Vocabulary - List 5 (I-J-K)

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  Vocab List - 4 (I-J-K)

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   { I }

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** iconoclast

(n.) one who smashes revered images; an attacker of cherished beliefs

* The iconoclast spoke against the traditions of the holiday.

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** ideology

(n.) speculation; representative way of thinking

* He joined the religious group because he agreed with their ideology.

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** idiosyncrasy

(n.) any personal peculiarity, mannerism

* Her tendency to bite her lip is an idiosyncrasy.

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** idyll

(n.) a written piece of work describing a peaceful rural scene

* Reading the idyll made me think of the family farm.

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** igneous

(adj.) having the nature of fire; volcanic

* When the sun shone upon it, the material took on an igneous quality.

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** ignoble

(adj.) ordinary; dishonorable;

* It was ignoble to disgrace the family in front of all of the townspeople.

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** ignominious

(adj.) contemptible; disgraced; degrading

* She left him because of his ignominious treatment of her.

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** illuminate

(v.) make understandable

* I asked a classmate to illuminate the professor’s far-ranging lecture for me.

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** illusive

(adj.) deceiving, misleading

* It was as illusive as a mirage.

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** illusory

(adj.) unreal; false; deceptive

* He was proven guilty when his alibi was found to be illusory.

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** imbue

(v.) to soak or stain; permeate

* The new day imbued him with a sense of optimism.

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** immaculate

(adj.) perfectly clean; correct; pure

* An immaculate house is free of dust or clutter.

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** imminent

(adj.) likely to happen without delay

* The storm clouds warned of the imminent downpour.

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** immune

(adj.) exempt from or protected against something

* Everybody wishes to be immune from the common cold.

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** immutable

(adj.) unchangeable; permanent

* The ties that bind alumni to their university are immutable . 

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** impale

(v.) pierce through with, or stick on; something pointed

* The knight was impaled by the sharp lance.

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** impartial

(adj.) unbiased; fair

* The judges in the competition needed to be impartial.

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** impasse

(n.) a situation that has no solution or escape

* The workers and administration were at an impasse in their negotiations.

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** impassive

(adj.) showing no emotion

* Even when his father died he gave an impassive response and walked out tearless.

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** impecunious

(adj.) poor; having no money

* The Great Depression made family after family impecunious.

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** impede

(v.) to stop the progress of; obstruct

* The rain impeded the work on the building.

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** impenitent

(adj.) without regret, shame, or remorse

* It was obvious after his impenitent remark to the press that the defendant felt no remorse for his crime.

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** imperious

(adj.) arrogant; urgent

* Her imperious manner cost her her two best friends.

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** imperturbable

(adj.) calm; not easily excited

* Imperturbable good humor, made her irresistible to the crowd.

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** impervious

(adj.) impenetrable; not allowing anything to pass through; unaffected

* The vest that the policeman wears is impervious to bullets. 

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** impetuous

(adj.) moving with great force; done with little thought

*  The impetuous teenager spent her money without considering what she needed the new purchase for.

* His rush was so impetuous, that he fairly overturned several of his opponents by dashing against them.

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** impiety

(n.) irreverence toward God; lack of respect

* Impiety is evident in the way many people commit rude actions.

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** implacable

(adj.) unwilling to be pacified or appeased

* The baby was so implacable a warm bottle would not settle her. 

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** implement

(v.)  to carry into effect;

(n.) something used in a given activity

* (v.) In case of emergency implement the evacuation plan immediately. 

* (n.) The rack is an implement of torture.

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** implication

(n.) suggestion; inference

* An implication was made that there might be trickery involved.

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** implicit

(adj.) understood but not plainly stated; without doubt

* The child’s anger was implicit.

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** impolitic

(adj.) unwise; imprudent

* If you are planning to invest your money, impolitic decisions may be costly.

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** imprecate

(v.) to pray for evil; to invoke a curse

* A witch may imprecate an enemy with a curse of bad luck.

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** impromptu

(adj.) without preparation

* Her impromptu speech was well-received, giving her new confidence in her ability to speak off the cuff.

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** improvident

(adj.) not providing for the future

* An improvident person may end up destitute in latter life.

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** impudent

(adj.) disrespectful and shameless

* Impudent actions caused him to be unpopular. 

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** impugn

(v.) to attack with words; to question the truthfulness or integrity 

* If I believe the man is a fraud I will impugn his comments.

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** imputation

(n.) to charge, to attribute a fault or misconduct to another

* The imputation of guilt was made by the judge.

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** inadvertent

(adj.) not on purpose; unintentional

* It was an inadvertent error, to be sure, but nonetheless a mistake that required correction.

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** inanimate

(adj.) to be dull or spiritless; not animated, not endowed with life

* The boy asked his father for a real puppy, not some inanimate stuffed
animal.

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** inarticulate

(adj.) speechless; unable to speak clearly

* He was so inarticulate that he had trouble making himself understood.

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** inaudible

(adj.) not able to be heard

* The signals were inaudible when the fans began to cheer.

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** incessant

(adj.) constant and unending

* Incessant rain caused the river to flood over its banks.

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** inchoate

(adj.) not yet fully formed; rudimentary

* The inchoate building appeared as if it would be a fast-food restaurant. 
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** incidental

(adj.) extraneous; unexpected

* The defense lawyer argued that the whereabouts of the defendant’s sneakers were only incidental to the commission of the crime.

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** incisive

(adj.) getting to the heart of things; to the point

* His incisive questioning helped settle the matter quickly.

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** inclined

(adj.) apt to; likely; angled

* The man’s ear for music indicated he was inclined toward learning an instrument.

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** incognito

(adj.) unidentified; disguised; concealed

* The federal Witness Protection Program makes its charges permanently incognito.

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** incoherent

(adj.) illogical; rambling; disjointed

* Following the accident, the woman went into shock and became incoherent as medics struggled to understand her.

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** incommodious

(adj.) inconvenient

* The incommodious illness caused her to miss an important interview.

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** incompatible

(adj.) disagreeing; disharmonious; not compatible

* Being incompatible with each other, children were assigned to sit on opposite sides of the room.

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** incompetence

(n.) failing to meet necessary requirements

* The alleged incompetence of the construction crew would later become the subject of a class-action suit.

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** inconclusive

(adj.) not final or of a definite result

* The results being inconclusive, the doctors continued to look for a cause of the illness.

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** incorporeal

(adj.) not consisting of matter

* The apparition appeared to be incorporeal.

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** incorrigible

(adj.) not capable of correction or improvement

* The mischievous boy was an incorrigible practical joker.

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** incredulous

(adj.) skeptical,disbelieving

* The reporter was incredulous on hearing the computer executive’s UFO account.

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** inculcate

(v.) to impress upon the mind, as by insistent urging

* I will inculcate the directions if people are unsure of them.

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** incursion

(n.) an entry into, especially when not desired

* The incursion by enemy forces left the country shocked.

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** indecipherable

(adj.) illegible

* The scribbling on the paper is indecipherable.

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* indelible

(adj.) that which cannot be blotted out or erased

* The photograph of Neil Armstrong setting foot on the moon made an indelible impression on all who saw it.

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** indemnify

(v.) to insure against or pay for loss or damage

* It is important to indemnify your valuables with a reliable insurance company.

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** indict

(v.) charge with a crime

* The grand jury indicted her and her husband for embezzlement and six other lesser counts.

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** indifferent

(adj.) unconcerned

* There he lay, indifferent to all the excitement around him.

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** indigence

(n.) the condition of being poor

* The family’s indigence was evident by the run-down house they lived in.

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** indigenous

(adj.) native to a region; inborn or innate

* Piranha are indigenous to the tropics.
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** indignant

(adj.) expressing anger to an injustice

* He was indignant over the way he was treated.

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** indolent

(adj.) lazy; inactive

* An indolent student slept all day.

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** indomitable

(adj.) not easily discouraged or defeated

* The underdog candidate had an indomitable spirit.

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** indubitably

(adj.) unquestionably; surely

* The officer was best indubitably the candidate for captain.

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** indulgent

(adj.) lenient; patient; permissive

* He has indulgent tendencies to eat chocolate when he is happy.

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** ineluctable

(adj.) something inevitable

* They were prepared for the ineluctable disaster.

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** inept

(adj.) incompetent; clumsy

* She would rather update the budget book herself, since her assistant is so inept.

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** inert

(adj.) not reacting chemically; inactive

* Inert gases like krypton and argon can enhance window insulation.

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** inevitable

(adj.) sure to happen; unavoidable

* A confrontation between the disagreeing neighbors seemed inevitable.

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** infamous

(adj.) having a bad reputation; notorious

* After producing machines that developed many problems, the production company became infamous for poor manufacturing.
 
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** infamy

(n.) a bad reputation

* The town had only 98 residents, so all it took was one bad apple to bring infamy on the whole place.

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** infer

(v.) form an opinion; conclude

* From the broad outline he supplied it was easy to infer that the applicant knew a great deal about trains.

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** ingenious

(adj.) clever, resourceful

* His ingenious idea made it possible to double production at no extra cost.

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** ingenue

(n.) an unworldly young woman

* As an ingenue, Corky had no experience outside of her small town.

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** ingenuous

(adj.) noble; honorable; candid; also naive, simple, artless, without guile

* The ingenuous doctor had a great bedside manner, especially when it came to laying out the full implications of an illness.

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** ingratiate

(v.) to bring into one’s good graces

* The man was hoping to ingratiate himself with his wife by buying a bouquet of flowers and candy.

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** ingratitude

(n.) ungratefulness

* When she failed to send a thank-you card, her friend took it as a sign of ingratitude .

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** inherent

(adj.) part of the essential character; intrinsic

* A constant smile is inherent in pageant competitors. 

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** inimical

(adj.) hostile, unfriendly

* The chess player directed an inimical stare at his opponent to knock him off his game.

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** iniquitous

(adj.) wicked; unjust

* The verbal abuse towards the man was truly iniquitous.

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** initiate

(v.) begin; admit into a group;

(n.) a person who is in the process of being admitted into a group

* (v.) He initiated the dinner discussion by asking his father to borrow the car.

* (n.) As an initiate to the Explorers, George was expected to have a taste for the outdoor life.

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** innate

(adj.) natural; inborn

* A lion’s hunting skills are innate.

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** innocuous

(adj.) harmless; dull; innocent

* He couldn’t bear to sit through another innocuous lecture.

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** innovate

(v.) introduce a change; depart from the old

* She innovated a new product for the home construction market.

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** innuendo

(n.) an indirect remark; insinuation

* The student made an innuendo referring to the professor. 

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** inquisitive

(adj.) eager to ask questions in order to learn

* An inquisitive youngster is likely to become a wise adult.

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** insinuate

(v.) to work into gradually and indirectly

* He will insinuate his need for a vacation by saying how tired he has been lately.

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** insipid

(adj.) uninteresting, boring flat, dull

* Many people left the insipid movie before it was finished.

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** insolvent

(adj.) unable to pay debts

* The insolvent state of his bank account kept him from writing any checks.

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** instigate

(v.) start; provoke

* It was uncertain to the police as to which party instigated the riot.

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** insubordinate

(adj.) disobedient to authority

* The boy’s insubordinate behavior was a constant source of tension between the school and his parents.

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** insular (adj.)

having the characteristics of an island; narrow-minded, provincial

* After walking along the entire perimeter and seeing that the spit of land was actually insular, we realized it was time to build a boat. 

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** insularity

(n.) having the characteristics of an island

* The insularity of the country made it a great place to build a resort.

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** intangible

(adj.) incapable of being touched; immaterial

* Intangible though it may be, sometimes just knowing that the work you do helps others is reward enough.

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** intercede

(v.) to plead on behalf of another; mediate

* The superpowers were called on to intercede in the talks between the two warring nations.

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** intermittent

(adj.) periodic; occasional

* The intermittent blinking light was distracting.

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** intractable

(adj.) stubborn, obstinate; not easily taught or disciplined

* Every teacher in the school became frustrated with the intractable student and sent him to the principal’s office. 

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** intransigent

(adj.) uncompromising

* The baseball owners and players remained intransigent, so a deal was never struck.

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** intrepid

(adj.) fearless, bold

* The intrepid photographer flew on some of the fiercest bombing raids of the war.

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** inundate

(v.) to flood; to overwhelm with a large amount of

 * Surfing the Internet can inundate you with information: That’s why a web browser comes in handy.

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** inured

(adj.) accustomed to pain

* Beekeepers eventually become inured to bee stings.

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** inveterate

(adj.) a practice settled on over a long period of time

* He was an inveterate gambler, though a poor loser.

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** invoke

(v.) ask for; call upon

* The parishioners invoked divine help for their troubles.

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** iota

(n.) a very small piece

There wasn’t one iota of evidence to suggest a conspiracy.

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** irascible

(adj.) prone to anger

* Knowing that the king was irascible, the servants decided not to tell him about the broken crystal.

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** ironic

(adj.) contradictory, inconsistent; sarcastic

* Is it not ironic that Americans will toss out leftover French fries while people around the globe continue to starve ?

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** irrational

(adj.) not logical

* It would be irrational to climb Mt. Everest without some very warm clothing.

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** irreparable

(adj.) that which cannot be repaired or regained

* The damage to the house after the flood was irreparable. 

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** irreproachable

(adj.) without blame or faults

* The honesty of the priest made him irreproachable.

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** itinerary

(n.) travel plan; schedule; course

* Their trip’s itinerary was disrupted by an unexpected snow storm.

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   {J}

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** jaded

(adj.) worn-out;tired

* A person may become jaded if forced to work too many hours.

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** jargon

(n.) incoherent speech; specialized vocabulary in certain fields

* The engineers’ jargon is indecipherable to a layperson.

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** jeopardy

(n.) danger; peril

* The campers realized they were in potential jeopardy when the bears surrounded their camp.

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** jester

(n.) a person employed to amuse

* The jester tried all of his tricks to get the girl to laugh.

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** jettison

(v.) to throw overboard goods to lighten a vehicle; to discard

* To raise the balloon above the storm clouds, they had to jettison the ballast.

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** jocund

(adj.) happy, cheerful, genial, gay

* The jocund atmosphere was due to the team’s victory in the playoffs.

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** jorcose

(adj.) jocular; humorous

* Sam spoke in a jorcose tone.

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** jollity

(n.) being fun or jolly

* The jollity of the crowd was seen in the cheering and laughing.

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** jovial

(adj.) cheery; jolly; playful

* She was a jovial person, always pleasant and fun to be with.

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** judicious

(adj.) to have or show sound judgment

* Putting money away for a rainy day is a judicious decision.

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** juncture

(n.) critical point; meeting

* When the gas changed into a liquid, they sensed that they’d come to a critical juncture in their experimentation.

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** juxtapose

(v.) place side-by-side

* The author decided to juxtapose the two sentences since they each strengthened the meaning of the other.

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