasn't so ecstatic.
149. elated

If you're elated you aren't just happy — you're over the moon, absolutely excited and bursting with
pride. Like the way you feel after winning a scholarship to an Ivy league school or mastering a back
handspring.

You might be elated to hear you got that dream job. That is, until you find out it doesn't come with any
vacation days or health benefits. But don't let that dampen your elation. Feeling Elated is all about being
so extremely proud and overjoyed, and usually happens as a result of an accomplishment. So if you've
just achieved something big, feel free to be elated — and enjoy your time on cloud 9.

150. exultant

Use the adjective exultant to describe the triumphant feeling you get when you succeed at something.
The kids who win the Little League championship game will be exultant.

The kid who's elected sixth grade president will feel exultant, and so will a singer who's just given the
performance of her lifetime. Exultant describes an excitement that's a combination of pride, happiness,
and triumph. The word exultant comes from the Latin exsilire, "to leap up," from the prefix ex-, "up or
out," plus salire, "to leap." In other words, when you're exultant, you're jumping for joy.

151. exuberant

Are you feeling really happy and enthusiastic about something? Describe yourself with the adjective
exuberant!

Exuberant can be traced back to the same Indo-European root that has brought the word udder. If you
picture the plentiful amount of milk a cow can give, it is easy to remember that exuberant always
describes something that is abundant or plentiful like exuberant foliage. Abundance also comes into play
in its primary use today to mean very enthusiastic, full of energy or overjoyed. When the bell rings on
the last day of school, you will be exuberant.

From Latin exuberare "be abundant, grow luxuriously." From ex- "thoroughly" and uberare "to be
fruitful."

152. jaunty

Jaunty combines ideas such as cheerful, spiffy, upbeat, and natty into one delightfully economical
adjective that means all of those things at once!

A jaunty hat is one that's stylish and cheerful at the same time, a quality that can be accentuated if the
person wears it in a jaunty fashion, perhaps off to the side or over one eye. Playing the part of a jaunty
person is easy if you're feeling upbeat and chipper and want the world to know it. Elves are often jaunty
in their own way. Sporting their spiffy outfits and featuring that trademark cheerful spring in their step.
The fact they always seem so lively and eager to chat only increases the jaunty impression they make.
One can't be blamed for wanting to take a jaunt with the jaunty little guys.
153. jubilant

If you were the quarterback that threw the touchdown pass that won the Super Bowl, you would be
jubilant: filled with joy.

When you feel jubilant, you’re full of extreme happiness. Usually people are jubilant after great
victories, whether in sports, politics, or life. When you're jubilant, it's a moment of extreme happiness,
like giving birth or watching a child graduate. There can also be jubilant songs, jubilant performances,
even jubilant periods in history, times when people are especially proud and filled with triumph. The end
of World War II was just such a jubilant moment.

154. effervescent

Something effervescent has bubbles or froth, like a sparkling wine or a bubble bath. If you have a happy,
light, cheerful personality — if you are "bubbly" — you too are effervescent.

Coming from the Latin effervēscere, the original meaning was more boiling than bubbly, thanks to the
ferv part, which means "hot." The word literally refers to bubbles giving off gas, and any drinks you
enjoy that are nose-ticklingly effervescent make bubbles that pop and release into the air. Remember,
someone with an effervescent personality is just bubbly, not full of gas!

155. ebullient

More than chipper, more than happy, more than delighted is ebullient — meaning bubbling over with
joy and delight.

There are two senses of the word of ebullient. One describes an immediate, and ultimately short-lived,
reaction to a particular event — for example if you've just won the lottery, you are ebullient. The other
describes someone who is perpetually upbeat and cheerful, for example, as in "an ebullient personality."
Watch out for ebullient personalities: they can often be "over the top" as well.

156. euphoric

To be euphoric is to be carried away with amazingly good feelings. The euphoric feeling of having won
the lottery ended quickly when you saw your pet ferret chewing up your lottery ticket.

When someone's euphoric, they're so happy that they might have lost touch with reality for the
moment. This “too good to be true” quality is one reason some drug-induced states get described as
euphoric. In fact, euphoria, which euphoric stems from, originally meant a feeling of wellness caused in
the sick by the use of drugs.

From Greek euphoria "power of enduring easily", this word originally referred to feeling healthy and
comfortable even when sick, from eu- "well" and pherein "to carry.

157. appurtenance
Something that is an accessory to something but not an integral part of it is an appurtenance. If you buy
a car, you may want to purchase a few appurtenances for it, like an ice scraper and fuzzy dice to hang
from your rear view mirror.

The noun appurtenance does not only refer to tangible objects, such as appurtenances of a certain
lifestyle. It can also mean equipment or gear for a certain task. By the time you fill your locker with all
the appurtenances of a high school student, you won't have room for a coat. Perhaps the appurtenances
you should invest in are heavy sweatshirts.

158. appurtenant

Something that is appurtenant helps or supports something else. Good physical health is appurtenant to
mental well-being.

The adjective appurtenant sounds similar to pertinent, and you can use the two words in the same way,
to show that something relates or belongs to something else. Appurtenant shows up a lot in scholarly
writing, in situations like a building addition that fits, or is appurtenant to the original structure, or a
legal decision about whether a claim of discrimination is appurtenant to a particular law.

159. accoutrement

Does that shiny new car come with all the bells and whistles? Then it has plenty of accoutrements, or
accessories.

Say accoutrement with a French accent and you'll be referring to an outfit — a particularly bizarre outfit.
But when we borrowed the word from France, it evolved to refer to any kind of trappings or extras,
especially clothing accessories. So an accoutrement can be anything from a belt or bangles, to extra cup
holders and heated bucket seats.

160. bowdlerize

To bowdlerize means to edit offensive parts out of something. If the hero in an R-rated movie adapted
for TV exclaims, “Oh shoot fudge darn!” but his lips seem to be saying something else, that movie has
been bowdlerized.

The word bowdlerized comes from the name of Dr. T. Bowdler, who decided to publish an edition of
Shakespeare without sexual references or double-entendres (which is when a word has two meanings,
one of them cheeky). Mr. Bowdler thought he was performing a great service for humanity, but
generally if we call something bowdlerized, we’re implying that it was edited in a prudish way.

161. obloquy

If you are on the receiving end of obloquy, then society has turned against you and you are in a state of
disgrace. Poor Hester Prynne who was forced to wear a red "A" on her chest for "adultery" knows all
about obloquy.
If you break the word obloquy into its two Latin roots, you have ob, meaning “against” and loqui,
meaning "to speak" — so obloquy means “to speak against," in an especially mean way. Obloquy can
also be the result of public shame, or criticism. Get scolded in front of the other shoppers by the grocery
store manager for knocking over a display of bottles, and you will understand what obloquy is!

162. opprobrium

If you go against or oppose what's good, you might earn opprobrium — the opposite of getting
attention for something good. Bad behavior leads to opprobrium. If you throw a soft drink off the
theater balcony, the opprobrium might keep you from getting dates to the movies.

Even though the words aren't related, the "opp-" of the word opprobrium sounds a bit like the "app"
part of "inappropriate." Opprobrium isn't an action that leads to disgrace, it's something that comes
from the inappropriate thing that was done. A very inappropriate act leads to opprobrium for the
person who did the act. "Infamy" — extreme dishonor, often with lasting consequences — is a synonym
for opprobrium.

163. elegy

An elegy is a sad poem, usually written to praise and express sorrow for someone who is dead. Although
a speech at a funeral is a eulogy, you might later compose an elegy to someone you have loved and lost
to the grave.

The purpose of this kind of poem is to express feelings rather than tell a story. Thomas Gray's “Elegy
Written in a Country Churchyard” is a poem that reflects on the lives of common people buried in a
church cemetery, and on the nature of human mortality. The noun elegy was borrowed in the 16th
century from Middle French élégie, from Latin elegīa, from Greek elegeia, from elegos "mournful poem
or song."

164. pandemonium

Pandemonium is chaos, total and utter craziness — like the stampede after your team won the
championship, when everyone spilled onto the field at once, bouncing off each other.

If you look carefully at the word pandemonium, you’ll see the word demon inside it. This makes sense,
since the word pandemonium was coined in Milton’s Paradise Lost, where it was the name of the palace
built in the middle of Hell. Milton wrote back in the 17th century. Nowadays, pandemonium crops up
whenever journalists are describing a chaotic scene. High school students have been heard to use it to
describe their lunchroom.

165. panegyric

A formal, high-minded speech can be described with a formal, high-minded word — the word panegyric,
which is a very elaborate tribute to someone. You could consider most eulogies as panegyrics.
It stands to reason that the original use of the word panegyris, from which panegyric derives, was to
describe a public gathering in honor of a Greek god. The Latin, L. panegyricus, altered slightly to mean
"public eulogy," which around the 16th Century shifted to the French panégyrique, which meant
"laudation." In any case, the word today stands for high praise given in a speech or tribute as highfalutin
as the word itself sounds.

166. encomium

An encomium is a fancy word for a formal speech or piece of writing that warmly praises someone or
something.

Encomium comes from the Greek word enkomion which, in a nutshell, is to honor someone or
something at a party in a poetic speech. It used to refer to the song for the winner of the Olympic
Games, sung at a victory celebration. You might hear an encomium at a retirement party, after you
publish a fabulous book, or even at a funeral (a eulogy, or speech at a funeral about the person who
died, is a kind of encomium). It's pronounced with a long O, en-CO-mium.

167.