Words from Pride and Prejudice (Bantam edition)
1. 2 scrupulous (SCROOP-yuh-less) adj. painstakingly careful to do what is right; heeding moral scruples. She is so scrupulous that she will not do personal e-mail while she is at work.
2. 3 caprice n. (ca-PREECE) a sudden, impulsive action. By sheer caprice he changed his plans.
3. 6 surmise vt. to suppose based on slight evidence. Investigators surmised that a cigarette had started the fire. n. a guess. Test results confirmed his surmise.
4. 6 dispatch (dis-PATCH) vt. to send off or away with speed. The commander dispatched reinforcements to the battle site. (DIS-patch) n. 1. an official message. 2. haste, promptness.
5. 8 fastidious adj. hard to please; fussy. Fastidious dieters ask waiters to list the ingredients.
6. 11 affectation n. an artificial or insincere manner. His affectation of superiority is annoying.
7. 11 pliant adj. 1. flexible. Rubber is pliant. 2. yielding easily. My pliant friend cannot say no.
8. 13 supercilious adj. arrogant, haughty. The supercilious king expected dukes to bow.
9. 19 impertinent adj. rude. The impertinent child sassed the teacher.
10. 20 pedantic adj. needlessly and tediously displaying learning; insisting on trivial details. My pedantic friend cannot attend a concert without picking apart the musicians’ technique.
11. 23 effusion n. 1. an outpouring of emotions or words. Her effusion of sorrow made grown men cry. 2. a pouring forth, as of fluids.
12. 28 solicitude n. anxious care and protectiveness. Her solicitude sometimes embarrasses me.
13. 29 indolent adj. lazy; disinclined to move. He is too indolent to stir from the sofa.
14. 29 decorum n. appropriateness and good taste in conduct. In a surprising violation of decorum, the class president passed out the diplomas at the graduation ceremony.
15. 34 civility n. courtesy, politeness: the behavior of civilized people. Treat guests with civility.
16. 41 panegyric (pan-uh-JEER-ik or –JYE-rik) n. formal, elaborate praise, in oratory or writing. The patriotic poet wrote a panegyric commending the glories of Rome.
17. 41 celerity n. swiftness. Foolish rumors spread with amazing celerity.
18. 42 expostulate vi. to reason earnestly, esp. in disagreement. Debaters expostulated heatedly.
19. 43 alacrity n. promptness in response; cheerful readiness. I accepted the offer with alacrity.
20. 44 affront vt. to offend or insult. Her snide jokes about the sport I love affronted me. n. an insulting act. I took his criticism of my plan as a personal affront.
22. 52 iniquitous adj. wicked, evil, unjust. Outraged citizens protested the iniquitous laws.
23. 53 beneficent adj. doing good; charitable. Father Damien is famed for his beneficent works.
24. 56 asperity n. harshness of surface, sound, or manner. The asperity of her tone hurt him.
25. 56 affabilityn. friendliness; pleasant manner. The surgeon’s affability helps patients relax.
27. 79 taciturn (TASS-i-turn) adj. reluctant to speak; silent, stern [not to be confused with tacit, which means “unspoken”]. The taciturn girl surprised classmates by entering a speech contest.
28. 79 posterity n. future generations. For her great feats her name will be honored by posterity.
29. 79 éclat (A-clah [A as in bay]) n. brilliant effect, publicity, dazzling success. The éclat sur-rounding the new pop star died down after a few months.
30. 79 hauteur (ho-TUR) n. arrogance, haughtiness. Her cool hauteur made me feel inferior.
31. 80 upbraid vt. to reproach severely, scold. The Dean upbraided me for cutting class.
32. 83 probity n. honesty, integrity. The probity of high public officials must be unquestionable.
33. 87 derision n. ridicule, mockery. The speech drew derision from protesters in the crowd.
34. 87 entreat vt. to plead. Our hosts entreated us to stay, but it was getting late.
35. 110 complaisance n. friendliness; eagerness to please [not to be confused with complacence or complacency]. The complaisance of the sales staff makes it a pleasant place to shop.
36. 111 incumbent n. the holder of an office. The incumbent was reelected. adj. 1. holding office. 2. imposed as a duty. I feel it is incumbent on all citizens to help their community.
37. 116 repine vi. to be dejected, esp. to long for something. The rejected lover repined in woe.
38. 116 incredulous (in-KREJ-u-les) adj. skeptical, disbelieving. I was incredulous at the news.
39. 117 circumspect adj. careful to consider all consequences; prudent. She was circumspect in making financial investments.
40. 133 spleen n. 1. ill will, esp. when suppressed and/or released. In private he would vent his spleen against his rival. 2. an organ that helps regulate blood supply.
41. 136 deference n. respectful yielding to a superior. He showed deference to his elders.
42. 140 deportment n. bearing, manner. He returned from Oxford with a refined deportment.
43. 150 arch adj. mischievously ironic. Miss Bingley’s arch remarks do not amuse Darcy.
45. 139 trepidation n. fear or anxiety. New students feel trepidation on the first day of school.
46. 165 misrepresent vt. to give a false impression of, usu. with the intent to deceive. To avoid incriminating himself, he misrepresented the facts.
47. 172. propensity n. strong natural tendency or preference. He has a propensity to daydream.
48. 172 pecuniary (pi-KEW-nee-airy) adj. of or pertaining to money. The chief architect con-centrated on design and left pecuniary matters to other members of the firm.
49. 172 lieu (LOO) n. stead, place (usu. in lieu of). In lieu of a test, students can create a project.
50. 172 accede vi. to agree or yield to a request or demand. He acceded to the rebels’ demands.
52. 183 chagrin (shuh-GRIN) n. annoyance due to embarrassment, failure, etc. To her chagrin, no one came to her party. vt. to vex, disappoint, humiliate. He was chagrined when he overslept.
53. 186 consternation n. amazement or dismay that hinders or confuses. The power outage caused consternation throughout the crowded theater.
54. 191 equivocal (ee-KWIV-o-cul) adj. 1. subject to different interpretations; misleading (often intentionally). Lawyers debated the equivocal phrasing in the will. 2. hard to classify or judge.
55. 194 tumult (TOO-mult) n. disorder, commotion. The wild mob was in a state of tumult.
57. 199 voluble adj. freely talkative. Elizabeth Bennet wishes her mother were less voluble.
58. 202 injunction n. 1. an order or command. Employees were under a strict injunction not to talk to the media. 2. a legal writ requiring or forbidding someone to do something.
59. 204 querulous adj. habitually complaining or whining. The querulous boy annoys teachers.
60. 206 acquiesce (ack-we-ESS) vi. to accept or submit without opposition (used with in or to). Keeping his annoyance to himself, he acquiesced in the wishes of the group.
62. 224 impute vt. to accuse; to attribute blame. The prince imputed her vows of love to greed.
63. 225 petulance (PETCH-uh-lents) n. peevishness, irritability, ill temper. I could understand such pouting and petulance in a spoiled child, but she is a grown woman.
64. 225 acrimony (AK-ra-mo-ny) n. harshness or sharpness of speech or disposition. She responded with acrimony to her friend’s betrayal.
65. 236 palliate (PAL-ee-ate) vt. to make less serious; to ease. Steroids palliate some diseases.
66. 236 engross vt. to take the full attention of; to occupy completely. The book engrossed me.
68. 249 insufferable adj. intolerable, unbearable. Everyone avoided the insufferable bore.
70. 252 alleviate vt. to relieve, lessen; to make more bearable. An aspirin alleviated the pain.
71. 295 premeditation n. planning beforehand to commit an act. The assault was committed on impulse and not with premeditation.
72. 296 forbearance n. tolerance or restraint when provoked. I admire her forbearance in responding so calmly to rude questions.
73. 312 divert vt. 1. to amuse, esp. as relief from worry. After long hours of study, she watches comic shows on TV to divert herself. 2. to distract. 3. to turn aside.
74. 333 arrears n. (usu. plural) tardiness in meeting obligations. I was in arrears with my rent.
75. 334 pleasantry n. 1. a joke; playful conversation. The speaker’s pleasantries relaxed the audience. 2. a polite social remark. We only had time to exchange pleasantries.
