Chapter 2 Continued - Vocabulary and Word Choice

Different words can express the same idea. Usually, you are better off using the most simple word when you write for the web. Once in a while, however, use a sophisticated word to express a complex concept and variety in your work. Here are some words and their definitions to refresh your vocabulary. We rarely find these words in current issues of popular magazines or daily newspapers.

Aberration n. Deviation from a right, customary, or prescribed course
Abeyance n. A state of suspension or temporary inaction
Abject adj. Sunk to a low condition
Abscission n. The act of cutting off, as in a surgical operation
Abscond v. To depart suddenly and secretly.
Abstruse adj. Dealing with matters difficult to be understood
Accost v. To speak to
Accouter v. To dress
Acme n. The highest point, or summit
Acquiesce v. To comply; submit
Adjutant adj. Auxiliary
Adroit adj. Having skill in the use of the bodily or mental powers
Adumbrate v. To represent beforehand in outline or by emblem
Affable adj. Easy to approach
Alacrity n. Cheerful willingness
Allude v. To refer incidentally, or by suggestion
Altruism n. Benevolence to others on subordination to self-interest
Ambulate v. To walk about
Anathema n. Anything forbidden, as by social usage
Arrant adj. Notoriously bad
Audacious adj. Fearless
Banal adj. Commonplace
Bellicose adj. Warlike
Bemoan v. To lament
Bide v. To await
Blithe adj. Joyous
Bombast n. Inflated or extravagant language
Brae n. Hillside
Brigand n. Thief
Callow adj. Without experience of the world
Capitulate v. To surrender or stipulate terms
Carouse v. To drink deeply and in boisterous or jovial manner
Coddle v. To treat as a baby or an invalid
Contusion n. A bruise
Covert adj. Concealed, especially for an evil purpose
Deign v. To deem worthy of notice or account
Denizen n. Inhabitant
Deprecate v. To express disapproval and hope for the opposite
Descry v. To discern
Dilatory adj. Tending to cause delay
Docile adj. Easy to manage
Dun v. To make a demand for payment
Educe v. To draw out
Effete adj. Exhausted, as having performed its functions
Elicit v. To educe or extract gradually
Epitome n. A simplified representation
Equivocal adj. Ambiguous
Erudite adj. Very-learned
Evince v. To make manifest or evident
Extol v. To praise in the highest terms
Florid adj. Flushed with red
Furtive adj. Stealthy or sly, like the actions of a thief
Gambol n. Playful leaping or frisking
Genteel adj. Well-bred or refined
Gibe v. To utter taunts or reproaches
Gossamer adj. Flimsy
Iconoclast n. An image-breaker
Impetuosity n. Rashness
Inane adj. Silly
Incipient adj. Initial
Indolent adj. Habitually inactive or lazy
Insipid adj. Tasteless
Leeward n. The direction of the wind blowing
Laudatory adj. Pertaining to, expressing, or containing praise
Leviathan n. Large animal
Loquacious adj. Talkative
Magnate n. A person of rank or importance
Mollify v. To soothe
Nomic adj. Usual or customary
Ocular adj. Of or pertaining to the eye
Opaque adj. Impervious to light
Ossify v. to convert into bone
Panoply n. A full set of armor
Pariah n. A member of a degraded class; a social outcast
Pedagogue n. A schoolmaster
Pervade v. To pass or spread through every part
Pestilence n. A raging epidemic
Petulance n. The character or condition of being impatient
Phlegmatic adj. Not easily roused to feeling or action
Plebeian adj. Common
Polemics n. The art of controversy
Polyglot adj. Speaking several tongues
Puerile adj. Childish
Rancor n. Malice
Remiss adj. Negligent
Repartee n. A ready, witty, or apt reply
Sapient adj. Possessing wisdom
Tacit adj. Understood
Turgid adj. Swollen
Unctuous adj. Oily
Wane v. To diminish in size and brilliancy
Zephyr n. Any soft, gentle wind

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