| allusion
He alluded to Susan without mentioning her name.
| an indirect reference |
| candid
I gave them my candid opinion
| honest and direct |
| capacious
she carried a capacious bag
| large in capacity |
| celibate
celibate priests
| abstaining from (i.e., never having) sexual intercourse
or:
an unmarried person who has taken a religious vow of chastity |
| contempt -- as in: feels contempt towards him
Familiarity breeds contempt.
| lack of respect -- often accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike or disgust |
| credulous
The trick would fool none but the most credulous.
| gullible (being too willing to believe) |
| domestic -- as in: domestic happiness
They share the domestic chores.
| relating to a home or family |
| eccentric
The home was built and then abandoned by an eccentricbillionaire.
| unconventional or strange; or a person with such traits |
| elaborate
Will you elaborate on your comment that...?
| to have or pay attention to details and complexity; or to add details
or:
to exaggerate an action |
| gravity -- as in: moment of utmost gravity
She suddenly realized the gravity of her situation.
| serious -- typically a manner or feeling that is serious and solemn |
| heresy
a hard-line form of Sunni Islam that condemns all other strains as heresy
| opinions or actions most people consider immoral |
impetuous -- as in: an impetuous decision
an impetuous display of spending and gambling | impulsive (acting suddenly without much thought) -- often with an unfortunate consequence |
indifferent
About a third are in favor of the change, a third are opposed, and a third are indifferent. | without interest -- in various senses such as:
- unconcerned
- unsympathetic
- impartial
- not of good quality (which may imply average or poor quality depending upon context)
|
| indignant
She was indignant, but agreed to be searched when they accused her of shoplifting.
| angered or annoyed at something unjust or wrong |
| lax
Lax safeguards contributed to the oil spill.
| lacking in strictness or strength |
| metaphor
He was speaking metaphorically when he referred to being mugged by reality.
| a figure of speech in which a word is used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity -- as when Shakespeare wrote, "All the world`s a stage." |
| ostentatious
Although wealthy, the family is not ostentatious.
| intended to attract notice and impress others -- especially with wealth in a vulgar way |
| philanthropy
Her primary interests are family and philanthropy.
| helping others -- especially donating money to worthy causes; or an organization that does so |
| pretense
The country maintains a pretense of a free press.
| an appearance or action to help one pretend |
| quixotic
a quixotic law that was supposed to end excessive influence of special interests in government
| impractical due to excessive romanticism or idealism |
| reconcile -- as in: reconciled their differences
She reconciled her checking account statement.
| to bring into agreement |
| refute
The speaker refuted his opponent`s arguments
| to prove or attempt to prove that something is false |
| reproach
She reproached him for being thoughtless and lazy.
| a criticism; or to express criticism |
| resignation -- as in: accepted it with resignation
Come what may, she seems resigned to her fate.
| acceptance of something undesired as unavoidable or the lesser of evils |
| speculate -- as in: don`t know, but I`ll speculate
philosophers have speculated on the question of God for thousands of years
| to guess without certainty; or to reflect (think) deeply upon a subject |
| supercilious
Her mother eyed my clothes with a supercilious air.
| showing arrogant disdain of those one views as unworthy |
| tedious
endured another of her tedious lectures
| boring -- especially due to the amount of something that must be endured |
| utilitarian -- as in: utilitarian furniture
She likes plain utilitarian kitchenware.
| designed for usefulness rather than beauty or style |
| vacillate
She was determined and did not vacillate in the least.
| to change one`s mind back and forth between conflicting ideas
or:
to sway back and forth |
| vulgarity
Her vulgarity was a turnoff.
| of bad taste -- often crude or offensive
or:
of unsophisticated (or common) -- especially of taste |
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