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British Literature
Vocabulary List
Unit One
• Bell – from the Latin for “war”• Antebellum – existing before a war• Bellicose – warlike, aggressive, quarrelsome• Belligerence – aggressiveness, combativeness• Rebellion – open defiance and opposition to
authority
Unit One
• Pac/Peas – from Latin for “agree” and “peace” Pacific ocean
• Pacify – to soothe anger or agitation, subdue armed action
• Pacifist – a person opposed to war or violence and refuses to fight
• Pact – an agreement between two or more people or groups; treaty or formal agreement
• Appease – to make peaceful and quiet; to calm, satisfy
Unit Two
• Hosp/host – comes from Latin word hospes meaning “host” and “guest”
• Hostage – a person given or held to ensure that an agreement, demand, or treaty is kept or fulfilled
• Hospice – a place or program to help care for the terminally ill
• Hostel – an inexpensive, supervised place for young travelers to stay overnight
• Inhospitable – not welcoming or generous, unfriendly, providing no shelter or food (desert)
Unit Two
• Am/Im comes from Latin word “amare” meaning “to love”
• Amicable – friendly, peaceful• Enamored – charmed or fascinated; inflamed
with love• Inimical – hostile, unfriendly, harmful• Paramour – a lover, often secret, not allowed
by law or custom
Unit 3
• Crim – Latin for “fault or crime” or “accusation”• Criminology – study of crime, criminals, law
enforcement, etc.• Decriminalize – to remove or reduce criminal
status of• Incriminate – to show evidence of involvement
in a crime or fault• Recrimination – an accusation in retaliation for
an accusation made against oneself
Unit 3
• Prob/prov – “prove or proof” “honesty or integrity”
• Approbation – formal or official act of approving, praise
• Disprove – refute, show something is not what it has claimed
• Probity – absolute honesty and uprightness• Reprobate – a person of thoroughly bad
character
Unit 4
• Grav – Latin for “heavy, weighty, serious”• Gravid – pregnant or enlarged with something• Gravitas – great or very dignified, seriousness• Gravitate – to move or be drawn toward
something• Gravity – weighty importance, seriousness,
dignity
Unit 4
• Lev – Latin for “light”• Alleviate – to lighten, lessen, relieve• Elevate – lit up or raise, raise in rank or status• Leavening – something that lightens and
raises, something that modifies, eases, animates
• Levity – frivolity, lack of appropriate seriousness
Unit 5
• Cicerone – a guide, especially one who takes tourists to museums, monuments, etc.
• Hector – to bully; to intimidate• Hedonism – an attitude or way of life based on
the idea that pleasure or happiness should be the chief goal
• Nestor – a senior figure or leader in one’s field• Spartan – marked by simplicity and often strict
self-discipline or self-denial
Unit 5
• Stentorian – extremely loud, often with a richness of sound
• Stoic – seemingly indifferent to pleasure or pain
• Sybaritic – marked by a luxurious or sensual way of life
Unit 6
• AG Latin for “do, go, lead, drive”• Agitate – to move something with an irregular,
rapid, violent action• Litigate – to carry on a lawsuit• Prodigal – recklessly or wastefully extravagant• Synagogue – Jewish temple
Unit 6
• VEN/VENT – Latin for “come”• Advent – a coming or arrival• Provenance – origin or source• Venturesome – inclined to seek out risk• Venue – a place of a trial or event
Unit 7
• Cap/cep/cip – to take or seize (Latin)• Reception – social gathering where guests are
welcomed• Incipient – starting to become evident or
come into being• Perceptible – noticeable• Susceptible – open to influences
Unit 7
• Fin – Latin for “end” or “boundary”• Affinity – sympathy; attraction• Definitive – authoritative and final• Infinitesimal – extremely small• Finite – having definite limits
Unit 8AMBI/AMPHI
• Ambi – Latin• Amphi – Greek• Means “on both sides” or “around” – think
ambidextrous• Ambiguous – doubtful or uncertain especially
from being obscure or indistinct, unclear, understandable in more than one way
• Ambient – existing or present on all sides
Unit 8
• Ambivalent – holding opposite feelings and attitudes at the same time; continually wavering
• Amphitheater – an oval or circular building with an open area ringed by rising tiers of seats
Unit 8Ep/Epi
• Greek means “upon” “besides” “attached to” “over” “outer” “after”
• Ephemeral – lasting a day only; lasting a very short time• Ephiphyte – a plant that obtains its nutrients from the air
and the rain and usually grows on another plant for support
• Epitaph – an inscription on a grave or tomb in memory of one buried there
• Epithet – a descriptive word or phrase occurring with or in place of a name of a person or thing; an insulting or demeaning word or phrase
Unit 9hypo/hyp/therm
• Under, beneath, down, below normal• Hypodermic needle• Hypochondriac – a person unduly concerned with
health and often suffering from delusions of physical disease
• Hypocrisy – a pretending to be what one is not or to feel what one does not really feel
• Hypothermia – subnormal temperature of the body• Hypothetical – involving an assumption made for the
sake of an argument or investigation
Unit 9
• Therm/thermo – Greek for warm • Think thermometer• Thermal – of relating to or caused by heat; designed to
insulate in order to retain body heat• Thermocline – region in a body of water that divides the
warmer (oxygen-rich) from colder (oxygen-poor) region• Thermocouple – device for measuring temperature that
makes use of the way different metals respond to heat• Thermonuclear – of or relating to changes in the nucleus of
atoms with low atomic weight that require high temperature to begin (hydrogen)
Unit 10poly/prim
• Poly – Greek for many • Think polygamy• Polychromatic – showing a variety or change of colors;
multicolored• Polyglot – one who can speak or write in several languages• Polymer – a chemical compound formed by a reaction in
which two or more molecules combine to form larger molecules with repeating structural units
• Polyphony – music consisting or two or more independent but harmonious melodies
Unit 10
• Prim – Latin for first• Think primer or primate• Primal – original or primitive; first in importance• Primiparous – bearing a first offspring• Primogeniture – an exclusive right of inheritance
belonging to the eldest son of a single set of parents
• Primordial – first created or developed; existing in/from the very beginning
Unit 11hom/dis
• Hom/homo – Greek for same• Think homosexual• Homonym – one of two or more words pronounced and/or
spelled alike but different in meaning (pool/of water; pool/game)
• Homogeneous – of the same or a similar kind; uniform structure or composition
• Homologous – developing from the same or a similar part of a remote ancestor
• Homophone – one of two or more words pronounced alike but different in meaning or derivation or spelling (wood/would)
Unit 11
• Dis – Latin for apart/opposite of/deprive• Think disenfranchise• Diffraction – the bending or spreading of a beam of
light (or other wave – like sound) especially when it passes through a narrow opening or is reflected
• Dissention – disagreement in opinion• Disseminate – to spread widely• Dissipate – to cause to spread to the point of
vanishing
Unit 12
• Latin Phrases• Ad hoc – formed or used for a particular
purpose or immediate need• Ad hominem – an attack against an opponent’s
character rather than issue• Alter ego – a trusted friend/personal
representative or opposite side of personality• De facto – being in practice or effect but not
formally recognized
Unit 12
• De jure – by right of law• Ex post facto – done, made, or formulated
after the fact• Modus operandi – a usual way of doing
something• Modus vivendi – a practical compromise or
arrangement that is acceptable to all concerned/a way of life
Unit 13vor/carn
• Vor – Latin “to eat”• Carnivorous – meat-eating/flesh-eating• Herbivorous – plant-eating• Omnivorous – feeding on both plants and
animals/intensely interested in everything• Voracious – having a huge appetite/very eager
Unit 13
• Carn – Latin for “flesh”• Carnage – great destruction of life/slaughter• Carnal – having to do with bodily pleasures• Carnival – season of merrymaking before
Lent/traveling group that presents merriment• Incarnation – a particular physical form or
version of something/person showing a trait to a marked degree
Unit 14Cred/fid
• Cred – Latin “to believe”• Credence – mental acceptance of something
as true or real• Creditable – worthy of praise• Credulity – readiness or willingness to believe
on the basis of little evidence• Creed – statement of basic beliefs of a
religious faith
Unit 14
• Fid – Latin “faith”• Affidavit – sworn statement made in writing• Diffident – lacking confidence, timid, cautious• Fiduciary – confidence or trust or held in trust
for another• Perfidy – faithlessness, disloyalty, treachery
Unit 15curr, curs/ped
• Curr/curs – Latin for “to run”• Concurrent – happening or operating at the
same time• Cursory – hastily and often carelessly done• Discursive – passing from one topic to another• Precursor – one that goes before and indicates
the coming of another
Unit 15
• Ped – Latin for “foot”• Expedient – suitable for bringing about a desired
result (often without regard for what is fair or right)
• Expedite – to speed up the process or progress of• Impediment – something that interferes with
movement or progress• Pedestrian – commonplace, ordinary, or
unimaginative
Unit 16flect,flex/post
• Flect/flex – Latin “to bend”• Deflect – to turn aside, especially from a
straight or fixed course• Flexor – a muscle that bends a part of the body
such as arm or leg• Genuflect – to kneel on one knee and then rise
in an act of respect• Inflection – a change in pitch, tone, or loudness
of the voice
Unit 16
• Post – Latin for “after” or “behind”• Posterior – situated toward or on the back; rear• Posthumous – published after the death of the
author; happening after one’s death• Postmodern – the architectural and literary
movement that is a reaction against modernism• Postmortem – occurring after death/ following
the event
Unit 17Words from Mythology
• Calypso – a folk song or style of singing of West Indian origin
• Odyssey – a long, wandering journey full of trials and adventures; a spiritual journey or quest
• Palladium – a precious, silver-white metal used in electrical contacts
• Penelope – a modest domestic wife
Unit 17
• Procrustean – ruthlessly disregarding individual differences or special circumstances
• Protean – displaying great versatility or variety• Sibyl – a female prophet or fortune-teller• Siren – a woman who tempts men with
bewitching sweetness
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