abrogation n : the act of abrogating; an official or legal cancellation [syn: {repeal}, {annulment}] % accentuate v 1: to stress, single out as important; "Dr. Jones emphasizes exercise in addition to a change in diet" [syn: {stress}, {emphasize}, {emphasise}, {punctuate}, {accent}] 2: put stress on; utter with an accent; "In Farsi, you accent the last syllable of each word" [syn: {stress}, {accent}] % affable adj : diffusing warmth and friendliness; "an affable smile"; "an amiable gathering"; "cordial relations"; "a cordial greeting"; "a genial host" [syn: {amiable}, {cordial}, {genial}] % ague n 1: a fit of shivering 2: successive stages of chills and fever that is a symptom of malaria [syn: {chills and fever}] 3: a mark (') placed above a vowel to indicate pronunciation [syn: {acute accent}, {acute}] % aphorism n : a short pithy instructive saying [syn: {apothegm}, {apophthegm}] % aspirant adj 1: seeking advancement or recognition [syn: {aspiring(p)}, {wishful}, {would-be(a)}] 2: desiring or striving for recognition or advancement [syn: {aspiring(a)}] n : an ambitious and aspiring young person; "a lofty aspirant"; "two executive hopefuls joined the firm"; "the audience was full of Madonna wannabes" [syn: {aspirer}, {hopeful}, {wannabe}, {wannabee}] % assuage v 1: cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of; "She managed to mollify the angry customer" [syn: {pacify}, {lenify}, {conciliate}, {appease}, {mollify}, {placate}, {gentle}, {gruntle}] 2: satisfy (thirst); "The cold water quenched his thirst" [syn: {quench}, {slake}, {allay}] 3: provide physical relief, as from pain; "This pill will relieve your headaches" [syn: {relieve}, {alleviate}, {palliate}] % astute adj : marked by practical hardheaded intelligence; "a smart businessman"; "an astute tenant always reads the small print in a lease"; "he was too shrewd to go along with them on a road that could lead only to their overthrow" [syn: {sharp}, {shrewd}] % austerity n : the trait of great self-denial (especially refraining from worldly pleasures) [syn: {asceticism}, {nonindulgence}] % avuncular adj 1: being or relating to an uncle 2: like an uncle in kindness or indulgence; "showed avuncular concern" % coalesce v 1: mix together different elements; "The colors blend well" [syn: {blend}, {flux}, {mix}, {conflate}, {commingle}, {immix}, {fuse}, {meld}, {combine}, {merge}] 2: fuse or cause to grow together % coalesced adj : joined together into a whole; "United Industries"; "the amalgamated colleges constituted a university"; "a consolidated school" [syn: {amalgamate}, {amalgamated}, {consolidated}, {fused}] % cogent adj 1: having the power to influence or convince; "a cogent analysis of the problem"; "potent arguments" [syn: {potent}, {powerful}] 2: powerfully persuasive; "a cogent argument"; "a telling presentation"; "a weighty argument" [syn: {telling}, {weighty}] % collocation n 1: a grouping of words in a sentence 2: the act of positioning close together (or side by side); "it is the result of the juxtaposition of contrasting colors" [syn: {juxtaposition}, {apposition}] % concomitant adj : following as a consequence; "an excessive growth of bureaucracy, with related problems"; "snags incidental to the changeover in management" [syn: {accompanying}, {attendant}, {incidental}, {incidental to(p)}] n : an event or situation that happens at the same time as or in connection with another [syn: {accompaniment}, {co-occurrence}] % congenial adj 1: suitable to your needs or similar to your nature; "a congenial atmosphere to work in"; "two congenial spirits united...by mutual confidence and reciprocal virtues"- T.L.Peacock [syn: {agreeable}] [ant: {uncongenial}] 2: used of plants; capable of cross-fertilization or of being grafted % contrapuntal adj 1: relating to or characteristic of or according to the rules of counterpoint; "contrapuntal base" 2: having two or more independent but harmonically related melodic parts sounding together [syn: {polyphonic}] [ant: {monophonic}] % cordial adj 1: diffusing warmth and friendliness; "an affable smile"; "an amiable gathering"; "cordial relations"; "a cordial greeting"; "a genial host" [syn: {affable}, {amiable}, {genial}] 2: showing warm and heartfelt friendliness; "gave us a cordial reception"; "a hearty welcome" [syn: {hearty}] 3: sincerely or intensely felt; "a cordial regard for his visitor's comfort"; "a cordial abhorrence of waste"; "a fervent hope" [syn: {fervent}] cordial n : strong highly flavored sweet liquor usually drunk after a meal [syn: {liqueur}] % culminate v 1: end, especially to reach a final or climactic stage; "The meeting culminated in a tearful embrace" [syn: {climax}] 2: bring to a head or to the highest point; "Seurat culminated pointillism" 3: reach the highest or most decisive point 4: of a celestial body: reach its highest altitude or the meridian 5: rise to, or form, a summit; "The helmet culminated in a crest" % deferential adj : showing deference [syn: {deferent}, {regardful}] % deprecate v 1: express strong disapproval of; deplore 2: belittle; "The teacher should not deprecate his student's efforts" [syn: {depreciate}] % despond v : lose confidence or hope; become dejected; "The supporters of the Presidential candidate desponded when they learned the early results of the election" % detritus n 1: the remains of something that has been destroyed or broken up [syn: {debris}, {dust}, {junk}, {rubble}] 2: loose material (stone fragments and silt etc) that is worn away from rocks % dialectic adj : of or relating to or employing dialectic; "the dialectical method" [syn: {dialectical}] dialectic n 1: any formal system of reasoning that arrives at the truth by the exchange of logical arguments 2: a contradiction of ideas that serves as the determining factor in their interaction; "this situation created the inner dialectic of American history" % dialectical adj 1: of or relating to logical disputation; "a dialectical weapon against his opponent" 2: of or relating to or employing dialectic; "the dialectical method" [syn: {dialectic}] % dirge n : a song or hymn of mourning composed or performed as a memorial to a dead person [syn: {coronach}, {lament}, {requiem}, {threnody}] % disavowal n : denial of any connection with or knowledge of [syn: {disclaimer}] % disparate adj 1: fundamentally different or distinct in quality or kind; "such disparate attractions as grand opera and game fishing"; "disparate ideas" 2: including markedly dissimilar elements; "a disparate aggregate of creeds and songs and prayers" % ebullient adj : joyously unrestrained [syn: {exuberant}, {high-spirited}] % efficacy n : capacity or power to produce a desired effect; "concern about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine" [syn: {efficaciousness}] [ant: {inefficacy}] % elegiac adj 1: resembling or characteristic of or appropriate to an elegy; "an elegiac poem on a friend's death" 2: expressing sorrow often for something past; "an elegiac lament for youthful ideals" % eloquence n : powerful and effective language [syn: {fluency}] % enmity n 1: a state of deep-seated ill-will [syn: {hostility}, {antagonism}] 2: the feeling of a hostile person; "he could no longer contain his hostility" [syn: {hostility}, {ill will}] % entropy n 1: (communication theory) a numerical measure of the uncertainty of an outcome; "the signal contained thousands of bits of information" [syn: {information}, {selective information}] 2: (thermodynamics) a thermodynamic quantity representing the amount of energy in a system that is no longer available for doing mechanical work; "entropy increases as matter and energy in the universe degrade to an ultimate state of inert uniformity" [syn: {randomness}, {S}] % erudite adj : having or showing profound knowledge; "a learned jurist"; "an erudite professor" [syn: {learned}] % eschew v : avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of [syn: {shun}] % expectorate v 1: clear out the chest and lungs; "This drug expectorates quickly" [syn: {clear out}, {drive out}] 2: discharge (phlegm or sputum) from the lungs and out of the mouth [syn: {cough up}, {cough out}, {spit up}, {spit out}] % expedient adj 1: serving to promote your interest; "was merciful only when mercy was expedient" [ant: {inexpedient}] 2: appropriate to a purpose; practical; "in the circumstances it was expedient to express loyalty" expedient n : a means to an end; not necessarily a principled or ethical one % expostulate v : reason with (somebody) for the purpose of dissuasion % exquisite adj 1: intense or sharp; "suffered exquisite pain"; "felt exquisite pleasure" [syn: {keen}] 2: lavishly elegant and refined [syn: {recherche}] 3: of delicate composition and artistry; "a dainty teacup"; "an exquisite cameo" [syn: {dainty}] 4: of extreme beauty; "her exquisite face" % exult v 1: feel extreme happiness or elation [syn: {walk on air}, {be on cloud nine}, {jump for joy}] 2: to express great joy; "Who cannot exult in Spring?" [syn: {rejoice}, {triumph}, {jubilate}] % falsifiable adj : capable of being tested (verified or falsified) by experiment or observation [syn: {confirmable}, {verifiable}] % foist v 1: to force onto another; "He foisted his work on me" 2: insert surreptitiously or without warrant % fungible adj : of goods or commodities; freely exchangeable for or replaceable by another of like nature or kind in the satisfaction of an obligation n : a commodity that is freely interchangeable with another in satisfying an obligation % gesticulate v : show, express or direct through movement; "He gestured his desire to leave" [syn: {gesture}, {motion}] % gravitas n : formality in bearing and appearance; "he behaved with great dignity" [syn: {dignity}, {lordliness}] % grist n : grain intended to be or that has been ground % imbroglio n 1: an intricate and confusing interpersonal or political situation [syn: {embroilment}] 2: a very embarrassing misunderstanding % immanent adj 1: of a mental act performed entirely within the mind; "a cognition is an immanent act of mind" [syn: {subjective}] [ant: {transeunt}] 2: of qualities that are spread throughout something; "ambition is immanent in human nature"; "we think of God as immanent in nature" % incarnate adj 1: possessing or existing in bodily form; "what seemed corporal melted as breath into the wind"- Shakespeare; "an incarnate spirit"; "`corporate' is an archaic term" [syn: {bodied}, {corporal}, {corporate}, {embodied}] 2: invested with a bodily form especially of a human body; "a monarch...regarded as a god incarnate" v 1: make concrete and real [ant: {disincarnate}] 2: represent in bodily form; "He embodies all that is evil wrong with the system"; "The painting substantiates the feelings of the artist" [syn: {body forth}, {embody}, {substantiate}] % inchoate adj : only partly in existence; imperfectly formed; "incipient civil disorder"; "an incipient tumor"; "a vague inchoate idea" [syn: {incipient}] % incipient adj : only partly in existence; imperfectly formed; "incipient civil disorder"; "an incipient tumor"; "a vague inchoate idea" [syn: {inchoate}] % incredulity n : doubt about the truth of something [syn: {disbelief}, {skepticism}, {mental rejection}] % inexorable adj 1: not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty; "grim determination"; "grim necessity"; "Russia's final hour, it seemed, approached with inexorable certainty"; "relentless persecution"; "the stern demands of parenthood" [syn: {grim}, {relentless}, {stern}, {unappeasable}, {unforgiving}, {unrelenting}] 2: not capable of being swayed or diverted from a course; unsusceptible to persuasion; "he is adamant in his refusal to change his mind"; "Cynthia was inexorable; she would have none of him"- W.Churchill; "an intransigent conservative opposed to every liberal tendancy" [syn: {adamant}, {adamantine}, {intransigent}] % inscrutable adj : of an obscure nature; "the new insurance policy is written without cryptic or mysterious terms"; "a deep dark secret"; "the inscrutible workings of Providence"; "in its mysterious past it encompasses all the dim origins of life"- Rachel Carson; "rituals totally mystifying to visitors from other lands" [syn: {cryptic}, {cryptical}, {deep}, {mysterious}, {mystifying}] % interminable adj : tiresomely long; seemingly without end; "endless debates"; "an endless conversation"; "the wait seemed eternal"; "eternal quarreling"; "an interminable sermon" [syn: {endless}, {eternal}] % macrocosm n : everything that exists anywhere; "they study the evolution of the universe"; "the biggest tree in existence" [syn: {universe}, {existence}, {creation}, {world}, {cosmos}] % magnate n : a very wealthy or powerful businessman; "an oil baron" [syn: {baron}, {big businessman}, {business leader}, {king}, {mogul}, {power}, {top executive}, {tycoon}] % mesmeric adj : attracting and holding interest as if by a spell; "read the bedtime story in a hypnotic voice"; "she had a warm mesmeric charm"; "the sheer force of his presence was mesmerizing"; "a spellbinding description of life in ancient Rome" [syn: {hypnotic}, {mesmerizing}, {spellbinding}] % microcosm n : a miniature model of something % moribund adj 1: not growing or changing; without force or vitality [syn: {stagnant}] 2: on the point of death; breathing your last; "a moribund patient"; "the expiring man was carried home by his two friends" % motif n 1: a design that consists of recurring shapes or colors 2: a theme that is elaborated on in a piece of music [syn: {motive}] 3: a unifying idea that is a recurrent element in a literary or artistic work; "it was the usual `boy gets girl' theme" [syn: {theme}] % negate v 1: be in contradiction with [syn: {contradict}, {belie}] 2: deny the truth of [syn: {contradict}, {contravene}] 3: prove negative; show to be false [syn: {contradict}] [ant: {confirm}] 4: make ineffective by counterbalancing the effect of; "Her optimism neutralizes his gloom"; "This action will negate the effect of my efforts" [syn: {neutralize}, {neutralise}, {nullify}] % nonpareil adj : eminent beyond or above comparison; "matchless beauty"; "the team's nonpareil center fielder"; "she's one girl in a million"; "the one and only Muhammad Ali"; "a peerless scholar"; "infamy unmatched in the Western world"; "wrote with unmatchable clarity"; "unrivaled mastery of her art" [syn: {matchless}, {one(a)}, {one and only(a)}, {peerless}, {unmatched}, {unmatchable}, {unrivaled}, {unrivalled}] n 1: model of excellence or perfection of a kind; one having no equal [syn: {ideal}, {paragon}, {saint}, {apotheosis}, {nonesuch}, {nonsuch}] 2: colored beads of sugar used as a topping on e.g. candies and cookies 3: a flat disk of chocolate covered with beads of colored sugar % nostrum n 1: hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases; once sought by the alchemists [syn: {panacea}, {cure-all}] 2: patent medicine whose efficacy is questionable % nubile adj : of girls or women [syn: {marriageable}] % opprobrium n 1: state of disgrace resulting from public abuse [syn: {obloquy}] 2: a state of extreme dishonor; "a date which will live in infamy"- F.D.Roosevelt; "the name was a by-word of scorn and opprobrium throughout the city" [syn: {infamy}] [ant: {fame}] % ostensibly adv : from appearances alone; "irrigation often produces bumper crops from apparently desert land"; "the child is seemingly healthy but the doctor is concerned"; "had been ostensibly frank as to his purpose while really concealing it"-Thomas Hardy; "on the face of it the problem seems minor" [syn: {apparently}, {seemingly}, {on the face of it}] % palliative adj : moderating pain or sorrow by making it easier to bear [syn: {alleviative}, {alleviatory}, {lenitive}, {mitigative}, {mitigatory}] n : remedy that alleviates pain without curing [syn: {alleviant}, {alleviator}] % parenthetic adj 1: as if using parentheses; "a parenthetical style" [syn: {parenthetical}] 2: qualifying or explaining; placed or as if placed in parentheses; "parenthetical remarks" [syn: {parenthetical}] % parlance n : a manner of speaking that is natural to native speakers of a language [syn: {idiom}] % pensive adj 1: persistently or morbidly thoughtful [syn: {brooding}, {broody}, {contemplative}, {meditative}, {musing}, {pondering}, {reflective}, {ruminative}] 2: showing pensive sadness; "the sensitive and wistful response of a poet to the gentler phases of beauty" [syn: {wistful}] % permutation n 1: an event in which one thing is substituted for another; "the replacement of lost blood by a transfusion of donor blood" [syn: {substitution}, {transposition}, {replacement}, {switch}] 2: the act of changing the arrangement of a given number of elements 3: complete change in character or condition; "the permutations...taking place in the physical world"- Henry Miller 4: act of changing the lineal order of objects in a group % piquant adj 1: having an agreeably pungent taste [syn: {savory}, {savoury}, {spicy}, {zesty}] 2: engagingly stimulating or provocative; "a piquant wit"; "salty language" [syn: {salty}] 3: attracting or delighting; "an engaging frankness"; "a piquant face with large appealing eyes" [syn: {engaging}] % precipitate n : a precipitated solid substance in suspension or after settling or filtering precipitate v 1: separate as a fine suspension of solid particles 2: bring about abruptly; "The crisis precipitated by Russia's revolution" 3: fall from clouds; "rain, snow and sleet were falling"; "Vesuvius precipitated its fiery, destructive rage on Herculaneum" [syn: {come down}, {fall}] 4: fall vertically, sharply, or headlong; "Our economy precipitated into complete ruin" 5: hurl or throw violently; "The bridge broke and precipitated the train into the river below" precipitate adj : done with very great haste and without due deliberation; "hasty marriage seldom proveth well"- Shakespeare; "hasty makeshifts take the place of planning"- Arthur Geddes; "rejected what was regarded as an overhasty plan for reconversion"; "wondered whether they had been rather precipitate in deposing the king" [syn: {hasty}, {overhasty}, {precipitant}, {precipitous}] % precocious adj 1: characterized by or characteristic of exceptionally early development or maturity (especially in mental aptitude); "a precocious child"; "a precocious achievement" [ant: {retarded}] 2: appearing or developing early; "precocious flowers appear before the leaves as in some species of magnolias" % propitious adj : presenting favorable circumstances; "propitious omens" [ant: {unpropitious}] % repudiate v 1: cast off or disown; "She renounced her husband"; "The parents repudiated their son" [syn: {renounce}] 2: refuse to acknowledge, ratify, or recognize as valid; "The woman repudiated the divorce settlement" 3: refuse to recognize or pay; "repudiate a debt" 4: reject as untrue, unfounded, or unjust; "She repudiated the accusations" % reticent adj 1: temperamentally disinclined to talk [syn: {untalkative}] 2: cool and formal in manner [syn: {reserved}, {restrained}, {unemotional}] 3: reluctant to draw attention to yourself [syn: {self-effacing}] % sagely adv : in a wise manner; "she acted wisely when she invited her parents" [syn: {wisely}, {with wisdom}, {showing wisdom}] [ant: {foolishly}] % seditious adj 1: arousing to action or rebellion [syn: {incendiary}, {incitive}, {inflammatory}, {instigative}, {rabble-rousing}] 2: in opposition to a civil authority or government [syn: {insurgent}, {subversive}] % sentience n 1: state of elementary or undifferentiated consciousness; "the crash intruded on his awareness" [syn: {awareness}] 2: the faculty through which the external world is apprehended; "in the dark he had to depend on touch and on his senses of smell and hearing" [syn: {sense}, {sensation}, {sentiency}, {sensory faculty}] 3: the readiness to perceive sensations; elementary or undifferentiated consciousness; "gave sentience to slugs and newts"- Richard Eberhart [ant: {insentience}] % spurn v : reject with contempt; "She spurned his advances" [syn: {reject}, {freeze off}, {scorn}, {pooh-pooh}, {disdain}, {turn down}] % stalwart adj 1: having rugged physical strength; inured to fatigue or hardships; "hardy explorers of northern Canada"; "proud of her tall stalwart son"; "stout seamen"; "sturdy young athletes" [syn: {hardy}, {stout}, {sturdy}] 2: dependable; "the stalwart citizens at Lexington"; "a stalwart supporter of the UN"; "stout hearts" [syn: {stout}] 3: used especially of persons; "a stalwart knight"; "a stouthearted fellow who had an active career in the army" [syn: {stouthearted}] n : a person who is loyal to their allegiance (especially in times of revolt) [syn: {loyalist}] % stentorian adj : used of the voice [syn: {booming}] % stoical adj : seeming unaffected by pleasure or pain; impassive; "stoic courage"; "stoic patience"; "a stoical sufferer" [syn: {stoic}] % stultify v 1: prove to be of unsound mind or demonstrate someone's incompetence; "nobody is legally allowed to stultify himself" 2: cause to appear foolish; "He stultified himself by contradicting himself and being inconsistent" 3: deprive of strength or efficiency; make useless or worthless; "This measure crippled our efforts"; "Their behavior stultified the boss's hard work" [syn: {cripple}] [also: {stultified}] % substrate n 1: the substance acted upon by an enzyme or ferment 2: any stratum lying underneath another [syn: {substratum}] % superfluous adj 1: serving no useful purpose; having no excuse for being; "otiose lines in a play"; "advice is wasted words" [syn: {otiose}, {pointless}, {wasted}] 2: more than is needed, desired, or required; "trying to lose excess weight"; "found some extra change lying on the dresser"; "yet another book on heraldry might be thought redundant"; "skills made redundant by technological advance"; "sleeping in the spare room"; "supernumerary ornamentation"; "it was supererogatory of her to gloat"; "delete superfluous (or unnecessary) words"; "extra ribs as well as other supernumerary internal parts"; "surplus cheese distributed to the needy" [syn: {excess}, {extra}, {redundant}, {spare}, {supererogatory}, {supernumerary}, {surplus}] % surreptitious adj 1: marked by quiet and caution and secrecy; taking pains to avoid being observed; "a furtive manner"; "a lurking prowler"; "a sneak attack"; "stealthy footsteps"; "a surreptitious glance at his watch"; "someone skulking in the shadows" [syn: {furtive}, {lurking}, {skulking}, {sneak(a)}, {sneaky}, {stealthy}] 2: conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods; "clandestine intelligence operations"; "cloak-and-dagger activities behind enemy lines"; "hole-and-corner intrigue"; "secret missions"; "a secret agent"; "secret sales of arms"; "surreptitious mobilization of troops"; "an undercover investigation"; "underground resistance" [syn: {clandestine}, {cloak-and-dagger}, {hole-and-corner(a)}, {hugger-mugger}, {hush-hush}, {on the quiet(p)}, {secret}, {undercover}, {underground}] % teleology n : (philosophy) a doctrine explaining phenomena by their ends or purposes % transcendent adj 1: beyond and outside the ordinary range of human experience or understanding; "philosophers...often explicitly reject the notion of any transcendent reality beyond thought...and claim to be concerned only with thought itself..."- W.P.Alston; "the unknowable mysteries of lifer" [syn: {unknowable}] 2: exceeding or surpassing usual limits especially in excellence [syn: {surpassing}] % trenchant adj 1: having keenness and forcefulness and penetration in thought, expression, or intellect; "searching insights"; "trenchant criticism" [syn: {searching}] 2: characterized by or full of force and vigor; "a hard-hitting expose"; "a trenchant argument" [syn: {hard-hitting}] 3: clearly or sharply defined to the mind; "clear-cut evidence of tampering"; "Claudius was the first to invade Britain with distinct...intentions of conquest"; "trenchant distinctions between right and wrong" [syn: {clear-cut}, {distinct}] % turgid adj 1: ostentatiously lofty in style; "a man given to large talk"; "tumid political prose" [syn: {bombastic}, {declamatory}, {large}, {orotund}, {tumid}] 2: abnormally distended especially by fluids or gas; "hungry children with bloated stomachs"; "he had a grossly distended stomach"; "eyes with puffed (or puffy) lids"; "swollen hands"; "tumescent tissue"; "puffy tumid flesh" [syn: {bloated}, {distended}, {puffed}, {puffy}, {swollen}, {tumescent}, {tumid}] % vacuous adj 1: complacently or inanely foolish [syn: {asinine}, {fatuous}, {inane}, {mindless}] 2: devoid of significance or point; "empty promises"; "a hollow victory"; "vacuous comments" [syn: {empty}, {hollow}] % vitriol n 1: (H2SO4) a highly corrosive acid made from sulfur dioxide; widely used in the chemical industry [syn: {oil of vitriol}, {sulfuric acid}, {sulphuric acid}] 2: abusive or venomous language used to express blame or censure or bitter deep-seated ill will [syn: {vituperation}, {invective}] v 1: expose to the effects of vitriol or injure with vitriol 2: subject to bitter verbal abuse [also: {vitriolling}, {vitriolled}] % vociferous adj : conspicuously and offensively loud; given to vehement outcry; "blatant radios"; "a clamorous uproar"; "strident demands"; "a vociferous mob" [syn: {blatant}, {clamant}, {clamorous}, {strident}] %