Verbal Questions - April 2008

April 29

1. Maverick(n): someone who exhibits great independence in thought and action.
Synonyms: nonconformist, independent, loner.

2.Meet(v): to come upon; come into the presence of; encounter; to become acquainted with;
Synonyms: get together, rendezvous, confront, intersect, converge, unite.
Antonyms: adjourn, scatter, diverge.

3. Embolden(v): to make bold or bolder; hearten; encourage

4. Prevaricate(v): to speak falsely or misleadingly; To stray from or evade the truth;
Synonyms: evade, shift, equivocate.

5. Lachrymose(adj): suggestive of or tending to cause tears; tearful; given to shedding tears readily; mournful.

6. Dilettante(n): a person who takes up an art, activity, or subject merely for amusement.
Synonyms: amateur.

7. Wardrobe(n): a stock of clothes or costumes; a room or place in which to keep clothes or costumes; a piece of furniture for holding clothes

8. Resilient(adj): springing back; rebounding; returning to the original form or position after being bent, compressed, or stretched.
Synonyms: elastic, flexible, springy.

9. Ethereal(adj): extremely delicate or refined; Characterized by lightness and insubstantiality;


Analogies:

1. Opera :music

2. Meet: embloden

3. wardrobe:garment


Issue topic:

1. People who pursue their own intellectual interests for purely personal reasons are more likely to benefit the rest of the world than are people who try to act for the public good.

Argument Topic:

1. The following appeared in a memo from the mayor of the town of Hopewell. "Two years ago, the town of Ocean View built a new municipal golf course and resort hotel. During the past two years, tourism in Ocean View has increased, new businesses have opened there, and Ocean View's tax revenues have risen by 30 percent. The best way to improve Hopewell's economy, and generate additional tax revenues, is to build a golf course and resort hotel similar to those in Ocean View."

April 25

1. Stasis(n): the state of equilibrium or inactivity caused by opposing equal forces; A condition of balance among various forces; motionlessness.

2. Proffer(v): to put before a person for acceptance; offer.
Synonyms: bid, proposal, tender.

3. Belie(v): to show to be false; to misrepresent; to act unworthily according to the standards.
Synonyms: refute, disprove, controvert, repudiate, confute, gainsay.
Antonyms: prove, verify, support.

4. Repudiate(v): to reject as having no authority or binding force; to reject with disapproval or condemnation.
Synonyms: disavow, renounce, discard, disclaim, condemn, disapprove, deny, disacknowledge, reject.
Antonyms: accept, approve.

5. Aggrandize(v): to widen in scope; increase in size or intensity; enlarge; extend; to make great or greater in power, wealth, rank, or honor.
Synonyms: inflate, strengthen, exalt, magnify.
Antonyms: reduce, diminish, minimize.

6. Lithe(adj): bending readily; pliant; limber; supple; flexible; Marked by effortless grace.

7. Happenstance(n): a chance happening or event

8. Spartan(adj): sternly disciplined and rigorously simple, frugal, or austere; Rigorously self-disciplined or self-restrained, brave; undaunted.

9. Mulish(adj): as being very stubborn, obstinate, or intractable; unreasonably rigid in the face of argument or entreaty or attack.

10. Persuaded(v): to prevail on (a person) to do something, as by advising or urging; to induce to believe by appealing to reason or understanding; convince.

11. Impetuous(adj): of, pertaining to, or characterized by sudden or rash action, emotion, moving with great force; violent.
Antonyms: planned, careful.


Analogies:

1. Impetuous: hesitancy

2. Mulish : persuaded


Issue Topic:

1. Importance of general welfare of people of a country rather than its achievers.


Argument Topic:

1. The following appeared in a memorandum from a dean at Omega University. "Fifteen years ago, Omega University implemented a new procedure that encouraged students to evaluate the teaching effectiveness of all their professors. Since that time, Omega professors have begun to assign higher grades in their classes, and overall student grade averages at Omega have risen by thirty percent. Potential employers apparently believe the grades at Omega are inflated; this would explain why Omega graduates have not been as successful at getting jobs as have graduates from nearby Alpha University. To enable its graduates to secure better jobs, Omega University should now terminate student evaluation of professors."

April 22

1.Garbled(v) : to confuse unintentionally or ignorantly; jumble; to make unfair or misleading selections from or arrangement of (fact, statements, writings, etc.)

2.Confession(n): The act or process of confessing.; Something confessed, especially disclosure of one's sins to a priest for absolution; a public declaration of your faith
Synonyms: avowal; admission; acknowledgment

3.Succumb(v): to give way to superior force;to give way to superior force; To submit to an overpowering force or yield to an overwhelming desire; give up or give in.
Synonyms: submit, accede, surrender.

4.Surfeit(n): excess; an excessive amount; excess or overindulgence in eating or drinking.
Synonyms: superabundance, superfluity, stuff, gorge.
Antonyms: lack

5. Laconic(adj): using few words; expressing much in few words; concise
Synonyms brief, pithy, terse; succinct.
Antonyms: voluble.

6. Rotundity(n): the condition or quality of roundness or plumpness, as of an object or person; fullness, as in tone or speech

7. Benediction(n): an utterance of good wishes; a blessing, an invocation of divine blessing

8. Ablution(n): a cleansing with water or other liquid; a washing of the hands, body, etc.

9. Glutton(n): A person who eats or consumes immoderate amounts of food and drink; a person with a remarkably great desire or capacity for something;

10. Quaint(adj): having an old-fashioned attractiveness or charm; strange, peculiar, or unusual in an interesting, pleasing, or amusing way.
Synonyms: antiquated, archaic, curious, uncommon
Antonyms: ordinary.

11.Magniloquent(adj): speaking or expressed in a lofty or grandiose style; pompous; bombastic; boastful; Lofty and extravagant in speech; grandiloquent.

12.Dust jacket(n): A removable paper cover used to protect the binding of a book.

13. Apocryphal(adj): of doubtful authorship or authenticity; Of questionable authorship or authenticity; Of questionable authorship or authenticity

14. Authenticity(n): The quality or condition of being authentic, trustworthy, or genuine
Synonyms: genuineness, realness, truthfulness, validity

15. Recant(v): to withdraw or disavow a statement, opinion, etc.; retract.


Analogies:

1.Dust jacket: books

2.Apocryphal: authenticity

3.Recant : spend

4.Glasses: vision

Issue Topic: 1.There are two types of laws: just and unjust. Every individual in a society has a responsibility to obey just laws and, even more importantly, to disobey and resist unjust laws

April 21


Today’s Words:

1.Assiduous(adj): constant; constant in application or effort; working diligently at a task; persevering; attentive.
Synonyms: industrious, sedulous, diligent, studious, Assiduous;tireless, persistent.
Antonyms: inconstant, lazy.

2.Surmount(v): to mount upon; get on the top of; to surpass in excellence; to exceed in amount; To overcome (an obstacle, for example); conquer.

3.Purvey(v): to provide, furnish, or supply (esp. food or provisions) usually as a business or service; To advertise or circulate.

4.Rancor(n): bitter, rankling resentment or ill will; hatred; malice.
Synonyms: bitterness, spite, venom, animosity, embitterment, gall, resentfulness, virulence.
Antonyms: benevolence.

5.Mottle(v): to mark or diversify with spots or blotches of a different color or shade

6.Estimable(adj): worthy of esteem; deserving respect or admiration; capable of being estimated.
Synonyms: reputable, respectable, admirable, laudable, meritorious, excellent.
Antonyms: contemptible.

7.Dour(adj): Marked by sternness or harshness; Silently ill-humored; gloomy.
Synonyms: morose, sour, moody, unyielding, forbidding, sullen.

8.Salubrious(adj): favorable to or promoting health; favorable to health of mind or body; Conducive or favorable to health or well-being

9.Abet(v): to encourage, support, or countenance by aid or approval, usually in wrongdoing.
Synonyms: assist, promote, succor.
Antonyms: hinder, discourage.

10.Antediluvian(adj): a very old or old-fashioned person or thing, of or belonging to the period before the Flood; very old, old-fashioned, or out of date; antiquated; primitive, ancient.

11.Dessert(n): cake, pie, fruit, pudding, ice cream, etc., served as the final course of a meal.


ANALOGIES:

1.Antediluvian: age

2.Dessert: meal

April 10

1. Insipid(adj): without distinctive, interesting, or stimulating qualities; without sufficient taste to be pleasing, as food or drink.
Synonyms: anemic, arid, banal, beige, drab, dullsville, feeble, inane, innocuous, jejune, limp, mundane, nebbish, prosaic, stale, subdued, tedious, tenuous, trite, vapid, wearisome, yawn .
Antonyms: interesting

2. Secret(adj): done, made, or conducted without the knowledge of others.
Synonyms: abstruse, ambiguous, arcane, camouflaged, covert, enigmatical, esoteric, furtive, obscure, occult, recondite, shrouded, veiled.
Antonyms: known, public, visible

3. Annul(v): to reduce to nothing; to make void or null; abolish; cancel; invalidate.
Synonyms: abate, abolish, abrogate, annihilate, countermand, efface, expunge, negate, nullify, obliterate, quash, repeal, rescind, vitiate.
Antonyms: ratify, validate

4. Tantalising(adj): arousing desire or expectation for something unattainable or mockingly out of reach;very pleasantly inviting.

5. Allude(v): to refer casually or indirectly;to contain a casual or indirect reference.
Synonyms: imply, insinuate, intimate, point, refer, suggest.
Antonyms: advertise, keep quiet, keep secret.

6. Virile(adj): having or exhibiting masculine energy, forcefulness, or strength in a marked degree.
Synonyms: colt, hairy, hunk, jock, jockstrap, lusty, mannism, procreative, robust, stud, vigorous.
Antonyms: effeminate, impotent, unmanly

7. Demography(n): the science of vital and social statistics, as of the births, deaths, diseases, marriages, etc., of populations.
Synonyms: anthropology, census-taking, population analysis, population density, population growth, population size, population studies, population vital statistics.

8. Opera(n): the form or branch of musical and dramatic art represented by such compositions.


Analogies:

1. Demography: population

2. Singers: opera

3. Classroom: teacher


Issue Topic:
1. "Although many people know how to achieve success, but very few people achieve it"

April 8

1.Dissension(n):strong disagreement; a contention or quarrel; discord.
Synonyms: altercation, contention, dissent, faction, fuss, strife, variance, wrangle.
Antonyms: accord, agreement, comity, harmony.

2.Enliven(v): to make vigorous or active; invigorate; To make lively or spirited; brighten.
Synonyms: animate, brace up, buoy, exhilarate, galvanize, invigorate, rejuvenate, vitalize, vify.
Antonyms: bore, dampen, dull, extinguish, subdue, tire.

3.Nugatory(adj): of no real value; trifling; worthless; of no force or effect; ineffective; futile

4.Zeitgeist(n): the spirit of the time; general trend of thought or feeling characteristic of a particular period of time.

5.Welsh(v): to cheat by failing to pay a gambling debt; to go back on one's word.
Synonyms: bamboozle, con, defraud, dodge, flimflam, hoodwink, scam.

6.Yank(v): to pull or remove abruptly and vigorously; an abrupt, vigorous pull; jerk.

7.Feint(n): a movement made in order to deceive an adversary; a feigned or assumed appearance
Synonyms: artifice, bait, bluff, distraction, dodge, expedient, gambit, hoax, imposture, maneuver, pretension, ruse, snare, subterfuge, wile.

8.Exchequer(n): a treasury, as of a state or nation.

9.Gubernatorial(adj): of or pertaining to a state governor or the office of state governor.

10.Frieze(n): any decorative band on an outside wall, broader than a stringcourse and bearing lettering, sculpture, etc.

11.Expatiate(v): to enlarge in discourse or writing; be copious in description or discussion: to expatiate upon a theme.

12.Rig(v): to put in proper order for working or use; to assemble, install, or prepare Synonyms: accouterments, apparatus, equipage, fixtures, outfit, tackle.

13.Loom(n): the art or the process of weaving.
Synonyms: approach, be forthcoming, be imminent, brew, dawn, emanate, impend, menace, overhang, portend.

14.Dabble(v): to play and splash in or as if in water, esp. with the hands; to wet slightly in or with a liquid; splash;
Synonyms: boggle, boondoggle, dally, diddle, jerk off, potchky, trifle, twiddle.
Antonyms: be into, be proficient, take seriously.

15. Lurk(v): to lie or wait in concealment, as a person in ambush; to exist unperceived or unsuspected
Synonyms: creep, crouch, prowl, skulk, slink, sneak.

16.Libretto(n): the text or words of an opera or similar extended musical composition.

17.Whit(n): a particle; bit; jot (used esp. in negative phrases);
Synonyms: atom, crumb, fragment, mite, modicum, speck, trace.
Antonyms: lot

18.Whiff(n): a slight gust or puff of wind, air, vapor, smoke; a slight trace of odor or smell.
Synonyms: aroma, blast, draught, flatus, gust, inhalation, smack, soupcon, trifle, waft.

19.Staccato(adj): shortened and detached when played or sung.

April 7

1.Cull(v): to choose; select; pick; pluck.
Synonyms: discriminate, elect, glean, optate, sift, winnow.

2.Seer(n): a person who sees; observer; a person who prophesies future events.
Synonyms: augur, channeller, oracle, soothsayer,

3.Tantamount(adj): equivalent, as in value, force, effect, or signification
Synonyms: commensurate, indistinguishable, synonymous.
Antonyms: different, opposite.

4.Fastidious(adj): excessively particular, critical, or demanding; hard to please.
Synonyms: captious, dainty, discriminating, finicky, fussy, hypercritical, meticulous, nitpicky, punctilious, queasy, squeamish, stickling.
Antonyms: indifferent, sloppy, uncouth, uncritical, undemanding.

5.Daft(adj): senseless, stupid, or foolish; insane; crazy.
Synonyms: absurd, asinine, bedlamite, bonkers, demented, giddy, lunatic, ridiculous, wacky.
Antonyms: rational, sane, sensible, sound, wise.

6.Feckless(adj): ineffective; incompetent; futile;having no sense of responsibility; indifferent; lazy.
Synonyms: feeble, fustian, futile, incautious, ineffectual, , wild.
Antonyms: competent, efficient, important, purposeful, responsible, useful.

7.Bravura(n): a display of daring; brilliant performance; A piece or passage that emphasizes a performer's virtuosity;(adj)--> Showy; ostentatious.

8.Perspicuous(adj): clearly expressed or presented; lucid; easy to understand.
Synonyms: apparent, comprehensible, explicit, limpid, pellucid, unambiguous, unblurred.

9.Exoteric(adj): suitable for or communicated to the general public;Not confined to an inner circle of disciples or initiates.

10.Gargoyle(n): a grotesquely carved figure of a human or animal.

11.Weltschmerz(n): sorrow that one feels and accepts as one's necessary portion in life; sentimental pessimism.

12.Garbled(v): to confuse unintentionally or ignorantly; to make unfair or misleading selections from or arrangement of (fact, statements, writings, etc.)

13.Physiognomy(n): the face or countenance, esp. when considered as an index to the character;the outward appearance of anything, taken as offering some insight into its character.

14.Spat(n): a petty quarrel; a light blow; slap; smack.
Synonyms: altercation, argument, bickering, discord, dissension, embroilment, feud, fracas, fuss, hubbub, squabble, strife, tiff.

15.Wrench(v): to twist suddenly and forcibly; pull, jerk, or force by a violent twist.
Synonyms: coerce, contort, dislodge, pervert, rend, tweak, yank.

16.Jibe(v): to alter course so that a fore-and-aft sail shifts in this manner.
Synonyms: accord, dovetail, harmonize, tally.

April 4

1.Slight(adj): small in amount; of little importance
Synonyms: feeble, insubstantial, meager, paltry, piddling, scanty, sparse, trifling, trivial
Antonyms: big, considerable.

2.Tantalize(v): tease by arousing expectations that are repeatedly disappointed
Synonyms: annoy, badger, baffle, beleaguer, entice, frustrate, gnaw, pester, plague, taunt, thwart, titillate.
Antonyms: disenchant, repulse, turn off.

3.Bilk(v): to defraud; cheat
Synonyms: circumvent, con, defraud, foil, frustrate, overreach, ruin, swindle, thwart.
Antonyms: give, give away

4. Invidious(adj): calculated to create ill will or resentment or give offense; hateful; offensively or unfairly discriminating
Synonyms: abominable, calumnious, defamatory, detestable, detractive, discriminatory, envious, libelous, maligning, obnoxious, odious, repugnant, scandalous, slanderous, vilifying.
Antonyms: desirable, pleasant

5.Calcify(v): To make or become inflexible and unchanging; To make or become stony or chalky by deposition of calcium salts
Antonyms: liquefy, soften.

6.Whet(v): to sharpen (a knife, tool, etc.) by grinding or friction; to make keen or eager; stimulate
Synonyms: edge, file, finish, grind, hone, sharpen, strop
Antonyms: blunt, dull

7.Invective(n): vehement or violent denunciation, censure, or reproach; vehement or violent denunciation, censure, or reproach
Synonyms: accusation, berating, blasphemy, castigation, censure, condemnation, denunciation, diatribe, epithet, jeremiad, obloquy, philippic, revilement, sarcasm, scurrility, tirade, vilification, vituperation
Antonyms: praise.

8.Trenchant(adj): incisive or keen; vigorous; effective; energetic; clearly or sharply defined.
Synonyms: acerbic, acidulous, acute, astringent, caustic, crisp, emphatic, incisive, piquant, scathing, sententious, tart, unequivocal, vigorous
Antonyms: kind, nice.

9.Insipid(adj): without distinctive, interesting, or stimulating qualities;without sufficient taste to be pleasing, as food or drink
Synonyms: anemic, arid, beige, drab, driveling, dullsville, feeble, inane, innocuous, jejune, mundane, nebbish, prosaic, subdued, tedious, tenuous, trite, vapid, wearisome.
Antonyms: interesting

10. Abdicate(v): to renounce or relinquish a throne, right, power, claim, responsibility.
Synonyms: abandon, abjure, abnegate, disclaim, forgo, relinquish, repudiate, waive.
Antonyms: appropriate, arrogate, assert, challenge, claim, hold, maintain, retain, take charge, usurp.


Analogies:

1.Trenchant: insipid

2.Abdicate: throne


Issue Topic:

1.Laws are of two kinds: just laws and unjust laws. It is every individual's responsibility to obey just laws and more importantly to disobey and resist unjust laws.

2.History teaches us that decisions about future cannot be made based on past experiences. (Something like this...)


ORKUT VERBAL DATABASE (Till Apr 3rd)


Today's Words:

1. Exacerbate

2. Stern

3. Debauched

4. Lampoon

5. Impeachable

6. Gratuitous

7. Feral

8. Amenable

9. Futility

10. Pragmatic

11. Saboteur

12. Disrupt


Analogies:

1. Starryeyed: Pragmatic

2. Saboteur: Disrupt

3. choreograph:movement


Issue Topic:

1. The best way to understand the character of a society is to examine the character of the men and women that the society chooses as its heroes or its heroines.


April 1


Today’s Words:

1. Hankering(n) : a longing; craving, to have a strong, often restless desire.
Synonyms: craving, hunger, pining, thirst, urge, weakness, yearning, zazzle.
Antonyms: aversion.

2 .Layover(n): a short stop or break in a journey, usually imposed by scheduling requirements;

3. Allude(v): to refer casually or indirectly.
Synonyms: imply, insinuate, intimate, refer, suggest
Antonyms: advertise, keep quiet, keep secret.

4. Banquet(n): a lavish meal; feast.
Synonyms: festivity, fete, regale, repast.
Antonyms: light meal, snack

5. Happenstance(n): a chance happening or event.

6. Conundrum(n): anything that puzzles; a riddle, the answer to which involves a pun or play on words.
Synonyms: brain-teaser, enigma, mystery, mystification.

7. Escalation(v): to increase in intensity, magnitude, etc.

8.Mettle(n): courage and fortitude, disposition or temperament.
Synonyms: animation, ardor, caliber, dauntlessness, gallantry, gameness, hardihood, indomitability, moxie, spunk, valor, vigor, vitality.

9.Taut(adj): tightly drawn; tense; not slack; emotionally or mentally strained or tense; in good order or condition; tidy; neat.
Synonyms: flexed, snug, stiff, trim, unyielding
Antonyms: droopy, flabby, loose, slack.

10. Haunter(n): One who, or that which, haunts(to visit habitually or appear to frequently as a spirit or ghost, to disturb or distress; cause to have anxiety; trouble; worry).

11. Symphony(n): harmony of sounds; anything characterized by a harmonious combination of elements, esp. an effective combination of colors; agreement; concord.

12. Immutable(adj): not mutable; unchangeable; changeless.
Synonyms: abiding, ageless, constant, enduring, inflexible, invariable, permanent, perpetual, sacrosanct, stable, steadfast, unalterable.
Antonyms: changeable, variable.

13. Qurush(n): a former coin and fractional monetary unit of several Middle Eastern and North African countries.

14. Haphazard(adj): characterized by lack of order or planning, by irregularity, or by randomness; determined by or dependent on chance; aimless; mere chance; accident.
Synonyms: accidental, arbitrary, desultory, erratically, fluke, incidental, indiscriminate, offhand, slapdash, slipshod, spontaneous, unconscious, unpremeditated.
Antonyms: methodical, planned, systematic.


Analogies:

1.Haphazard : order

2.Layover : Journey

3.Obstreperous :Control


Issue Topic:

1.Today’s advertisements are affecting people a lot. They show that if you use the product you “would be like” the model in the advertisement, so this concept is very effective.