week 16

No reason to get excited — cursory has nothing to do with bad language. Instead, it means not paying attention to details, like friends who are so busy studying for a test that they only give your new haircut a cursory glance.Something that is cursory is done quickly, like a teacher who takes a cursory look at a pile of completed tests, not to grade them, but to see if anyone attempted the bonus questions.

Someone or something that is prolific is fruitful or highly productive. A prolific songwriter can churn out five hit tunes before breakfast.
It is interesting to note that many of the words used to describe the adjective prolific are relayed in biological terms, such as "to give birth," "nourish," and "fertile." Other uses of the word pertain to having many ideas or an active and expressive mind, such as a "prolific writer." Clearly, people like to consider that the ideas or things that they mak

Cache sounds like what it is, a stash, and sometimes people — usually the criminal type — have a cache of stolen cash.
Often the phrase "weapons cache" is used of a bunch of hidden guns or weapons that have been hidden or stored away, which is logical, given that the French verb cacher means "to hide." Sometimes things aren’t really hidden but are stored away out of sight for use later.

If you are shot with a mythological arrow by cupid, the Greek god of love, you may find yourself making amorous advances on the next person you meet. Amorous means having strong feelings of love, especially sexual love.
Amorous words or glances show love or sexual desire. This adjective is a Middle English word, borrowed from Middle French, from Medieval Latin amorosus, from Latin amor "love." A more literary and less common synonym is amatory.

Use indigenous to describe a plant, animal or person that is native or original to an area. Though Switzerland is known for its chocolates, chocolate, which comes from the cocoa plant, is indigenous to South America.
Indigenous, aboriginal and native all mean the same thing. Aboriginal, however, is commonly used in connection with Australia, and native with North America.

An antithesis is the complete opposite of something. Though the counterculture was strong in America in 1968, voters elected Richard Nixon, the antithesis of a hippie.
The noun antithesis comes from a Greek root meaning "opposition" and "set against." It's often used today when describing two ideas or terms that are placed in strong contrast to each other. We might come across antithesis in school if we learn about the "Hegelian dialectic."

Remember the saying “Greed is good”? It could just as easily be “Cupidity is good,” though admittedly it doesn’t roll off the tongue quite the same way. Cupidity means a burning desire to have more wealth than you need.
Though it sounds like it might have something to do with the little winged figure who shoots arrows and makes folks fall in love on Valentine’s Day, cupidity is all about the love of money. It comes to us from Latin cupidus, which means "desirous." It’s not a word that crops up a

Use the noun virtuosity to describe an impressive skill, such as a classical musician's virtuosity at playing the cello.
Lots of people have talents, but only a select few, called virtuosos, have the superior quality of virtuosity. A piano virtuoso, for example, is able to play and improvise at the highest level possible. People can also display virtuosity in speaking, in writing computer code, in cooking, or in other skills. In the late fifteenth century, virtuosity specifically meant "manly qu

If you intrude on people without their permission, you are an interloper. An interloper crashes parties and laughs at "No Trespassing" signs.
They figure the word interloper was formed by combining inter- ("between") with -loper (from landloper — meaning "vagabond or adventurer"). So, it only makes sense that an interloper is someone who has ventured or traveled where he was not welcome. The noun interloper may also refer to something other than a person: "The new chain superstore built at the e

Scientists believe that one of the causes of the obesity epidemic sweeping the US is our sedentary lifestyle. Sedentary means sitting a lot and refers to a person or job that is not very physically active.
This adjective has a specialized meaning when referring to certain types of birds that stay in one area and do not migrate. Sedentary is from French sédentaire, from Old French, from Latin sedentārius, from sedēre "to sit."

Someone who is altruistic always puts others first. An altruistic firefighter risks his life to save another's life, while an altruistic mom gives up the last bite of pie so her kid will be happy.

A sing-song rhyme may help in remembering the word progeny: "All of you, all of me, together we make progeny." The "you" and "me" can be a man and a woman making a baby, or trees and plants making little offshoots, or progeny of their own.
Synonyms for progeny include "descendants," "product," and "offspring," and the word is applied to more than just living creatures. An idea can give birth to, so to speak, progeny, or similar ideas from the main seed idea; and a suite of products, such as a pr

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A person who lives simply and economically can be called frugal. Buying clothes at a consignment shop would be considered frugal. Not getting your mom a gift for her birthday — that's just cheap.
Thrifty, spartan, and prudent are synonyms for frugal, a word that often has positive connotations when used to describe a person who lives a simple life. "The question for retailers is whether shoppers will remain frugal or slowly resume their old spending habits whenever they get more money in their p

Have you noticed how so many of the best TV shows concentrate on a group of friends who seem to mesh together perfectly, to the exclusion of all others? This, then, is a coterie, an exclusive group with common interests.

Use the noun temerity to mean the quality of being unafraid of danger or punishment. If you have the temerity to jump off the bridge even after hearing about the risk of instant death, you truly are a nutcase.
Someone who has the temerity to do something is usually considered to be bold in a foolish way. Near synonyms are audacity and recklessness. Temerity is from Middle English temeryte, from Latin temeritas, from temere "by chance, rashly."

If you know someone who's outgoing, sociable, and fond of the company of others, you might want to call her gregarious.
The word was originally used to describe animals that live in flocks — it's from the Latin word grex, meaning "herd." Not surprisingly, people began using it to describe humans who liked being in groups. Today biologists still speak of gregarious species, but you're more likely to hear it in reference to people. Despite what you might suspect, it has no historical connection to

A bulwark is a wall built for protection or defense. If you and your pals build a secret fort for girls only, you might want to build a bulwark to surround it — with a "No Boys Allowed" sign posted prominently.
A seawall that runs perpendicular to the shore is sometimes called a bulwark, because it defends the beach, not against invaders, but against beach erosion. Although the noun bulwark can refer to any fortified wall, it often specifically refers to an earthen wall, like a rampart. As a ver

The word "bell" shows up in the middle of embellish, and bells are something that decorate, or embellish something, making it more attractive. If you embellish speech, though, it can get ugly if you add a lot of details that aren't true.
Embellish often has the positive meaning of adding something to make it more handsome or beautifully decorated. But, while adding bells to something looks great at first, after a couple of hours of bells ringing in the ears, what was meant to embellish and beaut

Saturated means drenched and full. When you fish out a slice of bread that’s fallen into your water glass and find it’s disgustingly spongy and waterlogged, it’s saturated.
Saturated originally meant “satisfied," but by the 1700s it could mean “soaked thoroughly.” In the twentieth century it developed marketing connotations, as in a saturated market — one without room for competition. In chemistry, saturated refers to an organic compound, like a fatty acid, that contains the highest number of hy