Sweat — Vocabulary
Zora Neale Hurston
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Exemplary sample Uses ACT/SAT
3 top 2000
tainttaint → tainted:spoiled or contaminated
Three people died from eating the tainted ice cream.more
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Taint no use uh you puttin' on airs makin' out lak you skeered uh dat snake—he's gointer stay right heah tell he die.†2 more
to spoil something so it is not desirable
Show general definition to spoil something so it is not desirable -- as when bacteria contaminates a food; or as when a rumor makes people distrust a person
1 top 200
scornscorn → scorned:rejected
Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.more
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He snorted scornfully.†
scorn → scornfully:in a disrespectful or rejecting manner
Show general definition disrespect or reject as not good enough
1 top 200
coherentsensible and clear
She presented a compelling and coherent plan.more
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Finally, she grew quiet, and after that, coherent thought.†
sensible and clear; or describing parts as fitting together in a consistent or pleasing manner
Show general definition sensible and clear; or describing parts as fitting together in a consistent or pleasing manner
1 top 500
indifferentwithout interest
About a third are in favor of the change, a third are opposed, and a third are indifferent.more
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A triumphant indifference to all that he was or did.†
Show general definition without interest
in various senses, including:
  • unconcerned -- as in "She is indifferent to what is served to eat."
  • unsympathetic -- as in "She is indifferent to his needs."
  • not of good quality (which may imply average or poor quality depending upon context) -- as in "an indifferent performance"
  • impartial -- as in "We need a judge who is indifferent."
1 top 500
parcheddried out
Nothing will grow in this parched soil.more
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Give huh two bottles uh strawberry soda-water, uh quart uh parched ground-peas, an' a block uh chewin' gum.†
dried out by heat or excessive exposure to sunlight; or very thirsty
Show general definition dried out by heat or excessive exposure to sunlight; or very thirsty
1 top 1000
listlesslacking energy and normal enthusiasm
She was listless and bored.more
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The village men on Joe Clarke's porch even chewed cane listlessly.†
listless → listlessly:with a lack of energy and normal enthusiasm
1 top 1000
debrispieces of something that has been destroyed; or trash that is lying around
She swept up the debris.more
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She lay awake, gazing upon the debris that cluttered their matrimonial trail.
pieces of something that was broken
1 top 1000
dismaydismay → dismayed:sad, disappointed, or worried
Don't be dismayed. I have a solution.more
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His wife gave a little scream of dismay, and quickly gathered them together again.†
sadness, disappointment, or worry
Show general definition to feel sadness, disappointment, or worry -- typically in response to something surprising
1 top 2000
intermittentstopping and starting at irregular intervals
The rain was intermittent throughout the afternoon.more
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A tremendous stir inside there, another series of animal screams, the intermittent whirr of the reptile.†
Show general definition stopping and starting at irregular intervals
1 top 1000
suppresssuppress → suppressed:kept from spreading
She claimed that Facebook suppressed and promoted news that met a political agenda.more
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Fifteen years of misery and suppression had brought Delia to the place where she would hope anything that looked towards a way over or through her wall of inhibitions.†
suppress → suppression:the act of trying to keep under control
Show general definition trying to keep under control
The exact meaning of suppress can depend upon its context. For example:
  • "suppressed the revolution" -- to stop others from doing something by force
  • "suppressed a smile" -- kept something from happening
  • "suppressed the story" -- kept news from spreading
  • "suppressed her fear" -- controlled an emotion
  • "suppressed the memory" -- avoided thinking about (perhaps even removed from conscious memory)
Show editor's word notes Synonym Comparison (if you're into word choice):

Suppress and repress can be interchanged; though in psychology something that is repressed is done unconsciously while something that is suppressed is done voluntarily.
1 top 2000
breachfailure
There was a security breach at the school when someone got into the building without a visitor pass.more
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It was plain that the breaches must remain agape.†
breach → breaches:breaks or penetrates
Show general definition break or failure
1 top 2000
mirthfun and laughter
The room filled with mirth as the friends shared stories and laughed late into the night.more
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He slapped his leg with his hand and almost rolled on the ground in his mirth.†
1 top 2000
vigorenergy and strength
After a good night’s sleep, she woke up full of vigor and ready to tackle the day’s challenges.more
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He moved sluggishly at first, but even as she turned round and round, jumped up and down in an insanity of fear, he began to stir vigorously.†
vigor → vigorously:in a strong or energetic manner
Show general definition strength, energy, or good health
1 top 2000
tormenttorment → tormenting:causing great mental or physical suffering
She enjoys tormenting others.†more
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She stood for a long time in the doorway in a red fury that grew bloodier for every second that she regarded the creature that was her torment.†
to cause or to experience great mental or physical suffering
Show general definition to cause or to experience great mental or physical suffering
1
agapewide open
She was shocked, mouth agape.more
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It was plain that the breaches must remain agape.
open
Show general definition for agape (as in: mouth agape) open (usually a mouth open in surprise)
1
hypocritesomeone who violates claimed moral standards
She calls him a hypocrite for suggesting a green lifestyle except when it is personally inconvenient.more
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You ain't nothing but a hypocrite.†
1
breechrear (in this case indicating that the baby came out of the birth canal butt-first)
It was a difficult breech birth.†more
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"Next time, Ah'm gointer kick 'em outdoors," he threatened as he struck a match along the leg of his corduroy breeches.†
breech → breeches:pants
Show general definition rear

Most commonly used today in the phrase breech birth in reference to a baby who comes out of the birth canal butt-first rather than head-first.

More-archaic senses seen in classic literature include:
  • breechcloth -- a form of loincloth consisting in a strip of material passed between the thighs and held up in front and behind by a belt or string
  • breeches -- pants
  • a cannon's breech -- the rear of a gun
1 top 2000
habitualdone regularly
The counseling is to break the cycle of habitual drug abuse.more
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Delia's habitual meekness seemed to slip from her shoulders like a blown scarf.
regular behavior
1
truculentdefiantly aggressive
The truculent customer refused to leave the store until he got a refund.more
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She saw that Sykes had kicked all of the clothes together again, and now stood in her way truculently, his whole manner hoping, praying, for an argument.†
1
introspectioncontemplation of one's own thoughts and feelings
She is not inclined towards introspection.more
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A period of introspection, a space of retrospection, then a mixture of both.†
Show general definition the contemplation of one's own thoughts and feelings