Substantiate

Substantiate

<sub-stan-she-ate>

prove; confirm; verify;

to validate that a statement is true.

The pictures in my wallet will substantiate that the dog belongs to me. He is my lost puppy.

Memory trick:
substantiate reminds of submit.
we submit something for proof.

At work:
The data did substantiate our claims. Our audit program found millions in savings.

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(c) 2015 E. Carruthers

Soporific

Soporific

<soh-for-rif-ick>

calming; hypnotic; sedative;

something that causes a person to get sleepy.

The lecture was soporific. I was glad to catch up on my sleep.

Memory trick:
soporific sounds like sofa.
we can fall asleep on a sofa or couch.

At work:
Our advertisements were soporific until we added talking monkeys. Now they are entertaining.

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(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Homogeneous

Homogeneous

<ho-mo-jeen-us>

alike; similar; equal;

being of the same kind.

He only wears homogeneous shirts. They are always white.

Memory trick:
homogeneous reminds of home.
things at home are alike.

At work:
We need to get away from homogeneous packaging. You can't tell one product from another.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers

Postulate

Postulate

<pahs-too-layte>

theorize; hypothesize; presume;

to suppose something to be true.

The secret to playing pool is to postulate where the ball will end up.

Memory trick:
postulate reminds of formulate.

At work:
We need to research and not just postulate. We should not guess at what the customers will like.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Largess

Largess

<lar-jess>

gift; generosity; donation;

generously giving money away.

He needed a bag to carry away the largess given by his relatives.

Memory trick:
largess reminds of large.
we give large amounts of money.

At work:
We will have a big largess for bonuses this year. It was a good year.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Talisman

Talisman

<tahl-lis-men>

totem; charm; mascot;

something believed to bring luck.

His purple hat is a Talisman. He thinks his team will win when he wears it.

Memory trick:
talisman reminds of tale man.
a good tale will be told when we have luck.

At work:
Our logo is a pony because it is our Talisman. Our founder thinks it brings in sales.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Vacuous

Vacuous

<vak-you-us>

silly; idiotic; empty;

being unintelligent in the mind.

He proved he was not vacuous when he wrote a best selling novel.

Memory trick:
vacuous reminds of vacuum.
nothing is in a vacuum.

At work:
The meeting was not vacuous. I was happy with the ideas put forth.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Orthodox

Orthodox

<awe-tho-doks>

conservative; conventional; accepted;

something traditional or the way it has always been done.

She wears orthodox clothes because she wants to be conservative and professional. She never wears wild outfits.

Memory trick:
orth is not north.
we stay in one place.

I no longer use orthodox sales techniques because the Internet has changed everything. Making a sales call in person is no longer efficient.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers

Peruse

Peruse

<per-rooz>

study; examine; analyze;

To read something with great attention.

The woman will peruse the menu because she is a picky eater.

Memory trick:
ruse.
we read carefully when we want to avoid a ruse.
a ruse it a trick or a cheat.

At work:
I will peruse the report tonight. I will tell you what I think in the morning.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Profligate

Profligate

praf-lah-gayte>

corrupt; extravagant; reckless;

being wasteful of money or materials.

I had profligate spending habits until I read a book about saving money.

Memory trick:
our profit goes out the gate.

At work:
We are profitable now that we stopped the profligate spending on office supplies.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers

Plaudits

Plaudits

<ploor-ditz>

acclaim; applause; cheers;

to get praise for doing something well.

He could not hear himself because of the plaudits of the crowd.

Memory trick:
plaudits reminds of applaud.

At work:
The workers got plaudits and gifts from the CEO. Everyone was happy.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Philanthropy

Philanthropy

<fil-lant-trow-pee>

charity; donation; generosity;

giving away money for a good cause.

Her philanthropy meant the animals would have a warm bed and good food.

Memory trick:
philanthropy reminds of fill atrophy.
atrophy means to get smaller.
we fill the atrophy and make it bigger when we donate.

At work:
Philanthropy is big in our company. We give free computers to the schools.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Cumbersome

Cumbersome

<kom-bur-sum>

bulky; awkward; heavy;

something that is clumsy to carry.

The boy carried the cumbersome bricks. He stumbled and kept dropping them.

Memory trick:
cumbersome reminds of cucumber.
cucumbers are big.
imagine carrying too many cucumbers.

At work:
The projector is too cumbersome to take on sales calls. We need to buy a smaller one.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Potable

Potable

<poh-tah-bul>

edible; safe; clean;

something untainted that is suitable for drinking.

The lake was a source of potable clear water. We did not need plumbing.

Memory trick:
potable reminds of pot-able.
It's good enough to put in a pot.

At work:
The water cooler is potable and the snacks are healthy. It is a great break room.



(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Impertinent

Impertinent

<iym-pert-tan-nent>

rude; arrogant; offensive;

acting in a disrespectful and brash way.

The impertinent bird stole the donut out of my hand. Its boldness was shocking.

Memory trick:
impertinent reminds of imperfect.
imperfect people are rude.

At work:
Do not be impertinent when on a sales call. Be nice and show respect.

(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
  

Vim

Vim

<vym>

enthusiasm; strength; passion;

being alive with energy;

The child ran with vim and laughter. He eventually dropped and took a nap.

Memory trick:
vim reminds of vitality.

At work:
The CEO gave a speech with vim and vigor. Everyone cheered with excitement.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
  

Gambit

Gambit

<gahm-bit>

ploy; trick; plot;

giving away something to get something better later.

Putting out tuna was a good gambit. She made friends with the cat.

Memory trick:
gambit reminds of gamble.
we gamble someone will fall for our offer.

At work:
The bank gave away free tablets. It was a clever gambit because people opened accounts.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Abeyance

Abeyance

<ah-bay-yense>

inactivity; discontinuation; recess;

something that is suspended or discontinued.

Buggy whip sales fell into abeyance because of the invention of the automobile.

Memory trick:
abeyance reminds of obey.
we obey the circumstance and stop doing something.

At work:
The use of the bug tracking system fell into abeyance because the software was so good.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers

 

Deft

Deft

<deaft>

skillful; nimble; agile;

doing something fast and expertly.

The goat was a deft climber and balanced on the edge of the cliff.

Memory trick:
deft reminds of definitely.
when you are skilled you will definitely complete it.

At work:
The deft artist created beautiful artwork for our presentation.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Balmy

Balmy

<bom-mee>

tranquil; mild; tropical;

comfortable and pleasant weather.

A balmy breeze came in my window. I imagined I was on a tropical beach.

Memory trick:
balmy reminds of balanced.
balanced weather is not too hold or cold.

At work:
The balmy weather made our outdoor promotion a success. A lot of people came.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Latent

Latent

<lay-tent>

dormant; lurking; smoldering;

something hidden before making its appearance.

The detective would find the latent fingerprints. The mouse stole the cheese.

Memory trick:
latent reminds of late.
something late is hidden until we see it.

At work:
She had a latent talent for leadership. She surprised herself by managing the team well.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Travesty

Travesty

<trah-ves-tee>

farce; sham; satire;

an absurd and inferior imitation of something.

The painting became a travesty when she added clowns. It was no longer serious art.

Memory trick:
we traverse away when something is badly done.

At work:
We prevented the new product from becoming a travesty by doing research. The new version was better than the old.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
 

Decamp

Decamp

<dee-kamp>

flee; run; escape;

to leave quickly or secretly.

We decided to decamp when it started raining. The picnic was over.

Memory trick.
decamp reminds of "un camp".
we pack up the camp and leave.

At work:
It was a good idea to decamp when the client agreed to the deal. We did not want to ruin it by talking more.


(c) 2015 E.  Carruthers
 

Disseminate

Disseminate

<dis-sem-min-nayte>

spread; circulate; publish;

to widely distribute something.

The seeds disseminate in the spring and become an endless bed of flowers.

Memory trick:
disseminate reminds of "distribute great".

At work:
We must disseminate the news of our discovery. Tell everyone far and wide.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers 

Adieu

Adieu

<ah-dew>

goodbye; farewell; ta-ta;

something said on parting.

I will say adieu and go on my way. See you again soon.

Memory trick:
adieu reminds of adios.

At work:
I will close the meeting and bid you adieu.  Thank you for coming.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
  

Laconic

Laconic

<lah-kon-nik>

short; brief; snippy;

getting right to the point with few words.

The book was laconic and I read it in an hour. It was short and to the point.

Memory trick:
laconic reminds of "lac" or lack.
lacking words.

At work:
Please keep your reports laconic because my time is limited.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
  

Ambivalent

Ambivalent

<ahm-biv-al-lent>

doubtful; unsure; iffy;

being conflicted about what to do.

The child was ambivalent. She could not decide between vanilla and chocolate.

Memory trick:
am bi.
bi means two or two choices.

At work:
We are ambivalent about the product colors. We want red and they want blue.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers 

Blather

Blather

<blah-thur>

chatter; yap; ramble;

to talk a lot without making sense.

The blather bored me to tears. I feel asleep not understanding a word they said.

Memory trick:
blather reminds of blab or blabber.

At work:
Our advertisement is blather. No one will watch it or understand our message:


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers
  

Arbitrator

Arbitrator

<arr-bih-tray-tor>

judge; referee; umpire;

someone who settles disagreements.

I will be the arbitrator. I will flip a coin to see who gets the last piece of cake.

Memory trick:
arbitrator reminds of traitor.
a traitor may not take our side.

At work:
An arbitrator will be brought in to settle disputes. There will be no favoritism.


(c)  2015 E. Carruthers
 

Sentient

Sentient

<sent-shint>

alive; alert; aware;

being responsive and able to understand things.

The robot became sentient when I put in new batteries. It greeted me.

Memory trick:
sentient reminds of sent.
messages are sent from something living.

At work:
The presentation had a sentient air because of the music and animation. It was lively.


(c) 2015 E. Carruthers