Vocabulary Unit 5 amnesty - noun - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Vocabulary Unit 5Slide2

amnesty - noun

a

general pardon for an offense against a government; in general, any act of forgiveness or absolution

Many political prisoners were freed under the

amnesty

granted by the new regime.Slide3

autonomy - noun

Self-government, political control

After the colonies gained

autonomy

from England, many Americans still clung to English traditions.Slide4

axiomatic- adj.

Self-evident, expressing a universally accepted principle

One should not accept the idea that the camera never lies as an

axiomatic truth.

It is axiomatic that democracy, more than any other form of government, calls for the active participation of all the people in public affairs.Isn’t it strange that the basic ideas that some economists regard as axiomatic are rejected by others as absolutely false!Slide5

blazon - verb

t

o adorn or embellish; to display conspicuously; to publish or proclaim widely

They will

blazon

the results of the election across the Internet and every television set in the land.Slide6

caveat- noun

A warning or caution to prevent misunderstanding or discourage behavior

I tried to warn them of the dangers involved in such an undertaking, but all my

caveats

and admonitions fell on deaf ears.Slide7

equitable – adj.

f

air, just, embodying principles of justice

He did more work, so a sixty-forty split of the profits seemed an equitable arrangement.Slide8

extricate - verb

To free from entanglements or difficulties; to remove with effort

The ring must have slid off my finger as I was trying to

extricate

the dog’s head from the pipe.Slide9

filch - verb

To steal, especially in a sneaky way and in petty amounts

If you

filch pennies from the cash drawer, you will be tempted to steal larger amounts one day.Slide10

flout- verb

To mock, treat with contempt

She chose to ignore my advice, not because she wanted to

flout my beliefs, but because she had strong opinions of her own.

Young people who consider themselves nonconformists often goto extremes in their determination to flout the conventions.Any unit of government – national or local – that

flouts

sound

e

conomic principles is headed for disaster.Slide11

fractious- adjective

Tending to be troublesome; unruly, quarrelsome, contrary; unpredictable

We had many talented players, but the

fractious

behavior of

a

few individuals impaired our team spirit and led to a losing season.Slide12

precept- noun

A rule of conduct or action

I tend to be guided by the simple

precepts

that have proven their

v

alue over long periods of human experience.Slide13

salutary- adjective

b

eneficial, helpful; healthful, wholesome

Parents usually try to encourage small children to eat fruits and vegetables because

these foods have a

salutary

effect on a person’s health.

Failures are always unpleasant, but if you learn from them, they may have a

salutary

e

ffect on your future career. Slide14

scathing-adj.

b

itterly severe, withering; causing great harm

Sometimes a reasoned discussion does more to change people’s minds than a

scathing attack.Slide15

scourge- verb

To whip, punish severely

Jonathan Swift used wit to

scourge

the British government for its cruel treatment of Ireland.Slide16

sepulchral- adj.

f

unereal, typical of the tomb; extremely gloomy or dismal

We stumbled upon a

sepulchral

space in the basement of the church

that was filled with skulls and bones.Slide17

soporific- adj./noun

Tending to cause sleep, relating to sleepiness or lethargy

Something that induces sleep

He claimed that the musical was

soporific and that he had sleptthrough the entire second act.Shakespeare’s Juliet drinks a soporific so as to appear to be dead – a

trick she is soon to regret.

The

soporific

effect of his droning lectures surpasses that of any

s

leeping pill now in use.Slide18

straitlaced -

adj

Extremely strict in regard to moral standards and conduct; prudish; puritanical

The standards of behavior generally accepted in Victorian times

w

ould probably be rejected today as excessively

straitlaced.Slide19

transient

–

adj

/nounLasting only a short time, fleeting;One who stays only a short time

The popular self-help book teaches that material things aretransient while moral values are eternal.His fame as a football star proved to be

transient

, and he found

h

imself just another young man looking for a job.

Many farm hands lived the lives of

transients

during the Great

Depression.Slide20

unwieldy -

adj

Not easily carried, handled, or managed because of size or complexity

We loaded the trunk with the chairs and the coffee table, but theg

rand piano was too unwieldy.Slide21

vapid -

adj

d

ull, uninteresting, tiresome; lacking in sharpness, flavor, liveliness, or forceWhile critics called the movie

vapid, I thought the performerswere very compelling.In spite of Ms. Horan’s obvious love for that novel, I found it to be mediocre and

vapid

in every respect.

Even the most talented actors could not breathe life and

c

redibility into the

vapid

lines of that silly play.