Vocabulary Words #8 (Honors Option)

plucky- having or showing pluck or courage; brave


corpulent- large or bulky of body; portly; stout; fat.


malaise- a condition of general bodily weakness or discomfort, often marking the onset of a disease.

indolent- having or showing a disposition to avoid exertion; slothful

volatile- tending or threatening to break out into open violence; explosive


quixotic- extravagantly chivalrous or romantic; visionary, impractical, or impracticable


tutelage- the act of guarding, protecting, or guiding; office or function of a guardian; guardianship

balustrade- a railing with supporting balusters

flying buttresse- An external, arched support for the wall of a church or other building. Flying buttresses were used in many Gothic cathedrals; they enabled builders to put up very tall but comparatively thin stone walls, so that much of the wall space could be filled with stained-glass windows. The cathedrals of Chartres and Notre Dame de Paris were built with flying buttresses.




eidetic-of, pertaining to, or constituting visual imagery vividly experienced and readily reproducible with great accuracy and in great detail.

Vocabulary Words #7 (Honors Option)

mugwump- a person who is unable to make up his or her mind on an issue, esp. in politics; a person who is neutral on a controversial issue.

muliebrity- womanly nature or qualities.


chevron- a badge consisting of stripes meeting at an angle, worn on the sleeve by noncommissioned officers, police officers, etc., as an indication of rank, service, or the like.

eristic- a person who engages in disputation; controversialist.

perpend- a large stone passing through the entire thickness of a wall.


vamoose- to leave hurriedly or quickly; decamp.

iatrogenic- Induced in a patient by a physician's activity, manner, or therapy. Used especially of an infection or other complication of treatment.


jnana- knowledge acquired through meditation and study as a means of reaching Brahman


fatuous- foolish or inane, esp. in an unconscious, complacent manner; silly.


doff- to remove or take off, as clothing.

Vocabulary Words #6 (Honors Option)

indemnification- something that serves to indemnify; compensation.


sultry- oppressively hot and close or moist; sweltering: a sultry day.


raze- to tear down; demolish; level to the ground: to raze a row of old buildings.


quell- to suppress; put an end to; extinguish


mollify- to soften in feeling or temper, as a person; pacify; appease.


licentious- going beyond customary or proper bounds or limits; disregarding rules

rectify- to make, put, or set right; remedy; correct

cognizance- awareness, realization, or knowledge; notice; perception

pluralism- a theory that there is more than one basic substance or principle.

tier- one of a number of galleries, as in a theater

Vocabulary Words #5 (Honors Option)

disport- to divert or amuse (oneself).



transmogrify- to change in appearance or form, esp. strangely or grotesquely; transform.


oneiric- of or pertaining to dreams.

pelf- money or wealth, esp. when regarded with contempt or acquired by reprehensible means.


bloviate- To discourse at length in a pompous or boastful manner

neologism- the introduction or use of new words or new senses of existing words.

dishabille- the state of being dressed in a careless, disheveled, or disorderly style or manner; undress.

ne plus ultra- the most intense degree of a quality or state.


trammel- a hindrance or impediment to free action; restraint

gubernatorial- of or pertaining to a state governor or the office of state governor