Daily Vocab. IV Week 4

noun: a natural inclination or tendency; penchant

But odder still is the coyote's propensity for breeding with wolves.

adj: dull; lack in spirit or imagination

Whether the prosaic chancellor shares these ambitions is unclear.

adj: characterized by a strong, sharp smell or taste

Swarms of flies rose from pungent clots of slick, stagnant water.

adj: foolishly impractical; marked by lofty romantic ideals

She is a quixotic mixture of illusion and reality.

adj: occurring or recurring daily; commonplace

Their cabinets are quotidian, their surroundings absolutely ordinary.

verb: to make or become thin, less dense; to refine

the law gets so rarefied that it doesn't reflect the reality of people's lives then you are in trouble.

adj: hidden; concealed; difficult to understand; obscure

Well, anyone who has ever pored over a scientific research paper will recall its recondite jargon.

adj: radiant; shiny; brilliant

Color, refulgent and ecstatic, turns out to trump sculptural form.

verb: to fail to honor a commitment; to go back on a promise

Many worried that the mayor would renege on any pledge to not resort to layoffs.

adj: diligent; persistent; hard-working

The success of this very useful scheme was due chiefly to his sedulous interest and help.

noun: a piece of broken pottery or glass

Not one more shard of ice need melt to make this a reality.

adj: causing drowsiness; tending to induce sleep

TV is a great soporific, often much needed as an escape, but it isn't good for you.

adj: thin; not dense; arranged at widely spaced intervals

The vegetation is sparse, and cattle and people dominate.

noun: one who spends money wastefully

His spendthrift ways with our money were replaced with miserly ways with his own.

• adj.diligent; persevering; persistent:
• "Her sedulous devotion to overcoming her background impressed many."
• (n: sedulity; sedulousness; adv. sedulously)

• adj.seemingly true but really false; deceptively convincing or attractive:
• "Her argument, though specious, was readily accepted by many."

• adj.only covering the surface:
• "A superficial treatment of the topic was all they wanted."