Nathans Vocabulary
2,943 flashcards by Nathan
- Assot (deprecated)
- To befool; to infatuate or besot (archaic).
- Exorable
- Able to be moved or persuaded by pleading; yielding to entreaty.
- Heisenberg indeterminacy principle
- A fundamental principle of quantum mechanics, formulated by Werner Heisenberg in 1927, stating that it is impossible to simultaneously determine with perfect precision both the position and the momentum of a particle; the more precisely one quantity is measured, the less precisely the other can be known.
- Marduk
- The chief god of ancient Babylon, patron deity of the city of Babylon and head of the Babylonian pantheon
- Münchhausen trilemma
- A philosophical argument that any attempt to prove a claim ultimately fails in one of three ways: infinite regress (each proof requires another proof), circular reasoning (the proof assumes the conclusion), or dogmatic assertion (the chain stops at an unproven axiom).
- Par excellence
- Better or more than all others of the same kind; being the best example of its kind
- Pogonotrophy
- The act or practice of growing and grooming a beard or other facial hair.
- Precis
- A summary or abstract of a text or speech; a concise account of essential points
- Shrive (deprecated)
- To hear the confession of a penitent, impose penance, and grant absolution.
- Tetragrammaton
- The four Hebrew letters (YHWH) representing the name of God in the Hebrew Bible
- Ucalegon
- A neighbor whose house is on fire or has burned down.
- Whence (deprecated)
- From what place or source (archaic/formal); from which
- Whither (deprecated)
- To what place or state (archaic/formal); where
- Absquatulate
- To leave abruptly or flee, especially to abscond with something or someone.
- Anagnorisis
- The moment of critical discovery or recognition in a narrative, especially in Greek tragedy, when the protagonist realizes the truth about their situation or identity
- Assiduousness
- The quality of showing great care and perseverance; diligence; constant attentiveness
- Curettement
- The surgical scraping or cleaning of tissue from a body cavity or surface using a curette; another word for curettage.
- Deuterocanonical
- Relating to a second canon of the Old Testament; books included in the Septuagint and Vulgate but not in the Hebrew Bible
- Dramatis personae
- The characters in a play; a list of dramatic characters
- Duverger's Law
- The political science principle that plurality-rule, single-ballot electoral systems (first-past-the-post) tend to produce two-party systems, while proportional representation tends to foster multiparty systems.
- Effluvium
- An unpleasant or harmful odor or vapor given off by something, especially something decaying.
- Ere (deprecated)
- Before (archaic or poetic); sooner than
- Foundationalism
- The epistemological theory that knowledge is structured like a building: certain basic or foundational beliefs are self-evident or self-justified, and all other knowledge is derived from and supported by these foundations.
- Hauteur
- Haughtiness of manner; disdainful pride and arrogance.
- Hesed
- A Hebrew concept meaning steadfast love, lovingkindness, mercy, or covenant loyalty; God's faithful, enduring love as expressed in the covenant relationship.
- Hypocoristic
- Of, relating to, or being a pet name, nickname, or diminutive form of a name or word, typically expressing affection.
- Idempotency
- The property of an operation whereby applying it multiple times produces the same result as applying it once
- Idempotent
- Denoting an element or operation that, when applied to itself or repeated, gives the same result as the initial application
- Imperium
- Absolute or supreme power of command, especially the legal authority to rule held by a state or its highest magistrates; by extension, an empire or sphere of dominion.
- Imponderable
- A factor that is difficult or impossible to estimate or assess; impossible to assess (adjective)