obstinate [ OB-stuh'-nit ] | | [ adjective ] | | MEANING : | | 1. stubborn, unyielding or mulish 2. difficult to treat or alleviate 3. persistent or refractory | | USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : | | Being an obstinate and headstrong young man, he frequently clashed with his bosses.
| | USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : | | Combine the obstinate mind-set with the strength of a seven-year old chimp—four to eight times as strong as an adult human—and that is a recipe for trouble, Fouts said. National Geographic, Goodall Group Calls for Curtain on Ape "Actors", Jennifer Hile, February 13, 2004 | | surly [ SUR-lee ] | | [ adjective ] | | MEANING : | | 1. ill-tempered, rude or churlish 2. threatening or menacing 3. dismal or gloomy | | USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : | | His surly temper made everyone wary of him.
| | USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : | | I have travelled extensively in the Caribbean, and while I haven't always found it as friendly as it's painted – service is often surly and I've yet to meet anyone remotely helpful at Antigua airport – I've never encountered any crime or felt threatened. Telegraph, Caribbean dangers still slight, Maggie O'Sullivan, 11 Aug 2008 | | somnolent [ SOM-nuh'-luh' nt ] | | [ adjective ] | | MEANING : | | 1. sleepy, dozy or drowsy likely to induce drowsiness or sleep | | USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : | | Her somnolent behaviour made everyone think she was drunk.
| | USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : | | George Bush, by contrast, appeared tentative, if not somnolent: unsure of himself and the issues. CNN, Bill Press: Gore finally hits his stride, By Bill Press/CNN | | lexicon [ LEK-si-kon, -kuh' n ] | | [ noun ] | | MEANING : | | 1. a dictionary 2. a list of words used in a particular subject | | USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : | | The term, 'swine flu' is probably the latest addition to the medical lexicon.
| | USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : | | While it is not likely that the listener will understand the lyrics that flow from the speakers, the language of polyrhythm and syncopation transcend the impositions of any systematized lexicon. National Geographic, New African Composers | | peremptory [ puh'-REMP-tuh'-ree, PER-uh' mp-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee ] | | [ adjective ] | | MEANING : | | 1. that cannot be challenged, refused or changed 2. dictatorial or imperative 3. (law) one that cannot be questioned, changed or denied 4. assertive in behaviour 5. urgent or commanding in nature | | USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : | | The District magistrate issued a peremptory command to the police to quell the riots.
| | USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : | | While he still makes placatory noises about the Left, his erstwhile allies are yet to stop smarting from the peremptory manner in which they were asked to get off the bus. The Times of India, Terror, inflation may dampen N-celebrations, Rajeev Deshpande,TNN, 3 Oct 2008 | |
Spelled Pronunciation Key Stress marks: [ CAPS ] indicates the primary stressed syllable, as in newspaper [NOOZ-pey-per ] and information [ in-fer-MEY-shuh' n ] CONSONANTS | [b] | boy, baby, rob | [d] | do, ladder, bed | [f] | food, offer, safe | [g] | get, bigger, dog | [h] | happy, ahead | [j] | jump, budget, age | [k] | can, speaker, stick | [l] | let, follow, still | [m] | make, summer, time | [n] | no, dinner, thin | [ng] | singer, think, long | [p] | put, apple, cup | [r] | run, marry, far, store | [s] | sit, city, passing, face | [sh] | she, station, push | [t] | top, better, cat | [ch] | church, watching, nature, witch | [th] | thirsty, nothing, math | [th'] | this, mother, breathe | [v] | very, seven, love | [w] | wear, away | [hw] | where, somewhat | [y] | yes, onion | [z] | zoo, easy, buzz | [zh] | measure, television, beige | | | VOWELS | [a] | apple, can, hat | [ey] | aid, hate, day | [ah] | arm, father, aha | [air] | air, careful, wear | [aw] | all, or, talk, lost, saw | [e] | ever, head, get | [ee] | eat, see, need | [eer] | ear, hero, beer | [er] | teacher, afterward, murderer | [i] | it, big, finishes | [ahy] | I, ice, hide, deny | [o] | odd, hot, woffle | [oh] | owe, road, below | [oo] | ooze, food, soup, sue | [oo'] | good, book, put | [oi] | oil, choice, toy | [ou] | out, loud, how | [uh] | up, mother, mud | [uh'] | about, animal, problem, circus | [ur] | early, bird, stirring | | | FOREIGN SOUNDS | [a*] | Fr. ami | [kh*] | Scot. loch, Ger. ach or ich | [œ] | Fr. feu, Ger. schön | [r*] | Fr. au revoir, Yiddish rebbe | [uh*] | Fr. oeuvre | [y*] | Fr. tu, Ger. über | | | SAMPLE NASALIZED VOWELS | [an*] | Fr. bien | [ahn*] | Fr. croissant | [awn*] | Fr. bon | [œn*] | Fr. parfum | [in*] | Port. Principe | | |
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