Vocab and Sentences List #7

1. aberration: (noun) the act of departing from the right, normal, or usual course

Kids who don't go to school are apart of an aberration.

2. ad hoc: (adverb) for the special purpose or end presently under consideration

I gave the students a study guide ad hoc so they could do well on the test.

3. bane: (noun) death; destruction; ruin

There is no greater destroyer then the bane of all, god.

4. bathos: (noun) a ludicrous descent from the exalted or lofty to the commonplace; anticlimax

Robin Hood allows the rich to take on a bathos so that they are no longer proud.

5. cantankerous: (adjective) cranky

The old man was very cantankerous.

6. casuistry: (noun) specious, deceptive, or oversubtle reasoning, especially in questions of morality

Friar Bob used casuistry to earn or funds, which were used for his alcoholic ways.

7. de facto: (noun) actually existing, especially when without lawful authority

Anarchy is de facto when the government no longer decides to control.

8. depredation: (noun) the act of preying upon or plundering

I find depredation not only hateful, but extremely ignorant.

9. empathy: (verb) active hatred

The man showed empathy to the driver that had cut him off.

10. harbinger: (noun) a messenger; a sign from the future

The harbinger was small, but very significant to the man's future.

11. hedonism: (noun) the doctrine that pleasure or happiness is the highest good

Hedonism could be the answer to your problems, or the start of them.

12. lackluster: (adjective) dull

The man's jokes were unusually lackluster.

13. malcontent: (adjective) not satisfied or content  with currently prevailing conditions or circumstances

We found that those who had money were so malcontent with their lives.

14. mellifluous: (adjective) sweetly or smoothly flowing

The poem was mellifluous, absorbing my attention.

15. nepotism: (noun) patronage bestowed or favoritism shown on the basis of family relationship, as in business and politics

Sports teams that are run by people who follow nepotism fail every time they try to win.

16. pander: (noun) a person who caters to or profits from the weaknesses or vices of others

My life becomes more difficult when colleges, who are panders, will take my money and time 

17. peccadillo: (noun) a very minor or slight sin or offense

Homeless children will try to steal food, but this is a peccadillo compared to the other crimes of the world.

18. piece de resistance: the most noteworthy or prized feature

His athleticism was his piece de resistance.

19. remand: (verb) to send back, remit, or consign again

I will remand my effort towards practice at one moment, and school the next.

20. syndrome: (noun) a group of related or coincident things
She showed a that her attitude was a syndrome, connected always to her problems.