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Vocab
15
anachronistic
adj
[an
(not) + chron (time)] misplaced in time, esp. when referring to notions
or ideas. (noun form anachronism) The filmmakers committed an anachronistic
error when they had Civil War generals communicating on cell phones. / Your
anachronistic notion that women should stay home and take care of the house does
not belong in the 21st century.
anarchy
n
[an
(not) + arch (rule)] the absence of government or rule. After the fall
of the government, the society collapsed into total anarchy.
bourgeois
adj
of or
belonging to the middle class, esp. as it reflects the somewhat tasteless
notions of the newly moneyed. No matter how wealthy he became, he could never
shake the somewhat bourgeois notion that his respectability was tied to the size
and model of the car he drove.
canonical
n
according
to an accepted list, esp. religious, as in the canon of the biblical books or
the canon of saints. There are 37 plays in the canonical list of
Shakespeare’s works, though several of them probably had collaborators working
on them. / Though Tobit is a book of the Catholic bible, it is not canonical
according to the King James version.
celerity
n
eager
quickness and speed. When asked to clap the erasers together out on the
playground, Johnny leaped to the task with celerity—anything to get out of the
boring lecture on reciprocal integers.
coalescence
n
a
coming together of material, ideas, or masses. Many scientists believe that
the solar system is the result of a gravitational coalescence of interstellar
dust and gas which gradually built up enough mass to ignite into the sun and
planets.
contrite
adj
heartily
sorry for, repentant The judge was not moved to commute the prisoner’s
sentence, especially since he admitted he was not contrite about what he did and
would gladly do it again.
corporeal
adj
bodily,
existing in the flesh or physical substance, esp. as opposed to spiritual Many
religions have believed that their gods—normally just spiritual
essences—could assume corporeal
form and walk about the earth as real men and women.
culpable
adj.
guilty,
worthy of blame Though the terrorist did not actually blow up the building
himself, he ordered his minions to do it, and he is therefore morally culpable
of the act.
diffident
adj
shy
and awkward, marked by hesitation and lack of self-confidence. I was
understandably diffident about giving the keynote address to the symposium of
Nobel Prize winners, especially since I had no formal training and had never
graduated college.