accentuate
1 use
Her face reddened, accentuating the acne, the pimples and small scabs.†
accentuating = emphasizing or drawing attention to
Definition
Generally accentuate means:to emphasize or draw attention to — possibly to emphasize by increasing
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 2 |
acknowledge
7 uses
They would acknowledge publicly that they went against official policy.
acknowledge = admit
Definition
Generally acknowledge means:express recognition of someone or something; or admit something
Word Statistics
| Book | 7 uses |
| Library | 29 uses in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 100 |
| 1st use | Part 6 |
amnesia
2 uses
Emotional amnesia, maybe.†
amnesia = loss of memory
Definition
Generally amnesia means:loss of memory (partial or total)
Word Statistics
| Book | 2 uses |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 1 |
cajole
2 uses
She couldn't abandon the driver's seat, not after having cajoled Miro into opening the door.
cajoled = gently persuaded
Definition
Generally cajole means:gently persuade
Word Statistics
| Book | 2 uses |
| Library | 3 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 2 |
confront
13 uses
He had ignored her until this moment of confrontation.
confrontation = an argument or a hostile situation
(editor's note: The suffix "-tion", converts a verb into a noun that denotes the action or result of the verb. Typically, there is a slight change in the ending of the root verb, as in action, education, and observation.)
(editor's note: The suffix "-tion", converts a verb into a noun that denotes the action or result of the verb. Typically, there is a slight change in the ending of the root verb, as in action, education, and observation.)
Definition
Generally confront means:to deal directly with an unpleasant situation or person
or:
to challenge someone — often by presenting evidence
or:
to challenge someone — often by presenting evidence
Word Statistics
| Book | 13 uses |
| Library | 27 uses in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 2000 |
| 1st use | Part 2 |
denotes
2 uses
Those asterisks denote the passage of time.†
denote = means literally; or indicates
Word Statistics
| Book | 2 uses |
| Library | 1 use in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 1000 |
| 1st use | Part 5 |
digress
1 use
I have digressed.
digressed = wandered away from the main topic
Definition
Generally digress means:wander from a direct or straight course — typically verbally
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 1 use in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 7 |
emerge
12 uses
And then one day you emerged from the coma.
emerged = came out of
Definition
Generally emerge means:to come out, or to appear
Word Statistics
| Book | 12 uses |
| Library | 58 uses in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 100 |
| 1st use | Part 6 |
expedient
1 use
Expediency is the rule.
expediency = action that is speedy or practical
Definition
Generally expedient means:a practical action — especially one that accepts negative tradeoffs due to circumstances
or:
convenient, speedy, or practical
or:
convenient, speedy, or practical
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 9 |
fastidious
1 use
Your bed is neatly made—you have always been fastidious.
fastidious = careful about detail; or excessively concerned with things like housekeeping
Definition
Generally fastidious means:giving careful attention to detail
or:
excessively concerned with cleanliness or matters of taste
or:
excessively concerned with cleanliness or matters of taste
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 7 |
grovel
1 use
Even now, Miro could touch certain spots on a body that would cause a victim to grovel with pain.
grovel = show submission or fear
Definition
Generally grovel means:to show submission or fear — sometimes by crawling or lying face down
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 6 |
inevitable
1 use
There would be the inevitable questioning, however.
inevitable = certain to happen
Definition
Generally inevitable means:certain to happen (even if one tried to prevent it)
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 23 uses in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 500 |
| 1st use | Part 9 |
irony
1 use
1 —1 use as in:
verbal irony
"I went to a special school," he said, wondering if she noticed the irony of his words. And then he found himself telling her about this special school that was not really a school at all,
irony = saying one thing while meaning something else
Definition
Generally this sense of irony means:saying one thing, while meaning the opposite or something else — usually as humor or sarcasm
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 6 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 6 |
malevolent
1 use
Later, as he passed by, Miro had looked at her with such malevolence, such hate, that she had clutched the child to her chest.
malevolence = appearing to wish evil or harm or evil to him
Definition
Generally malevolent means:evil
- of a person — wishing or appearing to wish evil to others
- of a thing — exerting an evil or harmful influence
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 3 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 8 |
placate
1 use
She'd been trying to placate the children and finally calmed them down by allowing them to open their lunchboxes and begin to eat whatever their mothers had fixed them for lunch.
placate = calm someone who is or may become upset
Definition
Generally placate means:calm someone who is or may become angry or concerned
Word Statistics
| Book | 1 use |
| Library | 3 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 4 |
scapegoat
4 uses
If the attempt at rescue failed and more children were sacrificed than were saved, scapegoats had been set up to absorb the blame.†
scapegoats = someone blamed or punished for the errors of others
Word Statistics
| Book | 4 uses |
| Library | 1 use in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 9 |
senile
2 uses
We keep him on his toes, keep him sharp, keep him from dropping into complete senility, Elliot says.†
senility = mental weakness caused by old age
Definition
Generally senile means:mental weakness caused by old age; or describing a medical condition as caused by old age
Word Statistics
| Book | 2 uses |
| Library | 2 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 1 |
sensuous
2 uses
His lips had looked sensuous before; now they were merely big and thick.†
sensuous = relating to pleasure from the body's senses rather than from the intellect
Word Statistics
| Book | 2 uses |
| Library | 1 use in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 4 |
sequential
3 uses
Her carefully planned sequence of events was disrupted,
sequence = happening in a specific order
Definition
Generally sequential means:happening in a specific order — especially chronological order
Word Statistics
| Book | 3 uses |
| Library | 9 uses in 10 avg bks |
| SAT®* | top 1000 |
| 1st use | Part 8 |
summon
14 uses
Bravery should be an interior quality, summoned from within.
summoned = called forth; or called to come
Definition
Generally summon means:to call forth
The exact meaning of summon can depend upon its context. For example:
- "summon to court" — officially demand that someone appear in court (call them to court)
- "summon the team to a meeting" — call upon the team members to attend a meeting
- "summon help" — call others to come and help
- "summon her courage" — call forth her courage from within
Word Statistics
| Book | 14 uses |
| Library | 35 uses in 10 avg bks |
| 1st use | Part 2 |