Respect

To show respect

·         Venerate (Verb)

·         Revere (Verb)

·         Exalt (Verb)

·         Hallow (Verb)

·         Lionize (Verb)

Explanation: Lionize (Verb) deviates slightly. Lionize means to treat someone as very important person.

VENERATE (Verb)

Meaning: To respect (someone or something) that is considered great, holy etc.

Use: In Tibet today, the common people still venerate their traditional spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

REVERE (Verb)

Meaning: To have deep respect for (someone or something)

Use: The family reveres old traditions.

EXALT (Verb)

Meaning: 1) Praise highly

                  2) To raise (someone or something) to a higher level

Use: The teacher's scholastic evaluations have exalted Clifton's learning skills to such a degree that he can be assured of getting a scholarship for his advanced studies in a university.

HALLOW (Verb)

Meaning: 1) To deeply respect

                  2) To make something holy

Use: The priest thought to hallow the land next to the church as a burial ground.

LIONIZE (Verb)

Meaning: To someone as very important and famous person

Use: She enjoyed being lionized and adored by the public.

Respect

·         Homage (Noun)

HOMAGE

Meaning: Respect

Use: A vassal was one who held land from a feudal lord and received protection in return for homage and allegiance

A way of behaving that shows respect for someone or something

·         Deference (Noun)

DEFERENCE (Noun)

Meaning: A way of behaving that shows respect for someone or something

Use: Clay was taught to show deference to people who were as old as his grandparents.

Brief and direct in a way that seems rude and unfriendly

·         Brusque (Adj.)

·         Curt (Adj.)

·         Terse (Adj.)

BRUSQUE (Adj.)

Meaning: Talking or behaving in a very direct and unfriendly way

Use: She was offended by his brusque reply.

CURT (Adj.)

Meaning: Said or done in a quick and impolite way

Use: Sam, the manager, gave a curt reply to the customer who was complaining about the clothing that he bought from the store.

TERSE (Adj.)

Meaning: Brief and direct in a way that may seem rude or unfriendly

Use: The board also issued a terse statement which was a big slap in the face for their second-largest individual shareholder.

Too confident in a way that shows lack of respect

·         Audacious (Adj.)

·         Impudent (Adj.)

·         Insolent (Adj.)

·         Impertinent (Adj.)

·         Presumptuous (Adj.)

AUDACIOUS (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Very bold

                  2) Very confident and daring

Use: Mildred's father was an audacious explorer in the Canadian north.

IMPUDENT (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Failing to show proper respect

                  2) Very rude

Use: The little boy’s impudent behavior earned him "an early to bed time".

INSOLENT (Adj.)

Meaning: Rude or impolite

Use: Insolent behavior will not be tolerated.

IMPERTINENT (Adj.)

Meaning: Rude and showing a lack of respect

Use: The reporter asked the actress some impertinent questions about her character who was committing illegal acts in a new movie.

PRESUMPTUOUS (Adj.)

Meaning: Too confident especially in a way that is rude

Use: Samuel's loud and crude language was considered presumptuous in the quiet of the library board meeting.

 

Mysterious / Difficult to understand

·         Conundrum (Noun)

·         Enigma (Noun) & Enigmatic (Adj.)

·         Cryptic (Adj.)

·         Indecipherable (Adj.)

·         Inscrutable (Adj.)

·         Murky (Adj.)

·         Arcane (Adj.)

·         Occult (Adj. & Noun)

·         Convoluted (Adj.)

Explanation: Murky (Adj.) means very dark or foggy. It also means not clearly expressed or understood. Occult (Adj.) means mysterious or related to supernatural power. Occult (Noun) means matter regarding supernatural power. Convoluted (Adj.) means containing many twists and turns.

CONUNDRUM

Meaning: A confusing or difficult problem

Use: A conundrum was caused by a notice on a flight information screen that said: "All passengers must now proceed to boarding. All other passengers must wait until called."

ENIGMA (Noun)

Meaning: Someone or something that is difficult to understand or explain

Use: Jim has an enigma regarding the collection of tools that he has because he can't figure out how to use some of them.

CRYPTIC (Adj.)

Meaning: Difficult to understand

Use:  The letter from Susan's boyfriend was written in a cryptic way so that only she could understand it! 

INDECIPHERABLE (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Impossible to read or understand.

                  2) Not decipherable

Use:  His handwriting is almost indecipherable. 

INSCRUTABLE (Adj.)

Meaning: Difficult to understand

Use: The inscrutable financial report by the company was too obscure and too vague for the tax accountants to figure out.

MURKY (Adj.)

Meaning: Not clearly expressed or understood

Use: The murky light in the cave made it difficult for the spelunkers to explore it.

ARCANE (Adj.)

Meaning: Secret or mysterious

Use: The professor was involved with arcane elements of science that are too difficult for most people to comprehend.

OCCULT (Noun)

Meaning: Supernatural beliefs, practices or events

OCCULT (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Of or related to supernatural powers or practices

                  2) Not easily understood

Use: Edward was convinced that his wife had occult powers because she could accurately predict so many things.

CONVOLUTED (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Having many twists and turns.

                  2) Very complicated and difficult to understand

Use: "She wrote so many convoluted sentences that I could not understand what she was trying to say."

Understood by few/ Difficult to understand

·         Obscure (Adj.)

·         Abstruse (Adj.)

·         Esoteric (Adj.)

·         Rarefied (Adj.)

·         Recondite (Adj.)

OBSCURE (Adj.)

Meaning: Not well-known or difficult to understand

Use: There was an obscure sentence in the contract, which made it very problematic, and it had to be written again.

ABSTRUSE (Adj.)

Meaning: Hard to understand

Use: The poetry of Harry Philips was often described as abstruse and so it was often relegated to the bottom shelf of many libraries.

ESOTERIC (Adj.)

Meaning: Hard to understand

Use: The results of the financial processes at Henry's company were very esoteric and restricted for anyone else to know about.

RAREFIED (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Understood by only a small group of people

                  2) (of air) Of low pressure than usual

Use: It is difficult to breathe in the rarefied air near the mountain’ s peak.

RECONDITE (Adj.)

Meaning: Not understood or known by many people

Use: He read many recondite books in order to obtain the material for his scholarly thesis.

To attract/ hold the attention of someone (or something)

·         Captivate (Verb)

·         Allure (Verb & Noun)

·         Bedazzle (Verb)

·         Bewitch (Verb)

·         Fascinate (Verb)

·         Enthrall (Verb)

·         Mesmerize (Verb)

·         Enchant (Verb)

·         Beguile (Verb)

Explanation: Allure (Verb) means to attract. Allure (Noun) means power to attract. Bedazzle (Verb)    means to enchant someone or to thrill or excite someone. Bewitch (Verb) means to attract someone in a way that seems magical. It has second meaning also. Bewitch (Verb) also means to use magic to make someone do, think or say something. Beguile (Verb) means to trick or deceive someone. It has second meaning also. It also means to attract someone. We covered beguile (Verb) in series for to trick or deceive someone.

CAPTIVATE (Verb)

Meaning: To attract and hold the attention of (someone) by being interesting, pretty etc.

Use: The singer captivated the audience with her beauty and wonderful songs.

ALLURE (Verb)

Meaning: To attract by charm

Use: Brian was allured by Maxine's sophistication and charm.

ALLURE (Noun)

Meaning: Attractiveness or charm

Use: The allure of traveling to foreign countries tempted Steve to become a commercial pilot.

BEDAZZLE (Verb)

Meaning: To enchant someone or to thrill or excite someone

Use: Fans bedazzled by movie stars.

BEWITCH (Verb)

Meaning: 1) to attract someone in a way that seems magical.

                  2) to use magic to make someone do, think or say something.

Use: According to the historians, Boyan was not a magician in the sense that he was able to cast spells, bewitch people and transform into animals, but he was a learned man and a poet.

FASCINATE (Verb)

Meaning: To cause (someone) to be very interested in something or someone

Use: When Jacklyn went on stage to sing, she always fascinated her audiences with her beauty and outstanding performances.

ENTHRALL (Verb)

Meaning: To hold the attention of (someone) by being very exciting, interesting or beautiful

Use: Trudy is an actress whose grace, skill, and virtuosity enthrall people who see her performances in various countries.

MESMERIZE (Verb)

Meaning: To hold the attention of (someone) entirely

Use: She had deep sea blue eyes that mesmerized most men they came across.

ENCHANT (Verb)

Meaning: To attract and hold the attention of (someone) by being interesting, pretty etc.

Use: Visitors will be enchanted, captivated, and charmed by the beauty of the place.

BEGUILE (Verb)

Meaning: 1) To trick or deceive someone.

                  2) To attract someone.

Use: Jenelle was beguiled into thinking that she could become a famous actress.

Delay / Postpone

·         Adjourn (Verb)

·         Protract (Verb)

·         Procrastinate (Verb)

·         Prorogue (Verb)

·         Prorogate (Verb)

·         Defer (Verb)

Explanation: Defer means to delay. It has second meaning also. It also means to respect someone. Deference (Noun) means way of behaving that shows respect for someone or something. We covered word Deference (Noun) in series for Respect.

ADJOURN (Verb)

Meaning: To end something (such as a meeting) for a period of time

Use: The meeting will adjourn until next week

PROTRACT (Verb)

Meaning: To delay

Use: The orchestra conductor agreed to protract the concert by adding two encores of his favorite music.

PROCRASTINATE (Verb)

Meaning: To be slow or late about doing something that should be done

Use: when you are under too much emotional stress, you vacillate and procrastinate, especially when it has something to do with money.

PROROGUE (Verb)

Meaning: 1) Postpone

                  2) To suspend a session of parliament without dissolving it.

Use: The bank agreed that it would prorogue the company's bank loan for two months until a settlement was concluded.

PROROGATE (Verb)

Meaning: 1) Postpone

                  2) To suspend a session of parliament without dissolving it.

Use: The premier decided to prorogate parliament until after the holiday season.

DEFER (Verb)

Meaning: To postpone or delay

Use: Malcolm wanted to defer joining the military until after he had finished his high school education.

Unintentionally

·         Inadvertent (Adj.)

·         Unwitting (Adj.)

INADVERTENT (Adj.)

Meaning: Not intended or planned

Use: Sam made an inadvertent mistake when he forgot to take his house keys with him as he left his apartment to go shopping; so, he had to go into his garage where he had hidden duplicates of the main door key and one for his apartment door.

UNWITTING (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Unaware

                  2) Not intended or planned

Use: Ken was an unwitting person who unintentionally took the reserved parking space of a fellow employee of his company.

Untrue statement meant to harm someone’ s reputation/ Act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Untrue statement meant to harm someone’ s reputation

·         Aspersion (Noun)

·         Calumny (Noun)

·         Scurrility (Noun) & Scurrilous (Adj.)

·         Slander (Noun & Verb) & Slanderous (Adj.)

·         Libel (Noun & Verb) & Libelous (Adj.)

ASPERSION (Noun)

Meaning: 1) Untrue statement meant to harm someone’ s reputation

                  2) Act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: Shirley cast aspersions on Bill's integrity and honesty as a reporter.

CALUMNY (Noun)

Meaning: 1) Untrue statement meant to harm someone’ s reputation

                  2) Act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: Accusations of abuse were pure extortive calumny about the higher prices being charged by the store being a malicious effort to make more money.

SCURRILITY (Noun)

Meaning: Untrue statement meant to harm someone’ s reputation

Use: In a heated political debate, She unleashed a torrent of scurrility on her opponent.

SLANDER (Noun)

Meaning: The crime of making false statements that damage a person ‘s reputation

Use: It is inappropriate to utter such slander about a neighbor.

SLANDER (Verb)

Meaning: Make false and harmful statements about

Use: Not long ago, however, the vice president filed a slander suit against some members of the Taiwan media.

LIBEL (Noun)

Meaning: Act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: The angry statements in the newspaper appeared almost to be statements of libel.

LIBEL (Verb)

Meaning: To harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: The defeated candidate tried to libel his opponents after the election.

To harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

·         Asperse (Verb)

·         Traduce (Verb)

·         Libel (Verb & Noun)

·         Slander (Verb & Noun)

·         Slur (Verb & Noun)

Explanation: Libel (Noun), slander (Noun) and slur (Noun) means act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement. Asperse (Verb), Traduce (Verb), Libel (Verb), Slander (Verb) and Slur (Verb) means to harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement. Asperse (Verb) has second meaning also. It means to sprinkle with holy water. Slur (Verb) has second meaning also. It means to speak in an unclear way. Slur (Verb) has third meaning also. It means to perform a group of musical notes in a flowing way

ASPERSE (Verb)

Meaning: 1) To harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement.

                  2) To sprinkle with holy water

Use: How dare you asperse my character.

TRADUCE (Verb)

Meaning: To harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: The newspaper columnist was obviously traducing, or defaming, the politician in her newspaper column..

LIBEL (Verb)

Meaning: To harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: The defeated candidate tried to libel his opponents after the election.

LIBEL (Noun)

Meaning: Act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: The angry statements in the newspaper appeared almost to be statements of libel.

SLANDER (Verb)

Meaning: To harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: Not long ago, however, the vice president filed a slander suit against some members of the Taiwan media.

SLANDER (Noun)

Meaning: Act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

Use: It is inappropriate to utter such slander about a neighbor.

SLUR (Verb)

Meaning: 1) To harm someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement

                  2) To speak in an unclear way

                  3) To perform a group of musical notes in a flowing way

Use: Voters don’ t like political advertisements in which opponents slur one another.

SLUR (Noun)

Meaning: 1) Act of harming someone’ s reputation by making untrue statement.

                  2) A curved line indicating that musical notes are to be slurred.

Use: Polls revealed that the front-runner’ s standing had been damaged by the slurs and innuendoes circulated by his opponent’ s staff.

Brave

·         Audacious (Adj.)

·         Dauntless (Adj.)

·         Undaunted (Adj.)

·         Fearless (Adj.)

·         Gallant (Adj.)

·         Doughty (Adj.)

·         Intrepid (Adj.)

·         Valiant (Adj.)

·         Valorous (Adj.)

·         Gutsy (Adj.)

·         Stout (Adj.)

·         Stalwart (Adj.)

AUDACIOUS (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Very confident and daring

                  2) Very bold

Use: The soldier was an audacious warrior when he fought the enemy in order to save his comrades.

DAUNTLESS (Adj.)

Meaning: Very brave

Use: The comic book hero was the most dauntless and brave character ever to be imagined.

UNDAUNTED (Adj.

Meaning: Very brave

Use: The loss of the football game did not leave the coach undaunted in his determination to have his team become the champions of his league.

FEARLESS (Adj.)

Meaning: Very brave

Use: Skydiving is one sport that tends to attract fearless types.

GALLANT (Adj.)

Meaning: Showing courage or very brave

Use: He was quite a gallant, primping more than either of his sisters.

DOUGHTY (Adj.)

Meaning: Brave, strong and determined

Use: The doughty heroes of old.

INTREPID (Adj.)

Meaning: Very bold or brave

Use:  In many fairy tales, the most courageous and intrepid young man, showing much endurance and determination, was the one who was chosen to marry the princess.

VALIANT (Adj.)

Meaning: Very brave or courageous

Use: Despite their valiant efforts, they lost the game.

VALOROUS (Adj.)

Meaning: Very brave or courageous

Use:  Lizzie made the valorous decision to follow the trail of the Klondike Gold Rush, hiking up the mountains, camping in the wild, etc.

GUTSY (Adj.)

Meaning: Brave and determined

Use: That was a very gutsy decision.

STOUT (Adj.)

Meaning: 1) Thick and strong

                   2) Brave and determined

Use: She was stout, middle-aged, and veiny in the cheeks and nose.

STALWART (Adj.)

Meaning: Very loyal and physically strong

Use: Jake was respected for being a stalwart who was not only a very good coach at his university but also as a deacon in his church.