Page 176 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

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obdurate (AHB dyoo RAYT) adj. 1. not easily moved to feeling empathy;
2. not readily giving in; stubborn; inflexible
• Despite his tenants’ having a difficult time coming up with the rent,
Simon Legree was obdurate in his intention to evict them.
• Although Susan tried to get her employer to allow her to work flexible
hours so that she could take some courses, the manager remained obdurate
in insisting she stick to a fixed schedule.
[-ly adv.] [Syn. inflexible]
oblique (oh BLEEK) adj. 1. Neither vertical, nor horizontal, but slanting;
2. indirect rather than to the point; 3. evasive and underhanded
• The hypotenuse of a right triangle is always oblique to both of the
triangle’s legs.
• Despite Joe’s trying to get a direct answer from his supervisor as to
whether his taking vacation time would impair his chances of promotion,
the supervisor’s answers remained oblique.
• The lawyer tried to pin Alice down on how much of the conversation she
had overheard, but she was oblique in most of her responses.
[-ly adv., -ness n.]
obscurity* (ahb SKYUR i tee) n. the condition or quality of being difficult to
perceive, hard to see, not well known, vague, or ambiguous
• Because the soldier had taken care to completely camouflage his position,
despite the enemy’s closeness, his presence remained in obscurity.
• Elvis’s presence at the top of the pop music scene elevated him to the
limelight from near obscurity.
• The obscurity of the wording of the contract made it difficult to determine
what was expected from either party.
[obscurities pl.]
observation (AHB zir VAY shin) n. 1. the following or keeping a law, custom,
principle, etc.; 2. a noticing of something; 3. being seen or noticed; 4. the noting
and recording of facts; 5. a comment or remark
• The observation of the Sabbath was a key part of Allan’s upbringing.
• Helen’s observation of a stranger near her car made her suspicious.
• The burglar kept low to the ground, hoping to elude everyone’s observation.
• Kenny’s observations during the chemical experiment were kept in his
chemistry notebook.
• Rosa noticed the mismatch of Pedro’s socks and could not help making an
observation to him.
[Syn. remark]

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