List 9

Describing People or Behavior

  1. Boorish: Rude or unrefined in manners.
  2. Circumspect: Cautious or wary, especially to avoid risks.
  3. Comity: Courtesy, harmony, or mutual respect.
  4. Cordial: Warm and friendly.
  5. Impetuous: Acting quickly without thought; impulsive.
  6. Irascible: Easily angered or irritable.
  7. Mercenary: Motivated by money rather than morality or duty.

Describing Harm or Productivity

  1. Deleterious: Harmful or damaging.
  2. Fecund: Fertile or highly productive.
  3. Feeble: Weak or lacking strength.

Mental Traits or Knowledge

  1. Edify: Enlighten or uplift through knowledge.
  2. Erudite: Having or showing great knowledge or learning.

Describing Contrasts or Differences

  1. Dichotomy: A split into two contrasting or opposing parts.

Describing Actions or Effects

  1. Elicit: Draw out a response, answer, or action.

Describing Situations or Results

  1. Felicitous: Well-suited or apt; pleasant and fortunate.
  2. Forbear: To tolerate or endure something patiently.
  3. Haphazard: Lacking organization or planning; random.
  4. Hodgepodge: A mixture of different things; a jumble.
  5. Impede: To hinder or obstruct progress.
  6. Mordant: Sharply critical or sarcastic.

Describing Behavior or Traits

  1. Meticulous: Very careful and precise about details.
  2. Outstrip: To surpass or exceed.
  3. Precarious: Risky, unstable, or uncertain.
  4. Quirky: Unusual in an endearing or peculiar way.
  5. Repudiate: To reject or refuse to accept.
  6. Tact: Skill in handling difficult situations without causing offense.
  7. Trifling: Lacking significance or importance.
  8. Turbulent: Full of conflict, disorder, or chaos.

Making Things Easy …

Boorish (ˈbʊr-ɪsh)

Meaning: Rude or unrefined in manners or behavior.
Mnemonic: Think of a “boar” at a fancy dinner table—messy and rude!
Sentence: His boorish comments offended everyone at the meeting.

Brook (brʊk)

Meaning: To tolerate or endure something, especially an annoyance.
Mnemonic: Imagine you’re fishing in a brook (small stream) and tolerating mosquitoes while waiting for a fish!
Sentence: The teacher did not brook any nonsense during the exam.

Circumspect (ˈsɜr-kəm-spekt)

Meaning: Cautious or wary, especially when considering potential consequences.
Mnemonic: Think of a circus inspector, being very careful to check every act for safety!
Sentence: She was circumspect about sharing personal information online.

Comity (ˈkɑː-mɪ-ti)

Meaning: A courteous harmony or mutual respect toward others.
Mnemonic: Think of a comet passing peacefully through space, maintaining harmony in the universe.
Sentence: The negotiation ended with a sense of comity between the two parties.

Commensurate (kəˈmen-sər-ət)

Meaning: Comparable in size, extent, or degree; proportionate.
Mnemonic: Imagine a common measure used to compare two things.
Sentence: His salary was commensurate with his level of experience.

Cordial (ˈkɔːr-dʒəl)

Meaning: Characterized by warmth and sincerity.
Mnemonic: Think of drinking a warm cordial drink on a cold day—comforting and friendly!
Sentence: They greeted us with a cordial smile and invited us in.

Deleterious (ˌdɛl-ɪˈtɪə-ri-əs)

Meaning: Having a harmful effect.
Mnemonic: Think of something so bad it should be deleted from existence!
Sentence: Smoking has a deleterious impact on your health.

Dichotomy (daɪˈkɑː-tə-mi)

Meaning: A split into two contrasting or opposite parts.
Mnemonic: Think of a die-cut, splitting paper into two halves.
Sentence: The movie explores the dichotomy between good and evil.

Edify (ˈɛd-ɪ-faɪ)

Meaning: To enlighten or uplift through knowledge; to teach.
Mnemonic: Imagine someone editing your thoughts to make you wiser.
Sentence: The teacher’s goal was to edify her students through thought-provoking discussions.

Elicit (ɪˈlɪs-ɪt)

Meaning: To extract a reply or action; provoke.
Mnemonic: Picture a magician eliciting gasps from the audience by pulling a rabbit out of a hat!
Sentence: The lawyer tried to elicit the truth from the witness.

Erudite (ˈɛr-jə-daɪt)

Meaning: Possessing great knowledge, typically from study or research.
Mnemonic: “Eru” sounds like “error-free” due to great knowledge.
Sentence: The scientist’s erudite lecture impressed everyone in the audience.

Fecund (ˈfɛk-ənd)

Meaning: Fertile or highly productive.
Mnemonic: Think of a “feckin’ garden”, bursting with fruits and vegetables.
Sentence: The fecund soil produced a bountiful harvest.

Feeble (ˈfiː-bəl)

Meaning: Weak; deficient in strength.
Mnemonic: Imagine a bee trying to fly with weak wings—it’s a feeble bee!
Sentence: After the illness, he was too feeble to get out of bed.

Felicitous (fəˈlɪs-ɪ-təs)

Meaning:

  1. Well-suited or apt.
  2. Causing delight or satisfaction.
    Mnemonic: Think of the “feel-it-is-us” moment, perfectly fitting!
    “Felicity” means happiness, so felicitous means well-suited or fortunate.
    Sentence: Her felicitous choice of words made her speech memorable.

Forbear (fawr-BEHR)

Meaning: Refrain or abstain from doing something.
Mnemonic: “For Bear” safety, we must refrain from feeding it.
Sentence: She decided to forbear from commenting on his rude behavior.

Haphazard (hap-HAZ-urd)

Meaning: Lacking clear planning, order, or direction.
Mnemonic: Think of a “hapless hazard”, like a messy room with random hazards.
Sentence: The project was managed in a haphazard way, leading to numerous delays.

Hodgepodge (HOJ-pahj)

Meaning: A mixture or assortment of different things.
Mnemonic: Imagine a “hot pot” full of random ingredients—a true mix!
Sentence: The artist’s work was a hodgepodge of different styles and techniques.

Impede (im-PEED)

Meaning: Obstruct or hinder progress.
Mnemonic: “I’m Ped” on the brakes to hinder the car’s movement.
Sentence: Bad weather impeded the construction work.

Impetuous (im-PET-yoo-us)

Meaning: Rash or hasty in action or decision.
Mnemonic: Imagine a child with a pet “imp” who is always acting rashly.
Sentence: His impetuous decision to quit his job left him struggling financially.

Irascible (ih-RAS-uh-buhl)

Meaning: Easily angered or irritated.
Mnemonic: Think of a “Iras” (name) who always gets mad easily. “Irritable rascal” gets angry easily. Sentence: His irascible temperament made it hard for others to work with him.

Mercenary (MUR-suh-ner-ee)

Meaning: Motivated primarily by a desire for monetary or material gain.
Mnemonic: “Money Sentry”—a person only working as a guard for money. Merchants" often work for money rather than morals.
Sentence: Many accused him of being a mercenary journalist, only writing for profit.

Meticulous (muh-TIK-yuh-luhs)

Meaning: Exhibiting great care to detail.
Mnemonic: “Me tick all boxes”—a person who checks every detail carefully.
Sentence: The architect was meticulous in designing every aspect of the building.

Mordant (MOR-dnt)

Meaning: Biting or sharply critical in thought or expression.
Mnemonic: Think of a “more dent” in your pride caused by someone’s sharp criticism.
Sentence: His mordant humor often offended people unintentionally.

Outstrip (out-STRIP)

Meaning: Surpass or do better than.
Mnemonic: “Outrun the strip”—go beyond the usual limit or expectation. Think of a runner who “strips” past others and surpasses them.
Sentence: Her performance outstripped everyone’s expectations.

Precarious (prih-KAIR-ee-us)

Meaning: Uncertain and likely to cause danger.
Mnemonic: Think of “pre-care” before doing something risky.
Sentence: Climbing the mountain during a storm was a precarious decision.

Quirky (KWUR-kee)

Meaning: Unusual in an endearing or peculiar way.
Mnemonic: Imagine a person with a “quirk” key—unlocking their unique and adorable habits.
Sentence: Her quirky sense of humor always made her the life of the party.

Repudiate (rih-PYOO-dee-ayt)

Meaning: Reject or refute.
Mnemonic: “Refuse a date”—repudiate someone’s romantic advances.
Sentence: He repudiated the accusations, claiming they were baseless.

Tact (takt)

Meaning: Skill in handling difficult situations without causing offense.
Mnemonic: Think of a “tactful act”—smoothly resolving tricky situations.
Sentence: She handled the customer’s complaint with great tact and professionalism.

Trifling (TRY-fling)

Meaning: Lacking significance or importance.
Mnemonic: “Try fling” it away—it’s insignificant and not worth keeping.
“Trifling” things are “trivial,” lacking importance or value.

Sentence: The issue seemed so trifling that no one bothered to address it.

Turbulent (TUR-byuh-luhnt)

Meaning: Full of conflict or chaos.
Mnemonic: Think of a “turbine”—it spins wildly, symbolizing chaos.
Sentence: The country went through a turbulent period after the election results were disputed.

Story Mode

In the whimsical town of Vocabularyville, there lived a group of friends who were known for their quirky personalities and boorish behavior. They decided to throw a party to celebrate their friendship, but things quickly spiraled into chaos. As they planned, the group was haphazard in their organization. Timmy, the impetuous one, suggested they have a giant inflatable slide, while Sally, always circumspect, warned them about the risks. “What if it collapses?” she asked. But Timmy just shrugged and said, “Let’s not repudiate fun!”

On the day of the party, they set up in the backyard, which was a hodgepodge of decorations—balloons here, streamers there, and a fecund amount of snacks piled high. However, the snacks were so plentiful that they started to attract unwanted guests: a swarm of ants! The ants were definitely deleterious to their plans. As the guests arrived, they were greeted with cordial smiles and laughter. But soon enough, Mark, who was known for being irascible, got into an argument with Joe over who could eat the most cupcakes. “You’re just a feeble cupcake eater!” Mark shouted. Joe retorted with a mordant comment about Mark’s inability to share.

To lighten the mood, Sally decided to play games that would elicit laughter. She was always so meticulous about planning these activities that she had even prepared a trivia game about their favorite movies. But when it came time to play, Timmy’s competitive spirit made him want to outstrip everyone else. As the games went on, things turned turbulent. The inflatable slide wobbled precariously as more people climbed on it. “This is going to end badly!” Sally exclaimed, her voice filled with concern. But Timmy just laughed and said, “What’s life without a little risk?”

Suddenly, the slide gave way! Everyone tumbled down in a chaotic pile of limbs and laughter. After the dust settled, they all lay on the grass giggling like children. “That was so much fun!” Joe said breathlessly. Feeling triumphant after surviving the slide disaster, they decided to share stories about their most embarrassing moments. As they did so, they realized how felicitous it was to have friends who could laugh at themselves. They even learned some new things from each other—like how Sally could be quite erudite when discussing obscure trivia!

But not everyone was on board with this new trend of sharing secrets. Mark suddenly felt left out and tried to impede their fun by saying he had no embarrassing stories worth sharing. “Oh come on,” Timmy urged him. “Don’t be so trifling! Everyone has something!” By the end of the night, despite some initial conflicts and a bit of chaos, they all agreed that this party had been one for the books—filled with laughter and memories that would last forever. They learned that even in moments of disorder and unexpected mishaps, friendship always prevails.

As they cleaned up their backyard—a true testament to their wild night—they promised each other that next time they would be more organized (but who were they kidding? That would never happen!). And so ended another unforgettable adventure in Vocabularyville!