AP English Language and Composition
1. Adroit (adj.) skillful; clever
He was not an adroit speaker, but he was a genius with numbers.
2. Macroscopic (adj.) visible to the naked eye
On a clear night, the Milky Way appears macroscopic.
3. Fatuous (adj.) foolish
Her fatuous simpering began to grate on our nerves.
4. Bovine (adj.) pertaining to cows or cattle
The cave drawing depicted bovine creatures.
5. Ferret (v.) to search or drive out
John knew the answer was in the text but couldn’t ferret it out.
6. Affectation (n.) a phony attitude
Amy couldn’t stand the affectations of the girls in the popular clique.
7. Knell (n.) a sound made by a bell, often rung slowly for a death or funeral
The knell of the church bell told the town the minister passed away.
8. Dichotomy (n.) a division into two parts
Disagreements among board members caused a dichotomy for the organization.
9. Callow (adj.) young and inexperienced
The callow boy left for war, but an exhausted man returned.
10. Laconic (adj.) using few words; short; concise
The laconic man wasted few words.
11. Quiddity (n.) an essential quality
Patience is a quiddity of a good teacher.
12. Patent (adj.) evident or obvious
The electronic store refused to offer a refund to the customer due to the patent abuse of the game system.
13. Peccadillo (n.) a minor offense; a misdeed
Stealing tips from tables was a peccadillo in Bill’s mind.
14. Sagacious (adj.) wise; having keen perception and sound judgment
The sagacious old man always had answers to moral problems.
15. Rationalize (v.) to make an excuse for
The boy tried to rationalize his absence from school.
16. Deride (v.) to ridicule; to mock
The unpopular professor derided students who made mistakes.
17. Censure (v.) to criticize sharply
The judged censured the repeat offender for his criminal behavior.
18. Gambol (v.) to frolic
The preschoolers liked to gambol about the playground.
19. Immolate (v.) to kill someone as a sacrificial victim, usually by fire
Some Buddhist monks immolated themselves in protest of the government’s policies.
20. Recondite (adj.) difficult to understand; profound
Only a few students understood the recondite explanation of the theory.
21. Martinet (n.) a strict disciplinarian; taskmaster
The teacher was a martinet who never made exceptions to the rules.
22. Quagmire (n.) a swamp; a difficult or inextricable situation
The war was a political quagmire for three U.S. presidents.
23. Gibe (v.) to scoff; to ridicule
The man gibed at everything his wife said.
24. Agape (adj.) open-mouthed; surprised
The judge was agape when the witness told the ridiculous story.
25. Carcinogen (n.) causing cancer
Nicotine is a carcinogen.
26. Olfactory (adj.) pertaining to smell
The child’s olfactory senses were lessened due to his head cold.
27. Imperious (adj.) domineering; haughty
The judge pronounced the verdict in an imperious voice.
28. Grotesque (adj.) absurd; distorted
The boy made a grotesque face toward his sister.
29. Neologism (n.) a new word or expression
Some writers coin neologisms to impress their readers.
30. Hackneyed (adj.) commonplace; overused
“Good as gold” is a hackneyed expression.