FEBRUARY THREAD - Updated regularly

Make sure to do all words from previous threads also...

1. Esoteric - Beyond the understanding of an average mind;

mysterious, obscure; not publicly disclosed; confidential; confined
to a small group; intended for or understood by only a particular
group; of or relating to that which is known by a restricted number
of people
2. Augury - The art, ability, or practice of auguring; divination; sign
of something coming; an omen; phenomenon that serves as a sign or
warning of some future good or evil; practice of reading signs or
omens
3. Rapacious - Taking by force; plundering; greedy; ravenous;
subsisting on live prey; grasping; having an insatiable appetite for
an activity or pursuit
4. Spurious - Lacking authenticity or validity in essence or origin;
not genuine; false; of illegitimate birth; similar in appearance but
unlike in structure or function; counterfeit, fake; fraudulently or
deceptively imitative
5. Reminiscence - The act or process of recollecting past experiences
or events; event that brings to mind a similar, former event; calling
to mind of incidents within the range of personal knowledge or
experience; narrative of experiences undergone by the writer.
commentary (often used in plural)
6. Sacrilegious - Grossly irreverent toward what is or is held to be
sacred; showing irreverence and contempt for something sacred;
profane; grossly irreverent toward what is held to be holy
7. Unflappable - Persistently calm, whether when facing difficulties
or experiencing success; not easily upset or excited; cool and calm
8. Apron - A garment of cloth worn to protect your clothing; a
defined area on an airfield intended to accommodate aircraft for
purposes of loading or unloading passengers or cargo, refueling,
parking, or maintenance; flat piece of wood mounted under the base
of a cabinet; part of a stage in a theater extending in front of the
curtain; platform, as of planking, at the entrance to a dock
9. Arboreal - Relating to or resembling a tree; living in trees;
pertaining to trees; of or relating to or formed by trees; inhabiting
or frequenting trees; resembling a tree in form and branching
structure
10. Altercation - A vehement quarrel; discussion, often heated, in
which a difference of opinion is expressed; fight, often verbal; angry
fight or dispute
11. Whet - To sharpen (a knife, for example); hone; make more keen;
stimulate; sharpen; arouse; excite
12. Obstreperous - Noisily and stubbornly defiant; aggressively
boisterous; unruly; not submitting to discipline or control;
offensively loud and insistent
13. Interloper - One that interferes with the affairs of others, often
for selfish reasons; a meddler; one that intrudes in a place,
situation, or activity; one that trespasses on a trade monopoly, as by
conducting unauthorized trade in an area designated to a chartered
company; ship or other vessel used in such trade; one who
encroaches or intrudes; person given to intruding in other people's
affairs
14. Voluble - Marked by a ready flow of speech; fluent; turning easily
on an axis; rotating; talkative; marked by a ready flow of speech
15. Reify - To regard or treat (an abstraction) as if it had concrete or
material existence; interpretation of an abstract idea or concept,
such as the state, as real or concrete; consider an abstract concept to
be real
16. Modicum - A small, moderate, or token amount
17. Fraught - Filled with a specified element or elements; charged;
marked by or causing distress; emotional; freight; cargo; marked by
distress; filled with or attended with
18. Placidity - The quality or state of being placid; calmness;
serenity; a feeling of calmness; a quiet and undisturbed feeling; a
disposition free from stress or emotion
19. Phlegmatic - Without emotion or interest; having or suggesting a
calm, sluggish temperament; unemotional
20. Intermittent - Stopping and starting at intervals; alternately
containing and empty of water; irregular, sporadic; happening or
appearing now and then
21. Unctuous - Characterized by affected, exaggerated, or insincere
earnestness; slippery; greasy; affectedly and self-servingly earnest;
too polite in speech or manner
22. Saunter - To walk at a leisurely pace; stroll; leisurely pace;
leisurely walk or stroll; stroll; walk in a confident manner; act of
walking, especially for pleasure
23. Cavil - To find fault unnecessarily; raise trivial objections;
quibble about; detect petty flaws in; carping or trivial objection;
critic of our own work
24. Laxatives - Laxatives are products that promote bowel
movements; having power to open or loosen the bowels
25. Doleful - Filled with or expressing grief; mournful; causing grief;
depressing
26. Lugubrious - Mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially to an
exaggerated or ludicrous degree
27. Awe - A mixed emotion of reverence, respect, dread, and wonder
inspired by authority, genius, great beauty, sublimity, or might;
amazement; amaze; deep respect mixed with fear and wonder;
impress strongly by what is unexpected or unusual
28. Tepid - Moderately warm; lukewarm; lacking in emotional
warmth or enthusiasm; halfhearted; neither hot nor cold
29. Unsubstantial - Lacking material substance; insubstantial;
lacking firmness or strength; flimsy; lacking basis in fact; lacking
material form or substance; unreal
30. Slipshod - Marked by carelessness; sloppy or slovenly; shabby or
seedy; careless; not well done; indifferent to correctness, accuracy,
or neatness
31. Equivocation - Intentionally vague or ambiguous; falsification
by means of vague or ambiguous language; a statement that is not
literally false but that cleverly avoids an unpleasant truth;
expression or term liable to more than one interpretation; use or an
instance of equivocal language
32. Mendicant - Depending on alms for a living; practicing begging;
beggar; member of an order of friars forbidden to own property in
common, who work or beg for their living; one who begs habitually
or for a living
33. Repose - Freedom from labor, responsibility, or strain; relax;
recline; calm; rest; to lie while being supported by something; to
place (trust, for example); cease from troubling
34. Futility - The quality of having no useful result; uselessness; lack
of importance or purpose; frivolousness; condition or quality of
being useless or ineffective; fruitlessness
35. Dicey - Involving or fraught with danger or risk; risky;of
uncertain outcome; especially fraught with risk
36. Zest - A distinctive property of a substance affecting the
gustatory sense; spirited enjoyment; energy, gusto; taste, flavor;
hearty enjoyment. Also: The outermost part of the rind of an orange,
lemon, or other citrus fruit, used as flavoring; piquancy
37. Fustian - A coarse sturdy cloth made of cotton and flax;
pretentious speech or writing; pompous language; pompous,
bombastic, and ranting
38. Thaw - Change from a frozen solid to a liquid by gradual
warming; unfreeze, warm
39. Sangfroid - A stable, calm state of the emotions
40. Grueling - Physically or mentally demanding to the point of
exhaustion; difficult, taxing
41. Venerate - To regard with respect, reverence, or heartfelt
deference
42. Quisling - A traitor who serves as the puppet of the enemy
occupying his or her country; someone who collaborates with an
enemy occupying force
43. Hodgepodge - A mixture of dissimilar ingredients; a jumble;
mixture, mess; a theory or argument made up of miscellaneous or
incongruous ideas; collection of various things
44. Skittish - Feeling or exhibiting nervous tension; very nervous;
lively; shy
45. Circumlocution - The use of unnecessarily wordy and indirect
language; roundabout expression; evasion in speech or writing;
redundancy
46. Bewail - To cry over; lament; express sorrow or unhappiness
over; regret strongly
47. Bemoan - To express grief over; lament; express disapproval of
or regret for; deplore; express sorrow; regret strongly
48. Blasphemous - Impiously irreverent; showing irreverence and
contempt for something sacred; irreverent
49. Minotaur - A monster who was half man and half bull, to whom
young Athenian men and women were sacrificed in the Cretan
labyrinth until Theseus killed him
50. Stern - Hard, harsh, or severe in manner or character; grim,
gloomy, or forbidding in appearance or outlook; firm or unyielding;
uncompromising; inexorable; relentless; the rear part of a ship or
boat; rear part or section
51. Abaft - Toward the stern; nearer the stern than; behind; at or
near or toward the stern of a ship or tail of an airplane; in or behind
the stern of a ship
52. Abattoir - A slaughterhouse; something likened to a
slaughterhouse
53. Butcher - One who slaughters and dresses animals for food or
market
54. Gerontophobia - Fear of old people or of growing old; fear of
growing old, or a hatred of the elderly
55. Mollify - To calm in temper or feeling; soothe; lessen in intensity;
temper; reduce the rigidity of; soften; ease the anger or agitation of;
ause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of; make more
temperate, acceptable, or suitable by adding something else;
moderate
56. Presbyterians - Supporters of Calvinism, preaching the doctrine
of the elect and advocating church government by a hierarchy of
courts. Ultimate authority was the Bible and services gave great
prominence to preaching
57. Presbyterian - One who holds the conviction that the government
authorities of the Church should be called presbyters; that form of
church government which invests presbyters with all spiritual
power, and admits no prelates over them; also, the faith and polity
of the Presbyterian churches, taken collectively
58. Presbyters - A priest in various hierarchical churches; elder of
the congregation in the early Christian church
59. Cinnamon - A light brown spice made from the inner bark of a
tree that grows in the East Indies; of a light reddish brown
60. Stygian - Gloomy and dark; infernal; hellish
61. Zealot - Excessive enthusiasm or u can say excessive zeal; or
fanatic
62. Impertinent - Exceeding the limits of propriety or good manners;
improperly forward or bold; not pertinent; irrelevant; bold,
disrespectful
63. Satiate - To satisfy to the full or to excess; stuff, satisfy
64. Debauched - Dissolute; dissipated; violated, corrupted; lead
away from virtue or morality; to corrupt
65. Gallant - Smartly or boldly stylish; dashing; unflinching in battle
or action; valiant; nobly or selflessly resolute; courteously attentive
especially to women; chivalrous; fashionable young man; having or
showing courage; brave, gentlemanly
66. Mason - One who builds or works with stone or brick; craftsman
who works with stone or brick; to build of or strengthen with
masonry
67. Sap - A person who is easily deceived or victimized; lessen or
deplete the nerve, energy, or strength of; lessen or weaken severely,
as by removing something essential; squeeze out; watery fluid that
circulates through a plant, carrying food and other substances to
the various tissues; vitality; leather-covered hand weapon; a
blackjack; covered trench or tunnel dug to a point near or within an
enemy position; undermine the foundations of (a fortification)
68. Crux - The basic, central, or critical point or feature; puzzling or
apparently insoluble problem; most important part; a cross; a
difficulty; a stumbling-block; a puzzle
69. Awry - In a position that is turned or twisted toward one side;
askew; away from the correct course; amiss
70. Intransigent - Refusing to moderate a position, especially an
extreme position; uncompromising; firmly, often unreasonably
immovable in purpose or will; not capable of being swayed or
diverted from a course; unsusceptible to persuasion
71. Wag - To move (a body part) rapidly from side to side or up and
down, as in playfulness, agreement, admonition, or chatter;
humorous or droll person; a wit; walk with a clumsy sway; waddle;
person whose words or actions provoke or are intended to provoke
amusement or laughter
72. Droll - Amusingly odd or whimsically comical; amusing, farcical;
buffoon; arousing laughter
73. Sabotage - Destruction of property or obstruction of normal
operations, as by civilians or enemy agents in time of war;
treacherous action to defeat or hinder a cause or an endeavor;
deliberate subversion; deliberate damage to equipment or
information; incapacitate, damage
74. Saboteur - Someone who commits sabotage or deliberately
causes wrecks; a member of a clandestine subversive organization
who tries to help a potential invader
75. Venerable - Commanding respect by virtue of age, dignity,
character, or position; worthy of reverence, especially by religious
or historical association; belonging to, existing, or occurring in
times long past; respected
76. Subtle - So slight as to be difficult to notice or appreciate; able to
make or detect effects of great subtlety or precision; clever, cunning;
nice, quiet, delicate; having a low intensity; not severe and having
no serious sequelae; difficult to detect or grasp by the mind
77. Infirm - Weak in body, especially from old age or disease; feeble;
lacking firmness of will, character, or purpose; irresolute; not
strong or stable; shaky; sick, weak; weak; feeble, as from disease or
old age
78. Vigorous - Possessing, exerting, or displaying energy; energetic,
powerful; active in mind or body; robust
79. Providential - Happening as if through divine intervention;
opportune; of or resulting from divine providence; characterized by
luck or good fortune; opportune; unexpectedly and conspicuously
beneficial to the person so describing it
80. Fortuitous - Happening by accident or chance; occurring
unexpectedly; lucky, accidental; fortunate
81. Surfeit - To feed or supply to excess, satiety, or disgust;
overindulge; excessive amount; satisfy to the full or to excess;
Immoderate indulgence, as in food or drink; overfill; state of being
more than full; quality of being so overabundant that prices fall

ANALOGIES:

1. apron:clothing
2. arboreal:trees
3. interloper:intruder
4. fraught:placidity
5. equivocation:ambiguous
6. mendicant:beg
7. phlegmatic:arouse
8. lugubrious:doleful
9. obstreperous:control
10. vivid:inspiration
11. instigate:provoke
12. presbyterians:church
13. cinnamon:spices
14. gerontophobia:old
15. abattoir:butcher
16. abaft:ship
17. wag:droll
18. saboteur:disrupt
19. venerable:respect
20. subtle:awe
21. vigorous:infirm

ISSUE TOPICS:
1. Laws should not be rigid or fixed. Instead, they should be flexible
enough to take account of various circumstances, times, and places
2. The study of history places too much emphasis on individuals. The
most significant events and trends in history were made possible not
by the famous few, but by groups of people whose identities have
long been forgotten
3. Governments should focus more on solving the immediate
problems of today rather than trying to solve the anticipated
problems of the future
4. The surest indicator of a great nation is not the achievements of
its rulers, artists, or scientists, but the general welfare of all its
people
5. Those who treat politics and morality as though they were
separate realms fail to understand either the one or the other
6. Over the past century, the most significant contribution of
technology has been to make people's lives more comfortable
7. The most essential quality of an effective leader is the ability to
remain consistently committed to particular principles and
objectives. Any leader who is quickly and easily influenced by shifts
in popular opinion will accomplish little
8. Progress is best made through discussion among people who have
contrasting points of view
9. Although many people think that the luxuries and conveniences of
contemporary life are entirely harmless, in fact, they actually
prevent people from developing into truly strong and independent
individuals
10. In this age of intensive media coverage, it is no longer possible
for a society to regard any woman or man as a hero. The reputation
of anyone who is subjected to media scrutiny will eventually be
diminished

ARGUMENT TOPICS:

1. The following appeared in an article in a magazine for writers.

"A recent study showed that in describing a typical day's

conversation, people make an average of 23 references to watching
television and only 1 reference to reading fiction. This result
suggests that, compared with the television industry, the publishing
and bookselling industries are likely to decline in profitability.
Therefore, people who wish to have careers as writers should
acquire training and experience in writing for television rather than
for print media."

2. The following appeared as a letter to the editor of a national

newspaper.
"Your recent article on corporate downsizing* in the United States is
misleading. The article gives the mistaken impression that many
competent workers who lost jobs as a result of downsizing face
serious economic hardship, often for years, before finding other
suitable employment. But this impression is contradicted by a recent
report on the United States economy, which found that since 1992
far more jobs have been created than have been eliminated. The
report also demonstrates that many of those who lost their jobs have
found new employment. Two-thirds of the newly created jobs have
been in industries that tend to pay above-average wages, and the
vast majority of these jobs are full-time."

3. The following appeared in an editorial in the Mason City

newspaper.

"At present, Mason City residents seldom use the nearby Mason
River for any kind of recreational activity, even though surveys of
the region's residents consistently rank water sports (swimming,
fishing, and boating) as a favorite form of recreation. Since there
have been complaints about the quality of the water in the river,
residents must be avoiding the river because they think that it is not
clean enough. But that situation is about to change: the agency
responsible for rivers in our region has announced plans to clean up
Mason River. Therefore, recreational use of the river is likely to
increase, so the Mason City council will need to increase its budget
for improvements to the publicly owned lands along the Mason
River."

4. The following appeared in the summary of a study on headaches

suffered by the residents of Mentia.

"Salicylates are members of the same chemical family as aspirin, a

medicine used to treat headaches. Although many foods are
naturally rich in salicylates, for the past several decades food-
processing companies have also been adding salicylates to foods as
preservatives. This rise in the commercial use of salicylates has been
found to correlate with a steady decline in the average number of
headaches reported by participants in our twenty-year study.
Recently, food-processing companies have found that salicylates can
also be used as flavor additives for foods. With this new use for
salicylates, we can expect a continued steady decline in the number
of headaches suffered by the average citizen of Mentia."