| |
Word Of The Day Archives - February 2008
Friday, February 1, 2008
|
| foible (n) |
minor fault |
|
|
| Sentence: |
If you can ignore a few of your finance's foibles, you will grow to admire him. |
|
| Similar Words: |
idiosyncrasy |
|
Saturday, February 2, 2008
|
| confluence (n) |
flowing together |
| confluent |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The confluence of their ideas produced a breakthrough. |
|
| Similar Words: |
merging |
|
Sunday, February 3, 2008
|
| diminutive (adj) |
tiny |
| diminutiveness |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The large man looked odd walking the diminutive dog. |
|
| Similar Words: |
miniscule |
|
Monday, February 4, 2008
|
| peruse (v) |
study |
| perusal |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Have you perused the latest sports scores in the newspaper? |
|
| Similar Words: |
read, examine |
|
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
|
| chimerical (adj) |
imaginary |
| chimera |
|
|
| Sentence: |
My goal of winning the U.S. Open was chimerical, but it did help me play better golf. |
|
| Similar Words: |
illusory |
|
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
|
| moratorium (n) |
permitted delay |
|
|
| Sentence: |
During the recent recession, the banks in my town agreed to a moratorium on foreclosing on homes and farms. |
|
| Similar Words: |
suspension |
|
Thursday, February 7, 2008
|
| impermeable (adj) |
not permitting passage |
| permeate, permeability |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Plastic is impermeable to air. |
|
| Similar Words: |
airtight, impervious |
|
Friday, February 8, 2008
|
| cursory (adj) |
brief |
| cursoriness |
|
|
| Sentence: |
With a cursory glance, I could tell that someone had been in the room. |
|
| Similar Words: |
perfunctory |
|
Saturday, February 9, 2008
|
| aggravate (v) |
worsen |
| aggravation |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The marathon aggravated my chronically sore knees. |
|
| Similar Words: |
exacerbate |
|
Sunday, February 10, 2008
|
| expostulate (v) |
reason with |
| expostulation |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The young mother expostulated with her son on the danger of running out in the street. |
|
| Similar Words: |
object |
|
Monday, February 11, 2008
|
| arduous (adj) |
difficult |
| arduousness |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The arduous climb up the hill exhausted all of us. |
|
| Similar Words: |
laborious |
|
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
|
| soluble (adj) |
able to be solved |
| solubility |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Is that math problem soluble -- or is it a black hole? |
|
| Similar Words: |
explainable |
|
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
|
| secular (adj) |
not relating to religion |
| secularism |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Our church had many secular concerns -- such as how to pay the mortgage and how to prevent vandalism. |
|
| Similar Words: |
lay, laity |
|
Thursday, February 14, 2008
|
| nascent (adj) |
just started |
| nascence |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Not 30 years ago, quantum theory was a nascent idea, just waiting to be explored by physicists. |
|
| Similar Words: |
inchoate |
|
Friday, February 15, 2008
|
| harrowing (adj) |
distressing, terrifying |
| harrow |
|
|
| Sentence: |
We closed our eyes during the harrowing raft trip through the rapids. |
|
| Similar Words: |
chilling, agonizing |
|
Saturday, February 16, 2008
|
| dissent (v) |
differ in opinion |
| dissension |
|
|
| Sentence: |
On principle, I dissented from our club's decision to expel a long-time member. |
|
| Similar Words: |
disagree, object |
|
Sunday, February 17, 2008
|
| vituperation (n) |
verbal abuse |
| vituperate, vituperative |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Why are you using vituperation in a friendly school debate? |
|
| Similar Words: |
castigation, aspersion |
|
Monday, February 18, 2008
|
| recreant (adj) |
unfaithful, cowardly |
| recreance |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The recreant young army officer went absent without leave just when the battle was heating up. |
|
| Similar Words: |
craven, traitorous |
|
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
|
| ebullient (adj) |
joyous |
| ebullience |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The Italians were ebullient after winning the World Cup. |
|
| Similar Words: |
exuberant |
|
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
|
| tacit (adj) |
understood |
| tacitness |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The principal gave us tacit approval when he did not object to my plan. |
|
| Similar Words: |
unspoken |
|
Thursday, February 21, 2008
|
| pseudonym (n) |
fictitious name |
| pseudonymous |
|
|
| Sentence: |
For sake of personal protection, I wrote the provocative book under a pseudonym. |
|
| Similar Words: |
alias |
|
Friday, February 22, 2008
|
| foment (v) |
stir up |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Why did you try to foment a dispute between your two bosses? |
|
| Similar Words: |
incite, instigate |
|
Saturday, February 23, 2008
|
| mercurial (adj) |
volatile in mood |
| mercurialness |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Mercurial, my boss smiled one minute and screamed the next. |
|
| Similar Words: |
temperamental, capricious |
|
Sunday, February 24, 2008
|
| jocose (adj) |
given to joking |
| jocoseness |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Naturally jocose from her earliest years, my daughter could amuse her classmates for hours at a time. |
|
| Similar Words: |
playful, jocular |
|
Monday, February 25, 2008
|
| rendezvous (n) |
meeting |
|
|
| Sentence: |
Our rendezvous is set for 3:00 at the park bench behind my office building. |
|
| Similar Words: |
tryst |
|
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
|
| paradox (n) |
illogic |
| paradoxical |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The paradox of thrift bedeviled philosophers for centuries. |
|
| Similar Words: |
contradiction, anomaly |
|
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
|
| amulet (n) |
good-luck charm |
|
|
| Sentence: |
What do the amulets hanging from your bracelet represent? |
|
| Similar Words: |
talisman |
|
Thursday, February 28, 2008
|
| dilate (v) |
widen |
| dilation |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The ophthalmologist dilated my right eye and examined it closely for injury. |
|
| Similar Words: |
stretch, expand |
|
Friday, February 29, 2008
|
| hypothetical (adj) |
assumed |
| hypothesize |
|
|
| Sentence: |
The candidate for mayor refused to answer hypothetical questions about how he would handle problems of our city. |
|
| Similar Words: |
supposed, theoretical |
|
| Return to Today's Word of the Day Page |
|
| Intensive Vocab™ is a revolutionary online program that enables you to learn 2400 vocabulary words through fully interactive and customizable quizzes.... the most effective vocabulary builder yet. Intensive Vocab™ is fun, easy and free! |
|
™
