AP Literature and Composition Vocabulary Unit 2 Flashcards

5032031237	sycophant	a person who acts obsequiously toward someone important in order to gain advantage	0
5032031238	temerity	excessive confidence or boldness; audacity	1
5032031239	quagmire	an awkward, complex, or hazardous situation	2
5032031240	pragmatic	dealing with things sensibly and realistically in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical situations	3
5032031241	ostentatious	characterized by vulgar or pretentious display; designed to impress or attract notice	4
5032031242	ameliorate	make (something bad or unsatisfactory) better	5
5032031243	antecedent	a thing or event that existed before or logically precedes another	6
5032031244	ascertain	find (something) out for certain; make sure of	7
5032031245	bereft	deprived of or lacking of something, especially a non-material asset	8
5032031246	bourgeois	of or characteristic of the middle class, typically with reference to its perceived materialistic values or conventional attitudes	9
5032031247	insidious	proceeding in a gradual, subtle way, but with harmful effects	10
5032031248	insipid	lacking vigor or interest	11
5032031249	licentious	going beyond customary or proper bounds or limits; disregarding rules	12
5032031251	mollify	appease the anger or anxiety of (someone)	13
5032031252	mercurial	(of a person) subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind	14
5032031253	laconic	(of a person, speech, or style of writing) using very few words	15
5032031255	maudlin	self-pityingly or tearfully sentimental, often through drunkenness	16
5032031256	nefarious	(typically of an action or activity) wicked or criminal	17
5032031257	pugnacious	eager or quick to argue, quarrel, or fight	18
5032031258	allay	diminish or put at rest (fear, suspicion, or worry)	19
5032031259	sanctimonious	making a show of being morally superior to other people	20
5032031260	reprehensible	deserving censure or condemnation	21
5032031261	fatuous	silly and pointless	22
5032031262	abet	encourage or assist someone to do something wrong, such as a crime	23
5032031263	contentious	causing or likely to cause an argument; controversial	24
5146359170	parenthetical expression	an expression that is inserted into the flow of thought. It may be in the middle of the sentence or between sentences, but it does not directly deal with the topic at hand. Set off by dashes or parentheses	25
5146370031	parody	mimicking someone else's work or style in a humorous or satirical way	26
5146376407	personification	attributing human qualities to an inanimate object	27
5146380594	idiolect	a person's idiolect is their own personal language, the words they choose and any other features that characterize their speech and writing	28
5146390189	euphony	soothing, pleasant sounds	29