adversary

someone who offers opposition

The students are united by shared suffering, and by a common adversary.

aplomb
great coolness and composure under strain

I wish I had handled it with aplomb.

apprehensive
in fear or dread of possible evil or harm

Virga still feels apprehensive when visiting an unfamiliar zoo. .

aptitude
inherent ability

I was recently asked in an interview, what is more valued by companies

aptitude or attitude?
Forbes (Sep 12, 2014) .
attentive
taking heed

You make sure to be extra attentive to your friend.

banish
send away from a place of residence, as for punishment

Napoleon loses so big that he is banished to an island.

barricade
block off with barriers

The Secret Service ordered nearby streets and parking lots barricaded for
security.

bluff
frighten someone by pretending to be stronger than one is

Sporting a pith helmet, Nixon observed that whoever is talking the loudest is
pretty sure to be bluffing.
brackish
slightly salty

Brackish water can be used, but freshwater is easier and less costly.

brandish
move or swing back and forth

Hart brandished a Free Hugs sign as he stood alone in front of a police

barricade.
circumference
the size of something as given by the distance around it

That's almost 10 times the circumference of the Earth, which is a surprisingly

small 24,859.82 miles.

commotion
confused movement

Moments later came commotion, followed by shouts of Stop pushing me!

concoction
any foodstuff made by combining different ingredients

There are some food combos that blend beautifully with each other to create
truly tasty concoctions.

conspicuous
obvious to the eye or mind

Today, the link is more conspicuous: highlighted in blue, it appears directly

beneath the sites login form.
contortion
a tortuous and twisted shape or position

There was tumbling, human pyramids and bodies stretched into

extraordinary contortions.

counter
speak in response

The seller can then accept, counter or reject the offer.

cunning
shrewdness as demonstrated by being skilled in deception

Moreover, it was no secret that Cleopatra had ruthless cunning and superior
intelligence.

debris
the remains of something that has been destroyed

Theblast rattled their homes and sent debris flying onto nearby properties,
they said.
defiance
a hostile challenge

Schools still could expel students for violating school rules or laws and could
suspend students for willful defiance of authorities in grades 4 through 12.

deft
skillful in physical movements; especially of the hands

To make it work requires a deft hand.

destination
the place designated as the end, as of a race or journey

Airports get stacked up with planes that cant take off for theirdestinations.

diminish
decrease in size, extent, or range

By Friday morning, most of the heavy rain is expected to diminish.

disdain
lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike

In the visage of Grumpy Cat, it seems, her fans found the perfect holy
expression of indifferent disdain for all things.

dismal
causing dejection

Its been a pretty dismal month, as far as world events go, but the news wasnt
all bad thanks to some very entertaining on-air mishaps.
dispel
force to go away

For most of us, dispelling the darkness is as simple as turning on a light.

eavesdrop
listen without the speaker's knowledge

They eavesdrop on the noises that other birds make while hiding food in
order to steal the stash later, new research shows.
egregious
conspicuously and outrageously bad or reprehensible

Prosecutors questioned him about killings and other egregious human rights
abuses perpetrated by his regime.

ember
a hot, smoldering fragment of wood left from a fire

Every hot spot is an ember that, if not contained, can become a new fire,
Obama said.
emerge
come out into view, as from concealment

They say that program has helped them emerge from the shadows, making
possible a work permit, a Social Security number and enhanced self-
respect.

engross
consume all of one's attention or time

I dont know how long I was reading; I was so engrossed in the paper that I
did not hear any footsteps.
exasperation
a feeling of annoyance

Like many a teenager on his school holidays, Parys is in bed, his mother
explains with exasperation.

exhilarate
fill with sublime emotion

To see Yosemite Falls coming to life this morning is trulyexhilarating, Park

Superintendent Don Neubacher said in a statement.
falter
move hesitatingly, as if about to give way

The rocket has faltered, but it wont crash, he said.

foresight
seeing ahead; knowing in advance; foreseeing
But nobody had the wherewithal or foresight to think that day would actually
happen.

fragrance
a distinctive odor that is pleasant

After 30 minutes in the oven, what hits you first is the enticing,
warmfragrance that fills your kitchen.

furtive
secret and sly or sordid
What muffled whispers do they share, what furtive games are they playing?

grueling
characterized by effort to the point of exhaustion

As of Dec. 19, 22 students will have made it through a grueling curriculum

that requires about 700 hours of computer code.

gusto
 vigorous and enthusiastic enjoyment

They each approach their tasks with gusto that can only be admired, even if
the results cant.

habitation
the act of dwelling in or living permanently in a place

Although the area is not fit for human habitation, many poor people who
work in the coal mines live here.

hasten
 speed up the progress of; facilitate

Rather than wait for that day, he set out to hasten its arrival.

headway
forward movement

At times, you feel like youre struggling to run forward, going through the
motions but making no headway, frozen in place.
ignite
cause to start burning

Firefighters say the blaze started when stain-soaked rags ignited on the front
porch.

illuminate
make free from confusion or ambiguity

The problem is that for illuminating answers, you need to ask the right
questions.
impending
close in time; about to occur

First, he gives the enemy 12 days of warning about impending air attacks.

imperious
having or showing arrogant superiority to

It was a little scary how quickly he flipped from friendly to imperious.

jabber
talk in a noisy, excited, or declamatory manner

A parrot jabbered atop its cage and a monkey squealed and battered at its
bronze ring, until its owner brought bananas.

jargon
technical terminology characteristic of a particular subject

Steer clear of jargon, me-too claims, and statements without substance.

jostle
make one's way by pushing or shoving

In Jerusalem, great religions have crowded and jostled their way down
through millenniums.

jut
extend out or project in space

From its long beak juts a fearsome tooth.

kindle
call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response

Recently in class I saw the fire of an idea flicker in a first-year students eyes
and so to kindle it I cold-called him.

knoll
a small natural hill

The home, set on a quarter-acre knoll, has views of the city, the Hollywood
Reservoir and the Hollywood sign.
luminous
softly bright or radiant

It was briefly one of the most luminous stars in the galaxy.

malleable
easily influenced

Memory is so malleable or volatile that each time we see something, the

memory is actually influenced and re-created.
materialize
come into being; become reality

By the time people reach their 70s, theyre beginning to look back at the plans
they made and dreams they had that never materialized.

meander
move or cause to move in a sinuous or circular course

Instead of straight paths and noisy throngs, the new park will
havemeandering walkways and quiet places for picnicking nestled in gently
sloping "lawn valleys."
meticulous
marked by extreme care in treatment of details

It's a six-page scene and very meticulous, step by step.

misgiving
uneasiness about the fitness of an action

Quite a few said they had come despite the misgivings of parents who wanted
them to focus on studying.
momentum
an impelling force or strength

Mitchell believed that a songs momentum should always push upward,

ascending like the slope of a mountain into the unknown.

monotonous
sounded or spoken in a tone unvarying in pitch

Unfortunately, their monotonous verbiage reminds me of Charlie Browns

teacher in the Peanuts TV shows.
multitude
a large indefinite number

They surround you in their multitudes - hundreds, maybe thousands of them,

swooping and stinging and injecting venom into your flesh.

muster
gather or bring together

Fans chanted and hollered and enriched the arena with as much life as they
could possibly muster.
narrate
give a detailed account of

Standing amid bags of garbage, he starts sorting, tearing open plastic bags
and narrating his finds.

obscure
not clearly understood or expressed

The book contains little plot, an abundance of obscure poetry and the
untimely death of three protagonists.
ominous
threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments

Evil forces around the world want to harm Americans every day,
anominous voiceover states.

outlandish
conspicuously or grossly unconventional or unusual

Not everything in the show is outlandish; some events are all too realistic.
persistent
stubbornly unyielding

It says, together, if we face obstacles and counter the negative with

apersistent positive, we might just change the world.

pertinent
having precise or logical relevance to the matter at hand

You write about things that feel pertinent and urgent to you, and that varies
depending on what stage of life you are going through.
plenteous
affording an abundant supply

"The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few."

potential
existing in possibility

What potential global threat should policymakers pay more attention to?
precipice
a very steep cliff

"Every minute of every day, we were on the precipice of failure, which is an

exciting place to be," Marsh says.

pristine
completely free from dirt or contamination

Back at the jail, Snow White is getting under Anna's skin a bit -- shaking her
once pristine view of the princess.
quell
overcome or allay

The White House has tried to quell anxieties about the danger of Ebola
spreading in the United States.

recluse
one who lives in solitude
Long before his days as the worlds most famous recluse, Howard Hughes flew
planes fast and far.

recuperate
restore to good health or strength

Sleep is the time when your body recuperates and rebuilds from the days
stress.

replenish
 fill something that had previously been emptied

They bring in dredged sand to replenish the beach.

repugnant
offensive to the mind

The truth is that we need only look at recent human history to find real, live,
utterly repugnant evil.

restitution
 a sum of money paid in compensation for loss or injury

While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments
are paid to a crime victims fund.

sabotage
destroy property or hinder normal operations

We want at least a district that wont sabotage the dreams of its youths.
scarcity
a small and inadequate amount

Waterits scarcity, quality and the regulations affecting itis becoming a new corporate
headache.

scurry
to move about or proceed hurriedly

Ever wonder how cockroaches scurry around in the dark while you fumble to switch on the
kitchen light?
serenity
the absence of mental stress or anxiety

The surrounding waters and beautiful pools that surround the hotel create a
real sense of calm and luxurious serenity.

sociable
friendly and pleasant

Running with others is really sociable and great fun.

somber
grave or even gloomy in character

It was also the day before one of the most somber of American anniversaries:
Pearl Harbor was bombed 73 years ago Sunday.

specimen
an example regarded as typical of its class
The researchers detected it in older starfish samples, museum specimensfrom
as early as 1942.

stamina
enduring strength and energy

A 6-year-old might not want to walk the mile into Petra, but teenagers have
enough physical and intellectual stamina to appreciate going to these
places.

subside
 wear off or die down

The virus has a history of subsiding, then flaring up again.

swagger
a proud stiff pompous gait

The Giants had arrived here with the swagger of a team that had won two of
the last four World Series titles.

swarm
 move in large numbers

In Swarm mode, the robots instead follow one another, like children chasing
a soccer ball.

tactic
a plan for attaining a particular goal

Technology has been used as a crime-fighting tactic, but not as a tool to determine what
happens during a police action.
terse
brief and to the point

Its a request to which Dipper responds, with terse eloquence, Weird.

translucent
allowing light to pass through diffusely

It comes in several colors, including attractive translucent ones.

uncanny
surpassing the ordinary or normal

The Dark Sky App tells you the weather where you are with an uncanny
accuracy.

unsightly
unpleasant to look at

But thats just a quibble, an unsightly pimple on what is a greater problem.

versatile
able to move freely in all directions

Eggs are among the most versatile foods and the proteins change when you
heat them, beat them or mix them with other ingredients.

vigilant
carefully observant or attentive

Because there are so many scammers out there, banks are vigilant about
verifying that you are who you say you are.
vulnerable
capable of being wounded or hurt

Second, older cells are more vulnerable to this damageor less able to repair
themselves.

waft
be driven or carried along, as by the air

The birds were chirping, and a warm breeze wafted through the screens.
waver
pause or hold back in uncertainty or unwillingness

He is tough as nails, never wavers, speaks the truth and stays focused.

weather
face and withstand with courage

You even get subjected to ridicule, and you have to weather that storm.
zeal
a feeling of strong eagerness

The enthusiasm has caught on among his regulars, who come often, linger
and talk about pumpkins with the zeal of converts.
 100
COMMON
WORDS
ROXY BIANCA G. PADERES