Past CSS English paper vocabulary

Past CSS English paper vocabulary

1. Anathema (a thing or an idea which you hate because it’s opposite of what you believe)
Ex. Racial prejudice is an anathema to me. 
Synonyms: disgrace/evil/curse/bugbear/abhorrent/odious/repugnant/repellent

2. Torpor (the state of being not active and having no energy or enthusiasm)
Ex. In the heat they sank into a state of torpor.
Synonyms: lethargy/laziness/lassitude/inactive/sloth/Acadia/languor

3. Touchstone (something used as standard/criterion)
Ex. They tend to regard grammar as the touchstone of all language performance.
Synonyms: standard/criterion/benchmark/yardstick/gauge/litmus/bellwether

4. Sequester (to keep a person or group of people away from other people)
Ex. The jury were sequestered during the trial.
Synonyms: isolate/separate/segregate/seclude/keep away/withdraw

5. Finicky (too worried about what you eat, wear, etc; disliking many things)
Ex. She is such a finicky eater that likes nothing.
Synonyms: fussy/punctilious/fastidious/picky/demanding/exacting

6. Loggia (a room or gallery with one or more open sides)
Ex. The portraits were placed in the rare side of the loggia.
Synonyms: room/gallery/mall/walkway/piazza/stoa/portico

7. Lacunae (a place where something is missing; missing parts)
Ex. The journal has filled the lacunae in the reports.
Synonyms: gap/missing parts/hiatus/cavity/interval/interim/

8. Paroxysm (a sudden strong outburst of something that can’t be controlled)
Ex. She went into a paroxysm of tears after hearing the news of his death. 
Synonyms: sudden outburst/agitation/anger/frenzy/outbreak/eruption

9. Grotto (a small artificial cave, especially made in a garden)
Ex. Seven pounds of cocaine was found in a remote grotto.
Synonyms: cave/cavern/hollow/pothole/underground chamber/hidden

10. Laconic (using only a few words to say something)
Ex. His laconic reply suggested his lack of interest in the discussion.
Synonyms: brief/concise/short/succinct/reticent/reserved/taciturn

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