rampantgoing unchecked; widespread

H1NI vaccinations should stop the rampant spread of the virus.

5th Week/1st Day

inanefoolish

Our argument over the movie was inane.

5th Week/1st Day

ethicscode of principles

My personal ethics will not permit me to cheat on the test.

5th Week/1st Day

concuragree

I concur with your decision to attend college.

5th Week/1st Day

clandestinesecret, undercover

After a few clandestine meetings, they were able to plan the surprise party.

5th Week/1st Day

stock in trade

the goods, tools, and other requisites of a profession

A quick wit and a warm smile were the salesman’s stock in trade.

flagrantoutrageous; glaringly bad

Exceeding the speed limit by 30 miles per hour is a flagrant violation of traffic laws.

5th Week/ 2nd Day

admonishto warn; reprove

After giving me a speeding ticket, the officer admonished me to slow down.

5th Week/2nd Day

duresscompulsion, force

The student completed his senior project under duress.

5th Week/2nd Day

culpritthe guilty person

The manager caught the culprit who had broken into hisstore.

5th Week/ 2nd Day

inexorableinflexible, unrelenting

Many current high school seniors have an inexorable goal-to graduate in May 2010.

5th Week/2nd Day

to take down a peg

to take the conceit out of a braggartThe alumni thought they had a great

basketball team, but our varsity took them down a peg.

egregiousremarkably bad

Stealing from the elderly blind woman was an egregious act.

5th Week/3rd Day

distraughtmentally confused, crazed

The young mother was distraught when her toddler was lost in the department store.

5th Week/3rd Day

duplicitycunning, trickery

The con men used duplicity to take money from the elderly couple.

5th Week/3rd Day

acrimoniousbitter

The famous couple’s divorce was especially acrimonious because it involved a child.

5th Week/3rd Day

paucityscarcity

The soup kitchen is trying to address the paucity of food among the residents of that neighborhood.

5th Week/3rd Day

To pass the buck

to evade responsibilityHe always gives me a straight answer and

never tries to pass the

elicitto draw forth

The patient teacher tried to elicit an answer from the reluctant student.

5th Week/4th Day

perniciousharmful, causing injury

Plants that are destructive to other plants are sometimes called pernicious weeds.

5th Week/4th Day

tolerateto put up with, to bear

I will not tolerate disrespectful behavior.

5th Week/4th Day

construeto make a deduction; infer

He construed her throwing his clothes out the window as a sign that his wife wanted him to leave.

5th Week/4th Day

impunityfreedom from punishment

The corrupt sheriff allowed his brother to steal from others with impunity.

5th Week/ 4th Day

To lionize a person

to make a big fuss over someoneWhen the famous poet Dylan Thomas visited the United States, he was lionized wherever he lectured.