advocate Ad (to) + voc (voice) + ate (cause) =

v. or n. Speak for It is time to advocate a new policy.

ponderous Pond (weight) + ous (full of) =

Adj. weighty Marley told Scrooge that his chain was a ponderous burden.

retribution Re (back) + trib (pay) + tion (act or state of)=

n. revenge Many saw Hiroshima as retribution for Pearl Harbor.

android Andro (man) + oid (appearance) =

n. robot R2D2 was an android in Star Wars.

infidel In (not) + fid (faith) =

n. unbeliever The crusade against the infidels was unsuccessful.

resurgence Re (again) + surg (rise) =

n. Rising again A resurgence of patriotism occurred after 9-11.

punctilious Punct (point) + ous (full of) =

Adj. Precise in conduct She liked his punctilious, formal manners.

condescend Con (together) + de (down) + cede (go) =

v. Lower oneself She would not condescend by responding to the ridiculous argument.

collateral Co (together) + lat (side) =

Adj. Side by side In war, collateral damage is a euphemism for civilian deaths.

irrevocable ir (not ) + re (back) + voc (voice) =

Adj. Beyond recall Her cruel comment did irrevocable harm to their friendship.

elucidate e (out) + luc (light) + ate (cause) =

v. explain Since the student was confused, the teacher had to elucidate the algebra problem again.

epigram epi (on) + gram (writing) =

n. Witty comment Benjamin Franklin’s epigrams amuse us still. My favorite is, “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.”

eccentricity ec (out) + centri (center) =

n. oddness Sometimes geniuses are known for their eccentricities. Michael Jackson made his children wear veils in public.

cognizant cogn (know) + =

Adj. aware It is wise to be cognizant of laws before visiting another country.

stringent String (bind) =

Adj. binding Since 9/11, the stringent regulations when flying are more understandable.

anthropoid anthropo (man) + oid (appearance) =

Adj. manlike The Greek and Roman gods had anthropoid characteristics.

diffident Dis (away) + fid (faith) =

Adj. shy Because Mary was afraid she had the wrong answer, her diffident response was difficult to hear.

pandemonium Pan (all) = **daemo is the other stem, Greek for demon, not people

n. Demonic clamor Pandemonium broke out when the teacher left the classroom unattended.

urbane Urb (city) =

Adj. sophisticated After spending a year overseas, his manners became more urbane.

tractable Tract (pull)=

Adj. docile When I ride a horse, I need one that is tractable so it will easily follow my directions.

supersede Super (over) + sed (sit) =

v. replace According to the Constitution, federal law supersedes state law. It comes first.

temporize tempor (time) + ize (make) =

v. delay Begin reading your book without temporizing, please. You only have twenty minutes.

somnambulist somn (sleep) + ambul (walk) + ist (one who) =

n. sleepwalker It is not a good idea to awaken a somnambulist.

sanguinary sangui (blood) =

Adj. bloody Antietam was an especially sanguinary battle of the Civil War. There were over 22,000 casualties in just one day of fighting.

inanimate in (not) + anim (mind) + ate (cause) =

Adj. lifeless An inaminate object does not breathe, live, or change. An example is a desk.