Adjectives and/or Adverbs
A common but _________ tactic of police interrogators is to tell minors suspected of crimes that if they confess, then they can go home.
"Devious": Done or acting in a shifty or underhanded way
improper or disrespectful treatment of something held sacred
"Sacrilege"
The judge ruled that the murderer was to be taken from the courtroom and then to the gallows to be _________ hanged.
"Summarily"
Their boss was always so _________ in his approach to problem-solving that the employees anonymously sent him a shirt that said "I can't see the forest for the trees" for Christmas.
"Myopic": nearsighted; lacking a broad, realistic view of a situation
Complete the lyric/title of this Temptations song: "Ain't Too Proud to ____"
Beg
The thin, stray dog approached our family picnic and sat waiting for food with _________ eyes.
"Suppliant": asking humbly and earnestly
An object that functions as a charm or is believed to hold magical powers
"Talisman"
The desperately thirsty survivors of the shipwreck felt that the universe was playing some kind of sick joke on them by surrounding them with the ________ water that they could not drink.
"Brackish": Having a salty taste and unpleasant to drink
Swiftness; rapidity of motion or action
"Celerity"
According to poet Dylan Thomas, you should "rage, rage against" this.
The dying of the light.
What was once a banal word was suddenly being used as a _________ term meant to demonize a specific group of people.
"Pejorative": expressing disapproval or disparagement, derogatory, belittling
A comment indicating strong criticism or disapproval
Animadversion
The reactionary politician knew that her ___________ comments would cause controversy and draw a stern rebuke from her opponent...and also result in more discussion of her on TV news programs.
"Incendiary": Designed to start fires; designed to stir up trouble, strife, or rebellion
Karl wanted the money that Steve owed him, but knew he had to go about it strategically; Steve might run and go back into hiding if Karl were to _________ him aggressively about it out in public.
"Accost": Approach or speak to first; to confront in an aggressive or challenging way
In poetry, "Arrayed" and "Said" create what kind of rhyme?
Slant Rhyme
Desirous of something to the point of greed; intensely eager
"Avid"
A whirlpool of great size and violence; a situation resembling a whirlpool in violence and destruction
"Maelstrom"
Theatrical; artificial; melodramatic
"Histrionics"
He freaked out a little bit when he realized that it was a snake that he saw _________ across the surface of the water just a few feet away.
"Undulate": to move in waves or with a wavelike motion
In poetry, this is a stanza with four lines.
Quatrain
Historically, it is a common strategy of nationalistic and fascist movements to claim to want to restore their nation to a more __________ era of peace and prosperity from the past.
"Halcyon": calm, peaceful, happy, golden, affluent
His usual opening ________ of asking if the girl at the bar was tired backfired when she said that, yes, she was tired of strange guys approaching her with obnoxious pickup lines.
"Gambit": An opening move that involves risk or sacrifice in order to gain an advantage (originally from chess)
It boggled the public's mind that the politician paid no penalty despite committing such _______ crimes.
"Overt": Open, not hidden; expressed or revealed in a way that is easily recognizable
The child offended her mother's sense of __________ when she could not stop laughing at her grandfather's unceasing flatulence.
"Propriety": The state of being proper; appropriateness
Despite the danger of the ________, the _______ treasure hunter urged the boat pilot to move with greater __________ in order to ensure that his rival did not make it to the temple where he believed the _________ was hidden before him, even though the former guardian of the temple had insisted that it would be a great _________ with grave consequences for either of them to touch the legendary object.
maelstrom; avid; celerity; talisman; sacrilege