READING VOCABULARY

Violation: the act of going against or refusing to obey a law, an agreement, etc.

Sentence: In ten years, the only traffic violation I had committed was not making minimum speed on the freeway.

Succinct: expressed clearly and in a few words

Sentence: Everyone was happy when the politician made a succinct speech that did not take all evening

Redundancy: the state of being not or no longer needed or useful.

Sentence: Thousands of bank employees are facing redundancy as their employers cut costs.

Connotation: a feeling or idea that is suggested by a word in addition to its basic meaning.

Sentence: They said they’d be too busy to play soccer next semester, giving the connotation that they were taking a heavy course load.

Prejudice: an unreasonable dislike of or preference for a person, group, custom, etc.

Sentence: He has a prejudice against fast-food restaurants.

Annihilation: complete destruction, so that nothing or no one is left:

Sentence: The massive use of nuclear weapons holds out the potential for global annihilation.

Propulsion: the force that drives something forward

Sentence: Sailboats use wind as their source of propulsion.

Primordial: exists at or since the beginning of the world or the universe

Sentence: Sometimes I feel primordial when I eat food without silverware.

Partisan: strongly supporting a person, principle, or political party

Sentence: The audience was very partisan, and refused to listen to her speech.

Analogy: a comparison made to show how two different things are similar, especially in limited ways.

Sentence: The teacher drew an analogy between the human heart and a pump.

Originate: to happen or appear for the first time in a particular place or situation.

Sentence: The sound seemed to originate from outside the room.