Tone Words

Mary H.
Vocabulary words that will help students identify and elaborate their discussion of author's attitude toward his or her subject.
20 words 20 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. apathetic
    showing little or no emotion or animation
    Students are often accused of being apathetic about politics.
  2. callous
    emotionally hardened
    The guard's callous treatment of the American prisoner infuriated the Australian POW's.
  3. caustic
    capable of destroying or eating away by chemical action
    Jose's caustic remark sent me to the bathroom crying.
  4. conceited
    having an exaggerated sense of self-importance
  5. derisive
    expressing contempt or ridicule
  6. feeble
    pathetically lacking in force or effectiveness
  7. flirtatious
    behaving in a way to suggest a playful attraction to someone
  8. gregarious
    temperamentally seeking and enjoying the company of others
  9. indignant
    angered at something unjust or wrong
    When Muriel arrived in Somalia, she felt indignant about the lack of food and water most Somalis experienced.
  10. insolent
    marked by casual disrespect
  11. intrepid
    invulnerable to fear or intimidation
  12. jovial
    full of or showing high-spirited merriment
    The coach's jovial mood was surprising after such a devastating loss.
  13. malicious
    having the nature of threatening evil
  14. mercurial
    liable to sudden unpredictable change
    Her mercurial manner left her friends wondering who she really was.
  15. meticulous
    marked by precise accordance with details
  16. naive
    marked by or showing unaffected simplicity
    Ellie's naive personality left her the butt of many jokes.
  17. obstinate
    refusing to change one's mind or ways; difficult to convince
    I felt like Maria just wanted to disagree with me; she can be so obstinate!
  18. reverent
    feeling or showing profound respect or veneration
  19. shrewd
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
    Olivia's shrewd plan to sneak out of school was thwarted by Officer Mark.
  20. surly
    unfriendly and inclined toward anger or irritation
    The surly student threw his paper at Mr. Gregory.
Created on Tue Aug 28 14:40:37 EDT 2012 (updated Tue Aug 28 16:35:20 EDT 2012)

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