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Difficult Words:
Avarice, Autonomous, Avow, Avuncular, Awry and Axiom
This is a list of Difficult Words: Avarice, Autonomous, Avow, Avuncular, Awry and Axiom
Autonomous (aw TON uh mus) adj: acting independently
• The West Coast office of the law firm was quite autonomous. It never asked the East Coast office for permission before it did anything.
• An autonomous nation is one that is independent-it governs itself. It is said to have autonomy.
• To act autonomously is to act on your own authority. If something happens autonomously, it happens all by itself.
Avarice (AV ur is) n: greed, excessive love of riches
• The rich man's avarice was annoying to everyone who wanted to lay hands on some of his money.
• Avarice is the opposite of generosity or philanthropy.
• To be avaricious is to love wealth above all else and not to share it with other people.
Avow (uh VOW) v: to claim, to declare boldly, to admit
• At the age of twenty-five, Louis finally avowed that he couldn’t stand his mother's apple pie.
• To avow something is to declare or admit something that most people are reluctant to declare or admit. Mr. Smith avowed on television that he had never paid any income tax. Shortly afterward, he received a lengthy letter from the Internal Revenue Service.
• An avowed criminal is one who admits he is a criminal. To disavow is to deny or repudiate someone else’s claim. The mayor disavowed the allegation that he had embezzled campaign contributions.
Avuncular (uh AUNG kyuh lur) adj: like an uncle, especially a nice uncle
• What's am uncle like? Kind, helpful, generous and understanding and so on in an uncle-y sort of way: This is a fun word to use, although it's usually hard to find occasions to use it.
Awry (uh RYE) adj: off course, twisted to one side
• The hunter’s bullet went awry. Instead of hitting the bear, it hit an-other hunter.
• When we couldn't find a restaurant, our dinner plans went awry.
• The old man's hat was awry. It had dipped in front of his left eye.
Axiom (AK see um) n: a self-evident rule or truth, a widely accepted saying
• Everything that is living dies is an axiom.
• An axiom in geometry is a rule that doesn't have to be proved, because its truth is accepted as obvious, self-evident or improvable.
• That the rich get richer is an axiom. It is unquestionable. It is axiomatic.