Grade 6 College Vocabulary, Week 18

Definition: a beginner; someone new to a skill, a job, or a way of life.

From the reading: "...the one a novice, the other a warrior seasoned in twoscore battles."

KJV: "Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil" (1 Timothy 3:6). Paul warns that a beginner raised too high, too fast, is in danger of pride.

Synonyms:

beginner, apprentice, newcomer

Antonyms:

veteran, expert, master

Root:Latin novicius, "new," from novus, "new" (as in novel, renovate).

Definition: young and inexperienced; not yet mature.

From the reading: "...as it will get thee, callow as thou art, out of my Lord Fox's clutches."

Synonyms:

green, raw, immature

Antonyms:

seasoned, mature, experienced

Root:Old English calu, "bald." It was first used of young birds that had no feathers yet, then of youths who were not yet "fledged."

Definition: awkward and clumsy in movement or appearance.

From the reading: "...poor Myles, knowing how ungainly he must seem to them, felt the blood rush to his cheeks..."

Synonyms:

awkward, clumsy, gawky

Antonyms:

graceful, elegant, poised

Root:un- (not) + Middle English gainly, "fitting, graceful," from Old Norse gegn, "straight, ready."

Definition: lacking good manners or polish; rough and crude in speech or behavior.

From the reading: "...to Myles's ruder and more uncouth character Gascoyne lent a tone of his gentler manners..."

Synonyms:

rough, unrefined, boorish

Antonyms:

refined, polished, courteous

Root:Old English uncuth, "unknown, strange" (un- + cuth, "known"). What is unfamiliar seems strange, and then rough.

Definition: honor and respect that come from rank, success, or reputation.

From the reading: "...a law supported by all the prestige of long-continued usage."

Synonyms:

standing, status, renown

Antonyms:

obscurity, disrepute, dishonor

Root:Latin praestigiae, "juggler's tricks, illusions." In French prestige first meant a dazzling illusion, and later a dazzling reputation.

Definition: lowly and fit for a servant; needing little skill.

From the reading: "...what shame can be fouler than to do such menial service, saving for one's rightful Lord?" (Myles refuses to wait upon the bully squires, who have no right to command him. He serves his rightful lord gladly.)

KJV link: Washing feet was the most menial task in a house, and Christ did it Himself: "If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet" (John 13:14).

Synonyms:

lowly, humble, servile

Antonyms:

lofty, dignified, skilled

Root:Anglo-French meignial, "of the household," from meinie, "household," from Latin mansio, "dwelling."

Definition: rebelling against those in charge; refusing to obey.

From the reading: "Never have I been mutinous in my life."

KJV link: Myles refuses the bullies' lawless rule, but he does not rebel against rightful authority: "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God" (Romans 13:1).

Synonyms:

rebellious, insubordinate, defiant

Antonyms:

obedient, loyal, dutiful

Root:French mutin, "rebel," from Old French meute, "uprising," from Latin movere, "to move."

Definition: to mock or provoke someone with insulting words; an insulting, mocking remark.

From the reading: "...said Blunt, tauntingly, and the bachelors gave a jeering laugh in echo."

KJV: "So it shall be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment unto the nations that are round about thee" (Ezekiel 5:15).

Synonyms:

jeer, mock, ridicule

Antonyms:

praise, encourage, compliment

Root:origin uncertain; perhaps from French tant pour tant, "so much for so much" (tit for tat), a sharp reply that pays back an insult.

Definition: frightened into backing down or obeying.

From the reading: "...shrank back, cowed in spite of himself."

KJV link: "The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe" (Proverbs 29:25).

Synonyms:

intimidated, daunted, browbeaten

Antonyms:

emboldened, undaunted, defiant

Root:Old Norse kúga, "to force down, oppress." It is not related to the farm animal.

Definition: rough or abrupt in voice or manner, though not always unkind.

From the reading: "The smith was a gruff, good-natured fellow..."

Synonyms:

brusque, curt, blunt

Antonyms:

gentle, gracious, mild

Root:Dutch grof, "coarse, rough."

Definition: embarrassed and ashamed; made shy or uneasy.

From the reading: "...he felt awkward and abashed at the parting..."

Synonyms:

embarrassed, sheepish, chagrined

Antonyms:

bold, unashamed, confident

Root:Old French esbaïr, "to astonish, dismay" (es- "out" + baer "to gape"): left gaping and red-faced.

Definition: showing no emotion; calm and expressionless.

From the reading: "...only the King sat calm, sullen, impassive."

Synonyms:

expressionless, stoic, unmoved

Antonyms:

emotional, expressive, excitable

Root:Latin in- (not) + passivus, "able to feel," from pati, "to suffer, feel" (as in passion).

Definition: a smaller group inside a larger one, joined together against other groups.

From the reading: "Upon the other hand, the Prince of Wales's faction had been steadily, and of late rapidly, increasing in power..."

Synonyms:

party, camp, clique

Antonyms:

unity, the whole body

Root:Latin factio, "a making, a party," from facere, "to make, do."

Definition: Secret scheming; as a verb, to plot secretly, or to make someone curious (a common test sense: "The puzzle intrigued her").

From the reading: "...the centre of a great web of plot and intrigue, stretching far and wide..." (Notice Pyle's metaphor: the plotting is a web.)

Synonyms:

plotting, scheming, conspiracy; (sense 2) fascinate, interest

Antonyms:

openness, candor; (sense 2) bore

Root:Latin intricare, "to entangle." It shares a root with intricate.

Definition: a real or supposed wrong that gives cause for complaint.

From the reading: "...the King had many rational, perhaps just, grounds for grievance against such an ardent opponent..."

KJV: "Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance?" (Habakkuk 1:3).

Synonyms:

complaint, grudge, injury

Antonyms:

satisfaction, contentment

Root:Old French grevance, from grever, "to burden," from Latin gravis, "heavy."

Definition: standing apart; cool, distant, and reserved toward others.

From the reading: "...he never held himself aloof..." (Myles stays close to the Prince's lively companions, yet does not join in their wrongs.)

KJV: "My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore; and my kinsmen stand afar off" (Psalm 38:11).

Synonyms:

distant, detached, reserved

Antonyms:

friendly, warm, sociable

Root:a- (on) + loof, "windward." Sailors kept the ship's head "aloof," into the wind and away from the dangerous shore.

Definition: The ceremony that makes a man a knight; an award or a mark of high praise (the common test sense).

From the reading: "The accolade was the term used for the creation of a knight upon the field of battle. It was a reward of valor or of meritorious service..."

Synonyms:

honor, tribute, award

Antonyms:

criticism, censure, disgrace

Root:French accolade, from Latin ad- (to) + collum (neck): the old embrace about the neck given to a new knight.

Definition: a comparison that uses like or as.

From the reading: "Myles turned upon the speaker like a flash..."

KJV: "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God" (Psalm 42:1). "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water" (Psalm 1:3).

Synonyms:

comparison, likeness

Antonyms:

(none exact) literal statement

Root:Latin simile, "a like thing," from similis, "like" (as in similar).

Definition: a comparison that says one thing is another, without like or as.

From the reading: "...yet they exercised over the rest of the sixty-four squires and pages a rule of iron..."

KJV: "The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer" (Psalm 18:2).

Synonyms:

figure, image, figurative comparison

Antonyms:

literal statement

Root:Greek metaphora, "a carrying over," from meta- (across) + pherein (to carry). A metaphor carries meaning across from one thing to another.

Definition: In a comparison, the thing being described; its partner, the vehicle, is the thing it is compared to; the general meaning or drift of something said or written (the sense tests check).

Context: In "The LORD is my rock" (Psalm 18:2), the LORD is the tenor and rock is the vehicle. (Sense 2) From the tenor of the Earl's warning, Myles knew he must win the combat or die.

Synonyms:

(sense 2) drift, gist, thrust

Antonyms:

(sense 2) (none exact) the fine details

Root:Latin tenor, "a holding on, a steady course," from tenere, "to hold." The tenor voice was the one that "held" the melody.