Grade 6 College Vocabulary, Week 9

Definition: An argument that a story or claim is believable and true; any proof or evidence that shows something is true.

From the reading: "Confirmation is refutation turned around."

Synonyms:

proof, verification, support

Antonyms:

refutation, denial, disproof

Root:Latin confirmare, "to make firm," from con- (thoroughly) + firmus (firm, strong).

Definition: not controlled by, relying on, or connected with another; standing on one's own.

From the reading: "The more early, named and independent the witnesses, the stronger the confirmation."

Synonyms:

separate, self-reliant, unconnected

Antonyms:

dependent, reliant, subordinate

Root:Latin in- (not) + dependere (to hang from): not hanging on anyone else.

Definition: To show beyond doubt that something is true; to set up firmly or found, such as a school or a law.

From the reading: "at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established."

KJV: The lesson's verse comes from God's law: "at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established" (Deuteronomy 19:15).

Synonyms:

prove, confirm, settle; (second sense) found, institute

Antonyms:

disprove, refute; (second sense) abolish, overthrow

Root:Old French establir, from Latin stabilire, "to make stable," from stabilis (standing firm).

Definition: great wickedness or injustice; a sinful act.

From the reading: "One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth"

KJV: This is the first part of Deuteronomy 19:15. God would not let one witness alone convict a man of iniquity.

Synonyms:

wickedness, sin, injustice

Antonyms:

righteousness, virtue, justice

Root:Latin iniquitas, "unfairness," from in- (not) + aequus (equal, just).

Definition: clear, logical and convincing; strong enough to persuade.

Context: Paul gives a cogent argument: he names witnesses whom his readers could find and question.

Synonyms:

convincing, compelling, persuasive

Antonyms:

weak, unconvincing, flimsy

Root:Latin cogere, "to drive together, compel," from co- (together) + agere (to drive). A cogent argument drives the mind to agree.

Definition: Agreeing with itself in every part, without contradiction; acting the same way over time.

Context: A true account is consistent: what happens in its middle agrees with how it begins and how it ends. That is the head called "logical."

Synonyms:

harmonious, compatible, steady

Antonyms:

contradictory, inconsistent, erratic

Root:Latin consistere, "to stand firm, stand together," from con- (together) + sistere (to stand).

Definition: logically connected and easy to follow; making sense as a whole.

Context: Paul's list is coherent: he names the witnesses in order, from Cephas to the twelve to the five hundred, and last of all himself.

Synonyms:

orderly, logical, intelligible

Antonyms:

jumbled, confused, incoherent

Root:Latin cohaerere, "to stick together," from co- (together) + haerere (to cling).

Definition: incapable of being wrong or of failing; completely reliable.

KJV: "To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs" (Acts 1:3).

Synonyms:

unerring, certain, unfailing

Antonyms:

fallible, mistaken, unreliable

Root:Latin in- (not) + fallere (to deceive, to fail): that which cannot deceive.

Definition: a short story that teaches a moral or spiritual lesson by comparing it to something everyday.

From the reading: "Matthew 15:14 is the parable it illustrates." (The lesson is talking about Bruegel's painting of the blind leading the blind.)

KJV: "Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable" (Matthew 15:15).

Synonyms:

allegory, fable, illustration

Antonyms:

(none exact) literal account

Root:Greek parabole, "a comparison," literally "a placing beside," from para (beside) + ballein (to throw).

Definition: easily tricked into believing something; too ready to trust.

Context: In Bruegel's painting the gullible men at the back follow the man in front without checking where he leads. Compare "The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going" (Proverbs 14:15).

Synonyms:

naive, unsuspecting, easily fooled

Antonyms:

wary, discerning, suspicious

Root:English gull, "to dupe or cheat"; a gull was a person easily fooled.

Definition: to check or prove that something is true or accurate.

Context: Paul's readers could verify his account, because most of the five hundred witnesses were still alive.

Synonyms:

confirm, check, prove

Antonyms:

disprove, refute, contradict

Root:Latin verus (true) + facere (to make): to show something to be true.

Definition: to declare that something is true, especially as a witness; to be clear proof of something.

Context: Cephas, the twelve and James could all attest that they had seen the risen Lord.

Synonyms:

testify, certify, vouch for

Antonyms:

deny, contradict, disprove

Root:Latin attestari, from ad- (to) + testis (a witness).

Definition: a deadly disease that spreads quickly among many people; a plague.

Context: When a pestilence swept through London, Robin's servants fled and left him alone and sick in his father's house.

KJV: "Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday" (Psalm 91:6).

Synonyms:

plague, epidemic, scourge

Antonyms:

health, wholesomeness

Root:Latin pestilentia, from pestis, "plague, ruin."

Definition: to change oneself or something else in order to suit new conditions.

Context: Robin can no longer walk as a page should, so he must adapt and learn new ways to serve.

Synonyms:

adjust, accommodate, modify

Antonyms:

resist, stagnate, remain unchanged

Root:Latin adaptare, from ad- (to) + aptare (to fit).

Definition: quick, neat and skillful, especially with the hands.

Context: Brother Luke teaches Robin to carve, and Robin's hands grow deft with the knife.

Synonyms:

skillful, nimble, adroit

Antonyms:

clumsy, awkward, inept

Root:Middle English defte, "gentle, fitting," a form of the word that later became daft. The two meanings drifted far apart.

Definition: something that blocks the way or makes progress hard.

Context: Robin learns that his weak legs are an obstacle but not a wall without a door: there is still a way for him to serve.

Synonyms:

barrier, hindrance, impediment

Antonyms:

aid, help, advantage

Root:Latin obstaculum, from ob- (against) + stare (to stand): something that stands in your way.

Definition: to state firmly and publicly that something is true.

KJV: "This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly" (Titus 3:8).

Synonyms:

declare, assert, maintain

Antonyms:

deny, reject, retract

Root:Latin affirmare, from ad- (to) + firmare (to make firm). This word comes from the same root as confirmation.

Definition: to give evidence that proves a claim is true.

Context: A good confirmation does not simply say "I believe it." It substantiates the story with named witnesses.

Synonyms:

prove, support, back up

Antonyms:

disprove, refute, undermine

Root:Latin substantia, "substance," from sub (under) + stare (to stand): to put something solid under a claim.

Definition: To make up something false in order to deceive; to build or manufacture.

Context: A man who fabricates a story seldom names five hundred living witnesses, because any of them could expose him.

Synonyms:

invent, concoct, falsify; (second sense) construct

Antonyms:

tell truly, report accurately; (second sense) dismantle

Root:Latin fabricari, "to make, build," from faber (a craftsman).

Definition: information heard from other people that the speaker did not see or know for himself; rumor.

Context: Paul does not rely on hearsay. He names people who saw the risen Christ with their own eyes.

Synonyms:

rumor, gossip, secondhand report

Antonyms:

eyewitness account, firsthand evidence

Root:English hear + say: what one hears others say.