Unit 2 Voc. Hints
1. Abysmal: abysus= a pit So, the root is the word.
2. Antagonistic: anti- "against" = from agon "contest" So the word means to work or compete
against someone.
3. Blasphemy: blasphemein "to speak evil of. + pheme "utterance" So to blaspheme is to speak evil
of usu. something holy.
4. Connoisseur: rom Latin cognoscere "to know, to become well-acquainted with," from com"with" (see com-) + gnoscere "recognize" So, to be a connoisseur is to KNOW all about a
subject such that you are an expert.
5. Deplore: (see de-) + plorare "weep, cry out." So, to deplore something means to grieve or feel
guilty or regretful about something.
6. Eccentric: ek "out" (see ex-) + kentron "center" If you are outside the norm (center), then you
are odd.
7. Exhaustive: 1530s, "to draw off or out, to use up completely," from Latin exhaustus, past
participle of exhaurire "draw off, take away, use up," from ex- "off" (see ex-) + haurire "to draw
up" (as water), So, if you do an exhaustive job, you have used up (completed) EVERY part of
it—there’s nothing left to do.
8. Garrulous: gar-to chatter If you are garrulous then you like to talk a lot, chatter.
9. Implement: Late Latin implementem "a filling up" and Implement means “to put [a plan] into
effect , then when you are “full-up” with the tools you need, then you can begin the plan.
10. Innocuous: In (not) + nocuus (harmful)
11. Latent: from root *la- "to be hidden" Latent abilities lie within us, but are hidden until an
opportunity arises for them to appear.
12. Naïve: nai= birth, born, in a natural state When you’re born, you are innocent and can be easily
tricked. Being naïve means being “artless.” You don’t know how to defend yourself from the
tricks of others (which is an “art”).
13. Pandemonium: from Greek pan- "all" (see pan-) + Late Latin daemonium "evil spirit," So,
Pandemonium is like hell because it’s where all the evil spirits are.
14. Poignancy :The root poignant mean "sharp, pointed, and Poignancy is “keenness of feeling.”
So, poignancy is when your emotions prick you and make you feel them sharply, kind of like that
needle-like sensation you get when tears begin to form but haven’t welled-up in your eyes yet.
15. Raucous: from PIE (proto-indo-european ) echoic base *reu- "make hoarse cries" (cognates:
Sanskritrayati "barks," ravati "roars;" Greek oryesthai "to howl, roar;" Latin racco "a roar;" Old
Church Slavonic rjevo "I roar;" Lithuanian rekti "roar;" Old English rarian "to wail, bellow"). So,
to be raucous is to be loud like a roar.
16. Sanctimonious: sanct= holy ious= like So, sanctimonious means to be LIKE holy, but not really.
That’s why it means to hypocritically act like you are holier than others.
17. Succinct: early 15c., "having one's belt fastened tightly," from Middle French succincte, from
Latin succinctus "prepared, ready; contracted, short," past participle of succingere "tuck up
(clothes for action), gird from below," from assimilated form of sub "up from under" (see sub-)
+ cingere "to gird" So, if it means a tightly closed belt, then there isn’t any EXTRA room. It
covers only the part of you that it has to, just like you only say what HAS to be said when you are
succinct.
18. Turbulence: from PIE (proto-indo-european) *(s)twer- (1) "to turn, whirl" (see storm (n.))
Turbulence in an airplane is like being in a storm; being in a turbulent relationship is sometimes
described as a “stormy” relationship.
19. Vogue: 1570s, the vogue, "height of popularity or accepted fashion," from Middle
French vogue "fashion, success;" also "drift, swaying motion (of a boat)" literally "a rowing,"
from Old Frenchvoguer "to row, sway, set sail" Perhaps the notion is of being "borne along on
the waves of fashion."
20. Xenophobia: 1903, from xeno- "foreign, strange" + -phobia "fear." So to be xenophobic is to
distrust foreigners, people from other cultures.