Vocab List #4

Apostate- a person who forsakes his religion, cause or party (noun)

The apostate grew up from his a religious life to hate all religion when becoming an adult.

 

Effusive-overflow of emotion, lacking reserve (adj)

The new Santa Claus had effusive greetings toward everyone; he was kind but annoying.

Impasse- a position or situation that you cannot escape from (noun)

The house was an impasse for all the people trapped inside.

Euphoria- a state of intense happiness or self-confidence (adj)

After having her baby she was in a euphoric state.

Lugubrious- excessively mournful (noun)

After losing both of his parents the lugubrious boy fell into a depression.

Bravado- a pretentious display or courage (noun)

The bravados were hated by everyone in school because they believed that they were better than everyone.

Consensus- majority of opinion (noun)

The consensus of the group was to eat lunch at 1:30 instead of 12:30.

Dichotomy- division into two parts (noun)

The dichotomy caused the liver to be cut in half.

Constrict- to draw or press in, contract (verb)

The snaked constricted the bait so that is could not breath.

Gothic- pertaining to the Middle Ages; medieval (adj)

He his home had a gothic style that was full of history.

Punctilio- a fine point or detail as of conduct or procedure (noun)

He missed the punctilio of the event that he was fired by his over controlling boss.

Metamorphosis- change of form or appearance (verb)

The caterpillar went from a metamorphosis into a beautiful butterfly.

Raconteur- a person who can relate anecdotes and stories (noun)

Teachers can be raconteurs when they bring in own life experiences to a lesson plan.  

Sine qua non- an essential condition, element, or factor (noun)

 The sine qua non of a healthy life style is water and oxygen.

Quixotic- extravagantly chivalrous or romantic; visionary, impractical, or impracticable (adj)

It is a quixotic but honorable event.

Vendetta-a private feud in which members of a victim’s family wants to murder the slayer (noun)

The Vendetta was unsuccessful after getting caught.

Non sequitur- a statement containing an illogical conclusion (noun)

Mystique- a framework of doctrines, ideas, beliefs, or the like, constructed around a person or object, endowing the person or object with enhanced value or profound meaning (noun)

The mystique of Charles Darwin is the basis of a lot of biology theories.

Quagmire- an area of miry or boggy ground whose surface yields under the tread; a bog (noun)

The quagmire was like quicksand it was hard to get out of it.

Parlous- dangerous (adj)

The parlous dragon was no match for Beowulf.