1. DEFERENCE (NOUN): obedience, compliance
Synonyms: yielding, docility
Antonyms: fight, disregard
Example Sentence:
I enjoyed that combination of deference and the respect being paid to teacher.
2. DELPHIC (ADJECTIVE): secret; obscure in meaning
Synonyms: ambiguous, vague Antonyms: certain, definite
Example Sentence:
Like all prophecies, it was somewhat Delphic; but he could get the general drift.
3. HOARY (ADJECTIVE): ancient
Synonyms: age-old, time-worn Antonyms: new
Example Sentence:
The idea is an old one—or as the irritable Economist magazine calls it, “hoary.”
4. SWANKY (ADJECTIVE): plush
Synonyms: classy, luxurious Antonyms: inferior, unstylish
Example Sentence:
In the twenty-three years of his life, every gift that money could swanky had been his.
5. DOPEY (ADJECTIVE): stupid
Synonyms: dumb, silly Antonyms: brainy, smart
Example Sentence:
You probably will, dopey, but you'll never rob us of this memory.
6. TOME (NOUN): large, scholarly book
Synonyms: novel, opus
Example Sentence:
And when you've completed your tome, hopefully it will show up on the bestseller table at the Strand.
7. ESPOUSE (VERB): stand up for; support
Synonyms: adopt, embrace Antonyms: desert, reject
Example Sentence:
They have also supported conservative family groups that espouse a traditional Christian view of marriage.
8. HONE (VERB): sharpen
Synonyms: grind, whet Antonyms: blunt, dull
Example Sentence:
Hunting and fishing to hone the skills my father and grandfather passed onto me.
9. OBVIATE (VERB): make unnecessary
Synonyms: counteract, preclude Antonyms: support, permit
Example Sentence:
But shall we, to obviate these evils, completely transpose their conditions?
10. POSEUR (NOUN): pretender
Synonyms: imposter, mimic Antonyms: real
Example Sentence:
Poet and poseur he was, the strangest combination ever seen in man.
