acquiesce
1 use
...once she really understood the nature of his love for her, once she realized that he'd done all this for her—for them—she would acquiesce.
acquiesce = comply (after resistance)
Definition
Generally acquiesce means:reluctant or unenthusiastic compliance, consent, or agreement
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 42 |
aghast
1 use
Her father, though proud she was "joining up with the good guys," was aghast that she was doing it in North Carolina.
aghast = shocked with feelings of surprise and dismay
Definition
Generally aghast means:shocked with feelings of surprise and dismay (sadness, disappointment, or worry)
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 3 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 28 |
assault
6 uses
This is the same guy that Mike Harris assaulted in the bar?
assaulted = attacked
Definition
Generally assault means:to attack someone or something physically or verbally; or to threaten violence
Word Statistics
| Book | 6 uses |
| Library | 24 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 35 |
augment
1 use
...no matter how cold the weather, she wore miniskirts to the salon. In the summer, she augmented that with skimpy halter tops; in the winter, tall leather boots.
augmented = added to the look
Definition
Generally augment means:enlarge or increase
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 3 |
celibate
1 use
...she'd sort of come to accept celibacy as a permanent way of life.
celibacy = never having sexual intercourse
Definition
Generally celibate means:abstaining from (i.e., never having) sexual intercourse
or:
an unmarried person who has taken a religious vow of chastity
or:
an unmarried person who has taken a religious vow of chastity
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 1 use in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 22 |
cognizant
1 use
She's barely cognizant of what's going on around her, and she doesn't remember me at all.
cognizant = aware (having knowledge or understanding)
Definition
Generally cognizant means:having or showing knowledge or understanding
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 0 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 5 |
cower
1 use
He cowered at each strike, pleading with her to stop and trying to cover himself, but she continued to wield the belt until her arms were too exhausted to move.
cowered = showed fear by positioning the body as though afraid of being hit
Definition
Generally cower means:show fear by positioning the body as though afraid of being hit
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 6 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 33 |
cursory
1 use
The photographs themselves showed no landmarks, and after a cursory glance through them, Jennifer wondered how to find out more about her.
cursory = hasty and without attention to detail
Definition
Generally cursory means:quick—not thorough (without attention to detail)
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 35 |
despondent
1 use
Overall, she thought, if she were ranking the days, this one would have been ... number three in despondency (the day Jim died and the funeral still occupied the first two slots in that sorry category),
despondency = sadness or depression
Definition
Generally despondent means:emotionally depressed — especially a feeling of grief and hopelessness after a loss
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 4 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 27 |
discern
1 use
Yesterday, he'd recalled the date in detail, remembering Julie's expressions and trying to discern any hidden subtexts in her statements suggesting that he'd done something wrong.
discern = understand something that is not obvious
Definition
Generally discern means:to notice or understand something — often something that is not obvious
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 6 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 4 |
emerge
7 uses
she felt an emerging kinship with him
emerging = beginning to form (come out)
Definition
Generally emerge means:to come out, or to appear
Word Statistics
| Book | 7 uses |
| Library | 58 uses in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 100 |
| 1st use | Chapter 5 |
furtive
1 use
Since the morning, Mabel had been casting furtive glances her way, as if ready on a moment's notice to charge across the room with arms held wide in case she needed to be held again.
furtive = while trying to avoid being noticed
Definition
Generally furtive means:taking pains to avoid being observed
or:
in a manner indicating nervousness (being cautious or appearing suspicious)
or:
in a manner indicating nervousness (being cautious or appearing suspicious)
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 4 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 32 |
incessant
1 use
She called every client "sugar," batted her long, mascara-enhanced lashes, and chewed gum incessantly.
incessantly = continuously
Definition
Generally incessant means:continuous — often in an annoying way
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 5 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 3 |
inevitable
4 uses
The situation with Andrea had only accelerated the inevitable.
inevitable = what was certain to happen (even if one tried to prevent it)
Definition
Generally inevitable means:certain to happen (even if one tried to prevent it)
Word Statistics
| Book | 4 uses |
| Library | 23 uses in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 500 |
| 1st use | Chapter 22 |
minute
1 use
1 —1 use as in:
minute size
Modern forensics had improved to the point where experts could identify minute traces of blood or strands from her hair, and that was the reason he hadn't bothered to hide Andrea's body in the first place.†
minute = small
Definition
Generally this sense of minute means:small, exceptionally small, or insignificant
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 4 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 34 |
monotonous
1 use
And maybe we can worry a little, just to break up the monotony.
monotony = boredom through lack of variety
Definition
Generally monotonous means:lacking in variety — typically boring
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 5 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 30 |
perversion
1 use
Then there was Ross, the second guy she dated. Ross the doctor. Ross the good-looking guy. Ross the pervert. One date with him was enough, thank you very much.
pervert = someone who likes sexual practices considered unacceptable by society
Definition
Generally perversion means:the conversion of something so it is not what it should be — especially a sexual practice considered unacceptable by society
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 3 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 1 |
rapture
1 use
1 —1 use as in:
listened with rapture
In her rapture, she hadn't noticed the pitying glances Mabel had cast her way, nor had she realized that Cobra was, like all the men she dated, basically a loser.
rapture = extreme happiness
Definition
Generally this sense of rapture means:intense desired emotion — usually extreme happiness
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 6 |
resilient
1 use
He'd enjoyed her company, of course, but what he'd come to admire most was her resilience.
resilience = ability to withstand strain and/or quickly recover from it
Definition
Generally resilient means:able to withstand strain and/or quickly recover from it — such as a person retaining a positive attitude, or a material returning to its shape after being bent, stretched, or pressed
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 3 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 4 |
wane
1 use
In the waning light, Julie's features took on a pale glow.
waning = declining
Definition
Generally wane means:a gradual decline (in size or strength or power or number) — especially the part of the moon that is visible
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 5 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Chapter 14 |