Page 193 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

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Essential Vocabulary
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poison (POY zin) n. 1. a substance that causes illness or death when eaten,
drunk, or otherwise absorbed by the body; 2. anything destructive physically,
emotionally, etc. —vt. 1. to give poison to; harm or destroy by means of poison;
2. to corrupt
• A cobra’s venom is one of the most powerful poisons in the animal world.
• Propaganda is a poison that the Nazis and the Soviets were adroit at using
in the middle of the last century.
• Various pesticides are used to poison undesirable rodents.
• Stereotyping certain ethnic groups can poison the attitudes of the impres-
sionable toward them.
[-ed, -ing]
polar (POH lir) adj. 1. of, relating to, or near the South or North Pole; 2. of a
pole; 3. having polarity; 4. opposite in nature or function
• The earth is not the only planet to have polar ice caps.
• Magnets are polar, with unlike ones attracting and like ones repelling each
other.
• When installing batteries in a radio, you must pay attention to their polar
alignment.
• Optimists’ and pessimists’ philosophies are at polar extremes of the
spectrum.
political (puh LI ti kl) adj. 1. of or about, politics, government, country, state;
2. relating to a definite governmental organization; 3. taking sides in political
parties
• Political leaders are elected in some countries, appointed in others, and
seize power by force in still others.
• The secretaries of the cabinet are political appointees of the president but
must be approved by the Senate.
• Many votes in the legislatures are governed by political considerations.
[-ly adv.]
politician (pah li TISH in) n. 1. a person actively engaged in politics, often
used derisively to mean scheming, after personal gain, etc.; 2. one particularly
skilled in politics
• Politicians as a group do not enjoy a particularly good reputation, as they’re
reputed to scheme in the back room.
• Lyndon Johnson was a particularly skilled politician, who knew how to play
the game to his best advantage.
pollution (puh LOO shin) n. 1. the result of defiling; making impure, corrupt,
or dirty; 2. contamination with waste materials
• Industrial pollution has been considerably abated in California as a result of
very strong environmental legislation.
• Air and water pollution are probably the two forms of contamination most
in the public eye.
[Syn. contamination]