Grade 12 College Vocabulary, Week 10

Definition: To wrap in several layers of fabric; to envelop.

Context (original sentence): Mist swathed the hills so that only the church spire showed.

Synonyms:

wrap, envelop, shroud

Antonyms:

unwrap, expose

Root:Old English swathian, to bind.

Definition: Having or showing a lack of skill and sensitivity in dealing with others.

Context (original sentence): It was tactless to mention the burned roast in front of the cook.

Synonyms:

undiplomatic, insensitive, indiscreet

Antonyms:

tactful, diplomatic

Root:Latin tactus, touch + English -less.

Definition: An object thought to have magic powers and to bring good luck.

From the reading: "Under the feet of Argamack, Like new moons were the shoes he bare, Silken trappings hung on his back, In a talisman on his neck, a prayer." (Poems of Longfellow)

Synonyms:

charm, amulet, fetish

Antonyms:

(none exact)

Root:Arabic tilsam, from Greek telesma, a consecrated object.

Definition: Expressing or intending to promote a particular cause or point of view, especially a controversial one.

Context (original sentence): The tendentious history left out every fact that did not flatter its hero.

Synonyms:

biased, partisan, one-sided

Antonyms:

impartial, objective

Root:from tendency, Latin tendere, to stretch toward.

Definition: A harsh-tempered or overbearing woman.

From the reading: "I would have such a fellow whipped for o’erdoing Termagant." (Hamlet)

Synonyms:

shrew, harridan, virago

Antonyms:

(none exact)

Root:Old French Tervagant, an imaginary deity in medieval plays, portrayed as violent.

Definition: Easily irritated; impatient and somewhat bad-tempered.

From the reading: "Must I stand and crouch Under your testy humour?" (Julius Caesar)

Synonyms:

irritable, tetchy, peevish

Antonyms:

good-humored, easygoing

Root:Anglo-French testif, headstrong (teste, head).

Definition: To tie an animal with a rope or chain so as to restrict its movement.

From the reading: "For Lord Hamlet, Believe so much in him that he is young; And with a larger tether may he walk Than may be given you." (Hamlet)

Synonyms:

tie, fasten, secure

Antonyms:

loose, release

Root:Old Norse tjothr, a rope.

Definition: The character or quality of a musical sound or voice as distinct from its pitch and intensity.

Context (original sentence): The timbre of the old cello was warmer than any new instrument's.

Synonyms:

tone, quality, resonance

Antonyms:

(none exact)

Root:French timbre, the sound of a bell.

Definition: Of exceptional strength, size, or power.

From the reading: "At last the tall figure and titanic energy of Flambeau appeared in the doorway of the mansions and dominated the little mob." (The Innocence of Father Brown)

Synonyms:

colossal, gigantic, mighty

Antonyms:

tiny, puny

Root:Greek Titanes, the Titans, giant gods of myth.

Definition: Holding or constituting a purely formal position or title without any real authority; relating to the title of a work.

From the reading: "I have always respected education when in conjunction with genuine sentiments, and I am besides a titular counsellor in rank." (Crime and Punishment)

Synonyms:

nominal, token, in name only

Antonyms:

actual, real

Root:Latin titulus, title.

Definition: Relating to the engraving of stone; elegant and concise, as if engraved in stone.

Context (original sentence): Her lapidary prose packs a whole argument into a single sentence.

Synonyms:

concise, polished, terse

Antonyms:

wordy, rambling

Root:Latin lapis, stone.

Definition: To attempt to sell something, typically by pestering people; to praise as being of great worth.

From the reading: "And off he went, this trusty tout, without even giving me time to thank him." (The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes)

Synonyms:

peddle, promote, hawk

Antonyms:

disparage

Root:Old English tytan, to peep out.

Definition: A significant or recurrent theme; a figurative or metaphorical use of a word.

From the reading: "As if only the savage dwelt near enough to Nature and Truth to borrow a trope from them." (Walden)

Synonyms:

motif, convention, figure of speech

Antonyms:

(none exact)

Root:Greek tropos, a turn.

Definition: Swollen; (of language or literary style) pompous or bombastic.

From the reading: "So high as heaved the tumid hills, so low Down sunk a hollow bottom broad and deep, Capacious bed of waters—.”" (Walden)

Synonyms:

swollen; bombastic, inflated

Antonyms:

plain, simple

Root:Latin tumidus, swollen (tumere, to swell).

Definition: A beginner or novice.

From the reading: "As she slowly drew nigh, from my lofty perch at the fore-mast-head, I had a good view of that sight so remarkable to a tyro in the far ocean fisheries—a whaler at sea, and long absent from home." (Moby-Dick)

Synonyms:

novice, neophyte, beginner

Antonyms:

expert, veteran

Root:Latin tiro, a recruit.

Definition: (Of a sin) slight and pardonable, as opposed to mortal; excusable.

From the reading: "Aristocracy is not an institution: aristocracy is a sin; generally a very venial one." (Orthodoxy)

Synonyms:

pardonable, forgivable, excusable

Antonyms:

unpardonable, mortal

Root:Latin venia, forgiveness.

Definition: Speaking or representing the truth; truthful.

From the reading: "I leave the gall, and go for the sweet fruits Promised to me by the veracious Leader; But to the centre first I needs must plunge.”" (The Divine Comedy)

Synonyms:

truthful, honest, accurate

Antonyms:

mendacious, untruthful

Root:Latin verax, truthful (verus, true).

Definition: Extremely high or steep; causing vertigo.

Context (original sentence): The path wound along a vertiginous cliff high above the sea.

Synonyms:

dizzying, giddy, steep

Antonyms:

(none exact)

Root:Latin vertigo, a whirling.

Definition: A domineering, violent, or bad-tempered woman; archaically, a woman of masculine strength or spirit.

From the reading: "A Scottish virago has been know to dash out the brains of a wounded enemy with her keys; and the intelligence that the good dames had come so well furnished, filled the Council with panic." (A Book of Golden Deeds)

Synonyms:

shrew, harridan; amazon

Antonyms:

(none exact)

Root:Latin virago, a heroic woman (vir, man).

Definition: A person's face, with reference to the form or proportions of the features.

From the reading: "The Trojan chief appear’d in open sight, August in visage, and serenely bright." (The Aeneid)

Synonyms:

face, countenance, features

Antonyms:

(none exact)

Root:Old French visage, from Latin visus, sight.