| A | B |
|---|
| adage | a traditional asying; a proverb |
| circumspection | watchfulness; caution; care |
| credibility | trustworthiness; believability |
| decipher | to decode; to make out; to make sense of |
| defraud | to take away a right, money, or property by deception; to cheat |
| lax | not strict; careless; loose; vague |
| ordeal | a harsh or trying test or experience |
| phishing | the practice of luring innocent Internet users to a fake Web site by using real-looking e-mail with the intent to steal personal information or introduce a virus |
| spam | junk e-mail; unasked for e-mail, often advertisingm, sent to multiple individuals. When used with a capital "S"-a canned meat product made mainly from pork |
| validity | authenticity; legal soundness; strength; authority |
| acronym | a word or abbreviation formed from the intial letters or groups of letters of words in a name or phrase |
| bewilder | to confuse, baffle, or puzzle |
| cliche' | a commonplace or overused expression or idea |
| colloquialism | an expression used in conversational or informal language, not usually appropriate for formal writing |
| concise | expressing much in a few words; brief |
| euphemism | the substitution of a mild or vague expression for one considered harsh |
| homonym | one of two or more words that have the same sound and sometimes the same spelling but differ in meaning |
| irony | a clash between what is expected to happen and what really does, often used humorously in literature; the use of words to state the opposite of their precise meaning |
| scrutinize | to examine carefully, especially looking for errors; to inspect |
| synopsis | a brief statement that gives a general idea; a summary |
| alliance | an agreement to cooperate; an association |
| barbarian | a savage; a brute; a person without culture |
| feudalism | a political system of the Middle Ages, based on holding land |
| homage | honor; tribute |
| medieval | of the Middle Ages |
| plague | a widespread disease; an outbreak; any widespread evil; any annoyance; to trouble; to annoy; to make miserable |
| plunder | to rob by force, as in war; to raid |
| privilege | an advantage; a right |
| proclaim | to state publicly; to praise publicly; to prohibit publicly |
| secular | worldly; not holy or religious |
| adorn | to decorate; to beautify |
| cupola | a dome or domelike structure |
| endow | to furnish; to equip; to give money as a donation |
| facade | exterior of a building, especially the front,and usually impressive; a false appearance |
| fertile | very productive; capable of having children |
| foresight | concern for the future; carefulness; knowledge of the future |
| fresco | painting done on moist plaster |
| humanism | philosophy emphasizing the importance of human interests and values, dating from the time of the Renaissance; study of the humanitites (literature, languages, philosophy, art) |
| intermittent | stopping and beginning again; periodic; irregular |
| Renaissance | a period of European history from the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries in which there was renewed interest in learning and discovery; (when spelled with a lower case "r") a rebirth; a revival |
| charisma | a special quality of leadership that inspires devotion; charm; allure |
| coup or coup d' etat | overthrow of the government; revolt |
| depose | to remove from an important position or office; to dethrone |
| figurehead | a person in a position of leadership who has no real power |
| impending | about to happen; in the near future; approaching; threatening; looming |
| infrastructure | foundations countries depend on, such as roads and power plants; the basic features of an organization |
| realm | a territory ruled by a king or a queen; an empire; an area of interest, knowledge, or activity |
| regime | government; period of time that a person or political system is in power |
| wrest | to extract or take through force or continuous effort ; to misrepresent or twist the meaning or use of |
| zenith | the highest point; the peak; the top |
| asset | a desirable thing or quality |
| entrepreneur | one who assumes the risks of business or enterprise |
| jovial | merry; good-humored; cheerful |
| liability | a disadvantage; an undesirable thing |
| modify | to change the for of; to vary; to alter partially |
| niche | an appropriate place or position;a recess in a wall for a statue or other decorative object |
| proliferate | to increase in number; spread rapidly; to grow |
| prominent | well known; leading; notable |
| propensity | a tendency; a leaning; a preference |
| venture | a business enterprise; an undertaking involving risk; to brave; to take the risk of |
| anemia | a lack of oxygen-carrying material in the blood, which results in weakness |
| antidote | soemthing that prevents an unwanted effect; a cure; a medicine or other remedy for counteracting the effects of a poison or a disease |
| deficiency | lack; shortage |
| domain | an area of concern; a field; a territory of control; a realm |
| eclectic | selecting from various sources; diverse |
| holistic | focusing on the importance of the whole and how its parts depend on each other; nontraditional health care |
| longevity | long life; length of life or service |
| naturopathic | treating diseases without drugs |
| syndrome | a set of symptoms that belong to a disorder or disease |
| unparalleled | unmatched; without equal |
