Animosity (n) – Hostility; Hatred

Synonyms: Unfriendliness, Opposition,
Antonym: Friendliness
Sample Sentence: The Capulets’ animosity toward the Montague family began so long ago that we don’t even know the cause of it. 

Archaic (adj) – Old-fashioned, Out-of-date, Antiquated

Synonym: Primitive
Antonyms: In style, Trendy, Up-to-date
Sample Sentence: Because of all of the new technology we have, using a pay phone would almost seem archaic to many people. 

Banal (adj) – Dull, Unoriginal

Synonym: Commonplace
Antonyms: Fresh, Original
Helpful Hints: There is still some debate as to the correct pronunciation of this word. The most accepted pronunciation rhymes with “canal”, but over one-third of users pronounce it like “anal,” and still others prefer “bun-ALL”
Sample Sentence: We had to hire a new designer because our designer’s ideas were banal and overdone. 

Candor (n) – Openness and sincerity in speech

Synonyms: Frankness, Honesty, Truthfulness
Antonyms: Deception, Duplicity
Sample Sentence: The politician’s candor made her extremely likable and many decided to vote for her after listening to her speak. 

Cogent (adj) – Logical, Clear, To the point, Relevant

Sample Sentence: Your teachers expect that your essays are cogent, so they are not reading a lot of unnecessary information.

Denounce (v) To criticize or condemn openly

Synonyms: Stigmatize, Blame, Brand
Antonyms: Praise, Commend
Sample Sentence: She was so ashamed of her family’s actions that she denounced them on TV. 

Disparity (n) – Inequality; Difference

Anytonyms: Similarity, Equality
Helpful Hints: Parity means equality
Sample Sentence: The disparity in their ranks in the army left one best friend in charge of the other. 

Enhance (v) – To intensify or magnify

Antonyms: Diminish, Reduce
Sample Sentence: The candlelight enhanced her beauty. 

Fabrication (n) – Something made up; Untrue

Synonyms: Fiction, A lie, A fib
Antonym: The truth
Sample Sentence: The little boy’s mother rarely believed his stories, as his fabrications were common. 

Funerary (adj) – Pertaining to a funeral or burial

Sample Sentence: Her funerary black outfit made it seem like she was in mourning.

Impetuous (adj) – Impulsive; Characterized by quick and thoughtless action

Synonyms: Eager, Headlong, Spontaneous
Antonyms: Planned, Careful
Sample Sentence: Their impetuous decision to get married in Vegas left them divorced within two months. 

Innovate (v) – To introduce something new, to improve on something that already exists

Synonyms: Introduce, Invent
Helpful Hints: We saw in the last unit that to renovate means to make something new again. To innovate is to bring in something new.
Sample Sentence: As an Imagineer at Disney World, her job was to innovate new rides and attractions to improve the parks. 

Libel (n) – A written statement meant to ruin a person’s reputation or image

Helpful Hints: The key in the definition is that the statement MUST BE written down. Otherwise, it is slander and cannot be called libel.
Sample Sentence: The actor sued the tabloid for libel. 

Multifarious (adj) – Having many aspects

Sample Sentence: His career as an actor was multifarious; it included TV shows, commercials, movies and plays.

Parched (adj) – Extremely dry or thirsty.

Sample Sentence: After working outside, the man was parched and had to drink three glasses of water.

Prohibitive (adj) – Intended to stop or forbid something

Sample Sentence: The prohibitive signs all over the road kept the neighborhood a safe place to live.

Remiss (adj) – Neglectful, wrong, or careless in performing a duty

Synonym: Thoughtless
Antonyms: Thoughtful, Considerate
Sample Sentence: He was terribly remiss in his work and got fired. 

Sedate (adj/v) adj. Calm; Placid   v. To make a person calm or placid

Synonyms: collected, serene
Sample Sentence: After a hectic week, Claire enjoyed the sedate setting of her hammock overlooking the lake.  v. The man was so upset after his accident that the nurse had to sedate him.

Squelch (v) – To suppress with great force

Synonyms: Squash, Crush
Sample Sentence: Firefighters got more help in order to squelch the fire immediately. 

Unwarranted (adj) – Unjustified

Synonym: Deserving
Antonyms: Justified, Warranted
Sample Sentence: The spanking seemed unwarranted since the little boy did not mean to break the glass. 

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