WORD MASTER~!!!!! – Flashcards

1a : a minister plenipotentiary accredited to a foreign government who ranks between an ambassador and a minister resident —called also envoy extraordinary b : a person delegated to represent one government in its dealings with another 2: messenger, representative Examples of ENVOY Origin of ENVOY French envoyé, from past participle of envoyer to send, from Old French enveier First Known Use: 1635 Synonyms: agent, delegate, emissary, ambassador, legate, minister, representative

1obsolete : trample 2a : to prevent from attaining an end : defeat b : to bring to naught : thwart Origin of FOIL Middle English, alteration of fullen to full cloth, from Anglo-French foller — more at full First Known Use: 14th century 1archaic : defeat 2archaic : the track or trail of an animal First Known Use of FOIL 15th century 1: very thin sheet metal 2: a thin piece of material (as metal) put under an inferior or paste stone to add color or brilliance 3: someone or something that serves as a contrast to another 4a : an indentation between cusps in Gothic tracery b : one of several arcs that enclose a complex figure 5: hydrofoil 1 Origin of FOIL Middle English, leaf, from Anglo-French fuille, foille (from Latin folia, plural of folium) & fuil, from Latin folium — more at blade First Known Use: 14th century 1: a light fencing sword having a usually circular guard and a flexible blade of rectangular section tapering to a blunted point — compare épée, saber 2: the art or sport of fencing with the foil —often used in plural Origin of FOIL origin unknown First Known Use: 1594 1: to back or cover with foil 2: to enhance by contrast Synonyms: baffle, balk, beat, checkmate, discomfit, foil, thwart Antonyms: advance, cultivate, encourage, forward, foster, further, nurture, promote

1: the act or process of segregating : the state of being segregated 2a : the separation or isolation of a race, class, or ethnic group by enforced or voluntary residence in a restricted area, by barriers to social intercourse, by separate educational facilities, or by other discriminatory means b : the separation for special treatment or observation of individuals or items from a larger group : the separation of allelic genes that occurs typically during meiosis Examples of SEGREGATION:They fought to end the segregation of public schools. the segregation of men and women First Known Use of SEGREGATION 1555 Synonyms: aloneness, insulation, privacy, secludedness, seclusion, isolation, separateness, sequestration, solitariness, solitude

1: to lower in status, esteem, quality, or character 2a : to reduce the intrinsic value of (a coin) by increasing the base-metal content b : to reduce the exchange value of (a monetary unit) — de·base·ment noun — de·bas·er noun Examples of DEBASEThe governor debased himself by lying to the public.The holiday has been debased by commercialism.First Known Use of DEBASE: 1565 Synonyms: abase, bastardize, canker, cheapen, corrupt, debauch, degrade, demean, demoralize, deprave, deteriorate, lessen, pervert, poison, profane, prostitute, subvert, vitiate, warp Antonyms: elevate, ennoble, uplift

1: showing or suggesting that future success is likely : propitious 2: attended by good fortune : prosperous — aus·pi·cious·ly adverb — aus·pi·cious·ness noun Examples of AUSPICIOUS:His acclaimed first novel was an auspicious debut.After his auspicious debut, Chambers became sought after by serious collectors of folk art; but given that the present show is now only the second he has had and is the first retrospective look at him, he is probably as obscure to the general museum going public today as he was in 1942. —Sanford Schwartz, New York Review of Books, 15 Jan. 2009 Origin of AUSPICIOUS: (see auspice) First Known Use: 1593 Synonyms: hopeful, bright, encouraging, fair, golden, heartening, likely, optimistic, promising, propitious, roseate, rose-colored, rosy, upbeat Antonyms: bleak, dark, depressing, desperate, discouraging, disheartening, dismal, downbeat, dreary, gloomy, hopeless, inauspicious, pessimistic, unencouraging, unlikely, unpromising, unpropitious

1a : an official at a tournament of arms with duties including the making of announcements and the marshaling of combatants b : an officer with the status of ambassador acting as official messenger between leaders especially in war c (1) : officer of arms (2) : an officer of arms ranking above a pursuivant and below a king of arms 2: an official crier or messenger 3a : one that precedes or foreshadows b : one that conveys news or proclaims : announcer c : one who actively promotes or advocates : exponent Examples of HERALD: The early flowers are heralds of spring.Mercury was the herald of the Roman gods.Origin of HERALD: Middle English, from Anglo-French heraud, herald, from Frankish *heriwald-, literally, leader of an armed force, from *heri- army + *wald- rule; akin to Old High German heri- army, waltan to rule — more at harry, wield Synonyms: adumbrate, forerun, harbinger, foreshadow, prefigure

1: liberal giving (as of money) to or as if to an inferior; also : something so given 2: generosity Variants of LARGESSE lar·gesse also lar·gess Examples of LARGESSE He relied on the largesse of friends after he lost his job. Origin of LARGESSE: Middle English largesse, from Anglo-French, from large First Known Use: 13th century Synonyms: bigheartedness, bountifulness, bounty, generosity, generousness, largesse (also largess), munificence, openhandedness, openheartedness, philanthropy, unselfishness Antonyms: cheapness, closeness, meanness, miserliness, parsimony, penuriousness, pinching, selfishness, stinginess, tightness, ungenerosity

Full Definition of ADULTERATE: to corrupt, debase, or make impure by the addition of a foreign or inferior substance or element; especially : to prepare for sale by replacing more valuable with less valuable or inert ingredients — adul·ter·a·tor noun Examples of ADULTERATE: The company is accused of adulterating its products with cheap additives. Origin of ADULTERATE: Latin adulteratus, past participle of adulterare, from ad- + alter other — more at else First Known Use: 1531 Synonyms: cut, dilute, extend, lace, sophisticate, thin, water down, weaken Antonyms: enrich, fortify, richen, strengthen

1a : to make strait or narrow b : to hem in : confine 2archaic : to restrict in freedom or scope : hamper 3: to subject to distress, privation, or deficiency First Known Use of STRAITEN: circa 1552

: a written communication : letter Examples of MISSIVE: She received yet another lengthy missive from her father. Origin of MISSIVE: Middle French lettre missive, literally, letter intended to be sent First Known Use: 1501 Synonyms: dispatch, epistle, memo, memorandum, 1letter, note

1archaic : close 2: to make impossible by necessary consequence : rule out in advance — pre·clu·sion noun — pre·clu·sive adjective — pre·clu·sive·ly adverb Examples of PRECLUDE: She suffered an injury that precluded the possibility of an athletic career.Bad weather precluded any further attempts to reach the summit. I fear these things, but vaguely, for my brain buzzes in the merciful wash of endorphins that preclude any thought from occupying it too long. —Louise Erdrich, Harper's, May 1993 Origin of PRECLUDE: Latin praecludere, from prae- + claudere to close — more at close Synonyms: avert, forestall, head off, help, obviate, prevent, stave off

1a : an artifice or trick in war for deceiving and outwitting the enemy b : a cleverly contrived trick or scheme for gaining an end 2: skill in ruses or trickery Examples of STRATAGEM Origin of STRATAGEM: Italian stratagemma, from Latin strategema, from Greek stratēgēma, from stratēgein to be a general, maneuver, from stratēgos general, from stratos camp, army (akin to Latin stratus, past participle, spread out) + agein to lead — more at stratum, agent First Known Use: 15th century Synonyms: artifice, device, dodge, fetch, flimflam, gambit, gimmick, jig, juggle, knack, play, ploy, scheme, shenanigan, sleight, trick, wile

transitive verb1a : cut down, reduce b : to cut out : excise 2: to pare away : remove intransitive verb: to make retrenchments; specifically : economize Examples of RETRENCH: When the economy slowed, the company was forced to retrench. Origin of RETRENCH: obsolete French retrencher (now retrancher), from Middle French retrenchier, from re- + trenchier to cut First Known Use: 1596