Vocabulary Unit 5

1. Vocabulary Unit 5 Mrs. Williams English 9

2. arbitrary (adj.) unreasonable; based on one’s wishes or whims without regard for reason or fairness • Synonyms: capricious, high-handed, autocratic • Antonyms: reasoned, rational, objective, equitable • EX • A judge may be criticized for rulings that appear to be arbitrary and without legal precedent.

3. brazen (adj.) made of brass; shameless, impudent • Synonyms: saucy, bold • Antonyms: deferential, respectful, self-effacing • EX • Behavior considered brazen in one era may be deemed perfectly acceptable in another.

4. catalyst (n.) a substance that causes or hastens a chemical reaction; any agent that causes change • Synonyms: stimulus, spur, instigator • EX • Enzymes are catalysts that aid in the digestion of food.

5. facilitate (v.) to make easier; to assist • Synonyms: ease, smooth the way, simplify • Antonyms: hamper, hinder, obstruct, impede • EX • The Federal Reserve Board may lower interest rates in order to facilitate economic growth.

6. incorrigible (adj.) not able to be corrected; beyond control • Synonyms: unruly, intractable, incurable, inveterate • Antonyms: tractable, docile, curable, reparable • EX • Criminals deemed incorrigible can expect to receive maximum sentences for their offenses against society.

7. latent (adj.) hidden, present but not realized • Synonyms: dormant, inactive, undeveloped • Antonyms: exposed, manifest, evident • EX • Don’t you think it’s sad that many people use only a small fraction of their latent abilities?

8. militant (adj.) given to fighting; active and aggressive in support of a cause; (n.) an activist • Synonyms: (adj.) truculent • Antonyms: (adj.) unassertive, peaceable, passive • EX • In the struggle for civil rights, Martin Luther King, Jr., advocated peaceful rather than militant protest. • EX- • Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a militantin the fight for woman suffrage.

9. morose (adj.) having a gloomy or sullen manner; not friendly or sociable • Synonyms: morbid, doleful • Antonyms: cheerful, blithe, jaunty, buoyant • EX • Heathcliff is the morose and vengeful protagonist in Emily Bronte’s novel Wuthering Heights.

10. opaque (adj.) not letting light through; not clear or lucid; dense, stupid • Synonyms: hazy, cloudy, foggy, murky, dull, obtuse • Antonyms: transparent, clear, bright, perceptive • EX • I have read that book twice, but I still find the author’s meaning completely opaque.

11. paramount (adj.) chief in importance, above all others • Synonyms: supreme, foremost, primary, dominant • Antonyms: secondary, subordinate, ancillary • EX • Voters should insist that candidates for high office address the paramount issues facing our society.

12. prattle (v.) to talk in an aimless, foolish, or simple way; to babble; (n.) baby talk; babble • Synonyms: (v.) chatter; (n.) twaddle, gibberish, piffle • Antonyms: speak concisely • EX • Some people can prattle away on the phone for hours on end. • Over time, recognizable words become part of a toddler’s cheerful prattle.

13. reprimand (v.) to scold; find fault with; (n.) a rebuke • Synonyms: (v.) reprove, reproach, chastised; (n.) reproof • Antonyms: (v.) praise, pat on the back • EX • A judge may need to reprimand a lawyer for repeatedly harassing a witness. • An employee who frequently violates a company’s rules may receive a written reprimand.

14. servitude (n.) slavery, forced labor • Synonyms: captivity, bondage, thralldom • Antonyms: freedom, liberty • EX • In Les Miserables, Jean Valjean is sentenced to many years of servitude for stealing a loaf of bread.

15. slapdash (adj.) careless and hasty • Synonyms: cursory, perfunctory, sloppy, slipshod • Antonyms: painstaking, meticulous, thorough, in-depth • EX • Landlords who routinely make slapdash repairs should be considered negligent.

16. succumb (v.) to give way to superior force, yield • Synonyms: submit, die, expire • Antonyms: overcome, master, conquer • EX • Most dieters occasionally succumb to the lure of high-calorie dessert.