1. calamity
1
It is an understatement to call the earthquake in Chile a
tragic event; it is nothing short of a complete calamity.
an event causing great and o:en sudden
damage or distress;
disaster (n.)
2. servile
2
Immediately a:er calami>es, as countries suffer from the shocks of
inadequate resources, they are more likely to succumb to servility
as other countries come to their aid.
excessive willingness to please or
serve others;
overly submissive (adj.)
3. assiduous
3
“Beyonce dances very assiduously in the ‘bootylicious’
video” (wiki.answers.com).
showing great care and perseverance;
diligent, persistent, hard-working (adj.)
4. benign
4
The stranger was far less malignant than he appeared, and
turned out to be rather benign.
gentle, harmless (adj.)
5. temerity
5
With temerity, she swaggered up to the man on the bench,
whispered in his ear, “Could you please stop staring at me,” and
walked off.
excessive confidence or boldness;
audacity, recklessness, fearlessness
(n.)
6. sagacious
6
A lack of beauty and a shortage of sagacious mentors oppressed
Pecola in The Bluest Eye.
showing good judgment;
wise, shrewd (adj.)
7. contemptuous
7
Our illness is treated with contempt; we are made to feel guilty for
inconveniencing others with our sickness.
showing a lack of respect;
scornful, disdainful (adj.)
8. abhor
8
Being despised by the masses makes it difficult not to succumb to
self‐abhorrence; in Pecola’s case, it was nearly impossible.
regard with disgust and hatred;
loathe, detest (v.)
9. bemuse
9
I try to understand the plot, but each new page bemuses me more
than the last.
to puzzle; confuse; bewilder (v.)
10. embittered
10
Pecola could have been embittered by her fatherʼs
seduction--this would be expected--but she only longed to
feel beautiful and desired.
resentful; scornful (adj.)
11. surreptitiously
11
Like a child sneaking out of the house, he left the hotel
surreptitiously, knowing what he had done was wrong.
doing something secretly because it
would be not be approved of (adv.)
12. pathos
12
Through pathos, Morrison gets the reader to understand
African-Americans better and to sympathize with their
experience.
an appeal to the audienceʼs emotions;
hoping to feel what the author feels (n.)
13. unabashed
13
Remaining unabashed, Claudia asked--or insisted--that
Frieda tell her about the experience with Mr. Henry.
not embarrassed or ashamed (adj.)
14. hamartia
14
Pecolaʼs hamartia was her inability to love herself; she
could not find beauty underneath her blackness.
the flaw in character which leads to the
downfall of the protagonist (n.)
15. succumb
15
All the teachers have been forced to succumb--even the
strongest among us--to ICC week.
to give in to someone or something; fail
to resist (v.)
16. hubris
16
Blinded by his hubris, he was never aware of the animosity
brewing towards him.
excessive pride or self-confidence that
leads a protagonist to disregard a
divine warning or to violate an
important moral law (n.)
17. fastidious
17
The Juniors were fastidious about their I.C.C. cheer;
everything had to be perfect.
very attentive to and concerned about
detail (adj.)
18. asyndeton
18
Example: “We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet
any hardships, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure
the survival and the success of liberty.” J. F. Kennedy,
Inaugural
the omission or absence of a
conjunction between parts of a
sentence (n.)
19. stagnate
19
Her social life flourished; at the same time, her academic
life stagnated.
become stagnant, inactive, dull; cease
developing (v.)
20. polysyndeton
20
Example: "We lived and laughed and loved and left."
(James Joyce, Finnegans Wake, 1939)
the use of several conjunctions in close
succession, especially where some
might be omitted (n.)
21. polysyndeton
20
"Let the whitefolks have their money and power and segregation and
sarcasm and big houses and schools and lawns like carpets, and books, and
mostly--mostly--let them have their whiteness."
(Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, 1969)
the use of several conjunctions in close
succession, especially where some
might be omitted (n.)
22. vindictive
21
Vindictive as she was after her fatherʼs murder, she still
tried to maintain her sanity.
having a strong desire for revenge;
spiteful; vengeful; unforgiving (adj.)
23. ethos
22
During the 1960ʼs, an ethos developed that was anti-war
and anti-government.
beliefs or character of a group (n.)
24. catharsis
23
Writing--whether itʼs fiction or non-fiction--can be a
cathartic experience, and a great way to relieve stress.
cleansing or purging of the emotions
(n.)
