Check back regularly to find new words of the day!

dogmatic (6.17.13)

arrogantly stating opnions without proof

compliance (6.14.13)

readiness to yield; conformity

innovation (5.30.13)

change; introduction of something new

furtive (5.28.13)

sneaky, secretive

hamper (5.14.13)

to obstruct; to make more difficult

assiduous (5.13.13)

earnest and persistent in undertaking a task

exalt (5.6.13)

raise in rank or dignity; praise

archaic (5.2.13)

ancient; out of date

ravenous (4.30.13)

extremely hungry

proliferation (4.29.13)

rapid growth, spread

feasible (4.22.13)

practical

munificent (4.10.13)

generous

egotism (4.8.13)

excessive self-importance; conceit

innate (4.3.13)

inborn (inside of you)

relegate (4.2.13)

banish to an inferior position; delegate; assign

impeccable (4.1.13)

faultless; having no flaws

equivocal (3.28.13)

unclear in meaning, intentionally misleading

ephemeral (3.27.13)

fleeting, only there for a short time

affable (3.26.13)

easily approachable, warm, friendly

phenomena (3.22.13)

observable facts; subjects of scientific investigation

adulation (3.21.13)

excessive flattery or admiration

stupefied (3.20.13)

made numb; stunned; amazed

tirade (3.14.13)

extended scolding, long angry speech denouncing something

nonchalance (3.13.13)

indifference; lack of concern; composure

raucous (3.12.13)

harsh and shrill; disorderly and boisterous

immutable (3.11.13)

unchangeable

nefarious (3.7.13)

very wicked

rancor (3.6.13)

hatred; bitterness

adversary (3.4.13)

opponent

penury (3.1.13)

severe poverty; stinginess

implement (2.28.13)

put into effect

emulate (2.27.13)

imitate

obstinate (2.25.13)

stubborn; hard to control or treat

haughtiness (2.14.13)

pride, arrogance

rigor (2.13.13)

severity, strictness

morose (2.5.13)

ill-humored, sad, gloomy

avarice (2.4.13)

greed

opulence (2.1.13)

extreme wealth

intrepid (1.31.13)

fearless

deplore (1.30.13)

to regret

ignominy (1.29.13)

shame, disgrace

elusive (1.28.13)

difficult to grasp

lament

to express sorrow

pretentious (1.18.13)

pompous; making unjustified claims

orator (1.17.13)

public speaker

cordial (1.14.13)

gracious, heartfelt

explicit (1.11.13)

totally clear; definitive

arbitrary (1.10.13)

randomly chosen

deterrent (1.8.13)

something that discourages

extricate (1.7.13)

to free; disentangle

incite (1.3.13)

encourage to stir up to action

disdain (1.2.13)

scorn

kowtow (12.21.12)

to kneel and touch the forehead to the ground in an expression of deep respect

impede (12.20.12)

to block progress of; to create an obstacle

gamete (12.19.12)

a reproductive cell having the haploid number of cells

antebellum (12.18.12)

belonging to the period before a war, especially the Civil War

circumlocution (12.14.12)

the use of unnecessarily wordy and indirect language

subjugate (12.11.12)

to bring under control; conquer

hubris (12.10.12)

overbearing pride or presumption; arrogance

Who is a character you know from literature that demonstrates hubris?

abrogate (12.7.12)

to abolish, do away with, or annul, especially by authority

lexicon (12.6.12)

a dictionary or stock of words particular to a field

vacuous (12.5.12)

lacking intelligence, stupid

tautology (12.4.12)

needless repetition of the same sense in different words

recapitulate (11.30.12)

to repeat in concise form

xenophobe (11.29.12)

a person unduly fearful or contemptuous of that which is foreign, especially of strangers or foreign people

quasar (11.28.12)

an extremelyl distant, and thus old, celestial object whose power output is several times that of the Milky Way

vehement (11.20.12)

forceful or intense in expression, emotion, or conviction; fervid

quotidian (11.19.12)

commonplace or ordinary

pugilist (9.10.2012)

a fighter, boxer, one who engages in hand-to-hand combat.

alacrity (9.11.2012)

speed, quickness, fluid motion

candid (9.12.2012)

honest, straightforward

lucid (9.13.2012)

clear, easily understood

root clue = "las luces"

autonomy (9.14.2012)

independence

root clue = "auto"

contiguous (9.17.2012)

continuous, touching

clue = the 48 contiguous United States

cosmopolitan (9.18.2012)

worldly

root = cosmos (or kosmos in Greek)

didactic (9.19.2012)

intended solely to teach a lesson

euphemism (9.20.2012)

a nice way to say something not so nice

root = eu (good, pleasant, well)

idiosyncrasy (9.21.12)

a quirk

What are your idiosyncrasies?

precocious (9.24.12)

highly developed, advanced, or mature at a young age

"She's precocious...and she knows it..."

pragmatic (9.25.12)

practical

inscrutable (9.26.12)

no easy to understand

reclusive (9.27.12)

describing someone who rarely goes out

Jared is pretty reclusive; he just stays home to shoot hockey pucks into his washing machine.

credible (10.1.12)

"legit," legitimate, reliable

root idea = creer (to think/to believe)

incontrovertible (10.2.12)

in = not

contro = against

vert =to go

ible = able

not able to go against

The lawyer presented evidence that was simply incontrovertible, so the jury was forced to acquit.

sycophant (10.3.12)

a suck-up

Jade, a sycophant, gave Mr. Ambrose a donut and told him he was her favorite teacher.

laudatory (10.5.12)

worthy of praise

cum laude, summa cum laude, magna cum laude

vex (10.9.12)

to anger and confuse

altruism (10.10.12)

doing things because they are the right thing to do

litigious (10.11.12)

having to del with legal matters

exorbitant (10.15.12)

exceeding what is usual or proper

Paul Zizzo spends an exorbitant amount of his income on candy.

ubiquitous (10.16.12)

seemingly omnipresent

North Face jackets and Ugg boots are ubiquitous at our school.

vicarious (10.17.12)

acting for/through another

ambiguous (10.18.12)

vague

felicitous (10.19.12)

happy, suitably expressed, pleasant, delightful

root = "feliz"

apathetic (10.23.12)

not caring

roots:

a = not

pathos = emotion

bombastic (10.25.12)

pretentious in speech

Think:  "She call me Mr. Bombastic, ain't it fantastic?"

vignette (10.26.12)

a short, short story - a scene almost like a snapshot

Think:  The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

vacillate (10.31.12)

to go back and forth, as in between two options

enfranchise (11.5.12)

to endow with full citizenship, including the right to vote

gauche (11.8.12)

socially awkward

moeity (11.9.12)

a half, a part, a portion

omnipotent (11.13.12)

having unlimited or universal power, authority, or force

jejune (11.15.2012)

not interesting, dull

antebellum (1.17.2012)

Belonging to the period before a war, especially the American Civil War.

After the success of their hit single "Need You Now," the members of Lady Antebellum purchased a lovely antebellum home in the South.

auspicious (1.18.2012)

Attended by favorable circumstances; marked by success.

When Tom Brady threw a touchdown pass to Wes Welker just seven seconds into the game, I knew things were off to an auspicious start.

belie (1.19.2012)

To give a false representation to; to misrepresent.

Mr. Ambrose's nerdy appearance belies the fact that he loves the musical stylings of Young Money.  YMCMB!

bellicose (1.20.2012)

Warlike or hostile in manner or temperment.

Newt Gingrich offered a bellicose response when the moderator asked about his second marriage.

bowdlerize (1.24.2012)

To remove material that is considered objectionable.

Katie Bowle bowdlerized The Canterbury Tales, removing all racy scenes in The Miller's Tale and The Reeve's Tale. 

churlish (1.25.2012)

having a bad disposition; surly

Mr. Howard is quite churlish in the morning before his cup of coffee.

circumlocution (1.26.2012)

1.  the use of unnecessarily wordy and indirect language, 2. a roundabout expression

"Get to the point," Mr. Morris said, " and avoid circumlocution in your essays."

deleterious (1.27.2012)

having a harmful effect

When Julia accidentally deleted Christina's essay before she saved it, it had a deleterious effect on Christina's grade - and their friendship.

diffident (1.30.2012)

lacking self-confidence, shy, timid

Snooki is most certainly not diffident.

epiphany (1.31.2012)

a sudden realization or revelation

One day, Mr. Ambrose had an epiphany that he wouldn't lose so many of his computer files if he just started a nerdy website called www.misterambrose.com. 

equinox (2.1.2012)

the date when the day and night are of equal length

March 20/21 and September 22/23

evanescent (2.2.2012)

vanishing or likely to vanish like a vapor

Marky Mark's rap career was certainly more evanescent than his acting career.

facetious (2.3.2012)

playfully jocular, humorous

Are you serious, or are you being facetious?

feckless (2.7.2012)

lacking purpose, careless, irresponsible

Anse Bundren in William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying has been described as one of the most feckless characters in all of literature.

filibuster (2.8.2012)

the use of obstructionist tactics, especially prolonged speechmaking, for the purpose of delaying legislative action

gauche (2.9.2012)

lacking grace or social polish; awkward

Perhaps the new MTV show Awkward should instead be called Gauche.

gerrymander (2.10.2012)

To divide a geographic area into voting districts to give an unfair advantage to one party

In the early 1800s, Elbridge Gerry, governor of Massachusetts, redrew voting districts so that one of them looked like a salamander.  That's an absolutely true story, and that's where we get this weird word gerrymander.

homogeneous (2.13.2012)

Uniform in structure or composition

My high school, Malden Catholic, has a rather homogeneous population.

hubris (2.14.2012)

overbearing pride, arrogance

Many people criticized Lebron James for his hubris when he remarked, "I'm taking my talents to South Beach."

impeach (2.15.2012)

to publicly accuse

What presidents have been impeached?  (Hint:  There are two.)

incognito (2.16.2012)

with one's identity concealed

Incognito Mosquito, a detective bug, was one of my favorite characters as a child.

incontrovertible (2.27.2012)

Roots = un able to go against

unable to dispute, refute, or deny

Anthony presented incontrovertible evidence that The Big Bang Theory was the best show on TV.

inculcate (2.28.2012)

to teach others by frequent instruction or repitition, indoctrinate

I hope to inculcate my students with a love of vocabulary.

interpolate  (3.1.2012)

1. to insert or introduce

2. to insert material into the text

3. to change or falsify a text with new or incorrect material

jejune (3.5.2012)

not interesting, dull

I love basketball, but I find golf jejune.

kinetic (3.7.2012)

of, relating to, or produced by motion

Think:  kinetic energy

kowtow (3.8.2012)

1. to show servile deference
2. to kneel and touch the forehead to the ground in expression of deep respect, worship, or submission, as formerly done in China

Mr. Ambrose kowtowed to Brandon Breen because Brandon was such an intimidating young lad.

lexicon

1. a dictionary 2. a stock of terms used in a particular subject

loquacious

very talkative, garrulous

lugubrious

mournful, dismal, or gloomy

metamorphosis

a marked change in appearance, character, condition, or function, a transformation

moiety

a half, a part, a portion, or a share

nanotechnology

the science and technology of building devices, such as electronic circuits, from individual atoms and molecules

nihilism

an extreme form of skepticism that denies existence is real

nomenclature

a system of names used in an art or science

nonsectarian

not limited to or associated with a particular religious denomination

notarize

to certify or attest to as a notary public

obsequious

full of or exhibiting servile compliance

oligarchy

government by a few, especially by a small faction of persons or families

omnipotent

all powerful

orthography

the art or study of correct spelling according to established usage

ostentatious

characterized by showiness meant to impress others; pretentious in display

oxidize

to combine with oxygen; to rust

paradigm

one that serves as a pattern or model

quotidian

commonplace or ordinary, as from everday experience

precipitous (4.27.2012)

extremely steep 

I was very nervous as I hiked up the precipitous cliff.

recipitulate (5.2.2012)

to repeat in a concise form; to make a short summary

reparation (5.3.2012)

The act or process of making amends for wrongs

sanguine (5.4.2012)

cheerfully optimistic

root:  sangre = blood (think about the four humours)

soliloquy (5.7.2012)

a dramatic or literary form of discourse in which a character talks to themselves or reveals their thoughts when alone or not aware of present characters

subjugate (5.8.2012)

to bring under control, to conquer

suffragist (5.9.2012)

an advocate of the extension of voting rights, especially to women

supercilious (5.10.2012)

arrogant, haughty

It is super silly to be supercilious.

tautology (5.11.2012)

needless repetition of the same sense in different words; redundant

tempestuous (5.14.2012)

1. stormy

2. characterized by violent emotions 

totalitarian (5.15.2012)

of, relating to, or imposing a form of government in which the political authority exercises control over all aspects of life

unctuous (5.16.2012)

characterized by affected, exaggerated, or insincere earnestness

THINK IAGO!

usurp (5.17.2012)

to seize and hold by force or without legal authority

vacuous (5.18.2012)

lacking intelligence, stupid

Sally is pretty vacuous, so when I said, "Sally, you are pretty vacuous," she said, "Thanks!"

vehement (5.19.2012)

passionate, emphatic

My wife is vehemently oposed to my wearing black socks with brown shoes.

vortex (5.20.2012)

1. a sprial motion of fluid

2. a place or situation regarded as drawing into its center

xenophobe (5.23.2012)

a person unduly fearful or contempuous of that which is foreign, especially of strangers or foreign peoples

yeoman (5.24.2012)

1. an attendant, servant, or less official in a royal or noble household
2. an assitant or other subordinate, as of a sheriff

ziggurat (5.29.2012)

a temple tower of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians

accolade (5.30.2012)

award, recognition

acrimony (5.31.2012)

bitter, sharp hostility, especially in speech

angst (6.4.2012)

a feeling of anxiety or apprehension

"Teenage angst has paid off well / Now I'm bored and old."  - Kurt Cobain, "Serve the Servants"

anomaly (6.5.2012)

someone or something that deviates from the common order or form

antidote (6.6.2012)

an agent that counteracts something that is poisonous or harmful 

avant-garde (6.7.2012)

a group that creates or promotes innovative or unconvetional ideas in a given field (arts)

baroque (6.8.2012)

extravagant, complex, or bizarre, especially in ornamentation

bona fide (6.11.2012)

made or carried out in good faith; sincere

boondoggle (6.12.2012)

something that is unnecessary - like a Boy Scout neckerchief

bourgeois (6.13.2012)

relating to or typical of the middle class

Use these words regularly in your writing and in your speech, and you'll sound smart in high school and beyond!