12.30.2013

A few words and their definitions

Fact is, I like words. I compiled a list of words I didn’t know and their definitions. 

vacillate: alternate or waver between different opinions or actions; be indecisive.

propinquity: nearness
manqué: having failed to become what one might have been; unfulfilled.
pernicious: having a harmful effect, esp. in a gradual or subtle way.
sacrosanct: (esp. of a principle, place, or routine) regarded as too important or valuable to be interfered with.
umbrage: 1) offense or annoyance. 2) shade or shadow, esp. as cast by trees.
quotidian: of or occurring every day; daily.
ebullient: cheerful and full of energy.
intuited: understand or work out by instinct. [known word, new tense]
dirigible: airship
boondoggle: an expensive and wasteful project usually paid for with public money
pedantic: precise, exact, perfectionist, meticulous
pine: to feel a lingering, often nostalgic desire.
rue: regret, remorse, or sorrow
prole: a person who has low social status; a member of the working class
wan: (of a person's complexion or appearance) pale and giving the impression of illness or exhaustion.
predicate: found or base something on.
environ: to surround
mete: dispense or allot justice, a punishment, or harsh treatment; allocate.
perdition: judgement; (in Christian theology) a state of eternal punishment and damnation into which a sinful and unpenitent person passes after death; eternal punishment; damnation.
decry: publicly denounce
opus: (Latin) work
exult: rejoice, show or feel elation or jubilation, esp. as the result of a success.
vociferous: (esp. of a person or speech) vehement or clamorous.
sept: a clan; originally in Ireland
cynosure: 1) something that strongly attracts attention by its brilliance, interest, etc. 2) something serving for guidance or direction.
voluble: speaking or spoken incessantly and fluently; loquacious, verbose.
sluice: 1) a sliding gate or other device for controlling the flow of water, esp. one in a lock gate. 2) an act of rinsing or showering with water. (“a sluice with cold water”)
hoar: grayish white; gray or gray-haired with age.
phylactery: a small leather box containing Hebrew texts on vellum, worn by Jewish men at morning prayer as a reminder to keep the law.
prestidigitation: magic tricks performed as entertainment.
prognosticator: one who predicts future events or developments.