The Giver / Vocabulary Ch. 20-23

1. fraz·zle v. -zled, -zling, -zles n. to make very tired, upset, or nervous: The summer heat <v.> frazzled her (or) she is in a <n.> frazzle from the heat.

2. aug·ment v. to increase, add to: We augmented the advertising budget in order to increase sales. -n. augmentation; -adj. augmentative

3. em·pow·er v. to give power to, (syn.) to authorize: The judge empowered the police to search the house for stolen goods. -n. empowerment.

4. in·stinc·tive adj. done from feeling, not from reason or learned behavior: His instinctive reaction to the falling rock was to run from it.

5. leth·ar·gy n. 1 sleepiness, (syn.) drowsiness: The patient's lethargy after surgery is normal. 2 lack of energy, (syn.) sluggishness: That fellow's lethargy is in fact laziness.

6. sar·cas·tic adj. unkind, critical (comments, attitude): Your sarcastic tone of voice shows that you don't respect your father.

7. em·phat·ic adj. stressed to the point of leaving no doubt, clear: Her explanation was detailed; she was emphatic about the need to cut expenses. -adv. emphatically.

8. sol·ace n. relief, comfort (from grief, hurt, etc.): When he is sad or worried, he takes solace in his religion.

9. loom v. 1 to appear large and dangerous: The storm loomed on the horizon and then struck. 2. to loom large: to be important, have great influence: That senator looms large in national politics.

10. stealth n.  secrecy, esp. with a plan to harm: The robber approached the house with stealth. -adv. stealthily; -adj. stealthy.

11. ob·scure v. -scured, -scuring, -scures 1 to block from view, hide, (syn.) to conceal: Fog obscured the airport, so our plane could not land. 2 to confuse, make unclear: Her bad memory obscured the facts about the accident. -adj. 1 difficult to understand, unclear: That professor's writing is so obscure that it is very hard to understand. 2 difficult to see: Heavy rain made the view of the mountain obscure. -adv. obscurely

12. lan·guid adj. with little energy or spirit, (syn.) listless: Tropical climates can make you feel languid. -n. languor ; -adj. languorous.