Boost Your Word Power: Key Definitions & Usage

Expand your lexicon with these essential terms and their precise meanings, enhancing your communication and writing skills.

Auspices

Approval and support; patronage.

Bode

To be a sign or an omen of; to portend.

Burnished

To polish; to make shiny by rubbing; a glossy finish.

Clandestine

Concealed, usually for a forbidden purpose; secret.

Coerce

To compel by force; to dominate or restrain by force.

Cosmopolitan

International; having worldly experience.

Chauvinism

Fanatical patriotism based on the superiority of one's own group.

Disparity

Inequality; difference.

Differentiate

To distinguish; to make different.

Devoid

Totally lacking; without; entirely empty.

Empirical

Based on practical experience rather than theory.

Epitome

An ideal example or summary.

Fervid

Giving off intense heat; impassioned, enthusiastic.

Fomenting

To foster trouble, rebellion, or strife; to stir up; to incite.

Facetious

Humorous, not meant seriously.

Gauntlet

A glove with a long sleeve in medieval times; a challenge.

Hiatus

A space where something is missing; any break in continuity.

Inexorable

Unalterable, relentless.

Moot

Resolved and not worth further discussion or illustration.

Misnomer

An incorrect or inappropriate name.

Mete

To distribute by or as if by measure; allot.

Mottled

Having spots or patches of color; streaked or spotted.

Officious

Excessively eager in giving unwanted advice; meddlesome, pushy.

Quiescent

Stillness; quietness; inactivity.

Reticent

Reserved; reluctant, discreet.

Renounce

To give up or resign something.

Regimen

A form of government; systematic procedure, or system for improving health.

Repository

A center for storage; a safe place; a person to whom something is entrusted.

Sagacity

Keen, sound judgment; mental acuteness; shrewdness.

Scathing

Bitterly severe, withering; causing great harm.

Solicitous

Showing concern or worry; anxiously concerned; eager.

Temerity

Reckless boldness; rashness; foolhardiness.

Terra Firma

Solid earth; firm ground.

Testimonial

A token of admiration or gratitude, or a statement of recommendation.

Treatise

A thoroughly written discussion of a topic.

Tenuous

Thin, not substantial, flimsy.

Vantage Point

A position that allows a clear view or understanding; an advantageous position.

Vindicate

To clear of suspicion or blame; to justify or support.

Vestige

A slight remnant; a trace of something that no longer exists; a minute quality.