Grade 6 College Vocabulary, Week 21

Definition: a statement that something is true, made in a way that invites proof; in an argument, the main point you want the reader to accept.

From the reading: "The point you want the reader to accept."

Context: Paul's claim before Festus is short and plain: he is not mad.

Synonyms:

assertion, contention, thesis

Antonyms:

denial, disavowal

Root:Latin clamare, "to cry out, call." A claim calls out what the speaker holds to be true.

Definition: facts, examples, records or testimony that show whether a claim is true.

From the reading: "Facts, examples, records or testimony that support the reason."

Context: Paul's evidence was public: the king himself knew of these events. On college tests, many questions ask which choice gives the best evidence for a claim.

Synonyms:

proof, support, grounds

Antonyms:

hearsay, rumor, speculation

Root:Latin evidentia, "clearness, proof," from e- (out) + videre (to see): something that can be plainly seen.

Definition: the reasons behind a belief, choice or action.

From the reading: "Why the claim is true; usually follows “because.”" (the lesson's definition of a reason)

KJV link: God Himself invites His people to reason: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD" (Isaiah 1:18).

Synonyms:

reasoning, justification, grounds

Antonyms:

whim, caprice

Root:Latin rationalis, "reasonable," from ratio, "reckoning, reason," from reri, "to think, reckon."

Definition: based on personal whim or chance rather than on reason or a fair rule.

From the reading: "A claim with no reason (“because I said so”)." (The lesson lists this as a common mistake. A claim like that is arbitrary.)

Synonyms:

random, unreasoned, capricious

Antonyms:

reasoned, rational, principled

Root:Latin arbitrarius, from arbiter, "judge." It first meant "left to a judge's decision," and later "depending only on someone's will."

Definition: loud and forceful in speaking out; noisy in protest or demand.

From the reading: "Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside thyself..."

Context: Festus was vociferous, but Paul answered calmly. Being loud does not make an argument stronger.

Synonyms:

clamorous, loud, strident

Antonyms:

quiet, soft-spoken, reserved

Root:Latin vox, vocis (voice) + ferre (to carry): carrying the voice far.

Definition: not guided by reason or sound judgment; senseless.

From the reading: "Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad."

Context: Festus called Paul irrational. Paul showed the charge was false by giving a calm, reasoned answer.

Synonyms:

unreasonable, illogical, senseless

Antonyms:

rational, sensible, reasonable

Root:Latin in- (not) + rationalis (reasonable), from ratio, "reason."

Definition: a clear-headed, serious and self-controlled state of mind.

From the reading: "I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness."

Synonyms:

soberness, seriousness, self-control

Antonyms:

frenzy, giddiness, recklessness

Root:Latin sobrietas, from sobrius, "sober" (se- "without" + ebrius "drunk").

Definition: formal politeness and respect in speech and behavior, especially toward someone you disagree with.

From the reading: "I am not mad, most noble Festus..."

Context: Festus had just insulted him, yet Paul showed civility and addressed him as "most noble."

Synonyms:

courtesy, politeness, respect

Antonyms:

rudeness, incivility, discourtesy

Root:Latin civilitas, from civis, "citizen": behaving as a good citizen should.

Definition: done or shown openly, not hidden or secret.

From the reading: "...for this thing was not done in a corner."

Context: Paul's evidence rested on overt events that anyone could check. As the lesson says, "Public events can be checked."

Synonyms:

open, public, plain

Antonyms:

covert, hidden, secret

Root:Old French overt, "open," the past participle of ovrir, "to open," from Latin aperire.

Definition: to claim that something is true, especially a charge of wrongdoing, without yet having proved it.

Context (KJV): At Paul's trial before Festus, his accusers "laid many and grievous complaints against Paul, which they could not prove" (Acts 25:7). They alleged a lot but proved nothing.

Synonyms:

assert, charge, claim

Antonyms:

prove, deny, retract

Root:Anglo-French aleger, "to declare on oath," influenced by Latin allegare, "to cite, send" (ad- + legare).

Definition: to clear someone of blame or of a criminal charge.

KJV: After hearing Paul, the rulers said, "This man doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds" (Acts 26:31). Agrippa added, "This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Caesar" (Acts 26:32).

Synonyms:

acquit, absolve, vindicate

Antonyms:

convict, condemn, incriminate

Root:Latin exonerare, "to unload," from ex- (off) + onus, oneris (burden): to take the burden of guilt off someone.

Definition: a leaning for or against someone or something that keeps a person from judging fairly.

KJV: "He that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbour cometh and searcheth him" (Proverbs 18:17). A wise judge hears both sides before deciding.

Synonyms:

prejudice, partiality, slant

Antonyms:

fairness, impartiality, objectivity

Root:Old French biais, "slant, sideways." In the old game of bowls, a "bias" was the weight that made a ball curve off a straight line.

Definition: sudden and unexpected; (also) short or curt in manner.

Context: In the old legend Kelly retells, a trumpeter of Kraków was struck by an arrow while sounding the hymn from the church tower, and the song still ends with the same abrupt break in his honor.

Synonyms:

sudden, unexpected, curt

Antonyms:

gradual, gentle, leisurely

Root:Latin abruptus, "broken off," from ab- (off) + rumpere (to break).

Definition: a person who is fleeing from danger, an enemy or capture.

Context: After raiders burned their home, the Charnetski family came to Kraków almost as fugitives, still guarding the treasure they had promised to keep.

Synonyms:

runaway, escapee, refugee

Antonyms:

pursuer, captor

Root:Latin fugitivus, from fugere, "to flee."

Definition: something handed down from those who came before, such as property, a duty or an example.

Context: Joseph inherits two legacies: his family's sworn duty to guard the crystal, and the faithful example of the trumpeter who kept playing until the end.

Synonyms:

heritage, inheritance, bequest

Antonyms:

(none exact) novelty, innovation

Root:Medieval Latin legatia, from Latin legare, "to bequeath, leave by will."

Definition: an idea or desire that fills a person's mind and will not let go.

Context: The alchemist's obsession with turning common metal into gold ruled his mind, and others used it to their own ends.

Synonyms:

fixation, preoccupation, mania

Antonyms:

indifference, detachment

Root:Latin obsessio, "a siege," from obsidere, "to besiege" (ob- "against" + sedere "to sit"). An obsession surrounds the mind the way an army surrounds a city.

Definition: gentle, patient and humble; not quick to anger or self-assertion. In Scripture, meekness means strength under control, not weakness.

KJV: "Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth" (Numbers 12:3). "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth" (Matthew 5:5). Christians give their reason "with meekness and fear" (1 Peter 3:15).

Synonyms:

gentle, mild, humble

Antonyms:

arrogant, overbearing, haughty

Root:Old Norse mjúkr, "soft, gentle."

Definition: to answer an argument or charge by showing it is false.

From the reading: "When Festus shouted that Paul was mad, Paul answered calmly."

Context: Paul rebutted the charge of madness with a claim, a reason and evidence.

Synonyms:

refute, counter, disprove

Antonyms:

concede, admit, confirm

Root:Old French reboter, "to push back," from re- (back) + boter (to butt, push).

Definition: a claim supported by reasons and evidence; (also) a quarrel. Here, and on college tests, it usually means the first sense.

From the reading: "A claim supported by reasons and evidence. (Not a quarrel.)"

KJV link: Before the governor Felix, Paul "reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled" (Acts 24:25).

Synonyms:

case, line of reasoning, reasoning

Antonyms:

(first sense) assertion without proof; (second sense) agreement, harmony

Root:Latin argumentum, "proof, evidence," from arguere, "to make clear, prove."

Definition: the art of public speaking, especially formal and persuasive speaking.

From the reading: "What makes a speaker worth listening to: his voice, or his reasons?" (a question from this week's picture study)

Context: Daniel Webster's oratory in the Senate in 1830 ended with the famous words "Liberty and Union, now and for ever, one and inseparable!"

Synonyms:

rhetoric, public speaking, eloquence

Antonyms:

(none exact) mumbling, inarticulateness

Root:Latin oratoria, "the art of speaking," from orare, "to speak, plead, pray."